Conway

  • Town of Conway Massachusetts
  • 32 Main Street
  • 413-369-4235
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Join Selectboard, Finance and Capital Improvements Meeting

Monday, June 5, 6:00 pm until 7:00 pm
Town Hall
A meeting of the Select Board

Selectboard Meeting - 5 Academy Hill Road, Conway - 6:00 p.m.
Meetings are now held every other Monday and are at this time accessible via Zoom.

Meeting of Select Board

Members: (Quorum)

  • Present: Christopher Waldo, at 6:00 PM
  • Present: Philip Kantor, Chair, at 6:00 PM
  • Present: Erica Goleman, at 6:00 PM

Also Present:

  • John Craine
  • Bob Armstrong
  • Phyllis Craine
  • Jim Recore
  • Ron Sweet
  • Laurie Lucier
  • Dave Maslanka
  • Roy Cohen
  • Veronique Blanchard and Adam Reed

See original Agenda Approved Meeting Minutes

Meeting opened: 6:00 PM

Meeting closed: 8:02 PM

  1. Meeting Preliminaries

  2. Warrants

  3. Meetings Attended by Select Board Members

  4. Public Comments. None

    • Public

      General Discussion...
      Dave Maslanka came to the Select Board with some questions about the process of finance that leads to the warrant that is mailed out.
      One question was regarding the amount of money a purchase has to exceed before it becomes a warrant article. The example was why the chipper was passed without a 2/3 majority. It was explained that the money came from funds remaining from the building of the Highway Facility which are already in the general fund, so the vote required is a simple majority. There was a question about the scissor lift and how that was purchased. In this the money came from the budget allocated to the construction of the Highway Facility. Mr. Maslanka also has concerns about the lack of guardrails on Shelburne Falls Road. New replacement guardrails are on the town list as soon as the budget permits. There may also be grants available to assist the town with this task.

  5. Unfinished Business.

    • None.

  6. New Business

    • - Schedule Eversource pole hearing, 161 Thompson Road.

      General Discussion...
      Tabled until June 20.

    • - FY 24 Annual Appointments for Boards, Committees and Commissions.

      MOTION, moved by Erica Goleman, seconded by Christopher Waldo: Reappointments for boards and committees with the term ending on June 30, 2023.
      Peter Freisem Cemetery Commission
      Mikayla Archambeau Community and Economic Development Committee
      Aimee Anderson Community Preservation Commission
      Michelle Sanger Cultural Council
      Suzanne Artemieff Forest and Trails Committee
      Priscilla Lynch Forest and Trails Committee
      Laura Nicholls-Shaw Historical Commission
      Yulia Stone Historical Commission
      Patricia Lynch Newsletter Committee
      Kathy Llamas Newsletter Committee
      Mac McCoy Open Space Committee
      Michael Merritt Parks and Recreation Committee
      Ron Sweet Public Buildings Committee
      Gary Fentin Zoning Board of Appeals
      .

      Pass: Aye: Erica Goleman, Philip Kantor, Christopher Waldo.

    • - Discuss and Sign the memorandum of understanding with the Franklin Regional Council of Governments for RFP assistance.

      General Discussion...
      Tabled until June 20.

    • - Discuss and Sign MOU for the transfer station hauling services.

      MOTION, moved by Philip Kantor, seconded by Erica Goleman: To sign the MOU for hauling services. .

      Pass: Aye: Erica Goleman, Philip Kantor, Christopher Waldo.

    • - Schedule a date for the closed bid for 0 off Ashfield Road.

      MOTION, moved by Philip Kantor, seconded by Erica Goleman: For the date of July 11, 2023 by 4:00 PM at the Town Clerk's office.

      Pass: Aye: Erica Goleman, Philip Kantor, Christopher Waldo.

    • Joint Meeting with Finance Committee and Capital Improvement - Lessons learned from Annual Town Meeting.

      General Discussion...
      Capital was called to order at 6:05 and adjourned at 7:50. Finance did not have a quorum.

      The following points were discussed regarding Annual Town Meeting.

      * Presentations should occur before the meeting to help educate the public about the warrant articles. At a separate meeting, Capital and Finance should go through their findings related to large ticket items.

      * The hand-outs seemed overwhelming for people. In future there should be a table for information, not a stack of papers on chairs, and everything should be clearly explained before the meeting begins. There also needs to be a town seal on documents so private hand-outs are not confused with information from the town.

      * With the warrant mailing, the warrant lite should be included as well as an explanation on the procedures of how the meeting runs.

      * In future we should hire a company to record the meeting. Wireless mics for the crowd are preferred for those with mobility restrictions.

      * A screen behind the moderator may be used to project the issue at hand. The clicker program can even be used for this information.

      * Further education about town meeting may be conveyed through a video clip on the website.

      * People should be restricted to 1 comment per article to move the process along. Someone would have the opportunity for a rebuttal if their name is brought up.

      * Name tags and introductions of the front panel should happen at the opening of the meeting.

      * These committees will reconvene a month before the next town meeting to confirm the process for making these corrections.

    • - Approval for the final mock up and placement of bag stickers.

      MOTION, moved by Erica Goleman, seconded by Christopher Waldo: .

      Pass: Aye: Erica Goleman, Philip Kantor, Christopher Waldo.

  7. Items Not Anticipated 48 Hours in Advance of the Meeting

    • None.

  8. Town Administrator update

  9. Selectboard member comments/concerns

  10. Mail

    • - Girl Scout recognition.

    • - Sign the Rural School Aid letter.

      MOTION, moved by Philip Kantor, seconded by Christopher Waldo: .

      Pass: Aye: Erica Goleman, Philip Kantor, Christopher Waldo.

  11. Announcements

  12. Meeting Wrap-up

The listing of matters is those reasonably anticipated by the Chair which may be discussed at the meeting. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by law.

Minutes approved on Tuesday, Jun 27, 2023

Posted to: Select Board (updated 2023-06-01 13:20:41).

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