|
|
Town of AmherstBoard of SelectmenJune 12, 2006
|
Chairman Bruce Bowler called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. Selectmen present: Reed Panasiti, George Infanti, Thomas Grella and Jay Dinkel (at 8:34 p.m.). Also present Town Administrator Gary MacGuire and Executive Assistant Sharon Frydlo.
Mr. Bowler asked everyone to rise for a moment of silence in memory of Rep. Lee Slocum who had been killed in an automobile accident the day before.
To Accept Unanticipated Revenue
Mr. Infanti moved to open the public hearing at 7:03 p.m., second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Mr. MacGuire advised that there was one minor adjustment to the list of Unanticipated Revenue given to the Board. The sale of Police cruisers was anticipated and the amount of $4212.00 was removed from the listed total of $142,549.66 altering the bottom line to $138,337.66. Mr. Bowler highlighted several amounts on the list over $1000.00: Fire Department – Fire Watch Detail at Wal-Mart $1085.00; DPW – Preliminary Engineering on New Boston/Beaver Brook Bridge $10,794.90; Auction Sale of Surplus Property $3150.00; Planning/Zoning – Stormwater Management –Laura Lyn Farms $2500.00; Hydro Study Review-Horizon Land Development $4000.00; Administration – Adelphia Franchise Fee $$33,714.89; EMS – Sale of Two Chevy Blazers $3195.00.
Mr. MacGuire reported that Police Details ($67,187.00) were an “in and out” item and next year they will be included in a revolving account. Much of this was for Baboosic Lake Road water line and 101A work. The amount paid was passed onto the officers who worked those details. Mr. Grella asked about the Adelphia fee. Mr. Bowler advised the total was $107,214.89 and they had budgeted less than this amount leaving $33,714.89 as unanticipated revenue. Mr. Grella thanked everyone who made this revenue possible – Fire, Police, Zoning, EMS stating it was very generous. Mr. Panasiti asked about the DPW Auction? Mr. Berry advised that they received $3150.00 for a truck that failed to pass inspection. They did not want to put a significant amount of money into this vehicle and put it up for auction at the White Farm, a State auction. The Board had deemed this vehicle surplus last year. Mr. MacGuire advised that Police cruisers go through a Police bid which goes out mainly to cab companies and they try to get the most return to the Town.
Mr. Infanti moved to close the public hearing, second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Mr. Infanti moved to accept the 2006 unanticipated revenues in the amount of $138, 337.66, second by Mr. Grella. Discussion: Mr. Bowler commented that some of DPW’s revenue should go back into their budget because it was money previously expended. Vote: Unanimous.
Citizens’ Forum
John Harvey spoke about Lee Slocum and their friendship, his accidental death and it being one of the latest and most tragic of deaths, monthly accidents and daily near-misses all along the Amherst segment of Route 101. He spoke from a prepared statement about his commute to Merrimack via this road from the Cider Mill to Camp Road and again during the evening commute. He described the routine as a “drag start” into the only window of traffic for miles traveling at a speed of 65 mph until his exit. Mr. Harvey now commutes to Merrimack on Baboosic Lake Road over Route 101 and while it is a longer commute, he refuses to use 101 unless it was absolutely necessary. He asked the Selectmen to rearrange their priorities and move the nice to have items from near the top of their budget to the bottom and plan on spending lots of the Town’s money to make the Amherst segment of Route 101 safe with lights and turn lanes at every intersection. He suggested it be shut down for “our safety”. Use Police statistics for deaths and accidents at the intersections and also use polls and surveys to capture the fear and concern for near-misses at the intersections. He asked that the Selectmen work with the State to make this segment of Route 101 safe.
Mr. Bowler advised he had received an email from a resident on Saddle Hill concerning turning lanes and it was sent on to the State Representatives since it was a State road. The intersection where the accident happened the Town was told in 2002-2003 that the State could not do this because of Pine Road and the bridge. Mr. Harvey indicated they had to make their voices known. Mr. Bowler commented that 101 was a tough road and he avoids it. This was a very tragic accident and it took something like this to open up the State’s eyes. He was willing to do something and he was sure the rest of the Board members agreed. Mr. Infanti agreed with him 100% and the Selectmen can make it known how they feel. Mr. Grella echoed this – it was a State road and this has been in the works for awhile. As they travel to the coast on this road, they post the number of deaths. Mr. Panisiti remarked that to do nothing would be irresponsible. He suggested placing “dangerous” road signs for motorists from Amherst to Milford. They need to make a statement that they as a Board will go to the State and what Mr. Slocum was fighting in Concord. In the short term, they could ask the State if they could put up some type of sign that people were entering a “dangerous strip of road from this point to another”.
