[Caraviello]: Good evening. The eighth regular meeting of the Medford City Council, February 23rd, 2021. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Present. Councilor Falco. Present. Vice President Knight. Present. Councilor Marks.
[SPEAKER_02]: Present.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Morell. Present. Councilor Scarpelli. President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Present. Please rise and exclude the plaque.
[Falco]: 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.
[Caraviello]: Pursuant to Governor Baker's March 12, 2020 order, of the open meeting law, ADA section 18 and the governor's March 15, 2020 order imposing strict limitation on the number of people that may gather in one place. This meeting of the Medford City Council will be conducted via remote participation to the greatest extent possible. Specific information and the general guidelines for remote participation by members and of the public and parties with the right or requirement to attend this meeting can be found on the City of Medford website at www.medford.org. For accessing for this meeting, members of the public who wish to listen or watch the meeting may do so by accessing the meeting link contained herein. No in-person attendance of the members of the public will be permitted, but every effort will be made to ensure that the public can adequately access the proceedings in real time. via technological means. In the event we were able to do so, despite best efforts, we will post on the City of Medford or the Medford community website an audio or video recording transcript or other comprehensive record of proceedings as soon as possible after the meeting. OK, before we start, I have a letter to read it to the record from the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General. On or about June 25, 2020, a complaint was filed by Linda Julian with the Medford City Council alleging a violation of the Open Meeting Law, Chapter 38, Section 18-25, General Law, Chapter 38, Section 23B, 940, Our office received the response from the council on July 14th, 2020. After 30 days have passed since the complaint was filed with the public body, but within 90 days from the date of the alleged violation, a complaint may be filed with the division of open government for review, general law 30A section 23B 940-29056. We sent you an email on July 27th, 2020 saying that if we did not receive the original complaint and a request from you by September 18, 2020, we would presume the action taken by the council was sufficient and would close this file. Our office currently has no record of a request for further review from you in this matter. Therefore, we now consider this matter closed. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or if you believe anything stated in this letter to be accurate. Erica Warren, Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General. Mr. Clerk, if you could please read that into the records. Put it into the records. Motions, orders, and resolutions. Mr. President, before you call for that? Vice President Mox. I'm sorry, Councilor Marks.
[Marks]: Would I get a promotion? Yes. That's great. What does it pay? That's great. Mr. President, two weeks ago, this council voted unanimously to ask that we receive a weekly update from the Board of Health Director regarding phase one. and phase two rollouts of the state and city vaccination. That is correct. Mr. President, I would ask that every week prior to the motions, orders, and resolutions that we receive the update from the Director of the Board of Health. And I was wondering if she's on the call tonight, Mr. President.
[Caraviello]: I do not see her on the call here. I do not, Councilor Marksley, she is not on the call.
[Marks]: Okay, do we have anyone from the city administration on?
[Caraviello]: We do not have anybody from the administration either.
[Marks]: So Mr. President, it was, I believe it was several months back, the council requested a monthly update. And now with the vaccination rollout and the importance of getting our seniors and first responders vaccinated, that we requested that we receive weekly updates, Mr. President. I don't think that's a lot to ask. As we all know, this is an evolving subject. Every day it changes. New information comes out every day. We heard today that potentially schools will be back sometime in April for the elementary schools. on a full-time basis. So this is something very important, Mr. President, that we receive updates as well as the general public be informed, Mr. President. And this is one avenue to do so. I'm not saying that this is the only avenue. It's one avenue. I am extremely disappointed that there is no one on from the Board of Health to give this council and give the residents of the community update. Mr. President, I still am receiving calls from seniors that are looking to get into the system. are waiting for the city of Medford to open their site, which we heard now is probably not going to happen because they're going to more of a group effort with Melrose and Malden, Mr. President. But there are many seniors, I believe we got statistics, there are over 4,500 seniors that are over 75 that would be eligible for the injection, Mr. President, that live in the city of Medford. And it's important that we know, Mr. President, the outreach that's happening in this community. Are seniors being contacted? Are there a list? Is there a current list that the city of Medford is working off of? What type of outreach? Are they reaching out to seniors? We can identify, we don't have to get into medical issues, Mr. President, but we can identify the population that's eligible. Now it's open for residents 65 to 74 that may have some other associated health risk also, Mr. President, and how many thousands more Method residents are eligible. I keep on getting phone calls from residents saying they can't make it to these other large state sites. They just don't have the bandwidth to get out to these sites. And we're asking our most vulnerable population to go out to these mega sites. They don't have the ability to get there. They don't have the ability to stand in maybe hour long lines, which I had witnessed myself, Mr. President, over at Fenway Park. Our long line, Mr. President, I think that's asking a lot of our seniors. And all we're asking for is a weekly update. So I would hope, Mr. President, if they're not on the call tonight, if they don't jump on tonight, that next Tuesday that we take up this again. before motions, orders, and resolutions are called, Mr. President.
[Caraviello]: I will reach out to the board tomorrow to make sure that they either send us out a report or make sure that they're here for next week. No, no, no.
[Marks]: I want someone, Mr. President. We voted to have an update. I will make sure that someone is here next week. Someone physically here to speak to us. I don't think we're asking a lot of one of our department heads during a pandemic to give us an update, Mr. President. Thank you.
[Scarpelli]: Scott, I thank you for bringing this up. Uh, Council marks. I, too, prepared to just ask a simple question that had a few phone calls this weekend. I heard the rollout at the Andrews and all the volunteers were amazing. the program was a great turnout, but the confusion that I heard from many constituents after the fact that we're bringing their parents or trying to find appointments, that they saw a lot of, or they talked to a lot of people that weren't from the city of Medford. So that was a confusion. The confusion was they were told that people from Malden and Melrose were. And that should be something we should have someone from the administration or the Board of Health just to explain to our constituents what the benefit what the benefit by having a consolidated effort, like maybe that we can go to Melrose-Wakefield Method residents or vice versa, we don't know that. At least that's what the communications I got back from a few seniors. So if we can ask the Department of Health to have that answer ready for next week, I think to be helpful. Thank you.
