APPROVED
TOWN OF PEL= HAM
BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING
MINUTES
September 1= 8, 2012
APPROVED &#= 8211; October 2, 2012
CALL TO ORDER – approximately 6:30pm
|
PRESENT: ABSENT: |
Mr. William McDevitt, M= r. Edmund Gleason, Mr. Doug Viger, Mr. Hal Lynde, Mr. Robert Haverty, Town Administrator Tom Gaydos. <= /p> None. |
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
MINUTES REVIEW
September 4, 2012
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MOTION: |
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|
|
VOTE: |
(4-0-1) The motion carried. Mr. Hav= erty abstained. |
OPEN FORUM
None.
ANNOUNCEMENT(S)
Mosquito Spraying Press Release – Mr. McDevitt stated that the Town had commenced and believed had completed mosquito spraying. He said the Selectmen had discusse= d the topic at their last meeting two weeks ago and decided to accept public input to f= ind out if people were in favor or objected to the spraying due to the growing prevalence of EEE and West Nile Virus.&nbs= p; Nothing but positive responses were received from residents, therefo= re the spraying program was instituted. Spraying was done by hand and met State regulations.
Fireworks Regulation: The First in a Series of Discussions which wi= ll include a Public Hearing on October 2, 2012 at 6:45pm – Mr. McDev= itt said based on a tragic incident that occurred in July, it was clear that the public wanted to discuss fireworks. The Selectmen received a number of opinions regarding if/how firewor= ks should be regulated. Later in= the meeting, the Selectmen will hear from the Fire Chief, discuss the laws and regulations and listen to suggestions.&nbs= p; With this being the first opportunity for the Selectmen to hear a br= oad discussion on the subject, public input would not be taken. During the meeting of October 2, 2= 012 beginning at 6:45pm those wishing to voice concerns and/or opinions will be invited to do so.
APPOINTMENT(S)
Albert Cote - Retirement Proclamation Presenta=
tion
Fire Ch= ief James Midgley announced that long time Fire Fighter Albert Cote was being honored. Mr. Cote came forward. Chief Midgley discus= sed Mr. Cote’s service to the Town through his career with the Fire Department for thirty-two years. He then presented Mr. Cote with an award on behalf of the Fire Department and = Town of Pelham for his years of service. Chief Midgley presented Mr. Cote with a Certificate of Merit signed = by the Director of the Division of Forests and Lands for his twenty-two years = as Deputy Forest Warden.
The Fir= e Union came forward to recognize Mr. Cote for his years of service with the Fire Depart= ment and community and in recognition of the lives he had touched over the years. They provided him with= a plaque for recognition of his dedication.&= nbsp;
Mr. McD= evitt read aloud a Proclamation from the Board of Selectmen in appreciation of Mr. Cote’s years of dedication and service to the Town of Pelham.
Fire Chief James Midgley:
- &nb=
sp;
Discussion
Regarding Fireworks Licensing – No Public Input
- &nb=
sp;
Emergency
Operations Plan Approval
- &nb=
sp;
New Fire S=
tation
Update
Fireworks Licensing – Mr. McDevitt said this was the first in a series of meetings they would have relative to fireworks. He said a good first step was to have the Fire Chief speak to the Bo= ard and interested members of the public. To begin, he asked that the Chief discuss the State Regulations and = what would apply to Pelham.
Fire Chief Midgley began = by explaining that the State amended its fireworks code two years ago. Prior to this they had a permissib= le list of fireworks. That list = was essentially removed two years ago by the Legislature. They said anything that is less th= an 50 grams and is a ground detonation device and anything that’s less than= 130 milligrams of black powder that was a ground detonation device for aerial c= ould be sold. There was a short li= st of items specifically banned, included on that list were firecrackers, large explosives, smoke bombs. As l= ong as the quantity of material that was in the device was under the permissible limit, it essentially became a residential-type firework. There have been attempts to open up dialogs to look back at possibly tightening up the code, but they havenR= 17;t gotten very far. Chief Midgle= y said he looked to see what surrounding communities were doing; Salem and Windham have no permissible fireworks through town ordinance, Nashua has no permiss= ible fireworks through city ordinance and Hudson has a permit-type process to detonate residential-type fireworks. Rules varied greatly throughout the State and were particular to how= the towns wanted to regulate them.
