Boards & Commissions Committee — 2025-05-01
Attendance
Cal Finocchiaro ; Maya Jamaleddine ; Manjula Karamcheti ; Leila Migliorelli ; Robb Stewart ; Kimberly Vandiver
Agenda
- Call to Order
- Public Portion
- Minutes Approval
- Appointments/Reappointments
- Appointment of Timothy Jasionowski, 143 Upham Street, to the Cable Television Commission, for a term of three years, said term to expire last day of February 2028.
- Appointment of Lisa Matey Bergeron, 63 Howard Street, to the Melrose Elderly & Disabled Taxation Fund Committee
- Appointment of Mike Festa, 127 Boston Rock Road, to the Melrose Elderly & Disabled Taxation Fund Committee
- Appointment of Gail Infurna, 12 Mt. Vernon Street, to the Melrose Elderly & Disabled Taxation Fund Committee
- Appointment of Anne Ahern, 98 West Emerson Street, to the Park Commission
- Appointment of Linda J. Thompson of 198 Melrose Street, to the Melrose Human Rights Commission, for a term of three years, said term to expire last day of February 2028.
- Adjournment
Minutes
CITY OF MELROSE BOARDS & COMMISSION CALENDAR● MAY 1, 2025 Council Chamber, First Floor, Melrose City Hall Regular 6:34 PM 562 Main Street, Melrose, MA 02176 Attendee Name Title Status Arrived Manjula Karamcheti Vice Chair Present Cal Finocchiaro Present Maya Jamaleddine Absent Robb Stewart Present Leila Migliorelli Ex Officio Member Present Kimberly Vandiver Chair Present
(ID # 12596) Appointment/Reappointment Appointment of Timothy Jasionowski, 143 Upham Street, to the Cable Television Commission, for a term of three years, said term to expire last day of February 2028. Recommend City Council
(ID # 12632) Appointment/Reappointment Appointment of Lisa Matey Bergeron, 63 Howard Street, to the Melrose Elderly & Disabled Taxation Fund Committee Recommend City Council
(ID # 12634) Appointment/Reappointment Appointment of Mike Festa, 127 Boston Rock Road, to the Melrose Elderly & Disabled Taxation Fund Committee Recommend City Council
(ID # 12635) Appointment/Reappointment Appointment of Gail Infurna, 12 Mt. Vernon Street, to the Melrose Elderly & Disabled Taxation Fund Committee Recommend City Council
(ID # 12636) Appointment/Reappointment Appointment of Anne Ahern, 98 West Emerson Street, to the Park Commission Recommend City Council
(ID # 12654) Appointment/Reappointment City of Melrose Page 1 5/5/2025 5:23 PM Minutes Boards & Commission May 1, 2025 Appointment of Linda J. Thompson of 198 Melrose Street, to the Melrose Human Rights Commission, for a term of three years, said term to expire last day of February 2028. Recommend City Council City of Melrose Page 2 5/5/2025 5:23 PM
Transcript
▶ 0:02 Kimberly Vandiver: Okay. Good evening. Recording in progress. The time is 6 34 on, uh, Thursday, May 1st, uh, 2025. This is a meeting of the Boards and Commissions committee. I, um, counselor Vander, the chair. Joining me tonight, our Vice Chair, Carm Shady and Counselor, uh, Fiocchi, uh, counselor Stewart and President Meli Exofficio. This serves as a notice of Quorum for the record in accordance with the Open Meeting law. This meeting is being recorded and broadcast live on MMTV. I'll now motion by unanimous consent to open the floor for public comment. See no objections. We're open for public comment. This is the portion of the meeting where the public may speak on any item on tonight's agenda. Comments expressing any viewpoint on
▶ 0:51 Kimberly Vandiver: other matters are also welcome. Uh, is anyone here to speak for public comment? Madam Clerk, is anyone line here? No, please. Thank you. At this time, I will, uh, motion by unanimous consent to close public comment and see no objection. We're now closed for public comment. Uh, at this time, I will motion to, uh, approve without reading the minutes from, by unanimous consent. Uh, the minutes from, uh, April 14th, and those are now approved tonight. We have six appointments before us. Uh, the first, uh, appointment on our agenda is ID number 1 2 5 7 5 9 6. Appointment of Timothy Janowski, 1 43 Upham Street to the Cable Television Commission for a term of three years. Said term to expire the last day of February, 2028.
