Town of New Boston
Selectmen's Meeting
July 19, 2004
PRESENT: Christine Quirk Chairman
David Woodbury Selectman
Gordon Carlstrom Selectman
Burton Reynolds Town Administrator
A. CALL TO ORDER: A regular meeting of the Board of Selectmen was called to order by Christine Quirk at 7:00PM beginning with the Pledge of Allegiance.
B. PUBLIC COMMENT: No public comments were made.
C. APPOINTMENTS:
1. 7:00 PM Gerry Cornett Transfer Station
Gerry was present to update the Selectmen:
· Scales – Currently the Transfer Station is in the process of prepping the area for the scales. They have utilized the skid steer and will arrange to have the Highway Department assist in the final grade. Items and services have been donated. George St. John has donated snap panels and roofing materials for the building. The Transfer Station will only have to purchase nuts, bolts and flashing. Daniel Hodgkin of Artistic Masonry will pour the foundation with a garage/floor mix. Gerry will rent a power float to complete the floor. Advanced notice to the public will be given prior to the start of the project. Currently the Transfer Station is weighing utilizing the small floor scale blue bucket. Altek has delivered the large scale. Installation is planned for August As Altek would like to use the New Boston Transfer Station as a show model, they have upgraded the scale equipment at no cost.
· Brush Pit – There have been issues since the closing of the brush pit and some residents have become irate. Conversion to chipping is scheduled for August. Once the chipping process begins, the costs are estimated to decrease by ½ because there will be no ash to test and dispose of.
· Stumps – Gerry is currently researching stump removal. Gerry has located an area for the processing of stumps. He has also contacted a company that will charge $20.00 per stump grinding, in which the Transfer Station receives $10.00 per stump. The process generates loam, which may be beneficial to the Highway Department and also increases revenue for the Transfer Station.
· 2005 CIP – The Transfer Station is in need of replacing the compactor and the #2 trailer. Of the two, replacing the compactor is the highest priority. The trailer is already scheduled for 2006. The compactor is estimated to cost $75,000.00 to $80,000.00. Since the parts are old, the ram/casing is $8000.00 to $10,000.00 to replace; the power inverter will be $4,000.00 to $8,000.00 to replace or $3,000.00 to $6,000.00 to rebuild. The compactor currently has a lot of rust.
o The #2 Trailer is a 1987. The frame is not bad but the running gear, axles and cams are in need of repair and there are concerns on safety on the rolling gear. The driver of this trailer is doing basic maintenance, greasing, washing and safety inspection for $75.00 per month.
· Recycling Effort – The recycling effort is still on the rise. There has been an increase of newspapers, mixed paper, cardboard, glass and aluminum. The weights for solid waste being hauled out has decreased which Gerry feels is partly due to less non-New Boston resident waste brought in previously by private haulers. B&A Waste is hauling one trailer a week and will pull out completely once the scales are utilized.
· “Check for the Neck” is the Transfer Station’s new program for plastic bottles. Currently the plastic recyclables has risen from 20 to 25% increase in recent efforts. The Transfer Station will take all bottles in one section and they will sort out.
· Staffing Patterns – Gerry has suggested switching employee hours to maintain more hours during the week and has decreased the Saturday hourly schedule. The Transfer Station is currently under budget for salaries as it is necessary to pay overtime to cover sick days and vacations. Also noted is the Transfer Station is close to going over on the maintenance budget but has offsets in other line items. Gerry feels they will net $50,000.00 or better in revenue this year. Gerry also informed the Selectmen the market for paper has decreased due to the local paper mill closing and the Chinese pulling out of the US Market.
Steel is set at the highest it has been in 10 years.
2. 7:15 PM John Riendeau Road Agent
After the agenda was published, it was decided John would meet with the Selectmen next week.
3. 8:15 PM Leslie Nixon Town Counsel (non public)
At 8:35 PM, David moved to suspend the Selectmen’s Meeting and enter into non public session with the Town Counsel, Leslie Nixon. Gordon seconded this motion. All were in favor.
At 9:20 PM Gordon made the motion to end the non public session and enter into the regularly scheduled Selectmen’s Meeting. David seconded this motion. All were in favor.
D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
1. Minutes of June 28, 2004 - The Selectmen reviewed the minutes. Corrections were noted. David moved that they be accepted as amended. Gordon seconded the motion. All were in favor.
