Town of New Boston
Selectmen's Meeting
August 20, 2007
PRESENT: Gordon Carlstrom Selectman
David Woodbury Selectman
Christine Quirk 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:
Ken Lombard and Cyndie Wilson from the Conservation Commission were present to discuss the language to include in the LaChance Homeowner Association easement. Cyndie and Ken have been working on it and Dwight Sowerby from Attorney Bill Drescher’s office asked them to get input from the Selectmen. They will be meeting with Dwight on Thursday. Ken said the homeowners are responsible for the easement because they own the land and the Conservation Commission’s job is to monitor the property and make sure the homeowners are following their rules. The Conservation Commission wants to include language saying the town can sue the homeowners association if they breach the easement and if the town wins the homeowners association will pay the legal fees. Ken said most of the other easements contain this
language. An example is the Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions for Houghton Woods. The Conservation Commission wants to include language saying they will deal with one person from the homeowners association. The easement will allow cutting for habitat management. The Planning Board approved the development pending recording until these language issues are resolved.
Ken also said he has been working with the Chanceys on their easement and has received the paperwork for a $128,000 grant for that property. Carl sold his portion of the lot to the Chanceys so they now own it 100% and they gave a 50% discount on the sale on the easement to the town.
C. APPOINTMENTS:
1. 7:00 PM Gerry Cornett Transfer Station
Transfer Station Manager Gerry Cornett was present to meet with the Selectmen to discuss projects at the Transfer Station.
· Gerry met with Burton last week to work on updating the Transfer Station Rules and Regulations. The Selectmen reviewed the updated Rules and Regulations. David moved to approve the Rules and Regulations including the changes discussed at this meeting. Gordon seconded the motion. All were in favor.
· Capitol Trash wrote to the Selectmen as they feel they were overcharged at the Transfer Station. The Selectmen don’t feel Capitol Trash was overcharged and will respond by letter.
· John Bunting suggested using a formal quotation system a new way to handle sale of recyclables. Burton discussed this with John and suggested making a notation when checking the market of who was called and why a particular vendor was chosen. Gerry will keep a record of this.
· The new trailer was received from J&J. It is a good trailer but the inside bracing was not properly installed. J& J brought it to Northeast Truck where they will fix the top of the door and paint it. If this system doesn’t work J&J will replace it with a standard double door.
· Gerry spoke about the above ground storage tanks for the oil containment system. They are required to have an engineer stamp on the oil containment system. The Transfer Station is getting rid of the 55-gallon drums they currently use. The new container will handle several different types of oil and if any spill it will be contained. An engineer was at the Transfer Station on Thursday and did a sitewalk and has done drawings of the facility. Both trash trailers need secondary containment and runoff needs booms. The state came in and found the Transfer Station to be non-compliant but with the new system they will become compliant before the letter of
non-compliance is received. The Transfer Station will also need settling ponds for runoff in the future.
· Gerry feels a backhoe is needed at the facility. The Highway department comes to the Transfer Station to push down the metal and demolition piles a couple times a week but it is not enough and some of the other piles could use it as well. The backhoe would also be used for plowing and can fill trucks better to cut down on trucking costs. It could do some of the work the skidsteer does which would help the skidsteer last longer. The skidsteer CIP could be re-evaluated. Road Agent John Riendeau could also use it as a backup when he needs two backhoes. He currently rents a second backhoe when needed. Gerry has looked into it and found it costs
$6,500-12,000 for a reliable backhoe. The Transfer Station is projected to be $90,000 underbudget this year. The Selectmen asked Gerry to work with John on a cost benefit analysis. This might have to be voted on in March or it could be purchased from this year’s budget.
· The brush pile was done in 6 hours for $3,000.
2. 7:45 PM Susan Carr Clean Air/Energy Committee
Susan Carr was present to meet with the Selectmen to discuss the new Clean Air/Energy Committee.
She said a committee has been formed and began meeting in July. She distributed the mission statement to the Selectmen. Burton will be the committee’s contact when they have questions about the community’s energy use. They want to erect a sign on the common a couple times per year showing the community how their energy use has decreased through community education provided by the committee. The Selectmen recommended she contact the Selectmen’s secretary Linda Sizemore to move the committee meetings from Susan’s mother’s house to the town hall. The committee will notice their public meetings and keep minutes that will also be filed at the town hall.
3. 8:00 PM Right Way Builders
Rick Martin and his attorney Patricia Panciocco were present to discuss the off site improvement cost apportionment for Beard Road.
Patricia has questions about the cost sharing arrangement for the cost of $165 per linear foot determined by the Road Committee. She and Planning Coordinator Nic Strong came up with a number of approximately 81 houses impacted by Beard Road. Patricia and Rick feel the whole cost to rebuild the road is being shifted to the new construction without taking into account the residences currently on the road and future traffic patterns and want the town to determine a proportional cost. Nic recommends this be forwarded to Attorney Bill Drescher for review and the Selectmen asked her to do this. Rick says Beard Road is 80% complete and all roads are at a different stage of completion and all should be a different proportionate figure of the $165 per linear foot. The Selectmen said developers can obtain an
engineering plan showing what the road reconstruction cost should be for that particular road. Rick feels if he did this the town should credit him the engineering costs. Patricia distributed a portion of chapter 29 of New Hampshire Practice to the Selectmen for review and referred them to RSA 674:21V(j) and to the website of Office of State Planning. The Selectmen and Nic will consult the Road Committee and Attorney Bill Drescher for clarification of the formula for determining the fair share cost of a road upgrade.
D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
1. Minutes of July 30, 2007 - The Selectmen reviewed the minutes. Corrections were noted. Gordon moved that they be accepted as amended. David seconded the motion. All were in favor.
