NOTES OF OCTOBER 14, 2015 RYE BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING
Final Revision B – Provided by the Rye Civic League
Present (clockwise around table): Town Finance Director Cyndi Gillespie, Selectmen Musselman, Jenness and Mills,. Not present: Town Administrator Michael Magnant.
Also present and sitting in the audience: Public Works Director Dennis McCarthy, Interim Fire Chief Tom Lambert, Police Chief Kevin Walsh, Planning Administrator Kim Reed, Recreation Director Lee Arthur.
Persons present from the public included: Russ Bookholz, Steven Borne, Peter Crawford, Randy Crapo, Mae Bradshaw, Jeanne Moynahan, Phil Winslow,
Editor’s
note: For ease in finding particular
sections using the archived video and audio on the Town website, the elapsed
time is indicated. Use the slider and
the elapsed time indicated at the bottom of the video window to fast forward to
the desired section. Videos on the Town website may currently be accessed
at www.town.rye.nh.us by clicking on
“Town Hall Streaming” at the bottom left of the screen. Follow the link for “Town Hall Live
Streaming,” then find the meeting by date under “Previous.”
The video starts
at 6:30:08 p.m. (0:00 elapsed).
Summary
Announcements
Prior to the start of the recording, it was
announced that the Rye Town Hall was among the finalists of the “Seven to Save”
program. Editor’s note: Rye Town Hall and
the Oceanic Hotel on Star Island in Rye were subsequently selected as two of
the seven. This is a State program which
may open up funding sources for the renovation of Town Hall. It was also announced that Library
Director Andy Richmond had been selected as Library Director of the year. Selectman Musselman was discussing the
meeting the prior night at which the Town Hall Survey results were revealed
when the video began. Editor’s note: It appears that the meeting started slightly
prior to 6:30 p.m., resulting in the truncation as recording was not scheduled
to begin until 6:30 p.m.
Discussion of Town Hall Survey report (0:00 elapsed)
As the recording begins, Selectman Musselman
is describing the report of the survey that has been completed. He stated that it does not provide a clear
path forward, although it indicates what the residents did not like. There will be more discussion at a meeting of
the Town Hall Committee on the 21st, he said. The document is on the Town website, he said.
Consent Agenda (1:09 elapsed)
Selectman Jenness announced that Jared
Wile-Marble of the Public Works Department had achieved the status of Roads
Scholar One. The Webster at Rye
requested permission to hold a raffle on December 5. She would like to pull item (c) which is to
set a date for the Deliberative Session.
All were in favor of the other two items, (a) and (b).
Deliberative Session Date (1:53 elapsed)
Selectman Jenness said that the earliest
that it could be held is Saturday, January 30 and the last day that it can be
held is Saturday, February 5. Editor’s note: February 5, 2016 is a Friday. It appears that she meant February 6. The precedent has been to take the
earlier date so that the later date would be available as a snow date. Selectman Musselman moved that the Deliberative
Session be January 30 and the snow date February 6.
Capital Improvement Program (“CIP”) Plan (2:46
elapsed)
CIP Committee Chairman
Ned Paul presented the plan. He brought
two graphs that show the impact on the debt service (i.e. principal and
interest) of projects proposed, and another with projects delayed in accordance
with the recommendations of the CIP Committee.
He stated that the CIP Plan is a four month process. Any capital project over $15,000 is included
in the plan. For comparison, he will
leave copies of the North Hampton and Portsmouth CIP Plans.
This year, some
departments, including Water, Cemetery (which is self-funding), and the Rye
Beach and Jenness Beach districts were not added up under Board of Selectmen
responsibility. The schools were
included. Editor’s note: The Rye Water
District and the two Beach Districts are separate entities with their own
annual town meetings and voter approval of their budgets. Each has independent authority to levy
taxes. The same is also true of the Rye
School District. However, unlike the
other three, but like the Town, School District taxation impacts all taxpayers
in Rye in proportion to the assessed valuation of their properties. The Cemetery is not separate from the Town
and the Town budget includes this entity, which is not the case with the other
four.
There are nine projects for 2016, Mr. Paul
said:
1.