▶ 1:42 Jen Grigoraitis: Um, Madam Mayor, the, the floor is yours. Thank you so much, Madam Chair. Good evening, counselors. Um, I'm thrilled to be here tonight. I do just wanna say it's really lovely, um, to have these meetings and get a chance to be with some of our nominees in person. There's been a lot of laughter and connecting, so thank you for that opportunity. Um, so I'm thrilled to have Mr. Janowski before you tonight to join our newly activated Cable Television Commission. Um, as you can see from his resume, he brings substantial experience in the telecommunications field. He also is a survivor of local government, having served in as, um, it truly is Survivor. Um, an elected position in his previous hometown, uh,
▶ 2:19 Jen Grigoraitis: um, of Virginia. And he and his wife have lived in Melrose for over 20 years. And it's really wonderful to have residents who've been involved in our community in different ways, um, reach out and wanna get active in local government. So I'm really pleased at your willingness to step up. Thank you for being here tonight. Thank You. And, uh, would you like to say anything to us before you open up for questions from the counselors? Um, as the mayor mentioned, I was once a councilman myself. Um, it's been quite a while. It was in the late nineties. Um, and, you know, coming up in the, the DC area, I've always had a, you know, desire to serve like many of the people who grew up in the shadow of the federal government.
▶ 2:59 Um, you know, I put myself in for a variety of positions here. I, you know, I've also served as a planning commissioner, a member of an architectural review board. Um, but, you know, I think I can help serve the town best in helping bring my telecommunications experience as well as my general technology experience to the cable tele Vision commission. I don't know where we are in terms of reviving it. I know there are franchise agreements, the, you know, the basics of the, the Telecom Act and the like. But anything I can do to help serve the town in this capacity, I'm, you know, welcome. Thank you so much. Um, are there any questions from the committee? I don't have any questions 'cause I don't know enough.
▶ 3:37 But I just wanna say thank you for your previous service and for being willing to step up again. It is so appreciated. Thank you. It seems like it's gonna be a great fit. So, great. I appreciate it. Um, you know, as I, as I mentioned in my letter, having served as a council member once myself, um, I don't envy the, the role. And, uh, this is a, a fine way to serve as an alternative. Councilor Occhio. Yes. Sorry. This, um, uh, question is for our mayor. Mm-hmm. Um, could you just explain a little bit about the cable, um, television commission is, um, or we'll do, I mean, I know we've appointed maybe a few other People too. Yep. This is our final appointment. So the commission has been in existence for some time,
▶ 4:20 Jen Grigoraitis: but I don't think has been staffed. So the, the most important role is working with us on behalf of the city to negotiate the agreements with, um, Comcast and Verizon. So those come up on a cycle. We have an opportunity to be engaged, particularly on behalf of local cable access. Um, and then also to hold, um, I believe the commission is supposed to hold a public hearing once a year to hear from residents about public television access. So it's an important role. I know my office relies heavily on MMTV, there are such a critical link to our community, so we wanna make sure that we're putting all of the tools and levers in place. Um, and I, the commission will work closely with City Solicitor Phillips as we do prepare
▶ 4:59 for some of those agreements. And that is probably my comfort level of explaining what the couple Cable Television Commission does. Great. Well, thank you. Thanks. Okay. I'll make a motion to recommend. I'm sorry, did you, oh, Okay. A motion to recommend, uh, by Vice Chair Karen Katy and a second Councilor Occhio on discussion. Uh, Councillor Stewart. Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, thank you, uh, uh, for being here this evening. Uh, just the one question that, that I, I did wanna bring, uh, any concerns about conflict of interest? Um, I don't hold any holdings in any telecommunications firms, and I have been actively outta the telecommunications industry since 2020, sorry, 2015. Okay. My current role is as Chief architect of Travelport,
▶ 5:45 Kimberly Vandiver: which is a travel. And, you know, if you've ever seen anyone at an airport tapping on a green screen, looking like they're staring into the matrix, um, that, um, is the type of technology that I deal with these days. Okay. Uh, global distribution of travel flights, cruises, hotels, things like that. Okay, great. Just one that was fair to ask that. Thank you Madam Chair. Yeah, no worries. Excellent. Anybody else on discussion? Okay. Uh, what, uh, all in favor? Uh, aye. Aye. Any opposed? Uh, so that passes, that will go back to the full council with the recommendation for passage. You don't need to attend at that time, but you're welcome to. Um, thank you so much as, as the others have said, for volunteering to serve.
