The Walpolean

Roll Call: Present: Board members Chair Jan Galloway-Leclerc, Vice-Chair David Edkins, Clerk Tom Murray, Tom Winmill. Alternates: Myra Mansouri, Don Sellarole, Shane O’Keefe. Absent: Board member Pauline Barnes and alternate Carolyn Vose.

Minutes: Review of September minutes. Mr. Edkins made one correction. He said Tom Murray was also absent as he was preparing for the Horse Thieves annual dinner. He also asked if the secretary would put the end time of the meeting in the minutes. She said she would.

Call to Order: Ms. Galloway-Leclerc called the meeting to order at 7 pm. She asked alternate Don Sellarole to fill in for the absent board member. He said he would.

Old Business:

Gravel Pit assignments: Inspection forms to be returned – Cold River Materials on Brewery Road, Tim Graves on Wentworth Road and Hodgkins on Old Drewsville Road.

Mr. Sellarole and Mr. Murray returned their Gravel Pit Inspection form for Cold River Materials. Both said there was one small issue. They asked for a small correction where someone had cut into a mountain of shurpak. Mr. Patch said it would be corrected immediately. Otherwise, everything else was in order, both members said. 

The Old Drewsville Road gravel pit, which was thought to be owned by John and Roger Hodgkins, has been sold to Jason Perry. Mr. O’Keefe knows who he is and will get in touch with him so Ms. Galloway-Leclerc and he can inspect the pit some time before the next meeting. The reports are due in October. Mr. Edkins and Ms. Mansouri will inspect the Graves pit on Wentworth Road.

Mark Stevens, Watkins Hill Road, removal of parents home

I checked back at the previous minutes of 2019 and 2020, which I will attach in a separate email.,They are the minutes of the meetings that Mr. Stevens came to in regard to the Watkins Hill property. It all began In May 2019 when Mr. Stevens came to the meeting and said he was building a house on his parents property and wondered what the requirements were. He wanted to live in the vacant house where his parents had lived while he was building a home on the property. There is actually no ordinance pertaining to this type of situation. However, since the buildings are in the rural/agricultural district there is an ordinance saying under Uses Permitted that says: “One single or one two-family dwelling per lot, with private garages and accessory buildings.” He was given a one-year time limit to build his home without demolishing the his parents’ building and living in the vacant home on the property. He was told he did not need a variance. If he were unable to complete the new home in one year, Mr. Stevens must come back to ZBA.

A quick review of previous minutes shows Mr. Stevens has been back to a ZBA meeting in September 2020, January 2021 and July 2021. Initially, during Covid, his contractor came down with Covid – more than once – and he had a supply chain issue with building materials. At another meeting he said he had tried getting several people to demolish the 200-year house down, but no one was interested. 

Some members who were on the Board when this was taking place thought it was time to get the Select Board involved. The Chair will send a letter to the Select Board explaining the situation and hoping they can help the ZBA sort this out and tell the board what is the next step.

Revisiting Airbnbs

Mr. Sellarole said that a couple years ago the board talked about Airbnbs. Recently he heard of house that was sold solely for the purpose of renting it out for short terms. He was wondering if the board wanted to revisit the topic.

Reaction was mixed. Some board members said they didn’t think it was an issue at this time. There doesn’t seem to be any problem by renters making too much noise or bothering neighbors. Others, such as the Chair, remember Town Counsel advising the Board to do something before it becomes a problem. Mr. O’Keefe, who works for a town in Vermont said that town is having an issue with short-term rentals and it had affected housing availability. That’s already a problem in many towns. Mr. Murray remembered that at the time of the board’s last discussion of the topic, there were only eight (8) such places. 

It was decided that the secretary would put together the information that was gathered at that time when it was last discussed in 2020 and would send the most pertinent information to the current board so that they can look it over and see if they want to pursue the possibility of an ordinance.

