HomeMy WebLinkAbout1976-06-01-BOS-min 11. 2
SELECTMEN'S MEETING
June 1, 1976 1
A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Select-
men's Meeting Room, Town Office Building, on Tuesday, June 1, 1976, at
7 30 p m. Chairman Kassler, Messrs Bailey and Buse, Mrs Battin, Mrs
Miley; Mr O'Connell, Town Manager; Mr Cohen, Town Counsel; Mr McSweeney,
Director of Public Works/Engineering; Mrs McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were
present
Police Mr O'Connell informed the Board that he had looked into Mrs
Towing Miley's question on the proposed Selectmen's Policy on Police Author-
Policy ized Towing concerning the requirement of storing 25 cars This stems
from the Board of Appeal's permit to Mr Biantedosi to park, temporarily,
not more than 25 vehicles on his land at Lincoln Street, subject to the
condition that cars should be parked at the rear of the garage After
discussing it further with Mrs Miley and also talking with Mr Briggs,
that permit deals mainly with the use of the land and it appears that the
Board of Appeals granted a special permit, which seems to fit the business
on the premises, whether or not that includes towing
Chairman Kassler We should be able to find a reasonable number to
use on "The qualifications include meeting all Zoning B-Law requirements
including capacity to store ? cars in Lexington " Before we authorize
any more companies, we should have Mr O'Connell check it out Currently
we have three authorized companies and we will proceed along these lines
until we hear something else
The Board agreed that Mr O'Connell is to come back with additional
information
Harrington Mr O'Connell informed the Board that Mr Page, Chairman of the
Seedling Harrington Seedling Committee has requested the appointment of Mrs Iris
Committee Wheaton to the Committee
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint Mrs
Iris Wheaton a member of the Harrington Seedling Committee
Coordinator Mr O'Connell recommended that the Board approve the position of Co-
Council on ordinator of the Council on Aging at a temporary, part-time position for
Aging up to 20 hours a week at a rate of $4 00 per hour, pending further review
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the
position of Coordinator of the Council on Aging at the rate of $4 00 per
hour for up to 20 hours, pending further review
Masciulli The Board discussed the bid from Mr Ralph J Masciulli, 59 Valley-
Tax Title field Street, for the purchase of Lot 26, Assessors' Map 24, located on
Lot Valleyfield Street
It was agreed to invite Mr Masciulli to meet with the Board on
June 7, 1976 to discuss his plans if Lot 26 is sold to him
The Board discussed the request from Mr Mark Moore for the installa-
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Selectmen's Meeting June 1, 1976
tion of Town and County lights on Lois land and it was agreed to discuss Mark Moore
the matter further on June 7, 1976 Lights on
Lois Lane
Chairman Kassler read a request from the Follen Church for a special
liquor license to sell beer during an auction on June 5, 1976 1-Day Liquor
Chairman Kassler• We have re eived a letter on a particular problem License
in that the Committee feels that th y will not clear $25 00 for the license
and, perhaps, the license could be ssued at a reduced fee
The Board agreed that there c uld not be a reduced fee if the request
is for beer only The Alcoholic Be erages Control Commission has set the
regulations for a special license f r all alcoholic beverages
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to issue the special
one-day liquor license, at a fee of $25,00, to the Follen Church on June
5, 1976
Chairman Kassler read a report: from Mr McSweeney concerning the 46 Garfield
request for a sewer extension on Garfield Street "For some months now, Sewer
Mr Steven E Cox has been negotiating the purchase of an existing house Extension
located at 46 Garfield Street Ban]: financing of this purchase is possible
and is contingent upon the provision of sewer to the property Because
Town funds are not available, Mr Cox is willing to have this work done
at his own expense This department: has investigated this request and
