MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2004, 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; 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; = Lee Archer
OTHERS PRESENT: Michael
Abdalla, Interim Superintendent of Schools
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Roy Cavanaugh, Director of Public Works
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Todd LoFrese, Director of Operations, Board of Education
&= 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 7:35 p.m.
Mr. = Kane, Chairman, Called a Short Recess at 7:35 p.m.
Mr. = Kane, Chairman, Reconvened the Regular Meeting at 7:36 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
December 6, 2004
Page 2
4.&nb=
sp; Public
Participation
&=
nbsp; Michael Abdalla, Interim Superinte=
ndent
of Schools,
=
; Mr.
Abdalla: I'm here tonight=
on
behalf of the Board of Education, who has authorized me to request the Town
Council, Town of
= ; Mr. Kane: Did you just say $1= 5,000?
=
; Mr.
Abdalla: $15,000. I'll explain the remaining money,
sir. In addition we have not =
been
able to determine whether a generator would be immediately available. If we can get one within a short p=
eriod
of time, one available in this part of the country, then we can have it
delivered and installed immediately.
If there is not one immediately available there could be up to a 3 m=
onth
hiatus between the submission of the order and the installation of a new un=
it.
The purpose of the generator, of course, is to protect the building. The weather can cause severe damag=
e if
we in fact do have a power failure and we don't have a generator, and so in
order to protect the building we would wish to install a temporary rental u=
nit
and that would cost us approximately $1,500 a month, and figured on the bas=
is
of 3 months, we're looking at $4,500, so the total sum would be $19,510.
= ; Mr. Kane: So where is the que= stion about the availability of the generator?
Mr. Abdalla: We have contacted the company and = gotten a price from it regarding the total cost and installation and we have not y= et been able to determine, they were not able to give us the information as to whether it was immediately available or not. We'll probably have that informati= on tomorrow, but you folks are meeting tonight, so we're presenting the entire package to you. If in fact the generator is available and we can get it say within a week, then we're home free.
Mr. Kane: Do you have paperwork for us?
= ; Mr. Abdalla: Yes. We will present such details and t= he information as you wish to have. (Inaudible) got the materials with him.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 3
=
; Todd
LoFrese, Director of Operations, Board of Education
= ; Mr. LoFrese: What is coming a= round is the proposal from H.O. Penn Company on the (inaudible) generator. What I gave to Chairman Kane was t= hat proposal in addition to 3 others that we solicited.
= ; Mr. Kane: This H.O. Penn is t= he one you want to go with, correct?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: Yes. They had the best price and the be= st warranty of the 4 people who gave us quotes.
Mr. Kane: But if it's not available, let's s= ay you choose this one, but if it's not available for 3 months, you're going to ha= ve to rent one in the meantime?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: Correct.
= ; Mr. Kane: Now what if one of = these other companies who may have had a higher price, had one available, would t= hat make sense to go with that rather than renting?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: All of the other companies have indicated a 9 to 10 week lead time.
= ; Ms. Adams: $12,500 and change= .
= ; Mr. LoFrese: Yes, it says $12= ,510; that's for delivery of the unit. That doesn't include the installation. We have an estimate from our Elect= rician to do the electrical hookup for roughly $1,000. There is some plumbing involved, plumbing of natural gas, and then disposal of the old unit, and we have a estimate of around $2,500 for that, so what you see there for the $12,510 is the proposal for the unit itself only.
Mr. Kane: Thank you. So even this company would be 8 to= 10 weeks away for delivery and installation?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: Yes. These things are manufactured pret= ty much on a continuous basis, they're not like a stock item. But what could potentially have ha= ppened is that someone ordered one somewhere else in the country and cancelled the= order, so (inaudible) for us.
= ; Mr. Kane: How old was the exi= sting one again?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: When the school = was combined, which I believe was in 1989.
= ; Mr. Kane: And what's the warr= anty on these new ones?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 4
= ; Mr. LoFrese: The warranty on = the one that is proposed is a 2 year warranty.
= ; Mr. Kane: What's the life expectancy?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: I'm not sure.
= ; Mr. Kane: I mean was 15 years= on the old one, was that good on industry standards? Were we lucky?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: I would say no. = We have other ones in the district = that are much older than that.
= ; Mr. Kane: That wasn't this co= mpany here, though, right?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: No.
= ; Mr. Kane: So you're asking us= to add this to the Agenda tonight?
