SEL20090922

APPROVED

TOWN OF PELHAM

BOARD OF SE= LECTMEN MEETING

MINUTES

September 22, 2009

APPROVED &#= 8211; September 29, 2009

CALL TO ORDER – 6:30pm

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

PRESENT:

Mr. Robert Haverty, Mr.= Douglas Viger, Mr. Edmund Gleason, Mr. William McDevitt,

Mr. Harold Lynde, Town Administrator Tom Gaydos

ABSENT:

None.

PUBLIC HEARING

2nd of two Public Hearings to Accept a 26-Acre Land Donation, Map 9 Lot 9-5, to the = Town of Pelham from Timothy Zelonis

Mr. Haverty opened the Pu= blic Hearing.

Mr. Gleason felt it was a worthwhile endeavor and would support it heartily when it came up for a vote. He believed the Town wo= uld benefit from the donation.

Mr. Viger saw that the Pl= anning Board Chairman, Peter McNamara had forwarded a letter indicating the Planni= ng Board approved, and recommended that the donation be accepted. He said there was also a letter (recommending the donation) from the Conservation Commission Chairman.

There was no public input= .

The public hearing was closed. Mr. Haverty sta= ted that the Selectmen would hold a vote on October 6, 2009 to see if they would accept the dona= tion.

Mr. Viger stepped out of = the room.

MINUTES REVIEW

Septe= mber 8, 2009

MOTION:

(Gleason/McDev= itt) To approve the Sep= tember 8, 2009 meeting minutes as written.

VOTE:

(4-0-1) The mo= tion carried. Mr. Viger abstaine= d (he was out of the room during the vote)&nbs= p;

Mr. Viger returned.

OPEN FORUM

Mr. Jean-Guy Bergeron and= Attorney Tony Soltani, representing Mr. Jean-Guy Bergeron, approached the Board. He noted that he had practiced mun= icipal law for nineteen years. Attor= ney Soltani stated that they were acting in the best interest of the Town and wanted to alert the Board about an important issue. He read aloud a portion of an ordi= nance (Section 307-19,D) that was enacted by the voters and had an amendment that= was passed in March, 2009 involving new and used retail car dealerships and whe= re they were permitted. Further, the ordinance states that no new or used car dealership in the permitted districts may be located closer than 2000 linear feet frontage between or adjacent to any other new or used car dealership.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Attorney stated that the Town had = used very specific terminology in enacting the ordinance and defined new or used auto dealerships. He stated t= hat the purpose of the ordinance was very clear, it wanted to reject condensati= on of start up auto dealerships as defined.&n= bsp; He noted that the ordinance defined the ‘start ups’ as v= ery broad to catch all, and define the existing businesses so as to any car dealership, whether active or inactive would count.

Attorney Soltani stated t= hat he was very alarmed that an Administrative Decision was issued by the TownR= 17;s Planning Director/Zoning Administrator.&nb= sp; He noted that the decision had not been sent to Mr. Wang, Mr. Edmund= s, Salem Route 66 and possibly others. He said there was a record of violations by the applicant in a file provided to the Selectmen. He= said this applicant went to the Planning Board and started to go through the Site Plan Review process, but needed a variance which was not completed; at the = time it was interpreted (by the Zoning Administrator) that the applicant’s conduct would be prohibited and they would need relief. Presently, the same person (Zoning Administrator) changed his view to say because he didn’t see any cars displayed; therefore the business could start up without a variance. Attorney Soltani said this decisio= n in effect defeated the will of the people without a variance. He said the issue went much worse, because the issue then went to the Planning Board. Some of the Planning Board members questioned the situation and asked if it would cause problems. The Zoning Administrator answered = by saying if there was a problem, let them appeal. Attorney Soltani said the Zoning Administrator testified at the Planning Board meeting if there were licensed dealers within a 2000ft. radius of the start up (business), they were now striped of their constitutionally vested rights. He said in order to do that the To= wn would have to show that the business had abandoned those vested rights. He stated that there were at least= three or four within that area and their license to operate was being stolen, whe= ther they chose to display cars was irrelevant the voters had chosen words caref= ully and they should be given their plain meaning. He said the situation defeated the complete process and stripped the rights of individuals.

Attorney Soltani urged the Selectmen to consult with Town Counsel.&nb= sp; He said the time for appealing the Planning Board decision was at the end of the month. He said the Selectmen should correct the situation before it got out of hand and before people were divested of their constitutionally protected right without any process (or notice). He said = now the Town had received notice and would have to decide how to proceed. He had not seen a situation like t= his in his experience and said that the person (who made the decision) was either incompetent or was intentionally misleading the Planning Board.

