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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1976-11-08-BOS-min 240 SELECTMEN'S MEETING November 8, 1976 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectmen's Meeting Room, Town Office Building, on Monday, November 8, 1976, at 7 30 p m Chairman Kessler, Mr Bailey, Mrs Battin, and Mrs Miley; Mr Perry, Acting Town Manager; Mr Cohen, Town Counsel; Mr McSweeney, Director of Public Works/Engineering; Mrs McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were present Resignation Mr Perry read a letter of resignation, for personal reasons, Fire Chief from Joseph P Marshall as Chief Fire Engineer of the Town of Lexing- ton, effective December 1, 1976 or a subsequent date if it would be in the best interests of the Town; also, if it would be possible to serve in another capacity within the Fire Department, he would be most grateful Chairman Kessler said that it is most unfortunate news as it has been evident to everyone concerned that Chief Marshall has had the backing of the entire Board of Selectmen, Mr O'Connell, and cer- tainly, Mr Perry We will accept his resignation and ask Mr Perry to express the Board's regrets to Chief Marshall and tell him that we will make every effort to make the transition easier and, hope- fully, find a spot for him in the department if it is at all possible The Board agreed to accept the resignation of Chief Fire Engineer Joseph P Marshall National Mr Perry read a request from the Assistant Secretary of De- Guard fense for the cooperation and support of the National Guard and Support Reserve Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the request for the Town of Lexington's cooperation and support of the National Guard and Reserve National Guard Resignation For the record, Mr Perry read a letter of resignation from Recreation Mr Vincent E. Hayes as a member of the Recreation Committee, effec- Committee tive immediately Chairman Kessler informed the Board that he had personally ex- pressed his regrets in a letter to Mr Hayes, thanking him for his contributions throughout the years in the areas of recreation in the Town The Board to fill the vacancy on the committee at a later date Mass League Mr Perry informed the Board of a late communication from the Home Rule Day Massachusetts League of Cities and Towns requesting that the Town adopt a resolution designating November 8 as Home Rule Day Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to designate November 8, 1976 as Home Rule Day in Lexington I __ 2411 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 Chairman Kassler read a request from the Lexington Minute Men, New Flagpole Inc to participate in the dedication ceremony and to raise the first Battle Green flag on the new flagpole on the Green It was agreed to talk with the Town Celebrations Committee to make arrangements for the dedication, which will take place before December 1 Chairman Kassler read a request from W R. Grace Co for a one- W.R.Grace day liquor license 1-Day License Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign the one- day liquor license for W R. Grace Co on November 10, 1976, at a fee of $25 00 Chairman Kassler read a report and a formal request from Mr Dog Hearing Barry Littleton, Animal Control Officer, for a hearing on a dog - Myers II owned by Mrs Brenda Myers, 26 Curve Street, by reason of a vicious disposition Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to conduct a dog hearing on Wednesday, November 17, 1976, at 8 30 a m. on the complaint against the dog owned by Mrs Brenda Myers, 26 Curve Street Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the Easements request of Mr Cohen, Town Counsel, to sign the Order of Taking for Forest St temporary construction easements for the Forest Street sidewalk Sidewalk Chairman Kassler read a request from Mr McSweeney, Director Intent - of Public Works/Engineering, to vote an intent to take sewer con- Sewer Ease struction easements to the rear of Blossomcrest Road Appraisals Blossomcrest and legal descriptions will be available to the Board prior to the actual vote to acquire the easement All abutters have been noti- fied of this intention and, with the exception of a Mr Crosby, no serious objections have been raised Other than the return of the receipt acknowledging that the letter from the Town had been re- ceived, numerous attempts to contact Mr Crosby have proven fruit- less The Algonquin Gas Co has reviewed the plan finds the ease- ment and design acceptable Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted an intent to take construction easements to the rear of Blossomcrest Road for construction of the sewer for Blossomcrest Road Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the Minutes minutes of Selectmen's meetings held on August 2 and 16; September 13, 20 and 27; October 18, 1976, as corrected Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the Ballot Cer- request of the Town Clerk to sign and certify to Secretary Guzzi tification the number of ballots cast in the Town of Lexington on November 2, Nov 2 1976 242 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 Contract Chairman Kessler read a request from Mr McSweeney, Director of q 77-9-E Public Works/Engineering, to sign Contract 77-9-E Traffic Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign Con- Signals tract 77-9-E, awarded on September 20, 1976 to New England Traffic Munroe Signals, Inc in the amount of $6,870 for the installation of School traffic signals at the Munroe School on Massachusetts Avenue New Town The Board discussed the appointment of a new Town Manager Manager Chairman Kassler said that the Board of Selectmen and the Town Manager Search Committee had set a goal for a complete professional and one who would have Town-wide support The selection process had worked out much better than anyone had expected and, as a result, there is enthusiastic endorsement, with no compromises, of the final choice We asked for input from -employees,boards, committees, and citizens