Committee Report - C of APM - 9-28-21 — File 212503

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 1 of 4 Printed 10/4/2021 September 28, 2021 REPORT OF THE CONFIRMATION OF APPOINTMENTS AND PERSONNEL MATTERS COMMITTEE Attendee Name Title Status Arrived Mary Jo Rossetti Chair Present Jefferson Thomas ("J.T.") Scott Vice Chair Present Wilfred N. Mbah City Councilor at Large Present Jesse Clingan Ward Four City Councilor Present Kristen Strezo City Councilor at Large Present Others present: Dr. Vanessa Boukili - Urban Forestry, Luisa Oliveira - Director of Public Space and Urban Forestry, Oliver Sellers-Garcia - OSE, Hannah Carrillo - Legislative Liaison, Peter Forcellese - Legislative Clerk. The meeting took place virtually via GoToWebinar and was called to order at 6:00 PM by Chair Rossetti and adjourned at 7:24 PM on a roll call vote of 5 in favor (Councilors Mbah, Clingan, Strezo, Scott and Rossetti), 0 against and 0 absent. Chair Rossetti stated her intention to move for approval of the confirmations of Frank Wright as City Solicitor, Steve Craig as Director of Constituent Services and William Roche as Municipal Hearing Officer at the next City Council meeting, forgoing their interviews. Approval of the August 31, 2021 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED 211062: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Aladdine Joroff to the Commission on Energy Use and Climate Change. Mr. Sellers-Garcia introduced the candidate, Aladdine Joroff, and spoke of her background in energy matters. Ms. Joroff also serves on the Conservation Commission. Ms. Joroff addressed the committee and thanked the members for the opportunity. Councilor Scott asked about her experience on the Conservation Commission and Ms. Joroff gave a brief summary. Councilor Mbah asked how she plans to track climate change and she spoke about her efforts with other cities to reduce greenhouse gases. She views the topic holistically. Chair Rossetti asked about engaging citizen scientists and Ms. Joroff explained that this was done on a national level and is now being examined for implementation on the local level. Chair Rossetti reviewed the membership of the commisssion with Mr. Sellers-Garcia. Ms.

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 2 of 4 Printed 10/4/2021 Joroff's term, if approved, would expire in March of 2023. Councilor Clingan asked if she was familiar with Somerville possibly being a pilot site for conversion from gas to geo-thermal. Chair Rossetti moved for approval. She advised the candidate that the appointment won't be official until it is approved by the City Council. RESULT: APPROVED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Rossetti, Scott, Mbah, Clingan, Strezo 211414: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Murphy Langevin to the Urban Forestry Committee. Dr. Boukili introduced the candidate, Murphy Langevin, and said that she is very qualified for this appointment and is studying the arboricultural field in high school, providing her with a tree inspired job outlook. Chair Rossetti reviewed the membership of the commission with Dr. Boukili. Councilors Mbah and Scott thanked the candidate for stepping forward for the position. Chair Rossetti moved for approval. She advised the candidate that the appointment won't be official until it is approved by the City Council. RESULT: APPROVED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Rossetti, Scott, Mbah, Clingan, Strezo 211746: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Megan Kearns to the Conservation Commission. Ms. Oliveira introduced the candidate, Megan Kearns, and summarized the responsibilities of the Commission. Ms. Kearns is a professional wetlands scientist and has been in the field for 7 years. Chair Rossetti reviewed the commission's membership with Ms. Oliveira. Councilor Scott commented that the candidate is highly qualified to fill this position. Councilor Mbah asked the candidate about her ideas for green spaces and she spoke about some areas in the city that would be good locations for adding green spaces. Councilor Strezo asked about swallow-wort and Ms. Kearns said she wasn't familiar with it but she has done other work on managing invasive species. Chair Rossetti moved for approval. She advised the candidate that the appointment won't be official until it is approved by the City Council. The Committee meeting was recessed at 6:40 PM to correct some technical problems and resumed at 6:45 PM. RESULT: APPROVED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Rossetti, Scott, Mbah, Clingan, Strezo 211852: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Jean Alix Simeon as a full member of the Condominium Review Board. Ms. Carrillo introduced the candidate, Jean Alix Simeon, to fill the homeowner position on the Condominium Review Board (CRB). Mr. Simeon stated that he became a Somerville homeowner 15 years ago and that he is happy to be before the committee this evening. Councilor Strezo asked what his housing priorities would be and Mr. Simeon replied that he would follow the rules of the CRB.

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 3 of 4 Printed 10/4/2021 Councilor Mbah addressed the candidate in his native language and the candidate responded in kind. Chair Rossetti asked Councilor Mbah to translate the conversation and Councilor Mbah explained that he was grateful that the candidate came forward to offer his services. Councilor Scott noted that this an important Board and he thanked the candidate for coming forward. Chair Rossetti spoke about the weekly health shows that Mr. Simeon produces to educate people how to care for and take charge of themselves. Chair Rossetti commented that perhaps he could work with SomerViva to set up a similar talk show or podcast, to get the word out of where assistance is available for housing issues and she asked that he bring up this topic at his first CRB meeting. Chair Rossetti moved for approval. She advised the candidate that the appointment won't be official until it is approved by the City Council. RESULT: APPROVED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Rossetti, Scott, Mbah, Clingan, Strezo 211853: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Paula Vancini as an Alternate Member of the Condominium Review Board. Ms. Carrillo introduced the candidate, Paula Vancini, to fill an alternate position on the Condominium Review Board (CRB). Chair Rossetti reviewed the membership of the CRB with Ms. Carrillo. There is another person who will be put forward for another position on the CRB in the near future. For now, Ms. Vancini would serve, if approved, as a full member as there is currently a vacancy on the Board. Ms. Vancini commented that she looks forward to serving. Councilor Mbah noted that Ms. Vancini is a dynamic individual and would be a valuable resource. Councilor Scott asked what her concerns are with landlord rights and Ms. Vancini replied that both sides need to be protected. Councilor Scott spoke about the condo conversion process and asked what the candidate saw as the most important protection needed for landlords. Ms. Vancini stated that she would need to dig into the review process to pinpoint areas where protection is lacking and she noted that she would assume the position without an agenda. Chair Rossetti moved for approval. She advised the candidate that the appointment won't be official until it is approved by the City Council. RESULT: APPROVED. [UNANIMOUS] AYES: Rossetti, Scott, Mbah, Clingan, Strezo 204899: Requesting the re-appointment of Walter Whitney as Superintendent of Public Buildings & Grounds. This item was placed on file RESULT: PLACED ON FILE 210871: Requesting confirmation of the re-appointment of Elizabeth Janiak to the Condominium Review Board. This item was withdrawn.

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 4 of 4 Printed 10/4/2021 RESULT: WITHDRAWN 210914: Requesting confirmation of the re-appointment of William Medeiros to the Condominium Review Board. This item was withdrawn. RESULT: WITHDRAWN