Selectmen Meeting Minutes — October 16,
2008—7:00
p.m. — Memorial Hall
Call to Order: the meeting was called to order by Chairman, Robert Manners.
Other members present: John Payne and Joseph Judd.
Acceptance of Minutes: A motion was made by John to accept the minutes
of October 2nd and October 7th, 2008 as presented. The motion was seconded
by Joe. Motion carried unanimously.
Noteworthy News:
Town Office - John reported that he has received a cash flow report from
the Treasurer which illustrates the town's collections and expenditures
for fiscal years 2008 and 2009. Once he has had an opportunity to review
the materials, he will report back to the Board.
John will also speak
with John Ryan of Breezeway Farm concerning a policy that was developed
as a result of a town audit that requires the town to reimburse HUD
for any interest earned on CDBG funding while in the towns' custody.
When the Town receives monies from a CDBG drawdown request, typically
the bills are processed immediately therefore generating little or
no interest. As a result of the recent audit, the Town reimbursed HUD
approximately $400 in interest earned and the Treasurer does not believe
that the figure was accurate. John also reported that the Town Collector
continues to have dialogue with taxpayers regarding delinquency and
the town hall office relocation is scheduled to begin on Friday, October
17th.
Police Dept. - will report under "Old Business".
Arms Library - Titan Roofing did make a site visit to review the overall condition
of the roof. They will report back to the town with their findings.
Highway
Dept. - the department is getting ready for winter; waiting for the arrival
of the new "used" truck.
7:30 p.m. John Ryan RE: Public Hearing for 2009
CDBG Grant Application - Chairman, Manners opened the hearing at 7:30 p.m. and read the public
hearing notice aloud. The hearing was then turned over to John Ryan of
Breezeway Farm Consulting. John explained that Shelburne is eligible
for up to $1 million dollars in grant funding. He reviewed the list of
eligible CDBG activities which include acquisition of real estate property,
construction/reconstruction, code enforcement, demolition, accessibility,
housing rehabilitation, social service programs, etc. The purpose of
the first public hearing is to solicit comments from residents and begin
identifying potential projects. John presented two draft documents for
the Board's review: a neighborhood survey which will be sent to residents
in the village in order to determine whether or not a project area is
income eligible and to solicit input as to residential priorities (housing
rehabilitation, first-time homebuyer assistance, infrastructure, etc.)
and a social services needs assessment which will be sent to agencies
throughout Franklin County which will be instrumental in identifying
their needs. After reviewing the residential survey and the social services
needs assessment, a motion was made by John to accept both documents
as presented. The motion was seconded by Joe. Motion carried unanimously.
The hearing was opened up for public comment. Tammy Butler of Franklin
County Community Action Corporation stated that her agency has benefited
from CDBG funded programs in the past and is very much interested in
participating again. Her agency is currently exploring several funding
options as they anticipate a great deal of community need. No other public
comments were voiced. Before closing the hearing John reminded the Board
to review and update the town's Community Development Strategy document.
A second public hearing will be held on October 30th at 7:30 p.m. The
public hearing was closed at 8:05 p.m.
OLD BUSINESS:
Scott Sawyer, Fiscal Officer RE: Proposed Understanding
of Services -
Joe would like to have an opportunity to speak with Scott. He is waiting
for a call back.
Internal Posting for Full-Time Patrolman - three resumes
have been received as a result of the internal posting. Both Joe and
John have had an opportunity to review the resumes and would like to
schedule interviews for all three candidates the first week of November.
Terry will coordinate scheduling of interviews with the Chief.
Part-time Clerical Positions for Town Boards - the Board will conduct a second round of interviews next week. Since
the first round of interviews, one candidate has withdrawn her application
leaving two individuals for consideration.
Cable Advisory Committee - John reported that the negotiation
team continues to have dialogue with Comcast. Comcast has made a second
offer and final offer that is slightly better than the last offer but
it still does not meet the town's needs.
Meeting Schedule - Joe initiated more dialogue
regarding the Board's Thursday night meeting schedule and suggested that
members consider the possibility of either changing the meeting night
or the frequency of meetings. Before making any changes, John suggested
that the Selectmen wait and see if the Planning Board reverts back to
Thursday night meetings in January. If that occurs, then the Selectmen
would consider changing their meeting night to Mondays in an attempt
to alleviate some of the meeting space conflicts.
NEW BUSINESS:
Silver Star Day Proclamation, May 1st - a motion was made by Joe and
seconded by John directing the Chairman to sign a proclamation designating
May 1st as "Silver Star Banner Day" in honor of the wounded
and ill Soldiers from Shelburne who have served their Country. After
a brief discussion, the motion passed unanimously.
Williams College
RE: Request to Access Glacial Potholes - the Geosciences department
from Williams College is requesting permission to access the glacial
potholes on November 12, 2008 between the hours of 3:00 p.m. and 4:30
p.m. A motion was made by John to approve the request providing weather
conditions and water flow on November 12th is conducive for a safe
visit. Motion seconded by Joe. Motion passed unanimously.
Historic
Commission RE: Recommendation to Appoint Susan Stark - members of the
Historical Commission met with Susan Stark on October 7th and is excited
to bring forth her name for appointment. A motion was made by Joe and
seconded by John to appoint Susan Stark as a member of the Historical
Commission. Motion carried unanimously.
V.F.W. Post 8503 RE: Rag Shag Parade Permit - Joe stated that he has
discussed the parade permit with Chief Walker and would encourage the
Board to approve the request. Motion to approve parade permit request
as presented was made by John and seconded by Joe. Motion passed unanimously.
Letter
to Fire Chief Bardwell RE: Mechanic Street Underground Tank - while dismantling
the Mechanic Street retaining wall, a large abandoned underground tank
was discovered on the adjacent property. The Fire Chief was contacted
after the tank was unearthed and he notified the property owner; providing
a list of DEP approved contractors licensed in fuel tank removal and
disposal. To date no action has been taken and the town is ready to finish
the Mechanic Street project (i.e. sidewalk, paving and parking lot).
Breezeway Farm is concerned that if the tank is not removed until after
the finish work is completed, that the quality of the finish work may
be jeopardized when the tank is finally removed. Breezeway Farm is recommending
that the Town request that the Fire Chief issue an Order of Notice to
the owner citing a specific deadline for tank removal. After a brief
discussion, a motion was made by John to authorize the Chairman to send
a letter to the Shelburne Falls Fire Chief requesting that an Order of
Notice be sent to the property owner. Motion seconded by John. Motion
passed unanimously.
PUBLIC COMMENT: none
ADJOURNMENT: Joe made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:32 p.m. John
seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Terry Mosher
Executive Secretary |
