Select Board Meeting ~ August 22, 2023

2023-08-22 · Select Board · 2:56:38 · watch on YouTube →

The Durham Select Board met on August 22, 2023 with all five members present. Two residents spoke in public comment, one about curbside trash collection in subdivisions and one about the town's care of its historic buildings. Much of the meeting concerned the Union Church: the fire chief reported a Life Safety Code inspection carried out with the State Fire Marshal, the town manager reported quotes for a structural engineer, the board went into executive session on the building, and afterwards the chair said the building is closed to entry until further notice. The board heard the code enforcement officer on the town's sign ordinance and a presentation from General Code on codifying the town's ordinances, and voted to form a solid waste committee of five members and two alternates to report back by January 1. Other business included road and fire department reports, the posting of meeting and site walk notices, the process for the town manager's annual review, and the consent agenda.

What was discussed

1. 9:33
   Public comment: trash collection in subdivisions

   A Day Road resident, Alan Purinton (?), asked whether anything restricts Casella from going down subdivision roads to collect at each house. He said the nine houses across from him will become twelve, that Casella has said it is moving to two 64-gallon containers that must be set three feet apart, and that winter plowing could make access a problem.

2. 9:33
   Public comment: town-owned historic buildings

   A Hallowell Road resident, Heather Hutchison (?), said the view she hears from town officials is that Durham's historic buildings must serve a financial purpose to be worth maintaining. She said the Union Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 2, 2001, that repair quotes were brought to the board at that time, and that the current state of the building follows from maintenance not being performed.

3. 14:49
   Road commissioner report and inspection of town properties

   The road commissioner, Calvin, reported that the town picnic tables have been rebuilt, including a table with a three-foot overhang for wheelchair access placed at River Park. An inspection of all town properties other than the Union Church found minor items such as vegetation to be cut back and bent trim at the salt shed, with a written report to go to the town manager. For the Union Church, the inspectors said they would recommend an engineer, and found the chimney unlined with evidence that the stove had been used.

4. 20:42
   Roads: bus routes, new truck, striping, bridge and ditching

   The road commissioner reported meeting the RSU5 transportation director about rerouting buses around the Swamp Road closure, delivery of the town's 550 by Ripley and Fletcher, and road striping scheduled for September 19 covering about 21 miles. The bridge deck was finished and gravelled, with paving scheduled for the 30th and the project about a month ahead of the guardrail schedule; the board discussed opening it with barrels and signage before the guardrail is in. Ditching was done on Route 125 with DOT flaggers, and Heather Roy asked again about the warning lights at Dead Man's Curve and about running power to the sensor instead of the solar panel.

5. 25:52
   Fire department report

   The fire chief reported a tanker shuttle water delivery drill in New Gloucester, a swift water rescue class held with Lisbon fire, and Narcan training provided by Maine EMS to several departments. Crews were sent to two Freeport fires on consecutive Saturdays. A school visit and open house are planned for fire prevention week, October 9 through 13, and the department's color guard will post the colors at the Portland Sea Dogs game on September 3 at one o'clock.

6. 25:52
   Sign ordinance: town attorney's opinion

   Alan Plummer reported that the town attorney concurred with Maine Municipal Association that no off-premises signs are allowed in Durham. Temporary signs tied to a specific event are allowed under state sign law if they carry the date they were put out and the name of the person who put them out; yard sale signs are exempt and may be up for seven days. He said he would contact people on his list, that Old Crow Ranch Meat Market would need a DOT sign, and that as addressing officer he can issue an address so contractors can post a number instead of a sign.

7. 36:49
   Historic District Commission and grant writing

   Josh Klein-Golden said that after a meeting with commission chair Lois Kilby-Chesley the board received an email offering grant writing for a fee, and that the optics of that offer following the discussion of ordinance section 12.6 were not appropriate. Lois Kilby-Chesley responded that grant writing is a private business she does in retirement, unrelated to the commission's duty under 12.6 to help owners find resources, that the figures are 8 percent and $175 an hour, and that she would not write a grant for the Union Church without a contract with the town. She also said that under the ordinance as written the commission would be sending the town a notice of violation for a building in disrepair.

8. 47:44
   Union Church life safety inspection

   The fire chief reported a Life Safety Code inspection of the Union Church conducted with a State Fire Marshal representative. Findings included a fire alarm system with no inspection history, no address numbers on the building (address given as 744 Royalsborough), extinguisher signage and placement, storage within two feet of the ceiling, and waste storage on the second floor. The Marshal and the chief concluded the building is an assembly use occupancy, which requires a construction permit through the plans review division and a second means of egress before any gathering; the chief also noted there is no running water and no bathroom facilities.

9. 1:04:24
   Structural engineer quotes and grant application

   Jerry Douglass said he had spoken to two firms: Criterium quoted a hard figure of $2,200, and Trillium Engineering quoted between one and two thousand dollars by the hour. Both are four to six weeks out from site visit to report. He has applied to MMA for a risk reduction grant of $2,200 with an October 1 deadline.

10. 1:09:40
    Executive session on the Union Church

    The board moved into executive session under 1 MRSA section 405 to discuss the Union Church building as real estate.

11. 1:23:01
    Union Church closed until further notice

    Coming out of executive session, the chair said there was no action taken and that the Union Church is closed with no entry until further notice while the town awaits the structural analysis. The only exception mentioned was a personal item such as a phone or wallet left behind.

