[Richard Caraviello]: 18th regular meeting of the Medford City Council. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Clerk]: Councilor Dello Russo? Councilor Falco? Present. Councilor Lank?
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Present.
[Clerk]: Councilor Long-Term?
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Present.
[Clerk]: Vice President Marks?
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Present.
[Clerk]: Councilor Scarpelli? Present.
[Richard Caraviello]: President Cariollo. Presidents, please rise and salute the flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. 17-423, offered by Councilor Knight, be it resolved that the Medford City Council receive monthly updates from the Member's Training Tower Committee on the status of their efforts in identifying potential locations for the new construction of the fire training tower. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much. With the recent passage of $2 million by the Medford City Council for a design study for the police station, There were a number of questions raised about the future of Medford's Fire Training Tower and Medford's Fire Training Academy. As such, the administration has agreed to appoint an ad hoc committee to begin to identify locations as to where this facility can go when it's reconstructed. So I'm asking for monthly updates from the administration or from actually the members of the committee as to the progress that they're making so that this can be a front burner item, Mr. President, making sure that it doesn't get lost in the shuffle of progress. So with that being said, I ask my colleagues to support the resolution and move for approval. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Councilor Dello Russo? Second. Second by Councilor, the motion by Councilor Knight, seconded by Councilor Dello Russo. All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes. 17.424 offered by Councilor Knight. Be it resolved that the city administration move, that the city administration forward to the city council a copy of the open space plan for the city of Medford. Councilor Knight?
[Adam Knight]: Yes, Mr. President. With the recent establishment of the Community Preservation Commission and also the recent discussions that this council has had relative to zoning, I think it's very important that a copy of the open space plan be forwarded to the Medford City Council. I'd also like to amend the paper, Mr. President, and ask that a copy of the open space plan also be forwarded to the Community Preservation Commission. With that being said, Mr. President, today, about a half an hour ago, when I checked my email, I did receive a response from Lauren Felch, the Medford City Council liaison, that has already forwarded myself a copy of the open space plan, so I'll be happy to share that with my colleagues. And I'd like to amend the paper just to request that it also gets sent to the Community Preservation Commission, Mr. President.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion by Councilor Knight, seconded by Councilor Lungo-Koehn. All those in favour? Aye. Motion passes. Mr. Clerk, if you could please record Councilor Falco as being present. 17.425, offered by Councilor Knight, being resolved. that the Medford City Council requests the following information be forwarded to the council. One, the Medford City Council requests the city solicitor offer an opinion on the following question. If the city of Medford adopts the provisions of Mass General Law, Chapter 40, Sections 22A, B, and or C, can the receipts received for the appropriation be credited to the special fund for the exclusive purposes of funding the position of a traffic engineer in the implementation of traffic calming measures. Two, the Medford City Council requests that the Director of Community Development offer an opinion on the following question. What is the estimated industry standard range for a public sector traffic engineer? Three, the Medford City Council requests that the Director of Finance and Auditing provide an opinion on the following. What is the annual breakdown of receipts received credited to the city's general fund following the fulfillment of contractual obligations to the parking management vendor since the implementation of the parking management program? Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much, Mr. President. With the passage of the Municipal Modernization Act on Beacon Hill, Local municipalities have been given some flexibility in regards to their parking receipts. Presently, parking receipts are put into the general fund. And with the adoptions of section 22A, B, and C, these receipts can be reserved for appropriation. The theory and the thinking behind this resolution, Mr. President, is that we have a parking management program that's in the community where people are required to pay to park in our business districts and elsewhere. And if these funds can be reserved for specific appropriation, like a traffic engineer, then we might be able to fund this position off the tax rolls through the parking management program. So the idea is to, first of all, ask the question to the city solicitor as to whether or not if we adopt these sections, can we reserve the funds for a specific and exclusive principle, which would be the funding of a traffic engineer and the implementation of traffic calming measures that come from that traffic engineer. Number two, what's the industry standard salary range? How much do we have to pay? a traffic engineer annually to be competitive and to get somebody that's good? And then the third question is, what's the breakdown of receipts? So do we take in enough money to internally fund a traffic engineer off the tax rolls? And with the adoption of these sections under the general laws, can we exclusively earmark these funds for the sole and exclusive purpose of hiring a traffic engineer and implementing traffic calming measures, Mr. President? So that's the resolution. That's the breakdown of it. I'd ask my colleagues for their support, and I'd move for approval.
[John Falco]: Thank you. Councilor Falco. Thank you, Mr. President. I just want to thank Councilman Knight for bringing this forward. The position of a traffic engineer is something that I have been advocating for for the past couple of years. I've offered a number of resolutions on this. I think if this is a way that we can actually pay to support this type of position, I'm all ears and hoping that this is an avenue that we can take to actually fund the position. Like I said before, A traffic engineer is desperately needed in this community. You can go to basically any neighborhood throughout this community and there are traffic issues that need to be addressed. We are a cut through community with over five state roads that cut through Medford and this needs to be addressed. So I definitely am in favor of this resolution and second the motion.
[Richard Caraviello]: On the motion by Councilor Lococo.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you. Briefly, I just wanted to make sure that we're asking for, to be clear, we're asking for the annual breakdown of receipts since the inception of the program. Yeah, if we could just maybe add that language. What is the annual breakdown of receipts from the inception of the program? Just to make sure we don't get just the one year in receipts. Oh, it does say that? Okay, yep, sorry. Gotcha, clear.
[Richard Caraviello]: On the motion by Councilor Knight, seconded by? By Councilor Falco. Roll call vote. Roll call vote has been requested, Mr. Clerk. Please call the roll.
[Clerk]: Councilor Dello Russo. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Councilor Knight. Yes. Councilor Lockern. Yes. Vice President Monson. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. Yes. President Cavioli.
[Richard Caraviello]: Yes. Seven in the affirmative, none in the negative. Motion passes. 17-426, offered by Councilor Knight and Scarpelli. Be it resolved that the Medford City Council congratulate Stephen Scapperardi and his teammates from the EMAC Celtics on an undefeated record resulting in the gold medal at the 2017 Massachusetts Special Olympics Winter Games. Be it further resolved that Mr. Scapperardi be invited to the future council meeting for the purpose of receiving an official Council commendation to commemorate this momentous achievement. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much. I'd like to thank my colleague, Councilor Scarpelli, as well, for joining me in bringing this resolution forward. It really feels as though it's a self-explanatory resolution. Stephen Scaparrotti is a gentleman who lives in our community, who was recently fortunate enough to win a gold medal in the Winter Games out in Auburn, Massachusetts. Mr. President, I had the opportunity of seeing Stephen a couple of weeks ago. And out of his pocket, he pulled his gold medal, and he wouldn't let me touch it or wear it. So I'm hoping that when we bring him up here to give him his citation, he'll let me put it on, Mr. President. But he's a great kid, and I think this is something that definitely deserves congratulations and accommodation, Mr. President. The eMark has been doing a great job in our community, and this is just one of the many services that they provide their clientele. I'd like to congratulate Stephen on his efforts and Stephen on his hard work. They don't keep individual statistics, but from what I understand, he was dominant in the four games that they went undefeated, Mr. President. So, I'd ask my council colleagues to support the resolution and move for approval. Thank you.
[George Scarpelli]: Councilor Scarpelli. I thank my fellow — thank you, Mr. President. I thank my fellow council, Mr. Knight, for bringing this forward. Stephen's a remarkable young man. I think that he's — He's embarking on the next chapter of his athletic prowess, which is the softball representation. He wants to make sure he wears his Method uniform proudly at practices. Great family, great young man. Can't wait to see him here. Thank you.
[John Falco]: Councilor Falco. Thank you, Mr. President. I also want to congratulate Stephen on a great accomplishment. A great citizen. He does a lot in his community. He's the usher at the 4 p.m. Mass at St. Francis every Saturday, and he's an all-around good guy, so congratulations to Stephen.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor De La Rosa. And he watches the council meetings. He does. Every Tuesday night. Stephen, you're a great American. Yes, he is.
[Richard Caraviello]: Councilor Marks. I'm sorry.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. Um, I believe it was last year that he also, uh, won, uh, the same award, Mr. President. And, um, so this is multiple awards by Steven. And as my council colleagues mentioned, um, he is, uh, worthy of, uh, uh, citation from this council and, um, uh, move approval, Mr. President.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. Vice President, and personally, I've known the Schiaparelli family and Steven since he was a little child, and I've seen him grow up into a very nice young man, and his family should be very proud of him. On the motion by Councilor Knight and Schiaparelli, seconded by Councilor Falco. All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes. 17-427, offered by Councilor Falco. be it resolved that the sidewalk in front of the parking lot at the Lawrence Memorial Hospital on Governor's Avenue be replaced or repaired in the interest of public safety. Councilor Falco.
[John Falco]: Thank you, Mr. President. I received a number of calls this past week with regard to the sidewalk in front of the parking lot at Lawrence Memorial Hospital. When you're exiting the parking lot, if you take a left that side of the sidewalk all the way down to I think it's around 200 Governors Ave. There's a stretch of sidewalk there that is in disrepair. It's really a trip hazard. There's a number of panels that the cement missing, it's been broken up over the years and it really needs to be replaced. So I just want to see if we can get the DPW out there to take a look, see what we can do to either repair it or replace it in the interest of public safety. Like I said, it's a trip hazard to anyone that's out there and especially with the Spring and summer months being here, there are many more people out walking around, and this needs to be addressed sooner than later. If I may, Councilor Caraviello, I know when we talk about sidewalks a lot of times, we also talk about stumps. And so if I could amend the resolution to include if the DPW could also remove a stump in front of 27 Saunders Street in the interest of public safety as well. 27 Saunders Street, Mr. Clerk. Thank you very much, Mr. President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor Dello Russo. Mr. President, while we're on the subject of sidewalks, it's been pointed out to me on more than one occasion that the sidewalks on Grove Street are at some points impassable when being traversed with a baby carriage or stroller. So if the Commissioner of Public Works would inspect those portions of the street and repair them accordingly, uh, the citizens would be deeply appreciative.