A dump truck, $165,000. The priority is 1 (secure life and property).
2.
Town Hall building design. The plan is for $200,000.
3.
Red Mill Rd. culvert, $150,000. The priority is 1, rank is 3.
4.
Police Department SUV, $54,000. The priority is 2, rank is 4.
5.
Ambulance, $275,000.
The priority is 2, rank is 5 as the ambulance is in working condition.
6.
Junior High School boiler replacement, $150,000
(heating only).
7.
Library boiler replacement, $190,000 (includes heating
and cooling)
8.
School security doors.
9.
Rec. Community Center needs study.
Mr. Paul then addressed
the 2017-2021 projects. In 2017, three
departments have presented major projects that would require bonding, including
the Town Hall, $3 million more for Conservation, and the Rec. Community
Center. In 2018 there is a $575,000 fire
truck replacement. The quint is 28 years
old, however there is only $153,000 set aside for its replacement. There is also breathing apparatus for the
fire department. In 2019, large projects
are the salt shed, which is a priority 1, for $250,000. However, there is nothing in the plan
relating to the redevelopment of the Transfer Center. The school roof replacement for $200,000 is
also scheduled for 2019. In 2020 the
library has asked for new carpet and painting for $110,000, and school paving
in that year is another $130,000. In
2021 there is $180,000 for a cat loader for Public Works.
Editor’s note: Several large
Water District projects were omitted by Mr. Paul, apparently because those are
not under the purview of the Selectmen.
Mr. Paul referred back
to the graphs. If all three projects are
funded in 2017, the bond debt would spike to unprecedented levels, he
said. That is a problem, so delays to
projects were recommended. The CIP
Committee has ten recommendations:
1.
Make the Town Hall a priority 1 for safety reasons.
2.
The Town Hall design costs should be reduced as two
plans have already been done. The cost
should be half, he asserted.
3.
The Town Hall should move forward at a lower cost than
the $3.8 million place holder an amount which was voted down. The footprint should be smaller so that the
Town would approve it and they should try to work with the 10,500 sq. ft. that
the original Space Needs Committee came up with after interviewing all of the
departments. Editor’s note: Mr. Paul was
Chairman of that Committee, which did its work in 2012.
4.
The school boiler is the higher priority, so the Library
boiler should be delayed until 2017.
5.
The new fire truck should be funded in 2018. There is only $153,000 in the capital reserve
fund, so there should be $100,000 warrant articles in each of 2016 and
2017. That would mean a $225,000 warrant
article in 2018.
6.
The 2017 conservation bond request should be delayed a
year. Sally King, Chairman of the
Conservation Commission has agreed to that, provided that Town Hall proceeds in
2018.
7.
The Recreation Community Center should be delayed to
2019 pending Town Hall approval. It
should also be made more affordable.
8.
The Rye Harbor Bridge project should be advanced from
2018 to 2017 as there is concern that the bridge is unstable and in need of
work.
9.
The Salt Shed should be advanced from 2019 due to
environmental concerns.
10. The Police
Department SUV in 2016 looks like a good idea but the $60,000 budget in each
year indicates that a cruiser (sic) is planned each year. These are less fuel efficient, he asserted.
Also, the ambulance should possibly be delayed, but more information is
needed. Mr. Paul stated that the
proposed modifications keep the debt level equal to what it was in 2011.
Selectman Jenness noted
that the plan becomes more readable each year.
For next year, a close look at the Parsonage needs to be taken. A major decision is needed within the next
three years as the lease expires in 2019.
Selectman Musselman said that it may be sold. There would thus be either a major capital
expense or minor income, he said.
Mr. Paul said that, in
2019, the waste water treatment agreement with Hampton expires, so that will
need to be dealt with as well.
Selectman Musselman
stated that they had done an outstanding job this year. A good job has been done integrating the
information, which has not been done in past years. It is a valid planning document. In the past, he has described this as a wish
list.
Selectman Musselman
said that he does not understand why a quint is needed for its ladder
capability. There are two ladder trucks
permanently parked a mile away on Lafayette Rd.
A ladder truck is used a couple of times a year. There are ongoing discussions with
Portsmouth. They could be paid to bring
their ladder truck whenever asked. It
could be rented for a pittance compared to buying a new one, he argued.
