# charter-review-committee — 46 documents, concatenated for reading and search # # This is a CONVENIENCE BUNDLE, not a source. Every document below is # published separately and byte-identically; cite the individual file, # whose path is given in each header, rather than this bundle. # Index of all boards: https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/minutes/INDEX.txt # The town's own scanned original is linked per document. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-09-06-agenda-1576.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-09-06 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-09-06-agenda-1576.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09062017-1576 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Meeting1. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-09-06-minutes-1576.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-09-06 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-09-06-minutes-1576.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09062017-1576 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue - Marian Benson Meeting Room Time: 7:00PM Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jamie Toale (Selectmen), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Katie Adams (School Committee), Michael Mackin (School Committee), Terry Burchficld (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative), Nancy Gray (Community Representative) SELECT OFFICERS Motion, J. Toale, nominate B. Ebersole as committee chair, Second, M. Jeffreys, all aye. Motion, M. Jeffreys, nominate J. Toale as committee vice-chair, Second, S. Archambault, all aye. Motion, J. Toalc, nominate M. Jeffreys as committee clerk, Second, B. Ebersole, all aye. MEETING SCHEDULE Members agreed to meet on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month; no objections to meetings being televised and preference will be for meetings in Town Hall. DISCUSSION Chairman confirmed with members receipt of material distributed via email; he advised the committee on Open Meeting Law requirements and the need for a transparent process. All members were in agreement that the activities of the committee should involve community engagement. Members introduced themselves to another and stated the boards/committees they represent. Members voiced their current familiarity with the Town Charter and expressed initial thoughts and areas of interest. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING 1. Members will review documents provided and bring up areas of interest at next meeting 2. Chairman, B. Ebersole will provide a version of the Town Charter that is double space and has larger font for members to mark-up and use as a primary reference 3. M. Mackin suggested a process for community members to remain abreast on the progress of the committee that also seeks their input. He will provide a draft of this process at the next meeting. UPCOMING MEETINGS Meetings are held at Town Hall, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: 27 September 11 October 25 October ADJOURNMENT Motion, J. Toale to adjourn, Second, Steve Archambault, all aye. Meeting adjourned at 7:44pm. Lunenburg Town Charter Forms of Government in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Study on Structural Changes in Local Govermment in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Clark University (2010) Nat- Nife ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-09-27-agenda-1575.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-09-27 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-09-27-agenda-1575.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09272017-1575 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Meeting1. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-09-27-minutes-1575.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-09-27 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-09-27-minutes-1575.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09272017-1575 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue — Marian Benson Meeting Room Time: 7:00PM Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jamie Toale (Selectmen), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Katie Adams (School Committee), Michael Mackin (School Committee), Terry Burchfield (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative, Nancy Gray (Community Representative) PUBLIC COMMENT No public comment BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS None MINUTES APPROVAL Motion, J. Toale to accepé minutes from 06 September 2017; second by B. Ebersole; all aye. DISCUSSION M. Jeffreys stated that since the charter requires two-thirds of the town to pass, the charter review . committee should follow similar requirements and need six of the nine members to make major changes. B. Ebersole stated that when three members are missing, no votes should be taken on major changes. J. Toale inquired about the definition of a "major change." This was clarified by B. Ebersole to be non- administrative decisions, such as changing a position from elected to appointed. Motion, M. Jeffreys, to have an operating procedure of a supermajority (six out of nine members) as a voting requirement for major items; Second, S. Archambault; all aye. b. Proposed 4-Phase Committee Approach i. Community engagement and research M. Jeffreys recommended for the charter review committee members to first engage with the remaining boards and committees not represented on the Charter Review committee for input on their ideas for changes to the charter. B. Ebersole stated that this could increase efficiency, employ a "divide and conquer" method, and that boards and committees could be able to respond to their representative on the Charter Review Committee, provide a written response, or appear in person, if they desire. T. Burchfield. suggested a group email to make boards aware that we are reviewing the charter and seek their input. S. Archambault suggested that we include the charter in the email. Each member will reach out to the board or committee they represent before the next meeting. B. Ebersole encouraged each member to communicate independently with the Town Manager. S. Archambault disclosed that he gets paid by the Parks Department and has worked under the School Committec. ii. Focused workgroups Will be developed, as we move forward iii. Draft Language Will likely be developed in subcommittees before being advanced to the larger body iv. Community Outreach B. Ebersole stated that engaging the unrepresented committees/boards will help create public awareness; as we get closer to a product or engage the community with certain topics, we can provide press releases to local papers or PACC. M. Jeffreys added that a new website will be launched in October, and the Charter Review Committee will have a dedicated section on that site. ===PAGE 2=== e. Areas of concern/interest with Charter M. Erickson noted that the committee should look into the Town Clerk position and consider whether it should be elected or appointed; would like to look into the form of government - open town meeting or representative town meeting; and believes that the organization and format ofthe charter should be improved, such as adding a table of contents. B. Ebersole stated that the BoS hired a company to codify the charter and bylaws and that it will be uploaded to the new website f. Identify areas of consensus No discussion g. Assign liaisons for unrepresented boards I. Burchfield Finance Committee Cultural Council Public Access Cable Committee Town Accouniant/Director of Finance S. Archambault Board of Assessors Cemetery Commissioners Library Trustees M. Erickson Park Commission Board of Health Commissioners of Trust Funds M. Mackin Town Clerk Registrars of Voters M. Jeffreys Constables Planning Board Sewer Commission School Committee Town Counsel Building Departinents/Staff Housing Authority Zoning Board of Appeals Police Department N. Gray Conservation Commission Storm. Water Task Green Community Task Force Town Moderator K. Adams Historical Commission Agricultural Committee Architectural Preservation Commission Open Space J. Toale Personnel Board Council on Aging Capital Planning h. Discuss community engagement process M. Mackin presented draft language for a press release about the Charter Review Committee that directs residents to YouTube channel; several members noted the difficulty finding the Charter on the town website; the link for the charter is to the MA Commonwealth website, where it is officially located. The new town website will provide a section for our committee where the Charter Review Committee will be able to upload docunents. M. Mackin will provide the press relcase to the IT department. ===PAGE 3=== b. Small group to look into other towns and their experience with different forms of government and how towns get more residents to attend Town Meetings. B. Ebersole will contact I.exington; M. Erickson; T. Burchfield, and K. Adams will research other communities. c. Look at the representative town meeting structure d. Town Clerk position: elected vs. appointed. PUBLIC COMMENT None BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS T. Burchfield and B. Ebersole noted that we should send invitations to Town Accountant and Town Manager to come to the Charter Review Committee meeting in the near future. M. Jeffreys will represent the Charter Review Committee at the town workshop in October. MEETING SCHEDULD Meetings are held at Town Hall, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: 11 October - may be at Ritter; M. Erickson will not be able to attend 25 October ADJOURNMENT Motion, S. Archambault to adjourn; Second, M. Erickson; all aye. 8:25pm ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-10-11-agenda-1561.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-10-11 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-10-11-agenda-1561.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10112017-1561 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ===PAGE 2=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-10-11-minutes-1561.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-10-11 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-10-11-minutes-1561.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_10112017-1561 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. MINUTES Meeting Posted: Yes Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue — Marian Benson Meeting Room Time: 7:00PM Present: Jamie Toale (Selectman), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Katie Adams (School Committee), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative) MINUTES APPROVAL 27 September Motion, T. Burchfield, to approve minutes from 27 September; Second, K. Adams; all aye DISCUSSION a. Responses from Committees/Boards T. Burchfield mentioned that PACC will review and respond; unsure of how to contact the Cultural Council. K. Adams mentioned that Architectural Preservation Commission inquired about the timeline for them to respond. Group discussion indicated that within a month (mid-November). N. Gray and J. Toale mentioned that boards he's contacted need time to add this to their agenda and discuss. M. Jeffreys noted that M. Allison (Planning Board) provided a comment stating that town members should get more time to groups or categories. K. Adams will organize the Charter into categories to make it more digestible and will distribute at the next meeting. b. Representative Town Government i. Review from similar communities Members need more time to continue to research this il Identify current consensus T. Burchfield stated that it would be good to first look into changing the time. Suggested a community education process and then to inquire about why participation rate is low; would like minutes to be added to the website. J. Toale would like for us to continue to explore what other towns do with a focus on their schedules. K. Adams stated that the mailing could be reformatted to be more inviting. M. Jeffreys noted that campaigning is a vital part of community awareness; increasing campaigning may increase involvement. c. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name J. Toale noted that other communities call it a Select Board. M. Jeffreys noted that the names are male centric. We will look into alternatives il. Alternative structure Membership of five members is seen as preferential d. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings General views are that the time of Town Meeting isn't ideal. Other communities spread it out over multiple days, Mondays and Tuesdays seem to be what most other towns do. K. Adams noted that ===PAGE 2=== points based on conversations and agenda discussions. Group discussion about the importance of teaching town government structure within the school system; looking at how to incorporate student involvement. N. Gray noted that she believes that the lack of involvement is affirmation that people are happy with the way things work. J. Toale noted that some towns do a lottery system for Town Meeting articles. i. Accountable officers ii. Employee review processes ill. Termination processes f. Director of Facilities General consensus is that this is worth exploring; K. Adams noted that this may take resources from other areas and that there may be potential within the current structure and assignment of duties to achieve the desired result. g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed Poliey versus operation - will be looked at on spreadsheet h. Designate small group tasks ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identity organizational inefficiencies and needs b. Agenda item for brain storming UPCOMING MEETINGS Meetings are held at Town Hall, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: 25 October at Ritter 08 November ADJOURNMENT Motion, T. Burchfield to adjourn, Second, M. Jeffreys, all aye. Meeting adjourned at 8:33 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-11-29-agenda-1574.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-11-29 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-11-29-agenda-1574.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11292017-1574 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Meeting1. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-11-29-minutes-1574.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-11-29 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-11-29-minutes-1574.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_11292017-1574 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. MINUTES 1. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Ebersole called the meeting to order at 7:03 PM Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Katie Adams (School Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee). Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee). Absent: Nancy Gray (Community Representative) 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL: 15 November 5. DISCUSSION: a. Responses from Committees/Boards Committee members have reached out to boards and are anticipating responses over the course of the month. b. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name c. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings ii. Identify alternative days and times iii. Communication of Town Meeting d. Elected Boards with employees i. Accountable officers ii. Employee review processes ili. Termination processes e. Charter vs. Bylaws for location of proposed changes f. Director of Facilities g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed h. Review highlights of Articles 1 & 2 Discussed highlights from the last meeting. General consensus for adding a brief explanation to some articles. Questions about why special town meetings require 100 signatures for citizen petitioned articles whereas scheduled town meetings only require 10. This difference comes from language in MA General Law. Finance Committee removed bylaws due to language being in the charter, with the understanding that there wasn't a substantial difference between the two. However, the charter does not have a requirement for members to be registered voters in town or residents. B. Ebersole noted that some religions (Jehovah's Witnesses) aren't registered to vote and requiring appointees to be voters could be prohibitive. 2-2, Town Moderator requested for a deputy to be appointed for the year and remove the requirement for the Town Clerk to be removed from being the back-up presiding officer. General disagreement on the second point, but consensus around having an appointed deputy moderator. ===PAGE 2=== Mackin said that the school committee meets next Wednesday, Dec 6 (televised) and charter review is on the agenda. Mr. Toale suggested we should focus on the Town Manager sections for an entire meeting. Town Manager should participate and we should give her sufficient time to prepare. Mr. Ebersole said this needs to be scheduled, likely after the holiday. Brief conversation on Parks Commission policy setting versus responsibility for day-to-day operations. Mr. Ebersole suggested so we may need to meet with them. Mr. Erickson said he would be in touch with the Parks Commission and report back. Ms. Adams suggested she might help. i. Brainstorm 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs. Ms. Burchfield and Mr. Erickson will review the Finance Director section and report back on December 17. Mr. Ebersole to schedule meeting with Town Manager on January 10, if available. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT: none 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS: none 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: 13 December 10. ADJOURNMENT: 8:41pm ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-12-13-agenda-1573.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-12-13 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-12-13-agenda-1573.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12132017-1573 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Meeting1. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-12-13-minutes-1573.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-12-13 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-12-13-minutes-1573.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_12132017-1573 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Meeting Posted: Yes Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue Time: 7:00PM CLERK OFFICE CALL TO ORDER Chairman Ebersole called the meeting to order at 7:01 PM Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Katie Adams (School Committee), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative), Nancy Gray (Community Representative) Absent: Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee) Also present: David Passios MINUTES No minutes ready for review DISCUSSION Feedback from committees: Ms. Gray: Cemetery commission proposing some changes; will meet with us in January. She explained what she could of the process for them. Mr. Ebersole then said we will make a recommendation at Town Meeting; the vote is then either yes or no. Some discussion ensued, including that this board had already determined we will need a 2/3 majority of this committee to move the proposed changes forward. After the discussion, Mr. Ebersole said he will clarify the process with counsel. Ms. Burchfield: Library will submit their recommendations in writing. Ms. Burchfield outlined some of their issues. Mr. Toale reminded that boards with employees need consistent language. Ms. Burchfield said the Finance Committee meets tomorrow to review the charter with TM and Finance Director. Ms. Adams: We should set out a timeline for ATM with milestones and dates. If we don't make ATM, we could have STM in the fall. Likely to have fewer warrant articles at STM. Perhaps an article at ATM would allow us to present a status update. Mr. Ebersole: Met with sewer commission; asked for input for early January. Mr. Erickson: Met with Parks last week and outlined the process for them. They have no direct employees. Heard from Trust Fund Commissioners; they heard there may be a move to make them appointed but believe they are elected by statute. Board of Health had this as an agenda item at their meeting last week. ===PAGE 2=== Ebersole referenced the worksheet of appointed position and how they are appointed and said we would have further discussion on this. Had some discussion about some parks related property and who has jurisdiction; as written, Parks sets policy, TM (DPW) carries out operations. Ms. Adams: Do we need a section under powers and duties of TM to ensure he/she responds to the public? Communication in general? Dave Passios: In an emergency, TM has appointed emergency response coordinator. Discussed our schedule and chance that we might miss ATM. Realistically, we may need more time. Input from committees by end of January, wordsmithing and legal review during February, public review during March, warrant prepared by early April. Ms. Adams raised a concern that this is an aggressive schedule that we may not be able to attain. Mr. Archambault agreed. She said she would draft a rough timeline with milestones for our next meeting. Mr. Erickson said we should try our best to be ready for ATM, as time is of the essence. Mr. Toale agreed... ACTION ITEMS 1. Continue communication with boards and committees. 2. Mr. Ebersole will review the TM process with Town Counsel. 3. Mr. Ebersole said he would obtain a full inventory of all property and facilities so we can be clear of who is responsible for what. 4. Mr. Toale will share the Moderators input with TM. 5. Ms. Adams will draft a rough timeline with milestones. PUBLIC COMMENT None BOARD COMMENT None MEETING SCHEDULE Next meeting Wednesday, December 27, 2017, 7:00 PM tentatively at Town Hall January 10, 2018, 7:00 PM January 24, 2018, 7:00 PM ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn by Mr. Archambault, seconded by Ms. Burchfield, all in favor; 8:31 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-12-27-agenda-1546.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-12-27 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-12-27-agenda-1546.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12272017-1546 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, December 27, 2017 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL: 29 November 5. DISCUSSION: a. Responses from Committees/Boards b. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name c. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings ii. Identify alternative days and times iii. Communication of Town Meeting d. Elected Boards with employees i. Accountable officers ii. Employee review processes iii. Termination processes e. Charter vs. Bylaws for location of proposed changes f. Director of Facilities g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed h. Review highlights of Articles 1, 2, 3, & 4 i. Discuss Article 5 through end of Charter j. Establish timeline to complete review k. Brainstorm 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs 7. PUBLIC COMMENT 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: January 10, 2018 January 24 10. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2017-12-27-minutes-1546.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2017-12-27 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2017-12-27-minutes-1546.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_12272017-1546 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue Time: 7:00PM LONENBURG TOWN *ICE CALL TO ORDER Chairman Ebersole called the meeting to order at 7:01 PM Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Katie Adams (School Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative)) Absent: Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative MINUTES Mr. Archambault moved to approve notes from 12/13/2017; seconded by Mr. Toale; all in favor. DISCUSSION Feedback from committees: None additional at this time Mr. Ebersole confirmed that Town Manager will join the meeting on January 10. Discussion of Article 5: Reviewed sections 5-1 and 5-2 and briefly discussed. Did not review section 5-3 as this deals with finance and we will review with TM in January. Discussed section 5-4. Mr. Ebersole questioned why it appears in this particular section of the charter. Continued discussion of Section 6-7. Consider including wording that says the Fincom budget letter is part of the warrant which is mailed to all voters. Discussed timing of capital budget, 150 day lead time. Reviewed and discussed article 7, General Provisions. Discussed the need for more clarity in section 7-8 and the need to be consistent with MGL. Use "minutes" of proceedings in section 7-8(c). Consider including rules, policies and procedures and minutes. Paragraph (d) Voting, says we need to include a call of the roll on all votes. Discussion of (e) Quorum; wording needs to be more clear so we know what is a quorum and what is a majority of a quorum. Section 7-9 is more clear than the TM section dealing with removal. Reviewed and discussed Article 8, Transitional Provisions Discussion of timeline and milestones: Ms. Adams drafted a timeline with milestones; 42 days prior to ATM the warrant closes (Mar 23); final proposed changes by Feb 28 gives Town Counsel the month of March; first public hearing would be Feb 21. Discussed having preliminary votes on proposed changes during second meeting of January (Jan 24). Mr. Erickson suggested we organize our comments by what is not changing, what is a style change and what is a substantive change. This will help focus our remaining work and determine if we can make the ATM date. We discussed that our supermajority is 6 of 9, so any proposed change will require 6 votes in the affirmative. ===PAGE 2=== Next meetings: Wednesday, Jamuary 14; 2018, 7:00 PM 7:00 PM, Ritter Building ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn by Mr. Archambault, seconded by Mr. Toale; all in favor; 8:28 ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-01-09-agenda-1564.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-01-09 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-01-09-agenda-1564.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_01092018-1564 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, January 9, 2019 – 7 PM Lunenburg Middle/High School Auditorium 1079 Mass Ave, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. MINUTES APPROVAL 28 October 12 December 3. PUBLIC HEARING ON DRAFT CHARTER A. Charter Committee Report B. Comments by remaining committee members C. Read written comments on draft Charter into record D. Public Comments E. Close Public Comment Period 4. DISCUSSION Deliberate, amend and vote of topics addressed in board/public comments. 5. MEETING SCHEDULE & FURTHER PUBLIC OUTREACH Discuss upcoming meetings and outreach efforts 2018 Proposed Charter Review Meeting Dates; Wed. Jan. 9th 7 PM MS/HS Auditorium (Public Hearing #1) Wed. Jan. 23rd 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 27th 7 PM MS/HS (Public Hearing #2) Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 6. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-01-10-agenda-1547.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-01-10 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-01-10-agenda-1547.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_01102018-1547 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, January 10, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL: 29 November 5. DISCUSSION: a. Responses from Committees/Boards b. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name c. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings ii. Identify alternative days and times iii. Communication of Town Meeting d. Elected Boards with employees i. Accountable officers ii. Employee review processes iii. Termination processes e. Charter vs. Bylaws for location of proposed changes f. Director of Facilities g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed h. Review highlights of Articles 1, 2, 3, & 4 i. Discuss Article 5 through end of Charter j. Establish timeline to complete review k. Brainstorm l. Meet with Town manager to discuss recommended changes 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs 7. PUBLIC COMMENT 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: January 24 10. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-01-10-minutes-1547.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-01-10 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-01-10-minutes-1547.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_01102018-1547 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue Time: 7:02PM Present: Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Katey Adams (School Committee Representative), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee Representative, Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Michael Mackin (School Committee) Absent: Bob Ebersole (Selectman), Steve Archambault (Community Representative) 1. CALL TO ORDER J. Toale, called the meeting to order and noted that due to expected absences, the town manager was asked to come to our next meeting. He advised hearing the representative from the Cemetery Commission and potentially adjourning the meeting until a supermajority of the board was present. Without objection, Mr. May was asked to join the committee and make a recommendation. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL 29 November 27 December 5. DISCUSSION: a. Responses from Committees/Boards Mr. Lance May (Cemetery commission) - believe that the current charter is missing one word that is part of the state law governing cemeteries, the word being "sole" in Section 3-5. b. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name c. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings ii. Identify alternative days and times ili. Communication of Town Meeting d. Elected Boards with employees i. Accountable officers ii. Employee review processes ili. Termination processes e. Charter vs. Bylaws for location of proposed changes T. Burchfield noted that the charter spells out very detailed information related to the duties of the finance department, whereas this level of detail is not replicated in any other bodies mentioned in the charter. She encouraged us to look into this before meeting with the town manager. J. Toale noted that there may be a historical reason for this, and B. Ebersole may have more insight. f. Director of Facilities g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed h. Review highlights of Articles 1, 2, 3, & 4 i. Discuss Article 5 through end of Charter ===PAGE 2=== b. Members should come on January 24 with suggested questions for Town Manager 7. PUBLIC COMMENT Rhonda Lisio - stated that she's an average member of the public and will recommend a change to the charter and feels that her opinion is just as important as everyone else's. 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: February 7. Skipping Valentines Day February 21 February 28 10. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-01-24-agenda-1548.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-01-24 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-01-24-agenda-1548.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_01242018-1548 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, January 24, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL: 10 January 5. DISCUSSION: a. Responses from Committees/Boards b. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name c. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings ii. Identify alternative days and times iii. Communication of Town Meeting d. Elected Boards with employees i. Accountable officers ii. Employee review processes iii. Termination processes e. Charter vs. Bylaws for location of proposed changes f. Director of Facilities g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed h. Review highlights of Articles 1, 2, 3, & 4 i. Discuss Article 5 through end of Charter j. Establish timeline to complete review k. Brainstorm l. Discuss posting a town survey m. Meet with Town Manager 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings: February 7 February 21 February 28 10. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-01-24-minutes-1548.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-01-24 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-01-24-minutes-1548.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_01242018-1548 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== vitals used, 1co Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue Time: 7:02PM Present: Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Katey Adams (School Committee Representative), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee Representative), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative) Absent: Bob Ebersole (Selectman), Steve Archambault (Community Representative) 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT none 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS none 4. MINUTES APPROVAL 10 January Changes recommended 5. DISCUSSION a. Responses from Committees/Boards b. Board of Selectmen i. Alternative name c. Town Meeting i. Schedule of meetings ii. Identify alternative days and times iii. Communication of Town Meeting d. Elected Boards with employees i. Accountable officers 11. Employee review processes ili. Termination processes e. Charter vs. Bylaws for location of proposed changes f. Director of Facilities g. Town Clerk i. Elected or appointed h. Review highlights of Articles 1, 2, 3, & 4 i. Discuss Article 5 through end of Charter j. Establish timeline to complete review k. Brainstorn 1. Discuss posting a town survey T. Burchfield forwarded a sample survey template via email prior to the meeting. M. Erickson asked if the recommended electronic format would limit participation. T. Burchfield expressed the importance of having a paper version. S. Archambault recommended a cut-off date for the survey for voters to know when it needs to be m. Meet with Town Manager ===PAGE 2=== the Board of selectman, it seems logical to include the town treasurer and town Collection, tererence to the Planning Direction which should be Land Use Director Section 4-2(e) - recommended changing language so that it doesn't sound like the Personnel Board is involved in Performance Evaluations and Collective Bargaining agreements. Delete the first clause and replace with "to the Personnel Administrator whom is..". Section 4-2(i) - add the pronoun her Section 4-2(I) - add in "add bargaining units" to clarify that the Town Manager can negotiate contracts with bargaining units Section 4-2(m) - delete specific reference to MGL and replace with "the General Laws," to encompass laws as they change. Section 5-3 - Replace the first clause with "There shall be a department of finance and financial services headed by a director of municipal finance who is either the Town Manager or his/her appointee per Article 4. Section 5-3(c) - The town manager is designated as the Chief Financial Officer, but this contradicts the first sentence in Section 4-2. To resolve this, there was consensus that the Town Manager appoint the Chief Financial Officer and act in that capacity in the absence of such an appointment. B. Ebersole recommended continuing discussion on the financial relationships. General discussion about the checks and balances within town finances. Consensus to allow the Town Manager to appoint the Town Accountant with the recommendation of the Board of Selectmen. Section 5-3(m) - The "division of procurement" is the Town Manager's responsibility. is mailed to every household in the town. Section 6-5 - The Budget. Delete "In the presentation of the budget, the town manager shall utilize modern concepts of fiscal presentation so as to furnish maximum information and the best financial control." Given recent technological trends, this is no longer needed. Minor changes in language noted. Delete c and replace with "Identify all other available sources of funding." S. Archambault read a message forwarded by Tim Murphy (Town Moderator) noted that termination process for the town manager, as noted in the Charter, may not provide her with enough right. J. Toale and M. Jeffreys mentioned that the facilities management role falls under most departments without a designated person and was asked if the role should be a separate department head. M. Erickson noted that Information Technology is not in the Charter but it is a requirement. J. Toale noted there's a need to synchronize the roles of town employees as they work with Town Boards. 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs. b. B. Ebersole will create two marked-up Charters: one with substantive changes and one without. Members interested in making additional changes not already discussed should forward that to B. Ebersole before the next meeting. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT none 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS ===PAGE 3=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-02-19-agenda-1567.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-02-19 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-02-19-agenda-1567.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_02192018-1567 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, January 9, 2019 – 7 PM Lunenburg Middle/High School Auditorium 17 Main Street, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. MINUTES APPROVAL 28 October 12 December 3. PUBLIC HEARING ON DRAFT CHARTER A. Charter Committee Report B. Comments by remaining committee members C. Read written comments on draft Charter into record D. Public Comments E. Close Public Comment Period 4. DISCUSSION Deliberate, amend and vote of topics addressed in board/public comments. 5. MEETING SCHEDULE & FURTHER PUBLIC OUTREACH Discuss upcoming meetings and outreach efforts 2018 Proposed Charter Review Meeting Dates; Wed. Jan. 9th 7 PM MS/HS Auditorium (Public Hearing #1) Wed. Jan. 23rd 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 27th 7 PM MS/HS (Public Hearing #2) Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 6. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-02-28-agenda-1549.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-02-28 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-02-28-agenda-1549.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_02282018-1549 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-02-28-minutes-1549.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-02-28 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-02-28-minutes-1549.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_02282018-1549 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue Time: 7:02PM Present: Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Bob Ebersole (Selectman), Katey Adams (School Committee Representative, Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee Representative), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative) Absent: Steve Archambault (Community Representative) 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT No public comments 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS None 4. MINUTES APPROVAL None approved 5. DISCUSSION 7 pm Phyllis Luck regarding proposal to require minimum number of votes for a candidate to be elected as a write in Ms. Luck mentioned that currently, there is not a minimum threshold for write in candidates to reach to be elected onto a town office. Ms. Luck recommended 42 votes (10% of last election where a governor was elected) to be the threshold for write-in candidates since that is the amount of signatures needed for a candidate to be on the ballot. J. Toale added B. Ebersole added that this should also become the minimum votes needed. General discussion. I. Burchfield, K. Adams, N. Gray, and M. Jeffreys would not support this change. T. Burchfield added that if it's under 42 it could be an interim appointment, but would like to see how often we find ourselves in the position where write- in candidates win with less than 42 votes. M. Erickson noted that if one can win the caucus with a simple unspecified majority of 2, then that should be the threshold. Ms. Adams noted changing this would restrict residents opportunities to participate. B. Ebersole called for a vote to continue this conversation. J. Toale and M. Mackin supported continuing the conversation, M. Jeffreys, K. Adams, N. Gray, M. Erickson, B. Ebersole, and T. Burchfield were opposed. Feedback from survey No results from the survey Feedback from town committees and officers Review, discuss and vote on draft charter changes as follows: A. non-substantive changes (typos, grammar, flow, state law changes, department input) 1.2: Adding quotation marks around "Lunenburg Home Charter rule 1.7j: Changing definition of quorum to match MGL 2-3b: adding requirement to be a registered voter 2-4: changing language to first annual town meeting and adding in a second annual town meeting 2-7: changing to written or electronic and provided instead of mailed 2-10: adjusting rules of procedure to clarify how Town Meeting conduct is governed ===PAGE 2=== operations 3-10: Need to adjust wording to clarify the relationship between the land use director 3-12: recommend changing town clerk to appointed and not elected 4-1: appointment of town manager - adding in that the town manager may appoint one resident voter, at large. Clarifying that the town manager shall not have served in "Lunenburg" town government in previous 12 months 4-2c: changing appointments from Board of Selectmen to Town manager with ratification by Town Manager. 4-2d: add in "evaluate and supervise" for positions appointed by the town manager 4-2e: clarifying that the town manager is the personnel administrator 4-2i: adding in "maintenance and repair" of town properties not otherwise controlled; discussed removing the word "full" and adding in "subject to policy by BOS" 4-21: requiring contract negotiations to be ratified by the BOS 4-2m: removes language that specifically quotes MGL to allow the charter to be more flexible to changes 4-2s: broadens language to capital budget programs 4-5: requires town moderator to preside over a meeting for the removal of the town manager 5-3d3: removes redundancy 5-3d5: removes redundancy 6-3: removes requirement to post in newspaper; adds in posting on website and mailing to homes where resident voters reside 6-5: removes redundancy 7-8: clarifies posting requirement to exclude Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays; clarifies language to not say journal and minutes instead. 7-9: misspelling on coterminous 7-11: enforcement of charter provisions - authorizes town manager to faithfully see that provisions of the charter and bylaws are followed 8-5: continuation of service provision to allow current office holders to continue to serve B. Clarifying changes (expanding language to reflect intent, additional provisions from other towns' charters to improve ours) C. Major changes (SelectBoard versus Selectmen, Appointed versus Elected Town Clerk) Straw Poll - 5 of 8 support changing to appointed from elected. D. Proposed election changes (minimum number of votes for write-ins, term limits, ranked choice voting. Term limits - proposed 3 terms for all elected positions. Discussed having a limit of 4 terms except planning board where it would be 3 elected terms, resulting to 12 - 15 years. Additional survey and outreach efforts to seek town input on town clerk as elected vs. appointed and for Select Board versus Board of Selectmen. Committee will review results at the next meeting. 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: ===PAGE 3=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-03-07-agenda-1550.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-03-07 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-03-07-agenda-1550.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03072018-1550 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, March 7, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL: 10 January 24 January 28 February 5. DISCUSSION: A. Review Survey feedback one representative versus open town meeting and meeting dates and time. Vote on final draft language B. Review revised draft charter as a result of February 28f meeting and preliminary input from town manager and town counsel. Vote on changes as necessary C. Determine main points of Charter Review Report D. Outreach efforts — town website, public hearings, et E. Develop meeting schedule through town meeting 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings March 14 March 28 10. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-03-14-agenda-1551.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-03-14 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-03-14-agenda-1551.