Board of Selectmen’s Minutes
December 19, 2005
PRESENT: Sarah Cannon Holden, Sara Mattes, Gary Taylor
STAFF: Timothy Higgins (Town Administrator), Debra Parkhurst (Administrative Assistant)
Welcome & Introductions: The Chairman welcomed the public, introduced the members of the Board and the Staff, and reviewed the Agenda. Mr. Higgins asked to add the following items to the Agenda: Pierce House contract (signatures); Vote on ZBA appointment (Dwight Quayle to full member); Add one snow plow contractor.
Announcements: Mrs. Holden announced that the Poston Post Cane was presented to the oldest person living in Lincoln, Bradford Cannon (her father). The cane was presented by Liz King, John Caswell, and Julie Pugh.
Open Forum: No one was present for this session.
Appointments:
7:30 p.m. Lincoln Firefighters Re: Collective Bargaining Agreement Signing
Fire Chief Art Cotoni and officers Scott Christensen, David Nichols, and Richard Russes were present
Mr. Higgins highlighted provisions of the agreement, noting that it provides a cost of living increase of 8% over three years (3%, 2 ½% and 2 ½ %). The new contract provides compensation that is more on par with other communities. An additional critical element is that in the event the Town offers ALS (Advanced Life Support) training for lieutenants, the contract mirrors that of Concord for shared services. The Chief noted that it was a cooperative effort on all sides. The Chairman commended their efforts and the Board thanked all the parties for their work. A MOTION was made, seconded, and voted unanimously to approve the contract, which was then signed.
Town Administrator’s Report
Mr. Higgins reported that he and Selectman Taylor are working with the FINCOM to maintain level of service in Town. Mr. Taylor noted that there are times when it is difficult to maintain adequate safety coverage in the Fire Dept., and it is a difficult problem to solve. Ms. Mattes said this is an opportunity to talk to the School and other departments about sharing the burden of the budget. The Board recognized that budgets sometimes reflect episodic needs, and not necessarily normal growth. Mr. Taylor said that this may be the time to ask for the additional staffing in the Fire Dept. Mr. Higgins said they will come back to the Board with a spread sheet showing two budgets, preferred vs. deferred. The FINCOM convenes again on January 19, 2006.
Mr. Higgins reported that he will invite the Capital Planning Committee as well as the Community Preservation Committee to a meeting early in January (Jan. 9). The two committees will work out the logistics for how an item might be covered. Ms. Mattes asked about opportunities to bank some of the CPA funds for future needs or opportunities. She has a continuing concern for the Codman Farmhouse as well as needs for other buildings in Town. Mr. Higgins said that the Request for quotes has gone out for the Building Needs Assessment
Mr. Higgins reported that Heritage Landscape Inventory application has been approved. Town Planner, Mark Whitehead will serve as point person. Discussion followed that this will require significant outreach, and that the Town of Lexington has some of the mechanisms for this.
7:45 p.m. Historic District Commission Candidates
Candidates Kerry Glass, Historical Society nominee, and Lucretia Giese were present. Mrs. Glass said she has been a member of the Historical Society since 1958. She said that progress and preservation must work side by side. She would like to see the Commission educate the community about the historic districts through education and closer relationships with the Historical Society, She noted the example of the 250th Anniversary Booklet. Mrs. Glass has a degree in archaelogy.
Mrs. Giese said she would like to see clarification of the purpose and value of the Historic District Commission, perhaps by looking outside at what other Towns have done. She would also like to see greater transparency by the Commission and among its members regarding processes. She said she has been a life long resident of Lincoln and has seen lots of changes, and yet sees the district survive. She suggested that perhaps there could be different kinds of districts that would protect the unique features of the homes and landscapes of various neighborhoods. Following other questions by the Board, Mrs. Geise said she would like to see a closer relationship between the Town and Historic New England. She said she is an Art History professor at the Rhode Island School of Design
and is able to read architectural plans.
Mrs. Mattes made a motion to appoint Kerry Glass as the Lincoln Historical Society appointee to the Lincoln Historic District Commission to expire in 2008. Mr. Taylor seconded and the motion passed unanimously.. Ms. Mattes made a motion to appoint Kerry Glass to the Lincoln Historical Commission, term to expire in 2008. Mr. Taylor seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Taylor made a motion to appoint Lucretia Giese to the Historic District commission, term to expire in 2007. Ms. Mattes seconded and the motion passed unanimously. Mr. Taylor made a motion to appoint Lucretia Giese to the Lincoln Historical Commission, term to expire in 2007. Ms. Mattes seconded and the motion passed unanimously.
