Town of Harwich Massachusetts - Minutes

SELECTMEN’S MEETING

GRIFFIN ROOM, TOWN HALL

MONDAY, JUNE 11, 2007

SELECTMEN PRESENT: Cole, Marsland, McManus, Piekarski, Wilkins

OTHERS PRESENT: Town Administrator James Merriam, Chief Mason, David Ryan, Lincoln Hooper, Ginny Hewitt, Kevin Considine, Chet Berg, Jack Brown, Bill Zoino, Doug Kreeger, and others.

MEETING CALLED TO ORDER at 7:00 p.m. by Chairman Wilkins.

Mr. Hooper reported that the Highway Department has begun putting in plantings at the roundabout today and the project should be completed by the end of the week. He also reported that the dredge is through pumping to Earle Road Beach and the parking lot should be open for open for business on June 19^th, two weeks ahead of schedule.

Mr. McManus reported that the Cranberry Festival would like to donate a storage shed to be used as a well head shed at the senior softball field. The Board agreed to take this item up under Action Items.

Ms. Hewitt updated the Board on upcoming library events.

1. May 21, 2007 Regular Meeting

2. May 29, 2007 Executive Session

B. Annual Police Department Appointments

C. Police Sergeant Promotion

D. Miscellaneous Appointments (B O S)

E. Approve renewal of Junk Dealer License for Monahan & Co.

F. Caleb Chase Fund requests

G. Ambulance Bill Abatements

The Board agreed to take the Police Sergeant Promotion off the Consent Agenda. Chief Mason recommended that Officer Kevin Considine be promoted to the rank of Police Sergeant effective July 1, 2007. Mr. McManus moved to accept the Chief’s recommendation on the promotion for Sergeant. Mr. Marsland seconded the motion and the motion carried by a unanimous vote. Officer Considine received a standing ovation and congratulations from the Board.

Mr. Cole requested that the second Caleb Chase request be pulled from the Consent Agenda. Mr. McManus moved to approve the balance of the Consent Agenda and the recommended actions thereon. Mr. Marsland seconded the motion and the motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Mr. Cole referred to a letter from a staff member which alleges that the applicant had been rude to her. Mr. Merriam stated that the staff member assured him that proper protocol was followed in this case. Mr. Cole stated that there may be a perception that this assistance is an entitlement and pointed out that the applicant was dissatisfied with the length of time for the review process to determine eligibility. He added that he felt the staff member deserved an apology and he would not be supporting this request. The Board took into consideration the recent change in the procedure for application to the fund as well stress the applicant may have been under due to the shut off notice. Mr. McManus commented that these people are under a tremendous amount of pressure and that it was commonly known around the community that this money was easily accessible. The Board agreed that the application process should be moved to the Council on Aging office. Chairman Wilkins suggested that it might be appropriate for the Outreach Worker to contact the applicant and explain the recent transition process and he added that we need further clarity in the process so there aren’t false expectations on the part of those seeking assistance. Mr. Cole stated that the fact that the fund was easily accessible in the past is not an excuse for this behavior. The motion carried by a 3-2-0 vote with Mr. Cole and Mr. Piekarski in opposition.

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

Mr. Merriam delivered the following report:

A meeting was held to discuss the Allen inner harbor. Attendees included representatives from Coastal Engineering and the Allen Harbor Yacht Club. Coastal is preparing our dredging permit which will include sampling. Once the sampling is complete, we’ll need to determine the best dredge methodology, including de-watering and a re-use.

We have received the sand gifts from the Seymours, Whites and Bronners. I spoke to Mike Harris from the Wyndemere Beach Association. The County Dredge intended to move on by noon Friday. Mr. Harris was able to secure $10,000 from a member’s credit card and $5,000 from their checking account, so the gift and sand pumping has been adjusted to $15,000 accordingly.

Mr. Merriam recommended that the Board amend their previous motion on this gift accordingly. Chairman Wilkins moved the recommendation. Mr. Marsland seconded the motion and the motion carried by a 4-1-0 vote with Mr. Piekarski in opposition. Chairman Wilkins commented to Mr. Merriam that in the future we should “have all our ducks in a row” before we have a motion. Mr. Merriam noted that the dredge agreements arrived today and were dated December 2006. The Board agreed to take this up at their next meeting.

The new Fire Rescue Boat is docked in Saquatucket Harbor. Tom Leach has proposed a location near the abandoned fuel dock. I’ve ask Tom to discuss with Waterways whether the Fire Dept. should be paying dockage as other departments bill each other. We should receive their recommendation after their next meeting.

The Board agreed that a policy on interdepartmental charges is necessary.

Model Airplanes/ Capped Landfill

Jennifer DeFoe has written the attached letter attesting to her continued opposition to this planned activity. Unfortunately, she was not present for the field test but she was misinformed with regard to how the test was conducted. Given that she wishes to pursue her objections, does the Board wish to provide her an appointment?