= ; Mr. Abdalla: The Board of Edu= cation is requesting that you add it to the Agenda tonight for your consideration. Primarily beca= use of the need or the lead time that does exist, we would like to get a unit into= the building as soon as possible for protection purposes. As it stands right now if there is= a power failure for any extended period of time that building is without heat= and there is the possibility of considerable damage taking place.
= ; Mr. Kane: Does anyone else ha= ve any questions?
= ; Mr. Primini: Has anybody cont= acted CL&P about a temporary generator?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: I was in contact= with Northeast Utilities and what they indicated to me was that other than their= own company, their priority list next goes to emergency shelters and hospitals,= so in the case of a ice storm or something of that nature, he basically indica= ted to me I'm not going to get one.
= ; Mr. Primini: I know they usua= lly have them for industrial parks. They say they can usually get it there within 3 hours so that's why I was curious.
= ; Mr. Abdalla: It depends on the degree of severity and how wide an area it would be.
= ; Ms. Adams: How much to repair= the old one?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 5
= ; Mr. LoFrese: We had an estima= te of around $12,000 to replace the engine on the unit, not the generation part, but the actual engine. We also receiv= ed several hourly quotes, but no one has been able to indicate how long they t= hink it's going to take to repair it and whether or not they'll be able to.
= ; Mr. Abdalla: One of the piece= s of information we did have was that it was a Ford engine that was no longer be= ing manufactured, and they offered to sell us a refurbished one. I think it was a 90 day guarantee?=
= ; Mr. LoFrese: Correct.
= ; Mr. Abdalla: For $12,500 that didn’t seem appropriate.
=
; Mr.
Kane:
= ; Mr. LoFrese: I hadn't heard t= hat, no.
= ; Mr. Abdalla: What we're consi= dering here is not the short term power outage.&n= bsp; We're considering a power outage over say several days. If there is a couple of hours, obv= iously the heat within the building is more than sufficient to keep it safe, but if you're going 24 or 36 hour period of time, you know that brick and masonry = is going to get cold and that is when you suffer damages. Simultaneously once you start to r= eheat after a period of time, it takes a long time to build up the heat reservoir within that building, and that also affects the attendance of the students.=
= ; Mr. LoFrese: The other item t= hat the generator powers is the refrigerator.&= nbsp; Obviously during the Fall and Spring the temperature of the refriger= ator could increase rapidly and we'd have spoiled food that's stored there.
= ; Mr. Valenti: The quote you re= ceived from H.O. Penn reads that it includes an on site start up service with buil= ding load. I guess that's wishful thinking to think that means connecting it to the electricity and . . . . . that's not what it implies?
= ; Mr. LoFrese: That's not what = it implies. We've estimated that= it's going to be about $2,500 to install it which would be both the electrical hookups and the plumbing. Wha= t they will come out and do is come out and start it and make sure everything is running correctly.
= ; Mr. Valenti: For the disposal= of the old unit, I understand that it doesn't make sense for us to repair the = old unit. Is there any salvage va= lue to it, where we could possibly auction it as opposed to . . . . .
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 6
= ; Mr. Abdalla: In fact that is something we're going to be investigating as to whether we can sell the old unit for scrap metal, but that's an unknown at this point. With the figures you have in front= of you, are worst case scenario. With a little luck as Todd indicated a unit would be available within a relative= ly short period of item. We shou= ld be able, with again a little luck, to sell the old unit for scrap metal and ag= ain mitigate the expenses to a certain extent.
&=
nbsp; Al Mickel,
=
; Mr.
Mickel: I rise on two ite=
ms on
the Agenda tonight, 9F and 9H.
Taking money from the State is always a good idea, but I would sugge=
st
that we change the wording for the new Town Hall. I think the School Board and this
Council has suggested that
=
; Robert
LeBlanc,
=
; Mr.
LeBlanc: I wonder if I co=
uld
get the results of the last arbitration hearing that was held this past
week. I was not allowed to go=
to it
by the arbitrator. The Town w=
ould
allow me to go, the
Secondly is anything being done about lighting up the Civil War Monument? I realize that the wires have been cut. Are they going to put ne= w wires to it? Forget about it? What are they going to do? It seems as though they put in a n= ew sidewalk and the wires disappeared, so I'd like to know if there's any chan= ce of getting the wires put back underneath that sidewalk.