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03142018-1551 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, March 14, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4. MINUTES APPROVAL: 10 January 24 January 28 February 5. DISCUSSION: A. Review Survey feedback; one representative versus open town meeting and meeting dates and time; Select Board versus Board of Selectmen; appointee versus elected town clerk; term limited versus no term limits; vote on final draft language B. Review revised draft charter as a result of February 28 meeting and preliminary input from town manager and town counsel. Vote on changes as necessary C. Determine main points of Charter Review Report D. Outreach efforts — town website, public hearings, et E. Develop meeting schedule through town meeting 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees, and departments to identify organizational inefficiencies and needs. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9. MEETING SCHEDULE: Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. Upcoming meetings March 21(?) March 28 10. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-04-05-agenda-1557.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-04-05 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-04-05-agenda-1557.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_04052018-1557 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-04-05-minutes-1557.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-04-05 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-04-05-minutes-1557.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04052018-1557 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Meeting Posted: Yes Place: Ritter Memorial Building, 960 Massachusetts Avenue Time: 7:00PM Present: Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Katey Adams (School Committee Representative), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Michael Mackin (School Committee Representative), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Bob Ebersole (Selectman), Steve Archambault (Community Representative) MINUTES APPROVAL 14 March = Minutes accepted by All members; All aye. PUBLIC HEARING ON DRAFT CHARTER A. Charter Committee Report The existing Charter requires a committee to meet every 10 years to review and make recommendations to amend the Charter. Members were assigned to committees and groups and in most cases there were no changes recommended. The committee employed surveys and held open meetings since August, 2017. Major changes include (1) changing the name of the Board of Selectman to Select Board, (2) manner of selection of the Town Clerk from elected to appointed, (3) providing that persons appointed to town committees be resident registered to vote in town, (4) providing for a second Town Meeting in the fall, (5) providing that conduct of town meeting to be governed by "Town Meeting Time," (6) clarify and confirm the appointment powers of the Select Board and Town Manager, (7) clarifying the duties of the town manager relating to the personnel management, (8) providing more specifics in the process for removal and suspension of the town manager, (9) make certain other grammatical and phrasing changes that do not alter the meaning or intent of existing provisions. B. Minority Report The task of the committee was to review the Charter and it's entirely possible to review the document and leave it unchanged. The language changes will run the government more like a business than like a government. The default should be to not make changes; the Town Manager is given more control and citizens may lose their voice. C. Comments by remaining committee members T. Burchfield - agreed to put everything in the charter knowing that some things may be voted down and that we could come back in the fall with adjustments. Did not believe that representative town meeting should be pursued without aggressively pursuing participation in Annual Town Meeting. Believes that adding an additional town meeting in the fall would make it better for residents to plan to attend with the goal of increasing participation. When first moved to Lunenburg found the format of Town Meeting to be fascinated and was alarmed by the amount of people that leave the meeting mid-day. Supported the Town Clerk change because it's a full-time job without a support mechanism within the organization of town government. Didn't have strong feelings about Board of Selectman or Select Board. M. Jeffreys - believes the committee took a conservative approach to drafting changes. Supported changes for the Planning Board, adding in a second annual town meeting, creation of facility manager, and changing name of Board of Selectman to Select Board to be more inclusive to women. Did not support changing the town clerk position from elected to appointed, but we hoped the committee could reach consensus on a passable draft. D. Read written comments on draft Charter into record Library Trustrees - request to change paragraph to to read, "The town manager shall, with the input of the library director, be responsible for hiring and removal of all fibrary employees except the library director." Carl Luck - requiring candidates for elected positions for which no candidate is printed on the RECETVED & FILED the amount of votes equal to the amount of signatures required to have been on the ballot. JUN 1 4 2018 LUNENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE ===PAGE 2=== Richard Mailloux - Chair of Library Board - what was suggested was adopted almost in its entirety. Did not believe that the existing Charter reflects what is done. The Library is not like the other departments - more similar to the Library. The Library Director is not hired by the Town Manager and is hired by the elected board of Trustees. Could not find any other Library in which the Town Manager hired Library Trustees (i.e Athol, Groton, Littleton, Westford, Wyoming, Iowa). Requests for the charter to reinstate the language recommended by the Board of Carl Luck - Believes that when the proposal (to create minimum voting thresholds for open elected positions without a candidate printed on the ballot) was presented, the wording was very different than what was proposed. Would like to see a change more reflective of state law. Stated that "broad policy guidelines" is too vague and "day to day" cannot be taken out of context and cannot be separately defined. Supports the addition of a second town meeting. Does not support the change to Select Board... it's "much ado about nothing." Would like to see language of "Road Commissioner" defined. Believes that this public hearing should have happened in February and that the commission needs more time to continue its work. David W. Rodgers- Does not support a name change for the Board of Selectman. Section 2-3 under "committees" is language allowed by the Freedom of Information Act. Believes that it should be easier for the public to be able to convey their thoughts to the public through two scheduled meetings, not harder. Believes that voter petitions are the purest form of democracy - such as with Wallis Park, which was not supported by three boards. Suggested that in Section 3-1 - voter elections should be any mark that indicates the vote of selection. Section 3-2 Board of Selectman - should be the chief policy makers- questions whether this allows the Board of Selectman to trump the elected boards with policy making duties. Section 3-2 — Selectman's appointed positions - the Town Clerk should be elected and not appointed. Reterence to the Director of Facilities - should get more study and needs more information. Section 3-4 — Board of Assessors / the Town Manager should not be involved in the Assessors. Thinks the role of the Town Manager has been expanded upon and that "there are 8 people who run this town." Thinks that elected officials should not have their actions preempted by town employees. Section 3-5 Cemetery commission - read the duties of the cemetery commission. Board of Sewer Commission - "you're elected to do something, but you can't do it." Section 4-2 - residency requirement on appointed positions. "Thinks we're getting further and further removed from the people we're supposed to be working for, which is the taxpayer." Matthew Woodward - Doesn't support change from Board of Selectman to Select Board; supports two town meetings; would like to keep the Town Clerk elected. Bill Tyler - Does not believe that there has been enough time to review the proposed changes. M.G.L. clearly states the roles of the Sewer Commission. Believes that the additional language added to the section takes away from the addition of the word "sole" that was added to the duties of the commission. Dave Passios - Does not support the verbiage added to the end of the sections for boards. Read added verbiage into record. Believes that the checks and balances are being systematically removed. The outreach was to ask for suggested changes but were not approached with suggested changes made by the board. Paula Bertram - Does not support changing the name of Board of Selectman to Select Board; believes that the Town Clerk should remain elected; supports the addition of a second town meeting; does not support the additional language for personnel and the additional language added to most boards and commissions. Tom Alonzo - Thanked the board for their work. Believes that the speed of the board's work seems to be governed by the schedule of Town Meeting. Supports changing the Town Clerk's job to being appointed and not elected given that it's the only elected official that has a salary. Against adding a second annual town meeting in the Charter and does not believe there is evidence that a schedule will increase participation. The appointment of the Town Accountant is changing from the Board of Selectman to the Town Manager and believes that the presumable idea of the current structure is to an independent view and not the view of the person who hired them. The added paragraph for boards of committees goes from "murky to cloudy" and that it's difficult to define. ===PAGE 3=== supports that there sauce dill best do crete boars. vote nine to keep me brecica lown bick elected. Would like clarification on what "day-to-day" means. Dave Passios - Strongly support keeping Town Clerk's position elected. Seth Mayer - Don't support changing the name of Board of Selectman. If it works, it can stay the same. Anna Lockwood - How well can we run the town. "Powers corrupts people, both ways." Believes there should be a barrier - doesn't believe that elected officials should go unchecked. Believes employees have a vested interest in doing a good job. F. Close Public Comment Period Ended at 8:47PM DISCUSSION M. Jeffreys - did not support aiming for Town Meeting and still doesn't M. Erickson - would like to reflect on comments; weather got in the way of the timeline M. Mackin - concurs that more time is needed to get it right K. Adams - believes the final draft should be ready before Town Meeting B. Ebersole - does not believe that this can be published tomorrow to meet Town Meeting; would like more feedback on major items; believes we should allow for messy government; delineate Town Manager duties T. Burchfield - would like to wait to work on the charter and not aim for Town Meeting in May; would like to clarity that Special Town Meetings should occur J. Toale - supports doing more work even if it means that we miss Town Meeting. Thinks that the wording "broad policy guidelines" should be workshopped through committees. Binary issues should have articulation with both the S. Archambault - accountant; check & balances VOTE S. Archambault - motion to not approve changes to Charter, Second by N. Gray; All Aye MEETING SCHEDULE & FURTHER PUBLIC OUTREACH Members will be contacted by the chair to coordinate a schedule for future meetings ADJOURNMENT S. Archambault - motion to adjourn, Second by M. Mackin; All aye at 9:05PM ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-06-13-agenda-1558.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-06-13 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-06-13-agenda-1558.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_06132018-1558 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-06-13-minutes-1558.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-06-13 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-06-13-minutes-1558.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06132018-1558 ======================================================================================== ===OCR macOS Vision=== ===PAGE 1=== Gray (Community Representative), Heather Sroka (School Committee, Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative) (arrived late) Absent: Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee) Also present: Katie Adams Chairman Ebersole welcomed new members Heather and Jim. Jim raised a question: Is there a conflict with Steve and his wife (school employee)? Bob said no; Steve would recuse himself if needed. Minutes of 4/5/2018: Jamie moved to approve; Mark seconded; all in favor. Public comment: Katie Adams said she enjoyed her time on the charter review committee and she is only leaving because she has joined the BOS and was not reappointed. Review public hearing feedback Our report Minority report • Commission comments • Public comments Bob's comment: Public hearing should have been earlier in the process; cancelled due to weather. When we had the hearing, we got lots of good feedback. Bob attended follow on meetings with several boards to apologize for lack of clarity on some of the changes. Town Manager has met with various commissions to clarify the hiring process; we will further clarify language. Care and maintenance of cemetery, BOH, parks need to be clarified. Appointment of Town Accountant: concern on checks and balances; what do other towns do? Town Clerk split opinion; same on selectmen/selectboard. Bring back discussion on minimum votes for a candidate not on the ballot. Won't be revisiting representative TM nor term limits. Two annual meetings: some support for it but more work is needed. Heather said the School Committee recommends that they "appoint" the superintendent. Jamie: consider stand-alone items for making changes to charter. ===PAGE 2=== time in the schedule to accommodate meetings with them. Bob: We seek input but at the end it's a recommendation from this commission Bob: We need to revisit committee assignments; Mark willing to keep his assignments; Jamie willing to keep his assignments; Nancy willing to keep her assignments. Katie's assignments need to be covered. Mike's assignments need to be covered. Jim said APDC also was not covered Bob will assemble a list of assignments; this will inform if we want to bring other committees to meet with us. Review schedule Talked about timing of fall town meeting and the likely date for a special TM. Proposed bylaw: second Tuesday in Nov (Nov 13). Working backwards from thjs date, we would need to have wording complete by the mailing date for the warrant, say first week of Oct (Oct 8). Public hearing first week of Sep. Mark: We should consider having two (at least) public hearings. Jamie: We may want to target spring TM because this schedule may not be doable. All agreed. Report out (interim) at Fall TM, hold a public hearing shortly afterward, hold another public hearing once we do our follow up work. Jamie: We should meet as soon as we can to set the schedule and make committee assignments. Plan to meet Jun 27, whoever can make it. Bob will organize what we already have into the three categories. Time is of the essence but we all agree to target ATM. Jim: He wasn't on the committee but he thought we did a good job. Bob: We should prepare a pros and cons document for both side of controversial issues. Jamie: Consider whether we need a super majority or a simple one; we should have a process discussion. Adjournment: Jamie moved to adjourn at 7:44, Mark seconded, unanimous Respectfully submitted: Mark Erickson RECEIVED & FILED AUG 09 2018 LUNENBURG TOWN CLERK OFFICE ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-06-27-agenda-1560.