Board
of Selectmen’s Meeting
November 6,
2006
A
meeting of the Board of Selectmen was called to order by Chairman Charles
Ampagoomian at 7:00 PM, Northbridge Town Hall, 7 Main Street, Whitinsville,
MA. Present: Messrs. Audette, Davis, Montecalvo, and Marzec.
The Pledge of Allegiance was
recited by those present.
Presentation
of Certificate to Hannah Perry – Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge. Present:
Grand Knight Bruce Caissie and Hannah Perry. Chairman Ampagoomian presented Hannah Perry with a
certificate from the Board of Selectmen recognizing her as the State Champion
in the Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge Mr. Caissie gave a brief summary on
when the Knights of Columbus was founded [1882 New Haven, CT] and
went
on to mention that Hannah is the second eleven-year-old in Northbridge to
receive the State Champion Knights of Columbus Soccer Challenge Award. The Board of Selectmen congratulated her.
Approval of Minutes.
A
motion/Mr. Marzec, seconded/Mr. Audette to approve the October 16, 2006 minutes
as presented with the readings omitted.
Vote yes/Unanimous.
October 16, 2006 [Executive Session 1]
A motion/Mr. Davis, seconded/Mr.
Montecalvo to approve the October 16, 2006 Executive Session minutes as
presented with the readings omitted.
Vote yes/Unanimous.
October 23, 2006
A motion/Mr.
Marzec, seconded/Mr. Audette to approve the October 23, 2006 minutes as
presented with the
readings
omitted. Vote yes/Unanimous.
October 24, 2006
A motion/Mr.
Davis, seconded/Mr. Montecalvo to approve the October 24, 2006 minutes as
presented with the
readings
omitted. Vote yes/Unanimous.
Public
Hearing. 1) 7:05 P.M./Tax Rate
Classification Hearing. Present: Robert Fitzgerald, Principal Assessor. Chairman Charles Ampagoomian read the public
hearing notice aloud. A motion/Mr.
Marzec, seconded/Mr. Davis to open the Public Hearing. Vote yes/Unanimous. The DOR requires this hearing
each year. Mr. Fitzgerald passed out a handout. It allows the Selectmen to decide whether to
shift the tax allocation between the classes of property. It will not increase the revenue, but just
shifts the tax burden. There is a 4.7%
percent increase over last year. The
handouts were explained in detail. The
idea is to shift some of the tax burden away from the residential and move it
to the commercial and industrial classes.
It lowers the residents’ taxes and can have greater revenue to the
Town. However, the commercial and
industrial classes decreased slightly in the last year. The Board of Assessors recommends not
shifting the tax rate this year.
Selection of residential exemption distributes the
taxes between the residential classes.
It is up to a 20% discount and is based on the average valuation of a
home. This year the average is
$322,000. Single-family homes under this
amount would get the discount, but it is made up by all the properties that are
over this amount. There are several
cities and towns in the Commonwealth that are doing this discount. The Board of Assessors reviewed this and felt
that it is not worthwhile to do this in Northbridge at this time.
The small commercial exemption would give a tax
break of up to 10% of the valuation for the small commercial properties. The definition to qualify is less than 10
employees and valued at less than $1 million.
Around 100 businesses qualify. If
you give the tax break for them, then it needs to be made up by the businesses
that are over $1 million. There are only
two communities in the Commonwealth that use this exemption. The Board of Assessors does not recommend this exemption.
Mr.
Fitzgerald also mentioned that in regards to the excess
levy capacity, the exact amount would not be known until after the town
meeting. It looks to be about
$2,000. Translated into taxes is about
one-hundredth of a penny. A memo will be
sent when the exact amount is known.
There being no further comments, a motion/Mr. Davis,
seconded/Mr. Marzec to close the Public Hearing. Vote yes/Unanimous.
A motion/Mr. Davis, seconded/Mr. Audette for the Town
of Northbridge to maintain a residential factor of 1. Vote yes/Unanimous. A motion/Mr. Marzec,
seconded/Mr. Davis not to adopt a residential exemption. Vote yes/ Unanimous. A motion/Mr. Davis, seconded/Mr. Marzec not
to adopt a small commercial exemption.
