Board of Selectmen Minutes
Meeting date:
Friday, May 2, 2008
Board of Selectmen
May 1, 2008
Present:
Panny Gerken
Curt Plante
Kenneth F. Troup
Jodi Ross, Town Administrator
Linda Day, Town Secretary
The Board of Selectmen met at the Town Hall at 7:00 p.m.
This was Ms. Gerken’s last meeting with the Board. She thanked reporters Nan Shnitzler (Bolton Common) and Ken Cleveland (Clinton Item) for sitting through the Selectmen’s meetings and producing articles that were fair and thoughtful. She also thanked Linda Day, Town Secretary for faithfully taking the minutes for the Board of Selectmen for many years. She thanked Jodi Ross, Town Administrator, for many reasons that included how she continued to impress upon members of the Board of Selectmen that you are only a selectman if you act as a board. She thanked her colleagues stating that it has never been dull. She thanked the citizens of Bolton for letting her serve them.
REVIEW OF AMENDED LIBRARY DESIGN AND APPLICATIONS FOR VARIANCES AND SPECIAL PERMIT
Present: Roland Oschenbein, Richard Marks, OPM and Drayton Fair, Lerner, Ladds & Bartels
The Board was provided with a brief presentation of the status of the library project as of now in preparation for the hearing scheduled for May 27, 2008 to request a special permit and variances for the public library.
As a result of grading issues on the east side of the library, twenty one parking spaces were developed on the west side of the library that will be buffered with evergreen trees to shield the nearby residence from the parking. The plan also provides for five parking spaces in front of the library along with an additional 6 spaces to the west side of the front of the library. Overflow parking will be dealt with at a later date. The building has been repositioned to keep the required 20 foot offset and therefore the request for a variance to the setback has been withdrawn. The 1st floor was designed so that the existing and new library will give the sense of one building. There is a 65 seat meeting room with bathrooms to be shared by the library and meeting area. The 2nd floor has the young adults and children’s space which is a little over 50% of the area. Teenagers were brought into the process to help identify the design space for young adults.
Mr. Fair and his group looked at multiple options and chose an exterior that is appropriate for the historical aspects of the town. The building will have a wood shingle siding with stucco accents with a pitched roof for a combination of modern and old. The pavilion area will be in an authentic stone to match the existing library although it has not yet been priced yet. The main entrance will be on the west side which will be the only entrance. The south side of the library will be relatively plain with stucco accents and dormers.
A variance will be requested from the zoning bylaws that requires the building height of no more than 32 feet above ground elevation. The proposed addition is 37 feet.
A variance will be requested from the zoning bylaws that requires the surface of the top occupiable floor be no more than 15 feet. The proposed addition is 16.6 feet.
A special permit for the existing lot size will also be requested.
Mr. Marks stated that the tiles will be removed from the existing roof to repair the sheathing and the existing tiles will be put back on. Mr. Troup suggested the same type of material be used to blend the two buildings as one. Mr. Marks stated they looked at roofing options and favored an asphalt shingle type roof which is less expensive. Mr. Troup suggested the tiles be sold as a fundraiser as he did not see a great benefit to reusing the tiles. Mr. Plante complimented the design presented and did not feel that the roofs needed to match. Ms. Remington, Historical Commission chairman stated that the Commission reviewed the plans at their meeting on April 16, 2008. They were comfortable with the height variance request but would like to see the expanded area have a type of roofing that would blend in with the background of the woods and be less intrusive than having the entire roof the orange color of the existing roof. Ms. Remington stated that the Historical Commission will have to discuss removing the original tiles. Mr. Oschenbein confirmed that they met with Building Inspector Frank Krysa and received a preliminary opinion which led them to go to the Board of Appeals for the required variances. Mr. Jonathan Keep, resident of Main Street questioned whether the town had gone through the proper process in allowing the 20 foot setback versus the 50 foot setback. The Board confirmed that town counsel, the building inspector, and the Board of Selectmen all agreed that the 20 foot setback applied to the library project.
