Use
of Town Vehicles
In
light of the current financial difficulties, it may be time to revisit the
practice of town employees bringing town vehicles home.
In
the past, the BOS voted to allow the highway superintendent to take a highway
vehicle home during the winter months. I believe the police chief and the fire
chief have wording in their contracts to take their vehicles home. I believe
the manager of the light and water department takes his vehicle home as well. I
think that’s it.
The
time has come to look at these policies. We may be facing a $163,000 cut in
this years operating budget. I think we should look at any potential savings in
expenses. This may be one place to start.
Julie
Farrell
Maybe it's time to shut down one of the Baldwinville buildings. Between heating oil, electricty, etc., there could be thousands in savings. Shut 'em down!
ReplyDeleteHas any of the town owned properties been put up for sale including 252 Bald. Rd.? Is there any other surplus items we can sell?
ReplyDeletemaybe the Lions Club will volunteer to run a bake sale to raise money for our budget. ha!
Deletebut more realistically, maybe we should bring back the dunk tank and all town officials (including dept managers) have to participate. L&W GM would bring in a hefty amount for sure!
I could be wrong, but if we sell properties like 252 Baldwinville Rd, the money from the sale won't be available to deal with the financial shortfall this fiscal year.
ReplyDeleteThat does NOTmean we shouldn't try to sell town owned property as expeditiously as possible.
I also agree that we should look into closing some of the town owned buildings and consolidate operations.
I can not see any reason to keep the old fire station in Baldwinville, heated all winter. It is a old building, and must cost a small fortune to heat. It looks like the we will have to make changes sooner, not later if we are going to survive as a town. It is time for everyone to help. Thar is mu opinion, Bev.
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DeleteThe police and Fire chief should be able to take the cars home. They are our first responders and the amount of gas and wear and tear on the vehicle don't mean anything.
ReplyDeleteWho else takes home vehicles besides highway, police & fire dept heads? I don't see why anyone else would need them at home besides those 3 positions.
ReplyDeleteWhy does the W/L general manager even need a vehicle? The sewer dept donated theirs to the selectmen due to lack of use. If he gets called in --- he uses his own goddamn car !!!
ReplyDeleteMy employer doesn't give me a vehicle to commute to work. I would think that if anyone should have a vehicle it should be the water supt or the light supt, but NOT Mr. General Manager. WTF !!!!
Well now that thats out and he lives in leominster, what the 4.00 charge to be a customer can be used for is the gas and other cost involved with it!
ReplyDeleteIts a hybrid and they are a higher cost to service and being the light co and deep pockets we have "why" is a good question, shiny and new! Templeton problems arn't the light and waters problems? Or are they now?
I will add that one to the list.
Any others i can pass on with delite! I would be glad to.
Shareholder
Dave Smart
Light and Water meeting on Thursday at 6:00
ReplyDeleteYou gotta heat the equipment right but not at 65 degrees right? WHY does Mema need a whole building when the MEMA director
ReplyDeleteand his first responder wife are in Florida for the winter. WHO IS THE BACKUP and Do they need a whole heated building?
Who was in the Light and Water vehicle traveling between 70-80 mph going west on Rt2 Monday about 3pm? Besides the bad gas mileage there is the safety aspect and the potential cost of a speeding ticket. It looked like the White Ford Hybrid. This type of driving gives Templeton a bad name as being somewhat irresponsible.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we need to put a "how am I driving?" with a phone number bumper sticker on the vehicle.
DeleteIt seems like Light and Water want us out of their business unless they want us to pay for some thing. They shouldn't have it both ways, but they will if they can get away with it. If the L&W GM needs to ride in anything, we should give them the car from the sewer dept. He could ride in that! No way should he be getting a vehicle to ride back and forth from Leominster, in the first place. Bev
DeleteJust seeing the light agenda for the meeting on the 10th.
ReplyDeleteI hope "everyone" can make it. Water meeting is sure to be special with the truth out about the "permit boondoggle" the senior center went thru, hope the people come to let them know how happy everyone is now that they know what happened!
Light will recap the website progress! again
But still no web site?
Templeton wind Turbine cost Certification,how much?
Wow Bid new reclosers another 50k + more things to fail.
commercial rate c-4/m-4 lower rates ?
Business Manager Position? Driscoll needs a new helper,does another car go with that job too?
Well lets all bring a friend and ask the board whats our money getting spent on,how much of it do they have left. How far debt they have us in,wheres the templeton turbine audit? why don't we use muni pay for payments by chargecards.
How much was the wireing job for seaman papers direct line.
Whats the payback for the cost to do it?
How much did their rate increase after our investment was done ?
Looking for other questions also for their pleasure.
Please post and will ask!
