[Rich, 02:42]
Session 11 -- the end is in sight

• Called to order at 20:03.
• Voted that when we adjourn we adjourn to 20 June at 20:00.
• Mr. Abbott offered a resolution that the Town endorse the result of the non-binding vote in favor of a constitutional amendment to have a non-partisan board do districting in Massachusetts.
• The Moderator said that only non-controversial resolutions may come before the meeting without a warrant article and that he felt this one was non-controversial enough.
• Mr. Daly said he could not hear it and had some questions about it.
• Ms. Harrington suggested postponing it until more copies could be made.
• The Moderator reversed field, decided it was too controversial after all, and 86ed it.
• Article 2 removed from table.
• Article 2 - Committee Reports
  • Town Manager's report on Fees and Charges received.
  • Mr. Sullivan said this was being provided per a vote of Town Meeting last year and that while it is missing some requested detail because said detail had never been requested before, it will have that detail in the future.
  • Tabled
• Article 47 - Capital Budgets
  • FinComm recommended a capital budget without the Park Circle station rebuild.
  • The CapPlanComm moved a substitute motion that was the same as FinComm's except for the addition of the rebuild.
  • The Moderator said that first only the Park Circle part of the capital budgets would be discussed and then the rest. He also explained how he planned to choreograph the opening of the discussion, designating the first four speakers he would recognize before going to the list.
  • Mr. Foskett presented the slide presentation he had handed out on Monday. Some key points were that the external engine shelter is tough to work in, living conditions are bad, Engine 3 is first on-site in Morningside for 91% of the critical life calls, Engine 3 is first on-site in East Arlington for 92% of critical life calls, that when Highland has to serve the "Park Polygon" it fails the 6 minute test 35% of the time, and when HQ has to serve the "Park Polygon" it fails the test 42% of the time. Because of all this, the CapPlanComm recommends spending the $2,300,000 to rebuild the Park Circle station.
  • Mr. Loreti asked for five additional minutes, receiving it on a voice vote after objections. He offered an amendment to spend the $2,300,000 on preparations for rebuilding Highland and HQ instead of Park Circle, saying that two fire stations are sufficient. He said Arlington is very high in terms of stations per square mile and that even with two stations, Arlington would still be in the top 10% and that density statistics show densities significantly less than Arlington's achieve the 90% in less than six minutes standard. Mr. Loreti also noted that fire losses are much less now than 80 years ago. He criticized the data in Mr. Foskett's presentation saying that much of the data was not for "true emergency" calls, noting that none of the Highland-to-Park Polygon runs were true emergencies. He Highland ambulance runs were left out and that no distinction was made between Basic Life Support (BLS) which is non-time-critical and Advanced Life Support (ALS) which is time critical. He said that because of the the OSHA 2-in/2-out rule, even if a Park Circle engine is first on the scene it only carried three people, so no one can go in until more equipment arrives. He said the CapPlanComm data is "deeply flawed" and invalid to base a decision on and that since the other stations also need to be renovated, they should be done first while a disinterested professional party helped the Town study if a third station is needed.
  • Mr. Tosti asked for ten additional minutes, receiving it on a voice vote after objections. He said the bonded cost of rebuild will start at $215,000 and will tail off to around $125,000 by the time the bonds are paid off and that FinComm did not think that was a good use of funds. He said FinComm believes two stations are sufficient and that it does not recommend reducing any positions. He said FinComm stood by the MMA study and also did its own peer community study and that many towns with significantly more land area use two stations. Mr. Tosti said he was also worried that rebuilding now would foreclose more strategic thinking, such as regionalized dispatch (noting that New York City only uses three dispatch centers for 8 million people), regionalized service, fire districts, etc. He noted that police are often the first responders and therefore we should consider training up officers to be EMTs. He urged that the money not be spent just because it's always been that way. He also noted the FinComm original vote was 10-5, followed by a later vote of 8-7 against reconsidering the original vote.
  • Fire Chief McEwen said he believes three stations are best, resulting in faster response times, which are important.
  • Mr. Sullivan said Arlington had the third highest housing density in the peer group and more severe topography. He also said ambulance runs were left out of the data because the data only records the first responder and the engines always beat the ambulances. He said it would be a mistake to close the Park Circle station.
  • Ms. Munsey said that keeping the Park Circle station open will protect homes and property in the community and noted that many people who have been opposed to the rebuild in the past had changed their minds. She said the firefighters are unanimous in believing it should stay open and she also feels that it should have been rebuilt years ago.
  • Mr. Ruderman said he supported the Loreti amendment and said we need to consider the conditions of today and not of the past when deciding where fire stations should be. He said both people for and against the rebuilt wanted to save lives, but disagreed on how. He noted that only 77 calls were for fires and said fire service siting, equipment needs, and deployment strategies need to be geared around demands, conditions, and technology of the future, not demands, conditions, and technology of the past.
