BOS
…the meeting 11/12/13
Short
agenda= short meeting. WRONG! But
important decisions were made.
The
BOS appointed Bruce Shaw as acting Foreman/Laborer for the Cemetery/Parks
Department as recommended by Alan Mayo.
The
intersection of South Main and Partridgeville Rd will become a 4 way STOP . The addition of two stop signs
to create a 4-way stop intersection is an attempt to slow traffic on South Main
St.
The
BOS voted to appoint Matthew Praplaski, Travis Drudi and Michael Pierce as
part-time police officers.
Discussion
began on the Edgewood Development Co. Agreement, which was entered into on
August 24, 2009. A letter from Timothy Higgins, Vice-president of Development
was received on August 6, 2013 asking to be absolved of the $5,000 for the Park
and the remaining $37,5000 for materials/services in kind for Templeton Common
Improvements. Discussion was tabled on this topic.
The
BOS voted unanimously to approve a letter to the Massachusetts Board of Library
Commissioners (MBLC) requesting a waiver. The request for a waiver is necessary
even though the STM voted to increase the Boynton Public Library budget to
$57,295, that increase was not quite enough to meet the Municipal Appropriation
Requirement, $58,418. The letter was signed and will be mailed by November 14th.
Most
of the discussion at last night’s BOS meeting concerned Town Office Hours for
departments that had been cut in 2012. After much discussion, and I do mean
much discussion, the BOS voted to keep a 4-day workweek with extended hours on
Tuesdays and paid lunch break to take effect November 18th.
Positions that are restored to a 40-hour week (with a few exceptions) will
work:
Monday 7
am to 3 pm
Tuesday
7 am to 7
pm
Wednesday 7 am to 5
pm
Thursday 7 am to 5
pm
The
goal for these office hours is to keep the Town offices open and covered
consistently. These office hours should ensure that the residents of Templeton
can complete their transactions with the Town in a convenient and consistent
manner.
In
other business, The Town received a thank you letter from Royalston Emergency
Management Agency for the cooperation and support from Templeton’s CERT team.
SEWER
RATE HEARING-
There
will be a sewer rate hearing on December 2, 2013 at 4:30 pm. at the treatment
plant. The sewer commissioners would like to encourage residents to attend this
meeting and share their thoughts and ideas
Selectman
concerns-
Mrs.
Farrell – send a letter to the Spencer BOS asking to be kept informed of the
DESE budget review for their town. The nuclear option (603 CMR 41.05)
was used in Spencer East Brookfield.
Mr.
Morrison – was thankful we were able to restore hours back to the people who
had been cut. There will be a work bee at the new Senior Center (Bridge St.) on
Saturday, Nov 16th from 8-2 pm.
Mr.
Bennett – Publicly thanked Nathaniel Carlton, Grandson of Rick and Sue Parviainen
for his generous contribution to the Food Pantry. You can learn a lot from a
6-year old.
Resident
concerns-
Mr.
Mitchell – Would like to know if the Town had been informed of a plan by DCR to
clear cut red pine on State property. The clear cutting of this piece of
property will exacerbate the noise from Crow Hill MotorCross.
Mr.
Spring- mentioned a proposal to use CPC money to digitize Town Clerk records.
Also inquired if the newly formed Town Building Assessment committee were
planning on approaching CPC for funds for East Templeton.
My
opinions… supported by FACTS ! ! !
Julie
Farrell
Vote Mitchell for Selectman!
ReplyDeleteRemember the past to ensure a better future.
The nuclear option should never be used.
Hang on to your hats, I know the Light and Water Departments had received information about their rate studies, so I am thinking they will more than likely look to make a move toward adjusting those rates also. In the real world, where sewer and water are the same department,. I would think one increase would cover both water and sewer, but as we were dumb enough to let these departments be separated, so now what, two increases ??? Most businesses would look at their operation to see if there was a place to reduce cost, but I have learned from experience that this will not happen with the Light and Water Commissioners we have now. I guess the people in Templeton will wait until the rates are so bad they simply cannot afford the cost before they decide to complain. Don't say I didn't warn you !! Bev.
ReplyDeleteSorry Bev, I don't agree with you... why should people in town who do not have the option of having town sewer pay for an increase for this service??..if you combine both water and sewer rates together it would be very unfair to the residents to have to pay for one service or the other, when they do not have the option of receiving them both ...
DeleteWOW! A 4 day work week AND paid lunch break??? Thats a sweetheart deal. They keep their 3 day weekend & get paid to take a break. Who gets that nowadays? Definately not the school employees.
ReplyDeleteBTW. Is the town liable if they choke on lunch? They are on the clock. What if they drive into someone on lunch break?
Once again Puff, your comment sounds as if you would like the divide in town to stay. You obviously have some pent up resentment that you need to deal with. I certainly wouldn't want to work longer hours each day and don't consider it a sweetheart deal. If you want to continue to play the comparison game, then lets discuss insurance and retirement benefits for both the school and the town. Who "wins" there? How about union vs. non-union employees? You wanna keep going?
