BOS Minutes 5/14/18

MINUTES OF THE MAY 14, 2018 BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING

MEMBER’S PRESENT:  Board Members Bob O’Sullivan, Joe Lovejoy, Mike Houghton and Town Administrator Paul Deschaine. 

At 7:31 pm Chairman Houghton opened the general meeting of the Board of Selectmen.

MINUTES
Mr. O’Sullivan made a motion to approve the minutes from May 7, 2018 as amended.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

TREASURER
Town Treasurer Deb Bronson stated that the General Fund balance is $3,832,109.46 which includes payments to the schools. 

NEW BUSINESS
Fred Emanuel and Bruce Scamman both of Emanuel Companies came before the Board to discuss the Millbrook Office Park and what performance bonds need to be in place before building permits can be issued.  Emanuel Co. has received approval from the Planning Board for their revised site plan which consolidates six buildings into four.  Mr. Deschaine has reviewed the Letter of Credit and Performance Agreement, making minor comments.  Mr. Scamman gave an overview of the Phase II construction and reviewed proposed landscaping which includes many trees.  The Bond amount covers the road extension, parking lots, landscaping, connecting drives and sidewalks.  As is typical, it will not cover buildings.  Both the bond amount and site plan have been approved by Public Works Director Colin Laverty.  Mr. Deschaine cautioned that they wouldn’t be able to proceed any further than the foundations until the remainder of the Letter of Credit is in. Permits would be revoked if they did proceed beyond that point until bonding was in place.  Mr. O’Sullivan made a motion for a cash bond of $91,245 such that Emanuel Companies can commence street improvements for the Millbrook Drive Extension.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously.  Mr. O’Sullivan made a second motion to accept the full bond amount for Phase I and Phase II contingent upon the Letter of Credit being acceptable in form and terms to the Town of Stratham and, once delivered, the original cash bond will be returned and authorize Mr. Deschaine to sign the documents.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

POLICE
Police Chief John Scippa presented his department report using the new format.  They discussed the color key in the report and what it indicates.  Mr. Houghton said that of importance to him are key indicators so they may track trends in the department.  Overall, the Selectmen felt it was well done.  Chief Scippa noted that a report done in this manner will also help him see what areas may need attention.  The Police Dept. software allows updates to be made easily.  Mr. O’Sullivan noted that changes have already been implemented as a result of Chief Scippa’s prior report. 

Chief Scippa requested permission to expend money from the Drug Asset Forfeiture account to complete the video system upgrade both inside and outside the building at the Police Station.  Mr. O’Sullivan made a motion to allow Chief Scippa to expend up to 100% of the Drug Asset Forfeiture fund to address the video system upgrade costs.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 

Chief Scippa reported that Stratham traffic will be impacted due to construction on the Greenland side of Willowbrook Drive.  It is estimated that the work will commence within a month take one week to complete.  There will be one way traffic in Greenland making traffic slower than usual in Stratham.  Residents may want to seek alternate routes.  They will get the word out by using the Town’s website and the Police Dept. Facebook page.

At Mr. Deschaine’s request, Chief Scippa reached out to Rye Police Chief Kevin Walsh regarding their postings of bicycle safety signs.  They do not have any Town Ordinances regarding sign postings.  They discussed the various bicycle signs.  Chief Scippa talked about traffic, safety and the importance of bicyclists using directional hand signals.  Mr. Houghton suggested he put Bike Safety Practices on their website page.

NEW BUSINESS
Rebecca Mitchell, Heritage Commission, would like to hold an open house at the Bartlett-Cushman house so the public could see the inside.  She is proposing a Saturday, before the end of June.  The selectman supported the idea.  She will look into choosing a date that doesn’t conflict with other events.

