2007-02-05-WALKS-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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MEETING MINUTES — SIDEWALK COMMITTEE - FEB 5, 2007 Substantially the entire meeting was spent reviewing, again, how the Town DPW operates (puts project wark out to bid, evaluates bids, schedules road and sidewalk work and responds to requests from citizens and Town Departments). Another review of the timing relationship between money appropriated for capital projects and the calendar date by which the actual work will take place was done (for example money appropriated at Town Meeting 2006 for the neXt fiscal year is rarely actually spent until calendar year 2007 or later). Wayne Brooks agreed to provide a written update on the status of the sidewalk work for which the $200K was appropriated for fisca12006-07. [This was distributed subsequent to the meeting.] As none of the attendees apparently had reviewed the recently released 2007 Town Warrant the Committee was unaware that the prior year's appropriation and the $100K requested for sidewalk repair at the 2007 Town Meeting is/was a capital appropriation. As the Board of Selectmen liaison wasn't present and Mr. Brooks had not received an answer either the Committee was not informed of the reasons for the decision by the budget group to reduce the $200K amount originally in the DPW budget for the upcoming fiscal year to the $100K listed in the Warrant. Therefore the approved recommendation to send a letter to the Town Manager and Board of Selectmen to assure the $200K appropriated in the previous year be placed in the capital budget was moot. As little of the scheduled agenda items were addressed they were tabled until the next meeting scheduled for May 7th at 11AM. The item covered was the need to reorganize the Committee with a focus on Safe Routes to Schools and developing the Master Plan requested in the Committee Charge. Sue-Ellen Briggs offered to be the point person for building the Master Plan. PARENTETICAL NOTE FROM THE CHAIR: Our last few meetings have been unproductive, usually due to redundant review of settled issues, interrogation of town staff about why the town works the way it does, and lots of complaining and micromanagement efforts and personal agendas outside the scope of the Committee Charge. This must cease and meetings must become useful and productive. Respectfully submitted, Craig Weeks