The Walpolean

Selectboard Present:​Peggy Pschirrer (Chair); Cheryl Mayberry; Steven Dalessio

CALL TO ORDER:  Mrs. Pschirrer, Chair of the Walpole Selectboard, called this meeting via Zoom to order at 9:00 AM.  She announced that Ms. Cheryl Mayberry and Mr. Steven Dalessio, the other two Selectboard members are also present.  The Selectboard members are in three separate locations.  Mrs. Sarah Downing, Manager of Administration, is in the Walpole Town Hall, and Mrs. Regina Borden, Recording Secretary, is by telephone at a separate location.  This meeting is being recorded.

Public comments are to be emailed to Mrs. Downing at the Walpole Town Hall or by calling 603-756-3672.  She will display the Agenda.  That will be followed by documents as they are being discussed.

Mrs. Pschirrer called for a voice roll call vote of the Selectboardpresent:  Cheryl Mayberry was present; Steven Dalessio was present and Peggy Pschirrer was present.

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE:

There was no Accounts Payable Check Register this week due to the short holiday week.

PAYROLL:

Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Payroll Check Register for the week ending December 19, 2020, in the amount of $28,759.93 for checks dated December 24, 2020, and for the 941 Payroll Tax Transfer in the amount of $5,837.24.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

SELECTBOARD MEETING MINUTES:

SELECTBOARD MINUTES – December 17, 2020:  Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Minutes of the Selectboardmeeting of December 17, 2020, as submitted.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the Minutes were approved.  

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION – December 17, 2020:  Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session of December 17, 2020, as submitted.  These Minutes will remain sealed.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the Minutes were approved.

PROPERTY TAX REFUNDS:

Mr. Dalessio moved to grant the following Property Tax Refunds.  These are the result of overpayments of the recent tax bills:• Map and Lot #003-038-005 in the amount of $2,998.00;• Map and Lot #030-072-000 in the amount of $200.00;• Map and Lot #013-014-000 in the amount of $90.00.

Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

OLD BUSINESS:

Pending Further Actions:

Town Street Lights, Tax Deeded Property Sale, Houghton Brook Bridge Repair and Emergency Generators:  These items will continue to remain on the Pending Further Actions list.

Reservoir Dam Repairs:  Mr. Dalessio reported that the Reservoir Dam Repairs are moving forward.  The NH Department of Environmental Services and Fuss & O’Neill are making sure they get all the parameters for the model.  

NEW BUSINESS:

Date for FMRSD Deliberative Session:  Mrs. Pscherrier reported that the Fall Mountain Regional School District Board changed the date of their Deliberative Session from Thursday, February 4^th, 2021, to Tuesday, February 2^nd, 2021, after they became aware of the fact that the Walpole Selectboard had set the date for their Annual Budget Public Hearing for Thursday, February 4^th, 2021.  The Selectboard is grateful that the FMRSD made this change.  It was not a problem for the other FMRSD towns.

Possible Property Tax Refunds for December 28, 2020, and Check Register.  Mrs. Sandra Smith, Tax Collector, will be closing her books on Monday, December 28, 2020.  Any Property Tax Refunds will need to be processed on this date.  The Selectboard will not be meeting until Tuesday, December 29, 2020.

Ms. Mayberry moved that the Selectboard authorize Jodi Daigle to sign any of the Property Tax Refunds that come-up between now and December 28, 2020, on Monday, December 28, 2020. Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

Ms. Mayberry advised that if there are any Property Tax Refunds they will be read into the Minutes of the Selectboard meeting of December 29, 2020.  Mrs. Smith has been working with the State on closing out the books.  The balance for any additional refunds will wait to be handled in January 2021.

Next Selectboard Meeting:  The next Selectboard meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, December 29, 2020, at 5:30 PM.  It is anticipated to be a Zoom meeting.

