Town of Gray
Town Council Minutes
April 5, 2011
6:00 P.M. - Executive Session:
Councilor Sturgis moved; Councilor Hutchins seconded
Ordered, the Gray Town Council will enter into Executive Session, pursuant to Title 1, Chapter 13, Subchapter 1, Section 405, Subsection 6-E: “Consultations between a body or agency and its attorney concerning the legal rights and duties of the body or agency, pending or contemplated litigation, settlement offers and matters where the duties of the public body's counsel to his client pursuant to the code of professional responsibility clearly conflict with this subchapter or where premature general public knowledge would clearly place the State, municipality or other public agency or person at a substantial disadvantage (specifically relative to property, located at 34 Arundel Road).
5 Yes
The Council exited Executive Session at 7:05pm
Councilor Gellerson indicated that they were in Executive Session discussing a legal matter with the Town’s legal counsel.
Roll Call:
Councilors Matt Sturgis, Mark Grover, Peter Gellerson, Matt Doughty, Margaret Hutchins
Town Manager Deborah Cabana
Others present and speaking: Lou Mancini, James Monroe, Doug Webster, Rep. Anne Graham, Keith Whitmore, Deborah Mancini
Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag:
Minutes from Previous Meetings:
Approval of March 15, 2011, Town Council Minutes
Councilor Sturgis moved; Councilor Doughty seconded
Ordered the Gray Town Council approves March 15, 2011 Town Council Minutes, as corrected.
Councilor Sturgis stated that on page 5, Jim Saffian’s name is spelled incorrectly.
5 Yes
Approval of March 21, 2011, Special Town Council Minutes
Councilor Sturgis moved; Councilor Doughty seconded
Ordered the Gray Town Council approves March 21, 2011 Special Town Council Minutes, as corrected.
Councilor Gellerson stated that on page 2, “he cited Area 3- Emerson Building…” It should be Enercon. He also stated that on page 5, 7th paragraph beginning with “George…. the word “be” should replace “is” as well as on page 6, 2nd paragraph the word “they” should be replaced by “there.”
5 Yes
First Order of Business:
Public Comments of Non-Agenda Items – (limit 3 minutes per person)
Lou Mancini congratulated the Council and others for the Special Town Meeting. He stated that he supported this and believes the outcome is the best thing for Gray. He said that he was surprised that none of the landowners were notified. He believes that there needs to be continued work on improving the process and communicating with others so that people understand they matter.
James Monroe stated that he believes that the landowner aspect of the Special Town Meeting was not a good one. He asked how much money and time was wasted in not notifying the landowners. He believes that the paid consultant to the Town should have done his work by notifying the landowners and believes that he should not work for the Town. He asked why no one from Northbrook spoke at the meetings.
Second Order of Business:
Reports from the Council Chair:
Councilor Gellerson stated that he was impressed with the Special Town Meeting. He stated that they always learn from the public.
Reports from the Town Manager:
Town Manager Cabana read the results of the votes at the Special Town Meeting. She stated that the 2010 census results indicated population of the Town is 7, 761 and over 5,000 are registered to vote.
She stated that debit and credit cards are accepted at Town Hall and soon there will be online payment available.
Committee Reports:
Councilor Sturgis stated the he traveled up to Augusta with other residents and volunteers to be recognized for their work on the fishing derby and got to visit the Legislative Chambers among other things.
He reminded people that on May 21st the Patriot 5k will take place. This event supports the PTO. The Recreation and Conservation Committee will be meeting. GPCOG met and discussed a variety of topics at the county level. They are working on the MOU with the county on their services so as to not duplicate efforts.
Councilor Grover stated that the Dry Mills School House Committee is looking forward to the projects and repairs being scheduled to begin.
Councilor Doughty stated that the next Street Ordinance Committee meeting is Thursday.
Councilor Gellerson stated that the CEDC will be meeting tomorrow. He reminded people that most Town committees need new members. He also stated that the Planning Board has a house subdivision project at their upcoming meetings. This may be a good sign of things to come.