= ; Mr. Kane: Meredith, do you ha= ve any information on that?
= ; Ms. Robson: Todd may have more information than I. Todd has = been involved with Harry Ward trying to fix it.
Mr. LoFrese: The Munson Fund had paid to ha= ve sidewalks installed by Matty's Paving.&nbs= p; That was done in September, and apparently during the process they c= ut the electrical line. I just discovered this about a week or two ago.&n= bsp; I've been in contact with them and they've agreed to come out and do some digging and tunneling for us to run a new conduit line underneath. I'm in the process, I'm going to m= ake arrangements for our electrician and Matty's Paving to be on site at the sa= me time, so that problem should be corrected shortly.
= ; Mr. LeBlanc: Thank you, Todd.= The third question I have is conce= rning information that I requested about 4 weeks ago, that I only received half of. This is concerning accide= nts with Town vehicles and accident reports.&n= bsp; What I received was 1 accident report and 2 narratives, and I'd like= to know why I didn't receive the accident reports? Is there some kind of sacrosanct t= hat I can't see them or . . . . .
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 7
= ; Ms. Robson: Mr. LeBlanc, you received all that we had on those incidents. Now if we had something in additio= n to that, I haven't seen it and I can check, but you received everything we had= at that point.
= ; Mr. LeBlanc: Well something is definitely wrong when you have two accidents and no accident reports in this Town.
= ; Ms. Robson: And that's been corrected. That issue has been corrected.
= ; Mr. LeBlanc: So does that mea= n that I can get the accident reports, or they don't exist?
Ms. Robson: They don't exist.
=
; Mr.
LeBlanc: I have a problem=
with
this, Town Chairman. I don't =
see
why we have accidents and we don't have accident reports. It doesn't smell good to me. I don't know where to go with this=
after
talking to you people and finding out that it doesn't exist. It should exist. If there is an accident with a Town
vehicle, we should have an accident report and it should be investigated.
Ms. Robson: As I said, that's been corrected a= nd any time we do have a Town vehicle that's been in an accident, we will have a police report.
&=
nbsp; David
Bromley, Police Union President
&= nbsp; Mr. Bromley: I gave you a let= ter last month. Haven't heard if = we're having a meeting tonight or not.
&= nbsp; Mr. Kane: You did give me a letter. I am in receipt of it. I made the rest of the Council mem= bers aware of it. At this time and= I never got back to you, I apologize, but at this time our feeling is that the Town continue to work on this through the Town Manager's Office with you and I'm assuming that you are.
&= nbsp; Mr. Bromley: We have been working with it and t= hat's why I came to you because we're at a point where I felt money spent with a lawyer was going to be wasted. I felt that if you people got involved and knew the specifics of the case you would see the light maybe that the Town Manager is not seeing. Just to brief you, there are 3 mem= bers in the department being denied their full 30 years of services, they're only being given 29. Now the Town = wants them to pay for that extra year, and they've stated they paid from the beginning of their career. I = know there is paperwork that states they're different, these are signature papers that= say when to deduct. We've asked f= or payroll records; they've been destroyed in the Town basement. There are no payroll records to pr= ove whether they paid or didn't pay. The Town Attorney is telling us that the members have to prove it. Well how are we going to prove it = when the Town is mandated by federal law to maintain payroll records? You don't have them.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 8
&= nbsp; And now since I came to you the last time, now all of a sudden there is another member involved, who has been told he's got 32 years of service with the To= wn, he's been told now well you only got 29 years of service with a pension, wh= en all along his paperwork said he had 30 years of pension credit. So that smells to me. After I come to you that comes out, there's something wrong there.
&= nbsp; Mr. Kane: I don't know how much of this you = want to discuss right now.
= ; Mr. Bromley: I really don't w= ant to do it in public.
= ; Mr. Kane: Right.
= ; Mr. Bromley: That's why I ask= ed to meet with you, the Manager.
= ; Mr. Kane: But I know there we= re errors made I guess by the pension provider or what have you, but my assump= tion was that, now I know that everyone feels that if the people that you're speaking of are due, then they're due.&nbs= p; The problem is with locating the information like you're talking abo= ut to prove or disprove and that's where the problem lies. But I guess we can discuss it yet = again to get a feeling from everyone to see how they want to approach this next, = but my thought was, or I think the Council thinks that it was being taken care = of through yourself and through the Town Manager's Office on a continual basis= . But if that's not the case, then .= . . .