Adjournment

Mr. Edkins made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Murray seconded the motion and the motion carried. The time was 7:37 pm.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed next month for corrections, omissions and additions.

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine

ZBA Secretary

A comment was made about missing Zoning Board Meeting Minutes. I was able to get September and October and am posting them today. Not sure what happened but am glad to know that people miss them. – Lil

Present: Board Members: Vice-Chair Dave Edkins, Pauline Barnes. Alternates: Don Sellarole, Myra Mansouri, Shane O’Keefe. Absent: Board Members Chair Jan Galloway-Leclerc andTom Winmill. Alternate: Carolyn Vose.

Called to order: Mr. Edkins called the meeting to order a couple of minutes past 7 pm. He asked Mr Sellarole to sit in for Tom Murray, Mr. O’Keefe for Chair Jan Galloway-Leclerc and Ms. Mansouri for Mr. Winmill. They all agreed.

Minutes: Ms. Barnes made three typo corrections: page 1,  paragraph 6: add an “s” to apartment.

Page 2, first paragraph, second to last sentence, change capital “T” to lower case “t”.

Page 3, paragraph second from the bottom, add the word “the” before gazebo.

Ms. Mansouri made a motion to approve the minutes as corrected. Mr. O’Keefe seconded the motion and the motion carried.

Gravel Pit Inspection:

Once a year, according to RSA     members of the Zoning Board of Adjustment must inspect all of the town’s gravel pits. Currently there are only three gravel pits in operation. The following assignments for inspection were given and their inspection reports are due at the October meeting: The gravel pits inspections and who will inspect them are: 

Cold River Material on Brewery Road: Attached is a gravel pit inspection form.

Don Sellarole 

Tom Murray

Carolyn Vose

Tim Graves on Wentworth Road

Dave Edkins

Myra Mansouri

Hodgkins on Old Drewsville Road

Shane O’Keefe

Jan Galloway-Leclerc

There was a brief discussion of Ms. Galloway—Leclerc and Mr. Edkins meeting with the Select Board, which was mentioned in the September minutes.

Mr. O’Keefe made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Sellarole seconded the motion and the motion carried.

These minutes are unapproved and will be reviewed at the October meeting. 

Respectfully submitted,

Marilou Blaine, ZBA Recording Secretary.

On Saturday, October 28th from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon, Cub Scout Pack 299 and Boy Scout Troop 299 will be holding their Scouting for Food Drive. We will be handing out information sheets for the annual ‘Scouting for Food Drive’ at the following locations: Walpole Post Office, Walpole Recycling Center, Tractor Supply and Shaw’s.

Then, on  November 4, from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon, we will be at the same locations collecting non-perishable food items (no glass please) and monetary donations. Pet food is also greatly appreciated. All food and monetary donations go directly to the Fall Mountain Food Shelf.

Selectboard Present:  Peggy Pschirrer, Chair; Cheryl Mayberry; Steve Dalessio

Staff Present: Sarah Downing, Manager of Administration; Ahmad Esfahani, Recording Secretary

Others Present: Ray Boas

CALL TO ORDER:  Mrs. Pschirrer called this Selectboard meeting to order at 6:30 PM. She introduced herself, Peggy Pschirrer, Selectboard Chair, Steve Dalessio, Sarah Downing, Manager of Administration,and Ahmad Esfahani, Recording Secretary. Mrs. Pschirrer commented that Ms. Mayberry would be late for this meeting. 

NEW BUSINESS:

Traffic Study for Dunkin Donuts: Mr. Boas reflected on a recent Walpole Planning Board meeting. He believed there is grave concern over vehicular problems on a section of Route 12 where the proposed Dunkin is to be built. Mr. Boas stated he visited the Town Hall yesterday and reviewed documentation concerning speed limits within the Town. He pointed to possible errors in a traffic study, as well as requested that the Town pursue doing their own traffic study for this section of Route 12. Mr. Dalessio advised Mr. Boas to speak to Jeff Miller, Chair of the Planning Board. Mrs. Pschirrer said that this matter is within the responsibility of the Planning Board. Mr. Dalessio added that the Town can administer the traffic study, but the payment of the study should be the applicant’s responsibility and not the Town’s. Mr. Dalessio commented that the Southwest Region Planning Commission (SWRPC) may have useful information regarding this matter. 

