Ways and Means Committee Meeting 10-14-25

All right, we're at 6.

All right, this is the City Council Committee on Ways and Means. This is Tuesday, October 14, 2025, and we're at 6 p.m. I have Councilor Smith.

Present.

I have Councilor DePiro. Present. I have Councilor Healan. Present. And Councilor Petrotoni. Present. We have four members present. We do have a quorum.

Four members present. We have a quorum. Will you please stand and salute the flag? I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America

All right, the first item of business is an order up by Council Stephanie Mons as president. An order requesting approval to accept and expand a grant for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services, Department of Mental Health in the amount of 90,000 to support an outreach clinician position to help deliver services to the community in conjunction with police personnel.

So we did receive a communication from Chief Strong on this, and I'll just read it. I wanted to send you this communication to let you know that I met with Elliott Mental Health pertaining to this grant. We use Elliott Mental now to service the EPD on... certain calls for service. This grant would be used to hire an outreach clinician through Elliott to work with Officer O'Donnell, who is our community outreach officer. At this time, Elliott is having difficulty hiring someone. I plan on giving the outreach clinician position to the City of Everett HR Department to have them advertise the position, and I will keep you advised if we hire anyone. Thank you for your continued support to the Police Department. So I'll ask the floor of what's your pleasure for this item? Is there a second? Motion made and seconded for favorable action on the grant for $90,000 for a clinician position. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? The ayes have it. Will the clerk please read item number two?

Item number two is the order of my counsel, Stephanie Myers, as president. Not a request of approval to appropriate $185,000 for the capital stabilization account for three DPW one-ton pickup trucks.

Councilor Hanlon.

Didn't that come before us earlier on the calendar, or did we refer it to the committee?

We referred it out to the committee here.

Okay, so this is 3-3 PDW, truck for the highway department, the DPW.

I'm not sure who they're for, but I think we have the CFO here. Oh, if we can, you want to bring him forward.

Good evening, Miss City, Miss... Council Handler.

Just wondering what department these things are going to be in, these trucks.

So this is for DPW?

Yes.

Unfortunately, I don't have a lot of information.

I know Councilor Pietrantonio had asked for some additional information.

DPW is supposed to be here tonight.

I didn't know if you wanted to take it out of order. Is here? Is DPW, they are used they are used

I stood at the last council meeting.

Okay. I'm sorry. My question is really, what are they going to do with the three trucks they're replacing?

I know one of the questions was the age of the vehicles they're replacing. My understanding is that they go back at least 10 years so that they'd be looking to surplus them.

Are they going to keep them working?

They're going to surplus them. Okay. So that will be an action before the council at a subsequent meeting.

Okay.

So we didn't get no communication from DPW about the maintenance on these trucks. That's what I requested, the maintenance on the truck. Did we get any communication at all from the DPW? I didn't send it to Mr. Demas. It went to the DPW.

We did not receive any communication. I'm not sure if you want to lay this on the table and then take item number three and then see if they show up. That's fine.

Thank you.

Thank you. So we have a motion to second, or a motion to lay it on the table and second. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? We'll lay it on the table to see if we have any more information.

Right.

Item number three. Order of my counsel, Stephanie Miles, as president, not a request of approval to appropriate the amount of $2 billion by borrow for streets and sidewalk construction throughout the city.

I do see the is we received a list of streets and the city engineers here. If there are any questions from the floor.

Not really. I'd like to have a C of the list, though. I mean, have a coffee sent to each one of the councillors.

And I can read what the streets are. Francis Street, full depth and sidewalks, 500K. Paris Street and Lewis Street for mill, full depth patches and sidewalks for 350K for both of those. Chatham Road, Edith Street and Chute Street from Ferry to Edith is full depth and sidewalks for a million... which totals $2 million. And it says, please note work on the above streets may involve drainage improvements and or regrading to reduce ponding and localized flooding. I do have a question. If we could just bring the engineer up. Sorry for making you come back up.

Move to invite the engineer up before us.

Thank you. Good evening, Mr. Swanson.

Good evening. Thank you for having me up here this evening.

When is the work supposed to start? Is this 2026 work that we're going to do? Has any of this started?

No, the work that's identified as part of this appropriation has not started. The intention is to start work as soon as possible and continue the work as weather allows.

So we'll start it this year in terms of... October, November? Yes. Okay.

Yes. So to answer your question more specifically, the work may roll into 2026, but it's intended to start this year.

Okay. And do we know which one is going first, second? Have we prioritized these?

Right now, Francis Street is first. Like the order of the streets may vary, I will say that Paris and Lewis Street will likely occur last as we have subsurface drainage and sewer work to complete prior.

Any other questions from the floor? All right. Excuse the customary thanks.

Thank you.

Thank you. What's the pleasure of the body?

We'll actually second. Second. Both.

Motion made and seconded for favorable action. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? So let's... Okay, so the clerk just informed me since we don't have anyone here from the DPW, the recommendation from him is to refer it out with no recommendation from this body and then if we can get an answer by the regular meeting.

So moved. Seconds.

I just want to make sure Councilor Pietrantonio is okay with that, since this was he had questions. So we just discussed that we would refer this DPW one out with no recommendation, and hopefully we can get some answers in the next hour or so, because it is on our agenda tonight.

Okay, so this is, is it on our agenda tonight? It is, right? Which maybe they think they're going to come tonight for the 7 o'clock meeting.

Maybe we'll have an answer, but if not, we can make a decision at that meeting, and you can talk on it then.

Okay.

All right, so motion was made in second to refer no recommendation. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? The ayes have it.

Motion to adjourn? Oh. All done? Second.

Motion made in second to adjourn. All in favor? Aye. Opposed? Meeting adjourned.