Mr. Bowler was in favor of contacting the State to see what they can do on Route 101. Mr. Infanti commented that Milford had a concentrated effort in putting in some rumble strips and when people make enough noise, things happen. Mr. MacGuire advised he had 30 years of tragedies on this road and had received a Federal grant to start overtime patrol. He talked to the State about long range plans that were still long range. Mr. Harvey remarked that the folks on lower Mack Hill got together and slowed traffic down to 25-30 mph – the same thing could happen along 101. DPW Director Bruce Berry commented again that this was a State road and cautionary strips were fine with cars, but were deadly with motorcycles. Liz Overholt added that as a driver you should be careful that while waiting at an intersection to keep car wheels straight and not turned.
Mr. Bowler advised that Mr. Slocum had just left an Eagle Scout Award Ceremony as one of his duties as a State Representative and this was very unfortunate. He said they will get a letter off to the State Representatives and Senator Peter Bragdon as well as the DOT. In response to Mr. Panasiti suggestion, Mr. MacGuire explained that in his experience with the State, they will do what they feel is appropriate based on history and experience and the Town can make suggestions, but they will do a lot of research prior to acting. They can collectively put their ideas together on what to suggest to DOT.
Stormwater II Committee Update
Mr. Bowler advised that the above update has been postponed and they don’t know exactly when it will be rescheduled. Mr. MacGuire reported they are also looking to see an ordinance prepared and were waiting to have the key people also present. In response to Mr. Bowler’s question, Mr. MacGuire indicated that both the Planning Board and Board of Health needed to be involved. Mr. Bowler asked that when the meeting takes place to also notify Health Officer Dr. Starke and Deputy Health Officer Katherine Lockwood.
EOC Activation Review
Mr. Bowler reported that EMS Director Brian Gleason, Police Chief Peter Lyon, Fire Chief John DeSilva and DPW Director Bruce Berry were in attendance to go over the events of the flood on Mothers’ Day with a power point presentation.
Mr. Bowler thanked the four men that got together that Sunday morning to do all they did that day and night as well as the week that followed. They had done an outstanding job that continues to this day. Mr. Infanti added that they are what Amherst is and he has seen this for the last three years – the Department Heads working as one for the citizens of the Town and as a Board they appreciated this. Mr. Grella commented that he had stopped in at the Station one of the days and they were all out doing various things. He, too, appreciated it. Mr. Panasiti indicated that Peter was in this position just recently and Bruce, Brian and John have done a great job. He personally had some questions initially on how the process worked and talked to Chairman Bowler and Mr. Grella about this. He had some concerns at first, but they have done a tremendous job. He had not heard any concerns or complaints from any of the Departments and would like them to pass along his thanks.
Mr. Gleason presented a pictorial view of the event and how they approached it, thought about what they needed, how to approach it in the future and what systems to put in place. On May 14 they were notified to meet at 9:30 a.m. The Selectmen, Town Administrator, Police Chief, Fire Chief, DPW Director, EMS Deputy Director Don Holden and the Supervisor of PSCC were notified. They took under consideration road closures, areas of concerns, Baboosic Lake evacuation, medic notifications, State EOC updates, BOS updates and field updates.
Mr. Gleason continued …. Road closures were identified and they activated mutual aid. Chief DeSilva added that New Boston planned for mutual aid. Mr. Gleason advised that members from Fire, EMS and Police had extra help. Pictures were shown of Route 101 at Amherst/Bedford town line going east off Camp Road. Pictures were also shown of the damage on 101 the next day. There were pictures of Horace Greeley Road, Dodge Road, Schoolhouse Road, Embankment Rd at 101 was 4” deep, and Embankment Road at Walnut Hill. Chief DeSilva advised that on Monday a call was received from PSNH that they couldn’t make through with a line truck and Matt Conley had taken them out in the boat to shut power off. Walnut Hill at Embankment had close to 18” of water – a picture showed the road edge and erosion caused by it. Spring Road had collapsed and Mr. Berry told the Board the Police had close it off and it had been closed for almost one week. Mr. Gleason showed pictures of Lynch Farm as well as Merrimack Road at Holt Road (after the water had subsided) as well as Corduroy Road at Cricket Corner (also after the water had subsided) and spoke of the extent of the damage underneath roads. Pictures were shown of Route 122 at the golf course, and Boston Post Road in the area of the Souhegan River. Additional photos were given to them from Bruce Bowler and showed Clark Avenue and Baboosic Lake at Clark Avenue. Photos also showed damage done to Baboosic Lake Road as well as Conifer Lane that had been taken that day.
