by Frank Schroth

Town Meeting resumed Thursday night with a discussion of Article 17, an appropriation for a “feasibility study of the potential uses of the DPW yard” and would include support for cemetery, parks and recreation, and consolidated facilities”. The article has become town meeting’s version of The Never Ending Story.

At issue Thursday was the formation of a committee to take up the study. The article, which was submitted by the Board of Selectmen, did not specify who would conduct the study or manage the funds. This resulted in a series of discussions and motions. One motion to deny any appropriation for the study (the request was for $35,000) was defeated.

When the article was initially presented at last Tuesday’s session, it was the expectation of the Selectmen that the study would be done by DPW director Joseph Lynch. Town Meeting Member John Cronin rose to recommend a committee be formed to conduct the study as that was consistent with how the town typically manages land use. Due to the late hour, a motion was made and passed to adjourn and resume the issue at the next session.

Katie Conlon, Chair of the Selectmen, spoke in opposition to the formation of a committee, arguing that the scope of the article was narrow. There was not work to be done by a committee as the work had already been done. She explained that Mr. Lynch had issued an RFP, received several responses, and selected a firm with expertise in DPW facilities to conduct the study. She further stated that the DPW reported into the Selectmen’s office and that they were  responsible for the study. Lastly, the needs of the cemetery and parks would be included. She said that it was unclear what value add the committee would bring, and “We don’t see any reason for a delay.”

Several members then spoke in support of the committee. John Shields said, “I could not disagree more” and noted that no one had mentioned the neighbors who he felt should be included throughout the process. Steve Affanato, one of the Park Commissioners, said the committee should include the parks department.

Mr. Cronin spoke and, addressing Ms. Conlon’s concerns, said that the committee would provide transparency and the committee would provide oversight. The Warrant Committee supported the the motion. However, Town Meeting Member Peter Mullin rose to say that the focus of the article had changed substantially in scope and made a motion to defer the article until Monday which would allow the Selectmen, Mr. Cronin, and other vested interests to craft revised wording for the article. The motion passed by voice vote according to moderator. Seven members stood to call for a standing vote. The motion carried by standing vote 115 – 92.

[Note: Attendance at town meeting falls off with each successive day. According to the Town Clerk, attendance at Day 1 was 257, Day 2 was 239, and Day 3 was 222. Additionally, it decreases from the start of a session to the end of a session. For example, there were 222 signed in at the beginning of the session on Day 3; but only 207 participated in the standing vote on a motion that arose during the first article under discussion.]

The Fire Space Committee made a presentation which is available online. The discussion was led by the Chair Steve Morash. He was joined by Chief Grant and Tom Hess. The primary driving criterion in evaluating locations was response time – 4 minutes for fire and 8 minutes for EMS. The committee looked at several locations including town land at Brook and Centre Streets, but no locations would serve the town as well as the current location of our fire stations. Given the age an condition of the stations, they recommend building new stations at the present locations for headquarters (behind town hall) and Atherton. They propose moving the East Milton station to the site of the East Milton Library. Town Meeting Member Cheryl Tougias, who is also a member of the Master Plan Committee, advocated for retaining the current buildings and repurposing them. She argued that they should be preserved as important structures with historic character.

Morash acknowledged the report was a first step. Everything was under consideration and “on the table.” The report he said, reflected “where we are as a town” regarding fire safety and that “we have kicked this can down the road.”  As evidence the committee began their report with the following:

“The Central Fire Station and the Blue Hills Station are obsolete, having been constructed to house horse-drawn apparatus. The East Milton Station, while more recently constructed, is inadequate to house the men necessary to properly operate the apparatus and it is doubtful as to whether it will house a ladder truck built to today’s specifications.

The committee’s full report can be found here.

The largest appropriation of any Milton town budget is the school department. This year it is $39,357,890. Mary Gormley, Superintendent of Schools, gave a presentation on the budget. She was joined by Assistant Superintendents Glenn Pavlicek and John Phelan. You can find a copy of their budget presentation here. Note this may not be the exact presentation given at Town Meeting. The schools did not receive the full amount they requested ($39,674,142). Mr. Pavlickek reviewed the measures that would be taken to reduce costs to meet budget recommended. The article passed unanimously; however, a couple of members voiced concern about the budget going froward. TMM Bob Hiss said “I’m worried about next year.  .  . this is not going to be an easy roll.” The “easy roll” referring to the possible need for and passage of an override.