TOWN OF FARMINGTON
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
PUBLIC MEETING MINUTES
Monday, September 21, 2009
356 Main Street, Farmington, NH
Selectman Present: Chairman Paula Proulx, Joan Funk, Gerry McCarthy, Gail Ellis and Charlie King.
Town Staff Present: Town Administrator Anthony Mincu and Water Superintendent Dale Sprague.
Public Present: Ed Leonard of Wright-Pierce, Cindy Snowdon, Bill Snowdon, Tracy Major and Margaret Russell.
Chairman Paula Proulx opened the meeting at 6:00pm.
1. Campbell Commons Compliance Report:
Dale forwarded a revised draft of the report to the Board. He addressed the dialer from the first report by stating the dialer will call the maintenance company and then the wastewater department. Gerry asked if the dialer has battery back up and Dale said yes. Gail asked if this will cost the Town and Dale said no, it is just for notification purposes. Charlie commented that he believes Dale should always be notified when there is an emergency or maintenance call so that he can be kept abreast and in no way would Dale be responsible to respond. Dale will add that the notification to the wastewater department is for information purposes only to the document.
Dale informed the Board that he added to the hoist requirement that the capacity should be stamped on the hoist and it should be protected from the elements and it will stay with the pump after the one year of maintenance. Dale also added that the water meter and backflow device will be attached to the hydrant at all times and protected from freezing. Charlie asked if it would be better to install these in a pit and Dale said that is not normal, they are mostly above ground. Paula asked if it should be done like Rochester does and Dale replied no, it would be overkill because each house is individually metered and they all have backflow preventers. The Board discussed that they might be able to install the meter and backflow device in the back pit where the valves are. Dale said he would need
permission to go in and see if this is feasible and the Board agreed it would be okay and if the items will fit in the document then Dale will change the document if not a separate pit will be required.
In regards to the generator, Dale stated that he asked Legal about the requirements and from their response he can require a suitable generator that will remain with the pump station. Joan asked if the document should state a minimum size generator and Gail asked who will make sure the generator is the right size. Dale replied that he would be present when the generator was tested. Cindy Snowdon asked how the generator would get turned on and Dale explained that Mr. Campbell or the maintenance company would turn it on. Gerry commented that someone needs to monitor the generator when it is running and Dale stated he would add that the generator needs to be monitored for the duration of a power outage. Tracy Major asked if the generator stays on site and Dale replied that for the first year,
Mr. Campbell can bring it back and forth but after that the Homeowners Association would have to manage it.
Dale informed the Board that he also made changes to the document that state the Homeowners Association and the Wastewater Department will receive copies of service reports and an end of year certification that the pump is sufficient and operating normally. Charlie suggested that it say the end of one year report be 30 days prior to the actual end of maintenance year. Paula asked if all Mr. Campbell has to do is provide documentation if the pump is working sufficiently or not and Dale replied that it should be working acceptably. Dale also stated that there is no time limit in which Mr. Campbell needs to respond and bring the pump station into compliance though he needs to meet all five compliance requirements before the Town will sign off on it and the one year maintenance begins.
Cindy Snowdon provided the Board with a maintenance report from AAA Pump, who did the maintenance on the pump station for the Homeowners Association. Dale read the report and stated that all the items were included in his compliance report. It was suggested that Dale reference the court order in the compliance document and Dale replied he would do so.
Charlie King motioned to approve the compliance report for Campbell Commons as amended, 2nd Gail Ellis. Motion carried with all in favor.
Joan Funk motioned to authorize Tony to sign the Campbell Commons Compliance Report, 2nd Gerry McCarthy. Motion carried with all in favor.
Cindy Snowdon asked if any buffer will be required to hide the hoist like stockade fencing but it was determined that none was needed.
2. Public Comment from Mrs. Margaret Russell:
Mrs. Russell explained that she is very concerned about the recent appraisals she received on the multiple properties she owns. She stated that they were all sent out incorrectly in that the addresses did not match the lot numbers and when she contacted the office they apologized and sent out corrected appraisals. Gail explained that this happened to her as well and the explanation that she received was that the person who was preparing the appraisals was cutting and pasting and it was human error. Mrs. Russell asked how she can be sure that her appraisals are correct, noting that she has one piece of raw land that increased by one-third. Also, she received her revised appraisals on Friday night so therefore she was unable to make an appointment with the appraisal company. Gail asked Tony to
see if the appraisal group can be available for another Saturday for residents and Tony said he will see what he can do.