▶ 6:23 Jen Grigoraitis: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Congratulations. Uh, the next item on our agenda is ID number 1, 2 6 3 2, the appointment of Lisa Maddie Bergeron. Uh, 6 63 Howard Street to the Melrose Elderly and Disabled Taxation Fund Committee. And, uh, Madam Mayor. Oh, and she's here tonight. Um, uh, would you like to, uh, say a few words about the nominee in the committee? Yes, please. Thank you, Madam Chair. And just before we, I speak to Ms. Berger's qualifications, I did just wanna highlight that there is a memo in the packet regarding this fund. Um, I know this has been a familiar path for you all. There were, there are three voluntary taxation funds that reside on City of Melrose Tax bills. The Education Fund.
▶ 7:05 Jen Grigoraitis: The Scholarship Fund, both of which this committee has previously, um, appointed members to, and then the Elderly and Disabled Taxation Fund. And I think in this moment in time when there's a lot of conversation around the needs of our city budget and, um, concerns around affordability, this is a really critical fund. This is a place where residents can make a voluntary donation that can then be distributed to assist elderly and disabled residents who are unable to meet their tax burdens. The fund currently has about $5,000 in it. I think this is an opportunity for this community to really show, um, that it cares about folks and cares about affordability. And there's a real opportunity here with the experts
▶ 7:41 Jen Grigoraitis: that I hope you appoint tonight, to create a system where we can provide meaningful tax relief to those that need it most to be means tested. And also to be able to help residents who are not yet considered elderly. There are very limited tax relief options for those that are under age of six, under the age of 60. I know that we see constantly through the emergency fund that one of the greatest needs is, um, the, you know, unaffordability of housing, both rent and mortgages. And so to think about another tool that we have in our toolbox to try to assist some of our more financially challenged residents, this would be hugely impactful. So that's what the fund is. Um, and I think the way that we really get it off
▶ 8:18 Jen Grigoraitis: and running is by having a really phenomenally strong board. And I'm really, um, honored to have the nominees that we have before you tonight. So, Ms. Bergeron, um, was a volunteer and wanting to serve on this fund. She's a 20 year resident of Melrose, has raised her children here. Um, she brings a significant background in sales, and I think a lot of what we're gonna be doing is really outreaching to the community and helping people understand what this fund is and how we can be helpful to them. Um, and she's really deeply committed to Melrose. She's involved in many organizations and groups. Um, she's a vocal advocate for the community on social media groups, which I applaud you. That's pretty brave. Um,
▶ 8:57 and I just am so thrilled at her level of enthusiasm to wanna help some of our more vulnerable residents. So I'm thrilled to have her here tonight. Thank you so much. Uh, any, uh, and would you like, excuse me, would you like to say a few words as well? Sure. Um, Lisa Metis Bergeron. Thank you, Madam Mayor. And to the committee. Um, I just wanna say I am pleased to serve on this commission. I feel like if I'm gonna advocate in the community to support the community financially, that it's also equally important to try to help support those who are less able to, but may still want to support the community with their vote. And there's that balancing act that many people in the community are facing.
