[0:00] Good evening and welcome to the June 23rd, 2026 meeting of the East Amity

[0:04] Town Council. I'll call the meeting to order and ask that we stand for the

[0:07] Pledge of Allegiance.

[0:12] » I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the

[0:16] republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and

[0:22] justice for all.

[0:31] » I know what I asked that we take a brief moment of silence

[0:33] on all of the events going on both at home and abroad.

[0:42] Thank you. In accordance with Mass General Law, this meeting is being

[0:45] recorded by LCAT and if there's anyone else in the audience recording, if you

[0:48] could identify yourself. [clears throat] Seeing none,

[0:52] public comments. Is there anyone in the public audience that wishes to make a

[0:55] comment this evening? Seeing no one online or no one on Zoom

[1:00] with their hand raised. >> Oh, actually, Connor, can you mute pause

[1:02] for one second? I >> Now, if there's anyone on I don't see it

[1:07] yet, but Council comments. Is there anyone in the

[1:10] council that has a comment this evening?

[1:14] Yeah. Seeing none, town manager's report.

[1:18] Um >> Hi.

[1:21] Uh good evening. Um

[1:25] So, uh attached are the project reports for weeks uh of June 1st and June 8th

[1:31] for the high school and the auditorium. Uh not lost in the excitement of our

[1:36] beautiful shiny new school, uh we're reminded of fond memories and

[1:41] appreciation for just how much our old school meant uh to the people of this

[1:45] community. Um it is sad to watch as the bricks come

[1:49] down, but uh progress for the future and uh the building of many new memories for

[1:54] future generations is where we turn our focus.

[1:57] Uh onward and upward. Uh and just a reminder you can get all your

[2:01] scheduling and progress information at any time on the website uh easton meadow

[2:05] ma.gov/lhsbuildingproject.

[2:09] Uh every time I go by there's like another section of the school that's

[2:12] down, so that's happening fast too as we've been

[2:16] going with every [snorts] phase of this project.

[2:19] Um and as we say goodbye to the old high

[2:22] school, we also say goodbye to the person who has led the way for the

[2:25] school department for the last 16 years. Uh congratulations to Gordon Smith

[2:31] uh as he completes an amazing career and leaves us for retirement. Um it's really

[2:36] impossible to quantify the impact that Gordon has had on the school system and

[2:40] the people of Easton Meadow. Always smiling, always dapper. Uh they

[2:44] talked about his hair a lot in his his retirement party.

[2:49] Uh still perfect. Uh it's hard to imagine

[2:53] him not being around and seeing him all the time, but um very few can lead with

[2:57] their head and their heart uh and he was a master class.

[3:01] Uh he'll be greatly missed and we certainly

[3:04] wish him the best. Uh I'd also like to acknowledge that the

[3:07] first meeting of the school committee in July will be the first meeting of the

[3:10] school committee in 20 years without Greg Thompson.

[3:14] Uh Greg has served our community with vigor and his passion for the education

[3:18] of our youth has been unparalleled. Uh two decades of service to a community

[3:22] is enough to garner a maximum level of respect in its own right, uh but Greg

[3:26] will leave behind a legacy of improvement, advancement, and one of and

[3:30] was one of the champions for the new high school. Uh thank you for the your

[3:34] service to your community, Greg. >> [clears throat]

[3:37] » Uh we're also wishing well to our planning director, Wael Abdelchilla.

[3:42] Uh Robin and his wife will be moving to uh the eastern part of the state. Uh he

[3:46] has accepted a position to be the planning director for the town of

[3:49] Wellesley. Uh Robin has advanced operations of the

[3:53] planning department by leaps and bounds in his short tenure here.

[3:57] Uh, his knowledge, organization, and passion for his field will certainly be

[4:01] missed. Um, we wish him the best of luck as he

[4:04] starts a new chapter in his life. Um, there's a flyer attached. I'll take

[4:09] a break from saying goodbye to people and things.

[4:11] Uh, there Actually, it's for hazardous waste cleanup day, so you can say

[4:15] goodbye to some of your things. [laughter]

[4:19] Attached is a flyer for the hazardous waste day. It's uh, August 22nd from

[4:24] 9:00 until noon at the fire station. Uh, as you recall from last year, um,

[4:29] you do need to pre-register for this event. You cannot just show up. Places

[4:33] with hazardous waste as a rule. Um, but there's a certain amount of stuff they

[4:38] can take on site, so you have to sign up. Uh,

[4:42] there is a uh, QR code on the flyer. Uh, and also you can reach out to Elizabeth

[4:48] Bone at the health department uh, with any questions that you might have.

[4:54] » [sighs and snorts]

[4:58] » Last and certainly in no way least, uh, I want to say thank you and an

[5:03] emotional farewell to our colleague and dear friend Marilyn.

[5:09] Uh, words can't express what you have meant to this community for the last

[5:13] nearly half of a century. >> It's a lot of years.

[5:17] » [laughter] >> You [clears throat] always did what was

[5:19] right. You did it with grace. You did it

[5:22] unabashedly. There isn't a person that knows you that

[5:26] doesn't carry the utmost respect for your passion for our community,

[5:30] the sheer breadth of your institutional knowledge, and the shining example you

[5:35] always set for us all. Thank you

[5:39] from the bottom of my heart for the support you have given me over

[5:43] the years. And I promise to wait until at least

[5:47] July before I start asking you to join any more boards and commissions.

[5:51] » [laughter] >> Uh sincerely, um

[5:55] I I think I speak for everyone. Um thank you for everything. We love you so

[5:59] much. >> Thank you.

[6:01] » Um don't be a stranger and I will be calling you soon. But thank you for

[6:04] everything, Marilyn. >> Very nice.

[6:06] » Appreciate it. >> Appreciate it.

[6:08] That's it. I made it through without a tear.

[6:11] » Me, too. >> [laughter]

[6:14] » All right. Thank you, Tom. Any questions?

[6:17] Comments? I'll just echo a lot of those same

[6:20] sentiments. It was nice to go to Gordon's uh retirement party on the

[6:24] council and it was well attended and then it was a nice ceremony. Um

[6:29] likewise, it's both sad, but wishing both of them well,

[6:35] both Gordon and and Greg in their next chapter of life beyond town

[6:39] service. Um now communications, correspondence, and

[6:44] announcements. That moves to our first item is to recognize Marilyn formally

[6:51] for her years of service. >> Woohoo!

[6:53] » [laughter] >> Was that my son?

[6:58] » [laughter] >> So, first on behalf of the council, we

[7:01] the East Longmeadow Town Council hereby extend our congratulations to Marilyn M.

[7:05] Richards to commemorate her 46 years of service to the town of East Longmeadow.

[7:10] Marilyn began her service to the town on the Council on Aging Board in 1980,

[7:14] served as the first woman elected to the Board of Selectmen in 1988, then served

[7:19] on the Planning Board in 1997, and served on a myriad of additional

[7:23] committees before joining the Town Council in 2019.

[7:26] Marilyn's hard work, dedication, and expertise have contributed to the town's

[7:29] success over her tenure, and she will be deeply missed. The Town

[7:34] Council extends our best wishes to Marilyn in her retirement from elected

[7:37] office, and myself as your president.

[7:44] » [applause]

[7:49] » Good morning. >> Now, I know we have some additional

[7:53] representatives with us this evening. >> Some additional.

[7:58] » [laughter] >> We we didn't get the memo about wearing

[8:03] red. So, I'm not a red tonight. So, first of all, we apologize for that.

[8:08] » We're here for the free shirts. >> [laughter]

[8:10] » I'm coming out I'm coming out here so I can hug.

[8:14] » [laughter] >> I'm just glad to see

[8:16] » Congratulations. >> Thank you.

[8:20] You too.

[8:23] » Well, first of all for Marilyn, you know, I'm so pleased to be here

[8:27] tonight because after reading the article and the reminder about your

[8:31] years of service, I was doing a little math. I'm not a math guy.

[8:36] Um but the town of East Longmeadow has been around for 132 years.

[8:40] » Jeez, you're not [laughter] that

[8:43] » For all of it. But you've literally dedicated your life to a third of the

[8:47] history of this entire community. Uh for 46 years, whether it was as someone who

[8:52] was advocating for streetlights within this town coming back from nursing,

[8:57] whether it was making sure that planning boards, which is one of the unsung

[9:01] heroes of a community in a town form of government that has to deal with it,

[9:06] whether it was the first female member of the board of selectmen, which aren't

[9:11] really called selectmen anymore because of that reason, called select boards,

[9:15] and then your later service on the town council in a new form of government,

[9:20] you've dedicated your life, your adult life, to the town of East Longmeadow,

[9:25] and it's just an honor for me representing the state Senate side, and

[9:28] I know that Brian and Angelo will have words to share as well, but you've

[9:32] dedicated your life to this community. You have contributed to everything that

[9:38] you have within this community for from, you know, the midnight early 1980s all

[9:43] the way till today. But, the one thing that I think makes you stand out amongst

[9:47] everything else is that, you know, we all serve, whether you're sitting on

[9:52] this town council, whether you're a state legislator.

[9:55] In these roles, you can you don't make a lot of friends sometimes.

[9:59] » That's true. >> And you can

[10:00] disagree, but the one thing that makes you stand out is that you can disagree

[10:05] without being disagreeable. And that is something that is important to have in

[10:10] local government, it's important to have in state government, it's important to

[10:13] have at every level of government. So, on behalf of the Massachusetts Senate,

[10:17] be it known to all that the Massachusetts Senate hereby extends its

[10:20] congratulations to Councilor Marilyn M. Richards in recognition of your

[10:24] distinguished service on the East Longmeadow Town Council and your more

[10:29] than four decades of unwavering dedication to the betterment of this

[10:33] community and the residents who are in public service. And be it further known

[10:36] that the Massachusetts Senate hereby extends its very best wishes for

[10:39] continued success and that this citation be signed by the President of the Senate

[10:44] and by me, your state senator. Keep on staying involved, and I know you will.