finds that it is feasible to sewer 46 Garfield Street with a 185 ft ex-
tension manhole in Elm Street and, for that reason, recommmends approval
of Mr Cox' s request The estimated cost to do the work is $5,666 00
Mr Cox is willing to provide the Town with a passbook in the amount of
$6,000 00 in order to cover the cost of this work Once the necessary
documents are prepared, this project will be added to an existing sewer
contract
Upon motion duly made and sec nded, it was voted to approve the recom-
mendation of the Director of Public Works/Engineering to sewer a home lo-
cated at 46 Garfield Street by an e ension of 185 feet from the existing
manhole in Elm Street at the expens , of Mr Steven E Cox, in the estimated
amount of $5,666 00, subject to the condition that Mr Cohen, Town Counsel,
approves the steps to be taken with respect to the passbook, in the amount
of $6,000 00, to cover the cost of the project
Mrs Iris Wheaton, President of the North Lexington Association, and Hennessey -
residents of the area surrounding the Hennessey property met with the Horse Shows
Board to discuss the use of the rec eation area for horse shows
Mrs Wheaton We are here to ask the Board of Selectmen to enforce
the regulation on park and recreati nal facilities in the Town of Lexington
We have been discussing this since ast November with the Recreation Com-
mittee and one of the regulations a tually comes under the Selectmen for
driving, parking in a park, school nd recreation area I am not opposed
to horse shows Mr Lloyd Gilson is with me and will make a statement
that neighbors circulated a petition in the area immediately surrounding
the Hennessey land and there are 14'' signatures of abutters
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Selectmen's Meeting June 1, 1976
111
Mr Gilson The Board knows where the Hennessey estate is, basi-
cally in Precinct 7 corner of Mountain Road across from the Estabrook
School The land is town-owned land and has been designated for recrea-
tion and it comes under the Recreation Committee Last year, the Lexing-
ton Light Horse Club petitioned the Recreation Committee to have five
horse shows on the Hennessey land To our knowledge, they were held, and
also one by another organization The field is more of a meadow than
anything else and is used by residents It is the only land designated
for recreation that I know of Children in the TArning Mill area use it
as an open recreation area and also used by children to go to the Estabrook
School It suffered permanent destruction when the ring was put in; the
grass is gone and there are ruts from vehicles where the horses are driven
out there There were horse shows during rainstorms and the ruts are
still there Mr Busa of the Recreation Committee has pictures We have
quite good documentation of the shows not being well supervised, and
horses running around causing destruction The public address system
starts up loud and starts early and goes late It will be reduced to
having nothing but horse shows and the Recreation Committee must recognize
that it was proposed to make it permanent for horse shows DPW attempted
to fix it by reseeding and put gravel on to cover the ruts Despite de-
struction to the field, the residents' petition is quite moderate but they
object to horse vans, vehicles and that kind of thing Since the last
meeting of the Recreation Committee, there has been no firm decision yet
as to whether vehicles will be allowed However, a circulated map showed
a couple of potential parking areas, and they are on the field That is
certainly one plan envisioned by the Recreation Committee and it looks
to me like a plan to let the vehicles in and out We would like to see
a total ban of vehicles on that field. Last year, the Lexington Horse
Club parked vehicles (vans and cars) in the Estabrook parking lot and they
were able to run a horse show on that basis If they could do it once,
they could do it again and keep vehicles off the field The Selectmen's
rule #7 says that it is forbidden to operate or park on park grounds,
and I believe this field is covered by this
After a lengthy discussion, it was agreed to invite the Recreation
Committee to meet with the Board and all interested parties on June 7.
