The last public meeting held in Mattapoisett Town Hall before the building was effectively closed to public gatherings was a meeting of the Mattapoisett Finance Committee held on Thursday, March 12, at 4:30 pm.

            The committee has been meeting weekly with various department heads to discuss FY21 budgeting and to share how FY20 plans and goals were moving along.

            On this afternoon, outgoing Town Administrator Mike Gagne opened the meeting by saying a big concern for town governments across the commonwealth would be how to hold public meetings, conduct hearings, and still be mindful of social distancing and keeping public surfaces clean.

            Gagne said that the public presentation and meeting planned for 6:30 pm on March 18 at Center School to discuss infrastructure improvements to Industrial Drive would instead be filmed and at that time on ORCTV without public participation. He said those wishing to share their ideas, questions, or opinions would be able to do so after the presentation aired via a link on the town’s website. He said it would not be prudent to invite the public into the school at this time.

            Gagne briefly discussed the current COVID-19 crisis saying the town was in a “watch-see” mode at the present time, but that efforts to ramp up sanitation were in place with town hall employees wiping down counters and spaces used by the public.

            To further the cleanliness of public buildings Gagne asked the Finance Committee to transfer $14,000 from the reserve fund to janitorial salary and services to give him the flexibility of hiring sanitation teams. He said that the town hall and library would be included in full-on disinfecting actions. He said such actions would also include three cleanings per week for all municipal buildings, up from two. The request was granted.

            Other transfers that were also moved from the reserve fund were: $18,000 for legal services; $7,500 care of shade trees; $5,000 Route 6 hydrant rentals from the town of Fairhaven; $7,700 parks including additional improvements to the former Holy Ghost Park Street building; $15,000 to upgrade street lights to LED, and selectmen’s clerical salary $4,000. Regarding the LED upgrades, Gagne said that by switching to the more energy-efficient bulbs the town would see about a $50,000 savings over the next three years. He also noted that there are 368 street lights throughout the community.

            Meeting with the committee was Kathleen Costello, Administrator of Assessing. Costello reminded the committee that she is also responsible for all information technology (IT) platforms and functions throughout the municipal system and that upgraded security systems were in place. She said she also maintained the highest level of security possible by ensuring that employees are not opening emails or other electronic transmissions from unknown sources. “We have to think about cyber-security,” she said, adding, “…most problems arrive through emails.”

            In the wake of COVID-19, Costello said that she had been working to ensure that systems could handle an increase in online activities, including the collection of fees and payment of salaries.

            Also meeting with the committee was Town Clerk Catherine Heuberger, who discussed the need to have volunteers on boards and committees fully updated and trained on rules and responsibilities including ethics and open meeting laws. She planned to reach out to committee chairmen regarding this matter.

            One final comment from Gagne was a bright note – he said that currently, the town has approximately $1 million in five stability funds and $4 million in an OPEB trust fund. “That’s more than any other town in the SouthCoast – that’s incredible,” he stated.

            At press time, all public meetings in Mattapoisett have been postponed. Check the town’s website for important updates at www.mattapoisett.com and call town hall offices if you need assistance at 508-758-4100.

Mattapoisett Finance Committee

By Marilou Newell

            “It’s certainly not a routine first day!”

            Mattapoisett’s new Town Administrator Michael Lorenco embraced the obvious as he embarked upon his first day on March 16.

            The Wanderer sat down with Lorenco that afternoon, a day punctuated by difficulties related to COVID-19. Lorenco expressed the challenges of not only beginning a new job but beginning at a time when decisions needed to be made in rapid succession to ensure that residents and town employees remained as safe as possible.

            “We’ve been hand-delivering notices to businesses such as restaurants to make sure they are in compliance with the latest state-issued mandates,” Lorenco said.

            At press time the Governor’s office had set the maximum number of people gathering at any given location at 25 people to be lifted on April 6. However, at the same time, the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) were suggesting gatherings of 50 people or more be canceled for the next eight weeks. Lorenco commented that the situation is very fluid.

            Lorenco said that plans were in the making to accommodate town employees that need support should they or family members become ill. Plans were shaping up for some employees to work from home. Planning for public meetings and hearings was also being discussed but with no clear path forward at the present time, as the head of the Mattapoisett leadership team acknowledged the importance of the town’s business operating at some levels.

