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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1968-05-06-BOS-min 404 c: SELECTMEN'S MEETING May 6, 1968 A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was held in the Selectmen's Room, Town Office Building, on Monday evening, May 6, 1968, at 7:30 P.M. Chairman Cole, Messrs. Cataldo, Mabee, Kenney and Greeley were present. Mr. Legro, Town Counsel, Mr. Burke, Superin- tendent of Public Works, Mr. McSweeney, Town Engineer, Mr. Wenham, Assistant Superintendent of Public Works, and Mrs. McCurdy, Executive Clerk, were also present . Mr. Erwin Canham, Editor of the Christian Science Monitor, met with the Board. The Chairman opened the meeting with Mr. Canham. He has been invited to meet with the Board ; it is not an open hearing, it is an open meeting. He told Mr. Canham that they were happy to have him here and Mr. Cahham knew the reason for it. There is some embar- rassment on both sides of the fence. We have been con- cerned because we don' t think Lexington is a racist town. We know its government is not racist and its de- partments are nit rapist. We feel it was not your intent . . . Mr. Canham said that is perfectly true. I know it is not a racist town. I am happy to be here. I am at your disposal. Kr. Canham The Chairman said that the Board may have various question to ask you. I was upset in the beginning when I was informed of the story. I said that if these facts were true I would apologize. Later I talked with Re- porter England and related the facts to him and he assur- ed me the facts would get to you - to have the facts pro- perly known. May I atk you the basis of hyperbole on your part? There was one way that members of the family saw it. It is good we bad this contact with you. I re- cognized at the outset there were some identical inci- dents . The Chairman asked the Board if anyone had questions . Mr. Kenney said it was just a full routine police investigation conducted by a competent man. Mr. Greeley said his suggestion was that we will have some of our friends, have the Civil Rights Commit- tee come in, and make known to Mr. Canham the good we have done, which I think is considerable. We have done a great deal in this Town. It seems to me that the kind of publicity Lexington wants is to help relieve this problem, rather than accentuate it. 40r- 11 The Chairman said that they, primarily, are concerned is easing tensions they have in the Town and the Depart- ment heads think the same way. Mr. Cataldo said there was no question of the respect the people of Lexington have for you. They look to your editorials with great respect. I, personally share thi* respect. This raised a question in my mind, did this come about by the April 19th incident, or others we don' t know about. I can' t see one incident would have brought youu to this point, if there is something beyond which we don't know about. We do everything in our power to ease the ten- sions . I couldn't bring myself to understand why Lexing- ton was brought into this focus . Mr Canham said that, at the time of the hearing be- fore the Boston City Council, there was no other motivation or information. I had been told two related versions. I have received letters since then but these are problems of the Town of Lexington and I have no desire of interfering with the Town. As I say, the episode struck me then as a case of a black boy being picked up. I hope the comment doesn't offend anyone but it does, even now, strike me as being pretty zealous . This is so easy for us, for sen- sitive people, to feel that this was a racist act. It il- lustrates, a kind of unconscious racial act. This may be a misjudgment. Correspondence that I have had suggests a degree of zealousness toward young people I have not had an opportunity to make a full investigation. I am sure that which you have within your area in your responsibility. There have been many incidents that have been written to me, incidents that were illustrations of zealousness . This is a town where a lot of strangers come. Mr. Cataldo said that this is the only incident, and asked Mr Canham what his feeling would be if the Police Department walked by and a half hour later the boy got sick. Mr. Canham said he was no authority on what people should do. From where I sit, I feel it was extremely over- zealous . Mr. Mabee asked if he were aware of zealousness in re- verse direction which the officer who took the boy to the station has . Mr. Canham answered in the affirmative and said he had included it in the statement which he wrote on the next day. Mr. Mabee said some indiiidual spanned the issue. Mr. Greeley said that Mr. Canham had spoken of other efforts of zealousness . Mr. Canham said that he would give an illustration. A family got in touch with me saying that their daughter went to the Public Library. She called her mother and asked her to pick her up. She was approached by the Police and ques- tioned why she was standing there. There wane imputations 406 G: on her morality. This strikes me as being overzealous . Maybe an investigation would show the right for Police to approach a young girl. I can't really judge that Taken in context, it seems rather rigorous . Mr. Greeley said that one relates to overzealous- ness on the part of the Police and the other to pre- judice. You are referring primarily to overzealousness? Mr. Canbam said that I don' t want you to think I am trying to make a great case . I am well aware of the depth of the problem regarding the youth, but knowing when to act and when not to. The Chairman said, could I suggest that we are hu- mas beings subject to human frailties . I can assure you it is our earnest