SEL20090616

APPROVED

TOWN OF PELHAM

BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING

MINUTES

June 16, 2009

APPROVED &#= 8211; June 30, 2009

CALL TO ORDER – 6:30pm

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

PRESENT:

Mr. Robert Haverty, Mr.= Douglas Viger, Mr. William McDevitt, Mr. Harold Lynde, Mr. Edmund Gleason, Town Administrator Tom Gaydos

ABSENT:

None.

PUBLIC HEARING – To accept Donation of the Installation of= Sod at the Pelham Fire Station by Boyden’s Landscaping. The value of materials & labor= to be approximately $1000

There was no public input= .

Mr. Gaydos noted that the= area had taken a beating over the past many winters and there was no irrigation. He said Boyden of= fered to donate sod and set up hoses to get irrigation so the area was done in ti= me for Memorial Day.

Mr. Boyden was thanked by= the Selectmen for the donation and service to the Town.

MOTION:

(Viger/Gleason= ) To accept the donation of $1000 from Boyden’s Landscaping for the valu= e of materials and labor to install sod at the Pelham Fire Station.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

MINUTES REVIEW

June 2,= 2009 – deferred for further clarification.

Mr. Lynde asked that clarification be made to the discussion regarding associated costs for the = 2^nd egress at Muldoon Park. The Recording Secretary will revie= w the DVD of the meeting and provide a suggested amendment.

PUBLIC HEARING – Proposal to purchase Map 9 Lot 9 Parcel 2, / 17-51 Moeckel Road to be acquired f= or use as conservation land.

Conservation Commission C= hairman Paul Gagnon and Conservation Commission member Karen MacKay came forward to discuss the proposal to purchase conservation land. Mr. Gagnon stated that there had b= een previous conversations regarding the parcel and at this time he was providi= ng an overview of the proposal for the public. He stated that the Conservation Commission had been discussing the idea of neighborhood forests. He showed a map of the Town and the already distributed network of forests.&nb= sp; He said they were trying to evolve each one so they could be in the = size of approximately 100-200 acres so substantial wildlife could be supported.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> The area currently being discussed= was near the Kirby Town Forest which consisted of sixty-five acres and was difficult to access. Mr. Gagnon stated two parcels of l= and near Kirby Town Forest had come up for sale in the last year; one contained approximately 32 acres, the other contained approximately 65 acres. He provided a history of the land = and why the Conservation Commission was interested in purchasing the parcels. He noted that the property was ver= y developable and could possibly handle fourteen house lots. Mr. Gagnon said in two weeks they = would come forward with an additional parcel that would provide access to the for= est from Route 111A. He then revi= ewed the packet of information that had been provided to the Selectmen containing detailed information regarding the proposed parcel.

The Selectmen thanked the Conservation Commission for their hard work and efforts.

Mr. Viger asked that furt= her explanation be given regarding what access would be obtained to Kirby Town Forest and the bene= fits associated with it. Mr. Gagno= n stated that the proposed parcel didn’t provide access to the Kirby Town Forest (it was one parcel removed)= . He explained that the Kirby Town Forest was currently hard to utili= ze; there was no parking and the logging equipment could not access the land. He said the goal was to gain acces= s to the forest and the parcel being brought forward in two weeks would provide = such. He commented that the proposed par= cel had access from Moeckel Ro= ad and hoped that eventually it would connect to the Kirby forest.

Mr. Gleason asked if the = parcel would be paid through the existing funds from the $3 million dollars. Mr. Gagnon believed the parcel wou= ld be paid for out of the current use fund; it would not cost the tax payers additional money. Mr. Gleason= asked for the date of the Town appraisal. Mr. Gagnon stated that it was printed out on December 28, 2008. Mr. Gleason asked if the dam contr= olling Golden Brook was located in Wi= ndham, NH. Mr. Gagnon stated that was correct= ; it was not in Pelham. Mr. Gleason complimented the Conservation Commission for their effort and land obtained= for conservation. He said it was = an admirable accomplishment.

