HomeMy WebLinkAbout1960-10-31-min 210 ►-�
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SEL DC TMEN'S MEETING
October 34, 1960
A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen
was held in the Selectmen' s Room, Town Office Building,
on Monday, October 31, 1960, at 7: 30 P.M. C hair4an
Morey, Messrs . Adams , Ferguson, and Richards were
present . Mr. Stevens , Town Counsel, Mr. Carroll,
Superintendent of Public Works, and the Executive
Clerk were also present. Mr. Cole arrived at the
meeting at 7:50 P.M.
Mr. James J. Carroll met with the Board for the
Juror drawing of one juror. Mr. Paul J. Harris, 47 Peacock
Farm Road, was drawn for jury duty.
Mr. James Carroll retired.
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted
Minutes to approve the minutes of the Selectmen' s Meeting held
on October 24, 1960.
Mr. Stevens referred to the subject of extend-
ing
the time once more for the acquisition of the
property on Pollen Hill from the Tower Trust and ex-
Extension plained that the plan is not quite ready and there are
of time some temporary turn arounds that should be removed. He
therefore requested an extension to December 30, 1960
and advised that it has been signed by the Trustees.
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted
to extend the time for delivery of the deed and pay-
ment for a certain parcel of land to be acquired from
the Trustees of the Tower Trust to December 30, 1960
Mr. Stevens reported that he was informed today,
on a telephone call from Tufts University, that they
have voted to release the land from the conditions in
Tufts Uni- the deed and they will wait for a formal request from
versity the Town. He said he would meet with their counsel
release for the language of the release .
Mr. Stevens reported that he and Mr. Carroll at-
tended a meeting last Friday on the MDC water and sewer.
He said there is much discussion about the bond issue
and explained that there are three bills . One is a
$20,000,000 borrowing for water; one a $40,000,000
borrowing for sewer construction and the third is flood
control. The 1120,000,000 for water includes one item in
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which the Town has no interest, a $10,000,000 tunnel
going from Newton to Franklin Field. There is an
$8,000,000 item to complete the tunnel now under con- MDC bonds
struction between the Wachuse tt Reservoir and Marlboro
Which is of interest to everyone in the Water District
At the present time , the maximum of the tunnel to deliver
water is 200,000,000 a day and in the peak period, the
demand runs up to 300,000,000 gallons a day . When the
tunnel is in operation, there will be another 100,000,000
gallons a day. He explained that the $8,000,000 is to
make the connections and that appropriation is needed now
if the work is to be done when the tunnel is completed
which will be October 1, 1962, and the work is on schedile .
He stated that the question was raised at the hearing as
to why it was so large when it was estimated that $20,000,000
originally appropriated would do everything. He explained
that one element is a hydraulic generating unit which is
increasing the cost. He reported that there is an item of
$2,000,000 to build lines to connect the City tunnel ex-
tension at Shaft 9 to Medford Square which will reinforce
the supply coming here and will help Arlington and Belmont.
Mr. Stevens said that the sewer is a case where any
delay will involve future difficulties in that it is
needed to complete the sewer project which has been under
way for a number of years . He explained that until the
entire project is completed, none of it can be used.
The completion date is now 19555 and if it does not go
through this legislation, it will be postponed that much
longer.
Mr. Stevens suggested that it would be advisable
for the cities and towns to have their representatives
get this off the table and have it voted on.
Mr. Stevens retired at 7:55 P.M.
Mr. Edward F. Donnelly, 125 Shade Street , an
applicant for a Guide + s license , met with the Board.
Mr. Donnelly stated that he is a teacher in
Watertown.
The Chairman said she understood he wanted to
bring children to Lexington and would like to be able
to say that he is a Guide . She asked if he planned
to do aty_gutde work in the summer , and Mr. Donnelly
replied in the affirmative saying he would be interested.
The Chairman explained that Mr. Proctor, of the
Junior High School, is working with ten or twelve
children who want to become guides . She said that the
guides have an association and perhaps Mr. Donnelly
would be invited to meet with them, all students .
