Select Board Meeting ~ May 14, 2024

2024-05-14 · Select Board · 2:46:07 · watch on YouTube →

The Select Board met at the firehouse on May 14, 2024. The main item was a question-and-answer session with the two firms bidding to carry out the town's property revaluation, moved up from new business so the representatives would not have to sit through the rest of the agenda; the board took no vote and set May 28 as the target for a decision. Most of the remaining time went to setting 2024 work priorities for the Planning Board, Conservation Commission, Historic District Commission and the new solid waste committee, which Jerry Douglass will pass on to each group in a letter. The board adopted its meeting procedures, authorized the Town Manager to switch the town website host and remove the pine trees in front of the Town Office, kept its GPCOG delegates, and accepted the consent agenda. It also set a June 18 workshop at 5 pm on whether Durham should have its own police coverage, and agreed how it will interview the firms responding to the legal counsel RFP on May 28.

What was discussed

1. 10:17
   Call to order and agenda change

   The meeting opened at the firehouse at 6:30 pm with the call to order and the Pledge of Allegiance. The question-and-answer session with the property revaluation firms was moved from new business up to old business so the visiting representatives would not have to wait. No one spoke at public comment.

2. 10:17
   Revaluation firms introduced; April 1, 2027 date

   Jerry Douglass introduced Justin, of a four-person appraisal firm whose staff he named as himself, David, Nicole Stenberg (?) and Kathy (?), three of them former Maine Revenue Services staff, and Rob, of KRT Appraisal, which he said has been doing this work 24 years. Both (?) said the revaluation would be as of April 1, 2027, with the work complete in early to mid August, later than the town's usual commitment but in line with a possible move from a calendar year to a fiscal year.

3. 21:31
   Notifying residents and inspecting properties

   Rob (?) said postcards go out ahead of the data collectors in batches of parcels (the batch size was garbled in the recording), collectors knock and ask for an interior inspection, and if no one is home they measure the outside; a later letter offers an appointment to see inside. Justin (?) said he drives up with the door sign facing the house and hands out a card with a town office contact, and that in his career one person pulled a gun on him. Both (?) said vehicles are marked, collectors carry identification, and details can be filed with the sheriff's office; both said a structure found in the field that is not on the record card is simply added, without chasing permits.

4. 27:01
   Quality control and the hearing stage

   Rob (?) described office quality control checks on each card and a drive-by field review of every property. Both firms described the hearing stage: once values are set, every owner receives a letter showing the old and new value and can book a 15-minute hearing to go over the record card, with a site visit if needed. Justin (?) said the mill rate will not be estimated at that point, so a value going up several times over does not mean taxes do.

5. 32:17
   Record cards, Trio software and field equipment

   Donna, the town's assessing agent, said Durham uses Trio for assessing and tax collection and that both bids include loading the data into Trio; owners' hard-copy record cards go back to the 1970s and 1980s. Rob (?) said his collectors use a 100-foot tape, a hand laser and a larger scanning device for big commercial buildings; Justin (?) said he works with a tape.

6. 37:32
   Other commitments, timing, hours, and when a decision is needed

   Justin (?) said his firm's other current job is Readfield, with 90 percent of that work done by 2026. Both (?) said Durham's field work would be spread over roughly a year, finishing collection around February 2027, weekdays only, arriving about 8:30 am and knocking on doors until 4 or 4:30 pm, with postcards giving 45 to 60 days' notice by batch. Asked when they need an answer, both said a couple of months would be fine.

7. 47:41
   Explaining the revaluation to residents

   The board discussed getting an explanation out ahead of the work through the town report, a newsletter, tax bills and possibly a QR code, and asked whether the firms had video material. Donna (?) said the town office deliberately stays out of the valuation once a firm is hired, that the last revaluation was in 2010, and that Trio suits Durham better than the other assessing program in one firm's packet because many town office staff use it.

8. 53:21
   Timeline for awarding the revaluation contract

   The board did not vote, agreeing instead to take it up on May 28 so Joe Tomm, who was absent, could watch the video and review the proposals, and possibly to ask Donna back for an executive session. A board member confirmed the prices quoted fit the amount voted at town meeting.

9. 53:21
   2024 work priorities: how the board would set them

   Following the previous week's workshop, the chair proposed going page by page and having each member name a top three for each board and committee, so the groups are told what the Select Board wants worked on and can come back with resource needs. Switching the town from a calendar year to a fiscal year, which Donna had raised that day, was added to the page of items belonging to the Select Board itself.

