Generally when I attend a Board of Selectmen meeting, I report back to you on all the big stuff they talk about – things like the Swap Shop and the search for a new fire chief. But there are a lot of smaller discussions and decisions that happen at the meetings too.
In this post I’ll step through the agenda from last week’s selectmen meeting and let you know what decisions were made, with the idea that sometimes the small decisions are just as interesting as the big ones.
Agenda item: Sign annual licenses
If you’re a business in town that sells food, liquor, or various other items, your license to do so must be approved every year. Selectmen reviewed the list of licenses for businesses like Tomasso, Southborough House of Pizza, Mauro’s Cafe, and Stony Brook Market, and renewed them all for another year. No licenses were revoked.
Agenda item: DPW – Revised Cemetery Rules and Regulations
Selectmen voted to increase notification times and overtime fees at the Rural Cemetery. You can read more in this post.
Agenda item: Public comment
Former Selectwoman Bonnie Phaneuf attended the meeting and asked about what’s next with the Swap Shop discussion. Town Administrator Jean Kitchen said she’s looking into setting up a public form. Read more in this post.
Agenda item: Report from Chairman of the Board of Selectmen Bill Boland
None this week
Agenda item: Report from Town Administrator Jean Kitchen
Kitchen and Finance Director Brian Ballantine have been meeting with departments on budgets and asking them for more detail on how a 1% cut would impact their programs and services. They’ve also been meeting informally with the K-8 schools. Kitchen said the meetings are about sharing information on revenues and expenditures “so we understand each other’s budgets and each other’s concerns.”
The Madison Place 40B received go-ahead from the state, but the town is protesting the decision because Mass Housing allowed developer Bob Moss to submit supplemental information without the town reviewing it first. Madison Place is a proposed 140-unit apartment building on Route 9 east near Crystal Pond Road.
Kitchen said the wheels of the canon on the Town Common are in rough shape and a resident has offered to repair them. The selectmen gave their approval (no formal vote required).
Consent agenda
For those of you not familiar with the concept, the consent agenda contains items that are intended to be voted on as a group without discussion. That’s not to say they can’t be discussed, just that a discussion isn’t necessarily anticipated. This week selectmen unanimously approved all consent agenda items without discussion. Here’s the list of approved items:
- Minutes from November 22, 2011
- Merit increase for Library Assistant Barbara Spiri
- Donations to be allocated to the Library
- PILOT donation in the amount of $18,00 from Harvard
- Appoint Phillip Silva to the Green Technology and Recycling Committee
- Request by Max Performance to use town roads for two road races (May and September)
