PRESENT: Chairman Friedman, Councilor Perkins, Councilor King, Councilor Parker, Councilor Olson, Acting Town Manager L. Varisco, Acting Town Clerk K. Morin, Office Administrator J. Reed, Fire Chief G. Martin, Recreation Director R. Young, Police Chief M. Leonard, Public Works Director B. Stoyell, Assessor B. Birch, Town Attorney T. Russell, Members of the Public.
ITEM 1. The October 11, 2011 Veazie Town Council meeting was called to order at 7:00PM.
ITEM 2. Consideration of the Minutes
Motion By: Councilor Parker—to accept the September 12, 2011 meeting minutes as written. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 5-0 in favor.
Motion By: Councilor King—to accept the September 13, 2011 meeting minutes as written. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 4-0 in favor. Councilor Parker abstained.
Motion By: Councilor King—to accept the September 19, 2011 meeting minutes as written. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 5-0 in favor.
Motion By: Councilor Perkins—to accept the September 22, 2011 meeting minutes as written. Seconded: Councilor King, Voted 4-0 in favor. Councilor Parker abstained.
ITEM 3. Consideration of Agenda
Acting Town Manager Larry Varisco stated that there was an item that did not get put on the agenda: Letter of Commendation.
Chief Leonard presented Sergeant Paul Haslam with a letter of commendation and a plaque for an incident that Sergeant Haslam responded to and saved the life of a woman.
Chairman Friedman stated he would like to move item 6b above public comments and new business. It was the consensus of the Council to do so.
Motion By: Councilor Parker—to permanently move “Comments from the Public” to the next item after the “Manager’s Report”. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 5-0 in favor.
ITEM 6b. Overview of the Town’s Assessing Function (taken out of order)
Assessor Ben Birch gave an overview of the Town’s assessing function. He outlined that after the commitment was completed staff ran several reports and discovered a serious problem. Of the 887 real estate accounts, 400 had override valuations. He also added that the assessing information is incomplete on tax cards as well as in the computer software and the only way to fix these things is to do a complete revaluation. Assessor Ben Birch stated that he could not do the revaluation because he simply did not have the manpower. He quoted a price of around $80,000-$100,000 to have the project completed by an outside firm and anywhere from a year to a year and a half to complete the work.
ITEM 5a. Town Manager Search – Proposed Outline Review
Acting Town Manager Larry Varisco stated that he had placed a suggested outline in the council packet for the hiring of a new town manager. The Council was receptive of the outline. It was outlined that the interviews would take place in executive session. Acting Town Manager Larry Varisco stated that he would generate some standard questions as well as some ‘do’s and don’ts’.
ITEM 5b. Public Hearing – G.A. Ordinance Revisions
Motion By: Councilor Perkins—to open the public hearing to receive comments on the General Assistance Ordinance Revisions. Seconded: Councilor King, Voted 5-0 in favor.
Motion By: Councilor Perkins—to close the public hearing on the General Assistance Ordinance Revisions. Seconded: Councilor Olson, Voted 5-0 in favor.
Motion By: Councilor Olson—that the Town of Veazie formally adopt the MMA Model Ordinance General Assistance Appendixes (A-C) for the period of October 1, 2011 through October 1, 2012. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 5-0 in favor.
ITEM 5c. RSU Referendum Warrant
The Council signed the RSU referendum warrant for the RSU to hold an election on Tuesday, November 8th for the purpose of the determining the following referendum question:
“Question 1: Do you favor establishing July 1st as the single common date for beginning the term of office for school board members who are elected at regular municipal elections conducted after March 12, 2012?”
ITEM 6a. Approval of Employment Separation Agreement
Motion By: Councilor Parker—to enter into an executive session pursuant to 1 M.R.S.A. Section 405 6(E) with the town attorney to discuss a separation agreement. Seconded: Councilor King, Voted 5-0 in favor.
Motion By: Chairman Friedman—to come out of executive session. Seconded: Councilor Parker, Voted 5-0 in favor.
Motion By: Councilor King—to approve the separation agreement and authorize Acting Town Manager Larry Varisco to sign it. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 4-1 in favor. Councilor Parker was opposed.
ITEM 6c. Collective Bargaining Agreement
Motion By: Councilor Friedman—to authorize Acting Town Manager Larry Varisco to sign the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Seconded: Councilor Perkins, Voted 5-0 in favor.
ITEM 7. Additions by Council
Councilor Parker stated that moving forward he hopes that the Council will talk together on things before making decisions. He outlined that the ad was run to advertise for a Town Manager but it was never discussed in public session. Things like that should have the consensus of the Council first.
Chairman Friedman stated that there will be a workshop for elected officials on October 18th in Ellsworth if anyone was interested in going. He outlined that he needed to be signed up for it.
ITEM 8. Manager’s Report
The following documents were included in the Council’s packet.
· A copy of the recent Bangor Daily News article regarding tree planting.
· A copy of a memo from a resident stating they do not wish to accept an appointment.
· A copy of the TIF reimbursement letter sent to Casco Bay Energy, LLC.
· A copy of the budget report from the Acting Town Treasurer/Tax Collector.
· A copy of a thank you letter to the Police Department.
· A copy of the signed release from Allan Thomas.
· A copy of the Town’s Charter
ITEM 4. Comments from the Public (taken out of order)
Member of the public Ray Michaels wished to discuss his taxes and valuation. He felt his valuation and taxes were considerably high. Assessor Ben Birch explained Mr. Michaels options to him.
ITEM 9. Requests for Information and Town Council Comments
There were no requests for information or Town Council comments.
ITEM 10. Warrants: Town Warrant 7, 7A and 8 and Town Payrolls 7 and 8 were circulated for signature.
ITEM 11. Adjournment: Motion: Councilor King —to adjourn the October 11, 2011 Town Council Meeting. Seconded: Councilor Perkins. There was no further discussion. Voted 5-0. Meeting adjourned 8:36 pm.
A true record, Attest:
Karen Morin
Acting Town Clerk
Town of Veazie
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