Orange Archive

Office of the Select Board

Town of Orange, New Hampshire

Minutes of July, 14, 2014

Present: Betty Fulton, Chair; Bob Ells, Patricia Mercer, and Sandi Pierson (clerical).
Others present: Bev Ells, Sophie Seace, Cathy Bean, Judith Lindahl, Dorothy Heinrichs, Beth DiFrancesco, and Laurie Sanborn.

Meeting opened at 7 PM. Attendance taken by the secretary.

Approval of minutes:

• The minutes of June 24, 2014 were unanimously accepted as submitted.

• The minutes of June 30, 2014 were unanimously accepted as submitted. (A special meeting for the sole purpose of signing a voucher and an Intent to Cut in a timely manner.)

  Orange Conservation Commission (OCC): OCC Chair Dorothy Heinrichs came before the Board to request that they approve the removal of an invasive species, Euonymus atropurpureus, commonly known as a Burning Bush, from the Town House grounds. This plant is on the State’s invasive species list. Dorothy stated that the specie at the Town House has been expertly identified and that the State recommends its removal. She said the OCC will coordinate its removal and will replace it with a comparable ornamental bush that is not on the invasive species list. They will do a write-up of the process for the next town report in order to educate the public on the need to eradicate invasive species whenever possible.

  Pat Mercer spoke in opposition to removing the plant, citing that it is not illegal to have one and that it may have been originally planted as a memoriam. She said that she is careful to always cut it back before the berries materialize so it will not propagate. (It’s only reproduces via the seeds in the berry.) Dorothy suggested asking the person who planted it if they would be in favor of removing it and rededicating the memorial with a new ornamental of their choice and at no cost to them. Nobody present knew who planted it. After discussion it was agreed that Dorothy would contact Gary Hamel to see if he knew who planted the bush.

  In other OCC information, Dorothy stated they were keeping up to date on the future Quabbin- to-Cardigan trail corridor and also exploring the possibility of making some trails on woodland town property such as the so-called Firescrew Forest (a town-owned parcel of land on the northern side of Firescrew Mountain). Dorothy noted that the OCC is now meeting quarterly. Pat Mercer suggested the OCC consider having a booth at the Harvest Festival.

  Voluntary Merger: Sandi shared with the Board a survey plat of a voluntary merger from 2002 that was recorded at the Registry of Deeds but was never entered into the assessing software thus is still processed and taxed as two separate properties. She said she had both Scott Sanborn and Bob Proulx review the map (the latter who signed the plan as Planning Board Chair) and they both agreed it was a single lot and should only be generating one tax bill. After discussion the Board requested that Sandi draft a letter to the property owners for the Board to sign at the next meeting and have a copy made of the plat so they can submit it to the property owners.

Pole licensing update and Fairpoint: Sandi stated that at the prior teleconference meeting with the Board and Avitar, Gary Roberge said he would email the updated pole license that is intended to cover all existing poles regarding the PRW. Again he only emailed an updated pole license intended for new, individual poles. Betty had asked Sandi to contact the town of Auburn to get a clarification. (Auburn has offered both their guidance and pole licensing documents to other towns regarding the PRW taxation issue.) Sandi shared with the Board copies of Auburn’s Resolution template that would be accepted at a public hearing thus allowing the taxation of PRW. The administrator from Auburn said the Resolution was drafted by Mitchell and Bates, a law firm that is representing fifty towns with Fairpoint. Sandi also shared Auburn’s letters to utilities notifying them of the Resolution. Pat stated that she has been in touch with Julia Griffiths from the Hanover town offices and is willing to help with the pole licensing update process. Betty said that Pat is welcome to set up a meeting with Julia Griffiths and the Board to review the process.

Fairpoint: Sandi shared with the Board the Fairpoint inventory received in 2013 upon her request in order for Cross Country Associates to establish a valuation. She stated that recently Fairpoint sent the town by email another inventory catalog, this time with much more information on each pole, including percentage of ownership and their value. After discussion the Board directed Sandi to forward the new inventory to Avitar for an analysis of the valuation in relation to what is presently on their assessment card. Sandi noted that Fairpoint has not yet brought their abatement to the BLTA and the deadline is in six weeks.

Driveway permit: The Board reviewed a driveway permit from Douglas Weekes for his property on Tug Mountain Road (Map 3, Lot 21). The permit was reviewed and signed by Road Agent Scott Sanborn with the condition that vegetation on the southerly side of the driveway entrance be trimmed and cleared perpetually in order to maintain 150 feet of clear sight distance. After discussion the Board approved and signed the driveway permit with the condition.

Sandi stated that the town has two versions of a driveway permit; one that only request the signature of the road agent and the other, only requesting the signatures of the Selectmen. Historically both the road agent and Board signs them and the road agent notes whether it is approved with or without conditions. Sandi will modify the existing permit to include both signatures.

Cardigan Forest: The Board reviewed and signed the acreage and valuation data form received from the State that is used to formulate the annual reimbursement to the town (“payment in lieu of taxes”). It was noted that the reimbursement has decreased significantly over the years and in 2014 the town received about $1200. Cardigan encompasses appoximately a third of the total acreage in Orange.

