APPROVED
TOWN OF
BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING
MINUTES
APPROVED –
Meeting opened at
Appointment – Exit Interview with John Lyford of Mason &
Rich, Town Auditors
CALL TO ORDER
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
|
PRESENT: |
Mr. Victor Danevich, Mr. Edmund Gleason, Mr. Jean-Gu= y Bergeron, Mr. Tom Domenico, Town Administrator Tom Gaydos |
|
Also present: ABSENT: |
Members of the press and general public. Mr. Harold Lynde |
Mr. Danevich began the meeting by reading aloud a lett= er submitted by Mr. Andy Ducharme. Mr. Ducharme thanked Tim from the Highway Department for fixing his mailbox aft= er being hit by a snowplow.
MINUTES REVIEW
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Gleason/Bergeron) To approve the |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The motion carri= ed. |
The amendments to the minutes were as follows: page 1,= Open Forum – the words ‘had been’ were replaced with ‘wa= s in the process of being ’; the words ‘has bought’ were repla= ced with ‘…is buying 40% of Verizon assets in…’; page 2, last paragraph – the word ‘road’ was replaced by the word ‘development’ in the following ‘…the proposed development and..’; page 3, 3rd paragraph – the words ‘the proposed’ were replaced with ‘…road connectivi= ty in this area…’; 6th paragraph – the words ‘that the’ were replaced with ‘to be determined for which the’; there were also grammatical corrections made.
OPEN FORUM
Mr. Leo Thibeault,
APPOINTMENTS
Paul Zarnowski, Deputy Health Officer – Article K Waivers<= o:p>
The Selectmen convened as the Board of Health with Cha= irman, Deputy Health Officer Paul Zarnowski they heard the following:
Continuation =
of
Mr. Danevich thanked the applicant for making the ten changes requested at the last meeting.&nbs= p; He noted that information was added that indicated the advantages of= a new system: 1) septic tank will be 50ft. from well as opposed to 40ft.- improves bad condition making it better; 2) leach field is an additional 10= ft. further from well; and 3) new field down slope from the well – effluent will drain away from well.
Mr. Gleason confirmed that the measurement of 32ft. wa=
s from
the center of the well to the edge of the external wall of the building.
There was no public inpu= t.
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Danevich/Domenico) To approve the waiver request to
Pelham Health Ordinance, Se=
ction
295-16 requiring 50ft. from septic to well – 32ft. being
requested. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Danevich/Domenico) To approve the waiver to Section=
295-16
of the Pelham Health Ordinance where 75ft is required from the leach fiel=
d to the well - 60ft. is requested.=
|
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Danevich/Domenico) To approve the Article K request=
plan,
subject to approval by the =
New
Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
Mr. Danevich said he was trying to orientate himself t= o the plan; it appeared there were two different houses that appeared to be using= the same septic. Mr. Dingman said= there were two different houses and two different systems; lot 147 had a tank and pump chamber that pumped up to the existing leach field; the existing house= for lot 160 feeds gravity down across Andover Street to the large proposed Clean Solutions treatment tank. He briefly described the proposed system.&nbs= p; Mr. Danevich further reviewed the plan and confirmed that the waiver request was only for the one well the system passed. It was noted that a second waiver = was needed for the owner’s well also.&nb= sp; Mr. Danevich said he would like the plan clarified because as presen= ted, it was difficult to determine what was being requested. Mr. Zarnowski asked that the appli= cant define the limits of the abutting lot (owner name and address, map & lot number) so it was clearer as well as having a setback arrow (indicating footage) from the abutting well to the sewer line.
PUBLIC INPUT
Donna and Jay Bibeau,
Mr. Zarnowski said the scale on the plan showed the pr= oposed sewer line to be approximately 30ft. from the Bibeau’s well and approximately 12ft from the on-site well.&= nbsp;
Mr. Bibeau said he had lived at the location for approximately 20 years and noted that the abutter dug their well approximat= ely two years ago. Ms. Bibeau ask= ed who granted the waivers and wanted to know who would be liable if there was a problem to their well. Mr. Zarnowski described what was being proposed and the fact that both pipes wo= uld be pressure tested. Mr. Dingm= an noted that the pipe-in-pipe system had been a state standard for wetland crossings etc. Ms. Bibe= au asked how long the proposed system had been in effect and tested how long it took for the outside pipe to let go once the inner pipe failed. Mr. Dingman said the double pipe s= ystem had been used by the state (on and off) for approximately 35 years. He said to the best of his abiliti= es every setback that was obtainable was designed into the system; the waiver = was being requested because of the lot sizes and proximities.