[Caraviello]: I will make sure that someone from the Board of Health is here next week to answer the questions in every week until until this is passed. Thank you. Thank you, Councilor Marks. Motions, orders, and resolutions 21069 offered by Vice President Knight, be it resolved that the Method City Council extend its deep and sincere condolences to the family of John Spike Lawless on his recent passing. Vice President Knight.
[Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much. Just recently, friend Spike Law was passed away. Any of us that knew Spike knew what a great gentleman he was. Cambridge firefighter retired established an organization to provide support among fellow firefighters for post-traumatic stress syndrome for Tragedies seen in the line of duty well before mental health was something that was talked about, Mr. President, a pioneer in the field of mental health and counseling. Mr. Lawless would be a fixture at St. Rayfield's Parish, West Medford Hillside, Little League, or bopping around town, down in West Medford Square, getting his Dunkin' Donuts. Um, and just recently we lost him. He's gone on to a better place, but he will be sadly missing Mr. President. He was a great father, a great friend, and he's someone that really give a lot to this community. And as we've all said before, um, each week we have condolences on the agenda. And each week it's a person that gave so much of themselves to making Medford a great place. And there's such a concern about when that next generation and next crop is going to come up and fill their shoes. And if anybody is going to try to fill the shoes of Spike Lawless, they've got some pretty big shoes to fill, Mr. President. So I'd ask my colleagues to support this resolution in offering condolences to the family during this difficult time. Thank you, Vice President.
[Caraviello]: Okay, on the motion by Vice President Zain, seconded by Councilor Falco. Will you please rise and take a moment of silence. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President Knight. Yes. Councilor Marks. Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes. So the affirmative motion passes. 21-070 offered by Councilor Bears. be resolved by the Medford City Council that the city administration building department and health department provide an update on the complaints and inspections process for reporting health and safety issues for tenants and meet with the council to address ongoing problems and improve the system going forward. Councilor Best.
[Bears]: Thank you, Mr. President. I put this resolution forward for a few reasons. One of them is the message we received from residents of the alpha management building at 53 to 63 Bellsway West. Um, but I'm also, since that came out, spoken with a lot of residents who have had some issues reporting, um, you know, health or safety concerns to the city and getting, uh, units inspected. Um, so I put this forward because, you know, we really need to make sure the city is fulfilling the responsibility that we have for inspections around safe and healthy housing. Um, we had made some initial progress. Um, I spoke to the city administration last week, um, making it clear on the city website, how to report, um, a complaint and requested inspection, which we can now do, uh, through the online permitting service. So that is one item that has been improved. Um, but we do need to do more to make sure that the city has an effective, responsive and transparent system, uh, for making sure that residents can get health and safety inspections. Um, so. I'm hoping we can look at the issue as a council and take action as the city. And I'm happy to report this either to the housing subcommittee or committee of the whole, whatever my fellow councilors would prefer.
[Caraviello]: Motion for the housing subcommittee, Mr. President. On the motion by Councilor Naif to refer this to the housing subcommittee. Any further discussion on this? Okay, on the motion by Councilor Bears, seconded by Vice President Knight to refer this to the subcommittee on housing. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears? Yes. Councilor Falco? Yes. Vice President Knight? Yes. Councilor Marks? Councilor Morell? Yes. Councilor Scarpelli? President Caraviello?
[Caraviello]: Yes, I'm in the affirmative, motion passes. 21701 offered by Councilor Bears, be it resolved by the Medford City Council that the city administration through the building department and health department address the serious health and safety problems reported by residents at Alpha Management Properties on Fellsway West. Councilor Bears.
[Bears]: Thank you, Mr. President. Along a similar vein, This is specifically requesting an update on the issues at 5363 Fells Way West, and I'm hoping to get that update promptly so residents can make sure they're living in safe and healthy conditions.
[Caraviello]: Thank you.
[Bears]: And I move approval.
[Caraviello]: Any further discussion on that? Hearing and seeing none. On the motion by Councilor Bears, seconded by Vice President Knight. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears? Yes. Councilor Falco? Yes. Vice President Knight? Yes. Councilor Marks? Yes. Councilor Morell? Yes. Councilor Scarpelli? Yes. President Caraviello?
[Caraviello]: Yes. Seven in the affirmative, motion passes. 21072, offered by Councilor Bez. Being resolved by the Medford City Council, that the city administration submit public comments to the FAA regarding airplane noise reduction prior to the March 15th deadline for submission. Councilor Bez.
[Bears]: Thank you, Mr. President. As I think we're all very aware, airplane noise has been a severe issue across Medford, especially since the FAA implemented new flight path rules that really channel most of the traffic leaving Logan Airport to the north, right over Medford's residential neighborhoods. There is a new federal administration with President Biden, Secretary of Transportation Buttigieg, and there is a public comment period currently open at the FAA to allow input around airplane noise. And I would like the city administration to submit public comments to that public comment period, indicating that we need relief from the excessive airplane noise that we're seeing in Medford. And I move approval.
[Caraviello]: Thank you, Councilor Bears. Councilor Morell.
[Morell]: Thank you, Mr. President. And I want to thank Councilor Bears for bringing this forward. I was able to attend one of the recent community meetings that the FAA hosted earlier this month And I was very dismayed to see representatives from the FAA kind of discount a lot of the very legitimate complaints and issues that people in Medford and surrounding communities have, citing that, you know, planes are quieter and ignoring the fact of why Medford is in such a difficult spot with the RNAV change and the constant onslaught and planes going over the same path over and over and over that it doesn't matter if they're a little bit quieter than they were in 1970 when you have, you know, one every minute. That doesn't matter. So I thank Councilor Bears for bringing this forward because clearly this agency really needs to hear from voices in Medford and beyond that this is a real problem and not something that they can ignore or try to explain away anymore. So thanks to Councilor Bears and this has my support.
[Caraviello]: And we do have some responses from the mayor in your package this week from both the FAA and different other departments. So there is a response.
[Knight]: Any further questions? I'd like to amend the paper to request that a copy be forwarded to Massport and CAC reps, so that they're aware of the council action. As amended.
[Caraviello]: To forward a copy. Okay. On the motion by Councilor Bears. Second. Seconded by Councilor Falco. As amended by Councilor Knight. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President. Yes. Councilmarks. Councilor Morell. Yes.
