[Speaker 3] (0:00 - 0:07)
And we'll call this meeting to order at 635. And will you please join me and rise with the pledge?

[Speaker 10] (0:10 - 0:21)
I pledge 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.

[Speaker 3] (0:24 - 0:29)
Thank you. We'll kick this off with the town administrator's report. Sean.

[Speaker 1] (0:30 - 7:12)
Thanks, David. Just want to just recognize the seven new officers that we swore in our last meeting. This week, we actually start two of those officers.

Nick Cruz and Joanne Pena are lateral transfers, so they will only need four to six weeks of field training. I did have a chance to meet with Joanne Pena today, and really absolutely excited about the caliber of individuals that we have in this new hiring round. Police department's been busy supporting our synagogues in town, and certainly having bi-weekly meetings with rabbis in Swampskip.

Today, I did speak with one of our rabbis and showed them that we are concerned about the rise in anti-Semitism and hate. We seem to be seeing a proliferation of this. So I would urge parents and I would urge folks to talk more about how important it is for us to be more reasonable and civil with each other.

We have too many extraordinary freedoms in this country to lose it because of some negativity. Lots of important work is continuing to happen with Kings Beach. I have a detailed update that includes a letter that we sent off to the Secretary of the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs.

Secretary Cooper has been in contact with me and has shared her excitement and enthusiasm of the type of collaboration that we're seeing on a local and state level. The next step is the federal level. And so we're eager to engage a number of our federal agencies along with the EPA and Army Corps in really getting their assistance as we evaluate additional complementary strategies to address the impairments to Kings Beach.

Health Department is busy looking at survey results for our opioid settlement. We have a little bit of money, but certainly we're looking to think about regional strategies for how we address opioid addiction and some of the challenges that our communities have faced with opioids. We are seeing a dramatic rise in respiratory illnesses and flu viruses, data that the city of Boston has been able to identify with wastewater.

We're at a dramatic rise in COVID. So if you're not feeling well, please take care of yourself. Mask up.

There's no shame in taking care of yourself. And I just want to urge folks to just be real sensitive around folks that may have compromised immune systems. Finance Department has been busy.

We sent out a budget member this week. Comes on the heels of the state announcing a dramatic drop in revenue. I don't want to be dour, but I think we have to really recognize that our financial forecasting is a little bit challenged right now.

I've asked department heads to actually project a budget with a 10% reduction. This is a decimation of their budget. But if we're looking at 9C cuts or we're looking at a significant drop in state aid, we have to be ready for that.

This exercise is not pyrrhic. This is a real challenging budget year. And we're going to have to be very careful about how we recommend appropriations.

Capital Improvement Committee is busy. I'm thrilled that we have some great ideas from our Climate Action Committee. I had an opportunity to meet with the members of the Climate Action Committee, but today I also attended a meeting to talk about a number of other improvements to our codes.

Our senior center is busy. Our long-awaited kitchen renovations have begun. They should be done over the next few weeks.

I know that there have been board members that are very eager to see that project move forward. If anybody wanted to cook a meal on the new equipment, I would welcome your best recipes. I have volunteered, but certainly would accept help.

Max has been busy looking at RFPs for solar for our new school. Our RFP includes a design for the roof and a future canopy for the parking lot. I've asked him to look into a solar canopy for all municipal lots.

I think we can all play a role in investing in solar. The town clerk has been busy mailing out our census and dog license forms and getting ready for town meeting and elections and primaries on March 5th, absentee ballots, lots of important work. Recreation had a wonderful New Year's Eve party.

These events are so important. We had over 450 attendees. I heard that many people attended that weren't from Swampskate, which frankly sounds awesome because we want to be a place where people come to and enjoy an extraordinary event.

Summer program is on our website. We have a 12-month calendar of events this year that recently is being presented. So you can look at that calendar and plan a whole year of no-cost and low-cost events.

We will be updating that with all sorts of other activities for the library and senior center. Community Development is working on a grant application for passive recreation on our newly purchased Archer Street. It was a drone footage of the property, and it absolutely looks magnificent.

Chief Archer brought the fire department's drone up there, and you can overlook the waterfront. And the thought is that perhaps we can build a tower that folks can actually go up and just take a look at the city of Boston and get a sense of just how unique that property is. That's my report.

Thanks, Sean.

[Speaker 3] (7:12 - 7:13)
Questions, comments from the board?

[Speaker 4] (7:15 - 7:21)
I have a couple questions. On the, where are we at with the Kings Beach, the water sewer committee?

[Speaker 1] (7:22 - 7:40)
We have received resumes. Both Doug and David have screened the candidates. I anticipate that at our next meeting, we will be prepared to come back and make recommendations to the board for appointing individuals to this committee.

[Speaker 4] (7:41 - 7:42)
You've screened candidates?

[Speaker 5] (7:48 - 7:52)
Incredible, incredible pool of candidates. I'm glad.

[Speaker 13] (7:52 - 7:52)
I agree.

[Speaker 5] (7:53 - 7:55)
Absolutely. We are very, very fortunate.

[Speaker 1] (7:56 - 8:07)
It's surprising how many people wanna talk about wastewater and trash talk. So it's a sign of some great citizens.

[Speaker 4] (8:08 - 8:35)
I have another question on the financial handout that was sent out. By charge of this project, we're obligated to have the financial review by November 15th to read the actual term in the charter is the annual financial forecast that the county administrator will report to select board. We are well past November 15th and this happened again last year.

So are we gonna have that review?

[Speaker 1] (8:36 - 8:45)
I'm happy to work with the chair. You did get a spreadsheet that had five years worth of financial forecasts. I think late November, early December.

[Speaker 4] (8:46 - 8:50)
We're supposed to have a public review with the finance committee and the school committee.

[Speaker 1] (8:50 - 10:05)
I'm happy to schedule that with the chair of the board. That'd be great. And our finance team.

That wasn't on an agenda. It was, yep. Was it not?

Yeah, it was on the table I think or something for some reason, but it was on there. I'm happy to, you know, have a conversation. I will, again, I'll say this when we talk about, you know, the forecast has been helpful, but it also is, it's challenging because, you know, we project deficits, but we work to solve those deficits every year.

And so, you know, some folks have kind of looked at that as kind of a fruitless exercise, but I think it's helpful to kind of, you know, look at what our baked in costs are. We actually take our actual expenditures and look at, you know, 10 years worth of actual expenditures. We come up with a model that is, you know, based on the last three years worth of actual activities with five years worth of actual activities.

And we wait the prior year more than the, but it never comes close to our reality.

[Speaker 4] (10:06 - 10:08)
I understand, it's just that it is in the charter.

[Speaker 1] (10:09 - 10:11)
Yeah, that's why I put it together.

[Speaker 3] (10:19 - 10:34)
Katie? Sean, just a quick question about the revenue from the state and how short is this revenue shortfall?

[Speaker 1] (10:35 - 11:43)
It's significant enough where, you know, we're off, I think the last seven months, and the state is actually sending out some signals that we have to be prepared for a likelihood that the state could be making dramatic changes. They've already identified any outside appropriations in the budget are gonna be the first to get cut. And so the town, you know, received some supplemental appropriations and so we're worried we're gonna lose some of those projects.

And again, this is across the Commonwealth. So state's got to figure out how to solve that budget challenge. And so we're worried that local aid is gonna be cut this year.

It will have budget implications. We've got to kind of figure out how to balance the Commonwealth books. And so I can get you more specificity at our next meeting, but certainly, you know, we're going through exercises that would help us prepare for mid-year budget cuts by the state.

[Speaker 3] (11:44 - 11:48)
Got it. So yeah, as more information comes to light, please share it with us.

[Speaker 1] (11:48 - 12:38)
So this week I met with a number of department heads. We did end of year projections with their budget were six months through the fiscal year. We basically take the last six months worth of expenditures and divide it by six, times it by 12.

We get gross end of year projections. We go back and touch each line based on what we know about certain expenditures based on, you know, our activity. And we're projecting end of year.

And so we've already have a number of departments that have frozen their budgets so that no additional discretionary expenditures could be made because we are under an obligation to meet budget. And so it's gonna be another exercise in meeting budget.

[Speaker 4] (12:40 - 12:45)
Thanks. So are you saying that money that's already been committed, we might not get money that was committed?

[Speaker 1] (12:45 - 13:15)
That's right. Budgets are not contracts. They're, you know, best plans.

You know, we're looking at our receipts as well and we may have to make some adjustments based on, you know, our meals tax, based on certain, you know, estimates. We always have to go back and say, are we gonna be able to meet our balanced budget responsibilities?

[Speaker 4] (13:16 - 13:22)
When will our second quarter financials be completed, reconciled?

[Speaker 1] (13:22 - 13:38)
Next week. You know, I met with our finance director today. You know, we used the numbers that we have through the second quarter, but, you know, she's gonna send out those reports.

So I have asked her to make sure we get those out monthly and I think the board can expect.

[Speaker 2] (13:38 - 13:53)
I believe we previously established the first meeting after the first month after a quarter because it takes the month following an end of quarter, frankly, for the finance director. So that would be the first meeting in February, kind of as the chart timeline for us to get quarters.

[Speaker 1] (13:53 - 13:57)
That's right. Okay.

[Speaker 3] (13:58 - 14:18)
Thanks, Sean. All right, we'll move on to public comment. Public comment is where members of the public can comment and approach the microphone and speak for up to three minutes about items that are not on our regular agenda.

Do we have any members of the public who would like to speak this evening? Ms. Lau.

[Speaker 8] (14:20 - 17:53)
Thank you. Just for the $1,000, as Nicole laid out, seems to me that ARPA funds were intended for other things and there seems to be a continual playbook of things are said to be incredibly important and the playbook is it has to happen now. And I feel that we have seen this playbook play out at town meeting and that it is not always accurate and that maybe taking a step back at times, waiting for a full board to be here to discuss those things would have been prudent, would have been in certainly the town's best interest, in my opinion, and would see this project to be a little bit more reflective.

Obviously, I'm not in favor of it. I think it's a big disappointment and a big miss for our town that Hadley will turn into a boutique hotel with exclusivity and that the RFP couldn't even include the language that was approved at town meeting to say to have one community room. It's disheartening and I think it's disrespectful to the voting members of the community.

I think it played out really poorly and I was really just, to sound stupid, disappointed. Not shocked, but disappointed. It's just, it's just disappointing.

Changing gears quickly, let me just say, it is not easy to get up here and do this time and time again. So, to that, okay? Thinking about schools, I hear the budget concerns and I certainly understand that.

I do know that the schools are concerned. I listen to pretty much every meeting that I can in town. Certainly not live, but at some point.

I really wanna impress upon you that I do not, having had students in this school system since 2021, I do not wanna see us go back to not having nurses in our classrooms. I do not wanna see any more staff cuts at the high school. I do not wanna see us lose libraries, close libraries.

[Speaker 3] (17:54 - 17:55)
Thank you, Ms. Long.

[Speaker 8] (17:55 - 17:55)
I just hope not.

[Speaker 3] (17:56 - 17:56)
Thank you, Ms. Long.

[Speaker 2] (18:04 - 18:06)
Well, you can talk about it, yeah.

[Speaker 7] (18:06 - 18:08)
Yeah, go on, sure.

[Speaker 3] (18:16 - 18:21)
Just please, please state your name and address for the record when you get to the microphone.

