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11-19-2021 12:31am
Highlights from Select Board Meeting of November 15, 2021 (Updated 11/21/2021)
Darlene Cancell
Editor
In case you missed it, here’s a quick summary of the information and actions from Select Board at its meeting on Monday, November 15, 2021.
Chair's Update
Volunteer opportunities are available for Westwood’s 125th
Anniversary celebration. The Town of Westwood celebrates its 125th anniversary in 2022, and recognition of the milestone will begin in January next year. Any residents who wish to volunteer to help can email Select Board at selectboard@townhall.westwood.ma.us
or call 781-326-4172.
Westwood’s holiday tree lighting tradition continues.
An added touch this year is the planned addition of lights to other buildings in town. It was noted, however, that lights are in short supply right now and hard to purchase.
Dedham-Westwood Water District Presentation
Dedham-Westwood Water District’s new executive director, Mr. Blake Lukis, provided an overview and update on the Water District’s drinking water violation where total trihalomethanes (TTHM) recently exceeded a secondary drinking water standard. Mr. Lukis noted that the delay between the October 7, 2021 water violation and customer notice going out on November 4, 2021 was due to the incident being a non-emergency. He pointed to MA DEP allowance of customer notice up to 30 days after discovery of the violation.
Actions the Water District says it is taking to reduce TTHM are blending of water with MWRA, hydrant flushing, reducing organic materials in the water before treatment, and increasing sampling from the required quarterly frequency to a monthly frequency.
The Water District is looking to Weston & Sampson, a landscape, architecture, engineering and design firm, to serve as its expert in water treatment. The firm has conducted a water age study and source tracing study, and is assessing the source of the problem.
Additional interim solutions could include reducing THM at the tank through mixers, vents, and aeration. If funding is obtained, Mr. Blake predicted that these interim improvements could be completed in six to nine months.
Longer-term solutions that the Water District has been considering is alleviating the stagnant water problem at dead ends of the distribution system by eliminating dead ends with new water main connections. Schoolmasters Lane was mentioned as a possible location for this fix.
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The dates of January 3 to 7, 2022 will be the next sampling period for measuring TTHM levels. This value will be included in determining whether TTHM levels are still being exceeded.
One reason discussed for the record-high TTHM readings this year is the plentiful summer rain, which meant water customers did not water their lawns and gardens as much as in past years. This would have created less flow of new water through the distribution system. "Old water" was discussed as a risk factor for the creation of TTHM.
Regarding safety of the water, Mr. Lukis noted that it is safe for most people but there is not enough data to show its effect on immunocompromised people. However, in answer to a question from Select Board member Robert Gotti regarding whether infants and pregnant women should be concerned, Mr. Lukis answered that they should discuss their concerns with a doctor.
Mr. Gotti also inquired whether the Water District could commit to posting its monthly testing data on its website, but the question was unanswered at this meeting. The Chair moved the discussion to another question by Town Administrator Christopher Coleman before an answer could be given. (However, in a subsequent Dedham-Westwood Water District meeting, the Water District did answer Mr. Gotti’s question, agreeing to provide monthly testing results.)
In answer to a question by Mr. Walsh regarding what communications the Water District would have with customers, the Water District noted that it would be issuing press releases and that customers can call its hotline at 800-279-8810 or email waterquality@dwwd.org.
Recommendation for Candidate for Tax Collector
To fill the vacant Tax Collector position, Select Board determined to diverge from past practice of public candidate interviews and opted to accept an option – one of three- presented by Mr. Coleman, that staff interview the candidates and make a hiring recommendation to Select Board. Although Select Board Clerk John Hickey was inclined to follow past practice of Select Board members conducting the interviews themselves and publicly, he deferred to Mr. Walsh and Mr. Gotti who preferred not to conduct live, taped interviews. Mr. Walsh called live, taped interviews “awkward,” and Mr. Gotti noted his belief that the environment is not conducive to an effective interview. Mr. Walsh directed Mr. Coleman to be prepared with a hiring recommendation at the next Select Board meeting.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels
Public hearing outcomes:
Three applications involving Eversource’s requests, related to installation of equipment at Dartmouth Street and Washington Street were all approved, unanimously. On Dartmouth Street, two new vent posts will be installed. Equipment for new electric service to serve 280 Washington Street will include relocating a pole and installing new conduit lines.
A public hearing on allocating the tax burden among residential and commercial classes for FY 2022 was continued to the next Select Board meeting. Ms. Pam Dukeman, Assistant Town Administrator and Westwood’s Finance Director explained that FY 2022 values have not yet been certified by the Department of Revenue, which is a step that must precede the hearing. Select Board unanimously determined to continue the meeting to December 6, 2021.
Select Board unanimously approved the transfer of five sellers licenses for five vehicle dealerships, formerly owned by Prime Automotive, to Group 1 Automotive. All properties will remain with the same owner except for the Mazda dealership, which is on a lease.
Select Board unanimously approved a change of a catering manager at Courtyard Marriot Boston Dedham/Westwood and a change of manager at Del Friscos Grill. It also approved a new manager at Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, although in order to do so, Select Board waived its requirement that the manager be a Massachusetts resident. Select Board acknowledged the difficulty during the pandemic of hiring within the food service industry.
Select Board voted to extend the term of two Planning Board Associate Members. The term of Associate Member Steven Olanoff will run until November 2023 and the term of Associate Member Steven Rafsky will run until November 2024. The vote among Select Board and Planning Board members, who attended this portion of the meeting as a joint meeting, was unanimously in favor.
Rather than continue a hearing to December, Select Board authorized its Chair, Mr. Michael Walsh, to sign-off on the authorization for two affordable housing units located in the new construction on Washington Street. In a case of the developer seeking regulatory approval of affordable housing where the developer had failed to accurately describe the properties, the arrangement would help avoid delays, said Ms. Nora Loughnane, Director of Community & Economic Development. Mr. Walsh’s approval of the regulatory agreement will be contingent upon review and acceptance by Town Counsel.
Upcoming Select Board Schedule
The next Select Board meeting will be December 6, 2021, at 7 p.m. in hybrid format, with the possibility that an uptick in COVID could change the format to Zoom only.
Additional meeting dates were agreed upon as follows:
December 20, 2021
January 11, 2022
January 18, 2022
January 24, 2022
February 7, 2022
February 28, 2022
March 1, 2022
March 14, 2022
March 29, 2022
April 4, 2022 (beginning of transition back to in-person meetings, unless Governor’s allowance for remote participation is extended)
April 11, 2022
May 2, 2022
May 9, 2022
May 23, 2022
Updated 11/21/2021 at 2:49 p.m. The contact email address for Dedham Westwood Water District has been corrected with the addition of a "d" at the end. Subheadings were added for increased clarity in sections now subtitled, "Recommendation for Candidate for Tax Collector" and "Upcoming Select Board Schedule."
Updated 11/19/2021 at 8:40 a.m. A correction has been made to the description of three Eversource projects were were inaccurately described as all related to service at 280 Washington Street. Rather, one Eversource project involves the installation of vent posts at Dartmouth Street.