▶ 9:39 Robb Stewart: Um, so that's something that I've been trying to advocate for. And if I'm gonna talk the talk, I need the walk the walk. So that's why I'm here. Thank you. Uh, any questions from the committee? Councillor Stewart? Thank you, Madam Chair. Uh, thank you for being here this evening. I think this is a, a, a great committee that that, uh, has been put forth. And, uh, when I think about the funds that are available, it's, it's not enough, right? To be able to be what I would consider as effective as we want to be. And so, um, and, and I don't wanna put you on the spot here, you know, by saying what are you gonna do? Right? But I think, um, I'd be interested longer term in seeing, um, what the committee can do in terms of outreach
▶ 10:33 Robb Stewart: to help build this. 'cause I think, uh, it would be important, I'd like to see this to be 50,000, right? And how do we get there? And so that, that's where I would ask, you know, what support do you need from the council? Mm-hmm. What support do you need from the community? And what support do you need from the administration? So I just wanna put those thoughts into your head. And, um, I'd also be interested in your reaction. I think it's too soon for me to say, but I definitely have broader and larger aspirations for what I would like to see personally for that type of relief. So stay tuned and thank you for the idea of the partnership with all of that. I think we're all gonna need it. Absolutely. Great. Thank you. Thank you. Mad chair.
▶ 11:17 Kimberly Vandiver: Thank you. Anybody else? I, i a motion to recommend? I'll second. Okay. Motion to recommend Councilor Occhio. And second vice Chair Carm Shady. Uh, anybody else on discussion? All in favor? Aye. Aye. Any opposed? So that also passes and we'll go to the full council with a recommendation. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank You. The next, uh, item on our agenda is, uh, ID number 1 2 6 3 4, the appointment of Mike Fea, 1 27 Boston Rock Road to the Melrose Elderly and Disabled Taxation Fund Committee. Madam Mayor. Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, so continuing with our highly qualified nominees for this, um, I believe Mr. Festa likely leaves likely needs no introduction. Um, he is a longtime Melrose resident,
▶ 12:05 Jen Grigoraitis: has raised his family here. He has served on this body. He's a former city counselor. He is our former state rep. He is the former executive director of the Office of Elder Affairs for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. And he's the former state director for A A RP Massachusetts. Um, so he brings, I would argue, an in-depth knowledge of this community of Melrose, as well as serving the needs of older residents at both a macro and micro level. Um, he is also just one of the kindest people you'll ever meet. Um, and he has offered to get back in, get back, engaged in local government after a little bit of a hiatus. Um, so I'm really thrilled to have him offering his personal experience, his knowledge
▶ 12:44 Jen Grigoraitis: of constituent services, his deep knowledge of policy around assisting elderly, um, residents. And, um, for those of you that are considering attending the Urban Garden Tour, you can also meet his goats. Um, so he brings a real broad range of, um, experiences and interest to this role. So thank you for being here. Well, Thanks for that really cool introduction. Um, so if I may, Madam Chair, just a quick comment. I, the first time I was in this chamber was in 1974 in January when I was sworn in as a school committee member. Still arguably picking my nose and just barely outta diapers. But, uh, I love this place. I I love the city. I actually have lived in Merose since I was born, uh, same house for 62 years.
▶ 13:32 And, um, you know, I take Merose very seriously. I take the quality of life and the, and the community. And I would just speak to two things. First of all, counselor, I thought your question was superbly on point, and I wanna meet that question with an answer. Um, the mayor and I have talked about this, uh, you know, really briefly, and there's a lot more discussion to be had. But I think the key is raising the awareness of the citizenry, of Melrose, of the opportunity for them to, for those who are able to, to contribute to this fund. I mean, a lot of times, and I've found this in all of my years of experiences, uh, raising awareness is half the battle. You know, people will say all the time,
▶ 14:15 oh my God, I had no idea. So this is one of those funds that's like, oh my God, I had no idea. Now, the other thing I would say that's really important, and it's kind of sobering, but it's true in the roles I've played recently, certainly with a RP and at, at Elder Affairs, there's a lot of economic insecurity in this city. And, you know, we're a wealthy state. We're a relatively wealthy city. But UMass Gerontology did a study not too long ago that said that six outta 10 seniors over 60 are economically insecure to some degree, that their income is less than their basic requirements of, you know, living. And, and, and that's primarily 'cause of the cost of living. Um, so there's a lot of need.
