Raynham Select Board 03/24/2026

(Episode Description is AI generated and may be errors in accuracy)

31.8 inches of snow will test any town, and we walk through what it actually takes to keep roads open, sidewalks passable, and public safety moving when the drifts won’t stop. We hear how the highway team shifted from pure survival mode to widening roads, scraping hard pack, coordinating with police and fire, and then turning immediately to potholes, storm cleanup, and the spring project list. If you care about snow operations, DPW planning, and how Massachusetts towns recover after a major winter event, there’s a lot here to learn.

We also zoom in on public health at the local level. The Board of Health report covers routine prevention work like trainings, a blood pressure clinic, and a planned update to well regulations with better detail for irrigation wells. We talk through a rise in housing complaints involving trash, mold, and pests, and how inspection work intersects with day-to-day life for residents. You’ll also hear about new educational “little free libraries” aimed at helping families talk with kids about vaping and other addictive drugs, plus a seasonal animal control reminder as kitten season ramps up.

Finally, we move through the nuts and bolts of a select board agenda: scheduling hearings for license changes, approving community requests, sharing hazardous waste collection and paint collection dates, and taking a key step toward a culvert replacement grant tied directly to emergency access for police, fire, and EMS. If you like understanding how local government works in public, this meeting is a clear window into the decisions that quietly shape a town.

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Transcript

Call To Order And Pledge

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Meeting to order at 7 o'clock p.m. The meeting of the Randy Am Select Board here on Tuesday, March 24th, 2026 in Veterans Memorial Town Hall at 558 South Main Street and announced that this meeting is open to the public. It is also being broadcast live on the Rainiamp Channel, Comicast Channel 98, and Verizon Channel 34. It is also being recorded by RayCamp or replay on the Rick Am Channel. With that, welcome to those of you with us and please join us at the Pledge of Review. I Pledge to reply the United States of America to the Republic for which it's operation from the principle and justice for all. Motion is made and seconded in the discussion. Hearing none all in favor and with polls. Next we have our department head reports. And first step, we have Paula Rosky Klapp, our health director, with her monthly report. Even though March isn't quite over yet, we were just here for February's report. I know you're getting tired of seeing me.

SPEAKER_05 1:33

Liggy. So, but I do have something that I can update the board on. So for the Board of Health update, the public health nurse has no communicable disease concerns to report. And Lindsay will be over at the senior center on Thursday, April 16th for a blood pressure clinic. The health inspector and myself have been attending Zoom educational trainings. We both took the HACT plan review training and I viewed another on pest control. Next month I will be submitting a recommendation to the board for an update to our current well regulations. This is mainly due to the need for more detail for the irrigation wells. This month we have had an increase in housing complaints. Since January, we've logged and closed 18 complaints in topics of housing, which include trash, mold, and pests. A few calls have been relating to food, tobacco, odors, and one communicable disease concern. We currently have three active complaints we are working to resolve. The opioid working group has purchased little free libraries to be placed around town buildings so that we can provide educational material to the public in a more consistent way. These libraries will replace current displays at the police station and the COA. Over the next month, we will be placing these red receptacles and replenish the items on a regular basis. Items include things like age-appropriate reading material, coloring books, and all to assist adults having conversations with their young family members about the risks associated with vaping and other addictive drugs. Now on animal control for that update. Barn inspections for 2025 are almost complete. We should be done by the end of the month, keeping us in compliance with the state. We will begin our 2026 inspections once we receive the new barn book sometime in August. As of this date, we do not have any animals on hold at the facility, but the ACO has been busy this month with both dogs and cats needing temporary oversight. A reminder to the public that this season is when the cat population has their kittens, both barrel and domestic cats can have their litters outside. If you know of a cat or kittens in your area that in need of rescue, please contact the Ringham Peace dispatch number and our ACO will assist. And I decided to end my report with some fun facts about pest control since I was reminded of this in my training this past week. Just so that you're aware, both mice and rats do not coexist. If you have an infestation with one, there are certain deterrence you can do to keep them off your property. I have a handout located at the entryway of this town hall, or you can call our office for an email to copy. If you are seeing cockroaches during the day, this means you have an infestation. Seeing a cockroach during the daylight means the nest is kicking out the weakest and they're overpopulated, so that's an issue if you see them in daylight hours. And then the final fun fact is: did you know cockroaches can live for up to one week without their head?

SPEAKER_04 4:59

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_05 5:01

So I got you on the bed bugs, and now I've moved on to cockroaches, but that's a little fun fact. And that's the end of my report. Thank you, Paula.

