Board of Selectmen, March 5, 2018

HOLDEN BOARD OF SELECTMEN

MEETING MINUTES

March 5, 2018

6:35PM                                                                                               Memorial Hall

Present: Chairman Robert Lavigne, Geri Herlihy, Jeremy Kurtz, Anthony Renzoni, Tim Ethier

Others Present:           Peter Lukes, Town Manager

                                    Stephanie Bacon, Assistant Town Manager

                                    Stephen Madaus, Town Counsel

                                    Liz Fotos, Town Recorder

Chairman Lavigne called the meeting to order at 6:35PM. The Board stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

1. Appointments, Licenses, and Permits

The Board called David George to the podium. 

Chairman Lavigne asked him to tell the Board about his interest in the ZBA.

D. George told the Board that he has been in city government for fifteen years and was an Administrator for Lexington and was familiar with the Zoning Acts and developments. 

Sel. Renzoni stated that this position was to fill in until May; he asked if Mr. George would be looking to continue on after the May term expired.

D. George replied he would.

Sel. Ethier asked who resigned.

Mr. Lukes replied he was not sure as this was the position for second alternate and it may not have been filled.

Chairman Lavigne asked if there was any conflict being on the Board and working in Lexington. 

Mr. George replied there was not and they met on alternating days.

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Kurtz, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO APPROVE DAVID GEORGE FOR THE SECOND ALTERNATE POSITION OF THE ZBA FOR A TERM TO EXPIRE ON MAY 31, 2018.

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Kurtz, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO APPROVE KIMBERLEE HUGHES ON BEHALF OF HOLDEN CHRISTIAN ACADEMY FOR A PARADE PERMIT FOR A 5K FUNDRAISER TO START AND FINISH AT HOLDEN CHAPEL ON SATURDAY, MAY 12, 2018 FROM 8:0AM TO 12:00PM.

1. Town Manager Update

Nomination Papers Available: The Town Clerks Office would like to remind everyone that nomination papers for elected town offices are available for the May 14 town elections.  Signatures need to be turned into the Town Clerk’s Office by April 9^th.  Offices on the ballot will be Town Moderator for one year term, two seats on the Board of Selectmen for three year terms, two seats on the Trustee for Damon Memorial for three year terms, three seats on the Wachusett Regional School District Committee for three years, with one additional two year seat to fill a vacancy, and one seat on the Holden Housing Authority for a five year term.

Lloyd Starbard Scholarship Fund:  The Lloyd Starbard Scholarship Fund earned $303.60 in interest over Calendar Year 2017, creating a balance of $17,081.77 as of December 31, 2017.

Sel. Renzoni request that this matter is posted for 1^st meeting in April to see if the Board wanted to award the scholarship this year.

Chairman Lavigne, asked if the nomination papers could still be pulled.

Mr. Lukes replied that he believe they could be pulled until the end of the week.

Chairman Lavigne encouraged anyone that was thinking about it to speak with any of the Selectmen or to reach out to the Town Managers office.  

UNC/Tighe and Bond Water Rates Survey:  Enclosed in your packet is a notification from Tighe and Bond Environmental Services for a survey that they conducted in conjunction with the University of North Carolina, comparing Holden water and sewer bills to those of other municipalities.  The survey needs to be accessed online and the results can be based on several criteria of the users choosing.   For instance, Holden’s bill for water and sewer is slightly lower than the median charge for other municipalities for districts with similar income of residents, but slightly higher than the median of all utilities statewide.  From an affordability standpoint the survey shows that Holden’s average bill is approximately 1.48% of the Median Household Income of our customers.

The Median Household Income (MHI) is a measure used by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine the affordability of the water and sewer charges of a community.  The EPA’s rule of thumb is that the water and or sewer costs are affordable if they are each 1 percent or less of the communities HMI (or combined, 2 percent of less).  The 1.48 percent of MHI for Holden indicates that our combined water and sewer rates are considered affordable for our community, according to the EPA’s criteria.  As a comparison, the City of Worcester water and sewer charge represents 2.84 percent of its MHI, according to this rate survey.

Year-to-Date-Revenue and Expenditure Reports: Attached are the Year-to-Date Revenue and Expenditure Reports for the period ending January 2018, prepared by Lori Rose, Town Accountant.

Chapter 90 Funding: The Baker/Polito Administration has informed us that, pending final passage of the bond authorization, Holden’s Chapter 90 local transportation aid funding apportionment for FY 2019 will be $615,739.

MIIA Dividend: The Town of Holden was awarded $3,418 in dividend reimbursement from MIIA Property and Casualty Group recently.  MIIA has also announced that it intends to distribute $2.5 million in Participation Credits this year.  I recently asked our MIIA representative to attend a Department Head meeting in which they explained their many opportunities for financial rewards based on safety plans, classes, seminars, etc which Holden can take advantage of.  We expect many of our departments will be actively working toward earning these credits this year, thereby lowering the Town’s insurance costs. 

Sel. Ethier asked regarding Chapter 90 funding, what percent the Town was receiving.

Mr. Lukes stated that this was local roads not regional transportation.

Sel. Ethier asked if they had any information on the transportation.

Sel. Herlihy stated that Chapter 7 made it into government.

Mr. Lukes stated that President Chandler and Rep. Ferguson would be at the next meeting and they could address it then.

HMLD Monthly Report: Enclosed is the monthly activity report for January 2018, prepared by Jim Robinson, General Manager.

Brush Burning Permits:  Brush burning permits will be available until May 1.  Apply for your permit either at the Holden Fire Department or online.  For more information: http:www.holdenma.gov/fire-department/pages/open-burning-information.

Recreation Department Summer Brochure: Encloses is the 2018 Summer Recreation Brochure.  Residents can find it online on the Town of Holden website or through a link on the Facebook page.

1. Approval of Conservation Restrictions-White Oak LCS, Inc.

Anthony Costello, White Oak and Pam Harding, Director of Planning were present.

A Costello stated that these restrictions serve the purpose of considering the watershed on the east side of South Road that feeds into Bailey Reservoir. He stated that White Oak was in the process of purchasing one parcel on the road and have negotiated with two neighbors.  He stated that they have a conservation restriction on 500 and 616 South Road and together those block all of the brook that is not already covered by the Cit of Worcester.  He stated that it will be 50 acres on South Road that will be preserved.  He stated that they also plan to make an access road/ trail that will be open to the public and will take people through the woods up to the City of Worcester land near the upper reservoir.

