TOWN OF SUTTON

Pillsbury Memorial Town Hall

93 Main Street Sutton Mills, NH 03221

Select Board Agenda

August 28, 2023 @ 5:00 p.m.

 

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE:

Chair Headley opened the meeting at 5:00pm with the Pledge of Allegiance. Present at the meeting were: Dane Headley, Chair; Walter Baker, Selectman, Michael McManus, Selectman and David Grinsell, Town Administrator.

 

Appointments:

Jennifer Call, Treasurer, provided the Board with a list of Town Investments. The Board inquired about the status of reconciling the Town cash accounts. Treasurer Call indicated that the work is completed through May, but she has not had the time to review the report or had any training in using the Excel format but was in the process of figuring it out on her own. Selectman Baker suggested that Treasurer Call had vacation time available and noted that she previously indicated she would be available to meet with the Bookkeeper and Town Admin to go over the reconciliation. The Treasurer did state that she had other commitments, so she is not available for the next two weeks. The Board was provided with an overview of the cash and investments by TA Grinsell and Treasurer Call. It was noted that the Treasurer is two months behind in preparing the cash reconciliations and was asked when she thought she could get caught up. She mentioned working at home on the weekend but would not be able to come into Town Hall. Selectman Baker offered to have the Treasurer meet with him, TA Grinsell and Executive Bookkeeper Himes on Wednesday, September 13, at 1:00pm so they can help the Treasurer get caught up with her work. The Treasurer was asked if she could do any work on the June reconciliation before the meeting and responded that she would have to see as she has a lot going on with her schedule.

 

Selectman McManus expressed concern about cashflow through the remainder of the year and a conversation followed about the timing of payments, the November real estate tax warrant and if funds will be available to help reduce the tax burden. TA Grinsell mentioned that instead of tying funds up in CDs, the money market account provided a very competitive interest rate and the flexibility to move funds at any time. Treasurer Call agreed. The Board continued with a discussion about the funds held in capital reserves at NH PDIP and moving the funds over to Bar Harbor Bank. The advantage of Bar Harbor Bank being that the funds are guaranteed, the interest rate is competitive and easy to transfer between investments and the operating account.

 

The Treasurer reviewed the list of responsibilities the Board had provided to her. Chair Headly inquired if Treasurer Call had the background and time to do the tasks required. The Treasurer indicated that the duties of the position have changed since she was hired and more time is required to do the work necessary, particularly the bank reconciliations. It was pointed out that because the Treasurer was not completing the bank reconciliations the Bookkeeper and TA were obligated to take on this work. Chair Headly interjected that it was necessary to get caught up and the way to do that was by having Selectman Baker, the Treasurer, Bookkeeper and TA meet and determine the best way to allocate the Treasurer’s work. The Treasure was encouraged by Selectman McManus to try and start working on the June reconciliation on the weekend as she is unavailable

for the next two weeks. The Treasurer indicated that she cannot be expected to prepare bank reconciliations for June and July in a few weeks. Chair Headly reiterated that the Treasurer, Bookkeeper and TA need to meet with Selectman Baker and determine how to allocate the Treasure’s responsibilities and get caught up. Selectman McManus mentioned to the Treasurer to let the Board know if the job is too much for her because some of her work can be allocated to others.

 

Peacock Hill, LLC Update

Glenn Pogust provided the Board with an update on Peacock Hill, LLC. The contractor paved roads despite the engineer advising him that paving in the rain is not in compliance with state standards. The road appeared to look satisfactory, however the integrity of the work cannot be verified. The contractor also failed to have an inspector on site to verify the asphalt lifts were being applied and compacted to state specifications. The expected remedy is to retain the road bond for an additional period of time to repair road degradation should that occur. It was noted that the contractor is responsible for the road.

As a pre-requisite to obtaining building permits, Peacock was supposed to submit acceptable drainage plans for each of the lots. Our engineer has advised us that the plans do not meet accepted standards and provided an explanation. The engineer is now reviewing the third submission which is still not complying with state standards. We have instructed the engineer to stick to the standards to ensure the quality of the work. Town counsel suggested providing the contractor with a notice of violation and getting a cease and desist and add it to the court action. The engineering report will be prepared this week and a course of action will be determined after the report is reviewed.