[Caraviello]: Councilor Scarpelli. Yes.
[Hurtubise]: President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes. Motion passes. 21073 offered by Councilor Morell being so resolved that the city administration provide an update to the city council on CARES Act expenditures used for contract tracing, vaccination, and other COVID related expenses as referenced in the Q2 Finance Update. Councilor Morell.
[Morell]: Thank you, Mr. President. As this resolution indicates, this is something that was raised at the Q2 meeting last week, I believe, where we had a brief overview slide that referenced $2.1 million of CARES Act funding that had not been yet specifically assigned or allocated by city departments. And I'm just requesting that we get an update on how this is being spent for the purposes which were referenced, which was COVID-related spending, vaccination and contact tracing, The chief of staff did note that things change so frequently. This is something that's hard to, I guess, give a long-term or really looking forward report on. So I'm just asking that we get an up-to-date report on this as soon as possible, as we know where this money is proposed to be going. And I move approval.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. Second. Any further discussion, please? The motion by Councilor Morell, seconded by Councilor Bears. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: Vice President Knight. Yes. Councilor Marks. Yes. Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli.
[Caraviello]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes, seven in the affirmative, motion passes. 21074, offered by Councilor Scarpelli, being resolved that our city, state, and federal leaders stand together and express the urgency of making our teachers a priority for COVID vaccinations. Councilor Scarpelli.
[Scarpelli]: Thank you, Mr. President. There's been a lot of movement, especially in the last 24 hours with the governor proclaiming and the head of the board of education that we're going to, at least for the younger grades, to full in-school learning for our elementary school students. And did a little research and just seeing the support of many different medical professionals talking about the, the safety of our children and that they are limited in transmitting the virus. But I think the biggest concern is our teachers. Sometimes it's a more elderly population and Our veteran teachers are afraid to come back, and we can understand why. We do want to get back to school. I'm one of the parents that want to see teachers back in the classroom, but this is a simple fix. If we moved all of our first responders to the front of the line, and we want to reopen our schools, there's no reason why we shouldn't have our teachers moved right to that front of that line. So it's a little disheartening. The good news, I can go get my vaccine shot because I'm a little overweight. I don't know if you noticed that, but that's a positive, but our teachers that are going to be educating our students need to feel comfortable and safe. And I think it's important that we start putting our teachers as a priority and that we reach out to all of our team members and government and really stress the governor that the teachers need to be put to the head of the line. So I ask this for my colleagues to support, and I hope that we can move quickly to try to get this important demographic taken care of. Our teachers need it. Thank you. Councilor Bearsley.
[Bears]: Thank you, Mr. President. I wanna thank Councilor Scarpelli for putting this on our agenda tonight. I think this is really essential I think we've actually heard from most, if not all teachers and teachers unions as well, that they would like to have a good plan in place to get back into the classroom and start addressing some of the mental health impacts that have happened with schools being closed for so long. But it is also simultaneously very frustrating. There's a study out today that says the main driver of COVID spread in schools is the adults, the educators, not the students. However, the CDC is saying it's safe to be in the building if you have social distancing, if you have masking, if you can follow these safety protocols, which kind of conflicts with the idea of going back five days a week with everybody in the classroom. It's very difficult to follow social distancing and safety protocols if you have 30 students in a single classroom. So I really think it's more essential than ever that teachers are moved to the front of this list, especially if the governor's proposals for April reopening start to go forward. So thank you, Councilor Scarpelli, and I second your motion.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. Councilor Falco.
[Falco]: Thank you, Mr. President. I also want to thank Councilor Scarpelli for bringing this forward. Very important issue. You know, Desi's pushing for full-time return to in-school, full return to in-person learning. And this can't be achieved without significant changes in our social distancing guidelines. And we know that adults more often are seriously affected by the coronavirus. And we need to ensure that they, our teachers, are vaccinated before they return to the classroom full time. Teachers want to be in person with their students teaching. Your parents want their children at school. We need to make sure that teachers have the ability to get vaccinated. Teachers are essential. The protection of their health needs to be prioritized and they do need to be vaccinated. If you take a look around our country, there are 28 states that have prioritized teacher vaccination and the state of Massachusetts still has not prioritized teacher vaccinations. It's kind of like almost a recurring theme. I feel like the state of Massachusetts is trailing from behind and usually In most other instances, we're at the top of the pack, we're at the front of the pack, we're leading the way. And I feel like time after time now we're falling behind. And I think this is an issue where we're not, we should be up in front, we should be getting our teachers vaccinated and we're not. So I thank Councilor Scarpelli for bringing this forward, and I would also move approval. Thank you. Thank you. Councilor Morocco.
[Morell]: Thank you, Mr. President. I also wanna thank Councilor Scarpelli for introducing this and for his prescience. seeing the news coming out at the state level today being more important than ever, this being more important than ever. I know, just echoing what's already been said, is I know students want to get back, I know teachers want to get back, and they want to do so safely. I do just also want to note that, as I understand this, school committee passed a resolution to this effect earlier this month. So if this passes the council, I think it's a great effort in showing a united front and united voices pushing for this. This has my support, and again, thanks to Councilor Scarpelli.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion by Councilor Bears, I'm assuming, by Councilor Scarpelli, seconded by Councilor Bears. Mr. Clerk, please call the motion. Councilor Marksley, do you want to speak?
[Marks]: Just briefly, Mr. President. I'm sorry, Councilor Marksley. Thank you, Mr. President. I want to thank Councilor Scarpelli and the comments of my colleagues. I fully agree with teachers should be listed as essential workers. They are essential workers when they're dealing in teaching our kids and by no stretch of the imagination, so they could be considered otherwise. It was stated by the governor just recently that the inability for them to have the visibility of how many injections they're gonna get in from the state on a weekly basis is the inhibitor right now with rolling this out to teachers and to other people that may be in need of the injection. And the governor was requesting that the federal government give at least a three or four week window on what we're gonna get for vaccinations, the number of vaccinations. And that'll enable us at our sites, our mass vaccination sites, to roll this out more effectively and efficiently and be able to have people book one, two, three, four weeks out at a time, which is currently not happening right now. So some of its logistics, Mr. President, and I would ask as part of this that we also send a correspondence to our federal delegation asking that they at least give some more visibility and insight on the number of injections we're gonna get as a state So when we roll out our plan, that we're able to plan for it and book residents and teachers in advance, Mr. President. I would also ask that the school committee show leadership. And once again, Mr. President, meet in a public setting. You know, we're going to be asking teachers, we're going to be asking students to get back into the classroom, Mr. President. And I think it's only appropriate that the school committee lead by example, Mr. President, and have their meetings held in a public setting. Thank you.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. On the motion by Councilor Scarpelli, seconded by Councilor Bears. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll. As amended by Councilor Marx.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Beres.