Chairman Lavigne asked if this was just more codification on something that they had voted on last year.

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Herlihy, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO APPROVE THE CONSERVATION RESTRICTION AS PRESENTED.

1. Selectmen Minutes

The Board discussed the January 2, 2018 Meeting Minutes.  Sel. Renzoni offered an amendment to the minutes. Sel. Ethier disagreed and stated that what was said was said.  Sel. Renzoni replied that the purpose of the Meeting Minutes was for historic documentation and should be as accurate as possible. 

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Kurtz, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO APPROVE THE JANUARY 2, 2018 BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES AS CORRECTED.

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Herlihy, it was VOTED TO APPROVE THE JANUARY 16, 2018 BOARD OF SELECTMEN AS PRESENTED BY A VOTE OF 4-0-1 (Lavigne: abstain).

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Kurtz, it was VOTED TO APPROVE THE FEBRUARY 12, 2018 BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING MINUTES AS PRESENTED BY A VOTE OF 3-0-2 (Lavigne: abstain; Ethier: abstain).

1. Citizen Address

Robin Van Lou was present at the meeting.  She stated that she was asking the Board to please consider a Phase 2 Study for the dam and to repair it as it was a beautiful lake and both wildlife and people use it.  She stated that she can’t believe there is talk about draining it.  She stated that she is also in favor of an educational enrichment fund to have money for Holden Schools in the event the school budget is cut. 

Sharon Taubert, 31 Hilltop Ave was present at the meeting.  She stated that she was born and raised here and that she wished to speak on behalf of Eagle Lake.  She stated that it is one of the largest lakes that abuts the Audubon and it has been around for 220 years.  She stated people use it for swimming, canoeing, fishing, picnics, skating, sledding, and more.  She stated that she heard that people are saying that if you drain it, it will go back to its natural state but that nature has evolved at this point.  Se stated that she had seen swans, and otters and eagles all in a short period of time.  She stated that before they drain it, they should explore other options because she knows a lot of people care about this resource and don’t know that it is going to be drained.

Tom Conley, 29 Forest Way was present.  He stated that he abuts the lake and that it belongs to all of the town.  He stated that he is looking to the Town to protect it.

Trevor Sewasky stated that he grew up on Eagle Lake and that it seemed ridiculous that this was all about the dam.  He stated that he was not sure about all the studies but that all that needed to be done was to replace a board.  He asked what the plan was.

Chairman Lavigne stated he wanted to public to know that Citizens Address was not an opportunity for back and forth with the Board.  He stated that the short answer to his question was that the dam was at a risk of failure by the state.

Dan Marinone, 37 Village Way was present at the meeting.  He stated that he was an administrator on the Friends of Eagle Lake Facebook page and he was struck by the passion of so many people that cared about the lake.  He stated that over the last year he has had to police the page and delete a few comments or block a user.  He stated that many people have strong opinions and that the lake was the reason that he bought his home.  He stated that while he is angry, he is using that to fuel the work that they do and that attacking and name calling will not be tolerated and will be deleted.  He stated that they need support to save the lake.  He stated that while he was traveling last week someone posted something that was not appropriate and he did not see it right away. He stated it has since been deleted and he has added two more administrators so that did not happen going forward.  He stated he wanted to address this because they needed everyone working together and he wanted to apologize that it was on the Facebook page.

Elizabeth Johnson, 55 Holden Street was present at the meeting.  She stated that she is a retired teacher and had been a Holden resident her whole life.  She stated that she had raised her children in town and had many fond memories of Eagle Lake.  She stated when her daughter was little she wanted to go into the middle of the lake and that the decision by the town to not invest in the lake was a little like walking into the water without realizing what was going on.  She stated that the Town had missed some great opportunities for recreation land such as the Red Barn and there were not many open spaces left.  She stated that she thinks Eagle Lake deserves to be considered and asked the Board to consider it carefully.

Kim Lajoie, 177 Kendall Road was present at the meeting.  She stated that she was not new to Town but that in January they decided to move to the area because she wanted to raise her kids in a more serene space.  She stated that she wanted her kids to learn to boat, climb trees, appreciate nature, animals, and more.  She stated that every morning she sees all types of animals as well as people fishing, kayaking, running and more.  She stated that she had also read that it was illegal to interfere with a swan nest and that she had seen swans on the lake as well.  She stated that she hopes the Town makes the right decision.

Bob Gonyea, 248 Paxton Road was present at the meeting.  He stated that he was a 42 year resident and that he wanted to express his disappointment in the process.  He stated that this seems like a done deal that the Town does not want anything to do with.  He stated that maybe it is a liability but they have an unfunded Citizen Committee and it doesn’t seem like the Town is interested in preserving the lake.  He stated that he thinks if this went to a Town Vote that people would want to preserve it but it seemed as though this Board wanted to make the decision.

Joanne Patsy, 165 Main Street was present at the meeting.  She stated that she lives on Eagle Lake and that the last time they lowered the lake she got bit by a mosquito and got viral meningitis.  She stated that it seems to her that they need help restoring the lake and not lowering it.  She stated that they may need more funding and that they may need to involve the state.  She stated it is so beautiful and there is so much wildlife that they need to do something to help Eagle Lake.  

Joseph Jourdain, 151 Sterling Road was present at the meeting.  He urged the Town to consider funding the study.  He stated that he had recently looked at a pictorial history of Holden and it looked so different than 100 years ago.  He stated that Eagle Lake is part of the heritage of Holden and has not only historical value but it also has real potential.  He stated if you look at the town pool, there is a demand for a water side recreation area in town.  He again urged the body to consider a study to not just look at the effects of the immediate cost but of the long term potential as well.

Sarah Holden, 100 High Street was present at the meeting.  She stated that her property does not abut the lake but she would like to see more people in Town stand up for the lake.  She stated that if this many people are effected by it then it should be a concern of the community.  She stated that we should care about our fellow citizens in the community.

Kevin McDonough, 20 Lexington Circle was present at the meeting.  He stated that he wished to speak on both issues. He stated that two things that made the difference when he looked to move to Town was the environmental/ recreational spaces such as Eagle Lake and the CRA, and the school systems.  He stated that the identity of Holden is that we have great schools and great active community with outside spaces.  He stated if the lake is gone and schools crumble where would the town be. 