[Adam Knight]: Thank you. Councilor Nice. Mr. President, thank you very much. And thank you to councilor Falco for bringing this resolution forward. Um, the area in question that he speaks of was recently excavated, um, for the purpose of public utility upgrade. And, uh, that trench work was patched and now we have to wait one year, I believe, uh, until they come back and resurface the roadway. So I'd like to get a copy of the, scheduled from the engineering department as to when that's going to take place as well. So I'd amend the paper asking the question to the engineering department as to when the stretch of Governor's Ave will be repaved and resurfaced as a result of the excavation work that was performed by the public utility.
[Richard Caraviello]: On the motion by Councilor Falco as amended by Councilor Dello Russo and Councilor Knight. All those in favor? All those in favor? Motion passes. 17-428 offered by Vice President Marks, be it resolved that the MBTA assessment to the city of Medford for providing transportation services be discussed. Vice President Marks.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. For those who are not aware, the MBTA assesses the City of Medford each and every year off our cherry sheet, Mr. President. This year's assessment to the taxpayers of this community is $3,709,296 for services provided by the MBTA. Out of the 175 cities and towns that are in this local assistance fund, Medford has the sixth highest assessment in Massachusetts. The MBTA has over $66 million in tax-exempt property in the city of Medford. The Salem Street car bonds tax-exempt property is $2,904,200. And the Wellington properties is valued, assessed at $63,095,800. And that's a combined $66 million of tax-exempt property in the city here, Mr. President. The MBTA has four major sources of revenue. One being the fare blocks and T-passes that we all buy to use the train and buses and so forth. The second is local municipal assessments, and that's the 3,709,000 I spoke about that the city of Medford is being charged this year. The third is 20% of the 5% sales tax, excluding meals tax, goes to operate the MBTA. And there's also a fourth, which is discretionary state assistance. That is when the MBTA is having a shortfall, the state is obligated to step in and fund whatever shortfall there is, Mr. President. So as you can see, as a Medford resident, if you are using the T, you're paying it to buy a T pass, You're paying it through the local municipal assessment, so that's the second way you're paying as a Medford resident. You're paying any time sales tax, so that's the third way you're paying, Mr. President. So as a Medford resident, we're paying three times for the MBTA. And, you know, because our proximity to Boston Because of our transportation, we have great transportation in this community, we find ourselves being the hub of commuters on a daily basis that come to use Wellington, that come to use the commuter rail in West Method, and come to jump on our buses, including the express buses, into town. And I think it's only appropriate, Mr. President, that Method residents, bearing the cost, in the form of this local municipal assessment that we enact legislation that would allow us to offset any assessed property that the MBTA has against our local assessment. Now, I'm not sure if this has ever been done before, Mr. President, but I offer tonight the following language be sent to the city solicitor for his input, then to our state delegation to file legislation to amend Chapter 161, Section 9 of the Mass General Laws. And the language is, and I can supply this to you, Mr. Clerk, beginning on July 1st, 2018, any city or town that contributes to the Mass Bay Transit Authority State and Local Assistance Fund, which has MBTA tax-exempt property located within said city or town, shall have 100% of the assessed value accredited against its share of the MBTA assessment. So, Mr. President, I would ask that that be sent to the city solicitor to draft a formal ordinance, or actually probably a home rule petition in this case, Mr. President, and hopefully offset the assessment that we're being hit up as a community, almost $4 million for T-Access, while people in Winchester, Arlington, and all the surrounding communities are coming to our city, Mr. President, to use the T. So I would offer that in the form of a motion, Mr. President, and move approval.
[Richard Caraviello]: On the motion by Councilor Marks, seconded by Councilor Scarpelli. All those in favor? Please record Councilor Knight as being in opposition.
[Adam Knight]: Negative. I'm concerned there'll be a negative impact on the extension of the Green Line with an adoption of such a matter.
[Richard Caraviello]: Council Member O'Karn.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: If you could just read back the exact resolution that we're voting on. The wording. Mr. Vice President, would you like to read that back, please? Yeah, if you'd do it one more time.
[Michael Marks]: I can read it out, yes. Thank you. Beginning on July 1st, 2018, any city or town that contributes to the Mass Bay Transit Authority State and Local Assistance Fund, which has MBTA tax-exempt property located within said city or town, shall have 100% of the assessed value accredited against its share of the MBTA assessment. So right now, we have over $66 million in tax-exempt property that's owned by the MBTA. We paid $3.7 million in a T assessment for T services, and I think we should be able to offset what we should be getting in in revenue from the MBTA against our assessment.
[Robert Cappucci]: Thank you.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor Dello Russo. I wish to be marked in opposition on grounds that such a effort, if ever, uh, it would become fruit, uh, brought to fruition would create a financial mayhem and chaos in the Commonwealth.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Mr. Clerk, would you please call the roll?
[Richard Caraviello]: It was done. On the motion by Councilor Nunez, seconded by Councilor Scarpelli. and we're marking Councilor Knight as being in opposition and Councilor Dello Russo as being in opposition. I'm sorry. All those in favor? Motion passed. 17-430 offered by Vice President Mox being resolved that the recent Oh, I'm sorry. 17.429, offered by Vice President Marks, be it resolved that the city's unaccounted for water and leak detection program be discussed. Vice President Marks.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. We just had a meeting with the Water and Sewer Commissioners regarding the combining of the water and sewer enterprise account and also regarding the fixed charge that will be appearing on residents' bill coming this August of 2017. At the meeting, Mr. President, we discussed a number of issues, one being leak detection. And I just want to discuss tonight the fact that, I think it was about eight months ago, the mayor invited a private company up here to City Hall to give us a quick demonstration, thank you, quick demonstration on a product that's being used around this state. And the product is installed, it's an acoustic whistling device that's installed on water meters, on water mains and gate valves between streets, and they're spaced out in a grid across the city, and the company would listen to the devices overnight, and they would be able to tell if there are leaks in particular areas and be able to pinpoint within a few feet where these leaks are coming from. And knowing, Mr. President, that this city right now has roughly 17 to 20% is unaccounted for water. And that's comprised of buildings in the city and fire hydrants that currently are not needed. That's considered unaccounted for. Water leaks is part of unaccounted for water. And also the municipal and the school side, which currently are needed, but don't pay a water bill. That's also listed under unaccounted for water. And that comprises roughly 17 to 20% of what our entire water bill is in this community. The city is also weighing in to purchase a $1 million leak detection system to reduce the amount of leakage in the pipes. And I would ask, Mr. President, tonight, if we can get an update on the company. I believe it was Akalara Technologies. Ecolara Technologies that came before us and made a presentation many months back. And I think it's important, Mr. President, that we're charging rate payers in this community tens of hundreds of thousands of dollars for unaccounted for water. And if there's a technology out there that can help us and alert us to particular hot spots in the community where we are leaking a lot of water, I think it would be worth its weight, Mr. President. Roughly 90% of the leaks don't surface. So it's not like you see bubbling water and say, ha ha, there's a leak. We have a lot of underground leaks, Mr. President, that never surface. One company that attended the meeting also said that within a five year period, if we enacted this particular program, we could save about $5 million with leak detection, saving up to 15 million gallons of water annually. And I think, Mr. President, it's only appropriate that we, on behalf of the ratepayers of this community, look any way we can, whether it's leak detection, whether it's I&I inflow and infiltration, where our sewer pipes are accepting groundwater, and that groundwater is being treated as raw sewage, costing the ratepayers millions of dollars a year, Mr. President. It's our obligation to move forward. And we have $7.5 million in an enterprise account that could be used for infrastructure improvements. I don't see any reason why we don't move forward on this, Mr. President. So that would be my resolve that we ask what happened to the technology that the mayor presented to us back some eight months ago, and what are we doing to help improve the leak detection in our community?
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. Vice President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: On the motion, Councilor Donald Berthiau. Mr. President, that presentation was the last official act of my tenure as president of this body, and I wouldn't be surprised if it turned up in the budget in a matter of weeks. We hope it will. Councilor Knightth.
[Richard Caraviello]: Second the motion, Mr. President. On the motion by Councilor Marks.
