1939-06-26 - Laserfiche WebLink

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34 I SELECTMEN'S MEETING NNE 269 1939. A regular.meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectments Room, Town Office Building, at 7:30 P.M. Chairman Giroux., Messrs. Potter, Rowse, Sarano and Locke were present. The Clerk was also present. At 7;30 P.M. hearing was declared open on the application of the Boston Edison Co. and the New England Tel. & Tel. Co. for permission to maintain three poles on Marrett Road, Pole southerly from Mass. Ave. No one appeared in favor or in Location opposition. Mr. Potter moved that the permit be granted. Mr. Saran seconded the motion and it was so voted. John Valentine appeared before the Board and said he wished to thank the members for the $30,000. policy which he had been requested to place. He said that his instructions were to place the policies with Mutual companies and that that would be hard for him to do. He talked with Mr. Cleason, Mr. Stonets law partner, who agreed with him. There are two questions to be considered: (1) whether or not the Board had the authority as a Board to accept the liability for the Town without the consent of the Town; and (2) whether or not the Board as a Board has the right to make the Town, as a corporation, part of another corporation. He said he assumed that the reason for going mutual was to save the dividends. Four or five years ago, the rate of town insurance was $1.28 and now it ib $1.12. He said no one knows how long the mutual companies.will be able to pay dividends. He said that the town had an appropriation this year for fire insurance of $4100, and by placing insurance with mutual companies, the Board was placing liability of $8200. on the town. Mr. Valentine presented a letter from E. A. Larner, Vice President of the Employers' Fire Insur- ance Co. stating that he had been informed that the Selectmen had decided to place the fire insurance on town properties, with mutual companies to the exclusion of stock companies. Mr. Larner said that Mr. Stone was on the West Coast, and he would appreciate it if the Board would delay any action on the matter until Mr. Stone's return. He presented an- other letter from J. Henry Duffy protesting the Board's action on the matter, -and also a letter from Robert Whitney in protest. Mr. Rowse asked if Mr. Valentine should not have devoted his efforts to seeing how to overcome the difficulties by going to non -insurance people. He said the liability of placing insurance with a first rate mutual company was ' practically nil. Mr. Val dntine said the only form of criticism Sze had was that mutual companies did not support Insurance