e e e e e you're live thank you welcome to the select board meeting of March 12th um I call the meeting to order this meeting of the Hopkin and select board is being held both in person and remotely using the video conference platform Zoom um I anticipate everybody participating will be in the meeting room tonight uh Mary Joe may be joining us all members participating in the meeting are present in the meeting room the public has the option of attending in person here at town hall or via zoom using the link posted in this meeting's agenda this meeting is being recorded and our first order of business is um to go into executive session if somebody wanted to make the motion um I move I move to go into executive session pursuant to pursuant to Mass General Law chapter 38 I think we have to read the whole thing for yeah sorry um I moved on Executive session pursuant to Mass General Law chapter 38 section 21A purpose 3 to consider strategy with respect to negotiations with the fire and dispatch unions pursuant to M General lot chapter 30A section 21A purpose 6 to consider the purchase s lease sale or value of real estate in relation to properties in the vicinity of town hall and South Street 10 head Hayden roow the kalala property zero Spring Street the mcdonal property zero Hill Street the Carrol property zero Cedar Street the Isador property zero Wood Street sl5 Mechanic Street the ler property and Parcels owned by umam off Chestnut street because an open meeting may have a detri detrimental effect excuse me on the negotiating position of the board also to approve executive session minutes to allow Norman kamalu and Elane Lazarus to POs to participate in the executive session and to reconvene an open session at the conclusion of of executive session second all those in favor say I I I any opposed any extensions okay so we all will be in the meeting room tonight is not able to attend roll call vote oh thank you roll call vote Mr nasaa yes yes M Kramer yes my apologies e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e all right um thank you welcome back our first order of business is the Pledge of Allegiance the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all okay our first order of business is public for where residents are invited to share their ideas opinions or ask questions regarding town government um and we um hold folks to a two-minute time limit is there anybody here to speak tonight there's one hand on Zoom we can go to the zoom we have a hand raised on Zoom if you want someone else to start all right who's who do we have on Zoom oh hi right Peter Madame chair good evening members of the select board um all fire department vehicles are outfitted with GPS the data recorded shows where all vehicles are at any given time and this makes a lot of sense and it helps the department manage vehicles in cases of multiple simultaneous emergencies I have confirmed with the fire chief um sorry looks like you're done talking so we'll lower your hand oh yeah sorry uh I have I have confirmed with the fire chief uh that these systems are operational similarly all Hopkinson police cars are outfitted with GPS through the endar computer I have now confirmed through the town's attorney Brian Bertram that none of these systems are operational the police department has no way of knowing where any of their Cruisers are at any time these Cruisers are town-owned property and not being able to properly account for these the position of these vehicles is a risk to Public Safety will the select board commit to looking into this issue uh is that your statement there Peter that is my statement yeah sorry Peter Thomas 25 Pawn Street I should have started with that that's okay um so we will we'll put it on the agenda thank you Muriel hi Steve I'm well how are you I doing wonderful [Music] St so still the main points January 30th I filed criminal complaints against the chief of Miss written Bush and um the sixth I brought it to your attention 27th I brought it to your attention I found a log entry that said papers dropped off in the proper time frame for me dropping them off I have a Foye for the policy of a complaint against an officer nothing was followed still waiting to hear something the town has 30 days to have to have at least let me know what's going on that's a problem the other stuff is the selectboard needs to finish the public review of the chief you you cut it off in the middle we need to finish that and um have the rest of the select board at least looked at all the stuff that they appeared to not have any clue of when Mrs Kramer brought to the attention of the people of the town that the the work the chief hasn't completed is I mean we should be we should be suspending or give him his retirement I don't really care but he's no longer functional as a chief in this town he shouldn't be in there making decisions he's going to hurt people the worst thing the worst thing in the world for a good cop is a bad cop bad cops get good cops hurt same thing bad firefighters get good fire fight his hurt you in any trade in anything he's not functional in his job he was he was probably great in a different role but he's not good as a chief so then the other thing was and I respect Ry I mean Ray I respect um Pat O'Brien immensely as a as a patrolman and a a really good guy but any tier one security person is going to have 5 minutes with the chief and know that he's not the guy sorry he is not the guy that's running the security for a to one safety event he's he's he's a figurehead absolutely 2 minutes it does it hurt him absolutely if he's not allowed there but he's he's he is not needed to run the marathon in the town of hopkington I'm sorry it's being run by people with a little bit more experience okay thank you thank you and I'll turn this into you too I did email today and it's on me that I didn't do it before I did email today for a status on your complaint but I should have done it sooner Tim Timothy boen 41 Pine Crest Village at 11:30 a.m. last Friday my wife and I sat down with our friend the Survivor and retired HPD deputy chief John Porter's child rape case after initial reporting and his indictment on three charges it took some time but L last year she started to resume as normal of a life as possible given the circumstances working raising her kids having some semblance of a life but then her identity was released at the direction of Chief Bennett prior to the louder Mill hearing the fear she lives with since then is debilitating to the point she can't work excuse me excuse me hello Jes fear she will lose her job and is terrified to simply visit a very close family member who lies dying not far from us tonight you guys can't even look at me as I'm talking jeez my wife and I counseled her to be patient to take heart that the first step would be tonight with the chief's review imagine our Collective shock later that same day when we read that the review was paused per your own statement to the media the da only asked the board not to conduct its own investigation until their investigation was completed performance review not mentioned at all why was the decision to suspend Chief Bennett's review not debated in a public meeting who made an seconded the motion to suspend the chief's review how did each individual board member vote I think you at least owe us and especially the Survivor that I naively thought the board must have been given poor legal or PR advice at the Lou mail hearing at the performance review two weeks ago with the exception of the chair the board was just a n now looking back at the share magnitude of the board's in transition over the past year here I wonder whether this is malicious the firing of Tim Brennan alone makes you all look like spoiled brats angry that this whole Affair is taking the spotlight off your cherished Centennial Marathon celebration you're 2 minutes Tim I don't care so you hide behind any excuse you can find not to have to face the truth M lerer don't pretend you know nothing let me help in the review ask the chief why he returned Porter's Firearms to a relative who lived literally one house away from him and he's under indictment for a violent crime Miss R redbush don't throw the chief softball questions about pizza parties senior centers and other unicorns and rainbows ask if he knows who now has possessions of these Firearms knowing John Porter's volatile nature and that his family member could give him access to Firearms the Survivor legitimately fears for life as well as her children's she lives in a virtual prison our legal system the chief and this board continues to build Brick by Brick by Brick when will this board at least start being accountable as you promised her Winston Churchill once were wrote United wishes and goodwi cannot overcome brute facts truth is incontrovertible Panic May resent it ignor ignorance May deride it malice May distort it but there it is and here we are still waiting the for the Moment of Truth while this board sits here passively or just ignoring us doing absolutely nothing day after day after day thank you anybody else here for public comment well I'm sorry what going identifi as my wife I had two statements but my readers I'm able to read it right now so that would be turned all right thank you okay um our um our next order of business is the consent agenda we will consider the minutes of February 20th a gift from uh Jim Bartlett to the fire department of $500 to be used towards training Marathon fund requests there are three of them $3,520 from the friends of Hopkinton for hopkington family day of which $1,110 will go towards Portable Restrooms and $2,410 will go towards Inflatables with insurance $2,883 from the marathon committee of which $13.34 will be used for 150 custom custom race bibs $1,142 will be used for 150 kids participant t-shirts $77.50 will be used for 150 lanyards and personalized metals