Town of Stoddard, NH

Public Informational Meeting

Building Committee

10:00 AM February 27, 2010

Stoddard Town Hall

Building Committee Members present:  Dick Briere, Lou GrandPré, Sandy Holland, Harry Power, Alan Rumrill

Townspeople present:  Carole Briere, George Cahill, Arlene DiCorcia, Leigh Fosberry, Bob Hardy, Patty & Ken Hill, Angel & Nick Nicoletti, Dennis Pellegrino, Pat Putnam, Steve Raymond, Joan Read, Ginger Saleski, Arnie Stymest, Curtis Taylor, Joe Van Schaick

Baybutt Construction Company represented by:  Rod Parsons, Project Manager, Fred Mohr, Estimator, and Valerie Woods, Project Coordinator.

Building Committee Chairperson Dick Briere opened the meeting at shortly after 10 AM, read the Mission Statement of the Building Committee as established by Article 39 at the 2009 Town Meeting, and turned the meeting over to Baybutt to begin the presentation.  The PowerPoint^® presentation ran approximately 20 minutes. 

Questions from the public were requested.  Nick Nicoletti asked whether there was a consensus among the members of the Committee on options.  Dick replied that yes, the Committee’s recommendation would be to renovate the Gould House, but we also must adhere to the Warrant Article and consider all options, giving the voters sufficient information to make their choice.  Dick noted that the original Building Committee had three scenarios for use of the Gould House out of nine considered. 

Dick noted that for years the Town Hall and other town buildings have only received care when something fell apart.  A Capital Reserve Fund could have been established years ago, which would put us in better shape now, but it wouldn’t do much good to establish one now. 

Dick also said that there are comments that we already have $250K in the Gould House.  $197K was paid for the house, but parking for 30 – 40 vehicles was provided, a septic design obtained, and various elements of landscaping were also installed which expended the difference of $53K.  At the Cahill property, we already have just under $59K invested and have nothing but a road including no knowledge of building conditions there.  The question now is where, if anywhere, do we want to spend additional money.  Dick explained the Committee’s bases for its recommendation for using the Gould House, which include centralizing town offices in the historical part of Stoddard and the fact that if we build on the Cahill property, we would still have the Gould House and Town Hall to maintain.

Dick noted that through last year’s Building Committee, seven town-owned properties were surveyed, including three waterfront parcels.  It was discovered that there is sufficient property at the current Davis Public Library site to install a septic, a well and build an addition.  We also must consider needs of the Fire and Police Stations. 

Dick also noted that each year three members of the nine-member Committee will have their terms expire.  He urged the attendees to think about all the information they are receiving, talk to Committee members to get questions answered, and come to meetings.  If anyone is interested in serving on the Committee, they should please come forward.  He cautioned against listening to people who have not attended meetings or who are not on the Committee as very often, facts become diluted or distorted by the time they’ve been told through several people.

Information was given on the Town’s need to have an audit done by an outside, professional before the Bond Bank can be approached for the least expensive method of funding any construction work. 

Dennis Pellegrino thanked the Committee for their work but noted that none of the options include work on the fire station, police station, ingress, egress, and that the Gould House would need more work in the future.  He said there was no extensive investigation done on the Cahill property and asked if any of that is in the mix.  Dick said that the town owns 8.8 acres and a gravel road.  The options for construction on the property do include immediate (around the building) site work, a small paved area and bringing in utilities.  He stated that we did not, however, hire Baybutt to just investigate the Cahill property.  The current road has limited depth.  It has been suggested it could come out onto King’s Highway, but the impacts of that have not been fully studied as yet either. 

Rod Parsons noted that it was unfortunate geotechnical work had not been accomplished for the Cahill property, as it is unknown if there is a water or ledge problem to be dealt with.

