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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1977-01-24-BOS-min 3O SELECTMEN'S MEETING January 24, 1977 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectmen's Meeting Room, Town Office Building, on Monday, January 24, 1977 at 7 30 p m Chairman Kassler, Mr Bailey, Mr Busa, Mrs Battin and Mrs Miley; Mr Hutchinson, Town Manager; Mr Cohen, Town Counsel; Mr McSweeney, Director of Public Works/ Engineering; Mrs McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were present Conservation Mr Clifford Prentiss and Mr David Williams met with the Guide Book Board to present copies of the "Guide to Town Conservation Land " On behalf of the Board, Chairman Kassler thanked the Conserva- tion Commission for a successful project of mapping Conservation lands for the information of our citizens concerning bicycle Paths, trails, and recreation Traffic Mr Albert Laing and Mr Joseph Belcastro of the State DPW, State DPW/ Mr Michele Lombardo and Mrs Ruth Wales of the Minuteman Regional Min.Man School Vocational Technical School met with the Board to discuss traffic conditions at the school Mr Laing said that they are meeting with the Board to see what can be done to correct traffic control signals at Route 2A and the school They feel that the ultimate solution would be an additional lane but they will try to do it with the existing equipment, as people trying to make a left hand turn are hindered by traffic Mr Belcastro added that the present traffic control is pre- timed, calling for an exclusive turn into the school, and they propose having a detector in position so that people can make the left turn This would allow for as many cars to go through as the call is put on the detector; the number of cars would depend on the timing adjustment Chairman Kassler pointed out that there is no place to store cars, and he asked if there is any way of letting people know earlier? Mr Laing replied that, now, all the cars behind must stop There is only one lane in the west direction so the first car to stop there holds up traffic; the ideal solution would be to have a west-hand lane Mr McSweeney felt that it is an improvement worth trying Chairman Kassler asked what action they are looking for from Lexington? Mr Laing replied that the Town of Lexington would put in the detector and the State would accept ownership of the signal The cost would be $1,000 Mr McSweeney said that when Mr Laing refers to the Town of Lexington, he means the Minuteman School The only thing the Town of Lexington did was to file the application, and we have assumed 334 Selectmen's Meeting January 24, 1977 the responsibility for the power Mr Cohen explained that the State has dealt with the Town and the Town of Lexington signed the agreement However, he believed that the Minuteman School actually takes on the cost Mr Laing stated that the State can only deal with the munici- pality Mr Cohen replied that the Minuteman School is a municipality; it is a regional school district involving twelve towns. Mr McSweeney said that once the light is accepted, the State then takes over the operation and maintenance of the signal Further discussion included the information that congestion is not only caused by buses but from industry in the area; also, that the initial plan called for a second driveway access road at the school The Board agreed that Mr Buse is to make arrangements for convening a meeting the Traffic Safety Committee and representatives of the State DPW and the Minuteman Regional School to come up with a proposal for a solution to the present traffic problem at Route 2A and the School Mr Hutchinson requested approval of a request for a transfer Fire Dept from Account 9000 to Account 4110-Fire Department in the amount of Transfer - $4,000, which would provide for vacation pay for Joseph Marshall and the appointment of Henri Fradette as Acting Chief with a salary of $25,000 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to authorize the Town Manager to make arrangements for the transfer of $4,000 from Account 9000 to Account 4110 Chairman Kessler read an application for a Common Carrier li- Common Carrier cense License- Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve Bicenten Tours a Common Carrier license, expiring December 31, 1977, to Bi- Centennial Tours, Waltham, for the transportation of passengers for hire by motor vehicle along Route 2A, Massachusetts Avenue and Hancock Street to historical sites, with stops at Museum of Our National Heritage, Munroe Tavern, Buckman Tavern, and Hancock Clarke House Chairman Kessler read a request for rental of Cary Hall Cary Hall Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant Rental permission to Lexington Friends Community Residence, Inc , 45 Forest Street, to rent Cary Memorial Hall for a benefit concert by the New Black Eagle Jazz Band on Saturday, April 30, 1977, from 8 30 p m to 11 00 p m at the rate of $35 00 for the Hall, plus custodian, policeman and fireman for special duty Chairman Kessler read a recommendation from the Traffic Safety Committee to amend the Traffic Rules and Regulations to 332 Selectmen's Meeting January 24, 1977 Traffic include a Stop sign at the intersection of Burlington Street and Amendment- Grove Street Burlington & Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to amend the Grove Sts - Traffic Rules and Orders of Lexington by adding to Article 8, Stop Sign Section 22, Schedule 7, the following Street Location Regulation Burlington Street Southwestbound at Grove Street Stop Bonds- Chairman Kassler read a request to approve bonds for Deputy Deputy Collectors Collectors Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the request from Mrs Doris E Barclay for approval of bonds for the following Deputy Collectors Paul E Kelly, Patrick J Moynihan, and