Public Participation

Transcript (~6 min @ 8:28)

Speakers identified by voice; unnamed voices are numbered within this recording. Auto-caption text — verify against the video.

▶ 8:25 Speaker 4: and justice for all in accordance with the massachusetts open meeting law our meeting this evening will be recorded and will be available for your viewing pleasure on local

▶ 8:36 Peter D. Mortimer: melrose cable television motion to open the floor for public participation mr president second

▶ 8:40 Speaker 4: alderman mortimer moves to open the floor for public participation the motion is seconded by alderman's work oh all those in favor of commencing public participation please indicate by saying aye aye aye is there anybody opposed motion passes and at this time we will conduct public participation any individual who wishes to speak on any item on our agenda is welcome to come to the table in the center of the room identify themselves and they will be heard sir i'll take

▶ 9:07 Speaker 6: advantage of that opportunity um i'm jerry morose um i'm here to speak about the water and sewer process um you know i'm glad to see that we have a new consultant i look forward to having some good rational analysis of our of our water rate structure I do appreciate this is separate from what they're doing but I do appreciate that we are finally looking at inflow and infiltration issues in the city like everything else the sooner you do it the cheaper costs and especially in the MWRA district the sooner we do it relative to everybody else the better bang for the buck we get for it but to the water rate issues specifically there are a number of issues to evaluate and I think that a number of those will will be self evident as we get into them I'd like though to understand how we can have

▶ 10:07 Speaker 6: opportunity for dialogue discussion interaction there are a lot of premises that people might come to the table with about why the rate should be in a certain way or not in another way and what I fear is what we've had in other years here is that we end up having a meeting in May or a meeting in June where somebody gets up here and presents something that's then the baseline and at that point it's difficult to have a conversation a discussion a real hashing

▶ 10:43 Speaker 6: out of the issues involved and why one way might seem a good way to do something but there are other issues about that we haven't had that opportunity in the last few years that I've been coming here to talk about water and sewer issues I have attended the water and sewer committee meetings you know a few minutes of speaking in advance of those meetings doesn't again prevent present an opportunity to engage in these issues and and so I as I said I think it was last July you know that was a time to start a new process of evaluating the water rate structure going forward I fear that we're actually a little bit late right now and I would like to find a way that that you know I personally as well as other members of the public can plug into the process so we can understand what's behind the proposal that will come forward to here in May or June and one issue that I want to highlight that people can have disagreements about legitimately is this issue of a conservation rate the tiered rate structure that we have now around the country people use tiered water rate

▶ 11:54 Speaker 6: structures for various reasons but to blindly accept that because it's used in the National Water Works Association recommends it in certain circumstances that we should automatically do it here I would like to really have a real discussion around that because in my view we don't need we don't have an issue with water supply here and if we ever did we can have that kind of you use limitations of water ban for watering or washing cars or whatever that could certainly control that we aren't getting conservation by having this small tiered rate structure we have we're not getting conservation and what we're doing is we're just penalizing people who might naturally use more water like people that might have you know four or five children and a couple parents and a couple grandparents in a house you know it doesn't cause them to conserve water they have to use what they have to use and then you just make them pay for it and I find that exploitive and so that's one issue that you know a consultant might might come to you and say oh well in earnest well this conservation structure is good I would like an opportunity to be able to at some level challenge what their premises are around there have some conversations from dialogue some some arguments some rebuttal so we can get to the issues because what my goal here is is that this year we can actually iron out these issues and basically if we can iron them out and have everything be calm it'll be easy for you going forward if we have a rate structure that works if we have things that are the costs of the service I should say whether whether rates or the the the charges are commensurate with the cost of the service that to me is good public policy you want people to pay for what they use you have to pay for your costs and a little bit of whatever the overhead costs your true costs I don't see that the water and sewer enterprise fund ought to be a a profit Center for the city in any way I don't see that it should actually be used to offset the cost of city services in the schools or other buildings where water is in charge to them there are a number of issues so I appeal to you as a board please find a way to let the public engage in the process because number one it will guide the process and if the public is also involved with the process the public will know why you got to where you got and even if there are disagreements that the disagreement might be a valid disagreement and we know what the what the basis for that is I appeal to you I don't know you know I can suggest a number of ways I leave it to you though But please provide a way for real engagement in these issues not just a presentation and then a vote. Thank you. Thank you, sir

▶ 14:44 Speaker 4: Anybody else who wishes to speak tonight?

▶ 14:48 Peter D. Mortimer: Motion to close public participation. Mr. President again

▶ 14:52 Speaker 4: Alderman Mortimer moves to conclude public participation the motion second by Alden Boycelle on the motion all those in favor All right, you want to post motion passes public participation is hereby concluded for this evening. Mr