SEL20120807

APPROVED

TOWN OF PELHAM

BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING

MINUTES

August 7, 2012

APPROVED &#= 8211; August 14, 2012=

Reconsidere= d and Re-Approved – August 21, 2012 (with additional lines 195-204)

CALL TO ORDER – approximately 6:30pm

PRESENT:

ABSENT:

Mr. William McDevitt, M= r. Edmund Gleason, Mr. Robert Haverty, Mr. Doug Viger, Mr. Hal Lynde (arrived shortly after the meeting commenced), Town Administrator Tom Gaydos. Also Present Finance Director Ci= ndy Kelley

None.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

MINUTES REVIEW

July 31,= 2012

MOTION:

(Gleason/Haverty) To approve the July 31, 2012 meeting minutes as amended.

VOTE:

(3-0-1) The motion carried. Mr. McD= evitt abstained.

OPEN FORUM

None.

ANNOUNCEMENT

Office of Senator Jeanne = Shaheen here on Thursday, August 9, 2012 from 12pm to 2pm at the Tow= n Hall Conference Room for Constituent Services.

Mr. Lynde arrived.

APPOINTMENTS

2013 BUDGET PRESENTATIONS

Parks & Recreation – Brian Johnson

2013 Budget request: $185= ,050, constituting a .42% increase over last year. 2012 Operating Budget: $184,278.

Salaries – contract= ual increase. Decrease shown for last year’s one-time signing bonus.

Telephone – decreas= e in cell phone – Town using a shared minutes program, last year’s actual numbers

were use= d.

Equipment rentals –= new road at Muldoon and the soccer fields had not been in the budget in the past. Increase of $500 put in budget for grader and materials for new soccer fiel= ds , Muldoon road and PVMP.

Mr. Gleason questioned if= the expenses line for irrigation was a one-year event, or if it should remain.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Mr. Johnson said it was constant.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> To date he was already in the rang= e of $1500.

Planning Department – Jeff Gowan

2013 Budget request: $305= ,593, constituting a 7.38% increase over last year. 2012 Operating Budget: $284,597.

Salaries – contract= ual increases. Decreases shown for last year’s one-time signing bonus. Increase for

Inspector stipends.

Telephone – decreas= e in cell phone and telephone/fax line.

Equipment Repairs – increase for copier maintenance contract.

Expenses – contract= ual increase primarily due to MuniSmart maintenance and engineering consulting

services= .

Miscellaneous Specials &#= 8211; Increase for NRPC Assistance with CIP and Master Plan; additional increase = for

Plan NH= Town Center Charrette.

After Mr. Gowan indicated= that the inspectors hadn’t received an increase in a long time, Mr. Gleaso= n offered that an increase was taken out of the budget last year, but he believed they had received increases in previous years.

Mr. Gowan explained that = the increase in expenses for engineering consulting services was because he had= the need for additional consultations on Town oriented projects. An example was reviewing updated regulations. Another example = was items that were at the request of the Planning Board and not paid for by applicants.

Mr. Gowan spoke to the ty= pe of assistance provided by the Nashua Regional Planning Commission. He discussed his work with Plan NH= and the Town Center Charrette that will focus on zoning changes, development patterns, evaluation of long-term needs etc. that will help form the Master Plan review. He discuss= ed the possibilities of creating different zoning for the <= st1:PlaceType w:st=3D"on">Town Center by working with the zoning committee (a sub-committee of the Planning Board). At this point, nothin= g has been presented to the Planning Board.

Mr. Gowan discussed a rev= ised budget with the Selectmen that included an automobile.

The 2013 budget request (= which would constitute a new budget) would be $309,398 constituting an 8.36% incr= ease over last year. The 2012 Oper= ating Budget was $284,597.

He explained there was a vehicle (Ford Focus) in the budget last year that end= ed up coming out and submitted as a Warrant Article. For this year’s budget he ob= tained revised prices and leasing numbers and plugged those numbers into the propo= sed budget. With the vehicle in t= he budget the Fuel and Maintenance lines would be reduced. Mr. Gowan stated that the current = car was running and the department remained hopeful that it would continue to r= un; it had a significant amount of work done to it. The current vehicle had high milea= ge and used a lot of gasoline.

Mr. Gleason asked Mr. Gow= an to prioritize the budgetary requests in terms of highest to lowest. He wanted to know if there were it= ems that could be deferred another year if there was a budget crunch.