Council Correspondence:
Councilor Doughty stated that he got feedback about landowners not being notified. There needs to be more outreach on communicating more effectively.
Third Order of Business:
Presentation: Anne Graham - Legislative Update
Rep. Anne Graham gave updates on revenue sharing proposal, excise taxes, transportation in the State’s
budget proposal. She will send links on all of these items with more details.
The budget process is being reviewed and a supplemental budget is also being reviewed. The goals are to reduce taxes with an income tax reduction to 7.9%. With this, there is a shift to property owners, etc due to lower revenue sharing potential.
She gave an overview of Gov. LePage’s proposal on revenue sharing. He proposes a capitalized revenue sharing each year which means that it can change each year. K-12 funding has moderate increases. Revenue sharing has always been based on a percentage of revenue collected but will be capitalized and decided by each legislature.
Excise Tax change: the Taxation Committee recommends not voting on the proposal. Excise tax changes proposed would go down but this decline would affect towns’ revenues collected. She stated that this will be a long session to work this budget out.
Transportation: Rep. Graham stated that a new report is out on how the transportation department can improve their efforts. She will send a link to the report. There are proposed changes in this area. She asked the Council to get any information or questions to her and she’ll take it back to Augusta.
She enjoyed having the Crystal Lake derby people visit Augusta and welcomes others who wish to visit.
Councilor Grover commented on the taxation committee’s rejection of the revenue sharing and keep it at the current 5%. He asked what the steps are in the process. Rep. Graham stated that it goes back to Appropriations Committee
Councilor Doughty asked about any transportation developments that are forthcoming as there are many roads that converge in Gray. She stated that there are further discussions and feels more optimistic at this point, but more details are in the works.
Councilor Gellerson commented on Route 100’s condition and that primary roads need to be worked on.
Councilor Doughty stated that the Town is doing a paving study which will give comprehensive conditions on the Town roads. The information will also highlight Rte 100, among others. Rep. Graham stated that they submit this data and concerns in a letter to the State to help move this along. Councilor Doughty stated that they plan to have something ready in May.
Councilor Sturgis urged Rep. Graham to continue the work being done. He stated that revenue sharing impacts property taxes for towns. He urges her to continue work on air and water quality issues, and address disability issues. He asked about SPO (State Planning Office). Rep. Graham said that the Governor wants to eliminate it initially and create a committee with multiple commissioners and if it doesn’t work it would be eliminated permanently in 2014. Her committee urges the Governor to take this item out of the budget. More negotiations will follow.
She stated that there will be a public hearing Wednesday at 7pm with area legislators.
Public Hearing:
- Council conducts a public hearing on the proposed FY 11/12 Municipal Budget.
Town Manager Cabana presented a PowerPoint presentation on the budget. She thanked department heads and Cathy Markavich and Michelle Jackson for their work. The budget details are online on the Town’s website.
She highlighted the following:
Town’s expenses are $606,000 less than less last year.
Revenue has18% decrease
There will be a .05 mil rate increase.
The Auditor has suggested that the Capital Reserves Fund be separated from the general budget. This would also provide for monies not spent from this category would go back into the Capital Reserves Fund.
She outlined several categories where revenue is being impacted. Building fees, interest, rescue fees, general assistance, transfers from other funds, recycling, planning board fees, library fines/fees, interest on delinquent taxes, state revenue sharing, and cable franchise fees.
Excise tax is 44% of Town income. Intergovernmental funds are another large area for revenues. She gave a 3 year budget comparison as part of her presentation.
She outlined some of the proposed budget changes and a breakdown of the budget warrant item outlining operations, debt service, plowing, committees/boards, community services, insurances, and capital projects.
She also mentioned a separate warrant item at the upcoming election on a proposed law enforcement service.
James Monroe asked if the reduction is due to not funding capital investments. He believes that it appears that operating expenses are about the same, but the way is it outlined isn’t quite accurate.