K. McDonough stated that he volunteers at the Dawson library and it is a crucially important thing that is not being funded.  He stated that they have a strong bond of volunteer group, which is a group of about 30 parents and they have raised money to buy books but wouldn’t it be helpful if they were able to take the money that was set aside and use it for materials.  He stated he thinks the fund is a good idea and they may not need to use it every year.  He stated that he thinks the town has been letting a lot of things get shabby and that we keep letting things go that can’t just be gotten back.  He stated that he is in support of both of these efforts; the educational fund and Eagle Lake and that he thinks they should work to fix both of these matters.

Linda Bellil, 35 Brentwood Drive was present at the meeting.  She stated that she was a member of the School Committee.  She stated that there were a lot of compelling arguments to at least do a study for the lake.  She stated that if enough people care about the lake, it is worth it.  She asked the Board if they did not have the information for the budget.

Chairman Lavigne stated that Sel. Ethier asked about Chapter 90.

L. Bellil stated that the Regional Transportation was not funded.

Steve Davis, 1575 Main Street was present at the meeting. He stated that he thinks it would be a mistake to drain the lake and this it is an asset to the community.

David Mills, Princeton Street, was present at the meeting.  He stated that when the talk is about bringing the lake back to a natural state, the lake has been there.  He stated that there was a Town Meeting in the 70’s about the mill and Eagle Lake and there was no resolution at that meeting and the lake and pressure of the dam was effected ever since.  He stated that when they do this study they should look at that as part of the solution as well.

Ann Hasset, 287 Pocket Street was present at the meeting.  She stated that Eagle Lake has been here for over 200 years.  She stated that she is not asking the Town to spend money but there are three owners to the dam and they should be spending the money.  She stated that one of the owners was spending money and buying more property and she thinks those funds should be used to repair the dam. 

Mary Barbato, 27 Village Way was present at the meeting. She stated that she chose Holden because of the schools, the parks, and the safety.  She stated that she is disappointed that none of the taxes were going to Eagle Lake and its upkeep.  She stated it was sad and not like Holden to do this.  She stated that she hopes they reconsider as this is not a lot of money that would be needed to do what is needed.

Jeff Garden, 25 Hilltop Ave was present at the meeting.  He stated that he had just purchased the home and they bought it because of the lake. He stated that they use it as a teaching tool and he would be very disappointed if the lake was gone.

Kristen Hilager, 69 High Street was present at the meeting.  She stated that she bought at this location because of the picture window with the gorgeous lake.  She stated she has little boys and they fish and have so much fun.  She stated that it would be a shame to see it go as it means so much to the people.

Mr. Pappolu, address not given, was present at the meeting.  He stated that he has been in Holden since 2005 and is a kayaker.  He stated that he is from Poland and hat he was training to bring the silver championship to Poland. He stated that when he heard that they were going to drain Eagle Lake he was ashamed and he thinks that they do not know the asset that they have in the Lake.  He stated he thinks that they can have a properly organized kayaking school and have races on the lake.  He stated that Eagles are also a national symbol and to drain it did not sound good.

Robert Climbing, 20 Lexington Circle was present at the meeting.  He stated that a healthy community needs common spaces where people can congregate and Eagle Lake is one of these places. He stated there was not a lot of these places left and it would be a shame to lose it.

Stephen Adams, 191 Union Street was present at the meeting. He stated that he understands that money is an issue however he feels as though it would cost less to fund a study and make repairs then it would to build another recreational facility.  He stated that he hopes that the Town would think long term and think about these costs over the years.

Joy Head, 100 Woodbridge Road was present at the meeting.  She stated that she was inspired by everyone speaking and she had originally come to speak about Educational Enrichment as education was such a huge reason her family moved to town.

She stated that she is a teacher in another district and feels like people don’t realize that they are asking teachers to do more and more with less and less resources.  She stated that she thinks the fund is a great opportunity to take the money that people were willing to spend in the first place and use it for education.  She stated she is in favor of educational enrichment and also in favor of Eagle Lake.

Alicia Garney, Jefferson MA was present at the meeting.  She stated that she had her engagement photos done at Eagle Lake.  She stated that eventually her family found a home close to the lake that was special to her.

Nick Living, 41 Village Way was present at the meeting.  He stated that it was time to start to think outside the box.  He asked where the Town would be in five or ten years; he said that there would be another pool area with millions of dollars spent. He stated that the town should not spend the millions but should spend the thousands to fix the lake.

Chairman Lavigne thanked the public for coming out and closed Citizens Address.

1. Report of Education Options Committee

Chairman Lavigne stated that this agenda item was regarding the report from the Education Options Committee.  He stated that one suggestion was the grant program.  He stated that as he had seen it and communicated with the Town Manager it was to take a sum of money that was approved and put it aside to do a grant program.  He stated that this was for anything outside the box for education and a teacher or principal or administrator could come in and the money would be there to help enrich lives through teaching.

Chairman Lavigne stated that another suggestion was to stand up a committee to discuss K-8 staying in the district.

Chairman Lavigne asked Sel. Ethier his thought as this was an agenda item he had requested.

Sel. Ethier stated that the Education Enrichment Fund came out last May.  He stated that for example, Holden voted a budget that was cut by the school committee to meet the needs of other towns.  He stated that there was money that wasn’t spent on education that Holden wanted to spend.  He stated that up until a few years ago, the money which was indicated “shall be” subtracted was just placed into a fund.  He stated this year the money was taken off the tax rate.  He stated that these were funds that were voted by Town Tax Payers and for years it was put into free cash.  He stated that his belief and the Committee’s belief was that it should still be spent on schools.  He stated that it was technically against state law before and what they saw before them now was a Warrant Article that he hoped would go to Town Meeting to allow the monies not spent to be put into a fund for education.  He stated the fund would be held by five members, Mountview, Dawson, Mayo, Davis Hill, and one member of the Board of Selectmen that could recommend expenditures to help the schools.  He stated that he had listed some ways that money could be spent.  He stated that Holden is a desirable community because of the schools but that won’t last forever if the Town keeps letting the schools deteriorate.

Sel. Ethier stated that the school budget is not sustainable.  He stated that we spend the lowest in the state and that he thinks property values will fall if something isn’t done.  He stated that the High School had lost AP programs. He stated that Special Education is a state requirement as it should be but that we were losing the top students because of the lack of enrichment.  He stated that the brightest kids bring up the level of all the students.  He stated that it would be very difficult to bring schools up to average expenditure and would require 20 million in additional spending to do so.

Sel. Ethier stated that once the Education Options Review Committee realized that dropping out of the District would be impossible they came up with this idea.  To take the excess funds that were appropriated to education and use it for Holden Schools.  He stated that money was being left on the table and it could benefit schools.  He stated if it went to the school district Holden would have benefited 44% but if they pass this fund every nickel of that money will go to Holden Schools.  He stated this will also give incentives to others looking at the school budget. 

