Vassalboro Select Board
Minutes of the Meeting
June 10, 2021
Members Present: Rob Browne, Chris French, and Barbara Redmond
Others Present: Mary Sabins, Kayla Krause, Mary Grow, Mike Poulin, John French, Ron Smith, and Eugene Field (6:36 pm)
1. Call to order – The meeting was called to order by Selectman Rob Browne acting as Chair at 6:30 pm. This being the first meeting after the annual municipal election, the election of a Chair of the Select Board for the upcoming fiscal year was in order. On a motion made by B. Redmond and seconded by C. French, the Board voted 2 in favor with Rob Browne abstaining, to elect Rob Browne as Chair of the Select Board.
2. Minutes – On a motion made by B. Redmond, seconded by R. Browne, the Board voted 2 in favor to accept the minutes of the 5/13/2021 meeting as written. Chris French abstained from the vote as he was not a member of the Board at that time and was not present at that meeting.
3. Auditor Ron Smith was present to discuss the results of the 6/30/2020 audit- Ron stated that the town was in about the same standing as it had been the previous audit, which was in good financial shape with about a $1.5M unassigned balance (surplus). He stated that the pre-audit for the current fiscal year was underway, and he gave advice to think about with the American Rescue Plan (ARP) money that would be filtering into municipalities. Ron said that the Town should spend within its means, that if Vassalboro builds infrastructure with the ARP money, we must take care of it and maintain it going forward. He advised not to get in over our heads with infrastructure.
4. Discuss and possibly award the paving bid – PW Director Eugene Field was present for the meeting and a spreadsheet was provided that outlined the seven paving bids that were received. E. Field recommended to the Board to accept Pikes bid of $67.47 per ton price with a total projected cost of $408,598.32 for the paving projects on the work plan. On a motion made by B. Redmond, seconded by C. French, the Board voted unanimously to award the bid to Pike Industries, Inc. The bid price was lower than projected during the budget season and may allow more paving work to be done than originally anticipated. The current fiscal year paving budget has a surplus of approximately $45,000, which Gene requested the Board carry forward into next fiscal year for possibly paving the parking lots at the Town Office, North Fire Station and Food Pantry. E. Field said the Food Pantry would contribute $5,000 toward the paving of the gravel section in front of their building, if the Board decides to pave that area.
5. Discuss clean-up of tax-acquired property located at 435 Main Street- M. Sabins presented the Board quotes for removal of the dilapidated mobile home located at 435 Main Street. Sabins has previously discussed with E. Field the possibility of the Town’s Public Works Department doing the work, estimated labor costs, and anticipated time frame for the demolition. Sabins stated she had consulted “Google” to estimate the weight of the old mobile home in order to factor fees that would be charged by Waste Management at $69/ton tipping fee for the estimated 16 tons, plus the hauling fees and dumpster delivery fee. Estimated cost for disposal is $2,345, not including town staff labor. Sabins’ best guess for the most cost effective demolition plan was to take Waste Management’s offer and to have the town crew provide the labor. R. Browne asked E. Field what his best guess would be for a timeframe to complete the job. Field replied that he would like to be able to say he could have it done in one day but we should factor on two days for the project. Sabins stated that she would like the clean-up project to be completed before the fiscal year ends for the Town, which is June 30, 2021, so the expenses for the clean-up will be in this year’s budget and not the new budget starting on July 1st. On a motion made by C. French, seconded by B. Redmond, the Board voted unanimously to go with the quote from Waste Management and have our Public Works Department perform the labor. As an aside question while Gene was in the room, B. Redmond asked G. Field about the location of the town gravel pit, which she read about in the Road Report this week. Gene provided details and answered that the pit is in China.
6. Discuss possible creation of Mass Gathering Rules – The State of Maine currently has a Mass Gathering statute in place which regulates a gathering for 2,000 people or more for over 12 hours. M. Sabins provided the Statutory reference and informed the Board that she had spoken with the State Inspector who is charged with issuing those state permits and enforcement. Sabins told of the inspector’s recommendation that Vassalboro develops its own local ordinance. B. Redmond offered to do research on the topic, using other municipal ordinances as guidance to develop a draft of a Mass Gathering Ordinance for Vassalboro. It was decided that Redmond would get together with Sabins to begin the process and report back to the Board.
7. Set Summer Select Board Meeting Schedule – It has been a long set tradition that the Vassalboro Select Board only meets once in the summer months of July and August. After discussion, the Board agreed to set July 15, 2021 and August 12, 2021, both at 6:30 pm, as the summer meeting schedule.
8. Reports - On a motion made by B. Redmond, seconded by C. French, the Board voted unanimous to accept the reports from the following departments: Road, Police, Treasurer, and Transfer Station.
9. Treasurer’s Warrants – On a motion made by B. Redmond, seconded by C. French, the Board voted unanimously to approve warrants #68 and #69.
10. Other – 1.) Bookkeeper Jean Poulin is retiring on July 2, 2021. Sabins announced that Melanie Alexander has been hired and will start employment on June 28, 2021. Melanie has municipal experience, having served in several other Maine towns. She has agreed to spend time with Jean Poulin June 21st and June 24th to learn the payroll process and accounts payable. 2.) Since the Board previously decided to not move forward with the fireworks display for the town, that leaves $4,000 available for town. The Vassalboro Business Association (VBA) requested a $1,000 donation toward the costs of the parade. On a motion made by B. Redmond, seconded by C. French, the Board voted unanimously to cut a check for $1,000 donation to the VBA for the Vassalboro Days parade when the town’s 250th birthday will be commemorated. 3.) Upon inquiry from R. Redmond, Sabins responded that she has not yet received word back from the school about contributing toward the shortfall for the generator project. 4.) R. Browne thanked Chris French for running for the Select Board position and joining the team. Chairman Browne wanted Chris to know that the Board will support his family commitments with young children and their schedules, to minimize impact on family time. Rob encouraged all Board Members to bring ideas to the Board for discussion.
11. Adjourn – There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 7:54 p.m.
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These minutes were read and accepted by the Select Board on 6/24/21 with the following amendments: None.