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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Beverly City Council Regular Meeting – October 6, 2025

City Council — Monday, October 6, 2025

BodyBeverly, Massachusetts

SessionCity Council

DateMonday, October 6, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:26:12

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:02

Thank you.

0:04

Thank you, everyone, for joining us this evening.

0:06

And everybody, it was amazing.

0:08

You all quieted down right at seven.

0:09

I said to Ms.

0:10

DuPont, is it seven?

0:12

And it was seven, so thank you.

0:14

So thank you for joining us here in the council chamber.

0:17

We do have several guests.

0:18

We have some public speakers.

0:20

And so before I call the meeting to order, I will just walk us through the agenda just so that we are all sort of on the same page about what we have before us this evening.

0:29

And I will, as always, extend an extra word of thanks to Kim and the Bev Cam booth for making sure that we're streaming and we're live and that folks can be following along, even if you couldn't join us here in the council chamber.

0:41

Thank you, Kim.

0:42

Thanks to the team at Bev Cam for that.

0:44

So this evening, as I mentioned, we do have some guests here in the chamber with us.

0:49

We're going to start with a resolution that Councillor St.

0:52

Hilaire has put together celebrating a milestone birthday for a resident of Beverly.

0:57

And then we do have guests from the Beverly Little League.

1:00

We've got Beverly Little League coaches, families, board members, and uh most importantly, players here with us.

1:06

And so we've got uh something to take up concerning Beverly Little League, and so we're happy to have all of you here with us.

1:13

We have two members of the public who have signed up to speak, and so we'll take those uh as we can come to them in the agenda, and thank you to those members of the public, and thanks for your patience in advance.

1:24

We have to juggle things a little bit with the order.

1:26

We have two public hearings that are posted for 7 30 and 7 40.

1:30

We'll need to take those at the times that they are posted.

1:32

Um Mayor Cahill and his team will not be presenting this evening.

1:36

I'll say more about that once I call the meeting to order to explain why.

1:39

And then we've got some routine business to take up, and we'll take a brief break for some subcommittee work.

1:44

Come back and finish it all up.

1:46

And for those who are avid fans of the city council, you may note that it's not our city clerk.

1:50

Lisa Kent sitting beside me is our assistant clerk, Katie DuPont.

1:53

Thank you, Ms.

1:54

DuPont for being here.

1:55

Um, Miss Kent is unfortunately under the weather, but we are in good hands with Miss DuPont, so thank you.

2:00

So with that, I'll officially call to order this regular meeting of the Beverly City Council, Monday, October 6th, 2025, 7 o'clock p.m.

2:09

Ms.

2:09

DuPont, will you please call the roll?

2:11

Sure.

2:12

Bowen.

2:12

Here.

2:13

Crowley.

2:13

Here.

2:14

Feldman.

2:15

Houseman.

2:16

Retondo?

2:17

Yeah.

2:18

Spang.

2:18

Here.

2:19

St.

2:19

Hilaire?

2:20

Here.

2:20

Sweeney?

2:21

Here.

2:22

Flowers.

2:22

Here.

2:23

Thank you, Ms.

2:23

DuPont.

2:24

Counselor Crowley, will you lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance, please?

2:30

My Pledge of Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

2:35

And to the Republic for which it stands.

2:39

One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Procedural███████████████████████████27%

Public Infrastructure████████████████16%

Youth Programs█████████████13%

Transportation Safety███████████11%

Grant Management███████████11%

Public Engagement██████████10%

Historic Preservation███████7%

Public Safety█████5%

Summary of Proceedings

Beverly City Council Regular Meeting – October 6, 2025

The Beverly City Council held its regular meeting on Monday, October 6, 2025, at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers at 191 Cabot Street. The meeting included a resolution honoring a resident's 95th birthday, a presentation from Beverly Little League, public comment, two public hearings on National Grid utility petitions, and a first reading of an ordinance to remove stop signs at two intersections. The council also approved multiple grants and appointments during subcommittee reports.

Consent Calendar

Order 227: Resolution honoring Charles Bucci on his 95th birthday (October 4, 2025). Approved 8-0.
Order 237: Letter from the City Council to the future 2050 City Council for inclusion in Beverly Little League's 75th anniversary time capsule. Approved 8-0.
Order 206: Final vote on an ordinance amendment (second reading) adding handicapped parking spaces at Atlantic Street South and Orchard Street East. Approved 8-0.
Approval of meeting minutes from the Finance and Property Committee meeting of June 11, 2025. Approved.
Approval of the election warrant for the November 4, 2025 biennial municipal election. Approved 8-0.
Receipt and placement on file of Order 240 (notice of filing from the Department of Utilities). Approved 8-0.

Public Comments & Testimony

Elliot Margolis (6 Cobbler's Lane) expressed frustration with the City's water billing department. He stated that his water bill jumped from about $150 to $420 without explanation, and it took five months for the city to send someone to check his meter. He believes the meter malfunctioned and that the city refused to work with him despite his efforts. He provided copies of his correspondence to council members.

Public Hearings

Order 212 (7:30 PM) – National Grid petition to install one jointly owned pole and underground laterals on West Dane Street at 52 West Dane Street. Representative Ismail Miku explained the pole will be 40 feet tall with three transformers, serving a new business that requires 277/480 volts. No public speakers. The hearing was closed and referred to the Public Services Committee, which later recommended granting the petition (approved 8-0).
Order 224 (7:40 PM) – National Grid petition to install underground facilities on Cliff Street at 40 Cliff Street. A five-foot trench from pole 3760 to the property will be dug through the sidewalk, which will be fully restored. Representative Miku clarified the work is in the sidewalk, not the roadway, to avoid conflict with an upcoming repaving project. No public speakers. The hearing was closed and referred to the Public Services Committee, which later recommended granting the petition (approved 8-0).

