[Fred Dello Russo]: Council will come to order. Mr. Clerk, please call the roll.
[Clerk]: Present. With five present and two absent, please rise to salute the flag.
[Fred Dello Russo]: 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. Commendations. We have two commendations. They were offered by Councilor Knight. So we'll table those for next week. And motion of Councilor Knight to table those commendations. All those in favor? All those opposed? matter is tabled. Uh, 15 a dash three 54 offered by president dollar. So be it resolved that the Medford city council received soup on it and members of the Medford relay for life to address the council regarding their upcoming event. Sue is not with us tonight, but Debbie Mitchell is, and we invite you up to address the council. Just please state your name and address for the record.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you. My name is Debbie Mitchell, and I live at 33 Bay State Road, Linfield, Mass. With me tonight is Ellen Nason, and she's the American Cancer Society rep, and she's also going to be giving a little talk after I finish. Good evening. Thank you, President Dello Russo and city council members for giving us the opportunity to address the council and the community of Medford tonight. I'd like to start by sharing a speech from one of our past relays that was given during the Luminaria ceremony. What makes a person brave is not letting their fears stop them. This statement defines a survivor, a caregiver, and those currently facing cancer. Cancer is a disease that knows no boundaries. It strikes anyone and at any time. Even with today's modern medical technology, It has the ability to outsmart doctors. And that is why tonight we are all here to celebrate a world with less cancer and more birthdays. Tonight we celebrate with all our survivors. We also remembered our loved ones who have lost their battle to cancer, and through their experience, they taught us. Remember their courage. Remember how they never complained. Remember that each day is a gift. Remember their endurance and determination to keep on fighting. Remember their hope and their ability to never stop believing. Remember that they remind us that life is very precious and there is no greater gift than love. Remember that there are angels who walk among us. The first relay for Life of Method Somerville was in 2007. It was started by my dear friend Linda Corrigan, a longtime Method resident and cancer survivor. Since 2007, I am proud to report that the Relay for Life of Medford Somerville has raised well over half a million dollars for the American Cancer Society. This year's event will take place on Friday, June 5, 2015 at Hormel Stadium, starting at 6 p.m. and will end at midnight. In the past, the Relay was an overnight event, but however, the committee of volunteers, we started planning back in September and decided to change the venue. We currently have 19 teams and 67 participants. The teams agreed to keep one member on the track at all times. These teams are made up of people from businesses, families, friends, schools, clubs, and churches. The relay for life represents hope. Hope that those who left are never forgotten. Hope that those who are battling cancer are supported. Hope that researches are funded. and hope that cancer is one day eliminated. Honoring and recognizing survivors and caregivers are a key component of our event. We start with an opening ceremony, followed with a survival app and a survivor dinner. There is music and entertainment throughout the evening as well as a relay marketplace where teams set up tables and sell raffle items for prizes. At 9 p.m., we have an emotional luminaria ceremony of candles and white paper bags to remember those who have lost their lives to cancer and those who are battling cancer. These glowing bags line the entire track. At this point, there is a single silent lap for all to participate as we follow the bagpiper around the track. In the stands, we have the words hope and cure. glowing large for all to see as we make our way around the track. It's very emotional and beautiful. We invite you to join us this year. We have just over $10,000. Our goal for this year is $100,000. Yes, we need the community's help to reach our goal. How can you help? Become a team captain and have your own team. Registration is free this year. Spread the word. Recruit family, friends, and coworkers. Become a Relay sponsor. Purchase and decorate luminaria bags. Donate gift cards, raffle items, and food. Your reasons for walking in the Relay for Life are as unique and special as the story that motivates you. This is your opportunity to not only honor cancer survivors and remember people who have lost, but also to raise funds and awareness to help save lives. Because of your support, we are creating a world where cancer can't claim another year of anyone's life. You are creating a world with less cancer and more birthdays. Thank you again for your time tonight.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_00]: Hi. My name's Ellen Nason, and I wanted to thank you for inviting us and allowing us to speak tonight. Debbie just shared some great information about our upcoming event, the Relay for Life of Medford, and I'm here representing the American Cancer Society. I specifically work with this community, that is, my entire job is to be working with the Metro-North area, helping to implement cancer awareness programs, share information about our patient programs, and work with amazing volunteers like Debbie on our events. So Debbie spoke to why raising this money is so important in this community. And I wanted to share a little bit about what the American Cancer Society does with the money that we raise. So we are the largest nonprofit private funder of cancer research. And since 1946, we have invested $4 billion into cancer research. We've seen the death rate decline by 20% since 1991. And that translates into roughly 1.3 million lives that have been saved as a result. The power of our research is impressive. We have played a role in nearly every single cancer breakthrough. This includes linking cigarette smoking to lung cancer, dramatically increasing the five-year survival rate of childhood leukemia by 90%, and we have also funded cutting-edge research, including 47 Nobel Prize winners. We have many patient programs and health and wellness programs right here in this area that many people are not even aware of. For example, we have a 1-800 number that's available to you 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And this is a little bit unique. So unlike calling many 800 numbers where you speak to somebody who may not even be in this country at the moment, when you call our 800 number, you are automatically transferred to somebody who has expertise in your area. So if you're calling from Chelsea, Massachusetts, you're speaking to somebody who knows the programs in Chelsea, Massachusetts. If you're calling from Medford, they know the programs in Medford. and they can put you in touch with people who can help. We have a Boston Hope Lodge, which we are very fortunate to have