June 6, 2024 | Town Admin Town of Sutton Pillsbury Memorial Hall 93 Main Street Sutton Mills, NH 03221 Select Board Minutes May 28th, 2024, 5:00pm Pledge of Allegiance: Select Board Chair Michael McManus opened the meeting at 5:00pm with the Pledge of Allegiance. Present at the meeting were: Michael McManus, Select Board Chair; Glenn Pogust, Selectman; and Julia Jones, Town Administrator. Also present at the meeting were: Lorri Himes, Executive Assistant & Bookkeeper, Beth-Holly LaDuke, Town Clerk, Peter Stanley, Land Use Coordinator; Richard Lovell, Emergency Management Director, Lee Booker, Ron Bauer, Jane Williamson, and Karen Booker. Appointments: At 5:00 the Board met with Karen Booker and Jane Williamson to discuss information gathered by the Ad Hoc Bulletin Board Committee. Booker and Williamson proposed several options for the design and location of a new bulletin board at Pillsbury Memorial Hall. The Board discussed sources of funding for the project, and the possibility of bringing forward a warrant article to raise and appropriate funds for the project depending on scope. The Board, Booker, and Williamson discussed the proposed locations with respect to accessibility, and the location of the Town’s informal handicap parking spaces, which have not been formally designated. The Board directed the Town Administrator to research how to add formally designated handicap spaces and permanent signage. The Board asked Booker and Williamson to gather additional information and emphasized the need to identify a source of funding for the project before selecting a design or location for the bulletin board. At 5:24pm the Board met with Land Use Coordinator, Peter Stanley, and Executive Assistant & Bookkeeper, Lorri Himes, to discuss code enforcement and succession planning for the Land Use Coordinator. Stanley and the Board discussed the pros and cons of hiring a zoning and building enforcement officer. Stanley discussed the scope and clarity of the Town’s building ordinance and recommended the Planning Board update the ordinance to ensure it fits the needs of the Town. While assuring the Board that he does not plan to retire in the near term, Stanley emphasized the importance of succession planning for the Land Use Coordinator position. When he does retire, Stanley recommended the Board hire a part-time employee (4-8 hours per week) to perform the clerical duties of the Land Use Coordinator and engage the Regional Planning Commission (RPC) on an hourly basis (4-8 hours per week) to perform some of the high-level duties of the Land Use Coordinator. Stanley clarified that the RPC will not perform enforcement. Selectman Pogust raised the possibility of combining the land use coordinator work with zoning and building enforcement responsibilities, including building and driveway permitting. Selectman Pogust also raised the possibility of sharing land use coordination and/or zoning with another town. Selectman McManus asked the Land Use Coordinator to prepare a job description for the current Land Use Coordinator position. At 5:45pm the Board met with the Town Clerk to discuss the storage, management, and digitization of Town documents. The Town Clerk notified the Board that the Planning Board, Zoning Board, and Conservation Commission need to review documents stored in the basement of Pillsbury Memorial Hall to identify documents that need to be kept and/or digitized. The Town Clerk identified the need for storage shelves to hold documents that the Town is required to retain in physical form. Chair McManus shared that the Town may be able to secure a donation of used storage shelves. The Board agreed to follow up on this donation. The Town Clerk also shared that there are extra wooden chairs and doors in the basement, paint, and an electric stove that need to be removed from the basement. Selectman Pogust recommended contacting CoverHome Repair to see if they would be interested receiving a donation of any of the items and would be willing to pick them up. The Town Clerk noted that the Historical Society expressed interest in the chairs. Chair McManus suggested the Board hold a public hearing to offer extra chairs in the basement to the public. At 6:00pm Richard Lovell, Emergency Management Director, briefed the Board on grant funding opportunities using an approved hazard mitigation plan. Director Lovell shared that the Town will be eligible for new grant funding opportunities once its hazard mitigation plan is updated. The Board and Director Lovell discussed next steps on engaging the Central New Hampshire Regional Planning Commission to begin working on the plan. The Board and Director Lovell also discussed the transition to a new emergency notification system provided by the state. Minutes: At 6:15 pm Selectman Pogust made a motion to accept the public minutes from May 20th subject to certain revisions made by Selectman Pogust. Chair McManus seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. The Board agreed to postpone review of the public and nonpublic minutes from May 13th at the request of the Town Administrator. Manifests: The Board reviewed and approved the following manifests: Payroll: $ 18,006.89 Vendor: $ 500,052.92 Intents: Building Permits: The Board reviewed and approved a $49,500 building permit for a garage submitted by Bauer Family Trust for parcel 09-297-248 located at 310 Baker Rd. North Sutton, NH 03260. New Business: The Board reviewed and approved the release of $8,000.21 from a security escrow for Innovative Timber Harvesting LLC based on the Road Agent’s satisfactory inspection of High Mowing Road and Eaton Grange Road. The Board agreed to table review of a Permanent Application for Property Tax Solar Energy Systems Exemption submitted by Michael & Karin Heffernan for parcel 06-405-273 located at 8 Grist Mill Street, Sutton Mills, NH 03221 until May 2025, once the solar system has been installed and the Assessor has assigned a value. The Board considered a $959.97 request from the Town Administrator to replace three air conditioning units for offices at Pillsbury Memorial Hall, noting that three units were last replaced in 2003. Chair McManus suggested the Board revisit this request once a source of funds has been identified. The Board was supplied year-to-date operating budget expenditures and updated balances of the Town’s expendable capital reserves. The Town Administrator recommended the Municipal Buildings Capital Reserve Fund as a source of funds for this request. The Town Administrator also suggested funds remaining in the budget for office furnishings and workstations in the Town Clerk/Tax Collector’s office as a source of funding for at least one AC unit. The Board authorized the Town Administrator to purchase one AC unit for the Town Clerk/Tax Collector’s office and agreed to revisit discussion of the remaining AC units at the next meeting of the Board. The Select Board reviewed the Birch Hill Rd. Turnaround Easement prepared by Town Counsel. The Board directed the Town Administrator to work with the Road Agent to bring the easement to the landowner in question. The Board agreed to postpone discussion of the Boston Post Cane until the next meeting of the Board. Old Business: Selectman Pogust acknowledged receipt of information requested for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) pre-application. The Town Administrator identified certain financial information that would require additional research to provide. The Board agreed to postpone discussion of the following until the next meeting of the Board: Investment Policy – NHMA response on surety bond for Treasurer – RSA 41:16 Merrimack Community Power – deadline Nonpublic session pursuant to RSA 91-A:3 II (c) Matters which, if discussed in public, would likely affect adversely the reputation of any person, other than a member of the public body itself, unless such person requests an open meeting. Gristmill parking lot repairs Review of correspondence: Public Input: Select Board Comments: Adjournment: There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 6:25pm. Respectfully submitted, Julia Jones Town Administrator
