March 21 2022 meeting

Chair Dalton called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. He announced that the meeting was being recorded for cable television and led those in attendance in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Proposed Opioid Litigation settlement offer, “Distributor Settlement” and “Janssen/J&J Settlement”

Town Counsel Thomas Mullen discussed this settlement offer by one of the firms that is part of the ongoing opioid litigation. Scott and Scott, the firm the Town has retained as special counsel for this case, is recommending the acceptance of the settlement offer. He said this settlement is much larger than the one presented to the Board two weeks ago. It would provide Lynnfield a payout stream over 18 years that would total over $490,000. The criteria for the division of the settlement among Massachusetts communities were the amounts of deliveries of opioids into the community, the number of overdoses and the incidences of opioid abuse disorders. These funds must be used only for opioid education, treatment and prevention. Scott and Scott will not take any attorney’s fees from this settlement. This does not require unanimous agreement among the communities. Other cases are still pending in court regarding opioid distributors, including a case that could be larger than this or any other case. Cities and towns will get 40 percent of the settlement; the remainder goes to the Commonwealth for the same purpose.

MOTION by Mr. Crawford, duly seconded by Mr. Connell: I move that the Board accept the settlement offers labeled “Distributor Settlement” and “J&J Settlement” as presented and authorize the chair to execute the relevant documents. Vote was unanimous.

Joint meeting with the Lynnfield Water District Board of Water Commissioners to set the compensation for the Tax Collector and Board of Assessors for Fiscal Year 2022

Pursuant to Section 108B, Chapter 41, of the General Laws of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, this Annual Joint Meeting between the Select Board and the Water Commissioners is called to set the salary to be paid to the Tax Collector and the Board of Assessors for work performed for the District. Lynnfield Water District Commissioners Ruth McMahon, John Harrigan and Stephan Rondeau were in attendance.

MOTION by Ms. McMahon, duly seconded by Mr. Rondeau: I moved that the joint meeting be

chaired by Mr. Dalton. Vote was unanimous.

MOTION by Mr. Rondeau, duly seconded by Ms. McMahon: I move that the joint meeting vote

to waive the reading of the minutes from the 2021 joint meeting. Vote was unanimous.

MOTION by Mr. Harrigan, duly seconded by Mr. Rondeau: I move that the joint meeting vote

to approve compensation for Fiscal Year 2022 annual compensation for services rendered to the

Lynnfield Water District to be set as follows: Tax Collector, $550, and Assessors, $250 each.

Vote was unanimous.

MOTION by Ms. McMahon, duly seconded by Mr. Harrigan: I move that the joint meeting be

adjourned the meeting sine die. Vote was unanimous. The meeting was adjourned at 6:09 p.m.

Interview of candidates for Reading Municipal Light Department Citizen Advisory Board

Sarah Parsons was interviewed for this vacant position. A second applicant will be on hand for the March 28 meeting. Ms. Parsons is a 10-year resident with two children attending the Middle School. She serves on the Recycling Committee and is a Girl Scout troop leader and cookie coordinator. She said she has time to devote to this position as her children get older.

Board members thanked her for coming forward and her current volunteerism.

FY23 Budget Presentation, School Department

Superintendent of Schools Kristen Vogel was on hand with other school officials to present the FY23 budget request.

Chair Dalton said that this year has been a collaborative effort and said he could not commend the superintendent enough for coming in with a budget that meets the needs of the schools while being fiscally responsible and sustainable. Ms. Vogel thanked Director of Finance Thomas Geary, Director of Special Services Roberta Keane and her leadership team, as well as the cooperation of Mr. Dolan and Chair Dalton.

She said the COVID epidemic put a spotlight on academic and social/emotional needs of students. Priorities were maintaining class sizes, offering electives and extracurricular activities, and aligning with the district’s strategy. She said the community prioritizes providing an exceptional educational experience. There are 30 after-school clubs and activities, 25 sports programs, and 14 advanced placement courses.

District enrollment has been consistent over the past five years. She reviewed the district’s strong showing on standardized tests. She highlighted the colleges and universities that accepted last year’s senior class members. She reviewed how the budget is formed and the budget timeline.

Ms. Keane said the most vulnerable students were affected the most by the dislocation due to COVID. The number of special education outplacements has been stable, but in the past two years needs have been more complex and costs have increased as a result. Compared to nearby districts, the number of students with outplacements has increased across the board. In-house programming is continually evaluated to make sure it is meeting the needs of as many students as possible. The district has partnered with landmark School Outreach to review language-based programming, which is expanding. Keeping students in their community has been proven by research to be the best model whenever possible.

