MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2005, 7:30 P.M.
PRESENT: = &nb= sp; Elaine Adams
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Karl Fisher
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Raymond Hebert, Jr., Vice Chairman
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Robert Kane, Chairman
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Kevin Killeen
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Raymond Primini
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Paul Rinaldi
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Paul Valenti
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Richard Wick
ABSENT: &nb= sp; = None
OTHERS PRESENT: John
Carroll, Police Chief
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Roy Cavanaugh, Public Works Director
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Tom Durso, Chairman, Police Commission
&=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; John
Gavallas, Deputy Police Chief
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Frank Nardelli, Finance Director/Assistant Town Manager
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Meredith Robson, Town Manager
1.&nb= sp; Call Meeting To Order
Mr. = Kane, Chairman, Called the Meeting to Order at 7:30 p.m.
2.&nb= sp; Roll Call
Ms. LaForme, Board Clerk, executed the Roll Call.
&= nbsp; Mr. Kane, Chairman, led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 2
4.&nb=
sp; Public
Participation
=
; Robert
Gianaccio,
=
; Mr.
Gianaccio: One of the main
reasons I'm here this evening is to thank the Town Manager for seeing me Fr=
iday
and spending a good amount of time with me. We had a good conversation, I have=
a new
respect for you, I know you listened to me and I listened to you, we agreed=
to disagree, we agreed on some things, we disagreed on so=
me
others. I told her how I felt=
and
what should be cut, and I mean cuts, you should start with personnel. I know you have to pay union probl=
ems,
if you do things you have to approach unions, I =
think
you should do that. The medic=
al
benefits, the pays, ask for givebacks, and if not go back to 5 years in whi=
ch
you hired people and look at what you hired and see what you can cut out.
The land deal that failed, and I'm going to say this whether you like it or not, and I voted for all you Republicans, I say that, I'm a registered Republica= n, my opinion that deal fell through because of the way you presented it. It went through too fast, there wa= sn't enough information, people felt there was something goi= ng on in the background. You can sh= ake your held, but I'm telling you that's what it is, that's why it went down big. You should have taken yo= ur time, it was possible to get that land passed. I just think it was pushed down pe= ople's throats and there should have been more time explaining cause a lot of peop= le just misunderstood what was said. I'm not saying this in a criticizing mode, I really think that land would have gone through.
= ; Mr. Kane: With all due respec= t, that started a year ago so I don't think it was pushed through by any means= .
Mr. Gianaccio: Well the last meeting, I'm going t= o tell you, one thing that was a bad taste in people's mouths, there was a verbal = vote taken, and I was standing right there, the Aye's did have it, but a gentlem= an on the floor asked for a hand count, and you blew him off.
Mr. Kane: No, at that point he cannot be recognized because at that point there is no public participation. In fact I'm going to talk about th= is in my Chairman's Report, so if you'll hang around I have a few things to talk about.
= ; Mr. Gianaccio: I'm going to h= ang around, but I thought, I'm just saying from what I heard from people., whether it was right or not, it sat badly with people. It was easy enough, a= nd I'm not saying, the Aye's did have it, I heard it. There's things= like that that . . . . .
Mr. Kane: The Aye's did have it.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 3
= ; Mr. Gianaccio: Yea, I know th= ey did, I'm agreeing with you, I did hear it, but what would 2 minutes have ta= ken out of your life?
Mr. Kane: It's just procedure.
= ; Mr. Gianaccio: And again than= k you for your time, I appreciate it.
Joe Pawlak,
Mr. Pawlak: I'd like to speak regarding an item which is on the Agenda later on, concerning the acquisition of a motor cycle for the Police Department. Mu= ch has been said about the motorcycle over the past 10 or 15 years. In this particular case there is a= new angle to it, there's several angles actually, one of them is a lease, I believe, whereby we can get one for $2,850 a year, the other one is as sort of an offshoot of that, but directly related is that there is a movement afoot to= try to get people or businesses to donate money to fund that lease. The first thing I would say to tha= t, and I would be against any public funding of that vehicle because it would tempt those individuals to look for undue influence, so I would be against that.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> I don't think the Police Department needs more hardware to do the job.
I've been going to Police Commission meetings for a long time, I've been on the Police Commission since November of 03, enforcement has always been a hot topic at the meetings. I spoke about it many, many ti= mes before I was a commissioner and many times since I've become a commissioner. We have never t= alked about hardware as a problem, it's always been ab= out manpower. We have plenty of hardware, we have 25 vehicles, we have 36 police= men. We're told that in case of a mass = mobilization because of homeland security we're going to have to put everybody on the ro= ad, and I would agree, 25 vehicles, 36 cops is plenty of vehicles to get cops on the road.
People
have talked about the possibility of going from one end of
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 4
In
the budget that was presented to the Town Manager there were 4 police cars =
that
were requested and 2 officers. 2
cars were cut and both officers. We
can't enforce the laws we have without people. We have the hardware, I've s=
aid
that before. This has been a =
15
year crusade, 10 or 15 years on the part of the Police Department, specific=
ally
the Chief, to get a motorcycle. I
took the time to go back and look at the Minutes that I had from September
03. I went through every sing=
le
minute, all of the minutes I should say.&n=
bsp;
Every time enforcement was discussed, there were 348 pages of
minutes. Enforcement was disc=
ussed
146 times. I'm sorry, I
misspoke. During the time tha=
t enforcement
was discussed during these meetings, the Chief responded 146 times. Now that could have been a single
syllable, yes or no, or a multi-paragraph response. Never was hardware mentioned as a =
reason
for the inability to enforce either speed laws or any kind of laws in the T=
own
of
At the Town Council Subcommittee meeting last week I raised the possibility of= in effect trading 2 cars for 1 officer. It turns out in going through the meeting minutes, a probationary officer costs $36,000 with his benefits, I asked that specifically and that= 's what I was told. A brand new = police car, fully loaded, cost about $36,300 according to the budget that was presented to the Town Council. I would suggest that it's much more effective for the Town of Watertown to approve another police officer at least, and preferably 2 to reinstate the 2 that were cut, and if not 2 at least 1, and trade a police car. I'd rather see officers on the str= eet enforcing the laws in this Town than getting another piece of equipment. I thank you for your time.
Mr. Kane: If I might, the budget review proce= ss is not complete as of this time.
&= nbsp; Mr. Kane, Chairman, Closed Public Participation at 7:40 p.m.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 5
5.&nb=
sp; Minutes
&= nbsp; A. Regular Meeting Minutes – March 7, 2005
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Ms. = Adams, sec. Mr. Primini) to Approve the Regular Meeting Minutes dated March 7, 2005 as presented.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLT
&=
nbsp; B. &nb=
sp;
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Ms. = Adams, sec. Mr. Primini) to Approve the Special Town Me= eting Minutes dated March 7, 2005 (7:00 p.m.) as presented.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; In Favor: &= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Mr. Fisher, Mr. Kane, Mr. Killeen, Mr. Primini, Mr. Rinaldi, Mr. Val= enti, Mr. Wick
= ; &n= bsp; Opposed: = None
= ; &n= bsp; Abstained: Mr. Hebert
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION CARRIED (8-0-1)
&=
nbsp; C. &nb=
sp;
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Ms. = Adams, sec. Mr. Primini) to Approve the Special Town Me= eting Minutes dated March 7, 2005 (7:15 p.m.) as presented.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLT
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 6
6.&nb=
sp; Sub-Committee
Reports
A. &nbs= p; Public Works Subcommittee
&nb= sp; Ms. Adams: We met last week a= nd we discussed a few things, the primary one being, what you had charged the subcommittee with, looking at the environmental grants through C.O.G. Roy Cavanaugh is here this evening= and he explained it to us and I believe some of the other Council members caught some of what this was all about, and trying to break it down in verbiage th= at we could understand, that it is a grant seeking application and what's invo= lved with it, so Roy is here tonight and I think he did a pretty good job with u= s so we're here to answer the questions and that will be part of the Agenda this evening.
= Secondly also you see a transfer on the budget for snowplow blades. It's been a really rough Winter on our equipment, so that will be happening.
=
We
had a meeting two weeks ago Thursday with HRP. They're the consulting firm that w=
as
hired for
= Mr. Kane: They're taking an active role (inau= dible).
