Alexandria Board of Selectmen
March 6, 2008
Approved April 3, 2008
Members present: Cindy Williams, Don Gangemi and Tom McGowan
A work session was held at 5:00 p.m. in order to determine who would speak to the various warrant articles at town meeting. This took until 6:00 p.m., so the ethics policy and building issues were set aside for another night.
The meeting came to order at 6:00 p.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was given.
Mike from Avitar came in to let the selectmen know who he is and that he is out working on under constructions, new constructions, subdivisions and abatements. Don Gangemi asked for a synopsis of Mike’s qualifications. He said he has been with Avitar for six years. He is a certified assessor with the state. Once he takes the state statutes course, he will be qualified as a supervisor. It takes five years in the field to achieve that level. Mike explained that mass appraisal, which is the work Avitar does, is not the same process that an appraiser uses to determine a selling price for your home.
At 6:15 Harry Smith from Indeck introduced himself and explained that a public hearing will be held in the old town hall on March 19. This is an opportunity for people to pose questions to the Indeck officials. Mr. Smith is the plant manager for the Alexandria facility.
Minutes: The
minutes of January 31, February 7, February 14 and February 21
were approved.
Department Heads:
Christie Phelps: No building permits issued, one purchase order was issued, no driveway permit applications were received. The audit is entering the third stage where Paul Brown will be performing a third party review of the information.
Town Clerk/Tax
Collector and Christie have reconciled through February and
year to date. The treasurer has been out of town, so her
reconciliation is not
yet available for February. They do agree through January.
Jeff Cantara:
Loader, grader and two trucks were down as of yesterday. Today
the loader is back up and one of the trucks is operational. Second
truck should
be ready tomorrow. The grader will need to be looked at by Cat and
all repairs
should be at their cost. Jeff has lined up contractors to help the
highway crew if
rain comes in heavily. Some of the ice has been removed from Cass
Mill Road.
Don asked if some of the pot holes could be filled in on some of the
roads. Jeff
said the crew has not had the time to do that, but will try to get
to it this next
week. They are also aware that street signs are missing and will do
what they
can as quickly as possible.
Barbara Emery:
Registration by mail is now available and will be used beginning
with the April renewals.
Conservation
Commission: Kate Barrett said that the commission has been
getting ready for town meeting and the Indeck meeting. The
commission is
concerned with the withdrawal and discharge levels to be allowed at
the Indeck
facility.
Items Requiring Signature:
A commitment letter was signed for the tax anticipation note.
An abatement was signed for Thomas Mitchell
Frank is
requesting authorization to find another officer who might be
available to be on call when the regular officers are not able to.
Cindy asked
if Andrew is back on duty yet; he is not. Cindy also asked if there
is a reason
why we are paying Bob to train Angela rather than the chief training
her. Frank
said they have both been working on her training.
Old Business: ongoing
New Business: Elections are Tuesday; the polls are open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
At least one selectman should be on duty at all times.
Frank’s next PT test is on March 18.
Hazard Mitigation Grant will need to be signed
on Monday by
one of the selectmen. The intersections of Sargent Road and
Washburn and Knowles Hill Road and Washburn are places that
are recurring problems. A grant has been applied for some additional
information was needed on the application. Christie and
Jeff have worked to get the information together. Paul Hatch from
Emergency Management will pick up the application on Monday.
The trees on Verrill Road remain an issue. A letter will be sent.
Washburn Road Bridge: Cindy said the town
may have to borrow
money in order to do the project prior to
2014, which is when the
state has us in the cycle.
Bridge Red List: Cindy asked Jeff if he is
familiar with the bridges
on the red list. Christie said that Jeff
has been given a copy of all
the information the selectmen have as well
as a memo asking
questions about information on the reports.
The memo asked Jeff
to be prepared to meet with the selectmen in
sixty days to discuss
plans for the bridges. Jeff said he may be
working on some of the
rail issues.
Public Input:
Jeff Cantara asked what enforcement the town has against a bulldozer running up and down the road. Cindy said that something could be put in the letter about the tree that is going to the same person that is driving the bulldozer. Christie said she would need the statute reference and the enforcing agency because the police chief has indicated he cannot enforce it because it is a conflict of interest due to the fact that the driver is an elected official of the town. Who then becomes the enforcing agency? Frank said he can enforce it; a better position is for the town not to enforce it, but to have the state do it. He said he can be a squeaky wheel with the state. He does not believe the town should be in the position of enforcement between two elected officials. Frank said the town does not want enforcement; it wants compliance. He has talked with the driver of the bulldozer. Christie asked how long the town should be expected to wait for state police to come in and do something. Frank replied he didn’t think very long. The selectmen stated that as long as everyone is working within the limitations of the statutes, they should be able to take care of the situation. Frank got into a heated discussion with Chet Caron that the selectmen put an end to. Frank said there are many issues involved with working on issues involving town employees. Frank said the issue at hand is a poor response by an agency that is supposed to come in and help the town. Frank said that he has been blindsided with this situation and wishes he had been told it would be a topic of conversation. It has not been discussed what can be done to solve a problem; the problem has simply been identified. Don said that the town will back up any employee working within the scope of the statutes that apply to their job.
Larry Stickney: Larry asked why just two locations were considered for the Hazard Mitigation Grant. Christie explained these are the two priority sites for the two due to the fact that they are recurring incidents that cost the town a significant amount of money.
Chet Caron: Chet asked about police patrol on Lakeview Heights. Chet said that the police chief told him he would not patrol that road. The chief replied that he did not say he would not patrol it, he said he would not enforce the traffic laws on that road. Ernie Lamos agreed with Chet. Another heated discussion took place that had to be stopped.
Adjournment: Motion to adjourn at 7:35 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Christie Phelps, TA