[Robert Penta]: Name and address for the record, please. My name is Robert Pantazero, Summit Road, Medford, Mass., former member of the Saugus party. My records that I have dating back when I was in the council go back to 2010. when this proposal was made. And the very first proposal was made by David Hatzell, who was a city engineer some multiple years ago, 20 years ago, when he got involved in an I&I program that saved the city approximately a million gallons of water per day. Now, subsequent to that period of time, up until now, you've had loans, grant loans, from the MWRA that either were interest-free or minimum and some of them have ranged anywhere from $5 million to $3.5 million. The sad part about all of this, as Councilor Marksley alluded to, is the fact that you have unaccounted for water in this city, which ranges anywhere from 17, 18, 19, 20%. Nobody really has the final handle on that. But there are a lot of services in this community that are using our water for which taxpayers, city taxpayers are paying for, and that's unfair too. Now you folks just passed, I believe it was last week, the combining of your water and sewer accounts together. And I would suggest as an addendum to the resolution tonight, that a request be made to your city solicitor for the purposes of, since these have now been merged together, can those monies be used for any other enterprises or any other general expenditures within your enterprise fund? checking this out with other states, and every state does it different as it relates to enterprise funds, I think it's important to note, because if you have merged these two accounts together financially, and where one has a deficit in one year and one might have an excess in another year, it would be very convenient to offset one from the other. Again, I don't know. Every state does it different. So I think it would behoove you to check this out with your city solicitor as to how the methods merging of its water and sewer account is used as it relates to any other fund, general fund, enterprise funds, general revenue account funds that the city has, because in some states, they're allowed to take the excess profit. Also, you folks, just as a reminder, what took place last week, You were told at a meeting by Mr. Fox and by the chairman of the Water and Sewer Commission that the water rates are going to be reduced by approximately 3% this year, by approximately 3%. But at the same time, they're going to be introducing what they call a connectivity fee. And the connectivity fee is going to be going toward pipe size coming into your house, anywhere from a half inch up to 10 inches, depending whether you're residential or whether you're a commercial. And I think it's important to note that I think the chairman of the board said, well, we're not going to call it connectivity. We're going to call it baseline. But baseline already has its position. It has its position within the Mass General Laws under chapter 60. Where is it here? It's under chapter 65, chapter 165, section 2B, where it talks about baseline having an effect on a city or town which does not reflect upon connectivity. It goes against large consumer use or the rate of use in the community, whether it goes up or down. And I think that's something you as a council need to get, that's got to be corrected. And hopefully, I wish somebody from the Water and Sewer Department were here, chairman or otherwise, to explain this connectivity fee because I think as we all know, people are looking at it as another fee. How can you be charging another fee on a bimonthly basis when in fact, your water rates are going down by 3%. But since, in fact, I believe it was alleged that there is a deficit on the sewer department side, and now with the merging of the water and sewer accounts together, I think the second question needs to be asked. Can the excess from one, which would be the revenue, the profit, or the excess money on that, can you use it to offset the deficit from one to the other? Because if you look at the merging of the two, It incorporates all your vehicles. It incorporates your employees, equipment, salaries, and everything else that goes along with it. So I think there is a benefit to what Councilor Marks is alluding. But more importantly, I don't think that the Medford taxpayer, knowing that there's over $7.5 million in excess account in this particular area, should be taken for the ride of saying, hey, You know, if you're right, Councilor Markson, it's up to 21%. But whatever it is, there should be a full accounting of the water and the metering of the water and how it's being distributed here in the city of Medford. You know, we all run businesses. Probably some people use more water than others. But if you're going to go that route and you're going to start charging people for the size of their water meter coming in, water pipe coming in, You know, that's going to have a profound effect on each and every taxpayer here in the city of Medford, because that's going to be on a bimonthly charge. And as the enterprise fund will tell you, and all you have to do is look up other states and other cities and towns and how the merging of enterprise funds, what you can and cannot do with them. And it's a whole host of activities. For example, in Winchester, they have an enterprise fund, but they also have an enterprise activity account fund. And again, trying to get a handle on that. It also deals with recreation. and a whole host of other things. Granted, Winchester's a town and not a city, but it's the intent and it's the purpose of the legislation and the merger that is written. So I would suggest that one of you make this request of the city solicitor, just what, in fact, does this enterprise fund, now that it's merged together, water and sewer, allow the city of Medford to do with those monies? Can they transfer them? Can they merge them? Can they be used to offset? It doesn't seem logical or with any sense of common sense that you could be having a profit in the water side and you have a deficit on the sewer side. But to this day, you haven't been able to offset it. But what you're going to be doing is charging a connectivity fee on your pipeline coming in, which supposedly will offset the sewer charge according to what was told you last week. But at the same time, you're going to be reducing your water rate by 3%. It's a lot for people to understand. It doesn't make any sense at all, especially when you're sitting on seven and a half million dollars, whether you want to call it surplus, reserve, or whatever it might be. This is a huge issue that's before you right now. Other than your tax bill, it's the next biggest thing that the citizen of this community has to deal with. And just for an example, relative to a connectivity fee. And your town of Stoneham, which is right across the border, they just have a one-time connectivity charge. New house going up, new resident, new line going in, $50 for a residential unit, up to one to five units. And anything over that in a commercial, it's $1,000 hookup. And that's what it might be. One-inch service is $500. A one- to two-inch service is $750. And a two-inch service or above is $1,000. Numbers are a lot lower than what's being proposed here. It's a one-time fee, and that fee is at the discretion of the Director of Public Works and the City of Stoneham. Every city and town does it different. I understand that. But it's hard to explain to the Mr. and Mrs. Medford resident that when you just gave them a new tax increase in their bill, when you're hitting them with a CPA tax, Community Preservation Act tax, for which the Commonwealth will not even meet its obligation to match the dollar for dollar that each rate payer is paying, Because that's what the people voted on under that assumption. And now you may be hitting them with a connectivity fee. It's just not fair. So as Councilor Marks has alluded to, and hopefully the council will go along with it, I really think you need a complete assessment of all the water, all the sewer usage here in the city of Metro to get a better handle as it relates to what's going on. And it's just a shame that your Water and Sewer Commissioners do not appear before this board to explain this. This is really an involved process. But you're once again hitting the rate payers with another fee. And I would assume that that would be very hard to explain, very hard to explain when you're sitting on $7.5 million profit at the present time. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much. I do believe we had a two-hour meeting on this topic last week. I certainly support Councilor Knox's resolution relative to a leak detection program for our unaccounted water in our community, Mr. President. I move for approval on the paper as filed. Councilor Lungo-Koehn.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you, President Caraviello. I too move approval. I think a leak detection program for unaccounted for water is something that we voted for many times over the last several years, and I believe it is in the works, and I hope that we do move forward with that, and I thank Council Member Max for bringing that forward. With regards to what Councilor Penta said, I too agree. I was not happy with the connectivity fee that was voted on by the Water and Sewer Commissioners. But last week at our meeting, it did make it much more clear, and we were able to ask questions. It wasn't almost an hour and a half meeting, but we were able to better understand what is taking place. And even though it is very confusing, it was good to know that the water rate will not be going up. It's the connectivity fee. is put in place. I guess a number of other cities and towns have it. We were kind of behind the eight ball on it. And I don't think any of us maybe are happy about it. But the water rate is going down 3%. And it's almost a way we have this number that we have to meet every year with regards to how much we are going to owe the MWRA. And it's almost a different way to calculate it. And I said in the meeting, I'm not worried about the next year. And I hope that the Water and Sewer Commission, like they stated to us, at last week's meeting always keeps it so we're not getting excess from our rate payers. My worry is that we one day will have a Water and Sewer Commission that maybe doesn't see it that way and uses the fee as well as the rate to increase what we're charging our rate payers. And that's something that I am worried about, although we don't have a say on what the Water and Sewer Commission does and how they vote. And I think it would be important, They were there for two hours last week, and it was hard to ask them to come to our meeting to explain this live to the people who are watching at home and the people that have called us or emailed us with concerns after they heard of the vote for the fee. But I think it's important to kind of, as Councilors, let them know what we did talk about, that our worries were at ease to a point because we met last week. And I think it's something that I, as one Councilor, wanted to let the public know, but I do see Councilor Penta's points and I think Councilor Marks are putting this forward. Maybe one day we will be able to get the Water and Sewer Commissioners here just to explain it more in depth for the public to understand. One point on that though is we did request that the Water and Sewer Commission put this explanation within one of the next Water and Sewer bills and I think that's really important because when we did find out about the vote that's when, you know, people started getting concerned. So something within the next bill or two, letting them know prior to this fee that they're going to see on their bill, letting them know what this vote means, that the rate is going down, that the fee is in place and why it's in place. I think that's very important.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion, name and address of the record, please.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: Andrew cast an anti Christian street method, Massachusetts, The ex-Councilor brought up some good points about this issue. Why would we merge the water accounts, the income and the sewerage? I can understand, as it was stated, for making a simpler accountant to be one number combined instead of two numbers. But my concern is, will this ever hurt us, the payer, because of this combination? I don't know if anyone has that answer, or I could guarantee that answer either. Number two, this connectivity fee, is this a one-time charge at the town next to us, or is this a yearly fee, or biannually? Does anyone know that? Councilor Langelgren.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: I believe it was a yearly fee that you'll be paying bimonthly within your bill. So depending on the pipe, you're charged, say, $50 for the year, but you pay it divided by six per bill. So you'd pay $7 per pay period.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: For a total of one year or continuously?
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: That would be for one year. It's going to be continued. The Water and Soil Commission voted this in.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: Is it yearly? After the first year, it will continue as a yearly extra cost.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: It's a yearly cost. The Water and Sewer Commission would argue whether it's an increased cost, because they lowered the rate.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: But this is not a one-time charge for 12 months. It's going to be done continuously after the year is over.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Yes, unless the Water and Sewer Commission changes their vote at some point.
[Richard Caraviello]: It will help provide a revenue stream for the water and sewer.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: As it stands right now. OK, thank you.
