Town of Warwick
Selectboard
March 30, 2015
                                                                 Minutes
Members present: Dawn Magi, Nick Arguimbau, Patricia Lemon (via remote
participation) 
Others present: Town Coordinator David Young, Town Secretary Rosa
Fratangelo, Ralph Hills, Helen Hills, Steve Ruggiero, Maria Ruggerio,
Bob Kirley, Richard Condon,  Tracey Kirley, Vern Bass, Bill Lyman,
Broadband Committee Chair Tom Wyatt, WiredWest Delegate John Bradford,
Finance and Broadband Committee member Bill Foote, Finance Committee
member Kevin Alden, School Committee member Martha Morse, Finance
Committee member Kevin Alden, Fire Chief Ron Gates, Tax Collector Terry
Kemerer, Beverly Shepardson, Steve Pontz, Linda Perkins, Martha Alden,
Laurette Crane, Eaden Marti, Claudia Lewis, Zachary Marti, Mark Nygard,
Erika Nygard, Todd Dexter, Anna Bennett, Lorne Petrain, Kim Smith, Scott
Williams, David Bruce, Dan Dibble, Jim McRae, Sue O'Reilly McRae, Jeanne
Robbins, Paul Robbins, Susan Wright, Carol Kahler, Lawrence "Doc"
Pruyne, Gerry Whitney, Maria Whitney, Jon Calcari, David Rainville
(Greenfield Recorder), Paula Robinson (Athol Daily News) 
I.  Call to Order 
Chair Magi called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm in Town Hall.
Magi presented the Boston Post Cane to Warwick's eldest resident Ralph
Hills. Mr. Hills gave a brief speech during which he credited his
longevity to good genes and the wonderful care he has received from his
wife Helen. He thanked the Board for the cane and said that he will
cherish it. Several photographs were taken of Ralph Hills and the Boston
Post Cane amidst a resounding round of applause and congratulatory
wishes.
II. Public Comment
Magi said that comments are to be limited to two minutes so that
everyone could have a chance to speak. As she had at the last meeting,
Magi asked that anyone who as an issue that requires lengthy discussion
should contact Town Coordinator David Young and submit it in writing for
inclusion on the next agenda. 
Steve Ruggiero gave copies to the Board of an Open Meeting Law Complaint
Form dated March 25, 2015 regarding the limiting of public comment with
respect to time allowed to speak and having to submit issues for
inclusion on a future agenda.
Paul Robbins said that he had been rescued out of the woods and gave
credit to the Warwick Police and Fire departments for the rescue that
saved his life. He noted that he would be saddened if either budget were
to be cut at all.
Kim Smith asked if Bill Lyman was recording the meeting. Just as she
inquired if she could record the proceedings, Lyman arrived. He
immediately began recording the meeting and announced that he was
recording. Lyman then read aloud the following statement: "On Tuesday,
March 17 at 12:45p.m., my pager sounded with a message of a male party
in the Hockanum area woods complaining of severe chest pain. I was in my
truck before the dispatch had ended. Before I left my driveway, Police
Officer John Stewart was en route and passed my house. I went to the
Fire Station where I met Brian Miner and we proceeded in Engine 2
towards Hockanum trail. It was unclear where the party was, but
Firefighter Brent Walker had already determined it was not on the first
trail when we reached the scene, so we proceeded to the intersection of
Hockanum and Wendell Rd. We met up with Orange paramedics at that time,
and believed from the position of Patrolman Stewart's cruiser that we
were following his path into the woods. Dispatch stayed on the phone
with the man, and he continued to give us clues until his cell phone
disconnected. Within two minutes Officer Stewart had located him. EMT
Miner and Orange paramedics reached him shortly after, and treated him,
including defibrillation, oxygen and warming him with their coats. I had
been given job of Command, which meant communications and getting
resources: manpower, equipment and coordinating Life Flight requests.
Firefighters and equipment from Warwick, Orange, Erving, Athol,
Royalston and DCR were requested. Our firefighter carried out blankets
and more oxygen bottles, Orange brought a Stokes basket, and we began
moving the patient manually while a snowmobile and tracked utility
vehicle were en route. The snow was nearly three feet deep, the patient
was an adult male, and they were a half mile into the woods. It took
about 20 people - this is labor intensive and could not have been done
without great mutual relationships.
Multiple requests were made for a chopper, and finally one was granted.
The effort to save someone's life in our town did not fall short due to
a spectacular battle on the patient's behalf because he wanted to live,
due to hard work from all the trained responders, and due to a few
undeniable miracles. We have a neighbor we can celebrate instead of
mourn.
