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Board of Selectmen Minutes -- 11/03/2011
Present:        Beatrice Davis, Chairman; Jerry Dougherty IV and John Allen, Selectmen

Visitors:       Office Administrator Diane Falcey, Police Chief Karl Meyers, Town Auditor Martha Benesh, Jackson Building Inspector Andy Chalmers, Jerry Dougherty III, Peter Benson, Gino Funicella, Hank Benesh, John Pietkiewicz

  • Amend & approve minutes
  • Selectmen’s Meeting – October 20, 2011  The minutes were approved as amended.
  • Non-Public Session – October 20, 2011  The minutes were approved as amended.
  • Police Report Chief Karl Meyers reviewed activities since his last report (9/15/11); some items discussed included providing assistance to the Fire Department with a smoke alarm that went off due to cooking; a project Good Morning welfare check; a landlord/tenant dispute; assisting the Ambulance Service with a heart pain call; arresting a gentleman for a narcotics violation and another for driving with a suspended license.  A report was taken of theft of power tools from a residential construction site.  A report was taken of a subject cutting trees in the Notch but that individual had a valid permit to do so.  There was a dog hit by a car and killed and no one stopped.  The Department participated in the Take Back Drugs program last Saturday; it was a great success; it’s the third time we’ve participated.  A construction truck and trailer went into a drainage ditch while trying to make a hairpin turn into a driveway.  Officers assisted with a landlord/tenant situation where the tenant was being asked to leave and there had been prior friction between them; there was a domestic disturbance at a local condo; it involved a husband and wife who both had too much to drink; one party fell and got hurt; there was no violence involved; the injured party was taken to the hospital.  There was a disturbance at a motel between a staff member and customers.  A gentleman came up wanting to stay at a local Bed & Breakfast that was closed; Officers helped him find other lodging.  There were fifteen false burglar alarms; a pick-up with a tall trailer went through the covered bridge; an officer caught up with the driver and issued a citation.  There was a car caught up on rocks and a construction worker fell ten feet while working in a dark loft where the floor ended.  There was some damage to Pear Cross Road which is a Class VI road; the small gate was damaged and Dick Bennett was going to fix that as best he could.  The NH State Highway Department was notified of potential problems with a section on Route 16 that had water running over it; Chairman Davis noted DOT went into the National Forest and took care of where the water was running down through there.  
  • Building Permits – Andy Chalmers, Building Inspector
  • Benson, Peter & Emily (Map R18, Lot 58) Two bedroom family home Inspector Chalmers recommends this; he has made some notes regarding the site being fairly restrictive so they want to be very accurate when setting the forms.  The property to be razed has lead paint and the Fire Department is going to help with that.  Selectman Allen, seconded by Chairman Davis, made a motion to approve the permit.  The motion passed 2-0-1 (Dougherty abstains)
  • Peterson Trustee, Anne (Map R16, Lot 14B) Add shed to north side of barn Inspector Chalmers noted this is a substantial shed; there are no setback issues; he has no issue with recommending this permit for approval.  Selectman Allen, seconded by Chairman Davis, made a motion to approve the permit.  The motion passed 2-0-1 (Dougherty abstains)
  • Harding, Samuel & Elizabeth (Map R17, Lot 12B) Add screened enclosure to existing deck Inspector Chalmers noted these folks are adding an enclosure to the existing deck with a small increase in the footprint; he has made some structural suggestions to both the owner and the builder; it needs more support.  Selectman Dougherty asked if this requires enforcement of the Building Codes and Inspector Chalmers noted it does because they are putting a roof on it.  Selectman Allen, seconded by Chairman Davis, made a motion to approve the permit.  The motion passed 2-0-1 (Dougherty abstains)
  • Milan, Edward & Helen (Map R14, Lot 11) Install steel roof over garage Inspector Chalmers noted this project doesn’t need a permit; they are putting on a steel roof.  Selectman Dougherty will sign this document.
