[Rich, 02:01]
Now That's the TM We All Know and Love

Here are my notes for Session 2. And I would be remiss if I did not thank Ms. Mahon for volunteering to "court report" the meeting and thus allow us to proceed. Without that gesture, we would have had to go home. I'm sure it had to be tiring.

• Called to order at 20:00.
• When the meeting is adjourned, it is adjourned to 20:00 on 3 May.
• Ms. Phelps noted that the stenographer did not show up, and asked if we could legally meet. Mr. Moderator initially said yes, but after a review of by-law reversed himself and said the meeting could not legally proceed. At this point, Ms. Mahon (a court reporter by trade) saved us all from having to go home by volunteering to substitute for the missing stenographer.
• Mr. Moderator announced that TMMs could have their handouts posted on Live From Arlington by emailing them to tm@livefromarlington.com.
• Town Counsel Maher said the Town had won a trial in a civil rights suit against a police officer and said that we are not sued often because we have good employees. He then began some long, involved joke about Mr. Moderator, Mr. Tosti, himself, a measurer of wood and bark, a field driver, a cow, a rabbi, a nun, and a bar, and then bailed out of it in mid-stream.
• Article 2 - Reports of Committees:
  • Mr. Shea read the report of the Human Rights Commission. He said the HRC has existed for ten years and that it has investigated complaints, done educational programs, condemned hate crimes, and is an important Town resource.
  • The report of the Zoning Bylaw Review Study Committee was received. Mr. Leone said the Committee has two vacancies.
  • A minority report of the Affordable Housing Task Force was received.
  • Article 2 tabled.
• Article 4 removed from the table.
• Article 4 - Assistant Moderator:
  • Mr. Moderator said the candidates would have five minutes each to speak, after which the ballots would be collected and counted.
  • Mr. Caccavaro said he had been thinking about the post since last year and that he had the time and energy to take it on.
  • Mr. Leone said he is a life-long resident of the Town and has been a TMM for 10 years, with a 100% attendance record. He said knows a lot of how town meeting and town government works and that he deals with the Town a lot in his legal practice.
  • Mr. McCabe said he had been a TMM for almost 40 years, the moderator for 12 years, a selectmen for 3 years, on FinComm for 6 years, and on the Council on Aging (which he helped found) for 38 years. He said he had has a broad range of knowledge and experience. He said that as moderator he lead the effort to replace Robert's Rules of Order with Town Meeting Time and began the practice of using a list to track speakers.
  • The results:
    • Leone - 122
    • McCabe - 34
    • Caccavaro - 34
    • Carreiro - 10 write-ins
    • unintelligible - 3
    • and $0.40 placed in a ballot box.
• Article 17 - Vote Amendment/Parmenter School:
  • Both the BoS and the ARB assumed the other would make the main motion, so neither report contained a main motion.
  • Mr. Tsoi of the ARB moved that the text of the warrant article be adopted and explained that it was a necessary housekeeping article since in 1993, 1998, and 2003 the Town forgot to renew the "surplus" status of the Parmenter school. The article is to make up for that and to renew through 2008. It is needed because the leases the Town has with tenants there depend on the school being surplus.
  • ARB recommendation approved unanimously.
• Article 18 - Environmental and Energy Efficiency:
  • ARB recommended a vote of no action as set forth in its report.
  • Mr. Chaput said the ARB asked Sustainable Arlington to come back next year with a proposed standard better suited to the Town.
  • ARB reccommendation approved.
• Article 19 - Bylaw Amendment/Snow Removal-Residences:
  • BoS recommended a vote as set forth in its report, to raise the fine from $10 to $25.
  • Ms. Mahon said Articles 19-22 came out of the BoS Snow&Ice Committee and recognizes that concerns residents have expressed about the need for better enforcement of the bylaw.
  • Mr. Trembly asked if a citation has ever been issued (to much laughter). Police Chief Ryan said yes. Mr. Trembly asked if the recipients cared. Chief Ryan said citations are issued after requests for voluntary compliance are snubbed. Mr. Trembly asked how many citations have been issued. Chief Ryan replied that the last time he checked, around 12 had been. Mr. Trembly said that some of the things in the by-law (such as removing "all snow and ice") are impossible to comply with and so it is not fair to raise the fine. He also said that raising the fine will increase the stakes between neighbors who are battling and using the by-law as a weapon.
  • Mr. Berkowitz said that both education and enforcement will be needed to change behaviors and wondered if the Police Department could properly enforce the by-law given its staffing levels. Chief Ryan said he had been directed by the Town Manager to "get creative" to find ways to step up enforcement. He said the APD has issued press releases and reminders about the by-law and will do again next year. Mr. Berkowitz asked about possibly putting reminders in tax bills. Ms. Mahon said the Town will post the snow policy in the Advocate this year and that the BoS would like to hear people's suggestions to make people more aware of the by-law.
  • Mr. Scott Smith said that he had attended the Snow&Ice meetings and supported the article, and that most people and businesses do a good job complying. He said the article is aimed at getting the attention of those few who do not.
  • Mr. Taber moved the previous question - debate terminated.
  • BoS recommendation approved.
• Mr. Sandrelli improperly used a point of information to attempt to continue debate, asking about plows pushing the snow back. Mr. Moderator shot him down after a bit.
• Article 20 - Bylaw Amendment/Snow Removal-Apartments/Condominiums:
  • BoS recommended a vote as set forth in its report, to raise the fine from $10 to $25.
  • Mr. Doherty asked why it was being proposed to only raise the fine for apartments/condos to $25, when it was proposed to be raised for businesses to $50, given that apartments/condos and businesses both tend to abut busily travelled sidewalks. Mr. Moderator interjected that perhaps the BoS should re-visit the entire snow removal section of the by-laws and propose a unified by-law. Mr. Doherty moved to amend the BoS vote to change the fine to $50 instead of to $25.
  • Mr. Carreiro, on a point of order, asked if the amendment was within the scope of the article, which specifically mentioned $25. Mr. Moderator ruled the amendment within the scope, saying that $50 was not sufficiently different than $25.
  • Mr. Sandrelli said that the Town used to plow sidewalks and that residents thus did not have to worry about snowy sidewalks. He complained that the sidewalk clearing burden was placed on the taxpayers. He asked what residents are supposed to do when street plows push the snow back onto your sidewalk.
  • Mr. O'Conor said that the current by-law specifies three hours to remove the snow, not the eight hours the "this is how the bylaw will now read" text on the BoS report has. Mr. Moderator said that is not a problem, because the operative part of the vote is only addressing the fine, so that regardless of what the rest of the text says, the time will remain at three hours.
  • Mr. Trembly said it is unfair to fine an apartment/condo owner $50 to remove the snow within three hours because it is not possible to do so.
  • Ms. Fiore asked that plowers be instructed to not block sidewalks between homes.
  • Mr. Bernardin said he was in favor of the amendment to raise the fine to $50, as Chief Ryan had made it clear people are given a chance to voluntarily comply before they are fined.
  • Ms. Phelps asked if a two-family house was a residence or an apartment. Mr. Moderator said the terms are defined in the Zoning By-Law and that an apartment is defined as having four or more units. Ms. Phelps asked if a condoized two-family is a residence or a condo. Mr. Moderator said they are residences and again questioned the wisdom of having multiple pieces of the snow removal by-law. Ms. Phelps said she believed the fine should be $25 to match that in Article 19.
  • Ms. Russian asked if there is any exemption for the elderly/disabled. Mr. Abbott, sans microphone, said the by-law provides for the BoS to promulgate regulations to exempt people who would be at a hardship. Ms. Mahon said the BoS tries not to punish people for doing the right thing and uses its discretion in such matters.
  • Mr. Gilligan moved the previous question - debate terminated.
  • Doherty amendment approved.
  • BoS recommendation as amended approved
• Article 21 - Bylaw Amendments/Snow Removal-Business:
  • BoS recommended a vote as set forth in its report, to raise the fine from $25 to $50.
  • Mr. Jones moved the previous question - debate terminated.
  • BoS recommendation approved.
• Article 22 - Bylaw Amendment/Public Ways:
  • BoS recommended a vote as set forth in its report, to prevent anyone but Town employees from dumping snow, dirt, etc. on roads and sidewalks.
  • Mr. Scott Smith said this was more important than the prior three and that it also grew out of citizen input to the Snow&Ice Committee. He said that right now nothing prevents people from dumping snow on sidewalks and streets.
  • Mr. Leonard moved to amend the recommended vote to insert "leaves" as one of the forbidden things to dump.
  • Mr. Fiore said he was in favor of the recommended vote, having had problems with a neighbor plowing him in and finding out that the behavior was legal.
  • Mr. Carabello moved the previous question. Before the vote could be taken, Mr. Judd improperly used a point of order to try to continue debate, saying the recommended vote was flawed since taken literally it would prevent one from putting down salt and sand. The motion on the previous question was defeated, allowing debate to continue.
  • Mr. Trembly, per the relevant by-law disclosed that as a snow plower, he has a financial interest in this article. He asked why Town employees are exempted from the dumping ban. Mr. Maher said that DPW workers have to move large amounts of materials around in the performance of their jobs. He also said the APD should be given credit for using common sense and discretion when enforcing the by-law. Mr. Trembly said that Arlington driveways are generally small and tight and that it is impossible to not leave some snow on the street when plowing the driveway. He said the recommendation is too broad and should be more narrowly targeted at those who offend.
  • Mr. Gilligan moved the previous question - debate terminated.
  • Leonard amendment approved.
  • BoS recommendation as amended approved.
• Article 23 - Bylaw Amendment/Repairs to Private Ways:
  • BoS recommended a vote as set forth in its report, to add thincoat and drainage work to the list of temporary repairs the Town can make to private ways, to increase the required "downpayment" by abutters from 1/3 of the project cost to 2/3 of the cost, and to decrease the payback time from 20 years to 5 years. The BoS said it would also ask the Assessors to give it data on the amount of road betterments funds collected, so that future Town Meetings could be asked to appropriate that out of free cash and into the revolving fund.
