Thursday, May 9, 2013
2013 Town Meeting - Night Six
Tonight was the night of a thousand appropriations, and the last night of Town Meeting 2013. We appropriated funds related to water & sewer facilities, committees, commissions, town celebrations, water bodies, signs, pensions, benefits, reserves, cemeteries, and other funds. I had a question about how we reimburse people for eminent domain takings if we don't know who owns the property. (The town holds the funds until the owner can be identified.) We finished up a little before 10:00. It was a fun year, and I think we did a good job responding to the concerns of our constituents. Happy summer to all.
Monday, May 6, 2013
2013 Town Meeting - Night Five
I apologize that I missed the first half of tonight's meeting. I had to appear before the Everett ZBA on behalf of a client, and the meeting took longer than expected. I arrived right as break was called. I missed the review of the Minuteman budget, but I understand it was passed.
When things started after break, we completed the review of the town budgets. Apparently there was an amendment proposed to transfer $300K from the reserve to the schools to offset student fees. (It was discussed at the start of tonight's meeting, so I missed it.) I try to avoid additional expenditures without offsets elsewhere in the budget, so I voted against it. The amendment did not pass, but we approved the overall budget for the year.
We approved the creation of a stabilization fund for special education funding, so funds budgeted but not spent in a given year can be retained and made available in a future year should needs change.
We ended with a long discussion of the capital budget. An amendment was presented reallocating funds for a parking study towards new trees to replace those lost last year. There was a lot of fun discussion about whether a tree was a capital expense and whether one could bond a tree. In the end we voted down the amendment and approved the budget. Since it was nearly 11:00, we adjourned until Wednesday.
When things started after break, we completed the review of the town budgets. Apparently there was an amendment proposed to transfer $300K from the reserve to the schools to offset student fees. (It was discussed at the start of tonight's meeting, so I missed it.) I try to avoid additional expenditures without offsets elsewhere in the budget, so I voted against it. The amendment did not pass, but we approved the overall budget for the year.
We approved the creation of a stabilization fund for special education funding, so funds budgeted but not spent in a given year can be retained and made available in a future year should needs change.
We ended with a long discussion of the capital budget. An amendment was presented reallocating funds for a parking study towards new trees to replace those lost last year. There was a lot of fun discussion about whether a tree was a capital expense and whether one could bond a tree. In the end we voted down the amendment and approved the budget. Since it was nearly 11:00, we adjourned until Wednesday.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Town Website Survey
The town's public information officer has asked town meeting members to spread the word about an online survey regarding the town's website. If you have not taken it yet, please take a few minutes to improve the town's delivery of services.
Thank you,
Take the Town
Website Survey
The Town of Arlington is in the
process of updating its website, arlingtonma.gov, with the goal of making it
more user-friendly for visitors and more efficient to update for staff.
We would like to learn more about our site visitors, how you use the
site and how you view the Town. Your candid responses will be helpful in
guiding us as we make early decisions about the content and tone of the
Town’s website.
The deadline to take the survey
is Wednesday, May 15th. It is anticipated that the new website will be
launched in the fall of 2013.
Direct link in the event the
embedded on above does not work.
2013 Town Meeting - Night Four
Well, depending on how you look at it, we either did next-to-nothing or quite a bit tonight. We started with hearing several reports: Uncle Sam, School Department, and the Building Committee. We then opened with Article 25, which proposed creating an exemption from taxable personal [business] property valued under $2000. This saves the town money, because it cost more to collect the tax than the tax generated. Yeah.
We then started into the main budget. We discussed legal, public works, treasurer, a few others, and spent the last portion of the night on the school budget. The common topics were sand, salt, trees, and athletic fees. We adjourned in the middle of the school budget, and we'll pick up with that on Monday.
We then started into the main budget. We discussed legal, public works, treasurer, a few others, and spent the last portion of the night on the school budget. The common topics were sand, salt, trees, and athletic fees. We adjourned in the middle of the school budget, and we'll pick up with that on Monday.
