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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1941-04-2110 Grass Fires Painting E. Lex. Fire Sta. SELECTMEW S MEETING April 21, 1941 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectmenfa Room, Town Office Building on Monday evening, April 21, 1941 at 7:30 P. M. Chairman Giroux, Messrs. Potter, Rowse, Locke and Sarano were present. The Clerk was also present. Chief Taylor appeared before the Board. The Board discussed with him the possibility of eliminating grass fires. The Chief said that the de- partment had had 173 alarms since April 1st. The Chief said that if a person started a fire and it got away from him and he was forced to pay for the expense of putting it out, it might be effective. He said that tf there was a large penalty for a person starting a fire without a permit, it might do some good. The Chief said that he had not issued any permits since April 15th upon instruction from the State. He said that the law says that any person starting a fire without a permit is liable to a fine. The Chief said that he had obthined an estimate from Mr. Shea, the Town painter, on the paintin of the East Lexington Fire Station. His estimate was 9425.00 for two coats. The Chairman asked what it would cost if a local contractor did the work and the Chief said it would be considerably above Shears price. Mr. Maras estimate in 1934 was $495.00. The Chief said that three coats of white paint would cost $475.00. Mr. Rowse asked what the balance was in his repair item and the Chief said he had spent all of the $750.00 allowed for East Lexington. He said that the underneath boards were badly rotted and the corner boards and pillars were all gone. He•still has done nothing with the doors or the cupola. Mr. Rowse asked how much he figured in his budget for repairs and the Chief said his estimate was $750.00 and this was to include the painting. The Chairman asked if he had any funds in his budget now to cover the cost of the painting and he replied in the negative. Mr. Rowse reminded the Chief that his budget this year was 42300.00 higher than last year and he asked him if he could not squeeze out enough money to do the paint- ing, but the Chief said he could not. He said he had no money to house the additional man and he should have $250, for this. Mr. Rowse asked why he did not mention that when he was talking about putting on the additional man and he said he did mention it. Mr, Rowse asked how much money the Chief needed to finish the repair work at East Lexington without the painting and the Chief thought it would take about $125. Mr. Sarano said that much more work had been done than was figured on. The Chairman asked the Chief if there was anything he could do so that it would not be necessary to provide the $250.00 to house the new man, and he said he didn't know what he could do. There is no room in either station. The Chairman asked if the men could double up and the Chief -said he didn't know how they could. He said however, that this matter could be post- poned for awhile. The Chairman asked when the Engineers planned to put on the new man and the Chief said it would probably be around the first of June. Mr. Rowse asked if it was feasible to give the East Lexington Station one coat of grey paint now and do a real fob of painting next year and the Chief said it would be very patchy. The Chairman showed the Chief the petition from the residents of East Lexington that the Station be painted white and the Chief said that the Fire Engineers had con- sidered white but had decided in favor of the grey. He reminded the Selectmen that the Fire Engineers had the care and custody of the Fire Department buildings so that the color was not a matter for the Selectmen to be con- cerned with. The Chief retired at 7:55 P.M. The Clerk was instructed to tell Chief Taylor that his total appropriation for repairs was $1250.00 of which $250.00 was for repair work at the center, station and that the Selectmen felt, inasmuch as the Town Meeting had ad- journed only two weeks ago, they did not care to ask for a transfer of funds so soon and suggested that Chief Taylor complete the repairing and painting at East Lexington out of his appropriation and let the center station go, or if he did the repair work at the center station.. he would have to let the painting of the East Lexington station go for this year. Mr. Paxton and Mr. Cosgrove