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Date: 1/25/2023
LONGMEADOW – Fire Chief John Dearborn read a statement discussing the availability of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to the Select Board at its meeting Jan. 17. He emphasized that quickly beginning CPR and use of an AED are the “keys to success” in saving lives. He cited four cases in Longmeadow over the past year in which “rapid CPR by a bystander” and use of an AED “made the difference.”
There is a total of 61 public AEDs located throughout the town. Since 2012, all town buildings and schools have been equipped with AEDs, Dearborn said. All police cruisers and non-EMS vehicles also have the equipment on board. The units, which include instructions, can be found at the town’s camps and pools and, in the summer the Longmeadow High School stadium, Blinn Tennis Courts and Russell Field have their own AEDs. There are also AEDs for the field club, yacht club, country clubs and senior housing.
Select Board Vice Chair Mark Gold said youth sports leagues may present a “gap in coverage,” but Dearborn explained the leagues do not require coaches to have or be trained on AEDs. The Recreation Department staff is trained, and Dearborn related that he and Recreation Director Bari Jarvis have discussed offering free training to coaches three times a year.
Select Board member Dan Zwirko asked about having an AED at the fields at Glenbrook Middle and Williams Middle schools and the transfer station. He remarked that people “congregate in that area and lift heavy things.”
Dearborn said he is hesitant to put the equipment outside in more locations. The units cost about $2,600 each and $15,000 per year is spent on maintenance. The AEDs can be damaged by leaky cabinets and weather, and he noted that if an AED were to become damaged and someone tried to use it, it would create a liability for the town. There is also a possibility of theft or vandalism, especially in remote locations, such as Strople Field, Wolf Swamp Field and Turner Park, he said, adding that the department is “researching better solutions.”
Instead of trying to blanket the town with AEDs, Dearborn said that calling 911 for a cardiac arrest will result in up to three police cruisers, an ambulance, a fire truck and possibly the fire inspector vehicle on site in about three minutes and, as previously noted, all would have an AED on board.
Select Board member Thomas Lachiusa suggested all people learn CPR and said there may be a time they have to use it on a loved one. Dearborn agreed that “folks need to learn CPR.” He said calling 911 is the most important action in an emergency, followed by performing CPR. CPR is now “hands-only,” and the respiration component is no longer advised. Dearborn said knowing the location of AEDs in the area and directing someone to retrieve the unit is also important.
Stormwater code update
Assistant Town Manager Corrin Meise-Munns presented updates to the stormwater management code which, she said, would bring the town into compliance with the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4). The MS4 is a state-administered permit that ensures local stormwater systems adhere to standards from the federal Environmental Protection Agency. As explained on the EPA’s website, https://www.epa.gov, the MS4 “prevents harmful pollutants from being washed or dumped” into stormwater systems and impacting groundwater.
Meise-Munns said Longmeadow is among many municipalities that are behind in implementing the code update. She has worked with consultants from the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC), a public agency that coordinates between various levels of government, to review and adjust the town’s stormwater code, as needed.
Select Board Chair Josh Levine asked what will happen if the updated code is not approved at the Annual Town Meeting in the spring. Meise Munns explained that it may result in fines and reduce the town’s eligibility for some grants.
Gold said he was concerned that people would react negatively to restrictions in the code update. He also objected to the DPW as the enforcement agent and said violations should go to the town’s code enforcement team.
Meise Munns said the regulations only affect projects that disturb an acre or more of land and will not impact most homeowners. Levine quoted the drafted code as stating projects affecting less than an acre, but discharging into a storm drain, “must meet low-impact development performance standards.”
Gold suggested exempting residential properties from the code. He said the working group should have included residents and should not have been created “behind closed doors,” with the PVPC.
Simmons said the MS4 is an existing policy that was updated by “professionals.” The document was not “a done deal,” and could be further workshopped if needed. Then she pushed back on Gold’s characterization of Meise-Munns’s work with the PVPC.
“No one is circumventing anything. No one is trying to present something at a town meeting that is going to seem bureaucratic or overly restrictive when it doesn’t need to be. I take issue with the ‘behind closed doors’ because it implies that we’re trying to do something that isn’t appropriate or is secretive and that’s absolutely not what’s happening.”
Gold said he accepted Simmons’s comments and that he did not realize the document was a draft.
