Loading...
2007-01-16 Regular Meeting Beverly City Council 7:00 PM Jan. 16, 2007 Roll Call: Councilors Present: John Burke, William Coughlin, Timothy Flaherty arrived at 7:10 PM, Miranda Gooding, Patricia Grimes, Kevin Hobin, Donald Martin, Maureen Troubetaris, Paul Guanci Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag : Led by Councilor Gooding Appointments: Public Hearings and Presentations: 7:05 PM to 7:20 PM Stormwater Management Plan 7:20 PM to 7:30 PM Toni Musanti-Tax Issues and Proposed Zoning Amendment 7:30 PM to 7:45 PM Homecoming Committee 7:45 PM to 7:50 PM Rosemary Maglio re sidewalk Acceptance of Minutes: Meeting of January 2, 2007 : Communications from His Honor the Mayor #13 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: I learned yesterday that soils investigation at Innocenti Park, which I contracted for several months ago with Alliance Environmental has revealed unacceptable levels of hazardous material beneath the surface of the field. As a result, we have immediately closed access to the field. Fortunately, it is little used in the winter. We have begun today engineering discussion on how to remedy the situation. One possible solution is to raise the elevation of the field three feet with clean fill and re-sod the field. I will have more to say about possible engineering solutions at a later time. Our consultant advises us that it is quite unlikely that anyone using the field over past years has come in contact with the waste material found below the surface. To cause a problem that material would actually have had to be ingested. During discussion this past summer with Mike Geisser of Alliance Environmental, I asked whether Beverly had any ongoing environmental concerns. He indicated we should test the soils beneath Innocenti Park. Back in the year 2000 as part of the Chase Street drainage project, contaminated soil was found and removed at the Margin Street pump station. At the time LSP (Licensed Site Practioner) Camp, Dresser and McKee, indicated that the City should test the soils on the adjacent property owned by the City. In 2001 the City authorized a series of test pits along the seawall between the park and the river. Hazardous waste was found, but at significant depths beneath the surface such that it raised no issues. In 2003 the LSP on behalf of the City wrote DEP suggesting that further testing be delayed until the entire seawall was to be repaired. As you know, we have not as yet proceeded with the seawall project. Testing shows that the hazardous material also extends beneath the McPherson Youth Center. The Center will be able to continue operation because much of the entire area is paved and any grass area can be immediately fenced off. It is my intention to pursue this matter vigorously. The recent grants obtained by the hard work of our Representative Mary Grant may well help us pay for much of our cost. 3 The plan for remediation of the site must be approved by DEP at each step and loss of the use of the field for some months is likely, but we will do our very best not to lose the entire season. I know how pressed we are for available fields. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Receive and Place on File #14 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: As you know the regulations of the Mass School Building Authority require that a School Building Committee be formulated for quote “The Eligible Applicant shall formulate a school building committee for the purpose of generally monitoring the application process and to advise the Eligible Applicant during the construction of an Approved Project.” The Council President has identified three councilors to serve on the advisory committee, namely Councilor Troubetaris, Councilor Flaherty and Councilor Grimes. The School Superintendent and School Committee Chair have identified the following persons to serve as well as themselves -- School Committee members Maria Decker and AnnMarie Cesa, High School Principal Carla Scuzzarella and High School Technical Director Judy Miller. In addition Finance Director John Dunn and Public Services Director Michael Collins will serve as well as Fred Hopps, a local teacher who is deeply involved in alternative energy and green school considerations. I will serve as chair of this committee which I expect will meet at least monthly. Lastly the members of the Planning and Construction Committee who are recommended for reappointment this evening under separate correspondence will also be members of the School Building Committee. By joining this group, members of the Planning and Construction Committee will be more fully informed on all aspects of the project. By way of review, this Committee is made up of the following members: Ray Bouchard, Chairman – Retired Engineer Maureen Hobin – Pharmacist and mother Cheryl Sydorko – School employee and mother Rod Maxner – Former Maintenance Director, Beverly Public Schools Tim Brennan – Former Inspector of Buildings Robert Griffin – Civil Engineer Dan Skolski – Architect It is anticipated that several subcommittees will be formed on subjects such as Alternative Energy Sources and Green School Design, Technology, Alternative Construction Materials, Site Considerations outside the building, e.g. parking, playing fields, possible shifts of the Hurd Stadium to the High School site. While this Committee is indeed large, it is advisory in nature and its broad based makeup should allow for thorough coverage of all aspects of the project. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Receive and Place on File #15 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 4 Dear Honorable Council: I hereby reappoint, subject to your review and recommendation, the following citizens to serve as members of the Planning and Construction Committee: Maureen Hobin Tim Brennan 6 Gardner Street 10 Hancock Street Term effective until December 31, 2007 Term effective until December 31, 2008 Cheryl Sydorko Robert Griffin 38 Cross Street 20 Walnut Avenue Term effective until December 31, 2008 Term effective until December 31, 2009 Rod Maxner Dan Skolski 3A Clifford Avenue 29 High Street Term effective until December 31, 2007 Ipswich, MA (He will be moving back to Beverly.) Raymond Bouchard Term effective until December 31, 2008 11 Elizabeth Avenue Term effective until December 31, 2009 Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Finance and Property #16 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: We have solved many flooding problems in our city. Tonight I put before you a request for an appropriation of $350,000 to conduct the detailed design of the North Beverly drainage project. For too long residents in Wards 3 and 5 have suffered flooded basements, yards and streets even in relatively modest storms. In December we met with more than 100 constituents from the affected neighborhood and reviewed the conceptual design. With your rapid action I believe we will be able to start construction later in this calendar year. The detailed design will take 120 days to complete. I hereby request an appropriation of Three Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($350,000) to account “North Beverly Drainage Project” from the Sewer Account.” Said sum of money to be expended under the direction of the Director of Engineering. Please schedule a Public Hearing at your first convenience. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Finance and Property #17 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: I hereby reappoint, subject to your review and recommendation, the following as members of the Parks and Recreation Commission: Deborah Ploszay 11 Beacon Street Jeffrey Rubin 5 36 Middlebury Lane Gary Lambert 9 Bass River Road Their terms to be effective until December 31, 2010. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Public Services #18 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: I hereby appoint, subject to your review and recommendation, the following to serve as Constables in the City of Beverly for the express purpose of serving Civil Process: Gary E. Modugno 16 Andover Road Beverly, MA 01915 James M. Cameron 10 Balcomb Street Salem, MA 01970 Their terms to be effective until January 31, 2010. Attached are their applications which have been approved by Police Chief, John Cassola. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Legal Affairs #19 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: I hereby reappoint, subject to your review and recommendation, the following to serve as members of the Beverly Library Board of Trustees: Anthony Kline 510 Hale Street Beverly, MA 01915 Kathleen McMahon 107 Hull Street Beverly, MA 01915 Their terms to be effective until January 31, 2010. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Public Services 6 #20 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: I hereby appoint, subject to your review and recommendation, Ms. Roseann Benson, 32 Washington Street, Beverly, MA 01915, to serve as a member of the Beverly Public Library Board of Trustees. She will replace Mrs. Helga Senko who has requested that she not be reappointed to this Board. Ms. Benson’s term will be effective until January 31, 2010. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Public Services #21 January 16, 2007 Honorable City Council City Hall Beverly, Ma 01915 Dear Honorable Council: I hereby reappoint, subject to your review and recommendation, the following to serve as members of the Planning Board: Richard Dinkin David Mack 93 Bridge Street 2 Eagle Lane Beverly, MA 01915 Beverly, MA 01915 Their terms to be effective until December 31, 2009. Very truly yours, William F. Scanlon, Jr., Mayor Refer to Legal Affairs Communications from other City Officers and Boards #22 January 10, 2007 Honorable City Council 191 Cabot St. Beverly, MA 01915 Dear Honorable Council, I hereby appoint Councilor at Large, Timothy Flaherty, Ward 1 Councilor, Maureen Troubetaris and Ward 6 Councilor, Patricia Grimes, to serve on Mayor William Scanlon's School Building Committee which will assist in over seeing the City of Beverly's High School rebuilding project. As President of the Council, I am requesting that the Council representatives to the committee report back to the full City Council by written communication after each meeting is held. Respectfully, Paul M. Guanci, City Council President Recommend approval of the Appointments 9-0 Vote 7 Communications, Applications and Petitions: #23 Request to waive ordinance Alcohol in a Public Building for an occasion to be held at the Beverly Farms Library on January, 30, 2007 Refer to Legal Affairs Reports from Committees: #06-264 07-5 The Committee on Finance and Property to whom as referred the matter of Acceptance of Cha. 157 of the Acts of 2005 relative to retirement have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Submit the accompanying order and recommend it adoption Ordered: That the City Council accept the provisions of Section 1 and 2 of Chapter 157 of the Acts of 2005 as per the request of the Beverly Retirement System. Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06-272 07-6 The Committee on Finance and Property to whom was referred the matter of required appropriation for FY08 PERAC (Retirement System) appropriation have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Receive and Place on File Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06-28007-7 The Committee on Finance and Property to whom was referred the matter of Communication relative to Joint Consolidation Committee have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Submit the accompanying order and recommend its adoption Ordered: That the City Council approve the enclosed order relative to the Joint Consolidation Committee. The Joint Consolidation Committee convened in April of this year and has since met seven times. Its members are Councilors Flaherty, Coughlin and Gooding, and School Committee Members Manzo and Decker. The Committee’s objective is to review and recommend the potential for consolidation of certain school and city departments, including Technology, Buildings and Grounds, and Finance. Kathy Griffin, the Budget Analyst for the City Council, has been assisting the Committee and has provided comparative information from other communities with consolidated departments, including Barnstable, Harvard, Reading, Framingham and Southbridge. To date, the Committee has met with representatives from the Town of Danvers and Town of Lynnfield to discuss how consolidation works in those communities. Within the city of Beverly, the Committee has met with department heads from the Technology and Public Services departments on the city side, and from Finance and Buildings and Grounds on the school side. The Committee expects that deliberations will continue through early 2007 and that a final report and recommendation as to potential consolidation will then be issued. In the meantime, the following interim steps are recommended for immediate action: 1. That the City Finance and School Business departments adopt the operating procedures recommended in the Memorandum prepared by Kathy Griffin entitled “Observations/Comments: Potential Consolidation of City/School Business and Finance Functions,” a copy of which is attached. 