Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-08-BOS-minSelectmen's Meeting Minutes August 14, 2000 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held on Monday, August 14, 2000 in the Selectmen's Meeting Room at 7:30 p.m. Chairman Krieger, Mrs. Eddison, Mrs. Abbott, Mrs. McKenna; Mr. White, Town Manager; Mr. Cohen, Town Counsel and Ms. Smith, Executive Clerk were present. Mrs. Krieger opened the meeting and announced that Mr. Enrich was on vacation and would not be attending the meeting. Public Comments Perry Pollins and Loraine Fournier spoke of their disfavor of the Selectmen's vote that will prohibit the erection of the creche on the Battle Green during the Holiday Season. Ruben Liebhaber spoke of his pleasure at the action of the Board on the matter. Consent Agenda Town Clerk Bond Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to set the sum of the Local Official Bond for the Town Clerk at $8,000. Sewer/Water Commitments and Adjustments Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the following: Commitment of water charges for 5/17/2000 (Cycle 2) $458,037.96 Commitment of sewer charges for 5/17/2000 (Cycle 2) $1,020,642.89 Commitment of water charges for 5/26/2000 (Cycle 3) $511,792.31 Commitment of sewer charges for 5/26/2000 (Cycle 3) $1,222,168.15 Commitment of water charges for 6/08/2000 (Cycle 9) $234,590.84 Commitment of water charges for 6/1/2000 to 6/30/2000 $52,307.57 Commitment of sewer charges for 6/1/2000 to 6/30/2000 $21,944.04 Adjustments of water charges for 3/1/2000 to 3/31/2000 - $2,966.85 Adjustments of sewer charges for 3/1/2000 to 3/31/2000 - $9,561.80 Adjustments of sewer charges for 4/1/2000 to 4/30/2000 - $5,425.82 Adjustments of water charges for 5/1/2000 to 5/31/2000 - $105,754.24 Adjustments of sewer charges for 5/1/2000 to 5/31/2000 - $13,319.39 Resignation from 20/20 Vision Steering Committee Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to accept the resignation of Heather Hartshorn Sweeney from the 20/20 Vision Steering Committee. Proclamation — Constitution Week Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign a proclamation declaring the week of September 17 through September 23 as Constitution Week. Selectmen's Meeting — August 14, 2000 Boston Gas Grant of Location — Brent Road Boston Gas Representative Francis X. O'Leary reviewed the petition for a grant of location to install 420 feet more or less of 4" gas main in Brent Road to extend the existing 4" gas main. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the petition of the Boston Gas Company to install approximately 420 feet of a 4 inch gas main in Brent Road, from the existing 4" gas main in Brent Road southerly to the end. Bell Atlantic Grant of Location — Hayden Avenue There was no representative of Bell Atlantic present. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn the hearing to September 11 at 7:30 p.m. Handicapped Parking — Lexington Center Assistant Town Engineer Dave Carbonneau recommended approval of a request from Barbara Barrows for additional handicapped parking spaces in Lexington Center. Mr. Carbonneau proposes one designated space in front of the Post Office and one in front of Vinny Testa's on Waltham Street. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the two additional handicapped spaces in the center as proposed. Precinct 4 Poll Relocation Town Clerk Donna Hooper presented a recommendation to relocate the Precinct 4 Poll from the High School to Bridge School. Mrs. Hooper will be sending out post cards to all registered voters in the precinct and will be posting signs on election day. The Warrant will also note the change in polling place for both Precinct 4 and Precinct 5. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to relocate the Precinct 4 polling place from the High School to Bridge School. Election Officer Appointments Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted 3 -0 (Mrs. McKenna abstained) to appoint a revised list of election officers dated August 11, 2000 that supersedes a previous vote of the Board on June 19, 2000. All appointments are effective September 1, 2000. The list consists of 59 democrats, 31 republicans and 46 unenrolled totaling 136 election officers. Selectmen's Meeting — August 14, 2000 Appointment of Planning Board Member Mrs. Krieger explained the process for appointing a member of the Planning Board to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Fred Merrill until the March 2001 local election. Planning Board members Chairman Steve Colman and Tony Galaitsis were present. Mr. Colman praised the work of Mr. Merrill and said the remaining Board members were pleased to have received applications from so many well qualified candidates. The Board would be well served by any of them. All the applicants were interviewed by the Planning Board, Mrs. Krieger and Mr. Enrich. The Planning Board met earlier this evening and would like to nominate Sara Chase to replace Mr. Merrill until the March election. Mrs. Chase's love for the Town, enthusiasm, energy and willingness to learn the zoning by -law came across strongly during the interview. If appointed, Mrs. Chase will resign as an Associate Member of the Board of Appeals. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted unanimously by Mrs. McKenna, Mrs. Eddison, Mrs. Krieger, Mrs. Abbott, Mr. Colman and Mr. Galaitsis to appoint Sara Chase as a member of the Planning Board for a term to expire March 5, 2001. Warrant for State Primary Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign the Warrant for the September 19, 2000 State Primary. Auctioneer's License Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the application and issue a three - day Auctioneer License to Metropolitan Antiques for an auction to be held September 8 -10, 2000 at Heritage Hall at 177 Bedford Street. Traffic Safety Advisory Committee Assistant Town Engineer Dave Carbonneau discussed a Traffic Safety Proposal for the lexington High School renovation project submitted by Principal Phil Lanoue. Principal Lanoue requested posting Worthen Road as a reduced speed School Zone and adding two crosswalks with yield to pedestrian cones at the new High School entrances off Worthen Road. The Committee explained that State Warrants require at least one grade below Grade 9 and therefore we could not recommend a School zone at this location. The Committee did agree to recommend the crosswalk installations. The Committee recommends two crosswalks be installed at the new entrances with YIELD TO PEDESTRIAN cones, NO PARKING zones and crosswalk signs. The cost of this recommendation is approximately $1,600. The School Department has offered to pay $1,000 of this cost. Selectmen's Meeting — August 14, 2000 Mrs. Abbott expressed concern about the heavy traffic on Worthen Road and the hope that any signage would be conspicuous. Mr. Carbonneau indicated they could use some new signage that is very conspicuous on a trial basis. Mrs. McKenna also felt it would be advisable to have no parking on Worthen Road between the two high school entrances. Mrs. Eddison supported Mrs. McKenna's recommendation. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the recommendation of the Traffic Safety Advisory Committee and to add two crosswalks with ancillary signage and no parking regulations on Worthen Road. Minutes Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the minutes of the meeting of May 8 with two corrections noted. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the minutes of the meetings of May 22, June 12 and July 24, 2000. Senior Center Siting Committee — Waldorf School Mrs. Abbott reviewed the position of the Senior Center Siting Committee that voted 6 -3 with two members absent to request the Board of Selectmen to exercise its option under the terms of the land lease in order to preserve its options regarding ownership of the Waldorf School, formerly the Adams School. The building needs a lot of work. It is not necessarily the best site; however, the majority of the Committee did not feel it should be taken out of consideration. The building should remain as an option for the Senior Center. The vote was 6 to 3 with two members absent. The Committee recommends that the Board vote tonight and negotiate for reclaiming the building. The Town Manager has asked seven restoration experts and they are not willing to be pinned down as to cost. There are sixty Lexington families served by Waldorf. Committee member Lauren MacNeil read a minority report that recommended letting Waldorf School remain. Council on Aging Chairman John Graham read a statement that indicated the Waldorf School would not be suitable for a new senior center. Carl Weiland, President of the Board of Trustees of Waldorf, said that Waldorf had just graduated its first high school class. The School has been a value to Lexington and the Trustees are concerned that the uncertainty of the Town's exercising its option is hampering their fund raising. Mr. Rosenberg felt the Committee has worked very hard and has recommended that the site remain under consideration. He indicated that if the Board repudiates the recommendation of the Committee, that would hamper the credibility and effectiveness of the Committee. Selectmen's Meeting — August 14, 2000 Several residents spoke in favor of the Waldorf school remaining in Town. Mrs. Eddison felt a school would not make a good