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
2013 Town Meeting - Night Three
Night Three was quite productive. We started with the news that the AG's office had already approved the results of the special town meeting we concluded last Wednesday. The new leaf blower regulations will go into effect before May 15. We also had a visit from students from our Japanese sister city. (I was glad they left before the bigoted "no speak English" comment by one of the members during the discussion on gas stations.)
We started with Article 13, bringing the town's dog regulations into line with the new state laws. We passed them without too much discussion. We also voted to maintain the existing self-serve gas regulation. I had voted to accept a substitute motion that would have required stations offering self-serve to also offer full-serve when requested, but that was defeated. I felt it would be better to have a reasonable fall-back position should the main motion pass. In the end, it failed, which maintains the status quo.
Articles 15 and 17 were resolutions where Town Meeting asks the Selectmen to take a certain position. We cannot make them do it; we just ask really nicely. The first was in regards to the replacement of light poles in town. The Selectmen had voted down a proposed resolution requiring them to pressure the utility companies to make all the poles in town safe by eliminating the double poles. There was a lot of discussion about what the BoS can really do, but in the end, we approved a substitute motion to have them try. The second one was a request to change the fee structure for on-street overnight parking permits. These are researched and granted to houses having no on-site parking options, like the row of houses on Highland. The current fee is $200 per year, which exceeds the amount needed to administer the program. The resolution that we passed requested that the first year fee be $150 with subsequent years being $25. This better reflects the actual costs borne by the town. I voted for the substitute motion and the final resolution, because this effects a fair number of constituents in this district.
Articles 16, 18, 19, 20, 22, and 26 all were recommended for no action, and without substitute motions, all were approved without action. I abstained on Article 21 which sought an exception for someone older than the application age to be on the interview list for a police position. I did not believe it to be my place to judge this individual's request; that should be the responsibility of the BoS and Police Department. His application was approved by the meeting.
The article seeking to create a fund to receive funds for public art created some interesting discussion. There was a call to reject the article because at some future date Town Meeting might vote to put money in that fund. Glad we don't trust ourselves. We did vote to create the fund. The Meeting also voted to approve a 50% raise for the Retirement Board. It was intended to compensate the board members for additional duties related to confirming they have no conflicts and other safeguards. I didn't see the need for such an increase, so I voted against it. It ended passing by 7 votes.
We finished the night with the first of the financial articles. We approved the Community Development Block Grant allocation and the continuation of the town's revolving funds. We also signed off on collective bargaining and position reclassification. The next article was to be the budget, but being almost 11:00, we voted to adjourn. We'll take that up on Wednesday.
We started with Article 13, bringing the town's dog regulations into line with the new state laws. We passed them without too much discussion. We also voted to maintain the existing self-serve gas regulation. I had voted to accept a substitute motion that would have required stations offering self-serve to also offer full-serve when requested, but that was defeated. I felt it would be better to have a reasonable fall-back position should the main motion pass. In the end, it failed, which maintains the status quo.
Articles 15 and 17 were resolutions where Town Meeting asks the Selectmen to take a certain position. We cannot make them do it; we just ask really nicely. The first was in regards to the replacement of light poles in town. The Selectmen had voted down a proposed resolution requiring them to pressure the utility companies to make all the poles in town safe by eliminating the double poles. There was a lot of discussion about what the BoS can really do, but in the end, we approved a substitute motion to have them try. The second one was a request to change the fee structure for on-street overnight parking permits. These are researched and granted to houses having no on-site parking options, like the row of houses on Highland. The current fee is $200 per year, which exceeds the amount needed to administer the program. The resolution that we passed requested that the first year fee be $150 with subsequent years being $25. This better reflects the actual costs borne by the town. I voted for the substitute motion and the final resolution, because this effects a fair number of constituents in this district.
Articles 16, 18, 19, 20, 22, and 26 all were recommended for no action, and without substitute motions, all were approved without action. I abstained on Article 21 which sought an exception for someone older than the application age to be on the interview list for a police position. I did not believe it to be my place to judge this individual's request; that should be the responsibility of the BoS and Police Department. His application was approved by the meeting.