Ms. Adams: Exactly, town and community members recognizing a problem and together working to get somethi= ng positive done, so HRP will be working up, you've got to look for plants that are slow growing, low growing salt, heat, drought resistant and apparently they are = out there, so we thought that was very, very positive as a step ahead. Along with other bond projects are= in various stages of approval so we can get those going once we finally get ri= d of the Winter weather, hopefully it won't happen ag= ain Wednesday with more snow anticipated.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 7
B. &nbs= p; Finance Subcommittee
=
Mr. Hebert: We're halfway through the budget s=
eason
in 7.&nb=
sp; Chairman’s
Report &=
nbsp; A. Correspondence &nb=
sp; Mr.
Kane: None &=
nbsp; Mr. Kane: We have a couple of regulars who c=
ome to
our meetings and kind of hold our feet to the fire in regards to Robert's R=
ules
of Order, and I guess they should, we should follow Robert's Rules of Order,
and I think we do, for the most part, so I was a bit perplexed that at the =
Town
Meeting a couple of weeks ago there were questions regarding the handling o=
f it
and we tried to follow Robert's Rules of Order, so I'm a bit confused on th=
at
part, where they want us to handle Robert's Rules of Order strictly, and th=
en
when we do we get questioned as well.
What I did was I just went through my own book, of course Robert's R=
ules
of Order, and just wanted to read a couple of excerpts regarding debate, and
opening a motion and what's on the floor, and that kind of thing, so if you=
'll
indulge me for a minute. &=
nbsp; What
precedes a debate? # steps are required before any subject is open to
debate. A member who has obta=
ined
the floor makes a motion. The=
motion
is seconded. The presiding of=
ficer,
also called the Chair, states the motion.&=
nbsp;
Only the Chair can put a motion before the assembly, thus presenting=
it
for consideration and action as the immediately pending question. After a motion is made no debate or
other motion is in order until the Chair states the motion or rules it out =
of order. So that's just a bit about debate.=
&=
nbsp; Secondly
another little line on debate, debate must be limited to the merits of the
immediately pending question. So
and this is what we were trying to perform that night is that the motion on=
the
floor was made and discussion has to pertain to it. &=
nbsp; Thirdly
regarding decorum in the debate, a member is confined in debate to the ques=
tion
before the assembly. He or she
should avoid personal comments and cannot question a member's motives, but =
may
condemn in strong terms the nature or consequences of a measure. It is the
measure, not the man or woman that is the subject of debate. A member can only discuss the act =
of the
assembly that he or she is debating or against which he or she intends a mo=
tion
to rescind at the conclusion of his or her remarks. So I just wanted to bring that to
everyone's intention, that we are asked to follow Robert's Rules of Order a=
nd I
think we do. Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 8 8.&nb=
sp; Action
Items =
; A. Consider
Appointments to Boards and Commissions &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; None =
; B. =
Consider
Transfers R E S O L U T I O N =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
expenses in the 2004-05 fiscal year require the Transfer of Funds; =
; &n=
bsp; NOW
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by vote of the Watertown Town Council, that the f=
ollowing
actions are taken relative to the Transfer of Funds: =
; &n=
bsp; GENERAL FUND =
; &n=
bsp; AMOUNT: $3,797 &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; NO: 1 =
; &n=
bsp; FROM: &=
nbsp; 010-50690-046-0000 Contingency =
; &n=
bsp; TO: &=
nbsp; 010-50510-014-=
1683 Town Hall Scaffolding =
; &n=
bsp; REASON: Purchase
Scaffolding for Town Hall =
; &n=
bsp; AMOUNT: $5,000 &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; NO: 2 =
; &n=
bsp; FROM: &=
nbsp; 010-50319-032-0000 Vehicle Maintenance =
; &n=
bsp; TO: &=
nbsp; 010-50415-032-=
0000 Equipment and Parts =
; &n=
bsp; REASON: New
Plow Blades needed due to number of snow events =
; &n=
bsp; WATER & SEWER =
; &n=
bsp; AMOUNT $11,3=
46 &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; NO: 3 =
; &n=
bsp; FROM: &=
nbsp; 017-50110-075-1702 Assistant Superintendent =
; &n=
bsp; TO: &=
nbsp; 017-53189-075-=
0858 Maintenance of Mains =
; &n=
bsp; REASON: Additional
Funds Required =
; &n=
bsp; AMOUNT: $2,500 &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; NO: 4 =
; &n=
bsp; FROM: &=
nbsp; 017-50110-075-1702 Assistant Superintendent =
; &n=
bsp; TO: &=
nbsp; 017-50357-075-=
0000 Hydrant Maintenance =
; &n=
bsp; REASON: Hydrants
Requiring Replacement =
; &n=
bsp; Dated at =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Robert
J. Kane, Chairman =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 9 =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Resolution Authorizing the Transfers=
. =
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: None<=
/p>
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY =
; C. Consider
an Appropriation from the General Fund to Fund the Town's Portion of a Stat=
e of
R E S O L U T I O N =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS, the Watertown Police Department has been notified of=
the
approval of a grant from the State of Connecticut Department of Transportat=
ion
for overtime expenditures in the amount of $2,481. =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
with the grant the Police Department will be able to conduct nine 5-hour bl=
ocks
exclusively for traffic enforcement and one 6-hour block for a DWI sobriety
check point. =
; &n=
bsp; NOW
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Council appropriates $3,308 from the
General Fund to the Police Overtime Account for DUI Traffic Enforcement of
which $2,481 will be reimbursed by the State. =
; &n=
bsp; Dated at =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Robert
J. Kane, Chairman =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Mr. Primini) to Approve the Resolut=
ion
authorizing the appropriation of $3,308 from the General Fund to the Police
Overtime Account for a DUI Traffic Enforcement of which $2,481 will be
reimbursed by the State from a Grant. =
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: Mr. Kane: Well personally I'd like to congrat=
ulate
the Police Department on their continuing effort. We see this probably yearly how yo=
u work
with the State of =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 10 =
; D. Consider
Resolution Authorizing a Bid Waiver for the Turkey Brook Project R E S O L U T I O N =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS, Town Council approval is required for waiving the bi=
d process
and awarding a contract to the lowest responsive, responsible bidder. =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS, Town Council authorization is required for any purch=
ase
exceeding $4,000 that has not been independently bid by the Town's Purchasi=
ng
Agent. =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
during the ongoing Turkey Brook Drainage Improvement Project, it was determ=
ined
that a new sanitary sewer lateral connection and the abandonment existing
lateral at a manufacturing building along =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
in order to proceed without adversely impacting the construction schedule, =
the
Director of Public Works sought bids for the work required; =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
it has been determined that Matty's Paving and
Construction Company who has submitted a quote for the work to be performed=
and
after careful review is recommended. =
; &n=
bsp; NOW
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, in the best interest of the maintenance the proje=
ct
schedule of the Turkey Brook Drainage Improvement Project a bid waiver for a
new sanitary sewer lateral connection and the abandonment of an existing
lateral at a manufacturing building along McLennan Drive in connection with=
the
Turkey Brook Drainage Improvement Project be approved to be completed by
Matty's Paving and Construction per their quote in the amount of $8,485. =
; &n=
bsp; Dated at =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Robert
J. Kane, Chairman =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Resolution Authorizing a Bid Waiver =
for
a new sanitary sewer lateral connection in the abandonment of an existing
lateral at a manufacturing building along McLennan Drive in connection with=
the
Turkey Brook Drainage Improvement Project to be completed by Matty's Paving=
and
Construction per their quote in the amount of $8,485. Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 11 =
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: =
; Mr.
