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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1978-01-12-BOS-min 112 SPECIAL SELECTMEN'S MEETING January 12, 1978 A special meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectmen's Meeting Room, Town Office Building, on Thursday, January 12, 1978, at 7 30 p m. Chairman Battin, Mr Bailey, Mr Buse, Mrs Miley, Mr Kent; Mr Hutchinson, Town Manager; Mrs McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were present Board of Dr Cosgrove, Dr Erdos, Mr James Lambie, members of the Health Board of Health, Mr George Smith, Director of Public Health; Mr Clough, Re-Place; Miss SanMartino, Mr Wright and Mr Lynch, Mystic Valley Mental Health, met with the Board to discuss bud- gets Dr Cosgrove recommended that the Tri-Community budget, Ac- count 3320, $6,800, not be cut as it is substantially the same as last year Regarding the Re-Place budget, Account 3330, he felt that Mr McKee, the Director, has been trying hard to do a good job, but questioned the assignments of the Outreach Worker at a salary of $9,025 The Board of Health feels that items in 111the Mystic Valley Mental Health budget, Account 3310, could be cut, such as the telephone bill, dues, public relations, postage, etc Dr Erdos said that his feeling about Mr McKee was a posi- tive one as he is doing an excellent job The function of the Outreach Worker is simply to increase visibility and availability with day-to-day contact with all High School students, and he did not think it an unusually high salary Regarding Mystic Valley Mental Health, he would like more information and a breakdown on a $53,000 telephone bill, supplies, postage, professional fees; also, to cut conferences and training, publications, and dues, as most of the people involved pay their own and work here part- time Re-Place Mr Clough, Re-Place, explained that the Outreach Worker has been meeting with groups of kids, has access to police logs, at- tends conferences with the parole officer, is also on duty Friday and Saturday nights He has not been involved in any big crises with youth Since September 24, he has been approved by Dr Lawson, Superintendent of Schools, and has been dealing with the schools, both by appointment and with the regular freedom at the high school and junior high schools The Outreach Worker's job is to seek out the kids that are causing trouble, talk with offi- cials, police and schools, and then talk with the kids and try to get them involved in the counseling program, and that is something that takes a good deal of effort There has been a dramatic im- 113 Special Selectmen's Meeting January 12, 1978 provement over the last few months As far as the budget, 90% goes to people who are delivering services The Town pays for approximately 50% of the budget Since our relationship with the Town has developed over the last couple of years, we have become much more effective in helping kids in Town He has seen a dramatic change in the way people feel about Re-Place, which has a cooperative relationship where everybody has been working together Mr Clough said that he had no problems with Mystic Valley We have people who have not been happy with Re-Place and have gone to Mystic Valley, which is much more structured and some kids like that; we have an informal intake program where kids drop in without appointments He did not see any overlay in ser- vices (MVMH) at all The total budget is $56,392, with the Town paying $28,062; Department of Mental Health, $12,000; Donations, $7,000; CETA, $8,700 Mr Busa said that he is again asking for back-up informa- tion on head count and programs He felt that the Outreach Worker should be an employee of, and under the direct supervision of the Town He asked about insurance coverage for the Outreach Worker Mr Hutchinson replied that the Re-Place fringe benefits' program covers him, and he was not in favor of having the Outreach Worker as a Town employee As far as numbers and programs, he was sure that Mr McKee would submit the facts to the Board Questions were raised, but not resolved, on (1) the possi- bility of the school budget absorbing some of the Outreach Worker's costs as he spends 60% of his time in the schools; (2) whether to pursue the possibility of applying for state and/or federal funds; (3) Re-Place continuing as a private function Mr Frank Lynch, MVMH Business Manager, felt that it would MVMH be a serious mistake to cut the MVMH budget by 5% He hoped the Town appreciated what it was getting for $38,000 Regarding the telephone item, they had put in a new system and did not think they were making any unnecessary telephone calls as they cover six towns Miss SanMartino, MVMH, stated that there are state and federal funds, and you are getting outpatients and school adoles- cents She makes out the monthly schedule of appointments with students and she had no concerns about duplication with Re-Place, just