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Minutes of 4/23/2012 DRAFT

April 27th, 2012

Carroll Board of Selectmen
Meeting Minutes
April 23, 2012
DRAFT
"These minutes of the Town of Carroll Select Board have been recorded by its Secretary. Though believed to be accurate and correct they are subject to additions, deletions and corrections by the Select Board at its next meeting when the Board votes its final approval of the minutes. They are being made available at this time to conform to the requirements of New Hampshire RSA 91-A:2."

Minutes recorded by Maryclare Quigley, Secretary

Board members present: Bill Dowling and Mark Catalano. Paul Bussiere was excused.

The meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by Chairman Dowling

Members of the public present: Joan Karpf, Linda Dowling, Bonnie Moroney, Carmine Fabrizio, Ann Fabrizio, Mike Gooden, Jeff Duncan, Scott Sonia, Dave Scalley, Guest, Christopher Allen, Elizabeth Allen, Nancy Mitiguy

Pledge of Allegiance

The meeting was filmed by Linda Dowling

The Board announced the approval of bills and signing of checks.

Chairman Dowling said approving the minutes would be tabled until Selectman Bussiere could be here.

Chairman Dowling requested that the Police Quarterly Activity Report be put into the correspondence binder for public viewing.

Selectman Catalano read a letter from Lee Hallquist as requested by Mr. Hallquist who also asked that it be entered into the minutes (attached). Selectman Catalano said he appreciates what Mr. Hallquist wrote and agrees with the need to work together and get along, and thanked him for the reminder. He went on to say the outcome of the last meeting was that the ZBA approved the application for Hunt Properties (though not necessarily as a result of the meeting.) After a brief discussion, he finished by saying the various Boards are to do two things which are: To protect the property of the town; and, To protect the people of town.

Selectman Catalano then spoke of the Water Department debt. The item will remain on the agenda until it is completed and they are hoping to have a meeting with the auditors during the second week of May.

Chairman Dowling advised that Greg Hogan, Road Agent, had an accident and will be out of commission for a while so he brought forth the bids for the New Straw Road reconstruction project. He announced bids had been submitted by: Busby Construction Co., Pike Industries, Inc., R & D Paving and GMI Asphalt. The Selectmen looked them over and Chairman Dowling recommended they send these to Greg for his review and recommendation. They want to be sure the quotes are comparable to each other and to look for any warranties there may be. The Chairman said if Mr. Hogan is back in the next couple of weeks, they will have him make the presentation.

Next on the agenda was the nomination of Nancy Mitiguy as a member of the Conservation Commission as recommended by the Commission. Chairman Dowling made a Motion to: Approve the nomination of Nancy Mitiguy as a member of the Conservation Commission. Selectman Catalano seconded and the Motion passed unanimously. It was noted that they still need new members, so any who wish to be on it should come forward.

Chairman Dowling then read a complaint form regarding the Selectmen’s requirement of people having to sign these forms submitted by Bonnie Moroney. Mrs. Moroney asked for an explanation why they made this a requirement as previous Boards felt otherwise. The Chairman said if it’s about an employee, the employee has the right to know who is complaining and Mrs. Moroney said it doesn’t specify that it’s only for employees, with which the Chairman agreed. He went on to say if it’s something against another citizen such as a leaking septic tank, etc. and it needs to go to court, they should know who submitted it. Mrs. Moroney said that shouldn’t be the citizens’ responsibility, that if something like that comes in, the Town should take it on. Selectman Catalano said first, he would prefer it being called what it is – an “Action Request Form” as it’s not necessarily just for complaints. He went on to say he feels it’s all right as long as people have the option to remain anonymous and the Board will respect it. However, he feels there have been many meetings when someone asked who made a complaint or statement and they couldn’t be identified. He also feels too much was being done inappropriately and the Select Board can look at the form and see that it’s legitimate. He also said there could be a perception that the Select Board is using it as leverage. He went on to say the LGC recommends that a signature be on it and that it is also up to the Board of Selectmen to decide the level of anonymity.