  • Mr. Hurd said the purpose is to revitalize the temporary repairs program by getting more money into the repairs revolving fund.
  • Ms. Harrington moved to amend the BoS recommendation by changing the 2/3 downpayment requirement back to 1/3. She said members of her precinct were in favor of her doing that and that it will make it more affordable for people to use the program which will result in more private ways being repaired.
  • Mr. Streitfeld said Ms. Harrington beat him to the punch. He said that the appropriations from free cash into the revolving fund are much more important than the size of the downpayments, so they should be left at 1/3.
  • Mr. Rehrig asked why we do not create an enterprise fund to take the repayments over time instead of letting them go into the general fund. Mr. Maher we already have a revolving fund for this. The problem is that since the "installment" payments are collected persuant to a tax lien, they are required by state statute to go into the general fund.
  • DPW Director Sanchez said that repair projects cost a significant amount of money and that if downpayments are only 1/3, there will not be a enough money in the revolving fund for the program to work for the first five years. He said the DPW worked hard on the numbers and determined that 2/3 would make things work.
  • Mr. Gilligan said he supported the BoS recommendation and asked the meeting to keep in mind that the costs are not imposed by the Town but are requested by private way abutters. He said they get a good deal because the Town is already doing the repair work elsewhere and that using the 2/3 downpayment will save everyone else in town money because the float being financed by the Town will be smaller.
  • Mr. Hurd said that the revolving fund funds the repair projects, but that "installment" repayments have to go into the general fund. He said in the future the amount of these repayments will be tracked and the meeting will be asked to appropriate them into the revolving fund.
  • Mr. Ellis asked if the downpayments and the installment payments go into the general fund. Mr. Moderator replied that the down payments go into the revolving fund and the installment payments go into the general fund. Mr. Ellis asked if there was any sense of how the proposed change would impact the number of people using the program. Mr. Sanchez said that there are 24 miles of private ways in Town and that very few people use the program because there is no money in the revolving fund. Mr. Ellis said that many people are bitter that requests to fix plow damage go unanswered. He asked how decisions are made about private way repair and if rebuilding the revolving fund would affect that. Mr. Sanchez said that the program only covers temporary repairs, not rebuilds. Mr. Ellis asked where temporary repair funds come from. Mr. Ellis said they come from the revolving fund.
  • Mr. Carrigan asked how much it costs to repair a street. Mr. Sanchez said between $100 and $300 per foot. Mr. Carrigan asked what a typical project cost is. Mr. Sanchez said between $10,000 and $50,000. Mr. Carrigan said it would be outrageous to double the size of the downpayment.
  • Mr. Fischer jokingly asked if the people on Cutter Mill Road could put in a tollbooth to make up for the wear and tear on it due to cut-throughs. He said the downpayment should be left at 1/3, since a 1000ft project that might have 10 abutters could cost $100,000 and this would mean the downpayment would rise from $33,000 to $66,000. Mr. Hurd said that in his experience, a typical per-home cost for a chipseal repair was $800, for a thincoat report $1,500-$1,800, and for a 2-inch repave $2,500-$3,000. So for a chipseal the downpayment would rise from around $260 to around $520. Mr. Fischer said he was now in favor of 2/3.
  • Mr. Streitfeld said that if you put enough seed money in the revolving fund the 1/3 vs. 2/3 question would be irrelevant. [at this point confusion broke out, with Mr. Streitfeld apparently confused about how the money moved and other people being confused about what Mr. Streitfeld was asking, and it eventually got resolved with another repetition from Mr. Maher and others that the downpayment goes into the revolving fund, the installment payment goes into the general fund, that the state law only allows the Town to make temporary repairs, and that the BoS believes that the downpayment has to be 2/3 for the program to work.]
  • Mr. Leonard said he was against the recommended vote because it was too confusing. He asked if more people would use the program if asphalt was used instead of chipseal and said it is unfair for the Town to decide what type of repair to make. Mr. Sanchez corrected him saying the Town does not impose a method of repair but rather the particular method is decided upon by the landowners based on how much money they wish to spend. Mr. Leonard asked if the landowners have the right to choose the repair method. Mr. Sanchez said they do.
  • Mr. Judd said he had several problems with the recommended vote. He asked why the Town had not been appropriating funds into the revolving fund all along, and that the revolving fund can be built up without changing the 1/3 to 2/3. He said that he also did not like that 2/3 of abutters can bind the remaining 1/3 to pay for repairs whether the dissenters like it or not and that this could pose a financial strain on people. Mr. Maher said that he (Maher) had not previously thought of replenishing the revolving fund by tracking the installment repayments and appropriating them into the revolving fund.
  • Mr. McCabe said the program is voluntary and urged people to vote for the 2/3 requirement so there would be a program. He said one has to live on a private way to truly appreciate the program. He said he did not believe the $10,000 or $100,000 numbers mentioned earlier and does not know what his private way association would do without the program.
  • Mr. Carreiro moved the previous question - debate terminated.
  • Harrison amendment defeated.
  • BoS recommendation approved.
• Motion to adjourn approved.
• Adjourned at 22:58 to 3 May at 20:00.