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

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

Stephenson Memorial Library Trustees: Neal Brown Chairman, Jami Bascom Member, Mary Ann Grant Treasurer, Bob Marshall Alternate, Bruce Dodge Member

The meeting was called to order at 7:05 PM by Chair Karen Day.

Documents for Review/Approval
  • Minutes of November 5th
  • Meeting House Rental Agreement
7:00 PM: Stephenson Memorial Library Trustees

The Library Trustees and Library Director, Julie Steenson, met with the Selectboard to discuss several quotes received to address the leak(s) in the Library basement. Quotes reviewed were from JCL Septic Services, Mathewson Company, Yankee Pools Inc., Landsite Corporation, and Rymans LLC. The quoted amounts were as follows:

  • JCL Septic: $4,217
  • Mathewson Co.: $14,852
  • Yankee Pools: $9000 – sealant application only
  • Landsite Co.: $13,848
  • Rymans LLC: $78,105
DPW Buildings and Grounds Manager Patrick Greene provided several pictures of the leaks in the basement and reported that there are multiple locations where the foundation meets the brickwork around the steps where there is no mortar. He also indentified multiple places where water is leaking. Locations where the roofs convene are particularly susceptible to rainwater coming down off the roof. The front stairs are also a place where there appear to be entrances and issues with the mortar or the stone foundation. At the back of the building he said he is still researching why there is water that is seeping into the bathroom. He does not have an answer for that as yet. He explained that he visited the Wilton Library and looked at their project. They had water bubbling through the floor and they have opted to do a complete sealing. The contractor has been working on the building through the summer. Mr. Greene said that these projects are not a one size fits all project.

Mr. Bob Marshall agreed that the Wilton Library had run experiments trying to patch the building for years. He cautioned the two boards on being penny wise and pound foolish. Otherwise it was likely that they would be going back at the issue again in the future. Mr. Marshall also referred to the letter from the Town’s insurer in which the risk management consultant had suggested that the town be supplied with engineered drawings and have a licensed contractor do the work.

Chairman Neal Brown explained to the two boards that in the past DPW had tried putting an asphalt pad at the corner of the building next to the stairs. This was sloped to keep the rain water from the roof from seeping through the basement. The asphalt didn’t work, which is an indicator that there are other problems beyond just the rain was coming down off the roof. He went on to say that “if you have proper drainage installed it won’t go through the wall because it won’t have a chance to build up.

A discussion of the Wilton library project was undertaken. It was noted that Wilton had started with a $30k project and had contingency money of $17k in reserves. The project ran into a lot of issues and has ultimately ballooned to over $90,000. It was noted that Wilton used people in town including an engineer who donated the engineering drawings. The real total for Wilton as a result is actually closer to $150k. Wilton had to replace the water and sewer piping, which was very old and collapsed when the excavation took place. It was noted that Greenfield’s connections were installed in 2003 and would likely be much better quality and not a threat compared to Wilton’s ancient clay pipes.

It was noted that the quotes by several of the companies call for sealing done by others. After additional discussion, a consensus that the quoted needed to be re-bid for 2016 was reached by the two boards. It was agreed among the library trustees that the amount of money for the Ryman quote, which was acknowledged to be the Cadillac quote in the mix was higher than the trustees had expected would be necessary.

Mary Ann Grant explained that she has lived across from the Library for the past 32 years. The leaks in the basement are well known to her and that they only happen under heavy rains. She felt that the town should look closely at the higher quote because it would ensure the best possible chance of successfully sealing the basement. After discussion about the cost of the quotes it was a consensus that the project should be closer to the $25-$30k range.

A discussion of the ‘knitting tree’ and the walkway was undertaken. It was generally accepted that the tree was in front of the new portion of the building and steps should be taken to spare the tree.

Bruce Dodge offered the following suggestion and said he was in favor of requiting the middle two quotes to meet certain criteria (Mathewson and Landsite). The criteria should be as follows:

  • A full excavation
  • Install perimeter drain
  • Foundation sealing
  • Repoint mortar or repair foundation as necessary
  • Backfill with crushed stone (drainage stone)
A consensus that this was the best approach was reached by nearly everyone in the meeting. Jami Bascom and Mary Ann Grant were in preference for using the higher bid with Ryman LLC, which is the contractor working in Wilton. Selectman Atherton suggested that Mike Borden be used throughout the project. He said he was in favor of being careful with money. It was noted by Mary Ann that the quotes are not “apples to apples”. She was in favor of getting other companies that could do all of the work rather than companies such as the two that the group was leaning toward, because they only do the excavation, they don’t provide the foundation sealing. It was decided that the new quotes would include any subcontractor fees so that the entire project could be done by one company.