Sel. Ethier stated that he had done a lot of research from state legislative level and more. He stated that he has put this article in front of the Board change state law and he wanted to create a fund to do so.  He stated that he provided a  motion and an article for the Board to review.

Chairman Lavigne stated that before there was a motion he wanted to state that the point of this agenda item was to reconsider the Boards position on the fund. He stated that the Board had just received this information tonight and that in his experience the Board would want to review before taking action. He stated that Sel. Ethier was free to do what he wanted but that was his opinion as the Board had just seen this for the first time.

Sel. Ethier stated that Town Counsel and the Town Manager had been sent this over a month ago. He stated that this could not wait any longer.

Chairman Lavigne asked why they would not put this with the other Warrant Articles.

Sel. Ethier stated that if it didn’t get in then it would not go to Town Meeting. He stated that the Town’s own Committee recommended this.  He stated that they have an obligation to listen to the Committee as it was appointed by the Board. He stated that he thinks they should give them the courtesy of placing it on for Town Meeting.  He stated that if this was not done then they would miss the deadline.  He asked what the deadline for Warrant Articles was.

Sel. Renzoni stated that they set the Warrant Articles and they have to be introduced two weeks before Town Meeting.

Sel. Ethier stated that he was not willing to wait because he was not confident that the Board would do this.  He stated if the Board does not he thinks there will be a Citizen Petition and that he thinks it is a courtesy to bring it forward for the Committee. He asked if the Committee was present to make comment.

Lauren Salmon-Garrett was present at the meeting.  She stated that she thinks that this should be put on as a Warrant Article to Town Meeting.  She stated that she thinks this is for the citizens to vote and that the money should in some way go to the schools.  She stated that while she hope the fund doesn’t exist because she would want to see all the Towns work together; the citizens of Holden vote a sum of money and she thinks the full amount should go to schools.  She stated because the Town votes on these funds to go to education she thinks it should. 

Sel. Renzoni thanked Ms. Salmon-Garrett and Tom Curran who were present at the meeting for their work.  He stated that he did want to acknowledge that the Board was acting on the Committee’s recommendations.  He stated that these funds can’t increase education and this fund would be for things and the Town had done this.  He stated that the Board had worked for an increase in technology in schools and had gone to Fin Com. 

Sel. Renzoni stated that these schools are visible and widely used.  He stated that the Board had done two things, one was the things in the classroom, playground, teacher grants, technology.  He stated that they could ask the Town Manager to make this a goal this year.  He stated that they would develop the framework for a grant program and took the report from the Committee to set the goal and they did take a chunk of that.  He stated the other thing they did was more significant in that they asked for a full capital inventory of what the Town owns.  He stated that some of the elementary schools have major problems, HVAC at Mayo, drainage issues and more.  He stated that the Board is looking at that as well.  He stated the enrichment fund that is being discussed tonight is different . It would be the dollars that Holden supported for education and then our sister towns drive down the budget so the money would then be returned to the tax payer.  He stated that when you start to put taxes on top of that it is a large increase.

Sel. Renzoni stated there was a vote for an assessment of inventory.  He said when they were talking about capital inventory they were speaking about setting real money aside.  He stated the problem with taking the scraps and putting it in a fund is that we would be working against ourselves.  He stated that we ask for a number each year and get less but we can’t use it for education. He stated in this way they can take real money and dedicate it to rebuilding the schools.  He stated that they were not sitting on this matter; they wanted to see it go forward.

Mr. Madaus stated that he had looked at this and stated that there was recently something in the news for Mount Greylock Regional School to allow for the town to spend for their elementary schools.  He stated that there may be an option in the future that would make an amendment to the agreement available.

Mr. Madaus stated that with regards to the proposed legislation he did speak with Sel. Ethier and this was part of special legislation because of the MA General Laws that were drafted for towns.  He stated that in the past the delta of funds from what was approved to what was actual had gone into the free cash however the assessor shall only assess the lower number.  He stated that he believes it to extraordinary that someone other than the School Committee would be in control of funds.  He stated that the previous work around was that the Board of Selectmen through Town Meeting had funds that they used to offer a gift to the schools and the Superintendent accepted it.

Mr. Madaus stated that he had some concerns for the working of this suggestion in terms of the sequencing.  He stated that it was somewhat confusing in terms of the mechanics of the suggestion. 

Sel. Ethier stated that he had spoken with Representative Ferguson. He stated that the process would work after the school budget if the Town voted to support the school budget.  He stated a second motion would be required for Educational Enrichment if the budget is reduced to go into an enrichment fund.  He stated they could also determine on a bad year to not allocate all the funds; he stated it would be up to Town Meeting and the Town would have control. 

Sel. Ethier stated that as far as the School Committees involvement he did speak with Rep. Ferguson on that matter and it would be subject to Town Meeting with the School Committee having control of those funds. He stated that Holden does have 10 out of 20 representatives on that Committee.

Chairman Lavigne stated that the funding was subject to the approval of the entire Wachusett Regional School Committee.

Sel. Ethier stated that if there was excess money it could be put into an Educational Enrichment Fund.  He stated that he was confident in the Holden Representatives on the School Committee.  He stated that this may be an idea that is dramatic but that he believes that dramatic things need to be done. He stated that we are at the bottom of state funding and that he thinks there will be another battle this year.  He stated that this is a way to pump more money into our own schools. 

Sel. Kurtz stated that he attended the School Budget Committee Meeting with Fin Com a few weeks ago.  He stated that a few years ago they did a technology update to the Holden schools but now the district is funding to the benefit of other towns to get them where Holden is.  He stated that what thing that Dr. McCall stated that was enlightening is that Holden is growing and there is an increase in our enrollment.  He stated that soon Holden is going to be 50% of the school populations. 

Sel. Kurtz stated that at 50% we need to take a look at what needs to be done to separate k-8 to have the full control.  He stated that Sel. Ethier could be the motion forward but that there is no money and he thinks that this is putting the cart before the horse.  He stated that he thinks the population study needs to be completed to better understand the true forecast of the Town and then determine how to spend the right tax money for the students.  He stated that while enrichment is great, it is not going to help further AP Classes in the High School or bring librarians back into the elementary schools.  He stated that he did not want the teachers digging into their own pockets but that he does not think this will benefit the Town the way Sel. Ethier thinks its going to. 

