DUNBARTON BOARD OF SELECTMEN
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2003
TOWN OFFICES – 7:00 P.M.
The regular weekly session of the Dunbarton Board of Selectmen was held at the above time, date and place with Chairman Charles Graybill presiding. The following were present:
Charles Graybill, Chairman
J. R. Swindlehurst, III
Steve Kennedy
Janice VandeBogart
Kenneth Swayze, Admin., Planning
and Zoning Department
Stillwater
– Tucker Hill Road, Request for return of Surety Bond:
Charles
Graybill asked what the reason was for the Planning Board not approving the
Stillwater – Tucker Road request for acceptance of the road, etc. at November
5, Planning Board Meeting. Alison
Vallieres read the minutes from the Planning Board Meeting which basically
stated that unless all conditions as required by the Planning Board are met,
the Planning Board will not approve the request.
John
R. Swindlehurst, III, General Discussion:
At this point in the meeting, John R. Swindlehurst, III stepped down from the Selectmen’s Board. He asked to address the Selectmen with a general discussion as follows:
John
R. Swindlehurst III stated as follows:
“I have in my possession a copy of a complaint filed with the Dunbarton
Ethics Committee. In this complaint,
there is a section referencing the hiring of Mr. Bowne as the Transfer Station
Supervisor. As you can see from the
minutes of August 9th, 2001, the hiring process of Mr. Bowne was in
non-public session with only the three Selectmen, the Recording Secretary and
the Town Administrator, along with the two co-chairs of the Transfer Station
Management Committee. It’s very
disturbing that the complaints contain information that was discussed in
non-public session. This brings up the
question of misuse of confidential information by a resident in town against a
Town Official. Chuck, seeing that you
were in that meeting, does this partial copy of the complaint show somewhat of
what went on in that non-public meeting, noting that they are not exactly what
was said, but it’s the fact that some
items are and should not have left the room.
My question to you gentlemen is, What can one do about this? Is this a Ethics concern? One of the three complaints is signed by a
Town Official.”
John
R. Swindlehurst III asked the Selectmen the following questions:
1) Has Mr. Colter, Mr. Herlihy
or Mr. Little ever been to a publicly posted Board of Selectmen’s Meeting to
complain about the hiring process of the Transfer Station Supervisor, namely
Mr. Patrick Bowne?
Both Steve Kennedy and Charles Graybill stated, “Not
to my knowledge.”
2) Has Mr. Colter, Mr. Herlihy
or Mr. Little ever been to a publicly posted Board of Selectmen’s Meeting to
complain about the Transfer Station Supervisor’s use of the Dodge pickup for
work related and/or Town related use?
Both Steve Kennedy and Charles Graybill stated, “Not
to my knowledge.”
3) Has Mr. Colter, Mr. Herlihy
or Mr. Little ever been to a publicly posted Board of Selectmen’s Meeting to
complain about the Transfer Station Supervisor or employees responding to or
not responding to fire and emergency calls?
Both Steve Kennedy and Charles Graybill stated, “Not to my knowledge.”
At this point, Steve Kennedy stated that he would
like Charles Graybill, Chairman, Board of Selectmen to notify the Chairman of
the Ethics Committee that the Selectmen want to discuss this. This circumvents the Selectmen’s
authority. According to the Ethics Code,
you must exhaust all other avenues of relief before going to the Ethics
Committee.
J. R. Swindlehurst stated that he feels they have
not exhausted all avenues of relief. He
stated he did not feel their action was appropriate.
J. R. Swindlehurst stated he was here to see whether
they should be using information which was discussed in a non-public session
and obtained illegally and whether this is a violation of the Ethics Code.
MOTION:
Steve Kennedy made a motion that the Dunbarton Board of Selectmen petition the Ethics Committee for a meeting to discuss whether they (the complaintants) have circumvented the Selectmen’s authority and responsibilities as elected officials. Charles Graybill seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously with a roll call as follows:
Charles
Graybill – Yes
Steve
Kennedy – Yes
8: 00 p.m. - Jeff Trexler, Dunbarton School Board: Discuss Application for the Use of the
Community Center:
At this point in the meeting, John R. Swindlehurst
III, stepped back to the Board of Selectmen.
C. Graybill apologized for not attending the Monday
evening meeting of the Committee because the Selectmen had an Emergency Meeting
with the Recreation Committee regarding Basketball, etc.
Jeff Trexler, Dunbarton School Board, presented a
revised policy which incorporated the changes as requested by the Selectmen at
their meeting on Thursday, October 16, 2003.
(attached)
Jeff Trexler noted that everyone needs to be able to
use this facility. Reservations will be
taken up to four months in advance but will only be shown for two months. Months three and four priority will be given
on the level of the user.
J. R. Swindlehurst stated he felt that if the
Recreation Committee wants to hire someone to teach a class for residents, this
should be considered a Town Function.
Jeff Trexler agreed with this statement.
