Town of Greenfield
Selectmen’s Meeting Minutes
Thursday – April 29, 2004 – 5:45 pm
Present: Selectmen: Chairman, William Brooks; Selectman, Conrad Dumas;
Selectman, George Rainier
Meeting called to order at 5:45 pm
Administrative Assistant, Debra Davidson taking minutes
Department Heads:
5:45 – Selectmen requested all key staff to attend this meeting, if they cannot attend, they should send a representative. Selectmen will begin monthly meetings, to be held on the fourth Thursday of each month. In the future additional staff will be asked to attend, those being the Library, Building Inspector, Treasurer, Tax Collector, Town Clerk, Planning Board Chair and Conservation Commission Chair. Oak Park Committee. In attendance for the first meeting were:
Road Agent, Duffy Fox
Fire Chief, Loren White
Police Chief, Brian Giammarino
Parks & Recreation, Molly Anfuso
Bookkeeper, Catherine Shaw
Administrative Assistant, Deb Davidson
Recycling Supervisor, Frank Pelkey
Selectman Brooks asked why everyone thought they were here? Discussion followed. Communication was one of the concerns that were expressed through the Town Management Assessment report; Selectmen would like to discuss this further with everyone. Selectman Brooks turned the discussion over to Selectman Dumas, who expressed how the Selectmen would like to see the meetings progress as well as indicated that everyone is always welcomed to attend Selectmen Meetings on any/all Thursday evenings. If there are ever any concerns or matters that need addressing, it is expected that department heads will address the Selectmen with them if necessary. The following topics were discussed with key staff.
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Selectmen’s Meeting Minutes
April 29, 2004
· Communication - Fire Chief, Loren White stated that it is his opinion due to his role as a volunteer employee; he is kept in the dark from time to time. Minutes are helpful, but not always timely. Loren would prefer minutes via e-mail at home and/or any other correspondence via e-mail that can be provided in such a way.
· Invoice Approval - Bookkeeper, Catherine Shaw discussed that invoices must be returned and signed by the 10th of each month to allow for discounts. A vendor list of who allows a discount by the 10th of each month will be provided to all departments so they can have an idea of who the vendors are. Payment arrangements can sometimes be changed if needed to allow for the discounts and/or timely payments. However, all departments should come in and sign their A/P folders on a regular basis no matter what.
· Daily decision-making – Selectmen discussed that this was another concern that was brought up in the management report; the Selectmen would like to discuss this further with key staff. Selectmen indicated to everyone that in the event an emergency arises, they are available for advice via telephones. They discussed that there isn’t anything that in the past has not and cannot in the future be addressed if it is a true emergency. Further discussion, signatures may have to wait until the evening, however phone decisions will be made. Procedure if a road is dug up was discussed, dispatch is always notified of where cones are or if roads are
blocked, dispatch acknowledges that emergency vehicles can not get through they will be notified when they can get through.
Chief Giammarino stated he feels comfortable that he is in control of his department on a day-to-day basis, however if some major purchase should arise, he would always ask the Board for their input. He is comfortable how things run.
· Phone system - The phone system was discussed, there are some minor glitches with how the phone works, we will work towards straightening them out. However, all the phones need to be set the same way in order for the main phone to accept messages etc. The phones have all been set the proper way; therefore no one should push any buttons on the phones except the numbers.
· Website – the website will be on line within the next month. Every department was requested to get their information to the town office as soon as possible. Currently, no one has submitted any information about his or her departments.
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Selectmen’s Meeting Minutes
April 29, 2004
Parks & Recreation Director, Molly Anfuso discussed the following –
· Sunset Lake – Road Agent, Fox will be digging up the culvert and they will intercept the pipe in the parking lot, catch basin will be installed, a small berm where the telephone poles are located will be installed. Water will still go into the lake, and the possible contaminants from the road will not go into the lake. Anfuso met with Meridian last week. This will be a permanent fix, not a band-aid. ConCom needs to be brought up to speed with this project. Meridian will contact the State to assure all proper permits have been obtained. Molly hopes this is complete by the start of swimming season.
· Wash well – Anfuso discussed the Wash well located under the Oak Park Gazebo – Currently, there is no water at Oak Park – John Hopkins contacted the wash well company, the pump was not winterized causing it to freeze. The wash well company indicated it was partially their fault, as they never showed anyone from the town how to winterize the well. They did indicate they would be willing to come to Greenfield and help out with this project. A sketch should be drawn of what is believed to be the well schematics, as well as where the well is located and where the water lines go, this should be placed in the property file. Discussion followed,
an artesian well needs to be researched and considered for 2005 budget.
· Concession Stand –The concession stand will most likely be open by June, not in time for little league. John Hopkins is going to put the metal roof on the building, there is supposed to be enough roofing to do the new building and the old shed as well.