Mr. Domenico asked what condition the existing septic = was in. Mr. Zarnowski said it was= in relatively poor shape located on the line.= Mr. Domenico confirmed that the existing system fell within the radi= us of the two existing wells. Mr. Zarnowski answered yes. Ms. B= ibeau said the abutter’s property had never been a year-round property and = the system wasn’t meant to facilitate that type of use. She said the property was a season= al camp. Mr. Zarnowski explained= that the system had been designed to make the best of the situation. He wanted to know what depth the s= ewer line would be and if it would take the wheel load. Mr. Dingman said the specification= at the lower note was that the line was to be buried at a minimum grade of 4-f= eet below the surface of the road and have foam and thermal barrier placed over= the entire crossing. Ms. Bibeau n= oted that the road washed away and they lost footage (sand) yearly; periodically= new material was added. Mr. Bibeau informed that there was a lot of rock in the area. Mr. Dingman said they performed te= st pits which had been witnessed; they had above and below system criteria of 8-feet of natural material and no bedrock was encountered.
Mr. Zarnowski said in summary the decision was whether=
to
keep a system with no treatment and may not be adequate in size for the cur=
rent
use of the site or to put something that would be adequately sized providing
proper treatment to the site. He
didn’t see any other way to further protect the abutter’s
well. Ms. Bibeau said if the =
lot
was to remain a summer camp there were alternate systems, such as a composi=
tion
system. Her concern was
contamination to her well and devaluation of her home. She said it the system was allowed=
the
abutter would want to make the property year-round. Mr. Zarnowski said he had a docume=
nt
from the Town indicating the property was year-round. Ms. Bibeau said she also had a doc=
ument
(dated
Mr. Bergeron questioned if the Board granted a waiver = who would be liable (owner or the Town) in the event the system failed. Mr. Zarnowski didn’t have the answer. He said the state had= no regulation regarding the setback. He said it may be advisable for the abutter to work something out wi= th the current owner; cases of contamination are difficult to determine. Mr. Bergeron said he wanted to kno= w the status of the property, whether it was seasonal or year-round.
Mr. Domenico asked how many bedrooms the propose syste= m was rated for. Mr. Dingman said i= t was rated for three. Mr. Domenico= said he didn’t want a request to come later for an addition. Mr. Danevich said a stipulation co= uld be added to an approval.
Mr. Gaydos summarized the request as improving a situa= tion by placing a larger septic system away from the property, across the road a= nd that the larger septic system could accommodate three bedrooms. He said the question was what assu= rances are there that the construction wouldn’t change over time. Mr. Dingman explained that he trie= d to design in at least 100% plus safety barriers to the design. Mr. Gaydos asked if there would be= more danger to the abutter’s wells if the proposed system was not approved. Mr. Dingman believe= d that was correct. Ms. Bibeau sugge= sted that the applicant could use a composition system. Mr. Bibeau explained that the neighborhood was shaped like a horseshoe and the leach field was being prop= osed for the center of it; if it fails, there would be sewer in the center. Mr. Zarnowski explained how the sy= stem pre-treated effluent. Mr. Dingman said he= had provided the abutters with pamphlets explaining the Clean Solutions system.= He said the proposed would be a cl= eaner system than those in the area.
Ms. Bibeau questioned what purpose the proposed system= had if the property was only a camp. Mr. Dingman said it gave the neighborhood and the applicant a shot at the technologies now available. Ms. Bibeau said they could use a composition system. Mr. Dingman said the applicant didn’t want a composition system, they wanted the best technology available.
Mr. Gleason asked if other areas were reviewed for a separate septic system. Mr. D= ingman answered no; the middle lot had the setbacks. Mr. Gleason asked if one system wo= uld service two separate residences. Mr. Dingman said there were two separate, independent systems on the center lot. Each home had its own independent system on the one lot. Mr. Gleason believed it was incumbent upon the applicant to convince= the abutter’s that the proposed system was safe. He asked if there was any plan to periodically test the system to ascertain that there had not been a rupture= /break. Mr. Dingman said the way it would = be installed, it shouldn’t rupture or break. Also, the pressure testing prior to installation would confirm that. Mr. Zarnowski said from what he had seen the engineer had done the b= est they could with the lot. He s= aid the wells could be periodically tested.&nb= sp; Mr. Gleason said even with periodic testing, the liability (if the waiver was granted) was on the Town.
