In attendance:

Selectman Edward F. Mical – Chairman

Selectman John C. Brayshaw – absent

Selectman Allen C. Brown

Recorder of the minutes: Mary Whalen

Chairman Mical opened the meeting at 6:00 p.m.

No appointments have been scheduled. There will be two Public Hearings held in the lower meeting room beginning at 7:00 p.m. First Public Hearing is regarding the progress of the Wage Study Committee; the second is for public input regarding the Odd Fellows/Martin building.

Chairman Mical moved into old business. The Naughton residence located on Route 127, there is no update at this time, and Selectman Brayshaw has been communicating with Mr. Naughton and updating the Selectmen of his progress. Chairman Mical did receive a call from a resident the parked vehicles on Poverty Plains and Route 127 that are operated by Mr. Naughton.

No progress regarding the signage at Evans Mart.

Chairman Mical is currently working on a written procedure for the alarm system.

Building maintenance will address the back sensor light of the Town Hall this week.

The Selectmen will begin reviewing the lease for the Old Graded School.

The Selectmen signed three intents-to-cut, a heavy hauling permit and one sign permit.

Assessing Clerk, Martha Mical informed the Board that once the MS-1 form has been signed there are no abatements; after the second tax bill is received there will be a form available for abatements to be filed with the State.

Chairman Mical recessed the meeting at 6:20 p.m.

Chairman Mical opened the Public Hearing for the progress of the Wage Study Committee. Chairman Mical noted that both hearings were properly noticed.

Mr. Peter St. James, Chairman of the Wage Study Committee, proceeded to explain the progress of the committee. To date all Department Heads have been contacted toward establishing accurate job descriptions. The job descriptions are currently being updated. The committee has targeted seventeen towns contiguous to Warner and in a similar market area. The salary information that is distributed by the New Hampshire Municipal Association will be used to formulate a wage scale. The committee has received input from New Durham, Bristol and Bow, which have recently developed their wage scale.

Chuck Goss: How is this committee different from the other committee?

Peter St. James: Specifically the current committee did not deal with history. The Town voted at the 2003 Town Meeting to revamp the Wage Study Committee, differences are not known.

Chairman Mical: At Town Meeting the article was amended to present recommendations and a wage scale.

John Dabuliewicz: What is the status regarding the evaluation process.

Peter St. James: The committee intends to complete that part of the package after the wage scale is developed and approved.

Mike Rogers: Clarified that the Selectmen will be setting the pay rate for each employee and the Town will be voting on the wage scale. Mr. Rogers asked if the ranges within each position will go before Town Meeting.

Peter St. James: The committee is addressing the Town’s request to have updated job descriptions and salaries.

Mike Rogers: Are the Selectmen going to set salaries before or after Town Meeting.

John Dabuliewicz: The Article has nothing to do with individual positions. The wage scale is providing a base for the Selectmen and Department Heads to work with.

Mike Rogers: We want to know what the employees will be paid. Isn’t that what the Town has been fighting for?

Peter St. James: No. That was not what the committee was set up to do.

Judith Rogers: The wage scale will be discussed at Town Meeting for approval or disapproval. The Selectmen will work with the scale prior to Town Meeting in order to create a budget. If the wage scale is not approved the Selectmen will have an alternate plan.

Wendy Pinkham: There would need to be another warrant article in case the wage scale was not approved in order to have salaries set.

Mike Rogers: The Selectmen then will have a salary schedule set before Town Meeting with a general idea where the employees are set on the scale, especially if there are some that are below the scale.

Chairman Mical: There will be one more Public Hearing scheduled in January and at that time we should have the wage information.

Chairman Mical closed the Public Hearing for the Wage Study Committee and opened the Public Hearing for the Odd/Fellows Martin Building. A hand out was made available courtesy of the Historical Society.

Chairman Mical explained that a concerned citizen approached the Selectmen regarding the safety of the front porch. It was determined by the Building Inspector to be unsafe and has since been removed by the Highway Department.

Chairman Mical proceeded to show digital photographs that were taken by a liability representative from the New Hampshire Municipal Association.

Chairman Mical also presented a preliminary hazardous material report. What has been found is mold, and lead base paint on the exterior and interior. The laboratory results regarding asbestos were not available. There is oil base paint, oil, fluorescent tubing, and flammable liquid and household cleaner currently in the building along with a number of appliances and computers and general debris.

Gamil Azmy: The Town should have investigated the building before purchasing the property. All I am hearing is the negative issues. The beauty of the building should be focused on.

Chairman Mical: The purpose of this meeting is to gain information from the voters of Warner.

Gamil Azmy: Why did the Selectmen buy this building five years ago?

Chairman Mical: The Townspeople voted at Town Meeting to expend the money.

Chuck Goss: I believe that originally the idea was to see if the building could be a public opportunity.

Gamil Azmy: I am against destroying the building. There are grants available to restore the building.

Royal Latuch: I have met with the Selectmen on two prior occasions to voice my concerns about the building. The pictures that were shown tonight do not depict the true decay of the building. I have been in the building four times and witnessed rain running down through the first floor. The building in four decades of private ownership has been neglected. The basement reeks of fuel oil.

