Chichester Town Organization Committee
Meeting Minutes
Meeting Date: May 23, 2007
Minutes Prepared By: Bruce Dyke
In Attendance: Bruce Dyke, Norm Larachelle, Allen Mayville, Paul Twomey
Not in Attendance: Lisa Drouse
Location: Selectmen’s Office Conference Room
Minutes Approved: October 25, 2007
- The meeting started at 7:10pm
- A brief discussion regarding any feedback received by group members since the Committee's final report was distributed took place. In general, there wasn't a lot of feedback, but what feedback was heard was deemed to be positive. Bruce noted that he received a call from one of Barnstead's Selectmen who indicated the Barnstead BOS found the report to contain good and useful data. In addition, they remain interested in having further discussions with Chichester and other area towns with respect to this project, if mutual interest exists.
- Bruce also noted that the Committee's report has been reposted on the Town's website and at least fifty downloads of it had occurred at this point. It's believed that another 150+ paper copies of the report have also been taken by townspeople over the last 60 days.
- Bruce and Allen provided an update of a meeting with the Selectmen on May 15th. This was a follow-up meeting to discuss "next steps" now that the Committee's report has been out for a period of time and everyone has had a chance to review it. At this point, three areas were discussed for potential further action:
- Review of potential cooperative arrangements specific to the Fire Dept. and Ambulance. The Selectmen were going to speak with the Fire Chief and possibly Loudon's Selectmen to ensure they understood that we remain pleased with our current arrangement with them and to see if they may also have interest in participating in any such discussions with other towns (or private ambulance providers).
- Developing and distributing a survey for town residents to collect feedback regarding desired levels of services, perceptions of current services levels, etc. The Selectmen were going to ask dept. heads to define questions they may wish to have on the survey. The Selectmen and Town Org. Committee will also give consideration to potential questions and meet at a later date to hopefully define a final list for inclusion on the survey. In terms of the survey itself, a number of approaches for it were considered, which included a paper-based questionnaire which would be mailed to each household, an on-line survey and a possible
combination of both. Specifics regarding the logistics of any survey will be defined at a later time.
- The formation of some type of regional association of area towns. This would likely be comprised of a Selectmen from each town that would meet every six months and exchange operational data, share info regarding operational practices, discuss current challenges and future major projects with the hope of defining possible cooperative agreements over time. The Selectmen asked the Committee to draft a letter on their behalf which would be sent to each of Chichester's bordering towns. Bruce drafted an initial letter and provide it to the group for review.
- The next meeting will be on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 at 7:00 in the Selectmen's Office Conference Room.
- The meeting adjourned at 8:10pm.
| 
