Board of Selectmen Minutes
Meeting date:
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Board of Selectmen Present: Stanley Wysocki
May 12, 2011 Curt Plante
David Lindsay
Don Lowe, Town Administrator
Linda L. Day, Town Secretary
Ms. Day called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and asked for nominations for Chairman.
Mr. Lindsay stated that normal procedure would be to rotate the chairmanship and nominate Mr. Plante as chairman. Although it was Mr. Lindsay’s conclusion to proceed with the rotation so as to not set a precedent for future years, he felt it was important to acknowledge the incident that took place last year when Mr. Plante was fined by the State Ethics Commission. Mr. Lindsay stated that at the time of the incident he was approached by residents and was aware of letters published in the newspaper suggesting it might not be appropriate for Mr. Plante to serve as chairman. Mr. Wysocki stated that from the standpoint of protocol there is nothing that says the rotation has to be this way, nor does it say the chairmanship should be taken away for the circumstances Mr. Lindsay reviewed.. Mr. Plante clarified for the record that there were only three individuals that wrote letters to the editor and stated that he chose not to discuss his settlement because then it would become public record. Mr. Plante was surprised with Mr. Lindsay’s decision to air Mr. Plante’s incident when he felt that Mr. Lindsay had acted in an unethical way during an executive session, which could also be aired publicly. Although Mr. Lindsay was willing to discuss the incident of the executive session, Mr. Wysocki cautioned against it because the executive session minutes had not been approved or released. Mr. Wysocki stated that he could see the opinions of both sides, but for the purposes of moving forward and having a harmonious Board, he wanted to proceed with Mr. Plante's nomination.
Mr. Shnitzler agreed that the Board of Selectmen should take the incident into consideration because the ethics issue was directly related to Mr. Plante as a Selectman, and it reflected poorly on the town.
Ms. Abdalian stated that many people make mistakes, and that Mr. Plante paid the penalty. It was Ms. Abdalian’s opinion that it did not require Mr. Plante to step down, and she would like to put this to rest and move on. Ms. Boyd and Mr. Bruce Slater both agreed with Ms. Abdalian.
On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, Mr. Plante was nominated and appointed as Chairman. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes)
On a motion made by Plante and seconded by Wysocki, Mr. Lindsay was nominated Clerk for the Board of Selectmen. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes)
SLATER, MEADOW ROAD, CHAPTER 61A
The Board of Selectmen received a request to release property owned by Scott, Jennifer and Bruce Slater on Meadow Road (lot 6) from Chapter 61A. On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted not to exercise their option to purchase the property and instead to release the property from Chapter 61A. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes) The Board of Selectmen also received comment from the Planning Board and Conservation Commission stating that they did not have any interest in the property at this time.
SIGN REQUEST
Ms. Sherman requested permission to attach a sign to the existing sign advertising her therapeutic massage business at 626 Main Street. The sign will be 30’ X 36’ and the same colors (brown and white) as the existing sign. The Board of Selectmen received a letter of approval from Nabil Roufail, owner of the property. On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve this sign request. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes)
ADOPT A NEIGHBOR PROGRAM
Mary Boyd, Terry Abdalian and Chief Alfano informed the Board of Selectmen of their proposal to form an “Adopt a Neighbor” program. The program is geared toward all residents and not just the Seniors. They hope that this will open up the lines of communication and help those in need whether it be a senior, single parent home, or one in need during an illness. As part of the program there will be captains assigned to visit residents to introduce themselves and see if they are in need of any type of assistance. They would also like to bring the neighbors together for activities such as block parties and pot luck dinners.
The new Garden Club phone book will have a contact information form that residents have the option of filling out and posting on their refrigerator in case of an emergency.
On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to acknowledge and support the “Adopt a Neighbor” program. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes)
ALZHEIMERS
On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the request of the Alzheimer’s Association to hold the 15th Annual Memory Ride, a charity bicycle event on Saturday, July 23, 2011. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes) Chief Alfano has also approved this event. The Alzheimers Association will be required to provide their insurance liability certificate.
TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORT
Full Time Police Officer: The Board of Selectmen reviewed a financial analysis of the pros and cons for hiring a full time officer.
The full cost of hiring a full time officer is estimated at $51,722 including fringe benefits, which were estimated at $13,409. This would be a costs savings of approximately $7,215 for FY12.
Mr. Plante raised the question about Chief Alfano not being on the patrol schedule. Chief Alfano stated that he is not listed on the schedule because he was not hired as a patrolman. He considers himself a working chief and is always on duty 24/7.
Mr. Wysocki and Mr. Lindsay were in agreement that Chief Alfano is a working chief and should not be on the patrol schedule.
It was Mr. Wysocki’s opinion that the hiring of a new officer would be a benefit to the town regardless if the officer injured on duty comes back or not. Mr. Plante was in favor of hiring the new officer to cut back on the overtime. Mr. Lindsay was reluctant to hire a new officer because of the small savings relative to the negative impact of having an additional fully-benefitted employee on the town's payroll.
On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Plante, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the hiring of an academy-trained, full-time patrol officer at step 1 of the compensation schedule to fill out the shift schedule in a more robust way than occurs presently. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – no, Wysocki – yes)
Electric rates: Mr. Lowe reported to the Board of Selectmen that he is researching alternatives for a cost savings on the Town’s electric rates and has met with a representative but is not convinced he should lock in at this time.
Mr. Lowe will continue to pursue and will contact Mr. Spratt, NRSD Facilities Manager to see who he is contracted with.
BOARD OF SELECTMEN BUSINESS
Municipal Blanket License - BatCo: The Board deferred approval of the municipal blanket license for music performance on behalf of the Town of Bolton from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). Mr. Lindsay had some questions regarding this license that he will forward to the Mr. Lowe for distribution to Mr. Troup and the Board of Selectmen.
Lease between the Town of Bolton and BatCo for Houghton Building: Mr. Lowe is in the process of finalizing the lease between the Town of Bolton and BATCO for the Houghton Building and including the start date of the lease.
Local Historic District Study Committee (LHDSC): Iris Berdrow and Alice Coggeshall met with the Board of Selectmen to request their signature on three letters to be sent to the Bolton Historical Society, Association of Realtors and the Institute of Architects as well as approval for a public posting seeking volunteers to serve on the Local Historic District Study Committee. On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to execute these letters. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes)
EMPLOYEE POLICY REGARDING ANIMALS IN TOWN-OWNED BUILDINGS AND VEHICLES
Mr. Plante questioned the existing policy related to personal pets in town buildings and if it included town-owned vehicles. Mr. Lowe stated that at the time, the policy was written to address personal pets not being allowed in the fire station which is open to the public and did not specifically address vehicles because they were not occupied by anyone from the public.
Mr. Lowe will draft an employee policy regarding animals in town buildings and vehicles for review by the Board of Selectmen.
MINUTES
On a motion made by Lindsay and seconded by Wysocki, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the regular session minutes of March 10, March 24, April 4 and April 14, 2011. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki –yes)
On a motion made by Wyscoki and seconded by Lindsay, the Board of Selectmen voted to approve the executive session minutes of March 10, March 24, April 4, April 14, and April 28, 2011. (Plante – yes, Lindsay – yes, Wysocki – yes)
EXECUTIVE SESSION
On a motion made by Wysocki and seconded by Lindsay, 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 8:45 p.m. to discuss collective bargaining. The Board announced it would not reconvene to open session.