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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1927-07-2610 5) REGULAR MEETING, JULY 26, 1927. A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held at the Selectmen's Office at 8.00 P.M. Messrs. Custance,-Burnham, Ballard, Robertson, and Chamberlain were'present. The Supt. of Public Works and the Clerk were also present, as was Town Counsel, Sydney R. Wrightington. With the exception of two corrections the records were approved. Registered notice having been sent to the following pig owners, Joseph Ballou Concord Avenue Frank Johnson Bedford Street Frank Canisius Ward Street Ricci Brothers Waltham Street Amos Holman Hill Avenue Thomas Forsythe Grant Street John A. Butcher Ridge Road the gentlemen appeared and the Town Counsel conducted the hearing calling before the Board John Riccl of Waltham Street, Lexington.. Town Counsel asked Mr. Ricci if he had a permit to keep pigs. H"e replied that he did not, but that he was keeping 200 pigs. Mr. Prentiss was tailed upon to give his report of the examination of the premises. He stated that he examined the Ricci premises July 25, 1927, and found that the garbage was not kept according to the regulations. It is kept in an open shed, and buildings are not whitewashed, and under one platform there was a bog hole. The compost heap is out in the yard uncovered. Town Counsel asked Mr. Ricci if he realized that he was keeping pigs without a permit, and stated that the purpose of this hearing was to%1ve him a chance to say what he wished to say. Town Counsel stated that agreeably to the decision of the liskell case, unless there is"some reason to the contrary an order of prohibition should be issued. Mr. Ricci stated that the garbage is only kept from Saturday to Monday, and at that time it i -s kept in the house, and is taken from the truck to the barn. He gets the swill from Brighton from Frank Donovan, who is a contractorppur�chasing from the City of Boston. Mr. Donovan collects swill himself,t has the right to sell it. -- Mr. Ricci stated that he carried one load each day. The largest number of pigs he has ever had was 200, and at times there may have been ten more, but the average is 200. Mr. Wrightington asked Mr.'Ricci if he had a permit to keep pigs last year. He stated that he did not, but that he did not see any reason why he did not get it. He stated that last year he made application at the proper time, and he was informed that he could get the permit. He came, he thought, about the.lst of April to the Selectmen's Office, talked with Miss Gallagher a ,,Dr. Kane. He came only once, and dduld'not see .any reason 'why he 'should not get the permit. He could not tell just what day he was there. He stated that Mr. Prentiss came around his . place yesterday morning at about 8.15 A. M. and he said that the place was dean. The Counsel asked if any complaints about the premises had been received by Mr. Ricci, and he stated that they had not. He stated that he uses the manure on the land, and that he cleans the 106 house every morning. The Counsel.asked Mr. "icei if it is a fact that he is keeping garbage in the kind of place that Mr. Prentiss says. His reply was "yes". One side of it is open. It is,there only once or twice a week. Only one load is carried'on Saturday, The Counsel asked how much was carried in a load. He replied 8 or 9 orrd feet or an averaa of l cord of garbage a day. In reply to i' Counsel's statement to r. Ricci that he understood Mr. Prentiss ' to say that the garbage was kept in an open sheds Mr. Ricci replied that this was just to get into the shed to feed the pigs. Counsel asked if he had had a copy of the regulations. He replied that he had and was then asked b the Counsel why he did not comply *ith y' y p y the regulations. He stated that he thought he had because he cleaned the pigs out every dayH h . a is a farm -of 16 or 17 acres with no frontage on Waltham Street simply a driveway to the street, all the land being in back. The hearing on Mr. Ricci's case was closed. The next person called was Thomas Forsythe of Grant Street, The Counsel inquired how many pigs he has. He replied that he has eight. When asked if he had a permit, he said that he did not, but that he had one for Imeeping two pigs years ago. He explained that' sometimes he has two pigs, sometimes three or four, sometimes none. Mr. Prentiss explained that the pigs were keptin the bard and feeding swill on the ground, and the garbage was not kept in a covered receptacle. Mr. Forsythe explained that sometimes the receptacle was covered and sometimes it was not covered. He did not give a careful inspection as he personally did not attend to it. He stated that the whole town is kicking all the time if he did not get the garbage. He would not keep pigs if he did not collect the garbage,,,,,--- but he considered that he was doing some people a favoe-' that he -did ' other work for, by collecting the garbage. He collected on Meriam Hill and on Bloomfield Hill. He stated that he collected two and one half to three feet a week. It cost him $5.00 per day ftr a man and team to do this work, and that there was no profit in it for him. If he did not have the routes, he would not keep the pigs. Ir. Frank Canisius of Garfield Street was then heard. Mr. Canisius was informed by the Counsel that the Board had had some complaints in regard to the condition of his premises. Mr... Prentiss reported that a large pile of manure on top c0- which were smelly fish heads was near his piggery, but this had recently been removed and the place had been cleaned up some. The garbage that had been collected was in barrels with baskets