DRAFT
Board of Selectmen’s Minutes
7:00 p.m., Tuesday, January 29, 2013, Medfield Town Hall
Attendance: Selectmen Ann Thompson, Mark Fisher and Osler Peterson and Town Administrator Michael Sullivan.
Chairman Thompson called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Norfolk Hunt Club and Medfield State Hospital Equestrian Use
Gil Rodgers, a resident of 283 North Street, was recognized. He introduced Rosamund Smythe, another member of the Norfolk Hunt Club. They were later joined by DA Hayden. Rodgers made a presentation on the history of Norfolk Hunt Club’s use of the Medfield State Hospital grounds for equestrian use, referencing the report he had submitted to The Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM) and the request to DCAMM to permit restricted seasonal use of long established trails on the former hospital property for hunts, and training. He asked the Selectmen to sign a draft letter he had prepared supporting the Norfolk Hunt Club’s request. Selectmen Peterson said that, while he expected to be fully supportive, he would like the opportunity to review the report, which he had just received, On a motion by Fisher, seconded by Thompson, the Board voted, unanimously, to sign the endorsement letter, subject to Selectmen Peterson’s review and approval. Rodgers also referred the Board to “A World Apart”, a film made in the 1990’s documenting the relationship between Medfield State Hospital and the Norfolk Hunt Club. He will try to have it shown on Medfield.TV.
Library Budget
Deborah Kelsey, Library Director, along with Library Trustees Maura McNicholas and James Whelan presented their proposed FY14 Library budget (see budget). The budget request was $674.315, an increase of 3.95% over the FY13 budget, with the greatest increase for wages Kelsey advised the Selectmen that the main factors in the wage line increase were for step increases and for increased hours for staff, needed to provide staffing on all three levels of the library during operating hours. She said that the library budget had increased only 8.33% over the last six years or less than 1.4%/year, and that the library staff were tired of trying to maintain high quality library services with an underfunded budget. Peterson asked why it was necessary to have staff coverage on all three levels. Kelsey related a situation which occurred during the last year when the lack of staffing delayed resolution of a situation in the library, which upset several parents. She felt that, as a result of the library layout and the legal issues regarding library usage, it was important to maintain staff coverage on each level. Sullivan pointed out that the proposed budget increase was above the guideline established at the annual budget meeting. Kelsey said that this amount was necessary to run the library in the way that Medfield residents expected it to operate and that they would be meeting with the Warrant Committee shortly to review this budget.
Taxi Cab License
Chief Meaney was recognized to give his recommendation on the application of Mr Walid M Makouk and Mr Mohamad Halwani for a taxicab license. Meaney said that while he would not comment on the individual driving records of the applicants, he felt that his review concluded that he would not recommend either one of them to drive a cab or to run a taxicab company. He further noted that the police department rarely received a request from anyone for public transportation and when they did, the called a cab service in a nearby town. He concluded that in his opinion, there was no need for a cab service at the present time. On a motion by Fisher, seconded by Peterson, the Board voted, unanimously, to deny the license request.
Request for Appointment as a Constable
The Board asked Chief Meaney for his recommendation on the request of Ronald A. spear, 5 Concetta Drive, Mansfield, MA to be appointed a constable for the Town of Medfield. The Chief told the Board that virtually all of the services in Medfield were done by the Norfolk County Sherriff’s Department. He had contacted them to see if someone from that Department could be recommended for appointment as a constable for Medfield, and was advised that the Norfolk County Sherriff’s constables had countywide jurisdiction and that they did not need or apply to be a constable in any particular town. The Chief felt that the constable’s service was being provided adequately by the sheriff’s Department and that it did not appear necessary to appoint a Medfield constable at this time. If anything further develops along those lines, Chief Meaney will contact the Board.
Informational
A letter from the Keystone Project at the University of Massachusetts Amherst seeking Keystone Cooperators to attend an April training session was received, as were copies of Orders of Conditions from the Conservation Commission for 36 Foundry and 7 Onondaga Lane. A letter from the MAPC regarding the availability of Professional, Technical and Planning Assistance was received and the Board was advised that the Planning board had also received a copy. A letter to the Treasurer/Collector from the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission (PERAC) approving the use of $100,000 from the Town’s Pension Reserve Fund to reduce the FY14 appropriation for the Norfolk County Retirement System was reviewed
Selectmen’s Reports
Fisher had attended an Eagle Scout installation for three young men and commented on how articulate their presentations were. He had also attended a performance of the Woodland Theatre Company at Medfield High School and helped take down the holiday lights at Baxter Park on Saturday
Peterson reported on his attendance at the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA) annual meeting including the opening session and a session on solar photo-voltaic opportunities, as well as the Massachusetts Selectmen’s Association meeting, where he was able to learn much about what other cities and towns were doing. He attended last week’s Water and Sewerage Board meeting and passed on their concern that negotiations with the state to secure a site for a new water town at the former Medfield State Hospital site begin as soon as possible. A new site was necessary because the current water tower was too low relative to the Mount Nebo water tower and created a stagnant water condition. He asked that either Sullivan or Trierweiler contact DCAMM to begin discussions on this matter. Peterson also mentioned a map that Feeney had presented to the Water and Sewerage Board showing that it would be possible to put a well on the land that the Cronin’s had sold to the town, in the event that the state would not convey the state hospital well site to the Town. He had attended a meeting of the Permanent Planning and Building Committee and it look like the cost of the reduced town garage would be the same as the cost of the garage proposal turned down by the voter two years ago, due mainly to construction cost inflation. He noted that the Medfield Coalition Against Drug Abuse was updating it’s application for a $675,000 grant. This grant application had received very good scores by a review panel last year, when it narrowly missed being selected for funding. Peterson presented an IPad that he had won for the Town at the MMA annual meeting and asked that it be given to the Outreach staff . He had toured the Medfield Square condominiums recently and spoken to Ralph Costello, the developer, who advised him that with more than 50% occupancy, there were only two school children in the units and they generated about $660,000 annually in real estate taxes, so that it was possible to have housing as a profit center. He displayed a trash map of Massachusetts distributed by DEP, which showed that Medfield was red, which indicated that it was an excessive trash disposer. He felt that the least excessive trash disposers were towns that had implemented pay-as-you-throw.
Thompson had been voted by a fourth grade class at the Wheelock School as a “Medfield Hero”. She reported that the State hospital clean-up mediation was still progressing. She noted the passing of Peter Bennotti, Ralph Good and Robert Stokes and thanked them for their contributions to the Town of Medfield. She said that several people had asked if it would be possible to have a town calendar available for people to find out what was going on in the Town. Sullivan said that now that the new web site was up and running, it should be possible to do so and he would check with Trierweiler to see if someone could be designated to do this. She expressed her wish that The Center at Medfield could be open on weekends for the many seniors who look forward to going there. She said that she had dons show for Medfield.TV, interviewing Peter Butler on his life with polio and had just interviewed Eric Iafolla, Barry Paulson and Frank Iafolla on growing up Italian in Medfield. She will be attending the Jazz Band concert on Saturday and recommended it to anyone who like jazz.
Peterson wished to remind residents that he would be conducting his monthly office hours on Saturday, February 2, 2013 at The Center at Medfield for anyone who wished to meet with him to discuss Town business.
On a motion by Fisher, seconded by Peterson, the Board, unanimously, voted to adjourn the meeting at 8:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Michael J. Sullivan
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