From the Town Administrator's Report
August 24, 2017
4. d. Should any final draft presented to you gain your approval, or – failing that – should you
decide to continue negotiations, we will also need to discuss the schedule for Town Hall and any
changes to your meeting schedule. This will also impact potential revisions to the Countdown to
the FY’19 Budget & Legislative Package.
You asked me to consider accelerating the presentation of the FY ’19 revenues (which I can move to your workshop of 10/02 if I am not trying to also present the five-year financial forecasts envisioned in the Draft financial policies). You have also asked me to consider accelerating the review process. I am not at all convinced we can do this by having all departments present and defend on the first workshop of 03/02.
First this would be a substantial amount of material for you to have to review in the week between the 02/26 presentation and this workshop. Secondly, I do not believe you could get through all of the departments in the one evening. Therefore, I am going to suggest that we look at adding some meetings in March such that we can target 03/26 as Adoption.
You asked me to consider accelerating the presentation of the FY ’19 revenues (which I can move to your workshop of 10/02 if I am not trying to also present the five-year financial forecasts envisioned in the Draft financial policies). You have also asked me to consider accelerating the review process. I am not at all convinced we can do this by having all departments present and defend on the first workshop of 03/02.
First this would be a substantial amount of material for you to have to review in the week between the 02/26 presentation and this workshop. Secondly, I do not believe you could get through all of the departments in the one evening. Therefore, I am going to suggest that we look at adding some meetings in March such that we can target 03/26 as Adoption.
Weekly Report:
We have some potential upcoming work-flow issues on the administrative side of Sewer between illness in the full-time position and a vacancy in the part-time position. I contributed to the several redrafts of the IMA/TA work and participated in the joint subcommittee meeting.
The Forester has been working on the Dump site marking and measuring trees. He
We have some potential upcoming work-flow issues on the administrative side of Sewer between illness in the full-time position and a vacancy in the part-time position. I contributed to the several redrafts of the IMA/TA work and participated in the joint subcommittee meeting.
The Forester has been working on the Dump site marking and measuring trees. He
advises that the area that is harvestable is considerably smaller than we initially thought because of
several streams and wetland areas that are inoperable and an area that contained smaller trees.
However, he believe the site would generate $7k to $10k. Once this site is out to contract he will
proceed with the Highway site. {FY 18 counted $10,000 as annual revenue from this source}
I’ve come to learn that we are not requiring insurance certificates for the use of our various facilities by others (Gilman Waite, Town Common). This is exposing you to great liability risk. I will prepare a full memo for your consideration and schedule it for the first possible workshop inviting the various units involved.{ Thought this was why we had insurance as a town}
I’ve been doing follow-up on the Barre Road property being developed by the Corporation for Independent Living (CLI) in an effort to answer resident questions. I have not connected with CLI yet but will keep you posted.{ Templeton's bylaw on group homes /treatment centers which may house registered sex offenders was repeaeld}
I met with Mike Pingpank from COG to discuss the upcoming CDBG grant round and who potential partners might be. We also discussed – and he will provide a firm proposal – to retain them to review subordination requests over the next few years (as opposed to us bring it in house). { Thought Templeton was ineligible for applying for Federal grants due to lack of consistent audits?}
Finally, I spent time with Alan M. and Bob from Highway trying to sort out a cost effective way to have a fleet ready to take on the winter season given deterioration of the vehicles and sanders beyond what we had anticipated and planned for.{Exactly which highway sanders and vehicles were planned to be replaced? With what money?}
I’ve come to learn that we are not requiring insurance certificates for the use of our various facilities by others (Gilman Waite, Town Common). This is exposing you to great liability risk. I will prepare a full memo for your consideration and schedule it for the first possible workshop inviting the various units involved.{ Thought this was why we had insurance as a town}
I’ve been doing follow-up on the Barre Road property being developed by the Corporation for Independent Living (CLI) in an effort to answer resident questions. I have not connected with CLI yet but will keep you posted.{ Templeton's bylaw on group homes /treatment centers which may house registered sex offenders was repeaeld}
I met with Mike Pingpank from COG to discuss the upcoming CDBG grant round and who potential partners might be. We also discussed – and he will provide a firm proposal – to retain them to review subordination requests over the next few years (as opposed to us bring it in house). { Thought Templeton was ineligible for applying for Federal grants due to lack of consistent audits?}
Finally, I spent time with Alan M. and Bob from Highway trying to sort out a cost effective way to have a fleet ready to take on the winter season given deterioration of the vehicles and sanders beyond what we had anticipated and planned for.{Exactly which highway sanders and vehicles were planned to be replaced? With what money?}
Public Works
Highway Department: Two new employees were added to the Highway division payroll to replace two that left earlier in the year. They began getting their feet wet in assisting in cleaning up the trees that were taken down on N. Main Street and Baldwinville Road. Trees were also removed in Templeton Center.
