City Council

HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007 Hearing opened at 7:00 P.M. with Councillor Nickel, Chair of the Public Service Committee presiding. All members were present. The following PETITION was the subject of the hearing. 1-08 National Grid and Verizon New England Inc., New Lancaster Road: Install seven jointly owned poles on New Lancaster Road beginning at a point approximately 94 feet southeast of the centerline of the intersection of Jungle Road and continuing approximately 810 feet in a southeasterly direction. Iris Price, representative of National Grid stated that they wanted to install 7 poles for the new Wal-Mart as outlined in the plan submitted. No one in the audience spoke in favor or in opposition. Councillor Freda requested to look at the outlined plan. No Councillors spoke. HEARING ADJOURNED AT 7:05 P.M. ____________________________ Lynn A. Bouchard, City Clerk and Clerk of the City Council HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007 Hearing opened at 7:07 P.M. with Councillor Rowlands, Chair of the Legal Affairs Committee Presiding. All members were present except Councillor Marchand. The following PETITION was the subject of the hearing. 110-07 Eric W. Sullender, Liberty Rental Corporation: Rezone the following parcels of land located off Central Street and shown on corresponding sketch’s prepared for Liberty Rental Corporation dated April 27, 2007 by Hannigan Engineering Inc. as follows: 1. Zoning Area A, containing 35,622 square feet, more or less from Residence C to Commercial. 2. Zoning Area B, containing 178 square feet, more or less from Commercial to Residence C. 3. Zoning Area C, containing 1 square foot, more or less from Commercial to Residence C. 4. Zoning Area D, containing 984 square feet, more or less from Residence C to Commercial. 5. Zoning Area E, containing 169 feet more or less from Commercial to Residence C. 6. Zoning Area F, containing 363 square feet from Residence C to Commercial. Introduced and made part of the record were the following: A. Petition #110-07 submitted by Eric Sullender, Liberty Rental Corporation including sketches prepared by Hannigan Engineering of Leominster, MA, dated April 27, 2007 showing the proposed zoning line changes and described more specifically. B. Notice of the public hearing published in the Sentinel & Enterprise on July 2, 2007, July 9, 2007 and July 16, 2007. C. Letters of recommendation from the Mayor, Conservation Commission, the Planning Board, Police Department- Traffic Division, and the Department of Public Works. Eric W. Sullender, Liberty Rental Corporation and Jim Moriarty, Legal Council for Liberty Rental Corp. were present. Mr. Moriarty said the properties in this petition surround Bart’s Farm. In 1991 this project was approved with an age restriction of 55 and older. Mr. Moriarty stated that they have fine tuned where the road will come down to Central Street. He said changing the zoning on these properties will align the lot lines with the existing zoning. They feel that changing some of the parcels from Commercial to Residential and some from Residential to Commercial is just housekeeping. Prior, they did not own lots 7B and 7C and another parcel in the rear of 7C. Mr. Moriarty said back in 2001 the zoning had changed and the back portion was zoned Residence C and the front portion became all Commercial. He said they reserved a right-of-way zoned Residential so that they could access the residential land in the back from the commercial land in the front. He said the right- of-way is 50 feet on the roadway and widening out to 100 feet. Mr. Moriarty stated the widening of the 100 feet in the back portion of the right-of-way was a waste of space. Councillor Tocci asked if they would be at the sub-committee meeting. Councillor Rowlands said he has not requested it but will make it a request. Councillor Dombrowski asked Mr. Sullender to explain the plan. Mr. Sullender explained the lots, the changes and why. Councillor Dombrowski asked what was on lot 7B. Mr. Sullender stated that A&B Tire was there but they tore it down and removed 800 tons of hazardous waste which was associated with the garage. He said they planned to put something nice there. Mr. Sullender stated that there will be a Commercial Site Plan submitted to the Planning Board in the future. He said lots 7A and 7B are planned for new commercial construction on them. He handed out copies of the full engineered Site Plan to the Councillors and said that he could have some of the lines taken off for the next meeting. Councillor Salvatelli asked what “nice” mean? Mr. Moriarty said nice means putting something in there that isn’t just crammed in there like A&B Tire was. He said they had problems with parking and getting in and out of there. Something nice would be something that would fit there, not jammed in, and would have plenty of parking for easy access. Mr. Dombrowski asked what was on Lot 2E. Mr. Sullender said right now they own the parcel and the drive is graveled. He said if you drive in you will see that Frances Bartolomeo is farming it. He said this land abuts 740 Central Street and goes down to the railroad tracks. Mr. Sullender said that 2E, 2F and 4C will be part of Brooks Pond, 55 and older project. Councillor Dombrowski asked about the parcel not labeled to the left and below of 2E that is shaped like an arrow. Mr. Sullender said it was a waste site for the A&B Tire business. It is a steep gully area and the plan is to leave it like it is. He said there is a possibility that it could be used as residential but one of the restrictions is that it is near a creek and 200 feet falls under the River Act. He said this would not be part of Brooks Farm Project right now. Councillor Freda said we have a public hearing which is the process for the public and the full Council and she is not quite sure why this is going to a subcommittee meeting when it is before the full Council as a public hearing She said at the sub- committee meeting the full Council is not there and are not able to ask questions and she thinks that in the process if there were more questions there should be a continuation of that hearing. HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007, continued Councillor Rowlands said that he would try to enlighten her on what he is trying to do. He said first there is a public hearing to give the public an opportunity to speak, and then the Councillors are allowed an opportunity to speak and ask questions without going into full discussion. He said this would allow the petitioner or anyone else that wishes to attend the subcommittee meeting time to prepare so that when they get there we are not saying I wish you had brought this or that down, or that we wanted a question clarified. Councillor Rowlands said it is his goal to move this to sub-committee and that everyone is prepared at that meeting so that we can push this to a vote at the following City Council meeting. Councillor Freda stated that this is a plan that goes back to 2001. She said when this was rezoned it was done to protect the neighborhood and was a pretty important piece of zoning for the 55 year and older. Councillor Freda said it was this Council that put the restriction on it and she has been in close contact with the developer for 5-7 years. She said the original plan called for what she calls a “Mashby Commons” type of building that can house a little bakery or a little farm stand, something that Bart can deal with. She is trying to stress that this is housekeeping to the wider plan which was originally approved by this Council, and this is to straighten out the zoning lines to accommodate now that the actual building has begun. She wanted to point it out that she has been involved with this since day one. Councillor Lanciani said for a point of information the Planning Board is also having a public hearing on this and there will be more input. Councillor Salvatelli said he knows that Councillor Freda has been involved in it but feels that zoning areas C, D, E, F and B are housekeeping but does not consider A as housekeeping. He feels A is a little more than housekeeping. He agreed that C, D, B, E, F is housekeeping because we didn’t know that road was going in there anyway. He asked if buying A&B Tire was always in the Plans. Mr. Moriarty said the 55 year and older went into effect in June 2001 and they bought A&B Tire simultaneously. Councillor Salvatelli said so they were renting the building and haven’t come back until now. The difference is that they had plans and we just didn’t know about it. He said 35,000 square feet is not housekeeping, it is a pretty good size lot for a commercial venture. Mr. Moriarty stated if you take the 35,000 square foot lot and take the Residence A/Commercial line and draw it right across and add the road, there is excess land not needed for the road, so why not use it for the benefit of commercial land. Councillor Salvatelli asked it the bocce courts were on Residence C land. Mr. Moriarty said it sits on Commercial. Councillor Tocci asked if they have recently purchased the Perkins building or is it in the works. Mr. Sullender said that has been for sale for a long time and they looked at it years ago but they are not interested. Councillor Tocci asked if they owned that part around Little Peach. Mr. Sullender said no. Councillor Dombrowski said he tends to be in favor of this and he thinks it will be an esthetic boost. He said he is a little concerned about creating an irregular zoning boundary line because we have to satisfy the standard for changing the zoning particularly with Lot A. Can you give me a justification for satisfying the zoning change? Councillor Rowlands said it will be discussed in Legal Affairs and asked the petitioners to come prepared for the sub- committee with the answer to that because we are already running behind schedule. He said he would like to move this on and this is a good discussion and will take longer than a few minutes to do. No one in the audience spoke in favor or in opposition of this petition. HEARING ADJOURNED AT 7:32 P.M. ____________________________ Lynn A. Bouchard, City Clerk and Clerk of the City Council HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007 Hearing opened at 7:33 P.M. with Councillor Rowlands, Chair of the Legal Affairs Committee presiding. All members were present except Councillor Dombrowski. The following PETITION was the subject of the hearing. HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007, continued 108-07 Nelson Lee, President, Dream Kitchens & Bath: Grant a Special Permit to use an existing building at 44 Mead Street located within an Industrial Zone and shown on Assessors Map 266 as Lot 1 for a showroom and sales office. Introduced and made part of the record were the following: A. Petition #108-07 submitted by Nelson Lee, President, Dream Kitchens & Bath with accompanying sketches. B. Notice of public hearing published in the Sentinel & Enterprise on July 2, 2007 and July 9, 2007. C. Letters of recommendation from the Police Department-Traffic Division, Department of Public Works, Building Inspector, Planning Department and Health Department. D. The following comments were submitted by the Fire Department: “Generally, we are in favor of the Council granting this Special Permit, however we are also aware that the fire alarm equipment within the building is quite antiquated and no longer supported by its manufacturer. While it would be unfair to require a tenant to upgrade equipment within the building that ultimately would become real estate of the property owner, the Council should consider the updating of the fire alarm control equipment as a condition of the Special Permit for the owner.” Nelson Lee, President of Dream Kitchens & Baths was present. He would like to relocate his showroom to a piece of property that is currently zoned Industrial. There is a corner area in the building that is set up as an office area that would be perfect to use for his new location. He said he has talked with the owners of the property and has had a lot of plans drawn up and he is prepared to answer any questions you have and tell you what his goals are. Councillor Rowlands asked what type of business this is. Mr. Lee said his business, Dream Kitchens and Bath, is basically a kitchen dealership that sells bathroom supplies, countertops and plumbing supplies. He said we do some installation projects also. Councillor Rowlands asked if he was correct in assessing there would be no manufacturing and is strictly a sales and show room. Mr. Lee said yes. Councillor Rowlands stated that this area is a pretty important area in terms of traffic, getting in and out of there and the use of the space. He has a parking diagram and a truck turning diagram that was handed to him. He said the goal is to open this hearing up to the public and have the subcommittee meeting on August 8, 2007. He said you will be on that agenda which starts at 7:00 p.m. and we will discuss this petition. Councillor Rowlands said if there are no problems or concerns it will be our goal to take it to Council for a vote at the next City Council meeting following the sub-committee meeting. He said the parking diagram will be discussed in sub-committee and he is hoping for a new plan. Councillor Rowlands asked Mr. Lee if he would be available for the sub-committee meeting. Mr. Lee said he would be available for the sub-committee meeting. Councillor Rowlands stated that if the owner of the building could attend that would be beneficial as well. Councillor Tocci said she has maps but does not know where he will be located. She asked if it was the highlighted area. Mr. Lee said yes. Councillor Salvatelli asked if they needed to designate how much square footage they have to have. Councillor Rowlands stated that there has been a lot of discussion in the City about the process. One of the interesting things about this is that we hear about the expedited process. The City Council had a pretty fast process about a year or a year and a half ago. This Council passed a petition to try to promote the use of existing industrial buildings for commercial and in doing so we set up criteria. Rule #1 you have to tell us what exactly is going in there in term of the size. If it grows above that size by a square foot then you have to come back before the Council then that Special Permit is done. The other point on this is that the criteria has to be that there is no alternate industrial use for this property. As part of the condition for this Special Permit you have to show that it is not easily used as industrial. Councillor Salvatelli asked if there was a possibility to visit this site. He said he would like to take a look at it. Councillor Rowlands said we tend not to. We tend to visit it informally and then bring it up for discussion but he has no problem setting up a visit. He stated he is not familiar with that corner. It is sort of an isolated area of the City that you don’t drive by and see it from a distance. Councillor Rowlands said he thinks it’s a great idea if you want to set up a meeting to tour that property. Councillor Tocci asked if it was the Laskso building that they were going into. Mr. Lee said yes. Councillor Tocci said she would like to go for the visit. Mr. Lee stated that two and a half weeks ago the Planning Board with about five of its members walked through the building. Councillor Rowlands said that they could do the visit before the August 8, 2007 Legal Affairs Committee meeting at around 6 p.m. as an informal thing. He said he will get back to him and will solidify that date. HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007, continued Councillor Nickel asked who was the owner of the property. Mr. Lee stated Joel Baker, owner of Baker Cadillac. Councillor Nickel stated that when the owner talked about expanding his parking lot the neighbors had concerns and issues with parking, traffic and things of that nature. Mr. Lee said that there is a plan in effect that has been approved. Councillor Nickel asked where he is located now. Mr. Lee said on Central Street. Councillor Marchand stated it was a pleasure to see him down here this evening and asked how long he has been in business. Mr. Lee responded with 13 years. Councillor Marchand asked if he was moving into the same building as Bay State Apparel is in. Mr. Lee said yes. Councillor Marchand asked what part of that building are you moving into. Mr. Lee said they would be directly in the front part. Councillor Marchand said Mr. Lee made a comment in his opening remarks that you were here for rezoning and just to clarify this is not a rezoning. You are asking for a Special Permit for a commercial establishment in an industrial building. Councillor Salvatelli said he thought a petition was suppose to be filed to change that whole area to Commercial and asked why it was never done. Councillor Rowlands said there was a discussion in City Council Chambers prior to the second dealerships application for a Special Permit. During that discussion a suggestion was made to have the whole area rezoned for Commercial, but he didn’t think it was ever done. Councillor Rowlands said that in preparation for the meeting he saw in a letter from the Fire Department regarding the fire alarm and that it will be a necessary to upgrade the equipment. He said you or the owner might want to be prepared to discuss the upgrade of that property in regards to the fire department requirements. No one in the audience spoke in favor or in opposition. HEARING ADJOUNDED AT 7:46 P.M. and continued to August 13, 2007 at 6:45 P.M. ____________________________ Lynn A. Bouchard, City Clerk and Clerk of the City Council HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007 Hearing opened at 7:46 P.M. with Councillor Rowlands, Chair of the Legal Affairs Committee presiding. All members were present. This is a continuation of the public hearing from June 25, 2007. The following PETITION was the subject of the hearing. 98-07 Nickolas Casaburri: Grant a Special Permit to use an exiting building at 213 Whitney Street, located in an Industrial zone and shown on Assessor’s Map 40 as Lot 8, for a used car dealership and auto repair facility. Introduced and made part of the record were the following: A. Petition #98-07submitted by Nickolas Casaburri along with Assessors Map 40. B. Notice of public hearing published in the Sentinel & Enterprise on June 4, 2007 and June 11, 2007. E. Letters of recommendation from the Police Department-Traffic Division, Department of Public Works, Building Inspector, Planning Department and Health Department. D. A letter from the Fire Department states that a review of our file on the property shows a Notice of Responsibility from the State Department of Environmental Protection dated in 2003, and upon checking with the agency several more notifications and deadlines which have long passed. The Council may wish to consider these facts as they discuss the issuance of the Special Permit. I have been advised by DEP that the potential lessor should be aware of the situation, for if any digging is done on the site, the person may be considered liable as well in the environmental issue.” HEARING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, JULY 23, 2007, continued F. A letter from the Conservation Commission states that the property appears to be within the riverfront (200’ outer riparian zone) of the Monoosnoc Brook. Therefore any site changes may require the applicant to file with the Commission.” The applicant, Nickolas Casaburri was present. Councillor Rowlands said that it was important that he come to the subcommittee meeting. We tried to send him mail but it was returned to us because we did not have a valid post office box or address. He said he would like Mr. Casaburri as well as the property owner at the Legal Affairs Committee meeting on August 8, 2007 at 7:30 p.m. Councillor Rowlands asked Mr. Casaburri to contact the City Clerk’s Office to provide a mailing address. He asked Mr. Casaburri to explain his plan and his goal for this property. Mr. Casaburri said he wants to relocate his business to 213 Whitney Street. He said he has been at 1074 Central Street for about a year and wants to expand to this location. Councillor Rowlands asked Mr. Casaburri if he could bring the owner of the property to the meeting on the August 8, 2007. Mr. Casaburri said yes. Councillor Nickel asked if he had been using the building. Mr. Casaburri stated because of the area he has to secure the vehicles inside the building. He said he is also renovating the building. So you will see him there time to time painting the floors, upgrading the lift and things like that. Councillor Lanciani, ask if he did car repairing at this location at 1074 Central Street. Mr. Casaburri said no it was not adequate there. Councillor Lanciani asked if he intended to do car repairing as well as selling used cars at Whitney Street. Mr. Casaburri said that is correct, primarily my own vehicles. He said he is not really equipped to do a lot of public repairs but he would like to have permission to do public repairs as well. No one in the audience spoke in favor or in opposition. HEARING ADJOUNDED AT 7:53 P.M. and continued to August 13, 2007 at 6:30 P.M. ____________________________ Lynn A. Bouchard, City Clerk and Clerk of the City Council REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL Meeting called to order at 8:00 P.M. Attendance was taken by a roll call vote: All members present. A recess was called at 8:03 p.m. to conduct a public forum. Meeting reconvened at 8:07 p.m. The following COMMUNICATION was received, referred to the FINANCE COMMITTEE, given REGULAR COURSE. C-6 Relative to the appropriation of $47,213.00 to the Gallagher Building Salary and Wages Account; same to be transferred from the Gallagher Building Revolving Fund. The following COMMUNICATION was received, referred to the WAYS & MEANS COMMITTEE and given REGULAR COURSE, and referred to the Retirement Board. C-7 Dean J. Mazzarella, Mayor: Request the following Home Rule Petition be passed to request the State Legislature to authorize the Commonwealth to grant benefits to Thomas Kamataris: Home Rule Petition Section 1: Not withstanding any general or special law or rule or regulation to the contrary, the Leominster Contributory Retirement Board shall retire Thomas Kamataris under the terms and conditions of Superannuation Retirement, pursuant to Section 5 of Chapter 32 of General Laws. Section 2: This act shall take effect upon its passage. REGULAR MEETING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, July 23, 2007, continued The following RESOLUTIOIN was received under SUSPENSION OF THE RULES and referred to the SMALL BUSINESS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE. Vt 9 “yeas” Upon recommendation of the SMALL BUSINESS & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE, the following RESOLUTION was ADOPTED. Vt 9 “yeas” C-8 Dean J. Mazzarella, Mayor endorse a Resolution authorizing the submission of the Massachusetts Opportunity Relocation and Expansion (MORE) Jobs Capital Program Supplemental Application for an infrastructure grant for the proposed Southgate Business Park to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development. The following PETITION was received, referred to the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, given REGULAR COURSE, and referred to the Fire Department, Police Department and Building Inspector. A hearing was set for August 13, 2007 at 7:00 P.M Vt 8/0; Councillor Dombrowski abstained due to a possible conflict of interest. 6-08 Attorney Jeffrey A. Aveni on behalf of Rogar Realty Trust: Request a license for the keeping, storing and sale of inflammable liquids at 680-706 Central Street. The following PETITION was received, referred to the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE and given REGULAR COURSE, and referred to the Planning Board, Building Inspector, Department of Public Works, Health Department, Police Department, Fire Department and Conservation Commission. A hearing was set for August 13, 2007 at 7:15 P.M Vt 9/0. 7-08 David Lolli: Grant a Special Permit to use an existing building at 444 Central Street located in an Industrial Zone and shown on Assessor’s Map 328 as Lot 51, for a retail store. The following PETITIONS were received, referred to the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, given REGULAR COURSE, 8-08 Sergeant Michael Goldman: Place a stop sign on Vista Avenue at Prospect Street. 9-08 Sergeant Michal Goldman: Place a stop sign on Haskell Avenue at Prospect Street. The following PETITION was received, referred to the WAYS & MEANS COMMITTEE and given REGULAR COURSE. 10-08 Dennis A. Rosa: Request that the following nonbinding public opinion advisory question be placed on the November 6, 2007 Municipal Ballot: “Shall the City of Leominster borrow $15,000,000. to build a new police station?” The following PETITION was received, referred to the WAYS & MEANS COMMITTEE, given REGULAR COURSE, and referred to the Treasurer and the License Commission. 11-08 Game Stop Inc., d/b/a Movie Stop #7045: Grant a Second Hand Dealers License for Movie Stop, Store #7045 located at 82 Orchard Hill Park Drive. Upon recommendation of the WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE, the following APPOINTMENTS were CONFIRMED. Vt 9 “yeas” Shaun Calcari and Jason Lizotte – Emergency Management Auxiliary Police Unit – terms to expire April 15, 2008 Leominster Cultural Council – Lisa DiGeronimo – term to expire April 15, 2010 Upon recommendation of the PUBLIC SERVICE this petition be TABLED FOR STUDY. Vt 9/0 109-07 Peter A. CampoBasso on behalf of Robert Eyles: Authorize the Conservation Commission accept a conservation easement in three lots of land on Southers Crossing in the location shown on the definitive subdivision plan entitled “Fall Brook Meadows- Definitive Plan of Land in Leominster, MA” recorded in Plan Book 417, Plan 2. Upon recommendation of the PUBLIC SERVICE COMMITTEE, the following PETITION was GRANTED Vt 9/0 1-08 National Grid and Verizon New England Inc.: New Lancaster Road: Install seven jointly owned poles on New Lancaster Road beginning at a point approximately 94 feet southeast of the centerline of the intersection of Jungle Road and continuing approximately 810 feet in a southeasterly direction. Upon recommendation of the FINANCE COMMITTEE, the following COMMUNICATIONS were GRANTED and ORDERED Vt 9 ”yeas” REGULAR MEETING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, July 23, 2007, continued C-1 Relative to the appropriation of $10,400.00 to the Cemetery Salary and Wages Account; same to be made from the Cemetery Perpetual Care Income Account. ORDERED: that the sum of Ten Thousand Four Hundred Dollars to the Cemetery Salary and Wage Account; same to be made from the Cemetery Perpetual Care Income Account. C-2 Relative to the appropriation of $12,500.00 to the Highway Department Capital Outlay Expense Account; same to be transferred from the Emergency Reserve Account. ORDERED: that the sum of Twelve Thousand Five Hundred Dollars to the Highway Department Capital Outlay Expense Account; same to be transferred from the Emergency Reserve Account. Upon recommendation of the FINANCE COMMITTEE the following COMMUNICATION was GRANTED and ORDERED. Vt 8 “yeas’ and 1 “nay”, Councillor Nickel opposed. C-3 RE: Sidewalks and fencing along Mill Street to supplement CDBG funded project. Relative to the appropriation of $1,300,000.00 to the Street Resurfacing Expense Account; same to be transferred from the Highway State Aid Receipts Reserved for Appropriations Account. Vt 8 “yeas” and 1 “nay” Councillor Nickel. ORDERED: that the sum of One Million Three Hundred Thousand Dollars to the Street Resurfacing Expense Account; same to be transferred from the Highway State Aid Receipts Reserved for Appropriations Account. Vt 8 “yeas and 1 “nay” Councillor Nickel. Upon recommendation of the FINANCE COMMITTEE the following COMMUNICATION was GRANTED and ORDERED. Vt 9 “yeas” C-4 Relative to the appropriation of $11,000.00 to the Police Salary and Wages Account; same to be transferred from the Collective Bargaining Expense Account-Prior Year Vt 9 “yeas” ORDERED: Relative to the appropriation of Eleven Thousand Dollars to the Police Salary and Wages Account; same to be transferred from the Collective Bargaining Expense Account-Prior Year Vt 9 “yeas” C-5 Relative to the appropriation of $31,000.00 to the Police Salary and Wages Account; same to be raised by Fiscal Year 2008 Revenue. Vt 9 “yeas” ORDERED: That the sum of Thirty One Thousand Dollars to the Police Salary and Wages Account; same to be raised by Fiscal Year 2008 Revenue. Vt 9 “yeas” Upon request of the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE the following PETITION was given FURTHER TIME. Vote 9 “yeas” 98-07 Nickolas Casaburri: Grant a Special Permit to use an exiting building at 213 Whitney Street, located in an Industrial zone and shown on Assessor’s Map 40 as Lot 8, for a used car dealership and auto repair facility. Upon recommendation of the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, the following PETITION was GRANTED WITH CONDITIONS and ORDERED. Roll call vote 9 “yeas” Conditions as follow: 1) The fire alarm system must meet the conditions of the Fire Department 2) No tractor trailers will use the upper loading dock from 7:00 P.M. to 7:00 A.M. Record to reflect all Special Permit requirements were met. 106-07 Craig R. Gugger, on behalf of TPS, LLC: Grant a Special Permit to use an existing building at 46 Industrial Road located within an Industrial Zone and shown on Assessors Map 251 as lot 21, to warehouse products which are to be distributed within and outside the city limits. Upon request of the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, the following PETITION was given FURTHER TIME. Vt 9 “yeas” 108-07 Nelson Lee, President, Dream Kitchens & Bath: Grant a Special Permit to use an existing building at 44 Mead Street located within an Industrial Zone and shown on Assessors Map 266 as Lot 1 for a showroom and sales office. Upon request of the LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE, the following PETITION was given FURTHER TIME. Vt 8 “yeas”; Councillor Marchand abstained due to a possible conflict of interest. 110-07 Eric W. Sullender, Liberty Rental Corporation: Rezone the following parcels of land located off Central Street and shown on corresponding sketch’s prepared for Liberty Rental Corporation dated April 27, 2007 by Hannigan Engineering Inc. as follows: REGULAR MEETING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, July 23, 2007, continued Zoning Area A, containing 35,622 square feet, more or less from Residence C to Commercial. 7. Zoning Area B, containing 178 square feet, more or less from Commercial to Residence C. 8. Zoning Area C, containing 1 square foot, more or less from Commercial to Residence C. 9. Zoning Area D, containing 984 square feet, more or less from Residence C to Commercial. 10. Zoning Area E, containing 169 feet more or less from Commercial to Residence C. 11. Zoning Area F, containing 363 square feet from Residence C to Commercial. Upon recommendation of the PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE, the following PETITIONS were GRANTED. Vt 9 “yeas 2-08 Wayne Nickel on behalf of Doris Gallant: Place a street light on pole #9 on Spruce Street. 3-08 Wayne Nickel on behalf of Doris Gallant: Place a street light on poles #9 and 11 on Laurel Street. Upon recommendation of the PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE, the following PETITION was given LEAVE TO WITHDRAW WITHOUT PREJUDICE. Vt 9/0 4-08 Wayne Nickel on behalf of Doris Gallant: Place a street light on pole #9 on Whitney Street. Upon recommendation of the COMMITTEE ON SCHOOLS, the following PETITION was GRANTED. Vt 8/1; Councillor Rosa opposed. 