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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-04-02 Board of Selectmen Minutes BOARD OF SELECTMEN MINUTES APRIL 2, 2012 CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Tracy Watson called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM at Town Hall Meeting Room. ATTENDANCE: The following were present: Tracy Watson, Chairman; William F. Gordon, Clerk; Rosemary Smedile, Licensing Chairman; Donald Stewart, Richard Vaillancourt, Ray Santilli, Assistant Town Manager; and Andrew Maylor, Town Manager. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE APPROVAL OF MINUTES: William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Rosemary Smedile, to approve the Open Session Minutes of March 12, 2012, as written. Vote approved 4-0-1. COMMUNICATIONS, ANNOUNCEMENTS,AND PUBLIC COMMENT: The Board welcomed the new elected selectman Richard Vaillancourt and re-elected selectman William Gordon. Town Common Tree Planting Program A group of Town Employees, members of the Historical District Commission and two residents met and are recommending the following improvements to the Old Center Common which includes plantings, benches and trash receptacles. The first phase will be tree planting and this will go out to bid in April, the contract will be awarded in May with work starting in June 2012. Donald Stewart made a MOTION, seconded by Rosemary Smedile, to accept the recommendations for phase 1 tree plantings at the Old Center Common. Vote approved 5-0. Energy Performance Contractinq Last May, the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee gave approval for Ameresco, Inc. to perform an investment grade audit of all municipal and school buildings. Ameresco presented their initial recommendations of various projects to undertake. The cost of the projects would be offset by the anticipated energy savings over a prescribed number of years. Ameresco will provide both the design and build services portion of the projects. The Board and the Town Manager discussed the projects, savings and how this audit would be financed. CONSENT ITEMS: Approval of the Motion to Intervene Attorney Bill August who represents the town in matters involving cable licenses with Comcast and Verizon is recommending that the Board of Selectmen authorize him to file a Motion to Intervene with the State DTC in a matter where we believe the Town was overcharged for certain costs by Comcast Cable. William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Richard Vaillancourt, acting as the License Issuing Authority, to authorize Assistant Town Counsel William August to file a Motion to intervene with the DTC on behalf of the Town in a matter involving Comcast Cable. Vote approved 5-0. Acceptance of Wheelabrator Grants As part of a settlement with the Commonwealth of MA over alleged environmental law violations, Wheelabrator is obligated to provide Supplemental Environmental Projects grants to communities that host waste-to-energy facilities to support programs that protect the environment. Three projects were accepted by Wheelabrator and approved by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection: Surface Water (Cochichewick) Overflow Engineering Study $50,000 Phyto-Pollution Reduction Project (tree planting) $25,000 Trash Truck Monitoring Project $75,000 $150.000 Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart, to accept the three Supplemental Environmental Projects grants approved by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and Board of Selectmen Minutes April 2, 2012 2 Wheelabrator as outlined in the March 28, 2012 letter from Assistant Town Manager Ray Santilli to Town Manager Andrew Maylor. Vote approved 4-0-1. William Gordon abstained. First Right of Refusal, Affordable Housing Resales CHAPA has notified the Town that two affordable units are up for sale. CHAPA manages the resale of affordable units for Oakridge Village and Kittredge Crossing. The Board of Selectmen has to determine if they want to exercise their right of first refusal. Rosemary Smedile made a MOTION, seconded by William Gordon, hereby votes not to exercise its right of first refusal as it relates to the following affordable housing units that are for sale: 3 Harvest Drive, Unit 105 at Oakridge Village and 109 Chickering Road, Unit 109D at Kittredge Crossing. Vote approved 5-0. Boston MedFlight"Every Second Counts" Cycling Event Diane Malcolmson of Boston MedFlight requests permission to hold the cycling event on July 29, 2012, from 7:00 a.m. —3:00 p.m. on North Andover town roads. William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Rosemary Smedile, to approve the "Every Second Counts" road cycling time trial event to be held on July 29, 2012 from 7 am to 3 pm beginning at the Boston MedFlight Hanger at the Lawrence Municipal Airport and traveling on roadways in North Andover. Vote approved 5-0. Selectmen Appointments Donald Stewart made a MOTION, seconded by Rosemary Smedile, to appoint resident Karin Rhoton to the Audit Committee. Vote approved 5-0. William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart, to appoint resident Roger Lawson, to the Board of Trustees of the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Vote approved 5-0. NEW BUSINESS: FY13 Town Manager Recommended Stevens Estate Enterprise Fund Budget The Town Manager Andrew Maylor presented a detailed summary of the Stevens Estate Budget and entertained questions from the Board regarding specifics of the plan. The Board was directed to forward this immediately to the Finance Committee. The Board discussed exploring options for the future of the Estate with restrictions of protecting the watershed. The Town Manager suggested having a workshop with the Board of Selectmen in the future. William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart, to accept the Town Manager's FY13 Recommended Stevens Estate Enterprise Fund Budget and forward to the Finance Committee. Vote approved 5-0. Vote to Close Warrant The Town Manager gave the Board of list of possible Articles to be placed on the Town Warrant for the Annual Town Meeting. The deadline for placing articles on the warrant closed on Friday March 30, 2012. The Board was asked to vote to close the Warrant. William Gordon made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart, to close the Warrant for Town Meeting Articles. Vote approved 5-0. TOWN MANAGER'S REPORT: Town Manager Appointments The Town Manager Andrew Maylor and Selectman William Gordon interviewed Ms. Lynne Rudnicki. She is being appointed to the Planning Board. The Town Manager appointed Maureen McAuley on March 28, 2012, to fill a vacant position as a Departmental Assistant within the Public Works Department. Board of Selectmen Minutes April 2, 2012 3 Employee Recognition The Town Manager Andrew Maylor recognized the excellent work of employee Angela Ciofolo. A resident wrote a letter commending Ms. Ciofolo for an outstanding job and her efforts in assisting him with his project. Five Year Forecast The Town Manager prepared a spreadsheet which projects the financial situation over the next five years. It assumes very little growth and both discretionary and non-discretionary expenses increasing at rates greater than inflation. The presumed health insurance increase represents making no changes to the benefit design currently offered and assumes the average increases during the last several years (28%total for FY12 and FY13)will continue. During the next several months health insurance will be front and center in many of our discussions as we hear back from our consultant with the options under the Health Insurance Reform Act. The Town Manager would like to start the annual practice of having a five year financial forecast presentation in October or November. That presentation would be a joint meeting of the selectmen, school committee and finance committee. Municipal Government Change in Hours The Town Manager and Human Resources Director having been working on changing the hours of operation for most of the municipal departments (excluding the Library, Senior Center and Youth Center) to allow for greater access for those who jobs or other circumstances make it difficult to do business with us. Based on the input from selectmen, residents, departments heads and other staff we will begin a pilot program on April 30, 2012 with the following hours of operation: Monday, 8:00—4:30; Tuesday, 8:00—6:00; Wednesday, 8:00—4:30, Thursday, 8:00 —4:30, Friday, 8:00— 12:00 Prior to the end of the summer, this will be evaluated on how the new schedule is working prior to making a more permanent decision regarding hours of operation. ADJOURNMENT: Richard Vaillancourt made a MOTION, seconded by Donald Stewart, to adjourn the meeting at 9:00 p.m. Vote approved 5-0. Adele J. Johnson Administrative Secretary William Gordon, Clerk of the Board