Board of Selectmen’s Meeting
May 5, 2008
A meeting
of the Board of Selectmen was called to order by Vice Chairman
The Pledge
of Allegiance was recited by those present.
Vice Chairman Marzec
mentioned Chairman Audette has been admitted into a
hospital with some health issues. The
Board of Selectmen wished him well on a speedy recovery.
Approval of Minutes.
April
14, 2008
A
motion/Mr. Ampagoomian, seconded/Mr. Montecalvo to approve the April 14, 2008 minutes
as presented with the readings omitted.
Vote yes/Messrs. Montecalvo, Davis, Ampagoomian and Marzec.
Appointments/By the Board of Selectmen. Present: Playground &
Recreation Committee Member Cari-Lynn Fisher. 1) Playground &
Recreation, Francis Puda. Mr. Puda introduced
himself and advised the Selectmen that he served on
the Playground and Recreation Committee in
Citizens’ Comments/Input. Robert A. Parker, Jr., 20 Nolet Street,
Linwood, MA brought to the Board of Selectmen’s attention that over 50
residents in Northbridge didn’t receive a Finance
Committee booklet for the Spring Annual Town Meeting. He also reminded the Selectmen that on
Wednesday, May 7, 2008 at 6 P.M., a meeting is being held
with the postal officials and residents of Linwood at the
Unibank for Savings/Request to hang a banner across
The Grill [John A. Pardee]/1) Application to transfer
the Automatic Amusement Devices License from San-Fran Corp. d/b/a The Grill. A
motion/Mr. Montecalvo, seconded/Mr. Ampagoomian to approve the transfer of the
Automatic Amusement Devices License from San-Fran Corp. d/b/a The Grill to The
Pardee Group, Inc. d/b/a The Grill [John A. Pardee]. Vote yes/Messrs. Montecalvo, Davis,
Ampagoomian and Marzec. 2) Application for Entertainment License/a) Live
or Recorded Music; b) Dancing by patrons.
Selectman Ampagoomian suggested a Public Hearing be held because
these licenses are considered to be new licenses and
the abutters should be notified. Town
Manager Kozak will look into this further.
Chief Warchol had some concerns with noise level and parking. A motion/Mr. Ampagoomian, seconded/Mr. Davis
to table this matter until the next Board of Selectmen’s
meeting [May 19, 2008] pending further review.
Vote yes/Messrs. Montecalvo, Davis, Ampagoomian and Marzec.
Union Street Brook/Vote on how to proceed. [Present: Robert A. Parker,
Notice of Intent to sell and convert land [Theodore
Koopman] under the provisions of M.G.L. c. 61A§14 – Right of first refusal. Present: Ross Smith,
Senior Citizen Property Tax Work-Off Program/Vote to
approve revised program income guidelines.
Town Manager Kozak mentioned
that there weren’t a lot of applicants for the program
because the income levels were too low so he requested that the Board of
Selectmen approve his request to change the income level as stated in the
revised program guidelines. A motion was made by Selectman Davis to move Agenda Item J [Senior
Citizen Property Tax Work-Off Program] to a decision. No second, motion
dies. The item will be
placed on the next agenda, May 6, 2008.
FY ’09 Sewer Rates. Present: Richard Sasseville, DPW Director. Mr.
Sasseville gave a PowerPoint presentation on the current sewer rates and
provided his recommendations for FY ’09 sewer utility rates, which he explained
are based on the volume of water used by customers. He stated that the water rates were set in
February 2007 and thus no further action was required at this time. Mr. Sasseville provided the Board of
Selectmen with two slides: “Revenues by Source” and “Expense Analysis” that
will also be presented at Town Meeting on May 6, 2008. Continuing, he explained that in order to
balance the FY ’08 Sewer Operating Budget, sewer rates increased an average of
21% and $500,000 in reserves was transferred into the
operating budget. Mr. Sasseville stressed
that use of Enterprise Fund Reserves should only be a short-term remedy for funding
as reserves are shrinking due to the lack of sewer extension permits. He also cautioned that in order to insure the
availability of reserves, sewer rate increases should be
considered as each 3% increase reduces the amount required from reserves
by $50,000. As for the proposed FY '09 Sewer
Operating Budget, $350,000 will be transferred from
reserves, pending approval by Town Meeting.
Town Manager Kozak recommended the full amount [21%] so that the Sewer
Department doesn’t have to use any of their reserves. Selectman Montecalvo recommended a nine
percent increase. The Board of Selectmen
will make a decision at their next meeting scheduled May 19, 2008.
Town Manager’s Goals and Objectives. Town Manager
Kozak suggested that each Selectman provide him with two primary goals for FY
2009. The Board of Selectmen will
discuss this further at their next meeting on May 19, 2008.
Town Manager’s Report. 1) Town Manager Kozak mentioned he met
with the Chairman of the Finance Committee and moderator to discuss the
articles for Town Meeting. He provided
the Board of Selectmen with a handout and mentioned there was a minor change. 2) a request
came in from a citizen in town to film town meeting and the moderator approved
it.
Selectmen’s Concerns. Selectman Ampagoomian 1) requested a hard copy of the letter from Joanne Alto,
Mass. School Building Authority. 2)
Inquired about the light pole that was knocked down in
front of Walker Realty. Mr. Sasseville responded
that he is waiting for the electrician to come.
3) Any progress on the
off-street parking [entering and exiting].
4) Any progress on the
Due to the impending change
in Board membership, Town Manager Kozak mentioned that he spoke to Town Counsel
regarding voting on the approval of Executive Session minutes. Town Counsel mentioned that the Selectmen
leaving can give their comments on Executive Session
minutes to the newly appointed Selectmen.
A motion/Mr.
Davis, seconded/Mr. Ampagoomian to adjourn the meeting. Vote
yes/Messrs. Montecalvo, Davis, Ampagoomian, and Marzec.
Meeting Adjourned: 10:09 P.M.
Respectfully
submitted,
Joseph
Montecalvo, Clerk
dg/