Town Council - Ways & Means Committee

Braintree Town Council MEMBERS Meredith Boericke, Chairwoman Committee of Ways & Means Peter Morin, Vice-Chairman One JFK Memorial Drive Joseph Reynolds, Member Braintree, Massachusetts 02184 Julia Flaherty, Member Elizabeth Maglio, Member MINUTES Tuesday, February 24, 2025 A meeting of the Committee of Ways & Means was held in Johnson Chambers on Tuesday, February 24, 2025 at 6:45pm. Councilor Boericke was in the Chair. Clerk of the Council, Susan Cimino conducted the roll call. Present: Meredith Boericke, Chairwoman Peter Morin, Vice-Chairman Julia Flaherty, Member (REMOTE) Elizabeth Maglio, Member Charles B. Ryan, President of the Town Council (ex-officio) Not Present: Joseph Reynolds, Member (Councilor Reynolds did not attend this meeting as he recused himself due to the fact a family member applied for this position and he did not want the appearance of being influenced by that.) Also Present: Erin V. Joyce, Mayor Kara Nyman, Chief of Staff Mike Esmond, Director of Finance Chris Shipps, Director of Human Resources Ben Hulke, Asst DPW Director Matthew Jacques, appointee DPW Director February 24, 2025 Ways & Means Committee 1 of 5 Approval of Minutes • October 9, 2024 Motion: by Councilor Morin to approve Minutes of October 9, 2024 Second: by Councilor Maglio Roll Call Vote: For (4 – Boericke, Flaherty, Maglio, Morin), Against (0), Absent (1-Reynolds), Abstain (0) • November 6, 2024 Motion: by Councilor Morin to approve Minutes of November 6, 2024 Second: by Councilor Maglio Roll Call Vote: For (4 – Boericke, Flaherty, Maglio, Morin), Against (0), Absent (1-Reynolds), Abstain (0) • November 20, 2024 Motion: by Councilor Morin to approve Minutes of November 20, 2024 Second: by Councilor Maglio Roll Call Vote: For (4 – Boericke, Flaherty, Maglio, Morin), Against (0), Absent (1-Reynolds), Abstain (0) • December 17, 2024 Motion: by Councilor Morin to approve Minutes of December 17, 2024 Second: by Councilor Maglio Roll Call Vote: For (4 – Boericke, Flaherty, Maglio, Morin), Against (0), Absent (1-Reynolds), Abstain (0) Old Business • None New Business • 25 002 Mayor: Appointment - Director of Public Works, Matthew Jacques or take up any action relative thereto Mayor Joyce explained I want to stress the team we are trying to build at town hall as we have in the last year and moving forward into the years ahead. Tonight before you is the appointment to the Director of Public Works, Matthew Jacques. He comes to us with a very strong background in Facilities and Public Works from the Town of Mansfield. We have a very capable Department of Public Works with 2 Directors that have been with the town for several years. We provided tonight an organizational chart to give some perspective of the different departments. We are looking to add a Director level that is able to bring in an external perspective on our department. I expect this person to bring an energy and resource that the department may not have. His organizational response to questions has been exciting. We need to get a handle on our facilities and our capital spend and getting projects off the ground. There is a public perception of us not getting things complete, we want to overcome that. We had a strong internal candidate that made this decision hard but we were looking to bring a new perspective to the DPW with this change of leadership. February 24, 2025 Ways & Means Committee 2 of 5 Matthew Jacques stated I prepared a professional portfolio for my interview and an executive summary of some projects I completed in Mansfield as the Facilities Director. I have over 30 years of experience in facilities background. My background is budget and oversight. My beliefs are to empower the departmental leaders. I hope to enhance that team. Last week I toured the town and got to see the town buildings at a high level. I have a 30-60-90 day plan. I will work with Director Esmond to work on the 5 year capital plan and set some realistic capital goals. Councilor Morin stated you replaced turf on an asphalt field. What was the cost? Mr. Jacques says we had an estimate of $5 million and came in at about $4.1 million. We bought the turf ourselves. Councilor Morin asked about bleachers that were added. Mr. Jacques mentioned they added to the bleachers for the band and changed the stone surface to a turf. We changed the fencing and added 6” curb to each side so the weed-wacker would not destroy the fence. We tried to think of those other things. Councilor Morin asked when you added the bleachers did it trigger any accessibility issues. Mr. Jacques stated when we added we knew we would have to add that to the work. Councilor Morin stated your facilities background seems very strong. One of the concerns is the rubber hitting the road and pavement and keeping up with that part of the job. Tell me about your paving work. Mr. Jacques stated I would have to learn what the town has for specifications. I’ve paved a lot in Mansfield schools and parking lots. Councilor Morin asked how big of a staff do you supervise? Mr. Jacques stated about 30. At BJs I ran the entire facilities portfolio at about 213. President Ryan stated his biggest concern he has is we are here to recommend you as the Director of Public Works and you haven’t worked in Public Works before. I have concerns with that. We are building a new Water Treatment Plant. What kind of experience do you have with that? Mr. Jacques replied very basic to be quite honest. I will have to get up to speed on that and understanding how that works. My ability to manage big projects and my ability to work with staff that is currently here is really what is going to help me through that. I don’t have a lot of experience there. President Ryan spoke about paving parking lots and mentioned they say “all roads lead to Braintree”. We need to spend our precious tax dollars on repairing the roads in Braintree. Your 5 year plan will include major expenses of that to be roadway reconstruction. President Ryan asked who do you need to talk to if you are going to do roadway reconstruction. Mr. Jacques replied we need to get out to the community and let them know it is being done. The Council DPW subcommittee would need to be aware. You need to coordinate with your public safety. We need to coordinate with schools. You would have to have a public meeting on it. People wouldn’t be happy with the disruption but the roads need to be done. President Ryan mentioned when you do a roadway over you need to make sure the underground infrastructure is in good condition. You don’t want to dig up a roadway and then have National Grid back the next year digging up the roadway to fix a gas line. They told someone they were going to do that gas line over in 2027 but we did the roadway