Primex: The Board reviewed the Primex insurance invoice for $1,707.50. It was noted that no payment is due to because the town still has a credit due to the “holiday premium.” Pat noted that the premium holiday resulted from a multi-million dollar, state-wide lawsuit regarding the premiums they had collected in the past.

Junkyard Ordinance: Bob Ells gave an update on possible violations of the junkyard ordinance which is part of the Orange Zoning Regulations. Health Officer Don Pfaefflin and Bob Ells did a town-wide tour to view possible violations. He reported that a prior concern regarding a resident who had compiled an overload of junk that looked to be recyclable has already remedied his property into compliance. The Board directed Sandi to draft a letter for the Board to sign noting their appreciation of the clean-up and attach the junkyard ordinance.

Bob reported that there were two residents with a prohibited number of unregistered vehicles. The Board agreed that they should be notified that they have 90 days to comply. It was unclear what the remedy would be if they did not comply in 90 days. The Board agreed to table action in order to first get a legal opinion on a recourse for noncompliance. Lastly, Bob stated there is a vacant home on the Canaan Town line and it is unclear whether the present accumulation of junk is in Canaan or Orange. Pat noted that Canaan does not have a zoning junk ordinance. After discussion it was agreed that Bob will speak to Canaan Town Manager Mike Sampson to see if the junk is in Canaan and, if so, ask if Canaan will take any action to have it cleaned up.

Secretarial: The Board discussed in length the duties and work schedule of the secretary. Pat felt they have noticeably increased over the years and people have expressed concern. Betty stated that when the Budget Committee discussed the increased hours, there was no one present who expressed opposition. Betty stated that Sandi requested an increase in hours in order to update the current use records and the discrepancies between the tax maps and assessment cards. Sandi shared documentation from the DRA that in 2005 Orange was zero percent compliant with their current use records and veteran credits and 8% compliant with elderly exemptions. The 2010 DRA records audit continued to show Orange was still zero percent compliant. In 2013 she had asked the Selectmen and the Budget Committee to approve additional time to update them, and they agreed. Sandi stated that the elderly exemptions and veteran credits are now 100% compliant and it was revealed that a substantial amount of revenue was being lost every year because of how many property owners were getting unwarranted property tax credits and exemptions. The current use update is ongoing and it has been revealed that many land use change taxes were not processed and that thousands of dollars have gone uncollected. (There is an 18-month statute of limitation on collecting LUCTs.) Sandi said she is currently working with Scott regarding the three pages of properties where the assessment card acreage does not match that of the tax map. Previously the Board opted to not send a generic letter to residents but, instead, have Sandi research each property file for documentation that would validate the adjustment.

Pat maintained that a number of tasks that Sandi is doing have been done by Board members in the past. Sophie Seace suggested drafting a formal job description. Laurie Sanborn said that from her experience, a secretary has been invaluable to her work in the school district and that Scott, when Selectman, told her that Pat White’s secretarial work had been indispensable. Betty stated that it was important for the office to be open a couple of days a week and that everyone knows if they need something, that Sandi is there on Mondays and Fridays. Pat said that that is not always the case. Sandi stated that she checked with a number of towns the size of Orange and that her hours are on the “low end of the totem pole.” She added that the annual salary portrayed in the town report includes Budget Committee meeting and minutes, ZBA hearings and minutes, Select Board meetings, and the town report. Betty stated that Budget Committee has supported the secretarial position as it is and that she has no plans to change it as long as she is on the Board.

Acreage discrepancies: The Board signed two correspondences regarding acreage discrepancies between the tax maps and assessment cards. Both letters included documentation verifying the actual acreage.

Other:

The voucher and Intent to Cut from the June 30, 2014 meeting were available for review.

Secretary’s report:

The 2014 Primex insurance policy has been received and is available for review.

Reports from other Boards and Committees:

• Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA): Pat Mercer, ZBA ex-officio, recapped the decision of the ZBA at the 7/12/14 public hearing. She reported that the ZBA voted unanimously to deny a special exception that would allow a property owner to put a second manufactured home on a 2.54-acre parcel. She noted that per the zoning ordinance two-family homes are permitted on a single building lot but not two separate dwellings.

• Supervisors of the Checklist: Laurie Sanborn submitted to the Board a memo from the Supervisors requesting the purchase of a computer that will meet the requirements of the Secretary of State’s online ElectionNet system which they are required to use in their duties as Supervisors as the Checklist. After discussion both the Board and the Supervisors present (Laurie and Beth DiFrancesco) concurred that the present computer in the meeting room is outmoded and has an insufficient operating system and resources to perform the tasks necessary. Betty felt that the acquisition of a new computer needs to come before the Budget Committee before it is purchased. She said that the Budget Committee has approved the purchase of new computer for the Select Board’s office and suggested they share its access with the Supervisors. After discussion, Laurie, Beth, and the Board members agreed that the new computer in the Select Board’s office will be made available to the Supervisors and that a Select Board member will provide access to the office when required. Laurie said that the Supervisors will need to meet and access the computer three times before the March 2015 town meeting. Betty will immediately follow up on the acquisition of the new computer for the Select Board’s office.

  Public comment: The Board entertained and took public comment. Parties that spoke are welcome to submit their comments and attach them to the minutes for public review.

Meeting adjourned 8:45 PM

Respectfully submitted, Sandi Pierson

______________________ Betty Fulton

______________________ Robert Ells

______________________ Patricia Mercer