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-06-27 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-06-27-agenda-1560.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_06272018-1560 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-08-08-agenda-1559.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-08-08 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-08-08-agenda-1559.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08082018-1559 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-08-08-minutes-1559.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-08-08 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-08-08-minutes-1559.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_08082018-1559 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Minutes of Charter Review Committee August 8, 2018, Ritter Building Call to Order at 7 pm Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Nancy Gray (Community Representative) Heather Sroka (School Committee), Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee) Absent: Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative) Public Comment: None Minutes of June 13, 2018 and June 27, 2018 were unanimously approved. Review of Non-Controversial proposed changes -- The committee walked through the language and commented as follows: 3.3 School Committee (b) Powers and Duties (1) insert “select” in place of “elect” superintendent. School committee has this on their agenda to review. 3.5 Cemetery Commission (b) Powers and Duties add the word “sole” just before “responsibility to make regulations”; delete the previously proposed words “who may delegate such authority.” after “town manager”. This is not needed as Section 4.3 authorizes the town manager to delegate whatever powers she or he has. 3.9 Board of Park Commissioners (b) Powers and Duties delete the previously proposed words “who may delegate such authority.” after “town manager”. This is not needed as Section 4.3 authorizes the town manager to delegate whatever powers she or he has. 3.14 Sewer Commissioners (b) Powers and Duties delete the previously proposed words “who may delegate such authority.” after “town manager”. This is not needed as Section 4.3 authorizes the town manager to delegate whatever powers she or he has. 4-2 Town Manager Powers and Duties (s) keep the proposed deleted language “related to infrastructure maintenance, improvement and expansion” but needs discussion with the town manager. 6-3 Submission of Budget and Budget Message – proposed language inserts the words “on the town website” of a general summary of the proposed budget in place of “in a local newspaper”. Need to discuss with the town manager the cost of keeping notice in the local newspaper and other outreach tools; added at the end of 6-3 the sentence: “the summary of the budget shall be mailed with the warrant to households with registered voters as provided in the town by-laws. 8-5 This section is not needed as it is a duplicate of the first paragraph of section 8-2. Review of substantive changes not controversial -- The committee walked through the language and commented as follows: ===PAGE 2=== 2-4 Second Town Meeting – Bob will talk with Town Counsel about how to meet the desire to have a standing second town meeting without confusing it with the annual town meeting and not requiring the higher standards of a special town meeting. 3-10 Planning Board – move the proposed language regarding appointment of the land use director to the Town Manager section. 3-10 Planning Board, 3-14 Sewer Commission still need more dialog regarding staff supervision. 4-1 Town Manager Search process. Need to talk with Town Moderator as the proposed changes make the committee an even numbered membership. 7-11 Enforcement of Charter and town general bylaws. As requested at the previous meeting, Bob distributed the working of MGL 231A Section 1 that details the process for enforcement. Review of substantive changes considered controversial -- The committee walked through the language and commented as follows: Based on the feedback of the public during our prior hearing and in consideration that the approval process is not all or nothing, these topics will be presented as separate articles at the spring town meeting. In addition, we will seek to have pro and con statements so that the voters will have information on both sides of the proposal. Changing the name of the Selectmen to Select Board. As there are two new members of the committee, they were polled as to their current position on this topic. Both Jim and Heather said that they could live with either the current name or the proposed name. Changing the Town Clerk from elected to appointed. As with the prior topic, the two new members of the committee were polled as to their current position on this topic. Both Jim and Heather said that they support that the position be appointed. Bob will gather information from the Secretary of State’s office regarding this topic. 3-5 Cemetery, 3-9 Park and 3.13 Sewer – the committee will take out the previously proposed language requiring staying out of day to day administration, as in an attempt to clarify the section, the wording did not meet that standard. 3-7 Library – Bob will work with the Library and the Town Manager to get the language that meets what the Library wants but addresses the concerns of the Town Manager. It is noted that much of the current hiring has been done in a way to follow state law, and that will be incorporated. 4-2(c) –Residency requirement for town clerk if appointed – this language needs to be clarified so that it only applies to an appointed town clerk due to election requirements and not the other appointed officials. 5-3(d) (3) Division of Accounting - Town Accountant – the town accountant will continue to be an appointment of the Selectmen. Review of items previously considered but not included in the draft charter -- The committee walked through the language and commented as follows: ===PAGE 3=== 1. Requiring a minimum number of signatures for a write in candidate where there is no candidate’s name on the ballot. Bob distributed information previously provided by Carl and Phyllis Luck and it was decided to invite them to an upcoming meeting to discuss the proposal. It was noted that there may be an issue with a race with two open seats on a board and only one name on the ballot and how the proposed language would apply. 2. Ranked choice voting. In light of the multitude of candidates running for the Congressional seat and candidates stating that they may win with 19% of the vote, Bob noted this is a good opportunity to revisit this. We will invite someone in to discuss the topic. 3. Term limits. There was no interest in revisiting term limits. Next Meeting: August 22, 2018. We will discuss scheduling and public outreach. Meeting adjourned at 8:25 pm. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-08-22-agenda-1556.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-08-22 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-08-22-agenda-1556.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08222018-1556 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, August 22, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. APPROVE MINUTES August 8 4. DEVELOP MEETING AND OUTREACH SCHEDULE 5. CONTINUED DISCUSSION ON PROPOSED CHANGES 6. NEXT MEETING September 12 7. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-08-22-minutes-1556.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-08-22 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-08-22-minutes-1556.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_08222018-1556 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Minutes from meeting of 8/22/2018 Ritter Building Call to Order: 7:01 Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Absent: Michael-Ray Jeffreys (Planning Board), Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Steve Archambault (Community Representative), Heather Sroka (School Committee) Also present: Rhonda Lisio, Dave Passios Minutes of August 8, 2018: Not ready Bob provided 4 Handouts for review and discussion: 1. “Write-ins” language as drafted by Carl Luck tracks State law; “failure to elect” would then default to the appointing process. Mark said he is willing to reconsider this proposed change. Jamie said he is also willing to reconsider but doesn’t care for the language as drafted. Nancy said she should would need to think more about it. Terri asked, how often does it come up?  Bob to put this back on our agenda. 2. Ranked choice voting: Bob said we should consider having someone come in to present on the topic and he would add it to our schedule and agenda. 3. MGL 231A Section 1: Power to make declaratory determination. This section of MGL is referred to in section 7-11 of our Charter and Bob is providing it for clarity. 4. A calendar to assist in developing our schedule. Develop Meeting and Outreach Schedule: The warrant for ATM closes Mar 19-21; we should have two or three public hearings prior to a final vote of the committee by Mar 13 (ideally); we also have until Apr 8 for the warrant to be published. Special Town meeting is Tue, Nov 13, at which time we would issue a status report. The first public hearing would be the week of 11/26 depending on availability of Town Hall; the second public hearing could be the week of Jan 21. We will publish a proposed draft in advance of any public hearing. We would then appear before the BOS the first or second week of February to present our proposal. We discussed having a preliminary vote for the STM report by Oct 10 (warrant closes Oct 9). We talked about inviting various parties to meet with us and getting them on the schedule: Carl and Phyllis Luck to discuss write-ins; Heather to review her recommendations; Park, cemetery, sewer: option to meet with us, after taking out (non)-clarifying language; ===PAGE 2=== Library should be ok but we should give them the option to meet with us; Housing authority is mentioned in the charter; if they’re not following the charter, we should consider amending the charter accordingly. Continue Discussion on Proposed Changes: Bob said he would provide a clean copy at our next meeting. The plan is to have separate votes on corrections, non-controversial change and controversial changes, each individually. Bob said the way we run Town Meeting requires this. We would present both sides of any proposed change, not in the warrant, but for the public hearings. By the time we get to Annual Town Meeting, arguments on both sides should be clear. Next Meeting: September 12 Public comment: None Adjournment: 7:37 (Terri, Mark, unanimous) ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-09-12-agenda-1552.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-09-12 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-09-12-agenda-1552.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09122018-1552 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, September 12, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. APPROVE MINUTES August 22 4. DISCUSS MEETING AND OUTREACH SCHEDULE 5. DISCUSS VOTING REQUIREMENTS FOR WRITE-IN CANDIDATES A. When there isn’t a name on the ballot 5. CONTINUED DISCUSSION ON PROPOSED CHANGES 6. NEXT MEETING September 26 7. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-09-12-minutes-1552.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-09-12 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-09-12-minutes-1552.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09122018-1552 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, September 12, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA MINUTES 1. CALL TO ORDER Heather absent; all others present 2. PUBLIC COMMENT None 3. APPROVE MINUTES August 8 & 22 M. Erickson motion to approve minutes, second by J. Taole Discussion with B. Ebersole, M. Erickson, and T. Burchfield: in the conversion from the town websites, the minutes and agendas haven’t passed over. Housing Authority is mentioned in the Charter, but their duties don’t match their responsibilities. In T. Burchfield’s opinion, their minutes don’t reflect what the charter has charged them to do. J. Toale moved to approve minutes, second by T. Burchfield, all aye. 4. DISCUSS MEETING AND OUTREACH SCHEDULE Nathan Lockwood will attend next meeting to discuss rank choice voting Phyllis and Carl Luck will attend to discuss write-in voting requirements 5. DISCUSS VOTING REQUIREMENTS FOR WRITE-IN CANDIDATES A. When there isn’t a name on the ballot Postponed 6. CONTINUED DISCUSSION ON PROPOSED CHANGES T. Burchfield suggested that we should task out the strong issues to work through language. About 250 words. M. Jeffreys volunteered to write the pro for change to Select Board. The group will seek the public for a strong opinion against this. M. Jeffreys volunteered to write the against to the change to the Town Clerk to appointed instead of elected. Discussion on other controversial topics: Two town meetings raised concerns; B. Ebersole will follow-up with Town Counsel to delineate the differences between Annual Town Meeting and Special Town Meeting to determine whether the change should specify one over the other. J. Toale stated that he understood our decision to be two meeting without differentiation. S. Archambault is under the impression that we were seeking to get two town meetings. B. Ebersole noted that Rank choice voting; Minimum number of signatures — may need statements depending on how the committee votes. J. Toale asked if the language added to clarify the relationship between boards with employees is controversial. B. Ebersole noted that we’re still not clear on the termination process when employees are appointed by the town manager and ratified by elected boards. There is a lack of clarity when appointed boards have employees. J. Toale added that we need to continue to work with the boards that raised issues during the public hearing. M. Jeffreys asked who is responsible for reaching out to the boards. Discussion that the the Cemetery, Parks, Sewer, and Cemetery need to get reengaged about employment. B. Ebersole recommends that we add a future agenda of an employment topic. ===PAGE 2=== J. Toale noted that there is conflict within the Charter on the appointing process to fill vacancies 2.2 – assistant Town Moderator — later in the charter there is a reference to this section with additional verbiage 2.3 – town moderator — appointing personnel to committees 3.1 – f,1,2,3 — filling vacancies of elected positions. Failure to elect town officer (town clerk or town moderator) the Selectman shall appoint. Multi-member body will make notice of vacancy to public, and with the Board of Selectman, shall have a joint vote. There’s no provision if they don’t forward a notice to the BOS on how to appoint. There is a reference to 7.10 which may or may not apply to elected officials and employees. 