BOS Minutes 05-11-2004

APPROVED

TOWN OF PELHAM

BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING

MINUTES

May 11, 2004

APPROVED – May 18, 2004

CALL TO ORDER

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

PRESENT:

Mr. William McDevitt, Mr. Victor Danevich, Mr. Harold Lynde, Mr. Jean-Guy Bergeron, Mr. Richard Derby

Also present:

ABSENT:

Mr. Tom Gaydos, Town Administrator, members of the p= ress and general public.

None

&nbs= p;

The Chairman, William McDevitt, opened the meeting at approximately 6:30 pm.

MINUTES RE= VIEW

May 4, 2004

MOTION:<= o:p>

(Derby/Bergeron) To approve the May 4, 2004 meeting minutes = as written.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carri= ed.

OPEN FORUM=

None.

APPOINTMEN= TS

Karen White – Regional Water System

Ms. Karen White informed that on April 29, 2004 a committee (c= omprised of representatives from a number of towns who are currently served by the Pennichuck Water Corporation) voted to adopt a final charter for a proposed water district. She said the charter had taken approximately two years to draft. She provided a summary of how and = why the water district had been formed. She said know that the charter had been approved, the time had come = to ask each of the communities involved to consider voting to join the distric= t, adopt the charter and appoint a director for the regional water district. She informed that Nashua and Bedford had voted to join, three communities were needed to form the district. She made note of which communities= had scheduled a vote. Ms. White w= ent on to explain how the water district would be governed. She said there were a series of ch= ecks and balances throughout the charter to try an achieved a balance between the ne= eds and desires of small communities as well as the needs and desires of the ci= ty of Nashua. She said each community that joins= the district will have a seat on the Board of Directors; however there is no requirement that a community join; each community currently served will continue to be served. She no= ted that each community that joined as a member would receive payment in lieu of property taxes on all water utility property in the community. She also noted that member communi= ties would receive surplus revenue credits which could be used for water related purposes. Ms. White said that= the water district would provide a local office of consumer affairs to resolve customer issues. She said safe guards had been added to the charter with regard to water shed land being sold.

Mr. John Sweren, Marsh Road, asked if residents would be forced to tie-into the water system, or be allowed to stay on their wells. Ms. White said that the water dist= rict could not require people to tie-in, it would have to be a local ordinance.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Mr. Sweren discussed a situation i= n a town where an ordinance was in place that required residents to pay for the= ir water. Mr. McDevitt said Pelh= am didn’t have such a water ordinance in place. Ms. White said it was a plus for t= he water district to have residents stay on their wells.

Mr. McDevitt asked if a public hearing was required for adoption. Mr. Gaydos felt bec= ause the Town was not giving anything up, and was simply becoming a member of a group that a public hearing and Selectmen vote would be adequate. However if the Town was making a long-term commitment, financial in nature, a Town Meeting vote would be required.

Mr. McDevitt asked that Ms. White address the question= of by joining the water district if the Town was setting up for long-term expenses that would benefit another community. Ms. White said to the best of her knowledge the $10,000 requested fr= om the communities for legal/financial expenses for preparing the charter was = the only and last financial commitment that a community would make. She said if = Nashua was successful in immanent domai= n, their petition says they will float bonds to acquire Pennichuck and will tu= rn the three regulated utilities (of Pennichuck) to the regional water distric= t. At which time towns would be asked= if they would file as an intervener in support of Nashua at the Public Utilities Commissi= on for their petition of immanent domain.

Mr. Bergeron confirmed that when the district was form= ed the cities or towns that joined would be members. Ms. White said no city or town wou= ld have to pledge its faith, or credit for any of the financial liabilities or= financial revenues of the district (House Bill 361 states that clearly). Mr. Bergeron asked for an explanat= ion of the Public Utility Commission’s (PUC) length of oversight. Ms. White said Pennichuck Water Co= mpany (being a private company) was required to have Public Utility Commission oversight. She said a comprom= ise was reached, in that the PUC would have limited oversight for four years for any rise of rates in communities where it is above 15% of what members of t= he district are charged.

Mr. McDevitt asked if there were changes planned. Ms. White anticipated that most of= the capital improvements program would go into replacing the aging lines in Nashua before any= real expansion efforts happened. M= r. McDevitt asked if incremental growth would occur. Ms. White said a developer/new bus= iness could still request a tie-in to new water.= She said for the next two years there would be a one hundred thousand gallon ‘cap’ would be placed until after the resource plan was completed.