E. OLD BUSINESS:
1. Planning:
· The small-scale committee was formed. Gordon was unable to attend their meeting.
· Discussion of drainage calculations and road regulations. They considered allowing certain roads that would never be considered a feeder road be decreased in size and going back to a 50 foot right of way. Subdivision density and drainage calculations will be discussed next. Burton and Dave attended a recent road committee meeting where drainage calculations and width of roads were also discussed. John Bunting was against narrowing roads because emergency vehicles need room on the road to pass each other. The Planning Board discussed this as well. Nic will work on a questionnaire to be sent to the Department Heads about this topic.
· John and Rita Young of Beard Road have applied for a major subdivision 4 lots, 3 frontlots and one backlot. They have state subdivision approval, no wetlands impact, expected road widening for land dedication, sitewalk Tuesday, lot sizes are 2.2, 2.16, 7.1 and 2.5 acres. Some wetlands, some significant slopes but they were designed around.
· Jean McCreary submission of application for fitness and physical therapy facility. A wooden guardrail was erected to protect cars from going over a 15-20 foot drop but the Planning Board doesn’t think that is adequate and asked for a barrier certified by an engineer that is more aesthetic and they will plant shrubs to hide the parking lot from the road. The applicant asked for conditional approval for a complete application but the Planning Board denied this request as they don’t have state septic approval.
· Friendly Beaver Campground garage compliance hearing-accepted.
· Craig Heafield stump wood recycling and log yard compliance hearing-accepted.
· Gerald and Dona Fairbairn’s submission of application for minor subdivision 2 lots Bedford Road-it was felt this was not a good lot to subdivide because of the lot configuration. The abutters expressed concern because it is a poor lot and because the size of the house to be built might not be compatible with the neighborhood. A 4-bedroom house with a 2-car garage is planned. Sitewalk scheduled for Tuesday night.
· Steve LaBranche driveway permit approved with condition of 10% grade.
2. Use of Gazebo by Political Candidates-Dave Hulick from the original gazebo committee was asked about this and said the gazebo committee didn’t envision limitations on politicians using the gazebo and no such limitations were found in the file. The Selectmen feel it is appropriate use of the gazebo with limitations in place for the safety of the politicians and the town. The file will be noted.
3. Fiscal Impact Study-The Selectmen will review the study. The recreation and school portions of the study are not yet completed. Burton also plans to meet with the Department Heads to make sure the information obtained for the study is accurate. The study will also help the town departments with future CIPs and help the Planning Board to know how developments will affect each department. A side benefit will be evaluating whether impact fees would be practical.
4. Survey-The Selectmen, Fire Chief Dan MacDonald and Planning Coordinator Nic Strong reviewed a matrix prepared by Burton where the town would try to complete work on the employee survey topics by the end of 2008. Committees will be formed to work on the topics then report to the Selectmen for input at Selectmen’s meetings where they would get input, comments and finalize decisions on each topic. Committees will now be formed to begin work on job descriptions, health/dental and life benefits, retirement plan, communication, and mission statement. Nic will send a memo to the departments asking for committee members. Each committee will consist of a Selectmen, Department Head and employee representatives. The Selectmen suggested the employees
should designate someone who will designate who will work on each committee. Nic suggested getting a representative from the NH Retirement System to come in and educate employees on this topic now and the employees will schedule this. Preparation will begin on the employee newsletter. It was decided that the Department Heads and employee organizers will send the matrix out in conjunction with the Selectmen with the understanding that it is preliminary and subject to change. The organizing Department Head or employee will be identified and the committees formed by the next Selectmen’s meeting. Gordon will be on the benefits committee, Dave will be on the roles committee, and Christine will be on the personnel manual, newsletter and mission statement committees. Comp time will be researched to make sure the town policy is in compliance with law. The Selectmen suggested communications not take place by e-mail.
F. NEW BUSINESS:
1. Drug Testing-The town has been using a company in the Lakes Region for drug and alcohol testing when necessary but there is also one in Concord. Burton distributed a comparison sheet to the Selectmen. Burton and Road Agent John Riendeau will decide which company to use.
2. State Bridge Aid Changes-Due to additional money in the state budget, the Lyndeboro and Gregg Mill Road bridges will be worked on one year earlier than planned.
3. Nicolaou Response-The Selectmen reviewed a letter prepared by Burton outlining the process that must be followed if he wants his assessment reduced.
5. Letter to Residents RE: Numbering Ordinance & Emergencies- The Selectmen will review the letters. Burton will work on them with Police Chief Chris Krajenka and Fire Chief Dan MacDonald. The plan is to send letters to every household encouraging compliance with the address ordinance and explaining how to access information during times of an emergency.
G. OTHER:
1. Burton has been working with John Bunting on the address change notification template. It will be used to send to the Ciarlas and Browns about their address changes from Pulpit to Bedford Road. The change should be made now instead of waiting until the March ballot because it has already caused confusion for delivery drivers and if there was an emergency confusion could delay response to their homes. The new addresses will become effective October 1.
2. Jason Unger of Clark Hill Road sent a letter to the Selectmen asking to meet with them about the drainage situation at Heidi Palmer Real Estate. Burton will send a letter in reply advising that the best person to speak with would be the Road Agent.
3. A weed patch has grown in front of the town hall. Mr. Ryan’s front yard is planned to be re-landscaped which should remove the weed patch.
4. The last agency in Concord has signed off on the work to be done on Bog Brook Road. George Whipple will do the excavation work. The culvert has been ordered. A water diversion crew will do work in September.
H. PUBLIC COMMENT: No comments at this time.
I. ADJOURNMENT: David made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 11:02 PM. Gordon seconded the motion. All were in favor.
Prepared by Maralyn Segien
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