right in this area. The Boston Hope Lodge provides free housing right near the Boston hospitals for patients and caregivers. And this saves patients approximately $7,000, and patients typically stay up to six weeks. Our road to recovery program provides patients rides to treatment completely free of charge, And in Massachusetts alone, we provided 16,000 rides last year. So this is huge. This is a program that I actually worked with when I first started with the American Cancer Society. And I would field calls all day long from patients who had no way to get to treatment. And it was a great service to be able to match them up with volunteers right in their area who could get them to and from their treatment. So I think that these programs really speak to why this Relay for Life event in Medford is so important and why we're really hoping that we can get the community on board and we need everybody's support to raise $100,000, which is a very lofty goal and would be the highest that this community has ever raised. So we thank you for your support and we hope to see you in June.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you very much. Thank you. And Councilor Caffiello wants to speak. Thank you, Mr. President. I'd like to thank you ladies for coming up here and your cause. My mother passed from cancer. She battled cancer most of her life. And it is a deadly disease. And I, myself, have volunteered with Angel Flight for kids coming in from, you know, going, you know, for their treatment in Boston. So I applaud your work, and I hope the whole community comes out and supports you on this way.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you very much.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor Knight. Mr. President, motion to receive and place on file. Thank you very much, ladies, for coming out today. On that motion council max.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you. Mr. President. I was just wondering Debbie or Deb, would you like to give out some contact information if anyone is interested in either? donating to the relay For life or wants to put together a team Thank you, we actually have some of these For the viewing audience, maybe if you can give some information on where someone may be able to look you up on an email or website.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure. The website for the Relay for Life of Medford is relayforlife.org slash method MA. And you can sign up today. And again, as I stated earlier, registration is free. There is no charge to register. And then you can also contact Kayla. who is our American Cancer Rep, in addition to Ellen, and it's Kayla.Hindle, H-I-N-D-L-E, at cancer.org. And her direct line, I believe it's on this, the brochure, is 781-314-2630.
[Michael Marks]: And you also have that 800 number if someone wanted a call to get some more information from?
[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, that's 1-800. 227-2345. And I can leave my business cards here. It has all that. It has our 800 information. It also has my direct line. So if you need any cancer-specific information or information on our free programs, I can provide that to you as well.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you. Just give those to the messenger, and he'll distribute them to the council.
[Michael Marks]: Mr. President, if I could just say, this has been a great event in the city for a number of years. It's due to the many volunteers that get active and involved. I can't think of one person. that hasn't been impacted in one way or another by this awful disease, Mr. President. And it truly has no boundary. It doesn't discriminate. And it's something that we have to snuff out. And it's people like Debbie and the many volunteers that have put in countless hours trying to keep this in the forefront with all the different things that are out there and different people pulled in different directions. I think this is such a worthy cause, Mr. President, that we have to do our best to make sure we can eradicate this awful disease. So, again, I thank you both, and I hope it's going to be a big success, which I'm sure it will.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you very much for coming tonight. Thank you. On the motion of Councilor Knight to receive and place on file. All those in favor? All those opposed? Motion carries. Thank you all. 15355 offered by councillor night be it resolved that the metric City Council welcome the building department snoozed employees Steve Campoli Steve Randazzo and PETA Barco councillor night mr. President.
[Adam Knight]: Thank you very much Very recently, the building department had welcomed three new employees on. Steve Champoli handling plumbing inspection duties, Steve Randazzo handling some electrical inspection duties, both of whom were classmates of mine at Medford High School. As well as Peter Spock, who's going to be doing some code enforcement, Mr. President. So I think this is a very welcome addition to the building department. The council's been very outspoken in its need for a code enforcement officer, and we see one that's been put on. I'd like to commend the administration for listening to the council and taking the council's advice. And I wish these three individuals the best of luck and a healthy, happy, and successful career here in the city of Medford.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you. So on the motion of Councilor Knight, all those in favor? Seconded by Councilor Kern. All those opposed? Motion carries. 15-356 offered by Councilor Knight. Be it resolved that a crosswalk be installed on Forest Street between King Avenue and Cedar Road to allow safe pedestrian travel for knighthood neighborhood residents to McNally Park. Be it further resolved, the installation of this crosswalk be implemented prior to the completion of the park upgrades. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Again, Mr. President, thank you very much. Last week we had a very fruitful discussion on crosswalks and I think we may have pushed the first domino over and a number of requests will be coming in over the next coming months. But I was contacted by a family down on King Ave. who was very excited to see that McNally Park was going to be renovated. And one of the number one concerns that they had was the fact that there's no crosswalk for them to walk from their home to the park. So I took a ride down Forest Street. And I think that the first crosswalk would be at Forest Street and Governor's Ave. And the next one is down in front of the old high school. So I'd like to see a crosswalk put in somewhere that's a little bit closer to the vicinity of the park so that our residents who are willing to utilize this investment that we just made can get there safely, Mr. President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: It's a good measure. So on that motion, Councilor Knight, all those in favor? All those opposed? Motion carries. And FYI, the acting Commissioner of Public Works informed me that the striping of the streets, lines, and sidewalks has commenced already in the city. Councilor Marks?