The Board of Selectmen executed the amended application to withdraw the variance on the 20 foot setback issue. On a motion made by Troup and seconded by Gerken, the Board of Selectmen voted to proceed with the library design as proposed. (Gerken – yes, Plante – yes, Troup – yes)
UPDATE ON FORCE MAIN – BORING RESULTS AND GRAVITY VS. PUMP
Boring results of the proposed force main were reviewed. Generally speaking the boring results were favorable with one section where bedrock was encountered at a shallow depth ranging from 2 to 4 feet below grade along Wattaquadock Hill Road. Ledge was not encountered until one spot along Mechanic Street and a small section on Emerson playground. The options for the force main installation included installing the force main on the ledge or excavating a portion of the ledge for installation of the force main. Groundwater was very favorable. Based on the boring and groundwater information the cost estimates have been revised for each route that also included the pump station and lateral.
Route 1 was leaving the public safety center down Wattaquadock Hill Road to the south through the park and then to the Florence Sawyer School access drive following the route behind the Florence Sawyer School on the South side of the school. Route 2 is going on the north side of Florence Sawyer School with Route 2A going off into the gravel path access drive of Emerson School to the wastewater treatment plant. Route 3 is the route along Main Street through Mechanic Street around north and east side of Emerson School connecting to the connecting system at the southeast corner.
Cost estimates were done by contacting contractors to receive estimates as to how they are bidding this type of project and also supplemented the information used from MassHighway. Mr. Giunta stated he met with Mr. Brown, DPW Director and they discussed putting both the force main and water line through the same trench. Mr. Willis believes this is allowed if you maintain a two foot separation between the sewer line and the water line, and the sewer line is located below the water line.
Mr. Oschenbein urged the Board of Selectmen to meet with residents along the route that would be affected by the installation of the force main to address any concerns related to the private wells and potential digging on private property. As a side note, Mr. Amabile, resident on Main Street suggested the core for the mail boxes along Main Street be installed at this time.
Mr. Giunta stated it is his recommendation to only put the lateral and structure in but to delay the actual hookup, pumps and backflows so that the cost is not effected for town meeting. It was noted that it should be mentioned at town meeting that the cost of putting a shared septic system at the public safety center site for public safety and the library is estimated in the $50-75,000 range and reasons for doing it this way.
On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Troup, the Board of Selectmen agreed to go with a force main from the public safety center down Wattaquadock Hill Road easterly onto Main Street and southerly on Mechanic Street. It was also recommended that the Houghton Building should be tied in at this time if it stays within the budget and the Board of Selectmen will make their recommendation on town meeting floor as to the route they chose to go with. (Gerken – yes, Plante – yes, Troup – yes) Mr. Willis will attend the annual town meeting.