Mr. Adams inquired as to the subject Mr. Donnelly
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teaches, and he said he teaches American history.
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Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted
to appoint Edward F. Donnelly, 125 Shade Street, a
Guide within the limits of the Town for a term ex-
piring October 31, 1961.
The Chairman presented Mr. Donnelly with his
license and badge and he retired.
The Chairman read a letter from Mr. John E.
Rowan, 25 Pine Knoll Road, expressing appreciation
to the Highway Department for cleaning the street
in front of his property at the time of Mrs. Rowan's
funeral.
Mr. Frank L. Heaney, from the firm of Fay,
Spofford & Thorndike, Inc. , met with the Board to
discuss the proposal for engineering services on a
study of refuse collection and disposal.
Study of Mr. Heaney stated that the concern is making,
refuse col- and has made, studies of this type in Lynnfield,
lection & Winchester, Dedham, Swampscott, and Wakefield. At
disposal the present time, they are supervising construction
of an incinerator which they designed in Dedham end
Winchester. In Lynnfield, they felt the town could
better continue on with the present waste collection
than to spend the money for an incinerator He thought
Wakefield would come out the same way. He explained
the problems in Dedham and Winchester and stated that
the problems vary in the different communities because
the conditions are so different .
The Chairman said that from Page 5 on, in the
proposal, is what would be done provided the report
was accepted, and Section II would follow should it
be decided that the Town is going ahead with an in-
cinerator.
Mr. Heaney said that was correct..
The Chairman asked if all borings would be made
at the expense of the Town, and Mr. Heaney replied in
the affirmative.
Mr. Richards said he felt this proposal somewhat
missed the point as to what he , at least, felt that
Board wanted done . He said he couldgo along with Mr.
Heaney, with some exceptions, until he arrived at (g)
Interim Report. He said from there on the proposal is
dealing with incineration, and he believed it would be
the Town Meeting who would decide whether or not the
Town should pay for plans and specifications invdalving
an incinerator. He said items (h) , (i) , and (j ) in the
proposal, as far as he was concerned, are superfluous.
He said it is written around the basis of an incinerator
and he had in mind, and what he thought the Board was
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looking for, a general survey of the problem of refuse
and garbage disposal with emphasis on a background study,
quality and character, a discussion of the type of dis-
posal, and recommendations as to what sites would be
suitable for this particular type of disposal. He said
it seemed to him that sanitary land fill might not be in
the same area as an incinerator might be . He said after
a study of location, they would then have a study of the
costs of the various types and the engineer' s recommen-
dations . Then having studied the proposal, there would
be a recommendation as to the type of collection and
disposal of garbage . He said at that point, he felt the
Board of Selectmen, having met with Mr. Heaney, would have
an opportunity to decide and be prepared to go to Town
Meeting with a recommendation that a certain sum of money
should be made available for preliminary plans and speci-
fications or even final plans and specifications for a
site and preparation of a site or plans for an incinerator
He stated that the Board has to decide what it is going to
do and where to go. He said he would expect Mr. Heaney to
look at the currant dump and advise how nnuch longer it
will last . He stated th=it the proposal goes beyond this
and comes back as to whether or not the Town is going
to have an incinerator, which he does not care about at
this point. Right now, he would like to know what is to
be done with the dump and where another could be located.
He said thereare certain sites in the Town that could
possibly be suitable for a dump.
Mr. Carroll explained that he may have misled Mr.
Heaney insofar as the present dump is concerned because
he did not tell him to consider how much longer it would
last, being under the impression that it would beused
only about three years longer. He said he was sure Mr.
Heaney could easily figure it out .
The Chairman reported that as she read the pro-
posal, she felt too much attention was given to an in-
cinerator when what the Board wanted was refuse disposal .
Mr. Ferguson said he told Mr Carroll last week
there was too much emphasis on an incinerator and the
proposal should start with the present dump, how it is
being operated, if it is being operated as efficiently
as possible, and how many years it is good for . He said
he was disappointed in the sites and would want Mr. Heaney
to look at the entire Town as to where another dump might
be located, or an incinerator, and include in the study
all the possible sites th= t could be used rather than
selecting only three .
