The Select Board will be meeting tonight at 7pm in the Select Board meeting room at Town Hall. The board will be given a presentation from Genevieve Fiorente, Community Services Director Elder Affairs on the current and anticipated future ARPA funding. The total amount recommended by the Reading ARPA Advisory Committee (RAAC) and then voted on by the Select Board was $900,000; $300,000 to be used on a Feasibility Study and $600,000 for programming that included bus trips, wellness programs, improving accessibility, virtual/hybrid programs, supplemental program space, staff support.
To date, $55,415 has been spent as part of the feasibility study with $244,585 remaining. As noted in the packet, “The funds for the feasibility will be used and encumbered under the appropriate time-frame. The
feasibility study remains crucial to future planning of a new center/community center”. For programming, $81,772.19 has been spent of with $3,228.00 projected remaining by 2026. For a complete breakdown, see the chart below.
The board will also be receiving an update from RMLD’s General Manager Greg Phipps. Greg will be going over RMLD’s Mission and vision, direction, Load – significant changes, Owned generation and storage, 2024 customer bill estimates and the Ash Street campus.
The final items all relate to Town Manager, Fidel Maltez’s departure on December 31st. The board will be voting on the department heads to serve on the Town Manager Screening Committee. Last meeting, the board discussed having a combination of Police Chief Dave Clark, Fire Chief Greg Burns or the Director of the Reading Public Library Amy Lannon appointed. The board also voted previously to have Chair Jackie McCarthy and Vice-Chair Mark Dockser represent the Select Board on the committee. There will also be a vote on Town Manager Position Statement and a discussion on the appointment of Acting Town Manager when Fidel leaves at the end of the year.
The complete agenda is listed below.
- 7:00 Overview of Meeting
- 7:05 Public Comment
- 7:15 SB Liaison & Town Manager Reports
- 7:30 PUBLIC HEARING – Discuss and Vote on Proposed Traffic Amendments; 2023-11 Improve traffic and pedestrian safety at the intersection of Bancroft Ave at Hartshorn Street; 2023-12 10 Minute pick-up and drop-off on the Southerly side of Symonds Way
- 7:45 Presentation from Elder Affairs on ARPA Update
- 8:00 RMLD Update from Greg Phipps
- 8:15 Discuss Community Preservation Act Study Committee
- 8:35 Discuss and Vote on Requested Changes to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund Home Rule Petition, H1341
- 8:45 Vote to Appoint Department Heads to Screening Committee
- 9:00 Discuss Appointment of Acting Town Manager
- 9:10 Discuss and Vote on Town Manager Position Statement
- 9:20 Discuss Future Agendas, Including 2024 Meeting Schedule
- 9:35 Approve Meeting Minutes
- 9:45 EXECUTIVE SESSION – Vote to Approve Collective Bargaining Agreements (Local 1640, Reading Police Supervisory Officers Association – IBPO, Reading Facilities Maintenance Workers and Town Custodians – AFSCME Council 93, Local 1703, MassCop Local 191A, Reading Public Safety Dispatchers)
The 7PM meeting will take place in the Select Board meeting room at Town Hall. The public can attend in person or watch via several options: via a broadcast on RCTV’s YouTube channel at this link or on the RCTV Government Channel (Xfinity ch 22, Verizon ch 33). The Zoom link for this meeting is: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81442387641