It was noted that the old= Police cruisers were sold back to the leasing company while they still had value.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Mr. Gowan wasn’t aware of ha= nd-me-down vehicles available for use. <= /p>

Police Department – Police Chief Joseph Roark and Office Mana= ger Celia Lingley

2013 Budget request: $2,4= 65,888. (less 2012 Grant of $45,614) adjusted to $2,420,274. The 2012 Operating Bud= get: $2,433,711 (less Grant of $22,561) adjusted to $2,411,150.

Mr. Gleason commented tha= t the increase in the budget would come back to the Town because of the grant; the increase was actually $9,124 over the 2012 budget number.

Salaries – contract= ual increases, grant reimbursement, adjustments made for new officers coming in= and

other of= ficers moving out of department.

Supplies – increase= for tasers using phased approach (5 per year) for replacing those currently failing.

Expenses – increase= for professional development, uniforms, animal control, communications and CALE= A.

Chief Roark noted they we= re in a hiatus with the K-9 program. = They currently didn’t have the personnel to fill it and were re-evaluating= its necessity in terms of the cost to the Town and what they received in return= . The State Police have 20+ dogs and= more availability and some of the other towns had dogs available. He said they would look closely at= the program and its viability. The budget maintained a placeholder if the program was filled at a later time. =

The decrease in taser tra= ining was due to biannual training. Baton training showed an increase because of biannual training.

Mr. Haverty noticed that = the copier contracts lines didn’t match other budgets. He asked if they w= ere a consolidated contract. Mr. = Gaydos replied that the Town departments had different copiers because of different needs; each machine had different features. Once the needs of the departments = are determined they go out to bid for the best deal. Chief Roark noted some of the driv= ers on the service contracts were the amount of copies. He said he would be having a discu= ssion about a copier on his ‘wish’ list.

Chief Roark discussed the importance of the Child Advocacy Center and provided back up information for the Selectmen to review. He spoke about the CALEA national accreditation process. He sai= d it had been far more difficult than anticipated and felt the department was up= for the challenge. He said next year, if everything went as planned, the depart= ment would have their mock assessment in the spring. Experts from the national accredit= ation group would come in and oversee a dry run of their assessment. The department would then run off = the report given during the dry run and then would apply for a date in the fall= for the actual accreditation assessment. He said he wasn’t blind to the fact that the CALEA was a large number. He commented that the= y had narrowed down other areas of the budget so they could leave room for focusi= ng on their goal of becoming accredited. He asked for the Selectmen’s support so they could maintain the progress the department had made to date.&= nbsp;

Mr. Lynde asked if there were other ancillary benefits to becoming accredited.= Chief Roark answered yes; statistically, accredited police departmen= ts get sued less, challenged less in court, have policies and procedures that prove they run an efficient and economical department with higher conviction rates. And their policies hol= d up to scrutiny.

Chief Roark discussed his priority list of equipment. <= /p>

1.&n= bsp; Replacement of on-board computers in cruisers;

2.&n= bsp; Replacement of dash mounted cruiser cameras;

3.&n= bsp; 7 Motorola portable radio replacements;

4.&n= bsp; Copy machine replacement/upgrade;

5.&n= bsp; 2013 patrol SUV vehicle replacement.

There were comments by the Selectmen that in the long term, certain equipment should be added to the l= ease prices of the vehicles so they would have everything needed to function in a normal operating manner.

Mr. Gaydos noted that Exe= cutive Secretary Marie Maruca was very involved with the bidding and pricing proce= ss for the copiers. She’s created a list of all the copiers in Town.= He said Ms. Maruca was very experienced and already had everything p= ut together so when departments look for a copier, she’s already got the information for review. He sa= id the Town doesn’t spend as much on copiers as they had, even though they w= ere using more technologically advanced machines.

Chief Roark felt the SUV replacement was worth discussion, although in lieu of the other requests, realized it wasn’t hopeful for it to pass. The current vehicle would be seven= years old next year, making it out of warranty because of its age, and had 41,000 miles. It was the primary foul weather response vehicle. He hesitates to keep this type of vehicle in fleet; one of the department̵= 7;s goals was to have the front line vehicles on warranty. Chief Roark noted that the SUV was deferred last year and anticipated it would be deferred this year as well, = but at some point they would have to make a move.