E. OLD BUSINESS:
1. Planning:
Clark Hill Realty – Multi-family - The applicant withdrew at this time as they are researching the legal aspect prior to going further into subdivision.
Daniel Donovan – Mr. Donovan withdrew the subdivision application at this time.
Right Way Builders – 7 Lots - Weare Road/Routes 77 – The application was accepted as completed and granted for 4 lots for Rick Martin of Right Way Builders and 3 lots for Beck Custom Homes.
13-15 Hopkins Road – The application was accepted as complete. This meeting has been adjourned to August 10, 2004.
Lull Road Corporation – The application for a two-lot subdivision was approved. Prior to approval, Chairman Peter Hogan explained to many of the abutters present that this hearing was only for the two-lot subdivision and not the other proposal for cluster homes. He also stated if that proposal were to come in the future, the shared driveway which is a Class 6 could be changed to a Class 5.
Vista Road – The application has been approved for lots off Inkberry/Wilson Hill and was accepted as complete. After the approval was given, a new design for this same subdivision was given to the Planning Board with additional lots and road design they would like the Planning Board to consider.
Site Walks – Site walks that were scheduled for July 6, 2004 were for Rick Martin of Right Way Builders and Julie Dillon of Riverdale Road for riding stables. As there were concerns of manure going into the river, the Planning Board had given advice for a plan that would solve this kind of situation.
· Evaluation Process – The Performance Evaluation forms, instructions, evaluation primer and rating consideration sheet were given to the Selectmen for review. Also present to discuss this topic were Chief Greg Begin of the Police Department and Nicola Strong of the Planning Department.
Burton explained the purpose of the forms listed above was to determine the merit portion of employee raises and employee growth and he is currently trying to develop the personnel compensation sheet that discusses the salary plan. Burton is planning to meet with each department head and each employee to explain how it works. He also discussed the rating system of competent, commendable and outstanding. He is also currently working on a list of the types of things that come into play in the real world that interfere with the theory and explained the town employees receive a COLA (cost of living adjustment) and merit based on their evaluation unless the operating budget is voted down. He explained he was trying to critique the system so that taxpayers would understand the
system. He also is listing things that come into play that cause people in the private sector not to get those kinds of raises. Burton stated his concern that he feels we are going to have a number of years in which the raises we are going to give are greater than the raises people who are paying for the raises are going to get.
David questioned Gordon how was the real world experience. Gordon stated other companies are postponing or ignoring raises. Productivity is good because many jobs are getting outsourced. They have pay cuts or no pay raises. There is a lot of uncompensated labor. He also explained the town environment is significantly more secure as we receive more demands for more services and it is hard to outsource any of the jobs. It is a stable environment and he can remember years back when raises were voted down for teachers and town employees.
Chief Greg Begin stated his concerns that the Town Departments are not in the private arena. The law enforcement, public works and town hall is a public arena. He felt Burton and the Selectmen keep trying to make it the private arena and felt the need to separate the evaluation process from the Step process. He stated he is hearing they are being told to keep people at competent and it is very difficult to prove they are commendable or outstanding. He also stated he has heard separate responses and has received many pages of memos, primers, evaluation primers and overviews in order to try to keep this at 2 or 3%.
David questioned Greg as to the value of the evaluation process if there was no money. Greg stated the evaluation is to make sure they are doing their job. If they were commendable or outstanding, it would be advantageous for a promotion.
Greg stated the process is trying to treat everybody exactly the same. He further stated, “Nic’s office is not like my office. The Highway Department is not like my office. No office is identical so it is very difficult to use the same evaluation”. He also stated the public sector is not the same as the private sector and it is hard to use the same theory and philosophies because of the different variations.
Greg explained they currently have a much more detailed evaluation used for probation. Nic also agreed with Greg that to use these same forms were not being specific as to different departments, such as planning board, town clerk, tax collector, etc.
David questioned if the present system was difficult or impossible to implement. Nic stated no and Greg explained what he expects from his department are different from what Nic would expect from her department. A competent rating in his department is different than in Nic’s department.
Gordon explained the STEP system used in the past. Employees only received the COLA and were never moved from step 1 to step 2. The merit system was to change this.
Greg again stated the Town was a public arena and not private. He felt they use market rate. He further stated they are being told everybody is competent and feels he has to try to document for anything above.
