Town of Warwick Selectboard December 3, 2007 Draft Minutes Members present: Rick Abbott, Patricia Lemon, Jim Toth Others: Jon Calcari, Rosa Calcari, Jim Deming, Terry Kemerer, Dawn Magi, Chris Ryan, Miryam Williamson, David Young I. Call to Order The Meeting was called to order at 6:07 p.m. at the Town Hall by Chairman Lemon. II. Minutes Lemon MOVED to approve the minutes of the November 5 meeting and November 17 special meeting as printed. Abbott SECONDED. VOTED. III. Presentations / Discussions 1. Temporary Appointment Authority for Highway Department - Young explained that one member of the Highway crew is currently out due to a medical issue, and may remain so for some time. Warwick's Personnel Policy allows the Highway Superintendent to hire a temporary worker only for a period of one week. Young stated that since the crew member is likely to return to work, it makes sense for the Board to grant Highway Superintendent Tim Kilhart the authority to hire a temporary worker for a longer period of time and use his best judgment to handle this particular situation. Toth noted that Kilhart had already hired someone for the storm of December 2nd and 3rd. Lemon MOVED to allow Tim Kilhart to hire a temporary fill-in as needed, subject to the limitations of the Personnel Policy. Toth SECONDED. VOTED. 2. Class 2 and 3 License Renewals - Young stated that Rod Whipple of Orange Road has had a Class 2 and a Class 3 license for many years. He said Whipple has supplied the Board with proof of his bond, along with a check for the appropriate fees and a copy of last year's licenses. Toth MOVED to issue licenses to Rod Whipple as stated. Lemon SECONDED. VOTED. 3. Tax Classification Legal Hearing - Opened by Lemon at 6:15 pm for the purpose of setting the residential and commercial tax rates. Ryan said the Board of Assessors recommend one rate for both classifications. Kemerer and Williamson voiced their support for adopting a single tax rate. Ryan reported the levy capacity to be 96.79% residential and 3.2% commercial, industrial, and personal. Toth MOVED to accept the stated levy capacity as reported, and accept the single tax classification as recommended. Lemon SECONDED. VOTED. Lemon Closed the hearing at 6:21 pm. 4. Percentage Adjustment to FY 09 Wages and Salaries Budget - Young suggested that the Board set a percentage adjustment for requested wages and salaries for the FY 09 budget. Young recommended 3.5% , based in part on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). He stressed the importance of setting a percentage tonight, as the budget process is behind schedule. He noted the Library and Tax Collector have submitted FY 09 budget requests. Williamson expressed support for Young's recommendation, but cautioned against the use of a potentially politicized CPI. Toth said the CPI had been the source referred to for the past couple of years because prior to that point, 2.5% had been the number used with no particular justification, while employees were losing ground to inflation. Abbott expressed concern for residents who are retired or on a fixed income, and will be paying more taxes to support compensation for those who work for them. Williamson suggested publicizing the fact that significant real estate tax breaks are available for those living solely on Social Security. Toth pointed out that the development of a long term strategy for arriving at a percentage adjustment would be wise. Lemon mentioned the use of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) inflation calculator and Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) to provide a range of figures to consider. Both Young and Toth recommended setting a number, with the understanding that a change may be necessary in order to produce a balanced budget. Toth MOVED to use 3.5% as recommended by David Young, subject to final budget evaluation. Lemon SECONDED. VOTED. 5. Cultural Council Contract - The Selectboard Chair must sign this document. Toth MOVED to authorize the Chair to sign the Cultural Council Contract. Abbott SECONDED. VOTED. 6. Transfer from Mary Ann Hastings Fund - Young reported that there has been a recurring past due amount on the Verizon bill for the Board's main office telephone number for May and June, 2007. After Verizon granted Young's request to waive the late fees, the amount owed is $308.54. This is a prior fiscal year bill, and both the Treasurer and the Accountant told Young it is appropriate to transfer the amount owed from the Mary Ann Hastings Fund. A 90% vote at the Annual Town Meeting will be needed to move the money back into the Fund. Lemon MOVED to transfer $308.54 from the Mary Ann Hastings Fund to pay the prior year's bills, with the understanding that an article will be placed on the next Annual Town Meeting warrant to replace the funds. Abbott SECONDED. VOTED. 