and $845 will be used for the 10x10 aluminum uh with weight tents that's for the um the kids race uh celebrating Marathon then $1,240 from the class of 20 24 parents to pay for the five detail officers for the senior Car Parade we will consider the parade perit application for the triathlon at the Hopkinson State Park the select board is considering a parade permit from Tim Richmond on behalf of Max performance for the triathlon May 19th and September 8th the race would start and end at hopkington State Park uh parade permit for the 100 yard dash we just heard about the request for the bibs the t-shirts and Sundries um the DAR Thief ferer Wallace on behalf of the marathon committee um for for a 100 yard dash to be held April 13th with a rain date of April 14th starting at 11: um road closures are requested uh at the Boston Marathon start line on Main Street to Ash Street at Park Street and the race would start at the marathon start line and end at Ash Street at the Town common um we are that that actually the request is April 4 13 15 um at 1 p.m. uh and then the parade permanent application Amendment for the hopkington high school car parade the select board will consider approving an updated date for the class of 2024 senior Car Parade previously approv approved to be held on the second the new proposed date and time are Saturday June 1st at 11: a.m. anybody want to pull anything off the consent agenda I'll entertain a motion to approve the ENT agenda so moved so second all those in favor I any opposed any exensions all right we now have um the request for the parade permit application for the 2024 Boston Marathon um and we have no we have the marathon committee come on Dy you want to come forward too good evening thank you for having me first and foremost my name is Lauren prochan and I am the chief of race operations and production uh for the Boston Athletic Association but um for to this evening my baa Boston Marathon hat will be worn um before I start I want to thank our hopkington stakeholders on their support and contri contributions so far to ensure that the hopkington 100th experience is one to be remembered starting with our select board members hopkington police fire and Emergency Services Public Works the hopkington school department the hopkington parks department and of course the H I'm honored to present formally on behalf of the Boston Athletic Association our request for a parade permit uh this evening I'm pleased to note that the traditional course has remained the same and unchanged for over a century the schedule date for the 24 marathon is Monday April 15th and as is customary the athletes will assemble at hopkington high and middle schools before proceeding to the iconic start on Main Street the road closures and security checkpoints will start to be set up at 6:00 a.m. beginning with end that will start the beginning road closures the start sequence will remain the same as in 2023 with the professional athletes beginning at 902 and the final way for concluding at 11:15 once the road is clear hopkington PD will give us the all clear signal in which we will start closing U I'm sorry reopening the roads and starting to clean up in earnest as we approach the m m monumentous rather 100th year Milestone of hopton's role as the um Rend starting point of the Boston Marathon the baa in partnership with the hopkington marathon committee is crafting plant to commemorate this historic occasion we envision enriching The Narrative leading up to the event immersing participants and Spectators alike in the rich history and significance of the Boston Marathon start year in addition we plan to introduce an ARA of captivating programming and esteemed dignitaries to officiate the starting of the Boston Marathon um just to further our Grandeur of the starting ceremonies the week and weekend as you just heard leading up to the race will be infused with viant festivities and engaging activities on hopkington common fostering a sense of anticipation and community support and furthermore we intend to refine the design of the starter platform strategically incorporating the new elements that act uh accentuate hopkington Splendor and pay tribute to the town's profound admirations for its military personnel together these initiatives the enduring Legacy of hopkington Cal role of the marathon while creating an unforgettable experience for all involved from an operational standpoint the enhancements that we are implementing primarily focus on qu expanding the public viewing area and and making sure that all um public viewing areas have improved accessibility and convenience to those who want to watch the start collaborating with the Hopkinson parks department to facilitate the presence of vendors on the common on Boston Marathon morning and then sustaining our ongoing commitment to ensuring that all facets of this start comply with Ada standards thereby prioritizing an equitable viewing experience and opportunities for all Staters the baa continues to prioritize providing an inclusive and accessible experience for all participants and attendees alike I'm of course happy to answer any questions um and available anytime by email but thank well for allowing me my two minutes thank you very much D we welcome you as well and really appreciate you and all your uh committee's work to make this a collaborative and successful Endeavor um we welcome your thoughts too I think everybody's just uh La pretty much summed it up everybody's been working really well together all the Departments um there's also the Star Team captains U along with the marathon committee all the Departments SL board uh different businesses in town and everything so it's really coming together spectacular event com 15 maybe no rain maybe no rain do we um and uh and then it'll be fun to see the little the little guys out there running a couple days ahead do you want to do you want to plug that a little bit we just wanted to do something that uh recognizes the anniversary of the 100 stting ha content and we figured uh we' incorporate some of the little kids um ages uh kindergarten through fth sixth grade 5 to 12 and uh I think it's going to be quite nice because uh you'll be able to run over the start line and up onto Ash Street and presented a t-shirt a race b and a metal finishing metal so so that sounds awfully sweet yeah future Runners um how do kids do can is it just open and people can just show up or how do people actually we're going to be plugging it um you know uh very soon in the next couple of days we needed to get approval I don't want to push you it's just that I have a grandson that just might love this online registration okay taking the first 100 and we're not leaving anyone out okay awesome okay anybody have any questions about the marathon per permit I do y go ahead a great idea of the race I think the race is a really good idea I think Mary and Joe and I both heard a lot from the people who lived downtown last year that um it was difficult to access the common or difficult to know which way they could go to access the common like they'd go one way and somebody would turn them around but it was just it was not as easy to access as it's been in previous years have you worked to improve that for this year so not only have we changed the Pathways in order to reach the common but we've also better educated our Marshals those are the people that stand those checkpoints to better facilitate people getting into the the hopkington vi area so in particular on the common I think that's the the feedback that we heard that it was difficult to access the common on the um Korean Church side of the street nothing had changed fundamentally that side so we did better uh we worked to EMB better the um the access to the Comon itself great so just to be clear I don't people will be able to access the comment absolutely so they were last year I don't I just think we needed to do some better education both on how people can access the space but also for our personal people were told they couldn't actually which we which is not the right message yeah they were told they yeah so I mean you know it it it went exactly as as uh you might expect so people weren't allowed to go absolutely no the the common itself has enough capacity for over a thousand people standing on the Common working with d closely and making sure that space was open and available and again I think it's more of an educational versus a structural change that we needed to make on our part to allow people to access that easily we will it is a secured area so we will be checking people's bags and anything that they bring in um to make sure that it's a safe Zone U but it's not a credentialed or secured access other than the starting platform that's on the triangle of course that is um restricted access that the common is open to the public viewing great um so when additional vendors I wondered about John and ba great so when you send out the letter about the road closures to the people who live in the area will you mention the how to get to the common piece yeah absolutely we have done that in the past that letter goes out to all the surrounding World stre a map here Joe any questions no I'm in good I'm looking forward to it Go just a really enthusiastic thank you to everybody in town that makes this uh possible for everybody to enjoy into the baa for um bringing this wonderful event to this town and it's uh it's an amazing opportunity to celebrate Hopkinton as part of this process this year the 100th start in hopkington so we're really excited we want to help participate and support um all of the events um and I'm going to try and rally a couple Runners for your little 100 yard dash um and uh anyway I will entertain we must have a script for the motion um chair I move to approve the parade permit for the 128th Boston Marathon to be held on April 15th as submitted