Select Board Meeting ~ May 27, 2025

2025-05-27 · Select Board · 1:48:01 · watch on YouTube →

The Select Board met on May 27, 2025 and took up a complaint from the former fire chief about the loss of fire department control over booking the station's meeting room, agreeing that the Eureka Center should be the first choice for other boards and that bookings would be checked against the department's own calendar. Durham Youth Baseball (?) asked for $10,000 and was granted the customary $2,500 from the recreation reserve, with the board asking for written proposals before it would consider more for a batting cage or a play area. The Conservation Commission reported that the town has been awarded an $80,000 Community Resilience Partnership grant for an open space plan and conservation strategy. George set out the timetable for the land use ordinance codification, running to a vote at the June 2026 town meeting, and the board endorsed staff handling the technical corrections. The board approved $2,578.44 for internet service at the Eureka Center and authorised a tax anticipation note of up to about $2.6 million, acknowledging that the interest cost had not been budgeted when the town changed its fiscal year.

No written minutes could be matched to this meeting. The transcript records that the speaker changed but never who was speaking, so any name attached to a statement below is inferred from context and is marked (?).

What was discussed

1. 1:19
   Call to order and minutes

   The meeting was called to order at 6:30 with a quorum and no amendments to the agenda. Deb (?) moved approval of the May 13 minutes and Josh (?) seconded; one member recused because they had not attended that meeting.

2. 1:19
   Use of the fire station meeting room

   Chief St. Michelle (?), who coordinates the banquet committee, said he scheduled the room four times and only one of those meetings took place there, and only learned by texting the chief that the fire department no longer controls the booking. He said the station was built with three functional areas including the meeting room, that hours of volunteer labour went into it, and asked that regular select board and planning board meetings be fixed on a calendar with other bookings returning to the fire station.

3. 7:02
   Board's response on the meeting room

   The chair said nobody on the board wants the fire station to be its meeting space, that the move was temporary because the town office could hold only one or two members of the public, and that getting out of the space takes time and money and is tied to the downtown visioning plan. Chief St. Michelle (?) said the last banquet committee meeting was held at his house because the bays were too cold.

4. 12:44
   Agreement on scheduling

   The board agreed that the Eureka Center should be the first choice for all boards and committees other than the select board and planning board, and that anyone booking the fire station room should check with the chief. The fire department's printed monthly calendar, which already carries the select board meeting, will be cross-checked so the planning board and other bookings appear on it.

5. 12:44
   Durham Youth Baseball request

   Michael Clark, president, and Kyle Bulock (?), vice president, asked for $10,000, against the $2,500 the town has provided for each of the last three years. The league has 104 or 105 children aged 4 to 12 across six T-ball teams, two rookie teams, two minor teams and one majors team, and has leased the field from the town for three years.

6. 18:13
   Batting cage and play area

   Michael Clark (?) said a batting cage behind right field would let two teams practise at once, and that a play set, tables or similar behind left field would give younger siblings somewhere to be during games. He said the league has put $15,000 to $20,000 into the field over three years, including resurfacing the infield, loaming and seeding the outfield, fencing, a snack shack addition and electricity, while public works mows.

7. 18:13
   Board's conditions on a larger grant

   The chair said any structure outside the fence risks conflicting with the downtown visioning work, and that above $2,500 the board would want written proposals or estimates as it requires of any other capital request. He said the restructured recreation fund now allows awards through the year rather than only at budget time.

8. 23:36
   Season and timing

   Michael Clark (?) said indoor clinics run at a rented Brunswick facility from February break to April break, the game season runs from the week after April vacation to the end of the school year, and an all-star team plays a tournament in Skowhegan the last weekend of June. Members noted it is too late to build anything for this season and suggested planning over the winter.

9. 28:58
   Insurance for structures at the field

   A board member asked who carries liability. Michael Clark (?) said the league's insurance covers registered players during league activities but would not cover a resident using a structure outside league play. The board said this is why a play structure needs to be looked at separately from the batting cage.

10. 34:13
    Grant to Durham Youth Baseball

    Jerry Douglass (?) said the field is town property covered under the town's MMA insurance, as are the dugouts, and that a claim against the town would have to show negligence. The board moved and approved $2,500 from the recreation reserve, encouraging the league to bring detailed proposals for anything further.

