TheRochester Select Board is considering taking over the day-to-day management of the Park Commission.
The highlight of the May 4 Select Board meeting came when Town Administrator Cameron Durant explained the Park Commission needs help with the department’s daily operations because one member of the commission is not running for re-election and another member wishes to retire.
Durant said his proposal is to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the commission that will give the Select Board the ability to manage the park’s day-to-day operations. This authority would be granted to town staff under the board’s control, he said, specifically Facilities Manager Andrew Daniel and Highway Surveyor Jeff Eldridge. Durant noted that there is $7,500 in the Park Commission’s salaries account that Daniel can use for part-time workers to do small repairs and routine maintenance.
The Select Board, however, hesitated to make this a quick decision. Member Brad Morse wondered how the board would handle the day-to-day paying of Park Commission bills. “We need to take a bigger look at this,” Morse said, noting that running the department will not be a small task.
The board agreed to continue discussing the issues involved even as it works on the memorandum. “More needs to be addressed,” Morse said. “I’m in favor of continuing the discussion.”
The meeting began with the board approving two new hires for the Rochester Police Department. After Police Chief Michael Assad introduced them, the board appointed Scott Robbins as a new full-time patrol officer and Jason M. Arthurs as a new reserve police officer. Robbins, Assad said, is Massachusetts POST Commission certified police officer with specialized training in drug-enforcement administration and forensic technology. Arthurs has 29 years of law-enforcement experience. He recently retired as a criminal investigator with the Barnstable County Sheriff’s Department and over a decade as patrol officer with the Mashpee Police Department.
In other action, the board approved new contracts for Town Hall technology services. Comm-Tracts was granted a $130,658 Fiber Loop contract to connect all of the town’s municipal buildings except for the Rochester Memorial School and the Highway Department barn. This cost is being covered by a $232,000 municipal fiber-optics grant, Durant said. Secure One was granted a $240,550 contract to upgrade the town’s information-technology services.
The board announced the Forever 1111/Miles for Maddie 5K Run/Walk will travel through town on September 19.
The Rochester Select Board did not schedule its next meeting before adjourning.
Rochester Select Board
By Michael J. DeCicco