[10:49] » Thank you. Thank you. >> [applause]

[10:55] [applause] >> Uh you can take this, but I'm going to

[10:57] turn it over to Representative Ashe and >> [laughter]

[11:01] » Thank you, Senator. Marilyn, um obviously Jake stole my notes there and

[11:06] said everything we wanted to say, but sincerely, um you know, as Jake alluded

[11:10] to, working in in politics and anything like that, it

[11:14] it's tough to know who your friends are. It's tough sometimes to work cuz you're

[11:16] on different different angles with things.

[11:19] But, personally for me, from the bottom of my heart, it's been an absolute

[11:23] pleasure working with you, whether it is coming to some Veterans Day, Memorial

[11:27] Day, or any of the events here, or coming in here. I think the last time I

[11:30] was here, I was late cuz I went to the wrong door. [laughter]

[11:34] Yeah, I know, right? But but it really has been a joy working

[11:38] with you and it is easy to see whether speaking with you or whether

[11:43] seeing what you're doing in a meeting, how much you care about the community,

[11:46] how much you care about a town you you know you love and it would have been

[11:50] easy to have the time that you had before and call it quits. But you

[11:54] didn't, you want to give more and and that is so

[11:56] so commendable and to see somebody that that wants to keep giving back to the

[12:00] the community that you feel has given so much to you.

[12:04] We hope we get a red shirt before we leave but

[12:06] » [laughter]

[12:08] » I told you. >> Don't tell him that. You'll be back

[12:12] tonight. >> It's been an absolute joy working with

[12:16] you. I wish you nothing but success and and fun whatever you decide

[12:21] to do. I know this pulled so much time from you.

[12:24] » Thank you. >> [laughter]

[12:27] » No, it has been a joy and I will read the citation after

[12:30] Angela's >> After Angela's.

[12:32] » So just again, I want to thank all the town council members obviously being

[12:36] here, the town manager, the clerk, everybody

[12:38] and all the veterans, everybody that's here tonight. There's no place that us

[12:42] three would rather be than be here tonight certainly to say thank you

[12:45] Marilyn but it's a couple things. I I I did a lot of research because

[12:50] I thought Well, [laughter] I I do some it's easy

[12:53] with you know chat GPT, right? I did a lot of research and I and I I

[12:58] thought there was an age requirement when you started working because there's

[13:02] no way I said you started when you were like

[13:06] » [laughter] >> two or three years old but seriously you

[13:09] know again it's an honor and privilege to be here and all of us had served on a

[13:12] local level too and I think that's important. So we know that's really

[13:15] where you know the rubber sort of meets the road if you will. I mean you you

[13:18] know as Jake alluded to I mean there's a lot of tough decisions in the town.

[13:22] A lot of tough decisions that you're you're on the front line, right? And you

[13:25] know people come at you whether it's at a dinner, whether it's here, whether

[13:27] it's there. We've got the beauty of that in our district-wide, next week

[13:30] statewide. People come up to us no matter where you go. But when we were

[13:33] local and you're local and you know, and everybody here I think realizes the fact

[13:37] that, you know, you're on the front line. When something doesn't seem the

[13:40] way, you know, some resident may want, they they're at you, right? And uh

[13:44] » They give them your phone number. [laughter]

[13:46] » Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's good. You know, that's

[13:48] good. But but no, I mean, that's the point, right?

[13:51] And and to be involved for so long, 40 years, and all the hard work and

[13:55] dedication, and commitment really does, you know, uh transpose into a love

[13:59] affair, obviously, with the town, but obviously a love affair with helping

[14:03] people, constituent service, and making sure that, you know, the place uh that

[14:06] you call home here in East Longmeadow is is continues to be a great place. And as

[14:10] I think we've all said, we're going to certainly miss you. We've enjoyed

[14:12] working together. Uh we've had a great relationship, and we're going to

[14:15] continue on. We hope that you continue to stay involved. Uh and they may have

[14:19] to bring you back as a consultant. >> [laughter]

[14:22] » They may need some help at some point, right? That's what everybody does,

[14:24] right? They'll get back as a consultant. [laughter]

[14:26] Uh but again, seriously, congratulations on behalf of myself, the Commonwealth of

[14:29] Massachusetts. And again, no place we'd rather be here tonight than just to

[14:32] simply say thank you. >> Your work is appreciated.

[14:35] » Thank you very much. >> And thank YOU VERY MUCH.

[14:38] » [applause]

[14:42] » AND BEFORE HE HANDS YOU THAT, I GOT TO USE MY LITTLE LINE,

[14:46] RIGHT? >> OKAY.

[14:47] » Jake'll give you one, too. It's the only thing for you'll ever get from the

[14:50] Commonwealth of Massachusetts. [laughter] So, enjoy it while you can.

[14:54] » You know, when you made a joke about Anzu too, I think that's so important.

[14:57] Everybody here knows you have to have a sense of humor. If you don't, it'll be

[15:00] tough. I know you I know you don't do this job for the money.

[15:03] » [laughter] >> Um so, on behalf from the House of

[15:07] Representatives, be it here by known to all of the Massachusetts House of

[15:10] Representatives, offer What's the M stand for?

[15:13] » Oh, jeez. >> Uh-oh.

[15:15] » [laughter] >> Apparently no G's.

[15:18] » Matilda. >> Matilda. Oh, that's a lovely name.

[15:21] » It's a strong name. That's a good strong name.

[15:24] » even know what to say. That's what you Everybody Everybody

[15:27] needs Saugus Matilda. >> [laughter]

[15:31] » Hereby known to all of Massachusetts. I said I had you whisper to me.

[15:36] » It would be funny if it WASN'T AN M. >> [laughter]

[15:41] » UM IT'S A SINCERE congratulations to

[15:45] Marilyn Richards. Believe me, I'm not. Your tenure on the Town Council serving

[15:50] the residents of East Longmeadow for over 40 years of commitment to public

[15:54] service leading with grace, style, and unparalleled dignity. The entire

[15:59] membership extends its very best wishes and hope for future good fortune,

[16:02] continued success in all your endeavors. Signed by the Speaker of the House, by

[16:06] Angelo Puppolo, and by Mike Brian Ashe, state reps, and uh

[16:10] serious It's sincerely It's been an absolute pleasure working with you. And

[16:15] they're going to be a big loss when you Congratulations.

[16:19] » [applause]

[16:24] [applause]

[16:26] » I SHOULD PROBABLY GET IN THE FRONT. >> How about all the town councilors

[16:29] coming, too? >> I suppose. By the way, this is the first

[16:32] time that I've been to a town council meeting where everybody's here in

[16:35] person. So [laughter] >> Yeah, we're always in person. We must be

[16:38] troubling Marilyn if they all showed up today for you.

[16:42] » Just come around front. >> No, we going around front?

[16:45] » Yeah, let's come around front. >> I do apologize.

[16:50] » Thank you. Thank you. >> How you doing, Marilyn?

[16:54] » I'm fine, thank you.

[16:57] » How you doing, sir? >> I know.

[17:00] » Line them up. >> Line them up. So much red.

[17:02] » I know. >> I know.

[17:03] » Thank god you guys didn't wear red. >> Oh, yeah. I'm wearing red.

[17:06] » If we know Where we going? Come on in.

[17:08] » Oh, yeah. >> Okay.

[17:10] We're all short. >> Marilyn, you got to be up front.

[17:13] » Then the people are everybody else. Otherwise, no one will see them.

[17:15] » You go in the middle. If you can see your arm.

[17:17] » of on this side. >> [laughter]

[17:23] » I'll take up the whole side.

[17:28] » All right, ready? 1 2 3

[17:32] This way. Okay, phone number one.

[17:36] » [laughter] >> Okay, ready? 1 2 3

[18:00] » That's you, Marilyn, in the picture.

[18:04] » No, no, we're good. >> All right.

[18:06] » All right, we're good. >> All right, so just pick up Marilyn.

[18:09] » [laughter]

[18:13] » Thank you so much. >> Are you good now?

[18:16] » How's everybody?

[18:21] » [laughter]

[18:26] » Yes.

[18:34] » [laughter]

[18:36] » All right, I'll see you. >> Thank you.

[18:39] » Always here. >> I'm always here. Thank you.

[18:42] » Got it. >> He's coming.

[18:45] » Thank you, Victor. >> Are we I don't want to rope you in.

[18:51] » [laughter]

[18:53] » It's like moving your computer over. >> [laughter]

[19:01] [laughter]

[19:03] » Do you think I can keep going another 27 years to even catch up?

[19:07] » [laughter]

[19:11] » Okay. >> No, you don't.

[19:14] » No, no, no. >> That's okay.

[19:16] Okay, you ready? >> Yes, we have one final

[19:18] » Okay. >> Oh, [laughter] no.

[19:20] » So, Marilyn, on behalf of the East Longmeadow Town Council, um

[19:25] we have decided to place a banner along the parade route for you

[19:29] » [laughter] >> and I wanted to show you um it proudly

[19:32] celebrates your service for the town. >> serious?

[19:34] » Absolutely. >> [laughter]

[19:36] » But, this is what you're going to see when you walk in the parade.

[19:43] » [applause]

[19:48] » You've all been really great. Um it's been a real pleasure.

[19:52] As I said in the reminder article that the neat part about serving is

[19:57] as colleagues we become friends and I really believe that. Um

[20:01] we've been through a lot, but it's been really great.

[20:04] And thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you everybody.

[20:07] » Thank you. >> [applause]

[20:15] [applause]

[20:21] [applause]

[20:25] » Last but not least. >> Marilyn, I thought you

[20:28] » [laughter] >> I thought we might as well add one more

[20:31] citation to the pile. Um so, [clears throat] I I I think I speak

[20:35] for everybody here. You've been like such a mentor. Um

[20:40] I have always loved government, but like having somebody to lean on to, you know,

[20:45] talk about the issues, talk about the things both here and when I was on the

[20:49] planning board, uh you have always been I consider you now a friend and and and

[20:53] a colleague um and just so great to work with. Um so,

[20:57] in that in that vein uh on behalf of the governor and lieutenant governor, so you

[21:00] have all forms of government represented tonight here.

[21:05] Um Marilyn Richards, on behalf of the

[21:06] residents of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, I am pleased to confer

[21:10] upon you this governor's citation in recognition of your 46 years of

[21:14] dedicated service to the town of East Longmeadow. We commend your tremendous

[21:18] contribution to the town's success, serving in various capacities throughout

[21:22] your tenure, including as the first woman elected to the select board, and

[21:26] now retiring from the town council, which you've been a part of since 2019.

