THE MALDEN ADVOCATE - Friday, January 19, 2018

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Malden honors Dr. King’s legacy

Mayor Gary Christenson presents President of the North Shore Black Women’s Association Iodiah Henry with a City of Malden Citation, while Neal Anderson looks on during the NSBWA’s 25th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Luncheon at Anthony’s of Malden. See more photo highlights from the event on pages 8 & 9. (Advocate photo by Al Terminiello)

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By Barbara Taormina he Finance Committee voted this week to recommend spending $241,785 for raises for the city’s patrolmen but acknowledged changes are needed in the way police are paid for detail work. The money

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Friday, January 19, 2018

Malden Hospital back in the spotlight While Matheson stressed community involvement, Councillor-at-Large Stephen Winslow suggested that the committee apply for some of the city’s community preservation money to pay for some professional planning for the site. But others at the meeting felt some of that ground had already been covered. “We have the community input,� said Prisco Tammaro, president of the Friends of Fellsmere Heights and a citizen representative on the Hospital Friends of Fellsmere Heights President Prisco Tammaro shares Site Development Committee. Through a 2015 ballot quessome of his group’s proposals for the old Malden Hospital site tion, and a string of communiwith the new committee created to review redevelopment ty surveys and meetings, resoptions. idents have repeatedly exBy Barbara Taormina ty-wide meeting on the fu- pressed support for preservture of the site is also in the ing the hospital site and addembers of the new Hos- works, and the committee ing to the city’s stock of open pital Site Development and the Friends of Fellsmere space. Residents have also exCommittee wrapped up their Heights, a grassroots advoca- pressed opposition to more first meeting with some key cy group, are continuing to ex- large-scale residential develstrategies and next steps on plore possible uses for the 18- opment, such as the proposthe table. Committee Chair- acre site. al by the Fellsmere Housing man John Matheson plans to “We want to engage resi- Group to build a complex of schedule a meeting with Med- dents to the greatest extent nearly 300 apartments and ford’s Ad Hoc Committee on possible,� said Matheson, add- condos and 18 single-family the Malden Hospital to give ing that he hopes that togeth- homes on the hospital land. members from both cities a er, both Malden and Medford The Fellsmere Housing chance to share ideas and set could develop a feasible plan HOSPITAL | SEE PAGE 2 common goals. A communi- for the site.

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Patrolmen’s contract depends on details

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approved this week will cover a 2 1/2 percent raise for patrolmen for the current fiscal year. The money will be taken from the city’s $1.3 million salary reserve account. But unlike other labor contracts, which typically cover three years, this is a one-year salary fix that buys the city some time to work out a solution to an ongoing dispute about payment for police details. “This is what’s been worked out,� explained City Controller Charles Ranaghan. “We’ve been going back and forth on some issues, and we decided to do a one-year deal and then try to enter into a longer deal. This puts the salary issue to rest and gives us six months to work on the police detail system and third-party police details.� The problem of pay for police who work details has been bouncing around different courts for the past year. The Malden Patrolmen’s Associa-

tion sued the city for money owed for unpaid details performed for third-party businesses and contractors. The patrolmen lost, appealed and had one of their five counts against the city resurrected and sent back to superior court. The problem isn’t the city, which is required to pay patrolmen within 10 days of receiving payment from third parties who request details. It’s the third-party contractors who let bills for police details sit for months, and sometimes longer. “Some vendors take their time in paying, and you have patrolmen waiting three to four months to get paid,� said Ranaghan. And those bills add up. According to Ranaghan, one vendor owes more than $100,000 for past detail work. Finance Committee members wondered how the process of collecting fees for police details broke down, particular-

ly when fixes – such as taking credit card information or refusing to provide new details until old bills are paid – seem simple enough to implement. Ranaghan said that part of the problem is that the system, which generates about $2 million a year in detail work, is handled by one clerk who works at the police station. “We are not doing what we said we would do,� said Councillor-at-Large Craig Spadafora, adding that the city officials already agreed to move the police details operation to the Treasurer’s Office. “Shame on us for letting this get to $100,000,� he added. Finance Committee members agreed the system needs to be revamped with the consent of both police unions. “We have to fix this,� said Spadafora. “My biggest fear is that we won’t be able to collect some of this money and the city will have to pay it.�

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