Town of Warwick Selectboard February 11, 2008 Minutes Members present: Patricia Lemon, Jim Toth, Rick Abbott Others present: David Young, Rosa Calcari, Miryam Williamson, Jon Calcari, Brad Compton, Janet Conover, Paula Lundgren (Athol Daily News) I. Call to Order The Meeting was called to order at 6:01pm at the Town Hall by Chairman Lemon. II. Minutes Lemon MOVED to approve the minutes of the January 28 meeting as printed. Abbott Seconded. VOTED. III. Presentations/Discussions 1. Policy on Alarm Central and Phone Line Trouble Signals - Young stated that false alarms are being received at Alarm Central due to a problem with telephone line#1 in the Town Hall. He explained that the alarm system specs call for a dedicated phone line, but the telephone line for the alarm system is currently shared with part-time offices. He said that typically a problem occurs on outgoing calls from line 1. Young also said he had Verizon come test the phone lines, which tested normal for voltage, and he has discussed the problems with Fire Chief Gunnar Lambert as well. Because there are separate codes for separate issues, which would eliminate potential confusion that could lead to the ignoring of any other type of alarm, Young suggested that the Board vote to instruct Alarm Central to ignore low voltage calls from line 1. Toth said that moving line 1 in the alarm box to make it a dedicated line should solve the problem. Lemon said that Greenwood Alarm should check with the programmers to try and find a permanent resolution to the problem. Toth MOVED the Board instruct Alarm Central to ignore low voltage calls for line 1 until further notice. Lemon Seconded. VOTED. 2. Compact Disc Anti-Trust settlement Offer - Young explained that the settlement amount of $300.00 stems from a class action lawsuit filed in 2003. Toth said that were the Board to accept the settlement, terms of the settlement require that the funds be turned over to the Library for the specific purpose of purchasing music CD's. Lemon MOVED the Board authorize her to sign the settlement agreement. Toth Seconded. VOTED. 3. Name Change for Beech Hill and Brush Valley Roads - Toth said that the county action to discontinue the lower portion of Brush Valley Road began in 1989, and was finalized in 2003. The proposal has been made to rename Brush Valley Road Beech Hill Road, in part to optimize emergency response efficiency. Toth outlined the multi-step process, in accordance with MGL Chapter 85, Section 3B, for changing a road name. This process was developed last year during the process through which a part of White Road was renamed Bass Road. * Young presented a petition, which is the first step. * The next step will be to hold a public hearing, for which public notices are posted in Town and in the Athol Daily News. Providing that nothing noteworthy is presented at the hearing, the Board could then make the decision to make the name change. * If so decided, the Board would sign the Order of Road Name Change at their next meeting. * The order would then be filed with the Registry of Deeds. Once returned from the Registry and filed with all necessary Town and State personnel and departments, the enumerator (in this case, Fire Chief Lambert) assigns new house numbers to the three affected residences. * Because Beech Hill Road sign already exists, no new road sign will need to be ordered. Compton, who lives there, stated that all residents support the change. Toth MOVED to accept the petition from David Young for the road name change, and to set a public hearing date of Monday, March 10th at 7 pm in Town Hall. Lemon Seconded. VOTED. 4. Calendar for 2008 Annual Town Meeting - Lemon noted that the warrant for the ATM must be posted by April 21st, and that Town Counsel must have it at least one week prior to that date for full review of all warrant articles. Toth pointed out that it is important to distribute the proposed FY 09 budget information to the voters more than two weeks before the Meeting. Young suggested that the Board vote to open the Warrant now, and close it Monday, March 24th. Lemon MOVED to open the Annual Town Meeting warrant for submissions, and to close it on March 24th. Toth Seconded. VOTED. 5. FY09 Insurance Coverage - Young reported that he has been dealing with the two companies that currently provide insurance coverage to the Town: MIIA (Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Association) and Massamont. MIIA provides liability, property, and workmen's compensation coverage, while Massamont covers performance bonds and Police and Fire life insurance under the MacNamara Act. Toth explained that the MacNamara Act requires coverage be provided in case any police officer or firefighter is killed in the line of duty. Young said MIIA has offered the Town a 5% rate decrease if a two-year commitment is made to maintain coverage with them, with an initial deadline of acceptance set as February 15th and said he intends to continue negotiating with both insurance companies to insure the best possible rate for the Town. When questioned on the matter, Toth responded that there are no known negatives with either company, and that both MIIA and Massamont are known to be responsive and reliable and have good track records with Warwick. Young requested the Board authorize him to continue negotiations with the two companies. Abbott concurred that the ultimate goal is to secure the best financial deal for Warwick. Toth MOVED to authorize Town Coordinator David Young to negotiate and execute insurance coverage for FY 09 if there is at the lowest available rate quoted. Lemon Seconded. VOTED. 