Randy Crapo noted that
the North Hampton plan opposes the purchase by that town of a ladder truck.
Selectman Musselman
said that they would look at the ambulance and see if a year can be bought.
Selectman Musselman
stated that he did not know that the police are headed towards SUVs. He thought that they were going to get
Priuses. There was laughter.
Selectman Musselman
moved to accept the plan with the CIP-recommended adjustments. All were in favor.
Selectman Mills stated
that the bond figures would change. He
was shocked when he learned the prior night that all of the renovations of the
existing Town Hall could be done for $1 million.
Selectman Musselman
said that it could not be done for $1 million as the cost estimate did not
include the heating system, which was in the other building, and it did not
include an elevator, which was also in the other building. No work outside of the footprint of the
existing building was included in the estimate, thus excluding the new septic
system and site work. If something were
to be done inside this footprint, the cost would be far more, he asserted.
Mae Bradshaw asked
whether they actually had the cost figures.
Selectman Musselman stated that they could be estimated, however to get
an elevator into the existing building would require a different design. It is going to be more than $1 million but it
doesn’t need to be $3.8 million. With
the input that was received they are going to have to, and can, come up with a
less expensive Town Hall plan, “but we’ll see,” he said.
Peter Crawford said
that he thought it was a public hearing.
Selectman Jenness stated that she was now calling for public input. Mr. Crawford stated that he would have hoped
that it would have occurred prior to the vote.
Selectman Musselman said that they would change their vote if he
convinced them otherwise.
Mr. Crawford stated,
with regard to Town Hall, that, based on the presentation on the website, 25
percent of the respondents do not want to spend anything and 25 percent want to
spend either $2 million or $2.5 million.
Anything more than $2.5 million is a non-starter. It cannot be $3.8 million. The design for $200,000, separately voted may
also be a non-starter. He asked why
people would vote to do a full-blown design when there is a strong possibility
that the Town may not end up voting for that design. That was the mistake that was made
before. He suggested that, in 2016,
perhaps $50,000 for a schematic design should be requested.
Mr. Crawford stated
that he understands that there is now a culvert plan or study. He asked when the culverts were going to
appear in the CIP Plan. Public Works
Director Dennis McCarthy that they would be added “next year.” He agreed with the statement that he has a
sense as to the order that he wants to do them in. Selectman Musselman stated that what is in
the CIP Plan is consistent with the highest priority. He stated that Mr. Crawford was correct that
there would be more down the road. Mr.
Crawford stated that there is only one culvert replacement in there now, and
that he assumes that there will be more within the time frame of the CIP next
year. Mr. McCarthy agreed.
Mr. Crawford stated
that he had a similar concern to the one that Ned Paul expressed on the
ambulance. He stated that Skip Sullivan
used to come up with ideas for two ambulances and ways that he could take the
back part of the ambulance, the patient area, off and put it in a different
ambulance. Mr. Crawford asked whether
money could be saved by doing something like that. There was debate about whether the $275,000
included an entire ambulance or just a portion.
Mr. Crawford suggested
that the experience of other towns in terms of the mileage that they are
getting out of their ambulances needs to be looked at. He asked whether the ambulance didn’t have
about 88,000 miles and was eight years old.
Interim Fire Chief Tom Lambert agreed that those figures were
approximately correct. Mr. Crawford
stated that Joe Cummins had made some calls and ascertained that the typical
ambulance is good for about 180,000 miles.
With only 11,000 miles per year delaying the purchase a year or two may
not result in substantial additional repair costs. Although it would not be good for the
ambulance to break down on the way to a call, that would seem to be unlikely at
this mileage, he said.
Mr. Crawford stated
that if the Conservation Bond slips to 2018 that would be $3 million spent in
four years as the last bond was 2014.
That would amount to $750,000 per year.
The bond voted early in the 2000s was $5 million but lasted ten
years. That was $500,000 per year, so
this would be a 50 percent increase.
Randy Crapo stated that
the entire $3 million would not be borrowed at once as they would seek
acquisitions and draw the bond down only when needed.
