Present: Selectmen: Richard Bennett Chairman, Gino Funicella, & Gary Allen, Selectmen
Visitors: Arthur Fernald; Road Agent, Sharon Gothier; Androscoggin Valley Regional Refuge Disposal, Fran Lyons, Jay Henry
1. The minutes of November 14, 2005 were reviewed and approved as written.
2. The Summary of Payments was reviewed and checks were signed in the amount of $81,850.90
3. The Financial Resume indicated an amount of ($ to be determined) in the general fund after tonight’s vouchers.
4. Deposits in the amount of $67.25 were transferred to the treasurer tonight
5. Arthur Fernald; Road Agent attended the meeting to discuss the following: The paving that was scheduled for this fall was not completed due to weather conditions. The road agent requested that the balance of the money raised for paving be encumbered next year. Arthur reported that a beaver at the fire pond on Valley Cross Road has been creating some havoc on the trees. Arthur suggested that the selectmen go and look at the situation. It was noted that the location of where the beaver damn is, is private property, and there is a lot of wildlife in that area. The selectmen would like to have the Fish & Game Department look at the property. Arthur said that the annual tree lighting is scheduled for Sunday November 27, 2005, but the lights for the tree have not yet arrived from the company.
Arthur has been in contact with the company to discuss the situation and everything possible will be done to have the lights arrive in time for the scheduled event. Selectmen Gino Funicella asked Arthur about the process of paving the roads. Gino stated that he had several complaints of oil coming off the roads. Arthur stated that after the paving is complete, the roads are oiled and sanded. This year there were heavy rains which washed the sand off the tar, causing the oil to be exposed. Arthur stated that this was an unusual circumstance that has never happened before.
6. Sharon Gothier; from the Androscoggin Valley Regional Refuge Disposal Center attended the meeting to discuss accepting Jackson’s disposal in the future. The selectmen discussed what could be done to secure that Jackson would be on the list for bringing their disposal to Berlin. Currently the Town of Jackson holds an agreement with Bethlehem for solid waste disposal, which ends December 2006. Ms. Gothier said that based on the number of tons that Jackson disposes of she did not feel there would be any problem accepting Jackson into their facility. Ms. Gothier explained that their facility is made up of three separate entities, the transfer station, the recycling center and the landfill. In 2000 they opened a transfer station for C&D and bulky waste. The MERF Recycling Center is an
RSA 53B Municipal Cooperation serving many towns in the North Country. This center does all the basic recyclables (magazines, newspapers, cardboard, plastic’s #1 & 2, glass, paper, oil & batteries). Ms. Gothier explained that they would like to see an active recycling program in place, the better the recycling program the lower the tonnage. Gino questioned the life expectancy of the landfill, it was noted that it has 25 year expectancy and the expansion increases that time. The landfill operation is run to be self supporting as a commercial landfill, which helps cover the costs on the municipal side. Currently none of the towns are involved in the pay per bag program. The fees for hauling are based on a price per ton and determined by the zone. Jackson is within zone 1 which is currently at $67.00 per ton. Bartlett is located in Zone 2, which has a rate of $55.00 per ton. The further away you are, the lower the cost, this is
due to the increased transportation fees. There was some discussion regarding the Town of Bartlett and their figures on tonnage, as well as the zone.
7. Fran Lyons attended the meeting to discuss the building permit for the Mt. Washington Condo Association, for a new pump house. The original application was denied because it did not meet the setback requirements of the zoning ordinance. The applicant applied for a variance from the Board of Adjustment and was granted; the selectmen approved the building permit for the new pump house.
8. Acknowledgment was made of a letter received from Ann Kebler Jackson Grammar School. The Grammar School wanted to confirm that the school would not be denied use of the town hall for plays, gym and other uses. The selectmen said that until the school no longer needs the town hall for their various functions, that no commitments for the Town Hall would be made.
9. Diane McClave; Welfare Officer, submitted some new guidelines for public assistance. These guidelines keep the selectmen informed on regulations, how to formulate figures, and what you can and cannot do. The selectman made a motion to accept guidelines for updating the regulations on public assistance.
10. There was discussion on insurance coverage for the artwork in the town office building. The selectmen will look into having profession appraisal done to include the artwork on the insurance schedule.
11. Dick Bennett stated that he spoke with Charles Hanley from Adelphia Cable regarding the Franchise fees. Mr. Hanley explained that if the town was in favor of continuing to receiving the franchise fees back as revenue to the town, that Adelphia may put a block on the Valley Vision Program for Jackson. The town has always received the Franchise Fees from Adelphia which come back to the town as revenue to help off set taxes. Last year the revenue from franchise fees was $12,000. The selectmen do not want the town’s people to be offended from not having access to the Valley Vision Channel. The selectmen were not in favor of having the meetings televised.
12. The selectmen decided to continue their support for the coalition communities. Next year a certain sum will be raised for this cause. The coalition communities are active in the legal fight against the donor towns. Jackson is still considered a donor town.
13. Dick reported that he spoke with Jason Carr the building inspector regarding a commercial property that is for sale in Jackson. It was decided that the selectmen would ask the assessors to do an inspection of that property to let us know exactly what is physically there.
14. The meeting started at 5:30 p.m. and ended at 7:15 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Tracey L. Mosston
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