MINUTES OF HAVERHILL SELECTBOARD REGULAR MEETING

Monday, March 16, 2009

 

Board Members Present:  Roderick Ladd, Peter Conrad, and David Joslin.

Bob Maccini and Peter Heilemann were excused.

 

Town Manager:  Glenn English                                                        

 

Administrative Assistant/Finance Officer:  Jo Lacaillade, excused

 

Members of the Public Present:  Joel Godston, Annemarie Godston,  Duane Baxter, Virginia Mitchell, Doug Henson, Karen Griswold, Everett Henson, Robert Clifford.

 

Call Meeting to Order:

 

Chairman Ladd called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m.

 

Approval of Agenda: 

 

Dave Joslin made a motion to approve the agenda as presented; seconded by Peter Conrad and carried unanimously.

 

Reorganization of Board and committee assignments :

Peter Conrad made a motion to keep the Board structure and committee assignments as is, seconded by Dave Joslin and all approved.

     Rick Ladd, Chair

     Dave Joslin, Vice Chair

     Planning Bd rep – Rick Ladd, alternate Peter Conrad

     Heritage Com rep – Peter Heilemann

     ZBA rep – Dave Joslin

     Airport Com rep – Bob Maccini

     Recreation Com rep – Peter Conrad

 

Approval of Consent Agenda:

 

Peter Conrad made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda as presented; seconded by Dave Joslin and carried unanimously.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scheduled Public Appearances:  

Ø     Heritage Commission interviews and appointments:   

Duane J. Baxter, Karen Griswold, and Robert Clifford, Sr. were all present and desired to be appointed as alternates to the Heritage Commission.  TM English explained the Commission structure.   Each candidate introduced themselves to the Board and explained their interest in joining the Commission.   There was a discussion of the Commission’s projects, including the Railroad Park in Woodsville.  Conflict of interest policy was reviewed.  David Joslin made a motion to appoint Duane J. Baxter, Karen Griswold and Robert Clifford, Sr. to the Heritage Commission as alternates, seconded by Peter Conrad and all approved.   The appointment forms were signed.

 

Public Hearing(s):  None

 

Town Manager’s Report:   

TM English reported that he had received resignation letters from Library Trustees Susan Brown and Eleanor Ingbretson.   He mentioned that Susan Brown was interested in having the Selectboard name a Library Committee to continue some of the work the Library Trustees had done.   Rick Ladd stated that we would have that discussion under New Business.   Dave Joslin made a motion to accept the resignations of Town Library Trustees Susan Brown and Eleanor Ingbretson, seconded by Peter Conrad and all approved.   Dave Joslin noted that the third Trustee position was vacant.   TM English noted that there was no point in filling any of the positions since they all expire next March anyway.

 

 

Pending (Old) Business:  

 

Ø     Agreement re:  Life Safety Code/Fire Code 3rd  Party Inspections

          TM English reported that there has been no information received from any                                                                                                                                   of the precincts on this issue.   Rick Ladd stated that the Haverhill Corner Precinct    Commissioners would discuss this at their meeting on March 26th.   The Board agreed to continue to wait for precinct responses and until they had all had a meeting to discuss it..

 

Ø     Review of Gym Usage Policy:

The Board reviewed the current gym use policy, the gym usage form and a new policy proposed by the Recreation Director.  All agreed that the Gym usage request Form was fine.   There were several suggestions made about integrating the two policies.   Of particular concern was whether food and drinks are allowed and where.  The Board decided to let the Recreation Director prepare a new policy draft for discussion at the next Selectboard meeting.   The draft is to incorporate the important points from each policy.

           Rick Ladd said that once the policy is adopted requests to use the gym can                                                                                       go to the Recreation Director and there would be no need to wait for a Board    meeting.

 

New Business:  

 

Ø     Request for a Library Committee:   The Board discussed the concept of a Town Library Committee as requested by Susan Brown.   They decided that more information was required from Ms. Brown.   TM English was instructed to ask Susan Brown to make a request, in writing, as to what her purpose and concept of this Committee would be because the Board has been advised by legal counsel to be careful to what degree we are getting involved with the private libraries.