Mr. Gleason said it was r= eported that the Town was going to get some money from an incident on Sherburne Road. He questioned where that money wou= ld typically go. Chief Roark rep= lied they received $35,000, not all of which went to the department; it was divi= ded by percentage between those departments who were involved. Chief Roark indicated that around $= 2,000 would remain in Pelham. Mr. G= leason asked if there was anything in the list of priorities that should be expend= ed this year with any available funds since they are safety related. Mr. Gaydos stated he would work with the Chief and come up with a plan for immediate n= eeds and how they could be funded. Chief Roark rated the on-board computers as a critical function and need; 3 of 8 computers were currently not working. The second item was the cameras; they were working, but about to fail. The use of FEMA funds w= as brought up as an option.

Going back to the topic o= f the SUV, Mr. Lynde asked about the repair history. Chief Roark said the truck had some minor repairs, but was concerned if it ended up needing additional repairs = such as a transmission, which would be a major cost. He was concerned with the vehicle = being down since it was the department’s front line foul weather response vehicle. He suspected it would begin to fail because it had heavy usage.&= nbsp;

Mr. Viger asked the statu= s of the animal control shelter. Chief= Roark discussed the deficiencies with the present shelter, such as the inability = to separate cats and dogs, lack of an examination table to conduct tests (i.e. rabies) and the lack of a quarantine area.= He would look for the shelter to be a capital improvement, possibly taking it off the present site and build a simple structure on a Town site = to address the needs. He didn= 217;t know where it would fall in the CIP.

Selectmen – Tom Gaydos and Cindy Kelley

2013 Budget request: $481= ,742, constituting a .75% increase over last year. 2012 Operating Budget: $478,138.

Salaries – contract= ual and longevity increases; decrease in non-union wage increase line;

Telephones – decrea= se for cellular phone usage now using a shared minutes plan;

Equipment Repairs –= copier service contract increase because of the age of the copier and its contract= ;

Expenses – contract= ual MuniSmart support (accounting system).

Mr. Gleason felt it would= be appropriate to clarify erroneous statements contained in the newspaper and = note publicly that Mr. Gaydos does not receive overtime. Mr. Gaydos is not eligible for ove= rtime and never has received overtime. Mr. Gleason explained that the money shown in the Town Report was an initiative by the Board of Selectmen to eliminate the long-term liability associated with Compensated Absence. The Town negotiated all new contracts with department heads under wh= ich the Compensated Absence went away. Department heads were given straight vacation time and time off. They no longer accumulate this mon= ey as they’ve been able to in the past.&nb= sp; The money reflected in the Town Report was Mr. Gaydos’ compensation package that was bought out from him. He has time off that equals six we= eks per year, which is a use it or lose it situation. Mr. Gleason reiterated that Mr. Ga= ydos did not receive overtime. His= hours were flexible because of the deman= ds made on him in terms of nights and weekends.

Mr. Gleason noted that the $105,000 in the Compensated Absence line was to cover the anticipated expenditures this year. He sa= id there was a capital reserve for Compensated Absence that had a value of $16= 2,000. He said a couple years ago they ch= anged the process and put money in the operating budget each year to cover any anticipated outlays. He said<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> they have now eliminated compensat= ed absence through negotiation of the supervisor’s contracts. Thereby reducing the Town= 217;s unfunded liability.

Retirement – Tom Gaydos and Cindy Kelley

2013 has a placeholder nu= mber using the 2012 Operating Budget figure of $1,149,113. Mr. Gaydos said the rates had been= fixed by New Hampshire Retirement. = Once all the department budgets have been reviewed a good projection of what cos= ts would be can be determined.

Mr. Gleason commented wit= h the budgets that had already been reviewed, and the anticipated budgets, the overall budget for 2013 was up by approximately 1.4% ($176,000) from last year.

OTHER BUSINESS

June 2012 Revenue and Expense Review

Mr. Gaydos noted that the= budgets were within tolerance; they were still absorbing some of the one time costs previously discussed with the Selectmen.&n= bsp; The Selectmen reviewed the revenue spread sheet, which showed the To= wn as being ahead. It was sugges= ted to pull the tax number out of the report.&nbs= p;

Correspondence

Mr. McDevitt read aloud a= letter from the Chairman of the Litchfield Mosquito Control District, which indica= ted the state’s budget beyond the summer of 2013 did not include funding = for testing of trapped mosquitoes. Without testing they had to question their trapping and cataloging program. The lack of testing = would render them unable to determine the presence of EEE or West Nile Virus in t= heir localities. They were interes= ted in working together with other MCD’s or other town based programs should= the funding not be replaced. They= asked if Pelham was interested in combining time and resources to find a way to continue programs. Mr. Gaydos= said Pelham had faithfully done mosquito trapping and testing and treated larvic= ide in the beginning of the year. The Town has a mosquito control program in place that was effective.

