Town officials scramble to rework “cat” articles
Published on October 30th, 2002
STONEHAM, MA - A few unexpected guests, some furry and others bearing signs and special interests, were guests both inside and outside at last week’s Special Town Meeting. The meeting had several big-ticket issues such as the debate on the feasibility of transforming the Senior Center barn into an adult day care center, and actions the town of Stoneham is making to address a steep reduction in State Aid.
“State Aid cannot be guaranteed to help Stoneham,” wrote Finance and Advisory Board Chairman John Warren in a letter addressed to the voters at Town Meeting. “Any line item increase in excess of 2 1/2 percent must be met with matching reductions in personnel and operations in other areas. At best, look for departments to be level funded, most likely reduced.”
Article One concerned a report from the Fire Station Design Review Committee which amounted to a 20 minute plus slide-and-music show which strolled down the shared memory lanes of the Stoneham fire station and its relationship with the town.
What the presentation didn’t explain was the possible new sites for any new fire station, a timetable for the project, or the fire department needs that any new station wold need to address.
Article two presented the renovation of the Senior Center Barn, and grant writer Joe Slavette, a longtime stumper for the adult day care center. According to Slavette, the Senior Center would cost approximately $1.1 million to refurbish the barn.
Slavette was assisting the town in obtaining a CDBG grant from the Mass. Dept. of Housing and Community Development for $600,000, and hopes abounded that additional money could be realized from the Stockwell fund.
Town Meeting voters learned at Special Town Meeting that the Stockwell fund would not be helping to fund the additional $400,000, or, if bonding was required, the annual bond costs of $40,000.
Finance and Advisory Board member Peter D’Angelo spoke out against the project, and reminded voters that additional start-up costs of $50-100,000 could be tacked on to the $1.1 million price tag.
“In a time of such financial uncertainty, we really can’t afford to invest in something that will cost us money before any revenue is earned,” said D’Angelo. “This is just really poor timing with the current financial climate of both this town and the state.”
Selectman Cosmo Ciccarello liked the idea of approving a facility that would cater exclusively to the people of Stoneham, but couldn’t support the current plan. The 60 beds in the proposed center would have serviced elderly clients in a handful of surrounding communities.
The Finance Board also presented evidence that the center would provide almost $180,000 less in revenue than theorized by the Adult Day Care Strategic Plan.
Town Meeting voted to defeat the motion after both the Board of Selectmen and Finance Board opposed passage of the article.
“It’s a loss for the town of Stoneham because that grant money is going to be taken off the table next year,” said Slavet. “This was a now-or-never kind of situation.”
“The $400,000 would have been spread over a twenty year span, and the interests have never been lower than they are right now,” added Slavet. “They don’t see a real need for a facility like this, but they must not realize that there are real people out there suffering from Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.”
Article Three included the expenditure of $387,883 in surplus revenue to settle a number of town debts and services. The expenditure left the town without its customary 10 percent allotment for the stabilization fund or to fund a number of the special town warrant articles. The money was used to supplement the FY03 budget passed at the May Annual Town Meeting, but leaves the town with some very big fiscal question marks heading into a potentially tumultuous FY2004. Town Meeting approved passage of Article Three.
Article Four dealt with the refurbishment of Engine #4 for the Stoneham Fire Department. The work would potentially extend the truck’s usefulness for another 10-15 years, and would address the areas of deterioration on the 13 year-old truck.
According to Stoneham Fire Chief Lawrence Lamey, Engine #4 is used 80-90 days a year for mutual aid and back-up calls, and is a vital piece of their mutual aid.
“It’s the kind of situation where we’ll find out exactly how much we miss it when it’s out of commission,” said Lamey.
Article Four was pushed back to the Annual Spring Town Meeting to better organize a capital plan to address the department’s needs.
Town Meeting voted favorably to transfer $5,000 from surplus funds to pay prior year medical bills for police officers and firefighters.