[Bears]: What's the amendment from Councilor Marks, just so I'm aware?
[Hurtubise]: I believe there are two. Correspondence to the federal delegation requesting more insight on the number of vaccinations that are gonna be available in Massachusetts.
[Marks]: The number of vaccinations in advance.
[Hurtubise]: In advance. That will be available. That'll help for planning. And then was your request to the school committee, was that also an amendment? That wasn't an amendment, that was just a comment. So that was the yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President Knight. Councilor Marks. Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli.
[Caraviello]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes. I mean affirmative motion passes. 21075 offered by Councilor Falco, Councilor Scarpelli. We resolved that the parks department in conjunction with the recreation department retrofit each city tennis courts for pickleball use. Councilor Falco.
[Falco]: Thank you, Mr. President. I received a number of calls over the past week regarding pickleball. Pickleball is gaining a lot of popularity. It's been around for many years, but I think in our area, it's gaining popularity. And from what I've been told, it's gaining a lot of popularity with our senior residents. similar to tennis, but not quite like tennis, it's similar to tennis. And like I said, it's become very popular. But currently our parks are lined for pickleball. So what this resolution is, is actually it's an attempt to basically have our parks lined for pickleball use. I watched a meeting that was held by the administration last week. It was an update with regards to our parks and open space. And I believe one of the courts at Duggar Park is going to be lined for pickleball sometime in the future. And it was also recommended that when Carr Park is reconstructed or renovated, that they will have some sort of a pickleball court for use. know, if you take a look at the city of Medford, you know, we have many parks, many parks throughout our community, and all different sections of the city, all different neighborhoods, and we pride ourselves on our parks and open space. And, you know, so what this resolution is, it's basically a proposal that all of our tennis courts be lined to retrofitted so that they can be used for pickleball. The way I look at it is this would open up use for pickleball and make our our it would give the availability for people to play pickleball in any neighborhood, not just have to go to one particular park. And one of the people that he did talk to, he had also mentioned that, they felt that there should be more programming for seniors. And I think this is a great opportunity to have programming for our seniors and to have pickleball throughout the city of Medford. So when I asked that my Councilors, support this resolution, and I know Councilor Scarpelli has a few words to say about this as well. So at this point, I'd turn it over to my council colleague, Councilor Scott.
[Scarpelli]: Councilor Scarpelli. Thank you, Mr. President, and thanks, Councilor Falco, for really putting this issue forward. I think that, you know, in my field, we see, in recreation, we see how important it is, especially today with the pandemic, trying to get especially a demographic that's not being serviced in a sense as our seniors and finding recreational activities that are pretty inexpensive and an easy fix if you allow it. Talking to the director of recreation this past week, Kevin Bailey, I know we have a great and highly successful football program through recreation and an outside organization. And they really started groundswell here in our community like you're seeing in other communities that are giving constituents an opportunity to play. What that has also happened is that recreation organized program is great, but what we're seeing is we're seeing constituents that just want to go down the park and bring their paddles and go over to a tennis court and just have a pickup game. So with that, what Councilor Falco is mentioning, You know, I know that we heard some concerns that if you paint the courts, you know, that it'll affect X, Y, and Z, but just like other sports and other sports facilities, there's a way to do that where you are using temporary paint, using a different color, so you're really not affecting the tennis court itself, but also giving an opportunity for, you know, our participants in pickleball to have an opportunity to play in their neighborhood. So I think that we can end up becoming the Mecca of pickleball here in Medford will be the talk of every town and there'll be pickleball played across the land. So, but I know that, you know, another option that if we can look at too, I know that some communities participate in pickleball on turf fields. It's recommended to play on, from what I was told, on the tennis courts. But if you see that it's really growing to that extent, there's other areas that we can facilitate pickleball courts. But again, this is great. We started off with what we're seeing in our community with a bocce court that needs to be revisited a little bit. maybe take up the sand to put some stone dust, I guess, Mr. President. But I think that when you're adding these type of recreational activities, the people that in the past have been pushing aside, you know, I remember when our seniors only recreational activity was walking around Meadowblend Mall 455 times and then getting a coffee in the food court. But, you know, this is what our constituents are asking for. And I think that, I appreciate Councilor Falco to bring this forward so we can help this move along. And like I said, this isn't a big budget issue. This could be a very easy fix and it should be celebrated. So thank you. Thank you. Councilor Morocco.
[Morell]: Thank you, Mr. President. Yeah, I just wanted to confirm if I could through the chair, I did some research on pickleball this weekend. And so I thank the councilors for the opportunity to do such. I just want to confirm, so this would just be, changing markings and paint, it doesn't have to change the netting at all through the chair?
[Scarpelli]: No, I don't play pickleball, so I don't know. No, you don't really, you don't have to. From what we gather, you don't have to, so I don't think it's something that's, it's, you know, it's that dire. Okay. I think it's appropriate. Okay, thank you. I know we have some speakers.
[Falco]: If I may, really quick. I believe there may be a few people that may want to speak on this issue on the call. Councilor Knight.
[Bears]: Thank you, Mr. President. I just wanted to thank my fellow colleagues for putting this on the agenda. And you know, if we paint these lines, the people will come. So I think that's a great way to think about it. And I'm fully in support of this. I'm happy to defer to my fellow councilor.
