Selectboard Minutes
Minutes
Town of Greenfield
Greenfield Town Offices, 7 Sawmill Road Greenfield, NH
Selectboard’s Minutes
Tuesday, March 28, 2017 – 5:30 PM
Selectboard: Chair Margaret A. Charig Bliss, Selectman Stephen Atherton Jr., Selectman Robert Marshall
Staff: Aaron Patt, Town Administrator; Richard McQuade, Buildings & Grounds Manager
Public:
Documents for Review/Approval
- A/P Check Register (2) – 3/23 & 3/29
- Wastewater Check Register
- Minutes of Selectboard Meeting
- Avitar Associates Abatement Recommendation
- Elderly Tax Exemption Application
- Land Use Change Tax – R9-5-3
- Intent to Excavate
- Local River Management Advisory Committee Nominee Form
- Current Use Application(s) – R3-39-1 & R3-37
- Welfare Application
5:30 PM: Public Forum
At 5:30 pm Chairwoman Charig Bliss opened the meeting. It was noted that no public were present for the public forum.
5:45 PM: Buildings & Grounds Manger Richard McQuade
At 5:45 pm, Buildings & Grounds Manager McQuade came before the Selectboard to discuss the Oak Park Baseball Storage Shed. The shed was vandalized by arson in December of 2016. The town’s insurance company sent an adjuster to review the damage to the building and its contents. Mr. McQuade shared a spreadsheet detailing the contents of the shed. There were 36 helmets with face guards, 2 catcher’s masks, 3 full catcher’s sets of equipment, 11 baseball helmets without face guards, 5 equipment bags and several other assorted pieces of equipment in the shed at the time of the fire. The equipment was reviewed by the adjuster to see if it could be cleaned. There was sufficient smoke damage to make cleaning doubtful. As a result it was recommended that the equipment be replaced. Mr. McQuade said that the adjuster reviewed the shed itself and concluded that the smoke damage to the interior was significant. A steel sink had been filled with charcoal briquettes and the resulting charcoal fire in the sink burned a large hole in the floor. The conclusion was that the cost to clean the building, replace floor joists and install new flooring will be greater than the cost to replace the building with something similar in size. Mr. Mcquade discussed the possibility of purchasing a new shed from a shed company. The current building is 18X12, but he said that this was a larger space than was required for the baseball equipment. He suggested that the Board look at replacing the current building with a 12X16, or, a 10x16, or similar size depending on the cost. Mr. McQuade also outlined the cost of additional materials that would be required to build shelves in the building and cover the walls with plywood.
The Selectboard discussed this information and concluded that the Buildings & Grounds Manager should have a conversation with the Oak Park Committee to see if they had any suggestions regarding a replacement shed. The current shed was discussed as having originally been transported from Pack Monadnock, however given its current condition the Board members are in agreement to have it demolished. A question as to whether the Greenfield Fire Department could use it for a burn building came up. Mr. McQuade said that he would speak to the Fire Chief but that if it was burned it would reduce the cost of material disposal.
7:00 PM: Selectboard Work Session – Consent Agenda
The Chair moved to have the Board enter a Work Session in order to review the Consent Agenda and other items. Town Administrator Patt brought forward three financing quotes for the police cruiser. The financing from Tax Exempt Leasing Corp. was reviewed and noted to be lower than from Ford Credit and People’s Bank. Patt explained that he had spoken to the towns of Hancock, Lyndeborough and Hollis and all three had reported having an excellent experience with TELC. It was noted that the quote from TELC was lower than the amount in the warrant article, whereas the other two had increased or remained higher between the original quote and Town Meeting. The Board voted on a motion by the Chair and a second by Selectman Marshall to award the financing to TELC. The motion passed 3-0 in favor.
Next the Board reviewed a recommendation from a Planning Board site-walk, to allow Asplundh to cut two or three smaller trees at the edge of Zephyr Lake Beach as part of an Eversource utility trimming project. The Board voted on a motion by Selectman Marshall and a second by Selectman Atherton to allow Asplundh to perform utility tree trimming and removal at Zephyr Lake Beach area as recommended by the Planning Board. The vote was held and passed 3-0 in favor.
The Board discussed the motion from the floor of Town Meeting by Adele Hale to establish a committee to explore the possibility of having the town look into solar and wind energy to help offset the cost of electricity in town buildings. It was noted that Jack Moran of the Economic Development Committee (EDAC) had talked about how the EDAC had been looking at all types of renewable energies as part of their mission. The Board decided that it might be helpful to discuss with the EDAC members the extent of their work to date to see if it had any relevancy to specific project, or, whether it was geared more toward the Planning Board’s development of zoning ordinances.
The Board discussed the Fire Department’s interest in trading the offline tanker for a brush truck/engine. Chief Hall has moved forward with New Boston’s DPW and agreed to make the trade (no funds are expended in the trade). The Selectboard asked to be updated on any costs associated with painting the vehicle. There was a brief discussion on the disposition of the utility truck. During the discussion it was noted that the costs associated with the purchase of the new ambulance, the conversion of the older ambulance to a utility truck, and to acquire New Boston’s brush truck in a trade are almost equal to what the Fire Department had originally discussed to purchase a brush truck in 2016.
Next, Selectman Marshall outlined his interest in continuing to promote a conversation with the Sportsmen’s Club and the Conservation Committee regarding the use of the town owned property on Savage Road. He stated that there are a number of issues that have come to light when examining the documents about the Savage Road property. These include the fact that some documents show that the property was purchased by the town and that the club provided some of those funds. Notwithstanding the purchase, there are questions of title in conflicting deed references from other parcels. A separate will from George Proctor left funds to the club for certain activities and those funds are still held by the Trustees of Trust Funds. A Town Meeting vote, in 1988, set aside some or all of the property as a Town Forest with a committee made up of Club members and Conservation Commission members to oversee the property. Selectman Marshall stated that he was very interested in having the Sportsman’s Club, the Conservation Committee and the Selectboard record these separate items into a Memorandum of Understanding that all three groups could rely on for the future. The Chair said that the Board had had a discussion about scheduling this for its own meeting time on April 4th. The Board re-affirmed the date for this discussion, which will likely be held at 7pm.
The Chair opened a conversation about having the Board meet with Department Heads. After a brief discussion the Board agreed that they would try and schedule this on April 11th based on the department’s schedules.
Lastly, an old business item regarding municipal action to mitigate drought impacts was brought up by Selectman Marshall. Last September the Board received a directive from DES following a meeting with Governor Hassen and other representatives, asking municipalities to assist in mitigating drought impacts. The Board had asked the Conservation Commission to weigh in on whether the Board should adopt restrictions on use of public and private sources of water; including water drafting from town lakes. The Board asked the Conservation Commission for an opinion prior to the Selectmen taking any action heading into the summer months.
Adjournment
The time being 8:36 pm, Selectman Marshall moved to adjourn. Selectman Atherton seconded. All were in favor, and the motion carried 3-0. The meeting adjourned at 8:36 PM.
The minutes are final when approved and signed by the Selectboard. A signed copy is on file in the Selectboard’s office.