= ; Mr. Bromley: That's why I cam= e to you two weeks ago, that's why I wrote my letter two weeks ago, to try to cut off extra spending.
= ; Ms. Robson: It's not correct = to say that it's not still in the works. It is still in the works. We had a meeting recently and we continue to try and come to a resolution, so = it's simply not true that things are not being worked on.
= ; Mr. Bromley: Well I didn't say they're not being worked on. = I'm saying we're at an impasse.
= ; Ms. Robson: We disagree.
= ; Mr. Bromley: We disagree with= your end, but there is a lawyer involved and he has to be paid. In August when we met with the ins= urance carrier for the pension it was a few hundred dollars to make it whole, and = now we're already over that amount and the lawyer is going to cost probably what it's going to cost to fix that generator.
= ; Mr. Kane: Thank you. Is there anyone else?
&= nbsp; Mr. Kane, Chairman, Closed Public Participation at 7:56 p.m.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 9
5.&nb=
sp; Minutes
&= nbsp; A. Regular Meeting Minutes – November 15, 2004
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. = Wick, sec. Mr. Primini) to Accept the Regular Meeting Minutes dated November 15, = 2004 as presented.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
&=
nbsp; B. =
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. = Wick, sec. Ms. Adams) to Accept the Special Town Meeting Minutes dated November 1= 5, 2004 as presented.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; In Favor: &= nbsp; Ms. Adams, Mr. Fisher, Mr. Kane, Mr. Primini, Mr. Rinaldi, Mr. Valenti, Mr. Wic= k
= ; &n= bsp; Opposed: = None
= ; &n= bsp; Abstained: Mr. Hebert
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION CARRIED (7-0-1)
6.&nb=
sp; Sub-Committee
Reports
A. &nbs= p; Public Works Subcommittee
&nb=
sp; Ms.
Adams:
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 10
7.&nb= sp; Chairman’s Report
&= nbsp; Mr. Kane: Awhile back we created a Business Development Committee as a subcommittee of the Town Council. I'll admit that when I became Chai= rman I guess we stopped meeting so we are revitalizing that effort and our intenti= on is to have Ray Primini Chair that subcommittee, and I look forward to worki= ng with Ray and getting something going with that committee and work with the Economic Development Commission. A few weeks ago the E.D.C. did not meet and it wasn't lack of quorum, but a l= ack of business to meet upon, so this effort, in conjunction hopefully with the Watertown/Oakville Chamber of Commerce and things like that, maybe we can g= et some activity going yet again, so we did create the Business Development Committee and we want to revitalize that effort and I think we will under R= ay's leadership, so I look forward to that.
= ; A. Correspondence
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane read aloud the following letter from Coreine Peluso, Chairman of the Commission on Aging, regarding elderly tax considerations:
= ; &n= bsp; "The Watertown Commission on Aging unanimously went on record that the Town Coun= cil consider giving the seniors and disabled a further tax break such as what Woodbury, CT recently did. Du= e to the rising cost of living, we are asking you to consider this so that senio= rs can remain in their homes. Yo= ur consideration in this matter is greatly appreciated. This unanimous motion was made on Thursday, November 18, 2004."
&nb= sp; Mr. Kane: We have Carolyn Nad= eau, our Tax Assessor, working on that currently. She talked to us about this a few = weeks ago.
= ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: We're still trying to get clarific= ation about the authority for creating a commission, so it is in the works.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane read aloud the following letter of resignation from William Clock, addressed to Coreine Peluso, Chairman of the Commission on Aging:
= ; &n= bsp; "Dear Coreine:
= ; &n= bsp; This is to notify you that I am resigning my position on the Commission on Aging, effective this date (this is dated awhile back). I find that the health issues of m= y own as well as my wife that I'm not able to attend meetings on a regular basis.= Thank you.
= ; &n= bsp; William Clock, Sr."
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: Thank you, Mr. Clock, for particip= ating and we appreciate that.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 11
8.&nb=
sp; Action
Items
= ; A. Consider Appointments to Boards and Commissions
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr. =
Hebert,
sec. Ms. Adams) to appoint Steven Collette,
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to appoint Virginia Rossi,
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
=
; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Add Agenda Item 9I, Discussion of Replacement
Generator for
= ; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
9. &nb=
sp; Discussion
And Possible Action Items
A. Discussion and Possible Action on Authoriz= ing the Town Manager to Enter Into and Execute on Behalf of the Town of Watertown a Certain Water Tower Lease Agreement between Southwestern Bell Mobile System= s, d/b/a Cingular Wireless and the Town of Watertown for a Cellular Tower on t= he Georgetown Drive Water Tower.
