By Muriel Bristol | March 3, 2019
The Milton Board of Selectmen (BOS) have posted their agenda for a BOS meeting to be held Monday, March 4, 2019.
This meeting is scheduled to begin with a Public session beginning at 6:00 PM. The agenda has New Business, Old Business, and some housekeeping items.
Under New Business are scheduled six agenda items: 1) Ira Miller’s General Store Sell of Alcohol Request (Amy Darling), 2) Request Motion to Reimburse Due to Fund for Police Radio/Computer CRF (Richard Krauss), 3) Discussion on Purchase Process of Replacement Police Vehicle within CIP (Richard Krauss), 4) Discussion on Letter from DES Re.; Lockhart Field (Dave Owen), 5) Discussion on Donation of Parcel of Land to the Town Map 49 Lot 52 (Dave Owen), and 6) Request for DPW to Host Earth Day Clean-Up & Accept Donations (Pat Smith).
Ira Miller’s General Store Sell of Alcohol Request (Amy Darling). The first official act of the original Milton selectmen was the granting of a liquor license. Franklin D. Roosevelt announced the repeal of Prohibition on Tuesday, December 5, 1933. It marked the “End of an Error.” This should not take long.
Request Motion to Reimburse Due to Fund for Police Radio/Computer CRF (Richard Krauss), 3) Discussion on Purchase Process of Replacement Police Vehicle within CIP (Richard Krauss). How old is your car?
Discussion on Letter from DES Re.; Lockhart Field. A letter from the NH Department of Environmental Services.
Discussion on Donation of Parcel of Land to the Town Map 49 Lot 52. One of the phantom properties. Not buildable, only good for taxation. Would you like one, or would you like to get rid of one?
Request for DPW to Host Earth Day Clean-Up & Accept Donations. Lots of “nips,” beer cans, and other trash out on Milton roads. I’ve actually pulled televisions, broken lawn chairs, old tires, and other rubbish out of its waterways. Here is your Earth Day lesson in “unintended consequences”: if you charge for disposal of such items at the transfer station, do you think it will become more likely or less likely that such trash will be dumped in woods and rivers?
Under Old Business are scheduled three items: 7) Follow-up on Approval and Signing of Avitar Assessment Contract, 8) Follow-up on Strafford Regional Planning TAC Appointment Process, 9) Follow-up on Old Fire Station Status, and 10) Follow-up Discussion of Town Owned Properties Available for Disposition.
Approval and Signing of Avitar Assessment Contract. We paid twice for the 2017-18 assessment: once for Corcoran to “assess” everything (said to have cost $80,000), and again for Avitar to “fix” what Corcoran had done (then predicted to cost $100,000 or more).
In the interests of “transparency” and “accountability,” no explanation has ever been given for the 2017-18 valuation problem. The overages extracted were spent in covering increased spending, rather than being returned. For accountability’s sake: then selectmen Thibault and Rawson gave Corcoran their go-ahead. (Then selectman Beaulieu’s role remains unclear). An agenda inquiry that suggested reclaiming Corcoran’s fee was disregarded.
Beaulieu and Rawson will appear on next week’s ballot as candidates to be selectmen again.
Strafford Regional Planning TAC Appointment Process. In hopes that a squeaky wheel will get some bridge grease. Note the fact that this seems to be necessary.
Old Fire Station Status. The great white elephant again. When last discussed, it had been discovered that only a warrant article or special town meeting could clear its path. This was said to be the case because it was originally a gift. (Note the donation in New Business).
Town-owned Properties Available for Disposition. All of them.
The Town Deposit Location Policy was to be sorted out by department heads before the end of January. One of the proposed solutions had the Town Clerk, an elected official in her own right, being forced to break her own campaign promises regarding office hours.
The Town government has opted instead to post an extra position. This solution is good for the department heads, who last summer off-loaded their accounting tasks and hours to the Town Clerk. (There was briefly some danger of them having to take them back). This solution is good for the Town Clerk, who was swamped, having picked up the extra hours from the departments without having been given any extra staff.
It is yet another dead loss for taxpayers, who have now an additional permanent expense incurred with no net increase in “services.” Thanks, department heads, and thanks, Selectmen. And a special thanks for the new Town Treasurer, who arranged it all.
Finally, there will be the approval of prior minutes (from the BOS meeting of February 20), the expenditure report, Public Comments “Pertaining to Topics Discussed,” Town Administrator comments (on the Town Election), and BOS comments.
Ms. McDougall has called an eighth meeting of her Milton Advocates group. It will take place again in the Nute Library’s Community Room, on a date and time not yet determined. All town residents are invited. Bring your best manners. (Not her words).
Mr. S.D. Plissken contributed to this article.
References:
State of New Hampshire. (2016, June 21). RSA Chapter 91-A. Access to Governmental Records and Meetings. Retrieved from www.gencourt.state.nh.us/rsa/html/VI/91-A/91-A-3.htm
Town of Milton. (2018, March 1). BOS Meeting Agenda, March 4, 2019. Retrieved from www.miltonnh-us.com/sites/miltonnh/files/agendas/3.4.19_bos_agenda.pdf
Wikipedia. (2018, December 22). Repeal of Prohibition in the United States. Retrieved from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repeal_of_Prohibition_in_the_United_States
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