Board of Selectmen Minutes

Board of Selectmen                                 Present: Stanley Wysocki

August 12, 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.

DISCLOSURE

Mr. Plante disclosed, pursuant to General Laws, Chapter 268A, Section 23(b)(3), that he procured name plaques for Board of Selectmen members Kenneth Troup, Stanley Wysocki and David Lindsay, Town Administrator Jodi Ross and Don Lowe and Town Secretary Linda Day for use at the Board of Selectmen’s meetings.  The cost per engraved plate was $32.19 and the cost for each wood base was $15.00 for a total of $47.19.   As new member of the Board of Selectmen, Mr. Lindsay was presented with his name plaque this evening.

TWIN SPRINGS LIQUOR LICENSE

Present:  Brian Lynch, General Manager and Bob Keene, Manager of Twin Springs

The Board of Selectmen held a public hearing at 7:00 p.m. on the application of Twin Springs Holdings, Inc., 295 Wilder Road, Bolton for a new license for an annual, general on premise wine and malt license located at Twin Springs Golf Course, 295 Wilder Road.  A plan showing the layout of the Twin Springs Golf Course was presented.  

The golf course is a 9-hole course, with 2-holes located on the north side of Wilder Road, the same side as the clubhouse, and the other 7 holes on the south side of the road.  There are a parking lots on both sides of Wilder Road.  The license would allow Twin Springs Golf Course to better compete for business. Alcohol would be served between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m.  Mr. Lynch stated that they feel strongly that alcohol and children don’t belong on the turf at the same time, and alcohol would not be served when children’s programs are in session.

 

Mr. Plante expressed concern with the safety of golfers crossing Wilder Road especially during evening events.  Mr. Lynch stated that there are two or three glow ball events a year and it would be more practical to have a detail officer rather than installing lights as suggested by Mr. Plante.  Mr. Lynch stated alcohol would only be served on the clubhouse side of Wilder Road and a policy of “no alcohol on the public way” will be enforced.  There will also be “golfers crossing” signage from both directions on Wilder Road, along with designated crosswalks.  Mr. Lynch stated that they are interested in increasing daytime versus night events; noting that they did not intend to do night weddings.

Mr. Plante questioned whether a special permit was needed because of the beer and wine license creating somewhat of a change in use.  

Chief Alfano stated that the police have an excellent relationship with the management of The International Golf Course (IGC) and feel it will carry through to Twin Springs.   Mr. Lynch stated that he will keep communication lines open with the Police Department.    

Mr. Vespa, abutter to Twin Springs, stated that he did not have any problems with the proposed application.  Mr. Plante noted the seat capacity of 200 for outside events.  Mr. Vespa stated that they have outside events at Twin Springs now and he has not had any issues with these events.

Mr. Lynch stated that they take the responsibilities of dealing with the public seriously and have strong policies and procedures in place, and the right management to enforce the policies and procedures.  Bartenders will receive the proper training, including Training for Intervention Procedures (TIP).   

There were no other comments from the audience.

Mr. Lynch stated that as part of the renewal process he would be happy to meet with the Board of Selectmen for a six-month review to discuss how things are going.

On a motion by Lindsay and seconded by Plante, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the application of Twin Springs Holdings, Inc. of 295 Wilder Road for an annual wine and malt general on premise license.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)

HEALTH AND PERMITTING ASSISTANT

Mr. Lowe introduced Michelle Carlisle, who was hired to fill Lisa O’Leary’s position, as Health and Permitting Assistant.  Ms. Carlisle started on August 2, 2010.  Ms. Carlisle previously worked for the Town of Ayer, has municipal and Board of Health experience and came highly recommended.   Mr. Lowe stated that the interview process was difficult with a lot of strong candidates.

TOWN CLERK

Ms. Powell, Town Clerk proposed an increase in fees for dog and kennel licenses.  The fees have not been increased since 1998.  Ms. Powell proposed that the current fee of $6.00 for a spayed or neutered dog be increased to $10.00, and the current fee of $10.00 for an unneutered or unsprayed dog be increased to $15.00.  Ms. Powell stated that the fees have not been changed since 1998.

The Board of Selectmen will hold a public meeting on September 9, 2010 to allow residents to be heard if they have any concerns regarding the proposed increases.

BOLTON ORCHARDS SIGN REQUEST

Mr. Kenneth Janda met with the Board of Selectmen to request permission to replace three rotting posts and a wooden frame on the existing sign at Bolton Orchards.  The Board was satisfied with the proposal.  