 

Ø     Selectboard goals:

          Chairman Ladd reviewed the Selectboard goals for 2009 with the Board and        town manager and suggested that, now that town meeting was over, we start implementation of the goals; such as the Personnel Policy Manual changes, job descriptions, the police officers’ ergonomic needs.   TM English reported that we have a full plan ready to go to renovate the police officers’ work area.    Dave Joslin reported that Peter Kimball has requested that we notify him when we are doing Certificates of Appreciation so he can come and take pictures for the paper.   TM English said we can add him to the e-mail list for the Agenda.   TM English brought up the letter of commendation to our police officers from the State Police on their work on the pending murder case to break that case.   There is an opportunity to commend a couple of our police officers.   He recommended we do that at the next meeting.    Promoting the Business Park, Chairman Ladd asked about the listing agreement with Lyman Realty.   TM English reported that it had been renewed for a second year this past summer.   Chairman Ladd asked for an update on the water issue at the Park.   TM English reported that the North Haverhill Water & Light District applied to the State for a grant to upgrade the water system.   This is stimulus money.  Town preparedness and Hazard Mitigation plan.   TM English reported that we have a contract, going to Governor and Council, this Wednesday, for $5,000 from the State to update our Hazard Mitigation plan and once that is approved he suggested that we hire North Country Council to do the Plan since they were the original consultants who helped us write the initial plan and they have all the data and they can do an update rather easily.    Rick Ladd asked if we had heard back from the State on the 9-1-1 road issue.   TM English said we had not.    Chairman Ladd asked about Meadow Lane and Merchants Lane in Haverhill Corner.   TM English explained that Meadow Lane comes in off of Rt. 10 and continues down to the Bedell Bridge Park.   Merchants Lane comes off of Meadow Lane, one house in and provides access to Norma Lavoie’s property.    Rick Ladd said that a trucker couldn’t find Merchants Lane because the street sign on Rt. 10 says Meadow.   Rick Ladd asked if we ever got a report on the technology upgrades.   TM English said we got an oral report and a written summary.    Rick said he would contact Peter Heilemann to report to the Board at the next meeting.    Town Web site – Jo is learning to do the updating.   Rick Ladd suggested we talk about the web site when we talk about technology upgrades.    Support the Planning Boards effort to utilize North Country Council to update land use maps  showing land values.   TM English said the Planning Board is still on their training agenda and might not be ready to do that yet.   Railroad Park will be an extensive program this year.   Develop the Armory property – TM English reported that we have not yet received the deed and don’t own it yet so we shouldn’t advertise the recycling plan yet.   He was asked to follow up with the State on this.    Last item was the Life Safety inspector and we are waiting to hear from the precincts on that.

 

TM English stated that next year’s budget will be a real challenge because of the State revenue cut backs and he had given the Board a list of areas in the budget in which he would like some policy direction before putting a 2010 budget together.   Rick Ladd agreed that we need to start the process early this year.   Dave asked about the progress of the Governor’s budget.   TM English said the House Finance Committee is holding hearings now and then it goes to the Senate so we’re looking at mid- summer.

 

Commission/Committee Reports:    none

 

Correspondance:  

Rick Ladd presented several bills which are being proposed in the New Hampshire House.  He said next week the House has to deal with 300 bills in a period of three days.   HB 309 allowing towns and cities to establish a local revenue option as an alternative to property taxation for funding local government.     This would allow a town or city to enact their own sales tax for instance.    Rick Ladd said that you would reduce your property tax by what you bring in some other revenue.   This is coming up tomorrow.   There are a number of bills dealing with taxation structure.   HB 311 allowing municipalities to adopt a Homestead Exemption for property taxes assessments on a person’s principle place of residence, a $25,000 exemption for those under age 65 and $40,000 for those 65 and over.    It would be handled similar to the Elderly Exemption.     This is an effort to lower property taxes for folks but what it does is shifts the burden from one element within your town to another and business is still treated as business so it shifts the tax burden to commercial properties.   Also to second homeowners said Peter Conrad,