Pat Putnam inquired whether there would be room in the Gould House for offices for the Town Treasurer and Tax Collector.  Dick Briere indicated there was sufficient space to accommodate those functions.  There will be space on the second floor for an office and files storage, a common area for meeting with the public, and more dry usable space in the basement.  He continued that the heating system in the Gould House is in good shape.  The thermostat is set at 48° and holds at 50°.  The Town Hall, however, needs a new system badly.  By going with a gas fired system, we can eliminate the outdoor storage shed.  The reduced scope for Town Hall would not allow for removal and replacement of the handicap ramp though.  Under the reduced scope, what won’t get done is the floor, ADA restrooms, but it will make the building safe and weather tight.

Angel Nicolette asked, if we renovate the Gould House, how would the Town Hall be used?  The response was that we would continue to use for meetings and other uses as we do now.  The rated capacity is about 100 persons seated, and 200 standing.  The Red Room in the Gould House would comfortably accommodate twelve and may be adequate for selectmen’s meetings if a large agenda is not anticipated.

Rod Parsons was asked to address the floor/under floor of the Town Hall.  He stated that it sits on granite and is held up by piers.  There is no vapor barrier, thus the cold floor and why it wicks moisture.  How long it will last depends on its usage.  Baybutt’s recommendation is to fill the crawl space with flowable fill and put radiant heat in the floor.

Curtis Taylor thanked the Committee for their work and asked if we do the Gould House must we do one or the other options for Town Hall?  Will they be tied together or separate so that voters can choose?  Dick said that they will be presented separately in the Warrant Articles but it makes good sense if we are doing one, and have contractors on site, to do the other at the same time.

Dick spoke to some of the repairs at the Town Hall in the last year or so.  200 amp electrical service was installed because we were tripping circuits by plugging in coffee makers.

Ginger Saleski asked if the Cahill property options include bringing in utilities.  Rod Parsons said that the septic and well have been included and some money is there for bringing power, phone, cable in, but the cost for what PSNH might require is an unknown.

Dick turned the floor over to Harry Power to present the impact of the various options on the tax rate.

PROJECTED COST IF BONDED

It was noted that without an outside, professional audit being conducted, the town cannot approach the Bond Bank.  The Bank goes out in June and December, so we can’t hope for funds prior to January 2011.

George Cahill spoke briefly about taking everything into consideration.  He feels the economic situation we are experiencing is going to escalate rapidly over the next couple of years.

Harry Power reminded attendees that the school is proposing a budget that will add $1.13/thousand to our taxes and this is just the first of four steady increases, and also that we don’t know what the County is going to present to us.  The reason he looked for the shorter bonding periods of 10 and 15 years rather than 20 is that he feels the longer periods are financial suicide.

Dick Briere closed the meeting by saying that everyone had a lot to consider and think about and he thanked all for coming.

Respectfully submitted,

(With apologies to anyone I inadvertently omitted or whose comment/question was recorded incorrectly or attributed to the wrong individual.)

___________________________

Sandy Holland

Public Informational Meeting

Building Committee

7:00 PM February 26, 2010

Stoddard Town Hall

Building Committee Members present:  Dick Briere, Lou GrandPré, Sandy Holland, Harry Power, Amy Rokoszak

Townspeople present:  Pat & Peter Bassett, Carole Briere, Mrs. Chagnon, Carol Clark, George Davenport, Ed Saleski, Dean Huber, Beverly Power, Tom Rosley, Arnie and MaryLou Stymest, Joe Van Schaick

Baybutt Construction Company represented by:  Rod Parsons, Project Manager, Valerie Woods, Project Coordinator.

Building Committee Chairperson Dick Briere opened the meeting at 7:03 PM, read the Mission Statement of the Building Committee, and turned the meeting over to Baybutt to begin the presentation.  The PowerPoint^® presentation ran approximately 20 minutes. 

Questions from the public were requested.  George Davenport asked what the service life of the Baybutt concept for the Cahill property would be.  Rod Parsons responded that there would be a 50-year minimum for any work they do.  Work must outlive any mortgage, provide low maintenance, good longevity, and contain elements of recycling and conserving.  George further asked if the Gould House was renovated, what the anticipated service life for it would be.  Rod replied that it would be in the 50-year or longer range.