[Knight]: Mr. President Knight. Mr. President, thank you very much. Sure come a long way from playing street hockey at Playstead Park, huh? Wow. Sean Bates, Joe Sacco, David Sacco, Keith Tkachuk, Mike Morrison. I don't know of any famous pickleball players, Mr. President, but maybe Medford will be on the forefront of that as well. I've always been a strong supporter of expanding our recreational opportunities. And I've always been a strong supporter in providing various opportunities. And I don't understand why we can't make The majority of our courts in this community are multifunctional, Mr. President, between tennis, badminton, street hockey, pickleball, or whatever it's called here, basketball, adjustable rims, that type of stuff, Mr. President. We have a plethora of parkland in this community, more so than our neighboring towns. And that provides us with a unique opportunity to really expand our recreational programming I'm very happy with the work that the Recreation Department has been doing, Mr. President. I would like to see maybe a adult basketball league, night league in the summer, a few things like that that I think could be real low-hanging fruit. If you look at the success that they had over in Somerville with their Trump Field basketball league that they had over there for 40 years, the park was packed every single night. And I think that these are initiatives that we can pursue, and pickleball is one of them. So I thank my colleagues for putting this on. You know, I apologize to my street hockey playing friends that are going to be bumped off, bumped off our tennis courts, but this is something I support a lot of me. I thank my colleagues. Thank you, Vice President.
[Caraviello]: I see we have, Paul C has his hand up. Paul C, name and address of the record, please.
[Camuso]: Unmute. Getting used to this Zoom stuff, Mr. President. Paul Camuso, 114 Lincoln Road, Medford, Mass. First of all, I want to thank Councilor Falco and Councilor Scarpelli for putting this on, you know, as, as a former athlete at Medford High School, I love to see that we're trying diverse to diversify the athletic programs and the recreational programs in our community. Just a few years ago we were very lucky to. get the recreation department into full swing, you know, and to expand it to include more diverse opportunities for Medford residents. It's just a win-win, Mr. President. I really think that this is going to take off, you know, you look at the Barchi court, the old Italian Americans love Barchi for the most part, and a lot of other people are now becoming part of that bocce league at not only the boat club, but also the new bocce courts here in our community. For many, many years, people would go over to the Italian club over in Malden to participate in bocce and to see bocce and now pickleball come to fruition, I think it's a great opportunity for our residents. Furthermore, just on a side note, we have a lot of snowbirds in our community. The biggest voting blocks and the biggest group in this community, when you look at the numbers, are the senior citizens. And to give them more opportunity to enjoy their golden years of retirement, I think you have to do it. And I really appreciate you making an effort to put this in place. On another side note, my mom is a snowbird, as most of you know. And down in Naples, they actually have a tournament that brings in thousands upon thousands of people that play. And they actually set up professional pickleball courts. It's a big facility. And three years ago when I visited my mom, I never even heard of pickleball, but it certainly is something that's taken off, not only here, but down in Florida where the retirees go down and enjoy the nice warm winters that we unfortunately don't have up here. So I just wanted to go on record. If I could too, as a former member of the council and a parent of a student in the Medford Public Schools, I think it's very important. I used to put this on yearly when I was a member of your honorable body. but I think the safety audit of all the parks to make sure, especially now, because once the parks are up and running, I think you're gonna have more people out there this year than ever due to the fact of the COVID-19 situation. So if you could, somebody think about putting on the agenda or making a paper to have the parks department do the safety audit, just to go through the entire facility structures and check all the nuts and bolts so that we can prevent injuries. I think it's a, no win, it's a win-win for the community and we can't go wrong when we're trying to provide safety to the senior citizens and in this particular case, the youth of our community. So once again, thank you to Councilor Falco and Councilor Scarpelli. I like when you guys think outside the box, you get down there on Tuesday night and you do the people's business. So I really appreciate that. And on another note, You guys are showing leadership. You're showing people that the country can still move forward under this devastating vaccine program that's before us now in the COVID situation by showing up on Tuesday nights and getting the people's business done. The continuity of government has to be paramount. And the people that are there tonight are doing that. Thank you.
[Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. Musso. Any further questions from the public? I don't think I see any.
[Scarpelli]: Okay, Councilor Scott. If I can, if we can just amend the paper to, if we can call for a subcommittee meeting for Youth and Recreation Affairs, I think it'll be important that we can follow up with that with our Director of Recreation and also move forward some discussion before the budget and making sure that we have all of our ducks in a row when it comes to recreation in our community. So thank you. Thank you.
[Caraviello]: Seeing that's such a big senior sport, maybe I should, I should be looking into it. Maybe it'll be my new next job. On to motion by Councilor Bailão and Councilor Scott Felly, as amended by Councilor Scott Felly, seconded by Councilor Marks. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President Nights. Yes. Councilor Marks.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. Yes. President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes, seven affirmative motion passes. 21-076 offered by Councilor Falco and President Caraviello being resolved that the city administration develop a pilot program to resurface a portion of our roads using recycled asphalt. Councilor Falco.
[Falco]: Thank you, Mr. President. So, each of us has received many, many calls I think throughout the years, each and every one of us with regard to potholes, streets that are in disrepair. And this year is a program that President Caraviello and I learned about last year at a conference. And what it is, is it basically takes recycled asphalt, and actually they use it to pave the street again. There are numerous benefits to the process, shorter construction times, it's easier to use around catch basins and manholes and water valves and whatnot. It lowers engineering and traffic control costs as well. Last week we received an update from a CFO for the city of Medford. to say the least, the 2022 city budget is going to be a challenge. So this option that myself and my colleague are putting forth tonight, I think it's just a way to think out of the box to see if there's some way that we can work together to move forward and get some of our streets paved at a reasonable cost. The city is struggling for money and revenue, but I think this might be an option to pave our streets or at least come up with a pilot program, even if we try doing this to a few of our streets, we should at least try. And so it's just a cheaper alternative to paving our streets where we currently pave them. So I actually have additional information for anybody that wants to see it, they can make a copy. But at this point, I would ask for your support and I move approval.
[Caraviello]: Thank you, Councilor Falco. I want to thank Councilor Falco again for bringing this forward. This is something Councilor Falco and I brought up last year also. And again, the benefit of using our own recycled alcohol is normally, I don't know if anybody, but normally when they mill a street, they take it to a plant and they give it to them. We have to buy it back from them. So what these companies do is they do it right on site. So as they're milling and grinding, they're making the asphalt right behind the truck, and it's coming right back out. So again, it was something that we brought up last year. It didn't really go anywhere. And I would hope that the administration and Mr. Cameron's look at this again, especially when money's tight, then money for roads. And if we can do two roads for the price of one, I say that's what we need to do. It's time that this be looked at. And again, I hope that this gets looked at again this year. So I thank you, Councilor Falco and myself for bringing this up. Thank you. Any further discussion? Is it present?