[Michael Marks]: Suspension of the rules, so gentlemen would like to speak.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Motion for suspension of the rules. All those in favor? Aye. All those opposed? Sir, please state your name and address for the record.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: Hi everyone, thank you. I'm Jim Bilodeau, Gill Street, Medford. I just want to give my comments and opinions about the Republic parking. I think it was a better system what we had before this all came into effect in the city of Medford. I always found a place to park in the city of Medford, whether it's in South Medford, West Medford, the Square. I know they talk about these commuters. All right, you give up a few spots, but you don't have to pay. Now, if you want to shop, you have to pay to shop. I know a lot of my friends won't come into Square, South Medford, or West Medford to shop, because they don't want to pay to shop. And as far as their contract goes, that's void. They voided that out many, many numerous times. Look at all the things that they broke on the record. They don't go by the rules. They have signs that say that it's enforced at 7 to 7. But it's 6 to 6. What is it? 6 to 6? 8 to 6. Oh, 8 to 6, yeah. But the signs say 7 to 7, right?
[Michael Ruggiero]: They just changed that. Are they changing them?
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: There's still some. I see them in different spots. And it's illegal. They're charging people before time. They're taking their money illegally to park. So that breaks the contract, it's void. The whole contract is void. I think the city council should take the contract and rip it up because it's all voided out. Everything that they've done. They've given people tickets that have handicapped stickers. They've given people tickets that are going to the kiosks 50 yards away.
[Adam Knight]: Sir, I want you to understand that the Medford City Council doesn't have the authority over the contract. The traffic commission has the authority over the contract, and the mayor is the chief negotiating authority for the contract.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: The contract is void. It's voided out numerous times. Just one thing would void it out, but they have a laundry list of things that they've done. I mean, giving handicapped people a ticket, you know? And then people going to the kiosks while they're programming it, they're giving them a ticket on their window. They give them that white little, you know, receipt. They're getting a fine, for Christ's sake, and they're trying to pay. And, you know, it's just on and on. They have vessels that are going around, they're sneaking around. You don't know who they are. They come up on top of you and they give you a ticket while you're going to pay. That voids it out. And a few weeks from now, we're going to have the countable. Oh boy, can I buy stock in Republic? They're going to have a field day in this city, huh, with all the people coming in from the other cities. They'll be ticketing them everywhere. So, you know what I mean? It's just a bad situation. So if we can't void it out, then why don't we put it on the ballot and make it a binding question for the people of this city, we'll vote it out.
[Adam Knight]: Yeah, that's all we have to do. There's a methodology if someone wants to put something on the ballot. And signing petition. And I don't think anybody here agrees with you that the plan, that disagrees with you on the fact that the plan was rolled out and it was rolled out ineffectively and that it's created quite a bit of hardship for a number of residents and businesses here in the community. I just want you to be aware that this council doesn't have the power or authority to change anything in the contract. It doesn't have the power or the authority to change anything.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: Can we get it on the ballot and we can have an opined question?
[Fred Dello Russo]: It would have to be a citizen initiative. A citizen initiative by creating a valid question.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: We the people by the people.
[Adam Knight]: I would like to let you know that Wednesday the 22nd at 6 o'clock, I believe, 5.30, 6 o'clock. 6 o'clock. 6 o'clock. We're having a meeting here in the chambers with the traffic commission.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: With them?
[Adam Knight]: With traffic commission and representatives from the public.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: They're going around and playing my cars and they're giving people tickets. You don't know who they are. You know what they do too? They double park in the Medford Square. I've seen them almost cause accidents because they're so in a hurry to give somebody a ticket, they double park out there with no monitoring on their vessels, no flashing. Bang! Accident. Look at the poor lady that fell this past winter trying to pay for that thing. She slipped in the ice and went to the hospital. There's so many numerous problems with this situation. This used to be a friendly city where you could come here and shop. Now it isn't. It's not a friendly city anymore. You can't come here and shop. Who wants to pay to shop? So you just go somewhere else. All my friends tell me they ain't going here. They got tickets. I have a friend, a couple in Stoneham. They live in Stoneham. They like to go to Medford Square and go to the restaurants. They come out and get a ticket. They ain't going to shop. They ain't going to go there and eat anymore. I'm going to go where I don't have to get a fare of a ticket. I mean, it's so, I have other things, too, that I was going to mention, but you kind of forget. But they avoided out this contract. And they didn't even hire anybody from Medford. That voids out the contract. What's it supposed to be, 60% of the Medford people?