Charlie asked how long the group has been contracted with the Town to do the appraisals and it was noted they have been working on the new appraisals for the last five years with the reports going out this year.
3. Wright-Pierce Updates:
A. Mr. Leonard of Wright-Pierce stated that he submitted the interim financing for Phase 3, 4 and 5 to DRA and they were not convinced the original warrant covers the grant program the way it was written. Therefore he drafted a warrant to make the necessary change due to the ARRA (federal stimulus money) fund because it is technically a loan and not a grant, even though the loan is forgiven in 20% portions so that nothing is owed at the end of the loan. The original warrant loan amount needs to be increased to read the borrowed amount of $6.719 million in order to take advantage of the ARRA funds. Paula asked when the special meeting should be scheduled for and Tony said the requirement is for a seven day posting and he would suggest the vote be scheduled for October 7, 2009. It was
discussed that this would be a good day but that a mass mailing should be done to educate the public on the change in the warrant and the reason for it.
B. Preliminary Design and Project Schedule – Mr. Leonard explained that the preliminary design should be ready by the beginning of October and what type of work is included in the report. Charlie asked what the pre-selection package is and Mr. Leonard replied that Rural Development requires that the large systems be selected, designed and competitively bided before the smaller systems so any particular larger equipment representative cannot conglomerate on all the systems. Charlie asked who the 50% drawings are submitted to and Mr. Leonard replied the Town and regulatory groups receive them and they will probably be ready in late October.
C. Mr. Leonard explained that he would like to shift the Phase One under-run to Phase Two by pulling Phase 2, 3 and 4 project items forward into the Phase 1 project loan in order to maximize grant eligibility. He provided five different scenarios for the Board to consider in order to take advantage of the grants. The Board can close the DES/ARRA loan under budget for Phase 1 or DES and Rural Development are both willing to allow the Phase 3 (Collection, I/I) project scope to be moved into Phase 1. He is also trying to see if he can include the removal of individual sump pumps to Phase 1 to assist with the I/I and maximize the grant funding.
Paula asked if there is anyway the Town can add additional I/I work to Phase 1 without touching the Rural Development funding and if inflation was considered when the project was initially proposed. Mr. Leonard replied that the inflation was considered at 4% but he is not sure if this will cover everything. Also, the Town shouldn’t consider any scenario that will take away the Rural Development money but he might be able to work it so we can capture the “excess” money. Paula stated that if the project scope for Rural Development is not specific then it would probably be a good idea to move items under Phase 1 t utilize the DES/ARRA funds. Mr. Leonard stated that he would contact Rural Development to see what he can work out.
4. Other:
A. The Board decided to review the fuel bids next Monday.
B. Tony informed the Board that the Town is now lawsuit free.
C. Paula informed the Board that the LeClair Easement is scheduled for closing on September 22, 2009.
D. Paula informed the Board that John Nolan has requested for the culvert that was recently installed by his property be removed. The Board was in consensus that this request should come in writing and Tony said that he believes Joel is planning to remove the culvert.
E. Joan asked Tony to check with Joel and make sure the Landfill hours have been changed to add 30 minutes to the end of the day.
Charlie King motioned to go in non-public session under RSA 91A.3.II. (b) and (d), 2nd Gail Ellis. Roll Call – Paula Proulx (yes), Gerry McCarthy (yes), Gail Ellis (yes), Charlie King (yes) and Joan Funk (yes).
The Board came back in public session at 9:47pm.
Paula Proulx motioned to adjourn, 2nd Charlie King. Motion carried with all in favor.
Meeting adjourned at 9:48pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Brandy Sanger
Recording Secretary
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Chairman, Paula Proulx Vice-Chairman, Gail Ellis
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Gerry McCarthy Charlie King
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Joan A. Funk
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