8:00 p.m. Natural Resources Committee Re: Water Conservation Planning Update
Present from the Committee were : Jim Meadors and Tom Gumbart (Conservation), John Snell (Planning Board), Buck Creel (Water Commission), and Jon Hoch.
The Committee initially met with the Selectmen in October and was asked to return with a recommendation for Town Meeting. Mr. Snell discussed the various charts and analyses they produced including Annual Water Consumption, Average Water Consumption per month, Average Water Use per month, and Use during the Summer of 2005. Mr. Creel noted that they produced a ranking and found that the top 20% used 54% of the water, while the lowest 20% used 4% of the water. Under normal circumstances, there is sufficient water. The concern is water use during a drought. Largest consumption is in the summer and use drivers are temperature and rainfall. Ms. Mattes asked about agricultural use, and found out that most of their methods are not wasteful and many of those
use wells. Discussion turned to lawn irrigation systems. Mr. Gumbart said they concentrated on looking at nearby towns with similar demographics for their solutions. Concord and Acton have enough staff to do significant educational outreach. The Committee is concerned with very strict measures. They found that no towns have banned lawn irrigation across the Board. Some communities have banned irrigation systems on public water, but this often drives land owners to construct private wells which may affect the aquifer. Discussion turned to banning private wells as well as other regulations such as banning irrigation under certain conditions, or at certain times, and also limiting the amount of lawn allowed per site plan review or regulating buffer areas. The DEP has produced a model Use Restriction bylaw. Concord also has a model with different restrictionsupon uses of water during period of reduced water availability.
These models can be modified to be Lincoln specific and backed up by enforcement under the Non-criminal Disposition Bylaw. Concord also added specific provision to the bylaw requiring notification of sprinkler system installations and that such equipment as backflow preventers be inspected and installed on all irrigation systems. The Committee noted that it is hard to know when an irrigation system is being installed unless the landscape plan goes through a permit process. They also discussed the continued mechanization of reading the meters. They discussed a focus on behavior and use first, whatever the water source. Two tools would be education of the public and economic incentive. Mr. Gumbart noted that it is inexpensive to produce basic outreach inserts, mailing, website, and water audits. The Committee will produce a draft bylaw and are requesting a placeholder for Town meeting. Discussion followed on future
incentives such as working with the rate structure or providing other incentives. At this time, the Board asked them to go forward with a bylaw and to focus on uses and education, including inserts, articles in the paper, mailings, etc.
Discussion
Senior Housing Task Force
The Board discussed the Task Force, noting that much of this interest is an overlap with the Housing Commission. It was suggested that a delegate from the COA and Disabilities might also go to the At Risk Committee meeting. However, Mr. Taylor noted that their focus was different. The Board discussed that seniors may be looking for a range of services to be provided in different settings. Mr. Taylor will talk to the Housing Commission Ms. Mattes will talk to Ken Hurd (Planning Board), and they will discuss next steps at the next meeting.
Liaison Reports: There were no reports
Ms. Mates is concerned that Lincoln does not appear in the “West Weekly” section of the Globe, and thinks the area may be better served by being part of the “Northwest Weekly.”
Action Items
Develop Selectmen’s Meeting Schedule: The schedule will be in the next packet.
Review Correspondence
Pierce House Contracts: deferred to the next meeting.
Appointments to Zoning Board: Mr. Taylor made a MOTION, and Ms. Mattes seconded to appoint Dwight (Win) Quayle from associate to full member of the Board of Appeals to fill the term left by Buck Creel, term to expire in 2010. The Motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Taylor made a MOTION, Ms. Mattes seconded to add Russell Tree and Landscaping to the approved list for snow removal for 2005-2006. The Motion passed unanimously.
Review/Approve Minutes:
The Minutes of 11/07/05 were approved as amended.
The Minutes of 11/14/05 were approved as amended.
The Minutes of 11/28/05 were approved as amended.
Summarize Actions: Mr. Higgins summarized the actions and reviewed future agendas.
The Board approved and signed warrants.
The meeting adjourned at 10 PM.
Submitted by Debra Parkhurst
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