A number of doomed Town Meeting articles followed as the surplus cash shortage resulted in the indefinite postponement of $6,000 for parking enforcement (Article Six), $5,000 for traffic enforcement (Article Seven), $150,000 for sidewalk construction (Article Eight), as well as an article to transfer 10 percent of the surplus funds ($60,000) to the stabilization fund. The overtaxed surplus funds, however, did not stretch far enough to contribute to the stabilization fund, resulting in an indefinite postponement of Article Nine.
Article Ten appropriated $258,837 in funds from the State Highway Funds to be used for roadway and sidewalk repair.
Articles 11 and 12 dealt with a return of $45,000 not needed by the school department to replace the East School boiler system, and then the bonding of $32,000 to fix the East School roof.
Town Meeting also voted to turn down the final payment of $70,000 to fund the accumulated vacation leave of school employees. The payment was the third installment of a $250,000 payment, but could not be funded in the present fiscal conditions and was indefinitely postponed.
Article 14 proposed $15,000 for Stoneham to join the East Middlesex Mosquito Control Project, but was turned down after the project was funded entirely by the Stockwell Fund.
Article 15 dealt with Town retiree’s to buy service time for past active military service, and was approved by Town Meeting.
Article 16 allowed the Library of Trustees to regain the power to appoint all library personnel. The article was opposed by the Finance Board, but was approved by Town Meeting.
Article 17 began a trio of articles that have brought a firestorm of controversy about wild animals within Stoneham town lines, and the measures used to regulate them. Article 17 would have forbade Stoneham residents from feeding wild animals, and would have provided fines of $25, or $50 after an initial warning. Cat lovers and activists saw the article as a cruel attempt to eradicate the feral cat population of Stoneham. Animal activists and members of PAWS, an Wakefield group specializing in the rescue and humane treatment of feral cats, held signs and picketed the front door of Stoneham Town Hall during the opening minutes of the town meeting.
Amid pressure about the unexpected attention and the fact that Stoneham residents, if article 17 passed, could now legally be fined for owning bird feeders, Board of Health Advocate Luanne Clement, Animal Control Officer Ken Stache and Town Counsel William Solomon met to amend the article.
The amended article at Town meeting prohibited the feeding of only wild geese, and both the amended and original article were overwhelmingly struck down by Town Meeting voters.
According to Board of Health officials, the amendment was made to reflect the desire to regulate the population of wild geese in Stoneham.
“This article was not created to control the goose population, but they weren’t expecting this much opposition and changed the article to save some face,” said Kathleen Sullivan. “Let them bring it back at Annual Town Meeting.”
Town Meeting voters did narrowly pass Article 18 which will allow the Animal Control Officer to fine Stoneham residents with dogs that bark or howl excessively.
Article 19 dealt with bylaws to control and regulate the feral cat population in Stoneham. The bylaw would have allowed for the ACO to capture and contain feral cats for up to 10 days before euthanizing the cats to “reduce the spread of disease, property damage and accidents caused by feral cats.”
The Board of Health announced that the article had been indefinitely postponed, so officials could take a long hard look at the options.
PAWS co-founder Jim Davis took the decision as a temporary victory.
“Putting aside the very compelling argument that capturing and killing these cats is inhumane, it’s simply more cost effective to trap, neuter and return the feral cats to the wild,” said Davis. “You can adopt the kittens, and then let the adult cats live out their lives in peace. Volunteers and donations make the TNR option much more feasible and attractive.”
According to Davis, taxpayers would foot the entire bill for the ACO capturing, euthanizing and disposing of the wild cats, and there was only one case of positive cat rabies in Middlesex County last year.
Article 20, a sign bylaw, was indefinitely postponed by Town Meeting voters, but Article 21, a zoning bylaw to better designate and police in-law apartments, was approved, and Article 22 (zoning) and Article 23 (Town Administrator) were both approved.
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