PETE PETERSON’S IDEAS FOR TOWN OF MEDFIELD ISSUES
THAT THE BOARD OF SELECTMEN SHOULD CONSIDER IN 2010
The Board of Selectmen is currently deciding the list of goals and tasks on which the Selectmen and the town administrator should focus in 2010. If you have ideas or preferences, please submit them for consideration. The following are mine:
1. Planning Issues
a. Medfield State Hospital – implement reuse plan
b. Downtown – plan what can be done
c. Open space lands – implement plan to control land uses by means of purchase, addition of restrictions, and sale of part of the lands
d. Community Preservation Act – revisit
e. Sidewalk expansion plan needed
f. Bay Colony Rail Trail – study needed
2. Personnel administration
a. Recognition for employees
i. “Core values” (see Brookhaven at Lexington’s)
ii. “Employee of the quarter”
(1) nominated by fellow employees
b. Succession planning for employees (see materials from Massachusetts Municipal Association annual meeting) – start a discussion with employees about who wants to and who needs to move up to leadership positions
c. Appreciation of employees
i. Annual event
ii. Regular special events for those with long service
d. Implement annual written five year goals submitted by department heads
3. Health Department – ask for citizen committees to study need for
a. Lyme disease control – determine whether something needs to be done
b. Fluoridating the water – determine whether it is desirable
4. Systemize and professionalize operation of the Board of Selectmen
a. Create an annual Board of Selectmen schedule/calendar
i. Print out a list of the annual duties and when they will occur, using the town meeting budget schedule as a starting point
ii. Add all annual items, such as
(1) review of the town administrator
(2) setting of goals by the Board of Selectmen for the town administrator
(3) review of auditors’ reports
(4) tax classification hearing with assessors
b. Agendas on website by Friday afternoon
c. Materials scanned to website by Friday afternoon
d. Minutes on website by Friday afternoon
5. Solid Waste Committee – ask them to study
a. Single stream recycling results
b. Pay As You Throw
c. Swap area expansion into a year round volunteer run enterprise
6. Communication with residents
a. Implement use of internet surveys to learn what the residents want from their town government (e.g – Survey Monkey)
b. Town email distribution list to send out town information – create an opt in system from town website
7. Cemetery – Cemetery rates must be self-sustaining
8. Organize a spring clean up of the town by the residents
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