concern about enough hours and reaching out to people whose world is much more complicated now She did not understand human services being cut right now and did not feel that they had been asking for that much more in staff Regarding dues, the item was for organizational dues and not for the personal staff Mr Hutchinson said that we find in the initial review, be- cause of the myriad of agencies that exist, it is going to take 114 Special Selectmen's Meeting January 12, 1978 a little more than a year to come back with policies as there is a need for an assessment process to find out what the needs of the Town are My staff and the ad hoc human services committee have been looking into it and we will bring a proposal back to the Board Until we get a true picture, we hope to keep exist- ing levels of cost approximately the same, and we will schedule a meeting with the Board of Health, which has been monitoring the budgets Members of the Mystic Valley Mental Health retired from the meeting Mosquito Mr Kevin R Moran, East Middlesex Mosquito Control Project, Control met with the Board to discuss the program in Lexington Chairman Battin said that the question raised by Mr Manfred Friedman last year was whether we were doing it for comfort and convenience or for public health Mr Friedman was invited to attend but is not present Mr Moran said that mosquito control in Lexington is designed to keep the population of biting adults low, and this enables the taxpayers of Lexington to enjoy their backyards and playgrounds during the evening hours It keeps us constantly aware of the mosquito problems in the chance that a health hazard does arise The program not only minimizes the hazard of encephalitis but also of secondary infections from scratching bites and the risk of allergic persons being bitten Local mosquito control has the men and equipment ready for adult control by making only a phone call There has not been any evidence of mosquito resis- tance here in the northeast to the pesticides we are using We are using two or three different compounds in each of our adulticiding and larviciding programs The more chemicals that environmental groups take away from us the more this resistance will become a problem We do not do random spraying; we spray when and where needed, either because of complaints or bite counts Any one of our programs cannot be eliminated for the sake of another part of the program Dr Erdos said that spraying is done only at the request of individual citizens of the Town because of problems The majority of the mosquito control program consists not only of spraying but of ditching, draining, lavaciding, etc that are not environmental haz- hrds butif it prevents one case of encephalitis in an adult or a child it is worth the prevention I have seen some cases of those who have been terribly diminished in their mental capaci- ties for a long time Mr Moran said that all the chemicals we are using are labeled for mosquito control, using only the dosages that are labeled In my estimation, it is an environmentally sound program The Board thanked Mr Moran for his presentation, and Mr Moran and members of the Board of Health retired from the meeting 112; Special Selectmen's Meeting January 12, 1978 Mr Leo Gaughan, Chairman of the Town Celebrations Committee Town met with the Board to discuss the committee's budget Celebrations Mr Hutchinson said that the Board is concerned about the Committee substantial increase from $6,500 last year to $15,200 requested Budget for this year As the Town Manager, he had cut it back to $13,000 Mr Gaughan said that the committee felt that it could be cut back but they could not possibly operate on less than $10,000, and we would like to have $15,000 We are reluctant to ask people for sponsorships Units are charging much more this year, and the Minute Man organization is the only local unit we give money to - about $450 Last year's budget was $6,500 but the actual cost was $9,300, and we had $2,200 in sponsorships After discussion, a majority of the Board agreed that it would encourage having a relatively modest enterprise this year, and had no objection to the committee soliciting sponsorships by letter Mr Busa felt that they would need $10,000 Mr Gaughan said that he was not going to argue over getting $7,000, with the understanding that they will not have to pay $450 for the luncheon on Patriots' Day and, if they receive $2,500 to $3,000, he felt that the committee could do a decent job Mr Hutchinson said that the luncheon money is included in the Police budget Mr Gaughan thanked the Board and retired from the meeting Mr Hutchinson requested the Board to endorse the Town's Town Vehicle vehicle policy After a discussion with Mr Busa, who had recom- Policy mended that certain latitude be granted to the Police and Fire Chiefs and the Public Works Director, Mr Hutchinson agreed to a certain degree of latitude, with the