Mr. Berry advised that Conifer Lane was a situation that they never had before and had been monitoring the water the past week. He commented on the catch basins, the flat area and elevated water table. They had brought in an engineer and were currently pumping water through the golf course to the other side. Chief DeSilva reported that as of 3:30 p.m. they had brought down Engine 5 to help. 1100’ of hose has been run from the golf course to Edgewood Run, were equalizing the water and were pumping approximately 700-800 gallons per minute and drawing it down one inch per hour. Perhaps by the next day, the road may be dry.
Mr. Gleason told the Board about the EOC debriefing and initial assessment. There were no major power outages, no sewer damage, no communications failures, no personal injuries, no major overtime expenses with the exception of DPW, and no extended catastrophic road closures. To enhance future emergencies they will need additional “high water” and “street closure” signs and protocols; road barriers; sand bag stockpiles – deployment and pick up protocols and better use of ACTV20 and the Town web site. Mr. Berry commented that sand bags were a new adventure – he had a small supply of filled ones and a small supply of empty bags. He spoke about the issues related to this and worked out a plan for storage of a ready supply. Mr. Gleason added that these were the initial things they wanted to share with the Selectmen.
Board members asked how they should go about notifying the community of emergency shelters if the power was out? Mr. Gleason explained this was the biggest concern about notifying the community prior to an incident. He briefly spoke about working within the region and the need to have something on the community network channel. Relative to the use of PA systems – Chief Lyon explained this never came up because they were not in this situation. One answer is going door-to-door with firemen and other bodies. Another way is the use of telephones, even though there would loss of power.
Mr. Grella appreciated their efforts and indicated it was a great presentation. He thought a pre-warning on TV 20 was a good idea. Mr. Bowler appreciated the update and mentioned that a great job was done. He opened up further discussion to the audience. Mrs. Overholt suggested that it may be helpful to have a list of residents that have power boats and people who have four-wheeled drive during a snow storm. Any effort to add additional manpower from the Fire Department, EMS and Police they could call on to go door-to-door. Was there a number to call if people should need some help? Chief Lyon explained it was either 9-1-1 or the Police Department. Cal Wood asked that when they deployed their resources on the ground, do all departments operate on a common emergency frequency? Mr. Bowler advised there were only three. The Town voted in March to get DPW radios that would have the same frequency as the other Departments. Mr. Bowler also thanked Mr. Lyon for his efforts on Saturday’s Beautification Day.
Asphalt Zipper Update
Mr. Bowler reported that Mr. Berry had given the Board additional information two weeks ago. Mr. Berry advised he had given the Board a two page report that answered the questions they had in a previous presentation. In his research, he found they do not rent the zipper out, but do what is called a “test drive” for one month at $12,000 for 40 hours of operation. They should be able to do some sections in a relatively quick time. He had contacted folks who have used this equipment and it was documented on the second page.
Mr. Grella indicated he was at the demonstration, was impressed, thought it worthwhile to go out for the test drive to see how it works before purchasing and felt it will be money well spent. Mr. Infanti agreed with Mr. Grella. The numbers made sense and the $12,000 will be applied to the purchase price. From the first presentation he thought this made sense to him. He did not see a downside, suggested they go with a month and after that time Mr. Berry should come back with an evaluation on whether it made sense. Mr. Panasiti remarked that if they agreed to do this for a month, he would like to see what work is going to be accomplished from the time they have the Zipper. He was concerned about the large fee for one month and 40 hours. He also asked whether or not there will be any training? Mr. Berry explained they will come out and work with his people. Relative to fees, bits and fuel, everyone he called on the second page, didn’t express any downtime only with bits and the representative would be available to them based on his conversations thus far. As for the replacement of bits, they were based on the type of asphalt, age, etc. Relative to the $12,000, Mr. Berry does not see this coming out of this year’s budget, but rather the one beginning July 1st. He spoke about the bids he has recently sent out and anticipated this to come out of outside hire. Mr. Bowler reminded them that they had increased this line to $50,000. He was fine with going out and doing a test drive to see how it goes with the guys and how much they can get done.
Mr. Berry explained to Mr. Panasiti that the spots he was planning on repairing were on pictures in his first presentation and a good example of what he wanted to pursue and offered to take him to the various locations to look at them.