The article seeking to create a fund to receive funds for public art created some interesting discussion. There was a call to reject the article because at some future date Town Meeting might vote to put money in that fund. Glad we don't trust ourselves. We did vote to create the fund. The Meeting also voted to approve a 50% raise for the Retirement Board. It was intended to compensate the board members for additional duties related to confirming they have no conflicts and other safeguards. I didn't see the need for such an increase, so I voted against it. It ended passing by 7 votes.
We finished the night with the first of the financial articles. We approved the Community Development Block Grant allocation and the continuation of the town's revolving funds. We also signed off on collective bargaining and position reclassification. The next article was to be the budget, but being almost 11:00, we voted to adjourn. We'll take that up on Wednesday.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
2013 Town Meeting - Night Two
As Dana Carvey said, "Hmmm... isn't that special." Tonight was the Special Town Meeting in the middle of the Annual Town Meeting. We undertake this maneuver because the decisions of Town Meeting can only go into effect after the Attorney General's office has reviewed and accepted the results. The Annual won't be complete for a few more weeks, and there will be a lot to review. Having a Special early allows us to quickly send those results to the AG's office for approval, which means that they can go into effect much sooner.
We started the evening with the AHS Madrigal Singers presenting the national anthem. They were fantastic, and they entertained us with several other songs as well. If you are unfamiliar with the caliber of musical performance at the high school, you really owe it to yourself to check it out.
First up tonight was everyone's favorite topic ... leaf blowers! It appears that the compromise committee that was put into effect after last fall's special meeting was sharply divided between the landscaping representatives and the restriction proponents. My opinion from reading the proposal and listening to the presentations was that the "compromise" was very heavily weighted towards the opponents of the restrictions. As one member pointed out, going from 150 days without blowers to only 15 isn't meeting in the middle.
I rose to ask a few questions. The moderator clarified that the committee wasn't going to be presenting a report, only the recommended vote. I felt a real report would have been more helpful in understanding how the committee came to the recommendations it made. The chair of the compromise committee indicated that the final votes were 7-3 on all proposed sections with three members not present for the final votes. My main questions were how the article would be applied to the residents and how it was going to be enforced. The way it was written, there is ban on blower use from mid-June to mid-October, with exceptions for Monday through Saturday (i.e. - only Sundays in the summer and early fall are banned). In addition, only one blower can be used on small lots, breaks must be observed, debris cannot leave the yard, minimal power settings should be used, and starting next summer, the maximum sound level for commercial blowers must be lower than 74 dB. However, the final section states that "The restrictions set forth herein shall not apply to homeowners..." My question for Town Council was, since only the hours, lot size, and breaks are referred to as "restrictions", are they the only items that don't apply to residents, or do the others not apply as well. Her opinion was that nothing applies to residents. I was assured that the debris issue was included elsewhere in the bylaws, so that would still be in effect. However, residents will still be allowed to use the maximum power settings into the late evening. I don't agree with that interpretation, but such it is. I was also advised that the Board of Health and the Police Department were responsible for enforcement. Complaints should first be brought to the attention of the blower, but the next call might need to be to the police.
There was a proposed amendment and a substitute motion. The substitute was to postpone enactment for a year and constitute a new committee without commercial interest being an integral part of the makeup of the committee. While this was tempting, I voted against it because it would not allow the existing summer restrictions to come into effect. My constituents who have contacted me over the previous two years have almost all requested the summer restrictions remain in place. The substitute motion was not adopted. The amendment was to replace "gasoline-powered leaf blowers" with "leaf blowers with internal combustion engines". This was proposed because there are other fuels that can be used, specifically propane. I after hearing the discussion, I chose to vote against the change, because it sounds like the propane would actually be better than the gasoline. However, this amendment passed.
The final vote, despite my opposition, was to adopt the amended "compromise" language. I encourage all residents to be on their best behavior as this goes into effect, be civil when dealing with disagreements, and really look to the police as a last resort. If anyone wants to volunteer to be the test case for residents using the maximum power setting, be my guest.