[Speaker 7] (18:21 - 21:43)
Oh, I shouldn't have to tell you about this, but yeah. My name is Nina Rogers and I live in Nahaunt. I was a teacher here at Swampside High School for 16 years.

I taught Algebra I and Algebra II honors. I have been the varsity tennis coach for 16 years and I've come here to talk on behalf of the community and the opportunity to have pickleball courts. Because I've seen what's happened to our tennis courts.

We only have six. If you compare us to the neighboring community of Marblehead, they have a lot more. And every other community seems to have had, has built a lot of pickleball courts.

Marblehead, Lynn, Salem, everyone offers that opportunity to their citizens. And I feel like we are doing a disservice to our community not to take advantage of the opportunities that the state, aren't they offering money to build pickleball courts? So I was just, in using our tennis courts, which we only have six, as a pickleball court, really takes away from our students and the people who enjoy tennis.

Because I'm the varsity tennis coach, courts five and six have pickleball court lines on it. And we go to play a match and our second doubles team plays on court five. Well, most of these girls are inexperienced.

And all of a sudden they're seeing tennis lines and pickleball court lines. And it's confusing to these young people. And I just think it would be great for this community to be able to offer to our citizens if they pay taxes.

I mean, pickleball is, and you see my handout, is just, it's the up and coming sport. And why can't we as a community offer that to our young people, old people? Anyways, does anyone have any questions?

I'm just passionate about, you know, a racket sport. And I think it's something, especially pickleball, because I think it's something that, it's something that the senior citizens can play more. And it would be, and I wrote on my notes here, if you saw, I think that one of the concerns last time was the noise, right?

That people brought up, but there are new ways of, I think on my notes here, that there are new rackets that they put out that are less noisy. Anyway, I'm done. I just wanted to express my opinion here and just hope that you would take that into consideration.

[Speaker 3] (21:44 - 23:11)
Thank you, Ms. Rogers, thank you. Anyone else? All right, thank you.

We'll move on to new business and adoption of January 27th as Holocaust Memorial Day. And before we read, you know, we have a proclamation. Before we read it, it's incredible that we're sitting here in 2024.

And we're still talking about dealing with anti-Semitism, and we're dealing with anti-Semitism in our town. And I just, speaking for myself, there's no place for hate, there's no place for anti-Semitism within the town of Swampscott, period. No ifs, ands, or buts.

So I wanna make sure that everyone, especially those residents who have Jewish heritage, are respected and feel comfortable within the confines of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and within the town of Swampscott. So with that, Holocaust Memorial Day proclamation by the town of Swampscott. Whereas the town of Swampscott will never forget the events of the Holocaust, and the millions of Jewish and other minority groups who suffered and died during the most tragic genocide in modern history, and.

[Speaker 6] (23:12 - 23:26)
Whereas anti-Semitic incidents continue to increase in the United States, once reaching an all-time high in 2021 with a total of 2,717 incidences of assault, harassment, and vandalism reported to the Anti-Defamation League.

[Speaker 4] (23:27 - 23:42)
Whereas since the Hamas massacre on the Jewish state on October 7th, 2023, the ADL has reported an unprecedented rise in vandalism, harassment, and assault directed at Jews and Jewish institutions.

[Speaker 5] (23:42 - 23:54)
Whereas this year on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27th, 2024, we commemorate the 79th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp, and.

[Speaker 2] (23:54 - 24:05)
Whereas honoring the victims and the survivors begins with our renewed recognition of the value and dignity of each person. It demands from us the courage to protect the persecuted and speak out against bigotry and hatred, and.

[Speaker 3] (24:05 - 24:17)
And whereas on this anniversary, we recommit ourselves to combating the global rise in anti-Semitism and evil that threatens not only those of Jewish faith, but those of all faith and backgrounds, and.

[Speaker 6] (24:17 - 24:30)
Whereas recent acts of hate in Swampscott serve as a painful reminder of our obligations to condemn and combat rising anti-Semitism in all its forms, including the denial or trivialization of the Holocaust, and.

[Speaker 4] (24:31 - 24:43)
Whereas this anniversary is an opportunity to reflect on the progress we have made confronting this terrible chapter in human history and on our continuing efforts to end genocide, and.

[Speaker 5] (24:44 - 25:04)
Whereas the definition of anti-Semitism reads as follows. Anti-Semitism is a certain perception of Jews which may be expressed as hatred towards Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of anti-Semitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities, and.

[Speaker 2] (25:05 - 25:36)
Now therefore, on behalf of the entire select board, we do hereby proclaim January 27, 2024 as Holocaust Memorial Day in the town of Swampscott, Massachusetts, and encourage all of faith-based and nonprofit organizations, residents, businesses, and public institutions to acknowledge, honor, and value Jewish people's historic and current contributions locally and beyond, while also recognizing the ongoing and interconnected struggles of all Jewish communities locally and beyond. In witness whereof, we have unto set our hands, select board on this day.

[Speaker 3] (25:38 - 25:41)
Thank you. Any additional comments from the board?

[Speaker 5] (25:45 - 25:46)
Never again. Thank you.

[Speaker 1] (25:48 - 26:20)
Yeah, I think it's just incredibly important that we take time and talk about this and make sure that folks in the community can talk about it. Six million people perished in the Holocaust. It is incredibly important for us to think about the rise in anti-Semitism and the responsibility we have to ensure that every human being in this town, and frankly, in this state, in this country, in this world, is treated with dignity and respect.

[Speaker 3] (26:29 - 26:40)
All right, we'll move on. Discussion and possible vote on our donation policy and to name the high school baseball field 207 Forest Avenue. Sean?

Thank you, David.

[Speaker 1] (26:40 - 28:08)
Tonight, the board has a donation policy before it. I was hopeful that we could take the recommendation to name the diamond at the baseball field in honor of our legendary coach, Frank DeFelice. Coach DeFelice has an extraordinary record of accomplishment on the baseball field as a varsity coach, but most importantly, I think his support for Swanscot students and his life dedication as a teacher is reflected here tonight with a number of individuals that knew him, and I would encourage the gentleman to come down and share a few remarks about your friend and your coach.

Coach DeFelice, unfortunately, right now is dealing with some health issues, and we certainly wanted to take an opportunity to try to reflect his timely remembrance. I know that Gino Cresta, our assistant town administrator and ETW director shares a strong recommendation that we take a moment and honor Coach DeFelice's life. But with that, Mr. Caponigro.

[Speaker 9] (28:08 - 29:22)
Yes, thank you for having us, and thank you for all the work that you guys do. My name's Joe Caponigro. I'm almost a lifelong resident of Swanscot.

Been here probably 55 years, and I live on Pine Hill Road, 52 Pine Hill Road, and I have kind of a distinction, I believe. I played for Coach, he taught me. I was a student of Coach DeFelice's.

I played for Coach DeFelice. I coached against Coach DeFelice. Now I'm the coach at Swanscot High School Baseball.

Coach, as Sean said, he's had some tremendous accomplishments, not just wins, losses, state championships, but just the impact, the profound impact he's had on students and student athletes, and this, I think, is long overdue, and I think now's the time to do it, because, you know, and he's a very private individual, so he'd be upset if he knew we were even up here. He has no idea about it. We won't tell anybody.

Yeah.

[Speaker 4] (29:23 - 29:24)
He's not watching.

[Speaker 9] (29:24 - 29:56)
But he is certainly, he's an icon, you know, and as the high school baseball coach, I get the schedule for the year, and it says our games are at Swanscot Middle School, and I just think that naming it DeFelice Diamond, you know, I think it's much deserved, and like I said, overdue, long overdue, so thank you for hearing me, and I know these gentlemen want to say a few words as well.

[Speaker 3] (29:57 - 29:57)
Thanks, Joe.

[Speaker 10] (30:00 - 31:37)
Hi, Steve Balpet, resident of Nahant, Swanscot High School, class of, I'd rather not discuss it. Just an idea, the idea came about a few years ago as I was going to Swanscot baseball games with my best friend, Tommy LeBlanc, his nephew was, Luke Marshall was pitching, and we'd go to several games, and I'd always see Coach DeFelice there, and again, his accomplishments aside, which would be enough to warrant something, it just struck me that his continued support for the program, always being there, always offering help, and that led me to bring up the idea to Joe, and not wanting to step on toes, and making too big a deal of it, I said, what if we just named the Diamond after Coach DeFelice? I like the idea of DeFelice Diamond, and as I told Joe, someday, several years from now, after my friend Joe wins his eighth state championship, we can name it, it'll be DeFelice Diamond at Caponigro Coliseum.

Whatever, but just carving out this slice for Coach DeFelice, who I've known since I was very young, and always appreciated him, even when he was yelling at me. Anyway, it's time to do this, and I think it would be, again, he'd be upset if he knew we were here, probably, but sorry, Coach. Anyway, we hope you will follow through with this.

Thank you for your time. Thanks, Steve. Thanks.

[Speaker 9] (31:37 - 32:00)
Steve mentioned support, is he still coming to the games? Microphone, yeah. I just want to say that Steve mentioned the support of coming to the games, but he sends a check-in for our program yearly, so he still backs everything to do with Big Blue Sports, and baseball.

[Speaker 11] (32:05 - 32:59)
Joe, Mike Massey, 55, Winchita Road, Swampscott. Joe asked for some former of his players to maybe stop and show support tonight, and I think Steve said something that's, this isn't about Joe Cappa, but this field, one day, could be Joe Cappa Field, too, so when Joe talks, I listen, so. I'm here, I did have the privilege of playing under Coach DeFelice, football and baseball, late 70s, early 80s, and he's got a big footprint in this town.

I think Sean kind of encapsulated it pretty well there, as well, and if anyone deserves this type of honor, it is Coach DeFelice for his longevity and all his contributions, and it kind of goes without saying, so I just figured I'd stop in and reiterate, I think, what everyone already knows, so hopefully this one's an easy one. Thanks, Mike.

[Speaker 5] (32:59 - 33:00)
Thanks, Mike. Bye.

[Speaker 1] (33:07 - 33:32)
So with that, if the board would entertain a motion to support the recommendation to name the baseball diamond in honor of Coach DeFelice, I think that would allow us to address a timely memorial for the person that has dedicated their life to the town.

[Speaker 5] (33:32 - 33:40)
Happy to do that. I just have one question. The donation policy, is there a reason, is that a separate thing?

They seem to have no relation to each other.

[Speaker 1] (33:42 - 33:46)
Great question. We don't have a donation policy? That's a separate topic.

[Speaker 5] (33:46 - 33:49)
We got a separate topic. It should have been two separate agenda items.

[Speaker 2] (33:49 - 33:56)
Agreed, agreed. Happy to make a motion. Well, can I just ask what we're making, what are we naming the field?

I just, you said it.

[Speaker 1] (33:56 - 33:57)
The baseball diamond.

[Speaker 2] (33:57 - 34:06)
No, I understand what physical space you're talking about. I'm asking what's the name you're asking. DeFelice Diamond.

No, I don't think that's what, I've heard three different names so far, so I'm just asking what the name is.

[Speaker 1] (34:06 - 34:12)
Yeah, it's DeFelice Diamond. That is, I think, the recommendation from the. Yep.

[Speaker 4] (34:14 - 34:19)
Not Coach DeFelice, just DeFelice Diamond? DeFelice Diamond. That will do.

[Speaker 2] (34:20 - 34:24)
And then, so can I just ask, since we're on this, but we don't have a naming policy.

[Speaker 1] (34:25 - 34:25)
We don't.