[Adam Knight]: One of the information councilor night prior to last week's meeting with the council, the water and sewer commission had their monthly meeting and I attended that monthly meeting and at the monthly meeting they had a draft letter that they were passing around and they voted on including this draft letter in your upcoming bill. I think they just want to put the finishing touches on it and make sure it reads smoothly, but you will see a breakdown and an explanation within your next bill. I'm authored by the water and sewer commission and Ron Baker.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Councilor.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: OK, point number two, why a connection fee if we're already connected to our water lines? I can understand for new construction, there must be fees to hook it up to the street. But we're already connected. I kind of see why, in a fair way, you would add such a fee, or the state did, or the NWRA. I would say, why not simply raise the usage rate only if needed, because we're used to that every so many years, and it doesn't condolute the issue by having a connectivity fee forever and a day. It's just, I can't understand it. Unless some water meters are not being used, and they're basically trying to get a connectivity fee yearly, even if they use zero cubic feet of water, like The gas, natural gas has a supply side, and with all their hundreds of sentences, we'll need to try to decipher their bills. It doesn't seem fair, and I'm concerned it's gonna cost us not only in combination fees, but there might be extra costs, there might be a method to the reasoning here that might cost us greatly in the future. And the connectivity fee, I can't understand that unless we're gonna do a new connection. Thank you for this.
[Richard Caraviello]: On the motion by Council Mark seconded by Councilor Knight. All those in favor. Aye. Motion passes. Motion to spend the rules by Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Fees and the merging of the water and sewer accounts. I'd like to take that paper up, Mr. President and adopt the committee report. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: 17 of 422 committee for of the whole meeting report may 2nd, 2017 on the water and soil commission connection fees, merging of the water and sewer accounts and other issues.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, the, um, Medford city council made recommendations that the city audit to prepare the sources of revenue in the water and sewer enterprise account and provide that breakdown to the council. and the Medford City Council also requested that the mayor report back to the council on the status of the proposed leak detection program and equipment requested by the Water and Sewer Commission. Upon a motion by one of the councilors, the meeting report was reported out of committee and passed. The committee report was included on our packet today, and I move for adoption of such, Mr. President.
[Richard Caraviello]: Second. On the motion by Councilor Knight, seconded by Councilor Dello Russo. All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes. While we're under suspension, Reports of the committee. 17-421, Committee of the Whole meeting report, April 25, 2017, on Clipper Ship Connection. Councilor Nice.
[Adam Knight]: Yes, Mr. President. The Medford City Council met at the Committee of the Whole on April 25th to discuss the proposed Clipper Ship Connection program, specifically the part between the Crystal Campbell Parkway and Riverbend Park. There were recommendations that were made at this, that the DPW commissioner examined the stretch of land proposed for the path and address any safety concerns, that the commission hold a meeting with the abutters and residents of the area to address these concerns before the public hearing, that the engineer look at any quick fix improvements for pedestrian safety along Riverside Ave, Mr. President. The committee report requested that the committee report be reported out and the matter be reviewed in another 90 days. The meeting adjourned at 7 39 PM. Since that time, Mr. President, it's been brought to my attention that There's been some environmental concerns in the area based upon some research that's been done over there, but it's also my understanding that those environmental concerns can be fixed and there is a strong potential that the proposed Clippership connection will move forward as designed. The committee of the whole meeting included a presentation by Kyle Hagland from the DCR who assured the community that design alternatives will be made to the initial proposal. There were a number of residents that were present that evening. It has some concerns about the distance of the proposed path to their private property. There's been other projects in other communities where they've had the same concerns, and they've been able to iron those concerns out, Mr. President, through what we call working together. So I'm hopeful that these issues will be resolved and the Clippership Connector can move forward. In the meantime, however, Mr. President, I'd move to adopt the committee report, and I look forward to our meeting in what would now be 83 days.
[John Falco]: Councilor Falco. Thank you, Mr. President. Before we approve this, I know there are actually a number of people here tonight that wanted to talk about this topic.
[Richard Caraviello]: Councilor Falco yields the floor to the residents. Name and address for the record, please. I'm Matthew Bell, 37 Fells Avenue. And the young lady? Say your name. If you could put the mic down for her to help her out.
[Unidentified]: Say your name. I'm Violet.
[Richard Caraviello]: Violet?
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_04]: Violet who?
[Unidentified]: Bell.
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_04]: Hi, Violet. Violet Bell, also at 37 Phelps Avenue. Do you want to talk first, or do you want me to talk first? OK. We just wanted to add our two cents about the bike path and give you just a short story about our experience living in the city of Jerusalem. We lived there from 2010 to 2013 before we moved to Medford. That's where I got the hat. I was a Middle East correspondent for WGBH, the world's public radio program. And Jerusalem, as you probably have heard, can be a stressful place. But when we moved there, we were delighted to find out that just after we moved, they finished a bike path right in our neighborhood that went right down the street to the kids' school. So for the three years that we lived there, despite all the stresses, my wife and I look back at our time there and the bike path always comes up as this fantastic thing about the quality of life there. The fact is You know, the fact that we could get up in the morning, get the kids on bikes, ride about a mile down the path, you know, with not going on traffic, getting to school, then pick them up, we'd ride back. It just, it's something that I think a lot of people, if they don't, if they don't bike commute, you might not realize how huge that is for a family and how, what a huge thing for the quality of life that is. Violet has a very short speech.
[Richard Caraviello]: Violet, would you like to come up here where it's a little shorter for her, where she can read it a little easier? Would you like to come up here and read?
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_04]: Or do you want to read from over there? You two are nervous. Okay, that's all right. We can send an email to John.
[Richard Caraviello]: If you like, I'll be happy to read it for her, if she'd like me to read it for her. Do you want him to read it, Violet?
[Bruce Kulik]: All right, thank you very much.
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_04]: Thank you very much.
[Bruce Kulik]: Name and address for the record, please. I'm Bruce Kulik, 168 Grove Street in Medford, and also the vice chair of the Medford Bicycle Advisory Commission. And I just wanted to make two points. One is the Medford Bicycle Advisory Commission voted several meetings ago to actually endorse this project, and we are looking forward to it moving forward. I want to make sure that people were aware of that. The second, um, I was not actually at the committee, the whole meeting. So perhaps this information didn't come up there, but it was just misreported, but it was alleged that the path would be traversing private property. And from all the analysis we've done in looking at the city assessor records and so forth, what we have seen is that the path itself, in fact, will not be traversing any private property, but rather an amalgam of city, DCR, highway department, and land that's under the control of the, I believe the Medford Housing Department, as well as one private development for which the Commonwealth has an easement. So it's our belief that we have all the property in place as long as each of those government agencies is willing to be able to go forward with it. I wanted to clarify that.
[Richard Caraviello]: Point of information, Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: I think the issue was the distance that the proposed pathway was from private property at some spots. I believe it was stated that it would be less than six feet, six feet from private property. Maybe I misspoke when I gave my presentation.
[Bruce Kulik]: I do believe that there are some stretches that are fairly narrow, but nonetheless are wide enough for the path to be placed and to provide an adequate buffer to the property. But that's clearly something the design team will be looking at to make sure that that fits properly.
[Clerk]: We'll see.
[Bruce Kulik]: Thank you. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Name and address for the record, please.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: Castagnetti, Andrew. The man's right. Usually when the city comes up with an idea, I'm not usually for it because it might cost us money or aggravation or a combination thereof sometimes. However, I believe we in East Medford deserve this as a connection to West Medford all the way through to Assembly Road so I can continue my bike path. Also, I must say, Route 93 got sound barriers on the west side, but the other child on my side, east forward, we never got any sound barriers. If you're gonna give it to one child, you should give it to both childs, or else Paul did not bring any presents home whatsoever for Christmas. That's only my opinion, of course. You're welcome, Councilor Dello Russo. So why not us in East Medford? Besides, there is a law, I believe it goes back to 1647, Cuomo of the Massachusetts, probably the oldest law in the 13 colonies, that states we the people have egress rights to walk along waterways, up to 20 feet, I believe, above high mean high tide. So if properties were built close to the waterway, that's a nice amenity for them to have in the real estate business. However, the Supreme Court also backed up this law on Cape Cod with Smith and Wesson's Peninsula down in Kituit. It's the people's right of way. I hope it goes forward as it should, as in West Medford. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. Kessing.
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_14]: Name and address of the record, please. Jason Eastman, 204 Fells Avenue. As a daily bike commuter, I just wanted to express my full support for this project. I think it's a great idea for the health of the community, the health of the city, and for just the infrastructure and everything. So thank you for all the support. Thank you. Council Member O'Karen.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: I'll yield to the speakers at the podium. I'm sorry.
[Martha Ondras]: Yeah, I'm Martha Andrus. I live at 45 Kilgore Avenue in West Medford, and I just wanted to go on record that I think the bike path is a great idea. I don't even own a bike. And I'm 68 years old, and I like a lot of older people. In Medford, I like to walk places. I don't like to get in the car and have to park and so forth. So I just wanted to point out, it's not just the bike people who use the bike path. Where I live in West Medford, I'm right up against DCR property along the river. And I love it. My husband and I sit on our porch. We watch people go by. We watch wildlife. You know, it's a real pleasure. So I just want to say bike paths are something I'm very interested in. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Name and address of the record, please.
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_06]: Emily Stein, 177 High Street. I'm also here to support the Clippership Connector. My husband and I walked the goat path that currently exists there a couple of years ago. And it was just the most beautiful part of Medford I'd seen. And I think for us to own this beauty of a river that we have in our front yard, in our backyard, it's something that I think more people need to see and need to appreciate. The other thing is this .5, .6 mile stretch that we're talking about is what connects us to Wellington Station, which connects us to Boston. There's the T. So people can walk to the T or cycle to the T and be connected. It also can take us all the way out to Minuteman Bike Trail, which could take us out to Concord. So really, this is the missing link. And especially seeing now that DCR is working on that side of the river, that was another missing link that goes by Whole Foods and 16. And as a parent of two little kids, I am too scared to cycle on the road. But seeing that go in, this is our ticket to, like, a lot of healthy, wonderful rides ahead of us. So thank you for having us here, and it's great to hear people's support. And again, this is something where every age would benefit. Senior citizens can walk. more than just beyond the building that exists there. It would also bring in a lot of traffic to Medford Square. We have this lack of foot traffic coming through. But when you think of the economic benefits of people coming in from the city, people coming in from Arlington, from Concord, there could be cafes. When you see all the places along the bike path in Lexington and Arlington, There's a lot of business from people using the bike path. So I think that's something that can also come to Medford. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Name and address for the record, please.