SPEAKER_01 5:11

Alright, Jeremy, so Mr. Pachico, any questions or comments?

SPEAKER_03 5:15

Paula, quick question for you. When when you're doing um um restaurant or store inspections, specifically Walmats, are you checking the outsides as well? I know when we used to inspect Walmart, we used to, and I was there this weekend a disaster. It looks like it was right.

SPEAKER_05 5:32

At this time, we've been doing the interior and the storage areas inside, so I will talk to Carlos because unless we get a complaint on the buildings, we usually don't do the outside unless we're doing um reach trap.

unknown 5:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:46

Um but I will um I will yeah, point one, you know, keep in mind too, we have a date here that's putting it. Okay, great.

SPEAKER_05 5:53

Thank you. Good to know, and I'll get them all there.

Blizzard Response And Road Recovery

SPEAKER_01 5:56

Thank you, Mr. Pachico, Mr. Conn. Thank you, probably. Let's leave us with visions of headless to cockroach. Alright, Norm, see if we can talk that. Next up is our highway superintendent, Norm's current.

SPEAKER_00 6:14

Good evening. I wish the budget had taken care of some of the past, but I guess it didn't do that. Uh have some updates from the highway department for the months of February to present. Uh as everybody probably wants to put in the radio member, we had the blizzard occurring uh February 22nd through February 24th. Rainham received 31.8 inches of snow. That does top the blizzard of 78, which I think reduced around 27 inches. Uh that was on the heels of another storm that we had back in January that we received 17.5. So a lot of that snow hadn't gone away yet, so we had some struggles with trying to find places to put the snow. Um pertaining to the storm, uh, I'll make it brief. Um day one, we we basically once it started coming down three, four inches an hour, and with drifts, we really had to go to just trying to keep the roads open. Um they were narrow, but they were open, and we were proud of that. We actually, before we went home, after a long, long couple of days, we actually had every road open. They weren't pretty, they were narrow, and and as soon as we came back a few hours later, we started that operation to start widening. Um we also had some hard pack, that only happens once every few years. Our uh main roads, you go home with three inches of hard pack and it's nice and smooth, and the roads are passable, and then when it starts to melt the next day, you're like riding on a on a washboard. So we worked hard at trying to get that off. It it took us about a day to get that off all the main roads so people could at least go the speed limit. Um following that right away, we started the widening. We got some contractors in as soon as we could get them available, and we widened roads, started the sidewalks, and had pretty much everything done by uh Saturday afternoon following the storm. So that was that was pretty good. Um some special thanks to all the departments. Uh police uh they were in contact with us if they had a call. Uh they asked if we could plow ahead of them. We we said yes, we worked on that. Um the chief had put a parking ban in place, which is great, and they enforced it because we we couldn't plow some areas when the cars were out on the road, so that was a big help, excuse me, a big help. Uh fire department, we had arranged a truck for them ahead of time uh to maintain their own lot to give our uh the parking lot guy, we knew he wouldn't be able to maintain that, so they actually helped maintain their own parking lot and go ahead of their calls with our truck, so that worked out very well for public safety. Um Deputy Johnson, the chief lacervator, that was great. We organized that before the storm. Um that is about it. We had sidewalks done, you know, for the for the start of school. Unfortunately, they had to miss five days, and we took that by the day. We're in contact with my truck almost every day to see if we could speed that up, but it was it was just too much snow too quick. So I do want to thank the residents. We received a lot of calls. Most 95% of the people really understood what we had just gone through, and they were very patient, and they were the calls were more. Um, I live on this road. When do you think it'd be there to widen? And it was very good experience for the calls after the storm. So we thank the residents for their patience on that. Um cemetery water, and I'm probably missing somebody. Uh they always plow for us all throughout the season, and they stay the course. Storms like this, um, they're not for the faint of hearts, it it separates the hard nose plow people from the ones that just come in and do it for a few extra hours of overtime. And I want to thank, of course, my staff because it's a it's a short staff. The dedication to work that many hours on sleepless hours is just amazing, and you know, I'm proud of the department and the whole town for helping out uh when we need it the most. So thanks to all. If I missed the department, I apologize. Um on to new things. Um the solid waste division. We received two new dumpsters from the DEP. One has come in already, and the other one will be in probably next week. Uh, that was through a mass DEP grant for two dumpsters that we had for glass collection that were in tough shape. So that saved the town. I think it was about an$8,800 grant to pay for those two. That was you know fantastic. Um, some important dates for the for the solid waste division. Uh, this Saturday we're gonna open the brush pile. We've had several calls because of the type of winter we had for all the down brush. You know, we listened to the residents, we're gonna open it a week early. It was scheduled to open on 4.4, and we're gonna open it this Saturday from 8 to 1 over on Gardner Street so they can start cleaning up their yards. Uh the second important date is uh first of two hazardous waste days. That'll happen uh two weeks from, I'm sorry, a week from the Saturday, April 4th, that will be from 8 to 12. And the second one, I'm not sure of the date, but that's gonna happen in September. For anybody that hasn't done it, it's very simple, very quick. Clean harvest does a great job. And you know, if you have anything to get rid of, again 8 to 12 at the highway department on King Phillip Street. Uh and the last day is we're gonna start our paint collections. Uh the first we collect paint all during the year from April to November, and it's the third Saturday of every month. It starts on 4.18. And if anybody needs further outdates, you can find it on our website. Parks and grounds, uh, all three divisions, by the way, they're all uh hands-on deck when it comes to snow. So I'm not reporting in on that because that was something we did for most of the winter. Uh parks and grounds was able to get all the maintenance done in between the storms in preparation for the busy upcoming season. And uh this coming Monday, they're gonna start fall uh fall, spring cleanups and field tune-ups and field prep. Uh the road crew division has been busy with potholes. This type of winter was devastating to some of our roads. It really opened up a lot of extra potholes this year that we'll be we'll be fixing for probably some time to come. Uh, and they've been busy with storm cleanup. They've been out with the chipper for about a week, and they could be finishing up this Friday, if not Monday or Tuesday of next week, to complete all that cleanup. Um, projects we are working on some easements for the final uh network they're gonna be doing on Mill Street sidewalk project, and then a mill and overlay on that final portion of the road for anybody that's tired of Mill Street being closed or detoured. I understand this will be a lot faster project, and it will be a nice completion. We got a lot of compliments on the new sidewalk there from especially the housing authority folks. And um, we I every time I see somebody using it in a wheelchair or one of those carts, motorized carts, it's a good feeling. So we'll be completing that this year. Uh, we're getting some easements on the Old Colony Bridge and on Gardner Street and Pine Street for those bridge and dam projects. Um we've been busy with quotes getting ready for the mill and overlay and resurface projects for the roads around town. Um the Greg, you'll be happy. We're gonna have the budget submitted tomorrow by the close of the afternoon. It's all done. I just gotta do one more recheck and then send it electronically to you and Chris. So that'll be done. And we're working with the folks over at MEMAR and FEMA to try to get some possible reimbursement for the for the large blizzard. Um I was told the federal government has put Bristol County as the target area for possible reimbursement where we were in the jackpot uh for that storm. Uh what else have we got here? Um that is it?

