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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBoard of Selectmen Minutes May 20, 2009_2014020616122085561 BOARD OF SELECTMEN Minutes of the Meeting of 20 May 2009. The meeting took place in the Court Room, Town and County Building, 16 Broad Street, Nantucket, MA 02554. Members of the Board present were Rick Atherton, Brian Chadwick, Michael Kopko, Allen Reinhard, and Patricia Roggeveen. Chairman Kopko called the meeting to order at 6:01 PM. Chairman Kopko added a discussion regarding Sherburne Commons as an agenda item under Citizen/Department Requests. ANNOUNCEMENTS Town Manager C. Elizabeth Gibson reviewed the schedule of public hearing and appointment dates for the 2009 committee/board/commission vacancies. A Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) Contractor Certification Seminar will be held 18 June 2009 at 6:00 PM at 2 Fairgrounds Road. The 2009 NRTA Shuttle service starts Saturday, 23 May 2009. There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Nobadeer Farm Road bike path Friday, 22 May 2009 at 3:00 PM at the corner of Macy Lane and Hinsdale Road. PUBLIC COMMENT Richard Cooper inquired into the status of the Tom Nevers Bunker. APPROVAL OF MINUTES, WARRANTS, PENDING CONTRACTS Approval of Minutes of 1 April 2009 at 6:00 PM. The minutes of 1 April 2009 at 6:00 PM were approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. Approval of Payroll Warrant for Week Ending 17 May 2009. The payroll warrant for the week ending 17 May 2009 was approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. Approval of Treasury Warrant and Pending Contracts for 20 May 2009. The treasury warrant and pending contracts for 20 May 2009 were approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. CITIZEN/DEPARTMENTAL REQUESTS Sherburne Commons. Ms. Gibson reviewed a bankruptcy court issue regarding Sherburne Commons and action the Board must take. After some discussion, Mr. Atherton moved for the Board to consent to extend the period to October 2009 in which the debtor in possession can decide to accept or discontinue the ground lease; Mr. Reinhard seconded. All in favor, so voted. Chairman Kopko informed the Board that he recently met with attorneys Steven Cohen, whose firm represents Sherburne Commons and Kevin Dale who represents Sovereign Bank; and sat in on a conference call with the prospective buyer, broker, and prospective management firm. He said his purpose at the meetings was to listen and take notes, and that all parties have requested the Board to schedule a special town meeting to address the issues of the potential buyer, including zoning and usage. A discussion among Board members and Attorney Cohen followed, and Mr. Atherton 2 expressed concern that Town Counsel was not present at the meeting mentioned by Chairman Kopko. Sustainable Nantucket: Request for Approval of Downtown Location for Nantucket Farmers and Artisans Market from 27 June 2009 – 17 October 2009 (continued from 13 May 2009). Sustainable Nantucket Director Michelle Whelan discussed possible locations of the Market and noted she has spoken with the Nantucket Land Bank and the Traffic Safety Work Group regarding such. She said that Sustainable Nantucket has come to an agreement with the Dreamland Foundation to use its property for the summer only so it needs a Town location for the spring and fall. Mr. Chadwick moved to approve the use of Cambridge Street between Federal Street and South Water Street and North Union Street between Cambridge Street and Main Street on Saturdays from 27 June through 17 October 2009 between 7:00 AM and 2:00 PM; Mr. Atherton seconded. All in favor, so voted. Visitor Services: Request for Approval of Partnership with Greenhound, LLC and Acceptance of Funding for Visitor Services Satellite Office at 10-12 Washington Street for 2009 Summer Season. Visitor Services Director Kate Hamilton-Pardee spoke in favor of the request, noting the funding amount is $5,142.62. Mr. Chadwick moved to approve the request for approval of partnership and acceptance of funding, and to send a letter to ReMain thanking the organization for its partnership; Mr. Atherton seconded. All in favor, so voted. Resignation: Council on Aging. Mr. Atherton moved to approve the resignation of Carol Barrett and to send a letter of thanks for her service to the Town; Mr. Chadwick seconded. All in favor, so voted. Commission on Disability: Request to Modify Parking at North End of Fair Street Adjacent to Nantucket Land Bank Fair Street Park to Allow for Handicap Accessibility. Commission on Disability Chairman Mickey Rowland reviewed and spoke in favor of the request. Ms. Gibson said that the issue has been vetted by the Traffic Safety Work Group at length. A discussion followed among Board members, Police Chief William Pittman, Commission on Disability Facilitator Brenda McDonough, and landscape architect David Bartsch. At 7:24 PM Chairman Kopko left the meeting and Ms. Roggeveen took over as acting chair. Mr. Atherton moved to allow for handicap accessibility to the Park on Fair Street