[21:30] The Commonwealth thanks you for your time and talent and wishes you all the

[21:34] best in the years to come. The 23rd day of June in the year 2026. Maura T.

[21:38] Healey, governor, and Kimberly Driscoll, lieutenant governor.

[21:44] » [applause]

[21:48] [applause]

[21:51] [laughter]

[21:57] » Okay. Congratulations.

[21:59] » Thank you. I don't believe this. >> [laughter]

[22:03] » Uh next under communications, uh was just the 4th of July parade. We'll all

[22:08] be participating in that again this year. Um

[22:11] Thank you, Ralph, for securing the golf cart, and Cathy again for the

[22:15] decorations as usual. Um we [clears throat] can meet um

[22:19] church parking lot as usual. >> With the cart. With the cart.

[22:25] » [laughter] >> See everyone then.

[22:28] » Awesome. >> All right. Next, uh we do have a public

[22:32] hearing this evening. Was scheduled for 6:15. Uh this is a

[22:37] public hearing for a proposed bylaw amendment amendment chapter 500 fee,

[22:41] fine, and penalty schedule as a second reading. And I would ask the clerk to

[22:44] read the legal notice into the record. >> The East Longmeadow Town Council will

[22:49] hold a public hearing on June 23rd, 2026 at 6:15 p.m. in the media room of of the

[22:55] Council on Aging, located at 328 North Main Street

[22:59] for a required second reading of a proposed bylaw amendment, chapter 500

[23:04] fee, fine, and penalty schedule. For the purpose of an annual update of

[23:08] all fees, fines, and penalties for the town of East Longmeadow.

[23:13] The public hearing may also be attended via Zoom webinar.

[23:17] Information relating to this bylaw is available for public inspection at the

[23:21] town clerk's office.

[23:24] Oh. Sorry, for the council clerk.

[23:27] » [laughter] >> Oh, the council clerk. For the council.

[23:30] » Thank you, Jackie. Uh the members from left to right this evening are Jim

[23:33] Leyden, Kathy Hill, Anna Jones, myself Connor O'Shea,

[23:36] Marilyn Richards, Ralph Page, and John Torsha.

[23:40] And then since it is a second reading, we will quickly do that reading this

[23:43] evening. Um under section 500-6 fire department

[23:49] fees, fines, and penalties, we have the I'll say it in the form of

[23:54] item and then the new fee would be the BLS emergency and emergency transport is

[24:01] now $1,000 445.09.

[24:05] BLS emergency transport Medicare is $473.92.

[24:12] BLS non-emergency Medicare $296.20. ALS one emergency non-emergency

[24:19] transport $2,309.26.

[24:22] ALS emergency transport Medicare $562.79.

[24:27] ALS one non-emergency transport Medicare $355.44.

[24:33] ALS two emergency transport $3,475.70.

[24:38] ALS two emergency transport Medicare $814.56.

[24:44] » [clears throat] >> Mileage per mile $38.99.

[24:47] Intercept fee $321.36.

[24:52] And if we go down to

[24:59] Sorry, many pages later, if we go to What chapter is that? Uh 500-12 public

[25:06] works department, fees, fines, and penalties. We were

[25:09] skipping that one. >> Oh, you are? Okay, stop. Yep.

[25:11] » Oh, okay. >> Then

[25:13] under section G, water, sewer, and storm water

[25:17] rates, water standard rate would now be $4.97 per 100 cubic feet. Water

[25:24] agricultural rate be $3.73 per 100 cubic feet. And sewer rate is

[25:30] $5.06 per 100 cubic feet. And that is it.

[25:37] At this time, it is a public hearing, so if there's anyone in the public audience

[25:40] that wishes to make a comment, now is an opportunity to do so.

[25:45] I don't see anyone online or in person. That will close the public input portion

[25:50] of the hearing. Now, it is the council's opportunity to

[25:53] make any comments, questions, concerns. I would just first add that um

[25:58] [clears throat] we're not changing any of these at this

[26:01] time um above and beyond. These are really just

[26:04] copied from what we appropriated in the town budget last month and updating them

[26:08] in the town bylaw because chapter 500 is a place that residents can see anything

[26:13] that the town would charge you all in one consolidated place. This is really

[26:17] just to keep it in sync with with the budget.

[26:21] Any other comments? >> So, I would make a motion to close the

[26:25] public hearing. >> Motion has been made and seconded. Any

[26:29] further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor, please say I.

[26:32] » I. >> I.

[26:33] » Any opposed? The motion passes. Close the public hearing. And then, is there a

[26:38] motion to approve >> I will move

[26:41] to adopt the proposed bylaw amendment chapter 500 the fine and penalty

[26:46] schedule as presented. >> I'll second that.

[26:49] » Motion was made and seconded. Any further discussion?

[26:52] Seeing none, this is a roll call vote. Jen?

[26:55] » Yes. >> Cathy?

[26:56] » Yes. >> Anna?

[26:57] » Yes. >> I say yes. Marilyn?

[26:58] » Yes. >> Ralph?

[26:59] » Yes. >> And John?

[27:00] » Yes. >> Motion passes.

[27:04] Okay. Next under orders of the day, financial

[27:08] matters, we have an appropriation to match donations received by the Veterans

[27:13] Memorial Committee. Um I know this was a topic that we've

[27:18] discussed over the last couple years uh with the Veterans Memorial Committee to

[27:22] try to get the Veterans Memorial project to completion. Um

[27:27] I don't know if you have anything to add to the topic, Ralph. I know you did

[27:31] some of the discussion and legwork here.

[27:35] » what we're planning? I I do believe so, but like I said, if you want to have to

[27:40] hurry up, that would be great. >> You're also welcome to come forward if

[27:42] you have any comments as well this evening.

[27:44] » I'm going to have a seat. So, um

[27:47] » Of course. >> Of course.

[27:50] So, I know uh this topic's gone around a few different times, and um

[27:55] we're we're coming close to the end, and so my thought was

[27:59] um in celebration of the country's 250th

[28:04] birthday, uh what better way to help us celebrate

[28:07] by remembering those from East Longmeadow that have given their all at

[28:11] a memorial. And so,

[28:14] I asked Connor to put this on the agenda as a matching donation so that anyone

[28:20] that contributes, uh we would also contribute up to a

[28:24] total of 100,000. I know they're looking to generate the last $200,000 roughly,

[28:31] and uh I thought maybe this would be a great way, um

[28:35] that it it's for the town, um and I thought

[28:39] this was a good way to celebrate our birthday, and to give it a little push,

[28:43] and to also put some out there for the businesses,

[28:47] um knowing that it's a one-to-one match. So, if they made $5,000,

[28:53] $5,000 would also come from the town, and hopefully we get them there, and I'd

[28:58] love to see a shovel in the ground by Veterans Day this year.

[29:01] » That'd be nice. >> There you go.

[29:04] » That would be great. Is there anything you want to add on

[29:07] behalf of the committee? >> Well,

[29:09] you have all these guys in the red shirts

[29:11] on the side of the aisle. >> [laughter]

[29:13] » You got the email.

[29:16] » Seriously, we'd like to First of all, I want to say congratulations to Marilyn.

[29:19] » Thank you, Terry. >> On behalf of this committee,

[29:22] uh you've always been a strong advocate and supporter, showed up at our

[29:26] fundraisers, and uh we really appreciate that.

[29:30] Uh [snorts] but going forward on why we're here

[29:34] is [clears throat] uh this committee

[29:37] is strongly appreciative of the conservative concerted effort of

[29:42] what you're trying to do, especially trying to get us across the finish line,

[29:47] uh especially after eight long years of fundraising.

[29:52] And uh but working together now, I think it's

[29:55] really important that the strategy is that we

[29:59] get this word out to the community, we get it out to all the businesses, all

[30:05] the households, and all the veterans. And uh directly ask them

[30:10] uh through a donation request form that uh

[30:16] they support this East Longmeadow Veterans Memorial.

[30:20] And it's important, I know you all realize this, but there's people in the

[30:24] community, I think, that are

[30:27] somewhat unaware of what we've been doing for the past eight years.

[30:31] And this is really to honor the 20 East Longmeadow veterans who did give

[30:36] their life for this community, uh but also to honor and pay tribute to

[30:41] everybody who served, especially from the town of East Lyme East Lyme Meadow.

[30:47] And I think if we if we don't get this across the finish line,

[30:52] we're going to run the risk of forgetting.

[30:56] And there's the phrase that is in the common circle of all veterans,

[31:00] and that is three words, "Lest we forget."

[31:04] Because what those three words mean, it's a solemn promise

[31:09] to [clears throat and cough] perpetuate the legacy

[31:12] of the veterans who gave their lives. And it's always been a solemn tribute.

[31:18] So, thank you. Thank you very much, and uh

[31:21] I know you have asked for uh paper forms. Um I did bring 10 of them

[31:25] tonight. And if you need more, you can you can make copies.

[31:29] And uh also, Ralph, I can

[31:33] you know, once you generate that letter, >> Yep.

[31:35] » um I think we talked about corresponding

[31:39] with each other. >> Absolutely.

[31:41] » other's input. But I also um think it's important, and I'll give you

[31:46] this, is uh there's three documents

[31:50] that probably should be inserted to accompany that letter.

[31:54] And uh that is this flyer right here.

[31:58] It's uh really our symbol, the Battle Cross symbol, but it also uh specifies

[32:04] when, how, and where to make a donation. Uh many people can

[32:09] just walk in to People's Bank and make that donation. And this flyer also

[32:15] designates uh what our uh EIN number is, tax-exempt number, so that people can

[32:22] avail themselves of that number. Uh the other document is

[32:27] a picture of the memorial. And the last document is the actual

[32:32] paper form, which is very specific in terms of I don't know Maryland bought

[32:37] one and uh

[32:39] how to buy a day before.

[32:43] And uh so

[32:46] we do um

[32:49] we did make some uh small cuts

[32:53] to uh what we was originally asking for,

[32:56] $202,000. And those were uh

[33:00] to give up the $12,000

[33:04] in the benches that we were going to buy.

