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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982-01-25 Board of Selectmen Minutes~ANUARY 25, 1982. (continued) 345 The Board received a Memorandum of Agreement for the improvement of roads in the Town of North Andover under the provisions of Section 34, Chapter 90 of the General Laws. As requested the Board voted to sign the ~greement, in duplicate, and return to the State Department of Public Works. The appropri- ation will be $85,723.00 fer force account work and will be sent to the Town when the Memorandum.of Agreement, duly executed, is received by the DPW. CONSTABLE: .. The .request of Richard Hayden to be appointed Constable in the Town of North Ando'ver was again discussed. SelEctman Graham stated that he would like the appointment postponed for one more week.to secure added information on the application. The question of how many Constables does the Town need came up. Brian advised the Board that there were four constables at the present time and thought there should be a reasonable limit on the number of constable appointed. Selectman Joyce told Hayden that the delay in his appointment was no reflection on him, that his recommendations from four townspeople were excellent. However, he had spoken briefly with the Police Chief who has work with all the Constables and the Chief was concerned about having a lzmzt set. It was voted to table the appointment for one week to enable the Board to consult with the Chief. At this point, Hayden requested that his applica- tion be withdrawn without prejudice. He stated that his bond was outstanding. for a few weeks now. Selectman Jo~ce repeated that the delay was no reflec- tion on Hayden, that the Board had/c~arify the number of Constables before acting and confer with the Chief. He made a motion to honor Hayden's request to withdraw his application without prejudice and to get back to him when the matter was settled. Vote was unanimous with the intention to discuss it once more at next week's meeting. DRUNK DRIVERS: The Board received answering letters of acknowledgement to their letters requesting stricter punishment for drunk drivers. Richard E. McLaughlin, Registrar of Motor Vehicles advised the Board that Governor King had appointed a Task Force to research.~:this problem and make recommendations for new legislation to be filed by Governor King to deal more sever~with these offenders. Representative Hermann stated that he had co-sponsored legislatio~ · to tighten up the existing law and he hoped to eliminate the plea-bargaining process. Senator Pollard stated that our current laws have a range of possibl penalties that can be imposed and , lately, judges around the State have begun to impose the more stringent penalties that are now available under our current laws. She feels strongly that if our current laws are strictly en- forced by the judiciary they can be used as a serious deterent to drunk driv- ing'in'the State. She also enclosed a copy of the current laws. CONSERVATION COMMISSION-LEGAL CONSULTANT: Letter received from the Conservation Commission stating that they were going to hire Gregor McGregor as a Special Legal:Consultant. The Board questioned the reasons the Conservation Commission was hiring McGregor and Selectman Joyce stated that he objected to this move by the C.C. and stated that Town Counsel was hired to advise Town departments and Commissions and the C.C. sh0dIdn't duplicate services already available to them from Town Counsel. That the Selectmen should be advised and they should approve any act of hirin a Special Town Counsel before he is hired. Brian stated he thought the C.C. wanted to acquire specific advice from McGregor to improve the By,Law, that it was more of a research ty~ of service they were asking for, not a legal opinion. A motion was made to send letter to Conservation Commission with copies to Town Counsel, McGregor and Licciardello, to advise them that the question was raised a~ to whether this procedure is in compliance with the To~n ~y~Law concerning Town Counsel~s.~duties and the legal affairs of the Town~ and requests further clarification on just what the Attorney will be doing andwhy ~hey feel that Town Counsel cannot adequately assist them in this matter. Vote was 3-0-1. 1 abstention (Graham) SIDEWALKS: Letter received from Peter Garofoli concerning the installation of additional s%dewalks and requested the Selectmen establish a committee to expedite the matter. On Selectman Graham's motion, the Board voted to send a letter to Mr. Garofoli stating thane before the Board establishes the proposed committee they would like him to/more specific on where he believes the problem areas are in Town.