Mr. Crawford agreed
that Mr. Crapo was correct. He stated
that his point was somewhat different.
He is in favor of having a pot of money in case a Rand Lumber comes up
which could have been bought for a lot less had the money been available in the
conservation fund at the time. He is
talking about the run rate and how much the Town is willing to spend on an
average annual basis. Some years might
be zero, others might be $2 million. The
question is the average over a number of years.
The Town had been running at a $500,000 annual rate, this would make it
a $750,000 rate. The last bond issue
passed by only seven votes.
Selectman Mills
interrupted and said that Mr. Crawford was getting into a lot of specifics that
are not needed right now. “If you want
to go after the Conservation Commission and how much money they want to spend,
or they want to get, save it, because it’s not right now. Mr. Crawford stated that he did not agree, as
that is the purpose of the public hearing.
Mr. Crawford stated
that the other issue that he has is with the Rec. Community Center. In light of a lot of things being voted down
around the State, including the Town Hall, last year, the willingness of people
to spend a lot of money is fairly minimal.
Something needs to be done. The
modulars are pretty poor. He stated that
something could be done for a lot less than $2.5 million.
Mr. Crapo stated that
the CIP Plan is a planning tool, not a pre-approval.
Mr. Crawford stated
that he understood that. He said that
this is a great job this year as there are recommendations for the 2016
projects and a ranking, one through nine, which is absolutely great. What’s missing is the visibility to the out
years and the beginning of building a sense in Town among the public and people
on the committees as to what is going to fly, and what is not, so that plans
can be made accordingly.
Steven Borne, 431
Wallis Rd., asked whether there was a target level of debt in the CIP
Plan. Mr. Paul responded that the target
was $1 million to $1.25 million. Editor’s note: The reference is apparently to the debt
service (i.e. principal and interest repayments in any particular year) rather
than the total debt, which is much higher.
Mr. Borne asked what the “mortgage” was that the Town can afford to
balance out the expenditures. Mr. Paul
responded that it was $1 million.
Currently only $.5 million is being spent because a few things have been
paid off, he said.
(41:17 elapsed)
Mr. Borne said that he
understood that they were voting to accept the vote of the CIP Committee. He asked when the public would engage in
talking about the priorities. The
conversations that he is having with residents indicate that people are asking
when something is going to be done with Rye Recreation and when the Transfer
Station is going to be fixed up. The
Town Hall is not in the discussion of what people would like to see. He asked when there could be an open dialogue.
Mae Bradshaw noted that
there are public hearings as part of the CIP process. Editor’s
note: Mr. Crapo and Ms. Bradshaw are
both members of the CIP Committee.
Selectman Mills asked whether Mr. Borne
conducted regular hearing sessions at his house. Selectman Mills asked if he had conducted
sessions about signs at the beaches, or about the Town Hall.
Mr. Borne stated that
he gets his information the same way Selectman Mills does: by talking to people.
Everyone gravitates to
you, Selectman Mills said.
Mr. Borne indicated
that he has e-mail and people know that he is involved and know what he
does. At school and youth sports events
people ask questions, he said.
Selectman Musselman
stated that, what is in place is two hearings on the CIP and an annual budget
process. That will be disseminated to
the Town and there will be hearings and a Deliberative Session on that, he
said.
Mr. Borne suggested
round tables with hundreds of people, as Portsmouth Listens does.
Mr. Crapo asked whether
there was a comment section on the Town website. Selectman Jenness said that she did not think
so.
Ned Paul suggested spot
for surveys on the website, which could be done several times a year.
Selectman Musselman
cautioned that a 50 person response may not be valid. There was an 1100 person response to the Town
Hall Committee’s survey which UNH is going to write papers about as the
response rate resulting from the signs had not been seen before.
Mr. Crapo stated that
the Town would like more regular input.
Minutes (47:02 elapsed)
The minutes of Monday,
September 28 were unanimously approved without changes.
The minutes of the
non-public session of the same day were unanimously approved without
changes.