I do want to add that it's the 100 years in hopkington there you go is there a second second all those in favor please say I any opposed any extensions thank you so much everybody than you so much all the work you do over the weekend I know all right we have a public hearing at 7 so we're ahead of that um maybe we can move forward uh can't really do that nobody here for the fire station um was the fire chief going to come on the fire station is he here oh he's here thank you I didn't see him can we do can we move the fire station discussion ahead Chief okay all right the select board and town manager will consider the fire chief and town Engineers request for additional funding for the following projects the request for the Main Street HVAC upgrade project and the request for the Woodville fire station take us away by Through The Chair by way of introduction um we are respectfully requesting that the board consider scheduling a special town meeting without within the annual town meeting here's why we have specific specifically three projects that have come to our attention um after the warrant closed projects that require the town's immediate attention uh by way of seeing if town meeting will consider additional funding for those projects uh on the agenda I identified two however this morning I also learned that there's a third project they've come to us in different forms the first two projects that I listed on the agenda previously have been considered by town meeting received funding for town meeting we went out to bid and the bids have come in higher than the amounts that we bued town meeting the third project unfortunately is coming us through um a very unfortunate incident where one of our Highway trucks caught fire we've been working with the insurance the truck will cost approximately $122,000 the insurance is only pay in the town $74,000 four 7474 thank okay so again three projects that in some way town meeting is said should move forward however we don't have sufficient funding for for those projects okay so we would need to open special time meeting we it yes tonight or the next tonight oh to do we have that on the agenda it's not in the Motions it's not clear from this that we are asking to it's not I don't think it is on the agenda yeah oh do I have my understanding is we we still have time the board still has time to open that warrant it could be next we it could be next week yes okay is it on the M it's not on the okay all right so but we uh request for additional funds but the there's not a motion to a motion for the town a special town meeting right not a motion but I the topic is there but it can wait till next week if it can wait till next week we should just do that yes it can wait till next week okay for some reason I'm not saying that the topic for a special time meeting I I understand they're requesting extra money but the mechanis isn't isn't listed so we should wait we should wait okay we can hear about it we can definitely hear about it start with the Main Street Fire Station this project actually started underneath Chief slamon uh Chief Miller worked on it and now me and Dave are trying to pick up on it this Project's actually going out to bid two times um it's going back to town meeting twice it's going out to bid sorry twice you're right 21 and 23 sure um the history of the funding on the project uh there was a first barwing back in uh it was 20 17 for $525,000 to upgr the hbac system the very tail end of the selection of Designer Final design uh project was getting ready to go out bid and that's when Co um per it's ugly head in 2019 through 2021 um the beginning of 2021 is when it went out to bid for the first time in a can at about $570,000 adding in all the other Dei design fees was short about $200,000 so we went back to to meeting in 2022 um and requested $252,000 um anticipating escalation um design contingencies construction contingencies would add up to about $50,000 um so we requested an additional 50 over the 200 we was short um March of last year the project went out to bid it important to note the last time it bid was 2021 out to rebid again in 2023 it was the same bid documents it was the same project that went out to bid same contractors bid on the project um except in 2023 came in at about 1.1 million compared to the 570,000 in 20 2021 so um it it really caught Everybody by surprise how how a project could come in two years later almost double um so being being what it was we tried to identify funding um after that bid an additional Grant was identified for $300,000 during that time um today we just the town manager got approval from the state that that Grant is going to be extended through 2025 so we still have those funds available um in the request for an additional $35,000 to cover that project which is currently about 95% to go back out to bid it should be going back out to bid this month so we'll have new bids before town meeting but we're anticipated uh a 15% escalation on top of last year's bid which which comes out to about $150,000 so um with the contingencies there's no additional design fees the design fees all the contract and it's it's looking for about $300,000 cover what we anticipate might be a shortfall bids that we receive in about probably probably four weeks four or five weeks and this is the uh to replace the rooftop units on the station um some of the reasons this is so expensive they actually have to do some structural work the size of the new units um do not fit in the footprint so they actually have to do some steel work in welding um also a bit a bit heavier than the old units we actually have to beef up the wooden structure I think it's on some of the original sections of the building um it is a a complete upgrade of all the HVAC systems the vents um not the duct work inside the building but the transitions between inside and outside units uh as well as a complete upgrade of the control system uh currently it's uh still a manual system um it'll be the last building that we need to upgrade the energy management system for the building it's a an expensive item but it allows us to control the unit remotely so we can call in and check um after hours which is especially important for fire and police stations open 365 three shift which isn't always great for my department it helps tremendously when when we get a call and we can just log in can I say excuse me for one second do we have to open a public hearing okay can I have a motion to open the public hearing the public hearing is there a second a second all those in favor signify by saying I I any opposed any abstentions okay so we'll come we'll we just had to open the public hearing we will address the public hearing after you're finished yeah there was a link in our document but um when I clicked it it just went to an empty folder are there other material like is there a slide presentation or no we had intended to post some of the documents from prior discussions including town meeting approvals Grant application as well as some of the information we've received from uh the engineers that have been F this process have us later yes I'll follow up with manager's office in backi okay so a project that we hoped would be about $525,000 is going to be just over a million and this is to um finish um the appropriation do we have funds identified a source of funds source of funds could potentially be free cash okay the other project is our what vill fire station to we just put that out the bid the other day uh Dave just got the results and that came in um over bidden overbed this is the same thing just trying to do with the shell of the building uh the roof the windows and the doors we currently are not Staffing this station but we do have the two brand new fire trucks there we're just trying to keep the weather out and the okay um and the total amount we don't know exactly yeah right now um we we know because the the bids just came in maybe two weeks ago so we have valid bids um in bid pricing we have not asked have to have asked the contractor to extend their bid prices yet um so we we do know the the shortfall is about $330,000 um for that project uh the original borrowing was back in 2022 which was $400,000 um that project went out to bid last June some reason there was Zero responses we received no general contractor bids we received no subcontract so the process um kind of produced the scope um discussions with our engineer they thought maybe because it was was so much involved in a little project there was a roof electrical upgrades generator upgrade there was site work Title 5 septic system there were Windows there was Overhead Doors there was repointing and there was the roof so it was all over the place for a little small site um in the May 202 um in June yeah 20 23 um included all that stuff so we rebid as as the chief said with just kind of an envelope project to tighten up our building which is roof repointing and um windows and that that project came in unexpectedly higher at 535,000 the budget that was available was about 300 um they already spent design fees um the estimated to complete is about $600,000 I included a a construction contingency which there wasn't one included um just comparing the bid price for the available budget um the shortfall comes out to about $330,000 and what that'll do is will tighten up that building so that it can be used to store whatever it'll be a still be a condition space um half of it is is a condition space and the other half of fun do you have any questions just trying to understand it says 350 or 420 um is that the 350 plus the 70 is the 420 I I pred the numbers um an hour before the meeting here and I I had made a mistake in my original calculation I had included a um the funds that had already been spent for design uh in the request as instead of subtracting them so I I apologize for skipping over that okay so