December 10, 2007
Work Session
Present at the meeting were Councilors Lafleur, Grenier, Bigelow, Poulin, Cusson, Donovan and Boucher; Mayor Danderson and Councilor Nelson were absent. Councilors-Elect McCue and Remillard were present. Staff members included Blandine Shallow, Patrick Macqueen, and Andre Caron. Jim Wagner, Jay Poulin, Mr. Patch, Don Bouchard, media and public.
Councilor Lafleur moved to elect Councilor Grenier chair, in the absence of Mayor Danderson; Councilor Cusson seconded and the motion carried.
Informational Presentation re: Woodstone/Greenova Pellet Project
Jay Poulin from HEB Engineers representing Greenova Wood Pellet Plant, explained that the company is looking at purchasing four sites at the industrial park. There would be several operations going on at the plant, with the first being a log storage area where whole logs would be brought to the site and stacked. Lot 11 would be used to de-bark the logs and process them into chips. That area would be paved to achieve a clean surface. Chips would then be conveyed to a kiln dryer which is heated with the extricated bark from the logs. Chips are then sent into a hammer mill and then conveyed to storage.
There are two means of shipping: trucked by the bag and loaded on pallets and there would also be six silos for bulk fill.
The operation would have three truck movements: that of raw wood delivery, bulk fill, and packaged pellet movement. All trucks will need to be weighed empty and full. A 45,000 square foot building is proposed with the processing equipment behind the building. Mr. Poulin presented a rendering of what the facility will look like.
Councilor Grenier asked what energy will be used to dry the chips and Mr. Poulin noted that the bark from the logs will be used to feed the burner that dries the chips. Natural gas will be used as well. There will be 200,000 tons of wood or 50-75 trucks per day. It takes twice the amount of wood to make pellets or two pounds of wood to make one pound of pellets.
Councilor Cusson asked if the trucks could be backed up onto the highway and Mr. Poulin indicated that there will be plenty of room so that does not happen and the trucks have to be unloaded with a crane and cannot be allowed to go onto the road.
Councilor Donovan asked what direction the trucks would be coming from as such traffic would have a major effect on city. Mr. Poulin reported that he did not know, at this point, who the wood contracts would be with but the plant will be on an existing truck route and there is also access through the east side which is a truck route. To the question of why Berlin, Mr. Poulin noted that it was the result of a Google search of pulp mill shut downs. The material and labor are here.
Councilor Bigelow asked about the decibels for hammers and whether noise levels have been identified. Mr. Poulin stated that the noise will likely be louder at the site than the 70 dba allowed by the ordinance; however away from the radius, it is likely to be within the perimeters.
There are trees that will help to deaden the sound across the river. This project has been to the Planning Board twice. The tenants at the Industrial Park know about the project and it is an industrial zone. Councilor Donovan stated that there is bound to be some inconvenience and he asked if a sound baffle would be out of the question. Mr. Poulin indicated that nothing is out of the question at this point.
Councilor Boucher asked how long it would take to get plant up and running. Mr. Poulin stated that the lead time on the equipment is very long; it will be at least 18 months.
Mr. Poulin reported that the project may need action from the Council with regard to conservation easements. The are 2.5 acres that need to be mitigated and that is done by having the city hold a conservation easement on land used by the Water Works as well as having the State hold a conservation easement on land currently owned by the City
Councilor Lafleur confirmed that the snow machine trail will not be impacted. An independent third party monitors the easements to be sure the terms are being met. This cannot be the owner of the land. Sites 1 & 2 would be owned by Greenova and the proposal is that the city would hold the easement. The State could hold the easement on the final piece of property. Councilor Grenier expressed that the cost associated with holding the easement should be borne by the company
Mr. Poulin informed the Council that industrial park covenants which were formed in the 70's were recently revoked by the BIDPA Board at Greenova’s request. The existing tenants all agreed to do away with the covenants. Councilor Donovan moved to support BIDPA’s revocation of the covenants; Councilor Poulin seconded and the motion carried.
Mr. Poulin reported that he will need to come back to the Council as the company is proposing to limit public access to Industrial Park Road because of safety and liability concerns on the site.
Small Pond Holdings Request for Conservation Easements
Don Bouchard from Horizons Engineering is representing Small Pond Holdings who own approximately 180 acres of property near Head Pond. Small Pond would like to do a phased development with 90 acres and 21 lots being the first phase. They too are looking for conservation easements for the wetlands to be impacted. In the area near where the AVRRDD has a conservation easement there is interest from the Wetlands Board to preserve several vernal pools. Carving out 15.4 acres as a conservation easement for this project keeps a continuous habitat for the wildlife. It would also give the project some extra conservation area for the next phase of the project.