DeleteHuff, they have had 4 day work weeks with some having longer hours a day for quite a while now and as a Realtor I have grown used to it and it's been consistent for the departments I need to see. They will work a night and that is a time they could be home with their family like many of us may be. During the winter months that will seem a long time as it gets dark so early. I think as long as it's consistent, it's good. I called Winchendon assessors office today and they are only open a few hours a day, so here we are lucky to be able to get in touch with live people. I am thankful they are dedicated to work those hours. They are also thankful they are restored as it restores some pay for them and I am very happy about that fact. Your comments seem a bit harsh for our long time town employees that have sacrificed for the greater good for a couple, few years.
ReplyDeleteya cain't bee harsh huff when ya runnin fo' selectmen, right Di Brooks?
ReplyDeleteHey Twisted- Glad to see you back on the blog. Your comments are entertaining. I have to defend Ms. Brooks and say she has always spoken in favor of both the town and the school. She is consistent with her comments. While I think its a total waste to hold an election and waste $5k+ the town doesn't have for a term of less than 4 months, I'm glad that she and other decent people are considering running for BOS. Its a tough, thankless job. But, only good can come from more people understanding the issues that face the town. I am pleased with the work and accomplishments the current BOS has done in the past year. And I hope that will continue over the next 6 months as lessons learned from the previous budget process should be applied to the FY15 budget talks. I also hope that whomever wins the BOS seat has a $50k idea to bring revenue to the town. Or at least a $5k one to cover the costs of the election.
DeleteWe should not speak harshly no. Whether I am running for Selectman or not I am not normally one to speak that way. That's my way, it's not everyone's way.
ReplyDeletePuffy,
ReplyDeleteThe decision for a 4 day work week was discussed by the BOS at a publicly posted meeting. If anyone had an issue with a 4 day week (and some in attendance did) they could voice their opposition.
In my opinion, Templeton is fortunate the override passed. The BOS and the Advisory board stated they would restore hours to departments that had been cut. That's what was voted on at Tuesday's meeting.
The harmful effects of the nuclear option have averted…for now.
Vote Mitchell for Selectman!
Remember the past to ensure a better future.
The nuclear option should never be used.
OMG! Im glad your almost done. The so-called nuclear option is the ONLY reason any of this got done. You couldnt find a way to bring more revenue in, you should be thankful that someone did.
DeleteI bee thinkin this huff is a puffin 2 much stuff from da hood. Beefo we go a thankin anywho, bout' we takes a moment to notice a police office left de town after same spent 'bout 50 big ones on his training. no why he be leavin? "Cause de school would not come to de table and talk so the talk bout cutting services, big time, caused hom to pack it in so a big shout out to da school folks, not only taxes be raised but nother 50K out the door and be benifitn' another hood. You keep a huffin and a puffin there.
ReplyDeletePuffy, You have no credibility in my book, so you can huff and puff all you want. I have a feeling you would not know Julie if you walked into her, and I for one am sick of your nasty remarks, and if you think you are funny, you are not.. We are members of a community that want the people who live in it, to have a good quality of life and still be able to afford to live here. Many of the older people who still live in their homes never had the paychecks that the younger people have today. Living on a fixed income is hard and with the cost of oil and gas, plus the cost of medication going up, people have to work to watch every penny they have. You may think that the school won when they decided to go after the town's money, but trust me when I say, they lost a lot more than they gained. That fact will come to light when they go after the goodies they want. It will come out in the wash. I do have to correct concerned but not convinced. From what I have learned from my Advisory Board friend, the sewer users pay 25% of the bond while the rest of us get to share 75% of the bond.. As things stand, when we were in Leominster, we got our water/sewer bill as one. If you did not pay, they shut off the water. As things stand now, people pay their water bill, but the sewer dept has a hard time getting people to pay up. What can they to to them if they don't pay ?? The Sewer Commissioners have asked the Water/Light Commissioners if they would shut off the water, and as far as I know, they said no. Bev.
DeleteVote Mitchell for Selectman!
ReplyDeleteRemember the past to ensure a better future.
The nuclear option should never be used.
With any kind of nuclear option, it is the fallout that comes back to haunt you !!
DeleteBEV. I know both Julie & Peter. I also know you. I have lived in town a long time. The thing I am most grateful of the SC for, is that they opened the eyes of the majority of voters in town( ie. the parents) as to how much we needed the tax rate to go up. This option helped everybody, so quit bitchin....
ReplyDeletePuffy,
ReplyDeleteYou may be aquatinted with Pete and I....but you don't know me. Not by a long shot.
Vote Mitchell for Selectman!
Remember the past to ensure a better future.
The nuclear option should NEVER be used!
I was responding to Bevs shortsighted post. As in, if I ever walked into you, although that would be next to impossible as we obviousely dont run in the same circles. See, we live, work, sweat & bleed in this town. We send our children to our towns schools. We donate our time to the towns AND the schools programs. So running into you would be next to impossible.
DeletePuffer, you continue to be an Idiot.
Delete