LONDONDERRY, Vt. – The Londonderry Selectboard met on Monday, Oct. 21, for their regularly scheduled meeting.
Among the first items on the agenda, the town proposed to reclassify a portion of Rest Haven Road, roughly a 400-foot distance in close proximity to the Rest Haven Cemetery, from a Class 3 road to Class 4. Town administrator Shane O’Keefe explained that a Class 3 road is maintained by the town, while a Class 4 road is not.
Some citizens were concerned with the proposal, thinking that it would make it more difficult for the cemetery to get maintained or for people to visit the cemetery. Board member Taylor Prouty clarified that this small portion of road had not been maintained by the town for a while, and therefore the reclassification wouldn’t change the condition of the road. “It’s in the interest of the town to have our efforts align with our map and classification,” he explained.
Board chair Tom Cavanagh added that the road in that particular section is only about 4 feet wide, which is why the town is not able to maintain it currently.
With 60 days to make a decision, and board members Martha Dale and Jim Fleming absent, the board moved to revisit the topic.
Esther Fishman, solid waste coordinator, addressed the board regarding the vending machine they planned to purchase to sell punch cards. The machine would have only held 220 cards, and Fishman said they sell about 500 a month, with an additional 50 bulk cards. She proposed a different machine that would hold more, and would cost $1,600 less than the original.
The board approved the new vending machine, and moved to reconsider the trash compactor they approved at the previous Oct. 7 meeting. Though a representative from Casella Waste visited the transfer station and said the power in the facility is sufficient to run a compactor, they decided that the transfer station needs electrical upgrades anyway, and decided to postpone purchasing the unit and preparing the slab and site for it. The board voted to revisit the matter during the coming winter.
The board also approved a sharps disposal container be installed at the transfer station. After discussing that there was a great need for needles to be collected from residents that have diabetes, arthritis, cancer, and other medical or personal reasons, the board was made aware that people need a place to dispose of their sharps safely. It is a big metal container that looks like a mailbox, that is locked and secured by key, and will be emptied monthly, or as necessary, by Stericycle Waste Company for $120, who also collects medical waste from smaller medical centers in the area.
The board reiterated that they are still searching for winter maintenance crew members. O’Keefe also expressed that the job description for the hiring of a new town administrator needed to be updated. He noted a few things that he does that is not in the description, and other things he doesn’t do that are listed. Board member James Ameden said that after recently speaking with Dale, they’d like to request that O’Keefe red line the document as soon as possible, so the board can make adjustments at the next meeting, get the job officially posted, and look to hopefully hire someone by January or February.
Ameden added that he received an email from someone who already has interest in the position, but they’d like to have a full interview process for any and all qualified applicants.
O’Keefe moved to discuss a few more change orders for the town office renovation project, explaining they still have a lot of water in the basement, despite drainage work they did a few years ago. O’Keefe said they’ll need to bust up the ledge and foundation in order to put in a drainage system, noting this is a big ticket item costing $36,812, but is necessary.
Additionally, they need to reroute the generator cable that was not properly sleeved originally. Cavanagh added that an inspector would require this to be redone correctly. This project totals $11,843. Lastly, the parking lot is in need of a subbase material for $8,000, based on a structural engineer analyzing the existing soil that is currently there is degrading.
O’Keefe added that they didn’t have a large contingency set up originally for the project, but to date they have about $80,000 in change orders. Cavanagh expressed it’s important to do it right now. The board approved the changes for the renovation project.
O’Keefe then provided the board with a list of companies who create websites for municipalities. He said it might be good to figure out what they want, and look into each company for comparisons, and then narrow down the list. He added that most companies allow you to spread out the costs over a couple of years.
The Londonderry Selectboard meets the first and third Monday of each month, at 6 p.m.