John M. Stygles, in the amount of $5,000 each Center Pool For the information of the Board, Mr Hutchinson advised that Study the Permanent Building Committee has selected Sasaki Associates of Watertown, and he is executing an agreement, on behalf of the Committee, for their services concerning the Center Pool Min Man Mr Roland Greeley, Lexington's representative on the Minute Park Adv Man National Historical Park Advisory Commission, met with the Commission Board to discuss the decision of the Office of Management and Bud- get to disband the Commission He urged the Selectmen to write to our representatives in Congress to support the appeal of the Minute Man Park Service for reconsideration, and to strongly urge the OMB be persuaded to continue the operation of the Advisory Commission Mr Greeley felt OMB action could not have been for economic reasons as the total cost is estimated at $320 00 per year for the federal government, with no funds involved for the three representative towns The Board thanked Mr Greeley for calling the matter to their attention and agreed to write to our Congressman and Senators urging their support in persuading the Office of Management and Bud- get to reestablish the Commission 1976 Art 80- Mr William Page met with the Board to discuss Article 80, Policy Opt which the 1976 Annual Town Meeting had referred to the Board of Committee Selectmen for consideration of the establishment of an Information and Policy Options Committee He suggested that there be some identification of people to work on assignments, and he would be glad to help and get back to the Board with names Mr Bailey said that he would like to see a copy of the Town Meeting vote before he discussed the matter Mr Busa objected to any discussion until he had more back- ground information Mr Page offered to meet with Mr Busa, and the Board agreed to defer discussion of Article 80 until Mr Busa has met with Mr Page to obtain the necessary information Selectmen's Meeting January 24, 1977 Mr Edward Tippett, President of Arlex Taxi Corporation d/b/a Tippett- Lexington Cab Company, met with the Board Lex Taxicabs Mr Hutchinson read a report from Police Captain Lima stating that he had conducted an inspection on January 21, accompanied by Inspector Gomes of the Registry of Motor Vehicles on the twelve cabs licensed by the Board of Selectmen on January 19, Five taxi- cabs, 6847, 6855, 6836, 6882, and 6877, were found to be in poor condition because of defective brakes, rear tail lights not working, etc , and all but one had broken meter seals The other seven were not inspected as they were told that four of the cabs were disabled in Arlington, and three were at Hub Motors and Meter Shop in Boston Mr Hutchinson expressed disappointment in the results of this inspection and stated that Lexington would be better served by vehicles in better condition and up to safety standards Mr Tippett explained that the week after he had taken over the business, the Registry had taken them off the road and, when the Registry said that he could put them back on, he did not give all of those cabs to Lexington Some cabs are tied up with trans- mission trouble and the rest are having meters and radios installed Mr Busa said that, according to the report, the cabs are un- safe and, before they are put back on the road, you must get the approval of Captain Lima Mr Tippett said that they are not all on the road Chairman Kassler said that invitations had been given to Mr Scafidi of the Wal-Lex Taxi Co of Waltham and Mr River of the Bedford Town Taxi to attend this meeting to discuss their letters of application to operate in Lexington Mr Rivet was not present but Mr William Belliveau was recognized Mr Belliveau, representing Mr Scafidi, said that when Mr Scafidi wrote the letter, Lexington was without a cab company but now he is leery of coming into a town where there is already an established company Chairman Kassler said that there is an opportunity for another cab company to come in Mr Belliveau replied that it would take a month or so to get the vehicles He added that he was not sure why he was at the meeting but Mr Scafidi was not able to make it. He understood that Mr Tippett's company was on a trial basis and, if after the thirty days are up and Lexington needs a cab company, please call them; but right now, no Mr Hutchinson asked Mr Tippett to respond to the Board as to what he is doing, as the Board wants to know if the situation will be corrected Mr Tippett said that when he took over on January 10, he had invested a lot of money and he may be in a slight pinch All licenses were transferred to him and he didn't know that they were revoked He had been given 30 days and no cab company could do it in that time; lettering takes more than 30 days The Registry men 334 Selectmen's Meeting January 24, 1977 were there and it takes time to put a motor in and fix the meters Mr Bailey reminded him that the Board had made this clear to him last week and, so far, there hadn't been much action on his part Chairman Kassler said that Mr Tippett would have the remainder of the 30 days and inspections would be made by the Police Department Mr Busa cautioned Mr Tippett not to put any cars back on be- fore being inspected Chairman Kassler pointed out that the Board did not want to discuss having another taxi company in Lexington without Mr Tippett being present Therefore, the Board is demonstrating good faith in its desire to have a good taxi company and good, safe, clean taxis We are going to have it whether we have one or two companies He asked Mr Belliveau to tell Mr Scafidi that the trial period is still on Mr Hutchinson agreed to work with Mr Tippett and the Police Department on inspections Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at 9 30 p.m A true record, Attest )1)1 A48-kr-.-7 Executive Clerk, Selectme