senior center. Mrs. McKenna felt the school needs to be kept open as an option. There are tremendous space needs in the community and we should preserve the right to purchase the school to the next step in the process. Mrs. Krieger thanked the Senior Center Siting Committee for the work they have done; however, she felt she had heard no new evidence to change her desire to see the Waldorf School remain and did not feel it would be fair to the school to keep the school in a state of uncertainty. Motion to exercise the Town's option under the terms of the land lease to preserve the Town's opportunity regarding ownership of the former Adams School was made and seconded and voted 2 to 2. Mrs. Krieger explained that the vote did not carry and the Waldorf School is not going to be put on notice. Newspaper Distribution Boxes Mr. White reviewed regulations that had been redrafted by Palmer & Dodge. Mr. White explained that he and Counsel would be meeting with the distributors on August 23 and hoped to be bringing the regulations to the Board for adoption at its meeting on September 11. The Historic Districts Commission can be very specific about their regulations. Their authority is not as limited as the Selectmen's might be. Gareth Charter, Publisher of the Lexington Minuteman, asked whether there was a specific public safety issue that caused the regulation to be drawn up. Mr. White explained there were several complaints about the lack of maintenance of the boxes and also complaints about blocking of sight lines and concerns about pedestrians not having access to sidewalks. Most recently a homeowner at the Marrett Road site in front of his house asked that the box be removed. Also it is the general sentiment of the community that there is no criteria for placement of the boxes. Mr. Charter also asked about guidelines from the HDC. Mrs. McKenna indicated the HDC is very accessible and would be happy to explain their guidelines. Pay As You Throw Committee Mrs. McKenna hoped that any recommendation for a PAYT program would go to the electorate. Steve Tripi speaking as a concerned citizen felt there would be a referendum on a trash fee. Perry Pollins objected to paying another fee. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint the following individuals to the Selectmen's Pay as You Throw Committee: John Andrews and John Fedorochko from SWAT, Lucy Lockwood from TMMA, David Kanter, William Frawley and Paul Chernick from the neighborhoods and Judy Uhrig from the League of Women Voters. Mrs. Krieger will be Selectman Liaison and Alan Levine will be Appropriation Committee liaison. Selectmen's Meeting — August 14, 2000 Use of Battle Green — Daughters of the American Revolution Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the request from the Lexington Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution to conduct a rededication service on October 18, 2000 at 2:00 p.m. at the site of a bronze plaque on the Battle Green marking the site of the Old Belfry. License Agreement — Lexington Park Subdivision Mr. Cohen explained a request for a license agreement for Town owned land abutting the recently approved Lexington Park Subdivision for water and drainage connections to the subdivision. The Planning Board felt that it would be very good use of the land. In return, they have said they will do maintenance work at the Marvin Street Playground in a written a letter to the Recreation Committee. In response to Mrs. Abbott's question, Mr. Cohen indicated that the Planning Board approval of the development hinges on the Board's approval of the license agreement. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve and sign the license agreement for Gerald T. Moloney, Trustee, Winter Street Realty Trust to use town -owned land abutting Cushing Road for water and drainage connections. Selectmen Liaison Reports Mrs. Abbott reported on meetings of the No Place for Hate Committee. They have been working with the Cary Lecture Series and hope there may be a diversity program within the series. They are working on defining more clearly the role of the committee and developing a logo. Mrs. Krieger reported that she has asked that the Town Manager work with the Health Director in developing guidelines and perhaps a by -law change that deals with the handling of vicious dog issues. Executive Session Upon motion duly made and seconded, by roll call vote: Mrs. McKenna, Mrs. Eddison, Mrs. Krieger and Mrs. Abbott to go into executive session for the purpose of discussion of a matter of litigation with no intent to resume open session. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at 10:00 p.m. A true record, Attest: Phyllis A. Smith Executive Clerk