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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1974-07-01-BOS-min (10 t) ' SELECTMEN'S MEETING July 1, 1974 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Select- men's Meeting Room on Monday, July 1, 1974, at 7 30 p.m Chairman Kenney, Messrs Busa and Brown, Mrs Battin; Mr O'Connell, Town Manager; Mr Cohen, Town Counsel; Mr Chase, Town Engineer; Mr Martin, Assistant Town Engineer; Mrs McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were present Rev Harold Handley, Guide Director, met with the Board to request the re-appointment of David Lavender, Jr Guide Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint David Lavender, Jr as a Lexington Official Guide Hearing was declared open upon application of W R Grace Co for permission to install two additional 11,000 gallon approved underground tanks for the storage of No 2 fuel oil on the premises at 15 Hayden Hearing Avenue, Lexington W R. Grace Notice of the hearing was inserted in the June 20, 1974 issue of Fuel Oil the Lexington Minute-man, and notices were sent by the applicant by certified mail Fire Chief Spellman reports that he has inspected and approved the location of the two additional underground tanks, which will be installed according to State laws and NFP A recommendations; also, the tanks are to be enclosed in plastic capsules as an additinal safeguard Mr John J Harty, Project Engineer for W R. Grace Co , informed the Board that the building has been occupied since last fall and we pro- pose to put the two 11,000 gallon underground tanks on the West side of the building An addition to the building will be ready next week and, therefore, the existing tank is not enough for the supply of heating oil No one appearing in favor or in opposition, the hearing was de- clared closed Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission for the installation of two additional 11,000 gallon underground tanks for the storage of No 2 fuel oil on the premises at 15 Hayden Avenue, subject t0 the condition that the tanks be encased in plastic capsules Mr O'Connell informed the Board that bids had been received on the Contract refurbishing of fourteen tennis courts, as requested by the Recreation 75-4-E Committee It is recommended that the contract be awarded to George Brox, Tennis Incorporated, 1471 Methuen Street, Dracut, for $22,900 ; under the appro- Courts priation for Article 42 of the 1974 Annual Town Meeting Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to award the con- tract 75-4-E for tennis court construction to George Brox, Incorporated, in the amount of $22,900 591 Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Mr O'Connell informed the Board that the Trustees of Cary Memorial Hall were enthusiastic about having signs made for the building and had Cary appointed a subcommittee to look into the matter Memorial The Board agreed to meet with the subcommittee and representatives Signs of the Historic Districts Commission to discuss the signs identifying the Cary Memorial Building Hearings were held on petitions from the New England Telephone Com- pany, represented by Mr Leonard Scott, and the Boston Edison Company, represented by Mr Louis Pratt Notices were sent to abutters, as listed on the Assessors' maps, and approval received from Mr E Coscia, DPW Manager Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- sion to the New England Telephone Company for the following installation Bedford Street and Ledgelawn Avenue From existing manhole 54/158 located on the southwesterly side of Bedford Street at Stations 72 and Conduit 42 approximately 308' of underground conduit southeasterly to a point at Bedford St the corner of Ledgelawn Avenue, thence 54' northeasterly to northwest- Ledgelawn erly side of Ledgelawn Avenue, then approximately 265' northeasterly to Avenue a pole 131/3 on the northwesterly side of Ledgelawn Avenue, subject to the condition that all excavation near the roots of trees must be done by hand Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- sion to the New England Telephone Company for the following installation Woburn Street On the north side from MH 54/130, easterly, 55' to Lowell Street, southerly, 75' to south side of Woburn Street to corner Conduit of Lowell Street, southerly, 146' to Pole 58/68 on west side of Lowell Woburn St Street. Lowell St Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- sion to the New England Telephone Company and the Boston Edison Company for the following installation Pole Worthen Road On the easterly side, approximately 117' northerly Worthen Rd from the corner of Massachusetts Avenue One (1) pole Mass Ave Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- sion to the New England Telephone Company and the Boston Edison Company Pole for the following installation Bates Rd Wood St Bates Road Northerly 211' from Wood Street one (1) pole to be relocated; also, remove one (1) pole on the easterly side of Bates Road `4“16) cl Awl Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- Conduit sion to the New England Telephone Company and the Boston Edison Company Bates Rd for the following installation Springdale Rd Bates Road Southwesterly, at Springdale Road, a distance of about 24 feet - Conduit Guy Wire Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- & Anchor sion to the Boston Edison Company for the following installation Concord Avenue Concord Avenue Northeasterly side, approximately 720 feet north- west of the Belmont-Lexington Town line, One (1) guy wire and anchor Chairman Kenney informed the Board that a hearing is