[Speaker 2] (34:26 - 34:34)
So this wasn't intended to add a naming policy. This was intended to have us talk about other things related to the field, but not a naming policy, but you want us to support a recommendation.

[Speaker 1] (34:34 - 34:37)
I do, because this came in as a timely.

[Speaker 2] (34:37 - 34:41)
Okay, no, I just want to make sure I'm not missing something. No, no. Because, okay.

[Speaker 1] (34:42 - 34:54)
Ideally, we'd like to vote on the naming policy, get that established, and then come back. We have a mitigating circumstance, given the health issue of the coach, and so this is out of sync.

[Speaker 6] (34:56 - 34:57)
I'll second the motion.

[Speaker 5] (34:58 - 34:58)
Okay.

[Speaker 6] (34:58 - 35:00)
Did anybody make the motion? Doug.

[Speaker 5] (35:00 - 35:03)
Doug has to make it. I said I was willing to. Oh, I thought you said, oh, sorry.

[Speaker 4] (35:03 - 35:04)
I'm happy to make the motion.

[Speaker 5] (35:04 - 35:05)
I kind of did, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Speaker 4] (35:05 - 35:07)
We've got a holiday break coming up.

[Speaker 5] (35:07 - 35:16)
I'm happy to make the motion to rename or name the baseball field DeFelice Brown.

[Speaker 7] (35:17 - 35:17)
Second.

[Speaker 3] (35:18 - 35:19)
All right, all in favor.

[Speaker 7] (35:19 - 35:19)
Aye.

[Speaker 3] (35:20 - 35:22)
All right. Thank you, gentlemen. Thank you.

[Speaker 6] (35:22 - 35:23)
Thank you, gentlemen.

[Speaker 3] (35:23 - 35:44)
Thank you very much. Have a great night. All right, and we'll talk about the donation policy, the way I'm viewing the donation policy is this would be the first read of the donation policy.

We can have comments and questions from the board, and then we can look to firm that up at our next meeting.

[Speaker 5] (35:44 - 35:48)
And is this a brand new policy, or is this a revised policy?

[Speaker 3] (35:48 - 35:48)
This is, yep.

[Speaker 5] (35:49 - 35:49)
Brand new?

[Speaker 1] (35:50 - 36:47)
Yep, and so over the years, we've done some solicitation. I think it does get a little confusing when department heads want to go out and raise money. You know, this is an area where oftentimes we can run into some complexity in terms of how much is reasonable to ask for, you know, what are we raising money for?

And it's important that I think the board is apprised of certain thresholds. Certainly we want to raise money for recreation programs. We want to raise money for public safety.

We want to raise money for any number of activities, but we want to do it in a way that's consistent with, you know, some standard of control. This policy reflects a reasonable practice. There are thresholds in here that I think would help support a risk mitigation in terms of behaviors that could be perceived as inappropriate.

[Speaker 6] (36:48 - 36:57)
When we took the donations in of the statues, did we not have some, did we not discuss the policy then? Well, that was placing the statues, right?

[Speaker 2] (36:58 - 37:04)
No, it was actually just, I think that was probably ceremonial. I mean, technically, I think under mass general law, we have to vote to accept certain gifts.

[Speaker 6] (37:04 - 37:05)
Oh, okay.

[Speaker 2] (37:05 - 37:07)
But I think that was probably more ceremonial.

[Speaker 6] (37:07 - 37:08)
Understood.

[Speaker 2] (37:08 - 37:39)
I think the town administrator put things on town lawns or town properties. Okay. I think my recollection is, we didn't actually vote on that.

That was a ceremonial meeting. Can I just ask that we please add a naming policy? Sure.

I mean, it feels like it's an obvious void here. And I assume this is also modeled after another community's because we don't need to reinvent the wheel. Can you just tell me what communities this was modeled after?

Because I'd like just to be able to understand.

[Speaker 6] (37:41 - 37:43)
And then just- I assume it's been vetted by council.

[Speaker 2] (37:43 - 37:49)
Let me ask, my last question was gonna be council. Or Katie's first question is gonna be council. Has it been vetted by council?

[Speaker 1] (37:50 - 37:57)
I believe it has. I had the Director of Community and Economic Development pull it together.

[Speaker 2] (37:58 - 38:01)
And so- If you don't know, you can confirm that. I will.

[Speaker 5] (38:07 - 38:11)
And we're not sure about the other communities. Are you gonna check on that?

[Speaker 3] (38:11 - 38:35)
I will check. Sean, with the levels on 1-5, we're talking about thresholds of $5,000. All sponsorships over $5,000 require select board approval.

Anything up to $5,000 would run through the town administrator or designee. I'm just curious as to how that was- That's pretty tight.

[Speaker 1] (38:35 - 39:11)
I've worked in other municipalities where it's been up to 25. That threshold is pretty low. But if the board wants to discuss what range, I'm sure that there's a number of communities that have different ranges, or what department heads are gonna be allowed to go and solicit funds for, and what would require a town administrator's approval?

What would require the select board's approval?

[Speaker 3] (39:11 - 39:43)
So would this be an individual gift of $5,000 or an aggregated gift of $5,000? So for instance, we have a street festival in Spombs County. So we go out and we solicit sponsorships for this type of event.

In aggregate, it might, no one person or one company or one organization is donating $5,000 or more. However, in aggregate, it can exceed that $5,000 threshold, and I just wanna make sure that we're not stepping on that tail.

[Speaker 1] (39:43 - 40:15)
Sure. I do think we can add some qualifying language that includes events and add a threshold in there for certain thresholds for donations for those events. The thought was, if you're getting something that was over $5,000, that should go to the select board.

Anything under $5,000 seems to be administered. Yeah. Yeah.

[Speaker 4] (40:18 - 40:28)
Can you just give an example of what we would be naming, or it just seems very abstract. Can you just give me some type of an idea here? I mean, are we naming a fire hydrant after a bank?

[Speaker 1] (40:28 - 40:29)
A building, a room.

[Speaker 4] (40:30 - 40:30)
Anything?

[Speaker 1] (40:33 - 40:52)
Public area, a bench. You know, there's all sorts of things that people would like to have named after a loved one. And so, this helps us just have a policy that says this is how we're gonna define those responsibilities.

[Speaker 3] (40:54 - 41:03)
So, we've had no policy in the past. Are there any, is there anything running around town that has just been placed, or?

[Speaker 1] (41:04 - 41:19)
I haven't done in our, but yes, we have done that frequently. Every year, we do something. Every year, there's a bench.

Every year, there's a feature, or something that is typically donated to the town. And so, we wanna bring some structure around that.

[Speaker 3] (41:19 - 41:26)
Without, with our approval, or without our approval? I mean, is there anything that's just popping up around town that is? Yes, things that pop up around town.

[Speaker 1] (41:28 - 41:38)
Some, you know, there's some things that I have approved, some things that some department heads have approved, and some things that some committees have approved, but it should all come to the select board.

[Speaker 5] (41:39 - 41:49)
Yeah, I mean, I think there's some names on, like, next to the tennis courts near the middle school, I think there's some names there, and there's some names on benches, and, you know, so, various places around town.

[Speaker 1] (41:49 - 41:59)
We're gonna try to corral it all, and say it has a policy, and if you wanna name anything, it has to come through a policy.

[Speaker 5] (42:04 - 42:36)
So, I guess the, this says department heads. So, basically, you could, it's gotta kind of work through you, the way this reads, if I get it right. But, I don't know how many total department heads you have, but, you know, it could be 10 different people out there, kind of soliciting money.

You would have to know about that happening. I think it's maybe a little bit to what David was getting at earlier, maybe. So, there could be a bunch of different people, you know, that could see, you know, the rec director doing it, and community development doing it, and, you know.

[Speaker 1] (42:37 - 43:06)
Police department, fire department, UPW, they're all working with vendors, they're all soliciting, you know, something that might be helpful to the town. We wanna control that, because it can be problematic. Unlikely that everyone's gonna be doing this all the time, but.

That's true. But, you know, every year we have rec events, we have golf tournaments, we do look for sponsorship, we do ask individuals to help subsidize some of our summer rec concerts. Yes?

[Speaker 3] (43:09 - 43:18)
I do just wanna interrupt for one second. Joe, is our audio okay? Because I'm getting messages that we're, that we're having a severe audio problem.

[Speaker 5] (43:27 - 43:27)
Okay.

[Speaker 3] (43:29 - 43:30)
Okay, thank you.

[Speaker 6] (43:31 - 44:04)
Sean, will there be some sort of limitation as to what can be sponsored? Are you giving parameters to department heads, or are vendors coming to us and saying, I want the high school auditorium to be named after me? Like, I just wanna, I don't want this to become, you know, the place where anybody can buy anything in town.

I get what you're trying to do, I don't think that's what you're trying to do, but I just want to understand the lengths at which this might go.

[Speaker 1] (44:04 - 45:54)
Sure. Katie, it's a good question. Right now, I don't have any companies or firms looking to have the town name something.

We have had that in the past. I do have an individual that has wanted to make a donation to the town, a sizable donation that would like to name it after a loved one. So, frankly, I think, you know, we're gonna have these opportunities from time to time, and having a policy by which the board could accept that and we have a threshold that says over a certain number, it comes back to the board, and we talk about that, and we talk about the appropriateness of whether or not there's a fitness, you know, for that type of donation.

That could be helpful. I do know, you know, we have vendors that work for the town. Oftentimes, we want good corporate citizenship.

We have companies in Swampstead that, frankly, we want them to be good corporate citizens, and so we look at possible opportunities under the Community Reinvestment Act that banks are obligated to support, that, you know, frankly, we don't want them just buying box seats at the Fleet Center. We want them to actually invest in community. So all of those things are possibilities that we can kind of use donation policy to actually, you know, just encourage with community support.

But having it all come back to the board, I think, ultimately, ensures that we mitigate some risk that it just is willy-nilly, and I think that's what we have had, and that can be problematic. It can be unfair to certain people that may have connections. It may, you know, we want to have a little bit more stringent standard of care for how we approach this.

[Speaker 6] (45:55 - 46:21)
Yeah, I think, too, it's also a balance between if you want to buy yourself an auditorium in the high school, or you want to make a significant time contribution like Coach did, and that, in turn, you know, becomes your donation, right? And that's why we recognize people for the time and energy that they give to the town. Like, that's more important to me than it's somebody writing a check.

So I just want to make sure that it's not just one or the other, but both.

[Speaker 1] (46:22 - 46:54)
I agree with you completely, Katie. I think that's a perfect way to kind of approach this, and I think, you know, this policy, you know, over the next two weeks, we can tweak it, we can look at adding some naming language to it that helps us, you know, just ensure that it has a framework that we can work within, but, obviously, at the end of the day, the board has the discretionary authority to exercise your broad prerogative as the governing body, so.

[Speaker 4] (46:54 - 47:14)
And then how do we deal with terms? I mean, are the, so if somebody wants to come in, and I'll stay with the naming of the auditorium, do the mass general law, does that actually have term limit? Like, how long does it stay named?

How do we work that out? Is that something that would be done per deal, or?

[Speaker 1] (47:16 - 47:31)
That's an interesting question. I think, you know, there's likely some case law on that, and I'd have to, you know, look at a policy that, you know, outlines a term, but.

[Speaker 6] (47:32 - 47:46)
And I think there, we don't have a naming policy here, but I think there is a difference between naming and dedicating a space after somebody and somebody sponsoring a space, so I think it would be good to understand the difference there.

