Tri-Town Board of Water Commissioners

TRI TOWN BOARD of Water Commissioners Braintree, Holbrook, Randolph MINUTES September 5, 2019 Present: Joseph C. Sullivan, Chair, Town of Braintree, Bill Alexopolous, Town of Randolph, Tim Gordon, Town of Holbrook. In attendance: Jim Arsenault, George Berds, William Bent, Peter Berry, John Caruso, Stephen DeFrancesco, Lou Dutton, Helen Gordon, Brian Howard, Robyn LaFrance, Peter Mello, David Mulligan, Keith Nastasia, Chris Pellitteri, Alex Richards, Janine Smith, Ed Spellman, Nicole Taub, Mike Walsh, and Susan Wright. Mayor Sullivan opened the meeting at 1:09 pm. Legal update on Draft Legislation and Draft Inter-municipal Agreement: Nicole Taub, Peter Mello, Peter Berry  Nicole Taub explained that they are still working on details of the draft legislation and inter-municipal agreement and she noted that immediate next steps include scheduling a working group meeting with all stakeholders so that final versions of each of the documents will be ready for a Tri Town Board meeting in October.  Peter Berry explained that they incorporated the language and feedback that was shared at the July 16 meeting and he specifically mentioned that each Town will continue to issue its own bonds, each Town will vote funds for capital improvements, and each town’s own Department of Public Works will be responsible for maintaining its own infrastructure.  Peter Mello explained that finalizing the documents involves technical and complicated issues and the goal is to invite all interested parties to meet together and finalize the work in time for an October Tri Town meeting.  Nicole Taub referenced the Holbrook Town Meeting scheduled for November and she said they hope to have this ready in time for that. She explained that the legislative action is to 1) repeal the former legislation and 2) establish the new Tri Town Water District and inter-municipal agreement, also referred to as the Joint Powers agreement. The goal is to have a draft in October, final version in November, and have a legislation date of December.  Mayor Sullivan said he will appoint Jim Arsenault and Lou Dutton to be included in the working group meeting. Tim Gordon said he will appoint himself and Chris Pellitteri,  and Bill Alexopolous will confirm participants with Brain Howard and respond as soon as possible. Helen Gordon and Paul Gabriel will also be included as the OPM.  Brian Howard asked a question concerning a simple majority vote to file a Home Rule Petition, and he asked Tim Gordon if Holbrook needed only the intent of Article or the complete Article at the time of posting.  Peter Mello said that they want to organize folks as soon as possible for a meeting to finalize the legislation and agreement.  Randolph resident David Mulligan asked a question concerning the Randolph/Holbrook Joint Water Board, asking if Holbrook should be responsible for 20% of repairs. Tim Gordon replied that it is a 50/50 split. It was also asked if the joint water board will be dissolved after the new Tri Town Water District is established and the answer was yes.  Helen Gordon noted that the water transmission from Randolph to Holbrook does need to be addressed and they look forward to the working group meeting to finalize these important issues. Environmental Partners updates: Helen Gordon  Helen Gordon provided a hand out to the Board and gave a brief update on the QBS Selection process. She reported that two firms, AECOM of Chelmsford and CDM Smith of Boston, submitted proposals by the August 23 deadline for the Designer Services Process. She explained that both firms will be interviewed and they will follow the same process as they would have if more than two were received. The reviews and rankings by the review committee are due by September 9, 2019, and interviews will be scheduled for the week of September 23, 2019.  Helen explained that the firms were required to provide five references and she suggested that at the next meeting, the Board go into Executive Session to discuss the references, and then resume the meeting.  Mayor Sullivan said he anticipated that the project would attract more than two proposals and Helen Gordon explained that other firms attended the mandatory August 2 site tour and that it was possible that they were not familiar enough with the project or could not meet the timeline expectations. Helen remarked that both of the companies who submitted proposals are very qualified.  David Mulligan asked Mayor Sullivan if this was a nationwide search or only a local search and Mayor replied that it was advertised on the national register. Helen Gordon noted that AECOM is headquartered in Los Angeles, has a Chelmsford office, and is a global company and that CDM Smith is also a global company.  Helen discussed the individual interviews as being a ½ hour presentation followed by a ½ hour question and answer with only one firm allowed in the meeting at a time. Mayor Sullivan asked Tim Gordon and Bill Alexopolus about scheduling the interviews on September 24 or 26, 2019.   Lastly, Helen Gordon reported that the firm hired by the Massachusetts Historical Commission to inspect the site has determined that no archaeological items were discovered and the site is clear and ready to move forward. Minutes: The minutes of July 16, 2019 were reviewed and accepted by the board. MOTION: by Tim Gordon to accept the minutes of the July 16, 2019 meeting SECOND: by Bill Alexopolous VOTE: unanimous Mayor Sullivan scheduled the next meeting for September 24, 2019 from 1-3pm which will consist of interviews with the two firms that submitted proposals, and a very quick update on the progress of the legislation and inter-municipal agreement. There was a motion to adjourn the meeting at 1:40 pm. Respectfully Submitted, Robyn LaFrance Recording Secretary