7.10 – vacancy in elected town office, the appointing authority shall post vacancy within 10 days — is the appointing authority two joint boards 3.2,d – Selectman appointments – no discussion on vacancies, only reappointments 3.8,c – town moderator — the deputy moderator’s duties are expressed, but appointments are to a date certain. S. Archambault read previous notes in which The moderator requested for the BOS, with the Town Moderator, to appoint a deputy not at town meeting but at the first BOS meeting of the year. 4.1 – Town Manager appointment 4.4,a - c – In working copy of the charter, c was deleted but in the current draft, it’s still there. 7.8,f – Finance committee – J. Taole noted that language could cause conflict with a broad search for a replacement versus a time crunch to fill a vacancy and is inconsistent with 2.3. B. Ebersole recommended that the BOS appoint personnel to a committee noted in 2.3 to be able to fill vacancies. J. Taole is concerned that the 30 days sets a time limit that doesn’t benefit the appointing authority in being able to select a qualified candidate when there is interest in the position. Question of when the 30 days starts — from vacancy or outreach. M. Erickson noted that the clock should be stopped when candidates are clearly known. J. Toale noted that the board may need a mechanism to trigger the board to act, B. Ebersole noted that there could be a dynamic in which this could be worked around and that the effect could be a self-perpetuating board. B. Ebersole noted that the personnel committee may want to produce job descriptions for appointed roles so that community members are informed on what the different roles do. 7. NEXT MEETING September 26 First meeting in October to discuss employment Question on if the School Committee decided on the “elect, select, appoint” language for the Superintendent B. Ebersole will follow up with Town Clerk to help finalize the calendar. Calendar is in minutes from 22AUG 8. ADJOURNMENT Motion by T. Burchfield, Second by M. Erickson. 7:54PM ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-10-24-agenda-1553.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-10-24 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-10-24-agenda-1553.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10242018-1553 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, October 24, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. APPROVE MINUTES September 12 4. MEET WITH PROPONENTS FOR MINIMUM NUMBER OF VOTES WHEN THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOT FOR AVAILABLE SLOTS 5. MEET WITH PROPONENTS FOR RANKED CHOICE VOTING 6. DISCUSS SPECIAL TOWN MEETING REPORT 7. REVIEW SCHEDULE THROUGH MAY 2019 TOWN MEETING 8. REVIEW CURRENT VERSION OF DRAFT CHARTER A. Votes, as necessary 9. REVIEW REPORTS FROM ANY TOWN OFFICIALS, BOARDS, COMMISSIONS, OR COMMITTEES 10. NEXT MEETING November 14 11. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-11-28-agenda-1554.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-11-28 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-11-28-agenda-1554.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11282018-1554 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, November 28, 2018 – 7:00 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. PUBLIC COMMENT 3. APPROVE MINUTES September 12 October 24 4. MEET WITH CEMETERY COMMISSION 5. MEET WITH OTHER COMMITTEES OR TOWN OFFICIALS 6. REVIEW FEEDBACK FROM TOWN COUNSEL 7. REVIEW DRAFT CHARTER, AS OF NOVEMBER 13 A. Vote, as necessary 8. REVIEW AND FINALIZE SCHEDULE 9. SELECT NEW CHAIR 10. NEXT MEETING December 12 11. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-11-28-minutes-1554.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-11-28 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-11-28-minutes-1554.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_11282018-1554 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Minutes of Charter Review Committee 11/28/2018 High School Collaborative Room Call to Order: 7:02 Present: Bob Ebersole (Selectmen), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Steve Archambault (Community Representative), Tanner Cole (Planning Board) Absent: Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Heather Sroka (School Committee) Also present: Bill Tyler, Katie Adams, Heather Lemieux, Jack Rodriquenz Public Comment: Katie Adams wished her thanks to Bob Ebersole for his role on the committee and for his service to the Town. Bob Ebersole welcomed Tanner Cole to the Town as the new Planning Board Representative. Minutes September 12, 2018: approved October 24, 2018: not ready Cemetery Commission Bill Tyler, Cemetery Commissioner, asked about our process; Bob explained upcoming public forums; Commission still has more work to do. Bill wants to know there are opportunities for more discussion; CC recommends adding the word “sole” to their powers and duties under section 3-5 (b), which mimics MGL; everyone seems on board with it; Bob said it is the current draft. Section 4-2 (i): Town Manager has full authority; CC requests Cemetery have control of their buildings and be added to this section; Jamie clarified wording that currently states “except school committee and conservation commission”; discussion ensued about the rationale for this change; Heather said any building falls under procurement policy; cemetery account from sale of lots (revolving account); Bob explained prior policy of centralized responsibility; we could have a centralized policy; Jack said it’s about exclusive use of cemetery of this building and this goes against policy of DPW sharing resources; explained that cemetery resources have been stored in parks facilities; Bill Tyler argued, if we’re paying for it, we should have control over it; Bob explained that library is now centralized with DPW; Tanner Cole stated at the agricultural commission has the authority to own property; Bob Ebersol stated we expect two public hearings and more discussion in between to resolve the issue. Other Committees Park commission has discussed increasing to 5 members. ===PAGE 2=== Appointment process timeline needs to be reviewed; town counsel has started their review; Steve Archambault said town moderator raised concern about timelines being more clear (how do you count days? Put it in definitions?), e.g., is it 30 calendar days or 30 business days; recommendation was made that we don’t tie it to the schedule of Town Hall. Heather Lemieux said she had attended some cemetery commission meetings; not aware that building and equipment would be paid for from sale of lots; wants town counsel to weigh in with respect to impact on personnel, e.g., snow removal and other DPW work. Steve Archambault said that the Town moderator said section on TM removal looks good; sections on temporary moderator need be more clear; we agreed to see if he has language to propose; discussed deputy, subject to ratification by town meeting; could default to town clerk; Steve to speak further with Tim Murphy. Feedback from Town Counsel If fall is a regular meeting, can we follow requirements (number of signatures, 2/3 vote) of ATM rather than STM? TC has proposed language to have fall town meeting follow the rules of ATM; if it’s truly STM, must follow rules of MGL. Discussed items on process. Proposed changes should go to counsel after public hearing; if anything changes at a subsequent public hearing, it should be reviewed again. Discussed wording of write-ins; at least 42 votes as of last count (may be higher due to high turnout at last gubernatorial election).  Steve Archambault moved we vote to recommend approval, Jamie Toale seconded  Discussion: number can fluctuate but it’s the same as the number required outside the caucus; Bob told examples of less than 10 votes; if you got many votes but not enough, you put in for the position; Tanner Cole talked about missing the date for pulling papers and raised a concern with putting hurdles in front of people; since it’s marked as a “red” change, it will be a separate article; Bob Ebersole said our vote is what should be changed in the charter.  5 in favor, 2 nay (Tanner Cole, Terri Burchfield opposed); does not pass because we don’t have a super majority; Terri might be willing to vote for a specific number; Jamie will speak with town clerk to determine what the new number is. Draft Charter as of Nov 13 Not proposing adding term limits. Not proposing ranked choice at this time. Not proposing representative town meeting. May want to vote again on other issues, given Tanner Cole is new and Bob Ebersole is leaving the committee. Schedule Dec 12 may not be doable for a public hearing because of not enough notice; Dec 26 meeting will not likely happen; Jan 9 should be publicized as a public hearing. ===PAGE 3=== We should take new votes on Dec 12 to finalize current draft so we can include them in the public hearing; make sure we have a super majority; assign pro/con responsibility; provide these enough in advance. Steve Archambault raised a concern about timeline, snow days, etc. Bob Ebersole said we could skip a topic on Jan 9 if we’re not ready; Steve said we should be clear we expect any major changes by Jan 9; Steve raised again the definition of a week; Bob said it’s pretty clear that we mean normal weekdays, irrespective of weekends and holidays; we agreed to clarify this in definitions. Bob Ebersole said a draft report and charter had been posted at town hall, library and senior center. Select new Chair Bob Ebersole his expressed his thanks to the committee; he commented that the process is all or nothing if you have an elected body; if appointed, the process is different, so we are clear to recommend specific changes individually. Jamie nominated Mark Erickson as chair and he declined; Bob suggested we wait until next meeting when we have both school committee representatives and a new selectboard rep.  Steve Archambault moved we postpone electing a new chair, Terri Burchfield second; all in favor. Jamie as vice chair will arrange agenda and meeting location for Dec 12, when a new chair will be elected. Next Meetings: December 12; location TBD. January 9; public hearing should be at an appropriate location. Public comment: Katie Adams commented on minimum write-ins: set a specific number; gave example that “appointment” would be much fewer people. Members expressed their thanks to Bob Ebersole. Adjournment: 8:06  Steve moved to adjourn, Terri seconded, all in favor ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-12-12-agenda-1572.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-12-12 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-12-12-agenda-1572.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12122018-1572 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Meeting1. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2018-12-12-minutes-1572.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2018-12-12 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2018-12-12-minutes-1572.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_12122018-1572 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Minutes of Charter Review Committee 12/12/2018 Location: Ritter Building Call to Order: 7:02 Present: Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Terri Burchfield (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson (Finance Committee), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Steve Archambault (Community Representative), Tanner Cole (Planning Board), Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Heather Sroka (School Committee) Absent: Phyllis Luck (Selectmen) Welcome new member(s): Tanner Cole and Phyllis Luck Also present: Katie Adams, Dave Passios Meeting being recorded for broadcast. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT Dave Passios: Park Commissioners section3-9; MGL 45-2 allows for 3 or 5 members; He proposes we use the same language for our charter. Darren Masse: verbiage for BOS section 3-2 (d); registered voter requirement disenfranchises residents; Terri gave background on the requirement for Fincom to be a voter; we agreed more discussion is needed. 3. Organization of the Committee (Chair and Clerk) Jamie prefaced by saying it should be clear that this is a commission, therefore a selectman should not be chair; situation with Bob was unique. Our votes were as follows: Terri nominated Steve as Chair, Heather seconded; vote unanimous (8-0). Jamie nominated Mark as Clerk, Heather seconded; vote unanimous (8-0). Heather nominated Terri as Vice Chair, Jamie seconded; vote unanimous (8-0). 4. APPROVE MINUTES October 24, 2018: TBA; Mark to prepare November 28, 2018: Terri moved to approve, Jamie seconded; vote unanimous (8-0). 5. REVIEW FEEDBACK FROM TOWN COUNSEL Jamie has a copy of what was sent to Bob, he will send to committee. Language for minimum vote; 53 is the new number based on the latest gubernatorial election; Terri willing to set a specific number, e.g., 20; Jim argued for the same threshold as getting on the ballot (1% of gubernatorial election); if not elected, appointed by a small number; if running as a write-in, you need ===PAGE 2=== to meet a threshold. Tanner: if no one is nominated by caucus and no one is on the ballot, then why not accept them; when has it been a problem? Jamie: if appointed, at least it’s in open session; Jim: someone gets in with 5 votes and turns out to be a disrupter; Terri: example of BOS overruling planning board; Mark suggested a minimum of 10 for discussion. Terri said they need to be “in proper form;” (Terri checked MGL: intent of voter needs to be clear, name and address is ideal but not required). As this is marked in red, it is considered controversial; Steve clarified we would want a super majority on this; we agreed to table this item until the next agenda item. 6. REVIEW DRAFT CHARTER, AS OF NOVEMBER 13 Purple items: non-substantive, non-controversial Number of days needs to be defined; Terri moved to define days as calendar days; Jamie seconded. Discussion: listed but not defined currently; days might need to be adjusted accordingly; Jim raised concern about 48 hours; Mark suggested a general rule with specific exceptions. We checked how many times “days” is used: 28, most context is calendar days. Terri modified her motion to define day as calendar day unless defined otherwise; Jim seconded; Jamie agreed based on his second of the previous motion; vote unanimous (8-0). Terri moved to convert months to days and mark the changes as brown; Jim seconded; vote unanimous (8-0).  