[Speaker 3] (47:49 - 48:03)
So there's also language about acceptance of grants. Gifts or grants of funds over $5,000 must be accepted by the select board. What has the process and procedure been with grants prior to?

[Speaker 1] (48:05 - 48:22)
Generally, grants have been accepted by the select board. I can't say, you know, the town has not accepted grants. You know, I think we do accept certain grants under a certain.

[Speaker 3] (48:23 - 48:46)
So if we're accepting the grants, again, I just want some clarification here. If we need to accept the grants, are we then a potential impediment to town department heads applying for grants? Because if, you know, if we ultimately have to vote to accept, I just wanna make sure that we don't, you know, we're not.

[Speaker 1] (48:46 - 48:56)
I think it's a very good question, David. I think we should look at that and just ensure that that is not gonna become an overly burdensome, you know, standard.

[Speaker 5] (48:56 - 49:11)
I think the word grant here is really meant in a different way than kind of like a director of community development getting a grant, because here it says all grants are gifts of funds. I think this is more like a person kind of granting some money or a small fund.

[Speaker 1] (49:11 - 49:21)
The way I was thinking about it too, Doug, and I think, you know, maybe there's a way for us to qualify it as all personal grants or? Non-municipal grant?

[Speaker 5] (49:22 - 49:59)
Yeah, that's fine. I just thought I would just bring it to light. I read it the same way you did to begin with, but now that I'm staring at it, maybe it's a little different, so.

I guess the only, another thing to think about for next time is, is 5,000 the right number? Where'd that come from? What would that buy, you know, like, if that means for 5,000 someone's gonna have like a big billboard on, you know, town hall, that probably wouldn't be the right threshold.

But yeah, so, yeah. You know, that's gonna get a little plaque on one little bench, you know, or something? Well, then maybe that's the right level, but, so.

[Speaker 1] (50:00 - 50:24)
I think that's a, you know, certainly an important conversation to have. I think we can probably put a range in there and just talk a little bit about what that means. Obviously, every one of these donations is a donation to a nonprofit, and there's certain, you know, benefits to making donations to the town, so.

[Speaker 3] (50:29 - 50:44)
Additional comments or questions? And again, this is just a first read. We'll come back with some additional information, and we'll present that to the board.

Thank you. So, Sean, this will be ready for our meeting on the 24th?

[Speaker 1] (50:44 - 50:50)
Yes, I think we can roll this up and have a broader discussion about each of the sections.

[Speaker 3] (50:51 - 51:02)
Great. Thank you. All right, we'll move on.

Discussion and possible vote on changing the makeup of the Solid Waste Committee. Ms. Fletcher.

[Speaker 4] (51:03 - 51:52)
So, I brought this up at our last meeting. We just wanted to have documentation in front of us for this meeting. But just to recap, what we're looking to do is to drop three voting members on this committee.

That will be the select board member, the board of health appointee. Actually, no, so it's the select board member, it's the director of health, and Gino Cresta, the director of DPW. This actually, the board of health appointee is actually still in the mix.

[Speaker 5] (51:53 - 51:57)
As someone from the board of health, or this says?

[Speaker 4] (51:57 - 52:02)
It says as an appointee from the board of health. The board of health has to send in an appointee.

[Speaker 5] (52:02 - 52:09)
You still want it, because here it says it's moving it just to being a resident member, but that's not true. You want it to still be the board of health person?

[Speaker 4] (52:10 - 52:17)
Yes, but they are still, yeah, they still need to be a board of health person. And so if you could just.

[Speaker 3] (52:19 - 52:23)
So we're not expanding the size of the committee, we're just, it's just a reorganizing.

[Speaker 4] (52:23 - 53:02)
We're just reorganizing. So what we're doing is we're taking those three spots as voting members out. They will still be attending meetings.

The liaison will attend meetings when they can, or communicate with the chair. The director of health, who is Jeff Vaughn right now, he will check in or attend meetings, depending on what the chair needs, and then the DPW director will do the same thing. So this way, they're not gonna tie up a quorum.

They were gonna put in three positions, three residents who could actually be working members of a committee, and it's just gonna, it should move a lot more efficiently and get a lot more of that.

[Speaker 3] (53:03 - 53:06)
And are we gonna post for these three open positions?

[Speaker 4] (53:06 - 53:12)
We would need to post, yes, we would need to post for these three positions and fill them.

[Speaker 3] (53:13 - 53:23)
Is there the potential of having an issue with quorum, just in this interim period between today and whenever these three individuals are seated?

[Speaker 4] (53:24 - 53:41)
I would think that what we should do is we should vote to do this, but to have it in place within a month from now. So we would say we would vote now, and then we'd say effective February, first week of February, second week of February. This way, we can have new members in.

[Speaker 3] (53:41 - 53:43)
And that's enough time for Wayne and?

[Speaker 4] (53:44 - 54:00)
I would say so, because there are applicants on the books right now, and Diane could send out something tomorrow morning, because I think even in the applications that have come in for the sewer and advisory committee, there are people that are expressing that they would like to do solid waste.

[Speaker 6] (54:03 - 54:09)
And obviously, these recommendations came with conversation with the committee.

[Speaker 4] (54:09 - 54:51)
Yeah, for about five months. Right now, it's difficult to, it's a challenge to get a quorum, but it's always done. But what you also see is you have, you have really five members that are doing all the work, and this is a, really a working, working committee.

We do a lot of work, a lot of research. So adding three more people in there. And also, you know, asking Gino Cresta and Jeff Bond to stay after that late, and then to attend another two and a half hour meeting, you're asking a lot of town directors.

And you for that matter. That goes without saying. But I love these meetings, they're awesome.

[Speaker 2] (54:52 - 57:45)
So I went back to remind myself, I made the motion originally to create this committee, and I don't have a problem with these changes, but I just wanna highlight why the committee was originally formed the way it was. And I think it had to do with just making sure that the work at the time the committee was charged, and essentially, it's great, they're focusing on a lot of things, but really, we're going through a tumultuous time in terms of contract negotiations and price increases on our solid waste line item, which is a huge line item, uncontrollable line item in our budget. And so I think that there was concern that we didn't want there to be a lack of alignment with at least understanding what is feasible to do, as opposed to what's desirable to do.

And I say that really a lot of times, I mean, do sometimes with logistics, but more often than not about finances, right? Which is, there's a lot of things we may wanna do, but in the context of financial reality, what is doable and what's not, and to make sure that this committee is always tethered to the people that can at least, what I'm gonna call, be guardrails of just reason, just in the context of municipal finance or municipal law or just logistics and things of that nature. So I just wanna make sure that by, I hear you about town staff, but at the same time, town staff's the one that has to deal with the headache when all of a sudden the select board gets a policy that sounds really wonderful and we really wanna do it, but financially, it's not feasible.

Logistically, it's never really gonna be implemented the way it's taught or something of that nature because there was a disconnect there. So I just wanna make sure that we somehow make sure that we create that connectivity before it shows up here at the select board because it avoids the inefficiency and sometime awkwardness of us saying, well, what did town staff have to say about it? And town staff say they don't really wanna publicly say anything negative or critical, and I would just rather make sure that we have those interactions all happen before they come to the board, and again, it's not to agree to everything.

It's not to compromise just to compromise. It's about just making sure everybody understands the limitations and so that thoughtful decisions are made even knowing or despite those limitations so that by the time it comes to this board, this board can say, great, it's really been a 360 conversation. So I just, that was why the other staff was put as members to get them there to make so that the board really couldn't take action without having those conversations because they needed that for a quorum.

I get the reasons for changing it. I'm totally fine with it. I just wanna make sure that somehow we, and this is really the town administrator more than anything, that we create this connectivity because we, and again, we're gonna have the same thing with the sewer advisory.

We have the same thing with harbor advisory. We have the same thing with any other advisory committees, which is their advisory, right? Earth removal is advisory, right?

And what happens is disconnect just can make people feel like it's inefficient or they're not, their time's not respected and appreciated. And so I just wanted to make sure that that connection was always.

[Speaker 1] (57:46 - 58:27)
Peter, I think it's a really important point. I think this solid waste committee has been successful beyond our, I think, expectations. I appreciate that we have a solid waste committee that really likes to trash talk.

But our health department of the town charter is in charge of sanitation. And so it's important to kind of understand the charter actually speaks to what board is in charge of dealing with sanitation and to not have a health director involved in those conversations. I think you miss a little bit of the charter.

[Speaker 4] (58:27 - 58:48)
I just wanna be really clear that the request is not to remove them from the committee, but to remove them as voting members and that they need to be available upon request of the chairman. So which means is they would probably attend a meeting, but only have to stay there for maybe the first half an hour and they're not a voting member. It is not to remove them.

[Speaker 1] (58:48 - 59:18)
Totally understand. And I just think it's important that- Just make sure that that's also in whatever we- Yeah, I see the ex officio and I don't generally disagree, even though I did hear from one of these individuals that they're a resident and they liked the idea that they had a voice in policy recommendations from the committee, but- They can apply. That's right.

I also said, hey, look, you're an employee. You have more of a voice than- Well, I spoke to them and they said, thank you.

[Speaker 2] (59:19 - 59:40)
So, look, the only thing I wanna say, but Mary Ellen said, look, the town administrator decides how town staff uses their time. So I just wanna be clear, a chairperson can't say to a town staff, you need to attend a meeting. Like they have to go through the town administrator just because that's the protocol, but still the town administrator should readily make people available when it's reasonable and convenient to do so.

[Speaker 1] (59:40 - 1:00:07)
Generally, I feel- No, you do. I just wanted to make sure that I didn't want people to mistake anything that- We wanna help every committee, but we also have to run a town. And so there are days that Gino, frankly, has to step out of meetings, days that I have to step out of meetings.

We have a town to run that has evolving day-to-day priorities. That said, this has been an incredibly successful committee. I hope these changes do help continue to move the committee in a forward direction.

[Speaker 4] (1:00:11 - 1:00:28)
So, you want me to make a motion? So I'd like to make a motion to make these changes to the Solid Waste Advisory Committee effective February 15th, 2023. Four.

2024, whoa, yeah. Do I have a second?

[Speaker 3] (1:00:28 - 1:00:31)
24. Second. All right, all in favor.

[Speaker 4] (1:00:31 - 1:00:32)
Aye.

[Speaker 3] (1:00:32 - 1:00:32)
Aye.

[Speaker 4] (1:00:33 - 1:00:41)
So Diane, can you advertise that tomorrow and then start to send notices out to the people that you have on your list? Yep.

[Speaker 1] (1:00:42 - 1:00:47)
Diane, can you advertise that tomorrow and make sure that everybody- Thank you.

[Speaker 12] (1:00:48 - 1:00:51)
Facebook and follow us on the newsletters. Awesome.

[Speaker 3] (1:00:52 - 1:00:53)
When's the next newsletter?

[Speaker 12] (1:00:53 - 1:00:55)
It comes up at the end of the month.

[Speaker 3] (1:00:55 - 1:01:03)
Okay, thank you. Too late. All right.

Thank you, Mary Ellen.

[Speaker 12] (1:01:04 - 1:01:04)
You're welcome.

[Speaker 3] (1:01:05 - 1:03:03)
Thank you, Sean. We're gonna move on. We're gonna have the review of the Town Administrator's Annual Select Board Review.