Ms. Mitchell reported that the Preservation Alliance asked if the town would want to include in the terms of the preservation easement that in future sales of the house, the town would have the right of first refusal.  The Board approved, with the stipulation that we be offered the opportunity to purchase the property prior to it going to a listing agent.  Mr. O’Sullivan asked for clarification as to what was covered under the preservation easement.  Ms. Mitchell said that the outside and portions of the inside are covered.  Mr. O’Sullivan asked when the sale of the house was expected to close.  Mr. Deschaine responded that the Buyer hasn’t submitted a counteroffer and he suspects her interest has waned.  He hopes that getting a survey done will help change her mind.  Mr. Mitchell noted that anyone who buys the home will be accepting an easement which depreciates the value.  

At 8:51 Mr. Houghton made a motion to enter into a non-public session to discuss a personnel matter which could affect the reputation of another.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously.  At 9:34 pm Mr. O’Sullivan made a motion to come out of the non-public session.  Mr. Houghton seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 

NEW BUSINESS continued
Mr. Houghton made a motion to make 7:00 pm the new start time for the Board of Selectmen meetings.  Any non-public issues to come before the Board will be addressed at 6:30 pm.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 

ADMINISTRATION
Mr. Deschaine reported that the Planning Board has recommended Todd Harrington to become an alternate on the Technical Review Committee.  Mr. O’Sullivan made a motion to approve Todd Harrington as an alternate to the Technical Review Committee.  Mr. Houghton seconded the motion which passed unanimously.  It has been recommended that Jeff Simeone on the Recreation Committee be elevated to a full member position.  Mr. Lovejoy made a motion to have Jeff Simeone become a regular member of the Recreation Commission.  Mr. O’Sullivan seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 

Mr. Houghton made a motion to authorize the semi-annual Tax Warrant for 2018.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 

The Board reviewed some of the Rules of Procedure, particularly Rule 24, which says that two selectmen could be a special committee.  This was most likely a holdover from when there were five board members.  Some standing committees by statute don’t have a Selectman representative member.  The wording should be changed to reflect that only selectman is sufficient for special committees. 

There are four properties eligible for deeding.  Two have payment plans and will, hopefully, avoid that outcome.  At Mr. O’Sullivan’s request, Mr. Deschaine explained that after the property has gone to lien, after two years and a day, the Town is entitled to execute its lien, foreclose and take the property by tax deed.  The Selectmen are allowed to accept or reject the deed.  Mr. Deschaine noted that warning letters were sent to the property owners. 

Continuing his Administration report, Mr. Deschaine reported that he has been in discussion with Applied Economic Research who is updating the cost of community services study.  They will be submitting a proposal soon.

They discussed the Organizational chart and the corrections that need to be made.  The selectmen feel the importance of the chart is to clarify the reporting relationships.  Once that is established, the roles will be strengthened and people will be empowered.  To enable people to perform at that level, the Board needs to provide clear expectations and hold people accountable.  The dashboard, the new reporting format, will list functional responsibilities.  From there, position descriptions will be created.  Position descriptions were one of the requests at the last All Employee Meeting.  The Board informed Mr. Deschaine that they want a dashboard report from him and the Town Treasurer.  Mr. Houghton explained that in order to prepare for his successor, they need to first examine what he is engaged in; to document his responsibilities. Further, he noted that they need to understand what they need to do to enable the dept. heads to expand their readiness to be able to take on those responsibilities. 

Mr. Houghton reviewed the format from last year’s meeting.  He reported on what they’ve done and what still needs to be completed.  He’d like to open the next one with what they’ve accomplished and asked if either selectman preferred a different format.  They discussed how best to communicate their vision.  They favored open communication about what it is they are trying to accomplish and why changes are being made.  It was noted that although department heads are aware of changes being made, it may not have been communicated to all employees.  Mr. Houghton asked the selectmen to review the spreadsheet and get back to him with comments.

Mr. Deschaine said he foresees some obstacles with meeting twice a month and noted a couple of last minute requests.  Mr. Houghton said the Board will set expectations that must be followed.  They discussed how to manage exceptions.  Mr. Houghton said that priorities for this year are still on the agenda for next week.  It was decided to devote next week’s meeting to planning a presentation for the All Employee Meeting and strategic planning. 

At 10:42 pm Mr. O’Sullivan made a motion to adjourn.  Mr. Lovejoy seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

Respectfully submitted,

Karen Richard
Recording Secretary