Chairman Wilkins stated that Mr. Merriam needs to look into all the issues Ms. DeFoe has raised, meet with all the parties involved and make a recommendation to the Board. Mr. Marsland advised that our Town Counsel should be involved as Ms. DeFoe is citing a violation of general laws. Mr. Piekarski requested that a second noise test be conducted in Ms. DeFoe’s presence and noted that if Ms. DeFoe wants to come before the Board it is her right. Mr. Merriam said he would give the Board another recommendation and if Ms. DeFoe is still dissatisfied he would make an appointment for her to come before the Board.

Preservation of Town Records

Town Clerk Anita Doucette has asked for your Board to execute a preservation of records contract with Brown’s River Preservation Services of Essex, Vermont in the amount of $34,629. She contacted two other vendors who could not match Brown’s price. Secondly, Anita recommends an award to General Code LLC for $10,527 for document management solution and $12,430 for Codification Code of our charter, by-laws, zoning by-laws and regulations.

With regard to the preservation of records contract, Mr. Cole requested to see a sample product. Specifically he asked to see what condition the documents are in and what the contractor does to the records. Mr. Merriam agreed to get a sample.

Mr. McManus noted that he has brought up the issue before that items such as these belong under Action Items on the agenda. He pointed out that both recommendations came from the Town Clerk on June 1^st and could have been listed as such. He reiterated that unless an item is an emergency it should be on the agenda. Mr. Merriam responded that the larger issue needs to be clarified and that is that the Charter calls for him to have full responsibility for purchasing except for the School Department, Water Department and Library. He asked the Board if it is their intent to award and execute all contracts except for in those three areas. Mr. Piekarski stated that they should abide by the Charter and Chairman Wilkins said the Board should be notified of the award of contracts. Mr. McManus asked for relevant sections of the Charter to be put on a future agenda and said that they should think about what the reason was for this past practice of the Board awarding and executing contracts.

Thompson West has been paid $2,178 in FY 06 and $2,741 in FY 07 to print periodic hard copies of Massachusetts law updates. As you know current updates of the law are available on the Commonwealth’s website for free. We would be better off canceling the subscription and making a one time purchase of a personal computer for our Town Hall library, so residents can access the current law at all times.

Mr. McManus recommended that we ask Mr. Ford if he has any objections to this.

Old Rec Building/ Cultural Center

I met with the Cultural Council on June 7^th to discuss stewardship of this building now that there are several activities taking place or booked for future use. As Town Meeting directed, the Cultural Council, like the Brooks Academy Commission, has been exercising its mission to advance the cultural arts and humanities, not compete with the Community Center. The Cultural Council has been recruiting new authors, and uses, not duplicating those in the Community Center. Barbara Johnson is the Program Coordinator. I will remain the Town’s contact. Their hope is that both buildings will eventually be managed or leased by a non profit organization. Attached are Guidelines for Cultural Activities at Cultural Centers and Guidelines for Teen Activities and Events.

Chairman Wilkins stressed that it should be understood that these guidelines are a working document for enabling purposes, not policies or regulations. Mr. Merriam agreed that these are evolving guidelines.

Disability Rights Committee

Vice Chair Carla Burke has forwarded a draft Emergency Preparedness Guide which will be finalized at their June 12 meeting. They want to distribute it at the June 21 Health Fair.

Assistant Town Administrator

Our office received 84 resumes for this position. I asked Robin Wilkins, Anita Doucette, Dave Scannell and Dave Ryan to serve as a Screening Committee. Interviews have been scheduled over the next two weeks.

Tax Title properties

I met with Mike Ford, Dave Scannell, Dolly Parkhurst and Paul Widegren to discuss a list of tax title accounts to process. Paul expressed his desire that the former Land Bank monies be dedicated for open space. I indicated that Dave Ryan had opined that this money is unencumbered and we intend to use it to process tax titles and will not determine any future disposition prematurely. Mike will forward a memo to us for consideration. We have tentatively selected 13 parcels as owner unknown for land court filing. That process includes a court examiner, publication, motion to default and judgment issued over a 12 month period. We also will recommend an eminent domain process for other parcels with large outstanding balances. We should commit money within the Treasurer’s budget to perform this work each year rather than generate a massive list of outstanding taxes owed.

Mr. McManus asked that Mr. Merriam put a copy of the list on their desks as soon as he gets it as well as the more inclusive list of the properties that some work had been done on.

Doug Kreeger of One Wah Wah Taysee Road came before the Board to voice his concerns that a cove has been created in front of his property as a result of dredging action on both sides of his property. He asked the Board to be cognizant of the negative impact of the dredge on his property and to look at the whole dredging process to figure out a way to allow nature to do most of the work in replenishing the beaches. Mr. Cole explained that he visited the site with the Harbormaster who believes that whether or not the cove fills in depends on how long the dredge stays there and pumps. Mr. Kreeger agreed that it is very conceivable that if the dredge pumps for another day or two the situation may be remedied. Mr. Cole pointed out that where some of the sand ended up going was a consequence of the adjustments that had to be made because the Wyndemere Beach Trust didn’t come up with the money they were supposed to so therefore there are two groined areas to the east of Mr. Kreeger that were scheduled to get spoils that are not and the public beach slightly to the west of Mr. Kreeger’s property is getting spoils that weren’t in the plan.