▶ 14:58 And I think, as I said to the mayor, you know, for me in my background, I have a, uh, heightened sensitivity to the need for confide confidentiality 'cause of I'm a lawyer and, uh, I respect that concern. And, but the other is just the aspect of raising consciousness. And let's see if we can take that fifth five to make it 50. And, you know, and know that it comes from the generosity of people who say, what can I do to help? And that doesn't need to be a lot, but certainly we know there are thoughtful and generous people in the city that might want to do something along these lines if they're made aware of it. So those are my thoughts. And I am a recovering politician, so I could talk longer,
▶ 15:39 Manjula Karamcheti: but I'm not going to bless you. Have questions. Thank you. Any, any questions from the committee? No. I just wanna say thank you for your years of service and continued years of service. Um, and I thought you did a great job answering counselor steward's questions. So excited for the whole committee to sort of be in action and build that awareness. 'cause I think you're so right. People wanna help and oftentimes they don't know how to help. And it sounds like you all are gonna make people aware of what the issues are, but also how to support our community. Yeah. Good. And by the way, I just, I talked to Gail, who's reminded me more than once she's gonna chair this committee, uh, Gail and Ferna.
▶ 16:26 Oh, little fact. This is a known fact that has to be put out on the table. I was the one who, a long time ago, walked from my house to her house and said, you gotta run for Ward Alderman. We need an alderman. So I'm to blame, uh, I'll take credit. But anyway, she's chairing and we have talked, and I want you to know that, I think that's part of it too, is that we are really focused on we gotta create regs, or not regs, but we have to certainly create guidelines as to how to apply, um, in a thoughtful way. You know, what we need to do. But it is raising, to me, the emphasis has to be on 5,000. You know, that's not very much money. It's not our fault as such, but I, I do think we can change that.
▶ 17:08 Cal Finocchiaro: Councillor Pinocchio, Sorry, I just wanted to say thank you for stepping up in Sure. For Lisa. And we're good to hear from Gail. But I think I, you know, you're speaking our language because ultimately we need an override in the city. But the major concern is, you know, the elderly population and disabled, and I think that's like 20% of our population in Melrose is 65 plus, so mm-hmm. It's not a small number. So anything we can do to help 'em is like number one priority for me anyways. So, and I think the rest of our body shares that Sentiment. So anyway. Yeah. And all of that, I, I don't wanna get off to a tangent, but it is important to acknowledge that in the face of needing an override and in the face of Macro challenges
▶ 17:51 with finances in the city, um, we have to make a convincing case in every respect. And for the seniors who are not able to afford the current tax bill, uh, the prospect of spending more is always daunting. And so we've gotta get a message out that says, you know, for those of you who really are in that place, hopefully there will be ways to mitigate that, that pain. And at the same time, recognizing that there are a lot of people who, you know, uh, again, might very well contribute to the fund mm-hmm. Or in a different situation, assuming their 401k come back. And just, I have a question for you. Mm-hmm. Um, mayor, um, Jen, the, this commission has been around, I mean, this fund has been around, correct? Yeah.
▶ 18:34 Jen Grigoraitis: Since 2018. Correct. It just hasn't been, It hasn't been staffed. So these three commissions had never had to, to, based on the records that we can find, okay. Going back to the early two thousands that there was never anyone appointed to them. Now I think some of that was the dollar amounts were probably mm-hmm. You know, to your point, um, it's a lot of work to create, um, you know, thresholds and processes for $5,000. So I think it's, the hope is that you all are doing both the external facing work of really informing people about this fund. I think we all in our world as electeds, are gonna need to be doing the encouraging people to, um, donate since these folks will be considered, um, public employees and have to be a little careful about that.
