BOS Minutes 05-30-2006

APPROVED

TOWN OF PELHAM

BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING

MINUTES

May 30, 2006

APPROVED – June 13, 2006

CALL TO ORDER

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

PRESENT:

Mr. Edmund Gleason, Mr. Jean-Guy Bergeron, Mr. Tom Domenico, Mr. Tom Gaydos – Town Administrator

Also present:

ABSENT:

Members of the press and general public.

Mr. Victor Danevich, Mr. Harold Lynde

MI= NUTES REVIEW

May 16, 2006

MOTION:=

(Domenico/Bergeron) To approve the May 16, 2006 meeting minute= s as amended

VOTE:

(3-0-0) The motion carried.

The amendments to the minutes were as follows: page 2,= under Planning Part-time – the sentence reading ‘…set hours for residents to set meetings.’ was amended to read ‘…set hou= rs for residents to contact Mr. Wakefield to set up meetings’; the words ‘Code Enforcement’ were added to ‘… have the Code Enforcement officer..’; page 2, under OHRV Grant – the words ‘the Chief’ were added to ‘Mr. Domenico asked the Chief to consider…’; the ending time/motion were added as follows: (Gleason/Bergeron) at 9:40pm; there were also minor grammatical corrections= .

OP= EN FORUM

None.

AP= POINTMENTS

An= nouncement of New Fire Chief

Mr. Gleason announced that an agreement had be= en made for a New Fire Chief. Th= e new Fire Chief will be Mr. Michael Walker from Fort Madison, Iowa. Mr. Gleason summarized the hiring process that had been taken. = He also discussed Mr. Walker’s qualifications. Mr. Walker will begin work on June 19, 2006 t= hereby providing a transition period to work with current Fire Chief E. David Fish= er until June 30, 2= 006. There will be a Transition Ceremon= y held at the Fire Station June 25, 2006 beginning at 1pm; citizens will have the opportunity to welcome Mr. Walker as well as say goo= dbye to Chief Fisher.

Mr. Gleason informed that the Town had acquired its first ladder truck from Pe= lham, NY. It is currently in front of the Fi= re Station for residents to view and will shortly be housed inside the station.

Em= ergency Status Update

Mr. Gaydos read aloud a memo submitted by Fire Chief E. David Fisher regarding the recent storm that began May 13, 2006. At present the FEMA team had come = to Town and done a preliminary survey; the damage to the Town Infrastructure w= as approximated at $1.8 million. Forms will be given to the Town to replenish = some of its cost for the actual emergency; at this point, 75% would come from th= e Federal Government; 12.5% from the state and 12.5% would be the local share. The state is considering capping t= he local share at $5000, but it has not yet been confirmed. Mr. Gaydos said following the Emer= gency Declaration there would be a Declaration of Mitigation (secondary process t= o do repairs) that wouldn’t start for an additional three to six months. On May 31, 2006 people seeking assistance will have the opportunity to fill out an application in Manchest= er – 160 Silva Street; assistance will be on a first come, first serve basis; Those who have not seen the flier can contact the Selectmen Office.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'>

Mr. Gleason asked for the status of the Main Street Bridge as well as f= or clarification about the limitations of the Willow Street Bridge. Mr. Gaydos said the Willow Street = Bridge always had a limitation; once the water (from the storm) had receded an engineer firm reviewed the bridge and felt it could be opened up to the 15 = ton limit. The engineering firm c= ommented that if the bridge was not addressed, the weight limit would slowly have to= be lowered; the Town was encouraged to have the bridge placed on the stateR= 17;s 10-year plan. Mr. Gaydos said= the Town was already setting money aside for the bridge.

Mr. Gaydos then discussed the Main Street Bridge. He said it was a state bridge and = the state had not yet commented on what they would do. He said a lot of the damage sustai= ned would not easily be repaired.

Mr. Gleason asked if the Tallant Road Bridge would still = be closed. Mr. Gaydos answered yes. He said the project was = on target to close the bridge on June 5, 2006.

Mr. Bergeron asked if the Main Street Bridge had anything scheduled in the state’s 10-year plan. Mr. Gaydos said it was a state bridge. The state has the opt= ion of repairing the bridge out of their operational funds. Mr. Bergeron confirmed that it wou= ld be up to the state what was to be done with the bridge; it may not have to go through the 10-year process. = Mr. Gaydos answered yes. He under= stood that the mitigation funds could bypass the 10-year program.