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Mr. Primini) to authorize the Town Manager to enter into and
execute on behalf of the Town of
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Mr. Rinaldi: Did the Water & Sewer Authority approve this?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 12
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: Yes.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: On Page 2, it makes reference to the lessee's responsibility not to increase the tower loading = if they make changes, and that led me to think about the project that I assume= is still on-going about evaluating the maximum loading that the towers can tol= erate, so my question is what is the status of that project, and if it's not finis= hed, is there any potential problem with regard to the basic load that's being a= dded based upon what is being presented tonight?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: We did get a final report. There are no problems= with loading. There's an issue mor= e of space requirements than anything else, but the loading in particular is not= an issue.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Wick: And on Page 6, in Paragraph 16 it talks about the responsibly of the lessee to remove in the = event they terminate, and the phrase at (inaudible) expense is absent, and I would suggest that we make it clear that it would be done at its expense.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: That was 16?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: Yes, on Page 6.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Kane: Believe me Dick, I'= m in the cellular phone business, they're not removing it, they're going to keep add= ing.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
B. = Discussion and Possible Action on Authoriz= ing the Town Manager to Enter Into and Execute on Behalf of the Town of Waterto= wn a Second Amendment to a Lease Agreement between Cellular Telephone Company, d= /b/a AT&T Wireless for One Additional Antenna and Associated Cables on the Buckingham Street Water Tower
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Mr. Primini) to Authorize the Town Manager to Enter Into and Execute on Behalf of the Town of Watertown a Second Amendment to a Lease Agreement between Cellular Telephone Company, d/b/a AT&T Wireless for O= ne Additional Antenna and Associated Cables on the Buckingham Street Water Tow= er.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Mr. Kane: Meredith, has this been approv= ed by the . . . . . ?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 13
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: Yes. The actual title in the agreement = will change to reflect their Cingular purchase of AT&T. That was a correction they just go= t to me today.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Wick: The rental that is in this extension starts out at $1,810 per month which is a little over $21,700 per year, and comparing it with the one we just approved, which is $28,500 per year, my q= uestion is really just, is the difference really because they have different stuff there and that it takes up less space, or it creates less weight on the Tow= n?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: No, actually it's relative to, this= is the second amendment to the lease agreement and the original lease agreement was done quite some time ago, and so the amounts requested at that time were not very high, so we weren't able to get the types of increases in this amendment that we have been successful in getting for the newer agreements,= so it's really just a function of when the original agreement was put in place= .
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Wick: Is there a possibil= ity of making it up in the future by increasing then increment of $100.00 per month that's represented here to something higher in the future?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: Well I'm sure the= next time the agreement comes around, if you're not happy with this, we can certainly try to get more. Even though the starting amounts are less, we tr= ied to mirror the types of increases and the schedule for the increases that the other contracts have.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
C. Discussion
and Possible Action on Proposed
Revised Fee Schedule from the
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to approve the revised fee schedule for the Hamilton Avenue Transfer Station
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Mr. Wick: I noticed there is a new category i= n what had been demolition and construction material, it had been all $15.00 a cub= ic yard and now in that category we have sheet rock and asphalt shingles at $50.00 a cubic yard and I think the reason, I just want confirmation, is because the= y're very heavy, they're density is very high.&= nbsp; Is that the main reason why this additional category is here?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 14
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: Kind of. When you get shingles or sheet roc= k you can make a very dense pile by laying it all flat, versus other demolition m= aterials that are a lot harder and (inaudible), it's very, very heavy and (inaudible= ).