I thought the townspeople needed to know that emergencies do happen, and
the response from Public safety is incredible. There are many heroes
that contributed to the successful outcome on March 17th. First should
be Patrolman John Stewart, who truly deserves this town's recognition
and respect for immediately taking actions to find, help stabilize and
transport our neighbor to safety and lifesaving medical treatment.
Officer Stewart's quick effort saved someone's life.
A coordinated public safety effort 911 dispatchers, police, fire, life
flight and hospital worked, and proved Stewart's determination was
warranted.
If the Selectboard would, I ask that you write a letter of thanks and
commendation to Officer John Stewart. Thank You."
Magi said that we have excellent Police and Fire and that she will not
vote for any cuts in their budgets.
Scott Williams asked if we can pursue cell service, as it was a miracle
that Mr. Robbins was able to get a signal and call 911. Smith asked if
the one bar service for emergency 911 calls had been looked in to. Young
said that second and third tier carriers are our best option, and that
he has been talking with Coverage Co. He explained that the problem is
that we do not own the radio spectrum, and that the fiber to the home
question will be dealt with first, as this is the Broadband Committee's
priority for the Annual Town Meeting. 
Wyatt asked that people introduce themselves before they speak because
there were so many people present. Lemon asked that people speak as
loudly and clearly as possible. Young asked people to contact him if
they had an interest in volunteering to work on getting cell service in
Town. He cautioned that it would not be as easy as it was to obtain
broadband.
Smith said that she had spoken with the owners of the tower in Erving
and they were open to one bar and 3G texting for emergencies. She noted
that Cabelas makes a device that allows cell phones to act as a
satellite phone. 
Anna Bennett said that she had received a leaflet in her mailbox saying
that our taxes are too high. She expressed support for those who work
for the Town and said that she was not in support of WiredWest. 
III.	Minutes	
Arguimbau MOVED to accept the minutes of March 16, 2015 as printed. Magi
SECONDED. Magi: AYE; Arguimbau: AYE; Lemon: ABSTAIN. Motion CARRIED
2-0-1.
IV. Presentations and Discussions
Chapter 268:20D Exemptions--Young requested that the Board grant MGL
Chapter 268 Section 20D exemptions for Slater Alden and Kerry Cooke. He
explained that Alden, now 18, is eligible for compensation as a
firefighter and is also an intern. Cooke sometimes serves as a
substitute Librarian and also works on broadband issues. Young said that
all of these positions have already been designated special municipal
employees.
Lemon MOVED to grant Slater Alden and Kerry Cooke Chapter 268 Section
20D exemptions. Magi SECONDED. Magi: AYE; Arguimbau: AYE; Lemon: AYE.
Motion CARRIED 3-0-0.
2.	Execute Pothole Grant Contract Documents --A Board vote was needed
to execute the pothole grant award and have Chair Magi sign on the
Board's behalf. 
Lemon MOVED to execute the pothole grant contract in the amount of
$34,147.00 and to authorize Dawn Magi to sign the contract documents.
Arguimbau SECONDED. Magi: AYE; Arguimbau: AYE; Lemon: AYE. Motion
CARRIED 3-0-0.
3.	Broadband and Fiber to the Home --Tom Wyatt said that there will
be an informational meeting on Tuesday, March 31st at 6 p.m. in Town
Hall. He said that they were currently working on reaching the 40%
sign-up goal. John Bradford said that WiredWest is working with MBI and
that everything is moving right along. Wyatt said that he was waiting
for some financial numbers that, if anything, would bring costs down.
	Arguimbau asked if property values increase due to high speed
internet, would the State decrease the Town's aid. Bradford said that
the WiredWest project would make the town more viable, especially to the
younger generation. He said that if property values go up, the taxes
collected would also increase, which would mean there would be more
funds available to the Town.
	Steve Ruggiero wanted to know how fiber optics would help with all
the wireless devices and the lack of cell service. Young said that more
fiber makes for faster, more reliable connections and is the strongest
form of connectivity we know. Vern Bass asked if we need WiredWest,
noting that people will not come to Town if the taxes keep increasing.
	Carol Kahler said that it is important for children to have better
access to the internet through fiber optics. Claudia Lewis said that she
would hate to see the children leave this scenic, old fashioned town
because they cannot adequately access technology. Ruggiero said that he
agreed with everyone who valued the availability of reliable
connectivity, but pointed out that Hughes Net provides him with all he
needs without asking the taxpayers to pay for any of it. Wyatt said that
$49.00 per month will provide 25MBS, and that due to the Fair Access
Policy (FAP), it is not uncommon that satellite internet users are
charged for going over their allotted usage. Erika Nygard said that it
is very hard not to go over when there are more than two people in the
house.