not required on the following petition from the New England Telephone Company as only the Town of Lexington is involved A report from Mr E Coscia, DPW Manager, states that the New Eng- Conduit land Telephone Company is proposing to install conduit on Bedford Street Hartwell (State Highway) from North Hancock Street to Hartwell Avenue - Harding Avenue - Road from Bedford Street 305 feet - Simonds Road from Bedford Street Bedford 109 feet The purpose of this conduit is to increase trunk capacity be- Street tween the Town of Lexington and the Town of Bedford which will eventually result in the elimination of the existing overhead cables The permit for Bedford Street will be issued by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Department of Public Works; however, location is satisfac- tory to this department, with one condition, that the proposed conduit be placed approximately five feet below the existing culvert at Station 25+35 to allow for future lowering of the culvert, if needed Harding Road and Simonds Road location is satisfactory to this department and all excavation near the roots of the trees must be done by hand Therefore, this department recommends that the New England Tele- phone Company be granted permission to install said conduit and manholes Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission to the New England Telephone Company for the following installation, sub- ject to the conditions outlined by the Director of Public Works/Engineer- ing Hartwell Avenue Approximately 55' northerly from station 17, at south corner of Bedford Street and Hartwell Avenue, north and west 40' on the surface of Hartwell Avenue, then north 210' across Hartwell Ave- nue then north and east 40' at north side of Hartwell Avenue, then 60' north to proposed manhole 54/114 on Bedford Street all on the southerly side of Bedford Street Joint Pole Chairman Kenney read a petition from the New England Telephone Com- Oakland St pany and the Boston Edison Company for permission for joint ownership of a pole, now owned by Boston Edison, on Oakland Street t7.y:11 Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permis- sion to the New England Telephone Company and the Boston Edison Company for joint ownership of a pole at the following location Oakland Street. From the southwesterly corner of Oakland Street at Meriam Street, southeasterly, approximately 774' from Meriam Street, one (1) pole Mr. O'Connell informed the Board that he had received the resigna- Resignation tion of Mr Arthur Burrell as Director of Civil Defense After it is Civ Defense filed with the Town Clerk, the resignation will become effective Director Mr O'Connell advised the Board that Mr McSweeney has received a quotation from Barnes Engineering of $4,710 for layout work in connec- Westview tion with the plan for the development of Westview Cemetery Cemetery The Board agreed to award the contract to Barnes Engineering up to Barnes $4,710 Engineering Residents of the area met with the Board to discuss the plans for the construction of the Turning Mill Road Sewer Mr Brown and Mrs Battin expressed a desire to defer a decision of the Board for two weeks Mr Martin, Assistant Town Engineer The original route is one we proposed in 1972 for Town Meeting action We have prepared addi- tional information for the Board to review and, naturally, we are Turning Mill anxious to proceed as we have a Hatch Act hearing in two weeks Sewer Mr McSweeney We are not asking for final approval Mrs Wheaton I would hope the Board would give extra time to listen to us We agree that lower Turning Mill Road needs sewerage; the only thing we are concerned about is the route and hope that the Selectmen will respond to our concerns about the muskrat pond and the area used by school children Mr Trainer, Estabrook School Teacher This area is particularly advantageous to us because of the trees and the vegetation, and the muskrat pond Mr Chris Theodore, 27 Turning Mill Road I was the first person to start the petition for the sewer and I speak for the owners who have problems We wish the Board would seriously consider to stop de- laying I was told construction would start in September and it should not be postponed for another year Mr McSweeney We have studied proposals and we will have the environmental impact by the end of the week We believe we can put the project through without lowering the water table and, as soon as we re- ceive the reports, we will give them to the Board We are going ahead on the hearing on the recommended route We have no intention of ask- ing the Board to formally vote the intention tonight 594 Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Chairman Kenney We will schedule another meeting for further dis- cussion We understand the concern of the children and environmental- ists, and we will take this into full evaluation before the contract is let out The residents retired from the meeting Mrs Margot Tutun, President of the League of Women Voters, met with Recycling the Board to discuss recycling Chairman Kenney. I feel that we should not tie recycling in with trash collection, and we could form a committee on recycling Mrs Tutun One or two members of the League would be glad to help, and we wondered if it would be an ongoing committee Chairman Kenney This would be a specific committee charged with recycling When the study is completed, we would probably then discharge the committee Mr Busa If we can have a partial solution to the problem, we will have something Board members agreed to submit recommendations for appointment to the committee at the next meeting Mrs