[Marks]: Councilor Box. Thank you, Mr. President. I want to thank my two colleagues, Councilor Falco and Councilor President Gaviello for putting this on. As I've stated in the past, we put very little to almost no money to resurface our roads and the budget. So we rely heavily on chapter 90 money, which is about 980,000 a year we receive from the state. And when you have over 700, 800 streets in a community, you can imagine a 980,000 doesn't go too far in having a plan to resurface our roads. Councilor Knight offered something back, I think it was two years ago, maybe two years now. regarding having our streets inspected through this machine that would go and almost do like an x-ray of the roads, up and down the roads, and be able to give you a printout on what streets are in dire need to be repaired and so forth. And it sounded like a magnificent idea to at least understand 700 or 800 roads, what the condition is, how they're evaluated, and what priority they're put in. Because right now, I think it's just a matter of, you know, the squeaky wheel gets the oil. And I can tell you firsthand, I've lived on the street almost 30 years that hasn't been touched in 30 years. So I think looking at some of these innovative and creative ways of potentially, as you mentioned, Mr. President, having our dollar spread a little further and doing more roads per year. And as Councilor Knight mentioned a while back by evaluating our streets to see where the priority roads are. I think that goes a long way in having an approach, a systematic approach to addressing what our needs are in the community, Mr. President. And so I support this paper wholeheartedly. I'd like to see even if we can roll it out to sidewalks as well. I know this substance could probably be used on sidewalks as well. And if that's the case, it may be a cost effective way handling some of the trip and falls that end up being lawsuits in a quicker and much more reasonable fashion, Mr. President.
[Caraviello]: Councilor Marks, if you can recall, Councilor Falco and myself also brought out a program for a company to come to the city that does that. They go out there and set your sidewalks. and they tell you which ones they can easily fix by either grinding or bringing them down to level. So again, this is something that's been brought up to the administration before. And if you do a little bit of work, this company's all here to do that stuff. So again, there's no reason why we can't be looking into it, especially during these tough financial times. Okay, the motion by Councilor Falco, seconded by Councilor Marks. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President Knight. Councilor Marks.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. Yes. President Caraviello. Yes.
[Caraviello]: Assembly affirmative. Motion passes. Okay. Communications with the city clerk 21077. City of Medford 2021 municipal election calendar. On the motion by Councilor Knight to have a brief synopsis by the clerk, seconded by Councilor Falco. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears? Yes. Councilor Falco? Yes. Vice President Knight? Yes. Councilor Marks?
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Morell? Yes. Councilor Scarpelli?
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: President Caraviello?
[Caraviello]: Yes. Motion passes. Mr. Clerk, if you'd like to give a brief synopsis.
[Hurtubise]: Absolutely. And I will be brief. As you're all aware, we have a minimum of two elections a year in Medford. The elections in the evening year are set by the state. The elections in the odd years are set by the city clerk with the approval of the city council. So this is the preliminary, this is the get the ball rolling document to get us in a position to prepare and execute our elections for September, if it is necessary, and for November. And this document lays out all the important dates and times for that election, starting with the nomination papers in June, going all the way through the end of year campaign finance report in January of 2022.
[Caraviello]: Paul C has his hand up. Paul C, name and address of the record, please.
[Bears]: Mr. President.
[Caraviello]: I'm sorry, Councilor Bassett.
[Bears]: Thank you. Just a couple of quick questions for the clerk. Are there any major departures on this calendar from previous years?
[Hurtubise]: There are no major departures. I think Two years ago, the petitions were available, I believe on June 11th this year, they're June 8th, but we tracked previous years when we compiled this calendar. We also conferred with Woburn and Somerville to make sure that we're all on the same page so that there's no confusion among voters.
[Bears]: Great, and do you have any expectations or information around mail-in ballots and early voting?
[Hurtubise]: We're tracking that, but as you know, that could change daily. That's pending the legislature right now. We do expect an uptick in requests for absentee ballots, but we're gonna be following closely any legislation to mandate early voting this year.
[Bears]: Thank you. And I just raised that point because it has been a priority of this council to have an elections coordinator hired by the city to take on the additional work of, you know, all of the elections that the clerk's office has been running and the registrar of voters has been running. So thank you for keeping an eye on it. And I just wanted to put that election coordinator idea out there once again. Thank you.
[Hurtubise]: And as you mentioned, the election coordinator, she's obviously working in a temporary role right now, but she was instrumental in helping us prepare this calendar.
[Bears]: Yes, a permanent position. Thank you.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. Paul C has his hand up.
[Camuso]: Name and address of the record, please. Paul Camuso, 114 Lincoln Road, Medford Mass. Thanks again, Mr. President. Just I'd like to make a quick comment on the upcoming elections. We all know that with COVID and the last few election cycles, there's been some movement around the VFW is no longer a polling place, as well as some other minor moves. The temple, excuse me, not the temple, the American Legion. And I think it's important that you get the message out via all the communication that you can. Some people received ballots last election that didn't put in for a mail-in ballot like myself. I actually brought that to the attention of the city clerk at the time. I just think there has to be a very good PR push to let everybody know what's going on, just because there's so many moving parts with COVID and the secretary of state just filed a bill for mail-in voting to become permanent. So whatever direction it goes in, I just think the public needs to know, because not everybody picks up the Boston Globe and reads the papers and does all their research. So it's incumbent upon this city to do that aspect of notifications, I believe.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. Okay, the motion of approval by Vice President Knight, seconded by Councilor Scarpelli. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears? Yes. Councilor Falco?
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: Vice President Knight? Councilor Marks? Yes.
[Morell]: Councilor Morales?