Mr. Geary said that in addition to the operating budget, he wished to discuss the emergency and secondary school COVID allotment. They have gone toward additional nursing staff, cleaning and protective equipment, air purifiers and classroom technology, social and emotional programming, professional development to assist in remote learning. He said these one-time revenues have not been put toward ongoing expenses.

The capital budget includes $250,000 for mobile devices for students and staff, the computer lab at the high school, servers and Smart screens in classrooms, as well as social studies and literacy curriculum materials for the elementary schools.

The total operating budget request includes 3.5 percent increase in funding, or $964,305.

Ms. Vogel said the budget reflects the district’s priorities for the next school year, and is fully aligned with the district’s strategy and preserves current offerings.

Chair Dolan said he was struck by the high participation in the 14 advanced placement courses. Ms. Vogel said that participation rate is exceptional.

Mr. Crawford said he noted enrollment overall has reduced by about 40 students over the past five years. He asked about the impact ion elementary school enrollment. He said music and art are still without designated spaces within the buildings, which will be addressed by the school expansion project, as will the provision of one-on-one space that now often takes place in hallways. She said COVID may have had an impact on enrollment.

Mr. Connell said the 41-page school budget document is very detailed. He said the increasing costs of special education services is noticeable. He said he agrees with the focus on trying to serve students with in-house programs when possible. He asked about substitute salaries going up significantly; Mr. Geary said it reflets absenteeism due to the impact of COVID, and a need to increase rates to remain competitive. He also noted that the athletic budget has not increased in four years. He noted the booster programs help supplement the school budget.

Ms. Vogel said that the teachers’ contract calls for a two-percent base increase in each of the next three years. She said teaching has always been challenging but the recent pandemic has made it increasingly so. Competitive salaries help retain teachers. There has been speculation about significant turnover in the teaching profession overall.

Resident Patricia Campbell asked for a copy of the teachers’ contract and the line-item budget proposal. Mr. Geary said the budget will be available next week and the contract will be available once it is ratified by the School Committee.

FY23 Budget Presentation, Library

Acting Director Abigail Porter was be on hand with other library officials to present the FY23 budget request. She said three full-time positions and two half-time positions have been filled. Saturday children’s programming has been increased. Digital access has been enhanced, and non-traditional materials have been increased. Outdoor and remote programming have been popular

The censor system indicates that there are 309 visits to the library per day. Visits and material lending are greatly increased.

One new position is requested for a full-time communications librarian, additional Saturday hours for the children’s library staffing, and additional funds for electronic books.

The cost of the communications librarian would be $50,000 and would allow for additional information technology assistance for staff and patrons as well as more robust social media programming and flexibility. Many reference questions are increasingly complex and address technology issues. The Saturday children’s position would be increased from seven to 11 hours to allow the staff member to meet more frequently with the department head. The cost would be $4,000. The e-book request is for an additional $1500, as usage is increasing.

The capital request is replacement of two 15-year-old computer tables that do not accommodate current technology, at $10,000, and $30,000 for a website upgrade, as the 10-year-ol site frequently crashes and has not kept up with accessibility issues, and not well configured for mobile devices. The third request is $7,055 for assistive technology, some for which could be borrowed by patrons. The fourth request is $2,400 for hybrid meeting equipment, one for library use and another for other Town departments and community groups.

Mr. Crawford asked about funding capital items through the ARPA funding. Mr. Dolan said this is under consideration. Mr. Connell and Chair Dalton thanked Ms. Porter for the presentation and the supporting documentation.

Renewal of seasonal liquor licenses

There are two licenses to be renewed; The Sagamore Springs Golf Course and Reedy Meadow Golf Course.

MOTION by Mr. Crawford, duly seconded by Mr. Connell: I move that the Board vote to renew the seasonal liquor licenses for Sagamore Springs Golf Course and Reedy Meadow Golf Course as presented. Vote was unanimous.

Use of Facilities requests:

a. Common, Rotary concert series

b. Common, April 9, Lynnfield For Love

c. Common, July 11, Lynnfield Library storyteller

d. Common, August 9, Lynnfield Library storyteller

e. Common, A Healthy Lynnfield, May 14-15, Health Expo

f. Banner requests, A Healthy Lynnfield and Coffee with a Cop

MOTION by Mr. Crawford, duly seconded by Mr. Connell: I move that the Board vote to approve the Use of Facilities requests as presented subject to any conditions that may be placed on them by the Police Chief or Public Works Director.

MOTION by Mr. Crawford, duly seconded by Mr. Connell: I move that the Board adjourn. Vote was unanimous.

The meeting was adjourned at 6:56 p.m.