Before removal the trees were evaluated by an Arborist and found to be diseased and hollow on the inside, therefore a hazard to residents. A tree hearing was posted and held on the 14th, there was no opposition to the removal of these trees. The new guys also lent a hand in erecting the new Heart Safe signs for the Fire department throughout town. Some hole patching was done and road side trimming.
The Director and Administrative assistant attended the quarterly DPW info share meeting held in Winchendon. These meeting are held every 3 months as a way to share ideas with local facilities. Many new ideas were on the table for discussion and we saw a few new faces. The next meeting will be in November and the location is still undisclosed.
Highway Department: Two new employees were added to the Highway division payroll to replace two that left earlier in the year. They began getting their feet wet in assisting in cleaning up the trees that were taken down on N. Main Street and Baldwinville Road. Trees were also removed in Templeton Center.
Before removal the trees were evaluated by an Arborist and found to be diseased and hollow on the inside, therefore a hazard to residents. A tree hearing was posted and held on the 14th, there was no opposition to the removal of these trees. The new guys also lent a hand in erecting the new Heart Safe signs for the Fire department throughout town. Some hole patching was done and road side trimming.
The Director and Administrative assistant attended the quarterly DPW info share meeting held in Winchendon. These meeting are held every 3 months as a way to share ideas with local facilities. Many new ideas were on the table for discussion and we saw a few new faces. The next meeting will be in November and the location is still undisclosed.
Buildings & Grounds: Prepped the Templeton common for the fair. Trimmed and blew off all
sidewalks as well as trimming all shrubs in the area. Loomed and seeded the ruts left by the tree
Clean up in the burial ground and at the police station and library. Greenlawn and Pine
Grove cemeteries were mowed and trimmed and general detailing was done. Mowing of all of the
common areas, including Gilman Waite field and the East Templeton ball field was accomplished.
The items brought to the common for the crafts fair (barrels, and picnic tables, as well as folding
tables) were picked up and brought back to the storage area
Public Safety
Templeton Police Department: 8/17 – 23 PD – 175 Calls for Service, 28 motor vehicle stops, 2 arrest, Police Station Project is awaiting contract approval from Town Counsel in order to go to bid. One-way traffic pattern has experienced minor issues. Some tweaks will be needed to improve its’ overall effectiveness. SRO ran A.L.I.C.E. training for the school staff in order to prepare for the upcoming school year. Dispatch – 319 Calls (does not include miscellaneous calls). Nothing new to report.
Templeton Fire/EMS: Nothing to report this week. Emergency Management: Nothing to report this week.
Templeton Police Department: 8/17 – 23 PD – 175 Calls for Service, 28 motor vehicle stops, 2 arrest, Police Station Project is awaiting contract approval from Town Counsel in order to go to bid. One-way traffic pattern has experienced minor issues. Some tweaks will be needed to improve its’ overall effectiveness. SRO ran A.L.I.C.E. training for the school staff in order to prepare for the upcoming school year. Dispatch – 319 Calls (does not include miscellaneous calls). Nothing new to report.
Templeton Fire/EMS: Nothing to report this week. Emergency Management: Nothing to report this week.
Development Services
Building Department: Building Department- Inspector was out of the office Monday 08/21/2017; worked in conjunction with the Board of Health in regards to a mobile home issue on 70 Otter River Road, denial letter issued. Building Commissioner met with the owner of Patriots Pizza and their engineer to discuss possible location to house new restaurant. TheBuilding Department issued a total of five building permits three for decks, the other for a roof and remodeling. Building Commissioner conducted multiple inspections. Plumbing issued a total of 3 permits and Electrical Dept issued a total of 5 permits this week.
Planning Board: Admin got items ready for next meeting and upcoming hearing. Final site approval documents were drafted for the Gardner T-Hanger. Admin worked closely with Charlie Walker on getting needed information on Lafayette for the detention pond and Farnsworth Rd on the environmental order.
