Members Present: Rob Browne, Lauchlin Titus, and John Melrose

Others Present: Mary Sabins, Mary Grow, Dick Bradstreet, Mike Vashon, Meg Robbins (6:35), and Albert Ferland (6:37).

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 R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept the minutes of the 1/10/19 meeting as written.

3. Other (taken out of agenda order) – House Representative Dick Bradstreet stopped by the meeting to provide an update on the bill he has submitted on behalf of the Town concerning the unemployment issue. The bill is currently named LR1227, but it has not been printed yet. Representative Bradstreet indicated he will notify us when it is printed. He further indicated it will be a busy Legislative session with 2,200 bills being assigned to committees for review. He is assigned to the Judiciary and the Labor & Housing Committees. In jest, Selectman Browne inquired if there might be a change in the law to allow an open season on harvesting wild turkeys, as the turkeys are in abundance and causing damage on his golf course property. In other matters, Dick stated that he had talked with Sheriff Mason concerning the proposed dispatch changes, and that Dick would attempt to attend the February 5th County Commissioner’s meeting where the dispatch topic is scheduled to be discussed again.

4. Dispatch update - Sabins stated that firefighter Mike Vashon had prepared a spreadsheet containing formulas to help determine the additional costs towns in Kennebec County would incur to switch their dispatch service from the RCC to Augusta Police Department, which she distributed to the affected towns for them to fill in their data and return to us. Mike Vashon stated he has been compiling the results and will present the findings to the Kennebec County Commissioners at their meeting on Feb. 5th for discussion.

5. Food Sovereignty Ordinance discussion – Due to the fact that Dylan Dillaway who had requested this discussion was unable to attend the meeting, the Board tabled the discussion on this topic until Feb. 7th.

6. Photocopier bids – Chairman Titus opened the three envelope bids received and read the contents as follows. No bid award was made at this time.

1. Budget Document Technology – Konica Minolta Model C458 – purchase price $9,223.20/lease price $183.54/month.
2. Budget Document Technology – Xerox Model C8045/H2 – purchase price $8,990.75/lease price $178.92/month.
3. Transco Business Technologies – Xerox Model C8045 – purchase price $5,500/lease price $109/month
4. A-COPI – Toshiba Model 4518A – purchase price $3,000/lease price $59.22/month
5. A-COPI – Toshiba Model 4515AC – purchase price $4,000/lease price $78.96/month

7. Other (taken out of agenda order again) – Albert Ferland, husband of Food Pantry Operator Cindy Ferland, stopped by the meeting to inform the Board that the Vassalboro Food Pantry building has been selected to receive a grant through Insource Renewables and a department of the Maine State Government for a Solar Panel installation on the town-owned food pantry building. Once the contract is complete, a public announcement will be made. As far as Mr. Ferland is aware, the Vassalboro Food Pantry will be the only food bank in Maine with a solar panel installed. The Board congratulated Mr. Ferland and the food pantry trustees. Selectman Melrose gave an update on the research that he has performed recently that included installation of a large solar array at the public works garage that would generate enough power for multiple town buildings. If the pantry has their own solar panel, the pantry building could be removed from the list. Mike Vashon inquired if anyone had considered the lawn behind the North Fire Station as an installation site. He is of the opinion that the direction of exposure to the sun at that location would be very advantageous for a better-sized solar panel installation. Discussion ensued regarding net metering. No formal action taken by the Board and they thanked Mr. Ferland for coming to the meeting.

8. Fund Balance Policy – The Board reviewed the fourth draft of the fund balance policy and determined that the policy reflects what the Board had asked Sabins to prepare. With little discussion and on a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to approve the policy as presented.

9. Single Stream Recycling Agreement – Selectman Melrose stated he wants to revisit the discussion on continuing the single stream program that was discussed and agreed to at the previous meeting. He stated that the whole Fiberight system is recycling, including a pulping process. He thinks the Fiberight recycling process is better than what the Town can do on its own. John also described a visit he had made to the China Transfer Station with China Selectman Irene Belanger to view their operations. They have five employees that operate their transfer station, and they process a lot of the recyclable waste on site. John also stated that he is not in favor of a three year bid process this year for solid waste transportation as was discussed at the last meeting. He would prefer a one year bid, with an option to renew. Selectman Browne agreed that eliminating the single sort program at our station and putting all recyclable material together with the household garbage and sending it to Fiberight mixed together would eliminate the need for facility revisions at our transfer station. After discussion, and on a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to decline to enter into an agreement with Fiberight for separate single stream recycling.

10. Solid Waste Transportation bids – In light of the vote just taken to decline to enter into a separate single stream recycling contract with Fiberight, which results in eliminating the single stream (a/k/s zero-sort) recycling program in Vassalboro immediately, Sabins stated that she will revise the bid documents again to remove all references to the zero-sort recyclables, and she will change them to reflect a one year bid with an option to renew. Board members commented they would like any bidders to have an option to propose other methods of transporting our trash, such as tractor trailers. On a motion made by L. Titus, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to approve the plan as stated above. This item will be revisited at the next meeting.

11. Transfer Station facility improvements – Selectman Melrose expressed concern about the aging backhoe and the compactor at the Transfer Station. He stated the traffic flow at the station is also sometimes a free-for-all. He explained that he had been giving the traffic flow some thought, as he used a diagram he had prepared to show how the traffic flow could be improved to provide a greater level of organization for the public. He feels the Selectmen should develop a 5-year plan to develop the site. Selectman Melrose encouraged the Board to think through a strategy and to hire an engineer to develop a plan. He estimates the cost of the engineer’s services to be around $5,000, and he feels we should use this amount for a budget proposal for the coming year.

12. Cable TV Franchise renewal – The Board briefly reviewed an email previously sent several months ago by Sabins to the cable representative Shelley Winchenbach with questions about provisions and agreements that may be included in the renewal agreement. Ms. Winchenbach is expected to attend the February 21st meeting to discuss franchise renewal. The Board asked Sabins to resend the same email questions to Ms. Winchenbach prior to that meeting. If she can answer the questions, the Board would not require her to attend a meeting.

13. Liquor License – Chairman Titus announced that Sabins has performed the annual check with the State Liquor Licensing Officer for our area and determined that no complaints have been registered against Natanis Golf Course for Liquor Licensing infractions, and there is no objection from the State office in renewing the license. On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by L. Titus, the Board voted two in favor, one abstained (Browne) to approve renewal of Natanis’ Liquor License.

14. Streetlight update – Chairman Titus stated that he has begun his streetlight review work and has completed about a third of the town. He has not found a current light that is not needed, but he has found a few areas (intersections) where he questions if a light is needed that is not in place now. He has also asked the School Principal to ask the school bus drivers if they know of areas that need a streetlight to protect the children as they get on or off the bus.

15. Reports –On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to accept all three reports (Road, Financial, and Transfer Station) as presented.

16. Treasurer’s Warrants – On a motion made by J. Melrose, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted unanimously to approve warrants #42 and #43.

17. Other – 1. At Sabins’ request, the Board briefly discussed ideas for the September MMA Strategic Planning meeting that may take place in Vassalboro because Sabins is the current President of the MMA Executive Committee. 2. Sabins reported on two separate incidents that lead to damage to one of the public works trucks. No personal injury was involved. 3. The Board approved a request from Robert Lamire to tap maple trees in the town cemetery again this spring. 5. Selectman Melrose inquired if the Town could combine our audit with the School’s audit, if the school did not want to come with us. Sabins affirmed we could.

18. Adjourn – There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 8:15 p.m.

/mss

These minutes were read and accepted by the Select Board on 2/7/19 with the following amendments: None.