2. That the City Council and the School Committee agree to resume the organizational review of the City Finance and School Business departments by an independent consultant, which review was authorized and begun earlier this year. Such review shall include the finance, business, human resource and benefits functions of both departments. Further, the purpose of the organizational review should be to analyze whether consolidation of the departments would achieve any of the following objectives: 8 ?? cost savings; ?? elimination of redundancy; ?? more efficient delivery of services; and ?? improved operating procedures. Finally, the Committee recommends that the independent consultant should report to the Joint Consolidation Committee on the foregoing matters and make a recommendation as to whether consolidation of the departments should be pursued and, if so, how the department(s) should be organized. Order read once and adopted 8-1 vote Councilor Grimes voting against #16 The Committee on Finance and Property to whom was referred the matter of appropriation re No. Beverly Drainage Project have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Submit the accompanying order and recommend its adoption Ordered: That the City Council will hold a public hearing on Monday Feb. 5, 10107 at 7:05 pm relative to an appropriation in the amount of $350,000 from account Sewer Account to No. Beverly Drainage Project. First Passage: Jan. 16, 2007 Public Hearing Feb. 5, 2007 Final Passage: Feb. 5, 2007 Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #1 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of Ordinance Zoning have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Submit the accompanying order and recommend its adoption Ordered: That the City Council and the Planning Board will hold a Joint Public Hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2007 at 7:05 PM in Council Chambers, third floor, 191 Cabot Street, Beverly, MA relative to a Proposed Zoning Amendment to Section 29-23.E. entitled “Residential Reuse of Existing Public Buildings” Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 269 07-8 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of Appointment to the Commission on Disabilities Candace Pike and Kevin Gallant have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit; Recommend the Council approve the Appointments Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06-274 07-9 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of application Livery License NDARYD Transportation have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Recommend the License be Granted Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 275 07-10 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of application for Second Hand Junk Dealers License HAWC, 330 Rantoul Street have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows to wit: Recommend the License be Granted 9 Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #3 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of application for Lodging House License- Garden City Residences 490 Rantoul Street have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit; Recommend the License Be Granted Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #4 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of Application for Class II MVDL-Beverly Farms Motors have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Recommend the License be Granted Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #23 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of request to waive city Ordinance have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Submit the accompanying order and recommend its adoption Ordered: That the City Council waive the Ordinance, Alcohol in a Public Building, for an occasion at the Beverly Farms Library, on January 30, 2007 from 5:00 Pm to 8:00 PM. Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #260-06 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of communication relative to buildings up to 75’ tall have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Receive and Place on File Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #265-06 The Committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of proposed amendment relative to reuse of public buildings have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Receive and Place on File Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #21 The committee on Legal Affairs to whom was referred the matter of appointment to Planning Board of Richard Dinkiin and David Mack have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Recommend the approval of the appointments Order read once and adopted # 06 – 144 07-11 10 The Committee on Public Services to whom was referred the matter of Communication relative to meeting regarding Flood Issues have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Receive and Place on File Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #06 – 270 07-12 The Committee on Public Services to whom was referred the matter of Appointment Solid Waste Management Committee-Kate Pinkham have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Recommend the Council approve the Appointment Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 233 The Committee on the Whole to whom was referred the matter of naming of former Vitale site by School Children have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Refer to Finance and Property Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 260 The Committee on the Whole to whom was referred the matter of Zoning Changes (Rantoul St.) have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Refer to Legal Affairs Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 265 The Committee on the Whole to whom was referred the matter of Ordinance-Zoning Residential reuse of existing buildings have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Refer to Legal Affairs Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 273 The Committee on the Whole to whom was referred the matter of National Grid improvements to system have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Refer to Public Services Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote # 06 – 280 The Committee on the Whole to whom was referred the matter of Communication relative to consolidation of City and School Functions have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Refer to Finance and Property Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote #1 11 The Committee on the Whole to whom was referred the matter of Ordinance Zoning relative to Reuse of Public Buildings have considered said matter and beg leave to report as follows, to wit: Refer to Legal Affairs Order read once and adopted 9-0 Vote Unfinished Business: Resolutions: Motions and Orders: #24 By Councilor Burke: Ordered: That the City of Beverly post a complete list of delinquent taxpayers and the respective amounts owed on the City’s web site. Refer to Legal Affairs & Finance & Property #25 By Councilors Hobin & Flaherty: Ordered:; That City Council Ad-Hoc committees (by city council rules) report on a quarterly basis or as needed to the full Council. Recommend the Council approve the order 9-0 Vote CMC Meeting adjourned: 9:30 PM Frances A. Macdonald, City Clerk 12