SPEAKER_01 13:32

That's all I got. Questions, comments, Mr. Pachico.

SPEAKER_03 13:36

Uh no questions, just again, thank you for uh everything you and your team did during a snowstorm. I know you and I talked quite regularly. Uh we were chatting earlier, and you're a month late behind from it, so you're getting the credit late, but thank you for that.

SPEAKER_01 13:51

Thank you, Mr. Pacheco, Mr. Collins.

SPEAKER_03 13:53

I appreciate your publicly apologizing. I usually try never to call departments, especially during it.

unknown 13:59

I called you every song.

SPEAKER_03 14:00

Of course, it was probably the two hours of sleep before.

SPEAKER_00 14:03

No worries. The only time I think I called is the year is before I was sleeping at a point, but I do appreciate everything you guys did.

SPEAKER_01 14:10

Yeah, just to echo that. Great job to you and your team. It was a historic storm, and and it was amazing the way you were able to handle it. So appreciate that. Question for you about the hazardous waste collection day. Sure. Is paint accepted at that time or only for those special dates?

SPEAKER_00 14:28

Good question. It is accepted on that day. We'll probably take it in ourselves, but we do collect it on that one day.

SPEAKER_01 14:33

I know you have a list like everything that can be accepted that you've given out before. Maybe if that could be sent out again on the Rainham.

SPEAKER_00 14:41

Sure, we can do that. Sure. I think it's on our website, but you're right. We do send a bullet out on anybody that's uh subscriber to the emails. Right. We can do that, sure, no problem.

SPEAKER_01 14:50

Okay, thank you, no.

SPEAKER_00 14:51

Yep, thank you.