Surplus equipment auction (47:37 elapsed)
Public Works Director
Dennis McCarthy stated that there was a 1998 six-wheel dump truck, a 2003
one-ton dump truck, three police cruisers and one dumpster that are all out of
service and have been replaced by newer equipment. He would like to put the equipment out for
bid. It is set up for Thursday November
5. The Selectmen would then be able to
approve the final prices prior to sale.
Selectman Mills asked
how the police department ended up with three cruisers. Mr. McCarthy stated that only one is a police
cruiser. One is his old “cruiser,” and
one was used by someone else, he said. Editor’s note: The Town has followed a policy of repurposing
old police cruisers for other Town uses.
Town Finance Director Cyndi Gillespie stated
that the Town is starting to get a “cruiser graveyard” down there.
Selectman Mills stated
that he wondered whether vehicles were being stockpiled. The fire chief, when he was in Vermont,
traded in a fire truck before the Selectmen smartened up, he said. Mr. McCarthy stated that is why they are all
in one place, so they know which they are.
There was agreement to
allow Mr. McCarthy to proceed.
Recreation Space Needs Committee
appointments (49:58 elapsed)
Selectman Jenness
stated that there were letters from seven people requesting to serve on this
Committee. They are: Beverly Levesque, Garritt Toohey, Shawn
Crapo, John Provencher, Doug Abrams, Randy Crapo and Tom Degnan.
Selectman Musselman
suggested adding Gregg Mikolaities and Priscilla Jenness.
Steven Borne asked how
all of those people knew to submit their letters as he and Peter Crawford both
pay a lot of attention to what is going on and he missed this. The letters all came at once, he
asserted. Mr. Borne stated that he
reached out to a number of people regarding this and none of them had heard
anything about it. Tom Degnan, who is on
the Rye Little League board, made his request as a result of Mr. Borne having
reached out to him. Mr. Borne suggested
that, prior to filling all of the slots, people that are highly involved in
youth sports should be contacted.
Selectman Musselman
admitted that only the Budget Committee members and Selectman Jenness had been
contacted. The Recreation Commission
encouraged others, he said.
Lee Arthur made
additional comments regarding the process.
Selectman Jenness said
that this has been in the building process for over six months.
Selectman Musselman
moved to appoint eight of the nine people indicated above, omitting Beverly
Levesque’s name, for a one year term on the Committee. Editor’s
note: The failure to mention Ms.
Levesque’s name appears to have been inadvertent, possibly because her name was
on the prior page of the agenda.
Letter from Kaitlyn Coffey regarding the sign at the end of Lang Rd.
(55:57 elapsed)
Police Chief Kevin
Walsh stated that he had exchanged e-mails with Ms. Coffey. They are trying to
arrange a meeting. The message board has
been changed to address the issue of vehicles stopping. The crosswalk has been moved closer to
Washington Rd. to be more in line with pedestrian traffic. An additional turn lane was added to deal
with congestion in the area, but people have taken advantage of this to turn
right without making a full stop. They
will be doing more direct enforcement relating to that.
Selectman Jenness asked
when the change had occurred. Chief
Walsh stated that it had been approved by the Selectmen the prior year, but to
be cost effective had not been implemented until the last couple of weeks.
There was discussion
about how long it had been in place and when the issue had been on the agenda.
Chief Walsh stated that
he would meet with Ms. Coffey and report back to the Board.
Abenaqui Country Club raffle (61:12 elapsed)
Selectman Jenness
stated that this was a request for a raffle on November 7 to benefit Acorn
School in Stratham, NH. The request was
approved unanimously.
Fencing at Library (62:10 elapsed)
Public Works Director
Dennis McCarthy stated that the fence has rotted, has settled and is
leaning. The Library has asked whether
the Town would like to participate with funds set aside for the Parsonage. Selectman Mills stated that the money is all
needed for the Parsonage Apartments.
Mr. McCarthy stated
that estimates for $13,750 and $13,550 and $10,250 had been received. The Library would like the Town to pay half.
That led to discussion
about other improvements at the Parsonage Apartments. Mr. McCarthy stated that the parking lot had
been paved that day, the roof the prior year, and the boiler replacement is
ongoing. Ms. Gillespie stated that,
after the expenditures, there would be only $1000 left in the Parsonage
Apartments fund. She stated that the
paving was in the prior year’s budget but the funds had been encumbered. She suggested another source of funds for the
fence.