Sel. Herlihy asked if the School Committee had spoken about or taken a position on the money that Holden gifted the district for technology.

Ms. Salmon-Garrett replied that they did not in official agenda time. She stated that she thought that it was a great opportunity for the Town to put money directly into the schools and education.  She stated that she thought there was a lot of opportunity here.

Sel. Herlihy stated that the Town was doing a Population Study and researching the Capital Plan as well.  She stated that she thinks the Town has proven that it wants to invest in the schools and kids but that she thinks that we are limited with the Regional Agreement. 

Chairman Lavigne stated that he is concerned when the Town gives money without control. He stated that he does not think this is a bad idea but that there is no control around it and he wants to make sure that if Holden puts money into something now in two years we are not funding 100% of another Towns same project.  He stated he had asked the district before for some protection on this and he stated that before he could support this he would need to see the framework to ensure that the Town is protected.

Sel. Ethier stated that the members of the School Committee were dedicated people and he guarantees that they are looking out for the town.

Chairman Lavigne replied that he agreed with that but right now the school committee with the majority vote puts forward a budget that has Holden subsidizing 50% of what we already did in Town plus the 100% that was done for the Holden schools.

Sel. Ethier replied that he does not think that would happen.  He stated that the Board created the Education Options Committee and the first goal was to look at de-regionalizing k-8 but that they believe that it would be impossible to get out of the district.  He stated that this was the suggestion to not de-regionalize but to take care of Holden.

Chairman Lavigne replied that the second option from the Committee was to further look at de regionalizing K-8. 

Ms. Salmon-Garrett replied that there was no mechanism to leave. 

Chairman Lavigne asked if Sel. Ethier was looking to make a motion.

Sel. Ethier stated that his last point was that if the Town voted to spend a certain level why we would not spend it.  He stated that property values have increased a lot and that if you invest in your community you will see it come back.  He asked why we as a Town were not spending the money that the Town voted to spend.

Sel. Renzoni stated that if a motion was not seconded then it should not be debated.  He stated that a motion would need to be made to discuss the matter further.

A Motion was made by Sel. Ethier to petition the General court to enact legislation in substantially the following form provided that the General Court may reasonably vary the form and substance of the requested legislation within the scope of the general public objections of this petition. 

The Motion failed for a second.

Chairman Lavigne stated he would not support this until there was a better plan than just a Warrant Article.  He stated that there was nothing to protect the Town from spending more money as it stood now.

Sel. Ethier stated they should trust the School Committee.

Mr. Lukes stated that two of the suggestions from the Education Options Review Committee are his goals and seem to be in conflict with motions like this.  He stated that he would need some direction from the Board as some of this discussion was in conflict with the goals that were already set for him.  Mr. Lukes stated that they plan ahead financially and then are able to move forward with different things such as things that need to be addressed within the building and facilities.

Chairman Lavigne replied that Mr. Lukes should move forward with the goals that were set by the Board. He stated that those goals were sent with the full support of the Board and he encourages Mr. Lukes to accomplish them to the fullest extent. 

Sel. Renzoni suggested at two minutes recess at 8:27.

1. Report of Eagle Lake Committee

Chairman Lavigne called the meeting back to order at 8:33PM.

Chairman Lavigne asked for the Eagle Lake Committee to give the Board some highlights regarding what they have been meeting about.

Geri Kersus, Chairman of the Eagle Lake Committee was present at the meeting.  He stated that this Committee was created by the Board in response to a group coming before the Board of Selectmen this summer because of plans to lower Eagle Lake.  He stated that the Committee was approved by the Board early September and their objectives are to identify the recreational value of Eagle Lake, to address costs associates with Eagle Lake, and to address options for the Lake.  He stated that it was a seven member Committee and since its inception there has been 14 public meetings.  He stated that they have received a lot of good input from the community as well and there has been a lot of activity at the lake.

Mr. Kersus stated that they have heard from a lot of people about what a valued resource the Lake is.  He stated that from Citizen’s Address the Board heard a lot of the recreational opportunities that were available at the lake.

Mr. Kersus stated that in 1959 the Town acquired the recreation area.  In 1985 the town bought Eagle Lake for $50,000 for 55 acres.  He stated the lake and the water is Town property and at the same time this was happening White Oak acquired the dam along with Mill Pond who acquired a portion of the dam that has the gates that control the level of the water. He stated that in 1993 the Town recognized that the leakage in the dam was causing the water level to go down and the Town took initiative to replace the dam.  He stated that the town paid over half of the $200,000. He stated that a little over 50% came from tax payers in 2007.

Mr. Kersus stated that the Town’s Conservation Commission issued an Order of Conditions from White Oak to permanently lower the lake. He stated that this will reduce the size of the lake and only some of the water will remain.  He stated this will impact recreation that many people in town find value in.  He stated that he was surprised at how many people came to the meeting tonight but that residents use the area for fishing, skating, swimming, hiking, cross country skiing, ice fishing, kayaking, canoeing, enjoying the wildlife, and more.  He stated that this is a four season recreation area and the value of the 55 acres is enhanced by MA Audubon that has 360 continuance acres around the lake.

Mr. Kersus stated that this was a safe area where no hunting could take place.  He stated that it is the best access for the Town to the Audubon land.  He stated additionally there was basketball, playgrounds, picnic, and the beach.  He stated that there is also a building storage that was rebuilt in 2007.  He stated that the building had not been used or occupied for about five or six years and they had the opportunity to go inside and it was truly in great shape. He stated that there was life guard equipment and that DPW did take care of the site in terms of plowing and the facility.  He stated that the playground however had not been painted in year and the picnic tables and beaches were deteriorated.  He stated that the basketball courts do get used and that there is often people in the parking lot.  He stated that hiking, dog walking, and fishing were additional uses of the space from the Committees perspective.

Mr. Kersus stated that the kayak race that was being sponsored by Canoeing and Kayaking was the type of thing that they could see with additional resources as well.  He stated the Committee also identified other uses that the area could see in the future such as adult basketball, adult volleyball, access to trails, Audubon trails, to name a few.

Mr. Kersus stated that the Town could probably for a cost of $20,000 to $25,000 maintain the trails and bring the area to a higher standard. He stated that this figure included bringing in sand and doing the grading work. 

