Prudential Committee- Dec 22, 2014 – Meeting Minutes

Prudential Committee

Cotuit Fire District

22 December 2014

Present: Laurie Hadley, Fran Parks, Clerk Charles Eager

Fran: I’m going to call to order the December 22 2014 meeting of the Prudential committee of the Cotuit Fire District. Is anyone recording? Amy Kates is recording.

First thing I’d like to say is I’m very grateful that I got to know Marge Wallace. I’m very sorry at her death and I’m sorry that the village of Cotuit is losing a dedicated volunteer and I hope everyone keeps her in their prayers.

Special District Meeting

Fran: Mr. Eager, would you like to do read the proposed District Warrant

Clerk Eager: To the clerk of the Cotuit Fire District, greetings. You are hereby required and directed to notify and warn the inhabitants of the town of Barnstable residing within the territory comprising of the Cotuit Fire District qualified to vote in the district elections and affairs to meet at Freedom Hall, Main Street, Cotuit on Thursday, January 22, 2015 at seven thirty o’clock p.m., when action will be taken on the following articles.

Article 1. To see if the district will vote to authorize the Prudential committee of the Cotuit Fire District to acquire for municipal purposes by purchase a certain parcel of land with buildings thereon known and numbered as 56 High Street in Cotuit for the sum of 299,000, with an additional 15,000 for closing costs, under such terms as the Prudential committee shall deem to be in the best interest of the district.

The property is shown on Barnstable’s assessor’s map 35 as lot 45.

For title CD recorded at Barnstable County registry of deeds in book 27152, page 241 and to appropriate a sum of money for such purpose and to determine whether such appropriation shall be raised by borrowing, transfer or otherwise and to take any other action relative thereto.

Article 2. To see if the district will vote to raise and appropriate or transfer from available funds the sum of 2500 for insurance care custody and security of the Cotuit Fire District’s real property located at 56 High Street in Cotuit.

Article 3. To see if the district will vote to raise and appropriate and or transfer from available funds the sum of 25,000 to pay for the additional anticipated costs associated with the current contract negotiations with the firefighters union.

Laurie: I understand Bond council has approved the wording of this first article.

Fran: Yes they have.

Laurie I don’t see any problem with that one.
Fran: Yes they have.

Laurie: The second article, I heard someone ask you earlier if 2500 dollars was enough for that purpose and Mr. Dailey has reminded us that if we put in a higher figure we can vote less, but if we put in a low figure we can’t vote more.

Fran: Well that needs to cover insurance and I’m assuming we’re going to have to secure the building, in terms of closing off the heat and maybe draining the pipes. Do you think we should increase it to 5 and then lower it? I don’t know, do you think we should have at least a rudimentary surveillance system put in there?

Laurie: I suppose it wouldn’t be a bad idea. You know, right now there’s always people around there, but once we acquire it, or if we acquire it, that won’t be true.

Fran: It might be an attractive nuisance to the local …

Laurie: Why don’t we raise it? Why don’t we double it to five and see if we can get a couple of estimates.

Fran: Do you want to make a motion to that end?

Laurie: Well first, let’s do them in order, I guess. I make a motion that we approve the Article 1, as written.

Fran: Second. All in favor? So moved. Article 2.

Laurie: I vote that we change the figure 2,500 dollars to 5000 and then approve the article as written.

Fran: Second. All in favor? So Moved.

Laurie: On the third one, I have two members of the committee here, you have any problems with Article 3?

Fran: I don’t.

Laurie: No. I move that we approve Article 3 as written.

Fran: Second. All in favor? So Moved.

Surplus property

Once the new gas furnace is installed in the basement, we will be free to dispose of the almost new oil furnace, but first we need a policy. Under the state guidelines, anything less than 10,000 dollars does not need to be listed on their website and go to auction to be disposed of, so I came up with a surplus property program. Did I hand that to you?
Property with a value of less than 10,000 dollars, the property once declared surplus may be disposed by advertising in the Cape Cod Times, the Barnesville Patriot, on Craig’s List, the Cotuit Fire District website, or by having a yard sale, a silent auction or seeking informal [quotes 07:27] or trade in for new equipment. Property with a value over 10,000 dollars shall be disposed of by sealed bid or public auction as per the state of Massachusetts guidelines.

