HomeMy WebLinkAbout1941-04-21 SELECTMEN'S MEETING
April 21, 1941
A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was
held in the Selectmen's 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
Grass fire without a permit, it might do some good. The Chief
Fires 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 obtained an estimate
from Mr. Shea, the Town painteron the painting of the
4111
East Lexington Fire Station. His estimate was $425.00
for two coats . The Chairman asked what it would Bost
if a local contractor did the work and the Chief said
it would be considerably above Shea's price. Mr.
Mara's estimate in 1934 was $495.00. The Chief said
that three coats of white paint would cost 4475.00.
Mr. Rowse asked what the balance was in his repair item
Painting and the Chief said he had spent all of the 4750.00
E . Lex. allowed for East Lexington. He said that the underneath
Fire Sta. 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 3750.00 and this was to include the painting. The
Chairman asked if he had any funds in his budget tow 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 4250.
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 the4111 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-
410 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 Mir. 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 Enclosed
and the question had been raised as to whether it was field at
wise to build the enclosed field on that spot. Mr. center
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.
Cosgrove replied in the negative.
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 load* 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
4111
over there once a month and take elevations of the field
and the Board told him to do this .
Mr. Cosgrove retired at 8:13 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:
Cv:,
Tmq
STONE PRICES PER TON
#1 #2 #3 #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
Maiden Crushed Plant 1.25 1.25 1.35 1.50 1.75 2.00 .75
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 2.00 .65 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 1.50 1.75 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. 4111
Potter moved that their bid be accepted. Mr. Lode seconded
the motion, and it was so voted.
Mr. Paxton said he had received bids on cement brick
as follows:
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¢`
4111
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 eo
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 locations: 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. 1110
4111
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. Labor
Mr. Paxton submitted a list of proposed increases. He rates
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: Public Wks
Present Proposed Dept. sal .
Walter Holman ; .65 hr. f .70 hr. increases
Sebastiano Palladino .55 .60
John McKenzie .55 .60
Anthony Cataldo .60 .65
1110 Sam Cuccinello .70 .75
Charles Brenton 30.00 wk. 32.00 wk.
Andrew Ferry .60 hr. .65 hr.
Henry Nutt .60 .65
Maurice Woodward .60 .65
Joseph MacDonald .55 .60
Wallace Weisinger .70 .75
Joseph Vitale .55 .60
James Casella .55 .65
George Ryan .60 .65
William Carpenter .60 .65
David McPeake .60 .65
Gabriel Brucci .60 .65
A letter was received from Mr. Francis Fay Miller,
attorney for the Tower brothers, requesting the extension Water main:
of water mains in Lockwood Avenue, Buckman Drive, Cedarwood Tower dev.
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 42500.00
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
16
certain amount of his work, and look over the list of 4111
welfare recipients, and if there are men available for
work, that he hire them and pay them 301 to 35/ 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
recipients 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
Board: 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
Building going on in town. He asked the committee to consider
By-Laws 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 9:55 P. M.
The Chairman said Mr. Harris has been making a
study of the Building By-law attuation 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
Boardos 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 building 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
4110
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 9:20
P. M.
Mr. Richards said he believed that the Engineering De-
partment should be instructed to check 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 cheek
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 Request for
the ground, having an area of thirty square feet. Mr. sign at
Ferguson said that in the first place no sign could be over Depot Sq.
twenty feet in area. The Clerk was insti^ucted to write the
Field and Garden Club to get their reaction in the matter.
Messrs. Richards, Ferguson and Paxton retired at 9:30 Y.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 D. Grosso
erecting a dwelling. The letter said that there was a new request to
street involved and that under the Subdivision Regulations, erect dwell
the Board of Survey was permitted to vary the requirements ing
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. Rosa relative
to the July, 1940 water bill at the First Pariah parsonage First Parid
at 16 Hancock Street. Mr. Ross said that the meter tested parsonage
accurately and that there were no leaks found in the plumb- water bill
ing. Mr. Locke requested that he be given a copy of the
report.
A letter was received from the Town Clerk advising
that Section 30, Chapter 45 of 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
4111 which was a gift from Mr. Scott, accepted by the Town.
18
•
Application for a ,ttnk license was received from 1110
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 $2435.65 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 Alden' s price of $25.00 per day for court work. It1111
v. Lex. 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
IT 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
4111
A surety bond in the sum of $1,000.00, issued in behalf
of John C . Russell as constable in the Town of Lexington,
was received. Constable
Mr. Rowse moved that the bond be approved. Mr. Sarano bond
seconded the motion, and it was so voted.
Abatement of water assessments in the sum of $270.00 Burton
levied on property of Elizabeth M. Burton was approved. abatement
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 $5,000.00 on Spring Street. He talked with Mr. Spring
Paxton and he said that the minimum he could build Spring Street
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 moneyfor Spring Street. The Chairman argued in
favor of the 10, 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 Loans
of 8 years, payable at $1,000.00 per year;
$15,000.00 loan fpr Follen Road for a period of five
years payable at $3,000.00 per year.
Mr. Potter moved that the note3be dated May 1, 1941.
Mr. Rowse seconded the motion, and it was so voted.
The matter of having flags placed at half staff in Flags Vets .
case of a veteran's 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 11:00 P. M.
A true record, Attest:
Clerk