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
&n= bsp; D. Discussion and Possible Action on an Appropriation from the General Fund from the Proceeds of a Donation for a C= ost Sharing Agreement with Matthew Rubin to the Public Works Department Budget = for the Steele Brook Flood Control Design Project
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve an Appropriation of $10,000 from the Gen= eral Fund from the Proceeds of a Donation for a Cost Sharing Agreement with Matt= hew Rubin to the Public Works Department Budget for the Steele Brook Flood Cont= rol Design Project.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion:: = ; None
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
&n=
bsp; E. =
Discussion
and Possible Action on a Second
Extension (February 10, 2005) to the
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Mr. Wick) to Approve a Second Extension to the
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Mr. Rinaldi: What's holding this up?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: They have to go to Planning and Zo= ning in January.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: Yea, there has been a lot of work related to it and they are getting through the process, but unfortunately t= hey weren't able to file their application on time.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Rinaldi: So it's just procedural stuff?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: Yes.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 15
&n= bsp; F. = Discussion and Possible Action on Authoriz= ing the Town Manager to Pursue the Assistance of Representative Williams and Senator DeLuca in Seeking State Funding for the Town Hall
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Mr. Primini) to Authorize the Town Manager to pursue the assistance of Representative Williams and Senator DeLuca in seeking State Funding for the Town Hall.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Mr. Kane: I think someone came up and asked a= bout the Town Hall versus the new Town Hall.&nb= sp; This has nothing to do with the potential of a new Town Hall. This has to do with fixing the bui= lding that is there, that is in need of repair, I guess is probably the kindest w= ay to say it.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Adams: I kind of (inaudible). I don't think every time we go to = our legislators, we can't always get what we ask for, and we talked an awful lot about just (inaudible). I'm r= eally mixed on it because I almost think that in putting, asking them for money for Heminway to help convert it is probably the better investment, as much as I understand that Town Hall is in extremely bad shape, but it will probably c= ost a couple million to bring that thing back up between the outside and inside problems, and I almost wonder if it's something we can hold on and go after money for Heminway?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: I understand your p= oint, but the problem is, even if we look at Heminway, that won't be available un= til at least 2007 by the time Swift is done, and there are some issues we need = to address right away on the existing Town Hall.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: Money might be avai= lable for the preservation of a historic building and so funds like that would no= t necessarily be eligible for Heminway when the time comes to deal with that issue, so it= 's almost sort of a different issue, and I would go one step further and say please ask anybody who might be able to help, but don't stop at Representat= ive Williams and Senator DeLuca. I would suggest that we consider all possible sources for assistance that can= be or for which this building would be eligible, no matter where they come fro= m.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 16
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Hebert: Unfortunately we'= re looking at everybody it seems is leaning towards Heminway for a new Town Ha= ll but the problem is we still have to fix what we have. We have people working in that bui= lding. Use the term bad shape, so we have= two problems, one is we want a new Town Hall, which is great, but the other pro= blem is we can't fix the one we have now, so I think any help we can get, and I agree with Dick, to get any help from anybody is (inaudible).
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: (Inaudible) we have another school right in the area. (Inaudible) possibility of moving over there temporarily (inaudible)= ?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: We have moved some things, mainly storage and one maintenance employee over to that facility, = we have not moved anybody else, and I don't honestly know what the requirements would be in terms of the electrical requirement, computer technology, etc.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> The vault is really the biggest is= sue.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: (Inaudible)?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: No, not that I kn= ow of.
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; Mr.
Rinaldi: This may be a li=
ttle
redundant, but I agree with what you said.=
I think
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Primini: The money that w= e are looking for is towards historical buildings and it is in cooperation with Congresswoman Nancy Johnson I believe to see what we can get from both the state and federal level. One = of the problems is if we vacate the building and then try to re-enter it, you have= to come into compliance with A.D.A. standards and what we're looking at right = now is to basically seal up the outside of the building to prevent further deterioration. There are sect= ions of that building, especially on the second floor which are going to be laps= e in certain section so what we're looking at right now is just to prevent furth= er deterioration, putting a new roof on. I beli= eve the roof is 108 years old, plus sealing the bricks. The last time we talked about this= I think was putting new windows in; the windows are shot and can't even be opened. They're putting window units in right now.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 17
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; We're asking for an accident to be happening pretty soon, but there are some other serious problems there, but I think what we're looking at right now is just= to seal up the building. This is some= thing that should have been done 30, 40 years ago and unfortunately the longer we= go it gets worse; it's time to step to the plate and do something.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Adams: I may be under the= wrong impression, but (inaudible) they're State, Ray mentioned Federal money.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Primini: They're working = on also seeing what federal money is available at the same time.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: Well we can do what= Dick said and authorize Meredith to ask everyone.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: I have been resea= rching different sources. We do have= the possibility of a grant for the evaluation of it, but not the physical, at l= east not at this point I'm not aware of anything cause a lot of times when it's a municipal structure the funding isn't available that would be to something that's historic, but not owned by a municipality.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: Yea, I said a mo= ment ago there are two options, either fix it or we don't. There is a third option too. I'm not a proponent, but we could = level the building.
&= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Ms. Adams: It may fall down o= n its own.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Valenti: In a similar vei= n, part of me agrees with Elaine that the decision to repair almost equals the decision that we're going to keep it and make some use of it, so the questi= on becomes well what is the future use? I know we've been talking about capital plans for this Town. It would be one thing if we thought there were going to be municipal uses of this building for years down the r= oad; it's another thing if we don't have that idea, or those sentiments, and it seems to me that maybe the best way to proceed is to first identify what th= at building is going to be and what we're going to do with it, and if there is some funding, as Meredith was saying, there is funding that you can't get a= s a municipality but you might for an otherwise historic building, maybe that b= egs the question does it stay under our ownership. I don't know. I think what I'm trying to say is = we should explore all options, including maybe even, although I don't necessar= ily agree with it either, the option of razing it, selling the bricks, making a park there, but put everything on the table before we commit a significant amount of resources.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 18
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: No, I agree, I can understand that. I think my thinking personally is the safety of the people who are working there today= , as well as the people who go in there every day. We’ve already seen the shing= les falling off and we've got a whole host of other problems there, so I think = it is always wonderful to look at things on a long term plan and see where that fits in our plan, and we do that, but in this case I think it's more a matt= er of personal safety regarding the people who are in there every day, and tha= t's something we have to look at, so if we can get some money to repair it, seal it, and fix it, that will protect the people who are in there, I think.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Rinaldi: I just want to m= ake it clear in the Minutes that we're discussing options here, and I don't want 22,000 people here at the next meeting saying we want to knock down the Town Hall.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Valenti: I guess what I'm saying is to put all options on the table.= You're concerned about the safety.&= nbsp; Maybe an option is we lease space in Town, we do one thing with this building, put the money otherwise into, I don’t know, but what I'd re= ally hate to see is we put "x" money in, then we don't use the buildin= g, and as is the want in this Town, people say you put money into a losing proposition.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: Well to go back to Elaine's point then, are we, or possibly Dick's actually, should we Amend t= his Motion to request the Town Manager to pursue assistance from more avenues?<= /p>
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Primini: Any avenue. I mean I mentioned this before, I'= d be willing to form some kind of committee and look for donations. We have to start prioritizing. This has to be a priority that we'= re going to do something with the Town Hall.&= nbsp; I think we've done enough with schools, not that we don't need new school buildings, but we have to come to a conclusion right now that this T= own Hall has to be the #1 priority for the Town as far as any construction going on. I'm willing to do anythin= g to (inaudible) Town Hall. If we = form some type of committee and look for donations, I'm sure people would be wil= ling to donate. It's amazing what = $5.00, $10.00, $25.00 would amount to and put a dent into something like this.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Kane: Do we then want to = go ahead with the way the Motion is written, or do we want to Amend the Motion= ?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 19
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Ms. = Adams, sec. Mr. Wick) to include any and all other sources available.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
= ; G. Discussion and Possible Action on a Reques= t from the Board of Education to Return Funds Raised from an Auction of Board of Education Vehicles to Offset the Lease of a New Truck (Tabled 11/15/04)
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to approve the request from the Board of Education = to Return Funds Raised from an Auction of Board of Education Vehicles to Offset the Lease of a New Truck.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: That's true, this was Tabled so we= need to take it off.
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Hebert: I'll Withdraw my Motion.
=
; =
; Ms.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Remove From The Table the Request from the Board= of Education to Return Funds Raised from an Auction of Board of Education Vehi= cles to Offset the Lease of a New Truck.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: None<= /p>
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION: (Mr. Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Request from the Board of Education = to Return Funds Raised from an Auction of Board of Education Vehicles to Offset the Lease of a New Truck.
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Mr. Primini: Has it ever been looked into to ju= st trading the vehicles in, cause I know the problem we have with auctions sometimes, we end up getting hardly anything for these vehicles, so has that alternative been looked into?
