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BOARD OF SELECTMEN PETER L. FOHLIN, TOWN MANAGER TOWN MANAGER'S REPORT 2012-13 JULY 23, 2012 http://www.williamstown.net JULY 23, 2012 DEPARTMENT HEADS

COUNCIL ON AGEING

Renovations to the Harper Center have begun. On Friday, July 13, electrician Carmen LaCasse disconnected the power to the 1980 heating plant in the attic to prepare it for removal. On Monday, July 16, Vareschi Plumbing of North Adams arrived and began removing original duct work and the ancient heat plant through the ventilation grids in the front of the building. They completed this stage on Tuesday, July 17. The Vareschi people have been working in the early morning hours before the attic spaces heat up and thus have avoided the heat and have not disrupted regularly scheduled COA programming. Phase 2, the installation of insulated duct work for the new heating and cooling plant, which will be located on the main floor in a closet on the Church Street side of the building, begins this week as well. Vareschi intends to work through the weekend on the project. The actual bits and pieces of duct work, pipes, wiring, etc. are custom created for the spaces at Harper and are fabricated in North Adams. Electrician LaCasse will schedule a day to upgrade the electrical service to the building. This will require shutting off power to the building and adding an upgraded electrical service and connecting to the transformer in the center of the Proprietors Field complex. LaCasse is looking at possibly doing this on Saturday, July 28. While the HVAC work is being completed, building contractor Jonathan Duda has ordered the materials (e. g. windows, lumber) necessary to complete the project. He has been working with the architect and Williamstown building inspectors on the final plan and will begin his portion of the project in a couple weeks. Williamstown Commons will host their Annual Senior Community picnic on Thursday, July 26, from 11:30 to 1:00 with lots of good food and entertainment. An indication of how many folks are coming will be appreciated, so signup sheets are available in the Harper Center and at the Housing Authority office at Meadowvale. You can call your reservation in to those locations as well at 458-8250 and 458-8282 respectively Friday, July 27, is the date for the July Brown Bag delivery in Williamstown. Brown Bag is a monthly offering of shelf stable foods, canned goods, and boxed or bagged items such as pasta or bags of rice, as well as fruits and veggies in season, fresh eggs, soy milk, etc., delivered once monthly in a brown paper sack. The program is sponsored by the Foodbank of Western Massachusetts and is offered for a modest donation every month to seniors who meet moderate income guidelines. The food is shipped from the Foodbanks operations center in the Pioneer

Valley to the Spitzer Center in North Adams, where the bags are assembled for distribution by the COA van. Eligibility for the Brown Bag program involves a simple one page application and statement of income to verify eligibility. Interested persons can contact the COA office at the Harper Center, 458-8250, for an application and assistance completing the very simple form.
TOWN CLERK

Absentee ballots for the September 6 State Primary are available in the Town Clerk's office. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is 12:00 noon on Wednesday, September 5. Residents should note that while elections are commonly held on Tuesday, this next State Primary will take place on Thursday, September 6. The deadline to register to vote for the State Primary is Friday, August 17. The town clerk's office will remain open until 8:00 pm that evening.
INSPECTION SERVICES

Ryan and Michael have been performing progress inspections and plan reviews, and meeting with design professionals and contractors on various projects; - 20 Williams College periodic inspections (Certificate of Inspection) have been completed - Building permits have been issued for Lickety Split in the Dennison Gate House, Harper Center, Chandler Gym (basketball court), and several small residential projects - Commercial project inspections have been done at Lansing Chapman Rink alterations, Williams steam line alterations, Jewish Religious Center, Currier Hall, Stetson Library, and Clark Art Institute Visitors Exhibition and Educational Center. A number of small residential projects have also been inspected. On July 11 there was a workplace accident at 18-20 Meadow Street. Two workmen fell from staging. One workman sustained injuries to his chest. The injured worker was transported to BMC, where he was treated and released. DIS inspected the site, and notified the Department of Public Safety, OSHA, and Division of Industrial Accidents. Investigations by OSHA and Division of Industrial accidents are in progress. Chief Pedercini and Michael Card inspected Williams College Goodrich Hall and certified it for occupancy as a nightclub. This is a requirement for the Selectmen to issue an alcoholic beverage license to WTF. The Health Inspector has been performing swimming pool inspections. The Mass. Dept. of Public Health classifies all public or semi-public pools the same whether they are large municipal pools or small bed and breakfast pools. Pools are inspected for water quality, signage, safety equipment, appropriate chemical tests with appropriate chemical testing equipment, appropriate flow rate and turnover, and certification of the pool operator. The Health Inspector has been inspecting recreational camps for children. The camps were administratively inspected prior to receiving a license for written procedures, criminal and sexual offender background checks, and other administrative functions. While in operation the camps are inspected for adequate medical personnel, adequate first aid equipment, completed medical evaluations and releases for campers and staff, adequate water and appropriate procedures to insure the continued health and safety of the campers. All camps in Williamstown, except the Youth Center, use Williams College dining facilities and dormitories, which also are inspected regularly by the Health Department.

