APPROVED
TOWN OF
BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING
MINUTES
APPROVED &#=
8211;
CALL TO ORDER –
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
|
PRESENT: |
Mr. Douglas Viger, Mr. = Robert Haverty, Mr. Harold Lynde, Mr. William McDevitt, Town Administrator Tom Gaydos |
|
Also present: ABSENT: |
Members of the press and general public. Mr. Victor Danevich |
OPEN FORUM
None.
APPOINTMENTS
Elderly Tax Exemptions
Mr. McDevitt stated that = last March he encountered two people that expressed disappointment that the Town= had not updated its Elderly Exemption for a long time. He said the current law allowed pe= ople of certain ages and certain incomes to pay slightly reduced property taxes. In researching, he fou= nd it had been ten or more years since the Town updated its exemptions. Mr. McDevitt outlined the current guidelines: persons aged 65-74 could receive an exemption of $25,000 in assessed value if certain criteria were met (single – net income less than $19,000 / married – combined net income of less than $28,100) and whether single or married assets can’t exceed $60,000 (not including = the home). Persons aged 75 and ov= er who meet the criteria don’t pay any taxes. He put together a packet of inform= ation for the Selectmen to review which included towns that Pelham might compare itself to. He felt Pelham sho= uld (modestly) increase the income and maximum asset limits to be a little more relevant. He was hesitant bec= ause with changes in exemptions a dollar in tax not paid by one party would wind= up being paid by somebody else. = There was also fair concern with not updating the numbers for ten plus years; it shouldn’t go for much longer.
Mr. McDevitt reviewed the=
number
of people requesting exemptions and found it curious that there were
approximately ten people aged 65-74 receiving an exemption and approximately
forty people 75 (plus) receiving an exemption. He then reviewed the suggested
amendments (that were revised using compound numbers from the past ten years
and the assessed valuation): for persons aged 65-74 - single income would
change from $19,000 to $25,000; married income would change from $28,000 to
37,000. Maximum assets would =
change
from $60,000 to $80,000. The
assessed value reduction would go from $25,000 to $33,000. He said one of the problems is whe=
n the
amounts are increased it would be unknown how many people would qualify.
Mr. Viger questioned if t= here was any restriction to stop other family members moving in with those having ex= emptions. Mr. Gaydos answered no. He said the Town had that type of situation that went to the Board of Tax and Land Appeal and were informed t= hat the law doesn’t specify other household income.
There was further discuss= ion regarding the suggested amendment to the exemption. Mr. Lynde suggested changing the starting age for total exemption from age 75 to 76 if the amendments were p= ut forward to limit the number of new people qualifying. Mr. Gaydos said the total amount of taxes (spread amongst the Town taxpayers) for the age 65-74 range was approximately $4300; the amount (spread amongst the Town taxpayers) of taxes for people receiving 100% was approximately $166,000. He said he could work with Mr. McD= evitt to draft language for Selectmen’s review.
After a brief discussion,= there was an agreement that Mr. Gaydos and Mr. McDevitt would work on language and bring it back for discussion at the next meeting.
Parks & Recreation: <=
/span>
Request for Warrant Article to Expend Muldoon Trust Funds – <=
/b>Park
& Recreation Director Brian Johnson came forward to discuss the
request. He stated that there=
was a
drain at
Mr. Gaydos noted that at = a further point in the meeting he would review with the Selectmen a list of items to = be encumbered from 2008.
Edmund Gleason Chairman, = Trustee of the Trust Funds came forward stated that he had done the research on all= the trust funds and made recommendations to Mr. Gaydos. He stated that the Muldoon trust f= und (private fund for the maintenance and operation of Muldoon with Selectmen as agents = to expend) had approximately $2100 in it.&nbs= p; He said the request appeared to be a legitimate expense. Mr. Gaydos asked if there was anot= her fund at Muldoon. Mr. Gleason = said the other fund was the public fund (based on funds being transferred from Capital Reserve). Both funds = were designated/established for the expendable trust funds for the operation and maintenance of Muldoon; in Mr. Gleason’s opinion, both funds could be expended for projects associated with maintenance/operation of Muldoon. The private fund contained approxi= mately $2100; the public fund contained approximately $575. In both instances the Selectmen we= re designated as agents to expend.
