HomeMy WebLinkAboutTGSCminutes20070108Town Government Study Committee
Minutes, January 8, 2007
Approved January 15, 2007
Land Bank Office
Call to Order. Chairman Reinhard called the fifty-second meeting of the Town Government Study
Committee to order at 1:06 pm. Present were members Reinhard, Gardner, Lohmann, Miller, Sevrens,
and Willauer, and guest Barnes.
Minutes. The minutes of December 18, 2006 were approved with the correction of the amount of
Groux's bill, which was $2,320.00 for Mr. Groux's services, $1,493.75 for Mr. Troy's services, for a
total of $3,813.75.
Timetable. Reinhard noted that his original timetable was to have a draft Final Report by February
12; however the committee will want to finalize the report after meeting with Town Administrator
[TM] Gibson, with the Board of Selectmen [BOS] and after a public forum with the Nantucket Civic
League [NCL] on February 19. The proposed articles will receive discussion at Town Meeting
[ATM], but the forum will serve to focus public attention and get feedback on the other
recommendations. Sevrens urged televising the forum, even if the TGSC has to pay for it, and
Reinhard mentioned also video recordings for Internet distribution to achieve maximum exposure.
Reinhard will invite Ms. Gibson to our meeting on January 22nd, and try to schedule a meeting with
the BOS.
Consideration of the "Primary List of Issues and Recommendations." Reinhard distributed a
"Primary List of Issues and Recommendations" of January 8 in which he listed all the subjects
mentioned so far in the TGSC's discussions. He asked if there were any additions. Sevrens brought up
an article from the Cape Cod Times about special legislation proposed by Sandwich concerning
benefits for part-time elected officials, which can result in major expense to a town. There was a
general feeling that Nantucket should consider joining or supporting Sandwich on the legislation.
Lohmann noted that a couple of the items on the "without recommendation" list might be included to
be considered, but without a specific recommendation. The committee then proceeded to consider the
points in order. The topics should be listed in a succinct, action-oriented sentence; a more detailed,
explanatory paragraph will follow to expand on the idea. The topics, in abbreviated form, together
with comments, follow:
1. Orientation for Committees. Desirable for TM to do, although different committees have different
requirements and different members have different levels of experience. Perhaps a general
handbook would suffice. Committee members should know what the role of the committee is and
how the committee relates to the staff.
2. Strengthen role of Finance Committee [FinCom]. The TGSC is not specifying how to achieve
this, but the concern is to offer expanded advice on long-range planning. Some of this is already
under way among the BOS and the FinCom. Gardner urged reviewing the FinCom handbook.
3. Audit Committee. The TGSC has already proposed mandating the Audit Committee in the
Charter, but the suggestion here is to consider changing its structure; an explanatory paragraph
will include some suggestions, but again make no specific recommendation.
4. Organizational Chart for planning bodies. Ongoing discussions among the committee, officials
and the public clearly demonstrate the need for clarification of the roles and relationships of the
various bodies charged with planning and administration.
5. Attendance Records and Minutes. The TGSC supports keeping these records. Lohmann suggested
separating the issue of record-keeping and the issue of developing a policy on attendance. Miller
suggested both could be consolidated as points under a general heading of Boards and
Commissions. Regular attendance is important, although more important for some committees
than others. Sevrens noted that regulatory commissions need to have the same members in
attendance over several meetings. The committee chair or human services person can monitor
attendance. Lack of attendance can be taken into account during reappointment time.
6. Mission Statements. The TGSC agrees these should be reviewed regularly by the administration.
Reinhard felt it was very useful to have spent time developing the TGSC mission statement. This
topic could also be included under a "Boards and Commissions" heading.
7. Structure of the Department of Public Works [DPW]. Again this is not to be a recommendation
for a specific change, but an observation that the issue has arisen and discussion of some of the
suggestions as explanation. Gardner noted that various departments had been studied in the past
and that with the current sewer commission discussion this might be a good time to do a DPW
study.
8. Facilities Plan. The committee agrees on the need for developing adequate meeting space and
media equipment for access to information. However this should not undercut keeping offices
downtown.
9. Communication skills. The suggestion was to change the wording to "…all Town and County
department personnel and administration."
10. Broadcast. The TGSC agreed that media coverage of public meetings should be maximized.
Gardner was concerned with the cost to the town. Willauer noted that it is possible under the TV
contract to tap a cable surcharge to fund public broadcasting. Miller commented that the private
channels get advertising revenue. Reinhard noted that there is also inexpensive recording
technology that can be made available on demand. While TV is more widely used, the
disadvantage is that it is broadcast at unpredictable times.
11. Oversight of Sheriff's budget. Again, the TGSC is not specifying how this should be
accomplished, but is supporting oversight.
12. Administrative Assistant. While the TGSC did not mandate this position in the Charter, they urge
its continuation. Without making specific recommendations, some explanatory suggestions may
be included.
13. Job descriptions. TGSC recommends job descriptions to clarify responsibilities and
accountability.
14. Appointment Procedure. With TGSC-recommended additional appointment powers for the TM,
there should be accompanying appointment procedures put in place.
15. Mentorship Program. Miller suggested this and #9 could be grouped under the heading of
Professional Development. A program offering a career path and system of evaluation and
accountability to assist officials and staff toward promotion could include speakers, technical
training, mentorship, coaching. This would be an area for cooperation with the schools.
Gardner suggested meeting weekly to finish review of the list. We agreed to add a meeting on
Monday, January 15 at 4:00 pm to continue with #16 on the list. Miller urged compacting the number
of items; Sevrens suggested listing bullet points under general categories. She also stressed the
importance of the previously mentioned benefits issue.
Adjournment. At about 2:30 pm
Respectfully submitted,
Pamela Lohmann