10. 58:28
    Planning Board priorities

    Josh Klein-Golden put battery energy storage standards and resource protection refinement first, with codification third; the others landed on the same three. Deb Oliver asked why battery storage ranked so high and was told inquiries and possibly applications are expected and such projects now fall under the conditional use permit, which gives little guidance. Heather Roy raised hiring a third-party consultant for battery storage; Jerry Douglass said that would have to have been budgeted and there is no money for it, and the board discussed that a moratorium would require a special town meeting.

11. 1:09:30
    Conservation Commission priorities

    The board picked the resource protection update, the open space grant, and part two of the solar ordinance. Members noted the commission did the legwork on resource protection last time and would more likely assist the Planning Board on battery storage than lead it. The chair said solar part two would be a large piece of work, describing a mitigation fee model along the lines of Topsham's, and that the open space item falls away if the grant is not awarded.

12. 1:26:39
    Historic District Commission priorities

    Heather Roy listed amending the land use ordinance, a name change already under way, and an inventory or survey of town buildings. Jerry Douglass said the ordinance is confusing where the historic district commission meets code enforcement, that George has a report already written and the commission has drafted ordinance language, and that George, the commission and the board should meet to settle it; George would repeal Article 12, which Jerry Douglass said fixes most of the confusion. Heather Roy raised the Parker Schoolhouse being torn down without the commission being told, and asked that historic properties outside the district get a chance to weigh in.

13. 1:32:21
    Solid waste committee priorities

    The board's priority for the new committee was to get organized, gather information and lay out options, with Josh Klein-Golden arguing against a short deadline because the current contract runs about five years and the work needs to be done properly. Jerry Douglass said he has given the committee a contract, ecomaine material and five years of tonnage figures, and that it met the night before. Heather Roy asked for a way to reduce tonnage before the next town meeting and for a view on where a transfer station could go; the board agreed to ask for regular written updates.

14. 1:43:27
    Communicating the priorities; resource protection map and buffers

    The board agreed Jerry Douglass would send each board and committee a letter setting out the Select Board's priorities and inviting questions. Jerry Douglass then said the resource protection change is mostly a map change George can handle: a state survey requested by a landowner concluded the turtle occurrence behind that area's protection is unlikely to represent a breeding population, and removing it leaves no area in town scoring the plus-six threshold. He said the board must decide whether the redrawn map shows buffers around existing houses, and that nothing changes for a landowner until the April 2025 town meeting vote.

15. 1:48:49
    Battery storage stays with the Planning Board; permit fee

    Jerry Douglass said battery energy storage should stay with the Planning Board because it would handle any application. He said the conditional use permit fee for battery storage is currently $225 and that fees need to go on an agenda soon.

16. 1:48:49
    Proposed agriculture committee

    A group of residents is working with the Maine Farmland Trust toward forming an agriculture committee, something the 2018 comprehensive plan calls for. Heather Roy said that if it is to become a town committee it should start at the town level, in public view, with an open call for members, rather than arrive already formed; the chair and Josh Klein-Golden said it is a citizen-led initiative the board cannot direct, and that the board will still approve bylaws and appoint members. The board settled on inviting whoever is leading it to a June meeting and checking what the comprehensive plan requires.

17. 2:04:27
    George's workload and a timeline for the ordinance work

    Jerry Douglass listed what would fall to George: the historic district ordinance work on Article 12 and 5.1, resource protection, codification, liaison work with GPCOG, and support on battery storage and open space; Matt Pannell (?) of GPCOG is coming on May 28 about community facilities. He said George (?) told him that afternoon it is doable, including battery storage. The board asked for George to bring both the resource protection map question and the historic district ordinance to one meeting in late June or July.

18. 2:09:46
    Adoption of Select Board meeting procedures

    The board adopted the meeting procedures it had worked through over several iterations; Joe Tomm had emailed his support and Deb Oliver had caught spelling errors that day. The chair said they should be posted on the town website.

19. 2:09:46
    Law enforcement: federal grant and the case for a workshop

    Heather Roy asked for the item because of a Department of Justice grant Jerry Douglass had emailed, with a deadline she gave as June 12, covering 75 percent of startup costs for three years against a 25 percent town share. Because the town has not voted to establish a department, it cannot apply this year, and the board treated the grant as a template for a later year. Josh Klein-Golden said the subject needs a workshop with the sheriff, the chief deputy, Chief McGee, and the Freeport chief who lives in Durham, and that the cost figures he was given were large.