[33:07] And also to uh strip some of the uh bushes and the

[33:11] things of that nature. Although it's still going to look beautiful.

[33:14] » [clears throat] >> But uh since that happened in the

[33:17] interim, uh we had a donation

[33:20] of uh for almost $4,500

[33:24] from someone in the local area. And we went out and did buy three

[33:29] benches that one of our members uh Ed Brown coordinated with a company

[33:34] in another state. And we all we have the benches already.

[33:39] And they were delivered to the trailer where we have everything stored back

[33:43] there. So with all this cuts and everything,

[33:46] uh we came down to where we penny for penny, we actually need

[33:51] $186,349.

[33:54] But um having said that,

[33:59] all of the vendors who did bid on this project

[34:04] cannot hold to the price

[34:07] of what they originally gave. Uh I know this for a fact. Um out of the

[34:12] four or five vendors, uh there might be one or two right now

[34:15] that are going to have to increase. The longer this goes on, obviously we

[34:19] all know that that's going to impact the price, but hopefully not too much. Our

[34:24] our architect and uh

[34:27] which is Kevin Rochelle architectural we all, W.J. Quinn our general contractor.

[34:33] They're working feverishly to hold the line. Yeah. You know, with that. And

[34:37] they're doing an excellent job. So. That's That's all I have to say.

[34:43] » Thank you for the update, Terry. >> Thank you, Terry.

[34:45] » I think >> If I can come forward, I'll give you all

[34:47] this information. >> Sure.

[34:51] » I'll just step >> Oh, yeah. Be careful of the cord, too.

[34:54] That's Give it Yeah, give it a jump. >> All right.

[35:01] » Yeah, these are the 10. >> Perfect.

[35:04] » Um

[35:09] And these are the other documents. >> Awesome.

[35:13] » Okay. >> I think there's three.

[35:16] » Yeah, that's all three. So, thank you very much.

[35:20] » Thank you, Terry. >> Terry.

[35:26] » I asked Terry for the donation forms cuz I know we've heard

[35:29] about them in the past. >> But

[35:30] » at least for me, I wanted it for my own personal donation.

[35:35] » And that's very specific of where to send the money.

[35:38] » Exactly. >> [laughter]

[35:42] » Thank you again. >> Great. Thank you, Terry.

[35:44] » Thank you. >> Thank you.

[35:46] » If there's no other comments or questions.

[35:49] » Thank you. >> Hey, do you want to stick around for the

[35:51] motion? >> Here.

[35:52] » Yeah. >> Hey.

[35:53] » Terry. >> [laughter]

[35:54] » Why don't you guys stick around for a few minutes?

[35:56] » Don't go. >> Stick around. We're going to make a

[35:58] motion to actually do this. It hasn't been done yet, so.

[36:08] » Hopefully we can take it. >> Yeah.

[36:10] » I'm sorry. >> Yeah, it's not finalized yet. Come on

[36:14] in. Let's make sure this goes through. We still have to vote on it.

[36:18] » [laughter] >> My wife didn't feed me. Go ahead.

[36:23] » Okay, so I move to appropriate $100,000 from free cash to match donations

[36:30] received by the Veterans Memorial Committee between June 23rd, 2026 and

[36:36] October 1st, 2026 dollar for dollar up to $100,000

[36:42] to be used for the design, construction, and costs related thereto of the

[36:48] Veterans Memorial. Provided that all donations submitted

[36:52] for matching are supported by detailed itemized

[36:56] documentation identifying each donor and the corresponding contribution amount.

[37:03] Matching funds shall only be expended once sufficient total funding has been

[37:08] verified to fully complete the project. Any unexpected any

[37:14] any unexpended funds such as unused contingency shall

[37:19] revert to the town's general fund and shall not be retained by the committee.

[37:24] Prior to the release of any funds, the town's director of municipal finance or

[37:29] their designee shall review and approve all donation documentation.

[37:35] » Second. >> Motion is made and seconded. Any further

[37:37] discussion? Seeing none, do we want this as a roll

[37:42] » Roll call, please. >> Jim.

[37:44] » Yes. >> Kathy.

[37:44] » Yes. >> Anna.

[37:45] » Yes. >> I'm a yes. Marilyn.

[37:47] » Yes. >> Ralph.

[37:48] » Yes. >> And John.

[37:49] » Yes. >> It passes.

[37:51] » Thank you. >> Thank you.

[37:53] » Terry, if you'd come up for a minute. >> Oh, jeez.

[37:57] » That's good. >> Yeah, watch the cord.

[38:00] » He tried to get him. >> [laughter]

[38:06] » So, now that the town has agreed to matching grants, I'd like to make the

[38:10] first donation from my company Page Landscaping. I can let's work this

[38:15] together and let's get this done. >> Yeah.

[38:17] » Well, um when I stepped out into the hall

[38:21] uh there's a gentleman in the audience. And uh,

[38:25] sitting right there. His name is Thomas Flaherty. He's the

[38:28] general manager of Westfield Gas and Electric. And once

[38:32] we get the uh the donation request form and out, uh

[38:36] he's the company's going to give us a donation of $5,000.

[38:43] » [applause]

[38:49] » All right. Thanks everybody. You really Thank you.

[38:52] Yeah, you really don't know what this means to us.

[38:53] » Now now you can go. >> [laughter]

[38:57] » Thank you. Thank you for coming.

[39:05] » [laughter] >> Okay.

[39:11] Next we have approval of our June 9th open session minutes.

[39:16] » I move to approve the June 9th, 2026 open session minutes.

[39:20] » Second. >> Motion was made and seconded. Any

[39:22] further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor please

[39:25] say aye. >> Aye.

[39:27] » Any opposed? The motion passes. Next under old business, we have the

[39:32] 250th anniversary. Uh you'll notice this evening we're all wearing red, and

[39:36] that's because our polo shirts for the town council came in. Uh we're still

[39:41] waiting on a corrected version for the town manager, but

[39:44] » Oh my gosh, I didn't even notice. >> town councilor this evening.

[39:46] » [laughter] >> Thanks to your vote.

[39:50] » You're one of us tonight. >> [laughter]

[39:53] » But now we'll all have a consistent look for the 4th of July and 250th

[39:57] celebration this year. I don't know if you had anything else.

[40:00] » No, uh the banners are going up. Uh some of the bigger banners are going up

[40:04] tomorrow. Um the fence is up for the carnival, so

[40:08] we're we're pretty much got everything all

[40:10] planned out and ready to go. Um

[40:13] yeah. Looking good.

[40:15] » The the banners do look really good. >> They do look very nice.

[40:18] » Flags and towns um um it really makes a difference. You come in you can tell

[40:22] immediately. >> And I'm glad we did the three types. The

[40:25] different type you know, the different >> They look good.

[40:27] » They look very nice. >> Right.

[40:29] » Soon to be four. >> Yeah. Soon to be four.

[40:32] » [laughter] >> That one's Can I have that one after so

[40:34] I can hang in my office? >> Well, we didn't tell you that's 10 ft by

[40:37] 15. >> [laughter]

[40:39] » Where's this going to be? >> You're left to find them all.

[40:43] » Oh, yes. >> Oh my [laughter] god.

[40:46] » Okay. >> Let's see.

[40:49] » Next under old business we had the town manager's

[40:53] performance evaluation. Um

[40:58] So, I had met with Tom earlier to kind of discuss

[41:03] we all collectively as a council had had talked [clears throat] about evaluation

[41:06] wise so he's not caught off guard by anything that we're uh

[41:10] thinking of here, but I had submitted a memo to you in advance of this meeting

[41:13] just to kind of summarize everything. I'll just read through it so the benefit

[41:17] of the public audience. >> Mr. Chair, I know we have an executive

[41:21] coming up. Is something that we could actually do

[41:24] after the executive? >> Sure, we can do that.

[41:26] » I would make a motion that we um out of order and

[41:32] come back to this after executive session.

[41:36] » Motion was made and >> Second.

[41:39] » Second motion made and seconded. Any further discussion?

[41:42] Seeing none, all those in favor to move out of order please say aye.

[41:46] » Aye. >> Any opposed?

[41:48] Motion passes. Um I would expect it should just be

[41:52] » Yeah. >> 5 minutes.

[41:55] » [laughter] >> Okay. Then I move to enter into

[41:59] executive session pursuant to Massachusetts General Law Chapter 30A

[42:03] Section 21A2 for the following purpose contract negotiations with non-union

[42:09] personnel town manager Tom Christensen.

[42:14] Is there a second? >> Second.

[42:16] » Oh. I was going to say, should we do all

[42:20] this then executive then instead of doing this? No?

[42:23] » It's only going to take a couple >> 5 minutes? Okay. All right.

[42:28] » A motion was made and seconded. Jim? >> Yes.

[42:31] » Cathy? >> Yes.

[42:32] » Anna? >> Yes.

[42:33] » I'm a yes. Marilyn? >> Yes.

[42:34] » Ralph? >> Yes.

[42:35] » And John? >> Yes.

[42:36] » We promise it'll be quick. >> Yes. [laughter]

[42:39] By the time you close the doors, you'll be able to walk away.

[42:41] » Almost.

[42:52] » Are you locking me in? >> Yeah, so if you just

[42:57] Uh yes. >> Yes.

[43:00] » Well, yes, yeah.

[43:14] » Oh, oh no, I just recorded and now I think Oh my gosh.

[43:17] Oh my gosh. >> You just what?

[43:20] » Recording in progress. >> Thank you, Jamie. Thank you all for your

[43:24] patience. Uh we are back from executive session. Um

[43:28] so just to quickly recap the town manager's performance evaluation, the

[43:32] subcommittee had met on Tuesday, June 16th. Um overall, Tom, out of the 10

[43:38] categories that we evaluate our town manager on,

[43:42] he scored 85 and 1/2 out of 100 if you add them up math-wise.