what is the total we're going to ask for um for Woodville it would be 330 330 the bbac main station was 305 okay all right and uh okay and I have a truck and I a truck too did you say yeah the yeah the truck is uh it's a it's a highway truck uh lost to a fire and that's we have been working with the insurance the actual replacement cost is higher than the cash FL value okay so will be three articles at time meeting potentially yes special and What's the total on the truck um the the cash value is 74,000 that will come from the insurance and the estimate that we've received for the truck is 122,000 okay so it's 48 y put at 50 okay um and and uh potential source of funds for all of them free cash free cash okay and mayor Joe do you have any questions this boggles my mind that they could go from okay the figures we have here $ 1,88 in such a short period of time it just it just seems kind of outrageous actually but uh that's it that's a truck I'm sorry we lost the truck we have terrible luck with trucks bursting to like this has to stop um Amy do you have any questions I was just going to one of them it says the bid is only valid for three weeks but you'll ask them to extend at till town meeting or uh yes Woodville bids um depending on the outcome of we can ask them to extend bids um and they they can or they might not so um one of those so it might be more than um there's always a possibility if we have to rebid um there'll be some additional funds but I I I know some of the operating budget stuff can cover rebid costs and we now have Marine doing um officer we're doing a lot more stuff inhouse so the costs to go up for advertising a B is in house okay so they would still they would still have to wait till special town meeting anyway right so we still have to get an extension I think I'm I'm happy to to ask you know I think you get a sense that this board supports this going forward so they hopefully they extending tonight would be you know tomorrow we'll ask the contractors um to extend their bids to till Tom meeting May May which isn't that far right if we went to check references and it still take about a month to get an actual award out even if we went to award okay I mean they see it seems necessary so I just unfortunate it cost more but I appreciate this trying to get these two projects done years any questions NOP um just encourage you to work with uh Town manager and Elaine to tighten this up so so that um you know we can open the town meeting and special town meeting rather uh next week and we have a clear timeline on bids and all that stuff great thank you thank you all right do we have um the Verizon rep I'm guessing online I don't there's someone with their hands raised okay could we liveen up our thank you hello can you hear me okay yes we can hear you okay great hi um my name is Don Bonner with Verizon um and um calling about uh not calling well I guess I am technically calling um about the uh poll t94 and a half uh which is on the there it's the south side of East Street um right near the common um this from my understanding is the final poll uh as uh being requested for the the Mass DOT upgrades along Main Street project and um the poll uh was already put in place as part of that project um in order to keep the um keep the project on schedule um presumably so it could be happened before the marathon um and um it's uh but I am here to because we we're not supposed to put in the polls without asking permission first but because this is a different type of project uh I need to do due diligence and and come back to you folks and and make sure that we get the approval that we should have gotten um at that it was approved as part of the mass mass do project but we also need to make sure we get our approvals for liability reasons so and we need to show the insurance companies that we are following the process or should have been following the process um so okay so the poll is already in and we're getting the formalized permission to put the poll in yeah that is true yes okay I I feel like we should just go ahead and take the vote seem the poll is already in does anybody have any questions though um I just want to ask Dave this is all part of um the the uh Main Street corter project it's in compliance with it it's uh it's what we wanted correct yes yes thank you anybody else have any questions will this allow this will allow you to remove the other one across the street is that right or this is an addition these are um new polls on the south outside of there's a picture of the one by the cemetery there's a little red X but there's a few poles that are on the North side that are coming out okay and when will the Old Poles come out yeah when um the overhead wires on the old poles are all transferred to the new poles and when the underground the new Underground structure has been energized tested and approved by ever source and all the other utilities um to function so there'll be a period of time when throughout the court or the project there'll be the overhead system which will be 100% in operation as well as the underground system will be 100% operation and then they can start transferring overhead connections to the underground system what is our best estimate for that underground fully operating thing are we asking every Mr voner oh not not the right guy has to move their wires too though with ever we ask that he try to get these underground Transformers over processed all right the Hopkins um any other questions uh no not for me thinking there wasn't a butter here is anybody here to ask a question all right I'll entertain that motion I move to Grant a pole location for the newly uh new jointly owned pole number t945 e 942 on the Southeast side of Main Street approximately 44 ft South westly from the central line of Ray Street and approximately 40 ft south of the ex existing pole t94 st e 94 second all those in favor I I any opposed any extensions okay thank you thank you thank you all right so now we have be smart for kids I think is that right thank you for being with us tonight by the way I want to say reading Theory materials to think is be smart yeah for everybody for everybody not just kids I'm glad you're looking at the kids but you know okay good evening everyone thank you to the members of the select board for allowing us this opportunity to introduce you to a simple proposal that we know will help reduce preventable G violence in schools and in our local communities in light of this topic I want to let everyone know that we're going to be talking about some sensitive issues my name is Carrie Connors and with me tonight are Nicole Simpson and car gr we are hopkington residents and volunteers with the B smart program of every town for gun safety which is a Grassroots organization that works to prevent gun violence communities across the country every town for gun safety is a nonpartisan organization we are supportive of responsible gun owners in keeping Firearms out of the hands of dangerous or unauthorized people and focused on Public Safety our sincere wish is to raise awareness and action in local communities for evidence-based strategies that work specifically tonight for measures on behalf of children and teen safety what we'll present is an important but often overlooked piece of the puzzle for helping reduce gun violence are we using yeah would it be possible to um display our slides oh they're up there here we go oh they are great we just can't see them now you can thank you there you go time delay can we go to the next slide thank you in order to accomplish this goal we have been introducing ourselves and the importance of Secure Storage over the past couple of years to organizations and community members in hopkington through presentations and tabling opportunities we have received very positive feedback and support from the police department the Board of Health and the Department of Youth and Family Services as well as residents we have had a chance to speak to we have also started conversations with school leadership next slide please so why are we trying to spread this message we have all been horrified too many times by school shootings and threats we recall Rob Elementary School in Uvaldi Texas Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland Florida and Sandy Hook elementary school in Connecticut just to name a few schools across the country have had to deal with ticktock threats of school gun violence and threats have even been reported here in Massachusetts in Riv walam and Lawrence for example and students in Brockton Charlestown and Everett were arrested for bringing Firearms to school Massachusetts is not immune to gun violence in the face of threats schools did the right thing by carefully monitoring them keeping parents informed of their credibility and heightening security when necessary however what is often omitted in school Communications to parents is a proactive message the critical necessity of families to securely store any Firearms they may own tonight we will be asking for your support when we present the message to the hopkington school committee and ask them to pass a Secure Storage notification resolution however we want to make sure the message about the importance of Secure Storage is also shared with community members who do not have school age children I know that guns are an emotional issue um and we all come from different backgrounds many of us are parents or grandparents or other kinds of caregivers some of us are gun owners and some of us are not some of us may even begun violent survivors whatever our backgrounds we surely can agree on these three things first we all want kids to grow up happy and healthy second we each have the right to make responsible decisions about how to protect our homes families and communities including whether or not to have a gun in our home and third if we can prevent even one