Select Board Meeting ~ August 8, 2023

2023-08-08 · Select Board · 1:56:19 · watch on YouTube →

The Select Board met on August 8, 2023 with four members, Joe Roy absent. Mike Clark presented Durham Youth Baseball's plans for the town field, including moving the outfield fence from 165 feet to 200 feet, resurfacing the infield, enclosing the field and extending the equipment shed, all funded by donations and the league; the board approved the plans subject to the road commissioner reviewing the tree cut line and distance markers. Lois Kilby-Chesley then set out the roles of the Historic District Commission, the Union Church committee and the Historical Society, and asked how the $10,000 voted at town meeting for the church sill could be used when the estimate is around $50,000. The board voted to hire a structural engineer with historic building experience out of the general fund, and directed the fire chief and code enforcement officer to check the building's safety before anyone uses it again. It also accepted Ron Williams's resignation from the planning board, with Brian Lanoie moving from alternate to full member, and heard that the state tax stabilization programme has been repealed and that the Swamp Road bridge project starts the following Monday.

What was discussed

1. 6:14
   Public comment on Union Church funding

   Lois Kilby-Chesley of Runaround Pond Road (?) said the Union Church committee cannot meet the three goals the board set without money, because bringing the building up to code on paper requires a structural engineer under the building. She said an estimate obtained through a contact came to $2,200, and asked for a signal that money would be available if the research is due in December.

2. 6:14
   Durham Youth Baseball: season and work already done

   Mike Clark, president of Durham Youth Baseball, reported about 110 children played this season from t-ball to U10, with good feedback. Before the season the league resurfaced and replaced the first base bleachers, reinforced the third base dugout which had rot and holes in the floor, added protective fencing and graded the infield.

3. 11:23
   Proposed field improvements

   With at least one U12 team expected next year, the league wants to move the outfield fence from about 165 feet to the standard 200 feet, which would require cutting a clump of pines in right centre and a few birches, done by a licensed arborist with stumps ground. They also want to regrade and seed bare spots, fill potholes that are an ankle risk, and resurface the infield with proper ball field mix from a supplier in Monmouth. A local contractor, Dan Bowie, has offered donated time or materials.

4. 16:28
   Enclosing the field and the shed extension

   A parent whose employer may donate fencing would let the league enclose the field with vehicle gates and a zigzag walk-in gate, keeping dirt bikes off the infield; Mike Clark said there were dirt bike tracks in the infield the previous day. Walk-in access would stay open to the public. Heather Roy asked that fencing along the road behind the backstop be considered because children chase balls into the road.

5. 21:42
   Base paths, tree line and approval

   Members discussed that the base plugs had been set at the wrong distances and were corrected this year, which shortened the outfield. Mike Clark said 190 feet reaches roughly the tree line and 200 feet would need the clump removed. The board asked the league to flag the trees and mark the 190 and 200 foot points for the road commissioner to review, and stressed that tree cutting be kept to the minimum.

6. 27:03
   Shed addition and code review

   The shed belongs to the town. Members advised checking with the code enforcement officer, because a shed passing a certain square footage triggers a permit, and to confirm the six foot overhang does not encroach on the town's right of way. Members agreed it does not need to go to the planning board.

7. 32:08
   The Historic District Commission's role

   Lois Kilby-Chesley, chair of the Historic District Commission, described its purpose as preventing inappropriate alterations and demolition within the district, which runs roughly from the bandstand a little down Route 9, over the hill towards the Get and Go, down Ferry Road and along the river. She said the commission reviews drawings, issues a certificate of appropriateness and works closely with the code officer. She also identified the three bodies with an interest in the Union Church: the commission, the Union Church committee, and the Historical Society, which has had oversight and use of the building since 1988.

8. 32:08
   The $10,000 voted for the church sill

   Lois Kilby-Chesley said the town meeting motion gave $10,000 to the commission for repair of the sill, and that the money must be spent before December. Members explained that an RFP normally follows an appropriation, that the board would issue it, and that spending the additional $21,000 in the restoration account on this work would likely need a town meeting or special town meeting vote. Jerry Douglass said the restoration account is not a reserve account and he could not speak to how it had been handled before he arrived.

