Town of Warwick
Selectboard
October 3, 2011
Minutes 
Members present: Patricia Lemon, Dawn Magi, Nick Arguimbau (arrived at
6:15 pm) 

Others present: Town Coordinator David Young, Town Secretary Rosa
Fratangelo Calcari, Fire Chief Gunnar Lambert, Fire Department members
Bill Lyman, Ron Gates, Adam Holloway and Mike Mankowsky, Nancy Kilhart,
Jon Calcari, Derek Drowne (Athol Daily News)

I.   Call to Order 
Chair Magi called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm in Town Hall. 

Public Comment 
None.

III.	Minutes
Lemon MOVED to accept the minutes of September 19, 2011 as printed. Magi
SECONDED. Motion carried by a vote of 2-0-0.

IV. Presentations and Discussions
1.   Report from Firemen's Association on Public Safety Building Plan--
A committee needs to be formed and a new Fire Chief appointed before any
further planning.
2.   Public Safety Building Committee --Ron Gates said that Brian Gale
and Lorne Petrain intend to serve on the committee. Bill Lyman noted
that Gale and Petrain, along with the Police Chief, Fire Chief, and
Emergency Management Director, would make a full board of five. The
committee would develop plans for the new Public Safety building and
advise the Selectboard. Lemon said that Town Coordinator David Young
often serve "ex officio" on such committees. He would sit in on
meetings, but not as a voting member.
Lemon MOVED to appoint David Young to the Public Safety Building
Committee ex officio. Magi SECONDED. Motion carried by a vote of 2-0-0.