So first and foremost, Select Board has reviewed the Town Administrator for fiscal year 23. Certainly a bit delayed in addressing this review. My apologies.

I'm sorry. So I wanted to apologize to the board and apologize to the Town Administrator for not doing this much sooner. I think your contract required us to do this- No worries.

So I do apologize for the tardiness here. So just to kind of let folks at home know what the process is. So what Sean will do is Sean will do a self-evaluation and he will send that to the members of the board and all the members of the board will do their own evaluations.

The chair then takes all evaluations and comments and compiles them together. And myself, as well as Katie Phelan, we met with Sean at the end of December to talk about the review. I do believe most board members have met with Sean to discuss their individual reviews as of today.

No? Tomorrow, okay. But you have the opportunity to do so.

I'm sure Sean will make the time. So I've taken the comments from the board members and I've created a summary document which I'll read for the record and therefore, thereafter, I'll allow the board to comment further. And then according to Sean's contract, we will vote discretionary bonus and then we will allow Sean to address us.

So that's sort of the process that we're gonna go through this evening.

[Speaker 4] (1:03:05 - 1:03:18)
Could you just, on the one thing on the process, could you just explain, so we fill out the evaluation. But the evaluation doesn't become public.

[Speaker 3] (1:03:19 - 1:03:24)
The individual evaluation does not become public. The consolidated will become public, yes.

[Speaker 5] (1:03:25 - 1:03:33)
And the consolidated is what we have before us, the narrative that, yes. Correct. All right, thanks.

[Speaker 3] (1:03:34 - 1:11:13)
Swampscott Select Board has undertaken its annual review of Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald. The review is for the fiscal year 23 and as in past years, it included a self-evaluation from the Town Administrator as well as individual assessments from each member of the Select Board. This evaluation summary completes the annual review process.

Fiscal year 23, including many accomplishments and achievements within the Town of Swampscott, including multiple town meetings. The town, fresh off its acquisition of the Hawthorne, held numerous idea sessions with the public, 400 plus attendees at the Hawthorne Visioning Session in January of 23, to gather input and continue making progress as to the next chapter at the Hawthorne property. Additionally, the Town Administrator has spent considerable time, effort, and energy with town staff and consultants to ready the Hadley RFP, which will redevelop and reimagine the Hadley School as an economic engine that will revitalize and re-energize Humphrey Street and our downtown corridor.

Under the leadership of the Town Administrator of the town and the Recreation Department spearheaded a number of community initiatives in 2023. This was the priority of our board to bring residents together on Town Hall lawn, or on Fisherman's Beach, or on Humphrey Street, or other locations in and around town for low-cost, no-cost events, to reconnect as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. Continued efforts to add events for all ages include a Pride Day 5K, Swampscott Porch Fest, Net Water Day at the Beach, Strawberry Festival, Wednesday Concert Series, Juneteenth Celebration, July 4th Races, Turkey Hunt, Christmas Parade, and more are now part of the fabric of our community.

Shawn continues to lead, and when necessary, provide funding to ensure these events happen. The Town Administrator consistently credits professional staff, Danielle Strauss and Jackie Camerlingo, as well as dozens of volunteers the town needs to make these events happen. Shawn can often be found attending these events with his family and making a positive impression on residents through his heartfelt speeches and participation in events.

The dunk tank at Swamptoberfest comes to mind for me. Shawn loves the town of Swampscott and loves his role as Town Administrator within the town of Swampscott. Despite facing much adversity for the last year, Shawn comes to work each and every day with a smile and exuberance for his job, remaining positive and optimistic for the future of our town.

Select Board is tasked, the Town Administrator, with supporting and promoting affordable housing initiatives within the town of Swampscott. Shawn, with the help of elected officials and professional staff, has led the charge to take the lead with the issuance of an RFP and complex negotiations of a purchase and sale agreement for much-needed veterans housing initiative on Pine Street. In the last year, Shawn has also worked with the leadership of the Swampscott Housing Authority to see if, for the first time, that the town and the Swampscott Housing Authority can work together to create 21st century public housing.

It is the thinking of the Town Administrator that we must do more than the bare minimum for the residents of Swampscott. Shawn believes that the town should work with state and federal agencies to create housing that each and every resident of town would live in, housing that is ADA accessible for current and future residents of Duncan, Doherty, and Cherry Street. This is a long-term goal and will take the non-linear type of leadership Shawn possesses to see this idea come to fruition.

The Town Administrator, along with the finance team, FinCom, Select Board, and others, have diligently worked over the last six years to bring the town's finances into order. This long-range planning, combined with many tough decisions, has borne fruit and has resulted in the town of Swampscott receiving a AAA bond rating from S&P. S&P reaffirmed the town's management score to Very Strong.

This did not happen by chance and certainly did not happen by accident. There are not many Massachusetts issuers, cities, towns, and municipalities that have this score. In fact, most S&P-rated communities and municipalities have scores of Strong or Lower.

As the town of Swampscott moves forward with bonding future capital projects, residents can rest assured that the town of Swampscott will receive the absolute best interest rate available for general obligation bonds, which translates into potential interest savings totaling millions of dollars over the life of the issuances. Fiscal 23 was not without challenges. The town of Swampscott left civil service and effectively controlled its own destiny with hiring new police officers, yet the town and the police union struggled to do so in a timely manner.

The process enacted was too slow to successfully hire for our town. That said, and much to the credit of the town administrator, Sean acknowledged that doing the same thing and expecting a different result would not benefit the residents of Swampscott, so he pivoted and worked with the union to revise the process, as well as ask the select board to assist with funding bonuses for lateral transfers, which has yielded results for our hiring process, as shown at one of our recent select board meetings at the end of December. Challenges remain with communications and community engagement, which can always be improved. While the town's redesign of its website is an incremental improvement, there's still work to do to make our website and its landing pages more engaging, more focused, and more user-friendly.

Communication plans for each individual town department should be imagined and implemented to ensure residents know what is happening and the website is more user-friendly. As a town, we need to continue outreach to inform those who are not already connected to town robocalls, emails, and social media. Swampscott faces challenges with the impacts of climate change.

To that effect, we need to refocus efforts and energies on advancing climate resiliency efforts and support the work of the Climate Action Plan Committee and their goals. This is only intensifying, and as a waterfront community in the Commonwealth, this should be a focus of our town planning and community development efforts. This should be prioritized as we move forward with major residential and mixed-use development projects in town.

During this review, communication and follow-through and follow-up were areas of concern. One of the areas that many select board members noted is needing improvement. The select board and staff have a full plate.

However, we want to implement better processes and procedures to ensure that we can continue to achieve many of the goals and objectives set forth by the board and the town administrator. The select board requests that Sean continues to make a determined effort to improve communication and listening skills, organization, and time management. The town administrator's time is very valuable, and he should structure and organize himself accordingly.

This will likely result in the need to delegate some tasks to other staff members, as there are simply not enough hours in the day, and the town administrator has surrounded himself with a strong team ready, willing, and able to assist. It is the hope of the select board that by delegating some of the town administrator's tasks, that more timely follow-up and next steps can and will emerge from our first and third Wednesday meetings, typically. This implementation of a better process for follow-up and next steps will only help benefit the town and the town administrator and help keep the select board and all parties on task and the town of Swampskate moving forward.

While there are always needs for improvement, the select board is satisfied with the town administrator's performance, as well as the performance of the town. We are grateful for the numerous accomplishments and progress that we have seen within the town in 2023, and we're excited to have a town administrator who looks to the future to do things not because they are easy, but because many of the tasks being addressed, including many infrastructure projects, including the new elementary school in Kings Beach, for example, were largely ignored for generations. We look forward to continuing to work with Sean and staff to realize a number of our aspirational multi-year goals and are excited about what the future will bring to Swampskate in 2024. And with that, I would like to open it up for comments.

Number one.

[Speaker 5] (1:11:14 - 1:11:40)
My first comment, David, is thank you very much for synthesizing all that and putting it together. As I said to you privately, you're a very, very good writer, and it was, I think, I imagine, I can't, I don't know everyone's individual input, but I think that was a very balanced and yet positive and upbeat and appropriate assessment. So I appreciate your putting it together.

Thank you, Doug.

[Speaker 6] (1:11:44 - 1:13:24)
I think what's interesting about the Town Administrator Review is that there are some similarities about how each of us look to Sean or look to, you know, for improvements or accolades that we have seen happen in the last year. And then also there are some wild differences, right, in how either some things were handled or what the prioritizations are, what the goals should be. And like, that's what makes this board work, right, is because we all wear different hats and we all want different things, but we understand that as a plate fills, you know, some things have to fall off.

I think the number one takeaway from all of us was the idea of delegation and time management. And because to your, to your credit, Sean, you have created a strong team around you that has the ability to take on more and that will afford you more time to take on more important things. And I think we are all very excited about the prospect of that pushing us even further in how we handle things in town.

You know, even more ambitious undertakings because there's more cooks in the kitchen to take on the duties. And that, as much as that might feel like a criticism, it is, again, it speaks to you and your hiring of the people around you and putting people in play who can take those items off your plate so you can take on more things.

[Speaker 5] (1:13:25 - 1:14:16)
Yeah, I just piggyback on that. You've also enabled, you know, I know the dynamic. My review on this is really only two months, you know, from August and from April to June.

But you've definitely set a tone, along with the select board, of high ambition, high aspiration, but with that, you know, it becomes you can't be Superman, right? So you gotta have a team. And so I think that's a really great way of, I don't take any credit for the delegation idea, wherever that came from, but I do think that is the path to success, to be able to continue to do all of these things and not have things not be followed up on or people be disappointed or not know where things are at, et cetera, et cetera, is that other people have to kind of step to the floor.

As well. Thank you.

[Speaker 4] (1:14:19 - 1:15:51)
For me, I wanna keep in mind that this evaluation is for 2023. So that means July 1st, 2022 to June 30th, 2023. And during that time, I was very vocal, I remain very vocal about the hiring, the lack of hiring for the police department and the stress that went on during that time.

I was very vocal about not having a planner. So things like that did trouble me. And I'm hoping that if and when you reorganize and you're able to rely on your staff more, that things like that can go a lot more smoothly.

Something that I have to be honest with that I've really learned in the last year and a half working with you is that your attitude every day when you come into work is something that I admire. And there are times when I don't feel like having that type of attitude when I go to work and I have thought about you. As you and I have not agreed on many things yet, you have always been very courteous to me.

And I think we have a fine working relationship. But I do wanna see these improvements on communication and follow through. And I do wanna help in any way that I can because this is about our community.

So that's what I have to say here.

[Speaker 9] (1:15:52 - 1:15:52)
Thank you.

[Speaker 2] (1:15:55 - 1:19:35)
I don't have much to offer. I really appreciate, David, you including the bit about, if you will, a little comparative to others, right? We are doing things as a town that towns aren't doing.

And it's primarily because they're really hard. I think there's a lot of smart people, a lot of creative people in a lot of communities. But you can't do something without upsetting groups of people.

You can't. And despite that, you have counseled me, and I'm sure others, and you've lived by it yourself to assess it based on its merits, its importance, its place, its time, its need. And that is a remarkable bit of guidance for someone whose job is the ultimate political job.

I mean, you are hired, you are monitored by five elected people. I wouldn't want the job because I think it's a really tough structure, right? But it takes a unique person and an ability to be able to do it and recognize that you are going to be, you use the phrase to people and you caution them, hey, take a position, you're gonna be hit by traffic coming from both sides.