Councilor Grenier commented that there could be no better place for a conservation easement because the land is of no use to anyone. Mr. Bouchard noted that they are ready to present the project to the Wetlands Bureau and want to present a potential easement holder. Councilor Grenier added that the applicant needs to accept the cost of maintaining the easement. The City Manager should negotiate the terms of the easement. Mr. Bouchard noted that there could potentially be a problem with the applicant paying for the maintenance of the conservation easement because the lots will be sold individually over time.
Councilor Cusson stated that the City may have to consider the cost of the easements as the cost of doing business. Councilor Donovan moved to authorize the City Manger to negotiate with Small Pond with regard to the terms of the easement and come back to the council with the information; Councilor Cusson seconded and the motion carried.
BCMP Discussion of Covenants per the City Code Sec. 19-23
Mr. MacQueen commented that he will have the covenant reviewed by the City Attorney. This contract would be acknowledging that there is a public benefit to the BCMP’s Downtown Project. It grants tax relief for five years and an additional two years. The Council would be entitled to documentation of the status of the project when it wants. In exchange for investment in the downtown, the City would grant tax relief on the portion of the assessment that is renovation. If the grantee does not perform, the City has the right to reject the covenants and go back to the normal assessment. The Council decides on how many years the tax relief will last up to seven.
The tax relief is transferable to a new owner. Mr. Caron reported that the penalties are severe if the owner fails to perform. The taxes go back to day one and the owner is fined 12% and if taxes are not paid, an 18% penalty kicks in as well.
Councilor Bigelow asked if tax relief was going to make or break the project. Mr. Caron indicated that the group is committed to revitalizing in the downtown. There may be others who will come for tax relief where it will be more critical to the viability of the project. Councilor Cusson stated that if the owners are hit with taxes as a building gets renovated, the taxes will take away money that could go into the renovation.
Mr. MacQueen clarified that most downtowns may get no investment and no property taxes. With this program, the City will get more taxes eventually and they will get investment. Mr. Caron added that the risk is on the developer. Councilor Bigelow maintained that he dislikes tax relief but, looking at the downtown, it could use investment. Mr. MacQueen reasoned that the covenant will be sent to the city attorney asking him if this contract adequately protects the city. The response will be brought back to the Council who would then authorize a motion have the City Manger sign off on the contract.
The terms of five or seven years were yet to be determined.
Investment Policy
Mr. MacQueen reported that this is the same policy except that the Trustees of Trust Funds were deleted. In doing the research for the policy, it came up that the City needed to sell its stock in Northway Bank. This is a good policy and in accordance with the law. Council members decided to move on the item on December 17th.
Bureau of Prisons
Mr. MacQueen proposed a response to the Bureau of Prisons. In the Bureau’s counter proposal to the City, they do not want to pay for an I & I study because they feel it is a project the city would have to take on even if the prison were not coming. Mr. MacQueen went on to say that he met with the contractor for the prison and they intend to be done by July 2010. They want to be connected to utilities by July of 2009. Though he hates to give up $48,000 of I & I, he urged the Council to approve the proposal. The overall status between the Bureau of Prisons and the City is that we are a few million dollars apart and neither side wants to give in. We have held out and proposed a phased approach. In the preliminary design, we are hoping to get closer to actual costs.
Councilor Bigelow stated that he does not feel we should give up our position. Subsequent comments favored moving forward and attributing the $48,000 as an investment toward the future. Councilor Donovan moved to proceed with the proposal; Councilor Cusson seconded and the motion carried. Councilor Bigelow opposed.
CIP
Mr. MacQueen introduced the proposed six year capital improvement program. This will be discussed further in January. The Plan puts forth budgeting goals and plans for debt service. There are existing projects such as the lease purchase of loaders and fire trucks and a $5 million sewer plant revision to be refinanced through the revolving loan fund.
Projects by year are listed as well as the detail of each individual project. The two projects suggested by the Council at the last meeting were included, (high school running track lighting and Unity Street lighting.) There is a proposal for police and fire facilities and that would have to come from a grant or borrowing. The first year of the CIP is included in the operating budget and though it may not get funded, it will show up.
Mr. MacQueen went on to say the CIP and Master Plan will have correlation. The Master Plan sets up zoning and what the important capital projects are in the community.
Councilor Donovan moved to adjourn; Councilor Poulin seconded and the motion carried. The meeting ended at 8:20 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Susan Tremblay
Administrative Assistant
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