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you. Councilor Lungo-Koehn.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you, President De La Rosa. I also was going to mention that we do have a subcommittee meeting on this at 6 p.m. next Wednesday, because I think everything you've spoken about, the Council has spoken about numerous times. Especially last week, we brought up, I and the rest of my colleagues brought up a number of the issues.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: Here's another good example for you. As I'm thinking about all the void things that they've done with this contract, they voided it right out. One thing would void it right out. It's no good. It's illegal. They're collecting illegal money. They're taking people's money. And people, they're putting in their registration number, and it's coming out another number. And they're getting a ticket. And then they're putting in their charge cards, and it's recording other people's charge card numbers. And then they get a ticket. That's dangerous. You can't be doing that. It's illegal.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: it's
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: then we're going to have to put it on the ballot and have it a binding question. And the people in Medford, we the people will vote this program right out of here. And we can go right back to the way we were. And everybody will be able to shop free. And we'll be able to not have to pay to shop. That's the way I see the whole situation. And watch now when the carnival comes. Oh, my god. They'll be crawling under cars giving people tickets. Thank you, and God bless you all.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you very much. Councilor Garfield? This will be a good ballot question for the new mayor coming up.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: Oh, yes, that's right.
[Richard Caraviello]: This will be, I think, a number one, one of the big topics in the upcoming election for the new mayor.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: I'll guarantee you, whoever runs, if he runs again, he will not win in this city ever again.
[Richard Caraviello]: The mayor is not running for re-election.
[Q7cD9OP2TNA_SPEAKER_22]: He isn't? He is not. Yeah, so now he's going to stick it to us. In the meantime, huh? We'll see. All right.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, sir.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Be it resolved the Council President to sign all resolutions filed in 2014 for which the Council has yet to receive a response to the appropriate subcommittee for further investigation and review. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much. Thank you, Councilor. Last week we passed a resolution, and the resolution suggested that, you know, the Mayor isn't responding to resolutions in a timely fashion. I think we were all in agreement that the 10-day window is met sometimes, but rarely. And we discussed putting on the tracking sheet the date that the resolution went forward. And that led me to take a look at the tracking sheets that we have, Mr. President, and the resolutions that have gone unanswered. And I think that it would be in our best interest and the best interest of the residents of the city of Medford for us to take a look at the resolutions that have gone forward that have been unanswered, sign them to subcommittee, and have the subcommittee further investigate and review the matters that were brought before this body, that were passed by this body, and that were sent to the administration. Um, so with that being said, Mr. President, I put this resolution forward, um, with the hopes that, um, you know, my colleagues would support the idea of us actually taking ownership of some of these issues that we sent across the hall to the mayor's office for action where there hasn't been action. Um, and we continuously send the same resolution saying the same thing to the same person to get the same result. I believe Albert Einstein was the person that said that would be the definition of insanity to do the same thing over and over again and expect that it's a different result. Um, so, I looked at this as an opportunity for us to change the way that we do business a little bit here, take ownership of some of these issues that we've sent forward to the administration, and let's roll up our sleeves and get to work and see if we can resolve some of them.
[Fred Dello Russo]: So what you're saying in this resolution is that by the vote of this resolution, the council is authorizing the president to act on the councilor's behalf to send all those papers in?
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes.
[Adam Knight]: at his discretion. Into the subcommittee structure that we have present, you know what I mean? And then we can take a look at investigating the matter further. Some of these items that we sent forward that have gone, you know, without an answer may have already been resolved. They might have resolved themselves. Right. So, you know, I think that it's just, you know, good for housekeeping.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Very good. So I will, in consultation with the clerk, if this meets the approval of our colleagues, act on that once we have an updated list. Councilor Lungo-Koehnan.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Thank you, President Knight. I think it's a good resolve. Just looking at one simple sheet we have. We get one, I think, once a month on our resolutions. We have a date responded to, date referred out. And this one, which is from a few months ago, shows that we got responses on 11 out of 34 resolutions. So I think it's definitely needed. We do need that. It's a good resolve. I mean, to think outside the box and figure out a way that we can make be more productive in, you know, what we're doing here every Tuesday night. So I agree with it. I second the resolve and move approval.
[Fred Dello Russo]: On the motion of approval, seconded by Councilor Longo-Kurt, Councilor Marx.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. And I thank my colleague for bringing this up. However, I'm not quite sure what the actual resolution would do to solve any concerns that we may have. with not getting a response from the administration, uh, which is, uh, a response that is set forth under section 55 of the charter, which requires the mayor to respond back to the council within 10 days. Um, if the mayor fails to respond back to the council, I'm not quite sure that having the paper then come back to the council and be sent to one of our subcommittees solves any concern of anything at all, other than we just take the issue and take it off the mayor's plate. My personal opinion is if originally it was sent to the mayor, it was sent because we were looking for a response from the administration or a department head or something that needed intervention from the mayor's office. And to send it back to us to work on it again to me makes no sense. I think we should try to address the reasoning behind why we're not getting responses according to the city charter within a timely manner. And that would be the issue. And furthermore, you know, the councilor is correct. And it may be things that we're sending to the mayor that are rhetorical in nature that we're really not even looking for a response. And those things can be vetted out by this council. But for the many resolutions that are sent to the mayor that go unresponded to, I'm not quite sure why we would want to welcome them back, put them in a subcommittee, for what purpose? I'm still not sure what that solves. If we want to really address the issue, We should be sitting down with the mayor saying, Mr. Mayor, we expect under the city charter, and that's the rules that regulate how the city operates. If the mayor chooses not to operate under those rules, there's a larger issue. But to try to circumvent the city charter and now take a paper that was originally sent to the mayor and say, well, we'll take it back because he never responded. I'd like to hear, I'm open for discussion and dialogue, but I'd like to hear how that helps the legislative process and how that helps move issues forward on behalf of this community. I don't see that.
