Back to Capital Outlay Committee Minutes
9/16/2010 at Town Office Building
Attending: Chairman Ray Eisenbies, Ron Kirven, Lucy Hancock, Tom Pyles (representing the Advisory Committee), Ted Alexiades (Town Accountant)
Ray Eisenbies called the meeting to order at 7:03 PM in the 3rd floor North Hearing Room.
Harbormaster Request
Hingham Harbormaster Ken Corson requested approval to use funds from a Port Security Grant Award (Federal Homeland Security money) to purchase a new boat and a new vehicle. The total amount of the grant is $1.9M, and Hingham's portion is at least $504,500. The two other communities that will benefit from the grant are Quincy and Weymouth.
The watercraft to be purchased is a 31-foot aluminum hull boat with composite tubes on the sides and twin Evinrude 300 HP outboard engines. The cost is $464,500. The manufacturer is Safe Boat International. The boat will be custom built for Hingham and will be completely loaded with PFDs, radar, FLIR, VHF radios, and other equipment. This is the type of boat used by Homeland Security and the USCG. Its life expectancy is twenty plus years.
The Harbormaster currently operates three boats: Marine 2 (old pump-out boat used as the primary patrol boat), Unit 3 (new pump-out boat), and Marine 1 (patrol boat that will be replaced by the new aluminum watercraft). It is likely that Marine 1 will be sold to another community, and the proceeds will go to the general fund. The operating expenses for the new boat will be similar to the operating expenses for Marine 1. The new boat will be more fuel-efficient. The 2-stroke engines will be lighter than the current engines and will require less maintenance.
The vehicle to be purchased is a Ford F250 pick-up truck. The cost is $40,000. The truck is primarily for use by Harbormaster personnel, but the Hingham Police may use it occasionally. It will replace a 1984 Chevy Blazer that is no longer usable. Ken will drive the new truck on a daily basis and will use it regularly for towing boats in / out of the water. Maintenance for the new truck is not in the budget, but fuel for the truck is in the budget.
The grant award also will be used to purchase port security cameras for the three towns. Hingham will get between one and three cameras that will be integrated into the existing Coast Guard system for waterways. The Harbormaster's office will have web-based access to the entire network. The MBTA will provide the office with the monitoring equipment. No additional staff will be needed to service or monitor the cameras. The purchase and installation of three cameras will cost about $150,000. Hingham will not have to replace any of the cameras if they fail.
COC members approved the expenditure of funds from the Port Security Grant Award for the items as specified. The boat, the truck, and the cameras will be procured through the city of Quincy and then turned over to Hingham.
Other Business
COC members briefly discussed the repairs needed at Town Hall due to repeated cellar flooding that occurs during periods of heavy rain. Water from the downspouts does not flow properly into drainage structures. A temporary solution is in place, but a permanent solution has been designed and is estimated to cost $21,000. The Advisory Committee and the Selectmen have approved the Reserve Fund transfer request for this work. The COC concurs with this action.
The truck that is used for plowing at Bare Cove Park needs replacement. The DPW has a truck to be traded next year, and it can be retained for this work. Until then, the DPW will do the plowing or repair the Bare Cove truck.
COC members briefly discussed the status of the Hingham Middle School and the work of the Master Plan Review Committee.
At the next COC meeting, members will approve any outstanding meeting minutes from last spring and this fall.
For FY 2011, Ray Eisenbies will remain as COC Chair, and Lucy Hancock will remain as Secretary.
Note to Files: In June 2010, the Hingham Police Department purchased four Motorola units for cruisers. The department needed two units but acquired four due to a discount. The operational budget was used for the purchase because the department returned $80,000 in operating fund savings.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Lucy Hancock, Secretary