6a. Selectboard Report - Lemon spoke about her continued efforts to compile the Annual Town Report for FY 07. She said she is pleased with the number of submissions and the sources of those reports. She said she is still waiting for the Board of Health report, which is a statutory requirement. Lemon announced that she plans to have proof sheets ready for circulation among those who submitted reports by the end of February, so they may review the format and correct any errors that might have crept in. * Lemon also felt it would be best to have the full version of the Zoning By-Laws available to ATM voters, since the condensed version is shorter by only 4 pages (2 sheets, printed on both sides), and this will provide the clearest understanding of the proposed changes. 6b. Toth spoke about the Snow and Ice expenditures, which is currently running over budget by about 30%. He said that this winter maintenance budget has remained artificially low for decades, stating that the meaningful number is the overage. Lemon suggested looking at the recent history of consumption and overage. Toth said that would be difficult to track and carry the numbers from one Highway Superintendent to another. 6c. Abbott said that he had asked Treasurer Dana Robinson about available vacation and comp. time from the standpoint of the liability it presents to the Town's budget. He feels these are useful numbers to know. Toth said that Highway Superintendent Tim Kilhart knows the numbers for his crew. Abbott said he would like a report from Kilhart for banked vacation days and comp. time. * Lemon inquired about the follow-up on certification for Police Officers. Toth said he had conferred with Police Chief Brian Peters, who assured him that all officers must be certified every two years, and all are currently certified. Lemon asked Toth to request copies of the certificates from Chief Peters for the Selectboard files. * Toth reminded everyone of the upcoming Heritage Landscape Inventory public meeting scheduled on Wednesday, February 13 at 6:30 pm. [Later postponed to March 5 on account of a February 13 ice storm] The meeting will allow Warwick residents to confer with the DCR-hired consultant and create a list of heritage landscapes. Toth said this process will provide a meaningful planning tool for future preservation issues and planning grants. Conover said that the DCR now owns about 62% of the land in Warwick, and reporting our history with respect to land now owned by this government agency should prove beneficial. 7. Town Coordinator Report - Young detailed some of the tasks he has been working on the past two weeks regarding internet connectivity. This included obtaining T-1 internet quotes from Verizon and Cinetel, scheduling new satellite internet installation, adding an amplifier to a router, and relocating antennas. He also updated Broadband survey results with the assistance of the Selectboard Secretary. * Young reported that conservation efforts are paying off with regards to fuel oil usage and energy costs in the Town Hall. He said that he met with police, Fire, and EMS regarding a Homeland Security grant application. * Free Cash certified: Young stated that he received a telephone call from Terry Williams of the DOR Springfield office informing him that Free Cash has been certified at $80,619.00. * Young credited Jan Conover for leading the effort to address problems with the Broadband 2-mile map and the emergency response map, in which FRCOG data has proven flawed. Conover said that the corrections to the data must come from us, and that it is crucial that all involved have a chance to review all information for accuracy. She said the first maps should be ready for marking up in approximately one week, and cautioned that the entire process could take up to one year. 8. Rabies Clinic - R. Calcari announced the finalized plans for the 2008 Rabies Clinic, which will be held at the Fire Station from 1 pm - 3 pm on Saturday, April 5th. She reminded the Board that they must vote each year to remove the ban on animals in municipal buildings specifically for the date, time, and location of the Rabies Clinic. Lemon Moved to allow an exception to the ban for April 5, 2008 between 1 pm and 3 pm for the purposes of holding the annual Rabies Clinic. Abbott Seconded. VOTED. IV. Public Comment None. V. Adjournment Lemon MOVED at 7:37 pm. to adjourn the meeting. Toth Seconded. VOTED. Minutes taken by Rosa Fratangelo Calcari. Approved 2/25/08.