Selectboard Minutes
Minutes
Town of Greenfield
Greenfield Town Offices, 7 Sawmill Road Greenfield, NH
Selectboard’s Minutes
Thursday, April 26, 2018 – 5:30 PM
Selectboard: Chair Robert Marshall, Selectwoman Margaret A. Charig Bliss, Selectwoman Karen Day
Staff: Aaron Patt, Town Administrator; Katherine Heck, Treasurer
Public: Gary Russell, Karen Russell, Norm Nickerson, Linda Nickerson, Andrew Heck, Myron Steere, Kim Kamienieki, Carele Mayer, Ken Paulsen, Abbey Kessler Monadnock Ledger Transcript
Documents for Review/Approval
- A/P Check Register(s) – 4/25
- Greenfield State Park Police Patrol Grant
- Transfer of payments for 2018 Groundskeeper Contract
- Employee Vacation Request
- Intent to Cut R2-3
- Elderly Exemption Application - R1-22
- Property Tax Warrant Levy –P01
- 2nd Quarter Sewer Tax Levy
- Minutes of Selectboard Meeting
- Welfare
5:30 PM: Public Forum
At 5:30 pm, Chairman Robert Marshall opened the meeting. Gary Russell, President of the Sportsmen’s Club outlined an issue with a culvert at the George Proctor Recreation Area. The Sportsmen’s Club requests permission to apply more gravel over the top of the culvert, prior to their annual fishing derby. Mr. Russell advised that the Club would appreciate if the Board could make a decision so that the Club can make arrangements with the gravel vendor. A discussion followed with the Selectboard. Mr. Russell stated that if the time frame for a decision should go beyond a couple of weeks, the Sportsmen’s Club would pay for the materials but it would still like to be reimbursed from the Sayles fund. Chairman Marshall directed Mr. Russell to fill out a project worksheet and submit to the Town Office for inclusion with the Selectboard’s agenda. The Selectboard would forward the necessary documents to the Trustee of Trust Funds for review and payment. Mr. Russell explained that at some future date he would propose putting in a debris catch system upstream from the culvert to prevent plugging and erosion.
5:43 PM: Selectboard Work Session
Chairman Marshall asked if anyone else was present for the public portion of the meeting. Seeing that there was no one else for the public forum, the Chair closed the public forum and opened the Selectboard Work Session.
Chairman Marshall reviewed the agenda and asked the public present if they were in attendance for the discussion on the Fire Department Tanker. Seeing that the residents were in attendance for the discussion on the tanker, the Chair moved the Fire Department Tanker discussion to the top of the Old Business list. Chairman Marshall invited Treasurer Heck to open the discussion with an overview of the town’s cash flow. Treasurer Heck noted that due to the way that municipalities collect property taxes, cash flow is tightest in October and November prior to the December 1st property tax due date. This is also in large part due to the number of large projects and payments that are required during the summer and early fall months.
A discussion on funding Capital Reserve Funds was held. Treasurer Heck explained that traditionally the Town of Greenfield funds the Capital Reserve Funds (CRF) in December just before the close of the year. This is because the funding voted at Town Meeting is not billed until the second half tax bill, usually in October or November, and due on December 1st. The funds are actually collected in the November/December/January time frame. This cycle has an impact the Selectboard’s interest in funding the Fire Apparatus Capital Reserve Fund earlier in the year.