            For the first time in its history, Mattapoisett’s Town Hall closed its doors to the public effective March 16 at 4:00 pm until at least April 6. Lorenco said that an outside dropbox was in place allowing documents and payments to continue to flow into Town Hall.

            “We want people to be safe,” Lorenco said, adding that given the symptoms are so similar to “regular” flu people may not know they are infected. The pandemic was very much on his mind and hard to ignore even for a few moments. “COVID-19 has put us into planning mode.”

            Setting those concerns aside as best he could, Lorenco said that he would be looking at the large capital projects facing the community as high on his list of things to come up to speed on quickly.

            Also ranking high on the list from Lorenco’s perspective was the need to address the Town Hall building itself, acknowledging that early study of the structure seems to be pointing away from renovating the current building given its age and condition.

            Other large projects Lorenco will be working on include repairs to the historic wharves, and the needs of the aging population. “We need to make sure we are providing adequate services to our seniors,” he said, alluding to his work in his previous position as Assistant Town Administrator and Finance Director in the Town of Eastham.

            Regarding the strong financial foundation the town currently enjoys, Lorenco said that it will be important to control debt and continue to put money aside for post-employment benefits known as OPEB obligations. 

            Lorenco said the first few months would be spent working closely with former Town Administrator Mike Gagne, who will be staying on as the two formulate a transition strategy. “He’ll be staying on through town meeting,” he said of Gagne’s assistance. “He built the budget, he worked with the boards, he needs to see things through to the end.”

            Looking ahead, Lorenco wants to assure the townspeople that he is up to the tasks at hand.

            “I can do this job,” he said, pointing to his experience planning and executing large budgets including multi-million-dollar capital projects and his investment into the health and well-being of the community’s tax dollars is upper most in his mind. “It’s important to be transparent. The taxpayers’ dollars are my responsibility… people expect you to do more with less.”

            Lorenco is a 2004 graduate of Old Rochester Regional High School and attended both Center and Old Hammondtown schools. During his interview process, Lorenco shared that he holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bentley College in corporate finance and a Master’s in Public Administration from Suffolk University.

            Lorenco wrote in his introductory letter that he had experience in municipal budgets, state public procurement regulations, organization and personnel management, as well as union negotiation and grievance processes. He also noted, “…I have vast personal knowledge of Mattapoisett, as it is my hometown for most of my life. For over 30 years my family called Mattapoisett home.”

            On a personal note, while Lorenco is currently back at the family home, he will be looking for his own home soon. He moved in with family to avoid a long commute from a house he owns in Harwich. “I’ll be selling that house soon,” he said.

By Marilou Newell

Using remote-access platforms to conduct the town’s public business, the Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen declared a state of emergency in Mattapoisett on March 19, 2020. Selectmen Jordan Collyer and chairman Paul Silva voted unanimously to accept the following that, upon their acceptance, would be sent on to the State House for approval.

            The declaration comes on the heels of Governor Baker declaring a state of emergency in Massachusetts and gives municipalities certain rights that will help financially and materially support cities and towns until the emergency period is over. It would allow communities to apply for county, state, and federal assistance programs.

            It reads in part: “Whereas the outbreak of COVID-19 and the risk to person-to-person transmission throughout the United States and the Commonwealth significantly affects the safety of the public; and… on March 10, 2020, Governor Baker announced emergency actions to respond to the COVID-19 emergency, including prohibitions on public gatherings, prohibiting on-premises consumption of food and drink at bars and restaurants, as well as suspension of elementary and secondary school…from March 17, 2020, to April 6, 2020; the Board of Selectmen has determined that COVID-19 presents a major disaster which poses an immediate threat to public health, safety, and general welfare of people residing both within and outside the town…the Selectmen have determined that immediate public action is needed in order to prevent and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 by and among the people of Mattapoisett; declaring a state of emergency will facilitate and expedite the use of resources to protect persons from the impacts of COVID-19 including but not limited to emergency expenditures…and the limitations on operating hours and access to public buildings – a state of emergency be declared.”

            The town’s new administrator, Mike Lorenco, drafted the declaration and read it for the selectmen who both called into the meeting.

            More than a week ago Governor Baker modified open-meeting rules during this emergency, granting cities and towns the flexibility of conducting business without being physically located in the same public space.

            Also present assisting with technical navigation through the meeting was former Town Administrator Mike Gagne, who will be staying on to help Lorenco during the transition process including finalization of the FY21 budget and the fall town meeting.