Vassalboro Select Board
Minutes of the Meeting
August 23, 2018

Members Present: Lauchlin Titus, John Melrose, and Rob Browne (6:35)

Others Present: Mary Sabins, Mary Grow, Dick Dolby, Tom Richards, George Hamar and his daughter Sierra, Melissa Olson, and Billy & Roxanne Pullen.

1. Call to order – The meeting was called to order by Chairman Titus at 6:30 p.m.

2. Minutes – On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by L. Titus, the Board voted unanimously to accept the minutes of the 7/12/18 and the 8/6/18 meetings as written. Chairman Titus noted that he did not attend the 8/6/18 meeting, but the minutes reflected the action that was anticipated to be taken that day (setting the mil rate).

3. Public Hearing on Declaration of a Dangerous Building – Code Officer Dick Dolby advised the Board that no hearing was necessary this evening, as the owner of the building has obtained the funding to replace the failed septic system, and the ground excavation work in is progress. On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by L. Titus, the Board voted unanimously to table this agenda item until the September 6th meeting.

Selectman Rob Browne arrived at this time (6:35).

4. Leon Cummings did not appear at the meeting after he requested to be placed on the agenda to discuss a right-of-way access over Ilona Drive. No action was taken on this agenda item.

5. Tom Richards stated he was looking for clarification on what is going on with the single-sort recycling program at the transfer station so he can advise his customers. Chairman Titus explained that the item is on the agenda a little further down, and Tom agreed to wait for that portion of the meeting.

6. Roll-off containers – Transfer Station Manager George Hamar stated that Bolsters (the current trash hauler) is willing to buy our two old roll-off containers that are no longer road worthy, and will pay $400 each for them. George stated that he has been using them for storage at the transfer station, but can do without them and wants to use the proceeds from the sale toward the purchase price of a new roll-off container that was authorized at town meeting. The price of the container has gone up since budget and town meeting time. After discussion, and on a motion made by R. Browne, seconded by J. Melrose, the Board voted unanimously to sell the two old containers to Bolsters for $400 each.

Chairman Titus gave Selectman Browne a quick summary of the action the Board had taken thus far in the meeting.

7. Single-sort recycling program – Chairman Titus explained that he and Sabins had attended an open house tour at the Fiberight facility in Hampden a month or more ago, and that discussion was given during the tour about a section of the building that will be dedicated to handling recyclables from single-sort programs among member towns. Sabins stated that she had received word from Fiberight Representative Shelby Wright that Fiberight has hopes to be able to receive single-sort products by the end of October or the first of November. For now, until the new Fiberight disposal option becomes available, the Town will continue to accept single-sort recyclables as we have done for several years and dispose of it with the municipal solid waste at the Norridgewock Landfill.

8. Personnel Handbook – With little discussion, and on a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to move forward with the Town Manager’s recommendations for changes to the Personnel Handbook as proposed at the July 12th meeting. Sabins will prepare a clean copy of the Handbook without highlights for the Board to sign.

9. Recreational Park beside Historical Society – J. Melrose told of the historical information that he had learned about the park area around the Civil War Monument on Route #32. He stated that historic photos of the site revealed that trees were once located on the site as a border between the school yard (now Historical Society) and the monument park. Also in the historical photos, he noted that there was a bandstand/gazebo located in the northeast corner of the monument park at one time. According to former Historical Society President Kent London, early on, the First Baptist Church was located on this site and around 1848 it served as a burial grounds for them. It was not a burial ground for Civil War Veterans. The headstones were removed, but it is uncertain if the buried remains were moved. Before the Civil War Monument went up, but after the church left, the land was apparently tilled for farming in spite of its use as a burial grounds. J. Melrose further stated that Fieldstone Gardens owner Steve Jones has some trees that he would like to donate to the Town for planting in the park at the border of the two former sites as was done in years past. In preparation for that work, the tree stumps from the old plantings have been removed by Mr. Jones and/or his stump removal contractor. J. Melrose read a list of maintenance and enhancement projects in the park area that have been suggested and approved by the Vassalboro Conservation Commission that included removal of the old chain link fence, removal of dead trees and limbs, planting of new trees, and a few other maintenance items. On a motion made by R. Browne, seconded by L. Titus, the Board voted unanimously to approve the list of park improvements as recommended by J. Melrose and also the Conservation Commission. *On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by L. Titus, the Board voted unanimously to accept the proposed amendments made by John Melrose to this paragraph as noted below.

10. Personal Property abatement – Sabins explained that the assessed owner of the personal property, Paul Morneau, had passed away in May. Instead of writing off the debt as uncollectible, Chairman Titus suggested a claim be filed against his estate. Sabins will pursue and provide an update at a future meeting

11. Reports – a. Road Report - On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the report as presented. b. Police Report - On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the report as presented. c. Transfer Station Report - On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the report as presented. d. Financial Report - On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the June and July 2018 reports as presented. e. First Responders report – not available.

12. Treasurer’s Warrants – On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to approve warrants #10 and #11.

13. Other – 1. Bill Pullen distributed posters for the Vassalboro Days car show that he is overseeing to be held again on the town office lawn. Discussion was also given about the need for a portable toilet for the event. Sabins will make arrangements. 2. It was noted that the Stanley Hill Road sign is missing. 3. The damaged guardrail on the Bog Road was discussed. Sabins will bill the driver again. 4. J. Melrose briefly discussed the Center Baptist Cemetery. 5. Bill Pullen requested road signs showing the direction of house numbers at intersections to help emergency response time. 6. The date of Vassalboro Days was discussed. Chairman Titus stated that historically, it never rains on the Saturday after Labor Day, and that is why the event is held on that weekend. 7. J. Melrose stated he had received an inquiry from the public about the possible use of the town office conference room for Tai Chi classes on Wednesday morning. The other Board members had no objection to the request.

14. Adjourn – There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 8:02 p.m.

/mss

These minutes were read and accepted by the Select Board on 9/6/18 with the following amendments:

*Recreational Park beside Historical Society – J. Melrose told of the historical information that he had learned about the park area around the Civil War Monument on Route #32. He stated that historic photos of the site revealed that trees were once located on the site as a border between the school yard (now Historical Society) and the monument park. Also in the historical photos, he noted that there was a bandstand/gazebo located in the northeast corner of the monument park at one time. According to former Historical Society President Kent London, early on, the First Baptist Church was located on this site up to and around 1848 and it served as a burial grounds for them. It was not a burial ground for Civil War Veterans. The headstones were removed, but it is uncertain if the buried remains were moved. Before the Civil War Monument went up, but after the church left, the land was apparently tilled and seeded for farming in spite of its use as a burial grounds. J. Melrose further stated that Fieldstone Gardens owner Steve Jones has some trees that he would like to donate to the Town for planting in the park at the border of the two former sites as was done in years past. In preparation for that work, the tree stumps from the old plantings have been removed by Mr. Jones and/or his stump removal contractor. J. Melrose read a list of maintenance and enhancement projects in the park area that have been suggested and approved by the Vassalboro Conservation Commission that included removal of the old chain link fence, removal of dead trees and limbs, planting of new trees, and a few other maintenance items. On a motion made by R. Browne, seconded by L. Titus, the Board voted unanimously to approve the list of park improvements as recommended by J. Melrose and also the Conservation Commission.