CONSENT AGENDA:

MINUTES:

Chair Headly made a motion to approve the August 14 minutes and Selectman Baker seconded the motion which passed unanimously. Another motion was made by Chair Headley to approve the August 22 and August 24 minutes and Selectman McManus seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

 

MANIFESTS:

The Board reviewed and approved the following manifests:

Payroll: $ 15,252.89

Vendor: $ 458,201.12

 

Selectman Baker mentioned that he will be contacting the Kearsarge Valley High School to determine if the high school can arrange their March schedule to accommodate the Town so that the annual town meeting can be held in the auditorium instead of the gymnasium.

 

BUILDING PERMITS:

The Board approved the following building permit:

JoAnn Wentworth and Stephen Foote, 04-267-288, Roby Road for a 14 X 12 Storage Area off existing garage.

 

NEW BUSINESS:

The Board approved a request to change the name of a shared driveway from Johnson Hill Road to Johnson Farm Drive and have the Town assign designated numbers for the 3 houses.

The Board scheduled to meet next week after the Labor Day holiday on Tuesday, September 5, 2023, at 5:00pm.

The Board approved the following elected officials for the Zoning Board of Adjustment/Building Code Board of Appeals and signed their Oaths of Office: Donna Catanzaro Member for a two-year term and Mark Beauchemin Alternate Member for a three-year term.

 

OLD BUSINESS:

Chair Headly made a motion to hire Hilary Grimes, IT Technician, to maintain the Town website and support all departments in posting information, minutes, meetings and keeping the Town calendar. The technician is slated to work 2 to 4 hours a week. The motion was seconded by Selectman Baker and the motion passed unanimously.

The Board engaged in a discussion about using the available ARPA Funds this year for various Town initiatives that were mentioned at prior Board meetings. Renovating the Town Hall two front offices and improving security were mentioned. Selectman Baker mentioned improving Harvey Road up to the Muster Field Farm and TA Grinsell was asked to schedule Adam Hurst, Road Agent, to meet with the Board to discuss the cost to repair the road.

TA Grinsell informed the Board that Eversource provided notice that the tree in front of Town Hall is scheduled for removal this week.

Chippers completed trimming and de-weighting the tree by the Grist Mill Parking lot.

The Board engaged in a brief discussion about presenting the Memorandum of Understanding to the Library Board and having Attorney Butterfield present to address questions.

The Board determined to schedule reviewing the MRI Wage Benefit Analysis on 09/18/23.

Chair Headley mentioned that the Highway Department approached the Board about allowing them to work four – ten-hour days during the summer. The Board continued discussing the duration of the 4-day work week and the implications of potentially incurring excessive overtime.

The Board instructed TA Grinsell to schedule the excavation of test pits in the Grist Mill Parking lot on 9/12 at 10:30am and coordinate the dig with Adam Hurst – Sutton Road Agent, Mike Vignale – KV Partners LLC, Cindy Balcius – Stoney Ridge Environmental and Peter Stanley – Sutton Land Use Coordinator.

The Board was informed that the Town received no response regarding the job advertisement for a Building & Grounds Maintenance professional.

The Board reviewed a resume for a potential Deputy Town Clerk that led to a discussion about the requirements needed to support the Town Clerk, administration, and accounting functions.

 

REVIEW OF CORRESPONDENCE:

Three emails from Sean Frost were presented to the Board for review. TA Grinsell commented that he will follow up with town counsel about the status of the lawsuit with Mr. Frost.

 

PUBLIC INPUT:

 

SELECTMEN’S COMMENTS:

Chair Headley mentioned that the Board meeting minutes from 7/31/23 were not posted to the website and requested TA Grinsell to correct the matter.

Chair Headley also requested TA Grinsell to contact the owner/bank of the vacant house on Gile Pond Road stating that the house is a fire hazard and an eye sore and inquire about the status of the property.

The Board discussed the completion of the work performed on the Old Store Museum and payments made to the vendor.

 

 

ADJOURNMENT:

 

The meeting was adjourned at 6:54pm.

 

 

 

Respectfully submitted,

David Grinsell, Town Administrator