Select Board Meeting Minutes 4/7/2020 (morning)

Minutes of the remote meeting of 4/7/20

Meeting Opened at: 9am

Select Board Members Present Remotely: Kenneth Basler, Chair, Donald Coburn, Steven Weisz

Also in attendance remotely: Mickey Gervas, Ann Canning, Roy Carwile, George Cain, Terry Walker

The following items were discussed:

1. Annual meetings and elections: Kenn has spoken with the Moderator, Mark Makuc and he has agreed to postpone the May 2^nd annual town meeting to Saturday, May 30^th at 9:30am which Bill No. 4617 allows (Town Counsel confirmed towns can postpone up to 30 days without first opening the May 2^nd meeting, and if necessary we can reschedule another 30 days).  A motion was made to postpone the annual town meeting to May 30^th at 9:30am.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
2. COVID-19 updates:
   1. The Board expressed concern that the Board of Health did not consult with the Select Board prior to sending out the letter about short term rentals prior to sending it out.  Roy Carwile, member of the Board of Health apologized for not giving the Select Board a heads up.  The Board is working on trying to get answers to the questions that have been raised since the letter was released.
   2. George Cain asked to comment on the open letter to realtors from the Select Board.  George said that the Commonwealth has deemed realtors to be an essential business and took offense that someone would think that the real estate business would do something to endanger the community.   George felt the information was misleading and the real estate industry is doing all they can to make it safe for the community.  Steve clarified that the letter was just a request under the guidance of the Commonwealth, CDC and other public agencies.
   3. The Board discussed posting signs on the playground and basketball court reminding everyone to obey social distancing guidelines so that the facilities can remain open.  Don had concerns about the metal & plastic surfaces and Kenn said the virus could remain on the surface for up to 72 hours. Don felt we should close/rope off both the areas.  It was agreed to hang signs and monitor the situation.
   4. Memorial Day parade:  Kenn has spoken with the parade coordinator, Mary Makuc.  The parade committee wants to wait 3-4 weeks before making a final decision on whether to recommend cancellation.
3. FY21 budget and warrant:
   1. The Board has reviewed the most recent memo and update budget.  The only outstanding items are the trucks requested from the highway department and bonding and loans.  Unibank has advised that as it stands right now it appears that we will need to go forward with another 1 year state note for the library.
   2. The Board noted that if we get to June 30^th without a town meeting we will have to go into FY21 operating on 1/12 of FY20’s budget.  It was suggested that a memo go out to the department heads letting them know about the 1/12 possibility and the possible relief available from strict following of 1/12 per month.
4. FY21 Southern Berkshire Elderly Transportation Agreement: Kenn reported that there are some issues right now that he doesn’t have a full understanding of yet; there are concerns that they have stopped doing transportation due to the virus but they haven’t come up with any alternatives.  Kenn proposed tabling the signing of the contract until we can get more information and all agreed with that.
5. Proposed employee Memorandum of Understanding (MOU): Kenn suggested that instead of an MOU a committee be set up to look at employee benefits and salaries made up of members of the Board, Fin Comm and the employees.
6. Steve will follow up with Alice Boyd on the email she sent about potential available funds through the housing grant during this crisis.
7. The Board discussed with Town Clerk, Terry Walker postponing the annual town elections.  The proposed dates are June 16 and June 30.  The Town Clerk said that June 30^th works best for her.  A vote was made to postpone the annual town elections to June 30^th.  The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
8. Terry Walker updated the Board on working remotely; she is trying to keep on top of answering emails and voice messages.  She asked about doing absentee ballots instead of holding an election; the Board has received no guidance on having an election with absentee ballots only.  Terry will follow up with the state elections division.
9. Town Administrator:  The consensus amongst the Board was that given the Collins Center suggestions and the fact that we are transitioning from a non-Town Administrator to a Town Administrator, the best possible solution would be to hire someone with the most experience possible, preferably a retired administrator who would serve on an interim basis so as to enable a smooth transition to the new form of government. The most recent draft of the suggested job description will be distributed to all board members for review after the meeting.
10. Minutes of 4/1/20 were approved.
11. Warrants were signed.

A motion was made and unanimously approved to adjourn the meeting at: 10:41am

Submitted by:

Melissa Noe, Administrative Assistant

Approved by:

Monterey Select Board

cc: Website (www.montereyma.gov)

Select Board Members

Minutes Book

Town Clerk

Any documents referred to in the minutes are available by request at town hall.