Cavanaugh: During the ori=
ginal
design of the Turkey Brook project up off of McLennan, there were certain
design assumptions made in regards to a sanitary sewer or lateral coming ou=
t of
a building. We didn’t have the as built drawings, we didn't have the
proposed drawings, so we made what we thought was a reasonable assumption, =
or
the design engineer made an assumption at that time where the sewer connect=
ion
would be made. During the act=
ual
course of the construction it was determined, we encountered the lateral in=
a
different place than we expected it, and it turns out that we can't put it =
back
where we originally envisioned it, we'd have to go out of the building in a
different direction. At that =
time
we generated a change order request to the contractor, Guerrera
Construction. He came back wi=
th a
price that we felt was excessive, it was in the vicinity of $13,000, so we
decided to go out and solicit some other bids in an effort to determine if =
that
was actually the market price and the dollar value of the future of the wor=
k to
be done. We got another price=
from
a reputable contractor we've done work before for a much lower price. We
didn’t have time to go through the normal bid process because Guerrer=
a is
on a rather tight timetable and we can't interfere with that schedule witho=
ut
subjecting ourselves to potential delay claims so we solicited a number of
other bids. We received anoth=
er bid
and we're requesting your approval of a bid waiver tonight for Matty's Pavi=
ng
so we an get them started tomorrow or Wednesday =
and
keep the project on track. Th=
is
money would not be coming out of the contingency of the General Fund, it wo=
uld
be coming out of the Turkey Brook funds as part of the Turkey Brook Project=
and
it is within the scope of work authorized by the bond. Any questions?=
=
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Mr. Rinaldi: Yea, that was basically my question=
. The money is coming out of the proj=
ect
fund, there's nothing coming out of the General Fund? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Mr. Cavanaugh: Right, it's the project fund it's c=
oming
out of the bond fund, but because it's over $4,000 we didn't go through the
normal process, we're generating a normal change order and we're requesting=
the
bid waiver. =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 12 =
; E. =
Consider
a Resolution Authorizing a Bid Waiver for IBM Think Pads for the Watertown
Police Department R E S O L U T I O N =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS, Town Council approval is required for waiving the bi=
d process
and awarding a contract to the lowest responsive, responsible bidder. =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS, Town Council authorization is required for any purch=
ase
exceeding $4,000 that has not been independently bid by the Town's Purchasi=
ng
Agent. =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
the Watertown Police Department wishes to replace five mobile data terminals
(MDT) with IBM Think Pads which are also presently used by the department w=
ith
satisfaction, and; =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
it is the desire to utilize IBM's special government pricing which is
significantly lower than if the department were to replace the terminals wi=
th
the exact same units. =
; &n=
bsp; NOW
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Council hereby approves a Bid Waiver
for Mobile Data Terminals from IBM at a cost of $1,900 for each Think Pad.<=
/p>
=
; &n=
bsp; Dated at =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Robert
J. Kane, Chairman =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Resolution
authorizing a Bid Waiver for the Watertown Police Department for IBM Think
Pads. =
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: =
; Ms.
Adams: Can we have an ove=
rview
on this? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Chief Carroll: What's the question? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Ms. Adams: Just kind of like an overview on t=
his,
regarding the Think Pads versus the, it looks like the other part you had w=
as .
. . . =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Chief Carroll: Those are the computers for the ve=
hicles,
right. Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 13 =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Ms. Robson: They want information=
on
why you're asking for a bid waiver. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Chief Carroll: Because that's the only outfit rig=
ht now
that's supplying and can service the equipment we're requesting. &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Ms.
Adams: These are going to=
be
compatible with all of our other systems now, where before the understandin=
g (inaudible)
that the other ones weren't, the Tuflocks weren't? &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Chief
Carroll: Right, but these=
are
individual units now that are going to be compatible. We're going to try and make them
compatible. I'll have John answer that question for you, but right now they=
're
the only people that can do it for us. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Mr.
Valenti: Do we have to bu=
y the
Think Pads as a condition of the grant?&nb=
sp;
Is that hand and glove with the grant itself? &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Chief
Carroll: I can't answer t=
hat
question right now. &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Valenti: I don't know if =
you
know, it's the IBM Think Pad, that's just a lap top, correct? Oh, I'm sorry, Deputy? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Chief
Carroll: My deputy has mo=
re
information on that, he's my Think Pad guru. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Deputy Chief Gavallas: What was the question? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Mr. Valenti: On the Think Pads, is it a conditi=
on of
the grant that we buy Think Pads as opposed to another lap top? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Deputy Chief Gavallas: No, these are MDT's. We can buy anything we want but
previously we had Panasonics and they cost almost twice what the IBM Think =
Pads
do, and the first grant gave us Think Pads and we bought Panasonics with our
portion, and the Think Pads work just as well as the Panasonics for about h=
alf
the price, so now that we're turning them over, replacing them, I thought it
was more prudent to go with the Think Pads, and we're getting a government
price from IBM for them. Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 14 =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Mr.
Valenti: But the Think Pa=
d is
just a lap top, correct? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Deputy Chief Gavallas: Correct, it's a lap top computer.<=
span
style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> It's just called the IBM Think Pad=
. It's a lap top computer. We call it a MDT. It's a mobile da=
ta
terminal in the car, but in effect it's a lap top computer. &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Valenti: And it will come=
, like
I know when I bought mine, you just get standard windows stuff. You'll have specialized software i=
n this
for what then Police Department does. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Deputy Chief Gavallas: It's compatible with our operating
system. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Mr.
Valenti: Is it possible t=
here are
other lap tops that would be compatible with that software too? &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Depu=
ty
Chief Gavallas: Well sure=
, the Panasonics
would, probably some Dell's would, but the best value I think for our money=
is
the IBM Think Pad. &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Wick: I have a question a=
bout
service. You're buying these =
directly
from IBM? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Deputy
Chief Gavallas: Yes. &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
wick:
Are they gong to provide the service or will that be provided by ano=
ther
organization? &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Depu=
ty
Chief Gavallas: They have=
a
local vendor that would work through them for the service. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Mr.
Wick: So they're sending =
their
PC business to overseas doesn't affect us in any=
way? =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Deputy
Chief Gavallas: I guess n=
ot,
there are local vendors who will service through IBM. =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Mr.
Rinaldi: By upgrading the=
Think
Pads, what are we going to get? More information, faster
information? What are =
we
going to accomplish? Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 15 &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Depu=
ty
Chief Gavallas: Well the
present MDT's we have aren't compatible to the new operating system we put =
in
which is a window based operating system last October, so we upgraded the
operating system in the P.D., now we're upgrading the lap tops in the cars =
so
they can all be compatible, so these are going to be Windows based. The older ones aren't (inaudible).=
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Kane: Well I mean you're =
able
to track suspects, check vehicles, things like that, right? &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Depu=
ty
Chief Gavallas: Yea, with=
this
MDT the officer in the car can (inaudible). =
; &n=
bsp; =
; =
; Mr.
Rinaldi: Right, that's wh=
at I
wanted to know, you can get more information faster, okay? &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Depu=
ty
Chief Gavallas: Yes, we c=
an get
motor vehicle data, we can get pictures out of the D.O.C., Department of
Corrections, of inmates who might be suspects, we can
get record checks, warrant checks. =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY =
; F. =
Consider
an Appropriation from the General Fund for Police Vehicle Repairs R E S O L U T I O N =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
additional funds are needed for repair of police vehicles and it is anticip=
ated
that the vehicle maintenance account will fall short; =
; &n=
bsp; BE
IT RESOLVED, that the Town Council approves an appropriation from the Gener=
al
Fund in the amount of $4,500 to be placed into account 010-50321-021-0000 -
Vehicle Maintenance. =
; &n=
bsp; Dated at =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Robert
J. Kane, Chairman =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 16 =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Resolution
authorizing an Appropriation in the amount of $4,500 from the General Fund =
to
be placed in the account 010-50321-021-0000 for vehicle maintenance for the
Watertown Police Department. =
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: =
; None =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY 9. &nb=
sp; Discussion
And Possible Action Items =
; A. Discussion
and Possible Action on an
Appropriation and Authorization to Sign an Agreement with the Valley Counci=
l of
Governments for an Assessment and Action Plan Relative to the Steele Brook
Corridor Improvements R E S O L U T I O N =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
the Valley Council of Governments (VCOG) administers the Naugatuck Valley
Brownfields Project (NVBP) and assists municipalities in obtaining assessme=
nt
grants or loans in order to evaluate and test real property; and =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS,
there are a variety of environmental issues and potential D.E.P. consent or=
der
requirements relative to the Steele Brook Corridor; and =
; &n=
bsp; WHEREAS, the VCOG has significant expertise and experience in=
these
manners and is well suited to assist the Town in determining the best plan =
for
Steele Brook Corridor Improvements. =
; &n=
bsp; NOW
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Watertown Town
Council hereby authorizes the Town Manager to execute an agreement with the
Valley Council of Governments for the assistance relative to this project as
outlined in the VCOG proposal dated January 18, 2005. =
; &n=
bsp; BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Watertown Town Cou=
ncil
hereby authorizes the Appropriation of $3,950 to pay for the assistance from
the VCOG. $2,000 of this cost=
will
be reimbursed by the owner of one of the properties involved in the Steele
Brook Corridor Improvements. =
; &n=
bsp; Dated at =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Robert
J. Kane, Chairman =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Regular Meeting March 21, 2005 Page 17 =
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Resolution authorizing the Town Mang=
er
to sign an Agreement with the Valley Council of Governments for an assessme=
nt
and action plan relative to the Steele Brook Corridor Improvements as well =
as
an Appropriation in the amount of $3,950 fro the General Fund for the VCOG
services of which $2,000 will be reimbursed from an adjacent property owner=
. =
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: Mr. Kane: We were all confused a couple of w=
eeks
ago. &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; Ms.