appeared before the Board at 8:00 P. M. The Chairman told Mr Cosgrove that the Board had asked him to come in to discuss the enclosed field at the center playground. He said that the records show that there are some twenty feet of peat underneath the field and the question had been raised as to whether it was wise to build the enclosed field on that spot. Mr. Cosgrove said that he thought it would work out all right. The Chairman asked if he expected the surface to sink on account of the foundation under it and Mr. toCosgrove replied in the negative. Enclosed field at center '12 Mr. Rowse asked if it would be safe to put bleachers • there and Mr. Cosgrove said that with the drainage that had been put in, he thought it would be all right. About four feet of fill was put there. The Chairman asked if he expected to have any trouble with the drainage pipes cracking etc. inasmuch as the pipes were laid on boards and he said he did not. Mr. Paxton said that five -ton trucks loaded with fill were driven all over that area when the field was being built and he thought that the fill that ;.-was put in would form a carpet and distribute the loads The Chairman said that some members of the Board had received criticism that the field should never have been built there as it was a known fact that there was twenty feet of peat under it. Mr. Rowse asked if the boards would rot and Mr. Cosgrove said he did not believe that they would as they are below the water table. Mr. Rowse said that there had been some sinking already where the pipes were put in and Mr. Cosgrove said that was natural, that there was always some sinking where pipes were laid. He said undoubtedly there would be more sink- ing but he did not believe that it would affect the joints. Mr. Paxton said that they expected to have to grade up the field from time to time. Mr. Rowse thought that Mr. Cosgrove should give the Board something definite with regard to the safety of putting weight on the field -- weight for a grandstand and people sitting in it. Mr. Cosgrove said that he could go over there once a month and take elevations of the field and the Board told him to do this. Mr. Cosgrove retired at 8113 P. M. Mr. Paxton said that the Red Cross had requested the use of a conference room on April 29th for a meeting and the Chamber of Commerce had requested the use of a con- ference room on April 24th for a directors' meeting. Mr. Potter moved that the use of the rooms be granted free of charge. Mr. Locke seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Mr. Paxton said he had received bids on crushed stone as follows • STONE PRICES PER TON #1 #2 0 #3A #4 #4A Stone Stone Stone Stone Stone Stone Stone Dust Disc. General Crushed Plant 1.25 1:25 1:35 1:50 1.75 2.00 .65 2% Stone Company Delivered 1.70 1.70 1.80 1.95 2.20 2.45 1.10 Malden Crushed Plant 1:25 1.25 11,35 1.50 1.75 2.00 175 Stone Company Delivered 1.80 1.80 1.90 2.00 2.20 2.40 1.25 Mass. Broken Plant 1.25 1.25 1.35 1.50 1.75 2400 165 2% Stone Company Delivered 1:60 1.60 1.70 1.85 2.10 2.35 1.00 J. H. McNamara Plant Incorporated Delivered Rowe Contracting Plant 1:25 1.25 1.35 1150 1175 2.00 .75 2% Company Delivered 1.75 1.75 1.85 2.00 2.25 2.50 1.25 14 The low bidder was the Mass. Broken Stone Company and Mr. Potter moved that their bid be accepted. Mr. Lo& sedonded the motion, and it was so voted. Mr. Paxton said he had received bids on cement brick as followst Bay State Builders $14.50 delivered in Lexington Supply Co. .50 discount per M - 10 days Cambridge Builders Supply Co. Kelley Sales Corp. Bids on Winchester Brick Co. $13.50 delivered in Lexington cement .50 discount per M - 10 days brick Atlantic Brick & Tile Co. 14:50 delivered in Lexington .50 discount per M Mr. Potter moved that the bid of the Winchester Brick Company be accepted. Mr. Locke seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Mr. Paxton said he sent out letters to four companies asking for bids on shovel rental and he received only one reply. Mr. R. H. Stevens bid $5.50 per hour which is 50¢ more than the 1940 price. Mr. Paxton said the only reason he could think of that the firms did not bid was that there was increased activity in business now. Mr. Rowse asked if the Stevens shovel was in good condition and Mr. Paxton said that it was. Mr. Locke moved that the bid of Mr. R. H. Stevens be accepted. Mr. Potter seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Mr. Rowse