Licenses Hearings And Town Votes

SPEAKER_01 14:52

Thank you. Okay, continuing with our agenda. Next we have appointments. We have nomination of inspectors of animals, Ariel Howard, Carlos Alvarado, and Paula Rossi Clapp.

SPEAKER_03 15:05

So moved.

SPEAKER_01 15:06

Motion is made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing and all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. We have no public hearings scheduled this evening. Completion of old or continuing business. Do you have anything, Mr. Bishop?

SPEAKER_04 15:19

No, ma'am.

SPEAKER_01 15:20

Do you have anything, Mr. Collins? Mr. Barnes, do you have any old or continuing business for us? We move on then to new business. One-day alcohol license for barrels and boards for a Sunday brunch on April 5th, April 12th, April 19th, and April 26th. The motion is made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing that, all in favor? Any opposed? So voted. Next we have discussion and form and vote of the form on for the one-day alcohol license. This was presented to us um at a previous meeting. I believe there were a couple of comments you had made. Have they all been um taken care of Mr. Vachica?

SPEAKER_03 16:09

They have, and I um would put it on as a motion to approve that.

SPEAKER_01 16:13

The motion is made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing and all in favor. Any opposed? Okay, so voted. Next we have a stockholder change for an all-alcohol restaurant license for chances incorporated in 1550 New State Highway. We need to set a hearing date.

SPEAKER_03 16:32

April 7th, Madam Chair.

SPEAKER_01 16:34

Motion is made for April 7th. We usually have it two weeks. And the motion made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing and all in favor. Aye. Any opposed? So voted. Next we have a new license or alteration for farmer brewery pouring permits for regrets distillery at 1377 Broadway. Again, we need to set a hearing date.

SPEAKER_03 16:56

April 7th manager.

SPEAKER_01 16:59

Motion made in second day for April 7th. Any further discussion? Hearing and all in favor? Aye. Any opposed? It is so voted. And next we need another hearing for a transfer of license or ownership for the wine and malt license or milk bottle at 785 Broadway. Is that a hearing date? April 7th, I think. It's going to be a busy night. All right. Motion is made and seconded for April 7th. Any further discussion? Hearing none all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. All right. And then we have a tag day request. We tag day requests for July 11th and July 12th for Ocean State Skating Club.

SPEAKER_03 17:39

Motion to approve.

SPEAKER_01 17:41

Motion made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing none and all in favor? Any opposed? So voted. Moving along, we have discussion and vote of a contract for a parcel boundary survey through Greenman Peterson Incorporated for the highway department. Do you have anything to tell us about that, Mr. Barnes?

SPEAKER_02 18:01

This involves a property over at the pond. We wish to put a put a fence up and we want to know where the town line is.

SPEAKER_01 18:29

Johnson's bond. Any further discussion? Hearing on all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. Discussion and vote to allow the 14th annual frosty half marathon by colonial roadrunners, and that would be on December 6th, 2026.

SPEAKER_03 18:45

Motion to approve.

SPEAKER_01 18:47

Motion made and seconded. Any discussion? Okay. Hearing on all in favor.

SPEAKER_02 18:51

Please make that contingent on police and fire report. Yes.

SPEAKER_03 18:56

Motion to approve contingent on police and fire.

SPEAKER_01 18:59

Motion made and seconded. Any further discussion? Okay. Hearing and all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. TMLP in Verizon, New England request for one new joint poll location on Robinson Robinson Street. We need to set a hearing date.

SPEAKER_03 19:15

April 7th had a meeting.

SPEAKER_01 19:16

April 7th. It's going to be a good meeting. Motion made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing then all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. Discussion and vote to refer to the planning board the re recommendation of the following ways as public. Goldfinch Drive, Sparrow Way, Blue Jay Lane, Bayberry Road Extension, and Mulberry Road.

SPEAKER_03 19:40

So moved.

SPEAKER_01 19:41

Motion is made and seconded, and again that's to refer it to the Planning Board for their recommendation. Any further discussion? Hearing on all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. And under new business, discussion and vote on the annual town election warrant.

SPEAKER_03 19:59

I'll motion to approve as presented.

SPEAKER_01 20:02

Motion is made and seconded. Any discussion? Hearing on all in favor. Any opposed? So voted. Do you have any other new business, Mr. Burton? Mr. Collins? Mr. Barnes, anything not on the agenda for new business?

SPEAKER_02 20:18

I have uh under town administrator.

SPEAKER_01 20:21

Then you're up next. Go right ahead.