But in reality, you do take positions and you still get hit by traffic on both sides, but you actually see that as part of your job. And I really appreciate the fact that you continue to do that, that in the midst of some of the toughest days when the criticism, fair, unfair, reasonable, unreasonable is thrown your way, I have never once, nine years, eight years since you've been here, seven years since you've been here, I can't recall a single time that you actually were the one saying, hey, let's pull back because it hurts, right? Let's pull back because it hurts the criticism.

You've shared at times not liking some of the criticism and I agree with you a thousand percent and at times we're the source of the criticism to you, but you just continued your compass and I've said this to people, you could fall out of a plane blindfolded and you would land pointing north. Your compass is undeniable. Your good days, your bad days, your compass is in the exact same place and that to me is remarkable.

We've had prior experiences with town administrators, so the town does have a comparative analysis, but I think the more relevant comparative analysis is just take any community in Massachusetts over the last seven years, any community, city or town, and I'm willing to put your record up and what you've been able to help this town do against anyone. I'm sorry that the public process for a review is you're the only employee that has a public review besides the superintendent and I hope people appreciate how awkward and difficult that that can be, but you handle this as well as you handle the rest of stuff and I do finally just wanna say I do appreciate the fact that as to the areas of improvement and criticisms and suggestions, it's not easy to hear. But you accept it and you hear it and you do work at it and that's very meaningful and so I'm grateful for you and when I look back at my time on the board, I think many of us feel the same. I know there's maybe divergent views here, but I believe my best things has been to help bring your vision to life for this town and so I'm grateful to you.

Thank you, Peter. Did you just call me Pete? I would like to change my remarks.

Yes.

[Speaker 1] (1:19:36 - 1:19:39)
You just called me Pete. I put an R on that, Peter. Peter.

[Speaker 4] (1:19:39 - 1:19:39)
Come on in, here they are.

[Speaker 1] (1:19:40 - 1:19:41)
It's my Massachusetts sign.

[Speaker 4] (1:19:41 - 1:19:42)
It's an accent thing.

[Speaker 1] (1:19:45 - 1:22:13)
Well, look, if the board has nothing else, I do wanna just share a few perspectives. I appreciate the time and effort that you've put into evaluating my performance. It is difficult to have five select citizens who represent this town evaluate my performance.

The last couple of years have been the most difficult years of my tenure in public life and I think any municipal CEO would say the same thing. These jobs are becoming more and more impossible. The acrimony, the vitriol, it's hard, but I do get bolstered by the progress that we make on a civic level.

The sense that we're going to cut a ribbon on a brand new elementary school that will serve tens of thousands of young citizens and be the best school in the Commonwealth over the next few months is a credit to an incredible amount of hard work. The sense that somehow we've been able to acquire open space and really think about ways to balance financial priorities to help ensure that Swampton has a little bit more of affordability. These are all tough and really difficult responsibilities, but we've done it.

This past year we've tracked just from this board over 160 individual requests. Diane's done a really good job trying to help me get better at being responsive to this board. Still not perfect and there's more work for us to do and I really do want you to feel as though your desire to help support this town will be met with our commitment to give you the best level of support that we can muster.

But we are busy and it's not an excuse. It's just there are days that frankly I could, I could stay 24 hours a day and just not get through everything. It's just.

[Speaker 5] (1:22:13 - 1:22:15)
You're not staying 24 hours a day?

[Speaker 1] (1:22:15 - 1:24:06)
No, it's a lot. I think about it almost 24 hours a day. I do think it's important that we continue to come back and really whether or not we agree, Mary Ellen, on anything.

I do think it's important that we recognize that we find common ground. I look at your concerns about municipal finance as probably the most amount of agreement that we have in terms of keeping Swampstead affordable and that's a huge cornerstone. We need that more than ever these days.

So I would kind of try to keep certain things in context. I do try to find a way to connect to each of my colleagues on this board in ways that I hope will help you feel as though your time on this board will be worthwhile and will be worthy of your continued effort, the most significant determinant about a community's ability to achieve extraordinary things is the tenure that you spend on this board. You can look around.

It's the time that we have continuity for ideas to manifest into reality. So let's continue to do our best to support each other. I will take your feedback in your individual evaluations and meet with each of you and try to listen more and speak last.

I think that's a goal that I'm working on. I appreciate that some of you have recognized that I'm trying to get better at that. I'm woefully inadequate, but I'm working on it.

[Speaker 2] (1:24:07 - 1:25:58)
Thanks, Sean. Mr. Chairman, I think, if I may, under the town administrator's contract, there's compensation, one of which is a discretionary bonus. There's also a deferred bonus.

The deferred bonus was designed as a retention incentive to encourage, financially, the town administrator to serve as long as possible in the town, and that's automatic. But the standard within the contract is that the board determines the town administrator has reasonably-statisfied goals set out for him. She'll pay the town administrator the following bonus.

I will say this. You help set your goals. Your goals are longer than any of our goals.

You could add all of our goals together. Your goals are longer. So you do put a ton on your plate, and you challenge yourself, and you don't make it easy.

And maybe, at times, that's where sometimes we get a little frustrated, because we're like, you're doing so much, or there's so much that we wanna do. But I just wanna say that there's no doubt in my mind that you've reasonably-satisfied the goals, and it doesn't mean that they're done. It doesn't mean that they're perfect.

But the fact that you keep at them, and you keep adding to them, and you keep... There is no finish line, right? And you've never defined a finish line.

It changes. Our needs change as a community, and frankly, the stuff that we talked about pre-COVID and post-COVID, the words we use, the ideas we have are different, and that's because we evolve, and you keep changing the finish line in a very healthy way for us, because we're a living, breathing community. So with that, I would like to make a motion to approve payment of the full amount of the discretionary budget for fiscal year 23 as set forth in the town administrator's contract.

Do I have a second?

[Speaker 6] (1:25:58 - 1:27:17)
I'll second that motion. I think the remarkable thing about you, Sean, is if I'm being fully honest, even if I'm giving you a criticism, that is, hey, you have so much on your plate. Maybe you should delegate some of it.

You're like, yes, but what about this? I also wanna put this on my plate. And it's a remarkable characteristic, because as Peter says, you're always moving that finishing line, that finish line.

You're never satisfied, which we have had town administrators who have been satisfied with mediocrity, or the average, or what peer communities were doing. And it didn't do anything to set Swampscot apart, to push us forward. And I think that some of your most lofty goals have put Swampscot in a class of its own.

And I think that, sure, there are definitely things that we want you to improve, but that doesn't take away from the fact that you've reasonably satisfied the goals you put forward. As Peter said, if you put less goals forward, it would be much easier for us to say that, but that wouldn't be you. So that is why I second that.

[Speaker 4] (1:27:19 - 1:27:30)
I have a question. My understanding was that we were asked what percentage of goals, and last year we took the percentages and combined them. We're not doing that this year?

[Speaker 2] (1:27:31 - 1:27:37)
Well, we actually did. Last year I made a motion, and it wasn't based on percentages, because we didn't know anybody's percentages.

[Speaker 4] (1:27:38 - 1:27:42)
I think last year, Neil came out and said what the number was.

[Speaker 2] (1:27:42 - 1:27:46)
No, I actually came out with a notion. I watched the meeting.

[Speaker 4] (1:27:46 - 1:27:47)
It was a motion.

[Speaker 2] (1:27:47 - 1:28:08)
Yeah, so again, this is not an averaging effort in my mind. It's a, we're a board like anything else. We take a vote to do this.

So I don't know what you guys all said, but this is, to me, it's a, again, decision of the board by majority, but last year was, I made a motion not knowing them as well for the time yesterday, I suppose.

[Speaker 3] (1:28:09 - 1:29:30)
I just had a comment. Over Christmas break, I went to the JFK Museum, JFK Presidential Library, and from the inaugural address, 1961, all this will not be finished in the first 100 days, nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet, but let us begin, and when I read that, I took a picture of it, I sent it to you, and I thought of you, because there's so many things that we've, that we're starting as a town, as a board, so many initiatives that are gonna outlive you and outlive me and this board, but we'll be here for the town, and it's really hard to quantify that within an annual review, because so many of these things that you've accomplished have, were started years ago, so many things that are being started today will be completed in five years, in 10 years, and we will see that at future times, so I just wanted to read that, and read that for the record, and just let you know that publicly.

[Speaker 1] (1:29:31 - 1:30:14)
Really appreciate that, David. I really appreciate that all these things we do together, but I am proud of the opportunity that this board has given me to serve in this position. These are important roles, and I will always believe that, as the great grandson of people that moved to this town in the 1920s, this is a privilege for me, and I do wanna make sure that when this is all said and done, that this place is left in a better place.

[Speaker 3] (1:30:16 - 1:30:18)
All right, so we have a motion, we have a second.

[Speaker 5] (1:30:19 - 1:31:40)
I have a comment. Go ahead. At the risk of being somewhat skunk at the garden party, I'm not quite on board with a 100% payment of the discretionary bonus, or whatever.

I think we've talked about and been very kind and appropriate in terms of all the progress, and we've also noted that there are some areas for opportunity for improvement, and so in my estimation of that, that doesn't necessarily add up to 100% bonus. That's not the way I've kind of experienced my entire career in terms of either receiving or handing out discretionary bonuses. So the motion on the table is the motion on the table.

I would prefer it be something more in the order of 80%, but there is a motion right now. I understand that's what we'd have to vote on right now, but that's my kind of directional intention. So it's a lot of enthusiasm and confidence that things are moving in the right direction, but to me, that doesn't quite add up to 100%.

So it's a little bit difficult thing to say, but there it is.

[Speaker 4] (1:31:41 - 1:31:54)
So I am going to echo what Doug said, but I also, with all due respect to you, Doug, your part of evaluating his time was only eight weeks.

[Speaker 5] (1:31:55 - 1:31:55)
That's correct.

[Speaker 4] (1:31:56 - 1:31:57)
Okay, so I just wanted to.

[Speaker 5] (1:31:57 - 1:32:02)
Absolutely. I acknowledge that. But they are a great eight weeks.

You did a lot of that.

[Speaker 6] (1:32:03 - 1:32:03)
80%.

[Speaker 5] (1:32:03 - 1:32:07)
It's not about me. It's about what Sean did in those eight weeks. We're doing your review next.

[Speaker 3] (1:32:10 - 1:32:17)
Excellent, 100% of zero, excellent. All right, so I'd call for a vote. All in favor of the motion on the floor?

Aye.

[Speaker 13] (1:32:18 - 1:32:18)
Aye.

[Speaker 3] (1:32:19 - 1:32:20)
Opposed?

[Speaker 7] (1:32:20 - 1:32:21)
Opposed.

[Speaker 3] (1:32:21 - 1:32:40)
Okay, three, two, motion carries. Thank you. And thank you to the hard work of the board.

I mean, this is a lot of information. It was a lot of email correspondence back and forth. So thank you for taking the time.

[Speaker 1] (1:32:42 - 1:33:16)
I want to just thank my colleagues, department heads and staff. All of our work, frankly, would be impossible without their dedication and hard work. We are supported by, I do believe, the best team in the commonwealth.

I think we have some of the most dedicated and committed boards and employees. We're fortunate to have their level best.

[Speaker 3] (1:33:17 - 1:33:43)
Thanks, Sean. All right, we'll move on to approval of the consent agenda. The consent agenda is designed to expedite the handling of routine and miscellaneous business of the board.