· Groundskeeper – Anfuso met with Terry Jarest, she has a contract she would like to have the selectmen sign, Jarest will sign it as well. Selectman Rainier reported that Fletchers (Marilyn & Jim) have trees they will be donating for next spring.
Police Chief, Brian Giammarino –
· Seized funds – A large sum of money was seized last year during a drug arrest, the accused pled guilty; therefore the town will receive the funds. However we must first turn the funds over to the State, they will then reimburse the town.
· New Officer - Officer Emond, the new Officer who was sworn in on March 5th, is doing very well. He has been working closely with Chief Giammarino and Officers Foster & Roberge, daily observation reports have been very positive. Giammarino is prepared to allow Officer Emond to do at least two shifts / month. That is the new policy of the Greenfield Police Department, and all officers will comply.
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· High-Risk Service Class – Giammarino thanked the Selectmen for allowing him to attend the recent training.
· Staff - Giammarino reported that the officers are all working very well together; the last year has been a huge transition. Based on how the officers worked together when Giammarino first started, he reported they all have made huge improvement. The Department is currently running very well.
Selectman Rainier reported to Department Heads & key staff, the Waste Water bids were opened on Thursday, April 22, 2004 – The one bid we received was $106,000 over what we had originally budgeted. Underwood Engineer, Keith Pratt will be working with the only bidding company to see if we can work on the price. If this cannot be reduced then it will need to go out to bid again. Therefore, there will not be any Grounds keeping needed at that location this summer.
Fire Chief, White requested a Selectmen’s signature, the Fire Dept. completed a grant for a Skid Unit in the amount of $250.00.
Water at the Library was discussed, they are glad to have their water back. Mr. Pelkey was asked to clean out the barrel that held the water during the winter.
Oak Park was discussed again – the long-term plans for the soccer field, needs of water, and future of the park were discussed.
There is a Car Wash scheduled for Saturday 8-2 – “Friends of Morgan” – all proceeds of the fundraiser will go to “Friends of Morgan” Fund. Morgan is the daughter of Lisa & Karl Betz, she has been diagnosed with cancer.
7:00 – RSA 91-A:3 II (a) – The dismissal, promotion or compensation of any public employee or the disciplining of such employee or the investigation of any charges against him unless the employee affected (1) has a right to a meeting, and (2) requests that the meeting be open, in which case the request shall be granted.
7:55 PM – out of non-public
Decision: Highway non-exempt employees will be paid $22.33/hour to build the recycling bay; the exempt employee will be paid $25.00/hour, at the end of the project a bonus will be prorated and each employee will be given a check.
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Selectmen’s Meeting Minutes
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8:00 RSA 91-A:3 II (a) – The dismissal, promotion or compensation of any public employee or the disciplining of such employee or the investigation of any charges against him unless the employee affected (1) has a right to a meeting, and (2) requests that the meeting be open, in which case the request shall be granted.
8:10 – out of non-pubic
Decision: Gary Russell will be offered the position; he will be on probationary period for 90 days.
Road Agent, Fox
· Vacation Time – Fox notified Selectmen he will be out Tuesday – Thursday;
· Grinding – East Road grinding will be complete tomorrow;
· Beaver trouble – There are two areas in Town with beaver trouble – Holden Road and Dunklee Hill Road. Fox reported he will need to get the Conservation Commission involved, due to culverts which will need to be replaced
Appointments:
No appointments were scheduled this week
On – going matters:
1. Downtown Project –
· Punchlist with DeGrandpre – No update
· Wastewater policy – Draft copy provided
· Wastewater project – Reported earlier by Selectman Rainier
2. Town Management Assessment –
3. Recycling Bay – See above; Highway Crew to build the bay
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Selectmen’s Meeting Minutes
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Other Business:
1. Minutes - Selectmen aaccepted the minutes of April 15, 2004 Selectmen’s Meeting as written, there was no Selectmen’s Meeting on April 22, 2004.
2. Selectmen approval –
· A/P Checks and Invoices –
· Assessment Change –
· Intent –to-cut –
· C/U Lien Release -
3. Mail – Opened letter for school advisory committee – there is a meeting scheduled Wednesday, May 5th at 7:00 pm at the SAU office; Selectman Dumas will be unavailable next week on Wednesday and Thursday. If Greenfield will not be represented at the SAU meeting, Selectman Dumas asked Deb to make a courtesy call to Keith Burke.
4. MS-5 – John Lyford, Mason & Rich will be here the week of May 3rd to begin the compilation of the MS-5, review the books and help with the early stages of the implementation of GASB34 – Discuss DRAFT Policy & Asset Management Software $278.00.
With no further business, the Selectmen adjourned the meeting at 8:30 PM. The next scheduled Selectmen’s Meeting Thursday – May 6, 2004 at 5:45 PM.
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