Town Council Meeting #01-14 January 7, 1914 MINUTES FREEPORT TOWN COUNCIL MEETING #01-14 FREEPORT TOWN HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS TUESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2014 – 6:30 P.M. FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS: Pledge of Allegiance Everyone stood and recited the Pledge. SECOND ORDER OF BUSINESS: To waive the reading of the Minutes of Meeting #26-13 held on December 16, 2013 and to accept the Minutes as printed. MOVED AND SECONDED: To waive the reading of the Minutes of Meeting #26-13 held on December 16, 2013 and to accept the Minutes as printed. (DeGrandpre & Egan) VOTE: (7 Ayes) THIRD ORDER OF BUSINESS: Announcements Chair Hendricks announced that dog licenses expired on the 31st. There will be a Rabies Clinic at the Freeport Town Hall on January 11 from 9 a.m. to Noon. The storm date for the clinic is January 25th. For your convenience, the Town Clerk’s Office will be open for dog registrations at that time. A $25 late fee will be assessed on any dog not licensed by January 31. Licenses can also be obtained on line. The Circuit Breaker Program has been replaced by the Refundable Property Tax Credit that can be claimed on the Maine Individual Income Tax form. The new credit will become available January 2014 on the 2013 Maine Individual Income Tax form, 1040ME. For more information, contact Maine Revenue Services during normal work hours at 207 626-8475. Forms can be downloaded from the Maine Revenue Services' website- www.ME.gov/Revenue/forms or by calling 624-7894 to request that form be mailed to you. Councilor Egan pointed out that there will be an Active Living Forum next Wednesday night, January 15 at the Freeport Community Center. At this forum, they will take the input they received from the public in the fall and review an actual Active Living Plan. If anyone is interested in getting a preview of it, the Active Living Task Force is meeting this Thursday at 7:30 a.m. to look at the draft plan before it goes into the second draft that will be in front of the public. They are hoping as many residents as possible can come and provide input into that draft before it is finalized. Councilor Sachs, on behalf of the Freeport Elders, pointed out that regarding some of the State regulations that have changed regarding kitchens, the Elders are finding themselves in the same situation as changing State regulations and have suspended their Pancake Breakfasts for January and February. They will begin again in March and their Breakfast will take place on the first Saturday in March and go through November. FCS is suspending its Community Lunch program, hopefully temporarily while they make sure they have all of the training manuals in place for compliance with the State regulations. They want to be sure their volunteers are trained up as well. For the moment, the Third Friday Free Community Lunch at Freeport Community Center is not happening but they certainly hope to renew it in the spring along with the Elders' Pancake Breakfast. FOURTH ORDER OF BUSINESS: Information Exchange 1 Town Council Meeting #01-14 January 7, 1914 There was none. FIFTH ORDER OF BUSINESS: Town Manager’s Report Mr. Joseph reported: Several residents have recently inquired why they have seen Amtrak passenger trains stopping at crossings, sounding their horn, and being directed through the crossings by train conductors with flags. Upon contacting Pan Am Railways, we were told that this is standard procedure whenever there is any malfunction in the crossing signal systems. Apparently the recent wet and freezing weather caused malfunctions of the train crossing signals at several locations in Town. We are told by Pan Am Railways that these additional safety measures are automatically taken whenever there is a malfunction with crossing signals. I want to thank all of our Public Safety Departments for their handling of our recent slew of storms. Our Police and Fire Departments have been very busy responding to emergency calls during the storms. Needless to say, the Public Works Department has also been exceptionally busy with overnight storms, below zero temperatures and freezing rain. Public Works has also been operating at reduced strength, with several employees out with flu-like symptoms. Thank you to all of our Public Safety employees, your hand work during the past few weeks is much appreciated. The ice skating rink at the Community Center should be up by the end of this week or the beginning of next week at the latest. This is usually accomplished by the Public Works when continuous freezing temperatures become available. This year the installation has been delayed as the Public Works crew has been occupied with clearing snow and ice since before Christmas. Many