Adams: We were all very
confused by all of this and this is another reason why
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: The money requested is for approva= l to basically to apply for a grant, that's the bottom line, a grant through the= Valley Council of Governments, of which we're a participating municipality. It would go to E.P.A and the D.E.P, they're the ones that provide the grant money so what we're looking to do i= s in essence hire the Valley Council of Governments and their staff to act as our consultant to go out and find us money for sample assessment and a remedial action plan. We're calling th= is the Steele Brook Corridor action plan of which the first piece may very well be= the Pin Shop Pond. It doesn't nec= essarily have to be, but that's one of the things that would fall out as part of the study. $1,950 I believe is fo= r the funding that portion of the grant application and providing the plan. One of the questions had come up, = if we do identify some petroleum or hazardous constituents on any of these properties, would the Town be liable, and the answer is absolutely not. It would still be incumbent upon t= he property holders.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: And this is only the first stage, = there would be other stages beyond this, correct?
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 18
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Right. This is a preliminary stage. One of the things that the Town, t= hrough the Town Council has to determine what actually is going to be the best and highest use for this property. What do we want to use it for? Do = we want to encourage redevelopment of this property in which case there would = be one cleanup and investigation standard or do we want to have it for active = or passive recreation or senior housing to something else, and that would be a higher standard of investigation and cleanup. So one of the things we want to kn= ow going in is are we targeting the appropriate level of assessment and cleanup and that's part of the dialogue we'd be having with D.E.:P. and the E.P.A. = to make sure going in that we have the right plan to take care of what the Tow= n is eventually looking to do along the Steele Brook Corridor.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Robson: Yea, you might ju= st think of this as a master plan for Steele Brook Corridor Improvements in general of which the Pin Shop Pond may be a portion of that. Once the plan is set, once you're = happy with the plan, then we would move to implementation of the plan which would mean we would try and tackle other sources of revenue, find other sources of revenue to actually implement the plan, so this is really the master plan f= or the improvement in the Steel Brook Corridor (Tape #1, Side A ended - may ha= ve missed some).
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Master environ= mental plan.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: I think another thing too, Roy, yo= u had talked about was, we had talked about at subcommittee was instead of just trying to piece mail pieces of Steele Brook, a lot of times we do studies, studies get lost, and then we have to do another study, but for this we 'd be looking for Steele Brook from one end of Town= to the other to have a plan in place. Now mind you there are going to be things that have to go into this = that we will have to decide, but this way one master plan, all decided this is t= he plan, this is how we'll move forward. And a lot of Steele Brook is already developed too. There aren't too many areas where = we would have to make any decisions on either. If I'm not mistaken, isn't D.E.P. looking at parts of the brook, and we're looking at a way to be a step ahea= d of D.E.P. should they start coming down on us?
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 19
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Yes. The D.E.P., the E.P.A., and the Ar= my Corps of Engineers prefer we take a look at the whole drainage basin rather than take out bits and pieces of it here and there. They rather we go in and take a lo= ok at the whole thing, soup to nuts. Steele Brook itself, that portion of it up by the field, down by Heminway, is on t= he D.E.P. list of impaired waters. In other words it's got known environmental problems. Part of what we would like to do w= ith this particular project is identify the source o= f the problem and hopefully tackle the problem. There has been some speculation a= s to what that can involve, but at some point, whether it's a stick or a carrot,= the stick is at some point the D.E.P, they've already been down a couple of tim= es and talked to us about it. The stick is they issue an order to us telling us we have to investigate it or = take a look at it or allow them to, or we can be more proactive and say we have a plan in place, this is how we're going to do the sampling, this is how we're going to do the assessment, and we have a plan to go after funds for actual= ly development or remediation or whatever through American Rivers or some of t= he other programs out there.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: Without the plan we can't go after any funding. W= e're not looking to do anything so much ourselves as search out there for monies= available, maybe not this time, but who knows, 2 or 3 years down the road we'll be all= set to just move on it versus have to do all of this background work.
&=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; Mr.
Kane: Well I thank both y=
ou and
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Rinaldi: At what point in this process do w= e have to decide on what level of use we want to use?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: We really have to say at some = point before we, probably realistically within the nex= t few months. Well actually we don'= t have to identify the specific use, we don't have to say that we're going to use = this for a park, field, or whatever, we have to say commercial or industrial, residential/recreational type. Those are the two strata that we're looking at.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: Are you talking abo= ut the Pin Shop Pond?
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 20
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Pin Shop or any particular section of it. Del= and Field we obviously know what it is, but also in back of the plaza right now is go= ing through the environmental impact study, so we'd like to take a look at the whole thing and determine what . . . . .
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: The Public Works Subcommittee with yourself, they can do that, kind of look at these things, correct?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: And bring it back to the Counc= il and what's reasonable and prudent, having discussion with the property owners, = what they'd like to do with it, redevelop it with our assistance, or see if we c= an pursue active fields or passive recreation or a greenway, trail way . . . .= .
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: But we're not pursi= ng anything right now, we're just talking about an application for a grant for remediation?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: We're talking = about an application for a grant, and once we get the grant, do the sampling and assessment to identify what are the real issues out there cause right now we don't know, and we'll have a much better handle on that afterwards, but we = got to know are we going to investigate to this level or this level. And we'd rather not do this level = and then determine later that we should be up here.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: All that is is a level of cleanup, whether you're going to do industrial/commercial or residential or anything= in between, just two levels.
&=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; Mr. Primini: I want to thank
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Thank you.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 21
= ; B. = Discussion and Possible Action on Authoriz= ing the Town Manager to Enter into and Execute on Behalf of the Town of Waterto= wn an Agreement with WeRecycle, Inc. for Professional Services regarding Electronics Recycling Services
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Mr. Primini) to Authorize the Town
Manager to Enter Into and Execute on Behalf of the Town of
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; Discussion: = ; Ms. Adams: Yes, this is hopef= ully, instead of a lot of these computer parts electronic things that sometimes h= ave high amounts of contaminants in them, people will recycle, and this firm in turn can take them away for us, for a charge of course. Hopefully through the recycling fe= es we can make up the difference.
&=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; Mr. Kane: There was a big article about this=
in
the Business Section of the
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Wick: (Inaudible).
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Robson: I think the palle= t jack is as or if needed.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Wick: The proposal here i= s to (inaudible) electronic devices. Are we go= ing to be compensated for that charge by an equal or higher charge when people bri= ng this type of trash, if you will, to the transfer station?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: Can you just talk to us about the p= otential fee the user would have for bringing this type of produce for recycling?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: WeRecycle is a relatively new firm= for a very emerging industry, they're charging us $.17= a pound.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: No, what is the user charged w= hen they bring it to the landfill?
&=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; Mr.
Cavanaugh: We came up wit=
h a
sliding scale based upon the approximate estimated weights of the individual
items. For instance a computer
monitor would be, we're being charged $.17 a pound and this is supposed to =
be
revenue neutral so we came up with, an average monitor is going to cost the
Town on average about $5.00 to get rid of, so that's what we're checking.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 22
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: What happens if peo= ple throw this stuff out with their regular trash? Do we know that?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: No, we don't know. That's what's happening in most of= it, right now it's being thrown out with the regular trash. It's classified by the D.E.P. as part of the universal waste, but it's not classified as a hazardo= us waste strictly because there are 300,000,000 of these things that are going= to be thrown out in the next decade or so so it's a huge landfill. Environmentally there's a lot of, = some of the nastier heavy metals, lead, cranium, and some of the exotic metals i= n a lot of the boards. One of the= reasons we're getting rid of it so cheaply is because there's so much gold in the circuit boards right there, that they're actually recycling the circuit boa= rds for the gold and silver. Appr= oximately 98% of a computer can be recycled, either the gl= ass, the plastic, or the levels or whatever, so that's how we came up with the f= ee, based upon the estimated weight of the average unit.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: And do we have a plan to educa= te people on this, maybe something in their tax bills, or something?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: It is an idea.= The first thing we want to do once= we get approval is issue a press release.&nbs= p; The second thing we'll do is put a notice on the web site. We're also going to be promoting it through Tom Valuckas, who has already been invited up to publicize this, we talked about it last week. There was a third component of the= education, I forget what it is, but no, we haven't talked about putting it in the tax bills, but we are talking about promoting it and bringing it out.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: Frank, is that doa= ble? An insert in t= he tax bills?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Nardelli: We'd have to sit with them, cause as you know the tax bills come off the computer = based on information to add something on like that, I don't know how much verbiage you want to put on there. You= do have stuff about the scholarship fund on the tax bills.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: What about a stuffer?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Nardelli: (Inaudible) a s= tuffer. We could certainly sit with them i= f they wanted to do that. We can ask= the Tax Collector also if you want to do something like that, but we'd have to research that.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 23
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: The last compo= nent we are going to be, every year we put a one page insert in the Town Times a= nd the Town Guide Bulletin. We a= re talking about doing a one page just for electronics and every resident in T= own would be getting that.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Kane: Cause that's a way to educate peop= le that this is going on and they should not be throwing these things out with their regular trash.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Yea, I just wanted to go a lit= tle bit slow at first, take the baby steps and work out all the glitches and ma= ke sure we don't stumble along the way.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Ms. Adams: Well also aren't w= e like one of the first few towns in the State to jump on board with this?
