BOARD OF SELECTMEN to residents –

SPECIAL TOWN MEETING

MONDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2013

MEDFIELD HIGH SCHOOL GYMNASIUM

7:30 PM

Please join us at the Special Town Meeting on October 7, 2013 to discuss the following three articles. Town Meeting has a quorum requirement of 250 registered voters and the meeting cannot begin without an official quorum present.

Article 1. To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Board of Selectmen to petition the General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for special legislation to direct the Commissioner of the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance to transfer to the Town for no or nominal consideration the Medfield State Hospital water tower and related land and easements, and the so-called Medfield State Hospital tubular well-field and related easements, totaling approximately 29 acres, for public purposes, including the maintenance and improvement of the current and future public water supply system, and legislation to include such terms, conditions, and language as the Board of Selectmen determines to be in the best interest, provided that any provision for the Town’s payment of compensation shall require further town meeting authorization, or do or act anything in relation thereto.

Article 2. To see if the Town will vote to appropriate a sum of money and determine in what manner said sum shall be raised for the purpose of conducting preliminary design and cost estimates for the construction of a new Medfield State Hospital Water Tower and appurtenant water mains, and to authorize the Board of Water and Sewerage to accept grants from the State and/or Federal governments and to enter into contracts with consultants, designers and contractors, or do or act anything in relation thereto.

Article 3. To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Board of Selectmen to acquire by purchase, eminent domain, or otherwise a certain tract of land containing approximately 31 acres, together with all improvements thereon, located on Foundry and Philip Streets, consisting of all of the land subject to a certain agreement of sale between the Trustees of Red Gate Realty Trust et aI., Sellers and Michael Viano, et al., Buyers, dated July 31, 2012, namely: “Parcel B” containing 30.8 acres shown on a plan of Red Gate Farm recorded with Norfolk Registry  of Deeds in Plan Book 603, Page 7, being a portion of the land described in a deed recorded in Book 28039, Page 347, and the southern portion ofthe lot conveyed to Brenda A. Kenny by deed recorded with said Registry of Deeds in Book 11573, Page 25, said land also being shown on Town ofMedfield Board of Assessors’ Maps, on Map 39 as Lot 33 and a portion of Lot 29, for a total acquisition price of one million, four hundred thousand dollars ($1,400,000.00) for municipal purposes limited to open space and passive recreation, said authorization to include the exercise of Town’s first refusal option, as provided in G.L. Chapter 61, Section 8 and to appropriate, transfer from available funds including the conservation fund established pursuant to G.L. Chapter 40, Section 8C and/or borrow such sum(s) of money as may be necessary to fund both the acquisition price and any incidental legal, engineering, or other acquisition expenses and to authorize the Treasurer/Collector, with the approval of the Board of Selectmen, to borrow in accordance with the provisions of G.L. Chapter 44, Section 7,  Paragraph 3 or any other enabling statute, and to authorize the Board of Selectmen to execute any and all documents and to take any and all other action necessary to accomplish said land acquisition, provided that all appropriations and/or borrowing authorized under this article be contingent upon voters’ approval of a so-called Proposition 2Yz debt exclusion, as provided in G.L. Chapter 59, Section 21 C, or do or act anything in relation thereto.

From Bill Massaro –                                                                                                                                               Special Town Meeting 7 Oct 2013       

What is Article 1?

Authorizes Selectmen,  under a Home Rule Amendment,  to petition State Senator James Timilty to file Special Legislation allowing  DCAMM to transfer:  the old 29-acre Medfield State Hospital Tubular Well-field off Colonial Road;  the  Hospital campus  Water Tower; and 6 acres of the Tower land to Medfield  at no or nominal cost. 

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Why has DCAMM agreed to this transfer?

Under the Mediated Settlement for the Construction & Demolition Debris Area cleanup

alongside and in the Charles River at the hospital, DCAMM has agreed they:   

• Will remove all contaminated fill out of the floodplain
• Will remove all contaminated fill from  Zone II capture area of Medfield’s main well    
• Will restore wetlands and riverbank to historic contours
• Will construct a scenic overlook and a canoe/kayak launching area
• Will transfer the Hospital Well-field & Water Tower to Medfield at no cost.

Why does Medfield need the Well-field & Tower?

   The Well-field:

• Will provide significant reserve for future Medfield water needs
• Transfer to Town will be independent of Hospital campus disposition/reuse   
• Sole condition –use only to maintain/improve Medfield’s Water Supply System    

The Water Tower & Tower Land:

• Immediate transfer to Medfield—no longer requires campus sale to a Developer before transfer 
• Increased Tower land size will allow uninterrupted use of old tower during new tower build
• Tower Easements/Access  transfer to Medfield independent of campus reuse/disposition 
•  Sole condition –use only to maintain/improve Medfield’s Water Supply System

                      Please Vote “Yes” on Article 1      

From Town Moderator –

Hello All:

I hope everyone has enjoyed a great September. As you know, we are on the hunt for a Quorum for next Monday night’s Special Town Meeting.   This is not a time of year when folks are naturally thinking of Town Meeting, so I urge an extra effort to communicate with our friends and neighbors.  I have attached an invitation letter to be circulated to town residents – please pass on this invite to all the Medfield friends and neighbors you are connected with via email.  As usual, there is a sign at Town Hall and on Saturday at the transfer station, a notice is going out in the school packets,  MedfieldTV is running announcements, the local papers will have notices,  and town officials and committee members have been urged to attend and encourage others to attend the meeting. But, the best assurance of a quorum is for all of us to pass along word of the meeting (and bring a neighbor with you).

We have important and ‘strategic’ Articles before us on Monday – long-term town water supply and open space.  But, I did just hear on the radio  that the Red Sox vs. Rays  Game 3 is scheduled for Monday at a time TBD.  So, don’t hesitate to tell people that the Moderator will be moving through our agenda with “all due dispatch.” We don’t anticipate a long meeting.

Thanks for sending along the invitation and I look forward to seeing you on Monday.

Very best,

SCOTT

Scott F. McDermott

Town Moderator

Town of Medfield

781.799.1285