Town Meeting 2015

2015-04-04 · Town Meeting · 1:50:42 · watch on YouTube →

The floor session of Durham's 227th annual town meeting in 2015, continuing from the previous evening and working through the warrant from article 16 to article 45. Most of the money articles passed as recommended, with the fire and rescue capital account funded at the budget committee's $40,000 rather than the selectmen's $50,000, and the public works budget adopted at the selectmen's figure, about $4,600 above the budget committee's. The meeting created a public works capital reserve fund and, after a voice vote called as failed, a disputed standing count and finally a written ballot, voted 51 to 41 to send unexpended public works operating funds into it automatically. Voters accepted Sand Hill Drive phase 2 as a town way over objections about the long-term cost of taking on roads, and authorised the selectmen to explore other means of voting on the town budget, an article that came from a citizen petition whose circulator asked the meeting to reject it. Much of the discussion turned on the first full year of the town running its own public works department after ending the plow contract, and on the arrangement under which Durham shares a road commissioner, crew and equipment with Pownal.

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. 0:13
   Remarks from Representative Paul Chase

   Chase, who lives on Colonial Drive and sits on the legislature's taxation committee, thanked residents for the work that goes into the town's budget process. He reported that the committee had deliberated on the governor's tax proposal and that there was strong resistance to removing municipal revenue sharing, so it was likely to stay in place, and described his caucus's focus on income tax reductions, keeping seniors in their homes and creating a business environment for jobs.

2. 5:14
   Correction on the school budget

   Kevin corrected an earlier statement made at the meeting. The proposed RSU budget does include a first interest-only payment of $250,000 for the new high school, which he said would save the district $1.2 million over the course of the loan.

3. 5:14
   Article 16: fire and rescue capital improvement account

   The selectmen recommended $50,000 and the budget committee $40,000, and the motion put was the budget committee's figure. Deputy Chief Keith (?) argued for the full $50,000, saying the chief has a capital plan running to 2030 and that funding it short pushes an apparatus purchase from 2017 into 2018.

4. 10:37
   The budget committee's case for $40,000

   Chuck (?) said the account received $25,000 in 2012, $25,000 in 2013 and $35,000 in 2014, that the vote to recommend $40,000 was not unanimous, and that the majority was being sensitive to the tax increase residents faced. He described the chief's plan as an excellent but necessarily estimated document, and said he had to be responsible to the taxpayers as well as to the department.

5. 10:37
   The selectmen's case for $50,000

   Jeff (?) confirmed the figures and added that about $5,000 was left over from the operating budget the previous year against roughly $18 this year. The board thought $50,000 prudent because money put in ahead can save interest by allowing early payment, and noted that in past years the board had cut the chief's requests but this year had gone along with the request.

6. 10:37
   Article 17: fire and rescue capital improvement projects

   Both boards recommended transferring $3,000 from the fire capital improvement fund, covering security cameras and the kitchen hood. Jeff (?) told the meeting the chief's original request had been $12,000, including about $7,000 to paint the outside of the station, which he said was in drastic need, and about $3,000 for trim around the bay doors.

7. 10:37
   Is painting a capital project

   The reduction came from a debate over what counts as a capital project, with the board concluding that painting is maintenance and belongs in the operating budget. Residents pushed back, one noting a comparable paint job at his own business was treated as capital and another pointing out that a $1,500 floor at the Eureka Center had come from a capital account. The moderator said the departments need to know how the boards will treat such items when they build their budgets, and left it for the selectmen and fire department to resolve before next year.

8. 15:46
   Article 18: fire station loan payment

   Both boards recommended transferring $39,510 from the fire capital improvement fund for the annual loan payment on the fire station, payment four of five under a refinancing agreement. There was no discussion.

9. 15:46
   Article 19: Quint ladder truck bond payment

   Both boards recommended transferring $33,004 from the fire capital improvement fund for payment two of six. Jeff (?) explained the chief had recommended paying $40,000 this year, which would have retired the debt early and saved the town $1,417.59, but that recommendation was conditional on the capital account being funded at the full $50,000; when that was reduced, the chief agreed the lower payment reflected the offset.

10. 20:52
    What the Quint actually cost

    Asked how the truck came in against projections, the deputy chief gave a principal cost of about $183,236 plus interest. Michelle Richardson pointed out that the town had authorised borrowing up to $210,000 and borrowed about $186,000, so the difference is not money sitting in an account but debt never taken on, which is why the payment is $33,000 rather than $40,000. The questioner clarified she had meant the rolling capital forecast rather than the bond. The bond was confirmed to be at a fixed rate.