Tutun retired from the meeting Mr John F Lahiff and residents of the Town met with the Board to META discuss better bus transportation service throughout the Town Bus Service After discussion, the Board agreed to write to the MBTA General Manager requesting buses on a more frequent basis during peak hours and the possibility of express service from Arlington Heights to Harvard Square during peak hours Mr Lahiff and residents retired from the meeting The Board discussed the renewal of licenses for taxicabs, which had been voted at the meeting of April 29, 1974 to expire on June 30, 1974. Taxicab Chairman Kenney There is a new owner, Mr Joseph Bruno, and Chief Licenses Corr reports that conditions have improved Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to renew the following licenses for taxicabs in the Town of Lexington, expiring May 1, 1975 81 Woburn Street Corporation Lexington Taxi Co , Inc d/a/a/ Minuteman Cab Company Registration No 452 Registration No 470 " 453 " 472 471 " " 483 " 1051 " " 485 " 1052 " " 486 5349 1053 If It 5354 " " 1054 If " 5356 " " 5352 1000 Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Mr Cohen discussed the land in Meagherville which was voted for ac- quisition under Article 45 of the 1963 Annual Town Meeting Meagher- Mr. Cohen This land was to be acquired for school, playground, and Ville other public purposes It is complicated because there are many tax title lots and I should know if the Selectmen want me to start doing the title work If so, I would have to get a plan from Mr McSweeney and we would have to have appraisals on taking by eminent domain The Board agreed that Mr McSweeney is to submit a plan of Meagher- ville to Mr Cohen Mr Cohen discussed the small, remaining parcels of land which have not been acquired at the Woburn Street School Site Woburn St Mr Busa Several owners have approached me regarding the status School now Site Mr Cohen Mr Legro mentioned that there were a couple you might want to take for access We should have more research Mr Busa We should notify all boards to see if they are still in- terested in acquiring the land The Board agreed that Mr Cohen and Mr McSweeney are to further research the matter Chairman Kenney read a report from the Building Inspector as a re- sult of a letter of complaint concerning noise from a fan at the Highland Complaint Food Store at 321 Marrett Road The building was inspected and the owner notified to take some means to muffle the noise of the fan The Board agreed to so notify the complainant The Board discussed an additional request from Mrs Doward Barter for a "Slow Children" sign on Fairlawn Lane Traffic The Board agreed to inform Mrs Barter that the previous reasons Sign for not installing the sign were still valid Chairman Kenney informed the Board that the final jury list has been compiled and is to be sent to the Clerk of Courts in Cambridge Jury List Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve the 1974-1975 Jury List, as submitted Chairman Kenney read a recommendation from the Director of Public Works/Engineering that a decision be deferred concerning a request from Sewer Col Eugene Larson for a connection to the Town sewer system. Larson The Board agreed to inform Col Larsen that sewer contracts are Wingate being evaluated and if there is available money he will be contacted Road in the fall Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to table the re- Conserva quest of the Conservation Commission to exercise the option on the Elliott Curtis S Elliott land Land j:1b► Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Chairman Kenney read a request from Mr Ernest J Rogers, 275 Dale Request for Street, Waltham, to open and operate a package goods store in Lexington Package it was agreed to inform Mr Rogers that the Board feels there are Goods sufficient package goods stores in the Town to well serve the public License and, therefore, additional applications are not accepted Mr Rogers' request is to be kept on file Chairman Kenney read a request from Mr Felix Costanza, 26 Rindge Avenue, for a chain link fence between his property and the Rindge Costanza Avenue playground; people are cutting through his property, grass Rindge Ave clippings are dumped, dirt from the playground property level is fall- Playground ing onto his land A report was read from Mr McSweeney recommending that 80 feet of chain link fence be erected at an approximate cost of $600 It was pointed out that neighbors are using the area as a convenient dumping spot and, therefore, this is unrelated to the playground The Park Department will remove boulders in the park and regrade the eroded areas The Board agreed to accept the recommendations and to instruct the Director of Public Works/Engineering to make arrangements to include the sum of $600 in next year's budget for the installation of approximately 80 feet of chain link fencing Mr Costanza is to be so informed by letter The Board approved the request of the Dierector of Public Works/ Orders for Engineering to sign Orders for Construction of Sewers Construction Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign Orders of Sewers for Construction of Sewer on the following streets Turning Mill Road from house No 25, a distance of 3,500 feet, more or less, to house No 67 Grimes Road from Turning Mill Road, a distance of 300 feet, more or less, to end Jeffrey Terrace from Demar Road, a distance of 340 feet, more or less to end Partridge Road from Turning Mill Road at No 29 to No 30 Partridge Road Gould Road from Turning Mill Road, a distance of 230 feet, more or less, Southwest Demar