Coordinator Report

April 10, 2014

The minutes of 3/31 required no changes. One change was requested in the
minutes of the 3/26 joint meeting with Planning Board by Mr. Arguimbau
who maintained at the 3/31 meeting that first he was joking about saying
call the police, then he denied saying it and finally in writing he has
acknowledged saying so and proposed a modification. His version is
attached in the meeting packet and I stand by my record.

Action on the Hurlberts possible continued use of a portion of Gale Rd
to exercise horses is before the board at this meeting.  I have spoken
with Liza and she is aware and intends to attend the meeting.

Mrs. Lemon has requested that Green Communities be on the agenda.  In
the past, all that was further required of Warwick to become a green
community, was for the Selectboard to vote to agree to commit to
providing leadership to get the town to provide for, through zoning
changes, some sort of "by right" (as opposed to though a special permit
process) green energy production. It would be our choice between solar,
wind, etc. And it didn't' have to be the whole town; a "district" within
the town would be enough.  Now, in addition, the town would need to vote
to be subject to the Stretch Code, a local option (at this point)
addition to the building code.  Stretch Code was brought before town
meeting without proper advance work and failed due to the objections of
some local builders prevailing. At this point it takes both actions to
become a Green Community and be eligible for this continued significant
grant funding.

We have paid for the new HD highway plow and sander truck and are
processing the Chapter 90 reimbursement paperwork which needs to be
executed. Larry could leave the paperwork with me but I have asked him
to attend as there is an agenda item where the board will be be
discussing the highway budget, future staffing, and how to proceed 
filling the superintendent position. I recommend we promote Larry from
acting, that we continue the wintertime part time / on call fourth man
for snow and ice in the future; and that we make the fourth man, during
the construction season, a seasonal employee on an as needed basis. 
This has budget benefit to the town. In the future we should look at
allocating some grant money to our employee wages. We have recently
bought a truck and otherwise only used Chapter grant money for materials
and contract labor.

Enterprise fund budgets are included in the meeting package and need to
be voted upon by the Selectboard for inclusion in the ATM warrant. The
transfer station is self-supporting. I have moved the post landfill
closing cost out of that budget and created an article to fund. 

Bill Lyman will not be available to discuss his streaming / recording
proposal because of his commitment to the grant writing workshop series.
I recommend we put it on the warrant though he'd have until the 15th to
submit ten signatures by petition.  Until the cost is known I am
personally skeptical.

The board needs to authorize debt exclusion language for a ballot
question about financing the school roof. I suggest the following:
"Shall the Town of Warwick be allowed to exempt from the provisions of
proposition two and one half, so-called, the amounts required to pay for
the debt issued to pay for the Warwick Community School roof replacement
and related expenses?"

Seaboard has submitted paper to allocate half of the proposed 10kW solar
generation as of this date.  I proposed a number of dates to TGP / KM
for a date for them to present and answer questions about the pipeline
proposal.  Selectboard meet with Finance Committee on Thursday 17 April
at 6 pm.

Accountant is completing reports to get our free cash certified and get
local aid flowing again which was suspended as threatened due to
lateness of filings. USDA will be in Warwick for a site visit on our
truck grant proposal, which is a reimbursement grant, sometime in the
next week.

The regional school district is taking a new to us approach to financing
technology debt which is to vote it and give the towns 60 days to reject
the proposal. It takes one town to do so and they can come back with the
same proposal again and again. While this is clearly within the law, we
need to see how this squares with the "district agreement". In today's
Recorder, Bernardston is threatening to leave the Pioneer District.

I communicated with Rep. Andrews regarding payment in lieu of tax PILOT
restoration in the house budget and our highway bond bill item. No
progress on the bond bill reconciliation committee to date. She is
supportive or our needs.

MBI reports they will have a crew on Mt Grace to complete the fiber
lateral in the next week.  Our order for completion of the lateral to
the cell tower has been entered for some time and is working up AXIA's
backlog notwithstanding the lack of a price quote. This is the next
bottleneck to be addressed in our system.  We have 216 connections. Next
year we won't be charging any town buildings for service and I've
removed the $600 / month from the Highway and town hall budgets and
lowered their budgets accordingly.