ZBA: Preparation completed for a hearing on 921 Patriots Rd
Conservation Commission: Monthly meeting was held on Monday the 21st. Chairman Andrews along with several other members completed multiple site walks on Victoria Lane, Baldwinville Road, and Ledge Drive. Draft minutes prepared from meeting on 21st.
Building Department: Building Department- Inspector was out of the office Monday 08/21/2017; worked in conjunction with the Board of Health in regards to a mobile home issue on 70 Otter River Road, denial letter issued. Building Commissioner met with the owner of Patriots Pizza and their engineer to discuss possible location to house new restaurant. TheBuilding Department issued a total of five building permits three for decks, the other for a roof and remodeling. Building Commissioner conducted multiple inspections. Plumbing issued a total of 3 permits and Electrical Dept issued a total of 5 permits this week.
Planning Board: Admin got items ready for next meeting and upcoming hearing. Final site approval documents were drafted for the Gardner T-Hanger. Admin worked closely with Charlie Walker on getting needed information on Lafayette for the detention pond and Farnsworth Rd on the environmental order.
ZBA: Preparation completed for a hearing on 921 Patriots Rd
Conservation Commission: Monthly meeting was held on Monday the 21st. Chairman Andrews along with several other members completed multiple site walks on Victoria Lane, Baldwinville Road, and Ledge Drive. Draft minutes prepared from meeting on 21st.
Board of Health: (includes activities since 8/10/17) Reviewed information on Laurelview Road
with Town Administrator and Highway Super regarding the condition and process to become an
accepted town road. { $$}
Reviewed septic information with Title 5 inspector, Neil Jackson for abandoned property known as 38 Shady Lane.
Closed Community Septic Loan for 101 French and provided payments to the vendors who did the installation.
Assisted Chief Dickie with a call at 29 Sawyer Street; trash related. Perc test at 178 Main (repair), 58 Michaels Lane (repair), and South Road (new build). Attended Templeton Arts & Crafts Fair; monitored all food vendors, found no violations on Saturday or Sunday.
Completed school food inspections (NMS/NRHS & Baldwinville
Reviewed septic information with Title 5 inspector, Neil Jackson for abandoned property known as 38 Shady Lane.
Closed Community Septic Loan for 101 French and provided payments to the vendors who did the installation.
Assisted Chief Dickie with a call at 29 Sawyer Street; trash related. Perc test at 178 Main (repair), 58 Michaels Lane (repair), and South Road (new build). Attended Templeton Arts & Crafts Fair; monitored all food vendors, found no violations on Saturday or Sunday.
Completed school food inspections (NMS/NRHS & Baldwinville
Elem), no violations; completed walk through NMS/NRHS – no issues to prevent opening.
Responded to a “mold” (condition of dampness) complaint on Baldwin Drive; order to correct issued to property management.
Agent issued a denial letter to 70 Otter River Road (lack of proper sanitary services) for a mobile home that was placed on the property without proper permitting.
Responded to a “mold” (condition of dampness) complaint on Baldwin Drive; order to correct issued to property management.
Agent issued a denial letter to 70 Otter River Road (lack of proper sanitary services) for a mobile home that was placed on the property without proper permitting.
Community Services
Council on Aging/Senior Center: The garden that the horticulture class planted for us has now started to provide vegetables. It is wonderful to have fresh vegetables for the seniors to take home with them. We are very grateful to the kids for their hard work. The class also planted grass in front of the building which makes such a huge difference in the appearance of the building.
We met with the architect writing the specs for the siding on the building and Alan tells me that the project is moving ahead, this is very exciting news. When we have siding on the building it will be a huge improvement in heating costs. We have a couple of new programs, yoga, and stained glass. The yoga class is a full class every week; we will probably be increasing the class from bi-weekly to weekly in October at a cost of no more than $4.00 per student per session. The stained glass is geared to everyone, but can be tailored to the disabled. Rick Trifilo received a sizable donation which enables him to do this at no cost to the participants. Renewal applications for fuel assistance have been sent out and the seniors are coming to us for help. We have seen an influx of people needing help with SNAP and Food Pantry Applications. We continue to help those in need, with the decrease in staffing we have had to institute a policy that in most instances an appointment is needed to see Sue or myself, for emergencies we are always available.