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Mr. Cavanaugh: Right, only a handful of towns hav= e a regular drop-off as opposed to a one day collection, so there's not a lot of track records out there when we were investigating this. You'll see 3 or 4 more actually th= is Spring, so we'll be proactive for a change and environmentally friendly.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
= ; C. Discussion and Possible Action on Proposed= Code of Ethics Ordinance
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Mr. Wick) to Approve the Ordinance
entitled Town of
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: = ; Mr. Wick: Just review the cha= nges that the Ordinance Subcommittee made as a result of the input from the publ= ic hearing last fall. At our last meeting I'm happy to report we came out of it with a unanimous recommendati= on of the Council for the language that you see before you, with unfortunately= one proofreading amendment I'm going to have to discuss. But just to review the major chang= es, one of the first things that was objected to was= the idea of including a financial disclosure requirement for basically all of us who serve the Town, whether we're paid or unpaid, and we eliminated that completely. That was in the Connecticut State Model Code, but regardless of that fact, we decided it was inappropriate for us to try and impose that, so it's out.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 24
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; At the last meeting of the Ordinance Subcommittee we discussed at length the choices of the Ethics Commission versus an alternative method, and it's interesting that in the very beginning even though the model code from the State made provisions for an ethics commission, the original discussion amo= ngst the members of the Ordinance Subcommittee at that time was to try to avoid doing that cause it seemed a little bit more complicated than it needed to = be and we tried to find an alternative. In the months that followed that expression of preference we learned= by discussing it with people that common cause, for example, that there really= is no effective mechanism other than a commission in their opinion, and that w= as the one issue that we finally resolved by saying okay, the preference seems= to be consistent really with what the Subcommittee wanted to do in the first place, which is to find an alternative to the commission and that's what th= is language provides for us, it provides that the alternative will be the subcommittee of the Council and with that change we emerged with a unanimous recommendation.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; The one change that I need to ask you to consider is really in the form of an amendment. One of the other observations that was made by speakers of the public hearing was that the 2 year window for filing a complaint seemed too long and after we thought abo= ut that we said yea, we agree, so we reduced it to 6 months, and at a meeting = of the Council 2 or 3 months ago Paul Valenti pointed out that it might be wis= e to change 6 months to 180 days in the interest of being more specific. The Subcommittee agreed with that,= but unfortunately that change didn't make it to the final draft and that's my f= ault for being an incomplete proofreader, I guess you'd call it, so I would offe= r an amendment to the Motion.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; MOTIPON: (Mr. Wick, sec. M= r. Hebert) to Amend the Motion to change in Section 3-5(e) the words 6 months to 180 days.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; In Favor: &= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Mr. Fisher, Mr. Hebert, Mr. Kane, Mr. Killeen, Mr. Primini, Mr. Vale= nti, Mr. Wick
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Opposed: = None
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Abstained: Mr. Rinaldi
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; MOTION CARRIED (8-0-1)
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 25
= ; = ; Mr. Primini: The Ethics Commi= ssion will be a subcommittee of the Town Council? I personally find that to be a con= flict of interest since I would think that we're the policy making, financial win= g of the Town and that seems to me to be a little conflict. Does anybody else have an opinion = on that?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Fisher: I guess I don't understand conflic= t? Explain it more.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Primini: I would think our job is specific,= that we're the financial and the policy making wing for the Town, and if we're making the policy, and then we're going to have a subcommittee be the ethic= s, wouldn't that be in conflict if we're making a policy and then be the judge= s of that policy after?
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Fisher: We're also the
executive wing and we're also the legislative wing, and if you look at the
United States Congress they have an Ethics Commission made up of congress m=
en
and women which is a subcommittee of that United States Congress. I think what we want to do goes along with that, using that almost as a model.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Rinaldi: According to the Charter, firs= t of all, I think we are the Ethics. The Council as a whole is the Ethics Committee. I understand what we're doing here= , and I don't think there's a conflict.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Primini: But if there is a question of ethi= cs with that particular member of that subcommittee, wouldn’t that be a = conflict?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Rinaldi: Of course, he'd have to recuse him= self.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Primini: But that's not addressed here, tho= ugh.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Wick: Believe me we discussed this conce= rn at the Subcommittee level and felt that a way to deal with it was to recognize exactly the possibility that there could be a problem, for example, if some= body who has been subjected to a complaint is someone who is known well or a relative of let's say a Councilman, and the idea was that the subcommittee = that would be appointed to handle a particular complaint would be appointed at t= he time of the complaint specifically so that that kind of problem would be avoided. It wouldn't be a sub= committee as we define them today, where the members are relatively constant. This is the concept, it would be a= subcommittee that would be selected at the time a complaint comes before the Council, wi= th the idea of trying to avoid the very good point that Ray brought up.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 26
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Case by case.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Wick: Case by case.
= ; = ; Mr. Rinaldi: I have a procedu= ral question. We had a public hea= ring on this, correct, and then you went back and put hour heads together and ca= me up with these changes. Should= n’t we have another public hearing on the changes?
= ; = ; Mr. Wick: We thought about th= at and took the position that since what we're doing here is making changes result= ing from the comments made at that public hearing, and we're really not adding anything new, that it really wasn't necessary. We're just responding actually in a positive way to everything that was presented in the form of suggestions for change.
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: I’m of the opinion that it should still go back for another public hearing.
&nb= sp; Mr. Primini: I agree.
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Yea, it should g= o back to public hearing.
= ; = ; Mr. Kane: My question is this= language that said there shall be a (inaudible) ethics subcommittee of the Council.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Does that mean we now have to crea= te one or you're still expecting us to make it on a case by case basis in case something comes up?
= ; = ; Mr. Wick: The theory was that= it would be formed when needed.
= ; = ; Mr. Killeen: I know the commi= ttee that worked on this document has worked very hard at it and I would like to recognize the work that they did on that, cause = I know it wasn't without challenges, and I think every one of the members deserves that recognition.
= ; &n= bsp; In Favor: &= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Mr. Fisher, Mr. Hebert, Mr. Kane, Mr. Killeen, Mr. Wick
= ; &n= bsp; Opposed: = Mr. Primini, Mr. Rinaldi, Mr. Valenti
= ; &n= bsp; Abstained: None
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION CARRIED (6-3-0)
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 27
= ; D. Discussion and Possible Action on a Resolu= tion Authorizing the Town Manager to Enter Into and Execute a Grant Agreement entitled "Grant Agreement Between the State of Connecticut and the Tow= n of Watertown for Cherry Avenue Culvert Replacement"
R E S O L U T I O N
= ; &n= bsp; BE IT RESOLVED, that Meredith S. Robson, Town Manag= er, be and hereby is authorized to sign the agreement entitled:
"Grant Agreement Between
the State of
=
; &n=
bsp; Dated at
=
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp; &nbs=
p; &=
nbsp;
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Robert J. Kane, Chairman
=
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp;
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Resolutio=
n authorizing
the Town Manager to Enter Into and Execute a Grant Agreement Entitled Grant=
Agreement
Between the State of Connecticut and the Town of
=
; &n=
bsp; Discussion: =
; Ms.