Steve to modify document to put definition in section 1 and edit instances of days throughout. Mark moved to approve purple items except those that refer to days or months, Tanner seconded; vote unanimous (8-0). Brown changes Sections 2-3 (b) and 3-2 (d): appointments should be registered voters; discussion ensued on how do we include even those who are not registered to vote; elsewhere we say that any voter can be elected; Mark suggested we separate the two issues, keep the voter requirement language in Fincom and strike it from the general appointments section; Mark moved to approve, Jim seconded; some discussion back and forth; vote 7-1, Jamie opposed. Section 3-10 (c): Terri moved to accept wording added in brown; Mark seconded. Discussion: Tanner raised concern about 15 days to reject an appointment; however, this is not marked as a change; vote unanimous (8-0). Section 3-13 (c): Jim moved to approve, Jamie seconded; vote unanimous (8-0). Section 4-1: Terri moved to approve, Jamie seconded; discussion: amended to 2 town residents; vote unanimous (8-0). Section 4-2(c): Jim moved to approve; Terri seconded; discussion: none; vote unanimous (8-0). Section 4-2(i): accept the brown and make cemetery red; Jamie moved to approve, Terri seconded, vote unanimous (8-0). ===PAGE 3=== Section 4-2(l): Mark moved to approve, Terri seconded, vote unanimous (8-0). Section 4-5(b): Terri moved to approve, Jim seconded, vote unanimous (8-0). Section 7-8(f): Terri gave background; Terri concerned with who has authority and how does it return to the appointing authority; Terri moved to accept the brown language; Jim seconded; vote unanimous (8-0) Section 7-11: Mark moved to approve, Nancy seconded; no discussion; vote unanimous (8-0) Red changes require more discussion: select board; minimum vote for write-ins; town clerk elected; we’ll develop pros and cons after the public hearings. Section 2-4: Brown but needs input from Town Counsel; vote postponed. 7. Discuss Public Hearing Schedule – January 9, 2019 Location and Notice: Town Hall; Steve to send agenda to Ellen Griffin and Kathy Herrick; public hearing notice to Ledger and Facebook via Heather Lemieux Jan 23: meeting to respond to PH changes clean up draft Feb 13: meeting to prepare for 2nd PH Second Hearing Location and Formal Notice: consider MSHS on Feb 27 Mar 13 regular meeting Mar 27 finalize warrant Apr 10/Apr 24 prepare for ATM 8. REVIEW AND FINALIZE SCHEDULE Warrant closes Mar 21 Feb 27 second PH; warrant goes to press Apr 5 9. Committee Assignments Check cemetery notes (all); Jamie to send legal notes 10. NEXT MEETING: January 9, 2019 Agenda adjusted to allow Public Comment Katie Adams commented on registered voter requirement; are there other committees that have a similar requirement? Resident could include those not yet old enough to vote. Dave Passios: Changes voted tonight should be made to what is posted online. Mark pointed out we will also need another legal review of the changes made this evening. 11. ADJOURNMENT 9:18 Terri moved to adjourn, Tanner seconded, vote unanimous (8-0) ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-01-19-agenda-1571.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-01-19 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-01-19-agenda-1571.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_01192019-1571 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Charter Review Committee Meeting1. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-01-19-minutes-1571.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-01-19 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-01-19-minutes-1571.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_01192019-1571 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Minutes of Charter Review Committee 1/9/2019 Location: Lunenburg MHS MS Collaborative Room 1. CALL TO ORDER: 7:00 PM Present: Steve Archambault, Chair (Community Representative), Terri Burchfield, Vice Chair (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson, Clerk (Finance Committee), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Phyllis Luck (Selectmen), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Tanner Cole (Planning Board), Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Heather Sroka (School Committee) Absent: None Meeting being recorded for broadcast. 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 10/24/2018: Terri moved to approve, Jamie seconded, vote unanimous 12/12/2018: Heather moved to approve, Jim seconded, vote unanimous 3. PUBLIC HEARING ON DRAFT CHARTER Charter Committee Report: Steve (Chair) read the current version of the committee report into the record. Comments by committee members: Phyllis asked why section 7-1, elections, not included; Terri clarified that it had not yet been voted but could be discussed during public comment. Terri also explained that we changed the Fincom section to be registered voter but other sections default to resident. Read written comments on draft Charter into record: Steve read into the record comments from Jim, from the Town Moderator and from Bill Tyler, Cemetery commission. Public Comments: Clarence Floyd, 720 Goodrich St. spoke in favor of the Town Clerk being elected. He also sees no reason to change BOS to Select Board. Dave Rodgers, 82 Highland St: Asked about opportunities for public comment. Steve clarified that each item can be commented upon. Tim Murphy, 97 Island Rd: asked that days be clarified to say “including weekends and holidays.” Town Manager selection committee should submit “name or names” in lieu of a list. Bill Tyler, 5 Graham St: clarified cemetery changes: “sole” responsibility; section 4-2 (i) “Town Manager has control of property except” should include cemetery commission. Carl Luck, 50 Sunset Lane: Asked if the document on the website is current. Steve said yes. He also asked about the minimum vote requirement, which will be discussed. He also questioned whether the super majority requirement still stands. Steve explained that purple and brown ===PAGE 2=== changes have already been approved, en masse. He expects a super majority to be needed for any red items, individually, for the committee’s recommendation. Discussion ensued as to when a super majority would be required or appropriate. Katie Adams, Williams Dr: One option is to not make a change; we should resist changes if they are not needed. Dave Rodgers: Thought we would go through the proposed changes and get options from the public, then the committee will act on it or not. Close Public Comment Period: We decided to keep public comment open for the duration of the discussion portion of the agenda. 4. DISCUSSION Deliberate, amend and vote of topics addressed in board/public comments. Change to Select Board: Phyllis asked if there is a cost to the town; we think not. Clarence Floyd asked why we want to change. Steve explained the rationale that Select Board is more inclusive. Katie Adams commented that BOS is an easy acronym. Jim said he has heard both terms used and it seems interchangeable. Item marked as red so town can vote on the proposed change. Town Clerk elected versus appointed: Steve asked Town Manager where “appointed” language would be placed: section 4-2 (c). Clarence Floyd said the position has always been elected and townspeople like it that way. Steve explained that many towns have an appointed position and that this is the only elected position that is paid. Jamie added that we plan to present pros/cons. It is split in the commonwealth; Town Clerks like it the way it is, either way. The differentiator is that it has become a position that needs substantial skills. Dave Rodgers said he has confidence that the voters will make sure candidates are well qualified. He questioned the requirement that they should be a resident and voiced his support that it be elected. He also said it is underpaid. Carl Luck asked if there are unintended consequences of the position being appointed.  Steve to check to see if it’s union or non-union. Katie Adams suggested we may not be prepared to make a change, given some of the unknowns. She questioned whether the skillset means it needs to be appointed. In a democracy, it’s sometimes less efficient but she favors that over moving the position to being appointed. Second Town Meeting: Steve shared Town Counsel recommended language to section 2-4: Treat under the rules of ATM, not STM. Jim moved to approve, Phyllis seconded, vote unanimous (9- 0). Voter requirement versus resident: We had voted to approve “registered voter” for the fincom and leave the charter silent otherwise (“inhabitants” or resident for all other positions as laid out in section 1-1). Discussion ensued about age of candidates. Mark pointed out that these are appointed positions so let’s not make it too complicated. Carl argued for keeping it as open as we can. Karin Menard said just because you’re at Town Meeting doesn’t mean you’re going to vote and raised a concern about not having a voter requirement in other sections. She suggest we change section 3-2 (d) to consider “residents who are of age to vote.” Town Meeting Times: formalizes use for our Town; no discussion. ===PAGE 3=== Appointments section 7-8 (f): clarifies who makes appointments, appointing authority or members of the committee itself. Town Counsel has proposed language. Dave Passios, Whiting St.: Agrees 30 days may too short; questions what is meant by “pool”; could be a pool of 1;  Steve to send to the commission a PDF of Town Counsel’s proposed language. Town Manager: responsibilities for charter enforcement, section 7-11; Tim Murphy: if we want to use “agency”, it needs to be defined in terms, and it is. Carl Luck raised a question of where a resident would go with a concern; it’s the Town Manager; if he/she’s not doing it, it goes to BOS. TM has responsibilities for facilities except…Section 4-2 (i): Cemetery Commission wants to be included in this section. Steve referenced 1935 grant of land from Dickinson. Bill Tyler made comments in favor of making this change so that a building they are constructing from their own funds be dedicated to their use. Tanner urged caution about assigning jurisdiction for facilities outside of the commissions responsible for them; Jamie explained economies of scale and consistency of policy as reasons for centralizing control with the TM, given exceptions of Schools and conservation. Dave Rodgers commented that we have various elected commissions and they should have jurisdiction for their resources. Town Manager explained day-to-day care and sharing of resources. Also concerned about other implications such as insurance and additional equipment such as a dedicated backhoe. Katie Adams asked about “full jurisdiction” and unintended consequences, for example if the TM closes the Town Beach, how do we change that. Carl Luck voiced his agreement with Dave Rodgers. Gave the example of outsourcing Sewer maintenance in agreement with the DPW. Dave Rodgers raised a concern about the format and timeframe for the discussion. He stated that the DPW and Cemetery Commission combined resources for economies of scale but it hasn’t worked. Clarence Floyd commented he agrees with Mr. Tyler. Karin Menard said that Parks Commission has not really discussed this but offered her opinion that commissions should manage their assigned resources. Steve asked that recommended changes be forwarded to him. Karin Menard requests that Parks Department section 3-9 (a) be changed to say “5 members.” Discussion then returned to the issue of full jurisdiction inn section 4-2 (i), in particular over the rental and use of facilities. Jamie pointed out that the Town Manager has responsibility for shared resources across the town through the budget process. Heather explained how the School Committee works with the Superintendent. Karin Menard referenced that MGL governs what some boards and commissions are responsible for. Bill Tyler explained they are not attempting to separate from anything, just wanting to make sure they have jurisdiction over their facility. Katie Adams asked whether “subject to written policies” presents an opportunity to further define the limits of jurisdiction.  Steve to modify the proposed change to say, “subject to written policies, set forth by elected commissions.” Process for removal of TM: no discussion. Changes marked in purple: no discussion. Day or days refer to calendar days, defined in terms: discussed previously. Change specific references to months so that they are in days. ===PAGE 4=== Steve recapped comments that have been raised and asked for further comment. Still need pros/cons defined. Dave Passios asked about the Town Clerk change and Steve summarized the previous discussion. We clarified previous discussions on minimum write-in votes and determined we did not vote to include this. Dave Passios expressed his opinion that we should not include this. Karin Menard questioned why it is 53 votes. Phyllis explained the basis for the recommended change. Marie Burchfield, Emerald Place: gave her opinion that no change should be made. Carl Luck agreed to protect the right to vote. He argued that people have abused the vote in the past. He recapped his previous explanation of the rationale for this change. Katie Adams said the number of votes does not assure the effectiveness of a candidate. Karin Menard said there are several different opportunities to either get elected or get on the ballot and her opinion is that no requirement should be necessary. 5. MEETING SCHEDULE & FURTHER PUBLIC OUTREACH Discuss upcoming meetings and outreach efforts 2019 Proposed Charter Review Meeting Dates: Wed. Jan. 9th 7 PM MS/HS Auditorium (Public Hearing #1) Wed. Jan. 23rd 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 27th 7 PM MS/HS (Public Hearing #2) Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Discussion: Steve commented on the opportunities for further discussion and asked everyone to submit comments or written input to the committee. Steve asked us to reach out to our respective commissions and double check if there are further changes. 6. ADJOURNMENT: 9:51 PM Jim moved to adjourn, Heather seconded, vote unanimous ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-01-23-agenda-1568.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-01-23 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-01-23-agenda-1568.