Moon Hill Resident of Moon Hill area met with the Board to discuss the sewer
Sewer project
Mr McSweeney We had an informational meeting on May 6 and we ex-
plained preliminary plans for the end of Moon Hill involving 35, 37, 38,
39 and 40 Moon Hill Road We had three or four alternatives and investi-
gated each with the group present, showing costs and intended easements to
be taken Moon Hill will be sewered from two different directions and we
still recommend that it be done by gravity The costs are Lower section-
$33,900; Upper section-$36,600; Easements-$71,400; Town Cost-$141,900;
Service Cost-$2,600; Total of $144,500 Basically, we are saying we are
reducing the owner' costs on three of them by $9,000
Dr Kessler I compliment the Engineering Department for a thorough
investigation of possible routes and taking into consideration the concerns
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Selectmen' s Meeting June 1, 1976
ofeo le of the area. The residerts P idents are all pleased and so is everybody
else
Mrs Thompson, 40 Moon Hill Road I agree with you that a remarkable
job has been done by the Engineering Department
Mr McSweeney• We will have for next week the plans with the intent
of taking the easements
Moon Hill residents retired from the meeting
Chairman Kassler read a recommendation from Mr Roland B Greeley Assoc
that Mr John R. Packard be appointed to fill the vacancy on the Historic Member
Districts Associate Membership Historic
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint Mr Dists Comm
John R. Packard an Associate Member of the Historic Districts Commission,
representing the Historical Societ , for a term of office to Jan 1, 1979
Mr Alan T Aronson, owner of the Lexington Transportation Co , and Lexington
Chief Corr met with the Board to discuss complaints regarding the condi- Taxicabs
tion of taxicabs
Chairman Kassler• Chief Corx has indicated that he will make spot
checks of the cabs and we felt that we would like to discuss it with you
Mr Aronson. Assurances are forthcoming It is a difficult posi-
tion when you consider these cars are used by 40 people during the day
The cars are washed and vacuumed orce or twice a week
Chairman Kassler These care are for public use and it would seem
to me if the owner of the company were interested in keeping the cars
clean, he would make spot checks.
Mr Aronson. This is done and have made it known to the drivers
Chief Corr suggested that the Board give Mr Aronson two or three
weeks to make sure all cabs are in good condition
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to extend the
current license to June 21, 1976 and, at that time, a report is to be
given by Chief Corr to the Board concerning the condition of all cabs
owned by the Lexington Transportation Company
Chairman Kassler read a request from Region Three, Mass. Department Permit -
of Mental Health for permission to use the turning circle at the end of Park Drive
Park Drive for pony rides
A report from Mr George Smith, Health Director, states that he has
no objection but points out that a license is needed from the Mass Horse
Program Section
A report from Mr McSweeney, Director of Public Works recommends
that approval be granted
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission
to Region Three, Mass Department cf Mental Health, to use the turning
circle at the end of Park Drive fox• pony rides on June 8, 1976 from 11 00
a m. to 12 00 Noon, subject to the regulations of the Board of Health,
the Mass Division of Animal Healti., and the Public Works Department
Chairman Kassler read a request from the Ceramic Guild for permission
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Selectmen's Meeting June 1, 1976
Permit-
erm to use the Buckman Tavern grounds
Buckman Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission
Tavern to the Ceramic Guild of the Arts and Crafts Society for the sale of pottery
Grounds on June 19, 1976 on the Buckman Tavern grounds, from 10 00 a m. to 6 00
p m. subject to the regulations of the Public Works Department
Bike-a-thon Chairman Kassler read a request for a bike-a-thon
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission
to the American Diabetes Association for a bike-a-thon on June 6, 1976 at
12 00 Noon from the DPW Barn to the Bedford town line, subject to the
regulations set forth by the Town Manager and the Chief of Police
Appts The Board discussed appointments of citizens to the Traffic Safety
Traffic Committee and it was agreed to add three citizens to the present make-up
Safety of town government members
Committee Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint Mr John
Blackwell, Mr Herbert Bogen, and Mrs Katherine Menand as members of the
Traffic Safety Committee
Chairman Kassler to Mr McSweeney, Chairman of the Committee The
vote is with the understanding that this will be an experiment for all of
us and we will review it with you whenever you think it is appropriate
TOPICS The Board agreed to review preliminary plans, submitted by Mr
Mass Ave / McSweeney, for traffic safety projects at Massachusetts Avenue and
Pleasant St Pleasant Street; Waltham Street and Marrett Road
Chairman Kassler announced that the Board has several matters for
Executive Session concerning the reputation and character of citizens of
the town The citizens to be discussed have been informed and will either
be present or know that they will be discussed Mr O'Connell has one
matter concerning collective bargaining
Executive Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted 5-0 by roll call
Session vote to go into executive session for the purpose of discussing the
character and reputation of persons, and to discuss strategy with res-
pect to collective bargaining
After discussion, it was voted to go out of Executive Session
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at
11 10 p m.
A truerecord, Attest.
3° li/ 2 c
•/ Executive Clerk, Selectmen l/
I