asked if the Town ever rented out its gas shovel and Mr. Paxton said it had been rented out in the past at $3.50 per hour plus the operator's time of $1.00 per hour. Mr. Paxton said he had received requests for approval of the following gas main locationst Taft Avenue for a distance of 315 feet, Sutherland Road for a distance of 400 feet, Lexington Avenue from Robbins Road to Follen Gas main Road, for a distance of 480 feet and in Richard Road for locations a distance of 250 feet, Mr. Potter moved that/ the locations be approved. Mr. Sarano seconded the motion, and it was so voted. The matter of labor rates in the Public Works Dept, was discussed. The Chairman read the record of the dis- cussion had in February 1940 on the subject. A letter was received from Mr. Francis Fay Miller, attorney for the Tower brothers, requesting the extension of water mains in Lockwood Avenue, Buckman Drive, Cedarwood Terrace and Dawes Road. Mr. Paxton said that in his opinion it was in order to have these extensions made and the esti- mated cost was $7500.00 Mr. Locke moved that the Water Department be authorized to install the water mains as requested as soon as the funds were available, Mr. Potter seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Mr. Paxton said that he had received a suggestion re- garding welfare men. The suggestion was that he take a 0 15 Labor rates Public Wks Dept, sal, increases Water mains Tower dev. He said that it was his understanding that the superintendents were working toward a maximum for laborers. He said that in bringing in requests for increases, it was in accordance with his understanding that this was part of a program and that Mr. Paxton was merely carrying out the ideas of last year. Mr. Paxton submitted a list of proposed increases. He said the superintendents were trying to bring along their men so that they would be capable of doing specific work and when it was necessary to hire extra help, they would not have' to hire foremen as the regular men could act in this capadity. Mr. Rowse asked if Mr. Paxton was attempting to equalize ac- cording to ability and he said that he was. Mr. Rowse asked if provision for these increases was made in the budget and Mr. Paxton said that the wages came out of the maintenance appropriation so that there would be sufficient money, Mr. Rowse moved that the list of salary increases as sub- mitted be approved as of April 18, 1941. Mr. Locke seconded the motion, and it was so voted, The increases granted were as follows: Present Proosed Walter Holman .65 hr. .70 hr. Sebastiano Palladino .55 :60 John McKenzie .55 :60 Anthony Cataldo .60 :65 Sam Cuccinello Charles Brenton .70 .75 30,00 wk. 32.00 wk: Andrew Ferry .60 hr. .65 hr. Henry Nutt .60 065 Maurice Woodward .60 .65 Joseph MacDonald .55 :60 Wallace Weisinger .70 175 Joseph Vitale .55 .60 James Casella ,55 165 George Ryan .60 :65 William Carpenter .60 :65 David McFeake .60 :65 Gabriel Brucci .60 .65 A letter was received from Mr. Francis Fay Miller, attorney for the Tower brothers, requesting the extension of water mains in Lockwood Avenue, Buckman Drive, Cedarwood Terrace and Dawes Road. Mr. Paxton said that in his opinion it was in order to have these extensions made and the esti- mated cost was $7500.00 Mr. Locke moved that the Water Department be authorized to install the water mains as requested as soon as the funds were available, Mr. Potter seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Mr. Paxton said that he had received a suggestion re- garding welfare men. The suggestion was that he take a 0 15 Labor rates Public Wks Dept, sal, increases Water mains Tower dev. 16 Building By -Laws certain amount of his work, and look over the list of welfare recipients, and if there are men available for work, that he hire them and pay them 30¢ to 359E an hour. He said that they probably could do work clean- ing brooks, dressing up the shoulders of the roads, etc. Mr. Potter thought it was a mistake to mix welfare recipl6nts and regular Town employees. Mr. Paxton said that he would merely have Town employees supervise the work. It was decided to leave the matter entirely to his discretion. The following members of the committee on the re- vision of the Building By-laws appeared before the Boardt Messrs, Gordon D. Richards, Edwin B. Worthen,Jr, Charles E. Ferguson, and Lewis M. Reynolds. The Chair- man said that realizing the amount of building going.on in town