by eliminating parking on the section of sidewalk along the Land Bank Park on Fair Street, and to leave the issue of parking on Fair Street to staff; Mr. Reinhard seconded. All in favor, so voted. PUBLIC HEARINGS Public Hearing to Consider Proposed Amendments to Commercial Shellfish Regulations (Continued from 15 April 2009). Vice Chairman Roggeveen opened the public hearing. Marine Superintendant Dave Fronzuto said a consistency review of the Town’s commercial shellfish regulations, recreational shellfish regulations, and in the Town Code, the Taking of Shellfish was undertaken by Town Counsel and the commercial shellfish regulations presented have been found to be consistent. He also noted one change made to the language, which deletes “hinge width” in Section C, page two. Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board (SHAB) Chairman Peter Boyce said his group, which worked on the regulations for many months, is “unanimously behind” the proposed regulations. Mr. Chadwick thanked SHAB for its hard work. Ms. Roggeveen closed the public 3 hearing. Mr. Chadwick moved to approve the commercial shellfish regulations as presented; seconded by Mr. Reinhard. All in favor, so voted. Public Hearing to Consider Application for Public Assembly Permit for Nantucket Cottage Hospital Fundraising Walk to be Held 19 July 2009, 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM. Vice Chairman Roggeveen opened the public hearing. Nantucket Cottage Hospital Director of Public Relations Chuck Gifford spoke in favor of the application. Vice Chairman Roggeveen closed the public hearing. Mr. Reinhard moved to approve the public assembly permit; Mr. Atherton seconded. All in favor, so voted. Public Hearing to Consider Application for New Seasonal Wine/Malt Beverages Club License for Great Harbor Yacht Club, Inc., John Luyrink, Manager for Premises Located at 23 Nobadeer Farm Road (Continued from 15 April 2009). Vice Chairman Roggeveen opened the public hearing. Attorney Sarah Alger, representing the applicant, spoke in favor of the application and requested the Board find the requested license not detrimental to the three educational facilities (Small Friends, Strong Wings, and Nantucket New School) in the immediate area. Vice Chairman Roggeveen closed the public hearing. Mr. Chadwick noted that no letters of opposition have been received and moved to approve the new seasonal wine/malt beverages club license; Mr. Reinhard seconded. All in favor, so voted. Public Hearing to Consider Application for Alteration and Expansion of Premises for Seasonal All- Alcoholic Beverages Club License Held by Great Harbor Yacht Club, Inc. d/b/a Great Harbor Yacht Club Sailing Center, Michael Mooney, Manager for Premises Located at 96 Washington Street, Nantucket. Vice Chairman Roggeveen opened the public hearing. Attorney Sarah Alger, representing the applicant, spoke in favor of the application and noted the hours of operation of the Club are specifically designated in its Planning Board special permit. Vice Chairman Roggeveen closed the public hearing. Mr. Reinhard moved to approve the alteration and expansion of premises for the seasonal all-alcoholic beverages club license held by Great Harbor Yacht Club, Inc. d/b/a Great Harbor Yacht Club; Mr. Chadwick seconded. Town Counsel Paul DeRensis recommended including a condition of hours of liquor service to correspond with the hours of operation which the Planning Board has approved. Vice Chairman Roggeveen moved to amend the motion to reflect Mr. DeRensis’s recommendation: Grill Room 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM to midnight; Formal Dining Room 6:00 PM to midnight; and Sailing Center 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. All in favor, so voted. Public Hearing to Consider Application for New Live and Non-Live Entertainment License for Joseph V. Arno d/b/a Easy Street, Joseph V. Arno, Manager for Premises Located at 31 Easy Street, Nantucket. Vice Chairman Roggeveen opened the public hearing. Attorney Kenneth Gullicksen, representing the applicant, spoke in favor of the application and said he received a phone call from an abutter requesting that the letter they submitted to the Board dated 9 April 2009 be entered for consideration. Vice Chairman Roggeveen closed the public hearing. After a brief discussion, Mr. Chadwick moved to approve the new live and non-live entertainment license with the provisions that music will stop at 11:00 PM and the windows on the south side of the building be closed between 10:00 PM and 11:00 PM; Mr. Atherton seconded. All in favor, so voted. Public Hearing to Consider Application for New Mobile Food Unit License for Raymond C. Symer d/b/a The Happy Dog on a Route to Include Nobadeer Beach and Cisco Beach Parking Lots, 4 Nantucket. Vice Chairman Roggeveen opened the public hearing. The applicant was present and spoke in favor of the application. A discussion followed regarding Nantucket Land Bank conditions for beach parking to be used, as well as a Town bylaw prohibiting mobile food service licensees from operating within 500 feet of one