FY 2007 - Town of Uxbridge

This Annual report meets the requirements of
Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40
(www.mass.gov) and covers the major activities
of the Town during FY 2007 (July 1, 2006 to
June 30, 2007).
The Uxbridge Board of Selectmen is a fivemember
board of elected individuals who serve
as the Chief Executive Officers of the Town.
Each member is elected to a three-year term on
a staggered basis. The Board meets regularly on
the second and fourth Monday of every month,
with a number of special meetings taking place
as needed. All meetings are televised on Cable
Access Television. Copies of meetings are made
available for a nominal fee and the minutes of
all meetings are filed with the Town Clerk, as
required by law. Citizens may read or request
copies of meeting minutes (for all Boards and
Committees) at the Town Clerk’s Office or from
the Town’s website at www.uxbridge-ma.gov.
The Board of Selectmen is primarily a policysetting
body, deriving its authority from
Massachusetts General Law (www.mass.gov/
legis/laws/mgl/index.htm) and the Charter of
Uxbridge adopted by voters of the Town on April
9, 2002. (www.uxbridge-ma.gov/Documents/
Charter.pdf).
From July 1 to May 29, Selectman Julie Woods
served as Chairman, Selectman Arthur DuBois
as Vice Chairman and Selectman Dan Stack as
Clerk. Selectman DuBois chose not to run for
re-election at the end of his term. At the spring
elections Mr. Michael Potaski was elected to the
Board. A reorganizational meeting was held on
May 29, at which time Selectman Woods was
voted Chairman, Selectman Kevin Kuros, Vice
Chairman and Selectman Potaski, Clerk. Along
with Selectmen James Dwyer and Dan Stack,
these individuals comprised the Board of
Selectmen for the remainder of Fiscal Year (FY)
2007. The following represents some of the
efforts of the Board of Selectmen during this
fiscal year.
Appointments
One of the most significant duties of the Board
of Selectmen is the appointment of individuals
to a number of boards and committees. These
include:
• Affordable Housing Committee
• Blanchard Reuse Committee
• Board of Registrars
Board of Selectmen
• Cable Advisory Committee
• Compensation Advisory Board
• Council on Aging
• Cultural Arts Council
• Historic Cemetery Committee
• Historic District Commission
• Historical Commission
• Parade Committee
• Poll Workers
• Recreation Committee
• School Building Committee
• Town Common Committee
• Town Counsel
• Trust Fund Commission
Budget
The Board participated in a number of special
joint meetings with the School Committee and
Finance Committee under the direction of Town
Manager Jill Myers as part of the preparation of
the FY08 annual budget. As per Charter requirements,
Town Manager Myers held several sessions
with the Board prior to releasing her recommended
budget. Facing a potential cut of
$588 thousand to the schools and $355 thousand
to municipal departments, the Board of
Selectmen voted to schedule a Special Ballot
Election in order to see if citizens would
approve an override of so-called Proposition 2
1/2 to avoid drastic cuts to the budget or massive
transfers from savings to balance the budget
without cuts. The vote to set the ballot election
passed 4-1-0 and was held on May 7th.
Results are available in the Town Clerk’s report.
Licenses
The Board is also responsible for the issuance
and renewal of various types of licenses, including
those for the sale of alcohol. In November
the Board held eight public hearings at one
meeting in order to hear testimony from the
Police Department, business owners and other
interested parties relative to the service or sale of
alcohol to minors, a violation of MGL. In each
case the Board declined to take punitive measures,
choosing to issue a written warning to
each business and encourage them to undertake
additional training for their employees. All
the instances were a result of a standard Police
Department “sting” operation and no alcohol
was actually delivered to or consumed by
minors as a result of these incidents.
Land Acquisition and Disposition
The Board and its designees completed the
negotiations on land acquired for the purposes
of building a new school, located on Quaker
Highway. Authority for this acquisition had first
been granted by Town Meeting vote on
November 15, 2005. In March 2007, after due
diligence, the Board voted to sign the Purchase
and Sales Agreement. One member abstained.
In April, Orders of Taking were recorded on the
two parcels obtained in order to clear any
clouds on the titles.
The Board of Selectmen issued a request for
Proposals (RFP) for the sale of its 50% interest
in 66+/- acres of land located near the intersection
of Routes 16 and 146. This process was
successfully completed and a Purchase and
Sales Agreement was negotiated with Mr. Robert
Cherrier for the sale price of $1.2 million.
Zoning Enforcement
The Board handled a number of Zoning
Enforcement issues in its role by Bylaw as the
Zoning Enforcement Officials. The Board sent
letters to two businesses operating in violation of
zoning: Athena’s by Amanda and AAA Haul-Away.
In both instances business owners complied with
the Board’s requests to cease and desist operations
and no enforcement action was necessary.
Elections
The Board continued to work with the Town
Manager, Town Clerks and Board of Registrars to
appoint Poll Workers. The Board welcomed a
new Town Clerk, Joseph Kaplan, appointed by the
Town Manager in January, following the resignation
of the previous Town Clerk Holly Gallerani.
With the assistance of town counsel
Kopleman & Paige we clarified questions
regarding the role of the Town Clerk, establishing
that the “Town Clerk is a member of the
Board of Registrars, and may therefore vote and
take other official action in that capacity.” It
was further established that this position is held
“ex officio”; that it is held by virtue of holding
the appointed position of Town Clerk and would
end when that term of offices ends.
Initiatives
Cable Access Management: The Board of
Selectmen continued its efforts to resolve conflicting
state guidelines regarding the management
of PEG Access funds. PEG Access funds are
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