Mr. Kersus stated at the beginning of the year Sel. Renzoni spoke about the overcrowding issue at the Town Pool.   He stated that this sounded to the Committee like a great way to offset some of those crowding issues. He stated that this sounded like a good opportunity for the town but that it would require some maintenance.  He stated that some other suggestions that were made was a handicap accessible playground, which they could look at grants for and a dog park.   He stated that there was a lot of value in this four season recreation facility that was on that side of town.  He stated that this was a good asset in the part of town that was growing. 

Mr. Kersus stated with that being said, there was no lake without the dam.  He stated that they needed to address the dam situation.  He stated that there were three owners of the dam; White Oak, Mill Pond Realty Trust, and Sundin Rentals. He stated each entity owns a separate part of the dam.  He stated that the dam structure that has the control gate was rebuilt by the Town even though it was on private property.  He stated that the Town did that because it protected a Town Recreation Area. He stated that per state regulations, it needed to be inspected every few years and the phase 1 came from that. He stated that the Town rebuilt the dam structure and twenty years later there was not a lot of maintenance that was done.  He stated that twenty years later, the Office of Dam Safety became involved and stated that the dam was in poor condition and that the owners needed to make repairs.  He stated that the state came in and because nothing was done they issued a Dam Safety Order and identified the concerns.  He stated that those concerns were predominately in the spillway. 

Mr. Kersus stated that a good portion of the work that needed to be done was brush clearing.  He stated that volunteers spent 500 man-hours clearing brush and they reduced the cost by about $30,000. 

Mr. Kersus stated that one thing to note was that the Office of Dam Safety did not say to have the water come out of the lake.  He stated that since nothing was done from 2015, the Office of Dam Safety issued a Notice of Failure to Comply and fines started accrue. He stated that after that occurred the dam owners filed for a permit to permanently lower the level of the lake.  He stated that the reason that was stated in the permit was for ‘Habitat Connectivity.’ 

Mr. Kersus stated that the dam was not coming down for dam safety, it was coming down for habitat connectivity.  He stated that this was an easy way for wildlife to get from point a to point b and this is the official reason as to why the owners requested approval and why the Conservation Commission was able to approve it.

Mr. Kersus stated that when the citizens dealt with the Conservation Commission they were told that Con Com had a very narrow purview and that they could only look at the Wetlands Protection Act and that there nothing that violated it so they had no choice but to approve the owners application.  

Mr. Kersus stated that in the filing, White Oak did acknowledge that the Town would lose about 30 acres of property.  He stated that in full disclosure, he is a lake abutter, and on his deed his property line indicates ‘high water line of the lake’.  He stated with the draining of the lake, they property lines would move.  He stated that he had spoken to a lawyer about this and that the lawyer told him that he and his neighbors were acquiring property from the lake.  He stated that would be something else that the Town would need to address. 

Mr. Kersus stated that if the water level was lowered the dam safety would still be an issue.  He stated that the status of repair should be an area of interest to the Town as it impacts the safety of the roads that are owned by the town. He stated that people need to look and see what the various impacts would be.  He stated that the Committee came up with a few recommendations.

Mr. Kersus stated that the first thing is that the Town never gave permission to modify the property. He stated that the town will lose property and will lose the value of the recreation area.  He stated that the Town has the responsibility to safeguard the property and the area.  He stated that the firs thing that can be done is that the Town can withhold permission for the owners to do this work.  He stated that the town should have had the opportunity to give permission because the rules of the NOI state that all parties effected by the change needs to approve the NOI.

Mr. Kersus stated that the second thing that needs to happen is that the Town needs to take steps to restore the recreation area.  He stated that it has been neglected and it really could be used as a good facility.

Mr. Kersus stated that their next recommendation was to make sure that the Phase 2 Study happens.   He stated that he understands that this is a difficult situation with three owners but the town has to protect its resource and make sure that these people are meeting their requirements.  He stated that the other option was to have the Town fund the Phase 2 Study.  He stated that they can take money from the Recreation Budget or have a Warrant Article or possibly someone from DPW may have the qualifications to do the study but there is the option for the Town to take control and have the study completed. 

Mr. Kersus stated that they also discussed the history of the ownership of the dam.  He stated that the Town should negotiate to take control of the dam.  He stated that this would give the Town the ability to control the infrastructure and also provide access to funding. He stated that from the Town cost perspective it should not cost a lot to maintain the dam.  He stated he is not sure what the terms could be but he presumes the Town could do so favorably presuming liability and maintenance was transferred.  He stated that they are estimating a bi-annual inspection of $5,000 and the Phase 2 Study is between $40,000-$50,000; he stated none of these were huge ticket items.

Mr. Kersus stated that was what they had so far and they would be finishing up a final report and providing detail and cost analaysis and doing a detail recommendation on the dam.  He stated they will also provide the Committee’s thoughts on the process and how to minimize expenses.  He asked what the Board would like the next steps for them to be.

Chairman Lavigne thanked the Committee for their work.  He asked the Board if they had any questions for the Committee.

Sel. Renzoni thanked the Committee.  He stated that the first thing he wanted to answer was that White Oak had gone through the process to draw down the lake; that was why the Board could not just stop them.  He asked if the Committee had considered establishing a nonprofit to take ownership of the dam.

Mr. Kersus stated that they had spoke about that but that given the draw down was due to start May 1, 2018 they did not feel as though there was time to set up a non profit.  He stated that it was a lot of work to set it up and organize it and the Committee did not think they had the time to flush that option out.

Chairman Lavigne stated that could possibly be a long term solution for the Committee to look into.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they would need to research more thoroughly the legality of public funds for private property.

Mr. Kersus stated that they should look at the fact that it impacts public safety.

Mr. Madaus stated that when this first came before the Board, it was suggested that they Board have tax payer money appropriated for private benefit.  He stated that the Town cannot spend taxpayer money in this fashion.  He stated that for every Federal Application there needs to be a Certificate of Title completed.  He stated that he was not trying to be difficult but that some people were suggesting that the Town just do a grant and that was not possible because the Town did not own the land.  He stated that he felt that everyone did a great job of linking the lake to the dam for public purpose but that they would still come across the issue of spending public funds on private property.  He stated that there were prohibitions that they would need to adhere to and that they could not just demand that someone make repair or the Town would use its own forces to main the repairs and then lien them.

Chairman Lavigne stated they could possibly look at assisting on the study without ownership.  He stated that whenever the Town accepted something like this it would be like accepting a road and everything would need to be up to standards and ready to go before the Town would take it over.  He stated that they know that the dam is in disrepair and it would be setting precedent to take over the repairs for the dam. He stated that asking to use public funds without ownership was a big question that they needed to look at more closely.