12. 1:23:01
    Presentation on ordinance codification

    Zachary Dumont of General Code (?) described the codification process: compiling everything the town has passed, organising it into a code book, flagging conflicts with state statute, and putting the result to town meeting. He said the company has three editors working in Maine and 31 Maine codes online, that projects such as China and Bucksport run about 18 months, and that the online e-Code 360 platform gives access to codes from other communities. Jerry Douglass said he expects to put in a capital request for the work.

13. 1:44:18
    Board discussion of codification cost and next steps

    Zachary Dumont estimated the work at under $10,000 based on the roughly 236-page land use ordinance he found online, comparing it with a $32,000 quote for a northern Maine town with 1,250 pages of ordinances. Board members supported starting the process; Joe Tomm asked that the board go slowly given recent spending, and Jerry Douglass was asked to come back with other quotes and information.

14. 1:55:44
    Solid waste committee and RFP

    Heather Roy proposed a solid waste committee to look at long-term options, noting Casella is seeking a five-year contract with an automated system and that the current contract ends in June. Richard George asked whether the trigger was cost and suggested going out to RFP first, which the board agreed to do alongside forming the committee. The scope discussed included a transfer station, private roads, environmental options such as recycling and composting, and a trash ordinance.

15. 2:22:05
    Posting of meeting and site walk notices

    Heather Roy said notices for site walks and other meetings used to be posted in the news blast, on Facebook and on the town website but now appear only on the town calendar, and that a final decision was made on a project without the public knowing it was happening. Jerry Douglass said the staff member who did the postings is at the window 16 hours of a 20-hour budgeted week. He agreed to speak to the office staff and to George so agendas and notices are posted more widely.

16. 2:37:48
    Meeting schedule and board vacancy

    Heather Roy asked for an additional meeting because Jerry Douglass will be away for the first two weeks of October and appointments need making; no extra meeting was scheduled, and the board agreed to take up solid waste committee appointments on September 12. Jerry Douglass also reported that Neil Berry, an alternate, has asked to become a full voting member; the board said applications would be sought for the vacancy.

17. 2:43:40
    Town manager report: workers compensation and DEP testing

    Jerry Douglass reported that MMA has notified the town of a 10 percent workers compensation discount effective January 1 under its incentive program. He also reported a letter dated August 22 from the Department of Environmental Protection about testing farms that have spread sludge and their groundwater, said Durham is in tier three of four, and gave a contact number for residents with questions.

18. 2:49:16
    Town manager annual review process

    The board noted the town manager's first year and that a review is part of his contract. Members agreed to each write something in paragraph form, to ask the previous chair for input, and to include a self-assessment and goal setting; the item goes on the next agenda.

19. 2:49:16
    Consent agenda and upcoming meetings

    The board took up the consent agenda, warrants to sign, and upcoming meetings: Conservation Commission on 8/30, Union Church committee on 8/31, planning board on 9/6, and select board meetings on 9/12 and 9/29.

20. 2:54:19
    Recording of committee meetings

    A question was raised about which meetings are recorded. Two meetings, the Conservation Commission and the Union Church committee, were not recorded; the board discussed who can set up the streaming software and whether secretaries would need training.

What was decided

• 1:09:40
  Go into executive session under 1 MRSA section 405 to discuss the Union Church building (moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Joe Roy)passed
• 1:23:01
  The Union Church is closed with no entry until further notice, pending the structural analysis; the chair said no vote was needed and that no action was taken in executive sessionpassed
• 1:50:10
  Heather Roy may ask MMA and GPCOG about grants toward codification, without committing the town; agreed without a formal votepassed
• 2:16:55
  Form a solid waste committee of five members and two alternates to look at a transfer station, all roads including private roads, environmental options and a trash ordinance, and report back to the Select Board by January 1 (moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Joe Roy)passed
• 2:37:48
  No additional meeting was scheduled before September 12; solid waste committee appointments to be placed on the September 12 agendapassed
• 2:49:16
  Accept the consent agenda as presented (moved by Joe Tomm, seconded by Joe Roy)passed
• 2:54:19
  Adjourn at 9:25pm (moved by Joe Tomm, seconded by Joe Roy)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_22_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.

• go into executive sessioncarried 5-0

  Moved by Josh Klein-Golden, seconded by Joe Roy

• form a solid waste committee consisting of (5) five members and (2) two alternates, that will report back to the Select Board on the scope of the committee (transfer station option, incorporating of all roads – public an…carried 5-0

  Moved by Heather Roy, seconded by Joe Roy

• accept the consent agenda as presentedcarried 5-0

  Moved by Joe Tomm, seconded by Joe Roy

• adjourn at 9:25pmcarried 5-0

  Moved by Joe Tomm, seconded by Joe Roy

Worth knowing

• 53:21
  The State Fire Marshal determined the Union Church is an assembly use occupancy, requiring a construction permit through the plans review division and a second means of egress before any gathering. Occupancy is figured at one person per 15 square feet of floor area, which the chief said would exceed 50 people.
• 1:04:24
  Structural engineering quotes were $2,200 from Criterium and one to two thousand dollars by the hour from Trillium Engineering, with four to six weeks from site visit to report. The town manager applied for a $2,200 MMA risk reduction grant, deadline October 1, and said a bill arriving before the award would void the grant.
• 2:06:03
  Casella is asking Durham for a five-year contract and the current contract ends at the end of June. In another town that put a five-year contract out to bid, Casella was the only bidder, and years three, four and five carried no fixed price, to be adjusted by the Consumer Price Index.
• 2:43:40
  The Department of Environmental Protection is coming through town to test farms that have spread sludge and their groundwater. Durham is in tier three of four. Residents with questions were given the number 207-287-5842 for David Madore at DEP.

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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