Mr. Haverty, who is the S= electmen Representative to the Planning Board, stated that he was present at the Planning Board meeting and agreed with Planning Director/Zoning Administrat= or Jeff Gowan’s Administrative Decision because there was no other deale= r in operation within 2000 linear feet of frontage that would conflict with the applicant’s operation of a dealership. He said Mr. Gowan’s explanat= ion that he would bring another dealership before the Board to seek relief was sufficient to him. He felt not granting the Change of Use would put the Town in an indefensible position if the applicant decided to take the matter higher. Attorney Soltani questioned if it = could be established that any of the dealers had abandoned their rights. Mr. Haverty read a portion of the ordinance and said there was no such facility within that area. He also noted that according to the Planning Department Mr. Wang (business owner) had been notified of the hear= ing. Attorney Soltani stated Mr. Wang w= as present and had told him that he was not notified. He noted that Mr. Wang had a licen= se and under the Town’s Zoning Ordinance it didn’t require an existing operation to display cars. He reviewed the Ordinance and told the Board that Mr. Wang was vested and constitutionally protected. <= /p>

Mr. McDevitt recommended = that the Board educate themselves as a Board.

Mr. Haverty stated that if someone wanted to appeal to the Zoning Board, they had until September 30, 2009 to do so= . Attorney Soltani wanted the Select= men aware (of the situation). He = said the Selectmen were also capable of appealing to the Zoning Board and enforc= ing the Ordinance.

Mr. Lynde stated he would= like more information as to the basis of the claim being made by Attorney Soltan= i of an entity complying with the Ordinance and being within 2000 ft. Attorney Soltani reviewed the Ordi= nance and noted whether a dealer displays or doesn’t is irrelevant. Mr. Lynde asked where Mr. Wang was located relative to the site. Mr. Bergeron said Mr. Wang was located approximately 300ft. behind the applicant’s proposed site. Attorney Soltani stated that the Ordinance does not require that a business display = or dedicate any particular area for sale; Mr. Wang is a licensed car dealer. He questioned why the Zoning Administrator only chose to apply section 2, and not section 1 (area for display). He said a business = did not have to have a dealership.

Mr. Gary Wang, owner Wang= Auto Sales, 120 Main Street came forward and showed the Board his dealer license and various other documents relating to his business that proved he had been in business for = many years. He said he follows all= the rules and renews his license every year.&n= bsp;

Mr. Gleason asked Mr. Wan= g the distance between him and the business in question. Mr. Wang said he was 536ft. from t= he Main Street= intersection. Mr. Gleason confirmed with Mr. Wan= g that he was licensed with the State of New Hampshire and had been actively doing business. Mr. Wang answered yes to both questions. He noted that he followed the rules of having forty hours per week. Mr. Gleason asked if Mr. Wang was registered with the Town as a small business operator. Mr. Wang said he was registered wi= th the state. Mr. Haverty asked Mr. = Wang if he had received a courtesy copy of the meeting. Mr. Wang said if they mailed out t= here should be a receipt. He said = the only letter he received was in reference to a rental property that he didn’t reply to because he didn’t have rental activity going on. He said he didn’t r= eceive a letter regarding the Planning Board decision. Mr. Haverty said courtesy copies w= ere sent via first class mail to Mr. Wang because he was within the 2000ft. described in the ordinance. H= e said he would do further research

Mr. Ed Tellier, owner Edm= unds Welding and Auto Body, stated that he had a used car license and was a bond= ed dealer (since 1984). He said he was = within eyesight of the business in question and was curious how his license would = be affected by it. Mr. Haverty didn’= ;t believe that anyone had deprived him of his license and it remained valid.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Mr. Tellier told the Board that he= sold cars out of his lot and he had for twenty-five years. Mr. Haverty said he didn’t k= now how it would affect the operation. He said he would speak with the Planning Department and find out what needed to be done. Mr. Tellier questioned if his license would be affected. Mr. Haverty didn’t have an answer.

Mr. McDevitt believed the= purpose of open forum was for the Selectmen to hear complaints or issues that people wished to bring to their attention. He said it wasn’t a requirement for the Board to respond to questions. He felt it was bes= t for the Selectmen to listen.