and, in writing, we set up criteria for the new office holder, including the relationship between the Board of Selectmen and the Town Manager It was turned over to the Personnel Depart- ment and, with the assistance of the Personnel Advisory Board, the position was advertised and 268 applications were received from all over the country The Board of Selectmendid not become involved and the initial screening process was handled by the Personnel Ad- visory Board Applicants were classified in A, B and C cataegories and those in the A category were turned over to the Screening Committee, who conducted the interviews The Town Manager Screening Committee represented the widest possible opinions of citizens of the Town and it was heartening to the Board of Selectmen that applicants took the time to say what an excellent job this committee had done and to tell us that they had never been involved in such a professional process and that they would be interested in using a similar approach The Board of Selectmen intervieweed the nine candidates recommended by the Screening Committee and, during the process, it became apparent to all that four of the nine were outstanding pros- pects Representatives of the Board and the Screening Committee visited the home towns of three of them and continued the discussion with each man in his home town Tonight, we are ready to vote and to bring our search to a close Mr Busa is the only member of the Board who is not here but he was interested and enthused enough about the selection process to volunteer to fly home from Florida We will make a telephone conference call, which will be much kinder to him Mrs Battin moved, pursuant to Section 5 of Chapter 753 of the Acts of 1968 as amended, to appoint Mr Robert M Hutchinson, Jr as Town Manager for a term beginning Jnuary 1, 1977 and ending December 31, 1979 at a salary of $34,000 for the first year Mr Busa, contact by telephone, seconded the motion by Mrs Battin He expressed his appreciation to the Personnel Advisory Board and the Town Manager Selection Committee for an excellent job in selecting the five finalists, and that any one of them would have served the Town admirably Mr Hutchinson has outstanding Gtie1+ Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 qualifications, their decision,s, which made the Board unanimous in and he would convey his vote to Mr Hutchinson Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was the unanimous vote of Vote the Board of Selectmen, pursuant to Section 5 of Chapter 753 of the P Acts of 1968 as amended, to appoint Mr Robert M Hutchinson as Town Manager for a term beginning January 1, 1977 and ending December 31, 1979, at a salary of $34,000 for the first year Chairman Kassler said that it had been a long process but a very satisfactory one During the procedure, we consistently worked very hard, not only to follow the letter of the law but the spirit of the law The only constraints the Board had were that most of the final- ists were not anxious to leave their positions and we had to preserve their privacy. Otherwise, it was a totally open process Mr Hutchinson is the Town Manager of Plainville, Connecticut, and he has the many attributes we were looking for He is considered to be one of the top Managers in New England. Other towns in Connecticut have used him as a consultant in collective bargaining, and he has had a tremendous amount of experience He will be coming to Lexington on January 1 and it will be evident to all, as it was to us, that he was the oustanding candidate We will be very proud to have him as our Town Manager Mr Perry added his wholehearted endorsement of the action of the Board Mr William R. Page, Chairman, and members of the Advisory Com- CATV mittee on Cable Television and Cable Communications met with the Board to give a progress report and recommendations on the next step to be taken by the Committee Mr Page explained that the Committee had made an analysis of any system that Lexington might decide to have, and had developed specifi- cations to rate four alternatives for ownership and operation of a cable television system A Municipal Ownership; Contract Operation B Private C Non-Profit Corporation; Ownership Contract Operation D Non-Profit Corporation; Ownership and Operation Specifications were divided into three considerations financial, technical, and quality of service CATV ratings are Technical - Alternative A is most likely to meet speci- fications D, C, and B Quality of Service - Alternative A D, C, and B Financial - Alternative D C, B, and A Mr Page pointed out that if you use the factor that some people in Lexington might consider the lowest possible cost service over the long run to be more important than any financial risk, then A and B have equivalent ratings 24'1 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 The Committee recommends that it continue to study Alternative A in order to get more details, but would be glad to treat A, C, and D in the same package The Town is under no pressure to consider a license so the Committee has the time for further study in more de- tail It is their feeling that a contract operation would offer a degree of control that other forms of operation wouldn't be likely to meet as well Mr Bailey said that the Committee has done a great job in moving another step forward in getting the Town in a more comfortable posi- tion before the fact, and in gathering the ultimate material which will be required by the Board. Chairman Kessler asked how much time would be needed by CATV to submit facts and figures to the Board? Mr Page replied that a reasonable time would be about four months Chairman Kessler endorsed Mr Bailey's statement and thanked the members of CATV for the great deal of time and thought which had been put into the report It was agreed that the Advisory Committee on Cable Television and Cable Communications would report back to the Board in four to six months, and the Committee retired from the meeting Proclamation - Chairman Kassler read a letter from Governor