Board of Selectmen Meeting, September 11, 2023

Recycling Center Issues

• The board discussed whether a new category for impact fees should be created for the Recycling Center, which is anticipated to require replacement in a few years. Currently, impact fees from new development are put into accounts for school, police, fire, and recreation. 

• The Town Administrator reported that an assessment of the Recycling Center was done in July. It determined that the facility was in good shape for its age. 

• The Recycling Center’s new backhoe has arrived. The new equipment will allow Recycling Center staff to plow the facility, removing the need to have the Highway Department do it. 

Fire Department Issues

• The board received a right-to-know request from Sandra Vilchock to unseal the non-public minutes from three session sessions. The board voted unanimously to keep the minutes sealed as they were a matter of current litigation.

• In the public comment period, a citizen inquired about the process the town used to determine that six employees could present complaints to the board in non-public session that did not appear to have ever been brought up before. Why did this not go through the normal chain of command? The response was that the board is the town’s governing body and is responsible for hearing complaints about high-level town officials. 

• Jaye Vilchock Jr (son of the former Fire Chief and Lieutenant) complained to the board that he had repeatedly requested to be put on the agenda and had been ignored. Chairman Bartlett responded saying that he had been denied, as his presentations were lengthy and redundant. Vilchock asked whether anyone had ever been denied before. No one on the board could recall a previous denial. Vilchock pointed out that at the beginning of the year the Fire Deparment had 6 officers. Now it is down to 2. Vilchock complained that the board never sat down with the Fire Chief face to face to discuss the allegations. Vilchock also said that the board just did a sham investigation that they didn’t even read. Selectman Welsh objected, saying that of course the board read the investigator’s report. At the three-minute mark Chairman Bartlett told Vilchock his time was up.

• [A CORRECTION: two readers pointed out an error in my previous article about the upcoming court hearing for the former Fire Chief. The trial date is not October 2. That’s just the next preliminary hearing. The trial date has yet to be scheduled.]

Other Issues

• The board voted unanimously to appoint Police Chief Fawn Woodman to the role of the town’s Emergency Management Director. She has been the acting director since the role was vacated. 

• Selectman Morin reported from the Planning Board meeting that the town’s fees to developers are lower than those of neighboring towns. The board should consider raising the fees.

• Winter plowing contracts are out for bid.

• Weather has been delaying paving. 

• Tree cutting is being done along power lines in town. Eversource is willing to pick up the entire cost of removing the large trees by the town hall lower parking lot as they are interfering with the power lines. The plan is to replace the pines with ornamental trees.

• The gas cube to be used for supplying fuel to town vehicles will be installed next week.

• One of the two air conditioning units at the fire station has failed and must be replaced, at a cost of $4.9k. As only $15k is left in the building maintenance fund, the town will attempt to fund this from the operating budget so the maintenance fund can be preserved for other emergency expenses. This decision may need to be reversed later depending on future expenses.

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