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_07]: Jen Valentine. I live in West Medford on Warren Street. And I'm happy to be here. I moved from San Francisco, where it's a big biking and walking community. Everyone's outdoors. And they're healthy-er. And coming back here, I grew up here, but I was kind of shocked at how many cars there are and the decrease in children getting driven to school. And the statistics show, like in the 60s, we're probably the last of the free-range kids, but more than half of the kids when we grew up walked and biked to school, like 12%. took a car and now it's 58% that get driven and like 12% walk. So the statistics have changed. So I love this idea. It opens up a path for the children to bike and to walk and also the seniors that are right there. They can also use the pathway and I support it. So I just wanted to throw my two cents in.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you.
[UJBcHvzH4YE_SPEAKER_07]: Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Councilor Lungo-Koehn.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you, President Caraviello. It was really beneficial to have the meeting we had a couple weeks ago. And I think we realized how many people were in support. And it definitely educated the council with regards to how the process is going to move forward. But I believe, I don't think it's in the committee report. And I just want to make sure. One big thing we did learn is the lack of communication between the direct abutters and whether it be city hall or the consultant that's going to do the design. We realized there really was a, an issue and residents need to be more aware and more included in the process. So I just want to make sure that's on the committee report. We did ask that the, whether it be the city representatives or the consultant design consultant meets with each individual butter to figure out a way to create buffer zones or figure out that everybody's concerns and questions and how we can make it So everybody's very happy with the project. Once we have the abutters on board, I think this whole community is going to be on board, and it's going to be so beneficial. And the residents who have already spoke are right. It's going to create the connection that we need, that we have been missing, and people are going to be able to traverse a number of different communities, but also our own Medford Square, which is extremely important for our commerce. So I just wanted to make sure that was on record that the design consultant, city administration, or department head that's involved with this does meet with each and every individual abutter and keeps them apprised throughout the process and figures out ways to make each abutter happy. That's the bottom line. So hopefully we can get that done and move forward on the project.
[Adam Knight]: Thank you. Councilor Leif. Mr. President, thank you very much. I just wanted to comment on something Ms. Valentin said about the amount of people and the percentage of people that are walking to school or biking to school these days. And I think that that's also a direct effect on big box education and the move away from neighborhood schools, Mr. President. We used to have the Gleason School, the Hervey School, the Brooks School. Now we have just the Brooks School. So I think that as municipalities and government that provide educational services, have changed the way that they do business, we've seen an effect in our community on the amount of people that are willing to bike, or able to bike and walk to school because of the distances between our big box schools now.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion by Councilor Knight that we accept the paper in committee, seconded by Councilor Falco. All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes. While we're under suspension, 17-432, Offered by President Caraviello, Vice President Marks, and Councilor Knight, be it resolved that the following Medford firefighters who have recently retired in the year 2016 and 2017 be congratulated and commended for their dedicated service to the citizens of Medford. Firefighter John S. Connors, retired 4-24-2016, appointed 1-29-1984. Served 32 years, injured one, three, five, Ladder two, emergency response unit. Training, shift commander, division A. Firefighter Kevin R. Rooney, appointed 3-9-78, retired 5-26-2016, served 38 years. Engine five and ladder two. Firefighter Joseph M. Fazio, appointed 10-27-1983, retired 12-8-2016, served 33 years, engine two, four, and six. Firefighter Wayne J. Lawler, appointed 8-17-1987, retired 12-8-2016, served 29 years, engines one, three, and five. Firefighter Richard P. Tetrell Jr., appointed 9-16-01, retired 2-15-17, served 15 years, engines 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and ladder 2. Captain John K. Small, appointed 5-31-74, retired 2-28-17, promoted to lieutenant 9-27-88, promoted to captain 12-2-92, served 43 years, engines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Ladder two, rescue one, fire prevention and training. Firefighter John M. Dotto, appointed 129-84, retired 3-31-17, served 33 years, engine 1-2-4, ladders 1 and 2, and emergency response unit. Firefighter William S. Hardy, appointed 12-1-86, retired 5-9-17, served 30.5 years, engines 3-4-6 and ladder 1. All of these brave and dedicated firefighters will be honored at the retirement party, Friday, May 19th, seven o'clock p.m. at the Firefighters Club, 340 Salem Street in Medford. If we could get them. These are great men and they've served our community for, Southwest for 40 years and they deserve all the recognition they get. And on the motion by Councilor Knight, Seconded by. Seconded by Councilor Falco.
[Adam Knight]: Councilor Knight. Um, I just asked that the city clerk make commemorative citations up for these eight individuals so that they could be presented at the retirement fund.
[Richard Caraviello]: Yeah, he is. I spoke to him earlier and he will be taking care of that. Thank you very much. On the motion by Councilor Knight, seconded by Councilor Falco. All those in favor? Motion passes. Motion to revert back to regular business. 17. 430, offered by Vice President Mox, be it resolved that the recent response from the Medford Housing Authority regarding Council Resolution 17-318 relative to emergency preparedness for our senior disabled housing complexes be discussed. Vice President Mox.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. Several weeks back, I offered a resolution, Paper 17-318, relative to emergency preparedness and evacuation policies for our elderly, disabled, and families that currently reside in our over 843 units consisting of eight developments within this community. It was brought to my attention, Mr. President, and the reason why I offer the resolution I received a call from a disabled woman living in one of our elderly disabled units, and during a power outage, being up on the fourth floor of the building, was unable to get down to the first floor, and was unable to use her lifeline because she had no power in the apartment, and had to stay put for a period of time. So I did get a response recently, and I'll pass this off to the city clerk, from the Medford Housing Authority. And it is from Joseph McRitchie, who is the interim director. I just want to make note, Mr. President, that the Housing Commission has just hired the new executive director, Attorney Jeff Driscoll, who took over just recently. Also, I want to thank Commissioner Mike Luongo for his quick response and action on this very important resolution, Mr. President. If I could just read it, it's from the Medford Housing Authority dated May 1st, 2017, regarding City Council Resolution 17-318. Dear Councilor Marks, thank you for the opportunity to update the Medford City Council on the status of the emergency preparedness at the Medford Housing Authority. Your inquiry has spurred the Housing Authority to take immediate steps to develop new and improved evacuation policies at each of our elderly and disabled complexes throughout the city. It will be our intent to seek the input and assistance of the Medford Fire Department, Health Department, and other first aid responders within the city. The first issue that you have raised is the question of whether our senior complexes are equipped with emergency generators to provide elevator service in the event of emergencies. The Saul and Stahl building, which is the Medford Housing Authority's only senior building classified as a high-rise, is equipped with an emergency generator that provides elevator service as well as limited lighting in the event of loss of power. Although the generator designed to automatically start when power is lost, it is my understanding that it did not so function in mid-March when a major power outage affected a large portion of Medford. Our generator contractor has assured us that the repairs have been made at the salt-and-stall generator to avoid a repeat in the future. Other mid and low rise buildings at the Medford Housing Authority did not have emergency generators included when originally built or converted for housing. Space limitations and financial constraints would make providing generators at this time very difficult. Although Weldon Gardens is a five story building, the topography does allow access from the third floor as well as the first floor. This does reduce the number of floors that those with mobility restrictions would need to traverse in an emergency. On the more general issue of emergency evacuations at the buildings, the Medford Housing Authority has undertaken to establish a plan for each building. Similar to the information on the city's website provided by the health department, we are encouraging all residents to familiarize themselves with all the emergency exits and to think about two separate evacuation routes in the event of an emergency and to recognize that essentially located stairwell elevators may be more crowded and this not be the optimal first choice. We are also requesting that residents notify staff if they have mobility issues that would require the assistance of first responders. It is our intent to maintain a list of residents requesting all requiring special assistance that would be kept inside the fire alarm control panels at each building that would be available to first responders when they arrive at the building. Those lists would be updated whenever individual residents' circumstances dictate. In summary, comprehensive evacuation plans and procedures are being formalized with the input of our residents and will be reviewed with the appropriate public safety and first responders within the Method community. It is also expected that they will be frequently reviewed and updated as necessary. Thank you for recognizing the need for a more formal process than previously followed, signed Joseph McRitchie, interim executive director, and the board of commissioners. Mr. President, I also received a letter from one of the tenants that was just sent out from the Method Housing Authority, and it's an important notice that was sent out to every resident, and it's asking questions on mobility, questions that if residents have special needs, if they have oxygen within the apartment, or any other need that they may have in times of a power outage or an emergency that may take place. And I'm happy to say that we offer a lot of resolutions before this council, and I'm pleased to see the quick response from Medford Housing on behalf of the 843 residents, or 843 units that house residents in our community that are under the developments, Mr. President. So they did an extensive, outreach to the community, which is underway right now, to try to get input. They have discussed this with the local public safety officials, including the fire department and first aid responders. And I feel comfortable now, Mr. President, that this issue is currently being addressed and that, as a result, we'll have a safer environment for our people living in the housing department. housing units throughout the city. Thank you, Mr. Vice President. Excuse me, gentleman in the back.