11. 20:52
    Article 20: general assistance

    Both boards recommended raising $5,000. Jeff (?) explained general assistance is a state-required needs-based programme administered by the town administrator, covering short-term help with rent and food, reimbursed by the state at 50 percent, and that the town must pay qualifying claims whether or not the appropriation covers them.

12. 20:52
    Article 21: Union Church restoration

    Both boards recommended zero. Jeff (?) explained the article was a placeholder in case the historical society came forward with figures or a motion from the floor; the society had asked for $10,000 but the town still had no clear plan. A resident said a preservation specialist is preparing a master plan for the Union Church and that they had decided to wait until next year, when there would be better information.

13. 26:14
    Article 22: parks and recreation

    Both boards recommended $12,977 transferred from designated fund balances from state park fees and the recreation fund. Jeff (?) said more money went in for War Memorial Park at Southwest Bend, where a Boy Scout has come forward with proposals including replacing the flag poles and a path to the gazebo, and will raise funds himself toward the cost.

14. 26:14
    Article 23: planning board and appeals board

    Both boards recommended $14,190, made up of $750 from application fee balances and $13,440 raised. The increases cover member stipends of $50 a meeting and $100 for a chair, an appeal now active which will require the appeals board to meet after a long gap, and $5,000 for ordinance review.

15. 26:14
    Contracting out the ordinance review

    Jeff (?) said it had become clear the town's ordinances need help, being unclear and sometimes in conflict, and that the intention is to contract the review out, either to GPCOG or to an individual. He noted the town had tried this some years ago with AVCOG and been disappointed with what it got for the money.

16. 31:17
    Where the planning board secretary is budgeted

    A resident asked why a planning board secretary line appeared to be new. Members explained the secretaries had previously sat in the administration budget and had been moved out to the individual committees, a change begun the previous year, so the administration line came down correspondingly.

17. 31:17
    Article 24: public works, and the plow contract comparison

    The motion followed the selectmen's recommendation, roughly $4,600 above the budget committee's. Chuck referred to a handout comparing the budget with what the town would have been paying had it kept the snow plow contract, which had been rising by about six percent a year, and said the roads budget had risen only slightly over two years by comparison. The moderator thanked Sean and his crew for their first winter running snow removal in house.

18. 36:46
    Sharing the crew and equipment with Pownal

    A newly elected selectman told the meeting that Durham's crew and new equipment go to Pownal, that a new contract with Pownal is coming up, that he is not in favour of it, and asked residents to email him their views. Later in the discussion Mark defended the arrangement, saying Durham could not hire a full-time road commissioner for what it pays as its share, that Pownal's grader and crack sealing machine are used here rather than the town buying a grader it does not need for six or seven miles of road, and that the two towns reconcile hours three times a year and have come within a few hundred dollars.

19. 36:46
    Fuel, equipment maintenance and FEMA reimbursement

    Asked why the public works fuel account rises sharply when others fall, members explained last year covered only about six or seven months because the department did not start until May or June, and the same explanation applied to equipment maintenance. On the federal disaster declaration following the blizzard, members said reimbursement would be credited back to the budget lines affected, mostly public works, provided it arrives in the same budget year.

20. 41:51
    Splitting out the road commissioner's cost

    Asked about a 26 percent drop in the road commissioner salary line, members explained that Pownal had been the employer with Durham contracting for the service, all in one line, and that with the new hire Durham will employ the road commissioner, so salary, Medicare and health insurance now appear separately and Pownal's share comes back as income. The figures were described as projections since hiring was still in progress, and the difference between the two boards' recommendations lay partly here.

21. 41:51
    Mowing contract, salt and sand

    The mowing is being bid for one more year because the town has no mower and wants to test the return on buying one, a decision deferred until the new road commissioner is in place. On winter roads, a resident asked why the budget buys less sand and more salt, given salt ends up in wells; members replied the previous year's figures covered only part of a season and that the town is using less salt than it has historically.

22. 46:54
    Maine PERS and where the budget committee found its cuts

    A resident asked why Maine PERS lines had risen across departments; members explained a credit the town had held at Maine PERS for at least a decade ran out last year, making this the first full year of payments. Chuck (?) said the budget committee had looked at reductions of about $13,100 but could only carry a 5 to 4 vote for a reduction of a few thousand, mostly from heat and electricity where prices had fallen, and reminded the meeting that apart from salaries and benefits the town votes an overall departmental budget rather than individual lines.