Mr. Infanti moved to test drive the Zipper for $12,000 for a month for up to 40 hours of operation payable in advance. At that time, they would review it for purchase, second by Mr. Grella. Discussion: The suggestion was made to put in a dollar amount in the motion. Mr. Infanti amended the motion that the $12,000 was for the test drive and an additional amount is for the bits, maintenance items and fuel, second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Thank You
Mr. Berry thanked the Town Administrator and the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen and other Departments with the issue of water in the homes on Conifer Lane. It had not been an easy issue and collectively there is a plan and a solution and he hoped this did not happen again.
Finalize Appointment of Planning Board
Mr. MacGuire reported a letter of resignation was received that day from Planning Board Alternate Paul Doherty. The Board briefly discussed the matter as it currently stood. Mr. Infanti will contact several people who had expressed an interest in serving to see if they still would like to be involved..
Untable Life, Long & Short Term Disability Recommendation
Mr. MacGuire advised that several weeks ago the Board was looking towards LGC and Primex for the above insurance. LGC was our existing carrier and Mr. Infanti asked the question about the length of the contract on LTD. Primex offered a two year rate guarantee. He had gone back to LGC to see if they would match this. The handout on rate history is what he received from them. This decision by LGC was just made during their negotiations last Thursday. They will offer two years which matches Primex and they had discussed most of the other points and issues at a prior meeting. Mr. Panasiti moved that since they already have been dealing with LGC and they have negotiated with their carrier for two years, that the Town maintains LGC for Long Term, Short Term Disability and Life Insurance Policies, second by Mr. Infanti. Vote: Unanimous.
Untable Abatement Recommendation M/L 1-10-5
Mr. MacGuire reported he was looking to untable the above recommendation and had a brief conversation with Michele in the Assessing Office. There had been a comment made from one of the Assessors who did not agree with the review, but agreed it was correct. The Board was looking for further explanation. With Michele out sick he did not have a chance to do it until that day. Scott Marsh who offered his opinion and his boss, Joe Lessard, will be in on Friday. He felt more comfortable talking to the experts to explain this and he would like to postpone this until their questions were answered.
Reimbursement of Taxes Request for Over Assessment on M/L 19-18-1
Mr. Infanti indicated that from his experience in Amherst, after the appeal period was up, he did not ever remember a time when they gave back this amount. He believed there is a State Statute, but was not completely sure. He would approve the current year but deny the others. Mr. Bowler agreed that they have denied these requests in the past. Mr. Panasiti asked if the property owner was working, non-working or elderly? Mr. MacGuire thought they both were employed at this time. After further discussion Mr. Infanti moved that they do not approve an abatement for 2005 back to 2002 on M/L 19-18-1, second by Mr. Panasiti. Discussion: Mr. Panasiti referred to the Tax Collector’s memo in which it states that the assessment had been corrected for the 2006 tax year. It was the homeowner’s responsibility to insure that they understand what they are being taxed on and agreed they should not to go back any further. Vote: Unanimous.
Sign Dog Warrant
Mr. MacGuire advised this was a statutory requirement every year that they authorize the Police Department to enforce the Dog Warrant. An unlicensed dog creates issues with the Police Department as it relates to rabies and this allows them to go after folks who have not licensed their dogs. Mr. Infanti moved to sign the Dog Warrant and sent it to the Police to enforce for another year, second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Mr. Dinkel arrived at 8:34 p.m.
Appoint Police chief as Highway Safety Chairman
Mr. Infanti moved to appoint the new Police Chief as the Highway Safety Committee Chairman, second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Sign 2006 Tax Warrant Levy
Mr. Infanti moved to sign the Levy of the 2006 Tax Warrant in the amount of $16,378,458.00 with interest at 12 percent per annum from July 3, 2006 thereafter on all sums not paid on or before that date, second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Other Business
Mr. MacGuire advised he received a memo that day from Merri Howe, Finance Director after they had a conversation with Liz Overholt who had done due diligence in her authorization as Town Treasurer regarding rates on investments. One concern was for the Conservation Land Account. The Bank will allow for six withdrawals per month at 4.4% for 30 days. Currently the account was earning 1.25% in the Concentration Account – the Account has approximately $260,000 in it. He would be asking the Selectmen to authorize the Treasurer to move the money, but would like to do a little bit of legwork on it first. This would be a good move to increase the Town’s return on a fairly large amount of money.