now, the Board was very anxious that the new By-laws be completed as soon as possible. He said this was es- pecially important because of the type of work that was going on in town. He asked the committee to consider putting 'teeth" into the By-laws so that the town would be doing everything possible to insure good building. He said that some of the reports the Board had received relative to improper building had bothered the members. Mr. Worthen, chairman of the committee, said that they had arrived at the point where they are planning to hold a hearing soon to which architects, builders, con- • tractors, etc. would be invited to thrash out the pro- posed By-laws. The Chairman said that the Selectmen desired By-laws that guaranteed, as far as possible, an honest deal for the individual. Mr. Ferguson. said that the laws did not mean a thing unless they were enforced and he believed that the town needed a full time inspector. Mr. John Harris, who works for the Boston Globe, appeared before the Board at 9t55 P. M. The Chairman said Mr. Harris has been making a study of the Building By-law actuation in the State. Mr. Ferguson said that the'Building Inspector had the additional problem of enforcing the zoning laws. Mr. Richards said that Winchester had studied the problem of small houses extensively and he was told that a'home could be built in Lexington several hundred dollars cheaper than in Winchester on account of the strict laws there. The Chairman said that it was not the Board's intention to try to do away with small houses, but it wanted to see that the people got value for their money. Mr. Ferguson said that all bu¢lding laws were for was to protect the health and safety of the individ- ual and if the committee got very far away from that principle the By-laws probably would not be passed by the Attorney General 10 The Chairman said that there was considerable feeling ' on the question of signs and he wanted to know how the Board felt on the subject. The Chairman said that the Board had gone on record as approving signs the width of the building and not exceeding three feet in height. Mr. Rowse said that there was some agitation about doing away with overhanging signs and he asked if the committee was considering this phase of the matter. Mr. Ferguson said that the only way an overhanging sign could be put up was with the approval Of the Selectmen and they alone could control them. Messrs. Worthen, Reynolds, and Harris retired at 9t20 P. M. Mr. Richards said he believed that the Engineering De- partment should be instructed to checlr the side lines of houses before construction as well as the setback and grade. It was left that Mr. Paxton was to have the engineers check the side lines if it was possible to do wo without going to too much expense. A letter was received from three business men in Depot Square requesting a permit to erect a sign seven feet above the ground, having an area of thirty square feet. Mr. Ferguson said that in the first place no sign could be over twenty feet in area. The Clerk was inst"eted to write the Field and Garden Club to get their reaction in the matter. Messrs. Richards, Ferguson and Paxton retired at 9:30 P".M. Mr. Morse appeared before the Board at 9:30 P. M. and retired at 10:07 P. M. A letter was received from the Planning Board advising that Diego Grosso had appeared before the Planning Board with reference to obtaining permission to use his land con- sisting of 6.95 acres off Woburn Street, for the purpose of erecting a dwelling. The letter said that there was a new street involved and that under the Subdivision Regulations, the Board of Survey was permitted to vary the requirements in special cases where topographic or other factors necessi- tate such variations. It was the opinion of the Planning Board that there were no topographic conditions affecting the layout. A letter was received from Mr. Joseph A. Ross relative to the July, 1940 water bill at the First Parish parsonage at 16 Hancock Street. Mr. Ross said that the meter tested accurately and that there were no leaks found in the plumb- ing. Mr. Locke requested that he be given a copy of the report. 