[43:47] Uh but in our breakdown, that falls into generally exceeds and always exceeds the

[43:51] performance standard in most categories. So, thank you for your

[43:56] deserved service to the town. Um each year the council has to put

[44:01] together goals that are mutually agreed upon by the town manager per the town

[44:04] manager's contract. So, this year's goals that we've agreed to

[44:09] uh the first one is to review health insurance costs, reconvene the insurance

[44:12] advisory committee, and evaluate potential stabilization funds. That was

[44:17] also an action item that came out of the financial oversight committee

[44:20] recommendation from this year. The second [clears throat] is to provide

[44:23] a municipal fiber build-out plan within 6 months due January 2027, which I know

[44:28] part of that is this evening, but we expect that there will be more reporting

[44:32] and uh planning.

[44:34] And then the third is to improve the town's online presence, including the

[44:37] town website, social media, and expanded use of open government code.

[44:42] Um Overall, the town manager's current

[44:46] salary was $147,680.

[44:51] Given his rating that the council all gave him,

[44:55] his contract says that he would get a minimum 4% increase, which would be

[44:59] $5,907. Um

[45:02] but then the council in executive session made an additional motion. So,

[45:06] for public transparency purposes, I will entertain that motion

[45:10] now. >> May I?

[45:11] » Sure. >> Okay.

[45:13] » [clears throat] >> I move to approve a 7% increase,

[45:16] $158,195,

[45:20] to the town manager's salary based on his performance evaluation score

[45:25] exceeding generally meets the performance standard, effective July 1,

[45:30] 2026. >> Second.

[45:31] » Second. >> Motion was made and seconded.

[45:35] Just so it's explicitly clear, the 4% is built into that 7% number, so it's not

[45:40] an additional above the 11. It's really just 3% more for your

[45:43] exceeding performance above the line that we set. Thanks.

[45:48] Um any other discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor please

[45:52] say I. >> I.

[45:54] » Any opposed? Motion passes.

[45:57] And then we have one more motion to adopt the goals.

[45:59] » I move to adopt the goals for the town manager for FY27 as presented.

[46:04] » Second. >> Motion was made and seconded. Any

[46:06] further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor, please

[46:09] say aye. >> Aye.

[46:10] » Any opposed? Motion passes. >> Thank you.

[46:14] » You all. >> [snorts]

[46:16] » All right, next under new business we have a municipal fiber update

[46:19] presentation from Whip City.

[46:25] » [clears throat and cough]

[46:32] » Brush coming up. >> [laughter]

[46:35] » Just want to let the record show that uh I thought I did that

[46:39] on the side the contribution and uh

[46:43] but it's something that we do. We're we're huge on the community support. Um

[46:47] in Westfield alone last year we donated close to $300,000.

[46:52] Uh plus a million dollars towards the uh high school field project. So

[46:56] Um we're doing the same in West Springfield.

[46:58] Helping out quite a few uh non-profit organizations there as well.

[47:04] Thank you. >> The town definitely appreciates the

[47:05] support. >> Yeah. Thank you.

[47:10] » Goes. All right. Well, uh

[47:13] thank you for having us this evening. Um my name is Andrew Shaw. I'm the key

[47:17] account sales manager for Westfield Gas and Electric Whip City Fiber.

[47:21] My left is Tom Flaherty, uh our general manager.

[47:25] My right, Jameson Carter, our fiber superintendent.

[47:30] From Mitchell, the assistant general manager, and I think you all know Ryan.

[47:34] » He's the top fiber guy. >> [laughter]

[47:38] » Um so yeah, so thank you for having us here this evening. The goal of tonight

[47:42] is to provide you with an update. Um I think the last time we spoke to the

[47:46] committee or the council was probably 2 years ago.

[47:49] Um so there's been a lot of work going on um that not necessarily that you see,

[47:54] but is actually foundational to moving the project forward.

[47:58] So, we'll start today. We'll give you some background and sort of some of the

[48:01] roles of uh Westfield Westfield Gas Web City Fiber. Give you an update as far as

[48:06] where we are today. Uh then we'll go into sort of, you know,

[48:09] what what does Web City Fiber do? What's the coordination that we provide? Uh

[48:14] talk about the FSAs, which are fiber service areas. So, the whole town, as

[48:18] part of the design and engineering, gets split up into a neighborhoods or fiber

[48:22] hoods, which are fiber service areas. Uh we'll talk about some build costs and

[48:27] expected revenue, anticipated income. Um and then uh we'll sort of close with

[48:33] some sort of next steps and how we plan the phased approach to the build of uh

[48:39] your fiber network. Um so, with that, we'll just jump into

[48:44] the first slide. Um so, we you know, we talk about

[48:48] completed engineering and design. So, what that meant is uh we actually mapped

[48:52] out every street, every house, every pole in the whole of uh East Longmeadow.

[48:57] And that equated to roughly 75 miles of overhead and 35 miles of underground

[49:03] construction that would be required. Um in all, there's about 7,300

[49:09] uh dwelling units, so potential customers. And we anticipate a take rate

[49:14] of around 50% of that. So, what you're seeing tonight is based on those sort of

[49:18] numbers. Uh that equates to 34 individual fiber service areas, FSAs.

[49:26] Um Moving from that, uh we then uh

[49:31] acted as the general contractor for that design company. So, not only do we

[49:38] uh manage the network and are able to build

[49:42] that network for you, we also manage the the uh contractors that are required for

[49:48] some of the work. We also um uh get involved with designing the hut,

[49:53] what goes in the hut, the equipment that's required, how many huts do we

[49:56] need, the placement of that hut. We worked in conjunction with with Tom and

[50:00] Ryan. Also during this period, we found that

[50:04] two things happened which kind of was a were a little bit of a delay. One was a

[50:09] company just came in and just started tagging

[50:13] every single pole. So that meant that they were the primary person on the

[50:17] pole. So we had to work to move them out so that East Longmeadow was the primary

[50:24] person on the pole. So that was a little bit of work that we did.

[50:29] On top of that, one of our utility partners changed the pole application

[50:34] process. So you batch the poles that you're going to strand onto that

[50:41] you're going to put your fiber onto. So you batch those.

[50:44] That had a number of I think it was 200 per application and they changed that

[50:50] halfway through to 125. So that meant we had to go back

[50:55] and rework all those fiber service areas and pole applications.

[51:00] Interestingly enough with the utility partner here in town,

[51:05] you have to go on a GIS map and individually peg every single pole that

[51:11] you want to run strand on. So it's a pretty laborious process.

[51:16] But that works all being completed. And we're at a stage now where we not

[51:21] only have a full design, full engineering build out.

[51:26] We're ready to go. We've worked on phased approach which

[51:31] Jamie will speak to. Which will provide the best

[51:37] way for the town to receive benefit quickly

[51:41] from building out the the fiber

[51:46] infrastructure. So with that, any questions so far?

[51:53] I just want to point out, I'm looking at some concerned and puzzled faces. We

[51:56] apologize. This is complicated stuff. There's

[52:01] our utility partners and the Department of Public Utilities and with your

[52:07] East Longmeadow Municipal Light Plant, you're now a utility.

[52:10] » [laughter] >> It's complicated. We're trying to make

[52:12] this as simple as possible. Trust us, we've done this before. So,

[52:18] if that helps. Yeah, I can give you some idea.

[52:21] We manage right now over 20 communities. We have just over 19,000 individual

[52:26] subscribers that we are supplying daily and that we keep active every single day

[52:31] of the week. I'd like to hand it over to Jamie just

[52:34] to talk about current state today. >> Sure. So, where are we today? So, right

[52:38] now we have bi-weekly meetings with National Grid. We also have meetings

[52:42] with Verizon and we have communication with Charter, who is your communication

[52:46] company right now. Through those bi-weekly meetings, we are conducting

[52:50] basically they're giving their estimates for the make-ready work that's supposed

[52:54] to be completed on the poles in order for us to provide a service to East

[52:58] Longmeadow. Those estimates are coming in. Lucky

[53:01] enough for us, we have four individuals that were ex-linemen, ex-gas guys that

[53:06] are used to doing the work. They understand what's going on in the poles.

[53:09] So, they're able to basically address the poles once

[53:13] not every so often, but once National Grid comes in, give us the estimates per

[53:16] pole and they call out maybe pole replacements,

[53:20] certain moves that need to happen, light replacements or light movements. We're

[53:24] able to go out there, take a look at those [clears throat] poles and say,

[53:26] "No, we don't need to do that. This needs to be done on this pole." So,

[53:30] we're able to shave some of that cost off because again, we have ex-linemen

[53:34] that are able to identify those certain things on those poles that need to be

[53:37] addressed and what doesn't need to be addressed.

[53:40] Also, there's forestry stuff that's been

[53:43] called out on some of those and we've been able to tackle those through our

[53:46] bi-weekly meetings. I did count a couple numbers here just to let you guys know.

[53:50] We had some forestry challenges in and 50% of those forestry challenges so far

[53:54] have been overturned to us in our favor. So, that's good. They don't have to

[53:58] perform those. Also, we've had 117 pole challenges and

[54:02] we're currently working on those today with National Grid. They have a

[54:05] ex-lineman themselves who's going out to these poles and we're riding out those

[54:09] poles with him to identify those issues and overturn those issues that the town

[54:13] will not have to pay for. So, >> If I may interrupt, what does a pole

[54:18] challenge really >> Sure. Yep, absolutely. So, if you look

[54:21] obviously when you go outside you drive around you see poles out there.

[54:25] What they're challenging is that there's enough make-ready room for us to attach

[54:28] a line. We need 40 in from the secondary. So, your your basically your

[54:33] electric line that goes from the pole to the house, your house,

[54:36] that's called secondary. If there's not 40 in on that pole between Arcom and

[54:41] electric, they need to change that pole out or perform some movement on the pole

[54:46] so that we can put our line in. So, again, each pole is being identified.

[54:51] Andrew was speaking to you guys about 125 poles. There's multiple

[54:54] applications. We're seeing all those surveys and estimates come to us and

[54:59] we're challenging those big ticket items. Those big ticket items are going

[55:02] to what's going to drive the cost higher and we're making sure that everybody's

[55:06] playing on the same even level playing ground here.

[55:09] Um so, with that, that's where we are today

[55:12] with the make-ready estimates. Uh discussing a phased approach to build.

[55:16] Obviously, um

[55:18] if you take a look at this map behind me,

[55:20] you'll see

[55:24] » Let me stop. You want

[55:26] » Yeah, I'll talk about it. >> Perfect. I'll get the other I'll get the

[55:29] other one for the other half. >> So, the poles

[55:32] » Thank you, Jim. >> Thank you. Vanna [laughter] White.