Mr. Domenico asked if the tangent be directed to come = in another way with an easement on another property. Mr. Dingman said to his knowledge = an easement wouldn’t be granted by the other abutter. Mr. Zarnowski said the best that c= ould be achieved is 40ft.
Mr. Danevich said the placement of the well on the Bibeau’s property infringed upon the rights of the applicant. He said the applicant was trying t= o make an improvement by using the double pipe which he felt was a dramatic improvement to the current (which was already within the 75ft. well radius). He said the Town was= not in a position to guarantee nothing would happen, but Mr. Zarnowski could be contacted in the event something went wrong. He said he was trying to balance t= he applicant’s request and the concerns of the abutter.
Mr. Bibeau reiterated that if his well became contamin= ated, he had no other location to put one. Ms. Bibeau said she believed the applicant’s intention was to = make the lot year-round and sell the two properties together. She confirmed that the waiver came= from the Selectmen. Mr. Danevich answered yes.
Mr. Zarnowski suggested that the designer create a doc= ument showing the pros and cons for the existing versus the proposed. Mr. Danevich wanted to verify if t= he property was seasonal or year-round. He read aloud a memo from the Planning Department (a copy of which w= as provided to the Bibeaus) that indicated the property met the standards for a year-round occupancy. Mr. Bib= eau questioned how the property could be considered year-round based on its cur= rent condition. Mr. Danevich said = that issue was outside the scope of the Board of Health. Ms. Bibeau said her main negativit= y came from the fact that she received a letter requesting her to sign off on all = rights that the abutter would contaminate her well.
Mr. Danevich asked for the following: 1) letter determ= ining the house status – year-round or seasonal; 2) lot line shown on the p= lan; 3) add arrow depicting the abutter’s well and distance to septic; 4) = add lot and map numbers for abutting parcels; 5) note that the plan is two bedr= oom and doesn’t constitute any grounds for Board of Adjustment considerat= ion on expansion; 6) abutting septic systems be shown on plan (or their approxi= mate location). Mr. Gleason said he would like to see the applicant working with the abutters to explain the sy= stem to allay some of their fears. He said he would feel better about voting favorably if there was concurrence w= ith the abutters.
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Gleason/Domenico) To adjourn the Board of Health. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
The Selectmen reconvened= .
Selectman,
Jean-Guy Bergeron – Request for Unanimous Consent Final Report to the
Board of Selectmen and the Public
Mr. Bergeron addressed the Board and s= aid the following:
“Chairman
Danevich, Vice Chairman Gleason, Selectman Lynde if you’re home watch=
ing
and also, Selectman Domenico this being my last meeting, I thank you for the
unanimous consent to allow me to address you and the public here, the public
that are here and you that are watching from home. When I ran for Selectman in 2001, =
I ran
to serve the residents of the Town of
As a Selectman=
I felt
it was also important to the Town to be represented at other tables such as=
the
Merrimack Valley Regional Water District, as a Commissioner to the NRPC in Nashua, the Southern New
Hampshire Hazmat District, CTAP, Context Sensitive Solution, Citizen Corps
Council, Council on Aging and I attended Cemetery Trustee meetings.
It’s bee=
n an
honor for me to work with this Board and other Selectmen over the last six
years and even though we haven’t always agreed with each other,
we’ve always respected one another.&=
nbsp;
I often hear people say
‘Selectmen, that’s a thankless job’. Well until you do the job, you really don’t
know. For me, it’s been=
a
thankful job. I was able to s=
erve
the residents of Pelham with the help of our Town Employees, Department Hea=
ds,
appointed Board members, Town volunteers, our Town Administrator, fellow Bo=
ard
members and members of other boards outside of the Town. I thank you all for your support a=
nd
service.