Chief Midgley said the regulations were pretty lengthy, but in reviewing them there was a potential for licensing and felt it should be discussed with the Town’s attorney. Being the first tim= e he was sitting with the Board, he felt the best option at this point was to ha= ve a dialog to discuss directions the Town could go in.
Mr. Gaydos asked for a description of the size fireworks that were permitted under the State’= ;s Regulations. Chief Midgley replied shells as la= rge as 2.5 inches in diameter are permissible as long as they stay within 130 milligrams, or below of explosives. He discussed the differences between ground and air detonation.
Mr. Gleason saw three spe= cific issues for the Town: 1) safety because of the unknown nature of fireworks, their manufacturing and processing and people failing to recognize the pote= ntial for premature ignition;
2) times of day that some fireworks are fired off; and 3) necessity to educate people regarding the potentials of fireworks and their legalities. He didn’t feel a lot of people were aware of the prudent things to do, or not to do, when bringing fireworks into their homes. At this time he wasn’t advocating any recommendations but want= ed the Chief to know his concerns. Mr. Gleason felt the accidents that occurred during the summer could have been prevented with proper precautions. He believed it was a regulation and education process; he was not in favor of banning them, but felt it was incumbent upon the Town to make peop= le aware of the potential for accidents.
Mr. Lynde heard the Chief= say that fireworks weren’t permissible in Windham and Salem. He questioned if they weren’t allowable, or if the towns didn’t have regulations. Chief Midgley replied those towns = and Nashua had regulations that didn’t allow fireworks. Mr. Lynde questioned if the = Chief currently had any authority to regulate fireworks. Chief Midgley answered no. Mr. Lynde asked the Chief if he fe= lt there was a need to have some authority.&n= bsp; Chief Midgley answered yes; those details would need to be discussed.
Mr. McDevitt questioned w= hat type of licensing was contemplated by the law and asked the Chief if he knew what other communities did in that regard. Chief Midgley was unsure how Hudson set up their permits. He said the State had a licensing program for display fireworks. He provided a brief overview of the State’s process. He believed the Town may be permit= ted to structure a licensing process however they wanted to. He commented that there were diffe= rent degrees of safety within different devices; there are some that are safer t= han others. This is specific to h= ow they are packaged and unpackaged.
Mr. Gleason said there wa= s quite a bit of discussion subsequent to the accidents (in the summer) about mortar type fireworks, which were previously banned, and then changed by the Legislature. He wanted to kno= w if in addition to the considerations to the Town to license or control firewor= ks, if there should be a separate initiative to petition the Legislature to try= and re-ban them. It was his impre= ssion that the Fire Marshall also had serious concerns about mortar type firework= s, which are also reusable. He questioned if the Town should support that initiative. Chief Midgley answered yes. He discussed the dangers associate= d with reloadable type shells, which went in whichever direction they were pointed should they become ignited. H= e said the Fire Marshall, in conjunction with one of the large fireworks vendors in Town, think the State should look at re-banning that type of fireworks. He felt there should be a se= cond initiative to reach out to the Legislators.
Mr. Gleason asked if enfo= rcement would primarily be the Chief’ responsibility if the Town were to purs= ue licensing fireworks. He also = wanted to know if it was the Chief’s desire to ban certain types of firework= s if the Legislator didn’t act on it.&nbs= p; Chief Midgley felt the Town should evaluate a two-pronged approach: = 1) take extremely hazardous devices off the market and don’t allow them = in the State; and 2) any licensing and enforcement would have to come in conjunction with local law enforcement.&nb= sp;
Mr. Gaydos asked what dif= ferences there were between the fireworks used during a commercial fireworks display= and the fireworks being discussed. Chief Midgley replied commercial fireworks break the threshold of 13= 0 milligrams of powder and high density shells up to possibly 6inches in diameter. With a commercial display comes a licensed technician who has to follow strict safety guidelines and is frequently inspected.