Mr. Heaney said he would make up a proposal and do
anything the Board wanted and to do a complete rubbish
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disposal study, it should know what the different
things look like completely. He said he would redraft
the proposal and the first part of the report should be
elaborated on to describe in more detail what is pro-
posed to be done under section (a) , quantity and charac-
ter of refuse to be handled, various costs of various
collection items, the general problems of disposal, how
long the present dump can be used, legislation trends,
transfer station.
Mr. Richards said he was interested in Secticm I
up through VIII, and if there is a section following
(g) it would be an examination not only of the cost
of developing the site for an incinerator but the cost
for developing sanitary land2fill.
The Chairman asked if the Board could have Mr.
Heaney' s consideration for next Monday and he replied
in the affirmative .
Mr. Heaney retired at 8:50 P.M.
Mr. Carroll reported that bids were opened today
for the removal of DOttch Elm diseased trees, and the
Bid low bidder was Brine Tree Surgery Inc. who submitted
a quotation of $1,634.32. He was not prepared to ask
the Board to award the contract as he wanted an op-
portunity to check the bids .
)Tr. Carroll reported that he attended a meeting
Mosquito of the Middlesex Mosquito Control and the request for
Control Lexington in 1961 will be the same as it was this year,
$7,000.
Mr. Stevens returned to the meeting at 8:53 P.M.
The Chairman read a letter frau Jasper A. Lane,
177 Waltham Street, requesting the installation of
granite curbing on Waltham Street from Massachusetts
Curbing Avenue to Marrett Road.
Mr. Carroll said he thought the curbing should
be extended next year and whatever is left in the
curbing appropriation, should be used in this area
Letter was received from Mr. James J. Carroll,
together with a copy of letter to him from the office
of Foley, Hoag & Eliot, reporting that Duncan T. Osborne ,
age three and a half, 52 Peacock Farm Road, was injured
Injury by a loose stone that fell from a stonewall on property
belonging to the Town situated on Peacock Farm Road,
Mr. Stevens said it was just reporting the injury
and not a claim for damages . He reported that the Town
did not own the property at the time .
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The Chairman read an excerpt from the Board of
Appeals' permit granting permission to the Lexington
Savings Bank to erect a clock at 1778 Massachusetts
Avenue which would project outside the face of the Clock
building. She reported that she had discussed the
subject with Mr. Nickerson and at the hearing he re-
minded the architect that permission would have to be
obtained from the Board of Selectmen.
Mr. Stevens said it might be well to call Mr.
Irwin' s attention to the fact that the clock cannot
be erected without a permit from the Board of Selectmen.
The Chairman reported that Reverend Lindsay of
the Council of Churches called relative to the question
on the ballot for the State Election, and that she had
talked to Mr. Stevens .
Mr . Stevens explained that a favorable vote on
question A, taverns would not be permitted without Question on
a vote on taverns. He said he called the ABC office ballot
and was advised that the Town would definitely have
to have a separate vote on taverns.
He explained that if a favorable vote is cast
on question A, there would be twenty-eight licenses
available , including the Package Goods Stores .
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted Town Meeting
to call a Special Town Meeting on Monday, November 28,
1960 at 8:00 P.M.
Mr. Carroll retired at 9:20 P.M.
Mr. Ferguson brought up the subject of enforce-
ment of the Zoning By-Law and said that the question
of legality always comes up.
Mr. Stevens said that in some instances letters
have been written and the violations ceased. Zoning
Mr. Ferguson said that there is any number of violations
violations around Town and whenever enforcement is
mentioned, there always seems to be problems. He
asked if Mr. Stevens had talked with the Building
Inspector about setting up a criteria.
Mr. Stevens said t t certainly there must be
sufficient evidence before it would be worthwhile
going to court .
Mr. Ferguson asked how much evidence was needed
and if the Building Inspector could get all the neces-
sary evidence .
Mr. Stevens said it would be enough for him to
certify that he has purchased articles or seen someone
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purchase them. ,
Mr. Ferguson asked ifthe advertisements in the
Minute-man were evidence enough, and Mr. Stevens re-
plied that it certainly is evidence but each case
would have to be considered on its own.