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_01232019-1568 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, January 23, 2019 – 7 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1) CALL TO ORDER 2) PUBLIC COMMENT 3) BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4) MINUTES APPROVAL a) 1-9-19 January 5) DISCUSSION a) Responses from committees/boards b) Town Clerk i) Elected or Appointed ii) Job description iii) Union non-union c) Minimum Write-in (7.11) d) Resident requirements (3-2-d) e) Appointment process - Town Counsel wording (7-8-f) f) Parks Committee Request (3-9-a) g) Cemetery request (4-2-i) h) Revisit/adjust # of days i) Planning Board ii) Other i) Article 1 intro i) Town of Lunenburg Charter vs ii) Lunenburg Home Rule Charter j) Wording & Placement Committees 2-3-c i) Line 107 et. al k) Identify Controversial Topics i) BOS vs Select Board ii) Town Clerk Elected vs Appointed iii) Minimum Write In Vote iv) Other v) Assign Pro – Con write up l) Brainstorm action plan ideas for Town Meeting Presentation 6) ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a) Continue to communicate with boards, committees and departments to identify and clarify possible draft charter changes. 7) PUBLIC COMMENT 8) BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9) MEETING SCHEDULE a) Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. b) Proposed upcoming meeting dates Wed. Jan. 23rd 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 27th 7 PM (tba) (Public Hearing #2) Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 6. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-01-23-minutes-1568.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-01-23 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-01-23-minutes-1568.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_01232019-1568 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Minutes of Charter Review Committee Wednesday, 1/23/2019 Location: Ritter Building 1. CALL TO ORDER: 7:00 PM a. Present: Steve Archambault, Chair (Community Representative), Terri Burchfield, Vice Chair (Finance Committee), Mark Erickson, Clerk (Finance Committee), Jaime Toale (Selectmen), Phyllis Luck (Selectmen), Nancy Gray (Community Representative), Tanner Cole (Planning Board), Jim LaVeck (School Committee), Heather Sroka (School Committee) b. Absent: None c. Meeting being recorded for broadcast. d. Reminder: Public comments at beginning and end but not during deliberations. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT a. Carl Luck 50 Sunset Lane: Read into the record his letter to the Committee, re minimum number of votes for elected positions. Requests proposed change be presented to Town Meeting for their vote. b. Terri: Would like to review section 7-7, Periodic Review, and consider a change in membership. Her proposal would be to have each elected commission designate one member to the Charter Review Committee. Steve read an excerpt about the Charter Review Process from MGL with regard to a provision for citizens’ petition review. Steve will add to our agenda for the next meeting. 3. BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS a. Phyllis said she had some questions about sections 4-2 and 4-4 4. MINUTES APPROVAL a. January 9, 2019, Jamie moved to approve, Terri seconded, vote unanimous 5. DISCUSSION a. Responses from committees/boards i. Terri provided feedback from Fincom about “registered voter” versus “resident” and while it is their preference, they questioned whether “voter” is necessary; she mentioned that “voter” was stricken from the by-law during the most recent review. Section 2-1 stipulates that Town Meeting shall be “voters.” Steve said the state is promoting youth contributing to committees; however, since they cannot vote, they can participate but not vote. Discussion ensued about who can vote at Town Meeting and whether the charter is clear or not about who can participate on committees.  Steve to get clarification from Town Counsel because section 2-1 addresses the legislative branch as being the voters; does this imply that the rest of section 2 is also voters ? ii. Jamie reported that TM has not resolved Cemetery request b. Town Clerk i. Elected or Appointed ii. Job description iii. Union non-union iv. We agreed that this item is marked in red and therefore should be put before voters at Town Meeting. Discussion then ensued about our “recommendation” versus putting proposed ===PAGE 2=== changes on the warrant. Tanner argued we should be cautious to only propose changes that we think should be made. Phyllis argued it should at least be on the ballot so that Town Meeting can decide. Jim agreed. We discussed the issue of majority versus super majority. Tanner suggested we should only propose changes on the warrant if we have a super majority, as a two-thirds majority will be needed at Town Meeting. Jamie suggested that our vote is whether or not to take an issue to Town Meeting. He said we should think of the Charter in the abstract, as it endures beyond any current incumbencies. Phyllis ask ed if the pro/con statements would be included in the warrant and we agreed they need to be mailed town-wide. v. Terri made a motion to propose a change to make the Town Clerk appointed; Jim seconded. Terri said she thought of it as an employee position, therefore should be appointed. Heather suggested we wait to hear from counsel. Terri withdrew her motion and Jim seconded. c. Minimum Write-in (7.11): Jamie moved to include a minimum of some number of votes, Phyllis seconded. Jamie said he agreed with Carl Luck’s memo. Tanner argued that if the minimum was 53 and you only got 50 votes you would not be elected. It was agreed they would likely be appointed. Mark asked whether the Charter is truly broken on this issue. Tanner argued that regardless of the number of votes, the election result should stand. Jamie argued that in the past, write-ins were elected and became disruptive to their boards and did not finish their terms. Phyllis said she worked very hard to get elected. In favor: Phyllis, Jamie, Jim, Steve; Opposed: Nancy, Mark, Terri, Heather, Tanner. d. Resident requirements (3-2-d): Jim questioned whether section 3-2(d) should be changed to “residents who are of voting age.” Jamie suggested we wait for input from Town Counsel. e. Appointment process - Town Counsel wording 7-8-(f): Steve read language proposed by Town Counsel to this section and to section 7-10. The remaining question is how many days. i. Section 7-10 Town Counsel language change marked in purple by a Town employee, other than those on multiple-member bodies; Heather moved to approve, Jim seconded, vote unanimous. ii. (f) Filling of Vacancies - Whenever a vacancy shall occur in the membership of an appointed multiple member body, the remaining members shall forthwith and no later than 30 days thereafter, give written notice of such vacancy to its appointing authority. If no notice is given, the vacancy shall be deemed to have occurred 30 days after it actually occurs or after it becomes known to the appointing authority, whichever is l ater. If, at the expiration of 60 days following the delivery of such notice to the appointing authority, and there is a candidate(s) available, said appointing authority officer or multiple member body has not appointed some person to fill the vacancy, the remaining members of the multiple member body shall fill such vacancy for the remainder of any unexpired term by majority vote of the remaining members. Jim moved to approve, Heather seconded; amended to purple, all in favor. f. Parks Committee Request (3-9-a): Request a change to 5 members: Composition, Term of Office - There shall be a board of park commissioners consisting of 5 members elected for terms of 3 years each so arranged that the terms of as nearly an equal number of members as is possible sha ll expire each year. i. Heather moved to approve, Tanner seconded, vote unanimous g. Cemetery request (4-2-i): Hold for feedback from Bill Tyler and the Town Manager h. Revisit/adjust # of days i. Planning Board: Hold for now ii. Other i. Article 1 intro i. Town of Lunenburg Charter vs ii. Lunenburg Home Rule Charter iii.  Steve to ask Town Counsel to clarify j. Wording & Placement Committees section 2-3 (c) i. Add “Finance Committee” to (c) Powers and Duties ===PAGE 3=== ii. Jim moved to approve, Heather seconded, vote unanimous k. Identify Controversial Topics i. BOS vs Select Board: Steve recapped arguments on both sides and asked if this is a change we want to propose. Terri moved to adopt “Selectboard”; Nancy seconded . Nancy argued that Selectmen is archaic; selectboard is more inclusive. Jamie pointed out th at many do not want to change it. Various arguments for and against; some ambivalent. Terri changed her motion to add a definition that is more inclusive. Nancy seconded. Discussion: The change would show in red. Terri and Nancy in favor, rest against 1. Jim moved we approve “selectboard” in place of selectmen, Jamie seconded; Heather, Phyllis, Mark opposed. Rest in favor 2. Terri will write pro; Heather will write con ii. Town Clerk Elected vs Appointed: Hold for Town Counsel feedback iii. Minimum Write In Vote: Voted down iv. Other 1. Voter versus resident pending Town Counsel feedback 2. Cemetery: waiting on Town Manager feedback v. Assign Pro – Con write up vi. Jim suggested and it was agreed to change library section 3-7 to purple l. Brainstorm action plan ideas for Town Meeting Presentation i. Article 1: purple changes ii. Article 2: brown changes iii. Article 3: red change 1 iv. Article 4: red change 2 v. Etc. 6. ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a. Continue to communicate with boards, committees and departments to identify and clarify possible draft charter changes. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT a. Katie Adams, Williams Dr.: Instead of purple, brown, red, we should label these changes for the benefit of the public. b. Dave Passios, 56 Whiting St.: Suggests we get accurate data about Town Clerk elected versus appointed across the state. 8. BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS a. None 9. MEETING SCHEDULE a. Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. b. Proposed upcoming meeting dates Wed. Jan. 23rd 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. Feb. 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 3 members absent (Heather, Jim, Mark) Terri to propose language section 7-7 Wed. Feb. 27th 7 PM (tba) (Public Hearing #2) Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial ===PAGE 4=== Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 10. ADJOURNMENT: 9:28, Terri moved to adjourn, Heather seconded, all in favor Respectfully submitted by Mark Erickson ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-02-13-agenda-1565.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-02-13 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-02-13-agenda-1565.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_02132019-1565 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, February 13, 2019 – 7 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1) CALL TO ORDER 2) PUBLIC COMMENT 3) BOARD ANNOUNCEMENTS 4) MINUTES APPROVAL a) 1-23-19 January 5) DISCUSSION a) Responses from committees/boards b) Article 1 wording of “Charter of the Town of Lunenburg” vs “Lunenburg Home Rule Charter” c) Term “Voter” as defined through out document (1-7-q, 2-1, 2-3-b, 3-2-d) d) 4-2-s (wording question) e) 4-4-c (wording question) f) Planning Board (i.e. # of days review) g) Town Clerk- update h) BOS vs Select Board update i) Cemetery update (4-2-I, 3-5-b) j) Identify Controversial Topics i) BOS vs Select Board ii) Town Clerk Elected vs Appointed iii) Other iv) Assign Pro – Con write up k) Brainstorm action plan ideas for Town Meeting Presentation l) Formulate Public Hearing Format 6) ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a) Continue to communicate with boards, committees and departments to identify and clarify possible draft charter changes. b) Prepare for Public Hearing on Feb. 27th. 7) PUBLIC COMMENT 8) BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 9) MEETING SCHEDULE a) Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. b) Proposed upcoming meeting dates Wed. Feb. 27th 7 PM (tba) (Public Hearing #2) Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 6. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-03-06-agenda-1570.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-03-06 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-03-06-agenda-1570.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03062019-1570 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, March 6th, 2019 – 7:30 PM Town Hall 17 Main Street, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. MINUTES APPROVAL 23 January 13 February 3. PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED DRAFT CHARTER A. Charter Committee Report B. Comments by remaining committee members C. Read written public comments on draft Charter into record D. Public Comments 1. Typographical corrections & legal compliance 2. Substantive changes, including re-alignment to current practice E. Close Public Comment Period 4. ACTION ITEMS FOR NEXT MEETING A. Prioritize items for review/research/discussion & possible vote B. Continue to organize materials for Town Meeting 5. MEETING SCHEDULE 2019 Proposed Charter Review Meeting Dates; Wed. March 13th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 6. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-03-13-agenda-1569.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-03-13 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-03-13-agenda-1569.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03132019-1569 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Wednesday, March 13, 2019 – 7 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1) CALL TO ORDER 2) MINUTES APPROVAL a) 6 March 3) BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 4) PUBLIC COMMENT 5) DISCUSSION – a) Sec. 4-2-I request from Sewer Commission to add their name to “except property under the control of “ phrase. b) Review, discuss and vote on all proposed Charter Review Recommendations. 6) ACTION ITEMS BEFORE NEXT MEETING a) Create updated Charter Review Recommendations document and submit same for Town Counsel review. b) Draft Charter Review articles for inclusion in May 6, 2019 Town Meeting Warrant (due on or before March 25, 2019). 7) PUBLIC COMMENT 8) MEETING SCHEDULE a) Meetings are held at Ritter Memorial Building, 7:00 PM, on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, unless otherwise indicated. b) Proposed upcoming meeting dates Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 9. ADJOURNMENT ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2019-03-18-agenda-1566.txt BOARD : charter-review-committee DATE : 2019-03-18 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/charter-review-committee/2019-03-18-agenda-1566.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_03182019-1566 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== TOWN OF LUNENBURG Charter Review Committee NOTICE OF MEETING Monday, March 18, 2019 – 7 PM Ritter Building 960 Massachusetts Avenue, Lunenburg, MA In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel. AGENDA 1) CALL TO ORDER 2) BOARD COMMENT/CONCERNS 3) PUBLIC COMMENT 4) DISCUSSION – a) Discussion, Review & possible votes to be taken on the final charter review recommendations. 5) PUBLIC COMMENT 6) MEETING SCHEDULE a) Proposed upcoming meeting dates Wed. March 27th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 10th 7 PM Ritter Memorial Wed. April 24th 7 PM Ritter Memorial 9. ADJOURNMENT