over in 2026 and that communication got lost in the shuffle. You have to have a 5-year plan with the roadways. What would you do if a 12 inch snow storm was coming. Mr. Jacques stated I would lean on Ben Hulke and preparation would be one of the biggest parts. Keeping an eye on the weather if it is going to be all snow or turn to rain. I understand what it is to be in a truck for 12 plus hours plowing snow. February 24, 2025 Ways & Means Committee 3 of 5 President Ryan asked what is your degree in? Mr. Jacques stated I have 2 degrees: Bachelor of Arts and general studies with a minor in business. I received an associate’s degree in business management in 1992. President Ryan stated the main concern I have is you’re not the typical candidate for a Director of Public Works. You don’t have Public Works experience. You have some relatable experience with Facility but not with Water Systems or Engineering Degree or 10 years Public Works experience. That is my concern. You are here tonight as the recommended candidate from Mayor Joyce. We had an internal candidate that if you looked at his resume seemed like a better match for the job. I’m concerned on how that is going to go if you become the DPW Director and people are training you on how to do the job. It seems that could be an awkward situation. How would you handle that situation? Mr. Jacques stated I have been in that situation before. They will not be training me to do my job. My job is to be the leader of the department. I will be the person that manages and oversees. That’s where my leadership of the past 30 years will come in. Building a relationship with the internal candidate is important. They have their job to do and I will have my job to do. I will take a ground up approach. It is important to talk to the people on the ground doing the work. There is no one who will work harder than me in this position. President Ryan stated you are going to be learning a lot from the people that work for you. You will be learning about Braintree’s roads and Water Treatment Plant and everything that is Braintree. You will be relying heavily on the Assistant Director and others. I see that as a challenge for you going into this job. Councilor Maglio stated this information you gave us makes me feel this is someone who wants this job. Mayor Joyce is building a team and she deserves to hire who she wants on her team. There are streets that don’t feel like the get taken care of as well as others. The answer has always been well that’s how we’ve always done it. I would hope with you maybe we can change that. Mr. Jacques stated I don’t know how you’ve always done it but I can understand where that needs to change. I want to be out there on the front lines and understand what those concerns are. I also rebuilt relationships with other departments in my past positions. We learn how to work together. Councilor Flaherty stated I think the reason you have been selected is because of your leadership style and your ways of providing direction. How is your leadership style going to fit Braintree. Mr. Jacques stated I try not to micro-manage. There is a balance of oversight and independence. Make sure there is clear direction and clear communication. If that is not happening there may need to be difficult conversations that I have had many times in my past. What are the obstacles to allow our team to do the best job possible. My leadership style is to build a team. Chairwoman Boericke stated the DPW is probably the number one thing I help residents address. We need to make sure we have someone we are confident in. What are some things you have done and how will you bring that to Braintree. Mr. Jacques stated the biggest thing I have done is make sure there is an opportunity and we are open to the best candidate and the best person for the job in Mansfield. There are opportunities for everyone. We start that early with summer help. We go to the schools and recruit summer help. We teach them about facilities and cleaning. Every year I have kids that have stayed with me through their college years. We show them there is a path. A couple of them are now full time custodians. Chairwoman Boericke stated how would you think about equity in your budgeting and your priorities. How would you make equitable choices across the town on where your resources are going. February 24, 2025 Ways & Means Committee 4 of 5 Mr. Jacques stated I think we need to ask what are the town’s priorities first. Is it equity or safety? What are the mayor’s priorities? We need to make sure we do not stay away from certain parts of town. How are we going to be fair across town is based on the needs and the budget. My priorities are that everything is equally distributed around the town. Mr. Jacques stated you all have a set of priorities that need to get relayed to me so I can understand them. Chairwoman Boericke stated our role is to raise awareness of what is important to my constituents and overall well being of the town. One big gap is overall care and forward thinking on the environment. We are a designated Green Community. I believe we are out of compliance or very close to out of compliance because the work hasn’t been done that is needed to be done. We have no plan for make ready EV charging without any environmental look forward. I would like this department to have an environmental plan. I will add you should have contact with ADA because the Commission on Disabilities Plan is also not being implemented. My district is high walking/high disability district and wheelchair users compared to the general population. Councilor Morin asked what do you know about Braintree’s budget/workforce. Mr. Jacques stated I ran the Mr. Tux in Braintree a long time ago and drove Rte. 37 and 5 corners. I did do some research on the budget and the amount of roadways you have. I know there is approximately $600,000 in the snow budget. I need to look at the budget and ask if it is correct. I know you had an override last year. Motion read by Councilor Morin for favorable recommendation to the full Council: MOTION: Upon request of her Honor, Mayor Joyce, the Town of Braintree, through the Braintree Town Council and in accordance with Section 3-3 of the Town Charter, approves the appointment of Matthew Jacques as Director of Public Works. Motion: by Councilor Morin to approve Order 25 002 Second: by Councilor Maglio Roll Call Vote: For (4 – Boericke, Flaherty, Maglio, Morin), Against (0), Absent (1-Reynolds), Abstain (0) It was unanimously voted to adjourn the meeting at 8:08p.m. Respectfully submitted, Susan M. Cimino Clerk of the Council Documents provided for Meeting • 25 002 Mayor: Appointment - Director of Public Works, Matthew Jacques February 24, 2025 Ways & Means Committee 5 of 5