Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1972-01-31-BOS-min 228 SELECTMEN'S MEETING January 31 , 1972 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectmen' s Meeting Room, Town Office Building, on Monday evening, January 31, 1972, at 7 30 p.m Chairman Cataldo, Messrs. Bailey, Busa and Mrs Riff in, Mr Legro, Town Counsel ; Mr. O'Connell, Town Manager; Mr McSweeney, Town Engineer, and Acting Superintendent of Public Works; Mrs. Mascetta, Acting Executive Clerk, were present. Chairman Cataldo addressed Mr. Legro and Mr O'Connell for re- ports, if any. Mr. Legro had nothing to report. Mr. O'Connell had one item that he would take up with the Board during Executive Session Chairman Cataldo read a letter from the Lexington Minute Men, Inc. requesting permission to re-enact the "Battle of Lexington" on April 6, 1972, and assistance to resolve a few minor problems. The Board agreed to refer the letter to the Celebrations Committee so that this re-enactment may be included in their program. The Board Lexington has no objection as long as the Traffic Committee and those`con- Minute cerned are notified. Men, Inc Mr. O'Connell One question that will arise, if there is a Sunday re-enactment some of the organizations will ask for a two day permit rather than a one day permit, that is if they are given their Annual Permit Chairman Cataldo If there is just this program, then there should be no problem. It was moved, seconded and unanimously voted to refer the letter to the Celebrations Committee to be added as part of the total program. Chairman Cataldo read the letter received from Thomas S. Wilson, 473 Lowell Street, relative to his acceptance of $150 award for Wilson damages by reason of taking The Chairman noted that it would be Award for necessary to refer this to Town Counsel that he may draw the neces- Damages sary documents to conclude this contractual obligation. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to refer Mr Wilson's letter of acceptance of $150 damages award to Town Counsel for preparation of necessary documents. Chairman Cataldo read the letter from Attorney Paul J. McCormack Domings Lot relative to property owned by Edward E and Mary L. Domings - 37 Valleyfield Valleyfield Street During discussion the Chairman noted that it Street must be clear that the action of this Board is only to remove the restriction inserted in the deed of the initial conveyancing; all other conditions and titles would remain the same, 2299. Ill The Board received a letter from the Burlington Board of Selectmen reuesting their assistance by asking their Senators and Representatives to support proposed legislation which would impose a penalty on the communities found guilty for not abiding with the so-called 100% assess- ment law. The proposed billis being submitted jointlyby Senator MacKenzie and Representative Vigneau Chairman Cataldo I see no advantage in Lexington supporting this legislation. Mr O'Connell noted that this might work in adverse. Certain Burlington monies reimbursed must have been worked out in equal valuation. 100% Attorney Legro in my opinion, this legislation can add nothing Assessment but difficulties and expenses. Bihl Mrs. Riffin We have been asked to support this proposed legis- lature without substantial information. Should we know more, we may consider to support it It was Burlington' s Chairman that supported this legislation at the Massachusetts Selectmen' s Association meeting. Chairman Cataldo What is the Board' s desire, should we write and request reasons for this request of assistance and support? It was agreed that the Board request specific information as to reasons why this bill should be filed, and why the Lexington Board of Selectmen should support it Chairman Cataldo read the letter received from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council and noted that detailed explanations were en- M.A P.C. closed. The Council is at this time seeking funds for improvements FAA/Airport to Hanscom Field Development Chairman Cataldo This is an application for funds, they are Aid not seeking approval for construction Mr Bailey Is this request consistant with a previous discussion on this matter? Chairman Cataldo It is pretty much so. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to approve this notice of intent by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council of the Massachusetts Port Authority to apply for FAA/Airport Development Aid funds for certain improvements to Hanscom field The Notice of Intent for street lay-outs was read by Chairman Cataldo, as follows Bow Street on the easterly side from a distance of 54 feet more or less, south of the centerline of Mill Notice of Brook Drain Easement northeasterly to a dis- Intent - tance of 180 feet, more or less, northeasterly Street of the centerline of Mill Brook Drain Easement. Lay-outs Mass: .Avenue: from the westerly sideline of Depot Square a distance of 137 feet, more or less, westerly to the easterly sideline of Meriam Street 