CITY OF WORCESTER

Public Service and Transportation Committee Meeting

Monday, March 19, 2012

Esther Howland (South) Chamber

Convened: 10:40 A.M.

Adjourned: 12:52 P.M.


Mayor
Joseph M. Petty

 

www.worcesterma.gov

 

Clerk of the City Council
David J. Rushford

Committee Members

Chairperson Philip P Palmieri
Councilor Frederick C Rushton
Councilor Kathleen M Toomey
 

City Hall - 455 Main Street Worcester, Massachusetts


Present Were:Chairperson Councilor Philip P Palmieri
Councilor Frederick C Rushton
Councilor Kathleen M Toomey
Councilor Tony Economou
Councilor William J. Eddy
City Manager Michael V. O'Brien
State Representative JamesO'Day
Robin Kennedy from the Lt. Governors Office
Field Engineering Manager Bob Pendrick
Assistant City Clerk Susan M. Ledoux, clerk
 
Also:Commissioner of the Department of Utilities David Cash
Department of Public Utilities Liaison Mary Coleman
From National Grid: Director of Community & Customer Management Aleta Fazzone
Community Manager for Worcester Kevin Shaughnessy
Director of Operations for Central/Western MA Tim O'Leary
Dispatch/Control Center Director Mike Gallagher
Senior Forestry Supervisor Eric Gemborys
Media Relations Deb Drew

 
1.

Discussion Item

1a.

Order of Councilor Philip P. Palmieri, Councilor Kathleen M. Toomey, Councilor Tony Economou, Council William J. Eddy, Councilor Frederick C. Rushton, Councilor Joseph C. O'Brien, Councilor Sarai Rivera, Councilor George J. Russell, Councilor Konstantina B. Lukes and Mayor Joseph M. Petty - Request the Standing Committee on Public Service & Transportation to hold a public hearing and invite representatives from National Grid and the Department of Public Utilities to discuss the trimming of trees around electrical power lines and informing the city administration when power outages take place in the City of Worcester.
# 10b CC February 07, 2012

Attachments

Recommend Hold
The Chairman invited opening statements from the following persons:
Director of Community & Customer Management Aleta Fazzone
City Manager Michael V. O'Brien
Michael Lanava on behalf of the Mayor

The Chairman recognized the following persons from the audience:
Jo Hart, Worcester resident
Steven O'Connor, Worcester resident

Chairman's Orders

Request City Manager request National Grid provide their five year tree trimming plan that includes monies spent in the last three years and future monies to be invested. Further, request a map that highlights the areas where tree trimming took place in the last three years and where trimming will take place in the future.

Request City Manager request National Grid report what were their workforce levels prior to deregulation and what are they currently.

Request City Manager request National Grid select areas in the city that could be feasible and cost effective to upgrade the infrastructure by placing it underground.

Request City Manager request National Grid provide a list of the top ten ways a consumer could save money on their electric bill.

Request City Manager request National Grid provide a list of their customers that are identified with medical needs.

Request City Manager request National Grid provide a list of areas in the city who have the most outages.

Request City Manager report to Department of Public Utilities when new development projects are impacted by the cost of upgrading National Grids systems and these costs are prohibitive to the project.

Request City Manager request National Grid provide a detailed report as to what are the capabilities of their current system, such as what it can do and what it can't do, and what can be improved so it would be able to provide real time information.

2.

Communications of the City Manager - Part I

2a.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City's Cable Franchise License.
# 8.38B CM March 04, 2008


In Committee March 19, 2008 - Held
In Committee October 15, 2008 - Held


Attachments
In Committee for informational purposes only

Recommend Hold

2b.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Government Channel Program Guide.
# 8.4A CM April 15, 2008


In Committee October 15, 2008 - Held

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2c.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Cable Television Advisory Committee's Review of Public, Educational and Government Access Programming.
# 7.4A CM May 20, 2008


In Committee October 15, 2008 - Held

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2d.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Transition from Analog TV to Digital TV.
# 8.12A CM October 07, 2008


In Committee October 15, 2008 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

2e.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City of Worcester's Government Access Channel 12 Receiving First Place Honors by the Alliance For Community Media-Northeast Region in the 11th Annual Northeast Region Video Contest.
# 9.12A CM December 02, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2f.

Ttransmitting informational communication relative to Charter Communication's Switched Digital Network Transition that is scheduled to begin on February 11, 2009.
# 8.12A CM February 03, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2g.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Charter Communication's Restructuring under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Law.
# 8.12A CM February 24, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2h.

Transmitting informational communication relative to an Agreement with Charter Communications for Production Services Support.
# 10.11A CM August 10, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2i.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Charter Communications' Third Quarter 2010 Report on Charter's Response Time to Customer Phone Calls.
# 9.11A CM November 30, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2j.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Cable Television License Renewal Process with Charter Communications.
# 9.11A CM December 14, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2k.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Charter Communication's 1st Quarter Report on Response Time in Handling Phone Calls to Customer Care.
# 10.11A CM June 07, 2011

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2l.