desire that there be no overzealous- ness on the part of the Town. It is our desire that its Police Department be zealous in discharge of it duties . Mr. Cataldo said that as much as we would like to work in that direction, we would like to see cooperation of the press , that they not be overzealous . The Chairman said that it has certainly not been our intent to bring embarrassment to jou. We appreciate your coming out, if this has served some good it baa been well worth it. I don 't think it has served any harm. Mr. Canham said, I particularly say again that I know the Town of Lexington is a perfectly splendid town and I am sure you are trying to maintain the right direc- tion. I, myself, have been guilty of unconscious racism. You have been extremely tolerant toward my indiscretion. This meeting tonight itlustrates the fact that we are all working toward the same objectives . The Chairman said that if Mr. Canham has no further question of the Board, we have no further questions . Mr. Canham retired . The Center Committee met with the Board. The Chairman said that the Committee unanimously recommends to the Board that they proceed with the pro- ject of Lexington Center as it was originally presented , Center with no changes from original design. Committee Mr. Greeley asked if they recommend narrowing the dimensions of the curbing itself. The Chairman said that the width of the curbing would be narrowed ; it would reduce the cost. Mr. Kenney asked if they had decided to use brick pavement. Mr. Cataldo said that be had met with part of the Committee and had expressed his feeling about the project. The Chairman said that the Committee found great difficulty in agreeing. Some said a double row of trees down the Avenue, others had the idea not to have double Pow of trees . This is a cumbersome situation. 407 1' Mr. Cataldo said that we should look at this with overall approach. How can we get it accepted now that time is some history of construction and maintenance problems; it must be re-evaluated. Heels are one pro- blem, brick, itself, another problem; can see us repair- ing the bricks in another five years. The Chairman said that thin heels are not being worn as much now and the cleaning of the sidewalk was brought out by Public Works, we could get a machine that can clean without damaging the bricks Mr. Cataldo said that be would hate to see the pro- ject stop here because of problems we know exist there. The only reason we got the money is that they know that section should be done. Mr. Kenney asked bow the Committee felt about a concrete sidewalk. The Chairman said that concrete poses problems, it does crack. I was originally opposed to brick but now I am convinced that brick would b®rk. Mr. Greeley said that be would like to bear someone comment of the relative merits . The Chairman said that Walter Pierce, a member of the Center Committee, is here. He is an architect and experienced on this subject Mr. Pierce said that on the problem of colored con- II crete, aside from the problem of cracking, the color fades . The result would be much less than satisfactory. He men- tioned that City Hall Plaza, Boston and Harvard Square have been successfullcy paved in brick. When the subject was discussed with the Committee there was very little evidence that the present brick installation has met with very wide resistance on the part of the people. Mr. Cataldo asked if he is talking about the same type of brick, some are specifically square, these are not. Thkse are not square enough to get a good tight joint. Mr. Pierce said that he was not involved in the final purchase of brick, maybe we could improve on brick; it was laid on concrete base and there was a frost heave. There is one possibility of using mortar joint instead of sand joint. Whether we can improve on brick itself . . . Think mortar joint, undoubtedly a better installation. Mr. Cataldo said if we weren't going to use salt in Lexington Center, what if we do? The Chairman said that we used sand, not mortar. Mr. Cataldo said that it was pounded in. Everythigg seems to be against it, the water from the roof is pull- ing it out. My feeling is to have some aggregate in there, not colored concrete. Probably something we could II consider. Mr. Pierce said that he was against any exotic finishes . 4108 e W. c: There is a problem of aggregate popping. Would like to provide a strong carpet to take care of the intensive pedestrian traffic. Mrs. Sharfman said that they keep referring to the need to finish the center. At the last Town Meeting, the vote was overwhelming. I am not sure we should anticipate any problem on appropriation. Information in- dicated that a lot less money would be needed . Mr. Cataldo said that many came up after the meet- ing and told us they had reluctantly voted for it. They were opposed to it because of the brick. Mr. Kenney asked if the Committee had a recommenda- tion from Public Works . The Chairman said that the Committee consists of the Executive Assistant, Mr. Gray, Mr. Zaleski, Mr. Pierce, Mrs . Sharfman, Mr. Kolovson, Mr. Burke, and Mr. Cole. When the Committee was formed, the Chairman took it upon himself to put the Town Engineer on the Committee. Mr. Mabee said with a Committee of all these people if they are making a recommendation that this is the plan, we should approve it. I move to approve the plan. Mr. Greeley seconded the motion. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to accept the plan of Lexington Center to Edison Way. Mr. Cataldo abstained . The Chairman read a letter from Chief Corr recommend- ing the appointment of three Special Police Officers. Special Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to Police appoint the following as Special Police Officers : Lee B. Jackson 62 Bow Street Kenneth S. Garber 161 Bedford Street George C. Barry 36 Forest Street Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to Private sign the Private Livery License for Raymond E Dalrymple, Livery 6 Sheridan Street. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to Minutes approve the Minutes of the Selectmen' s Meeting held on April 29, 1968. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to sigh Water Abatements for the following: Vera Taranto, Abatements $3.00; Winslow J. Tower, $8.75; Frederick H. Morse, $6.30; Emri Diosy, $32.68 . Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to grant permission to the Lexington Field and Garden Club Permit to hold a sale of plants on the Buckman Tavern Grounds on May 16, 1968. 409 Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted that the Board had no objection to a Country Auction to be held Permit by Temple Emunah on the Temple grounds on May 6, 1968. The Chairman said that the Board had agreed to put in an Article on Civil Defense Warning System in the Warrant for the Special Town Meeting in June. Article Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was unanimous- ly voted to include the Article on Civil Defence Warning System in the Warrant for the Special Town Meeting, June 3, 1968. The Chairman asked the Board to consider the bid sub- mitted at the recommendation of the Superintendent Of Pub- lic Works on the purchase of a shovel dozer, in the amount of $22,379. Shovel Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to Dozer award the bid for a shovel dozer in the amount of $22,379, to the International Harvester Company. Mr. Gray read quotations submitted on Water Meters and requested that the Board award to the low bidder, Neptune Meter Company, in the amount of $12,388 33. Hersey-Sparkling Meter Company had submitted a bid of Water $12,51. 81. Meter Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to Bid award the contract for water meters to Neptune Meter Com- pany, in the amount of $12,388.33. Mr Legro said that he would like to report to the Board regarding the question raised by the Bureau of Accounts on the quantum of votes for Articles 56, 57, and 8saidi 5 . He that the Town Clerk had sent cop esaf the vote to the Bureau of Accounts in response to their letter, and he bad written his opinion as to why a maj- ority vote was required . Mr. Legro read the tetter received from the Director of Accounts stating he con- curred with Mr. Legro that only a majority vote was necessary. Mr. Legro said that he was most happy to re- ceive the letter. Mr. Legro requested the Board to sign the tax title deed for lots 186 and 187 Grassland Street, purchased by Peter and Mary I. Sowkow The deed reserves an easement. Tax Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to Title sign the deed and authorize Mr. Legro to execute the in- strument for Tax Tttle Lots 186-187 Grassland Street, purchased by Peter and Mary I. Sowkow. 410 Mr. Legro said that be and Mr. Gray had been work- ing on the figures for publishing the full text of recodification of the Zoning By-Laws . If they are approved by the Attorney General, they have to be pub- liaked in the newspaper. Statute reference to Zoning By-Law is sufficient. We have always published the full text as it is the only manner in which people are well informed. The cost will be $500 or $600 greater to do it this way and Mr. Legro recommended that they be publ lisped ib full on each of these occasions. Mr. Gray said that there are two ways of doing it, similar to Town Meeting Warrant, complete recodifica- tion, a two-page Warrant, extra copies of newspaper stapled to Warrant. He had investigated the cost and there is a $500 difference. We feel the Town should have everything is one package. The way we printed the War- rant, Town Meeting members would have for easy reference. This is the way it will be printed . The Chairman said that by publishing in the news- paper everydne will have a chance to see what is proposed Mr. Legro said that this is conforming to the letter of the law. Benefit of people having an opportunity to read it in full, may very well save substantial confusion. May cause us to save doing it over again. My recollec- tion of the 1950 revision of Zoning By-Laws is that for a number of years afterwards many people were using the newspaper as By-Law. This may save some number of print- ings for the Zoning By-Law. I think it has some merits . Recodifi- Mr. Gray said that, on the basis of the letter from cation of the Planning Board months ago, I did include $2,000 Zoning extra in the election Budget. This may run more than By-Law $2,000 for printing the recodification. The Chairman asked if he had alerted the Appropria- tions Committee. Mr. Gray said that he bad not, but he had discussed it with Mrs. Riffin and, as far as the Planning Board is concerned, it is all set. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to authorize Mr. Gray to proceed with the printing of the recodification of the Zoning By-Laws . The Chairman read a letter received from Hartld Stevens which stated that Boerner Lexington Corporation has petitioned the Board of Appeals for a variance to allow parking for their building. Boerner Mr. Mabee said that the Planning Board has always Lexington been against neighborhood abutting land to be used for Corp. parking as it basically changes the area. Mr. Legro said there would be an R-1 section in there, useable for nothing. Mr. Greeley said that this is an exceptional case, rather that a typical case 414 Mr. Mabee said that there is a reason for exception in this case. Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to write the Planning Board favoring the transaction that a variance be granted to allow parking in this area Mr. Gray said that DeMatteo Company was doing work on Lincoln Street and he requested the Board to ask Mr. McSweeney to give a plan for the Lincoln Street side they would like to have it done before the end of June. Mr. Cataldo slid that he would like to see it land- scaped to the point of the fence, thatactual part along Linclon Street done - to get it cleaned up. The drain to be put in and the driveway Mr. Mabee asked if a snow fence would be put in. Mr. McSweeney said he felt that they should con- tinue fencing. Linooln Mr. Cataldo asked how many feet. Street Mr. Mabee said to fence across the front, between the street and the site. He asked how far back the right- of-way goes . Mr. Cataldo said at the sidewalk. 10' or 12' of shrubs, move fence back, put snow dump in where recommend- ed and the driveway in where recommended . He feels that nothing should be done without referring back to Mr. McSweeney. Then come back with the plan and the Board will vote. The Chairman said that Mr. McSweeney had the tacit ap- proval of the Board . Mr. Kenney said that be preferred the Structure of Government meeting of May 9 be held in the Selectmen' s Room rather than a private home. The Chairman said that the Board had been invited to the meeting. He will talk with Mr. Russian regard- ing the location, but stressed the fact that the Board had been invited by the Structure of Government Committee. Fire Commissioners Bailey, Fitzgerald and Robbins met with the Board . The Chairman said that the reason for the meeting was to have questions answered on the equipment the Fire Department will be getting. Mr. Cataldo said that, basically, there are two Fire questions . The service truck was voted at the Annual Commis- Town Meeting and they are talking a substantial amount sioners of money for a piece of equipment . They haven' t had the answers on the justification for how many poles you are going to transfer. Who is going to do this work and on what basis . I can see some problems coming up. We i12 r^ Y.1e should have asked before Town Meeting. They didn't cbme to us before it was put out to bid. - There should be some understanding as to where we are going on the pieve of equipment. The basic questions are, how many poles are you going to change over? What does it cost at this point? Who is going to do it? Who is going to pay them, and how are they going to be paid? Mr. Fitzgerald said that Chief Spellman has the list. Mr. Bailey said that we have been holding back, we have been just bitting the ones we have. Mr. Cataldo said they would request hooking up the alarm system at the Public Works Building - cost us a substantial amount of money to put the system in. If they can' t do this simple operation -- cant't under- stand doing tremendous pole changes . Mr. Gray said that he had received a call regard- ing a connection with the box on the outside. He called the Chief and when he came down he said that they were not equipped to do this . Change-over box originally on old building; the box was taken off and put on pale just across from the driveway. All hooked up again, really wasn' t box work. Mr. Robbins said that he will check with the Chief and report back to the Board . Mr Cataldo said that it cost $1,100, if our De- partment can' t do that thpe of work . . $11,500, for that type of equipment. What problems are we going to create with our men out there? What are we going to pay them and how are we going to pay them? There was no direction given at Town Meeting - to go Civil De- fence or buy outright. Mr Bailey said that he didn 't know if they can go Civil Defense. Mr. Cataldo asked if there was substantial they don' t need. Mr. Bailey said they wanted to save town money. The Chairman asked if it would cost less to go Civil Defense. Mr. Bailey said that they are trying to get Civil Defense approval. Mr. Cataldo said that truck can' t be traded under Civil Defense - would have to hold a year. Mr. Gray said that he had discussed it with Mr. Burrell. This is a unit over and above what a town normally has . Would have to keep it at least a year before disposal of old unit The Chairman asked if the net result would mean less cost to the Town on the whole operation; have to hold in abeyance. I Oil Mr. Greeley said it would be plus the cost of keep- ing the old truck if we have to. The Chairman said that no move will be made until there is an answer to this . Mr. Cataldo suggested that Mr. Gray handle the sit- uation on the utility truck. Mr. Gray said that he will talk with Mr. Fitzgerald. The Fire Commissioners retired at 9:25 P.M. Mr. Gray discussed the Hamilton case with the Board. He requested authorization from the Board to settle with Mrs . Hamilton and prepare a form of release, He recom- mended a connection to the sewer line. Hamilton Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted tp Claim grant authorization to Town Counsel to execute and pree pare award of damages in the nature of a sewer connectin in place of cash damages to Mrs Harriet Hamilton Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted to go into Executive Session for the purpose of discussing, deliberating or voting on matters which, if made public, might adversely affect the public security, the finan- cial interest of the Town or the reputation of any person. Following discussion which involved litigation and land damages and the applicants for the position of Town Counsel, it was voted to adjourn at 10:10 P.M. A true record, Attest : Executive Clerk, Selectmen ( L.0 C' y� It r