HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-05-01-CAC-min TOWN OF LEXINGTON
COMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY COMMITTEE
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF MAY 1, 2025
PARKER ROOM, TOWN OFFICE BUILDING
AND BY REMOTE PARTICIPATION
1. Call to order and roll call.
Communications Advisory Committee (CAC) Chair Kenneth Pogran called the meeting to order
at 6:34 PM and called the roll. The meeting was conducted in person and remotely via Zoom.
Members Present (via Zoom): Ken Pogran, Chair; Bob Avallone; Shabbir Bagasrawala; Dave
Buczkowski; Sreeni Chippada; Dorinda Goodman; Steve Kaufman; Rita Vachani; Nick Lauriat
Members Absent: Dave Becker; Smita Desai
Quorum: A quorum of members was present.
Others Present: Kerry Morris (Comcast)
Materials Referenced: Draft minutes of the March 25, 2025 meeting; Draft response to the
LexMedia FY 2025 3rdQ Report with spreadsheet
2. Welcome
New CAC member, Sreeni Chippada, was welcomed.
3. Review and VOTE to approve minutes of the CAC March 25, 2025 meeting
The minutes of the March 25, 2025 meeting, recorded by Steve Kaufman, were reviewed and
approved unanimously by roll call vote as amended. Mr. Avalone left the meeting at 7:05 pm.
The sentence regarding supplemental funding was deleted. It was replaced by "an additional
$150,000.00 from town appropriations".
4. Service provider reports —Kerry Morris (Comcast)
Ms. Morris spoke about Comcast Rise which supports small businesses with grants in five cities
and with consulting and technical assistance. The 2025 application period runs from May 1 to
May 31, 2025. Comcast also provides in-person continuing training in cybersecurity for seniors
and veterans at the Council on Aging. It may be extended to residents.
5. Chairman's Report: Ken Pogran
a. Mr. Pogran noted that Niall Connors has retired from Verizon. No new contact point has
been appointed. Mr. Pogran will try to clarify who the new person will be.
b. It was decided that the June meeting and Verizon Ascertainment Hearing would be held
on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 in the Parker Room at the Town Office
6. LexMedia update: Florence DelSanto
Ms. DelSanto's written report reported that the Lexington 250 Celebration went well with over
18,000 viewers of the reenactment and over 21,000 views of the Ken Burns lecture.
7. LexMedia FY2025 3`'d Q Report - Rita Vachani, Bob Avallone, Smita Desai
Ms. Vachani reported that LexMedia exceeded its fundraising goal. The 2025 reports need to be
posted on the website. The LexMedia report was approved unanimously by roll call vote.
8. PEG revenue update—Rita Vachani
Ms. Vachani presented updated slides to take to the new Town Manager. $200,000 was approved
by Town Meeting so the "cliff' is pushed out a year.
9. Wireless working group update—Steve Kaufman
Mr. Kaufman reported that letters regarding coverage issues were sent out to the wireless
carriers. Verizon Wireless acknowledged receipt of the letter and would like to schedule a
meeting. AT&T Wireless acknowledged receiving the letter but has not sent a response. T-
Mobile has not responded at all.
10. Verizon FiOS cable television renewal license: Ken Pogran, Dave Becker, Dave
Buczkowski, Nick Lauriat
Mr. Pogran reported that the license is due for renewal in October 2026. The Ascertainment
Hearing is scheduled for June 24, 2025. Notice will be posted on the Town website and not in a
local newspaper. The subgroup will compare the current Lexington license to one recently
executed by Bedford, MA as the CAC's attorney, Bill August, suggested the closer the
Lexington license is to Bedford's and other similar licenses the more likely Verizon will be to
not raise any objections.
11. Town IT update: Dorinda Goodman
Ms. Goodman reported that there has been more training and discussion with LexMedia on
coverage of public rooms. RCN contractually owed the Town a second LAN connection which
will be installed within the next week. Patriot's Day went well and the Town IT performed well.
12. Complaints: Dave Buczkowski(March); Bob Avalone (April)
There were no complaints in March and none in April. Upcoming: Ken Pogran (May); Dave
Becker (June)
13. Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 7:50 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
David J. Buczkowski,
Recording Secretary