We recently le=
arned of
the resignation of Commissioner Carol Murray of the Department of
Transportation. She will be d=
early
and deeply missed by all. I w=
ant to
thank her for all her help, assistance, knowledge, wisdom and insight to the
Town of
I think a new =
similar
concept could be applied to any project in the Town, such as to existing la=
nd,
purchasing land, renovations, additions, existing buildings, new buildings =
and
even maintenance that is badly needed.&nbs=
p;
The concept first: identify and build consensus of the problems in a
problem statement and then build a consensus to a solution that is affordab=
le
to all the citizens of the Town of Pelham; and now you’re ready for a
warrant article.
The stakeholde=
rs in
Pelham are the 13,000 plus citizens of the Town of
Connectivity.<=
span
style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> We often speak of it in Town, but =
how
about outside of Town. Our ro=
ads
and bridges don’t stop or end at our Town lines. They continue North, South, East a=
nd
West. I have two regional con=
cerns,
first a corporation is planning a huge development at the golf course in
Daniel Gionet.=
I think of him often. His wife, mother and father, broth=
er and
sister, and his grandparents. Let
us never forget Daniel, and other soldiers, and their loved ones. They are always in my prayers.
My service on =
the
Board of Selectmen was made possible because of the support from my loving =
wife
Emma, my family and my employees, and you the citizens of Pelham. As I mentioned earlier, six years,=
day
by day, that’s about 2190 days that I have had the honor, and pleasur=
e to
serve as your Selectman. I
sincerely thank you for your votes, your trust and for this experience. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
The Selectmen each thank= ed Mr. Bergeron for his hard work and continuing dedication to the Town.
Mr. Danevich also thanke= d Mr. Lynde for his commitment and contributions to the Town.
Jim Greenw=
ood,
Cable Coordinator – Review and possible vote to adopt updated PTV
Policies and Procedures
Mr. Jim Greenwood met with the Selectmen to review the proposed changes to the PTV Policies, which had not been updated since 1996. The Selectmen began discussing the proposed changes; it was decided that the Selectmen would forward feedback/proposed amendments to Mr. Greenwood and revisit the polic= y at a later date.
OTHER BUSINESS
Discussion – Pelham CERT – Sanction as Town Agency
Mr. Gaydos said it was important that the Town have th=
e CERT
program. He looked at how eff=
ective
other communities were in running their CERT programs; most of which were m=
ost
effective when they are recognized as a volunteer Town Agency. He explained that the volunteers h=
ad no
liability or workman’s compensation coverage. He asked the Selectmen to review t=
he
Committee Charge (to operate under RSA 91:A) and model language created by =
Mr. Danevich asked if the group had By-Laws. Mr. Gaydos said CERT had By-Laws, =
which
should be formally adopted by the Selectmen and available for public
inspection. He questioned if =
there
would be any cost to the Town. Mr.
Gaydos said they wouldn’t have any budget ‘per se’; howev=
er,
as with any other volunteers the Town’s insurance would cover them.
Mr. Gleason felt a clarification should be made that t=
he
proposed committee change would address the responsibility of the CERT Coun=
cil
and what their charter would be.
Mr. Gaydos said the document would cover the entire organization.
Mr. Bergeron said there was a Citizen Council that was= in existence that provided oversight to the CERT program and potentially other programs besides CERT. He understood what was being attempted with the document/insurance and was hop= eful that the Council agreed. He s= aid CERT was under the Council and there could be other parts as well. He said appointments had in the pa= st been done by the Council.
Fire Chief Michael Walker, who was seated with the pub= lic, stepped up and explained what organizations were under the Council. He said the goal was to bring the organizations under the Town’s umbrella for liability due to the work they do during emergency situations. He further discussed the interconnection of the volunteer organizati= on with the Town’s emergency responders.
Mr. Danevich confirmed that the document was not seeki= ng to change the way in which CERT operated, but rather to formalize/adopt guidelines. He said if the Se= lectmen had any input/comments they should forward them to Mr. Gaydos to create a d= raft document.
Insurance Services Survey
Fire Chief Michael Walker explained that currently the Insurance Service offices rated the Town between 1 and 10 (1 being perfect)= . He said currently there were portio= ns of the Town that were rated 10 and didn’t meet minimum standards for fire protection and other portions that were rated 9, which just met minimum standards. He said currently = there was no survey for the Town. H= e said he had researched through insurance companies and informed if the Town was = to go to a grade 6 the overall savings would be approximately five hundred thousand dollars for the citizens. <= /span>Chief Walker said they would like to invite ISO Insurance Services in to do a detailed survey at the end of the summer.&= nbsp; He said the possibility was that the Town’s grade could go up. He discussed the componen= ts that would be done in the survey. =
Mr. Domenico stepped out= of the room.