Chairman Marshall asked, given the number of projects during the year, if there are other strategies to help with cash flow. He stated that the Selectboard is committed to the operating budget warrant articles, and the Board’s assurance to the voters at Town Meeting that the Board would purchase a tanker with CRF funds. As discussed at Town Meeting, the Selectboard feels that the lack of a tanker truck is a public safety issue. Treasurer Heck explained that while there may be some opportunity to discuss the ConVal School payment schedule with SAU #1, the town has a responsibility to its legal obligations under State law. She noted that in the case of the tanker purchase, the town voted to fund a capital reserve account (savings account) but did not vote to purchase a fire truck. There are limitations on how flexible the town can be with regards its cash flow. In answer to a question from Linda Nickerson, Treasurer Heck explained that the town has not borrowed a Tax Anticipation Note (TAN) for a number of years. She stated that she believes that TANs are not meant to fund a capital reserve account because the CRF is technically an investment, and an investment is at risk. She stated that TAN monies are meant for use by the municipality for operation of the town and should be paid back before funding of CRF accounts. Treasurer Heck outlined the fact that the ConVal payment will change in July in accordance with their new budget. The payment will increase and this will put additional pressure on town government. A discussion followed about how the town could change from a calendar year to a fiscal year cycle so that it matched ConVal, which would take some pressure off of cash flow. It was noted that Peterborough accomplished this change over an 18 month period.
Myron Steere, Chair of the School Board and resident of Greenfield stated that it would be better for the Selectboard to wait and fund the truck purchase after the Capital Reserve Fund is funded at the end of the year. Mr. Steere stated that the town should not be taking a loan from the School.
Norm Nickerson stated that it sounds like we would be ‘strapping the town cashwise’. He asked, “Can we do this when we have the money in the fund?”
A discussion followed in which the Treasurer answered the questions raised by Mr. Steere and Mr. Nickerson. Treasurer Heck suggested that the town wait until the tax bill goes out.
Chairman Marshall asked the Treasurer, “What’s the best time frame, in terms of the soonest prudent time that the Selectboard could expect to take delivery of a tanker?”
Treasurer Heck stated that December 1st is the soonest prudent time.
Carele Mayer was recognized by the Chair. Ms. Mayer explained that she was not at Town Meeting. She asked, “Why are we doing this if the town voted against purchasing a truck?”
Chairman Marshall explained in detail his conversation, which he explained to the voters at Town Meeting about why the town needs to purchase a tanker. He then explained the circumstances of the Town Meeting vote that amended the Fire Apparatus Capital Reserve Fund, and added an additional $54,000 to the recommendation of $40,000 for a total of $94,000, which he felt had a unanimous vote and showed the voter’s intent to ensure that the Selectboard was able to purchase a fire truck this year.
Andrew Heck asked if the truck that the Selectboard chose after reviewing several quotes was a turn-key model. Was the truck complete with paint, radios, decals, etc? The Chair assured him that he understood that to be the case.
Selectwoman Charig Bliss asked if there were other payment arrangements that could be provided by the company.
Kim Kamieniecki asked if there were any reason why the town isn’t looking at used tankers.
A discussion followed about the Capital Improvements Plan (CIP). Chairman Marshall explained that the CIP at one point was following a ten-year replacement cycle, but unfortunately the town moved away from the savings plan. He further explained that the Selectboard is trying to get back into a predictable pattern of major capital equipment purchases. The use of Capital Reserve Fund monies is a step in the direction of mitigating spikes in the tax rate. Purchasing a new warranted vehicle will provide a significant number of years of failsafe performance.
Selectwoman Charig Bliss explained that she had wanted to explore used tanker trucks, but she said that the cost of locating and bringing back a tanker is significant. While she would be delighted to get a good deal on a used vehicle, a new truck has a warranty and she is persuaded that this is a significant benefit.
Selectwoman Karen Day explained that dependability is an important consideration. She outlined how tankers are used to provide significant amounts of water to the scene of a fire and how this was a necessity in rural areas.
Additional conversation was held regarding the December 1st tax bill, cash flow in the tax collector’s office, and the best time to fund capital reserve funds.
Linda Nickerson asked if the town needed to fund all of the capital reserve funds at the same time?
At the close of the discussion, Chairman Marshall thanked the participants in the discussion for their valuable input. Carele Mayer stated that the taxes are becoming increasingly expensive and that homeowners are faced with the affordability of their homes due to the increase in taxes. “How many years do I have left”, she asked “in 3 to 4 years I will have to move out of town”.
Chairman Marshall thanked Mrs. Mayer for her comments. The discussion came to an end at 6:25pm.