another. Vice Chairman Roggeveen closed the public hearing. Mr. Chadwick moved to approve the new mobile food unit license as presented; Mr. Atherton seconded. All in favor, so voted. TOWN MANAGER’S REPORT Review of FY 2009 General Fund Year-To-Date Expenses and Revenues. Assistant Finance Director Irene Larivee gave an update on the FY 2009 General Fund budget. Ms. Larivee and Ms. Gibson then answered questions from the Board. At 8:30 PM Chairman Kopko returned to the meeting. Ms. Gibson noted that in response to some open meeting law issues which have arisen, she has asked the District Attorney’s office to give a presentation on the subject to the Board at an upcoming meeting and a date will be provided shortly. Ms. Gibson said the newly formed Ad Hoc Fiscal Committee met today and its first task is to make recommendations to define criteria for essential services of the Town. SELECTMEN’S REPORTS/COMMENT Review of Legal Services Costs. Assistant Town Manager Malachy Rice gave an overview of Town Administration’s findings regarding legal services costs. He said that in developing the FY 2010 budget the Town “turned over every rock” looking for cost savings, and as part of that effort Town Administration undertook a comparative analysis cost study of legal services, noting the legal services contract is the largest professional services contract in the General Fund. Mr. Rice said several towns in Massachusetts were contacted and from the information collected it was determined that Nantucket spends more on legal services than do most other towns. He said two contributing factors as to why the Town’s legal costs are higher are the retainer cost and the amount of billable hours of non-retainer matters. Mr. Rice said the state’s independent administrative agency for overseeing licensed attorneys was then contacted and asked about best practices, which revealed that most towns do not pay a retainer as it is not cost effective. He reviewed several options in the legal services cost analysis on controlling legal spending, including renegotiating the Town’s contract with Town Counsel, increasing the services covered by the retainer which would reduce the number billable hours each month, issuing a Request for Proposal for non-retainer matters, and hiring a staff attorney. Regarding the retainer, Chairman Kopko asked how many hours are used under the retainer, and what the effective hourly rate works out to be. Mr. Rice said the retainer was discussed today at a meeting with Town Counsel, and that pursuant to a recent directive by the Board, a monthly breakdown of services provided in the retainer has been requested, but that as of right now those numbers are unknown. Ms. Gibson added that at today’s meeting with Town Counsel, Town Counsel put forward steps to address a reduction in the legal services budget for FY 2010, including delaying the scheduled increase in the retainer as well as the hourly rate increase scheduled for FY 2011, and agreeing to provide a breakdown of the retainer billing which in addition to helping the Town understand the number of hours used under the retainer, will also indicate who is utilizing the retainer and how many hours are being spent on specific matters. Town Counsel Paul DeRensis then refuted Town Administration’s legal services 5 analysis, saying that “virtually none of the numbers are accurate”, claiming the analysis to be “bogus”, and stating that services covered under the retainer are down to about $50 an hour. Mr. Rice said that if Town Counsel has different information that Town Administration would be happy to review it. He went on to say that even with different numbers presented by Town Counsel, the findings of the report are sound, that it is just a matter of degree of how much more Nantucket spends than other Towns. A discussion followed among Board members and Ms. Gibson on the analysis, whether it is appropriate for a paid Town contractor to attempt to invalidate a document prepared by Town Administration in such a public fashion, and the legal services budget. Ms. Roggeveen said although a lot of positives have come out of tonight’s discussion, she feels that legal costs are too high and need to be addressed and the analysis is a good start in doing so. Mr. Atherton said his sense of the analysis is that it has brought legal costs to the attention of the Board, and the matter is now being addressed, but quality is difficult to quantify. Mr. Chadwick suggested the Town hire an independent consultant to perform a legal services analysis since there is a dispute over the document Town Administration produced. Chairman Kopko said it was unnecessary as the Town has professional staff to do it. Mr. Chadwick pointed out that the work of Town Administration was just called “bogus” by its legal contractor; Chairman Kopko agreed with the claim then ended the discussion. Ms. Roggeveen apologized to the Administrative staff for the behavior of the legal contractor and what was said against Town Administration. The meeting was unanimously adjourned at 9:43 PM. Approved the 9th day of December, 2009.