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION:

Ms. Mayberry moved to enter into a Non-Public Selectboard Session pursuant to RSA 91-A:3 II to discuss (a) Personnel and (c) Reputations.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrerasked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved at 9:08AM.

The regular Selectboard meeting resumed at 10:26 AM.  

Ms. Mayberry moved that the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session of  December 23, 2020, will be sealed.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

ADJOURNMENT:

Ms. Mayberry moved to adjourn this Selectboard meeting.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the meeting was adjourned at 10:28 AM.

Respectfully submitted,

Regina Borden, Recording Secretary

The January 4th meeting has been cancelled.

From Tom Goins: On December 28^th one of our employees in the Restaurant at Burdick’s notified us that they tested positive for COVID.  The employee has not worked in the restaurant since Thursday, December 24^thand did not begin to show symptoms until the afternoon of Sunday, December 27^th.  We here at Burdick’s & the Walpole Grocery take this seriously and therefore it is with utmost precaution and the continued interest of keeping everyone safe & healthy as possible we are closing both The Restaurant at Burdick’s and the Walpole Grocery.  We will remain closed as long as necessary and we are also having our entire staff tested.  We hope you all remain healthy & safe.

For those who think of Burdick’s as one entity that includes The Restaurant at Burdick’s, the Walpole Grocery and the Chocolate Shop & Café, the COVID related closures only apply to the restaurant and grocery store.

TOWN OF WALPOLE

SELECTBOARD MEETING AGENDA

December 29, 2020 at 5:30 PM

SELECTBOARD MEETING

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

PAYROLL• Payroll Register totaling $30,336.25 dated 1/01/2021 and the 941 Payroll Tax Transfer of $6,087.58

SELECTBOARD MEETING MINUTES• Selectboard Minutes – December 23, 2020• Non-Public Selectboard Session – December 23, 2020

OLD BUSINESS

Pending Further Actions

Town Street Lights, Tax Deeded Property Sale, Houghton Brook Bridge Repair, Reservoir Dam Repairs, Emergency Generators

NEW BUSINESS• 2021 Draft Warrant Articles

**Any recording, audio or visual, and/or other devices must be declared at the beginning of the meeting**

Good morning,
A reminder that our Salute to Sandy Smith is today at 4 pm.  Everyone is to gather in the parking lot of the Walpole Middle School so that we can kick off at 4 pm led by the Walpole Police Department.
Sandy will be standing in the double door entrance on Elm Street.  So far, she is unaware this is happening.  Her family will be joining her this afternoon.

Broadband Install Update: December 2020

The infrastructure for Walpole’s fiber optic cable is going great guns. As of Dec 14, of the 3 phases of the ‘backbone’ for this project – 97% of the fiber was laid, 75% of the splicing was done, and now the testing of the network has begun. (Look for an updated report on the install of the ‘backbone’ coming out just before the New Year. This will be posted on the Walpole Town website.)

Those 3 phases of the ‘backbone’ lead to the stuff that matters – making the connection to the internet. Turns out that this is a two-step process. See the info from Consolidated Communications below regarding this final phase of the project:

“For awareness the installation process (connecting the fiber optic cable to the house/premise) has started.  CCI has begun calling residents that pre-registered on the landing page for pre-drop placements and will begin to run the fiber from the street to the outside of the house.  CCI will continue with this part of the installation(the part outside the home) through the end of January and then will begin to transition over to the in-home installations portion and begin to bring customers online.”

For more information visit Walpole’s town website here: 

https://www.walpolenh.us/Broadband.html

Or pre-register at Consolidated Communications webpage here:

https://www.consolidated.com/  (Note that you may need to disable some adblocking features on your computer to in order to get information specific to your location.

Or if you prefer the phone, this number Is posted on their website:1.844.968.7224 Residential Sales & Service: 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. (M-F)

I also see this phone number posted outside Consolidated’s building in the village 855-401-6423

Dennis Marcom, for Walpole’s Broadband Committee

**NOTICE**

Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020 at 5:30 PM

The Walpole Selectboard will be holding an Online Selectboard Meeting.

