TOWN OF TUFTONBORO
Selectmen present: Susan Weeks, Bill Stockman and Chip Albee.
Selectmen reviewed mail, which included: Building Permit for YMCA Camp Belknap, Richard & Elizabeth Laramee, Gerald Heald; Copy of letter to Garreau from code officer; Property Transfer from James & Jane Keddie to Jill & Mark Seitz; Letter of Transmittal from HEB re: County Road Bridge; Approval for Construction for Glenn Holinka, Todd Workman; NH DRA re: 2003 Total Equalized Valuation; Standard Dredge and Fill for Michael & Pamela Caplin, Barvel Whang Assoc.; NHDES Notice of Administrative Completeness for Caplin, Barvel Whang; Tax Collector memo re: 5/9/04 tax deeding; Legislative Bulletin #18; Letter from Avitar re: web hosting; Coalition Communities; HealthTrust Member Assistance Program; Terra-Map.
Items for Signature: Lien for Canniff; Application, Certification and Agreement for Federal Surplus Property; Veterans Credit application for Sedler; MS-5.
Minutes: The Selectmen’s meeting minutes for 4-26-04 and non-public minutes for 4-26-04 were accepted.
At approximately 6:30 Selectmen met with Code Officer Ted Wright and resident Ray Leslie. Mr. Leslie needs a temporary dwelling permit until his home is built. They are currently living in a trailer on the property. Work has been started but it will be some time before completion. A letter of agreement has to be drawn up by the Selectmen.
The Code officer reported that he has just issued the 30th building permit. This is about 1-½ months ahead of last year. Mr. Wright also requested that the planning board files be converted to map-block-lot so that information can be found. The current method is by original owners name which in many cases is not known. The Selectmen said it is up to the boards (planning, ZBA, conservation) to implement and a memo will be issued advising them of the new procedure. The memo will also include a request for meeting minutes to be forwarded to the Selectmen.
Chairman Weeks mentioned the broken pilings at Melvin Wharf and asked Mr. Wright to fill out the wetlands application.
At approximately 6:45 Selectmen met with Ted Bense. Mr. Bense submitted a quote for replacement of the fence and gate at the beach. The location has been staked and it is sitting further back from the road than the original state fence. Mr. Bense felt that a decision should be made soon as there will be a price increase in the near future. The items mentioned last week have also been staked. Chairman Weeks said that a meeting has to be set up between the Selectmen and the Parks and Rec Commission before going any further. It was decided to meet with Parks and Rec on Monday 5/10 at 5pm at the beach. Parks and Rec to be notified.
Mr. Bense presented pictures of the erosion of the field because of the ice rink. After some discussion everyone was in agreement that the grading has to be redone and done properly this time. It was also felt that the rink should be made smaller. Selectman Stockman asked Mr. Bense to get the opinion of a couple of contractors and get the specs from the company the rink was purchased from. Mr. Bense felt that in order to maintain the rink properly the town should hire someone. It has not worked well using volunteers. Mr. Bense said that there are several limbs that should be removed from trees at Davis field. It was noted that the road agent has money in his budget for the removal of unsafe trees. Mr. Bense will contact the road agent.
Mr. Bense was given permission to send a flier with the tax bills regarding the LRPC Household Hazardous Waste Product Collection.
At approximately 7:30 Selectmen met with Police Chief Shagoury. Chief Shagoury spoke with the sheriff regarding a contract to provide coverage over the summer for vacations, sick time, etc. The department stated that they would not enter into a contract but would be available to cover on a case-by-case basis at a cost of $42.00 per hour with a minimum of 4 hours. Much discussion ensued and it was decided that more information was needed - how much time would the town need and how much time could the sheriff’s department provide? Chief Shagoury will also explore using the surrounding towns for help.
There are 3 or 4 candidates at this point that can be scheduled for the agility test.
Bike Safety Day will be held on May 14 and Law Day on May 21.
Chairman Weeks announced that Scott Greenwood was hired to work at the Transfer Station. The HEB engineer will meet with Fred Sargent and Joe Kowalski at the Transfer Station on May 6th before making a presentation to the Selectmen.
Chairman Weeks reported on the Selectmen’s Forum she attended on May 1st in Moultonborough. There were 20 selectmen in attendance along with representatives Betsy Patten and Joe Kenney. NH DES gave a presentation on lagoons and septage issues confronting NH towns. The highway department made a presentation on maintenance vs. reconstruction of roads. They determined it is more cost efficient to maintain roads then to wait to reconstruct. A mutual aid program, NH Public Works, was explained. This is a statewide program in which towns join for $25.00 and then provide a list of equipment or assets for use in case of an emergency by another town. The cost for using the equipment or assets would be reimbursed by FEMA, if applicable. There is no obligation to provide the asset if it is not available at that time. There was also much discussion regarding the statewide property tax.
Selectman Stockman made a motion to seal indefinitely the non-public minutes for March 8th. Seconded by Selectman Albee with all in favor.
The following items were approved for signature:
Selectman Stockman reported on the first meeting of the Safety Needs Assessment Committee held last week. The chairman is Joe Kowalski and the secretary is Chief Shagoury. The list of priorities is to - review previous reports, look at the size of the town owned properties, find out what other towns have done, check NHMA for similar studies and get input form the police and fire chiefs. The next meeting is scheduled for May 11 at 7 PM.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:15 PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Carolyn Sundquist
Administrative Assistant