Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1976-04-12-BOS-min 55 SELECTMEN'S MEETING April 12, 1976 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Select- men's Meeting Room, Town Office Building, on Monday, April 12, 1976, at 7 00 p m. Chairman Kessler, Mr Bailey, Mr Busa, Mrs Battin, Mrs Miley; Mr. O'Connell, Town Manager; Mr Cohen, Town Counsel; Mr McSweeney, Direc- tor of Public Works/Engineering; Mrs McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were present Mr O'Connell recommended that the Board approve the request for a Transfer- transfer of $5,000 to Account #5450-Road Machinery The Appropriation Acct 5450 Committee approved a request for $5,000 on April 5 and it is necessary Road Mach to request an additional amount for outstanding expenditures for gasoline, parts, etc Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to request approval of the Appropriation Committee for a transfer from the Reserve Fund in the amount of $5,000 to Account #5450-Road Machinery Mr O'Connell recommended that the Board vote to reject all bids sub- Bids for mitted for a softball lighting at the Center playground because of the Softball negative action of Town Meeting Lighting Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to reject all bids for softball lighting at the Center playground Mr O'Connell asked the Board to read and consider supporting the Collective resolution of the Town of Weymouth petitioning the Great and General Bargaining Court to terminate the present collective bargaining act, which termi- Act nates legally on June 30, 1977 The Board agreed to discuss the matter at a future meeting Mr O'Connell requested approval of the appointment of Mrs Dorothy Council on Williams as a member of the Council on Aging, to fill the vacancy caused Aging by the resignation of Mrs Helen Sullivan If approved, Mrs Williams Appointment would be appointed without prejudice on the eligibility of the planned program coordinator position Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the recommendation of the Town Manager to appoint Mrs Dorothy Williams a member of the Council on Aging Mr O'Connell discussed the status of collective bargaining, which Collective is the basis of Article 5 presentation Bargaining D.P W - 5 4% has been ratified Police - 5 6% - not ratified Fire - non-settlement; will go to fact-finding Union's final offer is 7%, which would mean over 9% The Town has gone as far as it should, and the Town Manager's recommendation is 0 funds in Article 5 The Board may wish to keep Article 5 open in order to keep all options open through Town Meet- ing, and I would like to give the Appropriation Committee the same summary 56 Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 The Board agreed that Mr O'Connell is to update the Committee Appointment Chairman Kessler read a proposal for the creation of an appointment Criteria criteria committee, to draw up set standards for use in the appointments Committee to various Selectmen-appointed committee in future years Chairman Kassler I believe that appointments to the various Select— men committees and boards have, by and large, been excellent There are, however, no clearly defined standards, publicly discussed and generally agreed upon, by which these choices are made I see this as a committee charged with developing criteria within the next ten months for each of the Selectmen-appointed positions. The committee would work openly with as much citizen input as possible and report back to us periodically with proposals until we have established criteria for all committees and boards under our jurisdiction I feel that this will provide increased citizen participation in our appointment process Mrs Battin I think it is a good idea and would go along with it I wonder if it is possible to expand the charge, to look at things such as the number on the committee and, also, timing of the appointments? Chairman Kassler I am in favor of it Mrs Miley I am in favor, in the future, of having appointments to boards and committees made after Town Meeting Mr Bailey The committee should draw up guidelines rather than set standards, and I agree if the Board develops the charge to the Committee Mrs Battin I agree, and we will ask the Committee to develope criteria and come back to the Board Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to establish an ap- pointment criteria committee to draw up guidelines for use in appointments, the timing of appointments, and the number of members on the various Select- men-appointed Boards and Committees Also, this Committee is to make rec- ommendations to the Board of Selectmen within the next 10 months to enable the Board to act on each, individually Dr Kassler Due to the fact that we have voted to appoint a new Committee to set up critieria for next year, I recommend that there