So it affects that market.    HB 351 relative to the interest rate on late or delinquent property taxes.   TM English said this would result in more delinquent taxes.   The Tax Collector’s Association is against this bill.   It takes away one of the important incentives for people to pay their taxes.   If somebody really has a hardship in paying they can come to the Selectboard for an hardship abatement of taxes and/or interest charges and get relief so we don’t have to lower the interest for everybody.  HB 484 relative to the definition of charitable organizations.   This qualifies 501 (c)4 corporations for the same charitable status that 501(c) 3  organizations have.   This addresses games of chance.    No one was sure what this was really about.   Peter Conrad thought it was something to do with poker games.   HB 596 establishes a tax credit for taxpayers whose property taxes exceed 10% of household income.   How do we determine income?    Difficult to administer.   HB 648 medical marijuana.   Opinion is divided on this one.   HB 194,  fees for inspections and plan review services by Division of Fire Safety.    Rick Ladd said that last year through a Senate bill the fire marshal’s department downloaded the responsibility for inspecting schools to local fire chiefs.   So if they have a fee schedule can we use it locally?   HB 628,  property inventory and use tax, Rick Ladd said it sounds like a “shelf tax” .   They have a million ways proposed to gain revenues said Rick Ladd.   Proposed taxes and fees on everything.   HB 584, establishing an income tax for paying college tuition for emergency first responders, law enforcement officers and their dependents.   Peter Conrad said that’s a way to get a broad-based tax and have a lot of sympathy for it.

Also a bill to establish a flat-rate education income tax of $5.50/$1,000.   All these things are in the hopper.   So income tax and sales tax are in committees right now.    Peter Conrad questioned an income tax as a broad base tax, he preferred a sales tax and share the burden with the out-of-staters.   Dave Joslin said he had a problem with politicians not leaving things alone.   These little adjustments here and there don’t get noticed and start to add up.   If they earmark for specific things they just take money away from other things.  Rick Ladd said they end up spending more in the long-run.   TM English said his philosophy is that you never create a new tax unless you kill the old one, otherwise you just increase spending.    So if there is going to be a new tax to fund education then we shouldn’t have a local property tax to fund education.   Because if you just add a new tax it will increase spending.   He said there is no fiscal responsibility for spending in public education.    There is a definite effort not to change the way we are spending money, especially education, but there is a drift to fund that spending through further taxation like an income tax, said Rick Ladd.   The only bill that sort of reduces one tax when you create a new one is that first bill sponsored by the Municipal Association which allows towns to create an alternate tax in lieu of property taxes in a like amount.   HB 664, relative to taxation of capital gains under the interest and dividends tax, now they are going after capital gains.   This is really an income tax.   Rick Ladd said all these taxation bills are coming from one Party.   Peter Conrad said that the capital gains tax would hit the commercials particularly hard.   TM English said taxing interest , dividends and capital gains is double taxation.   Rick Ladd said there are other bills of a social nature dealing with marriage,  etc.    TM English asked Rick Ladd if he is getting any input from the general public on these bills.   He said he is but some of the input is from special interests.   He said about 75% of his input comes from individuals and the rest from large organizations, some outside our state.    Everett Henson said that none of these bills even begin to address the main problem.   The problem isn’t more money but less government.   Refering to people who work in Concord as the “state family” bugs him.    They considers themselves as above and beyond anything north of Concord.   They’ve got to cut back from State agencies.   Rick Ladd said the Governor has made a proposal to consolidate State agencies and that is good.   He said the problem extends down from the federal government.   The Department of Education  creates these mandates like No Child Left Behind.   Over $130 million dollars are spent on free and reduced meals, which are not free.   TM English said he agreed with what Everett said but people don’t seem to realize that the biggest unit of government in this country is public education.    That’s a government function that spends much more money than towns, cities, and in some cases the state.   That’s where most of your tax dollars go, whether they are federal, state or local.   Rick Ladd stated it is important for the Selectboard to start working on how we spend our money even though he feels we have been pretty frugal at the local level, but we have to be more frugal because the dollars are not going to be there.   The dollars for the County are not going to be there.   TM English said that County government is more visible than it’s ever been, they are getting some real public input, that they haven’t gotten for years.   Rick Ladd said he felt the County is going to be asked to spend less then they are spending now. 

 

Comments of the Public:  

Doug Henson asked about the issue of the water at the Industrial Park.   Rick Ladd said that the individual building there has been told that there is not enough pressure in the water line to operate the fire suppression system.   The pressure has to be increased to meet the standards set by the fire department.  The North Haverhill Precinct is responsible for providing adequate pressure in the line as per an agreement with the Town when the line was built.

.

 

Comments of the Town Manager:   None

 

Comments of Selectboard Members:   None

 

Adjourn Meeting:   Dave Joslin made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Peter Conrad and all approved.   The meeting was adjourned by Chairman Ladd at

7:06 pm.

 

Minutes transcribed by Glenn English