	Todd Dexter said that there is a need for internet no matter how you
use it, but expressed concern for how WiredWest would impact personal
budgets. He said that we are now at a turning point with the tax rate
and asked how we will pay for this and where the tax rate would end up.
Dexter asked that we be conscientious and stated is imperative that we
be able to afford the budget we vote.
	Bradford said that WiredWest had said from the start that they did
not want to make all the towns pay out of pocket. Young said that all
the towns are in this together, and that towns with larger populations
will subsidize towns our size. He said that we could get so much more
from WiredWest than we do from Warwick Broadband. Bradford said that we
would break even at 35% take rate, and at 40% we will get money paid
back to us. 
	Bill Foote noted that a WiredWest executive committee member would
be at tomorrow's meeting and that many of these questions can be asked
of him. Magi strongly encouraged everyone to attend that March 31st
meeting. 
	Jim McRae asked if the longevity of the technology and would it
become obsolete. Wyatt said that fiber optics has been around for 45
years, and that the electronics on either end can be replaced. Bradford
said that fiber optics is a major part for the country's infrastructure
and will be around for a long time. 
	Jon Calcari asked that the Board think about what Vern Bass had said
earlier, because people on fixed incomes cannot keep up with the rising
taxes. Magi said that she got on the Selectboard to keep taxes down, but
ultimately the budget is voted by the town, not just the Selectboard.
She said that every person's vote is important and that people need to
come to the Annual Town Meeting and vote. Young said that there was a
job to be done here and that there was hard work to do.
	Foote pointed out that WiredWest will offer data, phone and
potentially television, which together could be less expensive than
separate bills for internet, telephone and television. Kahler said that
fiber optics offers better and reliable telephone service than the
current copper lines. Several people nodded din agreement when Laurette
Crane said that every time it rains, her phone goes out. Lawrence "Doc"
Pruyne asked if we do not get on board now, would the grant money go
away; Wyatt said that the State money will go away if this project is
not approved within the next year. He also said that fiber will be run
on all roads with houses on them.
4.	Solid Waste/Transfer Station Enterprise Fund Budget--Young said
that the Transfer Station Commissioners met at 5 p.m. today and asked
the Selectboard to approve their FY 16 enterprise fund budget so that it
can be placed on the Annual Town Meeting warrant.
Lemon MOVED to approve the FY 16 Transfer Station Enterprise Fund Budget
of $34,860.00 and place it on the Annual Town Meeting warrant. Arguimbau
SECONDED. Magi: AYE; Arguimbau: AYE; Lemon: AYE. Motion CARRIED 3-0-0.
5.	Unfunded Mandates--Young said that the Lieutenant Governor had
sent an Email survey about unfunded mandates. He said that his answer to
the survey included we need for Chapter 70 funding (school aid) to grow,
continued Chapter 90 funding to address our highway needs, and payment
in lieu of taxes because we have so much state land. Young invited
people to read his Coordinator report on the Warwick website, and to
click on the link to answer the survey. He said that he would also put
this invitation on the "L".
6.	Pipeline --Young said that Planning Board Chair Ted Cady was at a
pipeline advisory meeting, so neither he nor fellow pipeline advisory
representative Gregori Brodski was available to speak to this today. He
said that Cady had asked that the Board consider increasing either the
legal line item or the reserve fund in order to provide funds for the
Town in case of legal action regarding the proposed gas pipeline. Young
noted that there is a growing consensus among towns that there is a need
to brace for a possible legal fight. 
7.	Correspondence--None.
8.	Selectboard Reports--None.
9.	Coordinator Report--Arguimbau pointed out an error on the last
line of the Coordinator's written report, noting that the figure should
be $22,000.00 rather than $12,000.00 for how far below the State
recommended amount of 5% of the total budget being in Capital
Stabilization we fall.
	Young said that Seaboard Solar is still active in West Brookfield
and permitting is going along in good shape.
10.	New and Other Business not Reasonably Anticipated Prior to
Posting Notice--Young said that there will be an executive session
meting of the Selectboard on April 2nd at 2 p.m. to discuss pending
litigation. He also said that there should be a meeting scheduled to
craft the ballot questions for the Annual Town Election. The Town Clerk
had reminded the Board that per MGL 54:42C ballot questions for the
annual election must be received no less than 35 days prior to the
election. In this case, final written notice of ballot questions must be
received by 5 p.m. on Monday, April 13th. 
	Sue O'Reilly McRae asked that an item be placed on the next agenda
for a briefing on the School budget.
V.  Adjournment
At 7:49 p.m., Lemon MOVED to adjourn. Arguimbau SECONDED. Magi: AYE;
Arguimbau: AYE; Lemon: AYE. Motion CARRIED 3-0-0. 

Minutes taken by Rosa Fratangelo