Library Trustee Chair Neal Brown said that if the trustees receive the new quotes and then vote against them then they will have to suffer a wet basement for 2016.

As a follow-on, Selectwoman Charig Bliss asked what would be happening with the landscaping after the project was completed. What was the cost of having the vendor(s) provide that service? She asked if the town could do that work after the vendor had finished.

It was noted that the Trustees would meet with the Selectboard again as soon as the quotes were ready.

8:50 PM: David Hall, Fire Chief

At approximately 8:50pm, Chief David Hall asked to speak with the Selectboard. Chief Hall said that after the public informational meeting where the Capital Reserve Funds were discussed with the idea to use them for rebuilding the older fleet vehicles at the fire station, he found a 1993 fire engine with a ladder that he feels would be a good fit for Greenfield. Chief Hall explained that the town of Sherborn Mass. has a fleet of eleven vehicles and they have a new ladder truck on order (cost: $900,000). As such the town is selling its 1993 ladder engine. Their truck will be available in January of 2016. Chief Hall said that some of the appealing things about this truck are as follows:
  • The 1993 Ladder Engine carries 2X the water that the 1985 Peterborough truck carries
  • All of the Greenfield trucks carry 750 gallons.
  • The 1993 Ladder Engine carries 1500 gallons
  • The Ladder Engine has indoor seating for five people
  • The truck is a one owner vehicle with all records available
  • The truck has an all aluminum body
  • The truck has 25,222 original miles and 2273 hours
  • The ladder and pump are tested every year
  • The truck is currently in-service
  • The tank is a plastic tank
  • The truck is 4 feet longer than Greenfield’s biggest truck, but it will fit into the bay
  • The truck comes with some additional components such as hoses, etc.
  • The truck has excellent tires
Chief Hall concluded that the truck is 8 years newer, with half the miles of the town’s current vehicle and has all indoor seating. The ladder is 55’ and has a ladder hose (pipe) for aerial application of water at the scene of a fire. Chief Hall asked Ken Paulsen, Chair of the Trustees of Trust funds to speak about the use of the Capital Reserve Funds. Mr. Paulsen explained that he has researched the trust funds and their wording carefully and went back to the original RSA 34-1 which he quoted from the Trustee of Trust Funds Handbook. The RSA contains the words ‘authorizes the construction, reconstruction or acquisition of equipment….”. Mr. Paulsen said he has reached out to Concord to find out what the Attorney General’s office has to say about the use of Capital Reserves for maintenance and repairs of vehicles, and hasn’t received any information back yet. Regardless, the Capital Reserve funds are definitely used for the purchase of new vehicles. He felt that in addition to meeting the letter of the RSA this purchase helped buy additional time for the town to save more money. As explained by the Planning Board’s Capital Improvement Plan, the town hasn’t been saving enough money to attempt to purchase new vehicles. This truck would have the benefit of holding more water, providing a ladder, adding 8 years lifespan to the fleet and still leaving close to $100,000 in the Fire Apparatus vehicle Capital Reserve Fund.

Chief Hall said that the truck was listed for sale at $40,000 but that he had been able to agree with Sherborn that the town would pay $30,000. He said that he was in hopes that the Selectboard would ‘get behind this deal because it is a very nice truck and the price is within the town’s reach’.

After some additional discussion and in consideration of the fact that there are other buyers poised to take the truck if Greenfield is not responsive, the Selectboard reached a consensus to bring the question of the purchase of the fire truck to a vote at the next regularly scheduled meeting, that meeting being Thursday, November 12th . It was acknowledged that the Fire Department would sell the old Peterborough truck, with the aim of doing so in the same time frame to help defray some of the expense.

9:20 PM: Documents for Review/Approval
The Board reached a consensus to move the documents on the clipboard to the following night’s meeting.

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 9:25 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