WESTFIELD – The City Council began its first meeting of 2017 by re-electing At-large Councilor Brent B. Bean, II as president. The motion was made, and the vote unanimous, with no other nominations from the floor.
Brent B. Bean II was unanimously re-elected president of the City Council at Thursday’s meeting. (Photo by Amy Porter)
The Council also unanimously endorsed a resolution to approve the updated local Hazard Mitigation Plan. Jim Wiggs, director of Emergency Management for the city, was on hand to answer questions about the plan before the vote was taken.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requires that municipalities have a Hazardous Mitigation Plan on file to be eligible to receive federal reimbursement when the federal government declares a state of emergency. The plans have to be updated every five years, and the new plan will expire in 2022.
Wiggs said the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission helped “put pen to paper” in updating the plan, but the work of reviewing every page of the document was done by representatives of the Mayor’s office and Emergency Management, Police, Fire, and Public Works departments.
Jim Wiggs, Westfield’s Director of Emergency Management. (Photo by Amy Porter)
Wiggs said some of the goals in the plan are far-reaching, and others can be put in place now. He said the intent is to form working groups to implement some of the suggestions. He gave the example of a plan for response to a virus outbreak, not updated since the H1N1 epidemic of 2009.
The first reading of the $5 million Bond Order for the repair, purchase and installation of water treatment and distribution was also unanimously approved by the Council. In presenting the recommendation of the Finance Committee to approve the bond, At-large Councilor Dave Flaherty said the city hopes to get reimbursed in the future, and may not have to borrow the entire amount. The vote will now go to a second reading at the Jan. 19 meeting.
In other actions taken on Thursday, the Council voted to donate surplus hand towel dispensers no longer in use by the city to not-for-profit organizations.
The Council also unanimously approved the appointment of Building Superintendent Carissa Lisee to the Commission for Citizens with Disabilities, replacing Karin Decker of the Personnel Department. At-large Councilor Cindy C. Harris, who chairs the Personnel Committee, said Lisee was the most logical person, being the one responsible for code enforcement of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the city.
Also approved were the appointments of Michael Tirrell as a member of the Park and Recreation Commission, and Hipolito Nunez as a member of the Public Safety Communications Commission.
All other agenda items were moved into committees, to come before the City Council with recommendations at future meetings. A Bond Order in the amount of $15 million for the Westfield Gas & Electric Whip City Fiber Expansion, presented by Mayor Brian P. Sullivan in his briefing, was sent to the Finance Committee, along with other requests for transfers of funds. The Mayor said the bond would pay for the rollout of underground infrastructure to the rest of the city.
Other items going into committee are an amendment to the limit on number of dogs or cats permitted in Westfield, which was sent to the Legislative & Ordinance committee from Zoning, Planning and Development by Ward 3 Councilor Andrew Surprise, who said it was not a zoning issue.
Before going into the Finance Committee and City Council meeting, At-large Councilor Matthew T. VanHeynigen speaks to members of Cub Scout Pack 108 on public service and city government. (Photo by Amy Porter)
A motion by Bean and Flaherty to raise the Council salary by $3,000 was sent to Law and L&O. In introducing the motion, Flaherty said it would go into effect following the next election if approved, and would be for the next body.
Bean said the current salary of $10,000 hasn’t been adjusted in 16 to 18 years, although it’s been discussed the last four or five years.
“A lot of people on this Council work really hard, taking time away from their families. Hopefully, we can get some support on this,” Bean said. Before the meeting, Bean admitted that for City Councilors, this is always a tough vote.
Flaherty added that he was probably the one who killed it the last time it came up, but has changed his mind. He said the raise would amount to a difference of $39,000 in the budget.
“I think it’s justified right now,” Flaherty said.
“While I understand about trying to get more people involved in city politics, I don’t think we can justify it. We’ve only kept taxes level for one year. We need some kind of track record to justify it,” said Surprise, who was one of two voices raised against sending the motion to committee.