Mr. Richard Wunderlich, o= wner Salem 66, stated t= hat using the scale on the Town maps his business fell within the 2000 feet. He told the Selectmen that he never received notice. He said he w= as in the process of selling his parcel to Walgreen’s and one of the first things he did was to go to the Planning Department and speak to the Planning Director. He said he pointed = out (to the Planning Director) some property he might be interested in buying a= nd was told (by the Planning Director) that he definitely could not open a used car lot at the location (of the proposed business). Mr. Wunderlich said according to t= he Administrative Decision businesses would have to apply for a variance to continue to do business even if they had a state license. In that case, he said licenses wou= ld be null a void and questioned if businesses would receive cease and desist letters. Mr. Haverty stated t= hat he didn’t have an answer. = Mr. Wunderlich said he was also told by Planning Director Jeff Gowan that they = do not like automotive businesses in Pelham and the only way he could re-open = in Pelham was to buy an existing dealership; the chances of buying property and opening up again were very slim.

Mr. Mike Dexter, Dexter A= uto stated that he had done everything he was supposed to. He said by no means did he try to = hurt any of the other business owners. He knew and liked most of them and had no problem with them. Mr. Dexter said he had tried to se= ll cars on the corner (of Route 38 and Main Street next to Pelham Plate Glass)= for (10+) years. He said he tried= to get a license in 2006 and didn’t qualify. He said things had changed a bit a= nd commented that Mr. Wang wasn’t displaying cars so he didn’t thi= nk he was hurting anyone. He sai= d he qualified and the Planning Board approved him (on September 10, 2009). He said no one would lose their li= cense. He told the Board that Salem 66 was more than 2000 feet from t= he proposed site. He also noted = that he knew the people that owned the proposed property.

Attorney Soltani read aloud a portion of the Planning Board’s Se= ptember 10, 2009 meeting minutes (page 7) - Mr. Haverty asked what would stop another facility, which had a license to sell cars, from doing so even though they presently were not. He questioned if they would have t= o come in front of the Board. Mr. Go= wan said if the Board were to give Mr. Dexter permission to sell cars at the proposed location, and anyone within 2000 linear feet (licensed or not) wer= e to engage in that activity, he would bring a code enforcement action upon them. Mr. Gowan said the one company he was aware of (within those 2000 linear feet) had never sold cars from their site. He said the = neighbors had been sent a copy of the Administrative Decision and were well aware of their right to appeal. Mr. Mc= Namara asked if someone could come forward and claim they were grandfathered in sp= ite of the Board’s action. = Mr. Gowan said his zoning decision would be that they weren’t grandfather= ed; their relief would be to go in front of the Zoning Board. Attorney Soltani reiterated his= statement that their (other businesses) license was being stolen.

Mr. Paul McDonough came forward and apologized to the = Board for taking their time during the budget meeting. He then discussed an instance when telephone service was not available and complimented Police Sergeant Anne Perriello for the manner in which she handled the situation. The Board thanked Mr. McDonough for coming forward. They also tha= nked him for donating a plant for the Town Hall lobby. Mr. McDonough also extended gratit= ude to Mr. Tim Zelonis for the donation of land to the Town.

APPOINTMENTS

Council on Aging Appointment – Christopher Sintros

Mr. Haverty read aloud a = letter from the Council on Aging who recommended his appointment to the Council on Aging.

MOTION:

(Gleason/McDev= itt) To appoint Mr. Christopher Sintros to the Council on Aging effective immedia= tely through April = 30, 2010.

VOTE:

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

Discussion – Possible Shannon Circle Improvements/Solutio= ns

Mr. Gaydos said a design = was put together regarding (possible improvements to) Shannon Circle. It showed the extent to which the = Town would need to seek easements from the neighbors. The plan was to remove enough of t= he shale material and replace it with loam and seed the area.

Mr. Gleason believed at t= he meeting they had discussed the possibility of bringing in an engineer to evaluate the geological aspects of the shale. Mr. Gaydos said he had asked aroun= d and there were only a couple people that would look at the shale, but they weren’t available for another week or two. He thought the Selectmen wanted to= know what the characteristics of the rock would be. He said the Board had been provide= d with an engineered study of what would be done to stabilize the area. Mr. Gleason asked if there was any= other action to determine what the cost would be. Mr. Gaydos said he had received two estimates from contractors and had not sought another estimate because he didn’t want to spend any money if the Board decided they weren’t interested in pursuing it.