Mr. McDevitt understood h= ow State laws and towns worked, in that a Town couldn’t be more permissive tha= n State law allows. He asked if the T= own could be more restrictive by not permitting certain fireworks, even if the = State allows them. Chief Midgley de= ferred the answer to legal counsel, but believed if the Town saw fit to ban certain types of fireworks it would potentially be difficult for law enforcement to determine the cut off between allowable and banned fireworks.
Mr. Gleason read aloud a =
portion
of Attorney Hillson’s memorandum to the Selectmen. It read that pursuant to statutory=
scheme,
it appears local government had the authority to regulate the use of any
fireworks within the municipality through a permitting process. These permits may be subject=
to
conditions that they may only be used after inspection by the Fire Chief and
are determination that the display would not threaten property or safety.
Mr. Viger asked that the Selectmen be given a breakdown of options so they could discuss each scenario. Chief Midgley will provide the Selectmen with those scenarios.
Mr. McDevitt said in the information read aloud, it seemed inspections and determinations by the Chi= ef, seemed to impose a significant manpower burden on both the Police and Fire Departments; especially during the July 4th celebration timeframe. He was unsure if t= he Town was up to identifying who had permits and who did not. Chief Midgley said he had discussi= ons with Police Chief Roark after the incidents in the summer. Through those conversations about = ideas, thoughts and State Regulations, the Police Chief’s first response was= it would be near impossible to regulate. Chief Midgley said he couldn’t tell the difference between a 2.5inch mortars or a large cake mortar by looking at it go off. He would physically have to go to = the locations and review each firework. It would be time consuming and manpower consuming to chase the firew= orks down.
Mr. Lynde commented that = another consideration to discuss would be avoidable costs.
Mr. Gleason said enforcem= ent of a licensing process might be difficult and felt it was important to have peop= le become cognizant and aware of situations so it may prevent accidents. Mr. Viger agreed that education wa= s the most important thing. He sugg= ested reaching out to the manufacturers to see if they had safety videos or public service announcements that could be run on public access television to educ= ate people.
Chief Midgley suggested a= good avenue to begin with was to get the Legislature to see what things were cau= sing massive injuries and see the instability.&= nbsp; He agreed that education was a big component.
Mr. McDevitt asked that t= he Chief find out what education material was available so they could discuss it at = the next meeting on the topic.
Emergency Operations Plan Approval – Prior to the meeting, Chief Midgley provided the Selectmen with an Emergency Operations Plan. He gave an overview of the plan and explained it contained three sections: 1) general structure and operation functions during an emergency; 2) emergency support functions; and 3) appendixes, resources lists. = He was looking for the Board to accept/adopt the plan. Having the plan adopted would open= the door for grant funding.
Mr. Gleason saw that othe=
r Town
functions were cited in the plan and questioned if the other Town departmen=
ts had
input and were in concurrence with the plan. Chief Midgley said the plan had be=
en
sent to the other Town departments; no feedback had been received. It was noted that each of the Town
departments had a signature line and would have to sign off on the plan.
Mr. Gleason made a motion= to approve the Emergency Operations Plan.&nbs= p; Mr. Viger seconded the motion. Mr. Lynde questioned if the Selectmen’s signatures would indic= ate their acceptance of the plan (as is), or if their signature indicated the p= lan was okay for the Town departments to sign.= Chief Midgley said each department would need to sign off that they understood their role within the emergency system.
Mr. Haverty wanted to kno= w what would happen if a department head disagreed with the plan, or didn’t understand it. Chief Midgley = said it would have to come back to the Selectmen to make a decision. Mr. Haverty questioned if the Selectmen’s signature was premature at this time. He wanted to avoid misunderstandings. Chief Midg= ley said the plan was sent to the Department Heads, who have had several opportunities to review the plan.
Mr. McDevitt asked if the Selectmen making the motion wanted to defer action until the department head signatures were received. Mr. Gleason wanted to know if there was a timeline in getting the plan to the g= overnment. Chief Midgley said the plan should= have been in months ago. Mr. Gleas= on preferred to have the Selectmen sign the plan and inform the departments to also do so. He said if the departments had an issue they should identify it.