Vote yes/Unanimous.
2) 7:20 P.M./Alcohol Violation Hearing: Vera’s
Mini-Mart. Present: Chief Walter Warchol, Officer Daniel
Lamoreaux, Moneer Guirguis, Attorney John F. DelPrete, Jr. Chairman Charles Ampagoomian read the public hearing
notice aloud. A motion/Mr. Davis,
seconded/Mr. Marzec to open the Public Hearing.
Vote yes/Unanimous. Chief Walter
Warchol provided an overview of what occurred at Vera’s Min-Mart on the night of
Saturday, September 16, 2006. Officer
Lamoreaux then read aloud the circumstances and mentioned that a young male
[Christopher Palaima, age 17] exited the store carrying a case of KeyStone
Light Beer. Attorney John DelPrete spoke
on behalf of his client, confirming what happened and mentioned there is no
excuse for what transpired. He indicated
that Mr. Youseff is one of the owners and that he will be attending another
Tips Training class in addition to an ABCC Seminar so that he understands the
nature of these violations. Chief
Warchol informed the Board that Vera’s Mini-Mart has been before them for
similar violations on two previous occasions [November 5, 2001 & March 4,
2002]. As a consequence, Chief Warchol
recommended suspending Vera’s Mini-Mart’s liquor license for (5) consecutive
days beginning November 14, 2006 through and including November 18, 2006. He also suggested that Mr. Youseff invest in
a scanning machine for his establishment.
Selectman Davis felt that the punishment should be worse based on the
evidence presented, but would support Chief Warchol’s recommendation. Each Selectman concurred and mentioned that
the next time it happens Vera’s Mini-Mart could face permanent suspension. A motion/Mr. Davis, seconded/Mr. Marzec to
close the Public Hearing. Vote
yes/Unanimous. There being no further
discussion, a motion/Mr. Ampagoomian, seconded/Mr. Davis to suspend Vera’s
Mini-Mart liquor license for 5 consecutive days [starting Tuesday, November 14,
2006 through November 18, 2006] plus additional Tips Training for owner, Mr.
Youseff, Scanning equipment and his attendance at an ABCC Seminar. Vote yes/Unanimous.
Zoning
Board/Request to increase Special Permit Application Fees. Present:
Chairman Thomas Hansson. Zoning Board of Appeals. Chairman Hansson of the Zoning Board of the
Appeals asked the Board for permission to increase the permit fees from $150.00
to $250.00. Reason being, the amount
they currently charge doesn’t cover the following costs; paper, postage,
envelopes, etc. A motion/Mr. Montecalvo,
seconded/Mr. Audette to approve the request of the Zoning Board to increase
special permit application fees from $150.00 to $250.00. Vote yes/Unanimous.
Toll
Booth Policy. Acting Town Manager Joseph Montecalvo,
suggested the Board of Selectmen discuss implementing a Toll Booth policy. Every year this topic comes up and the Board
of Selectmen try to control it. Mr.
Montecalvo feels that it is time to implement this policy, as there needs to be
more control because of safety reasons.
Chief Warchol presented a proposed toll booth policy to the Board of
Selectmen for their review. Further
discussion will take place at the next Board of Selectmen’s Meeting [November
20, 2006] on whether or not to accept the proposed policy.
Streetscape
Concerns. Present: Ken Couture. Mr. Couture, 426 Hill Street, request the Board of
Selectmen form an Adhoc Committee to look into the problems caused by
Streetscape. Selectman Davis mentioned
that he would like to negotiate and settle Mr. Couture’s concerns and issues
with his property but was unsure as to how the Board could accomplish
this. Mr. Couture spoke about parking
and safety concerns on the North side of Church Street and felt his and his customer’s
safety is paramount. He suggested that
by forming an Adhoc Committee some ideas and solutions could help the Town
benefit by this Committee. Selectman
Marzec agreed with Selectman Davis that Mr. Couture’s graffiti [on his
buildings] is appalling. Sharron
Ampagoomian spoke on behalf of Mr. Couture with respect to the safety concerns
on Church Street. She also feels the
traffic and speed are a safety hazard.