DISCUSSION REGARDING VERIZON CELL TOWER LEASE
Present: Attorney Dan Klasnick, David Tivnan, Site Acquisition Consultant and Jeffrey Barbadora, Construction Consultant
Ms. Ross stated that if the overlay district bylaw passes at the Annual Town Meeting on Monday, May 5, 2008 Verizon Wireless is anxious to proceed with the construction of the cell tower. Mr. Klasnick stated that Verizon responded to the RFP and proposed a 150 foot monopole to be located on the landfill parcel. There were three different scenarios for the roadway access that has developed over time. The initial design included with the RFP, dated July 25, 2007, proposed a roadway straight up to the Forbush Mill Road property. Questions were raised as to why a new roadway was being cut when there is already access from the abutting parcel. Another proposal was to come partially up the abutting property of existing access road and then cutting off to the site. The DPW suggested the roadway come off of the existing roadway although there are concerns with the capped landfill and DEP’s requirements. Because of these concerns the thought was to return to the original proposal. After much discussion, it was agreed that Verizon Wireless will try for the upper driveway and contact Mass Electric to determine if power can be placed along the top of the landfill. If this is not possible they will come back to the Board of Selectmen for further discussion. DEP will also be contacted to see if they can put poles along the top of the capped landfill. Revisions to the lease were discussed as follows:
Section 14: Lessor’s equipment – A section entitled “lessor’s equipment” was added to the lease which permits the lessor’s highway, police and fire departments as well as other emergency services to install antennas and communications equipment without any rent payment charge or fee. Verizon Wireless was willing to put our equipment on the tower when they are working on the tower. Chief Alfano stated that if our radio system were to be upgraded an enclosed storage type structure with environment and climate control would be needed. Verizon Wireless stated that they would provide the ground space but that we would need to provide the shelter as they do not allow other equipment in their shelter. Verizon’s representatives requested that the town provide an idea of what type of equipment the fire and police chiefs would anticipate using so that they can order the monopole accordingly to provide sufficient space. Paragraph 1 of Section 1: Premises – 10,000 square feet will be revised to 4,000 square feet; Paragraph 2 of Section 1: Premises – Sentence will be added to state “any improvements necessary are borne by the lessee”. Section 3(a): The lease is effective immediately upon execution. It was suggested that a no later than date be included. This will be discussed with Verizon personnel. Section 7: Taxes – The town shouldn't incur any expenses. This will be discussed with Verizon personnel.
Section 15: removal at end of term - The Board of Selectmen also recommended that all structures be removed from the site at the end of the lease including the footings. Therefore, it was recommended that the word “except” be removed just before the word footings in the first sentence. Mr. Barbadora suggested that the bond include the footings. Ms. Ross stated that the contract was negotiated based on Verizon’s proposal and therefore the percents discussed in Section 5 and Section 23 related to rentals and subleases were already accepted. Section 31: Casualty – Mr. Plante stated that loss casualty insurance is usually part of a large company’s policy and would cover rent to the lessor under such a loss. Therefore he did not feel we should lose rent because of an incident. This will be discussed with the insurance company.
Mr. Brown will be asked to provide the as-built plans for the landfill to Verizon Wireless personnel.
REVIEW OF ATM WARRANT
The Board of Selectmen reviewed and made minor revisions to the article motions and presentations document for the Annual Town Meeting on May 5, 2008.
Mr. Lindsay, Advisory Committee chairman stated that their will be a full presentation on the turf field by the School Committee and the Advisory Committee will make a statement.
Mr. Lindsay stated that the School Committee agreed that they would not go forward with the approach of bonding the turf field over a five year period if one or more of the towns disapproved the turf field article although according to state law they had the authority to do this.
TOWN ADMINISTRATOR CONTRACT
Ms. Gerken announced that the Board of Selectmen reviewed the performance of Ms. Ross, Town Administrator and out of a possible 5 she received a 4.69. In recognition of her outstanding performance for the past 4 years the Selectmen have voted to award her a 4 year contract, effective April 22, 2008 to June 30, 2012. Ms. Ross has made a huge contribution to the town and has developed a level of professionalism that did not exist prior to her coming. The Selectmen are pleased that she has accepted the contract.
UPCOMING APPEALS BOARD HEARING
A hearing notice was received regarding the proposed change to the age restriction on an existing 40 B to be held on May 13, 2008. Mr. Troup asked if there was any interest in discussing this and preparing a letter to the Board of Appeals. The Board has deferred this discussion to Wednesday, May 7, 2008. Ms. Ross will ask Ms. Atwood-Burney, Town Planner to attend the Board of Selectmen’s meeting to discuss this matter.
The town meeting warrant deadlines discussion was deferred to a future Board of Selectmen’s meeting.
The Board of Selectmen’s meeting was adjourned at 8:45 p.m. Refreshments were served and tributes given to honor Ms. Gerken as outgoing Selectman.
Respectfully submitted by Linda L. Day