Mr. Viger said he had req= uested that Planning Director Jeff Gowan notify the abutters regarding the site wa= lk and had since received phone calls from abutters that were concerned about = what their property would look like if anything was changed of the shale. He felt notification should be giv= en to the abutters so they could be involved in the process. He didn’t want to move forwa= rd with estimates if it wasn’t something that everyone was going to agree to. Mr. Gaydos said he alread= y had the estimates and the next step (if the Board wanted to proceed) was to get temporary slope easements from each of the abutters. He said at that point there was a = packet put together and they would then be able to meet with the residents and dis= cuss exactly what it would look like.

Mr. Charles McCoy, Shannon Circle said three of the neighbors were well aware of what was going on. He didn’t know if the neighbor, with access off = Jericho Road, was aware. Mr. Gleason asked how many houses = were in the Shannon Circle area. Mr. McCoy said there we= re approximately 12-14 houses. H= e said it was a neighborhood road that people from around the area used because of= how it was situated.

Mr. McDevitt asked for clarification of the plan and its delineation. Mr. Gaydos provided an explanation= of the plan and location of improvements.

Ms. Holly Howe, Jericho Road, told the Board that the property and shale was located along her property. She contacted Mr. Viger and asked = to be part of the process because it would involve her property; the face of the shale was on her property. She wanted to see the proposal and described the location of her home. Mr. Haverty understood that Ms. Ho= we wanted to be involved in the process, hear possible solutions and have a sa= y in the matter of how it was addressed. Ms. Howe said that was correct.&nbs= p; Mr. Lynde said the Town wouldn’t do anything to her property unless she said it was okay. =

Mr. Gaydos apologized to = the abutters. He said the Selectm= en had a request from Mr. McCoy and started reviewing the situation. The question that came quickly was= if the Board was interested in looking into the situation; if they were intere= sted in proceeding each of the abutters would be approached with a detailed plan explaining the sloping and what it would look like before and after. Ms. Howe said she would like to be= part of the beginning process, even if it was simply fact finding. Mr. Gleason commented that the rea= son the Selectmen were involved in the situation was because it was a safety issue. He said it was brought= to their attention, they decided to conduct a site walk and evaluate how to proceed. He thanked Ms. Howe = for her interest and cooperation.

Mr. Gleason was of the op= inion that Mr. Gaydos had provided a starting point and the proposed program was reasonable and the abutters should be notified. He believed there was the potentia= l for a safety issue and it should be rectified somehow and in accordance with the Town Regulations. He believed= the next step was as Mr. Gaydos described; to get notification out and request realistic pricing.

Mr. Viger stated that the= y would like to review the minutes from when the development was originally passed. He was concerned with= doing work off Town property and spending taxpayer dollars. He wanted to review all the circumstances as well as the Town’s position and legal rights.

Mr. Lynde agreed with Mr. Viger. He felt the situation = should be taken care of, but he wanted understand the process and costs.

Mr. McDevitt also agreed = with Mr. Viger, although his understanding had been that the Town contributed mighti= ly to the situation.

Mr. Haverty said, after h= aving reviewed Planning Board minutes from the various meeting that the developme= nt was discussed, the Town’s engineer (CLD) signed off on the fact that there was a shale face and said that they were comfortable with leaving it = as is. The Planning Board, takin= g the advice of the engineer, signed off on it as well.

Mr. Lynde asked if the co= st for the project was known. Mr. Ga= ydos said an estimate (for the work) had been received. Mr. Lynde asked if there was an es= timate to do the easements. Mr. Gayd= os said there would be recording costs and advice how to make the easements up (that would be reviewed by Legal), mailing cost, employee time speaking with abutters and the cost for the actual work.= He believed the total cost (other than construction) would be under $500. Mr. Lynde asked for the construction estimate. Mr. Ga= ydos said it was under $21,000.

Mr. Gleason felt the next= step would be notify the abutters with the pending action and receive input. He suggested notifying everyone an= d conducting a hearing. He felt there was = some merit in gathering data and cost and going through the procedure to make su= re it was done properly.

Mr. Lynde said the Select= men would need to provide both a written easement for review and also markings = on the ground and trees. He said= once that was authorized and in place, the Selectmen could then hold a public hearing and make a final decision. <= /span>There were no objections.

Mr. Gaydos said he would = set the process into motion; the packet was already together and copies would be ma= de for each of the property owners. He said once the packets were sent out a meeting would be held at the property= and a public hearing would be scheduled.

Mr. McCoy wanted the Sele= ctmen to understand the urgency of the situation and believed the sooner it was addressed the better. He said children play on the property, if they were injured it would be everyone’s problem.