Mr. Adams said that 95% of the evidence could
be gathered by the Building Inspector .
Mr. Stevens said it could be, but how much time
he has for it is a problem. He said if the Board was
going to try many of the cases, the Building Inspector
and Town Counsel would have to have assistance .
Mr. Ferguson said he was striving for some criteria
that if the Board has certain information, it is evidence
that can be obtained by the Building Inspector.
Mr. Stevens said he would go over the subject with
Mr. Ferguson and the Building Inspector any morning to
discuss what cases he has in mind.
Mr. Ferguson said he had no cases in mind . He
wanted to know what could be done to enforce the Zoning
By-Law.
Mr. Stevens said if Mr. Ferguson would set up a
meeting, he would see if thesubject could be clarified.
The Chairman said she thought letters from the
Building Inspector had cleared up the worst offenders .
Mr. Adams said that was true, but there are sore
places being opened up all the time and there are still
very flagrant violations .
The Chairman suggested a Saturday morning meeting
with Mr Stevens and the Inspector.
Mr. Adams suggested that a list of the violations
be obtained and gone over.
It was agreed that each member of the Board would
have a list of violations for the next meeting .
Mr. Stevens retired at 9:45 P.M.
Notice was received from the ABC relative to the
sale and delivery of alcoholic beverages on Election
Sale of Day, Tuesday, November 8, 1960 "Package Goods" Stores
alcoholic shall not sell or deliver alcoholic beverages during
beverages polling hours unless they are authorized to do so by
vote of their respective Local Licensing Authorities.
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted
not to authorize thesale or delivery of alcoholic
beverages during polling hours on Election Day, Tues-
day, November 8, 1960.
The Chairman read a letter from Mrs. Rich, Col-
lector of Taxes, advising that she has received a
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commitment of $100,000 on Excise and expects another
November 1. At this particular time ofthe year, when
her office is busy with payments of Real Estate , it
is impossible to write the bills and keep the daily
work up. The clerks are willing to work Saturdays if
they are paid overtime , and Mrs. Rich requested an
additional $300.
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted
to request the Appropriation Committee to transfer the
sum of $300 from the Reserve Fund to the Collector' s
Personal Services Account.
The Chairman read a letter from Arthur M. Gilpatrick,
19 Sutherland Road, to which was attached a copy of a
letter to the Chief of Police regarding dogs owned by
Robert L. Porthouse, 10 Aerial Street .
Report was received from the Dog Officer advising Dogs
that Mrs . Porthouse claimed the dogs were never out
without a muzzle . He examined the muzzle that showed
signs of extensive use and had become so worn it blended
with the color of the dog and couldnot be seen from a
distance of just a few feet. She agreed to obtain another
muzzle and have it stained white so that a casual glance
will show thatthe dog is muzzled.
Invitation was received from the Veterans' Day
Observance Committee for the Board to participate in
the observance planned for November 11
Mr. Cole will represent the Board.
Letter was received from the Merchants National
Bank of Boston relative to the second annual New Conference
England Municipal Conference to be held Thursday,
December 1, at the Statler-Hilton Hotel.
Application for a Taxi Driver' s license was
received from George H. Hamilton, 104 Winter Street.
Mr Hamilton is thirty-five years of age and employed
by the Lexington Cab Company. License
A report was received from the Chief relative to
a record in 1954 obtained through the Board of Probation.
Upon motion duly made and seconded, it was voted
to grant the license .
It was agreed to invite Mr. Irwin, Building In-
spector, to meet with the Board next Monday night during
the time Mr. Stevens is present and to ask him to bring
in the list of violations he compiled some time ago.
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The Chairman read a letter from the Appropriation
Committee advising that the following schedule has been
set up for meetings with the Selectman for the purpose
of discussing budget and policy:
November 7 - Town Meeting and Policy
Discussion
December 19- Police Department budget
January 9- Public Services budget
February 13- By*Law meeting.
The meeting adjourned at 10:30 P.M.
A true record, Attest: /
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