child's gun death or injury it's our responsibility to do so I'm now going to hand it over to Nicole who's going to share some relevant statistics and if you can advance I think two slides I think we missed one here back one thank you there is considerable data that underscores the fact that secure firearm storage saves lives to save time we have provided you with a handout that summarizes the risk of unsecure Firearms current Massachusetts Secure Storage laws and what we can do to address the ongoing issue of gun violence for kids and PS I just want to point out several key statistics that emphasize the urgency of spreading the word about Secure Storage Firearms are now the leading cause of death for American children the Secret Service found that up to 76% of School shooters under the age of 18 obtain the gun from their home or the homes of family members or friends over 80% of children who die by firearm suicide access the gun from their own home or that of a family member every year nearly 350 children under 18 unintentionally shoot themselves or someone else next slide as you may know suicide rates have increased significantly since 2007 for a number of reasons tragically this is even this is true even locally Studies have shown that reducing unsupervised unauthorized access by youth to Firearms can significantly reduce the risk next slide please from all the data the key takeaway is when Firearms are not securely stored in homes and vehicles of family relatives and friends we risk the increase of Youth suicides unintentional shootings school shootings and potentially some homicides next slide please gun violence is a complex issue with many causes and there is no one solution to reducing it however there are many evidence-based Solutions raising public awareness about the importance of secure firearm storage is one of those Solutions Secure Storage practices are promoted by the American Academy of Pediatrics the National Shooting Sports Foundation National PTA and many other organizations they and they are codified in our Massachusetts state laws and most recently in January of this year new executive actions to promote Secure Storage of firearms were announced and shared directly with school leaders throughout the country regardless of these executive actions and our current state laws spreading the word and continued reminders are an effective way to ensure ongoing compliance and now Carly Grant will talk about what we can do as a community next slide thank you in the next few slides we are going to talk about how School administrators as well as local boards and Community organizations can get involved in proactively reducing gun violence in their communities next slide please reducing gun violence begins in the home and in the local community everyone has a role to play including you as our select board members and school leadership who have access to parents and caregivers in the community next slide please there is a relevant report published in August of 2022 that among other things highlights the importance of raising awareness about and encouraging secure firearm storage practices Massachusetts has enacted strict safe storage laws including a section about child access prevention however National Data shows that one in three gun owners in states with child access prevention laws are not aware of their State's law so it is equally important to raise public awareness about these laws and the Public's legal responsibility to follow them the report mentions the B smart program which we will touch on in the next slide next slide please so be smart is an educational program of every town for gun safety endorsed by the national ETA it highlights the importance of gun ownership that is responsible and its goal is to reduce child gun deaths through education the program promotes five easy-to-remember behaviors to help reduce tragedies which occur when unsupervised children and teens gain access to unsecured Firearms it involves both gun owners and non-gun owners so Smart's an acronym where s is for secure guns and homes and vehicles M for model responsible behavior around guns a for ask about whether guns are secured in others homes R for recognize the role of firearms and suicides and T is for tell your peers to be smart the bottom line is that the responsibility for keeping our kids safe lies with adults not children next slide please schools in Massachusetts have taken some actions to increase safety however something simple is missing schools need to proactively raise awareness about the risks of unsecured firearm storage this is why we need your support not only in spreading this important message but also in our efforts as a community to work toward creating our own resolution with the schools nationally resolutions have been passed in at least 105 school districts in in 21 states in the near future we are hoping to present to the Hopkinton school committee to ask that hopkington public schools oh sorry next slide please to ask that Hopkinton public schools adopt a Secure Storage notification resolution that would include B smart programming for adults we are hoping for your support and the support of the community in this endeavor next slide please once a resolution has passed schools can Implement uh the resolution through Direct Communications with parents and caregivers such as additions to the school handbook newsletters and social media or through holding events like school safety fairs however other Town organizations like the police department the Board of Health and Youth and Family Services can also help to raise awareness for example Hopkinton Youth and Family Services can join us in presenting on Su suicide awareness and prevention or Hopkinton Police Department can assist us in talking to the community about Massachusetts Secure Storage laws next slide please other Town bodies such as Town Council or select boards can get involved as well recently in Medford Massachusetts the Town Council resolved to place B smart materials in government buildings have law enforcement disseminate safe storage information when citizens come in for a gun license or when renewing their license and request the help of the board of help uh Health in working with law enforcement to disseminate Secure Storage information next slide please if you're interested we have examples of what some surrounding Massachusetts towns have already done to implement this the Secure Storage resolution this slide displays some of what Framingham the Framingham school system has done since passing their resolution next slide please in closing I'd like to highlight that the American Academy for Pediatrics has concluded that the absence of guns in homes is the most effective deterrent to pre to prevent suicide homicide and other firearm related incidents in children and teens but if there are guns in the home the AAP states that storing guns unloaded and locked with ammunition kept in a separate place place can best mitigate the risk of child firearm injury we as individuals and as schools can prevent the tragedies which occur when unsupervised unauthorized children and teens gain access to unsecured Firearms schools should add their important voice to other community Advocates by proactively educating parents and caregivers about how secure firearm storage can save lives thank you very much for your attention today we hope that we can be a resource for Hopkinton and the school district and take the very important step of normalizing the conversation around safe gun storage and making a positive impact in the community thank you all so much for bringing this forward and for doing the work that you're doing and uh socializing it around town it's really important work really appreciate it you want to go first sure what can we do to help we were hoping you would ask that um so I think presenting in front of you was sort of three full one was to kind of introduce you to this program and to anyone who's listening um second is to gain your support when we continue our our goal to get in front of um the school committee and present to them and pass a resolution and third is to maybe um come up with some ideas on you know what what can you do around town to sort of help us um could it be something like what Medford did where um we could put materials in government buildings or ask law enforcement to um hand out the information when they are doing gun licenses um yeah it's all so so practical and it's just basic common sense right it makes absolute sense um especially license at the time of applying for a license um because I think it is baffling that a lot of people and I've been I've been a member um of every town for a long time and I still didn't even know what the exact Massachusetts safe storage laws were you know what I mean it's not something unless you look for it that you just kind of automatically know so also I think yeah a lot of people just aren't they'll say oh well we already have laws but like we were saying I mean just because you have laws in place doesn't mean people either know them or even follow follow them um and just like simple reminders can go a really long way yeah Amy um I think it's it's a really great idea there's a lot of Huns in town we have a lot of open space and it's really important that people are storing their firearms um safely and according to the law so I'm very supportive of this I I guess do you need we should do probably a joint resolution with the schools is that what most towns do every so go ahead yeah I mean I think people towns have done this all differently I would say uh correct me if I'm wrong the majority of towns have done it through the school um School Board um some towns have done it through the select board or the Town Council but certainly doing one jointly I think would be even better Inc that would be a wonderful approach and actually believe