on top, and there was quite a lot of lawn grass strewn around. There was some swill on the floor and a small compost heap uncovered. Mr. Canisius explained that it is on Earle Street that he kept his pigs, but he lived on Garfield Street and kept about ten pigs. He has been collecting swill in the Town of Lexington for fif#een or twenty years and collects about.two cord feet a week. In the winter When people are all home it amounts to about two and one half cord feet. when asked if he had kept any more pigs than tea, he explained that he had kept fifty pigs a number of years ago. When asked by Counsel if he had a permit last year, he replied that he did, and that he signed for one and made application for one before the first of April. when asked if he had anything to say in regard to his not obtaining a permit, he explained , that when examinations were made by the "ealth Inspector that he had at that time fallen down and had almost broken his neck and had a man doing the work for him who did not do it right. 107 The Counsel explained that he had a petition from the residents of Ward street complaining of the condition of his premises and of ' the pigs. Mr. Canisius stated that some of the parties complaining were keeping pigs themselves and in order to get by the Board of Health regulations, the son in one family was keeping two pigs, the father two pigs, and two more were kept in their cellar. He stated that he felt that some of his neighbors were trying to put him out of business and that some time ago they offered to purchase his place. He stated that he did not want to sell out as he desired to make his living out of his place. Dr. Tilton had been to his premises as also had Dr. Barnes but nothing was mentioned about the premises. lie cellected garbage from Oakland Street, Hayes Avenue, and Berwick Road and in a few places on Mass. Avenue. !hen asked if he made any changes in his premises, he said that he had and that he is to put in platforms. Mr. Amos Holman of Hill_ Avenue then came before the Board. When asked how many pigs he had, he replied 100. When asked where he kept the pigs, he stated that they were all over the lot. When asked if he had a permit, he replied that he did not, but he applied for one. He stated that his garbage came from Boston, and was collected from hotels., and is obtained through Spooner of Carlisle. He gets about one cord a day. The City of Boston requires that they carry the swill out in barrels. On July 23, 1927 Mr. Prentiss went to Mr. Holman's prem4ses and he said, as Mr. Holman stated, the pigs were kept all over the lot.and there were several platforms in the yard. There was one open box, but there was nothing that could be called a compost heap, Mr. Holman explained that he had five acres -of land and raised a ' lot of vegetables. He stated he did not have a covered receptacle. He had tin receptacles one in the house uncovered, two tin boxes, and a bIA square box that were not covered. He stated that to his mind tiye'swill was better left uncovered inasmuch as it would dry out, and it did not seem that there were so many flies. He explained that he had not"heard of any complaints of his piggery, but that he was surrounded by large piggeries on all sides, Mr. Connors: keeping them on one side, Mr. Sullivan across the street from him, and Mr. Reynolds on the other side. Mr. Robertson inquired of Mr. Holman as to whether he kept pigs for slaughtering and whether he has always kept them and raised them. Mr. Holman explained that he had always had some on the premises, but he had never kept as many as he is keeping at the present time. Mr. Holman was handed copy of the regulations. Mr. Holman stated that he asked for a permit to keep pigs, but he could not get one and wanted to know t.ie reason why. "'When asked if he would run a slaughter house if Hie did -Wt have pigs, he replied that he would. It was recalled that complaint has been made at the Board of Health office of the pigs owned by Mr. Holman. Mr. Joseph H. Ballou of Concord Avenue next came before the Board. Mr. Ballou stated that he kept about 63 pigs and secured his garbage from Cambridge getting about 7 feet a week. Mr. Prentiss explained that there is a large pig house on the premises, the compost heap was ' not covered, where the garbage was stored there was a large opening at one end of the house where the swill was thrown in over the top.. When Mr. Ballou was asked by Counsel if he had a permit, he stated that he did not. He stated that he had applied for one last year, but he had not received the same. Mr. Ballou stated that when Mr. Prentiss spoke about the cover being off the garbage house, it happened when 108 some of the pigs broke out on him and he left this place open to d drive the pigs in. When asked if the garbage was kept in a closed receptacle he stated that the roof is th . cover, and the other hosed He �rentiss sides are in. stated that Mr. asked him to close it, and when he had it closed, he was touse something to keep down the, ' odor which has been done ever since. He stated that he covered the compost heap with loan. The piggery is located on a 17 acre farm and he raises produce in connection with the piggery. He has been on the premises a ,year the 10th of June, 1927. When asked if he was familiar with the regulations, he replied that he had never had a copy. He stated that he came to Lexington from North Cambridge. Wbbm,asked by Mr. Ballard if the party who owned the premises previous to him had a permit ago beep pigs, he stated that they informed him that they did have a permit at one time. Mrs. Elizabeth Butcher of Ridge Road came before the Board to represent John