1 230 Emerson Road from a distance of 140 feet, more or less, east of the centerline of Maureen Road to a distance of 393 feet, more or less, west of the centerline of Maureen Road. Abernathy Road from Ingleside Road a distance of 661 feet, more or, less, easterly to end Birch Hill Lane from Lincoln Street a distance of 948 feet, more or less, northeasterly to end Clyde Place from Ingleside Road a distance of 296 feet, more or less, southerly to end. Conestoga Road from Wood Street a distance of 794 feet, nmore or less, easterly to end. Dudley Road from Goffe Road a distance of 901 feet, more or less, southeasterly to Philip Road Goffe Road from Worthen Road a distance of 777 feet, more or less, easterly to Philip Road Heritage Drive from Volunteer Way a distance of 1753 feet, more or less, southerly, easterly, and northerly to Volunteer Way. Ingleside Road from Maple Street a distance of 2232 feet, more or less, northerly to Clyde Place. Pheasant Lane from Lincoln Street a distance of 1066 feet, more or less, northeasterly to Birch Hill Lane. Worthen Road from Pleasant Street a distance of 2069 feet, more or less, northwesterly to the limit of the previ- ously accepted portion of Worthen Road. Maureen Road from East Street a distance of 503 feet, more or less, southerly to Emerson Road. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to sign Notices of Intent to lay put Streets as. read Chairman Cataldo informed the Board that a hearing will be held on Wednesday, February 16, 1972 at 8 00 p.m. in the Cary Memorial Hall. The Board received a letter from Herbert W. Eisenberg, Chairman of Eisenberg S.:A.C., regarding Spring Street. A meeting was held between the Citi- Associates zens Advisory Committee and the committee from Spring Street, at which Question- time the entire situation was discussed. It was understood that the noire residents were told that the Board of Selectmen would send out ques- tionnaires concerning plans for the construction of the street, to be evaluated in whichever manner best suits the Board 231 Mr Buse I believe it would be better to have mail returned to this office in order to insure its not being lost in transit If we are willing to collect the mail , he should come in to see our tally. Chairman Cataldo I submitted the letter to Mr. McSweeney for his evaluation, and we both agreed that two points should be changed I) The questionnaire should be returned to the Selectmen' s office. 2) The date for return should be February II , 1972. It is my feeling that, as we discussed at the hearing, the Board would receive the questionnaire and make public the final tally, and not report individual names, but just total number received in return. Later on the Chairman discussed with the Board the point of no signatures being required, and it was the feeling of both Mr McSweeney and the Chairman, for the purpose of record and tabulation, that signa- tures should be required It was agreed by all members that this change should be made on the return questionnaires The Chairman is to inform the Advisory Committee of these changes. Chairman Cataldo read a letter from Mrs Judith E Singer, PhD., resident at 48 Balfour Street, dated January 25, 1972. The letter Hamilton stated that Hamilton Photographers have been soliciting in the streets Photograph of Lexington, offering a coupon for a photograph taken in the home Solicitors Part of their sales pitch is that their reputation is attested by the licensing of the Town' s Board of Selectmen. Chairman Cataldo replied on January 26th as follows The Board of Selectmen has been advised that Hamilton Photo- graphers have been soliciting in the Town of Lexington, offering one coupon for a photograph taken in the home. Your solicitors are informing the people that they have been licensed by the Lexington Board of Selectmen This Board feels very strongly about this matter, therefore request that you appear before us at 7 45 p.m on Monday evening, January 31 , 1972 to discuss this matter Please inform this office of your intention of accepting this appointment. Chairman Cataldo informed the Board that as of this afternoon, there was no word received from Hamilton Photographers Late this afternoon Mr Cataldo contacted the Police Department, informed them of the situation, and placed the matter in their hands until further notice Chairman Cataldo informed the Board that a memo regarding the TOPICS TOPICS Program was submitted by John J McSweeney, Town Engineer, with Program a copy of the original Phase Ill- project group proposal , and asked Mr. Phase III McSweeney to present the issue in capsule form to the Board 232 Mr McSweeney asked that the Board review these submitted copies and noted that the Traffic Committee did change some of their priorities on the overall project. We are requesting your concurrence with the Traffic Committee' s recommended list. Approval of this list does not indicate that this will be the final say that the town has as to what willulti- mately take place, but only