Mr. Lynde asked if the sa= mples collected in Town was reliant on the state running tests. Mr. Gaydos answered no. The company ran the tests and turn= ed the information over to the state so there was one master data location. The Town received reports from the company on the mosquitoes they test. In the past, the state gave the Town a reimbursement on a portion of what was paid for testing. Mr. Gaydos will clarify what the Chairman of the Litchfield Mosquito Control District is stating.

Mr. McDevitt stated that = the Pelham Garden Group submitted correspondence indicating they had voted to explore the possibility of planting an evergreen on the right-hand side of = the Library building. They would = like to know if the Selectmen are interested in the project. If the Selectmen respond positivel= y to the proposal the Garden Group would then determine the cost of purchasing a= nd planting the evergreen. If fe= asible, the group will present the Board with a request to carry out the project.

Mr. Gleason suggested see= king the opinion of the Library Trustees.

Mr. McDevitt said there w= as correspondence regarding the Elm Tree Account. There was money set aside many yea= rs ago for Dutch Elm Disease; the money was still in place and the Conservation Commission has requested that the Selectmen transfer the funds elsewhere. The Conservation Commission reques= ted to possibly use that money to plant in the roundabouts.

Raffle Permit Application

Mr. McDevitt said there w= as a state law that requires raffles to obtain permission from the Board of Selectmen. Mr. Gaydos indicat= ed that the rules were spelled out in the statute as to what must be, can be a= nd cannot be on the ticket. He discussed the review and recommendation process. Mr. McDevitt stated the Pelham Fis= h and Game Club had submitted a request to hold a raffle. This raffle has been approved by t= he Chief of Police.

MOTION:

(Viger/Gleason) To approve the ra= ffle as requested by the Pelham Fish and Game Club.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The mo= tion carried.

SELECTMEN’S = / TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORTS

Mr. Lynde reported that a= concert would be held on the Village Green Wednesday August 8, 2012.

Fire Station Update

Mr. Gaydos reported that = the project was moving along. The insulated concrete forms had been set.&nbs= p; The site would begin to see a lot more activity. The testing company is prese= nt to ensure the sub-base of the area where the building and roadways was being properly put down and compacted. The first set of tests had been done and came back perfect. Everything was being done accordin= g to plan.

REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION

MOTION:

(Haverty/Lynde) Request for a non-public session per RSA 91-A:3,II, a&c (Personnel, M= atters which, if discussed publicly, would affect adversely the reputation of any person)

ROLL CALL:

Mr. McDevitt-Y= es; Mr. Gleason-Yes; Mr. Lynde-Yes; Mr. Robert Haverty-Yes;

Mr. Viger-Yes<= /p>

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 8:50 pm.

The Board return= ed to public session at approximately 9:27pm.

MOTION:

(Lynde/Haverty) To seal the minut= es of the non-public session indefinitely.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The mo= tion carried.

ADJOURNMENT

MOTION:

(Lynde/Haverty) To adjourn the meeting.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately = 9:27 pm.

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Respectfully submitted,

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Charity A. Landry

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Recording Secretary

BOARD OF SELECTMEN ACTION ITEMS

March 29, 2011=

<= ![if !supportLists]>· Mr. Gaydos to put timeline together for Cast= le Hill Road (6/7/11 easement being completed that would allow the Crawfords to access their property)(7/5/11 – Mr. Gaydos stated the project was mov= ing forward, there were other issues to get out of the way prior to addressing = this)(8/2/11 Mr. Gaydos is working with Attorney Solomon and will have a timeline quickl= y)(8/9/11 – Mr. Gaydos continuing to work with Attorney Solomon- associated correspondence will be provided to the Selectmen)(8/30/11 – still in progress); 1/17/12 – still in court. As of 7/10/12 on-going legal issues – po= stponed until October, 2012.

