Minutes
Town of Greenfield
Greenfield Town Offices, 7 Sawmill Road Greenfield, NH
Selectboard’s Minutes
Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016 – 5:30 PM
Selectboard: Chairwoman Margaret A. Charig Bliss, Selectman Stephen Atherton Jr., Selectman Robert Marshall
Staff: Aaron Patt, Town Administrator; David Hall Fire Chief; Brian Giammarino Police Chief
Budget Advisory Committee: Ken Paulsen, Myron Steere, Jim Murphy,
Public: Karen Day, Diane Boilard, Jeff LaCourse, Michael Borden, David Simmons, David Martin, Eugene Henessey, Ledger Transcript Reporter Abbey Kessler,
5:30 p.m. The meeting was opened by Chairwoman Charig Bliss.
Documents for Review/Approval
- A/P Check Register
- Wastewater Check Register
- Payroll
- Minutes of Selectboard Meetings – 11/22
- Employee Request for Vacation
- Home Healthcare Request for 2017 funding
- Corrective Deed
- Intent to Cut – R10-13
5:30 PM: Public Forum
At 5:30 pm the Chair noted that the meeting was open. Property owner Thomas Regan came before the Board to discuss a neighbor’s use of property. Mr. Regan advised the Board that his neighbor is building a machine shop on his property. The deliveries and types of machines installed are of the type that is geared to production and not to hobby use. Mr. Regan expressed his concern regarding the potential for environmental impact, non-residential traffic, hazardous waste, and use of a current right of way over his property for business-use in a residentially zoned district. Building Inspector Michael Borden reported to the Board that he has informed the owner that he cannot operate a business in a residential zone. He stated that at this point nothing illegal has occurred on the property, but if it does the Town will follow
up with the owner.
5:45 PM: Selectboard Work Session
At 5:45 pm the Board reviewed the Consent Agenda. On a motion by the Chair and a second by Selectman Marshall the Board voted 3-0 to approve the Consent Agenda.
6:00 PM: David Hall, Fire Chief
At 6:00 PM the Board welcomed Fire Chief David Hall to the meeting. Mr. Hall provided his proposed 2017 Fire Department budget to the Board. He began the budget conversation noting that overall the proposed budget is up 2.1% over the amount voted at Town Meeting the previous year. He said that the budget line items had been revisited and that he had re-allocated funds among several line items as he became more familiar with the needs of the department. There followed a discussion on several lines. The Emergency Management line is increased from $1,000 to $3,000 in order to provide the ability of the Emergency Management department to purchase Code Red. A discussion followed in which it was noted that the town had purchased and discontinued Code Red in the past. The pricing is now much less than it was previously and the
department is looking at using the service much more proactively. The Fire Fighter Rescue Stipends is increased by $7,500, the Gasoline and Diesel Fuel line is increased by $500, the Heating Fuel-Oil line is decreased by $3,000, the Propane line item is increased by $250.00, the Radio Repairs/Maintenance line item is decreased $2,500, and the Uniform Allowance is decreased by $1,000. The total increase to the 2016 department budget is $2,750, from $126,710 to $129,460.
At the conclusion of the budget discussion Chief Hall brought forward a proposal for a warrant article that would purchase a Jaws of Life extractor tool for the department. Chief Hall explained that the town’s current Jaws of Life is from the early 1980’s. At the Books and Ladders event in 2015 the town’s cutting tool portion of the Jaws was not able to cut through the roof pillars on a mini-van and the department realized that the cutter was no longer serviceable. As a result, for the past year or more, the Fire Department has been borrowing a back-up unit from another town. Chief Hall discussed a battery powered Jaws of Life version that is now available. He provided a quote for $33,155.30 that is good through the 2017 Town Meeting time frame. He stated that the Fire Department had to replace the Cardiac Monitor,
which was similarly priced at $37,000 before they could look at purchasing a new ‘Jaws’. The Fire Department volunteers worked throughout the summer splitting and selling campfire wood to people at the Greenfield State Park. As a result of this hard work, and, a donation from Crotched Mountain, the fire department was able to pay for the Cardiac Monitor without any tax payer funding. The Jaws of Life is the next mission critical tool that the Fire Department must replace in the very near future. Chief Hall stated that if the Board could purchase the tool sooner using Capital Reserve Fund monies, then he is in favor of that since the winter weather brings motor vehicle accidents that increase the potential need to use the extractor tool.
