Board of Selectmen Minutes

Board of Selectmen                              Present:  Stanley Wysocki

October 21, 2010                                                Curtis Plante

                                                                           David Lindsay

                                                                          Don Lowe, Town Administrator

                                                                          Linda L. Day, Town Secretary

The Board of Selectmen met at the Town Hall at 7:00 p.m.

Randy Dinjian, Chairman of the Advisory Committee and member Bob Czekanski; Pam Powell, Town Clerk; and Jeff Nichols, Chairman of the Board of Assessors, were also present.

FY12 BUDGET DISCUSSION

The Board of Selectmen reviewed their goals for FY12 and made the following comments:

Mr. Lindsay recommended that a goal to “monitor business development proposals” to help the businesses in town, given the economy, be added to the Selectmen’s goals.  As part of this, Mr. Lowe suggested the town be pro-active and reach out to existing businesses also to see what we can do the help them.  

The Board will hold a meeting at a later date for department heads to come in and discuss their goals and accomplishments for last year and their goals for the coming year.  The general citizenry will also be invited to attend this meeting.

Bolton Preliminary FY12 Revenues:  School Committee members Nancy Federspiel and Reta Rupich were present.

 

Mr. Lindsay presented a preliminary FY12 revenue projection that showed a 1.9% increase from FY11 to FY12.   Based on this information, Mr. Lindsay recommended that the Board of Selectmen request the School Committee to implement a FY12 budget that did not require an aggregate assessment increase exceeding +0.6%.  

Mr. Dinjian reported that the Advisory Committee, at their meeting on Tuesday, October 19, 2010 voted to recommend that the aggregate school district assessment for the three member towns be level funded for FY12 given the current economic situation.  

Ms. Federspiel stated that she has heard the message loud and clear, and level funding is the Committee’s goal, but they also want to maintain level services which could require a 3 to 5% increase in the budget and assessment.  Mr. Lindsay stated that an increase of that size would require an override.  

Mr. Plante credited the School Committee and Superintendent for creating a level funded budget for FY11 and suggested that they be given the opportunity to meet the same demands the town is facing for FY12.

 

On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Plante, the Board of Selectmen voted to send a letter to the School Committee from the Board of Selectmen and Advisory Committee requesting that they implement its budget for FY12 in a manner that does not require a system-wide increase in assessments to the constituent Towns of Lancaster, Stow and Bolton that exceeds 0%; and, that Mr. Lowe write a letter to the Board of Selectmen of the Towns of Lancaster and Stow suggesting coordination of their positions regarding the Nashoba’s FY12 budget and contacting the Town Administrators to discuss how they might implement this coordination.   (Wysocki –yes, Plante –yes, Lindsay – yes)

REPORT FROM SPACE NEEDS COMMITTEE

Present:  Brian Holmes, Panny Gerken, Pam Powell, Wayne Wetzel, Space Needs Committee, and Ken Troup, resident

The Space Needs Committee was charged with the Selectmen’s objective to determine and suggest implementation regarding space needs for all municipal employees. The Committee presented a report to the Board of Selectmen.  

The Committee reviewed all previous reports prepared and conducted their own assessment of space needs.

The Committee presented a plan for the first floor of the town hall which re-allocated meeting space for use as office space for up to 4 employees.  This would allow for the Town Treasurer, Town Accountant and Building Inspector to be moved from the Emerson School to the Town Hall.   The re-location of the BatCo booth and equipment would also be a factor in the amount of space available.

The Committee said it had toured the buildings that could be used for meeting space.  The district has offered use of the Emerson School and Florence Sawyer School meeting rooms.  Some of these meeting rooms are fully wired for broadcasting and recording events.

The Committee recommends a 5,000 cubic foot prefab vault, set on a cement slab, to be placed on the right of the town hall or in the upper parking lot.  This vault would be used for the storage of important Town records and documents.  The right side of the building seemed more desirable but would require some sort of walkway and covering to access the vault.  Placing the vault in the upper parking lot would eliminate some of the parking spaces at the Town Hall and additional parking would need to be requested from the First Parish Church.  

There are positives and negatives in regards to the re-use of the Houghton Building, but given the condition of the Houghton Building, the Committee feels it should be mothballed.

Mr. Troup stated that BatCo is interested in using the second floor of the Houghton building, and they have funds available to allow for cleanup and renovations.  Joint meeting rooms could be on the first floor as it is accessible to the public.  

Mr. Plante stated that the Houghton Building was donated to the town and recalled that there may be restrictions on the use of the building and this should be looked into.   

