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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBoard of Selectmen Minutes November 2, 2011_201402061649150572BOARD OF SELECTMEN Minutes of the Meeting of 2 November 2011. The meeting took place in the Public Safety Facility Community Room, 4 Fairgrounds Road, Nantucket, MA 02554. Members of the Board present were Rick Atherton, Robert DeCosta, Michael Kopko, Patricia Roggeveen, and Whiting Willauer. Chairman Atherton called the meeting to order at 6:01 PM. I. BOARD ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA The Board unanimously accepted the agenda as presented. II. ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. Town Manager C. Elizabeth Gibson announced that Town offices will be closed Friday, 11 November 2011 in observance of Veterans Day and Thursday, 24 November 2011 for Thanksgiving Day. 2. There will be no Board of Selectmen meetings on Wednesday, 23 November 2011 or Wednesday, 30 November 2011 as it’s the fifth Wednesday. 3. The 2012 Annual Town Meeting Warrant is open for citizen warrant article submittals until 14 November 2011. 4. Department of Public Works Director Kara Buzanoski gave an update on last weekend’s storm, noting that sandbags were delivered to areas prior to the storm and the Town did experience some flooding and wind damage with trees down. She said that the Fire Department had two calls to cut trees down due to limbs on wires, and added there was also a scallop seed stranding. Mr. DeCosta asked about the status of modification of the pumps at Children’s Beach. Ms. Buzanoski said she needs to speak with the engineer. Marine Superintendent Dave Fronzuto noted there were some sunken boats and boats stranded on beaches. He added that with the astronomical high tide approximately 400 bushels of stranded scallop seed have been moved over the past three days. Mr. DeCosta asked if it would be possible to allow the Marine Department use of the Police Department’s all-terrain vehicles in the off-season to access beaches which are not available to 4x4 vehicles, to help identify seed strandings in a timelier manner. III. PUBLIC COMMENT 1. Nantucket Land Council executive director Cormac Collier suggested the quality of the compost at the Landfill be a future agenda item, noting that the compost still contains glass and if the quality could be improved it could be a good revenue stream for the Town. 2. The Board discussed scheduling the next NRTA Advisory Board meeting, and agreed on Wednesday, 30 November 2011 at 6:30 PM. IV. NEW BUSINESS None. V. APPROVAL OF MINUTES, WARRANTS, PENDING CONTRACTS 1. Approval of Minutes of 12 October 2011 at 6:00 PM. The minutes of 12 October 2011 at 6:00 PM were approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. 1 2. Approval of Payroll Warrant for Week Ending 30 October 2011. The payroll warrant for week ending 30 October 2011 was approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. 3. Approval of Treasury Warrant for 2 November 2011. The treasury warrant for 2 November 2011 was approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. 4. Approval of Pending Contracts for 2 November 2011. Ms. Gibson reviewed the various pending contracts and answered questions from the Board. The pending contracts for 2 November 2011 were approved by the unanimous consent of the meeting. VI. CITIZEN/DEPARTMENTAL REQUESTS 1. Request for Acceptance of Resignation from C. William Steelman from Cemetery Commission Work Group. Mr. DeCosta moved to accept Reverend Steelman’s resignation from the Cemetery Commission Work Group with thanks; Mr. Willauer seconded. Mr. Willauer asked if the Cemetery Commission Work Group is still active and needed now that the Town has a Cemetery Commission. Allen Reinhard, chairman of the new Cemetery Commission, stated that the Cemetery Commission Work Group still exists and will work with the new Cemetery Commission in a “transition mode”, adding that a joint meeting is scheduled for 22 November 2011 between the two groups. Chairman Atherton said he feels the Cemetery Commission Work Group should be dissolved. Mr. DeCosta moved to dissolve the Cemetery Commission Work Group within 45 days; Mr. Willauer seconded. All in favor, so voted. On the main motion, all in favor, so voted. 2. Marine and Coastal Resources Department: Request for Acceptance of Gift of $5,000 from Nantucket Land Council for Shellfish Propagation Operation. Mr. Fronzuto noted that the Nantucket Land Council has raised over $52,000 for the shellfish propagation operation over the last couple of years; he answered questions from the Board. Mr. DeCosta moved to accept the gift from the Land Council as presented with thanks; Mr. Kopko seconded. All in favor, so voted. 