Bonnet Shores Fire District Council
Bonnet Shores Fire District Community Center
130 Bonnet Shores Road
Narragansett, Rhode Island

Monthly Meeting

September 20, 2006

The meeting was Called to Order at 7:32 p.m. by Chairperson Joe Thomas. Those in attendance included Pat Mannix, Carmine Moretti, Bob Stebenne, Dan Quirk and Pat Zito. District Manager Frank Murray, Treasurer Natalie McDonald, Tax Collector Helen Patience, Harbormaster Mike Tortolani, and Clerk Catherine Kelleher were also present. Bruce Fournier was absent.

Pledge of Allegiance

The Assembly recited the Pledge of Allegiance. The Council and Assembly also observed a prayerful moment of silence for the men and women in uniform who are serving in the Armed Forces, in harm’s way, in Afghanistan and Iraq and, in particular, for those serving from our own state and community.

Urgent Business

A. House plans for a rebuild at 54 Webster Avenue, Plat N-S Lot 7 were reviewed and approved by the Council.

B. Road extension of Brooklyn Road, Plat N-R Lots 819, 820, 823,824, 788 and 792 was reviewed. Michael Zavalia from Carrigan Engineering reviewed a proposed roadway and utility extension. Joe Thomas recommended that Mr. Zavalia notify the abutters of the storm drainage system, request all permits of Coastal and present approval of permits to the Council. The Council agreed to notify Mr. Zavalia of any questions they had regarding this development prior to inviting him to a Council meeting for an additional presentation.

Period of Public Comment

C. Matthew Mannix read a letter (original attached to these minutes which are retained in the District Manager’s office at the Community Center) from Grover J. Fugate, Executive Director of CRCMC regarding CRMC File # 2006-08-107 Robert Lamoureaux and # 2006-08-021 Raymond Shawcross.

D. Paul Haas, the Bonnet Shores Fire District representative with the U.R.I. Coalition, requested to host a meeting of the Coalition at Bonnet Shores on October 7^th at 7:00 p.m.

E. Henry Simpson, III is petitioning for reimbursement of expenses related to the tax sale. His letter is attached to these minutes.

F. Joe Thomas thanked Bob and Pat Reidy for their assistance in setting up the golf tournament on September 15, 2006.

Ratification of Minutes

Bob Stebenne motioned to accept the minutes of the August 16, 2006 Council meeting as written. The motion was seconded by Carmine Moretti and approved by all Council members in attendance.

Committee Reports

G. Beaches (Bob Stebenne)

Written report is attached to these minutes. Topics include: beach update, pond update, boat storage proposal, the Community Center study and the scope assessment.

Assistance with grant writing was solicited from the community.

Recreation (Pat Zito)

1. Day Camp had a successful season

2. Linda Byrne was thanked for overseeing the daily operations of Camp.

Social (Pat Zito)

Octoberfest is scheduled for October 14th at the Community Center. Tickets are limited to 100 and 50 have already been sold.

Beautification (Pat Zito)

Mums will be planted tomorrow, September 21^st.

By-Laws (Carmine Moretti)

1. There are 5 members on the By-Laws Committee.

2. The next meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. on October 5^th at the Community Center.

3. A copy of a letter from Paul and Margaret Haas is attached to the minutes. It references Article I, Section 5 on page 1 regarding an Act to incorporate the Bonnet Shores Fire District; January 1932 Section 2 on page 2; Amendment January 1966, Sections 1 and 2 on page 5; and Amendment 1985 Section 1 and 2 on page 12.

4. The Police Department has questions about cars being parked on Bonnet Shores roads. Joe Thomas will speak to the Police Chief regarding parking on the roads and complaints received from Waste Management.

Trash (Pat Mannix)

1. As of Labor Day, trash collection will occur once a week on Mondays.

2. The dumpster was delivered one hour late and emptied an hour later on Saturday due to a flat tire on the truck.

3. The Fire District will be reimbursed for a missed collection on the Thursday after Memorial Day.

4. Frank Murray received 7 calls regarding trash. The complaints were relayed to Waste Management and they responded immediately.

G. Harbor (Dan Quirk)

A written Harbor Committee report is attached to these minutes.

Carmine Moretti motioned to accept the technical corrections to the Harbor Management Plan as described by Mr. Quirk. The motion was seconded by Bob Stebenne and approved by all Council members in attendance.

The Harbor Committee met with Henry Marciano regarding the sailing program.

Natalie McDonald was asked to contact the insurance carrier regarding the additional cost associated with insuring a sailing program.

Dan offered to assist Bob Stebenne with a grant.

H. Roads (Bruce Fournier)

1. Joe Thomas reported on Roads in Bruce Fournier’s absence.

2. A written Roads Committee report is attached to these minutes.

Treasurer’s Report (Natalie McDonald)

See attached report on the website and hard copy retained in the Community Center.