Mr. Madaus stated that they would also need to overcome the issue of the contractor having potential liability issues.  He stated that this would be another thing that they would need to overcome by the statutory process.

Sel. Herlihy asked if there was any recourse against the current owners; anything they can do as the Town that says the owners have to do the study.

Mr. Madaus asked if she was speaking of an injunction.

Mr. Lukes stated that these would all be expensive things to move forward with.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they don’t know what the Phase 2 study was going to ask for; he stated he was curious if there was anyway to get the study done.

Sel. Renzoni stated that he thinks two things; one that the Board entertains the Committees motion to go to Town Meeting and allows the Eagle Lake Committee the ability to go thought the budget process.  He stated that they could also entertain a non binding article that the Town could vote to see if they want the Town to acquire this land. 

Mr. Kersus stated that he cannot speak for the Committee on that because they had not discussed it but that it did seem to be in keeping what the Committee wanted.   He stated that they also want to find the way to have the EPA say that the Town of Holden did not approve the lowering of the Towns lake.  He stated that they did not receive the Towns permission and they think that could possibly change the outcome as well.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they permission to lower the lake was granted by Con Com; he asked if there was anyway the Board could supersede them or have them delay. 

Pam Harding, Director of Planning was present.  She stated that Con Com issued an approve to do the draw down but they gave permission that they could refill it within three years.  She stated that there was an appeal period and the individual appeal was overturned.

Brian Vitale, Eagle Lake supporter was present. He disagreed.

P. Harding replied that it was nothing for DEP to do as they have not issued a determination.  She stated that it was an appealed Order of Conditions before the DEP and that they would have to appeal the Con Com decision.

Mr. Lukes stated that the Conservation Commission made decisions on behalf of the Town.

B. Vitale replied that they were in the process with Con Com.  He stated that at the Conservation hearing, the Chair of the Committee stated that their purview was limited to if the project would or would not violate wetlands protection and did not speak to anything else.  He stated that they (Eagle Lake) thinks that the Town has purview over other things such as economical, legal, etc.  

Mr. Madaus stated that he was not sure if the Chair of Con Com understood his jurisdiction if that was said. 

Sel. Renzoni stated that another side to the story was that there was a property owner that wanted to do something with his property.  He asked if by intervening was the Town telling private citizens what they were going to do with their private property.

B. Vitale stated that the Con Com stands with the Order of Conditions as it is now.  He stated that written permission was needed from land owners and that he thinks that the Wetlands Protection has not been met.  He stated that the Eagle Lake Committee feels that Con Com should begin the process of withdrawing their permit so they can go through the hearing process.

Sel. Ethier stated that Holden has a public interest in this land and that there was precedent set as the Town did spend money in 1993 to aid the property owners.  He stated that White Oak has offered to give the Town control of the dam. He stated that the Town has every incentive to do the work.  He stated that the Town owns the lake and that we have numerous property owners that live there and they deserve the Town’s support. 

Sel. Ethier stated that he believe that the Town Recreation Department should have been doing work on this all along.  He stated the last he heard the department had $700,000 in their account so they have the money to repair the problems.  He stated that if the Town lets the dam go, it will start the draw down.  He stated that it is his opinion that they should try to delay this process as the Phase 2 Study needs to be completed. He stated this should be done to the detriment of the Town and that the Town should take initiative and do the study.  He stated that he believes this should be put to Town Meeting and if everyone is in agreement it should be done.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they first need to see if it is legal.

Sel. Ethier stated that if the public was interested in spending money then Holden can.  He stated that the Town spent money to bury the wires and has done things like this in the past and should do it now.  He stated that we owe our residents.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they cannot make a motion that breaks the law.

Sel. Ethier replied Phase 2 Study.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they can’t just do things; they need to follow the law.  He stated that he doesn’t think that anyone there didn’t want to save the lake but they are trying to do it procedurally in a way that protects the Town.

Sel. Ethier stated that they can place a Warrant Article.  He stated if they don’t place the Warrant Article soon and let Town Counsel research it they will run out of time.  He stated that if they wait until May 1 the draw down will begin.

Sel. Renzoni stated that they were really focusing on this as a Recreational Area and his concern was that they had asked the Rec. Committee about it and they had indicated that there was not value there.  He stated in keeping in stride of taking the Citizen Committees recommendation he does not know if it is best to have a motion to set a Warrant Article.

Sel. Ethier stated that he was stalling.

Chairman Lavigne told Sel. Ethier to stop.

Sel. Renzoni stated that they knew that May 1 was the draw down which was before Town Meeting.  He stated that the Board was not the authority of the Town to raise money, spend money, or accept property; he stated that their job is to make a strong recommendation.  He stated that he thinks that Sel. Ethier knows that the Board wants to explore this if they can find a way.  He stated that he knows that they keep referring to 1993 but just because the Town did something before does not mean that it should be done again.  He stated he does not know their thinking in 1993 and they were currently being told by Town Counsel that using public funds for private property was not allowable.  He stated that it could raise the question of why this location but not a private road or other things in Town.  He stated that he thinks they are dedicated to looking into it but in the proper manner.

Mr. Kersus asked if the Town had the legal ability to postpone the drawdown.  He stated that the NOI through the Wetland Protection says that property owners have to give permission and this NOI has a big impact on Eagle Lake which is owned by the Town.  He stated that Holden did not give any written permission and he wonders if the Town could postpone this.

Chairman Lavigne stated that from May 1 to May 15 the lake was not going away despite the drawdown.  He stated that at this point they still have time to figure out the legal path to help with the Phase 2 Study, the insurance that they could need to enter the property and it allows them the opportunity to have a Warrant Article put on indicating a sum of money to put aside if all other things are figured out.

Sel. Ethier asked if they began drawing down on May 1 what would it do to the lake.

Mr. Kersus stated it would be 6” a week for 9 weeks and it would draw it down 4.5ft.   He stated in terms of the lake it would reduce it.  He stated that it shows that the lake would be about 1/3 of what it is but that is misleading.

Chairman Lavigne stated if they do nothing; the lake would go away slowly.

Sel. Ethier stated 12% was significant.  He stated that they had been going back and forth for a good amount of time and he thinks that Town Counsel had indicated that it was not a problem to place a Warrant Article.  He stated that this was getting kicked down the road.

Sel. Herlihy stated there was nothing that could be done until Town Meeting regardless of a motion tonight.

Sel. Ethier makes a motion to create a place holder for a Warrant Article that will request the Town do fund the Phase 2 Study.