▶ 19:12 Jen Grigoraitis: Um, but then also building what the process is gonna be internally. And the other two members by state statute are, um, our treasure collector, Catherine Armada, and our assessor Sarah McClellan. So there'll be some in-house expertise from City Hall as well. Well, I just wanna say thank you because I think this is important. You know, I know we all appreciate it, but, you know, to have these funds kinda sitting there now we can build it up, do something with it. So just wanna say thank you for getting this going. You're Welcome. Um, I know this is a topic we're all keen on and I saw two more hands. Um, we also do have another meeting we need to try to get into. So if we can keep the comments a little bit
▶ 19:47 Kimberly Vandiver: brief. Um, councilor Stewart, I was just going to suggest that, you know, he seems to be barely qualified, so, so I was gonna make a motion to recommend Madam Chair. I'll second. Okay. Motion to recommend Councilor Stewart, second vice chair Carrum Shady. And on discussion, president Elli, did you have something to add? Yes. Thank you. I'll be quick. Thank you. Mr. Fea. Uh, just a quick question. This, it occurred to me this voluntary donation program and like the other ones, are there opportunities for people to donate outside of like, just checking a box on their tax bill like they could send in? Correct? That's a great question. So there is an ability to do it on the city website through, um, the,
▶ 20:25 Jen Grigoraitis: the treasurer collectors, um, section of the website. We can get you all that link. It's not the most intuitive thing. There are a lot of regulations around our ability to process fees and payments on a website. So it's probably not as easy as folks would like it to be. But there is an ability to do it outside of your regular tax bill. And if you choose to pay your tax bill online, which saves us money on paper, um, you can also do it that way as well. Great question. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, so we have a motion on the table. Um, all in favor? Aye. Any opposed? So that will pass, that goes to the, uh, full council with a recommendation for passage. Thank you so much. Oh God. Savage grilling. Thank
▶ 21:05 Jen Grigoraitis: You. So we have two more, three more items on our agenda. Thank you. Um, ID number, uh, 1 2 6 3 5. The appointment of gay in Ferna 12 Mount Vernon Street to the Melrose Elderly and Disabled Taxation Fund Committee. Uh, did you want to add anything about? Sure. Um, former mayor in Ferna, I know had a scheduling conflicts night and wasn't able to be here. I'm respectfully requesting you consider her appointment. I'd really like to get this group fully up and running. Um, I believe you're all familiar with her. She served as the mayor of the city of Melrose. She also is a longtime member of the city council representing Ward five. And she has, um, spent her entire professional career in nursing.
▶ 21:40 Jen Grigoraitis: She is heavily involved in many, um, organizations throughout Melrose, including the Bridge, um, the Chamber of Commerce she's on, or was, or currently is on the board of Melrose Wakefield Hospital. She brings broad expertise and connections to the community and is incredibly passionate about being engaged in this work on behalf of residents. And I'm really thrilled that she was willing to step up and she has agreed to serve as chair as well. I'm, oh, Go ahead. Thank you. Uh, is that Councillor Stewart? I was going to make a motion to recommend And I'm happy to second that motion. Recommend Councillor Stewart. Uh, second vice chair car. Shady. Anybody on discussion? All in favor? Aye. Aye. Any opposed? So that will also, that also passes
▶ 22:22 Jen Grigoraitis: and we'll go to the full council with a recommendation. Uh, the next item on our agenda is ID number 1 2 6 3 6. The appointment of Anne Ahern, 98 West Emerson Street to the Park Commission. And would you like to speak to her as Sure. I, It's possible she's outside. I'm not quite sure what's going on out there. Oh, yeah, Yeah. Sorry. She Is, she travel? Travel? No, she's travel. We did have a message that she's not able To make it. She travel. Sorry. My bad. Um, so I think many folks here may know, and she is a longtime Melrose resident. She, um, has, is raised her own children here and is now has several grandchildren here. She was a member of the Park commission 40 years ago. And when she reached out
▶ 22:58 Jen Grigoraitis: to say she was interested in re-engaging in city government, which is a really wonderful thing that we have residents kind of throughout their life cycle saying they wanna get involved or re-involved. Um, she was really interested in getting back on the commission. Um, I think it would be really wonderful to have a resident who has lived so much of their life here and who is also quite candidly out of the kind of youth sports world. Um, she's really heavily involved in that as, um, a coach for men, both girls softball and I think also girls field hockey, but also has a lived experience beyond that point in life, which is often, I think can be what dominates the conversation around our parks.