Mr. Lynde asked for the a= creage of the lot that was on Beaver Brook in the southern portion of Town. Ms. MacKay believed it was approxi= mately one hundred twenty two acres. Mr. Lynde felt what the Conservation Commission was doing was great.

Mr. McDevitt said the app= raisal noted that the portion in Pelham would need to be improved (gravel road) and asked to what extent the value of the parcel reflected the fact that it was= on a Class VI road. He said it s= eemed that the value was a good deal less because someone would have to invest a = lot of money to bring the road up to Town standards. Mr. Gagnon felt the comment was accurate. He pointed out that= the road had been used for many years to access the owner’s home. He said part of the road is plowed in the winter and accessible year round. Once at Golden Brook there is a br= idge that is not functioning. Mr. = Gagnon didn’t know if Windham considered the first section of Moeckel Road a Class V road. He was sure the appraisal included= the cost for upgrading/paving the road to Town standards. He didn’t want to give peopl= e the impression that the parcel was on Class VI road. He said the parcel was currently accessed through a gravel road. Mr. McDevitt asked if the appraisal reflected the fact that the road was not buildable. Mr. Gagnon said th= e appraisal was very detailed and believed it referenced all the construction costs and= the fact that two towns would have to be dealt with. Mr. McDevitt thanked the Conservat= ion Commission for the work they had done.&nbs= p; Ms. MacKay reviewed the appraisal and outlined the work that would n= eed to be done to construct/improve the roadway (approximately 1500ft). She said in reading the appraisal = it mentioned the improvements several times.&= nbsp; She noted that the parcel could possibly yield as many as twenty single-family lots but that number was reduced to sixteen given the topogra= phy; an assumed number (of fourteen lots) was used. Mr. McDevitt said the point was th= at the price the Town was offering to pay was already discounted based on the work that would need to be done. <= /p>

MOTION:

(Lynde/Gleason= ) To approve the purchase of the parcel identified as Map 9 Lot 9, parcel 2, 1= 7-51 for the price of $350,000. =

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION

MOTION:

(McDevitt/Glea= son) Request for a non-public session per RSA 91-A:3,II, d (Consideration of acquisition, sale or lease of property)

ROLL CALL:

Mr. Haverty-Ye= s; Mr. Viger-Yes; Mr. McDevitt-Yes= ; Mr. Lynde-Yes; Mr. Gleason-Yes

It was noted tha= t after the Board returned from non-public session they would enter back into public session and conduct their other business.&= nbsp; The Board entered into a non-public session at approximately 7:15 pm.

The Board returned to pub= lic session at approximately 7:= 27pm.

OPEN FORUM

None.

APPOINTMENTS

Bruce Mason – Transfer Station Department Update

Transfer Station Superint= endent Bruce Mason came forward to discuss his department. He told the Board that they had th= e new skid steer and pick up truck. He said the Ford pick up truck came in approximately $1400 below budget; he to= ok a portion of which and had a spray bed lining done and installed mud flaps. He said because the bid was so low= for the skid steer he was able to get a little bigger machine than he anticipated. He stated that approximately $8600 would be turned back in to the general fund.

Mr. Mason discussed the s= tatus of his budget. He said his repai= r budget was pretty well expended and summarized where the funds had been spent. He told the Board that they were a= lso being ‘slammed’ with televisions and computer monitors. He said CRT (a company that provid= es a free pick ups periodically) had recently done a pick up of 6326 pounds. He provided the Board with a break= down from CRT. He said they were t= aking in an average of 25 refrigerators per month. He then discussed trash and provid= ed a comparison of what had been brought in as of the end of May, 2009.

Mr. McDevitt asked what t= he Town currently paid for tipping and hauling trash. Mr. Mason said the Town paid $71 p= er ton and $322 per pull.

Mr. Gaydos said he and Mr= . Mason had been working with Waste Management because the contract would come up January 1^st. The a= verage (combined) cost per ton was $88. The advantage of hiring a turn-key operation was that they would handle the rem= oval and take it wherever they had to. Mr. Mason said a 3.5% increase was built in each year with their contract. He said there had been a typograph= ical error in the contract, which he believed to be ending next year, but found = out it was ending this year. Mr. Gleason asked if they would extend the contract without increases. Mr. Gaydos said an offer was not y= et made, but they were working to have answers with Waste Management so they w= ould have a uniform outline of what could be bid out. Mr. Mason discussed the various co= sts for baling and removing the materials brought to the facility.