11. 39:48
    Community Resilience Partnership grant

    Roberta Brazinski (?) and Jess Costa (?) of the Conservation Commission reported the town has been awarded the grant for an open space plan and conservation strategy over two years, with heavy public participation to identify what residents value and what needs protection. The funding comes through NOAA and requires quarterly status reports.

12. 45:34
    Request for proposals for the open space plan

    The commission wants the RFP out as early in June as possible with a consultant selected toward the end of June and work starting in early July rather than mid June. After discussion the board decided the RFP language is administrative and does not need a board vote, and that it will vote when the consultant is selected and the contract signed.

13. 51:18
    Choosing a consultant

    The commission has GPCOG's list of pre-qualified firms and is inclined toward a small local firm with experience in open space plans. The board suggested checking with other towns, including New Gloucester, that have done open space plans under the same programme, and asked for a newsletter write-up crediting the contributors and linking the press release.

14. 56:34
    Land use ordinance codification

    George (?) reported the town has contracted with General Code, which works with about 3,000 communities nationally and about 30 in Maine, to produce an online codified ordinance. The firm has identified 139 technical issues, mostly typos and inconsistent cross-references and terms, plus areas where the ordinance does not comply with state law. The town's responses are due July 25.

15. 1:01:53
    Minor policy issues and the timetable

    Fourteen minor policy issues have been identified that recur at board meetings, including inconsistent back lot and subdivision road standards, the campground that is becoming an RV park with no year-round occupancy standards, and application procedures where developers carry delinquent taxes. These must be settled by December for the preliminary draft in February, with changes possible to April, a final draft in May 2026 and a vote at the June 2026 town meeting.

16. 1:01:53
    Issues left for later

    Nine larger policy questions, including gravel pits and the sign regulation, cannot be dealt with in this process and will follow, alongside the open space plan and the comprehensive plan update. George (?) said John Talbot had pressed for it to be clear from the start that codification would not settle every ordinance issue.

17. 1:07:44
    Board endorsement and public access to the changes

    George gave the mobile home park regulations as an example of a provision the town cannot enforce, since the ordinance requires an acre per site while state law requires the town to allow such parks. A member asked that redlined changes be publicly visible; George (?) said all 139 items with commentary will be on the working site and published when the codified ordinance goes live. The board agreed staff should proceed without a vote on each item.

18. 1:07:44
    Internet for the Eureka Center

    Jerry Douglass (?) presented a quote from BTS to place boosters at the fire station and the Eureka Center to relay the signal, paid from the buildings reserve. The alternative discussed was trenching from the town office or running a line from the pole.

19. 1:13:19
    Effect on the fire station and on streaming

    Members asked whether splitting the signal would weaken service at the fire station; Devin (?) advised that the fire station has the strongest connection and it can be split without harm. Heather (?) asked whether this would let meetings held at the Eureka Center be live streamed rather than recorded and uploaded, and was told the internet is the necessary first step, with equipment and staffing still to be worked out.

20. 1:18:48
    Town manager's report

    Jerry Douglass (?) reported another public works employee has left for a significantly higher-paying job and that Calvin will advertise the position this week. The HR consultant is coming Thursday to train all full-time employees on workplace expectations, sexual harassment, discrimination and bullying, and the employee handbook is being rewritten and will come to the board over two meetings.

21. 1:18:48
    GPCOG summit

    The chair will attend the GPCOG summit on Thursday and give a 60-second presentation on something that works in Durham, which will be the brochure explaining the fiscal year change rather than the downtown visioning process.

22. 1:24:09
    Tax brochure and lien notices

    Heather (?) said title company attorneys at closings have praised how well town staff explain Durham's two tax bill system when they call. Jerry Douglass (?) noted that 30-day lien notices go out this week.

23. 1:24:09
    TownCloud software transition

    The town still runs Trio while TownCloud is behind schedule, reportedly over the motor vehicle module, and none of the six or seven towns signed on is live against a January target. The town has paid $5,000 with the balance due at go-live, and the board asked for a formal status update.