  • Mr. Carrigan said the Town has always tried to be fair and that the rebuild would be fair to both the firefighters and to citizens, especially those in the Park Circle area. He said he has two children in the AFD and that they and all firefighters deserve a clean, safe place to live and work. He said most Town officials support the rebuild and that the MMA study is wrong because it contradicts them.
  • Mr. Dunn said he was against the rebuild because he was not satisfied that anyone knows how many stations there should be and where they should be sited. He said the data in the Foskett presentation does not tell if other locations would be better. He said virtually all variables affecting the number and siting of stations has changed since the stations were built and by rebuilding now we would lose our chance to think that out. He said the Foskett presentation was only the beginning of a study that needs to be done.
  • Mr. Belskis, noting he lives in an area which would be affected by the closing, said that municipalities close to our population density use three or four stations and that population density increase the risk of loss. He urged that the rebuild be supported.
  • Mr. Abbott said he was surprised by the lack of any contingency fund for a project being built on a certified hazmat site and that it will be very likely we will be asked to bond more money in the future because of this. He said the Winchester station just over the line could be a first responder to Morningside and that since the Highland station is almost as bad as the Park Circle station, it should be renovated first and therefore he supported the Loreti amendment.
  • Mr. Burke said that the Park Circle station was necessary, but that it (and the others) should be repaired instead of rebuilt. He strongly criticized override supporters and the Town's tendency to shirk proper maintenance, allowing buildings to fall into disrepair. He said a study on rebuild vs. replace is needed.
  • Mr. Kazarian said it was a tough decision but that ultimately it would not be a "big deal" for taxpayers to spend an extra $20/yr to keep the station open and that he would vote to keep it open.
  • Mr. Bernardin asked if Park Circle has any effect on ambulance reponse times. Mr. Sullivan said it had no direct effect, but closing it would affect response times of EMTs, since the engines beat the ambulances. Mr. Bernardin said it was a very tough decision, but also said he believed that if there was not already a station there, people would be against putting one there if it were proposed to put one there.
  • Mr. O'Neill said that he appreciated the response data and that it validated his belief that the Park Circle station is not strategically located and that he did not believe a station would go there if all three stations were being built from scratch. He said the NFPA 1710 standard is coming and that it will be a requirement to get DHS money. He said Park Circle should not be kept just because it is already there and that the reasons the Park Circle station was built no longer exist. He urged a review of the strategic locations of all stations and support for the FinComm motion.
  • Mr. Rosselli said a more realistic reponse time goal is three minutes since the fumes from burning modern materials can kill in that time. He said five minutes goes by very fast and that a station is needed in the Park Circle area. He said that Arlmont would be in "dire need" if crews had to go all the way out there from Highland and pointed out that mutual aid is becoming more difficult as all municipalities cut back. He noted some difficulties that had arisen over the years when an engine has been out of service and said that hometown firefighters would fight a fire in their town harder than out-of-towners. He urged support for the rebuild.
  • Mr. Jones said it was hard to argue against all the people in favor of the rebuild but that he did not feel the data justified the rebuild. He said the money should be spent on improving fire services and that he was against any staffing cuts. Mr. Jones also said there would be "no way" the rebuild cost would only be $2,300,000. He said he believed two stations were sufficient and that he supported the Loreti amendment. He said the statistics are skewed the because the dataset of time-critical fire runs is very small and that in the vast majority of the Town responses would be four to five minutes with or without Park Circle.
  • Mr. Jamieson and Mr. Lewiton received five additional minutes on a 115-21 vote. Mr. Lewiton said he had been against the rebuild until last week and now believes a station should be up there, though he believes a single-bay station would be fine. He noted that NFPA 1710 is a voluntary standard and that it is AFD practice to send a 2-person rescue along with the engine so that in fact the 2-in/2-out rule is quickly met. Mr. Jamieson went through their slide presentation. He said he supported the Park Circle rebuild but that if it did not get rebuilt, he recommended that Highland not be rebuilt where it is, but rather somewhere on Summer Street and therefore if Park Circle was not rebuilt, the HQ should be rebuilt first.
  • Mr. Carreiro moved the previous question on the Park Circle station discussion. Debate terminated.
  • The Moderator explained the order in which he would be taking the votes.
  • Loreti amendment defeated.
  • CapPlanComm substitute motion approved 106-53.
  • FinComm recommendation as substituted approved.
  • There were no questions on the rest of the capital budget, so the Moderator called for the rest of the votes.
  • Section 1 approved.
  • Section 2 approved unanimously.
  • Section 3 approved 127-30.
  • Section 4 approved unanimously.
  • Section 5 approved.
• Motion to adjourn approved.
• Adjourned to 20 June at 20:00.