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 20
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. LoFrese: One of the vehicles has no trade-in value. The other vehicle has = a Blue Book value of roughly $3,800. Last year the Board of Education returned 4 vehicles to the Town to auction. Those 4 vehicles were late 80, ear= ly 90 vehicles, and the auction of those vehicles raised several thousand dollars that was returned to the General Fund of the Town.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Primini: So you think this particular vehic= le can get more than $2,500 that could come up at auction?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. LoFrese: Between the pickup truck that we'd= be returning, and the currier van, yes.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: A question about the mechanism, when you auction vehicles, is it possible to set a reserve on th= em so that you'll know in advance if it's sold, it's sold at a minimum price s= uch as $2,500?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. LoFrese: I don't know; the auctions are handled through the Town.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: If it's possible to= set a reserve, then you could guarantee that if it's sold at auction you'll get enough to cover the (inaudible).
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: You mean a minimum?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Wick: Yes.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Ms. Robson: I have to double-check, but I beli= eve you can.
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Mr. Wick: Is that likely to h= appen?
&nb= sp; = &nb= sp; Ms. Robson: I can speak to th= e Purchasing Agent about that.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
= ; H. Discussion and Possible Action on the Appr= oval of "An Ordinance Creating a Code of Ethics" (Tabled 11/15/04)
= ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: This Item was Tabled so we cannot d= iscuss it. Actually we're not going = to take it off the Table tonight, we'll let Mr. Wick talk about this during Pu= blic Participation.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 21
=
; I. &=
nbsp; Discussion
of Replacement Generator for
=
; &n=
bsp; MOTION: (Mr.
Hebert, sec. Ms. Adams) to Approve the Board of Education request of $15,010
for Replacement Generator at
= ; &n= bsp; Discussion: Ms. Robson: $19,500 was the total.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Kane: Well you're looking= for, if one of you gentleman can come back to the podium, you're looking for the mo= ney for this particular bid for $15,010.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Abdalla: That's correct, Mr. Chairman.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Kane: The additional moni= es which may be needed, you're not asking for that tonight. That's just in case this is not available you may need to rent.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Abdalla: Actually we are asking for it tonig= ht too. Those monies would not be expended unless they were necessary.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Ms. Adams: We meet in 2 weeks= if they need the additional, we're giving them $15,010, if they need the additional to rent, if it's not available for 3 months (inaudible).
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: True.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. LoFrese: When is the next Regular Meeting?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Kane: December 20th.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Abdalla: I had been told there was only one meeting this month; that is incorrect.
= ; &n= bsp; = ; &n= bsp; Mr. Kane: We're here, so then we'll leav= e the original Motion. Any discussi= on on the Motion?
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Wick: After listening to = the explanation of why this capital item is needed, it seems to me it's in the category of an almost emergency, and I can understand their desire to have = it up and running to avoid a true emergency, and so therefore I think we have = no choice but to approve it.
Regular Meeting
December 6, 2004
Page 22
= ; &n= bsp; = ; = ; Mr. Kane: Pay me now or pay me later.
= ; &n= bsp; MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY
10. &n=
bsp; Public
Participation
Al Mickel,
Mr. Mickel: When is the next Ordinance Committee meeting and what will go on during that meeting?
Mr. Wick: The next meeting will be sched= uled after we have a complete set of information that is in the process of being compiled to answer the questions that came up at our last Council meeting relating to the Code of Ethics. There will be other items on the Agenda, but this is the primary one we're trying to have a complete set of information on. I don't know when the meeting will= be, but it will probably be at the Annex.
Mr. Kane: Can we post that on the web si= te?
= ; Ms. Robson: Yes.
= ; Mr. Mickel: You talked about = this Town Hall. I'm willing to say= that I think the old one should fall down, leave it, it will never suit the Town= 's need because of the location. In that regard you said that it's a safety issue. Is the building safe now, and when= will it be unsafe, and we spent years discussing a new Town Hall and I'm afraid = it still might be years before we resolve the issue, so if it's a safety issue, when will we know when it's time to abandon that building? Thank you.
Mr. Kane, Chairman, Closed Public Participation at 8:32 p.m.
11.&n=
bsp; Adjournment
= ; MOTION: (Ms. = Adams, sec. Mr. Hebert) to Adjourn the Regular Meeting at 8:32 p.m.
<=
/span>Discussion: None<=
/p>
<=
/span>MOTION
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY Regular Meeting December 6, 2004 Page 23 <=
/span>Regular
Meeting Adjourned at 8:32 p.m. Respectfully
submitted, Robert
Kane, Chairman Approved: _______________________________ Lynn M. LaF=
orme,
Clerk