[55:36] So, the poles that we had

[55:39] we engineered it to the >> and based off the design we figured

[55:41] [laughter] that a great location for a hot site would be

[55:46] here on Vineland Ave. From Vineland Ave, we're looking to

[55:50] build out a phased approach to start off in this general vicinity and as make

[55:56] ready's being completed, we're able to basically start climbing out and build

[56:00] out other FSAs. Now, obviously as you build an FSA, a customer taking that

[56:05] service that service is now going to fund more

[56:09] FSAs to be built out. So, what I say phased approach, money's coming in,

[56:14] people are taking service, you're able to pay for more more FSAs to be

[56:17] delivered. So.

[56:20] » When he says Vineland, that's uh on the same property as the Vineland pump

[56:25] station? >> Yeah.

[56:26] » Yep. >> Um there [clears throat] was enough room

[56:28] for us to easily locate that sort of out of the way on our property, which was

[56:33] nice. >> Yep.

[56:34] » It's also on our municipal fiber backbone.

[56:37] » Correct. There's We've got We're able to work with Ryan here as well as Tom to

[56:41] identify that you guys have conduit already in place, which gives us

[56:44] transport to get to other parts of the town to then spider out to those other

[56:48] fiber service areas. Um

[56:51] » What are the um I see like the different colors, but I

[56:54] see the fiber service areas. What do the colors mean in relation to

[56:57] » So, if you look at this, >> Oh, okay.

[57:00] » So, this is based off the fact that let's say that National Grid performs

[57:04] their make ready work, all the poles are ready for us to start putting fiber

[57:06] service on there. Once they do that, these other areas are

[57:10] shaded based off of the areas that we would build out first. So, right here

[57:14] we're calling bid one in 2028, which which would be this section of town

[57:17] because it's the closest to the hot. That's where you're going to spend the

[57:20] money to get your make ready done and then go further out as you progress.

[57:27] Got you. Any questions? >> Yeah, this area made sense just because

[57:30] as Tom mentioned, there was already land that we could we could utilize and also

[57:35] when you looked at the the homes that are in this area your

[57:39] cost per passing with less.

[57:42] » They're very consolidated so there's a lot more

[57:45] homes in that area so you're able to get a higher take rate.

[57:48] » It's overhead. >> Right.

[57:49] » So it's cheaper to run. >> Return on investment.

[57:52] » It's cheaper than underground. >> Yeah, a lot.

[57:54] » Yeah. >> Yes.

[57:55] » And your return on investment is faster rather than building way out on the

[57:58] other side of town a lot of dollars to get your first customers. There's a nice

[58:02] density in there so your return on investment be quicker, reinvest, keep

[58:06] building. >> And so I see the the triangle where you

[58:09] have that first hut on Vineland. Would there be other triangle huts elsewhere

[58:14] throughout town as you expand the network?

[58:16] » So right now with talking to Ryan we had the original

[58:20] assessment of putting two huts but after talking to Ryan there is the

[58:25] possibility and I think it's a strong possibility that we could just utilize

[58:28] one hut only and be able to use use your current underground conduit.

[58:31] » Okay. >> And then express it out to the area

[58:33] where we thought your second hut location was going to be and then spider

[58:36] out from there. And it's underground which means it

[58:39] would be >> [clears throat]

[58:41] » less susceptible to pole hits, tree damage, etc. So that's where we would

[58:46] have your kind of safe haven. >> That area was down on the south side

[58:50] along the >> Yeah.

[58:51] » The second second location was the Chestnut Street pump station property.

[58:56] » Yeah. Okay. I like that. >> All right.

[58:59] » So from there we can hop into our conduit which goes under the bike trail

[59:02] which is even more protected from just being on the curb side and get up to the

[59:07] Vineland pump station. >> So you keep saying our underground

[59:11] conduit. Don't we already have conduit with fiber that runs through the

[59:16] town and connects everything? Are we hooking into our existing main fiber?

[59:21] » No. >> The thought would be to keep it

[59:23] separate. So fiber has a lifespan. It's 25 years.

[59:28] » Yeah, so 25 years and obviously it's we've had fiber in Westfield today that

[59:32] was put up in 1996 and it's still there today and works fine.

[59:36] So, and that was to basically handle our north ring and south ring.

[59:40] Uh we have we own the fiber in Westfield, so NBI does not run through

[59:45] Westfield. So, NBI runs on our fiber through Westfield.

[59:49] » So, I know Ryan when we first talked about it that was one of the benefits

[59:52] that we thought we'd be saving money basically already using our main line

[59:57] and the fiber. Is that one of the reasons why the price in 3 years 3 and

[1:00:03] 1/2 years that we've already been looking at it? Initial [clears throat]

[1:00:06] we were hearing 8 11 million and now we're up to 31 million and it looks like

[1:00:12] we're not even going to start a build out for 2 more years. So, where are we

[1:00:15] going to be? I mean, let's be truthful. Where are we going to be with the total

[1:00:19] cost by the time this gets built out? I think the 31 million if that's today,

[1:00:25] you got to be looking at least another 10 million on top of that.

[1:00:28] Uh >> I don't believe that will grow that

[1:00:30] much. I'm I'm thinking around 2 million. However, with the

[1:00:34] um this includes the worst-case scenario from National Grid on the make-ready.

[1:00:39] So, if all all of our challenges come in,

[1:00:41] I'm not sure what the total amount that will come off maybe you know 500,000 to

[1:00:45] a million dollars will come off of that make-ready as well.

[1:00:48] » And like National Grid's make-ready if I got it right was like 7 million.

[1:00:52] » Yeah, it was 7 to 8 million I think. >> Yeah, I think so. Yeah.

[1:00:55] » Yeah.

[1:00:59] » Just the make-ready is almost what we were discussing at the beginning the

[1:01:03] total cost of everything. And the longer this goes, I mean, we

[1:01:08] rushed through, we made sure we got our votes in time to start the plant and

[1:01:12] everything. Um I was at the meetings when we first

[1:01:15] met and we were talking total 5 years for the make-ready and total build out

[1:01:20] and like I said, we're close to 4 years in and

[1:01:24] I mean, we're we're still sitting here talking about, [clears throat] you know,

[1:01:27] what's got to be done with make ready and all that. It's very frustrating, um

[1:01:31] at least for myself. Like I said, some counselors were here, some weren't, but

[1:01:36] um for a long time. >> those bi-weekly

[1:01:38] » bi-weekly meetings. >> Yeah, so working with the utility, it's

[1:01:42] been challenging, but we've been trying to drive

[1:01:45] in your favor. >> Is that typical to have to

[1:01:50] um wrestle with the utilities if I >> I I I hate to say, unfortunately, yes.

[1:01:55] Um you know, we had established relationships when we were building out

[1:01:59] our 19 Hill towns, but those established relationships were also pushed by the

[1:02:04] government, you know. The governor, the lieutenant governor

[1:02:08] was pushing that to make sure that those towns are built because they were under

[1:02:11] served, right? >> Under served.

[1:02:12] » So, again, we are still pushing that same momentum.

[1:02:17] We have a great relationship with Eversource. They're working well with us

[1:02:20] right now. National Grid, we haven't worked with them since we've done this.

[1:02:24] I think we're starting to get in a momentum where things are going to work

[1:02:28] in our favor. Um so, we through those bi-weekly

[1:02:32] meetings and they're and like I said, by us going out with their line folk,

[1:02:36] » [clears throat] >> discussing the challenges, that's also

[1:02:38] working in our favor as well cuz they see that again, we're not

[1:02:42] Gateway, we're not Joe Schmo off the street. We are a utility that's coming

[1:02:46] out and we have knowledge of the utility electric line department.

[1:02:50] So, we're able to give them that insight and they agree with us on

[1:02:54] most of the causes.

[1:02:59] » Well, >> Yeah.

[1:02:59] » I would like to assume that these numbers are at a 50% participation rate,

[1:03:05] but were to go to 60% or 65, then monthly cost for [cough]

[1:03:11] um a subscriber would be lower. >> Or you would make more money to pay off

[1:03:16] the the bond sooner. Um some of the towns that we work with

[1:03:20] in in the Hilltowns have already paid off their debt

[1:03:23] you know, 10 to 15 years prior to what was

[1:03:27] originally planned. Um they're also working on an an 85 to

[1:03:31] 95% take rate because they had absolutely nothing. But you have towns

[1:03:35] that like New Ashford up in up by

[1:03:38] Williamstown, they have 96 customers. You know, they had but I think a

[1:03:42] potential of 99 customers in in that in that one town.

[1:03:47] Like that's that's one of the towns. Building out West Springfield, we're

[1:03:50] already seeing from the pilot area take rate of 50%. So that that payback is

[1:03:55] going to be that much better. In Westfield, we're just over 55% and we

[1:04:00] we're actually just doing a study to find out what what it's taking for for

[1:04:04] people to to change over. What I've found in in kind of beating up some of

[1:04:09] my friends that haven't switched over is they're just they're used to pressing,

[1:04:13] you know, 822 for for NBC or or you know, 849 or whatever it is for for

[1:04:19] ESPN. And I'm like, but you're okay paying, you know, upwards of 450

[1:04:24] dollars a month for this and I'm like,

[1:04:28] your savings, you know, verse what I I I have a

[1:04:31] I said it before and I think Ralph heard it.

[1:04:33] I have an an antenna in my house which gets about 40 plus channels.

[1:04:38] 10 of them are bilingual channels, but a lot of like the 22s and 40s and channel

[1:04:44] 3 out of Connecticut and stuff like that, they have a bunch of sub channels.

[1:04:49] Um but you know, streaming, we were just talking out on the hallway about

[1:04:51] watching the World Cup. You know, so for a month and a half, I bought, you know,

[1:04:55] Fox One so you can stream all the all the World Cup games and then you can

[1:04:58] cancel it. So you decide what you want to watch, what bundle of of programming

[1:05:03] you want to watch. There's a lot of one of our biggest take rates in

[1:05:07] Westfield, which was a concern at first, is actually people over 65 because

[1:05:12] they're on fixed incomes. We help them. We told them you know how to get an

[1:05:15] antenna, you know, to get the local channels, but then they have the

[1:05:18] internet and we taught them how to how to stream. We hold

[1:05:22] you know, we still hold programs on that. We started holding those in multi

[1:05:26] languages in in West Springfield as well. It's a huge bilingual community.

