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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-07-19 Board of Selectmen Minutes BOARD OF SELECTMEN MINUTES JULY 19, 1999 CALL TO ORDER: Keith Mitchell called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. ATTENDANCE: The following were present: Keith A. Mitchell, Chairman; John R. Leeman, Jr. (7:20 p.m.); Donald B. Stewart; James M. Xenakis; Robert J. Halpin, Town Manager. EXECUTIVE SESSION: James Xenakis made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart,to move into Executive Session to review status of litigation with Town Counsel and Police Contract Update; vote approved 4— 0. The Board of Selectmen was individually polled and each voted to move into Executive Session. COMMUNICATIONS,ANNOUNCEMENTS,AND PUBLIC COMMENT: Keith Mitchell announced that the next Board of Selectmen meeting would be on July 26, 1999 at 7:30 p.m. Firefighter/EMT Issue. James Xenakis said that it has come to his attention that the staffing for the new ambulance will require eight new hires and that he didn't believe the candidates were given proper notice that it would require them to have EMT certification. Leonard White, 117 Lyman Road, a 28 year veteran of the North Andover Fire Department, stated that when the candidates took the entrance exam,they were not told that EMT certification was necessary. Chief William Dolan explained that as the appointing authority he had requested a selective certification and that a decision whether it would be sent had not been determined. He said that there are currently 16 EMTs who work the ambulance. The goal is to increase this number to 24. Negotiations with the union will have to be conducted and an agreement reached to increase the number of EMTs by eight. He also said he is not authorized to conduct negotiations. Keith Mitchell questioned the Chief about adequate notice being given. The Chief said he verbally encouraged candidates to seek EMT certification. Sean Fountain, Jr. 412 Foster Street, said he is one of the candidates on the current list and is willing to take the EMT course on his own time and at his own expense. He believes he deserves the position. David Ford, 115 Andover Street, said he is number one on the list and at the time Chief Dolan recommended he get his EMT certification, he couldn't afford it($500). Lt. William Martineau, President of the North Andover Firefighters Union, said this situation puts him a difficult position. He does believe the Town should employ Town residents. John Leeman asked if Lt. Martineau had heard that some present Firefighters would be willing to be assigned to the ambulance, and was told that a couple had indicated they would be willing to do this. John Leeman made a MOTION that before the Board requests a list it instructs the Town Manager and the Chief meet with the union to see if interim measures can be worked out. Chief Dolan said his reason for requesting a selective list is to get the second ambulance in service as soon as possible. He also said he would like the negotiations and requesting the selective list simultaneously. Keith Mitchell made the point that according to the Charter,the Fire Chief is the appointing authority. He added that the Board of Selectmen duty is to be the goal setting authority under the Charter and not to get Board of Selectmen Minutes July 19, 1999 Page 2 into the day to day operations of the Town. John Leeman said he agreed with the Chairman but also said the Board negotiates the contract. James Xenakis made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart,to send the attached letter to DPA stating that the Board of Selectmen would like to ask for an open competitive list for new hires. Donald Stewart pointed out that the Fire Chief is the hiring authority. John Leeman asked that James Xenakis amend the Motion to add the following: "Before we proceed with a special certification,the Board believes that the Town Manager should meet with the Collective Bargaining Unit to explore alternatives to staffing the second ambulance while some additional new hires attain their certification.'; vote approved 3 —2 (Keith Mitchell and William Duffy voted against). Sutton Pond Condominiums. Emma Donnelly a resident at Sutton Pond came before the Board to ask for a reduction in the water bill owed by the Condominium Association. Her reasons for this request are that there are inconsistencies in meter readings,the Association did inquire about their water bill in 1995 and the Association was told the bills were accurate and it would cause a financial hardship. The Town Manager said he has written a letter to the management company giving a number of options to the Association. He said he will be setting up a meeting to discuss these options. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Donald Stewart made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to approve the Minutes of May 24, 1999 (Executive and Open Sessions), June 5, 1999,the amended June 16, 1999 minutes and June 22, 1999;vote approved 5 — 0. CONSENT ITEMS: Request to Change Date for the use of the Old Center Common— St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church requests to change the date of their Church Picnic/Festival from July 18, 1999 to September 12, 1999 from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Donald Stewart made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to approve this request; vote approved 5 — 0. Lazarus House—Request to use the Old Center Common for a Band Concert on July 23, 1999 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. James Xenakis made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart to approve this request; vote approved 4— 0— 1 (John Leeman abstained). LICENSING COMMISSIONERS: James Xenakis made a MOTION seconded by John Leeman,to move into Licensing; vote approved 5 - 0. John Leeman made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to approve the following one-day licenses but did not waive the fee for the Historic Managers' Meeting; Evy Gillette, Manager, Stevens Estate @ Osgood Hill, 723 Osgood Street, requests the following one-day licenses: Historic Managers' Meeting July 21, 1999 5:00 p.m. — 8:00 