Select board may adopt the entire consent agenda with one motion and at the request of any board member, any items may be removed from the consent agenda and placed on the regular agenda for discussion. I'd entertain a motion.

[Speaker 6] (1:33:43 - 1:33:45)
Move to approve the consent agenda. Second.

[Speaker 3] (1:33:46 - 1:33:46)
All in favor.

[Speaker 6] (1:33:47 - 1:33:47)
Aye.

[Speaker 3] (1:33:47 - 1:33:50)
Aye. Thank you. Select board time.

[Speaker 4] (1:33:54 - 1:34:30)
I'd like to thank Maura Lau for coming to resident comment once again. It takes a lot of work to come down here. Encourage.

I also want to thank Joe Dulet and Joe, who's back there with you? Daniel Resky and Nathan Kent for their hard work. And I also want to thank the four little 10 year old girls that are at my house taking care of two week old puppies letting them come here today.

Thank you.

[Speaker 3] (1:34:30 - 1:34:31)
It takes a village.

[Speaker 4] (1:34:31 - 1:34:32)
It takes a village.

[Speaker 2] (1:34:33 - 1:34:54)
Would you mind if we spent just a couple minutes talking about our upcoming meetings? Yes. Just because I think it would be helpful if we might just have a sense of kind of the path towards we were talking about a special time meeting beginning in March and then we have a regular time meeting and a budget and a whole bunch of things and I just, it would be helpful to prepare.

[Speaker 3] (1:34:55 - 1:34:56)
Mentally.

[Speaker 2] (1:34:56 - 1:35:03)
Mentally, I think to just talk about some of those things. So if you wouldn't mind, maybe we could just talk through the next couple of meetings.

[Speaker 13] (1:35:03 - 1:35:03)
Sure.

[Speaker 2] (1:35:03 - 1:35:14)
And again, I don't say this, you don't have to have it all figured out right now. We can talk as a group to think about it. I just, it would help me because I don't have any insight as to kind of the next couple of meetings.

[Speaker 3] (1:35:15 - 1:36:04)
Sure, sure. So we're meeting today on the second Wednesday of the month. It would have been virtually impossible to meet on January the third.

My thought is we have a meeting two weeks from this evening on January the 24th and because January has five Wednesdays in it, we can then reconnect and move forward with the regular cadence of meetings on the first and third Wednesdays thereafter. So we would have a meeting on January the 24th in regular session and a meeting on February the 7th in regular session and we may have the need to meet in executive session on any number of topics but for now, regular sessions would be January 24th, February 7th.

[Speaker 2] (1:36:04 - 1:36:17)
And then what's after that? We always have a February vacation, kinda. The 21st would be our third and it's always in the middle of February vacation so we typically switch it out of there.

Yeah, correct. And we just talk about what date that would be and then we can go back and talk maybe some topics.

[Speaker 3] (1:36:17 - 1:36:26)
Yeah, yeah, we may need to have a meeting. We may need to have back-to-back meetings so we may have, I want to avoid the 14th of February if possible.

[Speaker 6] (1:36:26 - 1:36:27)
As much as I'd love to spend Valentine's Day with you all.

[Speaker 2] (1:36:27 - 1:36:30)
So I think the town administrator, I'm sorry.

[Speaker 6] (1:36:30 - 1:36:32)
I said as much as I would love to spend Valentine's Day with you all.

[Speaker 2] (1:36:33 - 1:36:45)
Yeah. We've actually done that. But I think Sean had mentioned March 5th as the current tentative date for a special time meeting.

I heard rumblings that there may be a conflict on March 5th with something.

[Speaker 1] (1:36:45 - 1:36:51)
There's a primary election on March 4th. Oh, it's 4th.

[Speaker 3] (1:36:51 - 1:36:54)
No, the 5th is Tuesday, right?

[Speaker 12] (1:36:55 - 1:37:01)
Yeah, the 5th of Tuesday. Yeah, the primary is Tuesday, March 5th. So we're looking to meet on Monday, March 4th.

[Speaker 2] (1:37:01 - 1:37:25)
Yeah, sorry, I said 5th. I meant to say 4th. My apologies.

All right, so Monday, March 4th is tentatively. All right, so I think that does mean that second week and kind of working backwards, that second week of February, it probably means we have to meet again just because we have to close the warrant. Yep.

To allow town staff to do everything they're doing. So can we just talk briefly about what day on the week of February 12th?

[Speaker 3] (1:37:25 - 1:37:29)
Would we be able to meet on the 13th or the 15th, Tuesday or Thursday?

[Speaker 2] (1:37:33 - 1:37:35)
I can do either, I'm happy to do either.

[Speaker 6] (1:37:37 - 1:37:40)
So I wasn't being sarcastic. I'm happy to meet with you on Valentine's Day.

[Speaker 2] (1:37:41 - 1:37:47)
Yeah, Valentine's Day, my life is every day is Valentine's Day, so I can officially miss Valentine's Day.

[Speaker 3] (1:37:49 - 1:37:50)
Romeo, Romeo.

[Speaker 6] (1:37:50 - 1:37:53)
Any of those three days are fine with me.

[Speaker 3] (1:37:53 - 1:37:54)
What's that?

[Speaker 6] (1:37:54 - 1:37:55)
Any of those three days.

[Speaker 3] (1:37:55 - 1:37:58)
Any of those three days? I don't have a...

[Speaker 6] (1:37:58 - 1:38:07)
Tuesday and Wednesday would require 6.30 to start. But if you did it the 15th, I'd be here by 6. Or earlier even, because I went from home to work.

[Speaker 2] (1:38:07 - 1:38:20)
So you wanna do the 15th? Well, let me ask the town administrator, does the 15th give you enough time to get things out? I actually...

It does, we... Yeah, I think you need to think about that for a second, because I think if it's the 4th, I'm not sure it does. It's a short month, remember.

[Speaker 6] (1:38:22 - 1:38:23)
It's more than two weeks.

[Speaker 12] (1:38:23 - 1:38:37)
So, we meet on the 4th. The final date to close the bar is February 13th. That'll give legal 24 hours to review it, and then you're out of the meeting.

[Speaker 6] (1:38:37 - 1:38:39)
So we have to meet the 12th and the 13th.

[Speaker 5] (1:38:39 - 1:38:40)
Why don't we just do it on the 7th?

[Speaker 2] (1:38:40 - 1:38:55)
Because we may need... We may be able to, but in the event that we aren't able to, I think having a scheduled meeting for the following week is a smart thing to just reserve us, because we have to be done with good intentions aside.

[Speaker 6] (1:38:56 - 1:38:58)
So we have to meet the 12th or the 13th?

[Speaker 2] (1:38:58 - 1:39:07)
The 12th or the 13th. I don't care either, for me. I'm flexible.

Is the 12th fine, because then it gives town staff 48 hours to do what they need to do, as opposed to 24?

[Speaker 5] (1:39:09 - 1:39:09)
Yeah.

[Speaker 4] (1:39:09 - 1:39:09)
I'm fine.

[Speaker 2] (1:39:09 - 1:39:10)
Okay.

[Speaker 5] (1:39:10 - 1:39:22)
But unless it puts undue pressure on you, Sean, to do it for the 7th, why don't we aim to do it on the 7th, so we're not completely against the law? Well, and you're encouraging us, Peter, here to be thoughtful and advanced.

[Speaker 3] (1:39:22 - 1:39:29)
So we actually... Well, we also have the 5th Wednesday in January. So we also have January 31st that we can work with.

[Speaker 2] (1:39:29 - 1:39:37)
Right, but that's two meetings to open, review, close a warrant, and we haven't even talked about what's in the warrant yet. Understood. I'm just saying now.

[Speaker 1] (1:39:37 - 1:39:38)
We do have a copy of the draft.

[Speaker 2] (1:39:38 - 1:39:42)
No, I understand. We know what you may want to have in the warrant.

[Speaker 6] (1:39:44 - 1:39:48)
So it's the 24th, the 7th, and then the 12th.

[Speaker 3] (1:39:49 - 1:39:53)
It's the 24th of... Yeah, it's the 24th of...

[Speaker 6] (1:39:53 - 1:39:53)
January.

[Speaker 3] (1:39:53 - 1:39:54)
January.

[Speaker 6] (1:39:54 - 1:39:55)
The 7th of February. The 7th of February.

[Speaker 3] (1:39:56 - 1:40:03)
And the 12th. And the 12th of February. But we could also flex January 31st if we needed to.

[Speaker 4] (1:40:04 - 1:40:10)
Well, why don't we just... Why don't we do January just to get everything done? That's fine with me.

[Speaker 2] (1:40:10 - 1:40:57)
I mean, I'm fine putting it on the calendar. I mean, maybe it helps if we talk about a couple of other things, because I think there's other things besides... There's a lot of just topics.

Right. There are things that are not just Town Meeting Warrant that are coming up that we have to do. So my understanding is from past meetings that on the 24th, we're gonna hear from and have a conversation on Hawthorne, right?

And to me, it seems like that's the first opportunity for us to open the Town Meeting Warrant. And so, Sean, if you can send that out in advance to us so that we have that, it's done now. So great, send it to us again, even if it's the same as what we got previously.

And then that allows us to review and come and be prepared to talk about things, about it, and have a conversation about what we wanna do with the Town Meeting Warrant, et cetera. And so that's the 24th.

[Speaker 5] (1:40:57 - 1:41:18)
I have a topic for that date issue. This is a good moment to... Potentially a discussion of specialized building code.

Doesn't necessarily mean it's gonna make it to the warrant, but there's a need to have some discussion of that. It has implications, I don't need to get into all the details right now.

[Speaker 1] (1:41:18 - 1:41:23)
Can we catch up tomorrow and we can talk a little bit about making sure we...

[Speaker 5] (1:41:23 - 1:41:26)
But it could just, again, doesn't have to initially mean it's gonna go on the warrant.

[Speaker 1] (1:41:27 - 1:41:39)
I'm happy to actually consider adding that, but I need to discuss that with Council and make sure that we have a runway for...

[Speaker 2] (1:41:42 - 1:42:53)
So the other thing that I think is coming up, that I think is, I'm gonna suggest, is just a select board meeting. The only topic for a select board meeting, but it's really a public forum as much as a select board meeting, which is, I think, by the week of January 29th, knock on wood, there would be a presentation by several of the respondents to the Hadley RFP. I think the current, I'm not prepared to have the conversation here, but I think it would be a public presentation by, and again, we need public for the public to come and see it, have it televised, have it be a select board meeting because we're all gonna be together and we can ask questions if we want to.

So it's welcome several of the respondents to come and share their responses. And I think my suggestion is gonna be that maybe we save the 31st as that night and hopefully not have to add anything else to it because frankly, it's gonna be better as a public forum as opposed to actually a select board meeting. I would propose that we're not even sitting up here or wherever we are, we're sitting in the crowd with everybody else just because I think it's a chance for the public to hear it and then give us feedback after that meeting at another time.

[Speaker 3] (1:42:53 - 1:42:56)
Would we envision that happening in B129 or would we look to do the?

[Speaker 2] (1:42:56 - 1:43:07)
I don't know, I think I'd wanna talk, honestly, I think I'd wanna talk to Joe a little bit and think about what the setup is and what the forum is and these people are gonna be here and what they may want to show and present.

[Speaker 3] (1:43:08 - 1:43:09)
What the technological means.