A. Butcher. She explained that they live just off Ridge Road, and kept nine pigs collecting the garbage from Cambridge from private parties, and collect about 6 barrels a week. She;ex- plained that they have had at times as many as 12 pigs. She stated that she thought she had a permit, but the records showed that she did not. She had a permit last year. Mr. Prentiss stated that he made an examination on July 25, 1927, of Mrs. Butcherts premises, and found the yard was full of muck. The garbage is stored in open wooden boxes.There was no garbage there at the time. Neither Mr. or Mrs. Butcher were on the premises at the time of the inspection, but a young girl showed him around. ' Mrs. Butcher stated that this girl did not know where the garbage was stored. It is kept in an iron container. Mrs. Butcher stated ' that on July 25, 1927 it was after a heavy rain and most any place would be muddy. She stated that she thought the garbage was fed to the pigs on a board which is raised from the ground by sticks. When asked how large the platform was, she stated that she could not say just how large it was, but it was ample for the place. She stated that she had never heard of any complaints of her premises. Mr.Prentiss explained that he informed Mr. Butcher that his permit had expired on the last of April. Mrs. Butcher stated that the only way they had to earn their taxes was through the keeping of pigs. The Board discussed the cases before them, and decided to take up each case on its own merits. Mr. Ballard suggested that the Board have a personal examination of the premises, and it was decided bo meet Tuesday afternoon at 3 P.M. to view the premises of those not holding permits, then further discussion on the action of the permits will be held on Tuesday evening. Mr. Wrightington explained that it was up to the Board to set a time when Mr. Miskell should get rid of his pigs. After discussing the matter, it was decided to set the date as of December 1,'1927 inasmUoh as Mr. Miskell has about 600 pigs and the market for sale of them is very low during the summer months. The Board therefor voted to instruct Town Counsel to advise the attorney of William J. Miskell that they would give said Miskell until December 1, 1927 to dispose of the pigs before contempt proceedings will be taken on his case, provided said Miskell keeps his premises in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Board of Health and instructions of the Health Inspector until December 1, 1927 and also that said Miskell shall pay at once the cost taxed by the Court, and on the further condition that the final decree be entered at once. At 8.30 P.M. hearing was called upon the application of Roffele Luongo of 74 Mass. Avenue for permission to erect a garage on his premises. No persons appeared to object, and it was voted to grant the permit. Letter was received from Miss Clara F. Wadleigh of 601 Mass. Avenue in which she asked whether or not under the new Zoning Law a permit could be received for remodeling her home into a two family dwelling. Town Counsel advised that the Board take action under Section 15 A of the Zoning Law and give a public hearing. The Board directed that the Clerk reply to Miss Wadleigh enclosing her a copy of the Zoning Law and also a form of application to make to the Board for action on her proposition. The Board approved the bill of Johnson, Clapp, Ives & Knight for $85.00, same being for services in the case of Mrs. Bridget Leary who was building a house on Cottage Street. This bill was incurred in the absence of the Town Counsel, The Baard signed the license for the Hart Motorcoach Company to operate their busses over Mass. Avenue, Middle Street, Marrett Street from the Arlington line to the Lincoln line. ' The Board considered the gasoline application of Rupert H. Stevens of 30 Utica Street upon which hearing was held last Tuesday evening. Town Counsel advised that Mr. Stevens is entitled to a gasoline tank of a larger size as he had prior rights under the Zoning Law. He also advised that he did not see how the operations of the gravel pit could be limited to one space even if it were in the resident district. Letter was received from Leslie Spencer of 38 Woburn Street asking for another hearing on his garage. Mr. Spencer was informed that he must first comply with the request of the Shard and furnish them with a plan of his property showing the lot line and the location of the buildings. Letter was received from the Town Accountant advising the following appropriations or transfer from the Reserve Fund to the following departments: Village hall $200.00 Forest Fires 175.00 Health Department 1,000.00 April 19th 19.66 Soldiers Relief 200.00 Application of William A. a gasoline tank on his premise Streets was considered, and it ;1,q594,69- Application ,5 .6 Granfield for permission to install s at the corner of.Spring and Middle was voted not to grant the same. 109 In regard to the claim of Mary A. Fitch for damages caused p during the construction of the sewer, Town Counsel requested the Supt. of Public Works to get a statement from someone who was familiar with the conditions during the construction of the Sewer ' and report same to him. In regard to the accident of Joseph Koss of the Water Department and Henry G. Leslie, owing to the fact that Mr. Leslie did not carry property damage insurance, the Board instructed Town Counsel to`collect the damages to the town car, amounting to $150.00, from Mr. Leslie if it was possible to do so without a great expense, Town Counsel is to interview the insurance company in regard to the acbident. The meeting adjourned at 11 P.M. A true record, Attest: <✓ , ezL Clerk. 1 1