Ward 3 Neighborhood Association
Agenda for Board Meeting
Tuesday, March 8, 2011 7 PM
Bridge Street School Library
(Introducing/welcoming director Suzanne Welch from Cutchins Center for Children.)
1. Approval of Minutes – Maddy
Vote: unanimous approval of minutes.
Maddy- Listerve question; can I send a link to the Forbes Library patrons' survey to the W3NA listserve?
Answer: Yes.
2 Treasurer's Report – Fred 7:06
Ward 3 Treasurers' Report March 2011
1. Previous Balance $2024.58
2. DUES: $0.0
3. EXPENSES: PO Box ($44), NAZ maps. ($6.59) =$50.59
4. NEW BALANCE: $1973.99
5. Note: $178.01 Allocated to Neighborhood Watch
6. LIST SERVE: for Ward 3ab = Previous 274; New = 275
7. Total Members = 273; New = 2
8. LIST SERVE MESSAGES: for this period = 6
2. President's Report – Jerry
- Update on Pomeroy Terrace Historic District 7:12
-Showing map of proposed historic district. Concerned that some historic houses are not included. Sarah LaValley and Jane Potter working on that.
Tim: Do they have to be contiguous? There are some historically significant houses that are out of that region.
Jerry: Probably, ask Sarah LaValley
Arnie: Some houses on Pomeroy Terrace were involved in the Underground RR during the Civil War.
Owen: Maybe we can work on getting plaques for those houses at the least.
- Neighborhood Associations Update 7:17
Trying to put together a date for a multi-ward social event. ? May 25
- Monthly Meeting with the Mayor – Topics/People
i. Shaw's Motel: Mayor non-committal, but preference is for enhanced SRO but looking for what market might bring. ?Storm water compliance issues. Shaw's is not officially in the list of affordable housing.
ii. Remediation Issues: Strong CC, surprised if anyone could get away with something like that. New wetlands ordinance didn't have enough guidance. Theme is to allow to remediate without CC saying no.
iii. Purchasing of Whately watershed: parcels were very close to reservoir that we have pulled water from. Water commissioners charged with protecting water, including taking land outside of city domain. Payment was within $20K of estimate, DEA paid 45% of purchase price.
iv. Fire Statistics: Fires have gone down dramatically in 2009- with the exception of the meth lab.
v. Break-ins: Since some arrests, break-ins down dramatically but also might be the weather.
vi. Towing: Usually at first storm tow about 100 cars, this time towed 17, second storm 39. Believes the lights are working, but maybe phone calls and texts are overkill. Lights were on for so long because they had a broken bucket-loader and parking had to lend DPW their bucket loader, so they couldn't clear as many spaces.
vii. DPW infrastructure studies: There are none.
Next month's questions:
Arnie: wondering why they don't clear the full width of the roadway?
Jim: are there any issues coming down the pike we might be interested in?
Arnie: regarding deplorable condition of our streets… why don't we do it little by little since she said it was so expensive to do all of them? (discussion).
Tim: What is the status of the Conz St. and North St. restructuring?
Tim: What is the status of the RR station siting? 7:39
Bill: What is the truth of the new refrigeration unit plan? It supposedly includes chlorine and other dangerous chemicals?
- Fairgrounds Redevelopment Update
It's starting to happen, barns down and barns up.
Tim: Please share your water concerns with me. I need to know to make decisions on CC.
Jerry: The area by cross-path is under water. Several issues why.
- Truck Problems on Sherman Avenue – Jeff Weir NTA
- Email situation
-Board got the emails. Jerry interested in that sensitive area. Used some language that he would not have used in retrospect to communicate question to Narkewicz.
Maddy: you were writing as a private citizen, it's a non-issue for me as a board member.
Jim & Bob: agree, non-issue
Arnie: Still confused about the price of the land.
Jerry: Market value appraisal came in close to what they paid, but higher than assessment which is traditionally depressed for farm land.
3. Nominating/Membership Committee Report – Owen 7:51 NTA
4. Update from Bridge Street School/School Committee News --Jerry
-Bridge Street School Alumni Lunch upcoming.
-Bridge Street School 100th Anniversary, put it in the spotlight upcoming.