[1:05:31] So we hold those and they're very well attended a lot of times by the by the

[1:05:34] same people. Some you know, it's that's their day out or whatever

[1:05:39] you know, at the senior center. But they're the the take rate has been going

[1:05:42] really well. >> How long has Westfield had fiber?

[1:05:46] » So Whip City Fiber proper is 10 years old this year. So

[1:05:51] » So after 10 years you're at 55%. >> After 10 years we're at 55%.

[1:05:56] » Cuz I know originally talked we were talking around 30% would basically cover

[1:06:00] all our costs. >> Yeah.

[1:06:02] » Anything above that would be >> And that was our original business plan

[1:06:05] for for West So I was for Westfield I was on the the board at

[1:06:09] the time the municipal light board and our

[1:06:13] projected take rate was going to be 30% and that would that would pay off the

[1:06:18] debt service. Our original debt service was 15 million. To totally build out

[1:06:22] Westfield was just over 40 million and everything over that first 15 million we

[1:06:26] paid with cash. We also are the ones doing doing the work, doing the installs

[1:06:32] and and and all of that. So we're we're a little bit different, but we're also

[1:06:36] running that business and and going out to 22 and 22 total communities today

[1:06:42] that we didn't plan on back in 2013 when we were originally doing the business

[1:06:48] plan. So it's a little bit of a of a

[1:06:51] difference and again our business plan might be different than other people's,

[1:06:55] but you the the town of East Long Meadow own all the infrastructure. We just

[1:07:00] provide all the services. The money that comes in goes directly into East Long

[1:07:04] Meadow's account or West Springfield's account or any other community that

[1:07:07] would that we work with on top of that. >> And the principal.

[1:07:10] » Right. That Yep. So, you have to pay pay off your bond, and you you get a monthly

[1:07:15] bill from us. >> Um kind of Can I um So, I'm looking at

[1:07:19] your construction schedule. Um

[1:07:23] » [clears throat] >> at first five uh colors up on top and

[1:07:27] going through 2030, and then you have a to be determined in yellow, which looks

[1:07:32] like half of our town. >> Yep.

[1:07:34] » So, do we have a a general idea of

[1:07:40] how long before the entire town would be built out?

[1:07:44] » So, that would be based off of that what National Grid works. They've been giving

[1:07:48] us estimates of how fast they can work. So, if they work fast, we can follow

[1:07:52] behind them as fast to build it out. >> And

[1:07:56] the other thing is underground. >> Yes.

[1:07:58] » So, obviously you want to do the poles, it's cheaper, you get a lot of take

[1:08:01] rate. Um my concern is um truthfully, I'm hearing from the public, and

[1:08:08] they're getting a little tired of waiting.

[1:08:10] Um is there a location, let's say Great Woods, where there's

[1:08:15] a lot of houses condensed together, the big houses, the take rate would probably

[1:08:19] be good, where we can start doing underground and not wait for National

[1:08:23] Grid, and maybe hook it up to the main line under the bike trail?

[1:08:28] » So, the underground we don't have to wait for National Grid, but we have to

[1:08:31] fund it. And get to it.

[1:08:35] » I I mean it's one of those where if you put some in and people like it,

[1:08:41] they're going to be talking, and then everyone's going to be excited about

[1:08:45] hey, what's going forward. Um people can't get excited about me telling them

[1:08:49] that it's another 2 years, maybe another three, and they're like, you told me

[1:08:52] that 4 years ago. >> Yeah.

[1:08:55] » So, that's that's why we're here, because we're at that point.

[1:08:58] » Mhm. >> So, Grid is finally

[1:09:01] uh we we have an understanding with Grid

[1:09:04] now, I think, Uh after the last couple meetings that

[1:09:06] » Cheers. >> uh huh?

[1:09:08] » It's a couple beers. >> Allegedly.

[1:09:10] uh that we expect and fully expect a partnership

[1:09:15] with the town of East Hampton, right? National Grid is

[1:09:19] on our property and that we want to start a utility in

[1:09:22] town and and therefore uh we expect a certain level of

[1:09:28] collaboration. And so they have been working to change the way they do things

[1:09:33] to allow us to build this in a way that GoFiber,

[1:09:38] GoNetSpeed, or whoever wouldn't be allowed to do because that's

[1:09:43] what we expect. So we're at this point now where we've been

[1:09:46] challenging and fighting and scratching and clawing and waiting from

[1:09:50] last June to get our estimates to this June to get our estimates.

[1:09:55] And now we're here. And so now's the time to sort of look at

[1:10:00] how this can be funded and let's let's hit go. We we don't we don't

[1:10:06] have to wait for Grid anymore. We're we're at that point where we can

[1:10:12] figure out what the other agreement looks like and how the construction is

[1:10:15] going to go. Um that that specifically is I think why

[1:10:19] we're here to say let's go. Um I think there's a little

[1:10:24] bit of a a spreadsheet there that it's probably hard to read to that that shows

[1:10:29] the the cost of things. And again, uh we had sort of earmarked quite a bit

[1:10:34] of free cash. Um and that uh a couple months ago about

[1:10:39] maybe putting two like a couple million dollars towards this project. Uh Kim and

[1:10:43] I have been talking with bond counsel about our options. Um

[1:10:49] Of all the things, uh ca- capitalizing interest is allowed for this type of

[1:10:54] project. Um and and pretty much the only way you get

[1:10:58] these things off the ground to to get this much money. We don't borrow

[1:11:02] interest payments or or it just increases the cost of the

[1:11:06] project. However, like we've been saying since the

[1:11:09] beginning, this is a project that is going to generate revenue for us.

[1:11:13] Um, so it's a whole different animal. But, like Kim was saying or like I was

[1:11:17] saying, Kim and I were talking uh with bond counsel about our options. Um,

[1:11:22] and it and it appears that uh we're we're all we're likely to have

[1:11:28] another couple million dollars in free cash available

[1:11:31] um when we certify again in September. Um, if we want to uh use that to fund

[1:11:37] this project. But, uh we are at the point now where it's time to go.

[1:11:42] Um, grid's almost there. The design is done. Um,

[1:11:47] » [clears throat] >> uh Whip City has been doing a ton of

[1:11:50] work on our behalf for the last uh year and a half checking in, uh taking

[1:11:55] meetings, having phone calls, you know, fighting the good fight. Uh, but we're

[1:12:00] here. Um, this is what it cost. I think somebody

[1:12:04] asked the question before. I think we said we we sort of

[1:12:08] added escalation a little bit into the pricing of that. So, if

[1:12:12] uh the $31 million is what, you know, some sort of escalator of what you'd

[1:12:17] think the cost would be 3 years from now. That that's sort of in the

[1:12:20] equation. >> Right. And also, when we originally

[1:12:23] priced it, um the the mileage for the underground was half of what the actual

[1:12:28] came back on the engineering study. That was the largest largest increase in

[1:12:33] addition to the um the increase in the in the uh estimated make ready.

[1:12:37] » Yeah, so the the underground piece while while

[1:12:40] we wouldn't have to wait for grid, and that I can't disagree with you on.

[1:12:45] It I mean, the cost is three to four X to try to build it. Um, it is extremely

[1:12:50] expensive. Um,

[1:12:53] and I still think this is the right plan. And we've talked about this a

[1:12:57] bunch of times. This is the way to spend our money wisely and have revenue

[1:13:02] generating within a couple years of of giving a

[1:13:06] check to Grid to start moving their stuff out of our way.

[1:13:09] » And in the first areas, if Grid moves quicker, you'll see the the bid

[1:13:13] timeline. You know, right now we're we're doing 10 fiber service areas. A

[1:13:16] fiber service area is about 250 locations. But we're doing 10 a year in

[1:13:21] West Springfield, and that plan's working fantastic with that partnership

[1:13:25] that we've developed through with with Eversource and Verizon. Verizon was

[1:13:30] a little bit slow at first, but they've they've even come to the table. Verizon

[1:13:35] is it's kind of that snail,

[1:13:38] you know, going going through and they're they're tough to work with.

[1:13:42] Here, that's not as big of an issue. You do have two utilities to deal with.

[1:13:46] Eversource is up on that right on that Springfield line. But if we can get

[1:13:50] those built out faster, we can we can the make-ready work faster, we can bid

[1:13:56] those out faster. And great part about it, we do all the installs. We're just

[1:14:00] talking about that in the hallway. We do 100% of the installs. Our direct

[1:14:04] employees. We don't contract that out. The only we we do contract out the you

[1:14:09] know, putting the strand in in the distribution system out there.

[1:14:13] Everything else is done by us. >> So, what did you just say about 250?

[1:14:17] » 250 in each fiber service area. So, each puzzle piece

[1:14:21] » That's what you can do in a year? >> No, no, no.

[1:14:23] » No, no, no. >> Each one of those puzzle pieces, the

[1:14:25] FSA, like if you look at FSA 7, >> 50.

[1:14:28] » that's about 250 locations. It can >> We're doing 10.

[1:14:32] » So, we're doing 10 about 10 a year in in West Springfield. However, with

[1:14:38] with that, it's it's built it's capable of 288

[1:14:42] connections. We we leave that many open. So, you'll see

[1:14:47] I know Mr. Page, you're on the the south side of town if I remember correctly at

[1:14:52] one point in our conversation. No, but if you look at that you look at the

[1:14:56] growth Yeah, I know. I know. >> [laughter]

[1:14:58] » But, you look at that area, you know, that that area is expansive. So, when we

[1:15:02] build that that fiber service area might only have 225 cuz there's potential for

[1:15:09] that growth in there. And and the key is, you know, when we have

[1:15:13] the fiber cabinet there that has the 200 and 88 connections, you don't want to

[1:15:16] put another cabinet. You want to size every area correctly so that you can

[1:15:21] expand when that load comes in.

[1:15:23] » Roughly 300 acres close to me that will be all developed within, well, by the

[1:15:27] time fiber is done. >> There you go. Perfect timing.

