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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-11-10-NAC-min RECEIVED 2021 30 III , IM pui °m Town of Lexington TOWN CLERK LEXINGTON MA Noise Advisory Committee(NAC) Minutes of Meeting November 10,2021 A meeting of the Noise Advisory Committee ("NAC")was held via Zoom videoconference on Wednesday November 10, 2021, at 7:00 PM. A quorum of three members was present. NAC Members Present: Dan Koretz (Chair), Vicki Blier, Nick Afshartous, Stewart Smith, April Wang Others Present: Mark Sandeen (Select Board), Suzie Barry(Select Board), 1 member of the Public 1. Introductory Remarks Dan convened the meeting at 7:00 pm and took the roll of NAC members in attendance. After calling the meeting to order he referred to the posted agenda for the meeting. He indicated that there were several items for the Committee's consideration. 2. Approval of Minutes The Committee reviewed Minutes from the November 4, 2021, meeting of the NAC which had been posted on Slack in draft form. Dan moved that the Minutes be approved, and the motion was seconded by Nick. Following a roll-call vote,the motion was carried unanimously. 3. Committee Business a) Mass Email of updated Fact Sheet The Committee discussed the mass email of the updated Fact Sheet to the Town Meeting Members.The Committee reviewed and discussed several proposed changes to the text of the cover email. Nick agreed to finalize the cover email and then send the updated Fact Sheet out as soon as possible.The same message will also be sent out shortly before Town Meeting. b) Proposed Amendment of Article 10 Dan noted that ahead of the consideration of Article 10, a proposed amendment by Town Meeting Member Steven Kaufman had been submitted.The proposal involved increasing the time for GLB phaseout from 2025 (as proposed by the NAC in Article 10) to 2027 (for both landscapers and Town residents). Dan displayed the proposed amendment with changes to the Article appearing in redline. Mark stated that, procedurally,the Town Moderator at Town Meeting would be looking for an indication as to whether the NAC will support the proposed amendment and, should the proposed amendment be accepted by Town Meeting,whether the NAC will still be in favor of the Article. Dan noted that he would not be uncomfortable with a modest change to the Article. However, he stated that there was no basis for the proposed long transition period. Nick pointed out that there were other possible means for providing transition assistance to landscapers other than providing further time. He referenced the recent efforts to secure bulk purchasing discounts via MAPC and the pending status of Michelle C.'s legislation introduced in the State House. Nick also queried whether the Article should be deferred until the Spring Town Meeting. The Committee discussed this latter point and agreed that deferral would not be acceptable to the NAC. Stewart noted that there did not appear to be a basis to extend the phaseout by a further two years and referenced the immediate noise complaints of residents coupled with the ongoing health dangers to GLIB operators which would only be exacerbated by adding further time. April noted that she had received communications from a Town Meeting member asking whether, if necessary, the Article could be split into two parts: hourly and seasonal restrictions, and phaseout.The Committee discussed this idea. The Committee then discussed the proposed amendment and after deliberation, the following Motion was made: Motion Dan moved that the Committee indicate that it does not support the proposed amendment to Article 10 by Town Meeting Member Steven Kaufman.The motion was seconded by Stewart and following a rollcall vote, the motion carried unanimously. Dan then introduced a second question. He asked the Committee whether, if the proposed Kaufman amendment was approved by Town Meeting, the NAC would then support the amendment. After discussion and deliberation,the following motion was made: Motion Dan moved that should Town Meeting accept the proposed amendment introduced by Steven Kaufman then the Committee would support the amendment in its current form.The motion was seconded by Stewart and following a roll call vote, the motion carried 4-1 on the following basis: In Favor Against Dan Nick Vicki April Stewa rt c) Delegation of Decision-Making to NAC Chair during Town Meeting The Committee discussed the fact the Town Moderator had advised the Chair that further proposed amendments to Article 10 would be received until noon on November 12, 2021. Moreover, in the event that other proposals or amendments took place during Town meeting on November 18th, it was agreed that Dan as Committee chair would need to be empowered to deal with such potential issues in the absence of a formal NAC meeting. Stewart suggested that a NAC meeting be scheduled the day before Town Meeting for the Committee to deal with any unforeseen issues or proposed amendments. He also suggested that Dan be delegated decision-making authority to act on behalf of the Committee at Town Meeting. Motion Stewart moved that NAC chair Dan Koretz be empowered to decide all matters related to Article 10 as may emerge during Town Meeting on November 18, 2021 (or such other date that the Article is considered by this Town Meeting).The motion was seconded by Vicki and following a rollcall vote, the motion carried unanimously with Dan abstaining. 3. Next Meeting The Committee agreed that the next meeting of the NAC take place at 6:30 pm on November 17, 2021 (if required). 4. Adjournment There being no further business, Dan made a motion, seconded by Stewart, that the meeting be adjourned.The motion carried unanimously, and the meeting was adjourned at 8:45pm.