3. Egan Maritime Foundation: Request for Approval of Preservation Restriction to be Held by the Town of Nantucket and Administered by the Historic District Commission for Nantucket Life-Saving Museum Artifacts Located at 158 Polpis Road. Attorney Jessie Glidden, representing the Egan Maritime Foundation, was present to answer questions from the Board. Mr. DeCosta moved to approve the preservation restriction for the Nantucket Life-Saving Museum artifacts as presented; Mr. Willauer seconded. All in favor, so voted. VII. TOWN MANAGER’S REPORT 1. Review of Scope of Services for Health and Human Services Request for Proposals for FY 2013 Annual Funding Allocation. Ms. Gibson explained that a couple of weeks ago the Board endorsed the Health and Human Services funding recommendation process for FY 2013, and now a scope of services is ready to be included in the Request for Proposal (RFP) to be issued, noting that part of the scope is from the 21 September 2010 “Back to Basics” report submitted by the Council for Human Services. Mr. Willauer recused himself from this matter. Ms. Gibson reviewed the scope of services endorsed by the current Council for Human Services on 3 October 2011, including affordable and/or emergency housing, food provision, utility assistance, access to health care and disease prevention and management, mental health care, dental care, child care, domestic violence prevention, substance abuse prevention including education and treatment, support and education for persons and families with developmental challenges, access to civil legal services, 2 and services to elders. Mr. Kopko moved to endorse the scope of services as presented; Ms. Roggeveen seconded. So voted 4-0. Small Friends of Nantucket executive director Steve McCluskey asked if there is any merit in considering a “catch all” category which the scope doesn’t cover. Ms. Gibson said the idea is to focus the RFP on specific services and not a “catch all”. Chairman Atherton suggested that Mr. McCluskey attend a meeting of the Council for Human Services to voice his concerns and ideas. Some discussion followed. 2. Review Recommendation of Nantucket Historical Commission Regarding Nantucket Historic District National Historic Landmark Nomination. Ms. Gibson explained that the Town received a packet from the U.S. Department of the Interior regarding Nantucket’s recent nomination as a National Historic Landmark, which was referred to the Nantucket Historical Commission and Historic District Commission (HDC) for review and comment. HDC Administrator Mark Voigt noted the work going into the nomination was funded by the Nantucket Preservation Trust (NPT) with Community Preservation Act funds. He added that NPT consultant Brian Pfeiffer prepared the nomination, and said this is simply an update from the Island’s 1966 designation. Mr. Voigt answered questions from the Board, noting that the previous designation only protected houses built up to 1900, and this recent nomination expands the date to 1975. Historical Commission Chair Deborah Timmermann spoke on the nomination report. Mr. DeCosta questioned whether the nomination will make it more difficult for homeowners to alter or renovate their homes. Ms. Roggeveen encouraged the HDC to clarify how it makes its decision and said she feels the HDC will use this document as a tool. Mr. Kopko spoke in support of the HDC and the decisions it makes. Discussion followed. NPT executive director Michael May reviewed the nomination document, noting the National Parks Service asked the NPT to expand the date of the designation to include buildings of significance, noting that the original nomination only included buildings through 1955. Mr. May answered questions from the Board. Chairman Atherton said he is supportive of moving forward with the new designation. Mr. DeCosta said he is concerned about houses dating from 1945 to 1975 being unable to be altered because of the designation, adding he doesn’t feel houses from this period are historic. Mr. Kopko asked if the Historical Commission endorses the designation. Ms. Timmermann answered affirmatively. Mr. Kopko moved to support the Nantucket Historical Commission’s recommendation to endorse the National Historic Landmark nomination. The motion died for lack of a second. Discussion followed. Mr. Kopko moved to write a letter of support to the reviewing agency regarding the nomination; Chairman Atherton seconded. So voted 2-2. Ms. Roggeveen and Mr. DeCosta were opposed. Mr. Willauer abstained from the vote. No further action was taken. 3. Status of Development of Coastal Management Principles. Ms. Gibson explained that staff and a couple of Selectmen began discussing coastal management principles pursuant to the adoption of a warrant article from 2008 Annual Town Meeting which called for the adoption of a “comprehensive coastal management plan” prior to any Town consideration of erosion control projects in certain areas of the Island on Town-owned properties. She said that the group generally agreed to pursue the development of principles rather than a plan at this point. Ms. Gibson noted that the Town applied for and was awarded a Storm Smart grant to get two years of technical assistance from the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM). She added that the Board can look at the principles to date and accept them as an interim measure, or the Town can take the time to get technical assistance from CZM and take a more comprehensive approach with a community-wide prospective. Mr. Atherton noted that the Town is in a situation where two years doesn’t work with the Siasconset Beach Preservation Fund-specific pending Conservation 3 Commission (ConCom) application. Discussion followed among the Board and audience members. Mr. DeCosta said he would like to get an interpretation from Town Counsel as to whether the adoption of coastal management principles is enough to lift the moratorium, and said he feels the Board should set a date to finalize a coastal management plan with a hard timeline and to hold public hearings. Mr. Fronzuto said he feels a coastal management plan can be completed by January 2012 with limited items, but it may be possible