Mr. Lynde looked at the b= udget and said with regard to projections, the department was in decent shape. Mr. Mason believed the department = would hold fair for the balance of the year.&nbs= p; Mr. Lynde said it would be nice if a study was done for the break ev= en point; when it would pay the Town to do bailing and at what volume it would make sense. Mr. Gaydos said o= ne of the things they were trying to do in speaking with Waste Management was to = get the answers and see where the break even points were. Mr. Lynde commented that everythin= g that was recycled saved the Town money (a minimum of $71 per ton). He said the net benefit for paper = was approximately $110 per ton; recycling cardboard saved the Town approximately $71 per ton.

Mr. Gleason asked how the= Town was doing with recycling and questioned what it could do better. Mr. Mason provided the Selectmen w= ith a spread sheet showing the 2007 recycling rate and the cost per capita. At this time, he didn’t have= the numbers from 2008, but would obtain them for the Board. Mr. Lynde questioned how many tons= of recyclable materials had gone out of the facility this year to date. Mr. Mason didn’t have the information. Mr. Lynde commen= ted that the tonnage was down and wanted to know if it was because there was le= ss material coming in, or if more was being diverted to the recycling stream.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Mr. Mason said his facility report reflected some good numbers; he would provide the information for the Board. Mr. Gleason asked if t= here was anything more that the Town could do or any program Mr. Mason wanted to pursue. Mr. Mason said educat= ion was the best thing and there were always programs that could be done.

Mr. Lynde questioned if t= here was a state-wide tabulation of the data Mr. Mason provided to the Board. Mr. Mason said there possibly could be. He would see if he could = obtain information for the data.

Mr. Mason wanted to know = if the Selectmen had thought about having a special revenue fund for the Transfer Station to put income into for purchasing equipment. He provided the Board with a copy = of the RSA that laid out the information on how to set an account up and how it co= uld be expended. He gave a brief sum= mary of how an account could be used.

Mr. Viger thanked Mr. Mas= on for the professionalism and courtesy of all the Transfer Station employees. Mr. Gleason commended Mr. Mason fo= r his dedication to the budget and looking for ways to save costs and streamline operations.

OTHER BUSINESS

May Financial Review

Mr. Gaydos discussed how = the report was composed. He began= by reviewing the revenue comparison report.&n= bsp; He felt the biggest area that should be discussed was the Town’= ;s interest income at Sovereign Bank and the Municipal Bond Bank, which was down approx= imately $65,000. He said in the past = they have always netted their costs to the interest income, but that was when interest was being paid as a higher rate.&= nbsp; He believed the proposal that would be brought forward during budget season was to have a revenue line for the interest and an appropriation for= the actual cost of operating those accounts.&n= bsp; He said he was working with the Treasurer and discussed how costs charged by the banks could be reduced.&nbs= p;

Mr. Gleason reviewed a le= tter that the Treasurer had submitted which indicated she would put together a presentation of the fees being charged to the Town and would work with the = bank for suggestions on how to cut costs. He went on to read that the Treasurer would be willing to meet with = Mr. Gaydos and/or the Selectmen to discuss the strategy for the next couple years. Mr. Gleason said he wo= uld like to maximize any opportunity the Town had to reduce the fees. He asked that the Board request a presentation from the Treasurer.

Mr. Gaydos continued the = review of the year to date revenue. = Mr. Gleason asked what the bottom line was for revenues. Mr. Gaydos said as of May they were close to even. He then review= ed expenses and told the Selectmen that he felt they were doing well. He said they would have to be vigi= lant from this point forward.

Mr. Lynde said a question= to ponder would be what the Town would do if the state ‘hit them big’. He said there was= a currently a conflict between the house and the senate about what gets cut a= nd doesn’t. He discussed s= ome of the actions that were being taken by the house and senate, such as recently with retirement age requirements.