[Richard Caraviello]: We can't hear him here. Thank you very much.
[Adam Knight]: Councilor Knight. Mr. President, thank you very much. Councilor Marks, great work. Great work, Councilor Marks. I'd like to amend the paper, Mr. President. As we know, Mr. McRitchie was the interim director, and he's since gone. And Mr. Driscoll is now the executive director, Jeffrey Driscoll, Attorney Jeffrey Driscoll, someone who I have had the pleasure of working with in the past, Mr. President. He was heavily involved with Mass Narrow during his tenure as an executive director in the housing authority business. And he's most notably renowned for turning around the Taunton Housing Authority, I believe, Mr. President, which was one of the worst housing authorities in the state, mismanaged. And at the time, he went in there and he whipped everybody into shape and turned the place around. So with that being said, I'm very excited to have Mr. Driscoll as part of the team here in the city of Medford. I welcome him aboard, and I wish him the best of luck. And I'd also like to extend to him the courtesy of coming before the council and introducing himself sometime.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion by Councilor Marks, seconded by Councilor Knight, as amended by Councilor... All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes. 17-431, offered by Councilor Falco, be it resolved that the Medford City Council extend its deep and sincere condolences to the family of Reverend Edward F. Dowdy on his recent passing. Reverend Dowdy was the former pastor of St. Francis and St. Joseph's Church in Medford. Councilor Falco.
[John Falco]: Thank you, President Caraviello. Just probably about a week ago, we lost Pastor Ed Doughty, former pastor of St. Francis and St. Joseph's. Father Ed was pastor for about five years. He's a very nice man, a good friend, former Marine, and he will be missed. So thoughts and prayers to his family. Thank you.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor Dello Russo. Mr. President, I had the opportunity to work with Father Doughty on a very regular basis in the conduct of my sacred duties. Good man. I studied with him in the seminary. We weren't classmates. He was a couple of years ahead of me, but I knew him back from my theology days in theology graduate school. Good man, good family man. Father Richard Clancy, another Woburn native, gave a beautiful homily at his Requiem Mass yesterday, which I had the honor of attending with Cardinal O'Malley and other luminaries in the Archdiocese. So we wish, as a good priest, he achieved his reward too soon, but yet he achieved that union with the God he served.
[Richard Caraviello]: Very well said.
[Fred Dello Russo]: I'd be grateful.
[Richard Caraviello]: Very well said. He was an outstanding man. And if we could rise for a moment of silence, please. Motion by Councilor Knight to take papers in the hands of the clerk. Seconded by Councilor Scarpelli. All those in favor? Motion passes. My Councilor Dello Russo is being in opposition. Offered by Councilor Knight, be it resolved that the Medford City Council thank Jack McDivitt for his many years of service as a cemetery trustee, and be it further resolved that he be congratulated on his retirement from public service. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Yes, Mr. President, thank you very much. If any of us know Mr. Jack McDevitt, we probably know him from our days as students at Medford High School where he taught for over 30 years. He retired from Medford High School and he actually went on and he became a teacher helping inmates at the Middlesex County House of Corrections receive their GEDs, Mr. President. And after he slowed down at the jail, he moved on to the Board of Cemetery Trustees. So if you take a look at Jack McDevitt's long and storied history in public service, I think you'll also find out that he is a veteran. So here's a gentleman that's dedicated more than 50 years of his life to the public. And I'd like to congratulate him for his years of service, thank him for his years of service, and welcome and wish him the best of luck in his years of retirement. It's my understanding that the payroll at Frank's Steakhouse got a little larger, and now that Jack's retired and has more time to spend down there, Mr. President. So I wish him the best of luck. I thank him for his service, and he's a great friend and a great person who's really helped me out a lot in my life.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor Dello Russo. Though I didn't have him in school, I didn't go to Medford High School, I know his reputation as a fine teacher and mentor, but I did have an opportunity to work with him in his capacity as a trustee at the cemetery. I always found him helpful. And I know he had the best interests of the citizens of Medford at heart at all times. Thank you, Councilor Del Rosario.
[Richard Caraviello]: Councilor McGovern.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you, President Caraviello. I just want to second the paper. Mr. McDevitt is an amazing man. I did have him in school. He taught me my first law class. He was a great, great teacher, one of the reasons I went on to law school. So I want to congratulate him and wish him the best in his retirement.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Councilor Marks.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. And don't think for a minute he's retiring. He's been around this city a number of years. I remember him from my days at the high school. And he was always a people person and still remains a people person, Mr. President. And I want to thank him for as many years of dedication to not only the students of this community, but also to the residents of this community. As a very prominent member of the cemetery board, he will sorely be missed. and I hope to see him around the community.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you.
[John Falco]: Councilor Falco. Thank you, Mr. President. Uh, I also too would like to congratulate, uh, Mr. McDevitt on his years of service to the city. Uh, I too had him for a, um, a teacher when I went to Medford high school, a law teacher. Great guy. Um, great friend actually. And you hit it on the head. Councilor Martz, he's just a people, people, person, great people, person. You see him, they still see him today. He walks around all over the place. You see him walking around and he stops and he chats and he says, hello, So he's a great guy, I just want to say congratulations on his years of service. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you.
[George Scarpelli]: Councilor Scarpelli. I too echo all of my councilor's words, but if you know Mr. McDevitt in the hallways of Medford High School, that you know he loved his love of BC, and his personality is what really resonated through all students who had him, who didn't have him. So he was a great example of how you give back to our community, And like Councilman Mark says, I'm sure he's not done, but we appreciate all the hard work he has done for us. So thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Councilman Scarpelli. And I, too, had him as a teacher, and I see him walking almost every day. And he's a nice person to say hello to as he walks by, briskly walking. I should be walking with him. Offered by President Caraviello and Councilor Knight, be it resolved that the Medford City Council send its deepest and sincere condolences to the family of Sammy Petrala. Sammy was a Medford businessman for many years in Medford prior to his passing along with being a South Medford icon. His presence in our community will be missed, and Sammy was a good friend to me over many years, and since I was a young child, and again, he will be missed. Name and address of the record, please.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: Andrew Castagnetti. Thank you, Councilor Caraviello, for informing me about Sammy Petrola a couple of hours ago. I'm very saddened to hear that he's out. I'm at a loss for words, he's a gentleman of a gentleman, one of the kindest people I've ever met in Salt and met Ford, and holy, he left a great legacy, and I hope somebody can even come close to matching him. I'm very sorry to his family.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. If we could rise for a moment of silence, please. Offered by Vice President Moxby, it resolved that the Medford City Council send a written comment by May 19th in opposition to the proposed cell phone towers located at 63 Tyler Avenue and 59 Charnwood Avenue. The comment should mention that projects 32081 and 32083 in section 10B be sent to Ramacher Contractor for in motion 855 Connolly Drive, Sauk City, Wisconsin, 53583. Also, a copy should be sent to Verona Simon, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Historical Commission, 220 Morrissey Boulevard, Austin, Mass. Councilor Marksx.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. Last week I offered this resolution and I want to follow up because I don't believe we voted as a council There's a culminating period that was just as a legal notice in the transcript that appeared April 20th in the Medford transcript. And it asked for comments from residents of this community regarding the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. which states that if a cell tower is posted within or erected within a half mile or proposed to be erected within a half mile of a National Historic Site that comments be allowed. And I think it's only appropriate that I believe one of the sites is within a half mile of the Royal House. And the other one is very close to being within a half mile of the Brooks Estates, Mr. President. So at this time, I would ask that we as a council go on record and submit a letter stating our opposition to both towers, Mr. President, on behalf of this community and on behalf of the historic preservation in our community.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. Vice President. On the motion by Councilor Locks, seconded by Councilor Lungo-Koehn. All those in favor? Motion passes. Offered by Councilor Lungo-Koehn, be it resolved that the Medford City Council thank the Medford Chamber of Commerce for organizing the successful Clippership Day celebration over the weekend. Be it further resolved that we thank the Medford DPW, Medford Police Department, and the Medford Fire Department for working and volunteering to help make the day in the event such a success. Council Member O'Kurin.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you, President Caraviello. I wanted to just take the opportunity to thank the Medford Chamber of Commerce. They organized over many months Clippership Day, brought it back to Medford Square, the street was blocked off, and a number of vendors were there, a number of businesses took part in the event, and hundreds of families benefited from it. It was a little long, 12 to 9, I believe from 12 to seven, it was jam-packed. I was there for three or four hours myself, and I know you, Councilor Caraviello, were there setting up tents and working hard, so thank you as well. I also know our Medford Police Department, Medford Fire Department, and our DPW Department were out the whole time. Some details, but a lot of volunteer work as well, and I think that just goes to show what great departments we have. We ask a lot of them, but it is time to thank them for all the hard work they did on that event, and the families thank them as well.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. You know, Steve Tonelli was there at six o'clock in the morning, and they were there till 10 o'clock at night with the sweepers, and the DPW guys did an outstanding job. Police were there till 10, 11 o'clock at night, and everyone did a, fire department were there all day. Everyone did a great job.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: And the fact that they volunteered. Volunteers. DPW are volunteering and I think that just goes to show how dedicated they are to the community.