The Health Inspector has been witnessing soil evaluations for the upgrade of septic systems. In the last few years, the number of evaluations has fallen of as fewer new homes are built, and fewer home sales are triggering Title 5 inspections. The Health Inspector continues inspecting rental units as part of the local Certificate of Compliance inspection program. The Health Inspector continues Food Establishment inspections, and periodic spot checks of the Farmers Market. The Conservation Commission has approved a RDA for Williamstown Rural Lands Foundation to work on handicapped accessible ramps and walkways. ConComm will meet this week to discuss an NOI for a repair of a failed septic system off Green River Road. Last Thursday the Zoning Board approved an application to reconstruct a nonconforming single family home on McCaully Lane. ZBA also approved the withdrawal without prejudice of a special permit application for camping at Hogs on the Farm.
PUBLIC WORKS

North Hoosac Road has been ground and graded in preparation for the first (binder) layer of pavement. Curbing and driveway aprons have been removed. The bid for bituminous concrete has been awarded to Lane Construction, the low bidder at $62.65 per ton for binder and $68.65 per ton for top. Installation of binder is scheduled for July 25-26, weather permitting. Two of the four benches in front of the former Subway location on Spring Street were vandalized beyond repair last week. We are seeking prices on replacement benches. Bid documents have been prepared for the installation of a 6 KW solar array on the roof of the Eastlawn Cemetery maintenance building. The $40,000 project is funded entirely by the Green Communities grant received last year. It is expected to produce enough power to offset 100% of the power usage at the Eastlawn Cemetery building, the Sherman-Burbank Memorial Chapel, the Transfer Station buildings and compactor, the Dog Pound, the parking lot lights at Town Hall, and the flag lights at Field Park. The project will be advertised on July 25 and bids opened on August 13. The project is expected to be online by this fall. The Town has contracted with CDM Smith to conduct comprehensive groundwater sampling at the former Phase I, Phase II, and Cole Field landfills as requested by DEP, as well as to perform annual landfill inspections. The sampling of existing groundwater monitoring wells is expected to occur by the end of July. The work is being conducted to finalize closure of the sites and establish ongoing monitoring requirements. The DPW has recently assisted the Williamstown Elementary School in determining areas of concrete sidewalk on WES property in need of repair or replacement, and the solicitation of contractor quotes to perform the work. Grady and Jennings of Williamstown submitted the low quote, and are expected to begin replacement of approximately 1,100 square feet of sidewalk panels and caulking of numerous expansion joints during the week of July 23. The work is expected to be complete within two weeks depending upon the weather.
FINANCE DEPARTMENT

Forty four letters have been mailed to delinquent taxpayers advising them that if payment is not received on or before July 30, the Town will begin tax taking proceedings. Typically at this time of year we send out about fifteen to eighteen letters. The current delinquency stands at

$244,000 as compared to $88,000 at this time last year. This will be the fourth notice to these property owners. (original bill, demand notice, friendly reminder, and notice) Currently, we have about 10 property owners who are under agreement for regular installment payments and will not be receiving a letter. Transfer Station permit sales are slowing down. We are selling about 20 per week compared to 50 per day at the beginning of the month. 1052 stickers have been sold to date, which is on target with this time last year. We typically sell 1450 per year.
PUBLIC SAFETY

The display panel for the south (northbound) speed sign proved to be defective. A replacement is on the way under warranty. Trailer trucks carrying oversized loads for the Florida MA windmill project will continue to pass through town from time to time for probably another six weeks. The primary route is Route 43 out of New York to Cold Spring Road then along Main Street. Lighter loads continue on Route 2 to Florida. Heavier loads follow Cole Avenue to North Hoosac Road east. The routes are dictated by bridge capacities and other navigational factors. There have been eleven (11) motor vehicle accidents reported this reporting period: one (1) vehicle v. dog; seven (7) two-vehicle roadway; two (2) single motorcycle roadway; one (1) single-vehicle into parked vehicle in a parking garage. A total of 107 motor vehicle stops were conducted during the reporting period and 101 citations were issued, recording 120 violations. Sixty-two (62) parking violations were issued this reporting period. Since the last reporting period, 13 criminal charges were taken against 4 individuals for the following: 07/06/12 07/09/12 07/10/12 07/12/12 OUI Liquor; Operate MV with License Suspended/revoked; MV Lights Violation A&B A&B; Vandalize Property (7 counts) Violate Abuse Prevention Order

Nine hundred two (902) calls for service were received at the Dispatch Center from Thursday, July 5, to Thursday, July 19: Police 797 Ambulance 95 Fire 10

NOTICE BEING MAILED TO ALL LICENSED ESTABLISHMENTS

The Williamstown Police Department will conduct alcohol compliance checks of liquor licensed Williamstown establishments throughout the year. Please take every opportunity to ensure your servers and managers are diligently upholding the law in an effort to prevent underage individuals from procuring and consuming alcoholic beverages. TIPS training and certification is recommended for all employees. Individual servers who fail to comply with the proper check of identification of customers face potential criminal charges. Consequences the establishments face may include fines and/or sanctions as recommended by the Williamstown Board of Selectman and the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC).