Legislative Matters Committee

City of Somerville, Massachusetts City Council Legislative Matters Committee Meeting Minutes Tuesday, May 30, 2023 6:00 PM This meeting was held via GoToWebinar and was called to order by Chair Davis at 6:08 pm and adjourned at 6:53 pm with a roll call vote of 3 in favor (Councilor Scott, Councilor Burnley and Chair Davis), none opposed, and 2 absent (Councilor McLaughlin and Councilor Kelly). Others present: Neha Singh – Mayor’s Office, Brendan Salisbury – City Clerk’s Office, Charles Breen – Fire, Stephanie Widzowski – Clerk of Committees. Roll Call Present: Chairperson Lance L. Davis, Willie Burnley Jr. and Jefferson Thomas (J.T.) Scott Absent: Vice Chair Charlotte Kelly and Matthew McLaughlin 1. Committee Approval of the Minutes of the Legislative Matters Committee Meeting of Minutes May 16, 2023. (ID # 23-0839) RESULT: ACCEPTED AYE: Chairperson Davis, City Councilor At Large Burnley Jr. and Ward Two City Councilor Scott ABSENT: Vice Chair Kelly and Ward One City Councilor McLaughlin 2. Ordinance By Councilor Ewen-Campen, Councilor Wilson, Councilor Kelly, Councilor (ID # 23-0607) Gomez Mouakad, Councilor Scott and Councilor Strezo Amending Section 9-116 of the Code of Ordinances, the Noise Ordinance, by prohibiting loud and disruptive construction activities on Saturdays and evenings. Chair Davis shared suggested edits to the proposed amendment. Chair Davis moved to replace the text of the proposed amendment with the text in the attachment titled "05.30.23 Davis Draft Amendment to 9-116 (4-5-23)". The motion PASSED with a roll call vote of 3 in favor (Councilor Scott, Councilor Burnley and Chair Davis), 2 absent (Councilor McLaughlin and Councilor Kelly), and none opposed. Then the Committee discussed a version shared by Liaison Singh from May 24 that had a substantive change to Sec. 9-114, which was made after a conversation with IAM (see attachment titled "05.30.23 Administration Draft Amendment to sections 9-114 and 9-116"). Councilor Burnley commented that constituents frequently complain that 7 am is too early to allow disruptive construction activities. This led to a discussion of why 7 am is the selected start time, the main reason being to align with shift start times. There was also discussion over whether and how to phrase the ordinance to allow exemptions for Page 1 of 2 Legislative Matters Committee Meeting Minutes May 30, 2023 capital projects. Chair Davis moved to add an eleventh subsection to Sec. 9-114 with the text, “Whether the noise is related to construction operations on city capital projects for the advancement of the public good.” The motion PASSED with a roll call vote of 3 in favor (Councilor Scott, Councilor Burnley and Chair Davis), 2 absent (Councilor McLaughlin and Councilor Kelly), and none opposed. RESULT: RECOMMENDED TO BE APPROVED AS AMENDED AYE: Chairperson Davis, City Councilor At Large Burnley Jr. and Ward Two City Councilor Scott ABSENT: Vice Chair Kelly and Ward One City Councilor McLaughlin 3. Order By Councilor Davis (ID # 22-0048) That the Administration re-submit its request for adoption of the Rental Registration and Energy Disclosure Ordinance. Chair Davis explained the history on this item, which can be found using Agenda Item 212824 under the Past Meetings tab of somervillema.legistar.com, and asked if the Administration is still interested in moving forward. Liaison Singh said that there is still interest. She shared concerns from Dir. Feloney about the priority of the item given staff turnover and capacity, but added that the Housing Division is currently hiring a new position, the Clean Green Housing Program Manager, who will focus on this ordinance. Councilor Scott asked if Dir. Blais would still be involved in the policy, and Liaison Singh said that to her knowledge, the new Housing Program Manager will take over for Dir. Blais. RESULT: KEPT IN COMMITTEE 4. Mayor's Request Requesting approval of the Surveillance Technology Impact Report for FLIR (ID # 23-0876) MC300C marine camera. Taken up first during the meeting. Chief Breen explained that in 2022 there were a few situations requiring late-night water rescues, and the responders faced challenges navigating the water at night without this kind of marine camera, which has thermal imaging. Chair Davis noted that no data is stored with this technology, and there is no other planned use for it besides for search and rescue. RESULT: RECOMMENDED TO BE APPROVED AYE: Chairperson Davis, City Councilor At Large Burnley Jr. and Ward Two City Councilor Scott ABSENT: Vice Chair Kelly and Ward One City Councilor McLaughlin Page 2 of 2