Vassalboro Select Board
Minutes of the Meeting
December 8, 2011

Members Present: Rob Browne, Lauchlin Titus, and Phil Haines

Others Present: Mary Sabins, George Gould, Ray Breton, unknown male, Tom Richards, and Mary Grow (7:05)

1. Call to order – The meeting was called to order by Chairman Haines at 6:58 p.m.

2. Minutes – On a motion made by L. Titus, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the 11/22/11 meeting as written.

3. Carl’s Quick Stop property – Resident and local contractor Ray Breton reiterated that he is interested in obtaining the Carl’s Quick Stop property in the North Village so he can demolish the dilapidated building and clean up the site. Ray provided an update on the research he has done by calling the Dept of Environmental protection to gain knowledge about a Brownsfield Assessment Grant through the State that may be available to help with the underground tank removal costs. Sabins has applied for and received a grant for the Phase 1 Assessment portion of the Brownsfield Grant. Depending on the findings of Phase 1, funding for Phase 2 is possible which will include tank removal. Discussion was given about the process to change ownership so Ray can become the eventual owner. The discussion led to more questions than answers since the property is considered abandoned. Discussion was also given about real estate taxes still owed on the property. The Selectmen agreed by consensus that they would be willing to abate the outstanding taxes on the property, but would like to recoup the legal fees the town has incurred to get us to this point. Once the Brownsfield Phase 1 assessment is complete and a preliminary report submitted by the December 13th deadline, we will likely have a few more answers to the questions raised during the discussion here tonight.

4. Tax acquired Cushnoc Road mobile home – Sabins explained that she had contacted a mobile home vendor named George Fernald, Jr. of Benton (d/b/a Geo & Sons) to remove the dilapidated trailer. As of the meeting, Mr. Fernald had not yet visited the mobile home to see if the trailer was anything he was interested in obtaining, so we will need to put this discussion on the next agenda.

5. Tom Richards (not on agenda) – Tom informed the Board that the flagpole outside the Town Office is in very poor condition and needs to be repaired, if not replaced. The pins on the telescoping pole are worn out which makes raising and lowering the flag very difficult. The base of the pole also takes on water. The Board took the information under advisement and will put it in next year’s budget. If the budget allows at the end of this fiscal year, it is possible we may be able to take action to repair or replace the pole sooner. Tom also informed the Board approximately 90 Veterans markers were stolen from three town cemeteries recently. There are no known suspects at this time.

6. Job descriptions – Discussion ensued about the draft job descriptions that had been created by Sabins. The Board members made a few suggestions for changes. The Board decided not to officially adopt the descriptions, but rather to leave the job description creation and implementation process up to Sabins. Discussion was also given about the concept of COLA raises versus merit raises, and whether staff increases should be a combination of both after annual evaluation. No formal action was taken and no final decision was made at this juncture.

7. Reports – a. Status Report – On a motion made by L. Titus, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the report as presented. b. Road Report - On a motion made by L. Titus, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the report as presented. c. Police Report - On a motion made by L. Titus, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the report as presented.

8. Treasurer’s Warrants – On a motion made by L. Titus, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to approve warrants #26 and #27.

9. Other – 1. Sabins stated that the new office carpet is scheduled to be installed Friday, December 9th through December 11th. The staff has been busy packing, cleaning out, and boxing their offices for the weekend event. 2. Sabins provided an update on the recycling building construction. 3. Selectman Titus suggested an item be added to the next meeting agenda to discuss setting a monetary amount that Sabins can spend without Board approval.

10. Adjourn – There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 8:10 p.m.

/mss

These minutes were read and accepted by the Select Board on 12/22/11 with the following amendments: None.
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