Burton explained the public is used to the system where almost everybody is competent. That is what they are rated and these are the people who are paying our taxes and fund them. He further explained they are coming up with a justification/rationale so hopefully if the public wants to really review this situation, they will feel it is fair.
Nic explained her concerns of keeping people at commendable because of their budget. Burton explained it is not a big budgetary thing and is an economic exercise. He further explained in order to move to commendable, you have to be performing at a level that is significantly above what the typical person would perform at and that this was an economic exercise. Nic stated now we are flipping the scales to economic exercises.
Brandy Mitroff spoke at this time stating something was not working. She stated maybe it is true that probably more people in the private sector are familiar with this system but questioned if it makes a difference. She noted the public votes this in and is voted in the operating budget. She suggested keeping the COLA and raises separate and if you did not all attach the raises to what is on their evaluation, you all could in fact better dictate that second piece to the economy.
She also recommended if someone in a department does something extraordinary, give them acknowledgement or $100.00.
Greg also discussed the use of median salary. Burton uses US wide, which was off from his department’s wages. He explained when he must get salary information, he is required to look at the same size department in local surrounding towns.
Further discussion occurred with receiving too much confusing information regarding evaluations. Nic also stated “ when you do something, it turns out what you thought is not the way it was, so another explanation is to come and that they want us all average because of the budget. That’s the kind of battle we are dealing with every day”. She also recommended to have all the department heads meet in the same place, same time with a very simple explanation and your problems would be solved.
Burton asked what is the recommendation, to continue with their evaluation but they do not have input on raises, as they will be set by Board of Selectmen? Per Nic, that was not her recommendation.
Attorney Leslie Nixon who was present at this time stated the process in her firm is they would set 1 to 3% depending on their evaluations based on work ethics which is subjective. She concurred with Brandy, let them do the evaluation for their employees but have the second piece be subjective to the whole and to the economy.
Gordon asked to revisit this topic at another time and thanked Nic and Greg for coming. Nic suggested that more department heads become involved at the next meeting.
· Six Month Financials – The six month financials were distributed and reviewed by the Selectmen. Christine Quirk asked that cable be changed to internet so that residents did not think it was TV.
Burton also stated the grant money from the Granite Thunder exercises at the New Boston Tracking Station had been received in the amount of $37,500.00. Dan McDonald also allotted an amount to have the fire truck transmission repaired that was disabled in this event.
· Apple Barn Preservation Easements – The Selectmen discussed the Apple Barn Preservation Easement and it was agreed that it would not be utilized for a commercial formulation.
David made the motion for, Geoff Katz of 99 Stark Realty, that the application be denied on the grounds the statute does not contemplate tax relief for commercial for profit business that would present non-agriculture uses. Gordon seconded this motion. All were in favor.
· Election Scanning Machine –Cathy Strausbaugh has relayed to Burton the approximate cost for the scanning machine and programming is $1100.00, $600.00 for printing and 29¢ for the ballot and questioned if there was support for this machine and warrant. The Selectmen agreed they would support the request for the election scanning machine but the voters would decide.
· Boston Post Cane – It has been undetermined who the oldest New Boston Resident is at this time, either Charlotte Smith or Leon Daniels. As the Selectmen are leery about the possible loss of the original Boston Post Cane, it was again discussed the possibility of having the cane duplicated or to give a plaque or certificate in place of the cane. Burton is to research the costs involved in duplicating this cane.
F. NEW BUSINESS:
· Approval of Road Name (Subdivision off Salisbury Road) David made the motion to move Kettle Road be the road name. Gordon seconded this motion. All were in favor.
· Holiday Observance – As New Years is on Saturday, December 31 will be the official town hall holiday.
· Planning Board Alternate – currently there is an open position for Planning Board Alternate. The Selectmen felt filling this opening was a better idea than asking one of the current alternate, that rarely attends meetings to resign.
G. OTHER:
· Town Clerks Office – Constance Wittneben has resigned from her position as Deputy Town Clerk. Kim Merron, Assistant, has accepted the additional duties and hours and will now be Deputy Town Clerk.
Gordon moved Kim Merron be appointed Deputy Clerk. Dave seconded this motion. All were in favor.
H. PUBLIC COMMENT: None.
I. ADJOURNMENT: Dave made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 10:20PM. Gordon seconded the motion. All were in favor.
Prepared by Karen Heselton
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