2018-03-12 BOS-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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Selectmen – March 12, 2018 Page 1 of 11 Selectmen’s Meeting March 12, 2018 A meeting of the Lexington Board of Selectmen was called to order at 6:03 p.m. on Monday, March 12, 2018 in the Selectmen’s Meeting Room of the Town Office Building and immediately entered Executive Session under Exemption 3 to discuss strategy with respect to collective and coalition bargaining related to Municipal and School unions. Upon exiting Executive Session at 7:15 p.m., a five-minute recess was called and Open Session reconvened at 7:20 p.m. Ms. Barry, Chair; Mr. Pato; Ms. Ciccolo; Mr. Lucente; and Ms. Hai were present as well as Mr. Valente, Town Manager; and Ms. Siebert, Recording Secretary. Public Comments Ann Grady, Follen Church Gun Violence Prevention Committee Chair, said her group’s application to rent the Cary Memorial Building on Sunday, April 8, 2018 for a program entitled “Gun Violence: Action, Truth, and Reconciliation” was denied by the Town. The intention of the program is to highlight the work of Lexington School students in response to the Parkland, Florida school shootings and to have experts, such as the State Attorney General, explain State and Federal gun laws. Ms. Grady asked that the decision be reconsidered and what the appeals process might be. Devesh Patel, a sophomore at Lexington High School, is a member of the “Lexington Says Enough” group. He reported that tensions and anxiety among students and parents have increased since the Parkland shootings. He asked the Gun Violence program be allowed to take place in the community space of the Cary Memorial Building since he believes it to be a conversation and not inherently political. Taylor Singh, 80 Burlington Street/Precinct 7 Town Meeting Member, is also a member of “Lexington Says Enough”. She, too, asked for reconsideration of the decision and noted that the prohibition against use of Cary Hall for political purposes, as stipulated in the bequest of the building donor, seems contradicted by its use for Town Meetings. She believes it would be more responsible, for security reasons, to hold the program near the Police Station, although there is no expectation of violence. Jessie Steigerwald, Precinct 8 Town Meeting Member, asked the Town Manager for reconsideration as well, or that an appeals process be identified that involves a group rather than a single individual. She sees the program as educational because it will provide residents with important information. Follen Church has been organizing this event for more than a year; while it is timely, it is not based on the recent events in Parkland, Florida. Ms. Steigerwald noted she has attended more than one program in the Cary Memorial Building where candidates seeking political office were allowed to speak. She believes the decision to deny use of Cary Hall for the Gun Violence program is inconsistent with permissions given in the past. Valerie Overton, 25 Emerson Gardens, belongs to a group that is co-sponsoring the Gun Violence program. She sees the program as a way of hearing multiple perspectives and offering critical information to a broad variety of people. She believes the program should be open and inclusive and held in a community space.