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Selectboard Minutes 11/05/2015
Minutes
Town of Greenfield
Greenfield Town Offices, 7 Sawmill Road Greenfield, NH
Selectboard’s Work Session Minutes
Thursday, Nov. 05, 2015 – 5:00 PM

Selectboard: Chairwoman Karen Day, Selectman Stephen Atherton Jr., Selectwoman Margaret Charig-Bliss by telephone,
Staff: Administrator Patt,

The meeting was called to order at 5:00 PM by Chair Karen Day.

Documents for Review/Approval
  • A/P Invoices
  • A/P Checks
  • Payroll
  • Driscoll Road – Road Deeds
  • DPW Purchase Order – 55 Gallons Oil
  • DPW Purchase Order – Two Stage Air Compressor
  • DPW Purchase Order – York Rake
  • Dept. of Env. Services – Russell Station Wetland Permit 02028& 02032
  • 2015 Preliminary Sales to Assessment Ratio Analysis
  • Assessing - Avitar One Year Contract
  • Land Donation to Greenfield – Resident
  • Corrected Minutes of 10/15, Minutes of 10/29
  • Intent to Cut – R6-3
  • Capital Reserve Fund (5) - Requests for Payment
  • Letter from County Road resident – Ledger-Transcript article
  • Letter from Forest Road resident – Ledger-Transcript article
  • Request for funding – Monadnock Area Food Bank
  • Employee Vacation Day(s) request
5:00 PM: St. Jean Auctioneers

St. Jean Auctioneers met with the Selectboard and outlined their approach to municipal property auctions. St. Jean Auctions was responsible for the auction that put the Greenfield Meeting Place back on the tax roles. The auction company works free of charge to the town. They charge a 10% buyers premium to the buyers. All of the marketing is included. The auction house creates a one page brochure and an e-flier. They also direct mail notifications to all of the abutters to the properties up for sale. The auction is held at one location on a Saturday. Usually a town office building or the Meeting House would be utilized for the auction. The auction house can sell properties with people still in them, and the buyers will take over the eviction process. The auction house needs a list of all of the properties, tax cards and the tax maps, as well as list of all abutters prior to evaluating the properties.

5:35 PM: Selectboard Non-Public

At 5:35 the Selectboard, on a motion by the Chair and a second by Selectman Atherton, took a roll call vote to enter into non-public session under RSA 91-A II c, Reputation. The Selectboard voted 3-0 to enter into non-public session. At 5:50pm the Board voted to exit non-public session 3-0. The minutes were sealed. No votes were taken and no decision reached as a result of the non-public session.

6:00 PM: Stephenson Memorial Library Trustees – Library Budget

At 6:00 the Selectboard welcomed Neal Brown, Chairman of the Library Trustees and Mary Ann Grant, Library Trustee Treasurer. Library Director Julie Steenson was present and provided copies of the 2016 proposed library budget to the Selectboard members. The Board reviewed the proposed budget and questions about a change to the heating fuel line item, which was $1200 less than the previous year. The Trustees said that they have been comfortably under budget and have been using this line as buffer in the past. This year they are re-allocating line items to reflect the actual spending that is likely to occur. The budget has a change from a part-time library director to a full-time library director. The library director wage is the same as in 2015 with 40 hours a week, rather than 29 hours. The Selectboard reviewed the Library of Congress book donation program. Library Director Steenson said that the books are being shipped free of charge by Congresswoman Kuster’s office. The Board asked a question about the Biblionix Appollo line item. This is the Integration Library System (ILS) that replaced an older, more cumbersome ILS system. The ILS system is partly responsible for the increase in circulation. Circulation is up 30% and Library visits are up from 300 per month to 1300 a month, an increase of 433% since the Library Director joined Greenfield. The ILS system provides, on average, 100 circulations from home (non-library originated check-outs).

A discussion of the Buildings Maintenance line item was held. This line item will be moving into the DPW budget for 2016. The Library has some contingency money for small maintenance items built into their 2016 General Supplies line item. The Building Maintenance line item will include all of the routine services that the library facilities need each year; oil furnace inspection and cleaning, fire extinguisher tagging and testing, fire alarm security testing, etc. These core services will be scheduled by the DPW Buildings and Grounds manager.

A discussion was held about the library basement. The Selectboard and Trustees concluded that the best way to handle this discussion was to schedule a meeting with all of the Trustees present. Neal Brown said that he would reach out to the Trustees and work to schedule a meeting, on an off night for the Selectboard, for the following week at a 7PM time frame.

7:00 PM: Documents for Review/Approval
The Board completed the list of documents for review and approval on the clip board. The Board signed A/P Checks & Invoices, Payroll, a DPW Purchase Order for a drum of Oil, a DPW Purchase Order for a new Air Compressor, and a one-year contract extension with Avitar Assessing.

The Board, on a motion by the Chair and a second by Selectman Atherton voted 3-0 to sign Transfer Requests for Capital Reserve Fund payments to be paid to the Trustee of Trust fund held accounts as they were passed at the 2015 Town Meeting. Five Transfer requests were signed:
  • The Fire Apparatus Capital Reserve Fund for $20,000
  • The Town Buildings Maintenance Capital Reserve Fund in the amount of $15,000
  • The Non-Apparatus Fire Department Capital Reserve Fund in the amount of $7,500
  • The Recycling Center Facilities and Equipment Capital Reserve Fund in the amount of $300
  • The Assessment Capital Reserve Fund in the amount of $10,000
The Board reviewed a letter from Gary Roberge at Avitar Assessing regarding the need for the Town to have legal representation for a PSNH abatement suit. The Town reviewed three different firms and made the determination to use Town Counsel Barton Mayer to file an appearance until it was certain that the abatement appeal would be going forward. It was noted that the PSNH appeal for previous years had failed at the BTLA and was being forwarded to the Supreme Court. The appeal of the Town of Greenfield’s tax assessment appears to be a placeholder and is dependent on the outcome of the previous years applications (in other towns) at the Supreme Court.

Adjournment

On a motion by the Chair, and a second by Selectman Atherton, the Board voted to adjourn. The motion carried 3-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:45 PM.
The minutes are final when approved and signed by the Selectboard. A signed copy is on file in the Selectboard’s office.

_________________    _______________________                        ___________________________             
Chair, Karen Day        Margaret Charig Bliss, Selectwoman    Stephen Atherton Jr., Selectman