It is the same type of situation as the “Roller Skating Party”. It is for the good of the community.
Jeff Trexler and Dan DelPra, Town Common Building Committee:
1. Both Jeff Trexler and Dan DelPra appeared before the Board of Selectmen with an update on the draft floor plan for the Town Hall renovations, including the Library and Town Offices. They reported the architect had met with Town staff and gone over renovations to provide more room for the Town Offices than originally. The Selectmen and Town Administrator agreed the revised plan was allowing more space to the Town Offices than previously.
2.
The Board of Selectmen asked both Trexler and DelPra if they felt the
School and/or Building Committee would be interested in pursuing the
acquisition of the Vaal property (approximately 6 acres) in lieu of the renovations to the Town Hall,
etc. The Selectmen indicated that both
the School and the Board of Selectmen should be together on this issue before
deciding on the next course of action.
The land is located between the school property, the Town cemetery and
Town Offices and could be of benefit to the Town in the future. This is probably the only property that will
become available within the Town Common area.
It is unknown at this time, what would be done with the existing building,
etc.
J. Trexler stated he felt the site was amendable to
a possible future structure for the Town Library. Didn’t think the building itself would ever
work as a municipal structure and it would be expensive to get the existing
building up to code.
Dan DelPra indicated after all was said and done,
there is a strong possibility by purchasing the Vaal property, possibly
building a new library and doing lesser renovations to the Town Hall for the
Town Offices, it still might be cheaper than the proposed $1.8 million for the
Town Hall renovations with wings, etc.
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the School
Board is December 3, 2003. They will
discuss this issue at that meeting. The
Selectmen will attend the December 3, meeting of the School Board.
Jan VandeBogart, Road Agent:
Jan VandeBogart, Road Agent, appeared before the Board of Selectmen. He presented a plan of the proposed salt shed showing drainage. Jan will speak with Don Mayo regarding the drainage, etc. He is considering a molded plastic type shed instead of building a wooden building. These type of salt sheds are being used in other communities (Concord and Salem) with good results. Everyone is trying to get their salt under cover.
J. R. Swindlehurst suggested that the V plow should be painted up and lettered “DUNBARTON HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT”.
He also noted that the roadside mowing went well this year. Did twice as much as last year.
Patrick Bowne, Supervisor, Transfer
Station: Various Items:
1. Stated he has checked into a cover system for the truck. Has called four different manufacturers. Two have responded. The lowest estimate is Leavitt & Boucher Equipment with a price of $7,600. (price quote attached)
MOTION:
Charles Graybill made
a motion that the Board of Selectmen acquire the Pioneer Cover with Rack N
Pinion Cover System, etc. as quoted by Leavitt & Boucher Equipment in the
amount of $7,600. The motion was
seconded by Steve Kennedy. The motion
passed unanimously.
2. P. Bowne reported that the Henniker Supervisor for the Transfer Station had contacted him regarding Dunbarton possibly hauling Henniker’s crushed glass to Goffstown etc. for a price. After discussion, the Board of Selectmen agreed that this would not be a good thing for Dunbarton. P. Bowne was advised to inform Henniker they were not interested.
3. The Board of Selectmen noted that the scheduled meeting for next week with Ron Slocum regarding the “punch” list for the Transfer Station would have to be cancelled because of other priorities for the Board.
4. P. Bowne reported that he was in the process of trying out a Bobcat for the Transfer Station. The price to the general public is $27,000 with the price to the Town of Dunbarton $20,000.
5. The project at the Transfer Station is moving along. Calling for pavement the week before Thanksgiving. There is a huge pile of loam which could be screened and used by the Town.
Kenneth Swayze, Administrator, Planning and
Zoning:
MOTION:
At this point in the meeting, a motion was made
by Steve Kennedy for the Board of Selectmen to go into non-public session under
RSA 91-A:3 for the purposes of discussion legal matters. The motion was seconded by Charles
Graybill. The motion passed unanimously
with a roll call vote as follows:
Charles
Graybill – Yes
Steve
Kennedy – Yes
J.
R. Swindlehurst – Yes
No decisions or motions were made at the non-public session.
MOTION:
At 9:40 p.m., a motion
was made by Steve Kennedy for the Board of Selectmen to adjourn the non-public
session under RSA 91-A:3 for the purposes of discussion of legal matters. The motion was seconded by J. R.
Swindlehurst. The motion passed
unanimously with a roll call vote as follows:
Charles Graybill – Yes
Steve Kennedy – Yes
J. R. Swindlehurst – Yes
There being no further business, the Board of Selectmen adjourned their meeting at 9:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alison R. Vallieres, Recording Secretary
____________________________________
Charles Graybill, Chairman
____________________________________
John R. Swindlehurst, III (Note: Accepted
minutes with exception of section dealing with himself.)
___________________________________
Stephen Kennedy
Dunbarton Board of Selectmen