23. 46:54
    This as a base year for public works

    Mark (?) described building the public works budget as like nailing jelly to the wall, with part of the old plowing contract still in it and items moved across from the administration article. He said this is the first fully in place twelve month public works budget and that next year's cycle, with real spending to compare against, could be gone through with a finer tooth comb.

24. 52:28
    How shared labour is accounted for

    Wendy Stewart (?) asked how time spent in Pownal is tracked. Members said labour and equipment hours are recorded on a spreadsheet showing which town has used more, with a payment settling the difference at year end. The selectman who had raised the issue said what has not been worked out is who pays workers compensation and covers a replacement if a Durham employee is injured while working in Pownal.

25. 52:28
    Paving plans and the cost of reconstruction

    Asked what the paving money would do, members said the plan was a heavy shim and overlay on the remainder of Meeting House Road from Route 136 to the pavement change by Old Brunswick Road, acknowledging that road is really too far gone for that treatment but that the town has to do something. No major reconstruction was included, because at somewhere between $500,000 and $1,000,000 a mile it would have to come to voters as a bond and would hit taxes.

26. 52:28
    The curve at Swamp Road

    A resident asked about the S curve where Newbrook Road meets Swamp Road. Members said it is a state responsibility because of Route 9, that the town has asked the state to look at it, and that the state has not been willing to spend money on it so far.

27. 57:31
    Article 25: creating a public works capital reserve fund

    Jeff (?) said the fund would let the town set money aside for future road reconstruction and public works equipment, evening out the tax burden as the fire department's capital account does, rather than facing spikes.

28. 57:31
    Article 26: automatic transfer of unexpended public works funds

    The article would send any unspent public works operating funds into the new capital reserve at year end, mirroring the fire department arrangement. Kevin (?) said he supported regular contributions to the reserve but not an automatic transfer, arguing the discretion should stay with the selectmen because money might be needed elsewhere, giving an eventual town hall roof as his example.

29. 57:31
    The disputed vote on article 26

    The moderator called the show of cards as a failure, and seven people including Milt Simon (?) questioned the count. A standing count came out 43 to 40, at which point the moderator called for a written ballot so that everyone could vote and the count would be accurate.

30. 1:02:47
    Article 28: public works equipment bond

    Both boards recommended raising $141,524 for payment one of ten on the public works equipment bond. A resident asked what the equipment had actually cost against what earlier town meetings had approved; the answer came back later in the session as approximately $1.413 million approved against about $1.150 million spent, roughly $250,000 less, and with one more piece of equipment purchased than originally specified.

31. 1:07:57
    Article 29: public works building bond

    Both boards recommended raising $91,120 for payment one of ten on the public works building bond. There was no discussion.

32. 1:07:57
    Article 30: solid waste

    Both boards recommended $191,825, part from the designated fund balance created by solid waste tag fees and $177,517 raised. No one spoke to it.

33. 1:07:57
    Article 27: 2014 public works surplus into the new reserve

    With article 26 decided, the meeting took up the transfer of $96,466 of excess 2014 public works operating funds from undesignated fund balance into the newly created reserve. Members noted this was the only recommendation apart from two supplemental articles that drew on undesignated funds, which the town is still trying to rebuild.

34. 1:07:57
    Article 31: telecommunications

    Both boards recommended $28,659 from the designated fund balance created by franchise fees. No one spoke to it.

35. 1:13:11
    Article 32: exceeding the state property tax levy limit

    This article, which state law requires be decided by written ballot, authorises the town to exceed the maximum property tax levy if the budget approved at the meeting produces a commitment above it. Members confirmed it applies only to the municipal articles, the school side being handled by a similar question on the RSU ballot in June, and said that voting it down would mean the town could not fund everything approved that day.

36. 1:13:11
    Nobody could say what the limit is

    Repeated questions from the floor established that neither the board nor the moderator knew the state limit. Members said the town crosses it every year, that almost every community in the state does, and that the calculation is a moving target based on the previous year's limit and state-determined growth factors rather than a fixed percentage. Kevin (?) noted the same question passed 59 to 12 the previous year and agreed the town should understand it better.

