Page 12 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, February 21, 2020 ~ Letter-to-the-Editor ~ Residents, taxpayers seek more transparency from CPC Dear Editor, Has the Community Preservation Committee forgotten about the community of Malden residents and taxpayers? On Tuesday, February 11th , City Solicitor Fallon met with Community Preservation Committee (CPC) to review an OML (Open Meeting Law) complaint. The complaint focused on a request for a missing agenda and minutes for the public hearing held on March 27, 2019. At least one member of the CPC was unaware there was an OML complaint filed. The reason for the complaint was that multiple requests had been made for the minutes and agenda for the March 27, 2019 public hearing that went unanswered. The formal complaint was filed on December 15, 2019. According to state law, the CPC was required to meet and review this formal complaint within 14 business days of its submission. Within 14 business days, the CPC was required to make a formal response, and send a copy of that response to the Attorney General. It’s unclear why the CPC has not acted in accordance with the state’s procedures and instructions for responding to this Open Meeting Law complaint. At the meeting on Tuesday, the City Solicitor did a fantastic job educating the CPC and those in attendance about the legal obligations of recording accurate and detailed minutes, posting agendas that must include all topics to be discussed. New/Old business on an agenda should not be used for important discussions/deliberations such as what happened at the April 2019 CPC meeting when the committee took an important vote on the funding of Roosevelt Park after residents left the meeting. The residents left because they believed any discussion concerning Roosevelt Park had already taken place. After they left, the committee did take an important vote on the funding of Roosevelt Park. Further inquiry about the vote revealed that the vote was taken under the agenda item Old Business. Also not reflected in the minutes from this meeting was that a committee member who opposed the plan to artificial turf Roosevelt Park left the meeting early before this important vote was taken. The Solicitor also discussed with the CPC the legal obligation to record names and addresses of individuals speaking at public hearings. The person’s remarks to support or in opposition should also be recorded in the minutes of the meeting. The purpose of a public hearing is to allow the public to speak and to have their comments recorded into the public record. At the CPC’s March 27th public hearing several residents, as well as a Salemwood kindergarten parent, spoke emphatically and outlined the many reasons for their opposition to the plan to artificial turf Roosevelt Park. None of the residents’ names were taken and their opposing remarks were not recorded into the public record. In addition to resident remarks, a CPC member stated at this hearing that they had no idea that there were any residents opposing this project. Apparently debate and discussion was happening at the CPC meetings concerning Roosevelt Park that did not include the sharing of the emails sent to the CPC by residents stating their opposition of the Roosevelt Park plan. The Solicitor emphasized several times that every board and commission must have an administrator that is not a voting member of the committee. This person needs to be trained and/or well versed in the proper and lawful way to prepare detailed agendas and detailed minutes. The CPC has not had a consistent administrator and it is unclear if the current administrator is still a part of the committee. Instead of an administrator recording minutes at meetings, committee members have been taking charge of minutes recording. (The CPC may “use up to 5% of the community's annual CPA revenues each year” to “assist with a variety of tasks for the CPC such as preparing meeting minutes, scheduling meetings, processing invoices, evaluating project proposals, creating/updating a Community Preservation Plan, and managing CPA-funded projects.”) The Solicitor pointed out that while there is a need to take minutes, having a member record the minutes takes that member away from focusing on and taking part in the discussions of the projects and business in front of the committee. The CPC has moved several projects forward and sent these projects to the City Council for approval without the proper procedures in place. The largest project, the Roosevelt Park Improvement Plan, which earmarks $2.05 million of CPC taxpayer funds will be bonded out against future CPC taxpayer funds for a 10 year period, limiting the amount available for other future projects. Without sufficient knowledge one might ask; would we hand a scalpel to a doctor still not fully educated in all parts of carrying out a successful operation? Would we hand the keys to our new Jaguar over to an inexperienced driver? Do we hand over millions of taxpayer dollars to a committee whose members are well intentioned and who have worked hard but have not been properly trained or educated to prepare detailed agendas, record detailed minutes, share all information that is sent to CPC email with all members and, finally, to ensure all residents comments and remarks are included in the public record on projects being approved by the committee? Without all of this in place, the committee may be making ill informed decisions because all of the proper information is not in front of them for deliberating and voting. Where does this leave us as a community? It leaves us with the realization that the CPC and possibly some other boards and commissions are not properly preparing agendas and minutes as well as posting minutes in a timely manner. They may not be acting on public records requests in a timely manner. These are all violations of the laws put in place to create a more transparent process of government. It leaves residents and taxpayers feeling uninformed about projects in which their valuable tax dollars are being channeled. The good news is that this realization will improve our record keeping and increase transparency which will renew public trust in the processes of our government infrastructure. The solicitor and the city clerk are committed to educating city boards and commissions about their duties and responsibilities under the OMLs and their duties to respond to public record requests within the time frame outlined in the FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) and the state’s Public Records Law. Our City Council should now revisit the CPC projects already partially approved or in the process of being approved. Were all of these projects properly vetted? Was there proper public input because CPC members were unaware of emails sent to the CPC from residents opposing projects and the remarks made at the CPC public hearing were not included in the public record or properly shared? CPC members who did not see the opposing emails or members who were not present at the March 27th public hearing did not hear the public comments. Discussion and deliberations lacked merit because all information was not shared equitably. The Friends of Roosevelt Park and the Salemwood Community have collected pages of signatures from parents of the Salemwood School, neighbors and residents. The most recent signatures were collected at Malden’s Democratic Caucus on February 15th. The Friends of Roosevelt Park and the Salemwood Community will continue to insist on transparency, inclusion and planning a project that reflects the action items in the Malden Vulnerability Plan. Signed, Kathleen Sullivan Friends of Roosevelt Park and Salemwood School Community
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