Jim Greenwood – Cable/PTV Update

Mr. Haverty explained tha= t the Board had been inviting Department Heads to meet with the Selectmen over the last several meetings to discuss challenges and issues they had been experiencing. He said they ha= d also discussed ideas and efficiencies to foster the concept of open communication.

Cable Television Coordina= tor Jim Greenwood met with= the Selectmen and provided an update of what he had been doing with his departm= ent and the new changes that he was implementing. One item was that the studio (in t= he Annex) at PTV was available to Town residents for doing shows; anyone inter= ested should contact PTV at 635-8645.

Mr. Gleason questioned ho= w a person would go about having an advertisement on PTV. Mr. Greenwood said each of the PTV channels had a slide that provided contact information; he will revise it to include community calendar submissions.&nb= sp; Mr. Gleason asked if the records (discs) were being archived. Mr. Greenwood said they were archi= ving all the DVDs; some of the older tapes were converted to digital and mpeg.

Mr. Lynde asked if consid= eration had been given to having wireless microphones. Mr. Greenwood said he had looked i= nto it. A wireless system would c= ost approximately $8000 and he was unsure how reliable they would be. He discussed the issues with teari= ng down and setting up the meeting space and had hoped in the future that there would be a permanent meeting room. &n= bsp;

OTHER BUSINESS

Approval to Advance Emergency Supplies to School for Flushots

Mr. Gaydos said a couple = years ago the Town Meeting voted for emergency supplies. He said Fire Chief Midgley had don= e a good job at reprioritizing the supplies the Town kept and making sure everything is up to date. He = said the issue was that the school would like to provide flu shots for the child= ren, but certain inventory was not in plentiful supply; there was an order outstanding. He said the Fire= Chief requested that the Selectmen authorize forwarding approximately $400 worth = of supplies to the school; the school would pay to replace those items.

Mr. Haverty asked if the = school had requested the supplies. M= r. Gaydos said the topic had come out of a meeting the Fire Chief had with the school.

Mr. Gleason questioned the estimated time for replacement if the Town provided the items to the school. Mr. Gaydos said the T= own already had the replacement order in and expected the supplies within a month. Mr. Gleason asked if t= he Town would find itself short (on supplies) in the event of an epidemic. Mr. Gaydos answered no. Mr. Gleason wanted to make sure th= at provisions were made to have the supplies replaced.

There was a consensus to authorize the non-emergency use of the pandemic supplies.

School fees for Parks & Recreation Programs

Park & Recreation Dir= ector Brian Johnson came forward to discuss the increase in school fees to Park &= amp; Recreation and other programs (i.e. travel basketball, Razorbacks). He wanted to bring it to the Board attention that there had been a drastic increase in what the school was asking. He reviewed the fee schedule that was in place last year and compared it to what they were now proposing. He discussed some = of the programs and noted that not all of them could continue. Mr. Johnson said the School Board = was holding a meeting on September 23^rd that he would be attend to discuss the fee increase and how it would affect programs. From what he understood the fee in= crease was generated be increases on the school side.

Mr. Viger questioned if t= he Selectmen should draft a letter issuing their concerns. Mr. Gleason shared the concerns an= d felt the initial action should be the Selectmen delegating Mr. Gaydos and Mr. Johnson and a Selectmen Representative to meet with the Superintendent of Schools to express the Board’s concerns and the anticipated impact. He didn’t feel that taxpayers should be subjected to this type of hardship. He reiterated his feeling that the= re should be a meeting so the Selectmen could express their concerns and to se= e if there was any amicable agreement they could come up to mitigate the situation. He recognized the = need for increase fees but felt the school should understand the ramifications o= f it on the taxpayers.

Mr. Lynde said the Town t= ries to have the programs cover their associated costs and assumed the School Board could justify their cost estimates on the same basis. He said he would wait to get that information before responding. He said they seem to be trying to do the same thing as the Town, minimizing the impact on property taxpayers by instituting user fees that cover program co= sts. Mr. Johnson said no one felt that = the school should absorb any costs that pertained to the gym being used.

Mr. Viger said from a bud= get point of view, the school couldn’t use the fees to directly pay for t= heir employees, they would have to put it in their budget and in turn return it = to the general fund because it was revenue.&n= bsp;

The Selectmen discussed h= ow they wanted to proceed. Mr. McDevi= tt felt it would be better to first have the Board express its concern by directing a letter to the School Board.&nb= sp; Mr. Lynde was hesitant to interject the day before the (School Board’s) meeting. Mr. J= ohnson understood, and commented that Park & Recreation had not been formally notified, they heard through the grapevine what was going on. He said initially, Park & Recr= eation was told that the increased fee schedule would not apply to them and they w= ould have the same fee schedule as the previous year. Mr. Gaydos asked if it had been a decision by the School Board or the Administration. Mr. Johnson was not sure.