-Winter Parking Around School (creating one-way streets). Howard said that winter parking around the school is very dangerous. He is wondering about making them one-way? It is very congested.
Arnie: How do you determine this and get an okay from the residents?
Jim: The school would have to take charge of that.
Owen: Some landscape design people in Ward 3 says that it is a bad idea, they are returning many streets to two-way.
Sidney: Could you flex it along with the traffic flow?
Marianne: I lived in a city that had those and there were lots of accidents.
Maddy: Let's encourage people to have their kids walk and take busses. It's ridiculous to clear the neighborhoods to make way for parents to drive their kids all the time.
Tim: Agreed.
5. Update on creation of related organization to do conservancy in Ward 3 – Fred (given earlier)
Jerry: It's really starting to gather steam. The planning department wants to take CR that are distributed everywhere wants to bring them home. Hopefully there will be new parcels that will be placed in protective overlay. This will begin to blossom over the next few years.
-Election of Interim Board and Focus on Finalizing Bylaws
-Annual walk to check boundaries of Sheldon Field
6. . Sustainability Committee Update – Jim
-Update on Zoning Revisions Committee discussions
Charettes being held next week to discuss traffic on King St., Damon Rd., & Conz St.
Will put it out on the listserve
-Status of infill and related topics survey
Trying to get parking regarding to infill. Would like Parking and Transportation to address this issue, especially in the ring around downtown which will become more developed.
Vote: (Unanimous) Please have the ZRC charge the P & T committee with looking into the impact on parking that increased density will have as a result of zoning revisions.
Arnie: common sense is that increased density will have an effect on parking.
Joanne: Just because it's obvious doesn't mean it would happen.
-Forums last month 8:18
i. discussed small business
-Right now have very narrow "home office" definition.
Arnie: 5 visits a day is going to be hard to enforce.
Bob & Jim: Yes.
Jerry: How do you monitor, it could be a significant problem if you consider deliveries, etc.
Owen: Not worried about it, concerned that 5 trips is an arbitrary number. People will be able to stop it by calling and complaining if it grows beyond the reasonable point.
ii. meeting results
-people okay with conversion of garages and barns into studios, etc.
-people okay with conversion of homes that have little exterior impact, but go from 2-3 units. Except for parking issue.
-people not okay with "tear-downs" and replacements, building that takes green space, blocks sunlight, etc.
iii. smith landscape group
-would like to do another forum. March 23 at BSS.
-should we be cosponsoring? YES (board)
This Thursday between 1-4 in the "green box" on Green St., you can see what they are working on it. It's a "pin-up."
iv. surveys
-keep the surveys coming in.
-that's what the sustainability committee will be working on
7. Traffic Calming Committee Update – 8:40
-email from Lola regarding ongoing process of hooking in safety improvements to the Pleasant St./Hokanum intersection into state work.
8. Exit 19 of I-91 Committee Update – Frank Werbinski
-no meeting date for public meeting yet.
-met with Rich Massey from DOT. Feels like we need to do something, but any of them are okay.
-neighborhood PAC should continue with giving input on the project even in the design phase.
9. Report of Transportation Committee - Owen NTA
10. Update on Neighborhood Watch – Arnie
-planning a spring clean up
-planning spring training
11. Legislative Update from City Councilor – NTA
12. Vegetable Garden Tour – Joanne 8:46
-Lots of great gardens, going to have to thin the herd.
-What are we going to do with money? Should we put protocol in place? Joanne thinks let's wait on the protocol.
Bob: let's give to BSS.
Jim: let's give some to beautification
Jerry: We have voted on priorities.
13. Social Committee Report – NTA
14. Report from Business Representative - NTA
15. Conservancy Report
On March 1, 2011 the MCCC met publicly to elect directors and vote on the Bylaws. I have also arranged with Dave Herships to have a contingent from the MCCC do an annual inspection of Sheldon Field and the Bleinman property on Potash Rd. around April 15th. The group will also have a public meeting with Tim Silva of Kestrel to discuss local conservancy issue. We are also planning a Board meeting to choose officers.
*Waste Water Treatment Plant: Effluent Pumps
I've asked Doug McDonald if he has a copy of report from USA Corp of Engineers inspection of dike in 2009 and so far nothing.
Adjourn
8:54
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