May 10, 2011=

·<= span style=3D'font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> = Mr. McDevitt researching appropriate signage= for Raymond Park (where parcels are located and what names were allowed per dee= ds) (6/7/11 Mr. McDev= itt said research was completed and would like to discuss with the Board after the meeting of= 6/28/11)(7/5/11 – M= r. McDevitt said a discussion should be scheduled regarding the names at Raymond Park. Information is available to educate the Selectmen. A discussion will be scheduled for= July 19, 2011)(= 8/2/11 Mr. McDev= itt said the Board had received a draft of the naming requirements of the park, which ra= ised additional questions. The Sel= ectmen will schedule a discussion at a later time)(8/9/11 – there is a quest= ion whether there could be signs that stay up at Raymond Park – this is in the process of being addressed)(8//30/11 – agenda item scheduled) / 10/25/11 – research still being conducted and signs to be designed; 1/17/12 – ongoing project – an Eagle Scout project will possibl= y be brought forward to put up kiosk. July 10, 2012 &= #8211; Park & Recreation Director waiting for a Boy Scout to come forward with a project.

May 24,= 2011

· Mr. Gaydos to review the legal ramifications of changing the road classificatio= n in the Gumpas Pond area; 7/1012 Mr. Gaydos to check status with Ms. Waters.

· Mr. Gaydos to obtain the Police Chief’s opinion regarding the trespass situation in the Gumpas Pond area, given that there was shooting and fires occurring. 7/10/= 12 Mr. Gaydos to check status with Ms. Waters.

July 5,= 2011

· Mr. Gaydos to request from Comcast something in writing indicating there will b= e no additional charge for moving cable to new fire station location (8/2/11 Mr. Gaydos said there were several issues he would deal with all at once when Comcast returned the signed contract)(8/30/11 – contracts returned – Town will approach Comcast with two required follow up letters of agreement) / 10/25/11- Mr. Gaydos to ask Mr. Greenwood to follow up; 1/17/12 follow up needed for written agreement.

Augus= t 2, 2011

· Ob= tain status regarding Young’s Crossing and the flashing sign on Route 38/Gage Hill Road/Ledge Road intersection and from Police Chief. (8/9/11 Mr. Gaydos had a discussion with Police Chief= Roark regarding the flashing light and there may be less expensive alternatives.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> The Chief has requested a meeting = with the DOT district for Pelham)(8/30/11 – correspondence received from State – Mr. Gaydos to work with Police Chief Roark to compile accident statistics) / 10/25/11 – Mr. Gaydos said Chief Roark was heading this up – the same type of study = is being done at the Sherburne Road intersection.; 1/17/12 – still worki= ng with intersection (with state) in conjunction with Sherburne Road.

Augus= t 16, 2011

· Mr. Gaydos to research if there is legislation pertaining to dam water releases= for a future agenda item (8/30/11 –Mr. Gaydos working on response regarding dam water releases and hope= d it would also address the flood ordinance Mr. Gowan was working on)/ 10/25/11 – Mr. Gaydos said there was wording, but it didn’t have suffici= ent ‘teeth’ – an agenda item will be scheduled for Selectmen discussion; 1/17/12 – at a standstill between what the state is willi= ng to do and what the Town would like them to do. Mr. Gaydos felt the flood study wo= uld aid in an outcome. =

September 27, 2011

· Mr. Gaydos to create policy for acquiring property due to non-payment of taxes. 1/17/12 an agenda item will be scheduled for the pol= icy adoption.

Febru= ary 14, 2012

· Schedule Hinds Lane conservation land status= follow up meeting for two months – April, 2012

March= 20, 2012

· Mr. Gaydos to confirm that the Police Grant = has been executed.

April 1= 0, 2012

· Install a street sign at Lox Lane (private way off Hinds Lane)= ;

· Mr. Gaydos to contact people in Londonderry regarding the flood study and work with= Mr. Gowan to coordinate.

April= 24, 2012

· Addition to Department of Transportation lis= t of questions – if the 6-8 parking spaces on Main Street will be replaced (for the Congregational Church);

· The Selectmen will compile a list of importa= nt items for Mr. Haverty (BOS School Rep.) to discuss with School Board;

· Planning Director to review water supply regulation and well ordinance documents and return comments to the Selectme= n;

June = 5, 2012

· Mr. Gaydos to provide a breakdown of the fire station soft costs

July = 17, 2012

· Selectmen to revisit the PUC order/Pennichuck Water to see what the repayment obligation (for legal fees) was to the Town= .