[Adam Knight]: Thank you, Council Member. Council Member Nye. Well, Mr. President, I do sometimes have concern about a resolution that starts off on the council floor that says, be it resolved that the Medford City Council discuss subject X, Y, and Z. And before that discussion's over, the resolution turns into something that's a larger issue. It's not a discussion. It becomes an action item. So, you know, I think that we have an underutilized subcommittee structure that's in place anyway, and I've said that for a year now. And, you know, I've tried to make efforts to put papers into subcommittee for further vetting and for further investigation and for further review. But the one thing that we can do in subcommittee is we can call department heads to come before the committee and explain themselves as to why this hasn't happened or that hasn't happened. We can figure out what's going on. We can figure out the cost of items. We can figure out legally whether or not there's an impediment to the question that we've asked. We can really roll up our sleeves and dig in. And if it's something that we want to work on, we can figure out what the problems are, why they exist, and then we can come up with a strategy to get around them. We can send it to the administration. The administration can look at it and say, yeah, that's something I'm going to work on. But I also have all this stuff on my desk that I need to work on, too. So it's going to happen when it happens. Because this is my stuff, and that's what they've sent. And I think that that's what's happening sometimes, Mr. President. You know, it's obviously not an easy job to run a city. I think we all know that. And this body keeps the administration rather busy with our requests. And I think that all the requests that we send across his desk have merit in one form or another. However, if they're not being addressed, then we need to send 14 or 15 resolutions to the administration relative to the lighting down at the Condon Shell. And I went on the Internet and pulled up the Condon Shell agreement, and it clearly said, at dusk till dawn is when the shell is open. So it would lead me to believe that because the shelves open just till dawn, they're probably not going to put lights down there until we get special approval from the DCI. So we sent 15 resolutions on the same subject matter. I pushed the internet, and they came up with a contract. So I just think that it gives us another unique opportunity, Mr. President. I'm not asking to do it with everything. I'm asking to do it with the resolutions that have gone forward from 2014 to date, just the resolutions from 2014 that have gone unresponded. And let's try it out and see if we can do something different and get a better result than what we're getting. Thank you. Councilor?
[Fred Dello Russo]: Madam Vice President.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: No, I just think what Councilor Marks has merit to, I think we should obviously get responses and we should be on the mayor to respond to our resolutions. But I also think, you know, it is partly our duty to follow up and to make sure our resolutions are getting responded to. So this is a way, another avenue, number one, to push the mayor, number two, to follow up on our own. I think the mayor's got the administration's got away with it for so long, and every time we bring up the matter and try to get on top of the administration, they'll start responding to more and more, and then kind of fall back and then start again. So I think this is just another avenue to take it into our own hands and get the resolves answered. So I think, you know, both Councilors are right. We need to do both.
[Michael Marks]: Mr. President, just if I could, you know, it's this council that takes a vote on whether we send a paper. It has to be a majority vote. to the mayor, or whether we set up a committee of the whole meeting, or whether we send it to subcommittee, it's always this council that takes the vote. So whatever has made its way to the mayor in the year 2014, which the councilor is talking about, was a majority vote of this council, saying we feel that this paper needs to go to the mayor for action. Now, if the council decided, you know what, we don't feel that's the best avenue to send it to the mayor first. We rather send it to subcommittee. Then it's under the purview of this council, which we do on many occasions, send it to subcommittee or committee the whole. So I'm not, I'm still not quite sure taking a paper back that the mayor has not responded to. And, and I might add a response. And I had a discussion just recently with the city solicitor. A response of, I will take this under advisement, is a response. You may not like the response, but it's a response. If the mayor comes back and say, this is something I'm going to be working on, that's also a response. And we could go back and say, Mr. Mayor, we'd like to know what a time frame is. You know, the 10 days no longer applies. How long you think you'll be working on this for? So there is that dialogue that could take place. I would just hate to see that this open up an avenue that the mayor, or not this mayor, or the next mayor, whoever it might be, say, you know what? The city chart is requiring me to respond within 10 days. However, if I don't, the council's just going to take the paper back, they're going to send it to a subcommittee, and good luck to them. See what happens with that paper. The slippery slope also is, and I'm not saying this will happen, If I had an issue that was near and dear to me, and it gets sent to the subcommittee that Councilor Caraviello sits on, along with two other members of the council, and they're not quite that hip on that issue that I'm hip on, that could sit in a burial for months and years in that subcommittee. And I would have really no input on getting it out. And I'm not saying that's going to happen, but it would lend itself to that type of activity. I think the process that's in place, which was created by our forefathers of the city charter, definitely needs to be reviewed. And I've been one of the most active members of this council calling for a review of the city charter. And I've publicly stated what I think needs to be changed in the charter that hasn't been looked at. in 28 years. I mean, what other document would you say that you established 28 years ago is still valid? I mean, no business plan would run on a business plan from 28 years ago. No private corporation or entity would work on such a plan, but the city of Medford has, in my opinion, has failed to look at the city charter in the past 28 years to bring it up to a day and age that we all know technology and many other advances have taken place. So, you know, I appreciate what