[Caraviello]: Yes. Councilor Pelli? Yes. Yes, let me defer to motion passes. Excuse me, communications from the mayor. 21037, February 16th, 2021. To President Richard Caraviello and all members of the city council, from Mayor Brianne Leguere. Licensing of food trucks. Dear President Caraviello and members of the Medford City Council, I respectfully request that the Medford City Council approve the following request for a food truck at the Andrews School. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, considering the city's temporary policies, limiting investor gatherings, the attached application includes some unique considerations which have been reviewed, approved by my office, as well as the Board of Health. This is a request for two trucks to be stationed at the Angel School for a pickup of pre-ordered dinner items. No conga game will be allowed as part of this plan. This is a request to reschedule the PTO fundraiser that had previously been scheduled for February 10th, that had to be rescheduled. Medford Streets, Food Truck PTO fundraiser will be March 3rd, 2021. Time will be four to seven o'clock, four to seven. And the setup begins at three o'clock PM. And the location will be at the Andrews School. Thank you for your consideration. Respectfully submitted, Mayor Brannon-Alongo-Kerr.
[Knight]: Councilor, Vice President Knight. Mr. President, thank you very much. This matter has been before our body on several occasions. We took a look at it and we had some concern as to whether or not the city council should be approving an application for a permit where the entity would be doing business on school property. And we asked the school committee take a look through the application report back to us, whether or not it falls within their fundraising policy criteria. And looking at the applicant that's before us personally, I'm not too crazy about the idea of doing business with them, but I don't wanna stand in the way of the PTO getting the fundraiser under their belt. I wouldn't necessarily call this a fundraiser, Mr. President. I would call it the food truck provider jacking up their prices 16% and that 16% of sales being donated back to the school. I don't think that that's quite in the spirit of philanthropy. However, as I stated, I don't want to get in the way of the PTO conducting a fundraiser or an event to bring excitement about the return to their school and to raise much-needed funds. So, Mr. President, my concern now lies on the fact that we have an entity coming into the community. They've asked for permits in the past. We've denied them permitting in the past. They're now pursuing permitting through our PTOs in our public schools, through our children. My concern is that this PTO fundraiser is no more than a data mining initiative. where they're going to be able to get people's personal information, emails, and the like, and then use that to begin a marketing campaign in the community, Mr. President. So I certainly have no problem approving this paper this evening for the simple fact that it's for the kids. However, I would like there to be requirements that no personal information or data be retained by the applicants following the conclusion of the event. Once they get paid, the party's over. And they're not going to be taking email addresses and emailing individuals in the community saying, do you want to be an ambassador? Do you want to have a food truck on your street? Use that as a form of solicitation, Mr. President. You know, to jack your prices up 18% and call that philanthropy and donation, I don't quite see it. In my world, when you give, you give. Sometimes that comes right off the top. You know, jack your prices up and then pass off your jacked up profits. They call that fundraising. So with that being said, Mr. President, I would move that the paper be approved with the following conditions, that no personal data be utilized or retained by the applicant following the conclusion of the event. Thank you, Vice President. Councilor Scarpelli.
[Scarpelli]: I would second that, Mr. President. Thank you. I said, I too understand that that was totally against us because of the implications to our brick and mortar businesses. And this is why I've been against the, the food truck initiative until we have an understanding of where and when these outside businesses are coming into our community and not paying permit fees and not paying taxes and not going through the protocol that all of our brick and mortar businesses go through to survive, and especially at this time. I had a great discussion with Vivian Su after the event, after the meeting last few weeks ago. talk to a few of the business owners in our community that they are now touching base and understanding that we have brick and mortar businesses that would love to work as a fundraiser where 10% of the proceeds that go into that restaurant for that day, all the proceeds, that 10% of all people that go in there, not just the people from that school, would go directly to that fundraising organization. I think that's the true meaning of a true fundraiser. So again, that again shows the support of our brick and mortar businesses and what they're willing to give even during these tough times. They're still reaching into their pockets and wanting to help our children and our community. So again, I will support this initiative tonight because I think some of our PTO members were put in a very difficult position not understanding what was the movement with this. But to me, this is just a blatant effort of an end around where they came to us. We did not approve it. The person that was speaking from Watertown was moved with talking to principal and so on and so forth. And then this was born. So in a time where you're talking about probably one of the neediest communities, parts of our community that have got housing projects and where a lot of our kids that have need, their classmates are walking outside and paying 16 to 18% more for a meal and can't be part of that program because of what is a blown up payment system. I think it's truly unjust and not a, not of opportunity for those kids to be involved and do it right in front of them, in front of their faces really, really bothers me, but I will support this tonight and with a lot of questions. Thank you.
[Caraviello]: Thank you, Councilor Scapelli. We have a name and address for the record, ma'am. Mr. Clerk, can you unmute him?
[SPEAKER_08]: Yes, hi. Good evening, everybody, and thank you, Mr. President. My name is Anne Marie Eidner, and I'm the blatant person that you're accusing of doing end runs. I'm more than happy to withdraw our application and to stay out of Medford. It was never our intent to do end runs around anybody. Nobody is making any money. The food trucks are all small businesses. They pay a permit fee, so they do everything that's required in order to be wherever they are. I think that the accusations that I'm hearing tonight are extremely unfair. No one is making money, no one. And I really, I'm really sorry.
[Scarpelli]: I believe the records we have, ma'am, we have that the prices were increased by 16%. Right. So you're not so. So obviously, so the understanding of a true fundraiser is leaving those prices where you have it, and then giving back to that community.
[SPEAKER_08]: But that's the that comes out of the trucks that doesn't come out of me. That comes out of what the trucks make.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, man. continue, please.
[SPEAKER_08]: I apologize for interrupting. But that's I think from the very beginning, this council has misunderstood our intentions. And I really am saddened by it. Really, we've worked extremely hard. I really apologize to Vivian. But I withdraw our offer to do this event. Um, I it's not it's not necessary. We don't have to do it. We wanted to do it as a way to and again, I can't increase the prices of the trucks if the trucks are going to not be able to pay for their food and their staff. So we don't make any money. We make a small booking fee and that's all we make. We've generated thousands of dollars for PTOs. It started because we asked them how they were going to fundraise this year and they said they didn't have any idea. So that's what we tried to do. If it doesn't work in Medford, we completely respect that. We apologize if we were not clear from the very beginning. We most of all apologize to the Andrews Middle School, but we don't think we should proceed with our request in the city of Medford.