Mr. Haverty asked if the department heads had to sign the plan prior to it being submitted to theSta= te. Chief Midgley said the Board was t= he ultimate signer of the plan. = The department head signatures indicate they understand what their roles are go= ing to be within the plan. It was= noted every time there is an elected Board; they would have to sign a concurrence. Although he had concerns about the department head’s agreement of the plan, Mr. Haver= ty didn’t want to slow the process and supported signing the plan to all= ow the Chief to proceed.
Mr. Viger confirmed that = the department heads had seen the plan and were familiar with its content. Chief Midgley answered yes; there = had been ample opportunity for input. &nb= sp;
If the motion passes, Mr. McDevitt wanted the Selectmen’s thoughts understood. He said through Mr. Gaydos, the Selectmen wanted to direct those department heads who haven’t gotten back, to confirm to Mr. Gaydos within the next two weeks that they’ve personally reviewed the plan and have no questions. Mr. Haverty said at the next meeti= ng, if there still was a department head that hadn’t responded, the Selectmen would like to hear from them at the next meeting. There was no objection.
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MOTION: |
(Gleason/Viger) To approve the Emergency Operations Plan |
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VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
New Fire Station Update – Chief Midgley extended an invitation to the Selectmen to tour the construction site. He provided an overview of the work being done at the new fire station site and discussed the status of construction.
Mr. Lynde questioned if i= t would be worthwhile to have PTV video the progress and run the footage on television. Chief Midgley tho= ught it would be a good idea. He s= aid he’d been trying to post pictures on the firestation.com site.
The Selectmen thanked the= Chief for speaking with them and providing updates.
Deputy Health Officer Paul Zarnowski – Chapter 295 (Articl=
e K)
Discussion
Planning Director Jeff Gowan – Well Water Regulation
Mr. McDevitt said procedu= rally both discussion matters were for the Board of Health (consisting of the Selectmen and Deputy Health Officer Paul Zarnowski), but rather than recess= ing the meeting and going through the process of calling the Board of Health, t= hey decided to have an informational discussion.
Planning Director Jeff Go= wan began the discussion by providing an overview of the Well Water Regulation which addressed both water quality and quantity for new construction. He said the concerns about water q= uality and how towns and cities deal with it is back as a discussion point primari= ly because of Arsenic. Because o= f the continuing concerns, Mr. Gowan and Mr. Zarnowski agreed that the regulation should be reviewed. Mr. Gowan= noted some of the differences in Pelham’s regulations compared to those in surrounding communities; mainly the timing for when water tests were done.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> He said it may be appropriate to consider certain requirements for ‘any’ new wells, rather than = only for new construction. He said= there seemed to be an expectation that the Town was watching out for water quality. Mr. Gowan said it wa= s time to look at the regulations and maybe consider adding a requirement to the ordinance for testing earlier and having mitigation to a quality standard p= rior to Occupancy Permits being issued. The idea was to build the mitigation cost into the mortgage rather t= han having a multi-thousand dollar surprise at the time of closing. The current Regulation requires th= at a purchaser have test results available by the builder on, or before, the tim= e of closing. There was a brief discussion regarding when the regulation was put in place. Mr. Gowan said the current regulat= ion fell a little bit short; the recommended changes dealt with the quality and timing of the water tests. Pr= ior to drafting anything, they were seeking Selectmen input on a conceptual level.
Mr. Gleason reviewed the
information given and questioned why the Board of Health would want to offe=
r waivers
for any of the requirements. =
He
didn’t see any fines/penalties for violating the provisions. He asked if it would be more pract=
ical
to provide the Board with recommended changes so they could compare to the
regulations in place. Mr. Gow=
an
felt coming in with initial discussion, would lead them in the direction of
what changes to draft.
Mr. Zarnowski discussed t= he problems with having the present timelines for water tests being provided at closing. Mr. Gleason didnR= 17;t think it was unreasonable to have a requirement in place to test water prio= r to building. Mr. Gowan commented= that the builders in Town were good about following the current regulation. He reiterated his belief that the regulations should be ‘dialed in’.