Non-public session at start of meeting with public meeting to follow.

Contact the Selectboard Office if you wish to be sent a Zoom invitation to discuss a specific topic during the meeting or check www.walpolenh.us for meeting information.

Questions to the Selectboard are to be submitted to sdowning@walpolenh.us or by calling 603-756-3672.

FYI – the next meeting of the Selectboard is 12/29 at 5:30. Sarah said she will be posting the Zoom link on their website if you would like to join. – Lil

Selectboard Present:​Peggy Pschirrer (Chair); Cheryl Mayberry; Steven Dalessio

CALL TO ORDER:  Mrs. Pschirrer, Chair of the Walpole Selectboard, called this meeting via Zoom to order at 6:30 PM.  She announced that Ms. Cheryl Mayberry and Mr. Steven Dalessio, the other two Selectboard members, were present.  The three Selectboard members are in separate locations.  Mrs. Sarah Downing, Manager of Administration, is in the Walpole Town Hall, and Mrs. Regina Borden, Recording Secretary, by telephone at a separate location. This Zoom meeting is being recorded remotely by FACT-TV and can be viewed on their YouTube channel.  

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE:  

Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Accounts Payable Check Register in the total amount of $1,646,816.23 for checks issued December 18, 2020.  This includes a payment of $1,601,676.00 to the Cheshire County for the yearly payment.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

PAYROLL:

Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Payroll Check Register for the week ending December 12, 2020, in the amount of $28,081.56 for checks dated December 18, 2020, and for the 941 Payroll Tax Transfer in the amount of $5,363.58.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

SELECTBOARD MEETING MINUTES:

SELECTBOARD MINUTES – December 10, 2020:  Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Minutes of the Selectboard meeting of December 10, 2020, as submitted. Seconded by Mrs. Pschirrer.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the Minutes were approved.  Ms. Mayberry abstained from the vote as she was not present at this meeting.

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION – December 10, 2020:  Mr. Dalessio moved to accept the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session of December 10, 2020, as submitted.  These Minutes will remain sealed.  Seconded by Mrs. Pschirrer.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessioand Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the Minutes were approved.  Ms. Mayberry abstained from the vote as she was not present at this meeting.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

The Selectboard acknowledged receipt of the following Committee reports:• Walpole Conservation Commission Meeting – December 7, 2020;• North Walpole Village Board of Commissioners Meeting – November 17, 2020;• North Walpole Village Board of Commissioners Meeting – November 24, 2020;• North Walpole Village Board of Commissioners Meeting – December 1, 2020;• North Walpole Village Board of Commissioners Meeting – December 8, 2020.

PROPERTY TAX REFUNDS:

Mr. Dalessio moved to grant the following Property Tax Refunds.  These are all the result of over-payments:• Map and Lot #020-043-000 in the amount of $48.00;• Map and Lot #024-016-000 in the amount of $2,180.00;• Map and Lot #005-035-000 in the amount of $11.00;• Map and Lot #008-015-005 in the amount of $5,918.00.

Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

TIMBER TAX WARRANT:

MAP and LOT #007-024-001:  Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the Timber Tax Warrant and the Certification of Yield Taxes Assessed in the amount of $248.44 for the owner(s) of Map and Lot #007-024-001.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

NOTICE OF INTENT TO CUT WOOD OR TIMBER:

MAP and LOT #004-041-000:  Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the Notice of Intent to Cut Wood or Timber for the owner(s) of Map and Lot #004-041-000 for a cut on a lot located off Route 12.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

OLD BUSINESS:

Travel Policy for Employees:  Mrs. Pschirrer reported that the Travel Policy for Employees was put “On Hold” at the last meeting as some additional wording was needed.  The policy was updated with ten (10) days of quarantine or seven (7) days quarantine with a PCR test.