  • Dickey, Kevin & Patricia (Map V1, Lot 44) Update Inspector Chalmers suggests this be denied and sent to the ZBA; it’s a non-conforming structure and Mr. Dickey was very good and asked about the property before he purchased it.  The whole building is within the setback from Main Street; the first contractor was let go and then Mr. Dickey hired another builder (Jeff Mallett) so Inspector Chalmers stopped by to make sure they were not expanding the volume of the building.  Someone mentioned the deck was getting wider in the back so he revisited it; sometimes once you get going you find a can of worms.  They had to go up to provide for the snow load which is allowed, however the roof was being raised even further to provide for more interior space.  The owner would need to get a waiver of the ordinance that prevents increasing the non-conformity of an already non-conforming property.  The approved design was not a problem but they had to make a change once they got into the project.  Inspector Chalmers has spoken with the builder and suggested he not continue until a decision is made by the ZBA on this.  Selectman Dougherty asked how the expansion of the deck related to the roof; it was noted the owner wanted a bigger deck but that is a separate issue than the raising of the roof; both of these changes require a trip to the ZBA.  Selectman Allen asked about the wooden beam that runs through the fireplace and was informed that will be remedied as part of the renovation; there have been many renovations and Inspector Chalmers is not sure all the improvements were looked at.  There have been two fires in the past year due to masonry being in contact with wood; a two inch standoff has been required since the early 2000’s.  
  • Martha Benesh – 2010 Auditor’s Report  Town Auditor Martha Benesh noted she’d sent around a preliminary draft and today she is presenting the next revision.  She explained that an audit takes a specific time period and looks at the snapshot created.  The purpose of the audit is to implement change to make Jackson a better town; it is not meant to be punitive.  There are two deficiencies found:
#1) Notices of Public meetings were not adequate.”  Folks need to know when meetings are being held; for instance, the Board could have posted this meeting within twenty four hours here at the town offices, but the Offices were closed yesterday.  She would like the town to decide, as a town how to notice meetings.  There is another group which announces a meeting no more than twenty-four hours before and the meeting night is always different.  If we want volunteers, we have to make it easy to get to meetings.  Selectman Dougherty wonders how to do what she’s looking for; Auditor Benesh explained that as a town, Jackson could set notifications as needing to be made no fewer than seventy-two hours before the meeting and can also say e-news is an accepted place for posting meeting notices.  Selectman Dougherty thought it was up to the various boards to set the time they meet.  It was noted towns have a right to set the notification requirements.  Because there are so many different boards and committees, this would be a good idea.  Notices show up all over town.  Posting places include the Library, the Town Offices, the School and on e-news.  It was noted the Post Office used to be the place for notifications but it’s not allowed anymore; the town now uses a window kiosk for posting at the Whitney Center; that was the place that was determined to be the official posting location; the town meetings are noticed there and officially that is where the warrant is posted.  The officially established locations for posting notices are the Whitney Center kiosk and the town offices; notices are also sent and published in E-news and the Jackson Town Column. Chairman Davis asked what happened to the board that was next to the bakery which was supposed to be just for the town’s official business; that board is still there.  Chairman Davis would like to see notices go in there as it is next to the Post Office.  It was agreed that voters would have to approve the setting of e-news for an official notice location.  Auditor Benesh would like to have more education and openness around meetings.  