[Speaker 2] (1:43:09 - 1:43:37)
Yeah, I think I just wanna do it in a way that makes it, especially for those that aren't here, which would be the majority of people watching it, that it's easiest for them to, at a later date, take it, see it, and have it be visible, audible, et cetera, et cetera. And so I just, it may be here, but we can maybe connect and brainstorm about that, Joe. About that.

And then on the seven, oh, I'm sorry.

[Speaker 6] (1:43:38 - 1:43:40)
I have a conflict with the 31st.

[Speaker 2] (1:43:40 - 1:43:42)
Okay, well, we can change that. No, no, but we can change that.

[Speaker 6] (1:43:43 - 1:43:45)
We can change the 30th or the first.

[Speaker 2] (1:43:46 - 1:44:32)
So I think I'd probably change it to the 30th, just to keep it in January. Keep it in January. Okay.

I think then on the seventh would be closing, ideally would be closing the town meeting warrant, but just in case we have the 12th. But that would be predominantly town meeting warrant. And I think either on the seventh or the 12th, Hadley would show up back on our agenda because this board would need to have discussions and make a decision as to who to, and what, if anything, to do next.

And I don't know which date that would be at this point, but that's fine. I mean, we've figured out the next. Yeah, yeah, no, I'm just trying to throw it out there because I think it's a little.

[Speaker 6] (1:44:34 - 1:44:38)
So we have the 24th, the 30th, the seventh, and possibly the 12th, if necessary.

[Speaker 2] (1:44:38 - 1:44:59)
So is the 30th what we're settling on then for the Hadley? We haven't, I don't think staff has reached out to confirm that date with the respondents yet, so let's kind of like call that tentative, just to make sure the groups that are to come here can be here on those dates. I think the preference is to have them in person, not on Zoom.

Yeah. To meet them and have them here.

[Speaker 4] (1:45:00 - 1:45:00)
Okay.

[Speaker 2] (1:45:00 - 1:45:01)
Agreed.

[Speaker 4] (1:45:02 - 1:45:08)
And do we have, as far as with the Hadley, do we have that information cumulated by Pinnacle?

[Speaker 2] (1:45:09 - 1:45:15)
So, no. I think everybody here has the, I think.

[Speaker 7] (1:45:15 - 1:45:16)
Right.

[Speaker 2] (1:45:16 - 1:45:57)
Has that, has the responses. So in the next week, but staff is working. Staff has asked for some supplemental information to be filed by each of the respondents, just to fill any gaps, to make everything complete from the respondents.

So staff's reached out to get that. That's then going to Pinnacle and staff for them to then coordinate it all together. So Pinnacle's also looked at them originally, the RFPs, and actually helped create that list of follow-up questions.

Not questions like interview questions, but say, hey, we notice you're missing this, or it's not clear what you meant by this. Can you explain this? And so follow-up questions went out just so the proposals themselves would be complete.

[Speaker 3] (1:45:58 - 1:46:01)
So they went out and those, and we're.

[Speaker 2] (1:46:01 - 1:46:35)
I think responses are due end of Thursday or Friday of this week, and then I assume sometime by mid next week, everything would be assembled. I'm making, I have to talk to some staff, but it seems reasonable by mid of next week. Everything would then be presented to you all, us all.

On that, the only thing that's not gonna be, again, publicly discussed is the economics, the price proposals, until we select a group for now. But the proposals themselves are, will be public.

[Speaker 4] (1:46:37 - 1:46:39)
But the prices are not public. Correct.

[Speaker 2] (1:46:40 - 1:46:40)
Yeah.

[Speaker 4] (1:46:41 - 1:46:45)
So you say the proposals are public, so the public can see those proposals right now?

[Speaker 2] (1:46:46 - 1:46:50)
They're not online, but they are public document, I believe, Sean. Am I correct about that?

[Speaker 4] (1:46:50 - 1:46:51)
So we're putting them online?

[Speaker 2] (1:46:51 - 1:46:53)
We don't have them digitized yet.

[Speaker 1] (1:46:53 - 1:46:58)
We don't, and frankly, there's some information that we would have to.

[Speaker 2] (1:46:58 - 1:47:18)
Well, we have, even the public stuff has to get redacted, because there are financials that have been submitted, and so I think, so it may make sense for you to have staff to just start the process of redacting, because there's financials, there's references, there's personal information. Not, and the price stuff is separate all by itself, but. We've already begun those conversations.

Okay.

[Speaker 4] (1:47:19 - 1:47:23)
My concern is one, how quickly can we get that information to the public?

[Speaker 1] (1:47:25 - 1:47:29)
I'll get you an update in the next few days.

[Speaker 2] (1:47:30 - 1:47:32)
So how about we try and set a goal?

[Speaker 1] (1:47:32 - 1:47:32)
Okay.

[Speaker 2] (1:47:33 - 1:47:49)
Because I hear that at least one of us likes goals. Yep. And so, if we could establish by next Thursday, a week from tomorrow, to be able to.

Have it up online. Have those online.

[Speaker 4] (1:47:49 - 1:47:50)
Redacted.

[Speaker 2] (1:47:50 - 1:47:51)
I think that would be great.

[Speaker 4] (1:47:51 - 1:47:52)
Personal information redacted.

[Speaker 2] (1:47:52 - 1:48:07)
That would give 10 days before the public forum. Again, I don't know that all proposed respondents are going to be presenting on the 30th, but there are numerous of them, but not necessarily all of them. But then all the proposals, people will have them for 10 days before the public forum.

[Speaker 1] (1:48:08 - 1:48:09)
Sure. We can make that happen.

[Speaker 2] (1:48:14 - 1:48:16)
Okay. All right, thanks for going through that exercise.

[Speaker 3] (1:48:16 - 1:48:28)
Yep. Thank you. Additional select word time from other members?

You want it. Yes, sir. You're good.

[Speaker 6] (1:48:28 - 1:48:44)
I missed the last meeting, because I was out ill. So, happy holidays. Merry Christmas.

Forgot to say goodnight. I didn't get to wear an ugly sweater, and I missed all those things, but it looks like you're all in good health for 24, so keep it up. Thank you.

You too. Thank you.

[Speaker 3] (1:48:45 - 1:48:48)
Happy New Year. I don't have anything additional to add, and I would.

[Speaker 5] (1:48:49 - 1:49:55)
Yeah, I guess a couple quick things. One, Common Action Planning Committee had a meeting the other night. Actually brought in a couple of other committees, Harbor and Water and Conservation Commission to have a discussion about resilience measures, and with Director of Community and Economic Development there to help guide us towards a municipal vulnerability grant.

We got that before, as people may recall. It helped to kind of berm up a lot of the beaches, and there's an opportunity for another grant coming up. So, we wanted to have some, begin some discussion about what that we might be going after.

What do we need to do about seawalls, or the fish house, or additional kind of berming and grassing, or arcs on the seawalls, or what are the things that we need to be thinking about in terms of that grant? So, there's some kind of thinking and talking and going on about that, FYI.

[Speaker 4] (1:49:56 - 1:50:10)
Can I ask you a quick question? What about the money that the governor just announced, I think it was two weeks ago, for coastal communities? This is something brand new.

Have you talked to Jenny Armini or anyone about that?

[Speaker 5] (1:50:11 - 1:50:15)
We have something that she, they talked about longer ago than that.

[Speaker 4] (1:50:15 - 1:50:16)
Pretty recent.

[Speaker 1] (1:50:16 - 1:50:19)
Yeah, up in Beverly she announced the program. Yeah, we've been.

[Speaker 4] (1:50:19 - 1:50:20)
It's really new.

[Speaker 1] (1:50:20 - 1:50:41)
Yep, following that. Certainly, we plan on applying for a number of grants for resiliency. You read the Harbor and Waterfront Plan.

There's all sorts of projects in there to help with coastal flooding. Today was a perfect example of how cantilevered seawalls have caught the storm surge and the pier.

[Speaker 2] (1:50:42 - 1:50:43)
Our pier caught the storm surge.

[Speaker 1] (1:50:43 - 1:50:45)
Yeah, the pier caught. Sure did, sure did.

[Speaker 2] (1:50:45 - 1:50:46)
Pictures of it. Sure did.

[Speaker 1] (1:50:46 - 1:50:54)
Damaged again. And so, for the folks that are thinking that pier doesn't need to be replaced or heightened. We'll look at the damage.

[Speaker 5] (1:50:55 - 1:50:55)
Literally.

[Speaker 4] (1:50:55 - 1:50:56)
It's not underwater.

[Speaker 5] (1:50:56 - 1:50:58)
No, it was not underwater. You're right.

[Speaker 2] (1:50:58 - 1:51:02)
The planks came up. It wasn't under the, you are technically correct. All of the pier was.

[Speaker 5] (1:51:02 - 1:51:02)
I haven't.

[Speaker 2] (1:51:02 - 1:51:05)
Just don't forget my view. I don't. Well, I know about the view.

[Speaker 5] (1:51:07 - 1:51:52)
Yeah, I mean, there was flooding. One end of Humphrey to another today. So, yes, definitely plenty of opportunities there to think about that.

And the other thing I'll say is maybe everyone got this. There are some fundraisers being planned for the Glover. This weekend at Mexicali.

And I think the 29th at the Dockside Pub. So, people can show up and like 20% of your bill or whatever, anyone's bill that mentions the Glover goes towards the Glover. Lots of other activity going on there.

Planning, et cetera, et cetera. I won't get into the details of, but just that is proceeding.

[Speaker 4] (1:51:53 - 1:52:03)
On the Glover, my understanding is the roof is in bad shape. Is there a possibility of putting any type of a covering to protect that? I mean.

[Speaker 13] (1:52:03 - 1:52:03)
There is.

[Speaker 4] (1:52:04 - 1:52:09)
There is. Who can do that? Is that the DPW and the fire department or?

[Speaker 1] (1:52:09 - 1:52:20)
It's owned by the Athanas family. So, I've been in touch with them. And we are looking to coordinate some type of coverage.

[Speaker 4] (1:52:23 - 1:52:23)
Okay.

[Speaker 5] (1:52:24 - 1:52:29)
There's work being done to assess the specifics. And if Sean has that information and.

[Speaker 1] (1:52:29 - 1:52:33)
DPW's been down there. Fire department's been down there. We know the areas.

[Speaker 4] (1:52:33 - 1:52:44)
It just seems like this is going on and on. And meanwhile you're saying, hey, come and eat Mexican food and get us some money. But there's a big hole in the ceiling and we don't have a tarp on it.

[Speaker 1] (1:52:44 - 1:52:48)
It's been there for about 20 years. So, we're going to jump on it.

[Speaker 5] (1:52:48 - 1:52:51)
It's actually not a big hole in the ceiling. But anyway. There is.

[Speaker 1] (1:52:52 - 1:53:08)
Okay. We're going to do our best to help salvage that. I'm working closely with the historic commission and Doug.

But we've got to do it in a way that's safe and that's legal. Legal. It's not our property.

[Speaker 5] (1:53:12 - 1:53:14)
Thanks. Thanks Doug.

[Speaker 4] (1:53:15 - 1:53:18)
I have a motion to adjourn. Second.

[Speaker 3] (1:53:18 - 1:53:19)
All in favor.

[Speaker 4] (1:53:19 - 1:53:19)
Aye.

[Speaker 3] (1:53:20 - 1:53:22)
Thank you. Thank you. Have a great night.

Thanks Joe.