24. 1:24:09
    Thanks and website search

    Heather (?) thanked the cemetery committee and the historical society for placing flags on veterans' graves for Memorial Day, and Keith Russell and Z Caris (?) for the flags on the telephone poles, and thanked Devin (?) for adding a search function to the town website.

25. 1:29:48
    Notice of departmental events

    Deb (?) said she only heard about the Sea Dogs game honouring Kevin Merrill after it had happened and asked that board members be told in advance so they can attend. The board agreed a process is needed to raise events of this kind above the individual department's own channels; the game was rained out.

26. 1:29:48
    Tax anticipation note taken from the consent agenda

    A member asked that the approval and signing of the tax anticipation note be pulled from the consent agenda so it could be discussed and voted separately.

27. 1:29:48
    Tax anticipation note discussion

    The note is for a maximum of $2,600,000 and change, with interest charged only on what is drawn. Outflows run about $800,000 a month against inflows of about $300,000, leaving a gap of about $600,000 a month until tax collection of about $5.2 million, so cash could run short in July, August or September depending on how much is paid in the first instalment.

28. 1:35:22
    Timing of tax bills and the unbudgeted interest

    Josh (?) said an August first payment would reduce the borrowing; others said the October date has been advertised in the brochure and voted on and cannot be changed now, and that some residents are counting on the later date. Heather (?) said she had understood from earlier cash flow work with Mark that reserves would cover the gap, and that she may have been recalling the twelve-month rather than the eighteen-month budget.

29. 1:41:31
    Votes and upcoming meetings

    The board approved and signed the tax anticipation note and then accepted the consent agenda. Upcoming meetings: agriculture planning committee June 4 at the Eureka Center, planning board June 4 at the fire station, solid waste June 9 at the Eureka Center, budget validation June 10 at the AMVETS hall, and select board June 10 at the fire station at 6:30. The board then moved into executive session on personnel matters.

What was decided

• 1:19
  Approve the minutes of May 13, 2025, moved by Deb and seconded by Josh, with one member recusing because they were not at that meetingpassed
• 12:44
  Make the Eureka Center the first choice for boards and committees other than the select board and planning board, check fire station bookings with the chief, and carry the meeting schedule on the fire department's monthly calendaroutcome unclear
• 34:13
  Provide $2,500 to Durham Youth Baseball from the recreation reserve, with any larger amount to await written proposalspassed
• 45:34
  Treat the conservation commission's request for proposals as administrative and not require a board vote on the RFP language, with the board voting when a consultant is selected and the contract signedoutcome unclear
• 1:07:44
  Endorse staff proceeding with the 139 technical codification items without a board vote on each, with the record of changes made publicoutcome unclear
• 1:18:48
  Spend $2,578.44 from the building reserve for internet service at the Eureka Centerpassed
• 1:29:48
  Remove the approval and signing of the tax anticipation note from the consent agenda for separate discussionpassed
• 1:41:31
  Approve and sign the resolution authorizing a tax anticipation notepassed
• 1:41:31
  Accept the consent agendapassed
• 1:41:31
  Enter executive session on personnel matterspassed

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.

Worth knowing

• 34:13
  Durham Youth Baseball (?) asked for $10,000 and received $2,500. The recreation reserve holds $23,742, which covers all recreation and not baseball alone. The league says it has put $15,000 to $20,000 into the town-owned field over three years while public works mows it.
• 39:48
  The Community Resilience Partnership grant is $80,000, of which $72,000 goes to a consultant to produce an open space plan and conservation strategy over two years and $8,000 comes to the town for administration. The chair said the town is at about $120,000 in grants this year.
• 56:34
  The codification timetable runs from the town's responses on 139 technical issues due July 25, through the 14 minor policy items by December, a preliminary draft in February and a final draft in May 2026, to a vote at the June 2026 town meeting. Nine larger issues, including gravel pits and sign regulation, are excluded and will follow.
• 1:35:22
  The tax anticipation note is for up to about $2.6 million at an expected 5 to 6 percent, and the board said the interest was not budgeted when the town changed its fiscal year, describing it as their own oversight. The town spends about $800,000 a month against about $300,000 coming in until taxes are collected in October.

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: 8 passages of motion language, against 10 decisions summarised.

Elsewhere

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