Ms. Mayberry moved to approve this updated COVID-19 Travel Policy for Employees.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

Emergency Generators:  Mrs. Pschirrer advised that Mr. Sam Jacobs and Mr. Justin Cassarino at the Walpole Elementary School talked to them about the need for an emergency generator now that they have been included as an approved shelter in the Walpole Emergency Plan.  Mrs. Pschirrer noted that an emergency generator is also needed at the Town Hall.  Mr. Dalessio spoke with Mr. Mark Houghton who is aware of this.  Mrs. Downing wrote to Ms. Liz Gilboy at the NH Homeland Security to ask where they need to apply for the Grant she spoke about and if the money is still available.

Pending Further Actions:

Tax Deeded Property Sale:  At the beginning of next year Mrs. Pschirrer would like to advertise this Tax Deeded Property Sale.  Mrs. Downing will begin the process.

Town Street Lights, Houghton Brook Bridge Repair, Reservoir Dam Repairs:  These items will remain on the agenda as Pending Further Actions.  

Annual Town Reports:  Mr. Dalessio asked Mrs. Downing to remind department managers that their annual reports will be due for the Annual Town Reports right after the first of the year.

NEW BUSINESS:      

Vachon Clukay & Co. Letter of Agreement for Tax Collector Audit:  Mrs. Pschirrer pointed out that Mrs. Smith will be retiring as the Town Clerk-Tax Collector on December 31, 2020. Therefore, an audit is required for the Tax Collector’s position.  Mrs. Smith will be closing the books on December 28, 2020.   

Ms. Mayberry moved to authorize the Chair of the Selectboard, Peggy L. Pschirrer, to sign the Letter of Agreement with Vachon Clukay & Company for the audit.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.   On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

Date for Annual Budget Public Hearing: There was a consensus of the Selectboard to set the date for the Annual Budget Public Hearing for Thursday, February 4, 2021.  It will be done either by a Public Hearing or a Zoom meeting.  In accordance with State RSAs the last date it can be held is February 11, 2021.  This information will be sent to Mr. Ray Boas for publication in the January and February Clarion.  This will be held at either 5:30pm or 6:00pm prior to the regular Selectboard meeting.

Next Selectboard Meeting:  Due to the Christmas Holiday next week, the next Selectboard meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, December 23, 2020, at 9:00 AM.  This will be a Zoom meeting.

Selectboard:  The Selectboard members will come into the office tomorrow or over the weekend to sign documents approved at this meeting.  

FACT-TV:  Mrs. Pschirrer announced that this concludes the regular Selectboard meeting.  The Selectboard will enter into a Non-Public Selectboard Session and Hooper Trustees meeting.  FACT-TV discontinued filming this meeting at 6:47 PM.

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION: 

Ms. Mayberry moved to enter into a Non-Public Selectboard Session pursuant to RSA 91-A:3 II to discuss (a) Personnel, (c) Reputations and (d) Acquisition, Sale or Lease of Real or Personal Property.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved at 6:50 PM.

The regular Selectboard meeting resumed at 7:07 PM.

Ms. Mayberry moved that the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session of December 17, 2020, will be sealed.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved.

RECESS SELECTBOARD MEETING:

Mr. Dalessio moved to recess this Selectboard meeting.  The Selectboard will enter into a meeting as the Hooper Trustees.  Seconded by Ms. Mayberry.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Mr. Dalessio, Ms. Mayberry and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, the motion was approved at 7:08 PM.

The regular Selectboard meeting resumed at 7:20 PM.   