Ms. Mayberry joined the meeting at 6:47 PM.

PAYROLL: Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the Payroll Register totaling $31,503.56 dated 10/13/23 and the 941 Payroll Tax Transfer of $6,523.28. Seconded by Ms. Mayberry. With Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry, and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

SELECTBOARD MEETING MINUTES:

SELECTBOARD MEETING– October 4, 2023:  Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the Minutes of the Selectboard Meeting Minutes of October 4, 2023. Seconded by Ms. Mayberry. With Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved. 

SELECTBOARD NON-PUBLIC SESSION – October 4, 2023:   Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the Minutes of the Selectboard Non-Public Session of October 4, 2023. Seconded by Ms. Mayberry. With Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved. The minutes will remain sealed. 

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

Mr. Dalessio brought to the chair’s attention the following committee reports:

• Recreation Committee Meeting – August 9, 2023

• Planning Board Workshop – September 26, 2023

• Conservation Commission Meeting – October 2, 2023

• North Walpole Village District Commissioner Meeting – October 3, 2023

Mrs. Pschirrer acknowledged these minutes. 

ABATEMENTS:

Map and Lot# 003-082-CL8: Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the property tax abatement for Map and Lot# 003-082-CL8. Seconded by Ms. Mayberry. With Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor the motion was approved.

Map and Lot# 003-082-000: Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the property tax abatement for Map and Lot# 003-082-000. Seconded by Ms. Mayberry. With Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor the motion was approved.

OLD BUSINESS:

Walpole Foundation Request: Mr. Dalessio motioned to accept a letter from the Walpole Foundation. Seconded by Ms. Mayberry. With Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor the motion was approved. 

NEW BUSINESS:

Rec. Revolving Fund Request: Ms. Mayberry motioned to approve an expense request from the Recreation Revolving Fund of $1,089.38 for the fall soccer jerseys. The sponsors should reimburse most of this amount. Seconded by Mr. Dalessio. With Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor the motion was approved.

Rec. Revolving Fund Request: Ms. Mayberry motioned to approve an expense request from the Recreation Revolving Fund of $340 to purchase fans for Age in Motion. Seconded by Mr. Dalessio. With Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor the motion was approved.

NON-PUBLIC BUSINESS RSA 91-A:3 II (a) (c) (e):  

Ms. Mayberry moved to enter into Non-Public meeting at 6:56 PM. Mr. Dalessio seconded. With Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio, and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

The public meeting reconvened at 7:31 PM. 

Ms. Mayberry moved to seal the non-public minutes. Seconded by Mr. Dalessio. With Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio, and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

ADJOURNMENT:

Mrs. Pschirrer declared the meeting adjourned at 7:33 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Ahmad Esfahani, Recording Secretary

The Advance Directives presentation is on OCTOBER 20TH. That is this Friday. Please excuse the headline. – Lil

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This Friday, October 20, from 4:30 to 6:00 pm, Lucy McVittyWeber, our NH State Representative and former Vermont ElderLaw attorney, will be presenting an information session on ‘Advanced Directives– Why You Need Them and How to Get Them’.  The talk will be free and open to the public at the Walpole Library Community Room. 

This talk is not just for seniors but for anyone who wants to be sure their wishes are known in times of emergency or end of life. Lucy will be handing out packets to everyone who attends, which include information and actual forms that can be filled out.

This is the second in a series of informational sessions for seniors or their families by River Valley Seniors at Home, a non-profit membership organization whose goal it is to help keep seniors in their homes longer.  

For more information, call Tara Sad at 603-756-4861