SPEAKER_02 20:24

So the highway department is applying for a grant uh for uh through the uh DER for a culvert replacement. This would be over at Pine Street, which we've talked about many times. The uh grant would be in the amount of$500,000. The town uh is trying to um obtain the other two million necessary to do the what is estimated to be a$2.5 million construction project. So uh well uh the grant doesn't cover the bulk of it, it is a significant amount, and we're uh hopefully that maybe they will uh provide us with such money which will allow us to get over the uh finish line in terms of that culvert. That culverts uh well, it's a dead-end road is quite important. Without that culvert, uh access to a number of properties is uh, suffice to say, significantly impeded, and it puts the public safety at risk because the police fire and EMS would not be able to get through without the without uh a functioning of the culvert. Right now, as you know, there has been a temporary repair, um, and that will remain the case until we permanently replace the culvert.

SPEAKER_01 21:55

Thank you, Mr. Barnes. Mr. Pacheco, questions, comments, or if you want to make a motion?

SPEAKER_03 22:00

I would approve uh the administrator's request. Okay. Second it.

SPEAKER_01 22:04

Motion is made and seconded to approve the recommendation just made by our town administrator. Any further discussion? Hearing and all in favor. Opposed? So voted. Is that all you have for us this evening, Mr. Barnes?

SPEAKER_02 22:18

Just to remind the public that we are now on a trial basis meeting every other week. So the next meeting will be April 7th. There will be no select board meeting next week.

SPEAKER_01 22:33

April 7th, the night when we have all those hearings. All right.

SPEAKER_02 22:36

We have a big night of alcohol and throw in a poll.

SPEAKER_01 22:43

All right, very good. Select board report, Mr. Chica.

SPEAKER_03 22:46

No, a norm was here, so he covered what I was going to bring up, which was household hazards.

SPEAKER_01 22:52

Thank you, Mr. Collins. I have a couple of things. Um our Ray Cam Rainium Cable Channel is planning its annual Rainham Candidates Night for all contested and uncontested candidates on the ballot. We just approved the uh if going forward at the annual town election. This candidates night will be held right here in Veterans Memorial Town Hall in the Don McKinnon Municipal Meeting Room. It will be telecast live on the Rainham Channel, Comcast Channel 98, and Verizon Channel 34. It will also be recorded by Raycam for replay to the Randam Channel's website and Facebook page. And all of the candidates appearing on the ballot have are being invited to attend that event. So hopefully everyone will be able to make that. Also, just a little bit of a press release. We recently voted to go forward with the 12th annual Rhanium Memorial Day Parade. And even though Memorial Day may seem far away, our RAVE volunteers are already at work fundraising to make sure this year's parade will be bigger and better than ever. The RAVE organization's salute to our Veterans Committee is bringing back its popular Comedy Night fundraiser, featuring some of Boston's top professional comedians on Saturday night, April 11th. And all proceeds will help fund the annual Memorial Day Parade that RAVE sponsors, in addition to Veterans Day assemblies and programs in the Rainheam Schools of the Bridgewater Rainheim School District, and RAVE's American Flag Project, which involves purchasing and maintaining the flags and flagpoles used to decorate the center of town for the Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Veterans Day holidays. For more information, you can contact Becky George at Rave Volunteer Coordinator at gmail.com or Sandy Leahy at 508-272-7245. And that is all I have at this time for select board reports. We have no correspondence. Press time. Do we have anyone here from the press? Do not see anyone. Emergency business, Mr. Chico. Mr. Collins, Mr. Barnes, do you have any emergency business for us?

SPEAKER_02 25:06

I have no emergency.

Executive Session Motion And Close

SPEAKER_01 25:07

Emergency business. Citizen and community input. We have no citizen and community input. Performance of administrative duties. Just to report that I and our finance director have reviewed and signed off on the town of Rainham invoice and payroll warrants with today's date, Tuesday, March 24th. And with that, I am looking for a motion to go into executive session in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 38, Section 21, A2 and 3, to conduct strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations with non-union personnel or to conduct collective bargaining sessions or contract negotiations with non-union personnel and to discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the bargaining or litigating position of the public body, and the chair so declares, specifically related to the town administrator, youth services, librarian, and the police union Rainham 9-11 operators. And that motion will include a statement that we will be returning to open meeting for the sole purpose of adjourning the meeting with no additional business to be discussed. Motion is made and seconded. Roll call vote, Mr. Pachico, Mr. Collins, Chair Votes Aye at 7 26, 7 27 p.m. We are closing the open meeting and going into executive session. Thank you all for either being here or watching us. Thank you.