Mr. Bergeron said the Town signed a memorandum of unde= rstanding and also put a warrant article out last year granting the Selectmen authori= ty to move forward. He made a mo= tion to join the Merrimack Valley Regional Water District. He said by joining it would ensure= the following: water quality, water quantity, cost, fire protection and local control. He didn’t want= to see the work done over the past two years go to waste. Mr. Lynde seconded the motion. He reviewed and read aloud the War= rant Article #38 from the 2003 Town Meeting, which authorized the Selectmen to j= oin the water district. He saw jo= ining the district as a benefit to the Town.&nbs= p; Mr. McDevitt asked if there would be any harm delaying to allow a pe= riod of public comment. Mr. Danevi= ch also would like to postpone the decision to allow for public comment and le= gal review. After further discuss= ion, Mr. Bergeron and Mr. Lynde agreed to withdraw their motion and second to al= low a period of public comment and scheduling a formal public hearing. Mr. Danevich said he would like to electronically post the charter since it had just been completed.

Will D’Andrea – Zoning Enforcement Process

Mr. McDevitt said in the past, the Selectmen had shown= dissatisfaction regarding the zoning enforcement process, therefore had requested a meeting with Planning Director Will D’Andrea.

Mr. D’Andrea referred the Selectmen to a draft d= ocument entitled Service Request Enforcement General Procedures that he would like = to implement. He believed the ou= tlined procedure would be effective in providing a structure for following up with code enforcement questions. H= e said the document was a work in progress and provided a framework structure to w= ork under. Mr. D’Andrea sai= d any request/inquiry relating to building codes, zoning ordinances, septic appro= vals or plans approved by the Planning Board would require that a service reques= t form be filed with the Planning Department.&nbs= p; The Planning Director will assign the party responsible for followin= g up with the complaint. He said a color-coded file system had been created for all Planning Department files;= complaints will be documented in an orange file. Within three-business days of a complaint being filed, a site visit = will occur; digital photos will be taken. The Planning Director will make a determination of violation upon re= view of the investigation documentation at which point a course of action will be decided. Mr. D’Andrea s= aid if a violation was observed, the Town could begin enforcement action within fi= ve days. He went on to describe = the process that would be taken in the event of a violation. He explained the tracking system f= or violations that would be used.

Mr. Danevich asked if there would be tracking numbers = for violations and if there would be status updates. Mr. D’Andrea said violations= would be filed by map and lot number. He said a spread sheet could be created. Mr. McDevitt asked that the spread sheet be provided to the Selectmen periodically.

Mr. D’Andrea continued to explain how inquiries = would be handled and assigned all which would be coordinated through the Planning Office.

Mr. Lynde asked if the Town had people that could cite people and bring them to court. Mr. D’Andrea said the Health Officer had some immediate recourses/actions that they were empowered to do, however general code enforcement was a drawn out process through documentation and offering opportunities to come into compliance. He said the case = could then be taken to superior court. Mr. Gaydos didn’t believe that the person had to be in uniform= to represent the Town. He said o= ne of the challenges that the Town had yet to consider was the fact that court to= ok all day, and some of the employees were part-time. Mr. Lynde said empowering the zoni= ng enforcement officer may save on legal costs. Mr. Gaydos said some of the surrou= nding towns had done such successfully. Mr. D’Andrea said legal counsel would only be brought in when a case was going to court; all documentation and contact would be through the Planning Office.

Mr. McDevitt reiterated that the Selectmen would like = to view a violation status report on a regular basis. There was a question about how ano= nymous complaints would be handled. = Mr. D’Andrea said anonymous complaints would be accepted and followed up. He said the name of the p= erson making a complaint was helpful if the violation went to court so that they could testify. Mr. Gaydos sug= gested creating a notebook (for the reading file) that contained a documented hist= ory of violations for easy reference.

Mr. McDevitt asked Mr. D’Andrea to come back to = the Selectmen June 8,= 2004 with an update of the process.

Mr. Bergeron was pleased that Mr. D’Andrea had c= reated the process and thanked him for focusing on the task.

Mr. Danevich asked that the ‘closure’ para= graph be added to the document, as well as an area that charted the escalation of= the project for accountability. <= /p>

Mr. Gaydos said if the process was going to succeed, complaints should be forwarded to Mr. D’Andrea.

OTHER BUSI= NESS

No Hunting Ordinance on Town Parks

Mr. McDevitt said last fall some residents had raised concern regarding Elmer G. Raymond Park because it was not posted against hunting and they walked their dog in the park. He noted that the Town had no ordi= nance or hunting prohibition at any Town parks.&= nbsp; He said the proposal before the Board is that a ‘No Hunting= 217; provision ordinance be adopted for Elmer G. Raymond Park and suggested including PVMP and Muldoo= n Park. He said Town Counsel had advised t= hat the Selectmen had the authority to control hunting on land that the Town ow= ned and controlled. He said the l= and would have to be posted to prosecute. He ended by saying if action was to be taken, it should be done so before next fall.