Lemon MOVED that the 5 people referred to above (Gale, Petrain, Police
Chief Shoemaker, Emergency Management Director, and the yet-to-be-named
Fire Chief)  be appointed to the committee to look into design and
funding sources for the Public Safety Building. Magi SECONDED. Motion
carried by a vote of 2-0-0.
Fire Department Members' Input on Fire Chief Selection Criteria -- Magi
asked for input from the firefighters present on what they were looking
for in a new Fire Chief. Current chief Gunnar Lambert will retire from
that position as soon as a new chief is appointed, but will remain a
member of the department. Mike Mankowsky said that the person selected
to be the Fire Chief should have several years experience with, and have
shown a commitment to, the Fire Department.
Lambert said the new Chief must demonstrate the ability to lead. 
Bill Lyman asked that the Board take this process very seriously,
identify the best list of candidates possible and develop a list of
questions designed to insure the selection of the best candidate. He
noted that the new chief must meet state criteria, be readily available
and have past proven leadership ability. He said that it would be best
if the choice were not made quickly, and that he felt it takes about
three years for anyone in a professional position to become fully
competent.
Lemon asked the firefighters if they felt that there were good
candidates from within the department; there was a consensus in the
affirmative.
Young explained that the Fire Department is more autonomous than the
Police Department, and that the Selectboard selects and appoints the
Fire Chief, who in turn appoints his firefighters. Young sought the
firefighters' input to frame the Board's approach to the selection
process. Young and all Board members agree that they want the very best
person to head the Warwick Fire Department.
Arguimbau arrived at this point in the discussion.
Lambert added that the new chief needs to be intelligent, thoughtful and
calm under stress.
Lemon said that she would be happy to receive telephone calls from any
firefighter regarding input in the selection process; Magi and Arguimbau
concurred. Magi wanted a list of criteria that can be framed into
interview questions. Arguimbau reminded everyone that, due to the open
meeting laws, all Board members should be contacted separately, as they
cannot discuss/confer amongst themselves outside of an open meeting.
Lemon suggested that firefighters who wished to make their opinions
known as part of the selection process phone each of the selectmen.
Develop Fire Chief Selection Criteria-- Young asked members of the Board
and  the firefighters what was the most important thing each looked for
in a new chief.
Arguimbau said he looked for a faith in the Town and a willingness to
serve for a long time.
Lambert cited an increase in knowledge through the years.
Magi said she was looking for someone who is demonstrates leadership, is
calm yet decisive, and has the ability to keep up morale and retain the
respect of the entire department.
Lemon listed several potential interview questions she had jotted down;
Lambert added a few of his own, as did Lyman. Lambert also said that the
new chief should be a member of the Massachusetts Fire Chiefs'
Association as well as of Incident Command.
Lyman said he wanted someone with the intention of longevity, grant
writing skills and the persuasive skills to get a budget to move the
department into the 21st century.
Adam Holloway said the chief needs to be able to articulate his thought
processes, have strong integrity and leadership, be equipped to network
with local towns and the State, and possess the ability to manage
personnel and finances.
The discussion turned to the need for the Fire Department to have
adequate computer capabilities for Email, financial calculations and
spreadsheets, connections to MEMA and Shelburne Control, as well as
general information, training, and fire-related weather information.
Young said that he should be able to get the Department the equipment
and software they needed.
Mankowsky said that they should look for someone with clear long and
short term goals, a long term commitment, and demonstrated dedication in
past endeavors. Ron Gates pointed out that strong grant-writing skills
are of great value to small towns such as ours. He sees the Chief as
needing good rapport with public safety personnel in surrounding towns.
 Holloway added that a knowledge of individual firefighters' strengths
 and the ability to delegate to best utilize those strengths is a must
 for the new Chief.
Arguimbau asked about goals for the future. Lambert said that the Town
needs a new truck, as the current trucks pump 150 gallons per minute,
and should pump 250 gallons per minute to deal with structural fires in
buildings constructed with modern, synthetic materials.
Holloway said that skill and interest in disseminating information and
instruction in fire prevention and life safety to the public should be
important for the new chief.
Magi thanked the firefighters for their input. She said that the
discussions were extremely helpful.
	Magi briefly reviewed agenda items IV.1 and 2 for Arguimbau, as he
	had arrived after the conclusion of those discussions.
5.	Forming a Flood Hazard Mitigation Plan Committee-- Young explained
that while we have a flood plain overlay district zoning, in order to be
eligible to apply for flood mitigation grants we must first have in
place a flood hazard mitigation plan. He noted that Planning Board chair
Ted Cady thinks that it is time to move forward and form a committee
whose members would be appointed by the Selectboard. Young said that we
need to publicize the need for this committee and identify those
interested in serving. Athol Daily News reporter Derek Drowne said that
he would write about this in his article.
6.	Chapter 268A:20D Ethics Exemption-- Young said that firefighter
Ron Gates had performed some work at Town Hall and needed an exemption
in order to receive compensation. He noted that the position of
firefighter had previously been designated as special municipal
employee.
Lemon MOVED to grant firefighter Ron Gates an exemption under Mass
General Law Chapter 268A Section 20D. Arguimbau SECONDED. Motion carried
by a vote of 3-0-0.
7.	Zoning/Building Permit Review Royalston Road-- Young said that he
had yet to hear back from Building Inspector Phil Delorey, and that this
issue would be placed on the  next meeting's agenda. Young noted that
the property owner had applied for a building permit.
8.	Selectboard Reports-- Lemon spoke about the damaging consequences
of plastic shopping bags on marine mammals and oceans. She said that
Staples and Stop 'n' Save will take plastic bags and send them off to be
recycled by manufacturers of Trex artificial decking. Lemon suggested
that if a receptacle for plastic bags were put in place at the Transfer
Station, she would take the bags to an appropriate store. Young said
that he would ask the Board of Health to put it on an agenda.
 9.	Coordinator Report-- Young asked if any Board members had
 questions on his report. Arguimbau asked if a house can be approved if
 it is not connected to the electrical grid. Young replied in the
 affirmative, and pointed out that there are houses in Town that are
 solar and battery powered and off the grid. Arguimbau also inquired
 about replacing road signs to comply with the new regulations for size
 and reflectivity. Young said that Highway Superintendent Tim Kilhart
 had written to the DOT about updating the sign for which it is
 responsible.
10.	New and Other Business-- Young handed the Board members Chapter
90 reimbursement documents for their signatures. The reimbursement was
for crack sealing all roads on the Highway department list.
V.  Executive Session	 
At 7:15 pm the Board went into Executive Session to discuss litigation.
VI.	Adjournment
At 7:30 pm, Lemon MOVED to adjourn the meeting.  Magi SECONDED. Motion
carried by a vote of 3-0-0.
Minutes taken by Rosa Fratangelo Calcari