Sel. Renzoni requested to amend the motion to create a place holder for the Eagle Lake Committee.  He stated that they don’t know what the Warrant Article is and that the Board was not doing any parts of the budget without Fin Com hearings.

Chairman Lavigne agreed.

Sel. Ethier stated that the Board could recommend to Town Meeting; he stated that Sel. Renzoni gave too much power to Fin Com.

Chairman Lavigne asked if Sel. Ethier accepted the amendment.

Sel. Ethier stated that the motion should be specific and say to create a place holder for Warrant Article that tasks the Town to fund a Phase 2 Study to determine what dam repairs were necessary.

Mr. Lukes stated that he needed a dollar amount and that it would need to be in front of Fin Com as they considered all matters financial.

Chairman Lavigne stated placeholder to not exceed $65,000.

Sel. Renzoni asked for the motion to be repeated.

Sel. Ethier stated the motion was to create a placeholder for a Warrant Article for a Phase 2 Study to not exceed $65,000. 

Sel. Herlihy asked what he wanted to happen tonight.

Sel. Ethier stated he wanted the Warrant Article placed.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they can’t place a Warrant Article until Fin Com goes through the process.

A Motion was made by Sel. Ethier to create a place holder to start the process to get the money set aside for a Phase 2 Study and to begin to work through the steps needed to legally fund the study and get this to the next step. The Motion was seconded by Chairman Lavigne.

Sel. Renzoni urged the Board to support this because it began the process of asking Fin Com to look into this. 

Sel. Kurtz stated that he would support having a placeholder but that he was not convinced that this was in the best interest of the Town.  He stated that as the Board they need to do their own research.  He stated there are four other dams in Town and this would be setting up precedent that the Town will cover the cost and potentially take over the dam if the owner does not want to do something.

Chairman Lavigne stated he did not know if he agreed with that.

Sel. Kurtz replied that White Oak was involved with two of the other ones as well. He stated that part of the research the Board needs to do is to look outside of just saving the dam.  He stated the state has had 54 dams removed, with 9 of those last year.  He stated most of those have been from old mills that were no longer mills.  He stated this was some of the study that he was hoping the Committee would have done.  He stated that he had reached out and spoken to two Towns and that they had positive results with wildlife coming back.  He stated that there is public information out there.  He stated he would support the motion but he would like a little more information.

Chairman Lavigne stated that he thinks that Sel. Kurtz point of reaching out to other communities was outside the scope of work that he had asked the Committee to do.

Sel. Kurtz stated that the charge was to look at Eagle Lake and see what was in the Towns best interest and what alternatives there were and to study what to do with the property if the lake was gone.

Sel. Renzoni called a Point of Order and asked to move the question.

Motion by Sel. Ethier, seconded by Chairman Lavigne, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO CREATE A PLACE HOLDER TO START THE PROCESS OF HAVING MONEY SET ASIDE FOR A PHASE 2 STUDY OF THE DAM AND TO BEGIN TO WORK THROUGH THE STEPS NEEDED TO LEGALLY FUND THE STUDY.

Mr. Kersus asked where they left of with the issue of the drawdown.  He asked if there was legally anything they could do to postpone it.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they would speak to the Town Manager about the legality of it.

Mr. Kersus replied they will work quickly to get the Board the final report from the Committee.

Sel. Ethier asked for the Town Manager to ask DCR if Holden places a Warrant Article if they postpone the drawdown.

Mr. Kersus replied he did not think it worked like that.  He stated they essentially believe in home rule and Con Com had made a decision on the matter. 

Sel. Ethier asked if the Town Manager could go to DCR.

Mr. Lukes replied that what Sel. Ethier was asking was the Town to override itself
(Con Com).

Sel. Ethier asked if they could bring it up to Con Com again and ask them to hold off on the work.

Mr. Madaus replied it was statutory and was under appeal.

Sel. Ethier asked if the appeal stopped the drawdown.  He stated they needed to do something quick.

Chairman Lavigne thanked the Committee for their work.

1. Follow Up to Citizens Address

Chairman Lavigne thanked everyone for coming out. He stated that he hoped the report from Mr. Kersus cleared up some points for public.  He stated that he appreciated the work that the Committee has been doing.

1. Selectmen Subcommittee

Sel. Ethier stated that Fin Com had a hearing for Public Safety and Schools and he would not comment on that further.

Sel. Ethier stated that Ag Com met last week and continued their conversation on Farmer’s Markets.  He stated that they were still working on some of the issues from last season.

Chairman Lavigne asked if Ag Com would need anything from Town Meeting on that.  Sel. Ethier replied he did not believe they would.

Sel. Kurtz: none.

Sel. Renzoni stated that Fin Com meets every other Wednesday at 6:30PM for budget meetings. 

1. Selectmen Misc.

Sel. Kurtz stated that he wanted to remind the Board about Social Media and the Boards policy.  He stated that he knows that most of the Board was connected in Social Media and once there is a conversation where two people comment on a post the rest of the Board needs to refrain from comment so as not to violate the Open Meeting Law. 

Sel. Kurtz asked the Town Manager to pass along a congratulations to the Light Department for their work in the last storm.  He stated that there were only a few outages and they were quick to respond and get everything back up and running. 

Sel. Renzoni stated that he wanted to clear up that it was not common practice for the Board to launch the Town Manager off with new goals with budget implications.  He stated that his goals were his goals and there was nothing to reconsider.

Sel. Renzoni congratulated May Clark from Mountview as the National Judo Champion for her age bracket.  He stated that she came in first Nationally and he wanted to recognize her.

Chairman Lavigne stated that there was a boat race on the lake he wanted to let people know about.

Chairman Lavigne also wanted to reiterate what Sel. Kurtz stated about Social Media.  He stated that they have the Social Media Policy and if there is a matter coming before the Board it could put the Board in a bad position.

Sel. Ethier stated he made the comment and he disagreed.

Chairman Lavigne stated that they have had issues with Open Meeting Violations in the past and they should stay way from any fuzzy line.

Sel. Ethier replied he disagreed.

Sel. Renzoni stated that he thinks that he came close.

Sel. Ethier stated that just because they are on the Board it does not make them give up rights as a citizen. 

Chairman Lavigne replied that he was not speaking as a citizen in that forum.

Motion by Sel. Renzoni, seconded by Sel. Kurtz, it was UNANIMOUSLY VOTED TO ADJOURN THE MARCH 5, 2018 BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING AT 10:10PM.

APPROVED: __ April 23, 2018 as Amended_____