Mr. Bergeron said he wanted to hear more about the complaints. Mr. McDevitt said= one person was walking their dog in Elmer G. Raymond Park and heard gunshots. He said another person encountered hunters in Elmer G. Raymond Park and informed them they were in a Town park; the hunters said because it was not posted, they were allowed to hunt.

Mr. Gaydos felt the Selectmen should clarify whether t= hey were considering a ‘no hunting ordinance’ or a ‘firearm discharge regulation’. = Mr. Danevich felt the proposed language was inclusive of hunting activities, not only firearm, but bow hunting. Mr. McDevitt said his concern was the parks were active recreation areas and th= ere were many other areas in Town where hunting was allowed.

Mr. Lynde asked if the property would need to be poste= d if an ordinance was approved. Mr. McDevitt understood the property would need to post signs. He read aloud a portion of RSA 675= :4a (adoption of ordinance).

Mr. McDevitt suggested that the Selectmen add an agend= a item for the next meeting. He also= felt that all three parks should be included.

Mr. John Sweren, Marsh Road suggested in the interest = of hunters, that certain Town land be set aside for hunting with signs posted = that read trespass at own risk. He= felt that land was being taken away that hunters had used for centuries. Mr. McDevitt said there was approximately 1000 acres of Town land, 350 of which was active recreation land.

Castle Hill<= /st1:PlaceType> Road Bridge – Reconstruction Plans=

Mr. Gaydos provided a brief history and noted that both Pelham and Windham= had voted to fund project study and preliminary design of the Castle Hill Bridge. He said funds had been raised and = once the final design was completed the Town would request that state reimbursem= ent for the project. He said the = Town would have to decide if the construction would be funded in the upcoming bu= dget (2005).

Mr. Lynde asked if the Town had sufficient funding for= all expenses on Tallant and C= astle Hill Bridges (excluding the construction). Mr. Gaydos said the Town had the f= unding available and had made commitments up to and including the final design for= the Castle Hill Road Bridge and the commitment for the Tallant Road Bridge was = for construction. Mr. Lynde revie= wed the funds currently set aside for the bridge projects. He confirmed that there would not = be major alignments. Mr. Gaydos answered yes.

Mr. Derby asked if the Willow Street Bridge project had = been scheduled. Mr. Gaydos said the Selectmen had not formally indicated they would like to pursue at this poin= t.

Mr. Lynde reviewed warrant article #26 from the 2002 t= own meeting, which stated cost and reimbursements. He said there appeared to be a disconnect. Mr. McDevitt said= there needed to be some clarification. He said he would review with Mr. Gaydos.

Tallant Road<= /st1:PlaceName> Bridge – Vote on Closing During Construction

Mr. McDevitt said there were numerous discussions rega= rding the options for the Talla= nt Road Bridge during construction. He felt = the Selectmen should make a decision.

Mr. Bergeron discussed the Tallant Road Bridge site, which = he had reviewed, and said he was in favor of closing the bridge during constructio= n.

Mr. Derby was in favor of closing the Tallant Road Bridge during construction because he felt there would be a bigger safety factor if the bridge remained open.

Mr. Lynde favored closing the <= st1:PlaceName w:st=3D"on">Tallant Road Bridge primarily fr= om a safety point of view but also due to costs.

Mr. Danevich felt the Tallant Road Bridge should be closed. He noted that through= an informal discussion with a couple Planning Board members, they had also expressed their support for closing the bridge.

Mr. McDevitt agreed that the bridge should be closed.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> He said if the Selectmen vote to c= lose the bridge, it was understood that part of the approval was that the Police Chief, who had previously presented specific recommendations, would develop plans to handle the traffic issues during construction. Mr. Gaydos said once the Selectmen= made a decision, the first thing would be to notify the Police Chief, develop a = plan and inform the public. He sai= d the Police Department’s efforts would be paid for out of the project.

MOTION:=

(Lynde/Bergeron) To close the Tallant Road Bridge during the bridge reconstruction this year. <= /span>

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

“Com= pass” System Update

Mr. Gaydos explained that the ‘Compass’ Sy= stem was an initiative that was launched by the Governor and the Department of M= otor Vehicles in an effort to bring the computer age to municipalities and how t= hey renew motor vehicle registrations. He said the state would like the Town to participate in the program.= After speaking with other towns, i= t was indicated that there were a number of unresolved issues. Mr. Gaydos said it might be best t= o wait and see how some of the problems were ‘ironed’ out. He discussed some of the issues th= at may affect the Town, but felt the program was worth watching.

