Chichester Board of Selectmen
Minutes of Meeting
December 29, 2009
Members present: Stephen MacCleery, Jeffrey Jordan, and Richard DeBold
Others Present: Nancy Tanner (Town Administrator), Jim Plunkett, Michele Plunkett, Gil Vien, Bette Bogdan, Thomas Halloran, Patrick Clarke, Bruce Dyke, Scott Marsden, Jason Weir, Mike Paveglio, John Martell
Chairman MacCleery opened the meeting at 7:00PM.
Budget Committee
The Selectmen and the Budget Committee discussed the line items that required review.
4191-19 Planning Legal Expenses – reduced from $3,000 to $2,500
4191-20 BOA Expenses – reduced from $500 to $250
4153-00 Selectmen Legal Expenses – reduced from $15,500 to $14,000
4240-21 Building Inspector Training/Conf/Expenses increased from $520 to $1020 (to move building code books expense from Selectmen’s budget into the Building Inspectors budget)
4130-92 Selectmen’s Office Reference Materials decrease from $1,000 to $500 (see note above)
4240-23 Building Inspector Mileage – BI requested an increase to $1,200. Since this is a new line item with no historical data the amount was left at $1,000
4290-00 Emergency Management - A stipend for the director was discussed. It was decided to add a line for a stipend in the amount of $1,000
4290-40 Forest Fire Control – total budget will be $4,000
4411-11 Health Officer Expense – John Dever requested that line be increased to $250. It was decided to leave it at $100. The stipend was discussed and it was decided to leave it at $500.
4619-11 Conservation Commission Secretarial – decreased from $900 to $750. There was a discussion about the anticipated increase in easements for next year. Nancy will look into other funding sources.
4441-10 Welfare Salary – The committee would like quantifiable reasons for the increase in salary. Nancy will contact Donna Stockman
4312-26 Highway Tools/Parts/Supplies – an increase for this line was discussed. Mr. Plunkett is confident $5,500 will be sufficient. The line remains unchanged.
4312-27 Truck Maintenance Blazer – The line is at $1.00. We plan on replacing the Blazer however Mr. MacCleery is concerned that there many be needed maintenance before we are able to replace it. Mr. Plunkett will review and report back.
4215-23 Fire Department Infection Control – The purpose of this line is to fund costs associated with accidental exposure. Nancy checked with our insurance company and accidental exposure is covered under worker’s compensation insurance.
There was discussion about the fees from Loudon. Chief Vien states the fees will remain the same for the year 2010. There was also discussion regarding coverage in Chichester during race weekend when we send personnel to Loudon. Chief Vien feels the town is adequately staffed. Mr. Weir stated that as a taxpayer he has an issue with sending personnel and equipment to Loudon on race weekend and not having enough personnel in town. Mr. Weir made mention of a situation this year when Concord had to cover one of Chichester’s calls.
There was discussion regarding the volunteer recognition program. Chief Vien feels the program is working well and it encourages training.
Fuel: There was discussion about getting a better price with a bulk buy. Jim Plunkett has done some research on State pricing. He feels that there would be some savings if Highway and Fire both purchased from the State. Nancy provided the committee with a breakdown of fuel usage. The committee and the Selectmen checked the budget numbers based on usage. They used $3.00/gal for Diesel and $2.75/gal for gasoline. The budget numbers were determined to be in line.
Old Home Days: Scott Marsden had some questions about the Old Home Day Committee expense report. He wanted to determine whether the expenses listed were actual expenses or donations of service/products. He also questioned new purchases despite having to ask the Town for an increase in funding.
Police Budget: Mr. MacCleery announced that the Selectmen have increased the Chief’s salary to $61,000 and allowed an increase in the officer’s salary lines for market adjustment. This will allow the Chief more negotiating power when recruiting. There was discussion regarding the Officers salaries and whether or not we were comparable to other towns. Jason Weir asked whether Chief Clarke needed more money to guarantee getting a certified officer. It was the consensus to stay with the amounts previously decided on for now.
Chief Clarke is proposing not purchasing a new cruiser this year and changing the following lines:
4210-58 (new) SOU Dues $2,500
4210-87 New Cruiser reduce from $25,200 to $1.00
4210-91 Maintenance for the new cruiser reduced to zero
4210-83 Maintenance for the Crown Vic originally schedule to be replaced increased from $250 to $2,250
Mr. MacCleery would like to see what develops between now and the budget hearing before making any final decisions.
Mr. DeBold has done salary research on the Administrative Assistant’s position. He found our AA to be significantly below market. He proposed to increase the hourly wage to $16/hour at 36 hours per week. The majority agreed.
Chief Clarke asked if Mr. DeBold would do a market analysis on the other people in his department.
The Fire Department roof was discussed and it was decided that it did not have to be replaced in 2010.
Next budget meeting will be on January 12th at 7:00
Other Business
Food Pantry: Donna Chagnon sent an email to the Selectmen requesting permission to buy materials to mount a small refrigerator in the food pantry. The Selectmen did not feel it is necessary to permanently mount a refrigerator as we do not usually have a need to store perishable food. Nancy will contact Ms. Chagnon.
Nonpublic meetings: Nancy contacted the Town’s attorney regarding the consequences of disclosing nonpublic information to the public. The attorney felt that due to the circumstances of the situation and what information was disclosed and to whom it was disclosed that it was not an issue for action. Mr. MacCleery stated that he feels the Warden should have asked the Selectmen prior to discussing the nonpublic information. Mr. DeBold agrees with Mr. MacCleery, but does not feel it rises to the level of removal. Mr. Jordan feels it was clear to the Warden that the meeting was nonpublic and that no information should have been discussed outside of that meeting.
Mr. MacCleery made a motion seconded by Mr. Jordan to withdraw the re-nomination recommendation of the Fire Warden. A vote was taken Mr. Jordan and Mr. MacCleery voted yes; Mr. DeBold voted no. Motion carries.
There was discussion about who the new nominee should be and what the process should be. Mr. Jordan commented that in almost every other town the Fire Chief is also the Fire Warden. Mr. DeBold stated that he has talked with Doug Miner and he believes it is about 50% of towns that have a Fire Chief who is also the Warden. Nancy was asked to call the division of forest and lands to notify them of the rescinded recommendation. Mr. MacCleery will call Mr. Stock and let him know about the decision.
AED donation: Chief Vien said that the Frank Merrill family would like to purchase and Automatic External Defibrillator and donate it to the Town in memory of Doris Vien. Chief Vien will help the family coordinate the purchase.
Mr. MacCleery made a motion seconded by Mr. DeBold to accept the donation of the defibrillator. There was a brief discussion about where the defibrillator would go. Chief Vien stated that we would be able to have an AED in all the cruisers. A vote was taken. Motion carries.
There was discussion about where in town the AED’s were and what the maintenance for them was. There are AEDs at the Library, School, Town Office, 3 cruisers, parsonage, and the churches.
Accounts payable and payroll were approved.
A motion by Mr. MacCleery and seconded by Mr. Jordan to adjourn the meeting at 10:05 pm. Motion passes.
Respectfully submitted,
Approved
Nancy Tanner
____________________________ ___________________________ __________________________
Stephen MacCleery, Sr., Chairman Jeffrey Jordan Richard DeBold
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