Board of Selectmen

Minutes of 01/15/08

Approved as of 02/12/08

Town Hall Northwood NH – January 15, 2008
Call to Order
Selectmen Ken Curley called the work session to order at 7:00 p.m.

Roll Call
Selectman Ken Curley, Selectman Alden Dill, and Town Administrator Paul Martel.
Chairman Bryer arrived at 7:15 p.m.

Town Administrator’s Report
Mason & Rich ~ 2006 Auditor’s Report
Mr. Martel provided the 2006 auditor’s report to the selectmen. After review and discussions on reconciliations, the board requested that the auditors come in and discuss the audit. 

Intent to Cut ~ Bunker Lane, Map 244; Lot 38.
Mr. Martel presented the board with an intent to cut for Bunker, Bunker Lane, Map 244; Lot 38. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to approve the intent to cut for Bunker, Bunker Lane, Map 244; Lot 38. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passes unanimously; 3/0.

Police Commission Request – Purchase Order
Mr. Martel stated that he has received a request from the police commission regarding a purchase order for $2,926.18 that came in the day the budget was froze and was not addressed. The commission is requesting that it be signed now. Mr. Martel stated that the work has been done. Mr. Bryer stated that the books have been closed and the money has not been encumbered; therefore, the money cannot be spent. Mr. Bryer stated that the commission will need to address this with the budget committee.

Payroll Manifest
Payroll Manifest in the amount of $42,910.72. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to approve the payroll manifest in the amount of $42,910.72. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The manifest was signed by the board.

Vendor Manifest
Vendor manifest in the amount of $262.00. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to approve the vendor manifest in the amount of $262.00. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The vendor manifest was signed by the board.

Budget Changes
Mr. Martel stated the following changes to the 2008 proposed selectmen’s budget:

Dept. 41402~Voter Registration
Mr. Martel stated that the changes are due to salary increases. **Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned to amend Dept. 41402/Voter Registration as follows: amend line 130 to $1,950., amend line 220 to $207.70, and amend line 225 to $48.58. New total is $3,806.28. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. Mr. Bryer stated that the department, selectmen, and budget committee should all be shown in agreement of the changes. 

Dept. 41403~Elections
**Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned to amend Dept. 41403/Elections as follows: amend line 130 to be the same as the budget committee recommendations, line 120 amend to $2,496., line 220 amend to $154.75, and amend line 225 to $36.19. New total is $6,186.94. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0.

Dept. 45501~Library
Mr. Bryer stated that a part time position was not removed from the budget. **Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned to amend Dept. 45501/Library as follows: amend line 111 to $22,024.41, line 220 amend to $5,666.90, and amend line 225 to $1325.32. New total is $170,508.79. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0.

Building Department
Mr. Bryer commented that he would like to wait until after town meeting to make and changes regarding the building department; however, he still supports the full time building inspector position. Mr. Curley stated that the budget committee has recommended the department’s request. Mr. Dill asked if Mr. Curley mentioned to the budget committee the current scheduling difficulties. Mr. Curley replied no and Mr. Bryer stated that this is a budgetary issue with leave time, not a disciplinary issue. Mr. Curley added that the perception is that the work load will be less within the building department this coming year.

Warrant Articles
$54,250. Facility Committee Expendable Trust Fund. **Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Mr. Bryer noted that the maintenance should not be stated as it is not the intention of the fund. Mr. Martel stated that it was stated last year. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$10,000. Town Hall Improvement Capital Reserve Fund. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Impact to the tax rate is .02. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$33,000. Police Department Vehicle Purchase. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

Operating Budget. Not addressed.

Adding Numeric Tally of Board of Selectmen & Budget Committee to Warrant Articles. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. No money value was involved; therefore, the motion and second were withdrawn.

$28,000. Cable Expendable Trust Fund. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. A discussion was held regarding the contract and how the money is used. Mr. Bryer stated should this article not pass, the town would need to fund the cable coordinator position via the operating budget. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$50,000. Special Duty Coverage. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$352,989. Lease/Purchase Fire/Rescue Department New Fire Engine. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Discussion was held regarding the current amount in the trust and the fact that only $30,000 is being proposed to come from the trust fund. Board members expressed concern with the fact that the rest of the money will be raised by taxation over the next six years. Further discussion on this article was postponed.

The selectmen recessed to meet with town counsel.