Selectman Mills stated
that the Town is so far behind with the Parsonage that they could start
tomorrow and it would be a money pit.
Selectman Musselman
noted that there was a proposal to construct 8-10 additional units on the site
right inside of the fence. Editor’s note: See the notes of the September 28, 2015 meeting,
at which Marty Chapman of the Housing Partnership, which manages the Parsonage
Apartments, made a proposal which would have the town giving them the Parsonage
Apartments, an extensive renovation of the apartments that exist, and new
units.
It was decided that
this was not a good time to move forward on the fence out of the Town
budget.
State Japanese Knotwood spraying at Parsons and Brackett Roads (69:01
elapsed)
Mr. McCarthy stated
that a representative from the State Department of Agriculture had started a
program of spraying for Japanese Knotwood along State highway corridors. There is a large stand along Parsons Rd. by
the intersection with Brackett Rd. The Town
owns that property. They are asking for
permission to spray that stand. They use
a type of Roundup. It results in an
85-100 percent control in the first application, he said.
There was discussion
about whether the maps might be incorrect.
There was concern about
the impact on water quality from spraying Roundup on the wetlands.
Mr. McCarthy stated
that Japanese Knotweed spreads to the roadsides and then onto properties
through the mowing of the roadsides.
Selectman Musselman
suggested that the Conservation Commission be contacted to see if this is a
good idea. The motion to approve the
spraying carried, contingent upon their approval.
Abenaqui golf course salt water intrusion
(75:15 elapsed)
Mr. McCarthy stated
that they are having a problem with salt water intrusion into their irrigation
ponds. The seepage is raising the
salinity level. They would like to put
in a tide flex check valve to keep the water out at high tide.
Selectman Musselman
stated that this would reduce the hydraulic capacity and ask how they knew that
flooding of Causeway Rd. would not result.
Mr. McCarthy enumerated
a set of conditions for them to proceed with this. Selectman Musselman stated that he believed
that it would be OK if all of those conditions are met.
Request for restrooms at sewer pumping station (87:20 elapsed)
Randy Crapo suggested
that restrooms be installed at the end of Cable Rd. where it intersects the
boardwalk. Those would replace the Porta
Potties that are there only during the summer.
There are no facilities during the winter. The state restrooms close at 5:00, Mr. Crapo
said.
Paving near Jenness Beach
Steven Borne commented
about the quality of paving on the State road where the bushes were removed
near Jenness Beach. Mr. McCarthy
confirmed that no additional paving coat is planned and that it is not the
smoothest paving done by the State.
Parsons Creek grant redeployment (89:42
elapsed)
Planning Administrator Kim Reed
stated Sally Soule of New Hampshire DES was present. Ms. Reed said that the second phase of the
319 grant recently approved by the Selectmen is coming along great. A lot of monitoring is being done, she
said.
They have uncovered high bacteria
rates and overnight seeps. They would
like to move some funds from task 20, transferring funds from monitoring to
looking at hot spots. They will be back
in two weeks to look at a feasibility study.
Mr. Magnant had suggested that prior to moving funds, Selectmen approval
is needed, she said.
Sally Soule stated that $12,000 had
been budgeted for 25 septic systems.
They would like to transfer $10,000 of that to finding out specifically
where the sources are. No failed septic
systems have been found near Marsh Rd., she said.
Ms. Soule stated that Governor and
Council (G&C) approval will be needed.
There will still be $2000 left which would provide for 4-5 septic system
evaluations, she said.
Selectman Musselman questioned
whether the homes on Ocean Blvd. that back up on the salt marsh, the homes
discharging waste water at the south end of Wallis Sands, and the homes on
Concord Pt., can support septic systems.
If there is only $2000 they will not come close to answering that
question, he said.
Ms. Soule stated that the $12,000
probably wouldn’t answer the question either.
Ms. Reed stated that Peter Rowell
had suggested six properties in the area to be tested.
Ms. Soule stated that they had had
people there the prior week and expected to find a failed septic system but did
not.
Selectman Musselman asked about a
reference to the Town seeking an SRF loan.