Tom Rosley wondered if it wouldn’t be better to tear the Gould House down and rebuild on the site.  He said the cross ties and floor structure were in terrible condition.  Dick Briere asked if the last time Tom had worked on it wasn’t about 20 years prior. 

Rod Parsons noted that it was unfortunate no geotechnical work had been accomplished for the Cahill property, as it is unknown if there is a water or ledge problem to be dealt with.

Arnie Stymest asked whether the road into the Cahill property is a legal road, does it meet requirements for a development such as is planned.  No one knows the answer to the question.  He also asked for a cost breakdown for the Baybutt concept versus the Aho concept for that property and was told that was coming. 

MaryLou Stymest said, when you take higher cost of restoration, does that come to $900K?  The answer was yes.  She asked if you take that figure over 20 years, what would it raise taxes.  The full scope for the Town Hall would be about $65 per year for 10 years for the average taxpayer (average home being $259,000), and the Gould House would add about $100/year for 15 years.  MaryLou asked if that was too much to have two buildings in pristine condition. 

Pat Bassett commented that under Option II for the Town Hall, the sill his already been replaced.  It was noted that it has been in part, but you can easily see all the remaining deterioration.  Tom Rosley asked whether there could still be design changes made to bring the cost down.  It was noted that the reduced scope is already bare bones, containing just things that are absolutely necessary. 

Rod Parson spoke briefly on the condition of the Town Hall stating that it sits on granite and is held up by piers.  There is no vapor barrier, thus the cold floor and why it wicks moisture.  How long it will last depends on its usage.  Baybutt’s recommendation was to fill the crawl space with flowable fill and put radiant heat in the floor.  He was asked if that was doable in the future.  He said that it was but he recommended it be done as soon as possible.  The floor is cupped from wear but also from moisture, and will only continue to degrade.  Harry Power stated that it is the Building Committee’s recommendation that the reduced scope option for the Town Hall be adopted.

Mrs. Chagnon asked if it had been considered what would happen to the Town Hall and Gould House should an option for the Cahill property be chosen.  Dick noted that the Town Hall, at a minimum, would need to be maintained if we were going to keep it as a historic town building.  He also said that the original Building Committee had considered nine scenarios with three of them, in some manner, including the Gould House.  The CIP Committee listed town offices as “urgent”. 

Dick further noted that last year’s Building Committee had been able to have seven town owned properties surveyed, including three waterfront parcels.  It was discovered that there is sufficient property at the current Davis Public Library site to install a septic, a well and build an addition.  We also must consider needs of the Fire and Police Stations.  He said it had been suggested that we should start a Capital Reserve fund, but the reality is that one should have been started years and years ago as it would take many years to accrue sufficient funds to attend to some of these issues.  With that, Dick turned the floor over to Harry Power to present the impact of the various options on the tax rate.

PROJECTED COST IF BONDED

It was noted that without an outside, professional audit being conducted, the town cannot approach the Bond Bank.  The Bank goes out in June and December, so we can’t hope for funds prior to January 2011.

Dick Briere added a couple of points about other town-owned buildings, stating that a sub-committee met with the Fire Chief and Captain a few weeks prior and was made aware of their needs.  The library wants to stay in its current location, but with the addition of septic, water, plumbing and more room.  The police station needs to be at least twice as large as it is.

Tom Rosley asked if the second floor of the Gould House could be used for office space if needed.  The second floor can be used for an office and also for storage.  Tom offered the reminder that whatever else we do, we will still have the Town Hall.  We need to establish a maintenance program for it.

Dick Briere closed the meeting by saying that each year three members of the nine-member Committee will have their terms expire.  If anyone is interested in serving on the Committee, they should please come forward. 

Respectfully submitted,

(With apologies to anyone I inadvertently omitted or whose comment/question was recorded incorrectly or attributed to the wrong individual.)