[Adam Knight]: Councilor Knight. Yes, Councilor Longo, thank you for bringing this resolution forward and I think I'd also like to take an opportunity to thank the vendors that were there that donated their time and their effort and their energy, especially the amazing John Antarpa and his magic show. From what I understand, it was a big hit. Mr. President, I wasn't able to make it. I got down to the clippership days. They were packing up the cars. Allison and the kids and I went down and they were putting the tables in the back of Steve Tanaglia's truck, actually, when we got there. But it was a great day, had by all, from what I understand. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get there sooner to enjoy some of the festivities. And I'd like to thank everybody for their efforts in putting together such a great community event as well.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Councilor Scarpelli.
[George Scarpelli]: I, too, want to congratulate the team. I know that I was a guest at one of the planning meetings. To see the effort of that team bringing back the clippership day. That's been so so so forgotten and Needed and I think these are the days that really bring your community together and I appreciate everything they've done the chamber and and everybody that really pulled forward the the you know, the volunteers the DPW the police but You know, again, John and Topper, unbelievable. I know that Lou would like to see the birds disappear in Medford, so maybe if his son could do some sort of a magic trick, that would be greatly appreciated. So just thank you, and again, these are the days, those are the days, even when it was raining and miserable at times, still brought the community out, and I think that's so important. So kudos and congratulations on a job well done.
[John Falco]: Councilor Falco. Thank you, Mr. President. I just wanted to thank Councilor Lungo-Koehn for bringing this forward tonight. I, too, wanted to congratulate everyone involved. It was a successful event. Hopefully, it's something that we see or continue to see every year. And especially, thank you to, like my fellow councilors said, the DPW. I did get there late, but everyone I talked to said that the DPW came through big time. And they were everywhere, and they helped out with everything. you know, like I said, hopefully this continues into the future, so thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: It was a little tough in the beginning when the rain, rain was coming down, it stopped, it started, and then, yeah, as soon as it cleared up, it turned into a great day. On the motion by Councilor Lococoon, seconded by Councilor De La Rosa, all those in favor? Motion passes. Offered by Councilor Falco, whereas the city of Medford is in close proximity to Logan International Airport, whereas the aircraft noise has had a significant negative impact on our quality of life, be it resolved that aircraft noise issue be discussed. Councilor Falco.
[John Falco]: Thank you, Mr. President. Last night I had the opportunity to attend the aircraft noise in Medford meeting here, right in these council chambers. You were there yourself, and Councilor Lungo-Koehn was there as well. And it was actually a great turnout. There was probably about 150 people here. And a big thank you to Peter Houck from the Massport CAC and Luke Fraser from Logan CAC. They're both of our volunteers that serve on those boards. And they put together a great presentation. It lasted probably about an hour and a half, two hours. And they put together a 33-page presentation, which is, I believe, on the city website. And I would definitely encourage everyone to read it over. It was a great talk about how this is really affecting the quality of life here in our city. Regardless of what neighborhood you live in, it really has had a negative impact on everyone. And it's something that they did a great job at describing how things used to be and how Things have basically happened over the years where they've streamlined the routes, and they tend to fly all over Medford, unfortunately. And the interesting thing is, is this is a problem that's really not going to go away. They talked about the modernization of Terminal E, which, just to let people know, there's going to be five additional low-cost carriers will offer 23 new flights a week. mostly from the international terminal. Flights will not leave at peak times at 2, 3, 5, and 8. They'll leave at off-peak times. There's going to be bigger airplanes flying in. The A380, which carries a lot more than your regular plane, and it's two decks. It's a double-decker airline. They talked basically about everything from how the patterns change during the weather and whatnot. But an interesting thing is, in 2015, the airport Terminal E, in particular, served 5.5 million international passengers. And by 2030, that's going to go up by 8 million. It's going to go up to 8 million. So there's going to be significant increases here with regard to passengers, but also to planes. And one of the big things that they pointed out is that, you know, you take a look at other surrounding communities, and really, we don't, as residents here in this city, we actually do not complain enough to Massport about this issue. So people really have to start to call, start to log complaints online. If you'd like to go online, you can go to massport.com slash environment slash environmental reporting slash noise abatement slash noise complaints. And you can also call the noise complaint line at 617-561-3333. I would encourage everyone, if you have the opportunity to really log on to the city website, take a look through this presentation. They did a great job. Like I said, 33 pages. It's full of all kinds of information about aircraft noise, departures, how the hotline works with regard to complaining, and the best way to actually complain. So they do have a lot of helpful hints here, but overall, Like I said, thanks to Peter Howick and to Luke Preissner who put this together. They did a great job. And I would encourage people to call Massport, especially with the warm-up months coming up. People like to spend time in the yard. This is going to be an issue, so people should call. So thank you. Thank you, Councilor Palacio. Thank you.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Councilor Lungo-Koehn. Thank you, President Caraviello. I just have some notes myself, because I wanted to thank Peter and Luke, who held the meeting last night. It was extremely informative, and it's something that we've been in need of for a very long time. And it's very good to know we have two representatives who do have a seat at the table who are working with regards to MedFed's best interests, and are really educated on the topic. Luke gave the first portion of the presentation, and he had graphs, and he educated the public. And the fact that the new radar system that's being used directs Every flight over Medford that uses 33L versus in the past when you had each pilot deciding on which route they wanted to go on, now with the new radar, every flight with 33L goes over Medford, which I believe it was mentioned last night that it's a direct route over the Andrews Middle School. So that is definitely concerning. I hope it's not too little too late. There's an MIT study going on. It's halfway done on ways to mitigate the noise. And hopefully that second half will, with it grouped in with complaints from Medford, we can get the FAA to make some changes. And that obviously is the hope and dream, because the noise is a little uncontrollable at times. main complaints besides speeding that I get as a city councilor, especially in the spring and summer months. So it was important for us to be there and get the information. With regards to the complaints, of 12,685 complaints in 2014, 742 were from Medford. That's very low. 2015, that shot down. 17,695 complaints Only 508 were from Medford. And then we did make a little bit better showing of 1,748 complaints out of 38,000 in 2016. But it is important because the FAA does look at the number of complaints in a community. We didn't learn about it last night, but I do know from speaking to the representative previously, I believe there was a big issue in Milton. And because of all their complaints, it's some of the reason why Medford's getting more traffic than we have in the past. So I, too, am so happy that we had the meeting. I hope we continue to inform the public. I hope the public, there had to have been 150 people here and all very concerned. Hopefully we can keep spreading the word with regards to getting educated and making the appropriate complaints because I think that is extremely important. One question that I do have that I didn't know if it came up after the meeting, after I left, I had to go get my daughter a softball. One concern I have is with regards to, we have all these planes flying over North Medford and our middle schools, the McGlynn and the Andrews, there's studies out there that show the more air pollution from planes causes higher rates of cancer. So, I mean, if we could send a request to our, I don't know, Energy and Environment Committee to see if they're involved in this at all with regards to the pollution that's coming from these planes, Because that alone, I mean, whether it's flying higher or taking different directions, I think something, noise is obviously the number one complaint. But people are starting to talk about the pollution that's coming over Medford and getting, I mean, there was a gentleman last night who talked about debris coming from the planes. That's another concern. But the pollution, with regards to having young, it's especially for our young children, it's really concerning to me. And it should be a factor, public health and public safety. So if we could ask if this has been looked into at all, discussed, researched, and maybe we can get our environment committees to, at the table as well, to push, to really push to get these studies, whether it be from MIT or get the administration, thankfully is on top of it. Mayor Burke was here, they're here last night. Councilor Caraviello, you and I did try to attend the FAA meeting with her. We got kicked out, but we did try. So anything we can do to, be positive and try to move forward and protect Medford's interests. We're a little late at the table. Thankfully those two reps are put on and thankfully they're doing a great job. And hopefully we can, I really hope that we can get some resolve to have thousands and thousands of planes coming through Medford. Everybody hears it from West Medford to South Medford, but especially on North Medford and McGlynn Andrews areas getting hit pretty hard and it's affecting a lot of people. So I hope that we can get some mediation resolved from this.
[Robert Cappucci]: Thank you. Name and address of the record, please. Thank you, Mr. President. I'm Rob Capucci, 71 Evans Street. I had opportunity to also attend last night's informational discussion. And while I am thankful that the meeting took place, I'm not really optimistic from what I learned last night. Uh, they started the meeting out saying that, uh, present trends of airplane noise are either going to continue or get worse. And, uh, I'm led to believe that it's actually going to get worse. Now as, as, because there's three new airlines, uh, that are going to start. 11 new airlines. Some of them, uh, double deckers, uh, that'll be coming in over the next, I think you president, uh, Caraviello said last night, one starts next month.
[Richard Caraviello]: The double-deckers have already started coming here, British Air and Arab Emirates. They come in with the big A380s.