Robson: This is so we
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: This is the money that Representat= ive Williams and Senator DeLuca had obtained for us?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: That's correct.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
= ; E. = Discussion Regarding Police Department Motorcycle Program
= ; &n= bsp; Chief Carroll: In your packet you had a descriptio= n of what the program is about, you have what the cost would be as indicated in there. If you look at this project carefully and know anything about it, about this operation, that the advantages certainly outweigh the disadvantages in a sy= stem like this. We're just trying = to enhance our ability to provide that service to the Town. You know how I feel about this for= a number of years.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 28
= ; &n= bsp; I just want to say this too, also in defense of our budget, we always put in = our budget the hardware, with the personnel.&n= bsp; If you go back in the years you'll see that it's all been in there.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> One goes and other one stays, so it offsets the other so it's a difficult thing that we're trying to do. This program has been well thought out. We had occasions a numbe= r of years back to get a piece of hardware like this for absolutely nothing but people did not understand what we were trying to accomplish with this. I think that's definitely going to= provide a way for us to keep a level of service that we need in this Town, particul= arly with the parks and everything else that we have to patrol, so just look at = the advantages versus the disadvantages of this project. As far as safety goes, these peopl= e are trained like anything else. W= hen you put a badge and gun on you're more at risk than driving in the car or walking on the street or dropping out of a parachute. That's all I'm going to say about it. I don't want to belabor t= he point but just look at the information.&nb= sp; If you have any questions get back to us. We know this is still in the budget process so I'm not going to try and give it anymore of a hard sell than it = has to take.
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Durso: This to me, this i=
s like
an offer we can't refuse. The=
total
cost per year for the first year would be about $6,000. I can't mention names right now, b=
ut there's businesspeople in this Town, who are willing to
support this, to get the bike on the road.=
$6,000 includes a 1 year lease, the outfitting of the officer, the
training is free provided by the State Police, there are a number of towns =
in
the area who are already using motorcycles. Deputy Gavallas talked to
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: What you're saying is the cost of = riding the bike, for lack of a better term, is $6,000 for a year, and there is the ability to secure those funds from a private donation?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Durso: That's the indication I have, absol= utely.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 29
&nb= sp; Ms. Robson: For the first yea= r, as I understand it.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Durso: Right and if we don't like it afte= r the first year, we walk away, right Jack?
= ; &n= bsp; Chief Carroll: Yes.
&nb= sp; Mr. Kane: It's a 1 year lease= ?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Durso: It's a 1 year at a time. John knows more of the particulars, he talked to the other chiefs.
=
; &n=
bsp; Deputy Chief Gavallas: The lease program works out to abou=
t $200
a month,
&nb= sp; Mr. Durso: I have owned Harle= ys all my life. This is just so nobo= dy thinks this is a toy or something to have fun with, naturally it's more fun to ride than a squad car, but more importantly I think it's a very valuable tool in patrolling then Town. For ins= tance during the weekend when the roads are crowded with cars, like on Saturday mornings, for instance if the bike was down at St. Mary Magdalene, the offi= cer can get to Veteran's Park in a matter of like 3 or 4 minutes or to the nort= hern end of Town by skirting the traffic, but that's just one example. Every town I believe that got into= the motorcycle patrol never got out of it.&nbs= p; There's always a need for it and it's definitely an asset. So does anybody have any questions= about it?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: We believe we're going to be able = to secure the donation that you're talking about, but we don't theoretically h= ave that donation, so what would we be approving tonight, accepting the program= if and when the donations are achieved?
&nb= sp; Mr. Durso: In other words it = would be a pronouncement from the Council that yes, Mr. Corporate Person, if you = want to finance this purchase or this lease for a year on a trial basis, we appreciate it and we'd be willing to accept it. But they don't want to come out an= d say, you know without, you're the rule making body of the Town, you're the bosse= s, we need your okay.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 30
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Killeen: My question is actually for the Chief. You've been at this bu= siness for a long time and it seems like for almost half of that period of time yo= u've been interested in procuring a motorcycle for the department. I know you're not going to be the = police officer that's riding that bike, so I would like to know exactly why you fe= el so strongly about it being a component of the equipment for the Police Department.
= ; &n= bsp; Chief Carroll: Because new dimensions in law enfor= cement always intrigue me, and we've tried different projects, and I feel that thi= s is an opportunity for us to at least enhance our ability to provide that servi= ce, like you say the parks and other things.&n= bsp; If it's going to be for this money that is far less than another vehicle, and probably will reduce our use on another vehicle at one point in time, but this is something that should be tried. We have traffic problems in Town, = we have more children in Town, we have the need, the development in Town has expanded in Town during the last 15 years that I can see, there's definitely going to be more vehicles on the road, there's no question about it, the co= st of fuel is going to be up there, so there's a lot of reasons, advantages to having this piece of equipment. If it doesn't work, I'll be the first one to get rid of it. But I'd like to see it at= least an opportunity to break from tradition from people just saying no to someth= ing cause they have a distaste for something, they have an= image for something, and let the professionals handle it. I talked to Chiefs all over the co= untry and I researched this (Tape #1, Side B ended - may have missed some) danger= ous thing. That's not true. We had the bike patrol out there a= nd we found out it couldn't work, not because of potential safety problems, becau= se the fact is it doesn't work in the system here, we don't have backup with it, <= span class=3DGramE>you should have 2 people on a project like that. We went in it sort of not getting = all the information. It was sold = to me by people within my department, but this one here I personally researched.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> I'm not a bike rider, I'm not a Ha= rley man, I'm a Cessna man, but that's my reasons for at least extending, take a chance on this, it's not a chance, it's a well researched thing and let's d= evelop it, and see if it works. I'm = sure that it's going to work. I ha= ve a lot of faith and confidence, in talking to other Chiefs throughout the coun= try on this and I wouldn't present it if I didn't think it was something that w= ould not have at least a try in this Town. Thank you.
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: I don't doubt an= y of the information that was presented here tonight, I'm sure it's all accurate. From where I'm sitt= ing, I saw this on the Agenda, I read the material, my problem goes a little farther. It's an issue of morality for me and an issue of conscience. I sat at a budget hearing last week where we had to cut the elderly bus.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: We didn't cut anything yet.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 31
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Right, but it's = not increased either and I think these people, before we spend money on a motorcycle, we ought to be spending money on getting elderly people to stor= es, to doctors, and getting them to where they have to be. I think money would be well spent = there in something like that than for something like this. I'm not knocking the motorcycle pr= ogram; I just think there's more, there's things in thi= s Town that are begging to be addressed rather than this.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: My only response to that is I agre= e with you, when we saw that the other night about the Senior Center bus, and it w= ould be one more day that we can keep it on the road, everything is on the table right now, so that has not been cut, as you mentioned, so that is still a viable thing. This, though, I= don't believe I've heard anyone say we're spending any money because we're gettin= g it donated. After one year maybe= we can look at it again and say gee, you're right, we're spending money on something.
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Well it's still $6,000, correct?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: $6,000 that's going to be secured = by private donation.
&nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Zero, it's going= to cost zero, like the Historical District cost us zero, right?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Durso: Paul, if I ask for one cent from t= he Council, I will sign my bike over to you, all right, th= at's how sure I am. I would not wa= nt to take money away from the seniors to buy a motorcycle, but keep in mind that= the Police Department is being squeezed too.&n= bsp; They have their mission to protect the Town, and whether you're talk= ing about school books for kids or busses for the old folks, I think job one is keeping the people safe. If t= hey're not safe, forget about taking them grocery shopping or having them get educ= ated if they're not safe.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Rinaldi: So if $1.00 shows up in the Police Budget, you'll come back here and justify this?
&nb= sp; Mr. Durso: I'll give you the = title to my bike.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Rinaldi: Okay, you've got a deal. I'm going to get me a new Harley t= his year.
&nb= sp; Mr. Valenti: I share some of = the concerns that Mr. Rinaldi just said, I think that a budget is a moral state= ment of the Town, and what we prioritize, and I share his shock at not doing 5 d= ays' worth of the senior bus. That aside, though . . . . .
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: Yea but again, I reiterate, that has not been finalized.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 32
&nb= sp; Mr. Valenti: I understand tha= t, but it's certainly what has been recommended to us. When we're talking about getting corporate sponsors, I understand the thought behind that, but my specific questions are as follows: The= re are several pieces of information that we've been given in support, I guess, of this program, much of which talks about speeding, stop sign violations and = what have you. We had a former mem= ber of the Police Commission who's been talking about those very same issues for a long time in this Town and all he got was voted not reappointed to the Poli= ce Commission for talking about things, now we're going to go spending money o= n, because maybe gee, he was right. That= 's #1.