on just coastal erosion. Mr. DeCosta said he would like to see the Board adopt a coastal management plan on erosion control as soon as possible, and said the remainder of the items can be dealt with over the next two years with CZM. Catherine Stover expressed her opinion that a comprehensive plan needs to be completed, not just principles. Chairman Atherton moved to support a process, continue to develop the erosion control plan, hold public hearings, seek public input, and have a deadline of 31 January 2012 for consideration by the Board of that document; Ms. Roggeveen seconded. All in favor, so voted. Ms. Gibson said several months ago the Town requested the Department of Revenue (DOR) to undertake a financial review of the Town, noting the Administration recently asked the DOR to postpone the review and the DOR has agreed. Ms. Gibson said the Administration will contact the DOR again later in 2012. Ms. Gibson noted that Governor Patrick has approved supplemental local aid and that Nantucket’s share is $4,800 for FY 2012. Ms. Gibson updated the Board on Airport issues, noting that the Board has approved a contract for an Airport forensic audit. She added that yesterday the Airport Commission approved the appointment of Bill McGrath as Interim Airport Manager. Ms. Gibson said that Chairman Atherton and she have met a couple of times with Airport Commission Chairman Dan Drake to discuss the Memorandum of Understanding between the Town and the Airport regarding procurement issues, as well as the forensic audit, and hiring a new Airport manager. Ms. Gibson said several months ago the Board directed the Administration to form a work group to review the Town-owned buildings at 20 South Water Street, 37 Washington Street, and 2 Fairgrounds Road regarding office space issues. Ms. Gibson said a meeting was held yesterday and she briefly reviewed options for the reuse of 20 South Water Street. She also discussed combining Code Enforcement with Planning, either at 37 Washington Street or 2 Fairgrounds Road, or at 20 South Water Street or 16 Broad Street. VIII. SELECTMEN’S REPORTS/COMMENT 3. Status of 37 Washington Street Improvements. Mr. DeCosta said it is important to look at how to get “the best bang for the buck” and that he feels altering 37 Washington Street does not work. He said that he would like to see a discussion regarding the bylaw pertaining to moving offices out of Town and would also like a cost analysis on moving Planning and Code Enforcement to 2 Fairgrounds Road or 37 Washington Street and put it before the voters. Mr. Kopko said that the bylaw does not prohibit moving offices out of Town; it just requires a town meeting vote to do so. Discussion followed. Chairman Atherton said at hand are proposed alterations to 37 Washington Street, noting that money is available, but that the Town could spend money renovating 2 Fairgrounds Road and possibly make it easier for the citizens. Mr. Kopko said he is in favor of spending “short money” for a short-term solution at 37 Washington Street. Ms. Gibson clarified that the Administration recommended the short-term relocation of Code Enforcement offices to 2 4 Fairgrounds Road several months ago, but the recommendation was not supported by the Board. Therefore, the Town requested and received an appropriation at town meeting for $100,000 for repairs to 37 Washington Street. Code Enforcement Director Richard Ray said he is working with an “untenable” situation currently at 37 Washington Street and the Town needs to move forward quickly with the repairs to 37 Washington Street. Some discussion followed. Mr. DeCosta said he feels there is no other option than renovating 37 Washington Street in the near term. Chairman Atherton said he feels the Board is “basically” in agreement to spend the $100,000 appropriation at 37 Washington Street. Mr. Kopko said he is against it if the renovation moves the Conservation Commission office to 2 Fairgrounds Road as that would be against the Town bylaw. Chairman Atherton said the Board would leave that up to the Administration to work out the details. 1. Discussion Regarding “Sober House” Property Located at 47 Boulevarde (Continued from 26 October 2011). Mr. Willauer recused himself from this matter. Ms. Gibson stated that Family and Children’s Services (FCS) has requested to terminate its lease at 47 Boulevarde and transfer the lease to Housing Nantucket (HoNan). She noted that the Affordable Housing Trust Fund (AHTF) has also expressed interest in the property, and added more information regarding the property needs to be pulled together and Human Services Director Pamela Meriam is working on a report. FCS executive director Peter Swenson explained that the lease began in 1993 and was amended in 2002 to extend the lease to 2014. He said the Sober House was opened on the property in 2006 but is too expensive to run and maintain and FCS is looking to transition out of the business of residential housing. At 8:34 PM Mr. DeCosta left the meeting; he returned at 8:37 PM. Mr. DeCosta asked what happens to the ownership of the two houses if FCS is allowed to terminate its lease, and said he feels the houses should come under the ownership of the Town. AHTF liaison and Housing Planner Susan Bennett Witte noted that the lease states that if the houses are not moved within six months of termination of the lease ownership reverts to the Town. Ms. Witte spoke in favor of the AHTF operating the property as affordable housing. HoNan executive director Anne Kuszpa said HoNan can assume operating the property as soon as possible and already has a rental list and people in mind. She added this property could be added to HoNan’s already “robust” inventory of affordable housing. Mr. DeCosta said he would like to see a maintenance and restoration schedule from whichever group takes over the property, as he wants to ensure that the future group will be able to afford it. Chairman Atherton said the Board will await further information and bring this matter back on a future agenda. 