Discussion Items

Order 220 – First reading of a proposed ordinance amendment to remove stop signs at two locations: (1) Kernwood Avenue (northbound and southbound) at Harris Avenue, and (2) McPherson Drive (southbound) and River Street (northbound) at Federal Street. Councilor Retendo explained the Kernwood Avenue sign removal is due to a new traffic signal coming online. The McPherson/River/Federal signs were originally installed 20 years ago for vehicular traffic, and the Federal Street bridge work will reduce traffic. The Parking and Traffic Commission had recommended removal of the signs subject to conditions: maintaining pedestrian crosswalks with new fluorescent yellow warning signs and additional signage as needed. Councilor Spang initially proposed a friendly amendment to delay removal of the McPherson/River signs until the traffic light at River and Bridge Street is fully activated, but withdrew it in favor of amending the ordinance to incorporate the Parking and Traffic Commission's conditions. That amendment was approved 8-0. The main order (as amended) then passed its first reading 8-0; a second reading and final vote will be on October 20, 2025.

Key Outcomes

Grants approved (all 8-0 after subcommittee reports):
- Order 228: $24,600 Mass Cultural Council grant for local cultural council.
- Order 229: $7,500 Senior Care Title 3B grant for Council on Aging outreach.
- Order 231: $1,537,311 FEMA Urban Search and Rescue grant for Massachusetts Task Force 1.
- Order 232: $251,119.90 FEMA Assistance to Firefighters grant for 70 sets of wildfire PPE and training.
Lease approved (Order 230): Lease agreement with T-Mobile Northeast LLC for cell tower space. Councilor Bowen questioned declining lease revenue; Purchasing Agent Dave Gelano explained mergers have reduced carriers, but the new lease includes a 3% annual escalator.
Appointments approved:
- Order 233: Noveo Horrican to Commission on Disabilities.
- Order 234: Alice Dudley to Parks and Recreation Committee.
- Order 235: Benjamin Roy to Zoning Board of Appeals.
Public hearings scheduled:
- Order 238: FY2026 Community Preservation Act (CPA) budget public hearing set for October 20, 2025 at 8:00 PM.
- Order 223: National Grid petition for Tall Tree Drive underground facilities – public hearing October 20, 2025 at 8:40 PM.
- Order 239: National Grid petition for Hale Street underground facilities – public hearing October 20, 2025 at 8:30 PM.
Subcommittee meetings: Finance and Property Committee approved all referred items in a brief recess. Public Services Committee announced a meeting on October 27, 2025 at 6:00 PM to discuss National Grid noise complaints on River Street.

Announcements

Councilor Retendo reminded about the Fall Frolic at Lynch Park this weekend.
Councilor Bowen announced a Public Services Committee meeting on October 27 to address National Grid noise issues.
Assistant Clerk Katie DuPont reported on her trip with City Clerk Lisa Kent to Washington D.C. to advocate for sustained federal election funding, emphasizing the importance of directing funds to local election offices.

Meeting Transcript

Thank you. Thank you, everyone, for joining us this evening. And everybody, it was amazing. You all quieted down right at seven. I said to Ms. DuPont, is it seven? And it was seven, so thank you. So thank you for joining us here in the council chamber. We do have several guests. We have some public speakers. And so before I call the meeting to order, I will just walk us through the agenda just so that we are all sort of on the same page about what we have before us this evening. And I will, as always, extend an extra word of thanks to Kim and the Bev Cam booth for making sure that we're streaming and we're live and that folks can be following along, even if you couldn't join us here in the council chamber. Thank you, Kim. Thanks to the team at Bev Cam for that. So this evening, as I mentioned, we do have some guests here in the chamber with us. We're going to start with a resolution that Councillor St. Hilaire has put together celebrating a milestone birthday for a resident of Beverly. And then we do have guests from the Beverly Little League. We've got Beverly Little League coaches, families, board members, and uh most importantly, players here with us. And so we've got uh something to take up concerning Beverly Little League, and so we're happy to have all of you here with us. We have two members of the public who have signed up to speak, and so we'll take those uh as we can come to them in the agenda, and thank you to those members of the public, and thanks for your patience in advance. We have to juggle things a little bit with the order. We have two public hearings that are posted for 7 30 and 7 40. We'll need to take those at the times that they are posted. Um Mayor Cahill and his team will not be presenting this evening. I'll say more about that once I call the meeting to order to explain why. And then we've got some routine business to take up, and we'll take a brief break for some subcommittee work. Come back and finish it all up. And for those who are avid fans of the city council, you may note that it's not our city clerk. Lisa Kent sitting beside me is our assistant clerk, Katie DuPont. Thank you, Ms. DuPont for being here. Um, Miss Kent is unfortunately under the weather, but we are in good hands with Miss DuPont, so thank you. So with that, I'll officially call to order this regular meeting of the Beverly City Council, Monday, October 6th, 2025, 7 o'clock p.m. Ms. DuPont, will you please call the roll? Sure. Bowen. Here. Crowley. Here. Feldman. Houseman. Retondo? Yeah. Spang. Here. St. Hilaire? Here.

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