be no changes this year The Committee will point the direction for next year's appointments We have annual appointments to make this evening and the first would be on the Board of Appeals Mrs Battin read the following statement "During the two years I have served on the Board of Selectmen, and for many years before that, the focus of my political concerns has been the structure within which our town government operates So far as it concerns the Board of Selectmen, this means to me that people should know the nature and extent of the powers we have, the way in which we use them and the criteria and standards we consider in exercising these powers Public knowledge of these matters is particularily important when we appoint other town boards, such as the Board of Appeals A year ago, in considering appointments to the Board of Appeals, Dr Kassler and I proposed criteria and standards for eligibility and qualifi- cation by which we would judge persons for appointment or re-appointment 57 Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 and stated we wouldaccordingly--which vote accordingly- which we did We were not successful, however, in persuading the entire board to debate these proposals or adopt standards I think it is important that we do so, not only for our present actions, but for the guidance of future boards so that people can have an insight into the workings of the board and what governs our actions The only way in which people can justify their confidence in us and what we do is if we act on the basis of standards known to the public and acknowledged by us to be controlling on our actions before we take them. The composition of the Board of Selectmen makes me feel confident that we can confront directly and resolve the issues of eligibility and qualifi- cation That task is difficult and more important than the issue posed by an individual personality For that reason, if a candidate for re-appoint- ment this year fails to meet my personal criteria, I intend to abstain from voting, rather than voting "No," until the board has had an opportunity to consider and adopt criteria and standards relevant to such an appointment I do this with the understanding that I intend to vote in a different manner after the board has dealt with the proposed changes, even though the candi- dates who come before us then may, in some instances, be the same as those before us now " Mrs Miley read the following statement "My votes and decisions as a member of the Board of Selectmen have been made with careful consideration of the facts on my part and a reflection of the wishes of the people of Lexington who elected me I am entirely in favor of forming a criteria committee for Board candidates In the absence of the above three factors, I may, in some instances, abstain from voting for some names at this meeting " Mr Buse I have yet to see any person serving on a committee now that has not been qualified in serving, and I take objection to innuendos or statements made by a member of the Board Mr Bailey I have no statement Chairman Kassler Our positions are all clear and, by and large, we will vote as we see fit, and also wait until next year to express ourselves On the membership of the Board of Appeals, Mrs Morey's term has expired and there is a vacancy due to the resignation of Logan Clarke Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Appointments appoint Mrs Ruth Morey a member of the Board of Appeals for a 5-year Board of term expiring March 31, 1981 Appeals Mrs Battin nominated Mr Irving H Mabee to fill the unexpired term of Mr. Logan Clarke to March 31, 1980 Mr Bailey seconded the nomination and stated that in appointing a full member of the Board of Appeals, historically, we pick the senior Associate Member and there is good reason for this, in my opinion When you start shooting around at random, you take your chances Haskell Reed is the senior member at this point in time but he asked, under the circum- stances, that his name not be placed in nomination Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to appoint Irving H Mabee a member of the Board of Appeals to fill an unexpired term of office to March 31, 1980 58 Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 Board of Mr Buse nominated the remaining five Associate Members of the Board Appeals of Appeals for re-appointment and to appoint Mr Clarence D Turner Assoc Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to re-appoint Mr Members Haskell W Reed an Associate Member of the Board of Appeals for a term of office expinring March 31, 1977 Mrs Miley abstained Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to re-appoint Mr Robert Cataldo an Associate Member of the Board of Appeals for a term of office expiring March 31, 1977 Mrs Battin and Mrs Miley abstained. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to re-appoint Mr Robert M. Gary an Associate Member of the Board of Appeals for a term of office expiring March 31, 1977 Mrs Miley abstained. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- appoint Mr Thomas G Taylor an Associate Member of the Board of Appeals for a term of office expiring March 31, 1977 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- appoint Mrs Natalie H Rif fin an Associate Member of the Board of Appeals for a term of office expiring March 31, 1977 Town Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Celeb appoint Mr Leo Gaughan and Mr William P Brenchick, Jr as members of Committee the Town Celebrations Committee for terms of office expiring April 30, 1979 Bldg/Plumb- Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- ing Comm. appoint Mr Robert W Custance and Mr Leo Dunn as members of the Standing Plumbing and Building By-Law Committee for terms of office expiring April 30, 1979 Gammell Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Legacy appoint Mr James E Collins a Trustee of the Gammell Legacy Income Trust Income Tr for a term of office expiring March 31, 1977 Trustee Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Pub Trusts appoint Mr George P Morey a Trustee of Public Trusts for a term of office & Bridge expiring March 31, 1982, and a Trustee of the Bridge Charitable Fund for a Char Fund term of office expiring March 31, 1979 Fence Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Viewers appoint Rev Harold T Handley and Mr Louis A Zehner as Fence Viewers for terms of office expiring March 31, 1977 Registrar Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- of Voters appoint Mr George E Williams a Registrar of Voters for a term of office expiring March 31, 1979 Executive Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Clerk appoint Mrs Eleanor M. McCurdy as Executive Clerk for a term of office expiring March 31, 1977 111 59 Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 Mrs Battin informed the Board that the Drug Advisory Committee rec- Drug ommends the appointment of Dr Frederick L Mazer, 19 Muzzey Street, and Advisory Mr. Jack Sarmanian, 330 Bedford Street, as members of the committee, be- Committee cause of Dr Ellicott's resignation and Mr Mabee's appoint to the Board of Appeals. Mr Sarmanian is nationally know in the drug abuse field, has headed an Everett drug program called ACID and currently has a contract with the Malden Court to provide education for drunk drivers Mrs Battin I would like to nominate Dr Frederick L Mazer and Mr Jack Sarmanian for appointment as members of the Drug Advisory Committee Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to appoint Dr Frederick L Mazer and Mrs Jack Sarmanian as members of the Drug Ad- visory Committee for terms of office expiring March 31, 1977 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- appoint the following members of the Drug Advisory Committee for terms of office expiring March 31, 1977 Mrs Margery M. Battin, Chairman; Mr Sumner E Perlman, Dr Jack H. Monderer Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Drug appoint Mr Charles L. McManus as DrugCounselor of the Town of Lexington Counselor AP g for a term expiring March 31, 1977 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to re- Street & appoint Mr Malcolm E Graf a member of the Street and Sidewalk Design Sidewalk Advisory Committee for a term expiring March 31, 1979 Committee The Board agreed to appoint a member of the Historic Districts Com- Hist Dists / mission as soon as nominees are submitted from the Historical Society Historical - It was also agreed to hold the appointments to the Personnel Advisory Person Bd Board for a few weeks Representative Carol Amick met with the Board and the PlanningBoard Burlington A g Rep Amick You listened to me a couple of weeks ago when I asked Lexington you to support a bill I filed on establishing a Tri-Town Regional Recrea- Bedford tion Conservation District in Burlington, Lexington and Bedford Because Committee of opposition from the Town of Burlington, I do not feel there is much chance of getting it through the Legislature Lloyd Gilson and I spoke to a member of the Burlington Planning Board and we were pleased that he said he would get together with Bedford and Lexington to try to get a solution to this It was suggested by a Burlington official some time ago to change boundary lines to swap some property with Bedford to keep this as open space; it was also proposed that Lexington give land at Hartwell Avenue and Hanscom Field to Bedford. I don't know the legal rami- fications but, a few years ago, Bedford and Billerica worked it out on Route 3 land. I would ask you to appoint a representative to go to Burl- ington and talk about it Chairman Kessler- We will leave it that you will also meet with the Planning Board and then