Chairman Dowling read a second form submitted by Mrs. Moroney regarding what she felt was rudeness by the Chairman at the previous meeting and that perhaps a new chairman might be warranted. The Chairman said he was responding to talking in the room and that people have to respect his Office, not necessarily him. Mrs. Moroney said she understands but felt the response was not the way it should have been and it could have been handled better. She also added that he had cut other people off when they had been recognized. Chairman Dowling responded by reading RSA 91-A, Right-to-Know which allows the public to come and take notes, tape, etc., but does not give them the right to speak. Selectman Catalano said all people want to be respect and all should be respectful. He said he feels they don’t want to consider another chairman at this point.

Jeff Duncan submitted the invoice which had just been received for the new ambulance and advised the vehicle is expected to be here in about a week and a half. It was announced that the old ambulance was being taken in as a trade with an allowance of $12,000. The Selectmen authorized payment of the invoice this week.

Elizabeth Allen was in attendance and asked if there is anything that might be done about the big dogs at a residence across from the Tarry Ho Campground. She said she lives off Blueberry Hill Lane and because she likes to walk to the Post Office, etc., she has to walk past this house. In spite of walking on the other side of the road, she has been jumped on and twice grabbed by at least one of these dogs. Fortunately there has been nothing serious, though one time the dog did draw blood from her hand. When asked, she said she had spoken to the Police several times and they keep giving the people fines. The Board said they will look at the Ordinance and will speak with the Police and they will get back to her. Mrs. Allen thanked the Board.

Other:

Joan Karpf said she was interested in information on controlled burns for training and wondered if Jeff Duncan could give any. She said she was thinking of getting rid of abandoned buildings in town. Chief Duncan said this is possible, however, they must be able to use the property as actual training, and believes the State Office likes to be able to use them about three times or so. He also said that asbestos abatement is required and thus some owners don’t want to donate the property as they don’t want the cost to do so. It was noted the town doesn’t have a policy or form for this, but the Fire Department does. When asked, Chief Duncan said the owner is responsible for any expense regarding asbestos.

Mrs. Karpf also spoke about the Action Request Form and she is concerned is Stan (Borkowski, Building Inspector) is involved there could be a cost to the town. She wondered if people should have to reference an ordinance or something if they want him contacted. Selectman Catalano said the Select Board looks at all Forms and based on what they see, they determine who gets it. He said not everything goes to Stan. He also said he wouldn’t leave it up to the individual to know if there is an ordinance or law about something.

Jeff Duncan referenced a conversation he had with Chairman Dowling about the garage door motor that needs to be replaced at the Fire Station. He said the door requires manual operation now and asked if this could be fixed and would be around $1,000. Chairman Dowling said it could be but he should check with Greg Hogan first as it will come from the General Buildings budget.

Selectman Catalano said the Select Board had met with DRA (Department of Revenue Administration) and CNP (Commerford Nieder Perkins) about our revaluation. He said the last time a revaluation was done the town value was about 400 million dollars. The CNP representative said historically about a third of property goes up in value, about a third goes down in value and about a third stays the same. Selectman Catalano said he believes what we are dealing with now in the entire country, not just here, is something new and what may have been true in the past, may not be true anymore. The Board had been talking about the town value going down 30 to 35% and CNP’s early estimate is that the town value will be about 300 million dollars—so the over-all value may go down 24 to 25%. He said he doesn’t want to create fear, but wants people to be knowledgeable that the tax rate may be to go up for the amount of money that has to be raised. He also reiterated that touch decisions will have to be made. Selectman Catalano also said the Budget Committee had their first meeting this week and invited anyone who would like to come to attend the Selectmen and Budget Committee meetings.

Joan Karpf said she found an article in the Town and City Magazine about tax rates was very informative and gave a copy to each Budget Committee member. There is a copy on the bulletin board here at the Town Hall. She has since heard positive responses from her colleagues on the Committee. Mrs. Karpf also said there was a good article about budgets.

As there was no further business, the Board was polled and went into non-public session for town aid at 7:55 p.m.

At the close of Non-Public Session, Chairman Dowling moved to return to Public Session and seal the minutes from Non-Public Session. Selectman Catalano seconded and the Motion passed unanimously.

There being no further discussion, Chairman Dowling made a Motion to: adjourn the meeting. Selectman Catalano seconded and the Motion passed unanimously. Chairman Dowling declared the meeting ended at 8:15 p.m. The next meeting will be on Monday, May 7, 2012.