Selectboard Minutes
Town of Greenfield
7 Sawmill Road, Greenfield, NH 03047
Selectboard’s Minutes
Wednesday, August 26, 2020 – 4:30 PM
Selectboard: Chairwoman Margaret Charig Bliss, Selectwoman Karen Day, Selectman Robert Marshall
Staff: Aaron Patt, Town Administrator; DPW Manager Rick McQuade;
Public: Scott Tarzia, Granite State Plumbing & Heating
4:30 PM: Virtual Meeting Open – Dial In 1+717-275-8940
The meeting was called to order at 5:30pm. Chairwoman Charig Bliss welcomed everyone to the virtual Selectboard meeting. Chairwoman Charig Bliss opened the meeting and read a statement provided by the Attorney General’s office regarding virtual meetings. “As Chair of the Selectboard, I find that due to the State of Emergency declared by the Governor as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and in accordance with the Governor’s Emergency Order #12 pursuant to Executive Order 2020-04, this public body is authorized to meet electronically.
Please note that there is no physical location to observe and listen contemporaneously to this meeting, which was authorized pursuant to the Governor’s Emergency Order. However, in accordance with the Emergency Order, I am confirming that we are providing public access to the meeting by telephone. We are currently working on providing additional access possibilities by video or other electronic means, however, we are a small town and that is not feasible for tonight’s call.
We are utilizing Freeconference.com for this electronic meeting. All members of the Board have the ability to communicate contemporaneously during this meeting through this platform, and the public has access to contemporaneously listen and, if necessary, participate in this meeting through dialing the access number posted online or by following the directions on the Meeting Instructions link from the Selectboard’s page on the website. The Website address is greenfield-nh.gov.
We previously gave notice to the public of the necessary information for accessing the meeting, including how to access the meeting telephonically. If there are problems with access, please email the Town Administrator and he will attempt to help you in real time. In the event the public is unable to access the meeting, the meeting will be adjourned and rescheduled.
Please note that all votes that are taken during this meeting shall be done by roll-call vote.
Let’s start the meeting by taking a roll-call attendance. When each member states their presence, please also state whether there is anyone in the room with you during this meeting, which is required under the Right-to-Know law. “
Each selectperson noted that they were alone. The Selectboard members are each home and alone, EMD Martin is home in his office and the Town Administrator is in his office at home and is alone.
The Chair stated: “at this point I would ask that everyone mute their phones by pressing * (star) 6 (six). If there isn’t time for your questions tonight, you can email the Town Administrator and request to be on the agenda during the next meeting. If you have technical difficulties on your end with your computer, laptop, or other electronic device email the Town Administrator if you having trouble connecting in real-time and we’ll try to be of help.
Gov. Sununu’s Emergency Order #16 has been lifted however, given the headlines where other States are pulling back from re-opening and the virus appears to be surging in many areas, there is a risk that the Selectboard cannot ignore. For the foreseeable future the Board will continue to meet by conference call as a result. We'll ask that - to the extent possible - you submit your questions/concerns/comments to the Town Administrator via email in advance so we can have answers ready. Remember to charge whatever device you are using in advance of the meeting. I can assure you everyone in your town government is doing everything in their capacity to ensure your safety, their safety and Greenfield's future. With that said, I would invite participants to bring issues before the Board.”
5:30 PM: Scott Tarzia, Granit State Plumbing & Heating
The Selectboard Chair welcomed Mr. Tarzia to the meeting. The Chair explained that the Selectboard has been researching air quality mitigation of COVID-19 in town buildings. It’s the Board’s understanding that Mr. Tarzia provides such services to Monadnock Community Hospital. The Board is interested in understanding what products are available that could help Town buildings in light of COVID-19.
Mr. Tarzia thanked the Board for the invitation to the meeting and proceeded to explain the company’s background has been in working with commercial entities and schools throughout the State. Mr. Tarzia outlined a solution for air handler systems using an ionization platform. The ionization product is called iWave. The system has been installed in schools in NH and commercial buildings such as MCH. Mr. Tarzia explained how volumes of air are handled by central air systems. In buildings where there is no central heating or cooling, stand alone units are available. Mr. Tarzia provide a link to a commercial grade air scrubber, which uses HEPA filters and are able to achieve 544 cubic feet of air transfer an hour. He said that the units can be considered loud in some settings. He suggests that there a few different ways that the town can go about having the iWave product purchased and installed. Mr. Tarzia stated that one benefit of the ion generator is that it does not produce ozone. He stated that ozone is very bad. The benefit of ionization is that the negatively charged ions attract dust and mold particles and also viruses and bacteria in the air and attach to the pollutants and the combination makes the particles able to be caught by the filters. As a result, the filter systems are not as expensive and a standard HEPA filter will have a bigger benefit.
The Selectboard discussed the cost of the units. DPW Manager Rick McQuade joined the call and asked several questions, including the power supply needed. The stand alone units are regular 110V units. At the conclusion of the discussion, Mr. Tarzia offered to meet Mr. McQuade at the Town Office in the morning to review and provide a quote to the Selectboard.
At 6:05 the Board thanked Mr. Tarzia for his time.
The Board held a brief discussion on a recent email from Town Counsel relative to elections and then agreed to go over the attorney’s opinion with the Moderator at the Thursday meeting.
There being no further business the Board voted to adjourn
Adjournment
At 6:08 pm, Selectwoman Day made a motion to adjourn the meeting; the motion was seconded by the Chair. The motion carried 3-0 in a roll-call vote.