Natalie McDonald reported that the combined balance in the checking and money market accounts is $174,581.56

A grant in the amount of $2,500 was received from the State of Rhode Island for the playground improvement fund. Natalie thanked Linda Byrne for her hard work in this area.

The report has been filed for audit.

Tax Collector’s Report (Helen Patience)

H. See attached report on the website and retained hard copy in the Community Center.

I. 2007 Fiscal Year tax information is as follows:

Total taxable assessment - $575,711,200.00

Taxes assessed - $232,587.32

Total abated taxes - $2,999.91

Total collectable taxes - $299,587.41

Taxes collected to date - $192,559.30

J. Fiscal Year 2006 tax information is as follows:

Uncollected from the prior year - $1,220.98

Taxes collected from prior year – $413.15

Uncollected taxes - $807.83

Interest collected - $51.89

Land Trust

K. Vice Chair Donna Gunning reported on the July 18, 2006 meeting of the Land Trust. Her written report is attached to these minutes.

L. Chairperson Doris Baris read a statement indicating that the trustees had addressed a comment in the January 19, 1999 meeting minutes regarding the Community Center building and grounds located on Bonnet Shores Road. That report is attached to these minutes.

District Manager’s Report (Frank Murray)

M. Community Center rentals continue to book.

N. 50 tickets have been sold for Octoberfest. The deadline for ticket purchase is October 1^st.

O. The assent for Kelly Beach has been received and recorded.

P. A maintenance certificate application is in process to clean the culverts under the road on Bonnet Point Road from Lake Road to Dunes Road.

Q. The October herring run is to be scheduled.

R. The District Manager’s winter hours begin on Tuesday, September 26^th and will be from noon to 7:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

S. The mower has been repaired at a cost of $500.

T. Proper mowing coverage will be secured through the end of the season.

Old Business

U. The Sailing Club proposal is discussed in Dan Quirk’s report.

V. Joe Thomas will contact the Police Chief and will invite him to attend an upcoming meeting to discuss speeding on Bonnet Shores roads.

W. The By-Laws Committee will look at feasible recommendations regarding the "No Dogs on Beach" sign.

X. The Harbor Plan status is discussed in Dan Quirk’s report.

Y. Updates on the 20-foot path include:

1. Authorization to survey the property has already been granted.

2. Ms. Johnson reported that Peg Lawrence is no longer her attorney.

3. Dan Quirk reported that his property is one of five parcels that abuts the paper road.

4. Dan Quirk requests the Council’s plan for the paper road.

5. Mr. Quirk asked if it was worth the Fire District’s money to survey the paper road and to ask Ms. Johnson to remove a structure on the paper road which is not being used.

Z. Joe Thomas will discuss the paper road with the Town regarding safety issues. He will also get 3 bids for a survey.

AA. The Council will review Bonnet Shores Rules of Civility for public participation at all Bonnet Shores Fire District meetings. The Council will report their comments at the October monthly meeting.

BB. Regarding the High Water Mean Tide Survey, Doris Baris reported that she has 3 bids out and has received 1 back at $3,220 for a survey. The beach survey information will be given to Bob Stebenne, the Beach and Harbor Committee chairperson.

CC. It was suggested that the direction of the $1,500 grant be changed to a safety project; for example, the foot bridge.

DD. Ballot counting procedures at the Annual Meeting have not yet been discussed.

EE. Discussion ensued regarding the webmaster job description:

1. The Fire District will purchase software for web hosting.

2. The Council was asked by Dick Agnitsch to consider the use of a credit or debit card for hosting the web site.

3. In the past, there has been no direct compensation to the webmaster for maintaining the website. However, after all website expenses are paid, the proceeds from the website have been split evenly between the Fire District and the webmaster.

4. The position of webmaster will be posted.

FF. Copies of the January 19, 1999 Bonnet Shores Fire District Council meeting were obtained and distributed to the current Council for review. As discussed in the Land Trust Committee report, the Council is being asked to review the section on the Community building and grounds and be prepared to further discuss this issue at the October meeting.

New Business

Attorney Kerry Rafanelli reported that there was nothing noted in the Blue Book to prevent meeting motions by non-residents. Joe Thomas suggested that this issue be referred to the By-Laws Committee for resolution.

Carmine Moretti is organizing a Bonnet Shores Fire District Red Hat Club which will be meeting on Thursday evenings from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. at the Community Center.

The Council will review the Community Center rental proposal and discuss it at the October meting.

Pat Mannix requested that an invitation to the Octoberfest be extended to the photographer who offered to sell photographs of the Bonnet Shores area, with some of those proceeds going to a scholarship fund in memory of the 3 U.R.I. students lost at sea.

Doris Baris asked if the Fire District was planning a "Meet the Candidates" forum. The Council stated that it had not been approached by any candidates to entertain such an event.

Executive Sessions

None.

Adjournment

GG. Carmine Moretti motioned to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Pat Zito and approved by all Council members in attendance.

HH. The meeting adjourned at 10:20 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Catherine M. Kelleher

Clerk