He commented on the law enforcement issue. He asked what will essentially change if the Town spends money on this. He asked how much more law enforcement is needed.
Keith Whitmore stated that he believes that there is sufficient law enforcement and hasn’t seen any data to support this increase. He commented on property taxes and there appears to be increases and would like to see more cuts before more taxes are increased.
Fourth Order of Business: ORDERS
Item #087-11 To review and act upon authorizing the Town Manager to sign the quitclaim deed for Kerry Wentworth, Map F02, Lot 0081 of the Tax Assessors’ maps of the Town of Gray.
Councilor Sturgis moved; Councilor Hutchins seconded
Ordered the Gray Town Council hereby authorizes the Town Manager to sign the quitclaim deed for Kerry Wentworth, Map F02, Lot 008 of the Tax Assessors’ maps of the Town of Gray.
5 Yes
Item #088-11 To review and act upon awarding a contract for the purposes of conducting an energy audit for following town buildings: Newbegin Gym, Gray Public Library, Public Works and Central Station at Public Safety.
Councilor Doughty moved; Councilor Sturgis seconded
Ordered the Gray Town Council authorizes the Town Manager to enter into an contract with Acadia Engineers Contructors as for the purposes of conducting an energy audit for following town buildings: Newbegin Gym, Gray Public Library, Public Works and Central Station at Public Safety, as recommended the local Energy Conservation Committee.
Councilor Grover asked about the timeline.
Doug Webster stated that final report should be in mid-May
Councilor Doughty stated that there is $7,000 difference between the 2 bids. He asked if spending this difference is giving more comprehensive report. He asked if it is worth rebidding this with more specifics and do it in 2012 versus losing $7,000 in heating costs this year. He believes it’s worth asking this question.
Doug Webster stated that the funding is coming from a grant and that there is a tight schedule for both the planning and project grant. Cooler temperatures are better for thermal imaging, since it gives a better contrast than waiting for extremes in the weather to assess the same thing. There is a 10% match but the rest comes from the grant.
Councilor Gellerson asked why the Public Works building is on the list as a fairly new building but Pennell is not.
Doug Webster stated that a full operating year is required for Pennell to be included. The Public Safety building had some cost savings measures that may require some resolution. There are some design issues that can be changed which could result in better efficiencies. The audit will tell the Town what potential changes can be done, and the results. It will help the Town make better decisions on their projects.
Councilor Gellerson asked if Efficiency Maine funds the building changes. Doug Webster stated that some of the remaining funds in the grant can do this.
5 Yes
Item #089-11 To review and act upon authorizing the Town Manager to sign a Memorandum of Understanding between the Town of Gray and FEMA to provide support to FEMA so state/federal funding may be secured in order to update Town of Gray flood plain data.
Councilor Hutchins moved; Councilor Sturgis seconded
Ordered the Gray Town Council hereby authorizes the Town Manager to sign a Memorandum of Understanding between the Town of Gray and FEMA showing support for FEMA in order to secure updated Town of Gray flood plain data.
Deborah Mancini asked how soon FEMA does its work. She asked if there is a date certain for this.
Doug Webster stated that it is fine tuning it and the MOU is to help state and federal funding to update and create more accurate data. The letter is more for support for the state division of FEMA to research the data. There are some projected dates, but nothing final as there are some contingencies.
Councilor Sturgis urges them to correct the Forest Lake error to correct issues of a flood plain for some owners requiring flood insurance where none is needed. He is happy to attend the meeting with Doug Webster on this.
Doug Webster stated that they will be looking for more public input on these issues.
Councilor Grover asked if the results affect how bridges would be design. Doug Webster stated that potentially, but watersheds are assessed for culverts and the like and assess the conditions, volume and the like. He also outlined aerial photos etc as tools to help assess this. Councilor Grover asked if there will be field visits. Doug Webster stated that it is up to FEMA. Councilor Grover asked about the origin for this request. Doug Webster stated that Joseph Young at the State Planning Office contacted them (as other towns have) urging the Town to provide the MOU to leverage funding.