Fo= restry & Conservation Commission re: Security at Gumpas Pond Conservation Area

Mr. Paul Gagnon (member of the Forestry Commit= tee and Conservation Commission) and Ms. Deb Waters (member of the Forestry Committee) met with the Selectmen to discuss the security at the Gumpas Pond Conservation Area. Ms. Waters= said last weekend there were a group of folks doing work (cleaning up) at the Gu= mpas Pond Conservation Area and a newly deposited wrecked car was discovered. When the property was purchased approximately ten or twelve cars had been removed and boulders were placed = at the entrance points from Hudson and Pelham to temporarily secure the land.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> These boulders have since been moved. A Police Report has be= en completed. The wrecked car was believed to have come in from the Hudson entrance point; it had been dragged far into the land.

Ms. Waters said they were coming in front of t= he Selectmen because it was somewhat of an emergency basis to request funding = for bar/gates and signage. She sa= id the Forestry Fund had been set aside for forestry property maintenance and want= ed to know if funding could be taken on an emergency basis. Mr. Gleason asked if the associated costs had been identified. Ms. Waters said they had done preliminary estimates and felt they could get two bar/gates for $1500 ($750 each) and two signs (one for Gumpas the other for= the Merriam property) for $1500 each. The quotes had not been refined.&nb= sp; Mr. Gleason asked if it was feasible to take money from the Forestry Fund for this type of activity. Mr. Gaydos said it was feasible, but it would have to be appropriated (at Town Meeting). Mr. Gagnon said the= re were plans to put money into the Forestry Fund (this year) from timber harv= esting and wanted to know if money could be taken from the Fund as a loan and put = back later in the year.

Mr. Bergeron informed that Legislation had been introduced regarding abandoned cars and wanted to research such. He said the Legislation was if an abandoned car was found, it was traced back to the last registered owner (w= ho would be responsible for costs of removal/towing etc.); if the car was stol= en (and never recovered) the owner would be an insurance company. Mr. Bergeron was in favor of signa= ge, but wanted the opportunity to further review the Legislature. Mr. Gagnon believed Fire Chief E. = David Fisher (who was also a member of the Forestry Committee) recommended the ga= tes because boulders may block access for emergency vehicles. Ms. Waters was fearful that doing nothing would encourage similar activity.&= nbsp;

There was further discussion regarding the placement of the bar/gates. M= r. Gleason said further research was needed regarding allocating/borrowing from the Forestry Funds. He asked = if there was any money in the Conservation budget that could be reviewed. Mr. Gagnon said there were funds, = but some of which was already allocated. Mr. Domenico supported the gates and the signs, but wanted to overco= me the administrative hurdle of how payments would work.

Mr. Gaydos was asked to review the Forestry Fu= nds to determine if it would be a feasible approach.

Pe= lham Garden Group re: Library Plan= tings

Members of the Pelham Garden Group, Mr. Bill McDevitt and Ms. Sue Mitchell, met with the Selectmen to discuss plantings = at the Library. Mr. McDevitt sai= d last year the Group discussed plantings with the Library; they would now like to discuss doing additional plantings on the right side of the Library. There would be six/seven additiona= l shrubs that would be of the appropriate size/style. Mr. McDevitt said the Group would acquire and do the plantings and asked for the Selectmen’s approval.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Mr. Gleason thanked the Group for = their work/dedication. There was a consensus by the Selectmen to allow the Garden Group to proceed with the additional plantings.

Mr. McDevitt then discussed the Town Common and requested permission to install permanent electricity to such. He said they had received a plan t= o put electricity all around the common, starting with the breaker panel. They would work with the Electrical Inspector, obtain necessary permits and have the work done by/overseen by a= licensed electrician. Mr. McDevitt sai= d the electricity would be safer if it was installed permanently. All the work and materials would be donated by the Garden Group. = When the work is done, it would be owned by the Town.

Mr. Gleason asked if there were any ramificati= ons to insurance. Mr. Gaydos said this had been discussed in the past and felt = the proposed approach was sound. = He felt it would be a great addition to the other efforts done by the Group. <= /p>

In summary, the Garden Group would like to ins= tall permanent electricity to the Town Common with an approximate material value= of $1600-$1800 (labor cost not known because it would be done by volunteers); = work would be done by = September 1, 2006.

