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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-06-30 Select Board Minutes NORTH ANDOVER SELECT BOARD MINUTES JUNE 30, 2025 Call To Order: Chair Brian Roache called the open meeting to order at 7:OOPM in the Select Board Room located at 120 Main Street North Andover. Select Board in Attendance: Chair Brian Roache, Janice Phillips, Laura Bates, Clerk Rosemary Smedile and David Kres were present Non-Board Members in Attendance: Town Manager Melissa Murphy-Rodrigues and Deputy Town Manager Denise Casey were present. PUBLIC COMMENT None. OLD BUSINESS PUBLIC HEARING -Greene Street Traffic and Safety Review MOTION: Ms. Phillips motioned to open the public hearing for Greene Street Traffic and Safety Review. Mr. Kres seconded. Motion approved 5-0. Ms. Bates and Ms. Smedile recused themselves. Mr. Roache stated this would typically not be held as a public hearing but wanted to hold it as a public hearing for the benefit of the public. Jennifer Murphy of 50 Bradstreet Road was present. Ms. Murphy stated she is asking the Town to install two stop signs:one at the corner of Bradstreet Road and Greene Street and the other at West Bradstreet Road. Ms. Murphy has brought a petition forward with signatures of support. Ms. Murphy stated, without stop signs, it makes the Bradstreet Roads look like one continuous road. Ms. Murphy stated her request is for safety reasons. Ms. Murphy stated she feels as though a stop sign in this area is warranted. Mr. Kres asked if the Police Department or DPW have recommendations or thoughts on the matter. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they sent over a request to a traffic engineer to do a study of the entire road;both for stop sign analysis and speeding mitigation. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they expect to have the study back for the Select Board's July 14th meeting. Mr. Kres asked if this is what they typically do when there are similar type requests. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated yes. Denevan O'Connell of 88 Greene Street expressed his support for stop signs. Mr. O'Connell stated he has witnessed close calls, and it should not take an accident for someone to take action. Mr. O'Connell stated he appreciates the time and effort that go into the studies, but as a neighbor living at these intersections, what they experience does not always line up with the data shown on paper. Mr. O'Connell asked the Board to consider putting a stop sign at this intersection even if the data does not show it. Jim Smedile of 65 Greene Street expressed his frustrations regarding the petition and lack of transparency. Mr. Smedile stated he is looking to be treated fairly, for there to be transparency, and for an upfront study. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they did receive public comment via email. Phil Rohn of 18 Woodbridge Road expressed that he does not want to see a stop sign if they do not really need one. Mr. Rohn stated that Woodbridge Road is a dead end street, and those coming and going are typically residents of that street. NORTH ANDOVER SELECT BOARD MINUTES JUNE 30, 2025 Kim Pass of 110 High Street expressed her thoughts of some sort of signage being placed at the intersection to warn drivers of the intersection. Mary Robinson of 27 Bradstreet Road expressed her support for placing a stop sign in this intersection. Ms. Robinson state safety is the most important, and a stop sign would prevent an accident from occurring. Joan Kulash of 55 Bradstreet Road expressed her support for a stop sign and stated the Town has already indicated this is a dangerous intersection with signage. Mary Ellen McAdam of 49 Greene Street expressed her support for a stop sign. Ms. McAdam stated safety is the utmost concern. Ms. Phillips stated the increasing reliance on delivery drivers, unfamiliar with Town roads, raises safety concerns. Ms. Phillips stated ensuring community safety, especially in neighborhoods with significant foot traffic, must come first particularly given the risk posed. MOTION: Mr. Kres motioned to close the public hearing for Greene Street Traffic and Safety Review. Ms. Phillips seconded. Motion approved 3-2 recused. Mr. Roache stated Greene Street has become more of a cutthrough between Mass Ave and Main Street. Mr. Roache stated there are a dozen four-way intersections in the Library District, and ten of them have stop signs for traffic control. Mr. Roache stated Greene Street is a busier road compared to others in the area. Mr. Roache stated not having stop signs at Bradstreet and Woodbridge creates inconsistency for those who are in the neighborhood. Mr. Roache stated it would be wise to go through the process of the study as it goes beyond stop signs to speeding issues. Mr. Roache stated they do not need the results of a study to tell them stop signs are appropriate. Ms. Bates and Ms. Smedile returned. Mr. Roache stated no action was taken, and they will reconvene on July 14th when they have the results of the traffic study. Vote to authorize the Town of North Andover to enter into an Intermunicipal Agreement with the Town of Boxford for the North Andover- Boxford Veteran Services District Ms. Casey discussed the Town of North Andover and Boxford's shared veteran services district. Ms. Casey stated they did not have an up-to-date memorandum of agreement between the two communities that addressed revenue sharing or what the responsibilities of the position would be. Ms. Casey stated it is important to be in compliance with the law and have an up-to-date MOA. Ms. Bates asked if they just needed to update the MOA. Ms. Casey stated yes. MOTION: Ms. Bates motioned to authorize the Town of North Andover to enter into an Intermunicipal Agreement with the Town of Boxford for the North Andover-Boxford Veteran Services District. Ms. Smedile seconded. Motion approved 5-0. NEW BUSINESS Reappointments to Board and Committees NORTH ANDOVER SELECT BOARD MINUTES JUNE 30, 2025 Ms. Phillips stated they have spent the last several weeks meeting with many volunteers from the Town boards and committees. Ms. Phillips stated they learned how they can help them and received updates on their committees. Mr. Kres stated feedback has been great. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues discussed her appointments. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they do have a vacancy on the Planning Board, and they will be posting that. MOTION: Ms. Phillips motioned to approve the reappointments and dates of term expiration of the Boards & Committee members as listed. Mr. Kres seconded. Motion approved 5-0. Appointment of KP Law as Special Town Counsel Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they keep KP Law on retainer and are required to do these appointments every year. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they are currently helping with a couple of different issues. Mr. Kres asked many municipalities they represent. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated it is a lot. Ms. Phillips asked if they work with a different person depending on what the need is. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated yes. MOTION: Ms. Bates motioned to appoint KP Law as special municipal counsel through June 30, 2026. Ms. Smedile seconded. Motion approved 5-0. Appointment of Norris, Murray and Peloquin as Special Town Counsel Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated this is their special labor counsel and work with the Town on more complicated labor issues and negotiations. Mr. Roache asked if this was as needed. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated yes. Mr. Roache asked if there is a retainer they charge. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated no. MOTION: Mr. Kres motioned to appoint Norris, Murray and Peloquin as special municipal counsel through June 30, 2026. Ms. Phillips seconded. Motion approved 5-0. Collect Board comments regarding Zero Prescott PEL Application Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they have a proposed development that has only site approval through Mass housing. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated the Town has not received any applications. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated the proposed development consists of 296 units of rental housing on 6.13 acres of land located at Zero Prescott Street and 67 High Street. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated the most recent housing production plan was completed in 2024. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated in June of 2023, they had 948 subsidized units on the housing inventory, which put them at 7.99%. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated until they get to 10%, which is safe harbor, they are subject to 40B developments under state law. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated at that point, they needed 239 units to get to 10%. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated the applicant for this project is East Mill Housing LLC. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they have asked KP Law to do a 40B refresher with the Zoning Board of Appeals. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues discussed what Mass housing considers for site approval. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they will be collecting comments from all the different boards that want to comment. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues discussed what they may want to comment on. Ms. Bates asked how much input do they have as this is a 40B and they do not meet the 10% housing. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated it is reasonable regulations. Mr. Roache asked if Fire would get to weigh in. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated yes. Mr. Roache asked if this one is unique in that it is being proposed by the principal who has a large investment already in the community. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated that RCG is a good community NORTH ANDOVER SELECT BOARD MINUTES JUNE 30, 2025 partner. Mr. Roache asked when looking at construction, would they ballpark construction in 2027. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated it depends. CONSENT ITEMS A. Accept donation from the community to the Town of a memorial bench for Officer Scarlett MOTION: Ms. Phillips motioned to accept the donation to the Town for a memorial bench for Officer Scarlett. Ms. Smedile seconded. Motion approved 5-0. APPROVAL OF OPEN SESSION MINUTES OF JUNE 16, 2025 MOTION: Ms. Bates motioned to approve the Open Session minutes of June 16, 2025 as presented. Ms. Phillips seconded. Motion approved 5-0. SELECT BOARD UPDATES Ms. Bates mentioned Officer Scarlett's Memorial. Ms. Bates mentioned that the Kittredge School Building Committee has been approved by MSBA to move into schematic design. Ms. Phillips mentioned the Farmer's Market. Mr. Roache mentioned fireworks on July 6. Ms. Phillips mentioned the reading of the Declaration of Independence on July 4. OUT OF ORDER: TOWN MANAGER'S REPORT Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues mentioned that they are aware of the news stories about Republic Services and their potential to strike. Ms. Murphy-Rodrigues stated they are doing their best and will keep everyone updated. BOARD REORGANIZATION A. Vote to appoint Chair MOTION: Ms. Bates motioned to appoint Janice Phillips as Chair of the Select Board. Mr. Kres seconded. Motion approved 5-0. B. Vote to appoint Vice Chair MOTION: Ms. Phillips motioned to appoint Rosemary Smedile as Vice Chair of the Select Board. Mr. Roache seconded. Motion approved 5-0. C. Vote to appoint Clerk MOTION: Ms. Bates motioned to appoint Brian Roache as Clerk of the Select Board. Mr. Kres seconded. Motion approved 5-0. D. Vote to appoint Licensing Chair MOTION: Mr. Roache motioned to appoint David Kres as Licensing Chair of the Select Board. Ms. Smedile seconded. Motion approved 5-0. NORTH ANDOVER SELECT BOARD MINUTES JUNE 30, 2025 E. Vote to appoint Appointment Subcommittee MOTION: Ms. Phillips motioned to appoint David Kres and Laura Bates as Appointment Subcommittee of the Select Board. Mr. Roache seconded. Motion approved 5-0. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Mr. Kres made a MOTION, seconded by Ms. Phillips to adjourn the Select Board meeting at 8:OOPM. Motion approved 5-0. Respectfully submitted, Nicole Civitarese Executive Assistant Rosemary Connelly Smedile, Clerk of the Board Documents used at meeting Intermunicipal Agreement Letter Petition Donation Reappointments Minutes from 6/16/25