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News/Events - Meeting Minutes

MINUTES OF MEETING:

Call to Order Chairman Patricia Butler called the meeting to order at 4:40 PM.

Present:
Patricia Butler, Chairman
Susan Blair (left at 6:25)
Mary Dean (left at 6:20)
Edward McCann
Ethel Wheatley

Absent: None

Also Present:
Paul DeLeo, Executive Director and Secretary to the Board
Laura Harbottle, Town Planner (left at 5:07)

Town Planner, Laura Harbottle, presented her proposal for the Scituate Housing Authority, the Town Planning Board and the Town Planner to jointly submit an application to the Community Preservation Committee for $13,000 for the development of an Affordable Housing Production Plan for the Town of Scituate. The Plan would evenly budget the production of affordable housing in the town over a period of perhaps ten years or an increase of .75% per year. The advantage to having such a plan, when approved by DHCD, is that it can be used as a defense against developers choking the town’s infrastructure by imposing large housing increases over a few years. Additionally, the Plan would include – and control -- how achieving the 10% affordable housing goal could be achieved, For example, by having a certain number or percentage of units on scattered sites instead of multi-family developments. Finally, it would serve as a reference document to unify, focus and communicate the affordable housing development efforts of all Scituate’s agencies and committees involved in that effort.

06-69: VOTE to endorse the Town Planner’s application to the Community Preservation Committee for funding for a consulting contract to prepare an Affordable Housing Production Plan, providing that (1) the Board of Director’s of the Scituate Housing Authority have an opportunity to review the draft report of the Plan, and (2) it receives a copy of the final report.

Edward McCann made the motion. Mary Dean seconded it.

In Favor: 5
Opposed: 0
Abstained: 0

In considering approval of the minutes of the September 12 Regular Meeting, the Board engaged in a Discussion of meeting minutes and vacancies. Patricia Butler inquired as to whether suggestions by the Board, in order to be included in the minutes, should be expressed as resolutions. It was determined that discussion items are properly included in public meeting minutes, and the recent introduction of the digital tape recorder should make this more possible. The discussion continued to the tracking of action taken on such discussion items. Susan Blair suggested that the minutes could be presented in a matrix format that readily presented the status of outstanding deliverables. Alternatively, they could be presented in the Old Business section of the agenda. Mary Dean asked that minutes that are approved “as amended” be distributed to the Directors in their amended form. Edward McCann suggested that meeting minutes, recordings of recent meetings, the Management Plan and other pertinent reference materials for commissioners be readily available to them in the office in a designated bookcase or cabinet.

On the matter of recent lengthy vacancy turnover times, the Executive Director reported the implementation of four new measures to prevent this problem from recurring. 1. There is now a written policy that, excepting to favor emergency hazards to health and safety, two maintenance staff must be assigned to refurbishing vacant apartments until the job is completed. 2. Upon receipt of a tenant’s thirty-day notice of vacating his apartment, the next tenant will be scheduled for leasing that unit ten days after the current lease ends. 3. Three cleaning vendors will be arranged to be available in the event of multiple vacancies or when maintenance staff are deployed for health and safety hazards such as snow removal or other emergencies, and 4. Weekly staff meetings are conducted to improve communication between the maintenance and office staff on this matter and others. Further, Patricia Butler directed the Executive Director to include in the FY 07 budget, funding for clerical help for the re-certification process.

06-70: Vote to have the Executive Director re-write the minutes of the September 12 Regular Meeting using the guidelines from the preceding discussion.

Susan Blair made the motion. Mary Dean seconded it.

In Favor: 5
Opposed: 0
Abstained: 0

The Board reviewed, discussed and amended the text of its draft application to the Community Preservation Committee.

06-71: VOTE to accept the application to the Community Preservation Committee for $18,000 for pre-development site analysis of The Driftway and New Kent Street site as amended and with the addition of a plot plan; and authorize the Executive Director to submit it on behalf of the Scituate Housing Authority

Mary Dean made the motion. Susan Blair seconded it.

In Favor: 5
Opposed: 0
Abstained: 0

The Board agreed to hold a Special Meeting on Monday, Oct 16 at 4:30 PM to review the Scituate Housing Authority’s HUD PHA Streamlined Annual and Five-Year Plans.

06-72: VOTE to authorize the Executive Director to sign the Certificate of Completion and make final payment of $825 to Campbell Construction Group on the Scituate Housing Authority’s June 2006 contract with them for masonry repairs to the Central Park building for a total price of $16,500.:

Ethel Wheatley made the motion. Edward McCann seconded it.

In Favor: 3
Opposed: 0
Abstained: 0

06-73: VOTE to authorize the ED to sign a contract w the public accounting firm of Hurley, O’Neill & Company, P.C. to audit the Comprehensive Grant Cost Certificates for the following HUD grants to the Scituate Housing Authority:

Edward McCann made the motion. Ethel Wheatley seconded it. Patricia Butler noted that the Capital Grant Fund is not included in the package of monthly budget comparative reports, and requested that it be added to that package starting with the October 2006 reports.

In Favor: 3
Opposed: 0
Abstained: 0

The Meeting adjourned at 6:30 PM.