There was further discussion. The action items = were to have a monthly report from the Treasurer.&= nbsp; Mr. Gleason said he would like to see a couple of reconciliation rep= orts that indicate the amount of money that reside in the cash flow and the amou= nt of fees the Town was being charged. When the treasurer does an analysis and action plan she will be scheduled to meet with the Selectmen. The Selectmen would like to conduct a similar review in one month. =

Announcement – Fire Chief James Midgley Swearing In Recept= ion & Ceremony

It was announced that Fir= e Chief James Midgley will be sworn in Tuesday, June 23, 2009 beginning with a reception at 6:00pm in the Town Hall Lobby followed b= y a Ceremony at 6:30pm in Sherburne Hall.

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S / SELECTMEN’S RE= PORTS

Mr. Lynde said the Pelham= High School Study Committee had been asked to continue on with their efforts to advise the School Board; they would be conducting a meeting and regroup to determine how they would proceed. An open forum would be held. Mr.= Lynde informed that the Concert on the Common Series would begin Wednesday June 24, 2009 with = Annie and the Orphans. He noted that Tot Soccer would be ending on Sunday. The next season would begin in the fall.

Mr. McDevitt announced th= at Pelham’s Celebration of America’s Independence would be held July 3, 2009 wit= h a rain date of July 5, 2009. Non Profit Organizations are invit= ed to participate and must have the prior approval of Pelham Community Spirit, In= c. on, or before Ju= ne 22, 2009. Interested organizations should co= ntact pelhamcommunityspirit@com= cast.net. Mr. McDevitt said the event was sponsored by the Pelham Community Spirit Inc.

Mr. Gleason had no report= .

Mr. Gaydos stated that he= had been working with Fire Chief Midgley and the team on the Fire Station Grant. The Federal Government= has now announced the Fire Station Grant Qualifications and the points for a competitive application. He believed the Town had a good chance of scoring highly because we are shovel ready. Mr. Gaydos said they h= ad pulled the plans for the Muldoon second access. The question would be how the Sele= ctmen wanted to approach it. Footba= ll and Little League have been asked for their input.

Mr. Viger said due to a s= chedule conflict he would be unable to attend the Regional Hazmat Director’s meeting and believed the Board could appoint Fire Chief Midgley to stand in= as a director. Mr. Gaydos believ= ed the Selectmen would need to authorize him to sign a letter for Chief Midgley to bring with him to the meeting. There was no objection to Mr. Gaydos signing a letter. Mr. Viger sta= ted that on Flag Day the Boy Scouts of Troops 25 and 610 had a ceremony at the Pelham Fish and Game to retire over one hundred American flags. He said the ceremony was very impr= essive and the boys were very proud to be part of it. Mr. Viger said Little League= was in its last week and championship games were being held.

Mr. Haverty stated that t= he Planning Board had voted to move to use Keach Nordstrom as their engineering peer review and not proceed with Stantec.&= nbsp; The vote was 4-2. Keac= h will handle all new projects. Stan= tec will continue with current projects.

Mr. Lynde said a question= had been raised about the Planning Board accepting land in the Town’s name without the Selectmen’s permission.&= nbsp; He wanted to know the status. Mr. Gaydos had a discussion with the Planning Director, who indicated they understood the Selectmen’s concerns and the instance that was brought up was one that the Town had already accepted the road. He said there will be a new level = of review when accepting roads. =

REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION

MOTION:

(Viger/Lynde) = Request for a non-public session per RSA 91-A:3,II, a (personnel – discussi= on of Union Contracts / Perfor= mance Reviews)

ROLL CALL:

Mr. Haverty-Ye= s; Mr. Viger-Yes; Mr. McDevitt-Yes= ; Mr. Lynde-Yes; Mr. Gleason-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 9:00 pm.

The Board returned to public session at approximately 9:30 pm.

MOTION:

(Lynde/McDevit= t) To seal the minutes of the non-public session indefinitely.

VOTE:

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

ADJOURNMENT

MOTION:

(Lynde/McDevit= t) To adjourn the meeting.

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:30 pm.

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

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = Charity A. L. Willis

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