___________________________

Sandy Holland

Building Committee Minutes

7:00 PM February 18, 2010

Stoddard Town Hall

Members present:    Penny Betz, Dick Briere, Lou GrandPré, Sandy Holland,                                            Harry Power, Alan Rumrill, and David Vaillancourt

Absent:                    P.J. Lamothe, Amy Rokoszak

Dick Briere called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM.

Lou GrandPré was asked if he had developed comments on the Aho design for the Cahill property to be added to our presentation for the two Public Informational Meetings next week.  He said that he had not, and although everyone knows that he’d have liked to develop the Cahill property, the reality is that we own the Gould House and, as a consequence, he feels it is wiser to go ahead with renovations there.

Dick Briere noted that out of nine scenarios presented by the original Building Committee, three of them involved the Gould House.  One was for buying land across the street for parking.  While $250K was spent for the Gould House, considerable parking was also obtained, a septic was designed and other work was accomplished with that sum.  Nearly $59K was spent on the road into the Cahill property and no tests were done to prove build-ability.  A local contractor has said that it is not buildable.  Lou said that he knows there are sufficient places to build on that acreage.  Lou asked what was involved in Baybutt’s plan for the Cahill property and added that he never intended to use the Aho plan for that property. 

At this point, Dick Briere introduced out guests, Rod Parsons, Fred Mohr and Valerie Woods from Baybutt Construction.  Dick noted that at the Public Informational Meetings, he will only make some opening comments and then turn it over to Baybutt.  Rod Parsons said that he thinks it is important to have a couple of sentences in opening to note what the mission of the Building Committee is, to summarize the work done and offer a recommendation for going forward.  This meeting is an opportunity for a final critique of the presentation and handout.  Both will present the benefit(s) to be attained, but we should answer the question of what it means to the voters, what they will get out of having cohesive town offices for years into the future.  He continued that we are discussing a historic community property, which says a lot about who we are, noting that there were a number of proud community members present at the time.

Dick noted that we were to look at all the options.  Since maintenance has been deferred for so many years, it is beginning to be a real cost burden in itself.  Rod noted that, in discussing numbers, the Committee should add in “owner cost” that would be in addition to total construction cost.  This would cover various pieces of equipment, fixtures, phone system, networking, furniture, etc.  Also, a contingency should be carried in the event conditions vary from what is expected.

Harry Power asked if the Town passes the scaled down plan for the Town Hall, will that come out in a written contract.  Rod responded that if it passes, BCC would return to pound out a firm Statement of Work.  The total cost for the Town Hall, including construction, owners’ cost, and contingency would be rounded to $570K.  A unanimous vote was received in response to asking if Committee members were in favor.  The number for the Gould House would be $355K.  Baybutt is hoping for the results of the abatement testing prior to next week as that could become an element of the total cost.

Valerie was asked if she could comment on the usable square footage of the Gould House.  Lou said that although we are not developing the basement or second floor, we should add half the square footage of each because both will be used to some extent, and both could be further developed in the future.  That number for usable space was estimated to be 1,900 SF.

On discussion of the presentation, Penny Betz requested that the windows be represented to scale.   Harry Power questioned the need for a bullet-proof transaction window and noted that while we might have that inside, there would be a picture window that was unprotected from the outside. 

Rod was asked to confirm the cost for the Aho plan and the Baybutt plan for the Cahill property.  Rod stated that in both cases, the prices include site work adjacent to the building, septic, well, some parking, etc.  They cannot anticipate what PSNH may require for bringing electricity in from Route 123 and certain other unknowns, i.e. the cost for blasting if significant ledge is encountered.  The Aho plan was priced at $1.3M and the Baybutt plan at $750K.  Baybutt’s plan would include a full basement.  Aho’s plan called for the building to be built into a hill in such a manner that each floor was ADA, although the floors were not ADA accessible one from another.   

Baybutt will print 100 copies of their tri-fold handout, and the Committee will print 100 copies of another handout.  The presentation will run approximately 25 minutes.  The Committee was charged to critique the presentation and get comments back to Dick in time for him to get them to Baybutt by Monday next at noon.