Mr. Lynde asked how the motor vehicle fee collection p= rocess would be handled. Mr. Gaydos = said the Town would still collect all of our fees.&= nbsp; He said the current set up was that the state would absorb the costs associated with payments through credit cards. He noted that the Town’s wou= ld be responsible to ensure that the process worked.

Mr. McDevitt asked if Derry was using the Compass System. Mr. Gaydos said Derry was using the Map Syst= em, which was very different.

Mr. Danevich agreed that there were a lot of issues th= at still needed to be worked out, but was glad that the program would be coming.

Award Bid = for Spring Street Extension

Mr. Gaydos said that the Town went through the bid pro= cess and received a low bid ($181,411) from Newport Construction Corporation. The total cost ($191,727) for improvements will be split up and paid for by those who reside, or benefit = from the improvements. He said the= Town portion upgrades would cost $27,183. = (note: that $200,000 had been raised through a warrant article at the 2003 town meeting and $35,000 had been raised through a warrant article at = the 2004 town meeting)

MOTION:=

(Danevich/Bergeron) To award the bid to Newport Construction Corporation for $189,411 for roadway improvements to Spring Street Extension.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

Status of “A” List Priorities

Mr. McDevitt reviewed the ‘A’ list items o= n the Selectmen’s priority list.

Assignment= of Executive Sponsors for Priorities

To be discussed at the next meeting.

BOS Calend= ar

Mr. McDevitt said any input, questions, or concerns sh= ould be brought forward and discussed.

Welfare Ca= se Management Update

Mr. Gaydos discussed the status of the Welfare Case Management. He said during th= e last eighteen weeks, twenty-one applications had been received, of which six app= ear to be long-term. He said to d= ate approximately 70% of the budget had been spent. Most of the assistance was through housing.

MISCELLANE= OUS

Mr. McDevitt provided the Selectmen with a copy of the Town’s Conflict of Interest Policy, which was last updated in 1982. He said the Selectmen may want to review.

Mr. McDevitt said the VFW was coordinating their month= ly meetings through the Selectmen’s office. There were no objections.

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S/SELECTMEN’S REPORTS

Mr. Gaydos said work was being done on the lawn and so= d was being put down next to the building. He said the seed and fertilizer would be completed by Saturday. He then reported that the heating = system in the Police Department had been further reviewed. The baseboard heating locations pr= oposed by Breadloaf were acceptable by the Police Chief. Mr. Gaydos said he would recommend= that Breadloaf continue the process of installing the heating system; Breadloaf = will stand behind the system if there are any problems in the upcoming winter. Mr. Gaydos informed that the Town = had continuing discussions with one individual regarding easements in connection with the Tallant Road Bridge project. He said it didn̵= 7;t appear that there would be a conclusion, and requested permission to begin eminent domain proceedings to gain the easements so the project could continue. Mr. McDevitt said it appeared to be the best step to take. There were no objections.

MOTION:=

(Lynde/Bergeron) To grant permission to Mr. Gaydos to begin eminent domain proceedings to secure the necessary rights-of-way for the Tallant Road Bridge.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

Mr. Bergeron had no report.

Mr. Derby said the Budget Committee would meet Thursday. The concerns were t= hat the state was pulling back some of the funds received in the past.

Mr. Danevich had no report.

Mr. Lynde had no report.

Mr. McDevitt had no report.

Mr. Gaydos ended by informing on May 28, 2004 (approximately 7:30am) there would be a full-scale ex= ercise in connection with Homeland Security.

REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION

MOTION:=

(Lynde/Danevich) Request for a non-public session pe= r RSA 91-A:3,II, a (Personnel)

ROLL CALL:<= /b>

Mr. McDevitt-Yes; Mr. Danevich-Yes; Mr. Lynde-Yes; M= r. Bergeron-Yes; Mr. Derby-Yes

Mr. McDevitt noted that when the Board returned, after= the non-public session, the Board would not take any other action publicly, exc= ept to seal the minutes of the non-public session and to adjourn the meeting. The Board entered into a non-public session at approximately 8:= 48 pm. Also present was Mr. Gaydos.

The Board returned to public session at approximately = 9:17 pm.

MOTION:=

(Lynde/Bergeron) To seal the minutes of the non-publ= ic session indefinitely.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

ADJOURNMEN= T

MOTION:<= o:p>

(Lynde/Bergeron) To adjourn the meeting.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carri= ed.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:17 pm.

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Respe= ctfully submitted,

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Chari= ty A. L. Willis

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Recor= ding Secretary