Carol traugh actually suggested that we have a big meeting with this the school board and the select board at one point that was sort of an idea it was just sort of hard to get that together organized um when do you go before the school we haven't gotten that far yet we actually need to touch base with uh them again and and figure that there's often a lot of big issues especially last year that we were dealing with that we didn't quite um get to that but yeah I mean we're we're we're flexible but at the same time we don't want to wait too long so from our end since we can't control what the school decides to do maybe we could just ask our own Department to to let us know what they thought they could do if you know if Youth and Family Services could um pass out literature or we could have it at town hall or you know the fire and police have different open houses that where they could have information out I think too so I think it would be helpful to know what we could do on the town side and then the school can decide what they might be able to do on the town School side yeah I agree when I I read up there and I saw that it said we could put your materials and some things out and I thought right away of the lobby down here at the town at the town hall there's a table down there and I think if we all agree we should we should let you put your literature on that table for people coming in and out of the Town Hall um it would be fantastic um so I like all of the I'm looking at Medford the Medford one I like all of those resolutions um I think that we could we could we could support them and then the agencies involved we could support them and communicate that to the school certainly or when you speak to them um and I'd be open to other things other avenues as well does that sound like a good start so that Med medford's is placing B smart materials in government buildings um asking law enforcement to disseminate Secure Storage information when citizens come in for a gun license or when renewing their license um and requesting the help of the Board of Health in working with law enforcement to disseminate Secure Storage information so I don't think that I would want it I don't want to limit it but I would think that that would be a good start if people felt comfortable asking departments I think I would add at our big open houses and we have um 101 we have I think there's a healthare and there's a fire station open house so any other we're happy to table at those places too yeah yeah would be there and answer question I think that that makes a lot of sense to to be there there wouldn't be any reason why you couldn't be there right isn't that open to all already participated in the health yeah and that was successful and not only were we there providing information but the police department provided us with some gun locks that we were able to distribute and we handed out a couple of those nice nice yeah I think one thing we want to make sure that we do is that you know that it's not just service we want to pass a resolution yeah the town um and we want it to not just be like okay let's sign here and then move on and not do anything about it I mean the hope is that this is a continuous thing that you know every town makes it easy to come you know coming up with ideas that sort of don't cost money don't involve more work from people like teachers um so there's there's a lot of really practical things we just want to make sure that it's something that you know is ongoing yeah yeah do you uh so I'm just asking do you want to take a vote on a resolution or do you want to draft one and then vote on it or I mean we didn't come prepared with our own resolution but right what again I think this is a a great presentation um worthwhile initiative I think we will need more time to review the resolution M we also have um template resolutions sample resolutions that other towns have used so if that would be helpful to you we can send them um and then I don't know how it works but we could come back if we need to do yeah to try I mean I guess you can't answer that question but as far is doing something with the schools and so I think that this board would support the schools participation in a resolution I can't imagine that there'd be any any friction so I think it's just a matter of putting um the pieces in place we can't we can't promise right we can't promise that but I I think that you have a lot of support here um and whatever they were willing to support I think we would support as well probably and then you already have the support of the police department y right so I like that's the one that kind of you know um stopped me was you know asking them to do a task but if they're already supportive they're already supporting your mission I don't think that that would be an imposition and so um it probably makes sense to socialize it to all Town departments right they were supportive when we spoke to them and most of what we would be asking is aligned with what they're already doing just providing that extra information at the time of yeah gun licensing and renewal renewal only happens every six years I believe so that's a big gap in time it is it is so providing that information at those relevant times plus having it available I might just one tiny piece of one suggestion I might draft your resolution right and that gives people something to react to um and it might ease the process so I know that we would certainly entertain supporting it yeah that's great a great suggestion and if you could share the draft from other towns with the town manager's office um so we you know great have a template thank you so much this is really wonderful where do I get a button everything thank you for giving us the time I know you're thank you thank you all right uh next order of business is hiring process updates um the lieutenant and the deputy chief and the town manager um so I think we all saw in our email that um the chief has provided an update on the deputy chief I don't know who Chief Stevens is who is Chief Stevens in our email he's the consultant that's working with the CH he is the consultant that's working so he is a past Chief apparently that now does this Consulting work okay um all right so um so he um we have a timeline we had um the the uh contract was executed for the deputy Chief's um search on March 2nd um we now have gotten uh confirmation that we we have an updated job description back to HR um and um the consultant is prepared to kick off so let me just look at the schedule here so um Chief Stevens who's the consultant hopes to post the position on Wednesday this Wednesday and then yeah oh yes tomorrow good Lord um so I'd like it I'd like to know that that happened if that's POS possible um if Kristen could just let me does Kristen post it or does it Chie does this m Mr Stevens Chief Stevens it has to be us that post it the consultant will post they'll give us a copy we'll also share it with our Network okay great and if you could just make sure you send it to the board that that would be wonderful um and then they um they anticipate an 11 week schedule so that um I think that we will be tracking that pretty carefully the posting uh they recommend the posting is up for 30 days they'll review resumés and send out a questionnaire and allow about a week for um responses to come in then interviews preliminary interviews by the vendor I would I would imagine that's the the um the high rank committee not just the vendor is that right for for the interviews deputy chief for the deputy chief yes they we did identify a possible screening committee Y and we have also reached out to the chief in ntic y um to see if he would participate uh yes clearly what what happens is the the consultant may do the preliminary screening and then forward a recommendation to the screening committee who will then review and confirm who is going to be interviewed and after that process who moves over to the assessment center Y and who moves over to the second yep yeah so the process will mirror the one we did for the fire chief correct okay so um so those preliminary interviews would be by uh the screening committee not just the vendor um and then there's a recommendation for um the candidates that would get invited to participate at the assessment center which is is specially designed to screen and and uh and uh test candidates it's also I guess um a nice opportunity also for candidates to get to practice doing that as well so then um once the assessment center takes place there will be a scoring report provided to the screening committee um and they will um they will recommend the final candidates for the select board to interview right okay all right so does anybody have any questions on the process no no all right um and then the update for the lieutenant promotion um was uh the the position was posted on February 27th it closed on March 11th today um so interviews will be conducted over the next he says here next few weeks I hope it'll be sooner I hope it'll be the next week or two I would think um and uh and then uh the chief will present candidates I imagine at least two candidates um for the board to consider for promotion anybody have any questions on that no okay so um he anticipates completing this process between April 16th hopefully we can do it um quicker actually if all the candidates are in they're um the you know the applications are in he'll be able to do the interviews in the next couple of weeks and we can we can address it and then for the sergeant he has selected a vender and the promotional exam was posted on February 27th the postings will close March 29th the exam will occur on March 31st and I'm sorry thank you May 31st and those candidates who receive a passing score of 70 or above will be given an interview and we'll have uh go through the assessment process for consideration um for promotion