#2)  “The Library failed to meet NH RSA’s in financial reporting and documentation.”  Auditor Benesh noted there was no beginning or ending balance for 2010. Also, the money held by the Library, approximately $84,000.00, was not shown on the Annual Report. These funds have not been shown on the town records since the ‘90’s but the Library is responsible to declare all assets. There is no written investment policy; also the financial policies of the Library were limited; namely art being allowed to be relocated or sold without town approval.

Auditor Benesh is responsible for the 2010 audit but there was no complete audit by the CPA in 2009. As a result, past records were not verifiable from an auditing view.   For example, in 2008 the Library received $33,000 from Lila Pond Trust. The money was expended in 2009 by a transfer to the Friends of the Library. From the Friends, the money went to the town treasurer for the construction of the new Library. Although the money was approved in the minutes of the Library Trustees it was never documented in the Library financial i.e., Annual Report. The Friends are not auditable by the town. The Library can use the money as they see fit, but it does have to be publically accounted for.
 
Another area needing documentation improvements is when the Library holds income from trust funds; they have been co-mingling the funds with no audit trail to ascertain how much belongs to each trust account. Selectman Dougherty noted the folks at the Library may not now be able to explain the good reason they had for using funds; it’s really poor record-keeping.  Auditor Benesh agrees with this; The bigger aspect is that money left the books, was expended and was never reflected on the books; accountability needs to improve to satisfy the legal requirements.  Auditor Benesh noted there is a Board of Trustees meeting on November 9th at 8 a.m. which was posted today.  The purpose of the meeting is: “To review and discuss the town auditor’s report.” Selectman Dougherty noted he’s ready to accept this report as it is now; the Trustees meeting won’t affect the report.  The report will be handled as an attachment for electronic versions and a hard copy will be available for review at the Town Offices.  Auditor Benesh noted the Library should have more policies; it’s up to the Trustees to decide what actions to take.  Selectman Dougherty pointed out that town money is the Selectmen’s responsibility; he would rather see the Board work with the Library Trustees.  Chairman Davis will go to the meeting as will Selectman Dougherty; Town Auditor Benesh will be there.  She noted, for what it is worth, the Town could be handling the Library’s books; the town is already writing the checks for the Library employees.  Selectman Dougherty wants the Library to come up with a plan to correct this; once they develop that, the Board can make suggestions.  Office Administrator Falcey asked if Auditor Benesh filled out the MS 60 for the Board to sign; it has to be signed and submitted within ten days after acceptance.  Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to accept the report as presented by Jackson’s town auditor.  The motion passed unanimously.  Selectman Dougherty noted the report Auditor Benesh produced is above and beyond.  Auditor Benesh recommends a change of CPA; the one the town uses did not audit these records; additionally, the town needs to get someone who lives closer to Jackson and who is amenable to conversation; the current firm looked at the checkbook with its $13,000 but not the $84,000 in funds that weren’t on the town report.  The Board will take these recommendations under advisement and Chairman Davis will get back to Auditor Benesh on this.