The next article was a proposed appropriation of $25K to build a "semi-permanent" structure near the Uncle Sam statue to be used as a visitor center. Most speakers liked the notion, but some were concerned about the siting, the maintenance, the possibility that another town department would procure the building and more it elsewhere, and the possibility of "tagging". My opinion has always been that the only way to deal with a bad person with a spray can was to have a good person with a spray can. This, however, was not recommended. (Neither was a good person with a leaf blower...) In the end, I voted with the majority in approving the funds. I hope it can lead to increased tourism and more revenue for our businesses.
The last article of the evening was a proposed ban on small PET water bottle sales. The Board of Selectmen had rejected the original proposal by the Arlington SAVE club at their hearing on the article. An amended version of the proposal was presented before Town Meeting as a substitute motion. (A possible second substitute was not presented.) The revised language included a provision allowing for the sale of bottled water at special events with prior approval from the BoS. This was something I had requested at the Selectman's hearing on behalf of the Friends of Robbins Farm Park. (I am the events coordinator, and it is really important the we have water available for our public events.) The proponents had a great presentation, the manager of Stop n' Shop spoke in opposition to the proposal, and all the speakers following also spoke in opposition. In the end, I voted against the substitute motion, because I don't believe it's implementation would have accomplished the reduction in PET bottles that was the intent of the article. The motion was not substituted, and the Selectman's recommendation of no action was accepted. We quickly adjourned.
We started the evening with the AHS Madrigal Singers presenting the national anthem. They were fantastic, and they entertained us with several other songs as well. If you are unfamiliar with the caliber of musical performance at the high school, you really owe it to yourself to check it out.
First up tonight was everyone's favorite topic ... leaf blowers! It appears that the compromise committee that was put into effect after last fall's special meeting was sharply divided between the landscaping representatives and the restriction proponents. My opinion from reading the proposal and listening to the presentations was that the "compromise" was very heavily weighted towards the opponents of the restrictions. As one member pointed out, going from 150 days without blowers to only 15 isn't meeting in the middle.
I rose to ask a few questions. The moderator clarified that the committee wasn't going to be presenting a report, only the recommended vote. I felt a real report would have been more helpful in understanding how the committee came to the recommendations it made. The chair of the compromise committee indicated that the final votes were 7-3 on all proposed sections with three members not present for the final votes. My main questions were how the article would be applied to the residents and how it was going to be enforced. The way it was written, there is ban on blower use from mid-June to mid-October, with exceptions for Monday through Saturday (i.e. - only Sundays in the summer and early fall are banned). In addition, only one blower can be used on small lots, breaks must be observed, debris cannot leave the yard, minimal power settings should be used, and starting next summer, the maximum sound level for commercial blowers must be lower than 74 dB. However, the final section states that "The restrictions set forth herein shall not apply to homeowners..." My question for Town Council was, since only the hours, lot size, and breaks are referred to as "restrictions", are they the only items that don't apply to residents, or do the others not apply as well. Her opinion was that nothing applies to residents. I was assured that the debris issue was included elsewhere in the bylaws, so that would still be in effect. However, residents will still be allowed to use the maximum power settings into the late evening. I don't agree with that interpretation, but such it is. I was also advised that the Board of Health and the Police Department were responsible for enforcement. Complaints should first be brought to the attention of the blower, but the next call might need to be to the police.
There was a proposed amendment and a substitute motion. The substitute was to postpone enactment for a year and constitute a new committee without commercial interest being an integral part of the makeup of the committee. While this was tempting, I voted against it because it would not allow the existing summer restrictions to come into effect. My constituents who have contacted me over the previous two years have almost all requested the summer restrictions remain in place. The substitute motion was not adopted. The amendment was to replace "gasoline-powered leaf blowers" with "leaf blowers with internal combustion engines". This was proposed because there are other fuels that can be used, specifically propane. I after hearing the discussion, I chose to vote against the change, because it sounds like the propane would actually be better than the gasoline. However, this amendment passed.
The final vote, despite my opposition, was to adopt the amended "compromise" language. I encourage all residents to be on their best behavior as this goes into effect, be civil when dealing with disagreements, and really look to the police as a last resort. If anyone wants to volunteer to be the test case for residents using the maximum power setting, be my guest.