Mr. Lynde volunteered to = attend the School Board meeting to express the Selectmen’s concerns and gath= er information to be brought back to the Selectmen. Mr. Haverty suggested that Mr. Joh= nson accompany Mr. Lynde at the School Board meeting.

Mr. Viger asked if Pelham High School had played baseball at Mu= ldoon Park last year. Mr. Johnson said he allowed the su= mmer league (run by the high school coach) use Muldoon (and the game clocks) for= no fee; they were unable to use the high school fields. He believed he played four or five= games during the summer.

Proposed Amendment of Transfer Station Fees

Mr. Haverty stated that t= he Selectmen had received a bi-weekly report dated August 28, 2009 from the Transfer Stat= ion Superintendent Bruce Mason indicating that microwaves were not allowed in t= he light iron mix due to the radioactive material contained within the unit. Mr. Mason indicated that they now = have to have special handling of the units and proposed a $10 disposal fee as was charged with other items such as televisions, monitors etc.

Mr. Gaydos said the lette= r was straight forward with its request. He felt the Board had to approve any fee structure changes.

Mr. McDevitt said he would support the fee increase because there was a direct cost to the Town.

MOTION:

(Lynde/McDevit= t) To add a requirement of a $10 disposal fee for microwaves to the Rules and Regul= ations for the Operation of the Town of Pelham Transfer/Recycling Facility.

VOTE:

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

Retirement of Transfer Station Superintendent, Bruce Mason =

Mr. Gaydos read aloud a l= etter from Transfer Station Superintendent Bruce Mason dated September 18, 2009 indicati= ng that he would be retiring from his position effective October 1, 2009.

The Selectmen each thanke= d Mr. Mason for his hard work and d= edication to the Town and the Transfer Station and wished him well.

MOTION:

(Lynde/Gleason= ) To accept, with regret and appreciation for his services, the retirement let= ter from Transfer Station Superintendent Bruce Mason, effective October 1, 2009.

VOTE:

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

Mr. Haverty told the Sele= ctmen that Mr. Mason had submitted a letter to the Board offering his services as= a contractor, either through a defined period of time, or an indefinite perio= d of time, which ever the Board chose. Mr. Gaydos stated that two days after Mr. Mason’s resignation = was received, a letter was submitted requesting that the Board consider keeping= him on as a sub-contractor for three to four days per week. The letter indicated if the Board = agreed, they could keep Mr. Mason on through the end of the year to oversee any cha= nges that may arise from the new contract proposals and to help with the transit= ion of a new superintendent by year’s end. If the Board chose not to fill the position immediately, Mr. Mason would stay on for and indefinite period of time.

The Selectmen discussed h= ow they would like to proceed. Mr. Ga= ydos stated that he had spoken to the Transfer Station employees who were capabl= e of carrying on in a similar manner and who had indicated they would do anything the Selectmen asked to keep things running smoothly. He said he was working with Foreman Larry Neskey. There was a bri= ef discussion regarding the superintendent position and how they would proceed; a suggest= ion was made to review the position and possibly discuss having a Public Works Director. Mr. Gaydos said he = had spoken to Mr. Neskey who was willing to proceed in his position.

Mr. McDevitt questioned h= ow the Transfer Station budget would be presented without Mr. Mason. Mr. Gaydos said Mr. Mason had offe= red to make the presentation because bids were still out. He said with the Selectmen’s permission he would meet with the Budget Committee Chairman and ask if he w= ould like to hear the Transfer Station budget at another time or make a presenta= tion on those items that were still out to bid (any changes would come up during reconsideration). There was no objection to Mr. Gaydos speaking with the Budget Committee Chair. Mr. Gaydos then said with the Selectmen’s permission, he would approach Foreman Neskey regarding ac= ting as an interim until such time as the Board had made another decision.

Mr. Haverty questioned if= the Selectmen wanted to speak to Mr. Neskey prior to appointing him and discuss= ing what was expected during the interim time period or to proceed with making a motion to appoint Mr. Neskey as the interim Superintendent. Mr. Viger said Mr. Neskey expressed interest and had no problem offering the interim position. Mr. McDevitt agreed.

