1988-01-BOS-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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, to 1 E r SELECTMEN'S MEETING January 27, 1988 meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held on Wednesday, January 27, 1988, i n the Bel ec tmen' s Meeting Room, Town Office Building, at 7:30 p . m , Chairman Edd i so n , Mr. Marshall, Mr, Da i 1 ev , Mrs. Smith, Mr. McSweeney; Mr. White, Town Manager; Mrs. Snow, Executive Clerk, were p r esen t . MWRA ISSUES Mr . Eddi son referred to a draft letter by Mrs. Smith from the Board to the MWRA stating opposition to procedures followed in the formulation of a new policy discussed at the Uanuary 25th meeting. He noted that although the members had been in favor of' sending the letter as presented, there had been no formal vote on the matter. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to authorize Mr. Eddi son to sign the let ter on behalf of the Board. BUDGET REVIEWS POLICE DEPARTMENT Mr. White referred to the presentation of the proposed budget of the Police Dept. by Chi of Fu r do n , schedu 1 ed for that evening. He noted the Expense Budget increase was under 4% as prescribed by guidelines, which showed a responsible outlook, He noted that fine performance of the Department as reflected in the number of citations and a low crime rate. Chief Fu r do n was introduced and thanked the Board for the opportunity to present an overview of Police operations and his proposed FY' BB Budget. He outlined figures on types of crimes committed in 1987 and distributed a chart showing a decline of 46% in burglaries in 1 987 and auto theft dowry 27.'/ . Larceny increased i n 1 987 over 1 986 by 101 cases. He. informed the Board that of BB Mass. cities, with 20,000- 30,000 population, Lexington has 4th lowest rate of violent crimes. Drug abuse may be down or levelling but alcohol abuse is up, r, which the Chief felt had contributed to a rise in vandalism, Chief Fu r do n described coverage of the Town by cruisers park-lock and walk, and directed patrol. The Department's Expense Budget request showed a B overall "Safety n cr ease . Of this 3%, the major increases were shown as Public Equipment and Telephone /Teletype costs. The Chief outlined amounts of fees colledted for various k i ndc of violations in 19K ($144,155) noting that this revenue amounts to more than the total Police Budget. Goals for F' 189 were listed as: ongoing maintenance of integrity; maximum protection of persons and property; ;� ensuring of statutory r i ghts; con t J* nued publ 1 c conf i dence i n the perf ormance of the Poi i ce Force. ' i of Furdon responded to questions by Board merr#bers. by justifying increases and explaining decreases. in several accounts. He reported that there are 4 of minority race and 1 woman now on the Force in compliance with legal requirements. He was complimented for his successful dealings w i th t r of f i c problems in Town and was asked to continue with his program of i n cr eased v i s i b i l i t y.