an approval to go ahead on to Phase III Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to confirm this action of the Town Engineer and give the TOPICS co-ordinator approval to begin Phase III , comprehensive studies of the location as listed. Chairman Cataldo informed the Board that letters were to be sent out to request submittal of nominees for appointment in the forming of a Commission of Youth He noted that it was the understanding of the Board that ten members to be- appointed by the Board be nominees of adult age. There seems to be some difference of understanding, as Mr Busa indicated after talking with Dr Monderer Mr Busa explained that he talked with Dr Monderer about the mis- understanding A poll of the Committee was taken to see what their Commission recommendations would be The committee concurred with him that there On Youth would be no restrictions on members We would like to have as many adults as possible, but there should be no indication that only adults are preferred Dr Monderer It is my feeling that there be more youth than adults, but there will not be restrictions on nominees; there should not be any restrictions as of age The committee also feels most agencies would be nominating adults It was recognized too that the Selectmen would be in the position to use their own discretion If they wish to use that criterion, then they should do so. Chairman Cataldo If we are going to appoint this Committee, it will be to make it work The feeling has been,made known that this committee should consist of youth and adults. i feel that there should be a clear understanding before we go after nominations If this com- mittee does not work, 1 do not want to feel that it was caused by improper appointments made, I don't want to be on this sort of a spot. Dr Monderer There should be some feeling of understanding You ought to select members on the basis of their contribution, not their age Chairman Cataldo I hear what you are saying; then there should be no stipulation in anything Mr Busa Now this brings us right back to where we were two weeks ago The misinterpretation is on the ten members to be appointed by this Board To resolve this matter, I feel that the committee should meet again to try to iron out the appointing of the tem members of the Youth Commission As long as the recommendations come through with the nominations, we make the appointments on this basis The organization appoints the governing body Chairman Cataldo Then we just appoint from a list of recommended nominees? If we have to appoint by the capabilities of contribution, 2 3°s where do we get the information? I feel that regardless of what the make- up of this Youth Commission, we want it to work. What is the feeling of this group? Any objections to a meeting of the committee to iron things out? Mrs Riffin I feel that each organization should submit their nominations, and we would respect their nominations It was agreed that this would be again reviewed for more positive direction before further action. Mr and Mrs Henri Vetter appeared before the Board to discuss the possibility of opening the Warrant for the Annual Town Meeting for the insertion of an article relative to the conveying of a parcel of land on wbiCh they intend to relocate the Scottish Rites home. Mrs Vetter I am sure that you are familiar with the house in question This house is to be demolished if it remains on its own site There 'has already been some demolition of the interior of this building There has been some anxiety expressed about the saving of this house We want to renovate it and live in it We feel that the location of Vetter 561 Massachusetts Avenue would be suitable because of the size of the Scottish building. We are not asking for all of this land, perhaps half of it. Rites Home We would hope that you would consider opening the Warrant for an article Relocatior to be inserted to allow us to purchase a portion of the land The Con- servation Commission it in favor of this landas a site for the Scottish Rites home. The Planning Board was consulted and they informed us that they had no objection to the project, as such, however they do not wish to see the stock of town-owned land depleted, so they would like to see some method arrived at to return some land to the town. We understand what is involved, but there is no other location that we know of avail- able on which this house can be put If something cannot be done, this opportunity will be lost. No legal arrangement has been made as of this time. We would not want to own the house with no place to put it The lot involved would be at least } acre The Conservation Commission will be consulted for the determination of any lot lines and wet areas. Chairman Cataldo It would be best to take this land in a straight forward manner; not to include any exchange. Next point is to take what- ever legal steps might be necessary. What is the feeling of the Board? As I understand it, the Planning Board has abandoned any intention to further Emerson