Mrs. Overholt added that the General Fund is earning 4.48%. The Concentration Account contains all the Driveway Escrows, DARE, Conservation Gift & Land Accounts, etc. Mr. Infanti asked if they were committed to just Citizens or could they shop around other local banks to get the best rates. This was a huge difference and he suggested they find other local banks they can do business with. Mr. Grella agreed. Mr. Dinkel refrained from commenting. Mr. Panasiti also agreed and suggested they go back to the current bank to see if there are any new programs. Mrs. Overholt explained this is what she did and had gone to the same bank. The other thing she looked at, after printing out a year’s worth of transactions, was the number of withdrawals per month. Mr. Bowler asked for a report within two weeks.
Mr. Infanti reported there were perhaps 40-50 people who took part in the Town clean-up and he acknowledged the Amherst Junior Women’s Club for putting this on and being as persistent as they were. Groups such as this makes a difference for the Town and they were out in the rain picking up the trash.
Mr. Grella had nothing to report.
Mr. Panasiti reported he had sat in on several Recreation Commission meetings where they discussed land issues. He thought they should have a review from the Chairman of OSAC on where they are regarding open space. Mr. Dinkel advised that what has happened is that there is a Recreation Commission representative on the Committee, unfortunately Maren Petropulos was not on the Commission any more and he had heard that Bob Heaton was to be appointed. Mr. Panasiti asked if the Chairman should come in and give them an overview? Mr. Dinkel indicated he has, but there were things that could not be publicly discussed. There should also be an additional flow from the representative back to the Commission. Mr. Panasiti asked about Conservation in that there were several things that came up and he had talked to Mr. MacGuire about some issues – one being easement language.
Mr. Infanti indicated that rumor had it that Conservation was very upset with the Selectmen over the appointments to the Planning Board and there were one or two people who had put harsh comments in writing via email about the BOS and since it was a matter of record, he would request copies since it was about them. He asked Mr. Panasiti to look into it for the Board. Mr. Panasiti said he would. He elaborated briefly on the subject and indicated that it was all about perception and was a philosophical discussion they were having. Mr. Infanti thought the Selectmen had been very supportive of Conservation’s requests and it bothered him that they had not come in to discuss the matter with the Board. It is their email that they should see and then draw some conclusions. Mr. Panasiti did not believe the discussion was over this sitting Board, but the BOS over time. They now feel this particular Board, in general, is working for the future of the Conservation Commission and Planning Board and looking out to the entire Town’s interest. It is at the discussion point at this time. He indicated he told the Commission that as long as it is fair and played by the rules of government, Planning Board, State and local regulations there cannot be any compromise and can’t be on their own personal agenda. Mr. Bowler commented that he was very upset with this letter.
Mr. Bowler reported that within two weeks it may make sense to fill up the diesel tank. Mr. Berry’s fuel line is out and talked about filling up the tanks with contingency funds and something they needed to think about for their next meeting – he has approximately 2500 gallons in a 10,000 gallon tank with a guaranteed price until June 30, 2006. Mr. MacGuire added that the pump work was to start next Monday because they were waiting on parts and they didn’t actually look for delivery until the end of the month. After a brief discussion, Mr. MacGuire will discuss the issue further with Mr. Berry.
Minutes
Mr. Infanti moved to approve the minutes of May 22, 2006 with the following recommended changes, seconded by Mr. Grella. Line 26 – Change “North Street” to “Lyndeborough Road”; insert “ or a community system” after “Septitech System; Line 28 – Strike “or a community system”; Line 33 –Strike “of the 41 lots 21 have proven” and replace with “less than 20 of 41 lots do not have the necessary”; Line 36 & 37 – Strike “and the market Mr. Farris wants to go for.”, insert “is” after “and”; Line 45 – Insert “test pit” before “question”; Line 72 – Change “endanger” to “danger”; Lines 78 & 79 – Strike “He”, replace with “Mr. Infanti”, Change “community system” to “single systems”; Line 96 – Insert “less than 48” of” before “original”, strike “be” replace with “require”, change “approve” to “approval”, strike “is 48”;Line 193 – Strike “and they have a map with four dots on it and it was not universal” replace with “in limited sections of Town”; Line 226 – Change “June” to “July”; Line 274 – Strike “The Rotary” replace with “A group of private citizens” after “and” insert “the Milford Rotary”, strike “another” replace with “approximately”. Vote: Unanimous.
Other Business
Mr. Panasiti indicated that someone had made a comment that on ACTV20 there was no day or times for the Farmers’ Market. Steve Coughlan explained that it was a slide show of photographs and not an advertisement and was put on for awareness.
Mr. Infanti moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:16 p.m., second by Mr. Grella. Vote: Unanimous.
Respectfully submitted,
Sharon L. Frydlo
Executive Assistant