Politics & Government
$100,000 Approved to Deal with Remnants of Irene
Money needed to fund overtime, fuel and other expenses due to storm; city anticipates it will be reimbursed from state, federal governments.
At its Aug. 29 meeting, the City Council unanimously approved a request by to transfer $100,000 from the stabilization account to a Hurricane Irene account to help the city offset expenses due to the storm.
At the time of the meeting, several sections of the city were still without power and the had announced the until Tuesday, Sept. 6.
In her letter to the City Council, the mayor thanked National Grid for its efforts to bring customers back online as soon as possible. She also thanked the city's public safety departments and emergency crews and all those who came to the aid to assist others during and after the storm.
Find out what's happening in Marlboroughwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
City Council President Arthur G. Vigeant echoed those sentiments on behalf of the City Council.
The mayor anticipates the city will be reimbursed by the state and federal governments for expenses related to the storm.
Find out what's happening in Marlboroughwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
In other business, the City Council conducted seven public hearings requested by AT&T Wireless. All hearings involved installing three
antennae at different locations on existing poles or structures.
In six of the seven cases, three additional antennae will be added. In the other instance at the old water tower, 4 Mount Royal Ave., three new antennae will replace existing structures on the side of the water tower.
All 21 antennae will serve to improve wireless communication for AT&T customers, according to Michael Dolan of Brown and Rudnick of
Boston, a lawyer representing AT&T.
Dolan said customers will have the latest 4G technology, which provides high-speed transmission rates of data on smart phones on the long term evolution (LTE) wireless network.
The only person who spoke in opposition to the proposals was David LoVecchio, 280 Elm St. He said he was concerned about the safety of high speed wireless transmissions and requested printed copies of where the structures would be located.
All of the new antennae will be situated on existing poles or structures. The sites include: 445 Simarano Drive, 75 Donald Lynch Blvd., 860 Boston Post Road, 450 Boston Post Road, 450 Boston Post Road, 97 Arnold St., 4 Mount Royal Ave. and 157 Union St.
Ward 6 Councilor Edward Clancy, chairman of the City Council's Wireless Subcommittee, said the city will receive $1,500 for each
installation per year.
Since 1999 all money collected from any wireless carrier who locates antennae in Marlborough is deposited into the city's Open Space Fund, Clancy said.
Any restrictions noted on existing special permits will carry forward with these new proposals, he added.
The ForeKicks Kick Back Club will be allowed to serve beer
and wine seven days a week from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. beginning Sept. 1.
Mayor Stevens also requested transfers for the Fire Dept. totaling $100,000 from various short-term debt interest accounts to overtime to fund shift coverage. These transfer requests will be taken up by the City Council's Finance Committee, which next meets at 6 p.m.,Tuesday, Sept. 6.
The City Council also voted 10-0 to transfer $17,165.69 from Firefighter funds to the overtime account.
Ward 5 Councilor Robert M. Seymour said a special event will take place at 9:58 a.m. at the Walker Building on Main Street on Sunday, Sept. 11, to commemorate the tragedies that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001 in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, DC.
A firefighter who was at the scene in New York City that fateful day will be the keynote speaker.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date on the latest Marlborough news, or simply hit the "like" button at the top of this page.