2. Discussion Regarding Petrel Landing Located on Commercial Street. Mr. Willauer said the Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board (SHAB) discussed Petrel Landing at its meeting last week and decided unanimously to bring the matter to the Board through Mr. Fronzuto. Mr. Fronzuto stated that Petrel Landing was identified in the 2009 Nantucket Harbor Plan as a location on which to put some type of marine facility. He added that the Nantucket Islands Land Bank, which owns Petrel Landing, had conceptual plans prepared to include six to eight slips and up to 100 linear feet of dinghy dock space with road access to load and unload boats. Mr. Fronzuto said he would like the Board to ask the Land Bank if its plan is still viable and if not, what its future plans are. Mr. DeCosta said he has seen the conceptual plans and said as a commercial fisherman, he cannot support them. He said the plans make Petrel Landing look like a mini-marina and he had hoped to see a steel bulkhead built around the landing with an area to pull a vehicle in and out to load and 5 6 unload, but not to be long-term dockage. Petrel Landing abutter Milton Rowland said he would like to ask the Land Bank to allow neighbors to have some input in any design discussion. SHAB Chairman Dr. Peter Boyce said he agreed with Mr. DeCosta and he handed out a prepared statement from SHAB to the Board. At 9:11 PM Ms. Roggeveen left the meeting; she returned at 9:13 PM. Attorney Arthur Reade, representing abutter Dick Corey, said the subject is in need of an ongoing discussion. Mr. DeCosta offered to be the Board representative to speak with the Land Bank. Land Bank Commissioner Allen Reinhard said Petrel Landing is the Land Bank’s property and the Land Bank will decide how to use it. He said the Land Bank is planning at this point to install a steel bulkhead but no decisions have been made yet for docks or dinghy racks. He added that the Land Bank tries to be a good neighbor and will listen to all neighbors’ concerns. Mr. Reinhard said the Land Bank has been working on permitting a bulkhead for the last four to five years and noted one issue facing the property is the Land Bank’s policy which does not allow for commercial use. He said the Land Bank is also unwilling to allow for management of the property by others. Mr. DeCosta thanked Mr. Reinhard for the update, saying he didn’t know permitting was in process. He asked if it would be possible to enter in to a joint venture with the Town and the Land Bank. Dr. Boyce asked that SHAB be involved in any future discussions. 4. Committee Reports. Ms. Roggeveen reported that the Capital Program Committee continues to meet. Mr. DeCosta noted that the Community Preservation Committee has finished with its appropriation recommendations and will be bringing forth additional warrant articles to ask the Board to approve a bond to fund synthetic playing fields at the 2012 Annual Town Meeting. Mr. Willauer reported on the Energy Study Committee, noting the ESC has been working with the Worcester Polytechnic Institute students to update the Nantucket Energy Plan, formerly known as the Climate Action Plan. He noted there will be a public forum on the proposed wind turbine next Thursday at 5:30 PM and a public discussion with the Board next week. Chairman Atherton said he feels committees have been doing well getting agenda packets online and he encourages the Nantucket Planning and Economic Development Commission to do the same. IX. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was unanimously adjourned at 9:24 PM. Approved the 15th day of February, 2012. BOARD OF SELECTMEN 2 NOVEMBER 2011 – 6:00 PM PUBLIC SAFETY FACILITY COMMUNITY ROOM 4 FAIRGROUNDS ROAD NANTUCKET, MASSACHUSETTS List of documents used at the meeting: V. 1. Draft minutes of 12 October 2011 at 6:00 PM V. 4. Pending contracts spreadsheet for 2 November 2011 VI. 1. Resignation letter from C. William Steelman from Cemetery Commission Work Group VI. 2. Memo from Marine and Coastal Resources Department, re: gift from Land Council VI. 3. Letter from Kopelman and Paige, PC, re: Life-Saving Museum Artifacts preservation restriction (PR); PR document VII. 1. Memo from Department of Human Services, re: scope of services for Health and Human Services RFP VII. 2. Memo from Nantucket Historical Commission, re: Nantucket Historic District Landmark Nomination; letter from U.S. Department of the Interior; nomination document VII. 3. Memo from Marine and Costal Resources Department, re: Coastal Management Principles update; CMP issue matrix and attachments; letter from SBPF VIII. 1. Letter from Family and Children’s Services, re: 47 Boulevarde lease; letter from Housing Nantucket; lease agreement, re: 47 Boulevarde; letter form Affordable Housing Trust Fund VIII. 2. Memo from Marine and Coastal Resources Department, re: Petrel Landing; Harbor Plan Implementation Matrix/Fishing; statement from SHAB