Acting Town Manager Joseph Montecalvo discussed the possibility of
setting up an Adhoc Committee and will discuss at the next meeting.
Streetscape
Update. Jennifer Dulmaine, Program
Manager, Community Development Block Program, and Richard Sasseville, Director
of Public Works, provided the Board with an update on all CDBG and CDAG
projects; 1) Downtown Streetscape Improvements Project – completed; 2)
Benches and Trash Receptacles – ordered and will be delivered in 6-8 weeks,
however, will not be installed until Spring of 2007; 3) Memorial Square
Lighting Improvements project – will be completed in two weeks; 4)
Underground Utilities: Verizon – completed in late Spring; National Grid –
completed in the Spring; Charter Communications – Completed; Removal of Poles –
not anticipated to be completed until late Spring 2007; Selectman Davis asked
for clarification as to what was taking these Companies so long to complete
these projects. Mr. Sasseville informed
Selectman Davis of the level of effort its takes to get all the various parties
to cooperate and then suggested that he would report back to the Board with a
status from each company; 5) Village Infrastructure Improvements Project
– Phase 1 of a 4-phase project [construction to begin in April 2007]; 6)
FY 2007 CDBG Application – deadline is February 16, 2007; 7) Downtown
Districts Banner Program – The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority awarded the
Town of Northbridge $10,000.00 for the Banner Program [consists of 3 sets of
banners].
Interim
Town Manager. Selectman Davis requested that the decision
to hire an Interim Town Manager be discussed at the next Board of
Selectmen’s Meeting. The Board of
Selectmen concurred.
Playground
and Recreation Proposal. Present: Committee Members - Bridget Curley, Craig
Bachman, and Bruce Frieswick. Craig
Bachman spoke on behalf of his committee to ask the Board of Selectmen to
authorize their commission to impose a $10 user fee on the private leagues and
implement the use of a liability form for using town fields. These fees would be deposited into a
revolving account to be used for improvements such as: back stops, safety nets,
bleachers, tot lots, etc. Chairman
Ampagoomian reviewed the Playground and Recreation's Field and Dreams Report
and highlighted some areas of concern.
Mr. Bachman mentioned that his committee was only looking for the Board
to adopt their league fees and approve the liability form at tonight’s
meeting. Selectman Marzec mentioned that
the Playground and Recreation topic was placed under discussion, therefore, no
vote can be taken until the next meeting.
Chairman Ampagoomian requested that this item be placed under decisions
at the next Board of Selectmen’s meeting.
Selectmen’s
Concerns. Selectman Davis 1) Is
Treasurer going to be providing a chart for bonding and USDA
Funding; 2) Strongly
requests that folks vote yes on Article 4 {the roofs} when they vote on
November 7, 2006; 3)
something be sent to the Building, Planning and Construction Committee so they
start looking at the Fire Station roof and what the costs are. Selectman Davis inquired about a Joint
Meeting being held on Wednesday, November 8, 2006 at 6:00 P.M. Selectman Audette 1) Friday
is the Marine Corps Birthday and Selectman Audette wished them a Happy
Birthday; 2)
Veteran’s Day is on November 11, 2006 and there will be a breakfast from 7:00
A.M. to 9:00 A.M. at the Middle School.
At 9:00 A.M. the Girl Scouts will be holding a service at the Town
Common. Chairman
Ampagoomian 1) reiterated Selectman Davis’ comments on voting yes to
Article 4; 2) read a
letter aloud from the Town of Uxbridge [Ms Jill Meyers – Town Manager]
commending our Town Clerk, Doreen Cedrone, for her support and guidance during
their recent staffing crisis; 3) discuss the issues of signs [downtown Whitinsville]
announcing their establishments.
Town
Manager’s Report. Acting Town Manager,
Joseph Montecalvo, asked that a moratorium be placed on the Town Hall fence
banners.
Items
for Future Agenda. 1) Toll
Booth Discussion; 2)
Streetscape ADHOC Committee; 3) Playground and Recreation League Fees and Liability Form; 4) Interim
Town Manager Position.
Open
Session Adjourned: 9:05 P.M.
Respectfully
submitted,
James
Marzec, Clerk
dg/