Mr. Gleason made a motion= to appoint Mr. Neskey as the interim Superintendent. The Selectmen, after a brief discu= ssion, decided against having a time limit for the appointment.

MOTION:

(Gleason/McDev= itt) To appoint Mr. Larry Neskey as the interim Transfer Station Superintendent, subject = to his acceptance.

VOTE:

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

Mr. Haverty asked how the Selectmen wanted to proceed with Mr. Mason’s request to be a contractor. They decided to h= ave a discussion at another time. <= /p>

CERT Option to Purchase Workers’ Compensation Insurance

Mr. Gaydos said Community= Emergency Response Team (‘CERT’) with a situation of not being covered un= der Workman’s Compensation (in the event they were hurt) because they were not employees. He said Legisl= ature had now broadened their legal definition of ‘employee’. He said the Local Government Center had now prov= ided the Town with the ability to provide the (approximate) thirty members of CE= RT with Worker’s Compensation for a total cost of $12.09 per year, per member. He said this wouldn&#= 8217;t cover members of the Medical Reserve Corps. (‘MRC’). Mr. Gaydos had a discussion with F= ire Chief James Midgley and encouraged members of the MRC to join CERT.

Mr. Haverty recalled havi= ng a discussion with Fire Chief Midgley during Department Head review he was ask= ed about the current status of CERT and if the Town had a disaster who would come. He was under the impres= sion that in the event of an emergency a handful of people would come, but the organization was no where the near the numbers it once was. He questioned, in terms of insuran= ce, what constituted an active member who was entitled to the insurance. Mr. Gaydos said a person who had p= assed the seven criteria and had been properly trained.

Mr. Haverty informed that= his brother was the coordinator of CERT and he would leave the decision to the Board.

Mr. Gaydos felt it would = be incentive, during recruitment, to let people know that they would be covered.

There was a consensus to authorize Mr. Gaydos the ability to provide the CERT members insurance thro= ugh the LGC.

Revenues and Expenses

Mr. Gaydos reviewed the b= oth the year to date revenues and expenses with the Selectmen. Mr. Gleason asked if consideration= had been given to close out some of the old warrants. Mr. Gaydos said they had been doing that. They were going to close bookkeeping as best as they could by the end of year.

2010 Warrant Article Discussion

The Selectmen were provid= ed with a list of warrant articles that would be requested for the 2010 Town Meetin= g. Mr. Haverty said the intent was to= start a discussion around what articles the Selectmen would want to support. At the present time the following = were requested:

1= )      = one new Police Officer (School Resource Officer) ($59,000)

2= )      = Highway Block Grant

3= )      = Capital Reserve for Tallant Road Willow Street Bridge ($50,000)

4= )      = Highway Department Garage

5= )      = Fire Department Deputy Chief ($65,000)

6= )      = Fire Station (if Federal Grant didn’t come through does Board want a warra= nt article)

7= )      = Fire Inspector vehicle ($30,000)

8= )      = Transfer Station skid steer loader ($18,000 – possible funding in reserve acco= unt to offset cost)

9= )      = Set up Transfer Station revolving fund

1= 0)    Supervisor contract

1= 1)    Support contract

1= 2)    Fire Department contract

1= 3)    Senior Center addition ($259,000 – offset by $100,000)

1= 4)    Forest Maintenance Fund

1= 5)    Raymond Trust Fund

Mr. Lynde questioned how = close the Town was to having the data together to submit to DRA to establish a tax rate. Mr. Gaydos said the num= bers were finalized earlier in the day. He said the Town was on track to having an early tax rate.

NH Arbovirus Surveillance Bulletin

Mr. Gaydos said the Town = had continued with the same level of testing it had done in the last several years. He read aloud the year-to-date statistics. He s= aid if mosquitoes became an issue in the Town they were prepared to do barrier treatments (adulticide) to specific areas, such as the parks at Muldoon Park ($550),

PVMP ($210), Raymond Park= ($460), Lyons Park ($150), Newcomb Field ($310), high school ($580), Memorial School ($350) and Pelham Elementary School ($340). He said the Town was ready in the = event they needed to do barrier spray; to date there had not been a positive test.

Mr. Lynde asked how much = of the money allocated (to spraying) had been spent. Mr. Gaydos said $35,000 had been a= llocated and $35,730 had been spent.

TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT /= SELECTMEN’S REPORTS

Mr. Gaydos reported there= had been an accident (involving motor vehicles) at the Fire Station over the weekend. There were questions regarding the status of the building. The Town was fortunate to get a structural engineer to the site immediately; a rigging company also came immediately the site was secured (within a few hours). The structural engineer’s report has been received. The insurance adjuster has reviewe= d the building and indicated he was looking for a cost estimate from the Town, on= ce reviewed and approved the work could be done. Mr. Gaydos said because so many pi= eces of the project would have to be coordinated, he felt it would be advisable = to speak with a general contractor who could put everything together. He believed the repairs could begi= n by the end of the week and be completed by next week. Mr. Gaydos asked the Board to waiv= e the requirements for bidding since it would be insurance money. He said if the insurance company doesn’t approve the cost estimate it would be dealt with. He spoke with Mr. David Mendes, wh= o had offered a willingness to help. There were a number of people from the community that have offered to provide services.

Mr. Lynde questioned who = would oversee the work. Mr. Gaydos = said he would like permission to ask Mr. Mendes; Building Inspector Roland Soucy would oversee the work.

Mr. Gleason asked what in= surance company was reviewing the information.&nbs= p; Mr. Gaydos said it was the Local Government Center (LGC). Mr. Gleason asked if the intent wa= s to recover the money. Mr. Gaydos= said the intent was to recover the money. There would be no expense to the Town. Mr. Gleason asked if the Town had = been impacted in services (ie – overtime and labor). Mr. Gaydos didn’t believe th= at there had been any added personnel. He said they had the cost of the engineer, but expected those costs = to be covered by the insurance company. Mr. Gleason asked if there was any cost to the equipment. Mr. Gaydos answered no; they were a= ble to pull all the equipment out of the station immediately after the accident.

Mr. Haverty asked if the = building was safe to operate. Mr. Gayd= os answered yes. Mr. Haverty sta= ted if it took longer than expected to fix the building, he wanted to hear from Fi= re Chief Midgley if there was anything that could be done to mitigate the impa= ct to service levels. He said th= ere had been talk on the Pelham Message Board about options available to the Selectmen and wanted to clarify the statements. He said the Selectmen had no inten= tion of calling a special town meeting to build a fire station on the Mills property, nor did they have the authority to build the fire station without= town meeting. He said the quickest= way to resolution was to fix the current building, restore it to the state it w= as in prior to the accident and restore service levels.

There was a brief discuss= ion regarding the work that would need to be done to the station. There was a consensus of the Board= to direct Mr. Gaydos to spend the reconstruction money with local contractors whenever reasonably possible.

Mr. Gleason had no report= .

Mr. Viger noted that the = Budget Committee was back in session. He reviewed what budgets had already been discussed.

Mr. McDevitt stated that = he had attended the Senior’s play and they did a great job. He thanked Mr. Gaydos for his quick response to the fire station incident.

Mr. Lynde noted that the = report had been received from Corcoran Associates and the before and after ratios = for 2009 were included. He wanted= to know what the percentage increase in property value was before they did the adjustments. He saw that ther= e was information regarding the historical building. Mr. Gaydos said memos had been sen= t by Mr. William Hayes and Building Inspector Roland Soucy; the Budget Committee= had conducted their walk through of the building and the outside. The items needing repair were poin= ted out. Mr. Lynde said there wer= e some items that needed immediate attention or there would be serious damage to t= he building. Mr. Gaydos said the= y had yet to identify where the septic field was located. Mr. McDevitt believed he knew wher= e it was and would inform Mr. Gaydos. Mr. Lynde ended by saying he was troubled by what he heard during op= en forum and would like to get some answers and have the Selectmen review such quickly. Mr. Gleason shared M= r. Lynde’s concern.   =

Mr. Haverty informed that= he had received an e-mail from School Superintendent Frank Bass requesting to tour= the six classrooms in the Mun= icipal Building with him.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> He asked the Selectmen what steps = he should take. Mr. Gaydos noted= that Mr. Bass had previously toured the building and was provided with measureme= nts. Mr. McDevitt echoed Mr. GaydosR= 17; comments. He said anyone coul= d look at the rooms. There were no objections by the Selectmen. =

REQUEST FOR NON-PUBLIC SESSION

MOTION:

(Lynde/McDevit= t) Request for a non-public session per RSA 91-A:3,II, a (Personnel)

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 10:00 pm.

The Board returned to public session at approximately 10:20 pm.

MOTION:

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

VOTE:

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

ADJOURNMENT

MOTION:

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

VOTE:

(5-0-0) The motion carried.

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 10:20 pm.

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

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

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