Shareholder
Dave Smart
The fire cheifs contract in the past had the wording that the chief could take the vehicle home, providing it is garaged within Templeton town limits. Copy of that contract should be at selectmen office for anyone to look at. The personnel policy also has a statement that the town coordinator will okay the taking home of town vehicles. So unless this has been changed, if one follows the policy, there should be no need for a selectmen vote, it should be up to Mr. Jeff Ritter, present town coordinator. Hence the need and reason to finally put in writing the authority of the town coordinator and have some kind of regular profeesional management involved in the day to day business of Templeton. That is one of the reasons I had first proposed guidelines and/or policies and procedures for selectmen. Oh wait, according to one blogger, I am all talk and no walk, how forgetful of me. Perhaps an item on next selectmen agenda so a vote could reinforce the wording of the personnel policy, unless some members wish to conviently ignore the personnel policy as in past practice. watch for a meeting of selectmen wilder and or mullins with the residents of echohill farm then watch the selectmen meeting, if the chair actually puts it on the agenda. Perhaps a "Templeton sharholder" can simply ask about this at the next meeting.
ReplyDeleteJeff, Who ever thinks you are "all talk with no walk" is sitting on his brains. They should know better! It seems there is no end to the things that are "not quite right", in our little town. I think things will get resolved, but it will take time. Dave, what was wrong with the Senior Center permit? I do know I would not want to be hanging from a branch, waiting for that transformer to show up!! Everyone that can make it to the L&W meeting on Thursday night, please come. They think only five of us have got a gripe. We need to show them it is more. Bev
DeleteWhy can't TEMA share space with the Fire dept. Fire, Police and highway should be able to take their vehicles home. as far as L&W the JD should be like other dept heads - no vehicle to be taken home. and maybe we should pass a bylaw like most other towns that the homeowners have 24hrs to clear the sidewalks in front of their homes after a storm. I'm sure the the highway dept has a lot of other things to do then plowing all these sidewalks.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteThe senior center was again held up for lack of proper permits needed to put lines into the building!
Problem is the permits required that Frank Moschetti and Mr. Harris spoke about and said were not needed,in fact were not needed, Only the grease trap pipe would have needed a permit! Frank and Mr. Harris do this all the time and told them it was not a problem and they are correct, again a delay for the senior center! who's fault was the delay? "I" can't say but it's not hard to figure it out! Did any wires get put in the pipes yet? Transformer put in either? " OK A847 " tell your grandmother to get out in the cold to shovel the sidewalk. Some aren't able to then what "fine" them from their fixed income?
Everyone needs to call 5 people to go to thursdays meeting on bridge street and see what they think of the few people then!
Seniors should go and ask how the water and light depts are doing at the senior center?
A Progress report should we say.
Get the answers from the gereral manager!
I hope that Moschetti + Harris go and tell them that we told you so!
Shareholder
Dave Smart
I think the Light and Water guys should get a award for outdoing them selves to hold up the Senior Center Project. For all of you that were not at the last Light& Water meeting, Frank and Bill were very upset because they had all of the contractors set to get the water in the building, before the bad weather came in. The contractors were at the Senior Center building, ready to get the job done. The water guy, Ron Davan stopped the job, for no real reason. They said they did not know where the pipe should go into the bldg. All you would have had to do is run a line from the pipe that was there, level to the building. That is where the hole would go for the water line. I am pretty sure I am right, but what the hell, you had a group of guys there that do this stuff all the time!! So they need a map?? What it boils down to is a big screw up to stop this project until next spring. I find it hard to understand how Ron Davan can get paid $87,836.46 (2011 Town Report) and not be able to do a simple job with out a plan? Yes I know the town dept. have helped along the way. Highway has been super, but there are times that any department head needs to make a decision. The paper work if really needed, could come later. We do not live in Boston, no one is going very far. My opinion, Bev.
DeleteRON DAVAN MAKES ALMOST 90K! What the hell is going on over there?
ReplyDeleteIt seems to be "out" of control. The commission is there to do what? Control? Did they control?
ReplyDeleteHas the time come to decommission? I say yes.
Shareholder
Dave Smart
I hope Ron doesn't get offended by those thinking he makes to much money and then increases our fluoride levels to calm us down. It is believed that fluoride is the active ingredient in prozac. Drink up shareholders, to calm yourselves down a little!!
ReplyDeleteDon't even begin to think these guys are out of control! They are not!! This is how the crew does business. They have given big pays to keep the troops happy. From what I can see, they do not give a shit that the rest of the town is in trouble. Like our friend JD says, he does not care, he does not live in Templeton. They are in a world of their own. Yes, more often than not, they go into executive session. Not much we can do to stop them. Oh by the way, Mr.Davan gets O.T. when he works over 40hrs. Not to shabby!! It is public knowledge, as in the Annual Town Report, but one woman who works for the water dept., makes more than or Town Clerk, Tax Collector, and our last Treasurer. Oh yes, she also gets a clothing allowance. Now, how can that be?? Do not tell me this woman has more responsibility than these people, because there is no way that she does. I have to say one thing, I do not hold any ill will against any of the staff of the Light and Water. I do have a problem with Light and Water Management. If you wonder why our pilot money is so low, it just may be that they take very good care of them selves, with little or no thought to the rest of the town. That is what needs to change. This is my opinion, Bev. Oh dam, They really won't let me use the bathroom tomorrow night!!!
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