The Committee determined there was no requirement to meet next Thursday with the Public Informational Meetings to be held on February 26^th at 7 PM and February 27^th at 20 AM.  A motion to adjourn carried unanimously and the meeting adjourned at 8:50 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

___________________________

Sandy Holland

Building Committee Minutes

7:00 PM February 11, 2010

Stoddard Town Hall

Members present:    Penny Betz, Dick Briere, Lou GrandPré, Sandy Holland,                                                              Harry Power , Alan Rumrill

Absent:                  P.J. Lamothe, Amy Rokoszak, David Vaillancourt

Dick Briere called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM.

Dick Briere said he had spent about 90 minutes at Baybutt with Rod Parsons, Fred Mohr and Valerie.  They will be present at our next meeting on February 18^th and will do a run-through on the program for the Public Informational Meetings.  The narrative the Committee provided has been embedded into the presentation.  Dick thinks that there will be an introduction of approximately five minutes, and the program will last 20 – 25 minutes.  After that, Dick will field any questions or comments from the public unless directed to a specific Committee member.

Some discussion ensued regarding square footages of the Gould House vs. Aho’s plan for new construction and Baybutt’s plan, primarily related to the overall final cost.  Lou GrandPré said that it has to be noted that the Gould House has already cost $250K.  Harry Power said that parking and other work was also accomplished in that number and using the house for town offices is still preferable because of its location.  Lou asked Dick to verify the square footage of each building.

Dick Briere said that besides the presentation for the Public Informational Meeting, Baybutt is developing a color tri-fold brochure that will include photos of the Gould House, Town Hall and new construction.  He asked for 100 copies to cover the Friday & Saturday meetings.  Baybutt asked how many of the numbers we want included in the presentation and/or handout.  Harry will have information on numbers for a bond to include the tax impact.  When we do the run-through on the 18^th we can ask questions and resolve last issues.  There are no more changes to the numbers.  Baybutt has spent a lot more time with us that they originally estimated would be spent due to our extra requests.

How to publicize the meeting was discussed with a consensus that we can post at Mill Village Country Store, Mr. Mike’s, Town Hall, Library and the website.  It was also decided that, if the money is available, we will post the meetings in the Monadnock Shopper and the Sentinel and also do a town-wide postcard mailing.  Lou said he would talk to the Historical Society to see what their mailing costs are.  Dick suggested we send the notice to Patty Hill and ask her to post it to her blogsite. 

Harry noted that we do have a septic design for the Gould House that was done by Meridien at the time the parking lot was being planned.  They guarantee that it will meet with NHDES approval and all we need now is to pay the $300 application fee to the State. 

Penny Betz suggested that we tape record or take notes on questions asked at the upcoming presentations.  Dick noted that Baybutt had made some minor modifications to the presentation they had given us previously, and he has asked for twelve copies for the Building Committee, the Board of Selectmen and a record file copy.  Alan Rumrill provided some historical commentary on the Gould House which will be sent to Baybutt for incorporation.  Dick has also prepared a brief summary on the fire department and police station buildings.  This year we have given priority to creation of Town Offices and the Town Hall repairs and renovations.  Next year the focus will be on the other town-owned buildings.  Dick noted that the CIP adopted three years ago noted that Town Offices were annotated as “URGENT”.  Even though we have spent a lot of time on them, we have not forgotten the other buildings.

Penny Betz brought information on the Library.  They had an inspection by Fire Chief P.J. Lamothe and Deputy Randy Weaver.  She asked if they could get bids on insulation and for seven windows.  The most urgent needs for the Library are a new heating system, water and septic.  It was noted that nearly everyone who offers an opinion wants the Library to stay where it is.  There is adequate land there, confirmed by last year’s survey, for installation of a septic, drilling a well, building on an addition and creating parking. 

The Committee will determine at the meeting on the 18^th whether it will be necessary to meet on the 25^th of February.  Following the Public Informational Meetings on the 26^th and 27^th, the Committee hopes to be able to resume meeting just every other Thursday through the remainder of the year.