residents may not be aware that this service is provided at little cost to the taxpayers, as the use of the parking lot is generously donated by Linda Bean. The only cost to taxpayers is the labor for setup and take down provided by the Public Works and Fire Departments. The Freeport Sewer District will host the Town Council for a tour and workshop on January 27, 2014 at12 the Sewer District Plant in South Freeport. (It will not be televised.) A special Town Council Workshop has been scheduled for next Tuesday, January 14 for a presentation of last year's Shellfish/Green Crab Study by Dr. Brian Beal. The workshop will begin at 6:30 p.m. It will be open to the public and it will be televised. Councilor Egan pointed out that the Sewer District has been making a lot of changes in the past five years to create more environmentally sensitive technology to keep the Harraseeket River clean. She feels it will be an interesting workshop for Councilors not familiar with the Sewer District. Councilor Sachs noted that the Teen Center has offered to keep the ice skating rink clean during the week. SIXTH ORDER OF BUSINESS: Public Comment Period – (30 Minutes) (Non-Agenda Items Only) MOVED AND SECONDED: To open the Public Comment Period for Non-agenda items only. (DeGrandpre & Egan) VOTE: (7 Ayes) Sande Updegraph provided a brief wrap-up of the Chamber's activities this year and what is to come. They are grateful for the Town's support. They are closing in on their goal of 200 members. They are hoping to reach 225 2 Town Council Meeting #01-14 January 7, 1914 by the end of 2014.Their Annual Meeting will take place on January 28, 2014 at the Harraseeket Inn. She hopes to see Council representation there. They have determined that people like to do business with people they know. Sally Walsh, resident, explained that she was at a November Council meeting discussing an accessibility issue which she has been concerned about. She sent the Council a letter but realizes how busy the Council is and does not want this issue to be forgotten. She asked if it was okay with the Council to gather a group of people with the Council's input who may have areas of expertise and can start studying this issue and report back to the Council with their progress. This will take away the burden from the Council. Chair Hendricks noted that he does not have a problem with Ms. Walsh's initiative but advised that the Council has not had time to address this issue. Councilor Egan mentioned that in conversations with Ms. Walsh, they discussed the possibility of establishing a task force to look at accessibility issues. She suggested putting this issue on a future agenda so the Council will have time to consider whether to establish a task force as appointed by the Council or whether Ms. Walsh creates a citizen group. Periodically they could be invited to present their findings. She would prefer to discuss this as a separate item and not in the Public Comment period. Chair Hendricks explained that this does not preclude Ms. Walsh from forming her own group. Councilor Tracy requested that Ms. Walsh explain what she is looking for. Ms. Walsh explained that she broke her leg a year and a half ago and when she came to Freeport to “use the Town” for enjoyment and shopping, she found it practically impossible. She brainstormed with friends and it evolved. She began discussions with Councilor Egan and transportation became part of the conversation as well as the whole picture. She feels it would be worthwhile to open the Town up to everybody. She would look at Town-owned properties as well as privately held properties. This would be an exploration-type of thing. MOVED AND SECONDED: To close the Public Comment Period for Non-agenda items only. (DeGrandpre & Egan) VOTE: (7 Ayes) SEVENTH ORDER OF BUSINESS: To take action on the following items of business as read by the Council Chairperson: ITEM #4-14 To consider action relative to adopting the January 7, 2014 Consent Agenda. BE IT ORDERED: That the January 7, 2014 Consent Agenda be adopted. (Hendricks & DeGrandpre) Chair Hendricks reviewed the items on the Consent Agenda for members of the public and explained the need for an amendment. MOVED AND SECONDED: To amend the Town Council Meeting Schedule to reflect that there will be a meeting here on January 14 in Town Hall at 6:30 p.m. as well as a meeting with the Sewer District on January 28 at the Sewer District Plant. (DeGrandpre & Egan) ROLL CALL VOTE: (7 Ayes) ROLL CALL VOTE ON AMENDED ORDER: (7 Ayes) ___________________________________________________________________________________ ITEM #5-14 To consider action relative to proposed amendments to Chapter 21: Zoning Ordinance Section 406 Medium Density A&B Districts as recommended by the Planning Board.