The next article was a proposed appropriation of $25K to build a "semi-permanent" structure near the Uncle Sam statue to be used as a visitor center. Most speakers liked the notion, but some were concerned about the siting, the maintenance, the possibility that another town department would procure the building and more it elsewhere, and the possibility of "tagging". My opinion has always been that the only way to deal with a bad person with a spray can was to have a good person with a spray can. This, however, was not recommended. (Neither was a good person with a leaf blower...) In the end, I voted with the majority in approving the funds. I hope it can lead to increased tourism and more revenue for our businesses.
The last article of the evening was a proposed ban on small PET water bottle sales. The Board of Selectmen had rejected the original proposal by the Arlington SAVE club at their hearing on the article. An amended version of the proposal was presented before Town Meeting as a substitute motion. (A possible second substitute was not presented.) The revised language included a provision allowing for the sale of bottled water at special events with prior approval from the BoS. This was something I had requested at the Selectman's hearing on behalf of the Friends of Robbins Farm Park. (I am the events coordinator, and it is really important the we have water available for our public events.) The proponents had a great presentation, the manager of Stop n' Shop spoke in opposition to the proposal, and all the speakers following also spoke in opposition. In the end, I voted against the substitute motion, because I don't believe it's implementation would have accomplished the reduction in PET bottles that was the intent of the article. The motion was not substituted, and the Selectman's recommendation of no action was accepted. We quickly adjourned.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
2013 Town Meeting - Night One
Arlington's Annual Town Meeting started up tonight. We made reasonable progress. It was nice to have most of the expected reports submitted on the first night for a change. I hope that will keep things moving right along.
We started with the easy moves of reelecting Elsie Fiore as the Measurer of Wood and Bark and James O'Connor as the Assistant Moderator.
The zoning bylaw changes were next. There were only three, because the town is preparing a new master plan, and that will likely propose changes to the zoning. In the meantime, we are only making smaller changes. The recommended vote on accessory apartments was for no action, so we passed on it. We had a long discussion regarding marijuana dispensaries. In the end, I voted with the minority for the proposed bylaw (the article failed) and with the majority for the one-year moratorium. We will need to come back next year and put zoning restrictions into place.
Next was a vote to approve an easement from the town to allow Verizon to move a few poles so the Thompson School could have a better drop-off area. That passed easily. We also voted to change "junk" dealers to "second-hand" dealers; the older language is from the State, but new store owners found it offensive. We then passed on Article 11 regarding changing the restrictions on certain town properties - the no action recommendation was confirmed.
The most debated article of the night was regarding the adoption of electronic voting during town meeting. There was an excellent presentation and a lively debate. In the end, we voted for open accountability, and passed both the authorizing language in the bylaw and a sum of money to be used next year to fund a pilot program. We then adjourned for the night.
If you have any questions about my votes or what happened at the meeting, please send me a note.
We started with the easy moves of reelecting Elsie Fiore as the Measurer of Wood and Bark and James O'Connor as the Assistant Moderator.
The zoning bylaw changes were next. There were only three, because the town is preparing a new master plan, and that will likely propose changes to the zoning. In the meantime, we are only making smaller changes. The recommended vote on accessory apartments was for no action, so we passed on it. We had a long discussion regarding marijuana dispensaries. In the end, I voted with the minority for the proposed bylaw (the article failed) and with the majority for the one-year moratorium. We will need to come back next year and put zoning restrictions into place.
Next was a vote to approve an easement from the town to allow Verizon to move a few poles so the Thompson School could have a better drop-off area. That passed easily. We also voted to change "junk" dealers to "second-hand" dealers; the older language is from the State, but new store owners found it offensive. We then passed on Article 11 regarding changing the restrictions on certain town properties - the no action recommendation was confirmed.
The most debated article of the night was regarding the adoption of electronic voting during town meeting. There was an excellent presentation and a lively debate. In the end, we voted for open accountability, and passed both the authorizing language in the bylaw and a sum of money to be used next year to fund a pilot program. We then adjourned for the night.
If you have any questions about my votes or what happened at the meeting, please send me a note.
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