p.m. Beer&Wine (Date Change) Morgillo Company Outing July 29, 1999 4:00 p.m. — 9:00 p.m. Beer&Wine Vote approved 5 — 0. John Leeman made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to approve the request of Paul Burke, Grand Knight, Monsignor Shea Council 3819, Knights of Columbus, 505 Sutton Street, for a one-day beer&wine Board of Selectmen Minutes July 19, 1999 Page 3 license for their annual pig roast on July 23, 1999 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and also to grant a fee waiver; vote approved 5 — 0. William Duffy made a MOTION, seconded by John Leeman,to approve the request of Camelot Building Associates for a license to alter the premises of the Knights of Columbus, 505 Sutton Street, by adding a patio; vote approved 5 — 0. William Duffy made a MOTION, seconded by John Leeman,to approve the transfer of a Liquor License from ARC Restaurant Inc., d/b/a Culpeppers Pub &Grill, 815 Turnpike Street, Carl Discipolo, Owner,to TJR Line Inc., James F. Tringale, Manager. This is contingent on Board of Health approval; vote approved 5 - 0. John Leeman made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to table the request from TJR Line Inc. to place four automatic amusement devices at Culpeppers Pub&Grill, 815 Turnpike Street, until next week when all approvals are completed; vote approved 5 — 0. Chief William Dolan, representing Building Commissioner, Robert Nicetta, requested that the approval for an aboveground storage tank license for Safety-Kleen Chemical Services, Inc., 221 Sutton Street be postponed. Some residents had questions about the tank. David Parquette, representing Safety-Kleen, said the chemicals stored are flammable but are stored according to all codes. Keith Mitchell made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to take no action at this time; vote approved 5 — 0. John Leeman made a MOTION, seconded by Keith Mitchell,to move out of Licensing; vote approved 5 - 0. OLD BUSINESS: Presentation—Water& Sewer Rate Structure Options—Wes Gardner, Consultants to Mana_eg ment. Wes Gardner presented his review of water and sewer rate structure options. There are two bases on which rates are designed, common usage and customer class usage. He said a water/sewer rate design can include a minimum charge or no minimum charge. He explained the advantages and disadvantages of each. Another area he discussed was the frequency of customer billing and its affects on cash flow and identification of meter problems. He said that North Andover has too many estimated readings, and he needs one year's worth of bills to do more than a one step evaluation. The Town Manager said an RFP will have to be issued, and Wes Gardner was asked to submit a proposal. Status Report—Water/Sewer Billing Improvements. J. William Hmurciak presented an update on the water and sewer billing improvements. A new system for reading meters has been implemented. As of July 19, 1999 funding has been obtained for the meter replacement program at the Annual Town Meeting, met with meter manufacturers to assess available technology, completed cross-check of 1993 to 1998 water/sewer permits and water/sewer permits and water billing accounts, completed 4th quarter water and sewer billing on target, restructured meter reading system, established a separate database for implementation of monthly billing of large users, continued coordination of Lucent meter replacement, implementing the transition to the new water/sewer billing software, obtained updated costs for planning the meter replacement program and drafted a scope of services and set of specifications for the meter replacement program RFP. FY 1999 Revenue Report. The Town Manager did an analysis of actual to budget revenues for FY 1999. The Town Accountant is tracking down Cherry Sheet figures through the Department of Revenue. Another area of concern was the practice of treating Chapter 90 as a receipt to the General Fund and there is some exposure there. This is being investigated by the Town Accountant. Another report will be given at the next Board meeting. Board of Selectmen Minutes July 19, 1999 Page 4 Stevens Pond Revenue vs. Expenditures. The Town Manager reviewed the Stevens Pond revenues vs. expenditures. The Town Manager said that beach receipts are currently falling short of covering all the expenses of the program. He said he believes that the revenues shown as supporting the FY 1999 expenses are understated by reason of the extremely wet June of 1998. As a result more beach tags may have been sold in July 1998 than would have otherwise been the case. For that same reason the revenues supporting the FY 2000 beach season may be overstated. The average revenues received over the past two years is $34,601 which may be a more accurate reflection. Keith Mitchell said all permits and fees should be analyzed. The Board felt these fees should be tracked more closely. It was felt that an analysis should be done in the fall. NEW BUSINESS: Acceptance of Gift to Fire Department and Establishment of Special Account. Chief William Dolan said Prescott Nursing Home had approached the Chief about raising funds to purchase a thermal imaging camera. A gentleman than came in and offered to donate $55,025.66 to purchase three cameras. The gentleman does not want a lot of publicity. James Xenakis made a MOTION, seconded by John Leeman,to accept the donation of$55,025.66 and establish a dedicated account for the purpose of purchasing the thermal imaging cameras; vote approved 5 — 0. Grant Application—Historic Center Roadway Pro _gram. Keith Mitchell said the Old Center Traffic Study Committee had been looking into grants and that William Scott, Director of Community Development was able to put together a grant application to the Federal Highway Administration Transportation and Community System Preservation Pilot Program. If granted, it could provide a $1.69 million dollar grant. John Leeman made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to apply for this Grant; vote approved 5 - 0. ADJOURNMENT: John Leeman made a MOTION, seconded by James Xenakis,to adjourn the meeting at 10:45 p.m.; vote approved 5 — 0. Ann M. Keating Administrative Secretary James M. Xenakis, Clerk of the Board