Library Director: The library's book sale was a success. We are now preparing for the start of Story Hour. Our additional hours will allow us to schedule two Story Hours each week, on Wednesday and Thursday mornings. Story Hour begins on Wednesday, September 13 at 10 am, and Thursday, September 14 at 10am. September's book order has been compiled and placed. I have begun work on the final 2 State reports, the compliance form, and the financial report. DPW director, Alan came by to further investigate the cause of the major leak in the Children's room. Many thanks to our colleagues at the Senior Center, as we've been sending our patrons who need to print materials over to the Senior Center, as we wait for a replacement part for our printer!
Community TV: This week TCTV taped the Templeton Arts & Crafts Festival, as well as the Advisory Committee and NRSD School Committee meetings. Overlays and slides on Cable Channel 8 have been running on the traffic changes on South and Wellington Roads. We scheduled the video of the Mac N Cheese fest, and continue to do production work on several other videos. The Historic Society and Boynton Library have requested videos as well.
Council on Aging/Senior Center: The garden that the horticulture class planted for us has now started to provide vegetables. It is wonderful to have fresh vegetables for the seniors to take home with them. We are very grateful to the kids for their hard work. The class also planted grass in front of the building which makes such a huge difference in the appearance of the building.
We met with the architect writing the specs for the siding on the building and Alan tells me that the project is moving ahead, this is very exciting news. When we have siding on the building it will be a huge improvement in heating costs. We have a couple of new programs, yoga, and stained glass. The yoga class is a full class every week; we will probably be increasing the class from bi-weekly to weekly in October at a cost of no more than $4.00 per student per session. The stained glass is geared to everyone, but can be tailored to the disabled. Rick Trifilo received a sizable donation which enables him to do this at no cost to the participants. Renewal applications for fuel assistance have been sent out and the seniors are coming to us for help. We have seen an influx of people needing help with SNAP and Food Pantry Applications. We continue to help those in need, with the decrease in staffing we have had to institute a policy that in most instances an appointment is needed to see Sue or myself, for emergencies we are always available.
Library Director: The library's book sale was a success. We are now preparing for the start of Story Hour. Our additional hours will allow us to schedule two Story Hours each week, on Wednesday and Thursday mornings. Story Hour begins on Wednesday, September 13 at 10 am, and Thursday, September 14 at 10am. September's book order has been compiled and placed. I have begun work on the final 2 State reports, the compliance form, and the financial report. DPW director, Alan came by to further investigate the cause of the major leak in the Children's room. Many thanks to our colleagues at the Senior Center, as we've been sending our patrons who need to print materials over to the Senior Center, as we wait for a replacement part for our printer!
Community TV: This week TCTV taped the Templeton Arts & Crafts Festival, as well as the Advisory Committee and NRSD School Committee meetings. Overlays and slides on Cable Channel 8 have been running on the traffic changes on South and Wellington Roads. We scheduled the video of the Mac N Cheese fest, and continue to do production work on several other videos. The Historic Society and Boynton Library have requested videos as well.
$10,000. for cutting trees is in the budget, but now they are not going to get the full amount ?? No kidding ! I brought up the fact than the DOR told us not to use one time monies in funding the budget. As a matter of fact, I brought it up more than once, but Carter would not relent. Also missing was the fact the Forester had to be paid, so where does that leave us ? In a hole again, as usual. Off hand, it does seem to me if a town has to depend on money from cutting trees to fund their budget, something is very, very wrong. Bev.
ReplyDeleteCorporation for Independent Living (CLI)
ReplyDeleteWhat type of residents do they plan on housing? I live 1/4 mile up from this and I have not been contacted about this. I don't want a house with more riff raft living that close. There are enough problems to condend with now. Don't need drugies or sex offenders here.
From CIL website:
DeleteCIL develops licensed community residences for persons with developmental disabilities and others in need of supportive residential settings. The homes allow persons with disabilities to live in community-based, non-institutional environments with an appropriate level of staff assistance.
Not thinking its a negative issue for the community.
But I guess it is ok to let pedophiles live in these homes? I tried reading the town by-laws on this, but got so confused trying to follow the different parts, so this is OK with the town residents? I don't think it is OK and this is the first I found out about it. Would be nice to have this information.
DeleteLets not forget about the Dover amendment for education uses.
ReplyDeleteIf its good for us then it's good for them.
You could ask Mark Hawke, Gardner Mayor, how he kept one of those "educational institutions" out of Gardner. He did it, despite the Dover law.
ReplyDeleteGardner sure has the money to pay a lawyer to fight it and i've been told we don't have money to fight any lawsuits we get into. So roll over for the Dover!
ReplyDeleteJust settle and live with it.
Sound like Templeton Mark?