Road. It is fine to discuss this with the Conservation Commission, but they would be the ones least involved in this purchase. If the Adams school site should ever be expanded, access would be through this property. The issues important now are I . the opening of the Warrant, and 2. Will the Town sell any of this land Did the Scottish Rites give .you a time limit on this' Mrs Vetter No, and I am puzzled about this. We might not be able to move the house for six months, it would be impossible to move it sooner. We have already contacted a mover, and they have ruled out all streets except Massachusetts Avenue for the route to move the building Mr Busa Should we open the Warrant for this? The building that stood on this lot before was equally as beautiful a home as this building that is intended to be placed on it 234 It was finally agreed to discuss this with the Planning Board, which was done at this meeting Mrs. Brown, Chairman of the Planning Board, indicated that all members of the Planning Board were sympathetic with the Vetter's re- quest. This would be a fine thing to do, but we must look into it carefully. This may be the beginning of something. We should have some policy, some balance. Chairman Cataldo Do you feel that we should open the Warrant? Would the Planning Board oppose this article? Mrs. Brown We discussed this during our work session. The general tempo was that time was needed to explore the situation. We are not opposed to the inclusion of the article. Chairman Cataldo Should the Warrant be opened to insert this article, it would have to be a Selectmen's Article at the request of a resident, based on some public interest being served. The School Department will be contacted, and the intent of the Town to sell this land will be checked into before any decision is made. Traffic Comm Chairman Cataldo Regarding the meeting with the Traffic Com- Eldred Rd. mittee and residents of Eldred Road and Bedford Street, a date has Meeting been called for to set up this meeting. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted Minutes to accept the minutes of the meeting of January 24, 1972. Relative to a previous issue brought to the attention of the Star Board, the Chairmaniinformed the group that the Star Market will Market put up a chain on the lot line. The Planning Board' s main purpose to meet with the Selectmen tonight is to discuss the Site Investigation Article. Mrs. Brown We are trying to find one more way to care for wet lands. The Sub-divisionControl Law, as it is, is of little help. We are not trying to stop development in this Town, but to try to set up some kind of zoning. We have none to propose at this time. A discussion with the Town Engineer in December, and the Board of Site Health, ended in the request for appointment of an ad-hoc committee Investiga- by Town Meeting. We listed four things we wanted them to look into. .tion It was our hope that this committee would be the people to make Article specific suggestions, if any were to be made. We are asking for $8,500 for 1972 based on a figure obtained from three firms.. We are asking for this appropriation in order to analyze the following areas, in this order of priority; I . Land west of Bedford Street between Rte. 128 and Hartwell Avenue, including the impact on downstream lands to the Shawsheen River 2. Upper Munroe Brook areas from north of Woburn Street to Bryant Road. 235 35?" 3. The third site will be one of the following areas, previously considered for development, unless .a new site of high priority is proposed for development Along Vine Brook southeast of Worthen Road Off Waltham Street to Valleyfield Street and Hayden Woods. Clematis Brook area from Town land to Rte. 2. Land southeast of Revere Street and south of the Railroad. Seems that in certain cases that if the Town asks specific ques- tions, information will be available that can be used by all Town Boards, it would be useful to have specific recommendations available to provide guide lines. We solicit your support of this appropriation which we consider essential to proper discharge of our duties as a planning agency and for the protection of the Town and its residents against environmental damage and the high cost of corrective measures. Chairman Cataldo I feel that substantial information is available within our Town Departments. If we are going to spend that kind of money, we should see some substantial reason before we appropriate money for more work in this area. I feel that there is all of that informa- tion in the Engineering Department that can be made use of . Perhaps there are some isolated cases where monies are needed, but to go into that magnitude of an expenditure, and try to change the controls that we have, may be wrong. Discussion followed and Mrs. Brown noted that some of the invesgi- gation and specifics they are seeking may seem superfluous, but does not seem this way to the Planning Board. , The Engineering Department always is so busy there are things that cannot be