Councilman Light brings up. I think it's part of the frustration that's been behind this reel on getting answers and so forth. I just don't like that particular avenue of getting to that approach. I think, honestly, whether it's this mayor or a future mayor, we have to follow the city charter. And as it reads right now, within 10 days, we should get a response. And I'm not going to go against the city charter. If that's the rule, then whoever the mayor is should adhere to that rule. And if they're not, maybe this council should stand up and take a vote of no confidence and say, you know what? You're not adhering to the city charter. We're not happy with the Mr. Mayor. This is a vote of no confidence to let you know things better change. But to say, you know what, we'll just take the paper back and scurried into a subcommittee, uh, and let them work on it. You know, it was sent to the mayor for a reason. I'm not quite sure that I can support that tonight. I would ask that we don't take a vote on this tonight and possibly this may be an issue that we want to discuss before one of the rules committee or one of the subcommittees that we have already established before we come up with such a major, it may seem like a minor piece of legislation, but it has a major profound impact on how this council runs and how we get questions and answers from the administration, Mr. President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you, Councilor. So on the motion of approval by Councilors Knight and Lungo-Koehn, Councilor Caraviello.
[Richard Caraviello]: Thank you, Mr. President. I agree with Councilor Marks on this. I mean, if anything needs to go to a subcommittee, I think this rule does because, like I said, this has an effect on our charter and the way we do business here. So I think before we vote on this this evening, again, whether we go to the Rules Committee, This is something that I think needs a little more discussion so we know that we're going in the right direction with this. And like I said, it is up to the mayor to respond within 10 days. And hey, let's say, if it's something near and dear to me, I'm going to be on the mayor's phone saying, hey, where is it? Let's get it going. That's part of our job to do our diligence. Something that's near and dear to our heart, then get on the mayor and get him to move on it.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you, Councilor Cavillo. Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Again, Mr. President, like I said, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Obviously, week in and week out, we have the same people with the same complaints about lack of response from the administration, lack of respect from the administration. I looked at this as a new and creative way for us to approach the way that we do business here, to take ownership of the issues that we send forward, to actually roll up our sleeves and get to work, dig down and figure it out, what's going on, talk with the department heads, talk with the people that are there on the ground, that on the ground level doing this type of work, Mr. President. So that's where I'm coming from. Again, you know, I've been on the council now for a little bit over a year, and I haven't seen any proposal that would, you know, suggest that we change the way that we're doing business. However, I've also sat here and I've listened to the same complaints week in and week out about the frustrations that people have. I'm trying to come up with a solution to a problem, a problem that I feel as though is hindering the ability of this body to move forward and to act effectively. So that's why I brought the resolution forward, Mr. President. I'd ask for a roll call. Thank you.
[Michael Marks]: Mr. President,
[Fred Dello Russo]: Councilor Marks.
[Michael Marks]: There's a thing called accountability too. And I think we have to keep that in mind that, um, you know, uh, under the charter, the mayors accountable to respond back to this council and to remove that accountability, uh, and say that, uh, you know what, it's not important that the mayor respond back to us because we'll just take back any response we already sent to them and send it to a subcommittee. I think sends the wrong message, not only to the members of this council, but to the entire community itself that the process is broken right now. And I can tell you as one member, the mayor came back to us several months back saying that if the council was interested in a dog park, they said, the mayor said, go out and find funding. I took the ball, Mr. President. I ran with the ball. I organized my own committee. We went out. We found funding for a dog park. So I know how to get things done in the community, and I know how to pick up a phone. I've been doing this for a long time. I talked to the department heads, but we all know under the city charter, there's one chief executive officer in this community, and he controls a lot of the strings and what goes on in this community, and we need his input, and we need his support, and to, I think, create an environment that the council will work in its own vacuum, and the mayor will do whatever he wants to do, and that's not the way city government should operate. And I don't think, I think it's well-intended, this resolution, but I don't think it suits any purpose other than, honestly, just lip service, and it's not gonna, in my opinion, do anything to improve the process. If anything, it's going to hamper the communications between the administration. So at this point, Mr. President, I would, after the gentleman speaks, I would respectfully ask that this issue be tabled. I'll remove it until the gentleman speaks then, Mr. President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Motion is withdrawn. Sir, please state your name and address for the record.
[Michael Ruggiero]: Michael Ruggiero, I live on 18 Pembroke Street. While I appreciate the frustration that has led to this motion, I strongly suggest that you neither table this resolution nor vote yes for it. This council, if so many resolutions have gone to the mayor and the mayor has ignored them, this council is complicit in enabling an administration that prefers procrastination to action. I urge you, do not simply just re-look at things that you've already gone through and don't table this. Do not allow the mayor's office to coast into the end of its term. There is too much important work that must be done in Medford. I respectfully suggest that perhaps the resolution should be, if the mayor does not respond to all 23, if that is the right, 20-some number of unresponded resolutions, then a vote of non-confidence will immediately follow. And also for transparency, may I ask that all of the unresponded resolutions be read. Thank you.