Zwirko acknowledged Gold’s concerns, but said he appreciated Simmons comment and recognized that “a lot of people worked really hard on this.” He said it was a “first pass” and that it was they would “make a better document” before Annual Town Meeting.
Lachiusa agreed with Zwirko, but said it was the Select Board’s job to “pick [the code] apart.” He also said if people are violating the code, the town should “help homeowners out ... rather than make them feel like they’re being cornered.”
Eversource
Eversource requested permits for gas main work at two locations in Longmeadow, to be performed simultaneously the following week. The first project is the retirement of cast iron low-pressure mains and installation of medium-pressure polyethylene mains on Lawnwood Avenue, Meadow Street and Longmeadow Street. Engineer Mathew Nichols said the new mains are supposed to last indefinitely, as opposed to the cast iron, which can rust over time. The project will affect gas service to about 50 customers and personnel will need to enter homes to turn their gas back on.
Lachiusa said the work site was his neighborhood and that he had smelled gas from the sewer in the past. He commented that he was “glad” Eversource was addressing the issue.
To complete the work, the breakdown lane of Longmeadow Street will be torn up, as well as a portion of the side roads.
“While the roads are being torn up and being repaved on your dime,” Gold said the Nichols, “we may want to look at doing something under that road at the same time.”
Gold also told the engineer that Longmeadow has sandy soil and has experienced a digging fatality in the past. He suggested requiring a caisson, a structure that allows work to be completed in a deep opening while eliminating the danger of a collapse.
Lachiusa brought up the idea that gas meters may “take away” from the aesthetics of historical homes. Bryan Meccariello of Eversource assured Lachiusa that homeowners are consulted prior to placing gas meters. Eversourse communications specialist Joseph Mitchell said when aware of historical homes, the company will contact the historical commission.
The second project swap the cast iron mains for polyethylene on Bliss Road, Burbank Road, Oakwood Drive and Blokland Drive and tie them into an existing main. The work will tear up one side of Bliss Road and divert traffic down side streets. The traffic disruption would last between two and three weeks.
Levine asked if an officer could direct traffic in the remaining lane, rather than have a detour. Nichols agreed it was an option but said that it may cause backups on such a busy street.
Levine also pointed out that an Eversource truck had damaged a tree on Bliss Road while doing power line work last summer. Nichols said the crews would protect the trees as much as possible and replace any that are damaged.
Zwirko asked if the project on Bliss Road can be rescheduled to late June when school is out of session. Nichols said he would have to check with the company’s scheduling department.
“If we had heard about the scheduling before it was already scheduled, we could have talked about the school issue before,” Levine remarked. Typically, the Select Board is notified several weeks in advance.
The board approved the projects with the caveat that registered letters be sent to affected customers to make them aware of the projects.
Preliminary Special Election
Jan. 28 was the deadline for voter registration in the Feb. 7 Preliminary Special Town Election. The polls will be open at the Longmeadow Community House from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. A preliminary election is conducted when more than two candidates run for a single seat, in this case, the Select Board seat that was vacated by Steven Marantz in August 2022. While the Select Board had decided to keep the seat vacant until the Town Election in the spring as a cost-saving measure, a public petition with the required 200 signatures forced an election to be called. The Special Town Election will be conducted March 7.
Gold suggested re-examining ranked choice voting for future town elections. The system has voters list their candidates in their preferred order. Gold said the system “forces somebody to get the majority of votes,” and would eliminate the need for preliminary elections, saving the town money.
Zwirko proposed changing the town’s bylaw to specify that future vacancies remain open until the Annual Town Election, eliminating the need for special town elections altogether.
Other topics
Tanya Campbell of Marcum LLC, a certified public accounting firm, delivered the fiscal year 2022 town audit report. “None of the issues that we noted in the management letter this year are material in nature,” she said, adding that there were no “significant deficiencies,” only “recommendations for improvement.”
Diana Pun of Pun Longmeadow Realty came before the board to request a zone change for Parcel 1, Lot 38, 899-925 Shaker Rd. She explained that the foundation of the loading dock at the former Armata’s Market is in violation of the 15-foot property line setback and to solve this issue, the company would like to rezone the property from residential to commercial.
Gold asked why the company did not seek a waiver from the Zoning Board of Appeals. He said, historically, residents have been hesitant to convert properties away from residential zoning. Planning Board member Walter Gunn interjected several times, resulting in Levine chastising him as being out of order, “Just stop talking.”
The Select Board referred the zoning change to the Planning Board.