done. In some years to come, we feel that it will be an asset to have the detailed informa- tion available that we are seeking. From the information that we have the information that we want is frequently unavailable. Chairman Cataldo• This direction is fine, but I do feel that 90% of what you are looking for is already here. It seems to me that no work or study has been done without all of the town departments assist- ing in each step of the way. Should some money be allotted, it would go to Mr O'Connell . We should rely on our Public Works Department and our Engineering Department. We should do all our own work, if you need hail) to further these analysis and studies, then that is another thing. Mrs Brown We are asking to get information that the Planning Board needs when a developer comes in. A degree of information should be available relative to drainage or ponding, etc With the informa- tion we are trying to get, we would avoid pressure peaks that seem to come along. Mr Busa The more they talk, the more confusing it gets. All the information I have had to get in by sub-division came from the Department of Public Works and the Engineering Department in the Town of Lexington. Information that was available to me has also been available to the Planning Board. In any sub-division the entire area of all brooks is available throughout town departments. 236 Mrs. Brown I am sure that information is available in the in- stances that you mention, but we are looking for a degree of investi- gation. We are trying to get a good analysis; the kinds of land we are working with now are wet Mr Zaleski In the past few years we had discussed with the Board of Health that funds may have to be appropriated because of necessity and not of choice. If we have these funds now, such studies can be done. Mr. Bailey As I follow this, I feel that it is clear and there is no objection as to what you are trying to do As I under- stand it, there is money available from a combination of sources if the Planning Board and the Town Engineer do come to a point that they do need outside help for an analysis. Mrs Riff in How much money is available at present? Mr O'Connell About $2500 which is consolidated Chairman Cataldo I would increase the monies that are available to Mr. O'Connell . I would not support an article to appropriate this money, but would support additional monies be allocated for these needs. Mrs. Brown Someone has to go over what we do have and what we do need To do this, do we need additional help? Wd only want to do a job efficiently and effectively I have no further comments on this issue. Mrs Broin questioned the wording on the Class III license re- cently issued to John A. Carroll Co., Inc., 31 Allen Street, Lexington, which reads "For buying of secondhand motor vehicles for the purpose of remodeling, taking apart or rebuilding the same, or the buying or selling .of parts of second hand motor vehicles or tires, or the assembling of second hand motor vehicle parts " This seems to us to be much broader than the By-Law allows. If this is the intention of the Board of Selectmen, then I find it advisable that a letter be sent to the owner. J,A. Carroll Chairman Cataldo I was very reluctant about issuing this. Class III It is the only Class 111 license issued, all are Class I . This License license was necessary in order that Mr. Carroll receive a dealers license. I made this very clear to Mr. Carroll and his Attorney. The Registry of Motor Vehicles issues the dealers' plates, and to procure one he had to have this liecnse, this is governed by State Statute. Mrs. Brown I would appreciate a letter be forwarded clarify- ing these restrictions. Chairman Cataldo I will write, a letter, and when this license is renewed, if it is, restrictions will be indicated on the license. We will revoke the license if so indicated by the Board of Appeals. 237 IMr Buse asked if the Planning Board could inform the Board at this time of the direction of Emerson Road as of now. Emerson Mrs. Brown Upon review of Town Meeting and the result of the Road Planning Board, as of this date the issue of Emerson Road is dead. The direction which it is going to take is also, at this time, un- determined. Mrs. Riff in Is there enough land along Massachusetts Avenue to Permit permit a curb cut, if it should be necessary? Curb Cut Mrs Brown Some resolution is possible, we must recognize the Mass. Ave town' s need for access to the brook. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to go into Exe- cutive Session for the purpose of discussing, deliberating or voting on matters which, if made public, might adversely affect the public security, the financial interests of the Town, or the reputation of a Executive person. Session After discussion of matters of financial interest to the Town, it was voted to go out of Executive Session. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimously voted to adjourn the meeting at 10 40 p.m. A true record, Attest J" Acting Executive Clerk, Selectmen