[Fred Dello Russo]: We presently have a motion on the floor for approval by Councilors Knight and Lungo-Koehn. Councilor Marks?
[Michael Marks]: Motion to table, Mr. President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: On the motion of Councilor Marks to table, which is undebatable, Vice President would like you to withdraw so she may ask a question.
[Breanna Lungo-Koehn]: Table it through the chair to Councilor Marks. Table it for more discussion, and if so, at a future meeting or in a subcommittee.
[Michael Marks]: on rules. Want to amend the paper and the paper?
[SPEAKER_02]: I'd be happy to consider it. I don't think that that's a problem. I don't have a problem going into subcommittee as evident by the resolution that I filed, Mr. President.
[Fred Dello Russo]: We have a motion for approval amended by Councilor Marks to send to subcommittee on rules. Subcommittee on rules. So on that motion, all those in favor? Aye. All those opposed? Motion carries. Gone to subcommittee on rules. 15-358 offered by Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, I'd like to withdraw the resolution as the administration's received a response from the federal government.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Motion request by Councilor Knight to withdraw 15-358. Motion withdrawn. 15-359 offered by Councilor Knight. Be it resolved, the Metro City Council adjourn this evening's City Council meeting in memory of the late State Senator Charles E. Shannon, as April 5th marks the 10th year anniversary of his untimely passing, Councilor Knight.
[Adam Knight]: Mr. President, thank you very much. I had the honor and privilege of working for Senator Shannon from 1999 to 2005. Preceding me there was Councilor Marks in his office, and I believe while I was interning in the office, Councilor Caraviello was there with me as well. So it's apparent that Senator Shannon has touched the lives of many of us here involved in government, as well as many citizens in Medford through his hard work, dedication, and diligence on Beacon Hill. The morning that the senator passed away, I remember it clearly. I was walking into an event being held by the children's trust fund and senate president travolini at the time pulled me aside to make me aware of the fact that the senator passed away. I was a young kid with no cell phone who wasn't able, they weren't able to get in touch with me that easily. And, you know, it was a very sad day for me. Charlie was a mentor. Charlie was a friend. And Charlie gave me a chance. And I sadly miss him, Mr. President, and I think that it's We take a moment to adjourn this evening's meeting in his memory based upon the 10 years of time that's passed since he's been gone and the 20 years of dedicated service that he gave to the residents of the city of Medford. Very good.
[Fred Dello Russo]: So on that motion, all those in favor? All those opposed? Motion carries. The meeting will be adjourned tonight in memory of the late Senator Charles E. Shannon. On the motion of Councilor Knight to Take paper under suspension. All those in favor? All those opposed? Under suspension. Offered by Councilors Camuso and Knight. Be it resolved that the Medford City Council sends its congratulations to Stella Tenaglia on her recent retirement after 30 years of service to the city of Medford.
[Adam Knight]: Councilor Knight. Mr. President, thank you very much. And on behalf of Councilor Camuso, He expresses his condolences for not being able to be here this evening and his congratulations to Stella for a stellar career in public service. She's a great woman. She's a very hard worker, very diligent, and that's evident by her many years of service to the residents of the city of Medford, Mr. President. So the next person that comes in to fill her shoes has some very large shoes to fill, and she did an excellent job for us, and she'll be sadly missed. However, she earned every minute of it, and I wish her the best in her retirement. Great lady, so congratulations to Stella.
[Fred Dello Russo]: All those in favor? All those opposed? And then while we're on suspension, offered by Councilor Knight, be it resolved that the Medford City Council extends its sympathies to the family of Marie Donato on her recent passing. Councilor.
[Adam Knight]: Yes, Mr. President. Marie was a long time Medford resident. She moved on to greener pastures down to Florida when the weather got cold. However, we recently lost her. I was in touch with her cousin, and he expressed some great sadness over the loss and explained to me how much he loved Medford and how much it would mean to the family if, in fact, this council did pass a resolution wishing them sympathy. So with that being said, I filed the resolution, Mr. President. I offer my condolences to the family, and I wish them the best. Marie will be sadly missed. On that motion, all those in favor, please stand for a moment of silence.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Motion of Vice President Lungo-Koehn to return to the regular order of business. All those in favor? All those opposed? Carries 15-360. Petitions, presentations, and similar matters. Petition by Jean M. Martin, 10 Cummings Street, Medford, Mass. To speak on public buildings, the Brooks Estate, and Medford Public Library. Ms. Martin, welcome. Please state your name and address for the record.