A motion was made to expe= nd money out of the trust fund. Mr. Gl= eason asked that one dollar remain in the fund so that it would be open to accept donations.
|
MOTION: |
(Lynde/Haverty=
) To
expend $2100 out of the private reserve Muldoon Trust Fund for the purpos=
e of
maintenance at |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
Mr. Gleason then discusse= d the Raymond Park Fund. He stated = that the fund had approximately $40,000; $15,000 of which constituted the princi= pal that came from a capital reserve fund.&nbs= p; He noted that the warrant article stipulated that the funds were for= the maintenance, operation and improvement of Raymond Park; the Selectmen were = not designated as the agents to expend.
Mr. Viger said the Select= men were being asked to create a warrant article for the total of $12,250 which would include: $750 for erosion control on soccer fields (spread loam on slope and install jute screens that will grow and stabilize slope); $7500 for soccer = fields (repair damage from ATV’s, over seed and fertilize fields); $2000 for Parade Field (Harley rake, seed and fertilize field) and $2000 for Parade F= ield road (improvements to access road to Parade Field).
A motion was made to pres= ent a warrant article to withdraw $= 12,250 from the Raymond Park Trust Fund. Mr. Gleason noted that from the Trustee’s perspective, every article on the warrant was consistent with the intent of the trust. He said they would honor the requests. Mr. McDevitt pointe= d out that there would be no tax impact. <= /span>
Mr. Gaydos provided sugge= sted the draft wording: Shall the Town vote to withdraw $12,250 from the Raymond Park Trust Fund (account # 032673, created March 2, 1982) for the purpose of upk= eep and maintenance of the Elmer G. Raymond Park as follows: $750 for erosion control on soccer fields (spread loam on slope and install jute screens that will grow and stabilize slope); $7500 for soccer fields (repair damage from ATV’s, over seed and fertilize fields); $2000 for Parade Field (Harley rake, seed and fertilize field) and $2000 for Parade Field road (improvemen= ts to access road to Parade Field). No tax impact.
Mr. McDevitt confirmed th= at the wording was draft language. He asked that the wording be consistent with past articles (i.e. raise and appropriate $xxxx for the purpose of……and further to be offset by…). Mr. Gaydos said t= he language could be worded as suggested by Mr. McDevitt to be consistent with other years.
The motion was amended.
|
MOTION: |
(Lynde/McDevit= t) To accept the draft warrant article wording as Mr. Gaydos read aloud. |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
LWCF Grant Discussion for
There was a discussion re= garding the request. It was explained= that installing the lights would allow additional use of the field. Those using the field would be cha= rged and pay a fee to the revolving fund. Mr. Gaydos stated that the statute for the revolving fund spoke abou= t operating funds and facilities. Mr. McD= evitt said his discomfort with the request was not in connection with the need for the lights, but rather with the purpose of the fund. He said if the statute states faci= lities he was comfortable with the request. Mr. Gaydos said he would circulate the statute wording.
Mr. Gaydos said the Selec= tmen were being asked to approve Mr. Johnson’s ability to apply for the grant. When the grant is rece= ived Mr. Johnson will come back to the Selectmen to review the information once again.
Mr. Lynde questioned if a= grant had been received from the county for lights (at the skate park). Mr. Johnson said they had the phys= ical lights, they just weren’t installed.= Mr. Gaydos said this would be a separate grant, for separate lights = at a separate location. He said the electrical service to the park could be upgraded and take the lights they already had and install them at the skate park to complete that grant. Then take the Land Conservation gr= ant and install the lights at the softball field. Mr. Johnson said if the grant was = not received they wouldn’t be able to put up the lights at the skate park. Mr. Lynde asked if all = the funds from the county grant had been expended. Mr. Gaydos answered yes. He said everything needed had been purchased.