A discussion followed on the best time frame for a purchase of the extractor. Karen Day, former Selectperson suggested that rather than wait the Board should look at using end of year monies to purchase the ‘Jaws’. After some discussion on whether the department could use some of the end of year fire department budget in conjunction with capital reserve funds, the Chair closed the meeting, stating that Board would hold a discussion on the extractor. Selectman Marshall asked the Budget Advisory Committee members present if they were supportive of purchasing the tool with capital reserve funds. Myron Steere stated that they were and that it ‘made sense’.
7:00PM: Brian Giammarino, Police Chief
At 7:00 pm the Board took up the Police Department budget. Chief Giammarino discussed several increases to the budget in order to supplement the part-time wages line item. He stated that the town’s rate of pay for part-time officers was too low at $15.00 per hour. The department needs to bring the hourly rate closer to $20.00 per hour in order to be competitive. Total increases to the 2017 budget across four line items – General Supplies, Over-Time Wages, Part-Time Wages, and Vehicle Repair/Maintenance, total $6,500. The largest increase is to Part-Time Wages; from $10,000 to $15,000. The remainder of the budget is unchanged from 2016. Chief Giammarino noted that any wage increases would be up to the Board to provide; he was not recommending wage adjustments for the full-time officers as those had taken place in 2016.
A discussion followed on Vehicle Repairs and the question of the Police Department’s need for a new police cruiser. Chief Giammarino stated that he intended to bring forward a warrant article for a new cruiser in the amount of approximately $40,000. The Chief provided quotes from two companies for a new SUV cruiser. A discussion followed on the need for a new radio, radar, and other hardware, or, whether the old equipment could be transferred from the old cruiser. The Chief stated that he would prefer to keep the old cruiser as a back-up rather than sell it. A long discussion followed about the Capital Improvements Plan, the need to space out the cruiser purchases (which were back-to-back over two years last time), and whether keeping the current cruiser would help extend the life of the other Crown Victoria and the new cruiser so that this could be achieved.
Selectman Marshall made several comments on the budget as a whole. He stated that the part-time wage increase would cover increasing part-timer’s hourly rate of pay, but there isn’t enough in the budget to cover the full-time officer’s vacation, holidays and personal time-off. Selectman Marshall stated that the residents deserve to know what the cost of running the department actually is. He stated that since he had become a selectperson he has noticed the chronic underfunding of the wage line in certain budgets that prevents employees from taking their time off appropriately. As a result the town has allowed the accrual of too much vacation time for a few department heads that don’t take time off because they are covering the department. The police department is one of these departments. He stated that it was
necessary and beneficial for the employees to have time off. The Chair stated that a more realistic part-time wage figure should be incorporated, along with the amount of part-time wages to cover the total amount of time off for members of the department. Selectman Marshall stated that the Board was interested in the employee’s health and well being and that employees need to take time off, including the police chief. The Board requested that Chief Giammarino re-submit a budget that takes this into account and provides enough part-time wages to cover the department’s vacation, holidays and personal time.
The meeting with Chief Giammarino ended at 7:52pm.
There followed a discussion on ConVal School District with Chairman of the School Board, Myron Steere. Mr. Steere explained to the Board that major expenses were coming due to the age of the buildings in the School District.
The Board revisited the Emergency Management Committee, noting that a recent email from the EMD outlined a grant that was in the process of being applied for that would require some matching funds from the town.
The Board discussed extending the current PILOT agreement with Barbara C. Harris (BCH) Center. The Board agreed that it would ask Town Counsel to draft an addendum for review by the Executive Director of BCH and the Center’s Board of Directors.
The Board reviewed a resident’s request that the town take a pre-payment of property taxes. The Board examined the RSA that allows pre-payment of taxes to the Tax Collector, noting that it requires a vote at Town Meeting or by the Board of Selectmen. No notice requirements were outlined in the RSA. After some discussion Selectman Atherton made a motion according to RSA 80:52-a for the Greenfield tax collector to have the ability to collect pre-payments on property taxes. Selectman Marshall seconded the motion. The Board voted 3-0 in favor and asked the Town Administrator to advise the Tax Collector of the vote.
The Board reviewed an updated Town Administrator job description. After a brief discussion, the Board agreed to adopt the job description by consensus, with all three Board members in favor of the revised job description. There followed a discussion on the evaluation of employees, the effectiveness of the current evaluation document and the effectiveness of the evaluations in tying evaluations to performance and performance to wages.
Adjournment
The time being 9:40 pm Selectman Marshall moved to adjourn. Selectman Atherton seconded. All were in favor, and the motion carried 3-0.
The meeting adjourned at 9:42 PM.
The minutes are final when approved and signed by the Selectboard. A signed copy is on file in the Selectboard’s office.
_________________ _______________________ _______________________
Chair, Margaret Charig Bliss, Selectman, Stephen Atherton Jr. Selectman, Robert Marshall
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