7. Town Hall Reports - * Refrigerators: Young stated that the large refrigerator is responsible for 10% of the energy used in Town Hall. He placed a dorm fridge of his own in the Dining Hall, which is of adequate size to hold most of what is needed on a daily basis. After proper adjustment, the small refrigerator costs about 3 cents per day to run. Young said Steve Kurkoski will install a switch to allow the large refrigerator to be used for the Senior Meal site. * Wiring: Toth's and Young's recent tour of Town Hall revealed loose sockets and questionable wiring, which prompted Young to seek permission from the Board to have an electrician repair the problems. In response to Toth's question of how much the repairs might cost, Young estimated $200.00. Toth MOVED to authorize David Young to move ahead in starting with electrical work to be done in Town Hall as previously discussed. Lemon SECONDED. VOTED. Toth said that he supported Young's recommendation to have electrical problems repaired, and cautioned that the Town Hall Expense Account, already hit hard by alarm system problems, will need to be carefully watched. Young announced that the elevator inspection is scheduled for Tuesday, December 11. Toth and the Fire Chief will be present when Greenwood Alarm conducts the inspection, which is required to be done annually. * Town Hall Use Policy: Copies of the Town of Wendell Town Hall Use Policy were distributed by Young. He asked the Board to consider adopting this policy, or adapting it to suit Warwick. Young highlighted several points from Wendell's policy: no alcohol is allowed on the premises; there is no commercial use, as usage is limited to residents only; anyone is allowed to come before the Board to plead their case as to why the usage fee should be waived. Abbott wanted to know what Warwick's insurance company's restrictions and requirements would be. Toth mentioned that the capacity for people sitting and standing should be posted in the Hall, and pointed out that the formal process to determine these numbers is complicated and very likely costly. Toth explained that an architect must be involved to evaluate such factors as structural integrity and fresh air intake. He said the Fire Marshall is a review agency rather than the one who determines the maximum capacity. 8. DOR Financial Management Review - Young said the review is scheduled to commence Monday, December 10. The process is likely to take several days, and will include meetings with the Board of Assessors, the Finance Committee, the Treasurer, the Tax Collector, the Accountant, and the Selectboard. Kemerer stated he will have all required information ready prior to the Review date. 9. FY 09 Budget Process - Deming said that department heads must submit their budget requests to the Town Coordinator by January 15, 2008. Only those whom the Finance Committee asks to see will need to come before them. Lemon MOVED to accept the resignation of Dawn Magi from the Finance Committee, with thanks and a request to reconsider. Abbott SECONDED. VOTED. To Lemon's request to reconsider her resignation, Magi replied that it was "not possible at this time". Lemon noted that last year Magi "did an amazing job with very little to go on", and expressed deep gratitude for her work on the FY 08 budget. Young will write a letter of appreciation to Magi on the Board's behalf. 10. DCR Heritage Landscape Inventory Program - Toth reported on a workshop he had attended in Barre earlier today. The Heritage Landscape Inventory Program focuses on community land use and resource protection efforts. Warwick has been invited to participate in the Program's Upper Quaboag and North Quabbin Reconnaissance Survey. Toth noted that participation would not require any monetary match on the Town's part. He also pointed out that this could provide Warwick with the opportunity to express, within the application, the deep dissatisfaction with the picnic area resolution. The application is due December 19, and Toth took it upon himself to organize the application effort. Several potentially interested parties within Town were identified; Toth will arrange a meeting with them, as schedules permit. 11. Town Boundary Perambulation - Toth stated he and Abbott have completed about one third of the perambulation so far. They will meet at 8:30 am at Town Hall on December 8 and 9, weather permitting. All interested residents will be invited to participate. IV. Public Comment Williamson stated she sees the budget to be reflective of the Town's values. She recommended taking a look at how the Town spends money as well as determining what the values of its citizens really are. She hopes to see future projects based on the true values of the residents, ones that will "make the Town proud and happy". V. Adjournment Toth MOVED to adjourn the meeting at 7:53 pm. Lemon SECONDED. VOTED. Minutes taken by Rosa Calcari. Approved at December 17, 2007, Selectboard meeting.