Ms. Gerken stated that the school district is interested in exploring the option of renting the 1922 section of Emerson School.

Mr. Lowe stated that in speaking with Harold Brown, DPW Director, there is the possibility that the heating system at the town hall may need to be upgraded if the changes recommended by the Space Needs Committee are made.

The Committee learned that there is a significant amount of space in town to be used for meetings, and it was their opinion that we should utilize this space before spending any money on alternatives.  Mr. Lindsay expressed concern with the idea of town government meetings being scattered all over town.  

The Board of Selectmen agreed that the first step is to figure out what it will cost for the renovations to Town Hall required to move the employees from Emerson School to the Town Hall.  The Board of Selectmen will schedule a site visit of the buildings.  The Committee urged the Board of Selectmen to follow through with the proposal.  The Committee was willing to stay on and take direction from the Board once they have come to a conclusion.  The Committee will continue to research and determine the cost for the vault and meet with the Capital Planning Committee.  Ms. Powell agreed to look at grant opportunities for the vault.

It was also noted that Ms. Powell, Town Clerk, has already started working on alternative locations for voting.

The Board thanked the Committee for their work, and Mr. Holmes was recognized for his leadership as chairman.  

SIGN REQUESTS

291 Harvard Road:   The Board of Selectmen at their meeting on September 28, 2010, had approved the request of Ms. Ehrlich to place a sign in front of her home at 291 Harvard Road, provided that she meet the requirements of the sign regulations in the zoning bylaws, which is no closer than ten feet back from the road pavement.  Ms. Ehrlich explained that Mr. Brown, DPW Director, informed her that ten feet back from the road pavement was town property.

 

Ms. Ehrlich requested permission to proceed with the placement of the sign on town property.  The Board of Selectmen agreed that the proposed location does not violate the sign regulation.   

27 Forbush Mill Road:  On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the request of Bobbi Laird to place a clear window cling on the top portion of the plate glass front entrance door advertising the Island Oasis Spa business located at 27 Forbush Mill Road.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORT

Update on the oil leak at the Public Safety Building:  Mr. Lowe reported that groundwater sampling results came back slightly above the allowable limit for petroleum.  This is not what we were hoping for, but Mr. Lowe does not want to create any undue concern from the abutters.  Based on these results, the file will not be closed out in December as planned.  More testing will be required, and a report is scheduled to be filed with the State on or before December 4, 2010.  Mr. Lowe is managing the funds as closely as possible.  If it goes over budget, we may have to utilize the Board of Selectmen’s purchase of service line item.

 

Council on Aging:  In an effort to continue to fund the Council on Aging outreach worker, who has been working 4 hours a week, donations were solicited to retain the position.  On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Plante, the Board of Selectmen voted to accept the private donations in the amount of $1,250.  (Wysocki –yes, Plante –yes, Lindsay – yes)

Minuteman High School: Mr. Lowe reported that he attended a meeting at Minuteman and learned that Belmont approved the feasibility study which meant that Minuteman would be going forward with the capital improvement.   The State's school building assistance program will cover 52% of the project, and 48% will be covered by the district.  The model proposed is that every member community will pay for 3% of the capital improvement.  Mr. Hannes Klein has been appointed as the Town of Bolton’s Minuteman representative, and Mr. Lowe will contact Mr. Klein to discuss this matter.

BOARD OF SELECTMEN BUSINESS

Minutes approved:  On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Wysocki, the regular session and executive session minutes of April 29 and May 6, 2010, and the Law Committee minutes of May 6, 2010 were approved.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes)

On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Wysocki, the executive session minutes of April 29 and May 6, 2010 were approved.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes)

On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Plante, the regular session and executive session minutes of May 20, June 10 and July 8, 2010 were approved.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)

Appointment:  On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to appoint Brad Cote to the Capital Planning Committee, term expiration June 30, 2013.   (Wysocki – yes, Plante –yes, Lindsay – yes)

PUBLIC SAFETY BUILDING

Mr. Plante recused himself from this discussion at 9:20 p.m. and left the meeting.  

Substantial Completion:  On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the date of August 10, 2010 as the date of substantial completion of the public safety building.   

(Wysocki – yes, Lindsay – yes)

Public Safety Building Sign:  On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the sign for the public safety building.  (Wysocki – yes, Lindsay – yes)

On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen’s meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m.  (Wysocki – yes, Lindsay – yes)

Respectfully submitted by Linda L. Day