Mr. Bergeron believed because the donation cost would exceed $500 it would have to go through the public hearing process. An item will be added to the next Selectmen agenda.

Ea= gle Scout Projects

Boy Scout Alex Hunt of Troop 610 met with the Selectmen to discuss his proposed Eagle Scout project. With the help of his Troop and a g= rant recently obtained by the Town (for trails) Mr. Hunt proposed to clear a tra= il through the woods at Raymond Park and create a picnic area.

Boy Scout Robert LaRose of Troop 610 also met = with the Selectmen to discuss his proposed Eagle Scout project. He proposed to do a two-mile exten= sion to the trails.

Mr. Bob Sherman informed that the Scouts would work with the Park & Recreation Director and the Trail Grant. The project had to be complete by September, 2006 when the Trail Grant ended. Mr. Sherman said there was a third= Scout that would also be helping. <= /p>

Mr. Domenico informed that the trail paths had been marked and felt that the work would be an asset to the Town.

Mr. Bergeron thanked the Scouts for the projec= t.

Mr. Gleason also thanked the Scouts for all th= ey do for the Town and Citizenry of New Hampshire.

= Mr. Domenico said if anyone wanted to volunteer to help with the trails they sh= ould contact the Park & Recreation Department.

MOTION:=

(Domenico) To approve Alex Hunt’s and Robert LaRose’s Eagle Scout projects as presented for trail development in Raymond Park to be completed September, 2006.

VOTE:

(3-0-0) The motion carried.

= OTHER BUSINESS

Ra= ymond Park Update

Mr. Gaydos said the trail project was underway. There were some maj= or wash outs in the area and would be eligible for FEMA funding; a culvert had been washed out and collapsed. How to proceed with the twin field construction will be assessed and discussed = at an upcoming meeting.

Muldoon Park<= /st1:PlaceType> Update

Mr. Gaydos said a meeting was held with Mr. Ge= orge Saurman, Park & Recreation Director Darren McCarthy and a representativ= e of Ed Herbert Associates. All th= ree volunteered their time to delineate the area. The topographical map is being updated. Information is being obtained so the permitting and construction process could proceed.

Tallant Bridg= e Update

Mr. Gaydos said some environmental test still needed to be done. He didn= 217;t feel the project would be held back, unless there were severe rains. Part of the permit for the bridge = to move forward was that Beaver Brook would have to be at a low flow.

Se= nior Bus Bids

Mr. Gaydos said the Selectmen had reviewed the= bus bids at the last meeting. He = said the Town had not done a specification for a bus since the 1970’s. He compared specifying a Senior Bu= s to the process used when specifying a Highway Department truck. Mr. Gaydos said further investigat= ion had to be done and recommended notifying all the bidders that the Town was rejecting all the bids. He wa= nted to put together a different set of specifications (comprised of the main bo= dy and undercarriage) for the Selectmen’s review. There was further discussion regar= ding the bus specification; when the specification is complete, it will be broug= ht to the Selectmen. There will = be a competitive bid in accordance with Town policy. Mr. Gaydos will proceed.

REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION

MOTION:=

(Domenico/Bergeron) Request for a non-public session= per RSA 91-A:3,II, e (Consideration or negotiation of pending claims or litigation).

ROLL CALL:<= /b>

Mr. Gleason-Yes; Mr. Bergeron-Yes; Mr. Domenico

Mr. Gleason noted that when the Board returned, after = the non-public session, the Board would not take any other action publicly, exc= ept to possibly seal the minutes of the non-public session and to adjourn the meeting. The Board entered in= to a non-public session at approximately 7:30 pm.

The Board returned to public session at approximately = 8:25 pm.

MOTION:=

(Bergeron/Domenico) To seal the minutes of the non-p= ublic session indefinitely.

VOTE:

(3-0-0) The motion carried.

ADJOURNMEN= T

MOTION:<= o:p>

(Bergeron/Domenico) To adjourn the meeting.

VOTE:

(3-0-0) The motion carri= ed.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:25pm.

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Respe= ctfully submitted,

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Chari= ty A. L. Willis

&nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Recor= ding Secretary