There was a consensus to = allow Mr. Johnson to apply for the grant.
Mr. Johnson provided the
Selectmen with an update regarding the skate rink and a list of the
donations. Mr. Haverty sugges=
ted
that the Selectmen schedule a public hearing to accept the donations. Mr. McDevitt said if there was to =
be a
shed donated (as Mr. Johnson indicated) the Selectmen should be informed of=
the
details (i.e. where it would be located, what it looked like). Mr. Gaydos understood that the shed
would be temporary. He had
reservations about having a shed in the woods because it would be an attrac=
tive
nuisance. He was intending to=
have
the public meeting on
Mr. Gaydos retrieved a co= py of the statute (31-B:1) regarding the uses of the revolving fund and read alou= d a portion of such. It indicated= that a support facility could be constructed, reconstruct, equipped and maintain= ed.
OTHER BUSINESS
Vehicle Bid Awards
Mr. Viger read aloud the = bid award results from sealed bids that were received for vehicles. The money collected ($1501) would = go back to the General Fund to offset taxes.&= nbsp;
* See attached for bid li= st and bid award list.
Support Union Tentative Agreement
Mr. Gaydos told the Selec= tmen that the tax payers had turned down a support contract for two years. A tentative agreement had been met= and had been ratified by the Support Union.&nb= sp; Mr. Gaydos hoped that the Selectmen would also ratify the agreement. He outlined the ch= anges that had been made which represented a total cost of $61,691 representing a 5.24% increase. He noted that= the contract would list the years 2007 – 2009 for continuity; there would= be no retroactive payment; the contract would be effective as of 2009.
The Selectmen discussed t= he importance of the contract. <= /p>
|
MOTION: |
(McDevitt/Lynd= e) To accept the tentative agreement of the Support Union. |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
Mr. Gaydos said the agree= ment would be brought to the Budget Committee.&= nbsp;
Mr. Viger asked if the Po= lice contract would be ready in time to be brought to the Budget Committee by January 13th. Mr. = Gaydos said they met earlier in the day and there were some decisions that the Pol= ice membership made to change their affiliation which presented some challenges. He said the Town = would be happy to work with them and accommodate if they could.
Mr. Gaydos stated there h= ad been regular meetings with the Supervisors.&nbs= p; He said he outlined a counter-proposal that would be provided in wri= ting for their review at their meeting later in the week. He was expecting/encouraged that t= here would be an agreement for the Selectmen to ratify by the Budget Committee’s meeting next week. Mr. Viger asked Mr. Gaydos to provide the Budget Committee with an update. Mr. Gaydos said he wo= uld do so.
Encumber Funds to 2009
Mr. Gaydos discussed the =
funds he
would like to encumber for the following:&=
nbsp;
$6775 (from Park & Recreation budget) for drain at
|
MOTION: |
(Haverty/Lynde=
) To
encumber $6775 for the purpose of the |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
Article to Discontinue Old Reserve Accounts
Mr. Gaydos said there wou= ld be warrant articles that came from the Trustees in working with the state. He said there were a number of acc= ounts that they weren’t sure when they were established; some had no value = in them.
There was a discussion re= garding the fund for the landfill. Mr. McDevitt said at one time when trash was burned at the incinerator the Town would bury the ashes from the incinerator in a small landfill located out behind the current Transfer Station (under the power lines). He said the state had identified i= t (as well as several other locations in the state) as something that should be remediated. He said the last = list he saw was five years ago and Pelham was on the end of the list. He stated Craig Mussleman (CMA Associates) had been asked to review the transition from incinerator to transfer station and comment on the ash land fill. In Mr. Mussleman’s report (a= nd verbally to the Selectmen), he indicated that the Town should ignore the ash landfill. The landfill was irrelevant and was causing no damage. Mr. McDevitt said the state was providing matching funds for remedia= tion but didn’t feel that the state would clean up the Town’s landfi= ll or require the Town to do so. He felt in difficult times holding onto money didn’t make sense.