clear understanding that all three are to be under the supervision of the Town Manager Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the recommendation of the Town Manager to adopt the Vehicle Policy of the Town of Lexington, as follows 1 Municipal vehicles will be used for municipal business only and are not to be used for personal/family business 2 Recognizing the emergency responsibilities of the follow- ing positions and further that these positions are occupied by residents within the Town of Lexington, the following personnel are allowed to take their vehicles to and from work recognizing that they are on a 24-hour call within the Town and outside the Town Town Manager Town Manager Police Chief 2 Captains Fire Chief i1 Special Selectmen's Meeting January 12, 1978 Public Works Director of Public Works Manager of Operations Manager Planning & Administration (Maintenance) Superintendent of Parks Superintendent of Water & Sewer 3 All other personnel will pick up vehicles from the Public Works pool of vehicles located at the Public Works garage These vehicles will be made available to the appropriate Divisions based upon assignment during the day Vehicles will be returned to the Public Works pool at the end of the normal working day These vehicles will be used for municipal purposes only 4 A certain degree of latitude concerning this policy will be extended to the Town Manager and under the supervision of the Town Manager to the Chief of Police, Director of Public Works and the Fire Chief Acct 1050- The Board discussed an item in the Selectmen's Account 1050 Dues & for membership in the Massachusetts League of Cities and Town, Membership $1,564, and the Massachusetts Selectmen's Association, $687 Mr Busa recommended that membership be discontinued in the Massachu- setts Selectmen's Association Chairman Battin said that there was a strong move to consolidate both organizations and, if con- solidation does not take place by next year, serious consideration should be given by the Board to withdrawing from one of the organi- 111 zations The Board agreed to continue membership in both organizations, with the understanding that the matter will be re-opened at the next budget process Operating The Board discussed and approved the following budgets Budgets Account Name Amount 1050 Selectmen 7,025 1065 Town Manager (includes 1300) 6,600 1080 Office Furniture & Fixtures 1,500 1090 Professional Services 25,000 1125 Fire & Police Medical 5,500 1135 Out of State Travel & Train 6,000 1141 Tuition & Training Fees 14,000 1142 Instate Travel 10,000 1148 Safety Program 1,000 1200 Town Clerk & Vital Statistics 1,100 1550 Board of Appeals 2,585 1650 Planning Board 4,555 1700 Group Insurance 751,000 1725 Unemployment Compensation 60,000 1750 Munic Prop & Wrkmn's Comp 291,203 117 Special Selectmen's Meeting January 12, 1978 Account Name Amount 1760 Printing Town Report 10,000 1775 Legal Fees 45,000 1800 Legal Expenses 12,000 1900 Elections/Selectmen 12,515 1950 Elections/Town Clerk 14,800 2050 Board of Registrars 9,600 2250 Appropriation Committee 3,800 2370 Misc Committees & Boards 2,450 2380 Council on Aging 24,220 2400 Town Celebrations Committee 7,000 2450 Historic Districts Commission 1,900 2460 Conservation Commission 10,090 2480 Recreation Committee 24,800 2525 Treasurer/Collector 27,033 2575 Foreclosure & Redemption 3,120 2850 Comptroller 3,200 2925 Office Machine Cap Outlay 4,300 2930 Office Machine/Maint & Rep 6,500 2935 Office Service Copier 8,000 2940 Metered Mail 20,250 111 3000 Assessors 8,300 3300 Health 10,455 3310 Mystic Valley Mental Health (Held) 3320 Tri Community Health Service 6,800 3330 Community Services (Held) 3450 Rabies Clinic 2,410 3550 Animal Control Officer 4,475 3800 Police 140,525 3900 Parking Meter Maintenance 4,000 4150 Fire & Ambulance Maint 71,475 4350 Local Disaster Sery 1,000 4500 Inspection 1,213 5000 DPW Office 9,900 5150 Engineering 6,050 5250 Town Building Maintenance (Held) 5400 Highway Maintenace 68,300 5450 Road Machinery 145,300 5500 Snow Removal 110,650 5550 Traffic Regs & St Signs 23,500 5600 Street Lights 215,000 5700 Sewer Maint & Sewer Sery 58,900 5800 Garbage Collection 78,000 5850 Sanitary Landfill 118,750 5900 Water Maint & Water Service 48,300 6000 Park 40,050 6050 Insect Suppression 10,500 118 Special Selectmen's Meeting January 12, 1978 , Account Name Amount 6100 Shade Trees 9,600 6150 Dutch Elm Disease 4,200 6400 Cemeteries 10,800 7150 Veterans Admin. 150 7200 Veterans Aid & Expenses 48,000 7250 Graves Registration 400 7300 Soldiers Burials 250 7550 Library 133,650 7800 Contributory Pension Fund 624,330 7810 Pension Funding 100,00 7825 Non-Contributory Pension (Held) 7850 Retirement Expenses 4,950 8500 Interest on Debt 207,768 8525 Tax & Bond Antic Loans 238,667 8550 Maturing Debt 1,460,000 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at 1100 pm A true record, Attest Executive Clerk, Selectmen (/ I