Mr. McDevitt thanked Mr. = Gowan and Mr. Zarnowski for discussing the issues with the Board. He suggested they create a bullet = point list of the things they would like to change and the reasons for such. This will give the Board the oppor= tunity to address the specific points.
The Board then discussed = Article K. Mr. Zarnowski said the last update was in 1990. He wanted= to address specific guidelines for conversions of residential properties from seasonal to year round. He no= ted that the State had specific guidelines and would like to incorporate that t= ype of scenario. He would also like to accommodate n= ew technologies with the pipe depth and setbacks. Mr. McDevitt suggested he provide = bullet point amendments for the Board to review.
The Board thanked the gen= tlemen for coming forward for the discussion.
OTHER BUSINESS
Permission to Improve Island at Hobbs Road & Route 38
Mr. Gaydos told the Selec= tmen that Mr. Timothy Cronin requested adopting the island that met Hobbs Road a= nd Route 38. He suggested permis= sion to improve Town property versus ‘adopting’. Mr. Cronin asked to be allowed to = do general weeding, grass mowing and care of shrubs and flowers.
Mr. Viger asked if an end=
date
would need to be included in a motion.&nbs=
p;
Mr. McDevitt said if someone else wanted to maintain the island, they
could meet with the Selectmen. The
caveat to allowing maintenance would be for the greenery. Mr. Haverty felt it should be clea=
r that
the ‘maintenance’ be in reference of the existing conditions.
Mr. Gleason noted that th= e area was popular for political signs. Mr. Gaydos said political signs didn’t belong at the location because it was Town property.
Mr. McDevitt said the con= cerns shouldn’t be misread. T= he offer being made was very generous and kind.
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MOTION: |
(Lynde/Gleason) To provide Mr. Tim Cronin the permission to beneficially maintain the isl= and at Hobbs Road and Route 38 |
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VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carried. |
Transfer Station Job Description Discussion
A copy of the Transfer St= ation Manager’s job description was given to the Selectmen for review. Mr. Gaydos would like to advertise= the position and gave the Selectmen a copy of the proposed advertisement. Mr. McDevitt saw that there was no requirement for the candidate to have experience in the waste or trash indu= stry or experience managing a disposal facility. Mr. Lynde suggested adding languag= e that knowledge of transfer/recycling stations would be a plus. Mr. McDevitt said adding language reading “A well candidate will…” could be inserted.
Mr. Lynde asked why the c= andidate needed a strong knowledge in certain computer skills. Mr. Gaydos said the person would h= ave to provide reports on a regular basis. There was no administrative support at the facility. Mr. Lynde said they should be capa= ble of putting together his/her own reports.
Mr. Gaydos said he would = send an e-mail to the Selectmen with an updated advertisement including the comments discussed and will wait for responses.&nbs= p;
Amended Agreement with Allied Waste
Mr. Gayd= os stated the Town had a 5-year agreement with Allied Waste that was signed on January 1, 2010. Allied has o= ffered to terminate and re-write the contract with new pricing. The Town had some issues with tonn= age and the number of trailers coming through.= Mr. Gaydos stated that there was no ability for the Town to unilater= ally terminate the contract. Howev= er, single stream was picked up by the Town subsequent to January 1, 2010; there was no contract and it had never been out to bid. As an incentive for Allied to terminate the contract and re-write it, they would like to single stream the products they remove. Mr. Gay= dos would like to have discussions with Allied to see if the Town could improve= the costs being paid and the revenue being received.
Mr. Lynd= e confirmed that Mr. Gaydos would enter into discussions to see what was feasible. They would then enter into a proce= ss of reviewing and approving. Mr. = Gaydos answered yes.
The Sele= ctmen voiced no objections; Mr. Gaydos may proceed.
Council on Aging
Mr. Gleason stated during= the past week, the Council on Aging held their first meeting of the season. The Council has come forward with = an updated and legally recommended set of rules. With the Council on Aging being an independent body (with non-profit status) he recommended that the Selectmen= no longer approve their membership. The Council still would like to have a Selectmen representative meet with them and would provide the Board with a courtesy list of members.