Lease/Purchase Fire/Rescue Department New Fire Engine. Discussion ensued. Mr. Bryer stated that he agrees with the article in principle; however, he requested that the overall language be amended so it is clear as to future payments. Mr. Curley stated that the article cannot be written that way as the town can only commit for one year at a time. Mr. Martel stated that a bond could be done. Mr. Dill stated that the entire purchase should be done this year and use all of the trust fund money. Mr. Curley stated that the way the article is written is the best way for the town to purchase a fire truck. Mr. Bryer agreed with Mr. Martel; however, historically the town does not like to bond. Mr. Bryer suggested that the issue be addressed next year. Motion passed; 2/1. Alden Dill was opposed. Mr. Dill stated that he would like to add an escape clause and begin to do things differently. Mr. Bryer explained that to pay for the truck all in one year the increase to the tax rate would be 0.75 per thousand. Mr. Dill stated that the increase this year would be $0.03 for taxes and if the trust fund is not voted in then the fire truck is paid for strictly through taxation. Mr. Bryer stated that this fire truck should have been better planned for. Mr. Dill asked if there is another way to get the fire truck and asked if it is really needed this year. Mr. Bryer replied that he feels that the fire department does need the new engine this year. He added that if the town does not have the proper right fire apparatus then there could be an effect to home owners insurances. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$32,600. Recreation Department Van. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to recommend the
warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Mr. Bryer stated that he supports the recreation 
department and making the director’s position full time. He wonders how much the van would
be used. Mr. Martel stated that he spoke to the chairman of the recreation commission, Chris
Andrews, who explained that the reason the budget increased $7,500. this year was due to
transportation costs. Currently the charge is $3. per mile and $20. per hour to rent a bus. The
bus is only half full. Mr. Bryer stated that he believes the town can purchase a van through the
state contract. Further discussion was held regarding the size of the van. Mr. Dill explained
that the proposal is for a 12 person van as anything larger requires a commercial drivers
license. Mr. Bryer stated that an analysis should be made available for town meeting. Mr. Dill
stated that he feels that the van is a good idea. Mr. Curley added that it is up to the department
to make their requests and he supports the departments. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$10,000. Highway Equipment Capital Reserve Fund. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

Lease/Purchase Fire/Rescue Department New Fire Engine. Fire Chief George Ashford met with the board regarding the need for the fire truck this year. Mr. Ashford explained that the truck proposed is a front line piece of equipment. Currently the town has two front line trucks; however, it is necessary to have the two. The truck that is being proposed to be replaced is 20 years old. He explained that this is all done via rotations and the rotation schedule cannot be stopped. Mr. Ashford explained that these types of trucks are the ones that are at all of the accidents, structure fires, and carry of the equipment; the trucks that the firefighters depend on. He added that the NFPA will only allow so much refurbishing to be done. There are expenses that need to be done to the truck and it is not really worth it. Mr. Ashford noted that Medicare has increased their rates and the town has been receiving the new rates for only five months. Discussion ensued regarding funds. Mr. Ashford stated that this truck is an adequate truck for the Town of Northwood. Mr. Ashford explained that he will need to do a warrant article every year for the next 5 years and added that should the article fail, the truck goes back and the town loses the money paid. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to reconsider the vote on the warrant article regarding the fire truck lease/purchase. Seconded by Mr. Bryer. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. **Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned to recommend the fire departments warrant article for a new fire truck. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0.

$20,000. Lagoon Maintenance & Repair Expendable Trust Fund. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. A discussion was held regarding the tipping fees and the new process for the septic haulers. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$800. Cemetery Improvement Expendable Trust Fund. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Mr. Curley asked where the funds come from. Mr. Martel explained that funds are raised from the sale of cemetery plots. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$47,823. Fire Trust Fund. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$3,000. Milfoil Control Treatment Program Expendable Trust Fund. **Motion** Mr. Curley motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Dill. Mr. Bryer asked what the balance of the fund is. Mr. Dill asked what is being done with the funds. Mr. Martel replied that he will check on these issues. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

$5,000. Upgrade of Records Retention Area. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to recommend the warrant article. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Mr. Bryer asked for clarification of the article. He stated that this fund was created for major projects/renovations for the town hall. He does not want to remove funds from that purpose. He asked why this would not be included with the facilities committee. Motion passed; 2/1. Mr. Bryer was opposed. The article was recommended by the board of selectmen, as written. 

Recreation Revolving Fund Agents. A discussion was held regarding who the agents are for the recreation revolving fund. Mr. Bryer suggested that from an internal control standpoint, the selectmen are the agents of the fund and nothing should be spent without authorization from the BOS. Mr. Martel explained that the article was a request from the treasurer. Mr. Bryer stated even though state statute specifically states that the selectmen are responsible for the affairs in the town and funds being spent from a revolving fund should be considered as prudent affairs of the town. Mr. Bryer suggested that counsel be contacted and the board will address this via a policy. **Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned that all expenditures coming out of the recreation revolving fund needs to be approved by the board of selectmen. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0. **Motion** Mr. Bryer motioned that all purchases relative to recreation must follow the same purchasing policy as all other departments. Seconded by Mr. Curley. Motion passed unanimously; 3/0.

9:15 p.m. **Motion** Mr. Dill motioned to adjourn. Seconded by Mr. Curley. The motion passed; 3/0.

Respectfully submitted,

Lisa Fellows-Weaver,
Board Secretary