DISCUSSION ITEMS

A. Discussion with Conservation Commission regarding allocation of funds from bog lease; budgeting, stewardship, maintenance and management of conservation land; funding agent hours

Chet Berg, Chairman of the Conservation Commission, asked for the Board’s support in improving stewardship of over 1,100 acres of conservation land which he valued at over $40 million through management plans. He stated that the management plans should include monitoring the land periodically by the Conservation Agent and he noted that the Conservation Commission has received insufficient funding to do its job of protecting this land under their jurisdiction. Mr. Berg explained that they intend to submit an article at Town Meeting to allocate funds realized from the lease of cranberry bogs under the jurisdiction of the Conservation Commission for conservation purposes only and he asked for assistance in writing the article as well as for the Board’s support of the article. He noted that our Conservation Agent has an excellent background and experience at developing management plans as well as knowledge of the Wetlands Protection Act and the Harwich Wetlands Bylaw so essential for protection of this asset. He recommended that the position be funded and the job description increased to include these duties. Mr. Berg stated that $40,000 was allocated at Town Meeting for developing management plans and this money can probably be partially saved by putting our Conservation Agent to work at developing those management plans.

Mr. Brown noted that Mr. Merriam had asked him about the use of CPC funds for the Conservation Agent to work on the management plan and he had spoken to his resources in Boston who thought this was a reasonable use providing we weren’t going to bid the opportunity.

Chairman Wilkins pointed out that it is the Town Administrator who is ultimately responsible for creating the construct that would enable this to take place. Mr. Cole asked Mr. Merriam’s reaction to the proposal and Mr. Merriam stated that he has spoken to Paula Champagne and John Chatham about how to shift resources and allocate time differently. He added that this proposal was presented to him by Mr. Chatham and he thought it was an excellent idea but we would have to take away some of his Health Department duties.

Chairman Wilkins thanked the Commission for bringing this forward and suggested that the Harwich Conservation Trust be included in future discussions.

A. Request by the Town of Walpole to support legislation for the immediate suspension of Chapter 40B, the Comprehensive Permit Law

Mr. Piekarski, Mr. McManus and Chairman Wilkins agreed that there is a problem in supporting this request in that there is not a distinction in the legislation between friendly and unfriendly 40B and were not willing to call for the immediate suspension of 40B in its entirety. Mr. Cole noted that this had been discussed by the 21^st Century Task Force where there was widespread concern on this issue and he would like to get something substantive from the members as to the specifics of their concerns.

Mr. McManus moved to not go on record as supporting a moratorium but ask that a letter be sent to our legislators indicating our interest that they support an ongoing conversation on changes and improvements – it can address issues of concerns to municipalities principally unfunded infrastructure and service costs. Mr. Cole seconded the motion. Chairman Wilkins requested that the letter be sent to our representatives as well as to the Walpole Board of Selectmen with copies to the Town Planner, Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

B. Appointment of new Registrar

Mr. McManus moved that Juell Buckwold be appointed as the new member of the Harwich Board of Registrars upon the retirement of Ann Kelly on June 30, 2007. Mr. Cole seconded the motion and the motion carried by a unanimous vote.

C. Request to donate shed by Harwich Cranberry Festival (not a scheduled agenda item)

Mr. Marsland moved to accept the shed. Mr. Piekarski seconded the motion. Mr. McManus recused himself on this item. The motion carried by a 4-0 vote.

D. Contracts for preservation of Town records (not a scheduled agenda item)

Mr. McManus moved to approve and authorize the Chair to sign the agreement to proceed with document management solution with General Code, LLC for $10,527 with optional components and authorize to proceed with the codification code proposal with General Code Publishing Corp. for $12,403 with selected options. Mr. Marsland seconded the motion. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. Mr. Piekarski inquired if the contracts had gone out to bid and Mr. Merriam responded that the Town Clerk had gotten three telephone quotes and he had asked her to document them.

Mr. McManus moved to authorize the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen to sign an agreement with Brown River Records Preservation Services of Essex, VT to accomplish a preservation of Town records, amount not to exceed $34,629. Mr. Marsland seconded the motion. Mr. Piekarski remarked that he would have preferred to have seen this go out to bid as there is not a time constraint on it. He inquired as to who the vendors were that the Town Clerk had received quotes from and Mr. Merriam responded that he did not have information on the vendors. Mr. McManus moved to ask the Town Administrator to determine who the vendors are in this area and to review the process in making the selection and report back. Mr. Marsland seconded the motion and the motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Mr. Marsland moved to go into Executive Session for the purpose of discussing collective bargaining matters without returning to Regular Session. Mr. McManus seconded the motion and the motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Respectfully submitted,