we will get together and appoint someone to go and represent Lexington's interest Rep Amick and the Planning Board retired from the meeting Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 Hanscom Hanscom Chairman Kassler read a request from Major Rhoads,oa , Air Force Community Base, to update the Hanscom Community Council Council The Board agreed to continue, and confirm to Major Rhoads, the present membership of the Hanscom Community Council, as follows Allan F Kenney, Lincoln P Cole, Jr , Otis S Brown, Jr , Arthur E Burrell, Raymond B Barnes Also, Mr Kenney is to act as liaison for discussion of any items of interest which may arise in the future Mr Bailey indicated a desire to become a member of the Council if one of the members should decide not to serve The Board agreed. Ride-a-Bike Chairman Kessler read a request from the Lexington Education Associa- Permit tion to conduct a "Ride-a-Bike " Mr O'Connell suggested that the organization be reminded that it is prohibited to nail signs to the Town's trees and to ask the group to re- move any that might have been posted along the route Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission to the Lexington Education Association to conduct a "Ride-a-Bike" event on May 2, 1976 at 1 00 p m. , subject to the regulations of the Police Depart- ment and the by-law prohibiting signs on trees Battle Green Chairman Kessler read a request from the Band Director of Lemont, Band Concert Illinois, High School Band to conduct a concert on the Green on June 19 Also, a request for the Town to provide 75 chairs Mr O'Connell There is no problem If the Board desires, we can request Mr Sweet to take 75 chairs from Cary Hall and put them on the Green Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission to the Lemont High School Band to conduct a band concert on the Battle Green on June 19 Minutes Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the minutes of the Selectmen's meeting held on March 29, 1976 Statement - Chairman Kessler said that he would like to make the following state- Town Mgr ment on behalf of the entire Board of Selectmen in answer to many questions Appointment and personal attacks on members of the Board "Much of the emotional discussion which has followed the March 15 ac- tion of the Board of Selectmen relative to the appointment of the Town Manager seems to be based on inaccurate or insufficient information The Selectmen/Town Manager Act under which Lexington operates states that the Board of Selectmen shall appoint the Town Manager for a term not to exceed three years The Manager was last reappointed on March 12, 1973 On March 12, 1976, the office of Manager, in the opinion of Town Counsel, would therefore become vacant without some action by the Selectmen The Selectmen had to make an appointment Failure to do so would have raised serious questions as to the legality of Mr O'Connell's signing papers or action in any way as an official representative of the Town The decision of the majority of the Selectmen to reappoint for a term of only six months was completely within the powers granted the Board bl II/ Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 The Board is of the unanimous opinion that neither the best interests 1 of the Town or the Town Manager would be served by a public hearing The Town Manager concurs " Mr. Bailey I want to add a footnote to that and I have a brief state- ment "The Chairman of the Board of Selectmen can expect to be subjected to criticism from time to time However, in fairness to the present incumbent, I think that it is important that everyone bear in mind that he became chair- men at the beginning of the Board's March 15 meeting As chairman, Howard will undoubtedly be the target of flak at various times in the future, but he shouldn't be tagged with blanket responsibility for Board actions prior to March 15 " Mr. Busa read the following statement "Because of the considerable confusion, rumors and concern expressed by the citizens of Lexington, I would like to clarify my position regard- ing the reappointment of the Town Manager The Town Manager's contract expired on March 12, 1976 The Board of Selectmen did discuss changing the term of the Town Manager's reappoint- ment from three years to a shorter period It was agreed that two members of the Board would meet with the Town Manager, discuss the matter with him, and work out a transition arrangement that would be agreeable to all and in the best interests of Lexington At that meeting, the Town Manager agreed to a six-month reappointment I did not agree with the majority of the Board at the time or their reason for a shorter appointment term, and I would have preferred a longer period for a smoother transition However, I support their right to make their decision and cast their vote as they see fit, but I defend my right to