Dukakis, requesting November all cities and towns to proclaim November as energy savingsmonth and, Energy Savings also, stressing the need for conservation measures Month Chairman Kassler pointed out that steps had already been taken by setting up a joint meeting next week with representatives of the Appropriation Committee and the School Department to hear a proposal by a Lexington-based firm of energy consultants Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to proclaim the month of November as Energy Savings Month Permit - Red Chairman Kassler informed the Board that the Red Cross Chapter Cross Sale has requested approval for conducting a treasure sale at their build- ing on Saturday, November 13, 1976 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the request of the Red Cross Chapter to conduct a treasure sale on November 13, 1976 Police Manual Mr Robert Kent, Chairman, and members of the Police Manual Com- Committee mittee met with the Board to submit its first report and recommenda- tions Mr Kent informed the Board that since the organizational meet- ing on July 20, 1976, the Committee had seven meetings They re- viewed the current Rules and Regulations of the Police Department, approved in 1972 by the Board of Selectmen and the Town Manager, and recognized the need for guidelines on one hand and, on the other, the dangers inherent in their becoming to specific or too voluminous The police manual contains three sections I Rules and Regulations; II Job Descriptions; III Policy L1-0 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 and Procedures Statements Rules and Regulations set forth instruc- tions binding upon members of the depalikment; they are categorical, precise, and are of such a nature that violation may lead to dis- ciplinary action Job Descriptions are self-explanatory These first two sections of the manual are appropriately promulgated by town officials, both by the Town Manager or the Board of Selectmen or, as we prefer, by both The Policy and Procedures section of the manual consists of a series of statements on a variety of topics designed to guide the officer in the conduct of his duty We empha- size that they are guidelines They are the products of much thought and deliberation; most summarize the factors rendering the topic important; each represents a statement of general policy as to how particular situations ought to be handled They all rest upon an assumption, however, that circumstances may and will arise in which a particular policy or procedure must yield to the exigencies of the situation and in which there is no substitute for the judge- ment of an officer on the spot Because the Policy and Procedures' statements are, in essence, working documents, they should be promul- gated by the official responsible for the operation of the department, namely the Chief of Police Mr Kent further stated that, although the committee had grappled with these concepts for some time, the nomenclature and views set IIIforth crystallized only after our meeting with representative of the Mass Police Institute on September 28 The Institute provides tech- nical assistance to police departments and it is federally funded by the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration It renders services only upon request of a police chief, hence it was at Chief Corr's in- vitation that representatives of the Institute met with us MPI's technical assistance includes the preparation of police department manuals, and they have prepared a set of 24 monographs, which are statements of Policy and Procedures, subject to local adaptation Among the more significant topics covered are arrest, crowds and demonstrations, juveniles, high-speed pursuit, rape, stop and frisk, use of force, strikes, and search and seizure The Institute keeps these monographs under constant review, and amendments are made from time to time Chief Corr has stressed that all of the matters included within the 24 monographs are vitally important to the proper operation of the Police Department, and the committee is quite per- suaded that this is so Additional topics may well qualify for in- clusion The Committee has come to conclusions and recommendations Ob- taining the assistance of the Institute represents the soundest ap- proach to commencement of a continuing review of the Police Department Manual, and Chief Corr stands ready to request such assistance Representatives of MPI who met with the Committee expressed their opinion that the present Rules and Regulations, including Job Descriptions, are in exceedingly good condition, and are among the Illbest that they have encountered in Massachusetts Our Rules and Regulations do contain matter which, under the MPI approach, would be I 46 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 placed in the sectionon PolicyProcedures The project we s c and ro pro- pose would involve a review&,f the Rules and Regulations, editing out those matters to be placed in Section III The Policy and Procedures' statements would then become a part of the manual, distinguished from the first two sections in that these statements would be promulgated by the Chief of Police, with Sections I and II to be adopted by the Town Manager, the Board of Selectmen, or both. The Committee believes that it is important that members of the department participate in this process For one thing, any amend- ments constituting a change in working conditions become the subject of collective bargaining As important is the proposition that, if the product is to work well, those who must use it should play a part in determing its content The Committee believes that a committee of citizens, such as ours, can continue to be helpful It should review the recommendations of MPI and serve as an advisory committee to the Chief as to the entire manual and to the Town Manager and the Board of Selectmen as to Sections I and II The Committee does not believe that a large number of copies is necessary There should be an adequate supply for the department, copies for the