1.7 Request for sign at Depot Sq. D. Grosso request to erect dwell Ing First Parid parsonage water bill A letter was received from the Town Clerk advising that Section 30, Chapter 45 orf the General Laws authorizes the Park Commissioners to accept gifts and therefore It was Center play not necessary to have the land at the center playground, ground which was a gift from Mr. Scott, accepted by the Town. 1s Application for a jtnk license was received from Junk Benjamin W. Berman of 353 Highland Avenue, Somerville. license A letter was received from the Chief of Police advising that Mr. Berman was a young man of good character. Mr. Potter moved that the license be granted sub- ject to the payment of the fee of $50.00 and receipt of a formal report from Chief Bullock of Arlington. Mr. Locke seconded the motion, and it was so voted. The Chairman said that a telegram had been re- ceived at his house from Mr. Irving Strauss of the RCA Manufacturing Company advising that the charge Two-way for the two-way radio had been changed to $2030.65. radio The Clerk was instructed to forward the agreement to Mr. Wrightington and tell him that the company had approved deleting paragraph five and that the price had been revised from 02435.65 to $2030.65. The Clerk was instructed to ask Mr. Wrightington to ad- vise the company that the Board would sign the agree - on the basis of elimination of paragraph five and the inclusion of the new figure, A letter was received from Mr. Wrightington in- forming the Board that he approved of Mr. Aldents bill Alden's bill in the case of DeCristofaro v. Lexington and also Mr. DeCristofaro Aldents price of $25.00 per day for court work. It v. Lext was decided to request Mr. Alden to submit his bill for services to date. A letter was received from the Middlesex County Sanatorium advising that Thomas Forsythe needed glasses T. Forsythe and that the cost would be $6.50. eyeglasses Mr. Potter moved that the glasses be approved. Mr. Locke seconded the motion, and it was so voted. A letter was received from Mr. Wrightington advis- ing that Judge Hurley of the Superior Court in Cambridge had refused to issue the writ of mandamus against the Rodenhiser Selectmen by Richard F. Rodenhiser. This is the case claim in which Mr. Rodenhiser sought a permit to clean cess- pools in Lexington. Mr. Potter moved that the following licenses be granted. Mr. Locke seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Mrs. John Thompson, 12 Franklin Ave. Home John W.Leary,45 Waltham St. Public Carrir.+ge William R. Greer,346 Concord Ave. Peddler's Swenson Bros. Allen St. 100 swine Western Union Tel, 1736 Mass. Ave. Overhanging sign • A surety bond in the sum of 61,000.00, issued in bbhalf of John C. Russell as constable in the Town of Lexington, was received. Mr. Rowse moved that the bond be approved. Mr. Sarano seconded the motion, and it was so voted. Abatement of water assessments in the sum of $270.00 levied on property of Elizabeth M. Burton was approved. The Clerk was instructed to request the Chief of Police to take bids from Chevrolet, Plymouth and Ford dealers on two new cars, painted white with standard police lettering and insignia on the side. The Chairman said that last week there was a hearing at the State House, State Department of Public Works, with the County Commissioners. The State said that Lexington had been cut 05,000.00 on Spring Street. He talked with Mr. Paxton and he said that the minimum he could build Spring Street for was $20,000.00. The Chairman asked him if he would rather have the Chapter 90 maintenance allotment or the $10,000.00 Spring Street and he said he would rather have the mons for Spring Street. The Chairman argued in favor of the 910,000.00 allotment and the State finally ap- proved it. The Board approved of Mr. Giroux' action. The Clerk was instructed to request the Town Treasurer to take bids on the following loans: $40,000.00 loan for water construction for a period of 8 years, payable at $5,000.00 per year; $8,000.00 loan for sewer construction for a period of 8 years, payable at $1,000.00 per year; 615,000.00 loan f r Follen Road for a period of five years payable at 3,000.00 per year. Mr. Potter moved that the notesbe dated May 1, 1941. Mr. Rowse seconded the motion, and it was so voted. 19 Constable bond Burton abatement Spring Street Loans The matter of having flags placed at half staff in Flags Vets. case of a veterants death was discussed. death Mr. Rowse moved that all flags be placed at half staff in case of a Veteran's death from the time of death until after the funeral. Mr. Potter seconded the motion, and it was so voted. The meeting adjourned at 11s00 P. M. A true record, Attests '�3 Clerk I0