abstain The petitions that have been circulated requesting an open hearing on that reappointment reflect a strong concern on the part of the thousands of residents who signed them. That these many signatures have been collected in the past three weeks is unprecedented in this Town The action speaks for the appreciation shown to Mr O'Connell for his efforts over the past six years The fact that these many citizens have taken part in such an action is a signal to the Board of Selectmen that we should be responsive to these con- 1 cerns We should clarify our position and do everything to avoid misunder- standings in the future However, the wisdom of holding a public hearing was discussed with Mr O'Connell and we agree that it would not be in his best interest or that of the Town, and that should be the primary concern of all of us Although I do not believe an open meeting would help the situation but could only serve to create more polarization I hope to be able to work to address the concerns expressed by so many people and lessen some of the ten- sions and apprehensions that exist I ask the Board to allow me to meet with anyone who has questions re- garding this matter, and I invite the chairman to join me at these meetings " Chairman Kessler On Mr Busa's last point, I would emphasize that over the past three weeks, nctthrough the media but through personal con- kit Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 tact with many citizens of the Town, I have repeatedly offered to meet with any group interested in the facts It is still my feeling that any- one interested in the best for the Town of Lexington should be interested in the facts, and meet face-to-face rather than indulge in the unpleasaft attacks I've seen during the last three weeks I am still available to people who are interested. Mr O'Connell left the meeting to meet with the Appropriation Committee Later on in the meeting, Mrs Shirley Byrne asked about not having a public hearing Chairman Kassler It is the unanimous opinion of the Board of Select- men and the Manager Mrs Byrne What about meeting with you? Chairman Kassler It is impossible for me to meet with individuals but I would be happy to meet with a group Mrs Byrne Set a time Chairman Kassler I will wait for somebody to invite me to come to a meeting Mrs Byrne Come to my house Chairman Kassler Yes, as an unofficial act I do not want to speak for the Board as a whole Mrs Scigliano Would Board members be notified of that meeting? Chairman Kassler Yes I am not setting up meetings I have said that I am available and will respond to invitations Permit- Chairman Kassler read a request from the Lexington Outlook Club to Outlook Club conduct punch sales; also, to sell color postcards of the Bicentennial Punch Sales quilt on April 19 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission Postcard to the Lexington Outlook Club to conduct punch sales on Buckman Tavern Sales and Visitors' Center lawn during the warm weather, and to sell color post- cards of the Bicentennial quilt on April 19 within the area where punch is sold Elks Club Chairman Kassler read a request from the Elks Club for an extension of hours of operation on April 19 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission to the Elks Club for an extension of hours on April 19 under the Club liquor license from 1 00 p m. to 12 00 Midnight Invitation- For the information of the Board, Chairman Kassler read an invitation Temple from Rabbi Meyers to attend an exhibit at Temple Emunah on Saunday, April Emunah 18, from 1 00 to 5 00 p m. and Monday, April 19 from 8 00 p m to 10 00 p m. Chairman Kassler is to attend the exhibit Sacred The Board had no objection to the Sacred Heart Women's Club conduc- Heart Flea ting a Flea Market in the Parish Center on Saturday, April 24, from 10 00 Market a m. to 3 00 p m. Chairman Kassler asked the Board to appoint an Acting Chairman dur- Selectmen's Meeting April 12, 1976 ing his absence from April 20 to April 25 Acting Mrs Battin said that the suggestion was made to rotate the Chairman Chairman and, therefore, she nominated Mr Busa as the Acting Chairman Busa Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint Select- men Alfred S Busa the Acting Chairman of the Board of Selectmen from April 20 through April 25, 1976 Mr McSweeney discussed the replacement of the flagpole on the Green Flagpole- and stated that a steel flagpole is preferred and, therefor, the recom- Battle mendation is to award the contract to B A Larson & Company, Bedford, Green Mass for the complete installation of a steel flagpole and all appur- tenances on the Battle Green in the amount of $25,866 00, subject to ap- proval of the Historic Districts Commission Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at 8 59 p.m. A true record, Attest I.VI" ' Executive Clerk, Selectmen (J