  • 2011 Tax Rate Office Administrator Falcey is working on the DRA worksheet; Selectman Dougherty noted the Board needs to determine what it wants to do with the rate fundamentally.  Currently the Board is looking at a tax increase of sixty-five cents (per thousand) for a total of $10.65, which is on par with last year’s rate had it not been offset by the school’s use of surplus funds to offset taxes.  He doesn’t want the Selectmen to arbitrarily set this.  The town has an unreserved fund that is just too high; the state recommends a fund of 5 – 15% and Jackson’s is approaching 22%; it’s unfair to the taxpayers to keep so much.  It also looks like our tax rate is going to increase 7 – 10% each year just for fixed costs; lowering the rate to $10.50 would move about $60,000 out of the unreserved fund balance.  One thing to consider is Jackson’s tax base rate before any adjustments from unreserved fund balances; in 2010 it was $10.69, this year it’s $10.65 so the base rate didn’t change at all.  $10.91 was the amount approved in the budget last year and that was adjusted down to $10.6 this year.  Next year we know it would be a sixty-five cent increase no matter what.  Selectman Dougherty feels the Board should reduce what it can of the unreserved fund balance.  The town won’t know what the contribution to the unreserved fund will be until mid-May or June of next year but we do know the fund is too high.  Chairman Davis thinks reducing the rate to $10.50 would keep the unreserved fund at a safe level; Donor Towns will come back but not until at least 2013.  If Jackson contributes the Donor Town fee all in one year it would mean a huge increase in the tax rate; if the Board reduces the rate to $10.25 that would use $150,000 from unreserved funds; bring that amount down to a little over $900,000 and the Board would be able to reduce the rate by that amount again next year as well as being able to tap into these funds to fund capital projects too.  It gives the Board wiggle room to reduce the rate and also the luxury to utilize these funds for funding long term capital projects.  Selectman Dougherty would like to table this to the next meeting;  In his opinion this is among the most important things the Selectmen do; it is still confusing to him after five years of working with it; this warrants some serious discussion.  If time is a factor then set a date for next week to hold a meeting to set the tax rate.  Tabling this would also give Selectman Allen more time to understand the process.  The Board is able to meet on Monday afternoon (11/7/11) at 3:30 p.m.; this will be posted. Jerry Dougherty III noted the Board is targeting the tax rate for using unencumbered funds to bring it down; he asked if that accounts for what might be added to the unencumbered funds; Selectman Dougherty noted it doesn’t however, we are not anticipating much will be added to the unreserved fund balance from 2011, probably less than $100,000.00.
  • 2012 Health Insurance Renewal  The Board reviewed the options.  Selectman Dougherty thanked Office Administrator Falcey for putting these numbers together and turning them into numbers the Selectmen can relate to; this work was above and beyond what was expected.  The only difference between the current plan and the alternative plan is prescription coverage.  The rates were going to go up no matter which plan is chosen; the average increase across various options was 14.1%.  The town would save $3700 by going to the new plan but the Board feels there’s not enough savings realized to warrant the amount of work involved to change from one plan to another.  Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to renew the current insurance plan with the LGC for 2012 health insurance.  The motion passed unanimously.  
  • Jeanette Heidmann, Tax Collector – Prepayment authorization request This is a housekeeping item; no one could find that the prepayment authorization was ever voted on or put into effect.  Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to authorize the tax collector to accept prepayments in accordance with RSA 80:52:A.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • Whitney Center Oversight Committee Appointment
  • Barbara Meserve for Community Representative (no terms specified in Betty Whitney Trust) There is no information about term length.  That information should be found in the contract between the school board and the foundation.  The contract just says the Committee is to be appointed by the Selectmen and to meet quarterly or more often; there is no term limit indicated.  Selectman Dougherty noted the Board recognized that and it is the Committee’s policy to have three-year term limits. Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to appoint Bobbi Meserve to the Whitney Center Oversight Committee with a term expiring in 2014.  The motion passed unanimously.  Selectman Dougherty noted there was another person who was interested in this seat but as that person was coming from the school community that name was not brought forward as the Committee wanted a member from the community-at-large.
  • Revise Transfer of Appropriations Office Administrator Falcey noted that while doing the budget for wages it was discovered Jackson’s Town Clerk and Tax Collector’s salary was coming out of the elected official’s line; this needs to be revised as we are pulling out too much to pay for Hurricane Irene road damages.  The amount of $12,000 is reduced down to $7500 and the balance is to come from the legal line which has $9,000 left in it to get the town through December.  Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to accept the revised transfer of appropriations.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • March Annual Meeting Date  Voting is the second Tuesday in March, which is March 13th. Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to set the annual Town Meeting date of Thursday March 15, 2012 at the Whitney Center, with Friday March 16, 2012 as an alternate date or for continuation of the Thursday meeting.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • Intent to Cut
  • Intent to Cut – Garland Lumber (WMNF Than unit #4) 11-231-7 Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to approve the cut.  The motion passed unanimously.  Martha Benesh asked if this is part of the cut in Carter Notch and was informed these are all in the National Forest and Baker Prospect Farm.  Martha quipped all she wants to know is if there is going to be skiing up there or not.  
  • Intent to Cut – Garland Lumber (WMNF Than unit #1) 11-231-8 Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to approve the cut.  The motion passed unanimously.  
  • Report of Cut – Dinsmore, Stephen & Denise (Map R30, Lot 6) 11-231-3 Selectman Dougherty, seconded by Selectman Allen, made a motion to approve the cut.  The motion passed 2-0-1 (Davis abstains).
  • Public Comment  Joe Pietkiewicz noted that he was talking with Road Agent Henry regarding parking on Dundee across from the new path trail; between the new path trail and the dog walkers he has people parked on both sides of the road; he can’t get out of his driveway.  Joe has a couple of rescue dogs he’s trying to work with and every time someone turns around they get all upset.  There is a parking lot down the hill by Earl’s old place and there’s a turn-around there; additionally if his dogs are loose they will bother the dog walkers.  When Dundee is closed for any length of time folks continue to drive up and turn around because they don’t see the small sign; he’d like the Board to consider either putting in a bigger sign or a lower one.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:29 p.m.  

                                                        Respectfully submitted by:

                                                        Martha D. Tobin

                                                        Recording Secretary