37. 1:18:52
    A resident's tax increase

    A resident from Pinkham Brook Road (?) said his property taxes had risen about $1,800 in two years, which he put at 62 percent, and argued the town should set its own cap. Others replied that the cap is what the meeting votes line by line, and that the spending had just been controlled by voting the articles up and down.

38. 1:18:52
    Article 33: historic district commission membership

    The amendment adds two associate members to the historic district commission ordinance, so that it will read that the commission shall consist of five members as well as two associate members. There was no discussion.

39. 1:24:03
    Article 34: accepting Sand Hill Drive phase 2

    A member of the development LLC told the meeting the road lies in the growth district, went through extra testing that the road commissioner described as more stringent than state department of transportation requirements, and that the parcel which paid about $1,000 in tax before development has produced over $20,000 in taxes in three years. One house is built, a second under construction, and the road will serve 13 lots; he said the expected maintenance for the next decade would be little more than plowing.

40. 1:24:03
    Argument against taking on the road

    A resident urged rejection, putting winter maintenance at about $3,500 a mile and the cost to the town at roughly $2,000 a year in perpetuity for the benefit of 13 households, and comparing it to the town's treatment of its long-serving fire chief over $1,600. Others answered that the town approved the development and wants the families and the tax base, that a town road adds value and spares residents organising their own plowing, and that the developer built to the standard the town set in good faith.

41. 1:29:07
    Whether a minimum number of houses is required

    Asked whether a road needs a certain number of houses built before acceptance, Jeff (?) said he was aware of no such limit: the criteria are that the road lies in the Southwest Bend growth district and that it meets the required specification, which the town's road committee had confirmed, after which it goes to the town to accept or not.

42. 1:34:12
    Article 35: exploring other means of voting on the budget

    Jeff (?) explained the article followed a citizen petition carrying enough signatures to meet the threshold of 10 percent of the last gubernatorial election, but which was too vague to enact, so the board instead proposed authorising the selectmen to explore how other towns vote. The petition had sought a referendum on the articles 30 to 45 days after town meeting.

43. 1:34:12
    The petitioner asks the meeting to vote it down

    Donna Church said she had circulated the petition, that she left it vague deliberately and had not realised that would be a problem, and that article 35 does not reflect what people signed. She asked the meeting to take no action or vote against it, saying she would rather form her own committee and bring a better proposal back than have the selectmen appoint one.

44. 1:39:19
    Debate on secret ballot voting and turnout

    Supporters (?) said around 119 people were voting for a town of some 3,000 and that residents who cannot attend, or who do not want neighbours to see how they vote, are shut out. Chuck (?) argued that voting is an obligation, that the same faces come every year, and that taking the budget book to a voting booth removes the discussion that informs the vote. Others said a committee appointed openly, with an invitation to Donna Church, would carry more credibility than one drawn from a single point of view, and that exploring the question costs only people's time.

45. 1:45:11
    Routine year-end articles

    The meeting closed with the standard articles: authority to seek and disburse grant funds after public hearing, interest on delinquent taxes set at 7 percent, appointment of standing committee members and minor officials left with the selectmen, authority to dispose of surplus town property and of real estate taken for unpaid taxes, interest on abated taxes set at 3 percent, authority to accept prepayment of taxes not yet committed, authority to settle disputes not involving public funds, authority to spend up to four twelfths of each budget category between January 1, 2016 and the 2016 town meeting, and authority to borrow for operating costs on notes countersigned by at least three selectmen.

46. 1:45:11
    Adjournment

    The moderator asked the meeting to applaud its elected officials for the time they had put in, and declared the 227th annual town meeting of the town of Durham adjourned.