[1:15:30] » That's building code. >> Uh building code.

[1:15:33] » Development. >> Yeah.

[1:15:34] » When you when those developments are announced to speak with that developer

[1:15:38] to have conduit put in as part of that development and then that's

[1:15:42] » And Connor, I I think I think Ryan had mentioned that once before at a planning

[1:15:46] board meeting. >> Yeah, about 2 years ago. 2 years ago.

[1:15:49] » We actually had it installed on Scarlet Drive, whatever that Oakwood Estates off

[1:15:54] Parker Street. Tom Bratt agreed to put in conduit for

[1:15:58] fiber. So, that's being installed. And again,

[1:16:00] » We have a development going in Westfield now that has 20 20 homes. They're higher

[1:16:04] end homes, but the developer physically bought the conduit from us

[1:16:08] and is installing the conduit. So, that's,

[1:16:11] you know, a big chunk of change that we don't have to invest in.

[1:16:15] » It We're we're we're we're taking that leap again when we

[1:16:20] built all our other infrastructure, water, sewer, storm water, like

[1:16:24] this is this is a big moment for the town.

[1:16:29] And again, it's got to start somewhere and we are at that point where we either

[1:16:33] start or we don't.

[1:16:36] And I think and I think everybody over there thinks that we should start and I

[1:16:40] think we're in a good place financially to get there and have revenue coming in

[1:16:46] be you know, maybe even before we have to make that first payment.

[1:16:50] Um >> So I don't want to cut it short, but I

[1:16:54] would suggest that this is a lot of information for us to to digest. So if

[1:16:59] you're open to it, maybe we could schedule another meeting. Um maybe later

[1:17:04] this summer or so where we can come back and have more discussions and give us

[1:17:08] some time to think about it internally and

[1:17:11] formulate any questions that we have. >> Sure.

[1:17:13] » Yep. >> Mr. Chair, question for you, Tom.

[1:17:17] » Um I'm fine with that. But is that

[1:17:20] hindering us? Is it Is there a timeline you need something from us? Is there

[1:17:23] » Well, we're still we're we're we're waiting a little bit to finalize things

[1:17:27] with National Grid. I think we're making, like they said, uh more progress

[1:17:32] in the last couple weeks or a month than we've made for a few months.

[1:17:37] Uh based on sort of everybody laying their

[1:17:40] cards on the table and and sort of expressing what we expect uh from the

[1:17:44] partnership. Uh it seems like that those numbers will be coming probably by the

[1:17:48] end of the month or or or yeah, so um at that point it's going to be

[1:17:54] finalizing our agreement with Grid to start the work and finalizing our

[1:17:58] agreement uh with Westfield uh for or Whip City. Um

[1:18:04] and and we'll get rolling. Um

[1:18:07] » So just to be clear, get rolling means get the poles [snorts] ready for

[1:18:12] » Yes. Yes. >> Yes, that's right.

[1:18:14] » Start the hut. >> So the hut's got to be there before you

[1:18:17] do anything. >> So we've already established our first

[1:18:19] 13 applications that National Grid will start working on. That's already been

[1:18:22] set in place for those first FSAs that we have on the map there.

[1:18:26] » So 13 * 125 >> 125

[1:18:29] » So if we start the make-ready, if you don't mind, um if we start the

[1:18:33] make-ready, we're still looking probably 2028 before the people actually get the

[1:18:39] high speed fiber. >> As long as they move if they move the

[1:18:42] faster they move the faster we can move. That's all I can say.

[1:18:45] » And this is all >> And I'm basing that basically on what

[1:18:48] you >> Yeah.

[1:18:49] » Our options that we can't start one of those colored areas until it's the the

[1:18:54] full make ready work from the utility is done. So, we can't go out and start

[1:18:58] hanging strand or >> We have to really be conservative with

[1:19:01] our estimate uh based on

[1:19:04] past experience, the fact that we didn't get the estimates for how much it was

[1:19:09] going to cost for a year after. Uh I don't know how long it's going to take

[1:19:13] to actually do the work. Uh so, that's that's a difficult thing

[1:19:16] to gauge. Uh they they say that it can be done in

[1:19:19] a certain amount of time, but >> The positive part about this town just

[1:19:23] so you're aware is in West Springfield the pole setter is

[1:19:26] Verizon. So, Verizon obviously has just Verizon workers doing that. The pole

[1:19:31] setter here in town is National Grid. National Grid could contract out other

[1:19:34] contractors to work the town, which means your make ready will go a lot

[1:19:38] faster.

[1:19:40] » [clears throat] >> I will put that on our agenda for our

[1:19:44] next meeting that we can continue the discussion. Um that way that we're not

[1:19:47] proceeding without making any decisions from a council level whether we want to

[1:19:52] but I expect that we're going to stop the project but before we have a chance

[1:19:56] to decide and discuss. >> Does council meet twice a month or once?

[1:20:00] » Uh typically in the summer July and August we meet once a month unless

[1:20:03] there's a special need uh but then starting in September we meet twice a

[1:20:07] month again. >> When's our next meeting? July 14th?

[1:20:09] » July 14th. >> Right after the holiday.

[1:20:14] » Right.

[1:20:16] » All right. Thank you for the update. >> Thank you.

[1:20:19] » Thank you guys so much. Thank you. Appreciate the questions. Thank you.

[1:20:23] » Thank you. >> Would you like your board back?

[1:20:27] » What's that? >> Yeah.

[1:20:28] » That was a lot. >> [laughter]

[1:20:30] » Do you want to keep it? >> We can keep it in the chamber.

[1:20:33] » The wall. What?

[1:20:37] Yeah, sure. Let's do that.

[1:20:40] Thank you, sir. Good to see you.

[1:20:46] Next step I held it very well. I mean

[1:20:52] Oh, next one's me, huh? >> Yep. Next we had the bylaw review

[1:20:56] committee report with the recommended changes.

[1:21:00] I will table this to the next meeting. I am through. I am doing chapter 315

[1:21:06] right now, which I'm running into major issues um with the chapter cuz every

[1:21:11] time I go to move something or adjust it, I lose columns and I am not really

[1:21:18] good with word and it took me over 2 hours to figure out how to change the

[1:21:23] color of some of these. But I got that down um and like I said

[1:21:27] » It's not Ralph cuz I had that same problem with zoning bylaws to changing

[1:21:32] colors. >> So I am literally writing all of

[1:21:36] the corrections I'm doing in order to get it correct and I'm I'm

[1:21:41] readjusting like uh we split up emergency services

[1:21:45] to fire and police departments and so the police department is going under P.

[1:21:51] So I've literally moved that to where it's supposed to be with all the

[1:21:54] corrections and I'm trying to make it as easy as possible. So when we read it you

[1:22:01] know, it'll be read. We're taking this out. We're adding this. And as it is

[1:22:07] I can't tell you how many corrections. I believe I'm at close to 300 commas um

[1:22:14] not to mention all the other wording and all and the commas are the hardest cuz I

[1:22:18] I go through and all of a sudden it's like

[1:22:20] that's a different color.

[1:22:24] Um but I will have it ready absolutely no later than the next meeting and I

[1:22:29] will circulate it ahead of time. The last third of the document I scanned

[1:22:34] through and there's only

[1:22:36] 150 or so changes. So it'll go quick.

[1:22:41] » Oh, that's good. I think more time is plenty fine. I think we still could take

[1:22:45] the motion that we talked about at our last meeting though to allow us to

[1:22:49] kind of split that report into two phases where this first one that we

[1:22:52] would start talking about at the next meeting would be just the regular bylaws

[1:22:57] and then zoning could still continue on. There are movement.

[1:23:02] » Would you like a motion? >> I would.

[1:23:04] » I move to authorize the bylaw review committee to submit its required report

[1:23:08] in two phases. First with recommendations on general

[1:23:12] bylaws submitted first, second for zoning bylaw recommendations submitted

[1:23:17] at a later date. This shall satisfy the requirement of the charter

[1:23:21] allowing additional time for more complex zoning review.

[1:23:25] » Second. >> Motion was made and seconded. Any

[1:23:27] further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor please say I.

[1:23:31] Any opposed? Motion passes. Next under new business, so per the

[1:23:37] council rule five, we have to prepare the calendar for the upcoming year. So

[1:23:42] I've done so as usual for July and August

[1:23:45] we'll have the one meeting unless there's

[1:23:48] » Very nicely done. >> any changes or things that pop up and

[1:23:52] otherwise we'll resume to two meetings a month except for December. The last

[1:23:56] couple years we've only had one because of the the holidays and being busy and

[1:24:00] so forth, but um thankfully the spreadsheet's pretty nice. You just

[1:24:04] change the year and anything that we have figured out that has to be done as

[1:24:08] it automatically calculates, so >> [clears throat]

[1:24:11] » It's great that you just volunteer to do [laughter] that every year.

[1:24:13] » Yep. >> Appreciate that.

[1:24:16] » You're never going to leave us. >> [laughter]

[1:24:19] » All right. Then next action items for our next meeting, uh the first will be

[1:24:24] reorganization that we do annually. We'll elect a new president and vice

[1:24:29] president. Um for that meeting as well, we have to do our annual acknowledgement

[1:24:33] of the council rules nation. So, [cough and clears throat] if you have

[1:24:36] any suggested changes or if you think

[1:24:38] they're fine as is, then for the next meeting,

[1:24:42] um we'll have fiber on the agenda again to discuss.

[1:24:46] Generally, we'll have the year-end financial report and any transfers that

[1:24:50] are due cuz it's the

[1:24:52] » [clears throat] >> had all that final year-end paperwork by

[1:24:54] the following day, I believe. And then, um

[1:24:57] » A lot of motions. >> a review report.

[1:25:00] That's all I have so far. >> That's fair.

[1:25:02] » We'll entertain a motion to adjourn. >> Marilyn, take us away.

[1:25:06] » I move we adjourn. [laughter] >> Motion is made and seconded. Any further

[1:25:11] discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor, please

[1:25:13] say I. Any opposed? Motion passes and we are

[1:25:17] adjourned at 7:42. >> Thank you. So, we're done.

Town Council 6/23/26

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