Road from Jeffrey Terrace, a distance of 1,160 feet, more or less, to Turning Mill Road Chairman Kenney read an application from Mico Realty, Mr Michael Colangelo Colangelo, for permission to install sewer and water line extensions to Sewer & service the development at Hartwell Avenue and Bedford Street Water The Board agreed with the recommendation of the Director of Public Extensions Works/Engineering that Mr Colangelo is to bear the cost of the sewer and water extensions, and approval is granted subject to the condition that Mr Colangelo is to contact the Engineering Department and comply with all the regulations of the Town IIISelectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Chairman Kenney read a letter from Mr Ray Cone, Property Manager of Tektronix., Inc , regarding the application before the Board of Appeals for finding and determination relative to the acquisition of about 5 acres of land at the corner of Hartwell Avenue and Bedford Street for the construction of a facility for general offices and re- Tektronix search and development operation The letter states, "We have directed Inc our architect to re-design the egress onto Hartwell Avenue completely Board of avoiding Hinchey Road There is also the question of a footpath from Appeals the end of Hinchey Road out to Bedford Street near Hartwell Avenue; we Application have allowed for a footpath and steps not disturbing contour lines We think that if the elevation of that portion of land owned by the town at the corner of Hartwell Avenue and Bedford Street is lowered to the street level, then the footpath can be a meaningful one Our plans have left these elevations as they presently exist because we think it would be presumptuous of us to disturb elevations without first con- sulting with and obtaining town permission and approval We do believe, though, that this matter can and will be easily and sensibly solved Finally, I understand that there is a question of where municipal util- ities will serve the premises we are acquiring Our submissions show municipal utilities servicing the premises from Hartwell Avenue Our agreement with the present owner calls for him to install and pay for all costs of construction of municipal utilities to our property lines He and I have indicated there would be no cost to the Town I should also point out that our application states our willingness to do what- ever the Town wants in this regard and that any approvals granted may be granted with those contingencies This has been made known in our application by pointing out that we will abide by any alternative pro- posed by the town, namely taking the utilities from Bedford Street " Chairman Kenney We must write to the Board of Appeals on our position regarding this application Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to authorize the Chairman to sign the letter to the Board of Appeals stating that the Board of Selectmen has no objection to the application of Tektronix, Inc being approved as proposed Chairman Kenney read a request from the State Department of Public Health for the appointment of a representative of Lexington on the Area Emergency Emergency Medical Services Committee to attend a meeting on July 10 Medical Mr O'Connell agreed to have a representative attend the meeting Services and the Board will confirm the appointment on July 15 Committee Chairman Kenney read a letter from Joseph Volante, 15 Lowell Volante Street, requesting that the Town clean up Lowell Street from the island DPW to the Arlington line and, also, to put in shrubs on the island Complaint A report from Mr McSweeney states that the Town picked up debris within the Town right-of-way and the Public Works Department had in- formed Mr Volante that our roadside maintenance was limited to cutting Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 the brush and repairing any shoulder areas considered to be a hazard to driving and pedestrian public Public Works will consider planting a few shrubs on the island of a size not to impede traffic sight distance Mr McSweeney further states that Mr Volante has placed stones along the edge of the traveled way, which are approximately 10 feet within the Town right-of-way; he could be held liable for damages because of this violation The Board agreed to order Mr Volante to remove the stones he has placed on the public right-of-way in front of his property Chairman Kenney read a letter from Mr Robert Tarlin, Bicentennial Director, regarding Bicentennial food services There will be far more visitors in the Town during the Bicentennial summers of '75 and '76 than can adequately be fed by existing facilities Additional facili- ties must be provided, not only from a standpoint of visitor courtesy but, more important, to control this mass feeding, including complete Bicentennial control of health and sanitation Some Town rules and regulations may Food have to be modified in order to accomplish the temporary measures re- Service quired; however, no relaxation of rules and regulations which pertain to Article X (Temporary Food Service Establishments) of the Sanitary Code will be allowed without express approval of the Town Health Officer The most feasible way to cope with this oncoming problem is to encourage Town-located food service facilities to expand their capa- bilities on a temporary (two summer) basis and equally encourage Town religious, fraternal and civic organizations having facilities which lend themselves to this type of project Specific examples are as follows 1 Outdoor picnic table type facilities with or without protec- tive cover (tent top or