Board of Selectmen Minutes
Meeting date:
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Board of Selectmen
May 15, 2008
Present:
Curtis Plante
Kenneth F. Troup
Stanley Wysocki
Jodi Ross, Town Administrator
Linda L. Day, Town Secretary
Present: Advisory Committee members David Lindsay and Randy Dinjian
Ms. Day called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and asked for nominations for Chairman. On a motion made by Troup and seconded by Wysocki, Mr. Plante was nominated as chairman. (Troup – yes, Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes) On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Plante, Mr. Troup was elected the clerk for the Board of Selectmen. (Wysocki – yes, Plante – yes, Troup – yes)
Minutes of February 21, March 4, March 20 and April 1, 2008 and executive session minutes of April 17, 2008 and April 22, 2008 were approved.
ALS BIKE RIDE
The Board of Selectmen reviewed the request from Myke Farricker for the ALS bike ride to raise money for research and patient care for those afflicted with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. The ride will take place on Sunday, June 22, 2008 and the rider’s will be in Bolton for 8 miles. Chief Alfano has approved this request. On a motion made by Troup and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the request. (Plante – yes, Troup – yes, Wysocki – yes)
HAROLD BROWN, DPW
Mr. Brown provided the Board of Selectmen with a list of roads that are in need of resurfacing. They included Wattaquadock Hill Road, Long Hill Road, Farm Road, Wheeler Road, a portion of Spectacle Hill Road, East End Road, Annie Moore Road, Weathers Lane, Warner Road, Meadow Road, Whitcomb Road, Golden Run Road, a portion of Lively Road, a portion of Main Street and Kettle Hole Road. Because of budget constraints Mr. Brown proposed resurfacing Wattaquadock Hill Road, a portion of Long Hill Road, Wheeler Road, Farm Road and a portion of Annie Moore Road for a total of 2.3 miles.
Mr. Brown stated he has taken East End Road off the list and replaced it with Annie Moore Road because of the condition of the stone chip surface. The road is not only in poor condition but is also causing problems for his plows and both of his Chevy trucks have broken frames. Mr. Brown stated that East End Road could be at the top of the list to be resurfaced after Annie Moore Road but felt that it could go another year.
In addition to the four roads to be resurfaced Mr. Brown proposed resurfacing sections of Meadow Road (from #42 to #52) and Golden Run Road (two sections by #99 and one section by #78).
Mr. Plante recommended that funds to resurface roads go towards the more heavily traveled roads.
Line painting of the center lines, fog lines and stop signs will be done the same as last year. Mr. Brown stated that the condition of the line painting done last year is probably at about 50% today. It is the opinion of Mr. Brown and Chief Alfano that the fog lines are very important for marking the edge of the road.
Mr. Brown hopes that the Spectacle Hill culvert will come in under the proposed $70,000 and move the additional funds to hot topping. Mr. Brown stated that the DPW crew will do the excavating and installation of the culvert, and hauling of the gravel will be done in conjunction with a local contractor. He will go out to bid for the recycling and paving of the road. He stated he has followed the City of Leominster’s procurement forms and talked with Ms. Ross in the past regarding the bid process.
Mr. Troup questioned the need for the catch basin repair on Deer Path when it is a fairly new road. Mr. Brown stated that he is having a problem with the catch basin brick deteriorating and has had the same problem Vaughn Hill Road. Mr. Plante suggested using grade rings. Mr. Brown will contact BayState roads regarding this problem.
Mr. Brown stated that grading of Randall Road is also needed although he did not include in his road work schedule. Mr. Brown is looking at purchasing a rake that would do the grading.
The temporary library in the Freidus building is ready for use except for cleaning the carpets. The Board asked about a sign for the new library location but Mr. Brown said he was not involved in that. Mr. Brown stated that he has been appointed to the BayState Advisory Board. Mr. Brown stated that the overall winter snowfall was not bad and it was the ice that caused the problems. The DPW is on scheduled to put up the flags on May 19, 2008 for Memorial Day. Mr. Plante complimented the DPW on the clean up of sidewalks.
Mr. Brown stated that the broom is sweeping the streets. They are working days to do this job and the only nights they will work is to clean up Route 117 because of the volume of traffic. He stated that the sand will be dumped in certain locations and then picked up the next day. The Board felt that it would be a cost savings to have a dump truck out with the sweeper to pick up sand. The sweeper does not cost more for evening cleanup.
Mr. Brown stated that he has been informed of a truck in the Syracuse, NY area that will be for sale soon. It is a 2003 truck in the $30-40,000 price range with a reversible plow that sounds like it is exactly what he is looking for.
Mr. Troup referred to Mr. Brown’s memo of March 17, 2008 regarding the repair to the sheep field culvert. Mr. Troup stated it was his understanding that the planks placed at the culvert had solved the problem. Mr. Brown stated that it looks like the inlet side is in process of collapsing because of water back up. It is his opinion that the culvert should be rebuilt as a larger culvert. This would have to be a joint project with the historical commission and engineering firm to come up with a plan that meets the needs of the Historical Commission requirements and drainage issues. Ms. Ross stated that the Army Corps of Engineers has say over the culvert which over rules the Historic Commission. The town decided the proposed 40 foot cement culvert proposed by the Army Corps of Engineers was way beyond what was needed so they purchased the steel planks for $3,000 to avoid going with the route of the Army Corps of Engineers as it was an expensive proposal. Mr. Plante asked if Pond Park could be designed to hold some of the water that would normally flood the area. Mr. Brown stated he removed the cage that blocked the debris but did not feel the cage caused the high water level. Mr. Brown stated that Waterline recommended the installation of a larger culvert. Mr. Plante suggested the manholes be raised a couple of feet and insulated with fiberglass to make it more water tight. Ms. Ross will ask Tata and Howard their opinion on what they might recommend for this problem as the culvert replacement does not seem like an option we would like to explore.