Transmitting communication relative to KKO study.
#8D CM April 15, 2003


In Committee October 13, 2004 - Held
In Committee November 30, 2005 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

2m.

Transmitting communication rrelative to MBTA Commuter Rail Service Improvement Project.
#8C CM June 29, 2004


In Committee October 13, 2004 - Held
In Committee November 30, 2005 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

2n.

Transmitting communication relative to KKO/HNTB Studies.
#8H CM August 17, 2004


In Committee October 13, 2004 - Held
In Committee November 30, 2005 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

2o.

Transmitting communication relative to CSX contract with the MBTA.
#8M CM August 17, 2004


In Committee October 13, 2004 - Held
In Committee November 30, 2005 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

2p.

Transmitting informational communication relative to transportation options for residents of the City of Worcester and the entire region.
#34D CM September 27, 2005


In Committee November 30, 2005 - Held

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2q.

Transmitting informational communication regarding the status of city projects submitted to the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).
# 9.12A CM October 30, 2007

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2r.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Properties in the City Owned by CSX Corporation.
# 7.29A CM April 01, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2s.

Transmitting informational communication regarding the Rail Summit held on May 9, 2008
# 11a CC May 13, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2t.

Transmitting informational communication relative to a Worcester Regional Mobility Study Public Informational Meeting.
# 7.5A CM April 28, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2u.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Present and Future Funding for the Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA).
# 7.39C CM September 01, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2v.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Livery Businesses.
# 8.17A CM December 22, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2w.

Transmitting informational communication relative to CSX and Hazardous Material Transportation.
# 9.39B CM June 15, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2x.

Transmitting communication relative to the City of Worcester Telecommunications Analysis.
#15A CM April 5, 2005


In Committee February 27, 2006 - Held
In Committee October 23, 2006 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

2y.

Transmitting informational communication relative to legal opinion as to the rights and responsibilities of Towing Operators.
#16B CM May 14, 2002


In Committee April 23, 2003 - Held

Attachments

Recommend Hold

2z.

Transmitting informational communication relative to future DPW issues.
#24B CM March 18, 2003

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3.

Communications of the City Manager - Part II

3a.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Green Energy Sources Available.
#17A CM August 17, 2004

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3b.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Policy for Massachusetts Electric to Site Transformers/Switch Gears.
#23A CM September 7, 2004

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3c.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City of Worcester's East-West Corridor.
#11B CM November 22, 2005

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3d.

Transmitting the City of Worcester Climate Action Plan.
# 7.37A CM January 30, 2007


In Committee for Informational Purposes Only - Approved by City Council on August 13, 2007

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3e.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City of Worcester being awarded the 2007 E-Government from Common Cause Massachusetts.
# 8.32A CM April 03, 2007


In Committee April 30, 2007 - Held

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3f.

Transmitting an update of the Economic Development Initiatives - May 2007.
# 5a CC May 15, 2007

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3g.

Transmitting informational communication regarding the Implementation of the Climate Action Plan and the procurement of an Energy Service Company.
# 10.37B CM August 14, 2007

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3h.

Transmitting the Monthly Economic Development Initiatives Status Report for the Month of June 2008.
# 9.5D CM July 08, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3i.

Transmitting the Monthly Economic Development Initiatives Status Report for the Month of August 2008.
# 11.5B CM August 12, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3j.

Transmitting the Monthly Economic Development Initiatives Status Report for the Month of September 2008.
# 8.5D CM September 09, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3k.

Transmitting Monthly Economic Development Initiatives Status Report - October 2008
# 5a CC October 14, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3l.

Transmitting the Economic Development Report for the Month of October 2008.
# 8.5C CM November 10, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3m.

Transmitting the Monthly Economic Development Initiatives Status Report - December 2008.
# 9.5F CM December 02, 2008

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3n.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the use of Live Streaming Video on the City's E-Government Channel.
# 7.36A CM January 06, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3o.

Transmitting the January 2009 Economic Development Report.
# 8.5C CM January 20, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3p.

Transmitting the February 2009 Economic Development Report.
# 8.5A CM February 24, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3q.

Transmitting the February 2009 Economic Development Report
# 8.5A CM March 17, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3r.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City of Worcester's Receipt of the 2009 E-Government Award.
# 10.36A CM April 14, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3s.

Transmitting the July 2009 Economic Development Quarterly Report.
# 9.5B CM July 28, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3t.

Transmitting informational communication relative to an Update on the City's Purchase of the Street Light System from National Grid.
# 7.13B CM September 15, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3u.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Worcester Regional Transit Authority and Paratransit Brokerage Services, Inc.
# 10.39A CM October 20, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3v.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the launch of the City's Redesigned Website on Monday, October 19, 2009.
# 10.33A CM October 20, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3w.