= ; &n= bsp; #2, I've read a lot of articles, most of them very well written and very intere= sting from Mr. Durso, often saying there is no free lunch, there's nothing free f= rom government. Now I'm hearing t= here is something free from government and there is a free lunch. Tom, welcome to the Democratic Clu= b, that's all I've got to say about that.
= ; &n= bsp; #3, one of the things given in support of this program was a document that talks about, it was from the Chicago Tribune.&nb= sp; It says "Cheap Leases Kick Start Patrols, But Other Costs Follo= w". Then it goes into how the off= er is apparently irresistible, more than 25 suburban departme= nt, blah, blah, blah, but there's nothing about that article about the other co= sts that follow. I'm sure that wa= s just an oversight, but I'd like to see the rest of that article, Tom, to what ot= her costs follow.
= ; &n= bsp; #4, one of the supporting materials that was submitt= ed in support of this program was a whole laundry list of reasons why you should = do this from Harley Davidson. Ca= ll me a skeptic, but I'm sure Harley Davidson has no reason to want to push these programs across the nation.
= ; &n= bsp; And finally, as I said before, I think I guess in concept i= t's fine. We've got other priorities. We had a nice recommendation or suggestion here by Police Commissioner Pawlak about maybe putting another patrolman and saving costs that way. I think there are other things tha= t we might be able to look at in the department, I don't know, Tom, was this vot= ed on by the Police Commission budget and approved as part of that budget?
=
; &n=
bsp; Mr. Durso: No, there was no formal vote taken=
, but
there was a sense of the Commission, at least people that I spoke with, tha=
t if
it doesn't cost us anything, why not, no problem. I know Commissioner Pawlak doesn't=
like
the idea, but if I can respond to you, Councilman Valenti, as a former Demo=
crat
to a present Democrat, now you mentioned Harley Davidson. These are
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 33
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Valenti: Can we get the r=
est of
that article from the Chicago Tribune that talks about the costs down the r=
oad,
because I'm not, the law of unintended consequence, I'm sure you've written
articles about that, do you think that's not going to arise in this
situation. I agree with Counc=
ilman
Rinaldi, I just suspect that as with everything we see in this Town, there =
will
be incrementalism as to costs. I
don't think I was a member of this Council when it actually got asked, but =
we
were told ad nausea by a lot of people, hey, this Historical District is not
going to cost us a dime. I ca=
n show
you the budget where it's costing us more than a dime, so I am inherently
skeptical about people saying this is not going to cost the Town a dime.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Durso: I agree, and when you mentioned fr= ee lunch too, and invited me back to the Democratic party<= /span>. This is not a free lunch, nothing = is a free lunch, but I'm not asking the taxpayers to kick anything in, at least = not coercively through higher taxes. We have volunteers, people in the private sector who have indicated they would help us out with this, so again, I wouldn't ask you for a penny, believe me= .
&nb= sp; Mr. Kane: I know it's an elec= tion year, but I don't think it's a Democrat/Republican issue.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Killeen: It's a case where patrolmen who are presently driving a patrol car would be trained to drive the motorcycle, so you're not seeking manpower to ride this bike?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: No.
= &nb= sp; Mr. Killeen: And in fact at least presently the= re is no pursuit of money requested through your budget to fund the motorcycle, i= t's just a canary that you want to see how it works?
&nb= sp; Mr. Durso: Zero, nothing. I think there was $20,000 requested originally and Meredith knifed it right out, cut it out like a tumor immediately.
=
; &n=
bsp; Mr. Primini: First of all I thought the whole p=
urpose
of this was that not whether we were going to vote on it tonight, but I do
agree with Mr. Valenti, I'd like to know what additional costs there are.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 34
&nb= sp; Ms. Robson: I have checked wi= th a number of my colleagues in other towns, not the Police Chiefs obviously but= the Town Managers or whatever form there is, and I got mixed reviews. Some thought it was very beneficia= l to the community and some thought it was used mainly ceremonially. Some of the communities that felt = it was beneficial, I think, have different, one for instance, and it may have been Cheshire, but don't hold me to that, indicated that they used it in large p= art for taking a look at their, not surveillance, but taking a look at their op= en space areas, and places that cars can't get to and they found that helpful. I think, though, wha= t it really comes down to whether we don't have to spend $6,000 this year, I thi= nk there will be costs in the future.
= ; &n= bsp; I think that what it really comes down to is a matter of priority, and I think that we're stretched so thin now, all across the board, that while it may b= e a great deal, and I mean no disrespect to the Police Department or the Police= Commission, I think that we need to focus on the basics. I'd be the first one to want to enh= ance service and I think that that's what this would do. I believe it would enhance service= , but I don't think based on all of the other things that we were trying to accomplish and what the budget looks like this year, and every year, that we should be focusing on those things if we can't get the basics. There will be a draw if we're focu= sing more on community policing which I applaud, I think that's a good thing in = any community, to focus more on community policing, but if we are focusing more= on that, we're losing some of the basic services. They may not need the extra person= nel per say to take care of that, but it will be a drain, it will be a draw from the other personnel providing what I consider to be basic services, so I th= ink it's an enhancement, I think it could be a good thing, I think that we just have too many other things on our plate, too many other priorities budget-w= ise to get into a new program, or a new part of a program.
= &nb= sp; Mr. Hebert: This may be a question for the Chi= ef or the Deputy, this patrol if it's started, would it supplement the normal shi= ft, or would it be a replacement for one of the officers on the shift, let's say days? Would you have the extr= a officer on the bike, or would you have . . . . ?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: We wouldn't have= an extra person. We'd have to rearrange the schedule so it would probably meet the times of need it would= be most used, probably between 8:00 and 4:00, 9:00 and 5:00, something like th= at. So I mean it would be the same per= sonnel on the shift. There would be = no . . . .
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Hebert: You wouldn't have an extra person, let's say 5 in the cruisers and 1 on the bike.= There wouldn't be 6, you'd have . = . . .
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 35
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Whatever the man= power strength is on the shift, if we had the extra person on the shift. Sometimes we run 3, 4 depending on circumstance of vacations, injuries, etc.&= nbsp; That's when it will be run. We're not going to strain the shift down, in other words we're not g= oing to run 2 patrol cars and 1 bike. (Inaudible) 3 cars on the road and if we had the extra person on that shift, then we'd = be running it. That's how that w= orks. Just like we di= d on the bike patrol. The same = thing that we would refine, certainly refine the way the other project was worked, because we've learned from bad experiences on the other one what time to ru= n it and what time not. It wouldn'= t be a 5 day a week project. We woul= d put it on the road when we had additional strength in basic patrol, then we wou= ld use it. Does that answer your= question?
= &nb= sp; Mr. Hebert: Yes. How many officers are you consider= ing training for this?
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Killeen: Well basically when we start out f= irst, 1, just 1. It's been recommen= ded that when you have a project like this, that's the person that maintains the vehicle or the piece of equipment, and be more experienced with it, and we'= ll try from there. If it works o= ut then we could probably put an additional person on, but I want to see somet= hing come out of it first.
&nb= sp; Mr. Wick: That relates to the question I had, Chief. If the= plan is to have only 1 patrolman trained and the bike sits idle when that patrol= man is on vacation or if he becomes injured or something, so the question I hav= e is what has to happen before you make the decision to train a backup?
= &nb= sp; Chief Carroll: I'm going to make sure that this t= hing works before I put any more time or . . . . .
&nb= sp; Mr. Wick: Is that a 3 month p= eriod, a 4 month period, is that the full year that we're talking about for this experiment?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Yes. It would take about a year to work= it out.
= &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: All of the above?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: All of the above= .
= &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: So you're saying that it would take= , if you wouldn't consider seriously training as a backup person until after abo= ut a year?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: I would say that, depending on how it works out. If it's working well and we're getting more time into it, then we'll put a bac= kup person on. If it's not, I'm n= ot going to invest 2 people. I d= on't have that. I don’t have= the personnel to do that right now.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 36
= &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: So during the experimental period = if we go forward, then we have to realize that the bike will sit idle for a certa= in period of time?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Correct. But it's nothing lost if it's sitt= ing idle. It's something that's n= ot lost, it's still available when the person is availabl= e. After that we'll train a second pe= rson if it works out.
= &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: I'm not sure if I understand this correctly. This has or has no= t gone forward through the Police Commission?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Well no, but it = has been discussed in the budget process. It was an item in the budget.