5-08 Nadine Binkley: Request the City Council endorse a letter of intent to the School Building Authority to review Lincoln School for a possible rebuild or renovation and that the President of the City Council be given the authority to sign the letter of intent so that it can be submitted to the appropriate authorities. Councillor Nickel said there was a meeting of the Presidents Drinking Water Oversight Committee and discussions were held regarding the water/sewerage treatment plan, not the drinking water. Mr. Reed, from the Water Department was there and answered some questions that came up. At the request of the Mayor the Committee went into Executive Session. There will be more meetings to follow. A meeting will take place in September when the latest results will be coming in from the testing that has been done. Councillor Nickel said he would do his best to have the meeting televised. Councillor Dombrowski said he had reviewed the information that Mr. Moore had provided. He said he would like to find out from Mr. Moore if the testing that was done involved the new coagulant to try to reduce the trihelomethine that were present. Councillor Lanciani said email was sent to all Councillors from Seargent Goldman advising them that there are many improper speed limit signs posted throughout the City which are in contradiction with the Mass. General Law. Sgt. Goldman is working with the Department of Public Works to have the 25 MPH Keep Kids Alive signs replaced with yellow 30mph signs which is in compliance with the Mass. General Law Chapter 90 Section17. This probably will generate angry and confused residents calling City Councillors. Councillor Freda said the Police Station Site Selection Committee has been in place for ten years. She said Councillor Lanciani and herself are on it and she wasn’t sure where the $15,000,000.00 figure came from. She will withhold her comments until it is discussed at the next meeting. Councillor Salvatelli said the amount of $15,000,000.00 came directly from the Mayor. Councillor Salvatelli said he has concerns regarding yard sale signs. He said some residents are having three or four of them a year, almost like a business and the Ordinance says you may only have two. Councillor Salvatelli asked a letter be sent to Mr. Cataldo expressing his concerns. The following ORDINANCE was read once, adopted as presented and ordered published. A hearing was scheduled for August 13, 2007 at 7:30 P.M. Vt 7 “yeas” and 2 “nays’ Councillors Freda and Lanianci opposed. 1st Reading Ordinance - Amend Chapter 21 Section 21-11.(a)3 entitled “Water Connection Charges” by deleting in it’s entirety and inserting in it’s place: (a) All individual domestic units including apartment units and condominium units within the city will be charged two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) per dwelling unit and any other connection. All individual domestic units including apartment units and condominium units out of the city will be charged four thousand five hundred dollars ($4,500.00) per dwelling unit and any other connection. This will serve as a connection and inspection fee that is valid through the last day of the year in which the permit was issued. The following ORDINANCE was read once, adopted as presented and ordered published. A hearing was scheduled for August 13, 2007 at 7:35 P.M. Vt 9 “yeas” 1st Reading Ordinance – Amend Chapter 13, Section 13-77 of the Revised Ordinances entitled “Stop Signs” by inserting “Barnes Street, against southwest bound drivers at Lancaster Street” The following ORDINANCE was read once, adopted as presented and ordered published. A hearing was scheduled for August 13, 2007 at 7:37 P.M. Vt 9 “yeas” 1st Reading Ordinance – Amend Chapter 13, Section 13-77 of the Revised Ordinances entitled “Stop Signs” by inserting “Hayes Street against southwest bound drivers at Lancaster Street”. REGULAR MEETING BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL, July 23, 2007, continued The following ORDINANCE was read once, adopted as presented and ordered published. A hearing was scheduled for August 13, 2007 at 7:30 P.M. Vt 9 “yeas” 1st Reading Ordinance – Amend Chapter 13, Section 13-77 of the Revised Ordinances entitled “Stop Signs” by inserting “Hudson Street, against southwest bound drivers at Lancaster Street”. The following ORDINANCE was read once, adopted as presented and ordered published. A hearing was scheduled for August 13, 2007 at 7:30 P.M. Vt 9 “yeas” 1st Reading Ordinance – Amend Chapter 13, Section 13-77 of the Revised Ordinances entitled “Stop Signs” by inserting “Garfield Street, against southwest bound drivers at Lancaster Street”. MEETING ADJOURNED: 9:40 P.M. ___________________________ Lynn A. Bouchard, City Clerk and Clerk of the City Council