9. 43:02
   How restoration money has been spent before

   Members asked how past church work had been authorised without a town meeting vote. The account held about $66,000 four years ago, of which roughly $20,000 went on the roof, $18,000 on repairs to the back of the church, and an unknown amount on tarring the walkway from the road to the stairs, which Lois Kilby-Chesley noted does not meet Department of the Interior standards. Nobody present could account for the practice.

10. 48:10
    Estimates for the sill work

    One written estimate, from a firm out of Gray, came to about $50,000 to raise the building and replace the sills all the way round, including a rear corner post that is rotted from the foundation to the roof and should have been done when the roof was. A second, verbal, estimate was in the same range. One estimator also suggested a possible additional cost of around $50,000 for a poured foundation faced with thin cut granite, which prompted the board's concern that there is no point replacing sills if the foundation also needs work.

11. 59:06
    Whether the building is safe to use

    Josh Klein-Golden said the town appears to be throwing money at the building without a plan, questioned whether the town should continue to own it, and said that after what he had heard he was not sure he would bring his seven year old daughter to the open house planned for September. Lois Kilby-Chesley said it had never been her intent to get the building closed and that she had not said it was unsafe. Members agreed the structural engineer's assessment was needed and that the fire chief and code officer should look at it in the meantime.

12. 1:10:28
    Motion to hire a structural engineer

    The motion was to authorise money from the general fund to hire a structural engineer with knowledge of historic buildings, to determine whether the building is safe and what repairs are needed, framed around life safety and occupancy rather than full code compliance. The figure was raised during discussion in case more than one specialist is needed. The mover explained he wanted it taken from the general fund so the $10,000 stays available to be moved into the restoration account or used as a deposit on repairs.

13. 1:20:56
    Who writes the RFP

    Members said the board generally drafts requests for proposals and can delegate that, but because the sill work will cost more than the $10,000 delegated at town meeting it comes back to the board. The commission's role is to identify what repairs are needed and bring them to the board, which then decides how the work is executed and funded. Members pointed to section 12.6 of the land use ordinance, which tasks the commission with working with public and private parties to help find funding.

14. 1:20:56
    Ordinance limits on demolition

    Lois Kilby-Chesley read out three prohibitions from Article 5: no archaeological site identified by the Maine Historic Preservation Commission may be disturbed; no structure on the National Register may be torn down or its exterior facade altered except to restore it to Secretary of the Interior standards; and no church or school building over 100 years old may be torn down or altered except to restore it to its original design. She raised it because demolition had come up at a Union Church committee meeting.

15. 1:26:48
    Inspection before further use of the church

    The board agreed the fire chief and code enforcement officer should inspect the building and confirm it is safe before anyone uses it, including the Union Church committee's planned meeting there the following Thursday. If they are not able to make that judgement, they may use part of the authorised money to bring in someone who can. Members noted the alarm should be flagged before they go in.

16. 1:36:53
    Planning board resignation and appointment

    Ron Williams has resigned from the planning board and the board thanked him for his service. Brian Lanoie moves from alternate to full voting member automatically, and the alternate vacancy has already been advertised on the website. Vacancies also exist on the budget committee, for Heather Roy's seat, and on the board of appeals.

17. 1:41:57
    Tax stabilization programme repealed

    Jerry Douglass reported that the state tax stabilization programme has been repealed and there will be no tax stabilization in 2024. Members asked whether participants would be able to see what their 2023 bill would have been without the freeze. Close to 200 Durham properties took part.

18. 1:41:57
    Swamp Road bridge project and detour

    The Swamp Road bridge project starts the following Monday, much earlier than expected, because of restricted permitting windows and a wish to finish before school starts. Traffic will be detoured down Route 9 and around to Route 125. The traffic plan was prepared by the project engineers.

19. 1:47:37
    Consent agenda and next meeting

    The consent agenda was accepted with a correction to the date in item 11 of the minutes. A member asked to add forming a solid waste committee to the next agenda, and another asked to add scheduling an extra meeting given the volume of work due before December. Jerry Douglass said he has arranged for someone to attend the next meeting to explain the land use codification process, and that Alan will report on signs.