▶ 23:32 Jen Grigoraitis: But we know that they are so much more than that. Um, she's worked in Melrose Public Schools. She is, um, heavily involved in many aspects of the community and I'm just thrilled that she's willing to step up into this role and is really excited to serve back on the Park commission. And she's also a member of our Melrose Emergency Fund Board. Um, and so she brings that knowledge of some of the challenges that we're seeing from some of our more vulnerable residents. Thank you so much. Councillor Occhio, I should say, I personally know Anne, she's a remarkable person, has been involved. Uh, her kids live here, three kids live here, grandkids here, and I know she's very invested in the city, so I'm happy to see what she's, um, what she's stepping up.
▶ 24:10 Jen Grigoraitis: So I'd like to make a motion to recommend. Second, Uh, thank you. A motion to recommend Councilor Occhio and a second vice chair Carm Shady. Anyone on discussion? I in favor. Aye. Aye. Any opposed that? We'll go back to the full counsel with a motion to recommend. And the last item on our agenda tonight is ID number 1 2 6 5 4. The appointment of Linda J. Thompson of 1 98 Melrose Street to the Melrose Human Rights Commission for a term of three years. Said term to expire the last day of February, 2028. And, uh, Ms. Thompson also let us know she wasn't able to be here tonight. Um, did you want to speak to her? Certainly. So, Ms. Thompson reached out expressing interest in joining the HRC. Um, I believe you all have her resume and cover letter.
▶ 24:49 Jen Grigoraitis: She spoke very, um, passionately about being the parent of a transgender adult and her concerns about what is happening in our country right now and wanting to engage at a local level, which is a really wonderful and humbling thing to have. Um, I think she'll be a fantastic addition to the commission. Um, I think, as you all know, 'cause you've been going through the appointments, we have reinvigorated the Human Rights Commission. They've had several vacancies and we've been able to fill them. They have new leadership. There's a new chair and vice chair. Um, you may have seen they've re-engaged on social media. I think we're gonna see more activity from that commission. Um, I think partly because of
▶ 25:21 Manjula Karamcheti: what is happening in this broader moment in our, um, country. And I'm really happy about their level of engagement and wanting to provide education and advocacy for all of our residents. And also awareness about the rights that are afforded to everyone. So I think Linda will be a wonderful addition. I'm really thrilled that she offered up her time and services. Wonderful. Uh, vice Chair Kam Shadi, Um, I'm just happy to speak on behalf of Linda Thompson as well. She's Ward one resident, has been actively engaged in advocacy for a variety of populations and is a creative thinker, really bright person, has a lot of talent in the business fields as well. And, and I think she'll bring a lot of energy, enthusiasm,
▶ 26:05 Kimberly Vandiver: and a great sense of humor to this work, which I think are all really important. She takes the work very seriously, but not herself seriously all the time. Um, and has bounds of empathy, um, for a cross section of folks, which I think is really important. So, second, So I'll Make a motion. Motion, recommend Vice Chair Carrum Chaney in a second. Councilor Pinocchio. Anyone on discussion? All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? So that we'll also go back to the full council with a motion, uh, recommendation for passage. Um, thank you so much, Madam Mayor, for all of the very thoughtful and high quality appointments you've been bringing to Melrose. It's amazing. Yeah. Um, I'm now motioned by unanimous consent to adjourn,