3/11/13 BOS Meeting…the movie

Part 1 Templeton BOS Meeting March 11, 2013

Part 2 Templeton BOS Meeting March 11, 2013

Part 3 Templeton BOS Meeting March 11, 2013

Mr. Dembek-

The BOS meeting on March 11, 2013 was very busy. Discussion about the drainage issue at Mr. Dembek’s house generated much discussion. Years ago, drainage was put in place to try to address the situation (it did not). Then the water mains were replaced and the road repair stopped prior to Mr. Dembek’s house. The project was going to be completed but is another orphan project in Templeton due to lack of funding.

The water department paid for engineering plans to correct this drainage issue. The plans went out to bid and came back very high (projected $225,000 actual $335,000) This project was never initiated. Efforts will be made to locate the plans, which were drawn up by Tata & Howard. This is a project that may be eligible for a MassWorks grant. On a cautionary note, most of Templeton’s Chapter 90 money is committed to the next phase in Back Bay and any potential cost overruns for the reconstruction of Baldwinville Rd.

In order to request an override for money to address this drainage issue, we need the plans from Tata & Howard to see if these plans meet current regulations, then the plans would need to be bid out. It will not happen in time for the ATM in May.

We skipped over the Dispatch agenda item until the Chiefs could arrive.

Under the agenda item for the Town treasurer, Dan Keeney, the BOS voted for short term borrowing of 1.5 million, which is necessary to help the cash flow of the Town. Once the tax rate is set and bills are mailed our cash flow will improve. (The sooner, the better) The BOS also voted to outsource the payroll to Harper’s. Outsourcing the payroll will allow the treasurer to devote more time to tax titles and financial planning for the town.

Next agenda item was the proposed regionalization of Dispatch with Gardner. The report was taken under advisement and will be voted on March 18^th.

PILOT Payment – The manager of TMLWP proposed the sum of $150,000 PILOT payment to the town for FY 14. Thank you! There was discussion of the calculation of the PILOT payment and the DOR recommendation (page 16):

Adopt Formal PILOT Agreement with Municipal Light & Water Plant

We recommend that selectmen negotiate a multi-year, formula based payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) agreement with the Templeton Municipal Light & Water Plant. A PILOT is an agreement between a municipality and an entity not subject to taxation in which a voluntary payment is made to the municipality. Templeton’s light & water plant has made regular payments with incremental increases over the past five years following a somewhat prescribed formula, as demonstrated in the table below. However, the decision by the light & water plant on how much to actually contribute occurs annually and on a more or less ad hoc basis. Moving forward, we advise selectmen and light & water commissioners to reach agreement on a multi-year formula that will serve as the basis for determining the annual payment to the town. The formula should have long-term applicability in a way that produces a fair, consistent and predictable annual payment to the town.

Hopefully, the BOS will be able to begin negotiations with TMLWP to formalize the PILOT payment.

Snow & Ice – Last May, on that fateful Friday night budget meeting prior to ATM, the BOS and the Advisory Board voted to cuts to many departments and line items. One of those cuts was to the Snow & Ice account. Snow & Ice is one of the few accounts that can be deficit spent only if the appropriation is not cut. Our Snow & Ice account is running at a current deficit because we cut the appropriation. We will need to cover the shortfall.

North County Sustainability Center – Audrie Labrie presented information about the North County Sustainability Center.

Draft letter to Division of Local Mandates – BOS discussed sending a draft letter to the Division of Local mandates to try to seek road repair for Royalston Rd. It’s a long shot, but a letter doesn’t cost much.

The BOH will hold a Bulky Waste Day on April 20^th from 9-11 a.m. Please contact the BOH @ 978-939-2377 for more information.

Special Legislation- Two pieces of Special Legislation now have Bill numbers and can be tracked through the legislative process.

S81 – the full Liquor license for Cote’s Market

S623 – Investigation into 252 Baldwinville Rd; The Casella Settlement; Chapter 93 Acts of 2000 and the WWTP issue. If you are interested in information about this special legislation, please review the information on the C4T website .

My opinions…supported by FACTS ! ! !

Julie Farrell