= ; &n= bsp; Ms. Adams: Has the Police Commission taken a = stand yes, we'd like to see them proceed this way, or was it just put the motorcy= cle in and see if Meredith cuts it or not?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Well the motorcy= cle has been in every year, and it's been cut every year. This time there is an advantage to= lease it, so we're not talking about money here.= I mean there are residual costs that come out afterward, there's no = fact that that will, but that's something in the first year of the project, you'= re going to be determining what that is, what will be those additional costs?<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> We don't know what they are. Just like the bike program, well I= don't know what they are yet.
= &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: So now would the Town be the one t= o lease the bike?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Yes, the departm= ent would.
= &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: And they allow a 1 year lease?
&nb= sp; Chief Carroll: Yes. It's a 1 year lease and you renew = it every year with a new vehicle. You don't have to keep the same vehicle, so the maintenance would be hopefully not as great as the maintenance on a full sized patrol vehicle.
= &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: Mr. Durso, is your Police Commissi= on, will it be meeting prior to our next meeting, which is April 4th?
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Durso: Well we have a Spe=
cial
Meeting which is going to be a week from Wednesday, talking about
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 37
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: The reason I say that is because obviously this was a discussion item tonight; I would like for it to be on = the Agenda and I am not one to turn away donations, whoever the corporate spons= ors might be I appreciate that immensely, but it seems to me that there are som= e questions from some of the members here tonight and might I recommend that you have i= t on your next agenda, you come back to us one more time, and then we put it on = our meeting agenda for, whatever that might, if it's not the 4th, then it might= be the 18th.
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Durso: I was going to rec=
ommend
that you hold off on taking a vote, or sense of the Council and we were goi=
ng to
try to get even some first hand testimony we'll say from
= &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: I think that's a good idea.
&nb= sp; Ms. Adams: I think it's impor= tant.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: If April 4th doesn't fit, then we = can have it on the 18th, at least give you an opportunity to meet and to meet w= ith the other towns as well. I th= ink that's probably the best thing right now.
&nb= sp; Mr. Durso: Thank you.
= &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: And if we can get the additional worker's comp liability and everything that Ray had mentioned?
= ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: The insurance really is not an appreciable difference; I've already checked on that.
=
; F. =
Discussion
and Possible Action on Recommen=
dation
for a Street Name Change -
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the name chan=
ge for
a portion of a paper street known as
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: = ; Mr. Primini: Does this involv= e any other people, or is it just the one household?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: The problem is th= ere are two Rocklands.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 38
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: There's two Pleasan= tviews too.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Ms. Adams: There's a lot of duplicates of names of streets in Town.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: The question was whether or not there was more than one residence impacted by the name chang= e.
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Cavanaugh:
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Primini: Does it involve = any other houses on that street right now where people have to do (inaudible)?<= /p>
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: No, they're being built. They're brand new, they haven't been sold, right? They're under construction. So nobody has to do thousands of a= ddress changes, that I haven't moved but my street name has changed.
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Cavanaugh: No, on this po=
rtion
of
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Rinaldi: This is
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Cavanaugh: Yea, it goes all the way down = too.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Yea, it runs, fr= om Beardsley it turns into Rockland, and then it turns, but after Rockland is a paper road that goes up to Hillcrest, and on the other end it's a paper roa= d as well. Now where are they buil= ding?
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Cavanaugh: He's on the ve=
ry end
down by Edgewood, between Edgewood and Shelter Hill, so you've got a paved =
portion
here, a big undeveloped portion and then you've got another, it
would be essentially a dead end because the original Planning & Zoning
didn’t even push this portion of
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 39
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Rinaldi: So the existing
portion of Rockland Venue that's there right now, I used to live there, tha=
t's
why I'm asking, is that going to stay
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Cavanaugh: Yes.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Rinaldi: This is only for= the new portion?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Cavanaugh: Only for the n= ew undeveloped portion because it's hanging out there by itself. There are no houses currently assi= gned or built there which would be forced to change their address or incur the o= ther costs as a result of renaming this portion of the street.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
10. &n=
bsp; Public
Participation
Al Mickel,
Mr. Mickel: The Police Department has left, I was going to ask what happens to the old compu= ters in the police cars? How will = they be disposed of? I guess I'll = go to the Police Commission meeting.
Ms. Robson: Well now we have a new recycling p= rogram, so we can recycle them.
Mr. Mickel: Well if they need recycling. I'm sure there might be some resid= ual value in them.
Ms. Adams: In other words you don't want them thrown out.
Mr. Mickel: The other thing that was done tonig= ht and I'm not sure if it was done correctly, there was a motion on the floor for changing the ordinance to say 180 days, and there was only 1 vote, so I'm n= ot sure you voted for the right thing?
Mr. Kane: No, we voted twice.
Mr. Mickel: Did you?
Mr. Kane: We voted for the amendment and the= n we voted for the original motion, yes, the amended motion.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 40
Mr. Mickel: The language of making up this committee, there was some discussion about that, and the word shall was mentioned. Now in most other documents that I've read, shall is a must.= Like the compliance officer is a shall, s= o is this wording for how the subcommittee of the Town Council, is that spelled = out in this ordinance.
Mr. Kane: I think we answered that question.=
Mr. Mickel; Is it?
Mr. Kane: I think we answered that question.= I brought it up myself and Mr. Wick answered the question.
Mr. Mickel: I'm sorry, maybe I didn't hear it. What was the answer?
Mr. Kane: Maybe. He said that we will create it as needed.
Mr. Mickel: So that is in the ordinance?
Mr. Wick: That was the intent of the subcommi= ttee to create a subcommittee when needed and it might have different people eve= ry time. That was the key point = that we tried to make in that distinction from the other subcommittees that we h= ave on the Council.
Mr. Mickel: My question is= , is that wording there?
Mr. Wick: Is the wording there?
Mr. Mickel: Is it in the ordinance?
Mr. Wick: I'd have to review it to answer your question accurately.
Ms. Robson: It says there shall be a municipal ethics subcommittee of the Town Council.&n= bsp; The members of the Subcommittee shall be appointed by vote of the To= wn Council, upon receipt of a complaint. A separate subcommittee may be convened to process individual complaints.
Mr. Mickel: Very good, thank you.
Mr. Kane: So it is there.
Mr. Mickel: Thank you. Does this ordinance require a comp= liance officer?
Mr. Kane: No.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 41
Mr. Wick: A compliance officer?
Mr. Mickel: If someone disagrees with the outc= ome of this subcommittee, is there a . . . .
Mr. Wick: Then there's a mechanism, I think,= for going to a higher authority so to speak.
Mr. Mickel: Is that the compliance officer?
Mr. Hebert: No.
Mr. Wick: That's in there. It's not a compliance officer per = say, no.
Mr. Mickel: What is the higher authority then?=
Mr. Wick: Well . . . . Meredith will help us= here.
Ms. Robson: It's the court of jurisdiction generally, but let me try and find the exact language. Of course I can't find this very quickly.
Mr. Mickel: Then let me suggest that we . . . = . .
Mr. Kane: Yea, this was just passed 5 minute= s ago so I think we could probably get back to you on a lot of these questions ne= xt meeting.
Mr. Mickel: Well I would suggest that we take = it to a public hearing like one of the Council members have suggested because the= re's probably a few questions that other people might have, like did you answer their concerns the first time correctly.&n= bsp; I was here, I'm not sure how long ago, but I asked for the number of= citations that were written by the Police Department. I'm not sure that I've gotten that= answer yet. As a matter of fact, I k= now I haven't gotten that answer yet. Is there any count of the number of citations written by the Police Department= in any length of time? The last calendar year? The last fiscal year? Just a number,= maybe even the type? Thank y= ou.
Ms. Robson: I found it. Any respondent aggrieved by a deci=
sion
of the subcommittee regarding the finding of a violation may within 30 days
take an appeal to the Superior Court or the appropriate Appellate Court for=
the
district in which
Mr. Kane, Chairman, Closed Public Participation at 9:02 p.m.
Regular Meeting
March 21, 2005
Page 42
11.&n=
bsp; Adjournment
= ; MOTION: (Ms. = Adams, sec. Mr. Hebert) to Adjourn the Regular Meeting at 9:03 p.m.
<=
/span>Discussion: None<=
/p>
<=
/span>MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY <=
/span>Regular
Meeting Adjourned at 9:03 p.m. Respectfully
submitted, Robert
Kane, Chairman Approved: _______________________________ Lynn M. LaF=
orme,
Clerk