again hopefully Pro uh putting forward a couple of candidates for the select board to interview as a final interview and select so um that's the update there do we have an update on the um Town manager posting yes we do um we we did consult with three entities that could work with the community and identifying its next town manager uh our Focus was on uh pricing timeline advertising as well as the initial consultations that will OCC between the select board and the Consulting entity um whether they were open to holding uh and facilitating Community Forum uh as well as what thoughts they may have with regard to staff participation we asked specifically if their process would include some survey of the department heads and key Town officials and then um also if the code provided uh would cover additional expenses we had discussions regarding the role of the screening committee and the depth of the background checks um received three again as I said um responses one from MRI another from Community Paradigm and then the last was from Randy Frank Consulting the pricing was more or less the same uh ranging from 13,500 to 15,000 though the Randy Frank Consulting identified additional expenses uh up to 7,500 and all the three entities have done extensive executive sessiones um we were looking at entities that have done 75 plus um and and all of them have um based on the review of the criteria that I listed um Community Paradigm who are familiar with the town um um would be the ideal Consulting Group for this paradig they did the fire chief they did the they just recently worked did they propose a timeline yeah timelines um um MRI was 12 weeks um Community Paradigm was 16 and then different Consulting was 17 so y same range again big Community Paradigm for for for me is more familiar with the community uh and they can get the ground running on this assignment questions I'm good no I I think that sounds fine I know you've been our time manager for 15 years we want to be really careful and do a thoughtful process so um I think that sounds like a a good choice MH any questions Mary Joe no no appreciate that I had a very good experience I think we had a very good experience working with Community Paradigm in the fire chief search so um I think that that's great um and important so lots of big important hirings going on yes all right thank you um okay um the town manager um report okay um Dave is still here we'll start with the Main Street Corridor project things good the docent is coming up but [Music] this is yours coming up is not coming up I have Michelle are you looking for Michelle um okay thank you it's okay yeah um on the Main Street Corridor project I included the update from Michelle as well as Dave very very detailed in terms of meetings that have occurred key focus of discussion is what happens after the M after the Boston Marathon event yep um also I've I've been doing my uh my my my my work my own background work on what really is taking place regarding Transformers oh okay clearly the issue is industrywide okay and there are many many reasons that are being offered ranging from climate change uh to uh increased demand uh as as well as uh our limited the The Limited number of companies that actually produce the materials that are required for Transformers um specifically for example when it comes to Steel that is used there's only one company that does that uh there's been an attempt to look at an alternative steel that could be used in Transformers that alternative is also manufactured by one company so clearly the lead time that that that is been discussed is still two years in my next life I'm coming back as a soul Source company yeah um good progress on the pasas filtration project um before you leave the Main Street quarter do you want to mention Michelle's email this morning because that was helpful about the signal yes um we had received several questions uh regarding um two aspects of the intersectional signal system that were not working well uh and we did receive an explanation that um we the the the contractors are coming in to make the necessary repairs I thought I thought she said they were in today actually yeah the email indicated today again as I said and they were able to diagnose the problem so yes that's first St yeah I I can read the email I think I'm yeah she said um Amaro subcontractor dangle is on site working today on the second light issues at the 135 85 intersection the left hand Green Arrow was not activating because the camera had tilted and was not detecting that lane of traffic northbound on 85 left on to 135 West there was also a delay between Cycles because the bike lane camera was malfunctioning it had been assigned even though the lights for the bike lane are not yet in place this will also be corrected today that's excellent yeah amazing and then the one other thing that's in the report but just for the public um a lot of towns apparently are having the issue with the peeling paint on the posts this same manufacturer has done them in a lot of towns and M do is um working to find a solution that works in one of the other towns before they replicate the solution for us whether it's repainting or replacing we don't know but anyway we're not the only town and they want to get the fix right it sounds like before they try to fix ours right okay that makes sense as I say p project is progressing well hopefully it will be commissioned in May as was projected um MW we had our meeting with the DCR team it was a very good meeting uh they've invited us to formally submit a letter to the commission with our request uh specifically they also wanted to know um if we had looked at other alternative locations as well as if the town request was to proceed um what how will we compensate the land that will be coming to the town um by law we have to offer three times the size of what the town would receive from DCR however that's a very lengthy process uh they were not promising that this was moving forward but I think the good thing is they've now asked the community to formally submit a letter to the commissioner and they did indicate to us what would make a successful request okay yeah and who is submitting that request um the consultant is drafting the letter the internal Town staff will review it and the town manager will submit it um I also included the the Staffing report um I offered the the details regarding who is living the town or how many people coming in as well as broke it down by Department uh and also provided the standard ratios for um that I used in recruitment I think that was really helpful and appreciate you the complete picture yeah thank you and then finally we are launching the fy2 5 participatory budget process um as was reported during the discussion of the comprehensive budget we're signing $100,000 on capital projects that are provided uh was suggested by the community um the town will fund the winning capital projects through free cash that's the funding source um therefore as was reported last year the idea is that the exercise should not um add to the tax impact um we will issue the rules as early as um two days from today uh the closing date for receiving proposals will be March 29th and then April 2nd um Town staff and the town manager will announce the so the the rules will be posted no later no longer than two weeks from today in two days two days two days thank you okay that makes better sense okay um and as we did last year um Town staff will be responsible uh to work alongside the proponents in presenting the projects at town meeting uh and following town meeting approval Town staff will implement the funded projects great so if anybody has a small project of something some idea around town that they should is their chance to submit it y I really like that participatory budget approach it's really wonderful would Eagle Scout projects fall under this yes cool again we cool Yes yes again we're looking for projects that um um have a larger footprint in terms of impact to the community and also um the life span of the project should be greater than 5 years and so yeah it it Le got projects to to out one of the projects that we're doing this year um I think was proposed by a high school student uh installing an EV charging station however Dave is indicating that there may be some challenges getting that potentially realized on schooled property um the other was um exercise stations on Center Trail I believe we've been working with Peter ly on that issue MH yeah great okay and then finally um this is an issue that was added to the agenda on Friday um I think we of liaison report here ex yeah so I had a um on last Thursday I had a meeting with uh the chairs of uh Charles Trail committee and the TCM TR coordinat management um it was a very productive meeting and um tcmc was able to provide um their uh thoughts and ideas on improving the charge and improving the process um however the upper Charles Trails committee um although we had authorized them previously to convene and come up with an idea ideas uh they hadn't taken advantage of that and um so what we were able to get from from the upper child's Trails committee was was somewhat limited and so with that I would uh like to reauthorize the upper trials Trails committee to to meet so uh they can so they can meet and um review the committee's charge and prepare a report for the select board um including suggestions for improvement with that I move to authorize the Charles Charles committee to convene meetings to review the committee's charge and prepare report for the select report including suggestions for improvement I think that's fine I thought we'd already voted to do that but we did to redo it they didn't have they didn't it was it was limited in time it was limited I didn't recall that okay yeah yeah so are do you have any questions are you fine with it no I'm fine with it