ROADHOUSE RESTAURANT

Mrs. White met with the Board of Selectmen to request permission to place a sign at the corner of Wattaquadock Hill Road and Main Street, and at the off ramp of Route 495 South.   The Board reviewed a photo showing the layout of the signs at the corner of Wattaquadock Hill Road and Main Street.

Mr. Lindsay would like to take this opportunity to clean up the signs at the corner of Wattaquadock Hill Road and Main Street before approving this request.  He would also like to see a photo of the signage located at the off ramp of Route 495 South.  

Mrs. White showed the Board a sample of the sign that she would like to place at both locations.

Mr. Dinjian, Advisory Committee member asked if there were any plans to place a directional sign at the intersection of Main Street and Wattaquadock Hill Road for the new public safety center and if so, how it could be incorporated into the sign cluster.

On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve a temporary sign for one year, for the Main Street and Wattaquadock Hill Road intersection with the understanding that Ms. Burney, Town Planner will be asked to review the signage policies and provide a summary of how this is handled in other towns.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante –yes, Lindsay – no)

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORT

Update on flooding on Nashaway and Vaughn Hill Road:  Mr. Lowe reported that he had a follow up meeting with Mr. Sebastian Amenta of Comprehensive Environmental, Inc. (CEI) to discuss the final report submitted by CEI regarding the storm water runoff and flooding in the area of Nashaway Road and Vaughn Hill Road.   The Board of Selectmen will invite the residents to attend their meeting on Thursday, September 9 at 7:00 p.m. to discuss this report.   As part of the discussion, the Board would like to discuss the next steps in the process and would like to receive input from the residents as to what they feel would be an acceptable approach to the drainage situation.

The Board of Selectmen expressed their opinion that they do not think an article would pass on town meeting if the necessary easements are not in place prior to the meeting.

Report on Public Safety Center Oil Leak:  Mr. Lowe reported that we have entered into the monitoring phase for the public safety center site.  The Maguire Group will be contacting the six homeowners abutting the Public Safety Center to do a follow-up sampling.  To date, there has been no indication that fuel oil contamination has migrated from the area and nothing has been detected in the monitoring wells on the site.   The next phase will be to move toward regulatory closure with follow up potable water samples being collected from only abutters immediately surrounding the public safety building.  

CSX Crossing at Wattaquadock Hill Road/Lancaster Road:  Mr. Lowe reported that the crossing at Wattaquadock Hill Road and Lancaster Road is considered a “low class track” and the track is not due to be repaired in the near future and definitely not in 2010.

Badges for town employees:  Mr. Lowe showed the Board of Selectmen a mock-up of an identification badge that will be made for town employees going on homeowner’s property.  The cost of the badge will be $4.00 each.

BOARD OF SELECTMEN BUSINESS

Execution of Warrant for State Primary – September 14, 2010:  On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to sign the warrant for the State Primary to be held on Tuesday, September 14, 2010.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)  

Cruiser Fleet/Capital Planning Committee:  Mr. Lindsay reminded Mr. Lowe of the Board’s recommendation that Chief Alfano meet with the Capital Planning Committee to discuss the cruiser fleet and a possible replacement schedule revision that would allow the purchase of the cruisers to be done in such a way to allow for a savings relative to the present program.   It was also suggested by Mr. Plante that an assessment be made regarding the current policy of relatively new high-performance cruisers being handed down to the DPW, or if the DPW should have vehicles more conducive to their work environment.

Selectmen’s Meeting Schedule:  The Board of Selectmen’s schedule is as follows:  Thursday, September 9 & 23, October 7 & 21, November 4 & 18, December 2 & 16, 2010 and January 6 & 20, 2011.  

Executive Session Minutes:  On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to release the executive session minutes of September 3 and September 17, 2009 related to the complaint filed by Curt Plante, representing Bradford Site Development, against Harold Brown.  (Wysocki – yes, Lindsay – yes)

EXECUTIVE SESSION

On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Plante, the Board of Selectmen voted 3-0 by roll call (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay - yes) to enter into executive session under the authority of Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 39B, Section 23B (3) at 8:35 p.m. to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining.  The Board announced it would reconvene to open session.

DISPATCH UNION CONTRACT

On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to reconvene from executive session to open session at 9:05 p.m.   (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)  

On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to execute the dispatch union contract agreement between the Town of Bolton and the Bolton Dispatchers Union, Local 286A, Massachusetts Coalition of Police, IUPA, AFL-CIO dated July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2011.   (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)

The contract includes a 1% cost of living adjustment which is retroactive.  The contract is consistent with the budget and will expire on June 30, 2011.

On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to adjourn at 9:15 p.m.  (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes)

Respectfully submitted by Linda L. Day