Laurie: I move that we adopt that policy as presented by Fran Parks

Fran: Second. Favor. Aye. So Moved

Fran: The two items are going to be the furnace and we have the brass hardware. I did a little bit of research on that and apparently brass salvage is worth a dollar ninety seven cents a pound.
I think I’m going to do a little bit more research and find out, maybe talk to the door opener people and find out the price for new brass hardware, which is a whole lot more than a dollar ninety seven cents a pound and then maybe see if we can sell it, get some money back for it.

Do you have any idea how long that was on the door?

Fran: No I don’t.

Fran: Neither do I.

Laurie: Only four years, Amy’s saying. Oh, you’re talking about the crash bars and everything. I think it’s been there a long time.

Freedom Hall

Fran: HVAC is coming along. It’s all done upstairs. They have to finish off the basement. We still haven’t heard anything from Demetrius and the interior painting, so we may have to sue him, which I’m perfectly willing to do.

Snowplowing

Laurie: Oh yes. We had a problem with that last year, didn’t we?

Fran: What do you want to do about the snow plowing? Get bids, or?

Laurie: Well I don’t know that we need a formal bid process.

Fran: No. We can just call people up and ask.

Laurie: There’s two or three people. I know Donny Sousa’s son does it. I know Roger Scudder does it. I’m not sure who else. I’d like to see somebody in the village, but I don’t think we can rely on the water department and the fire department.

Fran: No, I don’t either.

Laurie: Although they’re both willing, they’re not always able.

Fran: Right and we need someone at the same time that’s going to shovel out the entrances.

Laurie: I know we had Donny Sousa’s kid do it once last winter.

Fran: Right, yeah. Do you want to call a couple of people and I’ll call a couple of people?

Laurie: Sure. I’ll call Donny Sousa and Roger.

Minutes

Fran: Were you able to go over the minutes of the 24th?

Laurie: For once I printed them out. All seven pages. It’s why I usually don’t print them out, and the only thing I noticed that … It’s Rudziak, R-U-D, instead of Red.

Fran: OK.

Laurie: That was the only thing I noticed.

Fran: All right. Do you want to make a motion

Laurie: I’d like to make a motion that we approve the minutes of the 24 November meeting.

Fran: Second. All in favor? So Moved

Fran: Is there any public comment?

Public Comment

Stan Goldstein: I was just wondering how you were going to fill the position that the death of Marge Wallace left on the board, on the Prudential committee, and one of the reasons I’m asking is I’m interested in serving and understanding what it would be like.

My own personal idea is if I’m appointed for three or four months, I could get a feeling for it and if I like it, then I could run for the position at the regular election.

Laurie: We haven’t discussed it at all, what we’re going to do. We have the option I think of just trying to operate as a two-man board, or we can appoint someone, and we’ve not discussed it at all.

Fran: Yes. My plan was to put it on the January agenda. Thank you for the offer very much. That was the other thing that meeting in January?

Laurie: Yes. The 19th is a holiday. That’s the third Monday. Is that when we had talked about having … When did we schedule the district meeting?

Fran: The district meeting is the 22nd on a Thursday.

Laurie: Well the fourth Monday would be the 26th. Did you want to meet again before the district meeting?

Fran: I think so, yes.

Laurie: Yeah. Why don’t we do it the twelfth?

Fran: Twelfth? OK. That sounds good.

Laurie: Do we need to vote?

Fran: Probably. I make a motion that we hold the January 2015 meeting on the twelfth. All those in favor?

Laurie: I second the motion and I’m in favor.

Fran: Thank you very much. Motion to adjourn? So moved. Thank you

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