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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-01-25 Board of Selectmen Minutes BOARD OF SELECTMEN MINUTES JANUARY 25, 2010 CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Tracy M. Watson called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM at Town Hall Meeting Room. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE ATTENDANCE: The following were present: Tracy M. Watson, Chairman; Daniel P. Lanen, Vice Chairman; Rosemary Connelly Smedile, Clerk; Richard A. Nardella, Licensing Chairman;William F. Gordon; Mark Rees, Town Manager; Ray Santilli, Assistant Town Manager. Note: Daniel Lanen recused EXECUTIVE SESSION: William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Richard Nardella, to move into Executive Session to discuss Collective Bargaining. Roll Call Vote—Rosemary Smedile yes, William Gordon yes, Richard Nardella yes and Tracy Watson yes, approved 4-0. Note: Daniel Lanen returned APPROVAL OF MINUTES Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by Richard Nardella, to approve the Open Session Minutes and Executive Session Minutes as written for January 11, 2010. Vote approved 5-0. COMMUNICATIONS,ANNOUNCEMENTS, AND PUBLIC COMMENT: The Town Manager announced adding and deleting items to the Agenda. Under Communications and Announcements; Item VA FY09 Auditors Report and Management Letter would be postponed until the next meeting and adding Item VC Appointment by Board of Selectmen. Note: Daniel Lanen and Rosemary Smedile recused Conditional Appointment of Police Officer The Town Manager Mark Rees as appointing authority for police positions below the rank of Chief made a conditional appointment to fill a current vacancy in the police department. The Town Manager appointed Officer Jason K. Wedge to the police department. The actual appointment and determination of an effective date will be contingent upon successful completion of the required medial examination and the physical abilities test required by HRD, as well as the start of a recruit in the police academy. The Board of Selectmen was requested to vote to approve the appointment. Richard Nardella made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, to approve the conditional appointment of Jason K. Wedge to the police department. Vote approved 3-0. Note: Daniel Lanen and Rosemary Smedile returned Appointment to Poet Laureate Committee The appointment sub-committee consisting of William Gordon and Rosemary Smedile recommended appointing Thomas James Baker to the Poet Laureate Committee. The Board was requested to approve. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, to appoint Thomas James Baker to the Poet Laureate Committee. Vote approved 5-0. Update on Audit Committee Report Richard Nardella announced that the Audit Committee are still in the process of collecting facts regarding the Purchasing Director and will report back to the Board at their next meeting. William Gordon requested that residents shovel the snow in front of their homes especially if they are on a school walking route. Board of Selectmen Minutes January 25, 2010 2 Note: Daniel Lanen recused CONSENT ITEMS: Donation to Police and Fire Department Schneider Electric Buildings Business has made a generous donation of$1,000 to the Police Department and $1,000 to the Fire Department. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, to accept donations from Schneider Electric Building Business to the Fire Department and to the Police Department to be spent at the discretion of the Fire Chief and the Police Chief, respectively, in support of their departments and to instruct the Town Manager to send a letter expressing the Board's appreciation for these generous donations. Vote approved 4-0. Note: Daniel Lanen returned Donation of Van from Merrimack College Merrimack College has offered to donate a 1992 Chevrolet P2 handicapped accessible van. The van will be used jointly by the Senior Center and the Youth Center. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by Richard Nardella, to accept the donation by Merrimack College of a 1992 Chevrolet P2 handicapped accessible van and to instruct the Town Manager to send a letter expressing the Board's appreciation for this generous donation. Vote approved 5-0. LICENSING: Richard Nardella made a MOTION, seconded by Rosemary Smedile, to move into Licensing. Vote approved 5-0. License Compliance Issues: Millennium Eatery, Inc. d/b/a Beijing Restaurant At the Commission's December 21, 2009 meeting the Board granted the new management of the Beijing Restaurant time to become familiar with the operations of the establishment and to come back before the Board to present a plan on how they would ensure future compliance with the Commission's rules, regulations and state laws. A security inspection was administered by Lieutenant Paul Gallagher the morning of January 25, 2010. When he arrived there was no manager on duty, a hostess was able to show him the video camera and the intellicheck machine. Mr. Victor Ng, Manager of Operations, who works part-time on weekends, informed the Board that the restaurant had a staff meeting on January 19, 2010 to discuss the security plan in place at the establishment. This document was presented to the Board. Ms. Wen Jing Huang is the owner and manager on record and she stated that she only works at the restaurant about 30 hours a week because she owns another business in Boston. They stated that bartenders manage the restaurant when they are not present. Licensing Chairman Richard Nardella said he was disappointed that Mr. Ng did not contact the Police Department and try to work with and comply with all the proposed security systems that needed to be updated as requested by the Board. They had a month to get their act together and failed to properly get everything in place with a well planned security system. Nardella also said that according to the Licensing Rules and Regulations that the restaurant has to have a full-time manager on duty at all times. All employees must be TIP certified and be up-to-date every three years. Selectman Lanen suggested that the restaurant hire a full-time manager or a professional consultant to help them. In order to keep their liquor license things needed to change for the better dramatically and they would need to contact their attorney. Licensing Chairman Nardella and the Town Manager will work together drafting a letter to the management of the restaurant with specific deadlines for security compliance. If the restaurant management does not meet the deadlines and make the specific changes requested, their liquor license will be revoked and will be forced to close down. Board of Selectmen Minutes January 25, 2010 3 Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, to move out of Licensing. Vote approved 5-0. OLD BUSINESS: Movie and Film Production Policy Richard Nardella made revisions to the policy and the Board was requested to approve the revisions. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by Richard Nardella, to approve the Revised Movie and Film Production Policy. Vote approved 5-0. FYII Budget Policy Statement The Final revised copy was passed out by the Town Manager and the Board was asked to approve the FY11 Budget Policy Statement. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by Richard Nardella, to approve the revised FY11 Budget Policy Statement. Vote approved 5-0. Ambulance Rates 2010 At the last meeting questions were raised regarding collections of past due amounts. Answers were provided by Rick Martin at ComStar Ambulance Billing. The Town can use additional collection steps to collect unpaid bills such as a Collection Letters, Credit Bureau reporting and the use of an outside Advanced Collection Agency. The Town of North Andover uses the first two methods of collection for its non-residents that do not pay their ambulance bills, but the Town only sends three (3) bill requests to its residents and no further pursuing payment. There is an explanation of an abatement process for residents who cannot pay their bills. Richard Nardella made a MOTION, seconded by Rosemary Smedile, to set the current rate which represents a 12.7% rate increase which equates to the 75.9% above the 2010 Medicare rates. Vote approved 5-0. Procedure for filling Fire Chief Position Town Counsel Thomas Urbelis was present to answer any questions regarding the procedure for filling the position of Fire Chief. Urbelis said that the bylaw clearly states that and Assessment Center has to be setup and shall include a competitive examination process. "The Town Manager shall choose an individual or firm qualified by experience and knowledge to conduct the assessment center and shall also appoint the interviewing panel which shall, at a minimum, have two chiefs from the fire department to serve on the panel. The recommendations of the interviewing panel shall be forwarded to the Board of Selectmen for their consideration in making the appointment." Several questions were asked regarding the process, the cost, and the shelf-life of an assessment center because one was done two years ago to choose a Fire Chief and there might be a need to do another in the future for a Police Chief. The Town is looking for ways to cut the cost of redoing this every few years. The Town Manager said that it all depended on how many candidates apply for the position of Fire Chief. The cost and work of an Assessment Center would cost relatively less if only one candidate applied rather than three or four candidates. This would be a major factor in the decision. The position has been posted with a closing date of January 26, 2010. The Town Manager was asked to consider rewording or amending the Bylaw- Chapter 45 at the 2010 Annual Town Meeting. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, requesting the Town Manager to bring forth a proposal for an Assessment Center that would be acceptable as to the current bylaw. Vote approved 5-0. NEW BUSINESS: Purchasing Director Job Description Revision The Town Manager and the Assistant Town Manager proposed adding risk management responsibilities to the position of Purchasing Director. By adding risk management responsibilities to this position, the Board of Selectmen Minutes January 25, 2010 4 Town can take advantage of a dedicated person administering and focusing on these issues to minimize claims and reduce risk. This is now being handled by several departments. Selectmen opposed this revision at this time and asked the Town Manager to do a comparison among the communities regarding the Purchasing Director position and their responsibilities. This item was TABLED. TOWN MANAGER'S REPORT: • An update was given of Waverley Road Sewer Replacement Project. The contract for the work has been issued to DeFelice Corporation of Dracut. The project is anticipated to be for 270 days, excluding a winter shutdown between November 15, 2010 and April 15, 2011. • The Town has received approval to draw down on matching funds under the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust's CLEAN ENERGY CHOICE Program. A check in the amount of $16,578.13 has been received. • The Town Manager attended a hearing on January 12, 2010 and provided testimony to the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government on two home rule petition bills, an H597 an Act Exempting the Town of North Andover from Provisions of the Prevailing Wage Law and H598, An Act Modifying a Conservation Restriction in the Town of North Andover. The latter has to do with allowing athletic fields to be constructed at the Town Farm. • A joint meeting with the Finance Committee will be held on Thursday January 28 at 6:30 p.m. in the Selectmen's Meeting Room at Town Hall to review Capital Improvement Projects submitted by the School and Municipal Departments. • The Health Department will be conducting another H1 N1 flu clinic on Wednesday, January 27th beginning at 1:00 p.m. at Osgood Landing. At this clinic there will be 3000 dosages available. • The Town Manager announced that the Governor made an Announcement at the MMA Meeting that North Andover would receive level funding for FY11. This is a preliminary figure before it goes to the House of Representatives. Richard Nardella made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, to move back into Executive Session and would not return to Open Session. A roll call vote Rosemary Smedile yes, William Gordon yes, Richard Nardella yes, and Tracy Watson yes. Vote approved 4-0. Note: Daniel Lanen recused from Executive Session. ADJOURNMENT: Before leaving Executive Session Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, to adjourn the meeting at 10:20 p.m. Vote approved 4-0. Adele J. Johnson Administrative Secretary Rosemary Connelly Smedile, Clerk of the Board