Ms. Reed stated that this was not the case but that they would be
addressing that in two weeks.
Selectman Jenness asked whether they
had any idea how many years it was going to take to actually solve the
problem. Ms. Reed stated that she did
not have an answer. She stated that they
wanted to come back in two weeks and ask for the loan to do a feasibility study
and come up with a broader plan. Editor’s note: See the notes of the October 26, 2015 meeting
at which it was proposed that the Town borrow $79,000 for the study, of which
20% would be forgiven.
Selectman Musselman asked where, other
than north of Marsh Rd., source tracking was being done. Ms. Reed responded that they were doing the
entire Parsons Creek watershed. She stated
that areas that have not been sampled for five years will be revisited.
There was discussion about how the
funds could be redeployed without G&C approval. Ms. Reed asked for Selectmen’s permission.
Selectman Musselman said that he did
not believe that they could vote to do that as they have no paperwork and no
G&C approval. He has asked about
this before and had always been told that this sort of thing could not be done
without prior approval.
Ms. Soule stated that there is a
clause in the contract providing for this, however, any work done without
approval would be at the risk of the Town.
If the paperwork is done G&C approval can be obtained prior to the
end of November. The discussion revealed
that this would be too late.
Selectman Musselman stated that they
need to see the paperwork. Selectman
Jenness agreed.
Steven Borne noted that almost every
rock is turning green and nothing is being cleaned up.
Ms. Soule stated that Rye has been
doing a good job. It is a difficult
problem. The Town is making a commitment
to deal with the problem and is taking it seriously.
Mr. McCarthy stated that he also
feels the frustration which is why something to kick it into high gear is being
proposed.
Ms. Soule stated that the numbers
have been super high, but Rob goes back and gets numbers in the 900s. Editor’s
note: See the notes of the October 26,
2015 meeting at which it was revealed that there were samples exceeding 20,000,
while the limit is 104. People are
frustrated with DES because they have not found the smoking gun, she said.
Selectman Musselman asked whether
test pits with an excavator were going to be done. Ms. Soule said that only $500 per
investigation is budgeted.
Randy Crapo went back to the Rye
Beach example. There were 24
polluters. They knew where the contamination
was. The other 500 asked to join the
sewer were not tested. A blanket
economic solution was put in place and 500 people were forced to put holes in
their septic systems and connect to the sewer.
He stated that he hopes that that is not what is going to happen here,
with the whole region forced to do something as was done in Rye Beach.
Selectman Musselman stated that
there is only one smoking gun which is the situation at the Parsons Creek
outlet at low tide.
Ms. Soule stated that they will find
out on the 26th that the problem is broader than had been thought
and will need a bigger fix.
Selectman Jenness noted a difference
with Rye Beach. There, two long pipes
transferred sewage from Rye Beach directly into the ocean, which resulted in
the Town being under State mandate.
Mr. Crapo stated that they are
gathering more evidence so that the State can come in and force the Town to do
something.
Ms. Soule disagreed, saying that the
Town is being proactive. The Town has a
watershed plan in place, she said.
Ms. Soule stated that EPA and the
State recognize that this takes a long time.
It is like doing regulatory avoidance.
The creek is already on the 303(b) list.
They are trying to take it off.
(114:22 elapsed)
Selectman Jenness referred to the
report back in the 1980s when the Rye Beach sewer was put in. It said that the town as a whole would be all
right for the next 20 years, but the next spot needing attention will be Wallis
Sands.
Selectman Musselman raised his hand
and said that that was his report, done in 1978.
Steven Borne stated that State
Representatives David Borden and Tom Sherman had offered their assistance.
There was discussion about a
pump-out ordinance. Ms. Reed stated that
they should hold off on this.
Selectman Mills referred to the duck
pond at 800 Ocean Blvd., the Breakers.
Ms. Soule stated that it was on Rob Livingston’s list and would be
looked at eventually. She stated that
she would speak to Rob. They both report
to Steve Landry, she said.
There was further discussion about
the duck pond.
Non-public
session (118:22 elapsed)
The Selectmen then voted to go into
non-public session on personnel and litigation.