tarp) collocated adjacent to the sponsoring establishment and utilizing the same kitchen facilities The Town must determine not only if food service establishments may rent Town parking space, but also the rates (if any) at which this space may be rented I would suggest the rental rates be tied directly to the lost revenue from appropriated parking spaces Food stores, both chain and local, can consider similar activities on their own parking areas, being constrained only by their lack of kitchen facilities They could sponsor picnic bench areas, possibly under tents/tarps, with customers entering the store to purchase snack-type foods, fruits, pre-packaged sandwiches, and hot and cold beverages; then returning to the picnic area to consume them. Town organizations (religious/civic/fraternal) should be encouraged to utilize their facilities for a fast-food opera- tion on a continuing basis or for periodic pancake breakfasts, box lunches, bean suppers, etc This should be coordinated by the Lexing- ton Bicentennial Committee to insure a spread of activities and a min- imum of competition "foo I ill Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Along with the Town-sponsored plan to establish two picnic sites of about 25 tables each, a Town food-service establishment might wish to em- place a mobile food serving unit at each of these sites (Similar to the canteen trucks which service industrial/commercial areas ) Mr O'Connell Mr Tarlin had a meeting with the LBC subcommittee and local restaurant owners, who asked what the Town would or would not allow them to do We thought that the existing restaurants could be allowed to use their facilities but to use a larger area by having a sum- mer location as close to their place so their kitchen could serve the people. Their menu would have to be regulated as to what the Health Ser- vice would allow We have been exploring the sanitation and Mr Tarlin was asking about restaurant operators and churches that may want to go into the snack-type bar as a fund raiser Chairman Kenney I think we should look at it further If it doesn't work out well, we can stop it Mr O'Connell It has to be controlled and it could be done by those having licenses in the Town The Board agreed to authorize Mr Tarlin to proceed with his out- lined proposals. Chairman Kenney read a request from Mr John Drew, Special Assistant Hanscom to Governor Sargent, for the appointment of a representative of Lexington Task Force 111 to serve on the Task Force to consider appropriate future uses of U S Appointment Air Force Property at Hanscom Field The existence of a community Task Force will provide a central forum for discussion of the ultimate dis- position of these lands. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to appoint Select- man Sanborn C Brown to serve as a member, and Chairman Allan F Kenney as an alternate member, of the Hanscom Task Force Chairman Kenney read a request from the Director of Public Works/ Contract Engineering to sign the contract for the construction of sanitary sewers, 73-13-E awarded by the Board on June 3, 1974 to Somerset Paving Corporation, Sewers 41 Kay Street, Somerset, in the amount of $122,845.03 Somerset Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign Contract Paving 73-13-E awarded to Somerset Paving Corporation for construction of sani- tary sewers, in the amount of $122,845 03 Chairman Kenney read a recommendation from Mr C F Mistretta, East St State DPW Highway Engineer, that an extension of time be granted to the Contractor contractor on East Street Chapter 90 project Extension Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to approve an of Time extension of time from June 30, 1974 to August 31, 1974 to Cetrone- Compa Corp , Contractor on the East Street Chapter 90 project Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sign the forms State Aid- accepting State Aid-Highways in the amount of $446,500 Highways - (i00 Selectmen's Meeting July 1, 1974 Upon motion dulymade and seconded, it was voted to approve bond ISP Bond No 32-51-32 in the amount of $2,000, covering Norma B Jervis, Assis- tant Town Clerk Mrs Battin informed the Board that she had attended the Lexington Commission on Suburban Responsibility meeting on June 25, and Stanley Brown is the new Chairman They had reviewed the whole problem of de- LCSR institutionalization The State is now returning the problem of for- merly institutionalized persons to local communities - the mentally retarded, ex-mental patients, ex-offenders, etc It was thought that LCSR might be the group to look into it Motion was unanimously passed that LCSR recommend to the Selectmen that they be authorized to estab- lish a sub-committee to research the problem of people with special needs, report to LCSR, and tran'mit recommendations to the Selectmen In essence, to find out what provisions we ought to make in dealing with the problem. Chairman Kenney Give that to us in writing and the Board will act on it next week. Mrs Battin agreed Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to go into Execu- Executive tive Session for the purpose of discussing, deliberating or voting on ,Session matters which, if made public, might adversely affect the public secu- rity, the financial interests of the Town, or the reputation of a person After discussion of matters concerning the sanitary landfill, the Fire Department, and the financial interests of the Town, it was voted to go out of Executive Session Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to adjourn at 11 00 p.m A true record, Attest Executive Clerk, Selectmen - )X/1"1)j />2 I