Councilor Hutchins stated that she supports this, as this is a growing issue for people who refinance etc. and have never had need to have flood insurance in the past. FEMA is difficult to work with.
5 Yes
Fifth Order of Business: ORDINANCES:
Mass Gathering Ordinance should be ready soon.
Street Construction Ordinance should be ready in the Spring.
Doug Webster stated that it should come before the Council soon. Councilor Doughty stated that they
have made some minor changes to the document and the group has been great to work with.
Sign Ordinance draft is being done.
Councilor Gellerson stated that the CEDC is working on the TIF LDA letter draft.
Sixth Order of Business:
Council Action Items, Assignments and Issues Status:
Request that Maine DOT review signage in Gray center and nearby state roads.
- Consider and discuss a proposed Mass Gathering Ordinance, eventually moving it to a Public Hearing.
- Complete all revisions to the Street Construction Ordinance (§ 400).
- Amend or replace the Sign Ordinance (§ 406).
- Review the town TIF Policy. (CEDC to amend and not rewrite)
Establish a Gray Hall of Fame award and a process to identify initial, historical recipients.Begin organizing a Comprehensive Planning Committee.
Seventh Order of Business:
Council Business: -
Councilor Hutchins stated that the Solid Waste Committee would like explore updating the name of the
committee and asked if the Council would support this and they are asking for public input
on the possible new name. Councilor Grover stated that he suggested a name change and the Council
did not want to do so at the time. The Council supports the Solid Waste Committee working on name
change suggestions.
Councilor Gellerson supports the suggestion from Anne Graham for a letter to be sent to the Governor,
MDOT and others, on further paving of Route 100, and other state roads. He stated that while costs are
up, the repairs being done on state roads are the cheapest repairs possible.
Councilor Doughty stated that what is underneath the roads is what impacts the condition overtime. He
supports a letter addressing the concerns and believes it’s not a waste of time and effort. Councilors
Gellerson and Doughty agreed to draft a letter to bring to the Council for review.
Councilor Gellerson commented on Town staff attending Council meetings and budget workshops but
not getting any questions asked of them on the budget. He stated that it is not a criticism, but wonders
if it is necessary since they’ve worked a full day and are here.
Councilor Grover stated that this is different from year to year. Others agreed that it changes from year
to year. Councilor Sturgis stated that as a staff member for a town, he has attended them and that the
effort is worth it. They are as interested in the success in the budget outcome as anyone else.
Eighth Order of Business:
Additions to the Agenda:
Councior Doughty asked about the medical marijuana dispensary moratorium deadline. Town Manager Cabana stated that there will likely be a request for an extension on the moratorium.
Grover would like to set a date for the moratorium deadline. He expressed concerns about the process of this being decided with a new Council.
Town Manager Cabana reminded the group about a workshop on medium density zone. Councilor Gellerson asked for an update from Ryan Keith at the next meeting.
Councilor Grover asked for clarification on the old Rite Aid being qualified as a facility. He thanked the Town Manager for a draft on the budget warrant articles and that the explanatory notes are very good. He also asked about a report from the CEO on the local food ordinance discussion. He also asked about the status of the next draft of the LDA as part of the Northbrook TIF
Ninth Order of Business: Adjournment
Councilor Sturgis moved; Councilor Hutchins seconded
Motion to adjourn
5 Yes
The meeting ended at 9:03pm
Minutes approved and accepted April 19, 2011 by its Town Council:
_____________________________ ___________________________
Peter Gellerson, Council Chair Margaret Hutchins, Vice Chair
______________________________ ___________________________
Mark D. Grover Matthew Sturgis
_____________________________
Matthew Doughty
* The Town of Gray is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable equal access to public accommodations law. If you are planning to attend a Town Council or Town committee or board meeting and need assistance with a physical disability, please contact the Town Manager’s office at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting to have the Town assist you. 657-3339. TTY 657-3931.
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