20. 2:15:18
    Cost of police coverage and how to put it to voters

    Monmouth, described as a town of similar size with a full police department, was cited at about $450,000 to $500,000 a year, with startup higher. Heather Roy wanted the question put on a town meeting warrant so voters could authorize the work even if it is not budgeted; Josh Klein-Golden said there is no question to ask yet and suggested a local advisory question at the November election, when turnout is highest.

21. 2:20:47
    Setting the law enforcement workshop date

    The board worked through dates, ruling out the week of June 4, a Saturday, and nights with other town meetings, and settled on Tuesday June 18 at 5 pm, with an open invitation to the public and to officers who live in Durham. Jerry Douglass noted that many towns hold one business meeting and one workshop a month rather than two business meetings.

22. 2:26:00
    New business: website host and pine trees

    The board took the two authorizations as one motion: moving the town website to a different host, described as saving money and bringing more control in house, and removing the pine trees in front of the Town Office.

23. 2:31:08
    GPCOG delegates

    The GPCOG meeting is May 30 at 2:30. Josh Klein-Golden said he could not attend that date; the board kept Joe Roy and Joe Tomm as delegates with Heather Roy as alternate.

24. 2:31:08
    How to interview the law firms

    With the legal counsel RFP sent to four firms and proposals due May 23 at 2 pm, the board discussed whether to question firms together or one at a time. It settled on separate executive session slots of about 20 minutes before the May 28 meeting, noticed as a separate executive session starting around 5:30 with the regular meeting at 6:30, the exact start depending on how many respond. Jerry Douglass noted the room is not very private and said the door and kitchen should be kept closed; a member noted the town has no legal services after the 30th.

25. 2:42:15
    Board member reports, consent agenda and announcements

    The chair thanked the fire department for the save at a barn fire the week before, with 10 departments responding and 50,000 gallons of water used, no loss of life or pets, and noted a letter from Freeport High School thanking the town for its scholarship contribution. Heather Roy thanked town staff, naming Jerry Douglass, Alan Plummer (?) and the animal control officer, for dealing with a rabid fox. The consent agenda was accepted, upcoming meetings were listed, and the meeting adjourned.

What was decided

• 2:09:46
  Adopt the Select Board meeting procedures as written (moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Josh Klein-Golden; minutes record 4-0)passed
• 2:26:00
  Authorize the Town Manager to switch the town website to a different host and to remove the pine trees in front of the Town Office, taken as one motion (moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Joe Roy; minutes record 4-0)passed
• 2:31:08
  Elect Joe Roy and Joe Tomm as GPCOG delegates with Heather Roy as alternate (moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Josh Klein-Golden; minutes record 3-0)passed
• 2:42:15
  Accept the consent agenda as presented (moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Heather Roy; minutes record 4-0)passed
• 2:42:15
  Adjourn the meeting, recorded in the minutes at 9:05 pm (moved by Joe Roy, seconded by Deb Oliver; minutes record 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_05_14_24.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.

• adopt the Selectboard meeting procedurescarried 4-0

  Moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Josh Klein-Golden

• authorize the Town Manager to switch the website and remove the pine trees in front of the Town Officecarried 4-0

  Moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Joe Roy

• elect Joe Roy and Joe Tomm as delegates with Heather Roy as an alternatecarried 3-0

  Moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Josh Klein-Golden

• accept the consent agenda as presentedcarried 4-0

  Moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Heather Roy

• adjourn the meeting at 9:05 pmcarried 4-0

  Moved by Joe Roy, seconded by Deb Oliver

Worth knowing

• 10:17
  Both bidders said the revaluation would take effect April 1, 2027, with door-to-door data collection spread over about a year and finishing around February 2027, and hearings on individual values after that. The town's last revaluation was in 2010.
• 1:48:49
  The conditional use permit fee for a battery energy storage project is currently $225. Jerry Douglass said fees need to come back to the board soon.
• 2:09:46
  A Department of Justice grant, with a deadline given as June 12, would cover 75 percent of police startup costs for three years with the town paying 25 percent, but Durham cannot apply because voters have not authorized a department.
• 2:15:18
  Monmouth, described as a town of Durham's size with a full police department, was cited at about $450,000 to $500,000 a year, with startup costs higher than that.

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: 5 passages of motion language, against 5 decisions summarised.

Elsewhere

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