all right so uh is there a second to the motion second all those in favor say I I any opposed any extensions okay all right and then we will have the um full discussion when or is it TB so um so I think I think uh we wanted to in the meeting that we had um I think we wanted have a follow-up meeting after the up Charles Trails committee could meet up and and provide some input and then come if possible come up with a joint plan um if not come up with alternative plans that we could bring to the selp for everybody to review um and that's kind of the idea okay and do we have a Target when we're going to get together um like is it like three weeks or um I'm seeing no here um we don't have a Target we don't have a Target but we're we want to move it we want to move it forward okay so um we have to let the so they got the post the meeting they have to meet come up with ideas and then and then come back so I think there's going to be a bit of a process and then you'll have uh you'll have a posted meeting of the two to work out the plan or what's the well I think the upper Charles is going to come up with their ideas yep we're going to I'm going to have meet again with the chairs yep if we can come up with a joint plan we'll we'll bring that otherwise we bring two two plans to the select board and okay and it's going to be up to the whole board it's not just me it's up to the whole board to come up with what the final is going to be and we can either pick one if it's two idea or we can come up with our own and like I have some ideas and feedback as well so where should I send that to you or should I send it for when we're going to meet jointly or um I would love to have that feedback and I can share it is that okay with an open meeting law for me share ideas with their fund or send it to the town man Town manager okay thank you all right and I think we want to get this right so I don't think we going hry people need time to meet yeah yeah all right so uh board members ideas to the town manager for that all right um okay thank you um did we have um a date I don't think shadel's going to be here next week so I don't think we can put his forward um I was just looking at Future agenda items let's do liaison I don't I think we're there I was thinking he was back last week but now I'm not positive I'm not I'm not sure either Mary Joe well I mean I've been in communication with the marathon committee and and some of the baa for the marathon coming up but really nothing to report I mean just we're just business going forward as it should be right now Amy um I just wanted to not my own lay is unrolled but um I just wanted to bring up the DPW um so there've been some comments online about um the trees taken down at the Woodville Cemetery which it looks awful right now but it was voted at town meeting to repair the roads and the trees are just um they the tree roots are what's causing the pathways to crumble and damaging some of the tombstone so it did have to be done but the DPW has a new Facebook page um they explained all about that answer questions I just want people to look out for the DPW Facebook page we've also been communicating about the water issues people been reporting today I see all the signs around town about the flushing which is great for communication but um their Facebook page is group is go to tips about that sort of thing too so just to raise awareness on that that's awesome that's all um well I had the upper sh thing yeah yeah the only other thing I wanted to add is um the month of Ramadan started yesterday and um yeah day two today and we're all kind of uh so there's there's an ifar and interface ifar at the Middle School uh being sponsored by S and there is also a Interfaith ifar being held at mman um on Friday at on Friday so that was nice cuz we couldn't go to the wedes today yeah did where did you see the one on Friday cuz I'm I couldn't email I was invited yeah um just just within the last day or so okay you have it very nice yeah because we were s sorry to miss the one tonight obviously um okay um so I I don't have my my updates really where the police department um we do need to put the um the continuing discussion about the performance review on the next agenda and get that done should be good to make sure Shu will can attend to I don't know if we can put it off if he's not able to attend we can't just keep putting it off he can certainly give feedback I mean he's in plenty of time to do that I don't think we can wait but what do you think I think it's important enough that we have everybody here I think you should wait for when's our next meeting um 19th 19th next Tuesday and then after that April second April 2 so what do people think or F thinks we should wait I want to do it on the 19th if we can I think we should have all five of us there so yeah I mean I think sha is available next week but we could check oh if he is available taking the lead on this is I can check I think I did ask him one time I sent him a testt but I don't remember what he said I'll check quickly for you oh great okay great um I I agree that it's nice if we can have it all all of us here but I we can't keep putting it off um and then let me ask um if people want to entertain the the uh the discussion about the the gep PS activ activation on the um I think on vehicles first available date um I think that's something that we should be talking about that's okay the activation of the GPS uh capability on the police department vehicles to put it on the agenda okay yeah sure we should find out more I don't okay so we uh there's a technical issue for um okay uh oh while we're waiting for to find out if shadul is available next week um I was reminded at a different event I was at that uh at the time of clocks changing we very often remind folks to check their smoke detectors um and make sure that they're functional and haven't expired replac them if they're older um I think they have we have the fire chief right in the back I think they have about a 10year life 10 year life so I I know when my husband and I replaced ours they were at least 20 years old it was like you know was we just didn't think about it um so definitely um replace your your fire your smoke detectors and if you have um don't have them or you have trouble um affording them there are there are options and the fire department will help right great we can't hear you I'm sorry yes it's one of the newer initiatives we started with some donations um and actually we've actually received a bunch of donations after the account R now um it's um being managed through our community risk reduction through our fire prevention division great if you call the fire department they'll schedule a home safety inspection and I'll talk you through um all the SP alarms and other type of safety hazards great thank you you appreciate do you have any kind of is there a so when I do closings um I always tell my you know my buyers that uh check your smoke detectors even though you got a passing certificate check and see when it expires um and I think that would be helpful information to be able to share with uh new home buyers for anything you're doing for selling your home uh for buyers because the seller just needs to get this you know the smoke certificate um and we're good but how long is that smoke I mean how long are the smoke detectors good for is a separate question so I always tell my clients check them and um having the fire department um having a program safety is is even better so any information you could provide links or something of that effect would be great thank you very much awesome mral yeah he is unavailable um between the 19th and the 21st as well as the 28th and the 29th so he's not available on the 19th okay and our next meeting let's see he's unavailable the 19th to the 21st and then the 28th to the 29th um it's April 2nd yeah or we change the 19th to the 26th he's available on the 26th correct okay I certainly wouldn't mind a week off well that's two weeks I wouldn't either yeah oh yeah that would be a week that would be 19 that's a week yeah I wouldn't mind a week off either all right is the 26th okay I think so my dad's having surgery the day before but I if I have to go there I could zoom in probably I don't know if I'm going have to go yet except the board still needs to meet on the 19th to open the special town meeting yeah so we still have to meet on the 19th we'll be adding the 26 I don't want to add a meeting to be honest but um we could have a limited meeting on the 19 just do the opening of the special town meeting and then have the regular meeting on the 26th cool that okay that I appreciate that okay um awesome um all right so we will meet on the 19th but just briefly and then we'll meet again on the 26th and then maybe we'd have a eventually have a little update on the Trails maybe yeah okay follow um while we're talking about the special town meeting we're opening a warrant how long is that that's that's open right and then anyone can submit anyone can submit oh yes that's the fun of it yeah okay and it's open for how long how long people have to submit maybe 10 days or so I'd have to look okay no thank you that's that's the that's the support yeah um okay um I will entertain I think we're there right except for future meetings but I don't think um okay so brief meeting on the 19th do you want to put forward the item that you had or wait what it yeah I'm just looking at the future um future agenda items would be the discussion about dogs think so I didn't mean I don't know if I didn't mean to put that there um it's just been carried forward Amy so we can get rid of it if you want I know that the meting about it so I don't think I can wait till after see what meeting happens okay all right sounds good uh my favorite motion I'll entertain a motion to adjourn second all those in favor I any opposed any extensions all right