[Jeanne Martin]: Jean Martin, 10 Cummings Street. Thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to speak. The Brooks Estates needs to be dealt with. It needs to be put to rest once and for all. They've tried to come up with the money for it, and they can't. They can't come up with private funding, and there are some issues up there that I need to talk about. But first, I just want to say, we have to remember that the Brooks Estates comes out of the history, a darker point in our history. They were blue bloods. They made their money off of the shipping industry, the insurance of the industry. They insured the ships that were involved in the triangular trade. So they literally made their money off of slavery and rum, and if there were fires or piracy, they insured against those things. So we just have to keep that in mind when we go forward. They insured the cargo. that included enslaved Africans. The Brooks family also owned slaves, so the beautiful carriage house was built with blood money. The well-meaning group of volunteers have not been able to find donors to support the $3.5 million it takes to renovate the place for occupancy. Speaking of occupancy, I hear that there are people living in that house which in no way could possibly pass today's codes. So Mr. Knight, I'm glad we have another person that can check out the buildings, because I want somebody up there checking out that building for occupancies. Also, there is going to be, or might be, I don't know if the baby happened or if it's going to happen, but I heard a rumor that this is a young couple and they could have a baby. That's a problem. That house must have lead paint, electrical and plumbing deficiencies. I'm a landlord and I hold a certificate of occupancy, an inspection from my insurance company, carbon monoxide alarms, a stove, income taxes with all receipts for repairs, home insurance, and a 21-page lease. And I own a two-family house, okay? That's just for the renters downstairs. We, the entire city of Medford, are on the hook for any accident or incident that may happen on that property, not just the Brooks volunteers. It is time to move the occupants out, even if it costs the city to move them out, to do it and tear down the buildings once and for all. I know that it's hard for those people that put so much time and energy and effort into it, but then they're not the only ones that have other ideas for the city I have ideas for the city too. I would love to have that dance hall taken down so that when you come off the highway you see this beautiful structure called the people's house. I would love to take the library, invest three and a half million dollars, put another level on there and call it an art center or something so that we can maintain still maintain a library, make it more useful for modern day people because we have the internet and people don't use the library. But if we made it a library slash art center, maybe we could continue that public building. But I can't do that in good conscience and look at the police department, the police personnel, the DPW, the streets, the plumbing The sewer pipes that aren't getting any younger. The buildings in this area that aren't getting any younger. I can't do that. I can't look them in the eye. I can't look the buildings in the eye. God knows this one could use three and a half million. It just goes on. I also want a center for kids in Haines Square. That's another one of my pluses. That's another one of my dream sheets. What I'm saying is that it's a luxury to have the Brooks Estates. And it's one that we can't afford, and we've got to put it to rest. It's got to end. Because we have to get on with the really serious issues that this city is facing in economics and everything else. And I've spoken to some old timers, and they don't want it to be even remained as a green space. They look at that Brooks Estates, and they go, oh, plots. They have plots in their head. They're dying, their friends are dying, and they want to be buried here in Medford. And they see it. as future burial ground. I'm not suggesting that we do that, but I'm saying that there are a lot of people who would just like to turn that into that. If you want to keep it as a green space, I'm okay with that, but we have to put to rest the house, the structure, and everything else. That said, the $3.5 million needs to go towards a new police station and to fund 15 more police officers. We need more DPW workers for the streets. which need to be regularly swept, striped, crosswalks, squares need some life, like flower buckets and lighting. There are many needs in this city. The Brooks Estates has got to put this to rest, and the city can come together on what we really need to do. Needs and wants are two different things. Again, I want to thank those people that have put their attention into it. But they've got to realize that their dream isn't going to end. And they should get about six months to decompress and cry and grieve, because it just has to come to an end. Thank you.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you very much, Ms. Todd. I motion on behalf of Councilor Caraviello to receive the place on file. for jobs and infrastructure. Mr. Cappucci. Motion to table by Councilor Marksx. All those in favor? All those opposed? Paper is tabled. Reckons. Councilor Marksx.
[Michael Marks]: Thank you, Mr. President. Last week we had Mark Crowley from Boynton Road appear before the Medford City Council along with some neighbors regarding 59 Boynton Road, a home that's been in terrible condition and been marked by the city as a home that should not be entered in disrepair. We as a council asked for opinions from the city solicitor on a number of issues from the Board of Health, Karen Rose. and also Paul Mokey, the building commissioner, regarding what the next steps are on the property. And I just want people to know that we did receive a lengthy and thorough explanation regarding many of our questions in our packet this week from Paul Mokey, the building commissioner, Karen Rose, and the city solicitor, Mark Rumley. And according to my discussions recently with Mark, he thinks that the court process is probably going to be another six to eight weeks. And hopefully after that, Mr. President, when all the court issues are ironed out, that we'll be able to move forward with the seal of that property and eventually the either knocking the property down or the refurbishing of the home, if possible, to help out with the neighborhood and the residents that have to live alongside that eyesore and public safety concern in their neighborhood. So I just wanted to give an update on that property, Mr. President, and hopefully we can move forward.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you very much, Councilor Marksx, for that kind update. Records of the April 7th meeting were passed by Councilor Knight. Mr. Councilor, move for approval, Mr. President. Motion approved by Councilor Knight. All those in favor? All those opposed? On the motion of Councilor Knight for adjournment in memory of The late Senator Shannon, all those in favor? All those opposed? Meeting adjourned.
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