Mr. Danevich explained that when a homeowner files for homeowner’s insurance the insurance company reviews the Town’s rating and creates a rate schedule. Chief Walker said insurance companies contact him to find out the Town’s rating. Mr. Dane= vich asked if there was any cost. = Chief Walker said there would be some overtime costs by the Fire Department and s= ome by Pennichuck Water doing surveys. He said once the documents were created, they would come back to the Selectmen as a strategic planning document to determine what they wanted to achieve. There were associate= d cost that were unknown at this point; the Chief was seeking permission to request the survey and determine the costs based on the pre-survey documents.
There was no objection by the Selectmen to allow Chief Walker to take the next steps to start the process. When it gets to the next step of finalizing costs the Selectmen wanted to review.
Mr. Domenico returned. <= /p>
Discussion – Revocation of Fire Impact Fee and possible vo=
te
Mr. Danevich explained that the Selectmen in conjuncti=
on
with the Planning Board were in the process of implementing a new impact
fee. He said during the Plann=
ing
Board hearing process, there was some input during the final stages that
resulted in possible revisions of the final schedule and some of the fees.<=
span
style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> The Selectmen had been asked to re=
voke
their approval so the process could go back to the Planning Board and begin
again. The existing fees cont=
inue
to be collected; the request was in connection with the new fee schedule.
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Gleason/Domenico) To rescind the previous approval =
of the
proposed new Fire Impact Fee Schedule, with the intent of it coming back =
after
final revisions from the Planning Board. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
Mr. Gaydos will relay the Selectmen’s vote to the Planning Board.
Police Chief Application Deadline Extension to
Mr. Danevich said there was an inadvertent error publi=
shed
in the deadline date. He said=
the
deadline was extended to
OHRV Grant
Mr. Gaydos said the request seemed to be an annual req= uest from the Police Department. He explained that the OHRV enforcement grant came from the state; the funds we= re utilized to perform OHRV enforcement. He said the Board would be asked to sign and notarize the document.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> He said the Town had successfully = used the grant since he had been in Town.
Mr. Gleason noted that the deadline was
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Gleason/Domenico) To authorize Mr. Danevich to sign=
the
grant on behalf of the Selectmen.
|
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
TOWN ADMINISTRATOR/SELECTMEN REPORTS
Mr. Gaydos had no report= .
Mr. Domenico informed that he sent a draft letter indi=
cating
that the Planning Board was preparing and would probably ratify as a group =
the
safety issue on
Mr. Gleason informed that he sat with the auditor duri=
ng the
exit interview and discussed the difficulties that occurred. He said it was brought to his atte=
ntion
that the Town did go out with an RFP; 5 bidders were solicited, 3 didn̵=
7;t
respond, 1 no bid, only 1 bid received.&nb=
sp;
He felt the Selectmen should address the situation at the next meeti=
ng
because at this point there wasn’t a competitive bid, but there was a
responsible bidder. Mr. Gaydos
noted that a commitment letter would need to be signed to be able to reserve
the time. Mr. Gleason said he=
would
like the list of bidders solicited and the responses that were received.
Mr. Danevich said the 2007 Warrant Web Site was availa=
ble
for the public to review. The=
Town
reports were delivered this week and the Voter Guide will be sent out later
this week. Mr. Danevich thank=
ed the
Voter Information Society for hosting Candidate’s Night. He ended by reminding residents to=
vote
Mr. Bergeron said he was asked to supply a list of CTAP
Committee list of volunteers. He
said he met with the Planning Director and believed there were three people=
; NPRC
recommended five or six people. Mr.
Bergeron then presented the Town with a
ADJOURNMENT
|
MOTION:<= o:p> |
(Bergeron/Gleason) To adjourn the meeting. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carri=
ed. |
The meeting was adjourne=
d at
approximately
&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Respectfully submitted,
&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Charity A. L. Willis
&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Recording Secretary
BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING/March 6, 2007