Chairman Marshall reviewed the agenda and after discussion on several Old Business items moved to bring Katherine Heck’s meeting forward to 6:30, half an hour earlier than posted.
6:30PM: Katherine Heck, Treasurer
Chairman Marshall thanked the Treasurer for her hard work as treasurer of the town of Greenfield. He stated that due to her efforts and the efforts of the Town Administrator, the finances of the town are much stronger than they were in the past. The Treasurer provided a PowerPoint presentation that provided several pages of background information on the projects and payments that are planned for the summer. A discussion followed in which the payment obligations to the school district, payroll, retirement, health insurance and the annual payment to the County were explained. Treasurer Heck explained that the cash flow for just these basic obligations, not including the projects and payments voted on at Town Meeting, or voted by the Selectboard in the case of SB38 funding, is significant and most of the available projected cash flow accounts for these basics payments. Added to this list were the other significant items that are planned for the summer months. Cash flow from property taxes are augmented by incoming departmental revenue. At the conclusion of the discussion Treasurer Heck explained that the increase to the CRF by voters has put cash flow in a bind. There is a limit to the amount that the cash flow can stretch to fund the budget, year over year, given the fact that the municipality runs a year behind. $94,000 into one Capital Reserve Fund is too high she said. $40,000 is much more manageable. The Chair thanked the Treasurer for the presentation.
6:45PM: Selectboard Work Session Contd.
Chairman Marshall went through the Old Business items.
After weighing several items, Chairman Marshall motioned to have the Board enter into non-public session under RSA 91-A: II, A and C. The motion was seconded by Selectwoman Charig Bliss. On a roll-call vote the Board voted 3-0 to enter into non-public session. At 7:15 pm the Board voted to enter into public session. In the public session the Chair made a motion to seal the minutes. The motion was seconded by Selectwoman Charig Bliss and voted in favor on a vote of 3-0. It was noted that the Selectboard had asked for copies of the personnel policy be provided to the Selectboard members.
Next, the Selectboard reviewed an application for Elderly Exemption permanent tax abatement on R1-22, and denied the application due to the applicants’ having income that exceeds the limits voted by the town.
The Selectboard discussed a recent request by the Town Clerk for payment of fees. It was noted that the Clerk continues to be out. In the Clerk’s absence, registration services continue to be provided by temporary municipal agents at a cost that is much higher than anticipated in the 2018 budget. The Selectboard, on a motion by the Chair and a second by Selectwoman Day, voted 3-0 to have the town retain the municipal agent fees under RSA 261:74-d as outlined by Town Counsel.
The Selectmen reviewed a letter from the GIVers, and heard a report on a series of recent phone calls regarding the Memorial Day parade from Chairman Marshall. It was noted that the GIVers had written to say that they would not be hosting a Memorial Day parade this year. It was also noted that the number of wreaths requested had dropped from seven to one, “significant wreath”, which would be placed at the Meeting House. After discussion, Selectwoman Day made a motion to support the GIVers’ Memorial Day proposal. The motion was seconded by the Chair. The Board voted 3-0 in favor of supporting the GIVers’ proposal for the change to the Memorial Day program.
Next the Selectboard took up a discussion regarding the acquisition of a new tanker truck. The Board discussed the conversations with members of the public and the Treasurer held earlier in the evening. After a discussion the Board reached a consensus that more information was needed in order to determine if a truck could be secured in the near-term with delivery scheduled for December 1st. A discussion about whether an alternate payment schedule was needed, or, could be arranged in order to push out the delivery from October 1st to December 1st. The Board reached a consensus that the Fire Chief should make a call to the company and discuss the payment schedule and delivery time frame and then provide information back to the Board.
Adjournment
The time being 9:15, Selectwoman Charig Bliss motioned to adjourn; Chair Marshall seconded and the vote was unanimous 3-0.
The minutes are final when approved and signed by the Selectboard. A signed copy is on file in the Selectboard’s office.