TO: Board of Selectmen
FROM: Carter Terenzini, Town Administrator
RE: Administrator’s Weekly Report
DATE: June 7, 2018
CC: All Departments
Important Notice to All Departments
Job Openings: Laborer/Truck Driver (DPW)
Fire Fighter/EMT-P R
Reports on surplus item due by June 14 to highway@templeton1.org
5. b. Given our decentralized structure, we found out we had an additional intern after the
presentations of early May. This is to acknowledge their contribution to our organization.
Weekly Report:
I met with our Financial Advisor and our Finance Team to begin the compilation of
our several bond offerings for the Police ($2.475M) and Schools ($12M+/-). We look to have these on
your agenda for 07/11. You will see in August a renewal of the Sewer Pump Station Ban. The
Finance team and I met with Counsel on our 130+/- Tax Title properties looking to move about 13 to
Land Court (after we have an initial file search for any potential hazardous waste issues by Police,
Fire, BoH, and DPW). We will begin our initial batch of 10+/- lands of low value for submission to
DOR for certification which is a far speedier – and less costly – approach than going through Land
Court. We had a conference call with the MRPC and environmental scientist relative to procuring
funding for added research on the 20+ American Tissue properties. Our goal is to clear more lands
than added each year by the time of the fall tax-title process to – slowly but manageably – reduce the
list. We had a telcon with the Conway School of Design to secure their design services ($1k+/-) for
the old Town Offices site in Baldwinville to try to move this project forward. We met with our tax
mapping firm to look at various upgrades we want to make for better document management and
making those documents available to the public. I had several conversations with Laurel View
residents over the “Red List” letter they got about needed repairs before we can continue plowing this
private rod. I’ve arranged a full neighborhood meeting for 06/18 here at Town Hall.
Since these residents already pay real estate taxes and since public money can be spent on private roads for improvement, why not, in the name of public safety, lay out a plan and make this road a public way. If this is not done, what happens if those so called needed repairs do not happen and there is a fire or a medical emergency; would that mean the town resources woulld not respond? A precedent has already been set; if the town now refuses to plow this road and there is a fire with medical emergencies, would this put the Town at legal risk?
The people who live there will be paying for the recent tax increase for services but now the selectmen are going to deny them those services? Time for town management to accept that Laurel View residents were given a "bill of goods" and do right by them. Accept the road as is and put in for CDBG grant money and what ever other resources that can be gained and do the road, sidewalks, drainage, etc., over and be done with it. They are town residents, they pay taxes and they should receive something for their dollars. It is time for taxpayer money to go for something other than employee raises.