Mr. Lynde asked if it was reasonable to assume that the Council had no authority to direct budget ite= ms; they were an advisory group that would offer suggestions. Mr. Gleason said the Council offer= ed volunteer support and monetary assistance.= Mr. Lynde confirmed that they understood if they wanted to make any changes to a Town structure, they would need prior approval. Mr. Gleason answered yes; the Coun= cil worked closely with the Director, and the Director worked closely with the Selectmen.
Mr. McDevitt felt a motio= n to discontinue approving the Council on Aging member should be on record.
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MOTION: |
(Gleason/Lynde) To discontinue approving the members of the Council on Aging. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carried. |
Retirement Budget
Mr. Gaydos stated notific= ation was received on September 11, 2012 that the rates would increase, effective July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2015. He outlined the changes that would occur and the Town’s share.= The one line item in the proposed = 2013 budget was increased accordingly.
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MOTION: |
(Lynde/Gleason) To reconsider the Retirement budget submitted to the Budget Committee. |
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VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carried. |
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MOTION: |
(Lynde/Gleason) To submit the (re= vised) figure of $1,249,300 to the Budget Committee (for Retirement). |
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VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carried. |
Garden Club Tree Donation
Mr. McDevitt said there h= ad been a previous discussion about the Garden Club (Pelham Garden Group) desire to plant an evergreen tree near the Library.&= nbsp; At that time the Selectmen asked for a note from the Library Trustees seeking their thoughts. The L= ibrary Trustees sent a note back with no objections. It was believed the donation would= be under $500. The tree location= would be staked out. Mr. McDe= vitt would like to tell the Garden Club they had permission. There was no objection. Once determined, the specific dona= tion amount would be presented to the Board.&nb= sp;
2012 - August Revenue and Expense Report
Mr. Gaydos reviewed the r= eport and stated that the departments were in good standing. He gave a summary for each departm= ent and spoke to the statuses. Re= venues were doing well; the projected revenue budget was set to be exceeded. Mr. Gleason asked for clarificatio= n of certain figures in the miscellaneous lines. Mr. Gaydos said he would review and provide answers. Mr. Lynde sa= id those lines might have been leveled. Mr. Gleason asked for clarification of the numbers in the warrant articles line for Raymond Park. Mr. Gaydos read a portion of the warrant article aloud that requesting raising money from the Raymond Park Capital Reserve for forest management.
SELECTMEN’S =
/ TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORTS
Mr. Gleason said= a memo was received regarding the Town’s assessment; it was recommended that= the Board not update values for 2012. There was no objection by the Selectmen to accept the recommendation= .
Mr. Viger provid= ed the Board with an update regarding the Budget Committee’s review of the budget.
Mr. Gaydos provi= ded the latest update from the arbor virus surveillance and recent spraying for mosquitos. Mr. McDevitt said = the Board may want to consider spraying earlier in the season. Mr. Gaydos felt it may be appropriate.
Mr. McDevitt tha= nked the Fire, Police and safety services personnel for a job well done during Old H= ome Day.
REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION
|
MOTION: |
(Haverty/Gleason ) Request for a non-public session per RSA 91-A:3,II, a (Personnel) |
|
ROLL CALL: |
Mr. McDevitt-Y= es; Mr. Gleason-Yes; Mr. Lynde-Yes; Mr. Viger-Yes; Mr. Haverty-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 8:45 pm= .
The Board return= ed to public session at approximately 9:10 pm.
|
MOTION: |
(Haverty/Lynde) To seal the minut= es of the non-public session indefinitely. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The mo= tion carried. |
ADJOURNMENT
|
MOTION: |
(Haverty/Lynde) To adjourn the meeting. |
|
VOTE: |
(5-0-0) The motion carried. |
The meeting was = adjourned at approximately 9:10 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
May 10,
2011
May 24, 2011
July 5, 2011
August 2, 2011
August 16, 2011
September 27, 2011<= o:p>
February 14, 2012
March 20, 2012
April 10, 2012
April 24, 2012
June 5, 2012
July 17, 2012
BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING/September 18, 2012