Mr. Viger noted that the = state did periodic tests on the toxicity of the ash to ensure there weren’t issues with the dumping of ash. Mr. McDevitt said the state considered it a very low priority. He stated further that he wouldn&#= 8217;t give up the money if he thought that there was a problem. He suggested that the money was used.
|
MOTION: |
(McDevitt/Have= rty) To approve the following warrant article: To see if the Town would vote to discontinue the following Capital Reserve Funds, with the said funds with accumulated interest to date of withdrawal to be transferred to the Town’s General Fund: Landfill Closure, (est. date 1989)-$145,969; Revaluation (1994)-$4= 847; Valley Hill (no date) –no amount; Gibson Cemetery (no date) –= no amount; Highway Department vehicle(no date) no amount; St. Margaret’= ;s Drive (no date)-no amount; Abbott Bridge (no date) –no amount; Gold= en Brook Park (no date) $450; For a total of $151,266. |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
Mr. Gaydos had a list of expendable trust funds that had been set up: Brett Circle (1997) (money left for the Town to continue work – work has been done) $14,207; Vital Op= en Space (no date) – no amount; Emergency Way (no date) – no amoun= t; Cable System (no date) no amount; Health Insurance (no date)-no amount; Pel= ham Veteran’s Memorial Park (no date) $443.
|
MOTION: |
(McDevitt/Lynde) To app= rove the warrant article: To see if the Town of Pelham would vote to discontinue t= he following expendable Trust Funds with said funds and accumulated interest= to date of withdrawal to be transferred to the Town’s General Fund: Br= ett Circle (1997)- $14,207; Vital Open Space (no date) – no amount; Emergency Way (no date) – no amount; Cable System (no date) no amou= nt; Health Insurance (no date)-no amount; Pelham Veteran’s Memorial Park (no date) $443; For a total of $14,650. |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
It was noted that a Petit= ion Warrant Article had been received. Mr. Gaydos read the article aloud which in summary was an ordinance = that preserved public safety giving the Town enforcement authority to mandate ow= ners to perform repairs on properties posing public dangers. Mr. Gaydos told the Selectmen that Counsel stated there were already sufficient statutes that spoke about buil= dings that were attractive nuisances or public safety hazards. He also had a letter from the Town’s attorney that stated the Town had no statutory ability to enfo= rce the warrant article if it were to pass.&nb= sp;
There was a brief discuss= ion regarding the petition article which lead to the following motion:
|
MOTION: |
(McDevitt/Have= rty) To submit the (petition) warrant article as “Not recommended by the Bo= ard of Selectmen” and note that the Selectmen had been advised by Town Counsel that they did not have under Statute the legal authority to enfor= ce the article. |
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
DISCUSSION
Warrant Articles
Mr. Gaydos stated that he provided the Selectmen with a copy of the warrant articles, which had also = been sent to the state. He noted t= hat the article for the Fire Station was not included and that the Selectmen wo= uld need to make a decision regarding it.
