Alexandria Board of Selectmen
November 15, 2007
Approved December 6, 2007
Members Present: Cindy Williams, Don Gangemi, Tom McGowan
Pledge of Allegiance: Led by Senator Deborah Reynolds
Distribution of Minutes: November 8 were distributed
Approval of Minutes: Cindy asked to table the minutes of November 1 as she has not had an opportunity to review them.
6:15: Senator Reynolds offered her greetings and thanks
to any veterans in the audience in honor of
last week’s Veteran’s Day. As there are some 30 towns within her
district, the senator said she does not get to every town as often as she would
wish. Her main goal for District 2 is see quality telecommunications made
available to everyone who wants it. This includes broadband. The state has
hired a consultant to help with a strategic plan for broadband. The hope is
that the plan will be ready in 2008. The upgrading of this technology would
attract businesses to the area, which poses a separate issue; that being the
absence of affordable work force housing. Senator Reynolds has served on several
committees this year including Ways & Means, Judiciary and Congressional. The
state continues to receive money from tobacco companies to offset the cost of
treating tobacco related ailments. The senator is opposed to Fair Point
acquiring a portion of Verizon’s business. They are a small phone company, not
a giant telecommunications corporation. When she asked what the concerns on the
local level are, she was told school funding, bridge aid reductions and the lack
of communication between the state and local governments. When she mentioned
the state retirement system, she was asked whether or not the state is still
planning on looking at the Oregon system which was some years ago in the same
condition as New Hampshire but is now in the black. The senator did not know
the answer, but made a note to find out. Senator Reynolds encouraged people to
call and let her know when special events are being held as she does try to make
them. She left a number of business cards for people to use when contacting
her. She then thanked the selectmen for their time and left to attend one of
the public hearings regarding the new Grafton County Jail.
Department Heads:
Christie Phelps: One purchase order was signed
this week for $2484 for cutting edges for the
highway department. The surveyors are working on the Washburn
Bridge. There is no meeting
next week and the offices will be closed Thursday and Friday.
Frank Hinkle: Frank gave the
selectmen a justification of his budget request based on zero
budgeting. It was determined that this discussion should probably take place
during the selectmen’s next meeting regarding the budgets which is November 27
at 9:00 a.m. Frank said
that this week’s calls for service have included two major incidents that are
being handled accordingly.
Items Requiring Signature:
A certificate for Cub Scout Pack #59 was signed for their work on the garden.
A certificate and letter for Lynn Kenney was
signed for her work as Animal Control
Officer.
A volunteer policy was approved by a vote of 3-0.
Old Business:
Cole Hill Road: Cindy and Jeff are working on the issue
Transfer Station Land: Still need a meeting with Boake. Christie working on this.
Prestige Development: No word yet; Christie
left a message on Wednesday; will
follow up tomorrow.
Volunteer Policy: Complete; can be taken off the list
Firing Range: Bill Hall needs to meet with his attorney
Reclamation of Shackett Pit: In progress; Jim Ransom is working on it now.
New Business:
Health Officer: The health
officer budget is presently over some $568. Christie explained
that she is bringing it to the attention of the selectmen simply because it is a
department budget
that has been exceeded. The selectmen authorized Christie to get in touch with
George Whittaker, the health officer, to request that he refrain from making any
non-essential expenditures for the remainder of the year.
Chairman: Christie pointed out
that there is still no chairman of the board. Don suggested that
Tom be given a few opportunities to chair the meetings. Don has found it very
educational since he and Cindy have been splitting that job. The issue of
selecting a chairman will be brought up for discussion again on December 20.
Public Input:
Bonnie O’Brien wanted to know if we had
information yet on the memory bricks. Christie
said she is still working on getting pricing. Bonnie thought it
might be nice to have them
available for people to purchase at Community Day.
Larry Stickney asked if there is
any money set aside for working on bridges in town that require
emergency repairs. He was told that a warrant article will be presented to the
town this year to put money into a recently established Bridge Repair Capital
Reserve. It was also mentioned that the state usually has some money for
emergencies.
Larry also said that he has been overwhelmed by the offers of help and supplies he has received since becoming the animal control officer. People have given him ropes and halters and offered the use of their paddocks. This is in response to a recent loose horse incident that Larry took care of.
Adjournment:
Cindy made a motion to adjourn the meeting at
7:45 p.m. The motion was seconded by Tom
McGowan and approved by a vote of 3-0.
Respectfully submitted, Christie Phelps, TA