Present: Ed Melanson, Chairman; Harvey Nasuti, Vice-Chairman; Ellen Friedman, Member; Dan Winslow, Member; Vida Holmes, Member.
Harvey Nasuti called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. at the Town Hall in Room 124, in Mr. Melanson’s absence, he was expected to arrive shortly.
Mr. Nasuti opened with the Open Public Forum portion of the meeting recognizing John Olivieri, asking Mr. Olivieri if he had any issues or concerns for the Board, Mr. Olivieri responded noting he had nothing new but requested that the Board continue to address the concerns he had previously brought to the their attention. He did have one suggestion with Town Meeting approaching. He recommended providing an abundance of information to the public about the Vehicle Stabilization Program and commented that he had been approached by residents who did not understand its purpose. Mr. Vito informed Mr. Olivieri and the Board that he would be attending the Capital Outlay Committee meeting scheduled on Monday, May 1st to review over-ride issues, noting that difficult choices would need to be made within the next few years. With nothing
further, Mr. Nasuti closed the Open Public Forum and moved onto the next item.
Mr. Winslow made a motion to accept the meeting minutes of April 3, 2006. Ms. Friedman seconded, and it was so voted.
Mr. Nasuti continued with the Report from the Director of Public Works: Mr. Vito informed the Board that he had been contacted by Wheelabrator Millbury regarding the solid waste contract that was discussed at a previous Board meeting. At the meeting with Wheelabrator, he was informed that the representatives who had contacted the Town previously were not authorized to solicit communities outside of the consortium currently negotiating a solid waste contract with Wheelabrator and that they could not honor a twenty year contract previously discussed, but since the Town of Norfolk had committed to Wheelabrator by placing an article on Town Meeting this spring, they would honor a 10 year contract. The other details of the contract would remain the same. After a brief discussion it was agreed to allow the article to go
forward as written.
Mr. Vito continued with a project update by informing the Board that Rockwood Road had been paved the week of April 17th. To date, the contractor has not been paid for the project and will be responsible for any additional costs associated with the repaving process; the Medway Branch Sidewalk Project has begun and a meeting with the residents would be scheduled within a week or two. Medway Branch Road residents between Tucker Road and Boardman Street have expressed an interest in connecting to town water. Dufresne-Henry is reviewing the possible impacts to our system. A meeting will be scheduled with these residents to review cost for connection and the betterment process. Mr. Vito informed the Board that the project is being reviewed for fiscal 2008 in conjunction with the AC pipe replacement in that area and
that he would keep the Board informed; the Grove Street Betterment has been completed and will be filed with the Treasurer/Collector; Cleveland Street and Seekonk Street Intersection Project: shoulder areas are being cleaned out, the wall installation will begin in a few weeks as well as scheduling utility pole relocation. The project will continue through the summer.
With the completion of the Report from the Director of Public Works, Mr. Nasuti turned the meeting over to Chairman, Ed Melanson who had arrived at 8:20 pm.
The discussion continued with the subject of Non-Emergency Hydrant Use. Mr. Vito informed the Board that he has been working with the Fire Chief with regard to scheduling non-emergency use (fire training) to allow for minimal disturbance in the system and monitor the lost water. Mr. Vito continued, recommending that a written policy be established with set guidelines for future requests. He also noted that at this point, two hydrant locations had been designated for non-emergency use. The list of locations could be expanded once the town’s system has been completely flushed. A complete system flushing is scheduled for the fall of 2006. Mr. Vito informed the Board that tests have been completed on fire flow analysis with no problems noted. The Board agreed with the concept and suggested that
non-emergency testing be discouraged between the months of June and September and to request that the water be measured based on the length of time the hydrant is open. The Board requested that the information be submitted to the Fire Chief for comment prior to implementing the policy. Mr. Vito will report back to the Board at the next scheduled meeting.
The meeting continued with a discussion on the Mandatory Water Ban currently in place. The Board was in agreement that they would like to see more emphasis on water conservation rather than setting policy for a mandatory water ban. It was unclear what caused the previous Board to implement the mandatory water ban. Mr. Melanson noted it would be necessary to determine if the Town is required to maintain a water penalty system. After a brief discussion and review of the regulations noting that if a source crisis occurred a ban could be reinstated by a majority vote of the Board. A motion was made by Mr. Winslow to suspend the mandatory water ban in favor of voluntary water conservation and have the signs so designated as you enter the Town of Norfolk, Ms. Holmes seconded and it was so voted.
The meeting continued with Mr. Vito informing the Board that he met with the Advisory Board to discuss the Water Meter Program. He continued by informing the Board that based on the 2005 Annual Statistical Report, the town currently has 16% unaccounted for water. Leak detection is performed twice per year and as a result of the testing, water loss has reduced dramatically, but a portion of the lost water can be attributed to old water meters. With age water meters slow down making them less effective in registering water usage, which causes the town to lose revenue and contributes to the unaccounted for water. Mr. Vito continued noting that a power point presentation is being prepared by Sensus for Town Meeting. Mr. Melanson agreed to present the information to the Town with a request that Mr. Vito forward a list
of communities who currently use the meter system.
Mr. Melanson continued the meeting with a discussion of the budget cut impacts to the Department. Mr. Vito noted that in the Highway Division, one position will be vacated due to retirement in July, and one position will be cut without the need for layoffs. A brief discussion continued regarding current and vacant positions. Mr. Vito informed the Board that two vacant positions were filled, the Highway Skilled Laborer and Mechanic. The Board requested to be informed when a position becomes available and in the future when a position is filled, submit information to them noting the number of applicants, including a copy of the interview analysis and application and resume of the selected candidate. Mr. Nasuti commented on the rate offered to the Meter Reader/Monitor candidate for the next fiscal year. Mr. Vito
informed Mr. Nasuti and the Board that the applicant had requested more than the Town could offer in the FY-2007 budget, therefore; an agreement was met through negotiations to maintain her rate through fiscal 2006 and due to a planned vacation in the fall, agreed to a one week vacation and a salary increase in fiscal 2007. The discussion continued noting the candidate’s qualifications and potential for acquiring water licenses, which would benefit the Town.
Ms. Holmes inquired about the letter submitted to MassHighway regarding liability claims to Pavao Construction and Mr. Nasuti inquired as to why the Town was getting involved when it was a contractor issue. Mr. Vito informed the Board that the Department had received several claims associated with the Town Center Project. The information had been forwarded to Pavao Construction requesting that they take action. After several inquiries from the claimants and no response from the contractor the State Project Engineer recommended forwarding the entire packet of information to the MassHighway Director for his review and action.
The meeting continued with a discussion of the proposed water rate study. Rate study proposal information was submitted to the Board from Dufresne-Henry and a sample proposal submitted by Russell Tierney of Whitewater, Inc. Mr. Melanson recommended that the Board should be looking for a proposal or RFP and not a bid, possibly a two envelope proposal. The Board agreed that the focus would be on qualifications and that they would be looking for an organization with an understanding of New England that could bring their experiences in the water industry to the Town. He continued noting that the process should include a written proposal and interviews for the top three candidates. Mr. Vito informed the Board that he has been approached by firms interested in performing the rate study some were engineering firms and
other were solely involved with water rate studies. A list of firms for direct notification would be determined at a later date. Mr. Winslow and Ms. Friedman will review the sample rate study information and submit a draft proposal to the Board by the next meeting.
At 8:50 p.m. being no further business Mr. Nasuti made a motion to adjourn the meeting; Mr. Winslow seconded and it was so voted.
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