What was decided

• 27:03
  Approve the Durham Youth Baseball plans, pending the road commissioner's walk through and approval of the tree cut line and the 190 and 200 foot markers. Moved by Richard George, seconded by Joe Tomm; the minutes record it carried 4-0.passed
• 1:10:28
  Authorise money from the general fund to hire a structural engineer with knowledge of historic buildings to assess the Union Church for life safety, occupancy and needed repairs. Moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Richard George. The minutes record the motion as up to $4,000; in the recording the mover amended it to up to $9,999 and the chair states the motion carried 4-0.passed
• 1:26:48
  Board agreed to direct the fire chief and the code enforcement officer to inspect the Union Church and confirm it is safe before anyone else uses the building, with authority to bring in someone qualified if they cannot make that judgement.passed
• 1:36:53
  Accept Ron Williams's resignation from the planning board. Moved by Joe Tomm, seconded by Heather Roy; the minutes record it carried 4-0. Brian Lanoie moves from alternate to full voting member without a separate vote.passed
• 1:47:37
  Accept the consent agenda with the correction to the meeting minutes for item 11, the date of the upcoming select board meeting. Moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Richard George; the minutes record it carried 4-0.passed
• 1:47:37
  Board agreed to add discussion of forming a solid waste committee, and of adding an extra meeting to the schedule, to the next agenda.passed
• 1:53:19
  Adjourn. Moved by Richard George, seconded by Josh Klein-Golden; the minutes record it carried 4-0.passed

An outcome reads "unclear" where the recording does not state it plainly. The recogniser drops short words, and "the motion does not carry" is one missing word from its opposite.

Motions the minutes record

The town's own written account of what was decided, taken from sb_meeting_minutes_08_08_23.txt. It owes nothing to the recording or to a model: the clerk typed it, with the vote. Where the summary above claims a decision this list does not carry, the summary is the part to doubt.

• approve the Durham Youth Baseball plans, pending the Road Commissioner’s walk through and approvalcarried 4-0

  Moved by Richard George, seconded by Joe Tomm

• the Board authorize up to $4000 from the General Fund to hire a Structural Engineer with knowledge of historical buildings to assess what repairs are needed for the Union Church to assess life safety and to keep the buil…

  Moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Richard George; no outcome recorded

• accept Ron Williams resignation from the Planning Boardcarried 4-0

  Moved by Joe Tomm, seconded by Heather Roy

• accept the consent agenda with the correction on the meeting minutes for Item #11 for the Upcoming SB Meeting, it should read 8-08-23, not 8-11-23carried 4-0

  Moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Richard George

• adjourncarried 4-0

  Moved by Richard George, seconded by Josh Klein-Golden

Where the minutes and the recording disagree

Two independent records exist for this meeting: the town's written minutes and the video. For the items below they do not agree, or neither one settles the question. Both accounts are given as they stand. This site has no standing to decide which is right (the minutes are the legal record, the recording is what happened in the room), so the conflict is stated rather than resolved, and nothing here says the town got anything wrong.

• 1:10:28The written minutes record the structural engineer as authorised up to $4,000. On the recording the mover amends the figure to up to $9,999 before the 4-0 vote.

Worth knowing

• 48:10
  The written estimate to raise the Union Church and replace the sills all the way round, including a rotted rear corner post, is about $50,000, against the $10,000 voted at town meeting and $21,000 sitting in the restoration account. One estimator suggested a further sum of similar size for a new foundation. The $10,000 lapses at the end of December if unspent.
• 59:06
  A member said the town is throwing money at the Union Church without a plan, questioned whether the town should keep owning it, and said he was not sure he would bring his young daughter to the open house planned for September. The board directed the fire chief and code enforcement officer to check the building is safe before anyone uses it, including the Union Church committee's own meeting the following week.
• 1:41:57
  The state tax stabilization programme has been repealed, so there will be no stabilization in 2024. Close to 200 Durham properties had taken part.
• 1:41:57
  The Swamp Road bridge project starts the following Monday, earlier than expected, with traffic detoured down Route 9 and round to Route 125. The contractor is working to finish before school starts.

Motion language found in the transcript

Located by pattern matching, with no model involved: "I move that", "I'll second", "all those in favour". This is an independent check on the summary above: 3 passages of motion language, against 7 decisions summarised.

Elsewhere

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