[Robert Cappucci]: From what I heard the presenters, excuse me, say last night was, complaints have skyrocketed. And the information they put out last night was from a study that, I don't think it's half done, Councilor, I think it is done. I think this slide show, was actually the result of the study that I asked the guy after the meeting. I think the guy's name from MIT is Professor Hanson or something like that. And it's a taxpayer-funded study that I think more complaints to Massport is good and should happen. But what I really think needs to happen is that we have to address our state delegation, Congresswoman Clark, Senators Markey and Warren, because these are the people that have the political authority to do something. I looked up, before coming last night, because I thought the airlines were going to be here, the amount of profits that these airlines are reaping. And I am all for that, 100%. Make as much money as you can. But when they're making a combined $29 billion profit, They can afford to spend a few dollars to fly these planes out over the ocean, make a U-turn, gain the altitude, so they don't have to be subjecting our schools possibly to cancer, so that they don't have to be subjecting our city to this excessive noise. I mean, you heard some of the comments in here last night. One woman said, if she knew about all this airplane noise, she wouldn't have bought a house in Medford. We want more people to move here. We want the quality of life to improve. And as another gentleman said last night, with the CPA surcharge tax, and the property tax, and the water tax, now the connectivity tax, plus the sales tax, two income taxes, where are all these monies going to? If we're not going to get a better improvement in quality of life, I really think people should direct their complaints and light the fire under our state delegation and our federal representatives to cause a herring, have people come out and hold these airlines accountable. to what they're doing. Another option they can do, which is cost prohibitive to the airlines, like they did in East Boston and Winthrop, is start soundproofing the windows in Medford. Sound panel the houses. But because it's Medford and also Somerville and Everett, that's cost prohibitive. The only real solution, I think, here for them to do is to pay the few extra dollars in fuel costs, fly out over the ocean, gain altitude, and then you know, not subject our cities. I mean, some of these planes are flying at 500 and a thousand feet. It's, it's, it's really outrageous. Uh, I hope that, that people will still continue to complain to Massport, but if that's only going to fund, uh, cause another taxpayer funded study that tells us what we already know, I mean, what's the point? Get, get the people with the political will, and authority to do something about this before we start seeing people leave. And I want more people to move to Medford. I want it to be the best city north of Boston. But it won't be if we continue with these excessive fees, taxes, and planes that are destroying the quality of life in Medford. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you. Vice President Mox.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. You know, I just want to reiterate what I mentioned several months back regarding this particular issue. We went without a representative on the community advisory committee, which is our direct representative that sits on the committee, which talks about shifting of runways, where runways will filter over, what areas they will filter over. how it will impact communities. And for close to two years, we did not have a representative on that committee, a vital committee, Mr. President. And it was this council that kept on urging the mayor to either appoint someone or put someone on the committee that actually wanted to be there and do the work. And I agree with Councilor Lungo-Koehn that now we have two great representatives that have appeared before this council on several occasions, Mr. President, and are doing their homework and their due diligence, and they are attending the meetings. As to calling Logan Airport and complaining, as Councilor Lungo-Koehn mentioned, if you look at the statistics, in 2014, out of the 81 communities that reported complaints, Medford had the fifth highest number of complaints. In 2015, out of 84 communities that complained, Medford had the eighth highest in complaints, and then in 2016, out of 77 communities, Medford had the fourth highest. I don't know how much higher we can get, Mr. President. The issue is that, honestly, that when you look at other communities that have been involved in years, over the years, they've made headway through their congressional delegation, as was mentioned. And to be quite frank with you, Congressman Lynch has done yeoman's work for his district to make sure Milton and the other surrounding communities that were faced with a lot of airplane noise had mitigation and were at the table when decisions were being made. And I'm not sure that was quite the case with our congressperson, Captain Clark, Mr. President, and I requested several times that we have meetings with our delegation on the federal side. Also, Mr. President, within the community, we have several noise monitors, and this council voted unanimously to take another look at where these monitors are placed. Maybe they're not in the areas that the jets are coming over, because according to the feedback that I see on Logan Airport website, they're saying that our monitors don't meet the decimal level that requires some type of mitigation. And I would say that's untrue when you can read the underbelly of a plane and it shakes your house. I would say that definitely requires some type of mitigation, Mr. President. And you could talk to the residents of Revere, East Boston, Winthrop, and a lot of other surrounding communities that are getting brand new windows, brand new insulation in their roofs, and other factors to help with airplane noise, Mr. President. So, you know, We can file all the complaints we want, but if we don't have a seat at the table, and if there's no one representing this community, like has been the case in the past several years, then we're just gonna be another bystander as the process goes on. And that's unfortunate. I'm very pleased to see that we do have these two appointments, Mr. President. And once again, I would ask that the monitors that are located within the city of Medford, because we never got a response on our other one, Mr. President, that they be reviewed and see if we can find other areas that we can place these monitors that we're experiencing up in the Heights, I agree, in the Wellington area, in South Medford area, we're hearing a lot of complaints, Mr. President, the ones I'm receiving, all throughout the community. If we could place them in strategic areas to get some feedback on whether or not residents of this community are eligible for some type of noise mitigation from Massport.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. Vice President. Name and address of the record, please.
[Cheryl Rodriguez]: Hi, I'm Cheryl Rodriguez. I live at 281 Park Street. I currently reside under the FAA Airline Highway. The best way for them to reduce the noise complaints was to concentrate the traffic on what they call the Airline Highway. So basically, if you affect less people, you'll get less complaints. I've received several letters in response to my complaints that say, we've concentrated the traffic over your area so that it will affect less people. Well, that's great for them and not so great for me, as my tax bill rolls in and it's exactly the same amount. But I did speak to someone from the soundproofing department at Massport approximately two weeks ago. I called them and asked them some various questions Someone was confused that I spoke to and I ended up speaking to a manager. And what I took away from it was one neighborhood can have one very loud plane come in once a week, just one. In my neighborhood, you can have 40 or 50 planes come in a day. They can be loud, but not as loud as that one plane. The neighbor with the one extremely loud plane may qualify for soundproofing, while my neighborhood may not, because they're not doing it cumulatively. So that's an issue because the past two days I think we had over 100 planes. We had more than 100,000 planes fly over us last year. Our planes fly in at less than 5,000 feet off the ground. Now Milton, who got extensive help from state representatives Their planes fly in at approximately 10,000 square feet, more than double what they're flying over in Medford. And they have had several feature articles in the Globe about how their neighborhoods are suffering. And if anyone saw the two-sentence article that we had in the Globe yesterday, it said, residents get a chance to squawk about airline noise. That was the headline. The next two lines were, apparently it's loud in Medford, according to city officials anyway. come to City Hall at 7 o'clock to hear the meeting. So that's the level of respect that we're getting. And also, Elizabeth Warren is our senator, and she is on a committee that studies the FAA noise. So I encourage people to escalate. and go to your state reps, go to your national senator, get some action, because this is getting worse. But understand that just because it isn't loud in your neighborhood doesn't mean that it isn't loud. They've intentionally concentrated the noise to reduce the complaints. People's homes have shaking. I have things that fall off shelves. I have soot on the back of my home. This is not from traffic. planes flying over my house. My daughter is under treatment in neurology. She's nine years old. She's had severe migraines for three years. She misses more than 20 days of school a year from migraines. She's being followed. She's had medication doubled. She's had medication changed. It's all connected to sleep interruption from the planes that fly over late at night, that start at 5 in the morning, that don't end until midnight. Once in a while, we get a 3 a.m. flyover. This is an issue for people. We need to find some way to get soundproofing or just get them to fly higher. I do not believe that the answer is to disperse the traffic and affect more people. I think that the airlines need to consider that there are people under them and that they're affecting us negatively and keep calling and complaining. But don't stop at just complain to Massport because Massport already knows it's an issue because this is an issue that was intentionally concentrated over specific people. Thank you.
[Richard Caraviello]: Massport does have a sound debate program that they use, and you are welcome to call it. Name and address of the record.
[Andrew Castagnetti]: Andrew, I've been here enough. At the risk of repeating myself from last night's meeting and being crude, and knowing that hindsight is 20-20, seems to me the local politicians, however, are way too late. They should have been At that table, if they were, and with better power, back in 2006, 7, before runway 33L was actually built, which affects us on east side of Medford. But even with Tip O'Neill power, I'm not sure if you're going to stop Massport from doing what they want, being the entity that they are. And if Logan Airport is way too busy, Why can't we lay it off, some of that traffic to Providence, Worcester, Manchester? Seems to me it's a day late and a dollar short. And it is noise pollution and other pollution, as was stated. So I say I wish you the best of luck fixing this, or we have to live with it, or it's leaving 02155 if it bothers you that much. Unfortunately.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion by Councilor Falco, as amended by Councilor Logan Kern, seconded by Councilor Knight. All those in favor.
[Michael Marks]: I have two, Mr. President.
[Richard Caraviello]: I'm sorry? As amended by Councilor Marks also, I'm sorry. What was Councilor Marks' name again? Oh, Noyes Marks.
[Clerk]: Noyes Marks.
[Richard Caraviello]: Offered by Councilor Knight be it resolved that the DPW report back to the Council on the status of the paving of Paris Street. Councilor Nice.
[Adam Knight]: Yes, Mr. President, this is just a friendly reminder to our friends at the DPW that they've made a commitment to pave Paris Street this season, and I'm hoping that the DPW and the engineering division can report back to the council with the schedule as to when that will be completed. We also have requested for Evans Street, and I believe Evans Street goes first. They're gonna do the water pipe, some underground work, and then they're gonna move over to Paris. So I'm just hoping that we can get a copy of the construction schedule so that we can inform our constituencies as to what's going on in the neighborhood, because this has been a long overdue project that needs to take place. Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to support it and move for approval. Second.
[Richard Caraviello]: On the motion by Councilor Naidoo, seconded by Councilor Dello Russo. All those in favor? Aye. Motion passes. The records were passed to Councilor Scarpelli. Councilor Scarpelli, how did you find those records? On the motion that we accept the motion by Councilor Scarpelli, seconded by Councilor Knight. All those in favor? Motion passes. Motion for adjournment. Oh, oh. We also have- Councilor Marks. Council combination for May Makibrek.
[Michael Marks]: Are we gonna do that next week?
[Richard Caraviello]: We're gonna try to get her here next week. Next week, okay.
[Michael Marks]: Yes.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you. Thank you. On a motion by Councilor Dello Russo, seconded by Councilor Knight to adjourn. All those in favor? Aye. Motion adjourned. Meeting adjourned.
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