Town Manager, the Board of Selectmen, and members of a committee such as ours; plus copies should be made available for public inspection at convenient locations, such as Cary Library We do not believe that a general public distribution is called for as this is an operation document We do think that public access to it is essential In closing, we would express the hope that neither the Board nor the Townspeople will overemphasize the importance of the manual Most of what the officer learns about performance of his duties he learns from other sources, such as his substantial training upon joining the force, the courses which he takes, and the material which he reads Above all, he must be educated by his experience We do believe that an expanded manual can contribute useful guidelines for the exercise of the police function We believe that statement of guidelines and the existence of a process for their continuous review can contribute to that public confidence so essential to the ultimate success of the department Mrs Battin I commend you for what you have done I have seen the work of the Police Institute and it is superb But, in this case, you suggest that the Board of Selectmen adopt the Rules and Regulations and Job Descriptions, and the Police Chief is responsible for Policy. Normally, it is the elected body that does the policy, and administra- tion the rules As I see it, at some time we might be at odds with the police; for example, the sections on juveniles and high speed pur- suit Some time, the Chief might think something is necessary and the Board of Selectmen might not At times, community values might be at variance with those of the Police Chief, and the Selectmen represent the entire community I question who should adopt the policy, Again, I am talking about policies, not procedures 2'47 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 Mr Kent It is a difficult example you raise As to the P inevitability of high speeed pursuits, the question is, "When?" To us, it seems that it is most difficult in most areas of day-to-day conduct of officers that anybody could lay down a hard and fast rule for the officer on the scene When we talk policy, we want what we are talk- ing about and, most importantly, what we are not talking about - "Thou shall or shall not, upon pain of disciplinary action " - about not doing certain things We are not talking about policy abut by-laws, but guidelines for what is inevitable; largely, a discretionary faction; mainly, what happens in the field and not what the front office will tell him. The Chief is responsible to the Town Manager and, ultimately, if the Chief's policy and procedures get out of line, then something is going to give The control comes in the office of the Chief of Police, and the Board of Selectmen aught not to make the decesion as to how an individual officer does the job It seems to us that there ought to be a scrutiny of his policy and to have direct input from its own committee, and we think there ought to be some community input in this On a day- to-day basis, the person responsible ought to have the power to do it Mr Bailey I am absolutely delighted with the distinctions on the three important functions, and how you recommended following through Now comes the question of charging the committee to make sure that we have a four-way, mutually satisfactory basis Mr Kent If you approve the report, what happens next is a re- quest from Chief Corr to the Massachusetts Police Institute to review the regulations and job descriptions currently in the rules Our idea is that some would come out and go into the third section, complying with the monographs, with such changes as are deemed adviseable with the local practice When the Chief has them in shape, i e , high speed pursuit, he would present it to us, we advertise it, and we consider it, and we give him advice He has already taken the monograph on high speed pursuit and given it to the department as a suggested procedure They are working on 28 to 30 monographs now and, as they are approved, they would become part of the manual Chairman Kassler Then the meetings would become publicized? Mr Kent Yes; we anticipate a few subjects not covered by the other monographs Mr Chapin, Police Manual Committee Many of the monographs have already been in operation in the Police Department but haven't been part of a public document Chairman Kassler The Community Relations Committee found that a lot of the rules and regulations just aren't understood, and a review publicly would broaden the understanding Mr Kent I would emphasize, with respect to monographs, that is not the way it should be done but rather by furnishing a guideline To some extent, a man is bound by statute but, with the guidelines, we hope it will contribute but not supplant the thinking of the department before he gets into the situation Mrs Miley I would expect that this probably has been a proce- dure for many years and, in the final analysis, one always has to use 245 Selectmen's Meeting November 8, 1976 hisown -- has to be a major factor. judgment and judgment 7 I agree with Dr Kessler that when these are publicized - and always taking into consideration the human factor - there will be more understanding Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to accept the report of the Police Manual Committee, including the recommendations of the Committee It was agreed that the second step would be for Chief Corr to request the assistance of the Massachusetts Police Institute Chief Corr said that if the request is made before November 15, the services are free He will follow through immediately Executive Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted, 4-0 by roll Session call vote, to go into executive Session for the purpose of discussing the reputation and character of individuals and one item concerning personnel After discussion, it was voted to go out of Executive Session Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at 11 30 p m A true record, Attest: I xecutive Clerk, Selectmen