Chairman Mical: The purpose of this meeting is to solicit input from the public as to what the Town should do with the building.

Royal Latuch: The purpose of this meeting, as I understand it is to give accurate information to the public as to the true condition of the building.

Paul Proulx: Have we ever had an expert look at the building to have a study undertaken. A representative from the Historical Resource Division and I looked at the building from the outside and commented that there are many government organizations and grants available to do a study on the building. There should be a comprehensive study of the building before making any decisions. Mr. Proulx will forward the representative’s name to the Selectmen.

Beverly Howe: Can’t the building be cleaned out.

Rebecca Courser: Didn’t we vote at Town Meeting to have a study done?

Richard Senor: The article was written to give the Selectmen control of the money.

Rebecca Courser: What does the record show that the $10,000.00 voted at Town Meeting was used for.

Chairman Mical: The money was put into a Capital Reserve Fund. I would need to look at a Town Report to see what the money was to be used for.

Richard Senor: Being the ex-Chairman of the Martin Building. The Selectmen have control of the money to do as they see fit for the building. The article I wrote was not specific. There was a chance to receive grant money for a feasibility study but the Selectmen held back.

Rebecca Courser: I have information from the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance. For $500.00 you can have an historical analysis of the building completed. Information will be forwarded to the Selectmen.

Chuck Goss: I heard a rumor that a couple was interested in buying the building and renovating it.

Selectman Brown: Recently Mr. Christopher Closs has expressed an interest in the property and is in the process of putting together recommendations.

Christopher Closs: Addressed the meeting by introducing himself and his wife Pamela McDonald who operate a preservation planning consulting business in Hopkinton. They are attending tonight and are particularly concerned about the hazardous waste that is in the building. Mr. Closs is interested in preparing a proposal, to the community, to investigate the options of a redevelopment scenario. At this point they are still gathering information. I am personally convinced that there is a use for the building that will serve the community well. I am very much involved in the revitalization of New Hampshire’s downtowns. The loss of this building to Warner would be irreplaceable; to end up with a vacant lot at a critical location would be a lost opportunity. The building has minor to moderate structural problems, I do not consider sills and missing brick work serious. I am more concerned about oil in the basement and the types of things that are big ticket items in terms of clean up. Structurally the building is not complex.

Selectman Brown: By what you saw in the building was any of the original structure compromised by the renovations that have been done over the year?

Christopher Closs: The renovations that have been done are sheet rock and two by fours. As you ascend in the building, the level of interior finish that has survived is quite striking. The second and third floor is about 70 - 85% intact and a lot of the interior finish has survived.

Royal Latuch: Discussed the continuing deterioration of the building.

David Karrick: I’m interested in seeing the building put to good use and in hearing ideas to do so.

John Hill: I see no use for the building because of the lack of parking that is available. I would like to see the building fixed up, but I can’t see putting $800,000.00 in the building to use it a little bit. The building is sitting on its own property. Maybe the building could be moved. I see the building as a fire hazard fixed up or not.

Richard Senor: There is a business owner in town that owns property behind Foothills that is interested in selling. If we switch with the school parking to the lower area you would then have enough parking.

Rachel Parsons: The town owns property on Kearsarge Mountain Road. Could it be feasible to move the building there? I am encouraged by Mr. Closs’s comments that this could be resolved in a positive way.

John Hill: I am concerned about the cost of refurbishing and upkeep, it is a lot to ask of the Town.

Beverly Howe: Can’t we wait for Mr. Closs’s proposal before a decision is made?

Chairman Mical: No decisions will be made tonight; this hearing is for input from the public.

Dan Watts: As a newcomer to the Town, the Martin building is one of the things that caught my eye about the Town. Have people who are experts in this area, give their opinion about the building on whether it can be saved in any way.

Rebecca Courser: If the building is used commercially could we allow parking on Main Street. I would like to see some flexibility around what is required.

Chuck Goss: One option would be to sell the building to a private individual by running an ad in a magazine or a website.

Royal Latuch: There is a lot of personal feelings in this building, there has been more information received about the building tonight. There should be a presentation sponsored by the Selectmen, which will run down all the information about the building. I will commit that this issue will be on the ballot in March.

Richard Senor: Without advertising we have two people that are interested in the building, also there was a survey completed that will tell you what the people want done with the building.

Christopher Closs: I did not mean to understate the condition of the building; the basement does need immediate ventilation. On the parking, I look at trying to bring the intensity of use down rather than escalate it. The location of the building is prime for unassisted elderly. The other is to look at off site possibilities. I look at this as an opportunity for the private sector to take this building and use the historical tax credits and other incentives that are available, which the Town could not take advantage of because of its non-profit status.

Selectman Brown: Do you have an idea when your proposal would be ready?

Christopher Closs: I am waiting for the final results from the hazardous waste appraisal; the cost of disposing the hazardous material will be a determining factor.

Marianne Howlett: I would like to see something decided one way or the other; this has been on the back burner a long time.

Chairman Mical closed the Public Hearing at 9:30 p.m.

 

Edward F. Mical – Chairman

John C. Brayshaw  Absent

Allen C. Brown