ADJOURNMENT:

Ms. Mayberry moved to adjourn this Selectboard meeting.  Seconded by Mr. Dalessio.  Mrs. Pschirrer asked if there were any questions or comments.  There were none.  On a voice roll call vote with Ms. Mayberry, Mr. Dalessio and Mrs. Pschirrer in favor, this meeting adjourned at 7:22 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Regina Borden, Recording Secretary

COVID by the Numbers—December 23 Edition

Happy holidays, everyone,

As has been the case for the last few weeks, the numbers are both alarming, and bewildering.  It is hard to discern any really clear patterns, as some numbers are better and others are worse.  Making it more difficult to compare apples to apples, rather than oranges, is the backlog of tests as yet unreported to DHHS, so I am reporting based on the daily numbers from DHHS, and not on the reallocation of the new numbers back to the dates they actually belong to.  If that last sentence makes no sense, welcome to my world.  My guess?  We are coming down from the post-Thanksgiving spike, and given the numbers of people travelling, we are now in the lull before the post-Christmas spike.   The good news is that vaccines have arrived and are being administered in New Hampshire.  Front-line health care workers and a few nursing home residents were the first recipients.

As of December 22, Walpole had 9 active cases of COVID, up from 5 active cases in my last report, but down from a high of 11 a couple of days ago.  Total cases in Walpole went from 22 to 31.

Cheshire County had 150 new cases last week; down significantly from 241 the week before.  Again, I am not sure how this number may be influenced by the delay in reporting numbers from the backlog.  The daily average for the week is now down to just under 21.5 cases per day, down from just over 30 cases a day a as of my last report.  The Cheshire County 7 day moving average for number of daily cases per 100,000, as of December 21, is 24.6, down from a high of 43.6 on December 13. Because we are under 25 cases per 100,000, today, for the first time since December 1, we are colored orange rather than red on the Harvard Global Health initiative map.  Sullivan and Grafton counties are even lower than we are; but these numbers are down in every county.  Currently, Cheshire County has 195 active cases, down from a high of 258 on December 13th.

Statewide, the 7 day moving average of daily cases per 100,000 is now 49.4, down from a high of 65.0 on December 13^th.

Hospitalizations are at 297, an all-time high, up from 252 on December 15.

52 lives were lost last week, up from 38 last week, including at least one from Cheshire County.  The only good news here is that the last two days have added no deaths to that total.

Current active cases by town:  Keene-64, Jaffrey-22, Swanzey-19, Winchester-12, Rindge-11, Hinsdale-10, Walpole-9, Chesterfield-6, Marlborough-6, Troy-6, Westmoreland-5, Richmond-5

Towns with 1-4 cases: Alstead, Marlow, Stoddard, Nelson, Gilsum, Winchester. Harrisville, Roxbury, Dublin, Fitzwlliam.

Sullivan alone is at 0.

EddieFalkor begs you all to have a peaceful holiday season, full of joy, and friends, and family, even if at a distance.

As do I.

Please note that I have not trained EF to climb up on the ottoman and fix me with the Dog Stare while sitting pretty.  

This is a training technique he developed all on his own, designed to make a recalcitrant and untrainable human pay attention.

I can report it is very effective.

Wear your mask, keep your distance, wash your hands,

Keep well, and thank you all for being members of this wonderful community.

~ Representative Lucy Weber lwmcv@comcast.net 603-499-0282.

TOWN OF WALPOLE

SELECTBOARD MEETING AGENDA

December 23, 2020 at 9:00 AM

SELECTBOARD MEETING

PAYROLL• Payroll Register totaling $28,759.93 dated 12/24/2020 and the 941 Payroll Tax Transfer of $5,837.24

SELECTBOARD MEETING MINUTES• Selectboard Minutes – December 17, 2020• Non-Public Selectboard Session – December 17, 2020

PROPERTY TAX REFUNDS• Map and Lot# 003-038-005• Map and Lot# 030-072-000• Map and Lot# 013-014-000

OLD BUSINESS

Pending Further Actions

Town Street Lights, Tax Deeded Property Sale, Houghton Brook Bridge Repair, Reservoir Dam Repairs, Emergency Generators

NEW BUSINESS• Date for FMRSD Deliberative Session• Possible Property Tax Refunds for 12/28/2020 and Check Register

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

**Any recording, audio or visual, and/or other devices must be declared at the beginning of the meeting**