[Caraviello]: But ma'am, the paper has been written into the record and it cannot be withdrawn without a vote. So I just wanna let you know that.
[SPEAKER_08]: Okay, thank you.
[Caraviello]: The mayor. Only the making good. I'm Vivian so would you like to speak. Vivian so please name and address of the record please.
[SPEAKER_01]: The ensue 93rd Street Medford mass president Thank you so much for having us here again I really appreciate hearing from Councilor Knight and Councilor Scott Scarpelli. I appreciate very much the time that you took after our last meeting, Mr. Scarpelli to chat with me and to share your concerns. more deeply and to help me understand, better understand, I would very much enjoy having a further meeting to talk about the brick and mortar stores that are interested in hosting fundraisers at this time with us, because surely, once again, we realize that the PTOs are at a disadvantage due to COVID and this pandemic. So we are scratching our heads, trying to come up with creative ways. You know, we, We thought that a food truck fundraiser sounded like a good idea, something new, something innovative, something that we could do. But I understand all of the concerns. I was not there from the very beginning of the discussions that started months ago, so kind of jumping in in midstream. But I appreciate hearing all sides, and I leave it at that.
[Caraviello]: Thank you. Any further discussion? Okay. On the motion for approval by Vice President Knight, seconded by Councilor Scarpelli, as amended by Councilor Knight. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears? Yes. Councilor Falco? Yes. Vice President Knight? Councilor Marks? Yes. Councilor Morell? Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. Yes. President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes, seven affirmative motion passes. Thank you. Reports of committees. 21-065 February 16th, 2021. Committee of hold will report the following. 21-065 was the Q2 update done by a finance director Alicia Dudley. And she painted a picture of where we'll be going for the foreseeable future. And there's a little on the grim side, but hopefully we'll rebound and make some kind of comeback. So the motion by Councilor Mayne to accept the committee report 21065, seconded by Councilor Falco. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Galbo, Vice President Knight. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.
[Caraviello]: Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. And I think we got, we got some things I ain't done last week. So on the motion by Vice President Knight, seconded by Councilor Scarpelli. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President Knight. Yes. Councilor Marks. Yes. Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli.
[Caraviello]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes. Motion passes. Public participation. I don't see any hands up. Motion to minutes. The records were passed to February 9th. Okay. The records of February 9th were passed to Councilor Marks. They were tabled. Councilor Marks. First, I review the records, find them to be in order and move approval. The motion by Councilor Marks to accept the records of February 9th, seconded by Vice President Knight. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears?
[Caraviello]: Yes.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Falco? Yes. Vice President Knight? Yes. Councilor Marks? Yes. Councilor Morell? Yes. Councilor Scarpelli? Yes. President Caraviello?
[Caraviello]: Yes, 17 deferment and motion passes. The records of the meeting of February 16th, 2021 were passed to Councilor Morell. Councilor Morell, how did you find those records?
[Morell]: I found them to be in order, Mr. President, and move approval.
[Caraviello]: On the motion by Councilor Morell, seconded by Councilor Falco. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears? Yes. Councilor Falco? Yes. Vice President Knight? Councilor Marks. Yes. Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. Yes. President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes. Mr. President before you adjourn.
[Scarpelli]: I want to wish a very special person a happy 29th birthday. Carol Caraviello, I believe, celebrated her 29th birthday. We want to make sure that, you know, anybody that's been married to you as long as she's been alive has been pretty impressive. So thank you.
[Caraviello]: I'm a little disheartened you guys forgot my birthday last week.
[Falco]: Happy birthday, Carol.
[Caraviello]: I'll have the motion, but any other discussion?
[Marks]: I'll have the motion by Councilor Scarpelli. So Councilor Marks, do you want to say something? I do, Mr. President. Several weeks back, we had the Board of Health Director before us, and I believe it was Councilor Scarpelli asked the Board of Health Director when we could start having the general public into the meeting. And the Board of Health Director stated that as long as there's social distancing and all the CDC rules and regulations or adhere to, we're fine to have members of the general public come up to our meeting. Since then, we've had at least two that I can recall, maybe three people come before the council in person to publicly state their opinions on issues. And Mr. President, I am dumbfounded why the building is still on lockdown while we have our meeting at seven o'clock here at City Hall. So I would ask Mr. President respectfully that these doors remain open during this council meeting, whereas we were given the green light by the Board of Health Director. Of course, unless things have changed and we weren't notified, but then again, we wouldn't know that because the Board of Health Director hasn't appeared before this council at our request. So I would ask Mr. President that these doors remain open for public input during the council meeting, Mr. President. And as I mentioned, as long as social distancing and all the CDC requirements are adhered to.
[Caraviello]: And I will reach out to the chief of staff and the mayor tomorrow to address that subject. On another matter, something we talked about last week and we had a member of the public here on the collection boxes at Wellington Circle. I had the opportunity to go by on Thursday and the collection bins were overflowing. And there was stuff on the sides. And after doing a little bit of work, I was able to reach out to somebody from Standard Recycling to address the problem. And when I spoke to the gentleman, told him that the things were full. And he told me that he was unaware that we had a collection ordinance. He has spoken with the building commissioner, Moki. And on Saturday, he told us where he said, I'll have a truck out there on Saturday. did have a truck out there on Saturday to empty the bins. And he told me that he will be having a truck there this week to take the collection bins out of there until he conforms to the new ordinance. And on another note, he also stated that he signed the lease with Kimco to rent that spot. And I explained to him that he should maybe Wait till he goes a little further to see where the council wants to go with that collection box. So just a little update. So I know Mr. Paul, he was here last week and since then it was full and I'm glad the gentleman came, he was very responsive, came right down and cleaned it up. So I wanted to just say that. So on the motion we adjourn by Councilor Falco, seconded by Councilor Marks. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Hurtubise]: Councilor Bears. Yes. Councilor Falco. Yes. Vice President Knight. Yes. Councilor Marks. Yes. Councilor Morell. Yes. Councilor Scarpelli. Yes. President Caraviello.
[Caraviello]: Yes. I have a good evening. We'll see everybody tomorrow night.
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