What was decided

• 10:37
  Article 16: adopt the budget committee's recommendation and raise $40,000 for the fire and rescue capital improvement account, rather than the selectmen's $50,000.passed
• 15:46
  Article 17: transfer $3,000 from the fire capital improvement fund for fire and rescue capital improvement projects, against the chief's original $12,000 request.passed
• 15:46
  Article 18: transfer $39,510 from the fire capital improvement fund for the annual fire station loan payment, payment four of five under the refinancing agreement.passed
• 20:52
  Article 19: transfer $33,004 from the fire capital improvement fund for the annual Quint ladder truck bond payment, payment two of six.passed
• 20:52
  Article 20: raise and appropriate $5,000 for general assistance.passed
• 26:14
  Article 21: raise and appropriate zero dollars for the historical society for restoration of the Union Church, the society having decided to wait for its master plan before asking.passed
• 26:14
  Article 22: appropriate $12,977 for parks and recreation by transfer from the designated fund balances from state park fees and the recreation fund.passed
• 31:17
  Article 23: appropriate $14,190 for the planning board and appeals board, $750 from application fee balances and $13,440 raised, including $5,000 for ordinance review.passed
• 52:28
  Article 24: adopt the selectmen's recommendation for the public works budget, about $4,600 above the budget committee's figure.passed
• 57:31
  Article 25: create a public works capital reserve fund.passed
• 1:07:57
  Article 26: automatically transfer all unexpended public works operating funds at year end into the public works capital reserve fund. The moderator first called the show of cards as a failure; a standing count came out 43 to 40; a written ballot was then taken and the result announced later in the session as 51 to 41 in favour.passed
• 1:02:47
  Article 28: raise $141,524 for the annual public works equipment bond payment, payment one of ten. The moderator called for the vote but no result is stated in the recording.outcome unclear
• 1:07:57
  Article 29: raise and appropriate $91,120 for the annual public works building bond payment, payment one of ten.passed
• 1:07:57
  Article 30: appropriate $191,825 for solid waste, part from the designated fund balance from solid waste tag fees and $177,517 raised.passed
• 1:07:57
  Article 27: transfer $96,466 of excess 2014 public works operating funds from undesignated fund balance into the newly created public works capital reserve fund.passed
• 1:07:57
  Article 31: appropriate $28,659 for telecommunications from the designated fund balance created by franchise fees.passed
• 1:18:52
  Article 32: authorise an increase in the maximum property tax levy limit set by state law should the municipal budget produce a commitment above it. State law requires a written ballot and the moderator called for one; no result is announced in the recording.outcome unclear
• 1:18:52
  Article 33: amend the historic district commission ordinance so the commission consists of five members as well as two associate members.passed
• 1:29:07
  Article 34: accept as a town way Sand Hill Drive phase 2, associated with the subdivision plan of Sylvester Woods.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 35: authorise the selectmen to explore other means of voting on the town budget, despite the petitioner who prompted the article asking the meeting to reject it so she could bring her own proposal back.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 36: authorise the selectmen, after public hearing, to seek, accept and disburse grant funds from private, state or federal agencies for the purposes designated in each grant.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 37: fix interest on delinquent taxes at 7 percent per annum and set the date from which interest starts after commitment.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 38: leave the appointment of standing committee members and minor officials with the board of selectmen.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 39: authorise the selectmen to dispose of town-owned property no longer needed or usable, on terms they consider advisable.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 40: authorise the selectmen to sell and dispose of real estate acquired by the town for non-payment of taxes and to execute quitclaim deeds.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 41: set the interest rate paid by the town on abated taxes at 3 percent, cited by the moderator as under 36 M.R.S.A. section 506.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 42: authorise the tax collector and treasurer to accept payment of taxes not yet committed, cited as under 36 M.R.S.A. section 506.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 43: authorise the selectmen to resolve disputes with parties whose interests are adverse to the town where no public funds are spent or where budgeted funds are sufficient.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 44: authorise the selectmen to spend up to four twelfths of each budget category between January 1, 2016 and the close of the 2016 annual town meeting.passed
• 1:45:11
  Article 45: authorise the treasurer and administrative assistant to borrow money on notes countersigned by at least three selectmen to pay the operating costs of the town.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.

Worth knowing

• 57:31
  The vote on automatically moving unspent public works money into the new capital reserve was called three times. The moderator first declared it failed on a show of cards, a standing count then came out 43 to 40, and a written ballot finally carried it 51 to 41.
• 1:13:11
  Article 32 asks voters to authorise exceeding the state property tax levy limit, and nobody at the meeting, including the selectmen and the moderator, could say what that limit is. Members said Durham crosses it every year, as does almost every town in the state, and residents asked that the figure be known before the vote in future years.
• 52:28
  Road reconstruction was put at between $500,000 and $1,000,000 a mile, roughly $100 a linear foot. No major reconstruction is in this budget; the board said it would have to come to voters as a bond and would inevitably hit taxes.
• 36:46
  Durham shares its road commissioner, crew and equipment with Pownal. A newly elected selectman told the meeting he opposes continuing it and asked residents to email him before the new contract, while another member defended it as the only way a town with six or seven miles of gravel road can get a grader and a crack sealer. Nobody has yet settled who pays if a Durham employee is injured working in Pownal.

Elsewhere

2016-04-02 Town Meeting →All meetings