Transmitting information relative to the Use of Technology for the transmittal of information to the General Public.
# 9.39E CM December 01, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3x.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Taxi and Livery Companies.
# 8.17A CM December 15, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3y.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City's response to Google's request for proposals for a "dark fiber" network.
# 9c CC March 09, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

3z.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the transfer of the Worcester Regional Airport.
# 4a CC June 01, 2010

Attachments
In Committee for informational purposes only

Recommend Hold

4.

Communications of the City Manager - Part III

4a.

Transmitting informational communication relative to CSX Terminal Expansion Project.
# 10.39C CM August 10, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4b.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the use of Social Media for City Business.
# 9.39B CM October 19, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4c.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Charter Communication's 4th Quarter 2010 Report on Response Times in Handling Phone Calls to Customer Care.
# 8.11B CM January 25, 2011

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4d.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the City's Snow Storm of October 29-30, 2011.
# 17b CC November 01, 2011

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4e.

Transmitting informational communication relative to Charter Communication's 4th Quarter Report on Response Time in Handling Phone Calls to Customer Care.
# 8.4A CM February 28, 2012

Attachments

Recommmend Hold

4f.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) Proposed Fare Increases and Service Reductions.
# 8.32A CM January 31, 2012

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4g.

Transmitting informational communication relative to the Worcester Regional Transit Authority's (WRTA) Building Progress at Union Station.
# 10.4A CM March 13, 2012

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4h.

Transmitting informational communication relative to a Status Report on the City's Street Light System.
# 10.7A CM March 13, 2012

Attachments

Recommend Hold

4i.

Transmitting informational communication relative to a Petition that Charter Communications' Filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
# 10.13A CM March 13, 2012

Attachments

Recommend Hold

5.

Miscellaneous

5a.

Communication of Dr. Roberta Schaefer, President & CEO of the Worcester Regional Research Bureau, transmitting report "Worcester Regional Airport Positioned to Take Off"
# 13e CC June 08, 2010

Attachments

Recommend Hold

5b.

Communication of the Department of Telecommunications & Energy Notice of investigation into the appropriate pricing, based upon total element long run incremental costs, for unbundled network elements and combinations of unbundled network elements to be charged by Verizon New England, Inc. d/b/a Verizon, Mass. as well as appropriate avoided cost discount for Verizon's Resale Services, in the Commonwealth on Mass.
#58 CM January 30, 2001


In Committee April 23, 2003 - Held
In Committee June 23, 2004 - Held


Attachments

Recommend Hold

5c.

Report of the Committee on Public Service and Transportation upon the Communication of the City Manager relative to taxicabs that are handicap accessible.
#89 CC July 6, 2004


In Committee September 30, 2004 - Held
In Committee June 12, 2006 - Held In Committee December 21, 2009


Attachments

Recommend Hold

5d.

Order of Mayor Timothy P. Murray, Councilor Kathleen M. Toomey, and Councilor Gary Rosen - request the City Manager to seek the input of the general public professionals in real estate development and leasing, graduate students in college or university management programs, among others, to formulate a new and exciting marketing plan for Union Station and to suggest what strategies, besides the RFP process, might be available to implement such a plan.
#39 CC February 7, 2006.

Attachments

Recommend Hold

5e.

Order of Councilor Paul P. Clancy Jr. request the City Council Standing Committee on Public Service and Transportation explore the heaviest possible fines the city could issue against violators of the taxi and livery licensing. Further, request the committee with the City Solicitor and the Police Chief determine what other options are available to enforce payment of fines.
# 20b CC December 15, 2009

Attachments

Recommend Hold

5f.

Order of Councilor Fredrick C. Rushton request the Committee on Public Service and Transportation explore the feasibility of the long term benefits in creating a Worcester municipal utility for electrical power generation and distribution.
# 17g CC November 01, 2011

Attachments

Recommend Hold

5g.

Order of Councilor Philip P. Palmieri - Request City Manager to ask the MBTA if there will be any changes to the commuter rail and CSX plans that were previously agreed upon by City Council and the Administration. Further, request the Standing Committee on Public Service & Transportation invite the MBTA and any other entity to a meeting to discuss commuter rail services and further, request the administration consider holding a Transportation summit. Further, request towns and cities in metro Worcester be included in a future transportation summit as the city acts as the connection to metro Boston through commuter rail service. Further, request City Manager report to City Council the process the MBTA will use to get input from the public. Further, request City Manager report to City Council what was the actual commitment made by the MBTA in terms of increased commuter rail services when the city agreed to the CSX freight yard and if there was no commitment what is the plan to get a commitment. Further, request City Manager inform the Grafton Hill Business Association the timetable for construction activity associated with CSX on Grafton Street.
# 10k CC January 24, 2012


In Committe for Informational Purpose Only

Attachments

Recommend Hold