The Selectmen were provid=
ed with
a plan for a proposed fire station that was essentially like the previous p=
lan,
except that the living and office area was one story versus two stories. Mr. McDevitt reminded tha=
t the
state was looking for direction on the Mr. Lynde discussed the
situation. He believed the
Selectmen should put a warrant article on the ballot for a fire station. Mr. Gaydos noted that the=
Town
had approximately $190,000 in impact fees that would need to be returned if
they weren’t used in 2009. He
said Senator-elect Shaheen was working with the Mr. Lynde made a motion t=
o place
the fire station warrant on the ballot.&nb=
sp;
Mr. McDevitt seconded for discussion. Mr. McDevitt discussed the
economy and the fact that people are in a panic. He said he read an article about t=
he
state having to look at anything that they could legitimately pass on to to=
wns
because they don’t have the money to pay at the state level. He said he couldn’t think of=
a
worse year to put a four million bond on the warrant which was unfortunate
because the Town needed it. He
didn’t feel they could get the needed 60% vote. Another concern was that voters lo=
st
confidence after last year’s vote, which was in good times. Mr. McDevitt said he supported a n=
ew
fire station, but didn’t feel this was the year to request one. He also believed the Board would h=
ave to
quickly take the position that Plan B was the option to go with because it =
was
the only one that could be built whether the station was there or not. Mr. Haverty said he also =
wrestled
with the idea of building a new central fire station versus putting money i=
nto
the existing station recognizing that there was a dangerous traffic situati=
on
at the center of Town that needed to be addressed one way or another. He agreed that the economic realit=
ies
didn’t lend themselves very well to a four million dollar capital
project. He said this was one=
of
those times he could lead as an elected official and proposed a new fire st=
ation
which is what he felt was the right solution, or he could listen to the
taxpayers which he believed were saying they couldn’t afford it right
now. He didn’t feel he =
could
support a four million capital project this year. Mr. Haverty stated as much work th=
at was
done to reduce costs, he would have liked to see the cost reduced further i=
f he
was going to support it this year.
He didn’t think any further cost savings were possible and they
were rapidly approaching the point where future needs weren’t being
addressed and a band-aid was being put on current needs. He understood some of the impact f=
ees
would be sacrificed, but didn’t think the average tax payer cared abo=
ut
that when they looked at the warrant.
He said in some regard they were rolling the dice with the Town cent=
er,
but felt they should stay and ride out some of the economic turmoil. Mr. Lynde asked how much =
of the
impact fees would be returned. Mr.
Gaydos said it was in the range of $175,000-$190,000. Mr. Lynde pointed out that the mon=
ey
being returned was more than they would pay for the first year of a bond. Mr. McDevitt stated that =
the
impact money didn’t come from the taxpayers and wasn’t the
Town’s money. Mr. Lynde=
said
the impact money was the Town’s money to be used for a specific
purpose. He said the way to k=
eep
the money was to go ahead with the project. Mr. Viger said the Select=
men were
on the board to bring forward the right decision. He discussed the status of the com=
pany
that he worked for comparing last year to this year. It was his opinion to wait a year =
for
the fire station versus putting a fire station on the ballot that didn̵=
7;t
meet the next thirty years. He
didn’t want to provide something that was less of what was needed just
for the sake of getting something on the ballot for a lesser price. Mr. Gaydos said if the Se=
lectmen
were not going to support the fire station, they were automatically
telegraphing to the state that they were in support of Option B. Mr. Haverty believed that would be
another discussion the Selectmen would need to have; whether to have Option=
B
or nothing. The Selectmen had further
discussion regarding the warrant article and how they would proceed. Mr. Gaydos said if the time =
line
was reviewed and the Board chose not to move forward with the fire station,=
it
would have to be communicated to the state. In the next year the decision woul=
d also
have to be made whether to do the round-abouts or leave everything status
quo. If it was chosen to move
forward with Option B there would be a building that would have to be built=
for
the ambulances and money would have to be put into the existing building. Mr. Lynde stated that imp=
act
money had been spent preparing a new fire station and questioned if that mo=
ney
would need to be given back if a new station was not built. Mr. Gaydos answered no. He said that question was asked an=
d the
Board was told as long as the money was being spent in good faith to meet t=
he
criteria from which the impact fees were set. He said the Town couldn’t sp=
end the
impact fees on maintaining something that wasn’t intended for future
growth. He discussed some of =
the
deficiencies with the existing station and said the intent was to compose a
list of those items. The
approximate cost to correct the items was between a half million and one
million dollars. Mr. McDevitt=
said
he would like the Selectmen to review in detail the list of items that were
needed to be done at the existing station.=
Mr. Lynde asked that the
Selectmen place a warrant on the ballot authorizing the Selectmen to hold a
Special Town Meeting to raise funds, if there is matching federal funds, to
build a fire station. It was noted that there w=
as
currently a motion and second on the floor to place the fire station on the
ballot. MOTION: (Lynde/McDevit=
t) To place
the Fire Station warrant on the ballot.&=
nbsp;
VOTE: ( Mr. Lynde believed it wou=
ld be
important to have an enabling article to allow the Selectmen to hold a Spec=
ial
Town Meeting should federal funds become available to build the fire
station. Mr. Gaydos didn̵=
7;t
feel it was necessary because the Town had the right to accept grants and
gifts. He said if they had to=
raise
additional funds based on a grant they could ask the court at that time. Mr. Haverty said he would=
like
the Board to ask Mr. Gaydos to pursue with the state the possibility of get=
ting
federal funding for the fire station if stimulus packages are offered. Mr. McDevitt reviewed RSA=
39:1
which allowed Selectmen to call a Town Meeting but they must seek the
permission of the Superior Court to call a Special Town Meeting to appropri=
ate
money. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT /=
SELECTMEN’S REPORTS Mr. Gaydos state=
d that
he had not received an answer regarding funding in connection with the last=
ice
storm. He said the Governor h=
ad
asked the President for funding.
Each of the emergency managers were asked to provide a synopsis of w=
hat
they thought their costs were. Mr. McDevitt sta=
ted that
the Garden Club removed the Christmas decorations from the Common. He thanked them for their efforts.=
Mr. Lynde asked =
if the
articles with no tax impact should be noted as such. Mr. Gaydos said that was the prero=
gative
of the Board. Mr. Lynde asked=
that
Article K and M indicate “no tax impact”. Mr. Gaydos stated that the article
contained the words within it. Mr.
McDevitt didn’t think it would hurt to add the language. Mr. Lynde stated that the Forestry
Committee had met and had concerns with beaver dams increasing the wetlands
area on the Cutter-Merriam property.
They were going to try to have the beavers trapped and relocated. Mr. Gaydos noted=
that
the Town Deliberative Session would be held on Mr. Haverty info=
rmed the
Selectmen of the proceedings of the Planning Board and the zoning amendments
they discussed. Mr. Viger wanted=
to
schedule a discussion regarding the ice storm for the next meeting. Mr. Haverty suggested that the Sel=
ectmen
provide direction to the department heads.=
The Selectmen discussed the topic.&=
nbsp;
Mr. Gaydos suggested that the department heads meet amongst themselv=
es
and put a synopsis together for the Selectmen to review and determine which
items should be discussed publicly. Mr. Viger ended =
by
stated nothing had been brought to the Selectmen’s attention regarding
the Fire Chief taking a job in another town. REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION MOTION: (Lynde/McDevit=
t)
Request for a non-public session per RSA 91-A:3,II, a ROLL CALL: Mr. Viger-Yes;=
Mr.
Haverty-Yes; Mr. Lynde-Yes; Mr. McDevitt-Yes It was noted tha=
t when
the Board returned, after the non-public session, the Board would not take =
any
other action publicly, except to possibly seal the minutes of the non-public
session and to adjourn the meeting.
The Board entered into a non-public session at approximately The
Board returned to public session at approximately MOTION: (Haverty/McDev=
itt) To
seal the minutes of the non-public session indefinitely. VOTE: (4-0-0) The mo=
tion
carried. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: (Haverty/McDev=
itt) To
adjourn the meeting. VOTE: (4-0-0)
The motion carried. The
meeting was adjourned at approximately =
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
Respectfully
submitted, =
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
Charity
A. L. Willis =
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
Recording
Secretary
BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING/January 6, 2009