PUBLIC SAFETY CENTER ARCHITECT CONTRACT
Ms. Ross reviewed minor revisions to the contract for professional services between the Board of Selectmen and Jacunski Humes Architects, LLC for the public safety center.
On a motion made by Troup and seconded Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to award and execute the contract to Jacunski Humes Architects LLC in the amount of a lump sum fixed fee of $380,000, with $10,000 not to exceed reimburseables. (Plante – yes, Troup – yes, Wysocki – yes)
Mr. Lindsay stated that we will be about $2.2 million spent beyond what was bonded at the end of fiscal year on June 30, 2009 for the public safety center. We will have to do some substantial state house note borrowing or use our own cash reserves. At some point another bond issue might need to be voted next spring. Mr. Lindsay stated that the library is essentially funded except for a few hundred thousand dollars.
FORCE SEWER MAIN ROUTE
Mr. Troup reported that ledge was found along the force main route near Pond Park. Instead of going down the road and around the edge of zone 1 they are proposing they go through the pond at one corner or under the pond. Parks and Recreation was interested in having work done on the pond to level it out and they were therefore fine with this proposal. There is a meeting with the Conservation Commission next week to discuss this proposal. The Board of Selectmen should provide any comments regarding this proposal prior to the meeting.
The Board of Selectmen agreed that they would rather see the force main under the pond but left the decision up to the engineer to determine what the best route was. If they could do something to help Parks and Recreation make the pond more skateable would be great. Ms. Ross stated that she received a letter from Ms. Keaney’s 4th grade class asking permission to clean up the pond park area. Ms. Keaney’s class will be informed that they will need to find a different location because of the proposed route of the force main.
Mr. Troup also questioned whether the Board of Selectmen wanted to install a 2 inch pipe to service the two buildings or do they want to think further down the road and put in a 4 inch pipe to pick up additional flow (publicly or privately) at a later date. The Board was provided with diagrams showing flow assumptions with and without the schools and cost estimates.
Mr. Plante questioned what the maximum volume of flow of a 2 inch line is. It appeared to him that it is more than adequate to handle the Library, Public Safety Center and the Houghton building. Connecting the town hall would not be much additional flow.
The Board asked for additional information including what is the flow capacity of the 2 inch and 4 inch sewer line. Another question is if the numbers provided are DEP flows.
Mr. Plante was concerned with defeating the purpose of building the sewer treatment plant for schools if we don’t save capacity for the schools. Mr. Troup stated the plan was to save the flow of approximately 20,000 gpd for the schools. He felt there would also be an additional 10-15,000 gpd extra beyond the 20,000 saved for the schools.
Mr. Plante was concerned that going from a 2 inch pipe to a 4 inch pipe would open the town up to the private homeowners asking to be tied in. Mr. Troup stated that it would take a town meeting vote if the Board of Selectmen were to consider allowing private homeowners to tie in.
The Board of Selectmen will invite residents on Main Street to a meeting in June to discuss the proposed path and to answer any questions or hear any concerns the residents might have related to the path of the force main.
BANNER REQUEST
On a motion made by Troup and seconded by Plante, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the request of Dan Teague, chairman of the Bolton Celebrates Committee to hang a banner across Main Street advertising the July 4th festivities. (Plante – yes, Troup – yes, Wysocki – yes)
Ms. Day stated that the Bolton Celebrates Committee is anxious to get a response from the Board of Selectmen about taking part in the parade. They have secured a convertible for the Board of Selectmen. Mr. Plante has committed to participate; Mr. Troup and Mr. Wysocki will be out of town.
TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORT
Energy Committee: Bolton has received $10,901 in MTC clean energy matching grants. The Energy Committee will determine where these funds will be spent.
The Board was reminded of the informational meeting being hosted by the Energy Committee on Monday, June 19th, 2008 with Borrego Solar to learn more about PPA programs.
MSBA audit: A telephone conference call will take place on June 6, 2008.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Police Department and Registry of Motor Vehicles Police are teaming up to raise awareness about the dangerous of driving without buckling up. Operation graduation will take place on May 16, 2008 and will focus their efforts on educating teens on the importance of seat belt use.
The Garden Club will hold a tour of town gardens on June 7, 2008 from 10 to 2 p.m. starting at the Bolton Library.
The Conservation Commission will host the Walk Bolton’s Downtown on Saturday, May 17, 2008 starting at the rear of Town Hall at 2:00 p.m.
The board suggested that prayers be said for China at this difficult time in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake.
MEETINGS
The Bolton Board of Selectmen will host the Tri-Town meeting on Wednesday, June 4, 2008.
The Board of Selectmen’s upcoming meetings are scheduled for Thursday, June 5 & 19, 2008; Wednesday, July 9 & 23, 2008; Thursday, August 7 & 21, 2008; Thursday, October 4 & 18, 2008
Meeting adjourned 8:39 p.m.
Minutes respectfully submitted Linda L. Day