Penny Betz moved and Sandy Holland seconded the motion to adjourn.  By agreement of the Committee, the meeting adjourned at 7:50 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

___________________________

Sandy Holland

Building Committee Minutes

7:30 PM February 3, 2010

Stoddard Town Hall

Members present:                         Penny Betz, Dick Briere, Lou GrandPré, Sandy Holland,                                                                                  P.J. Lamothe, Harry Power, David Vaillancourt

Absent:                   Amy Rokoszak, Alan Rumrill

Dick Briere called the meeting to order at 7:37 PM.

Dick Briere noted that during last week’s meeting, we had discussed developing a narrative for the presentation to be made at the Public Informational Meeting tentatively scheduled for February.  There were only five members present last week, so he has asked Sandy Holland and Harry Power to work with him to develop this narrative. 

Dick asked that another subcommittee form to visit with the library, fire house, police station, etc.  The intent is to get a report on each town-owned building to go forward with into the upcoming informational meeting and Town Meeting. We need an update on the funds needed for necessary work to each building.  Dick and Harry are meeting at the fire station Saturday, February 6^th at 9:00 AM.  Dick asked David Vaillancourt if there is anything different that he would need at the police station.  David replied that in its present location, there is nothing.

Speaking to P.J. Lamothe, Dick said that on Saturday morning, she could point out general repairs or other items, and asked if there was anything that she would want to address at the upcoming Public Informational Meeting.  P.J. said that she didn’t think so.

Addressing Penny Betz, Dick said that she and Amy (Rokoszak) had a lot to do with the library at the time of getting the KSC plans and asked if they could provide any information to the town on the two design scenarios that we were given, etc.  Penny noted that she will be away from February 21^st through March 8^th, but noted that the plans KSC drew up do not necessarily represent what they really want for the library.  Penny added that a number of repairs have cropped up over the last few months, and their priorities at this point are just to replace the heating system and install plumbing.

Harry said that he needs better numbers to work with the Municipal Bond Bank.  Even though we cannot ask for a bond without an audit, we will want to be discussing some accurate numbers at both the informational meeting and Town Meeting.

Dick said that Catamount Environmental had visited the Town Hall and the Gould House today and took away a large number of samples to test for lead and asbestos. 

The Committee discussed what might be the best date for a Public Informational Meeting.  It was decided that two meetings might be most advantageous, give us an opportunity to reach more people.  The dates chosen were Friday evening, February 26^th, and Saturday mid-morning, February 27^th.  We also need to think about doing a dry run at some point prior to the Meeting.  The narrative needs to be available to Baybutt within a week so that they have adequate time to embed it in the presentation.  Dick said that after the subcommittee develops it, he would get it to them early next week. 

Harry Power noted that he thinks the work for the Town Hall seems to be less controversial than the Gould House renovations and iterated that we should be looking at the roof, siding, heat, cupola and trim, removing the chimneys and structures attached to the building.  He wants to make sure that the contractor doing the siding back primes it.  He suggested that the front entry and handicap ramp be delayed at least another year. 

There was some discussion that we do not have a lot of information to present on construction of a new building on the Cahill property.  Sandy Holland noted that every time Baybutt said anything about a new building, some committee members criticized them, saying that they were only interested in new construction, not in historical preservation or renovations.  Lou GrandPré stated for the second time that he was not interested in putting another dime into that building next door.  He asked if it would be acceptable for him to talk to Rod Parsons about specifics for a new building.  Dick responded that we do have numbers on a square foot estimate, plus parking lot, some landscaping, etc.  The estimated cost for new construction is $200 per square foot.  It is $75 - $100 per square foot for renovation.  Dick said that if Lou has a specific question and would get it to him, he would take it to Baybutt.  It was agreed early on that individual Committee members would not go on their own to Baybutt. 

The Committee will meet on the 11^th, 18^th and 25^th of February.  Following the Public Informational Meetings on the 26^th and 27^th, the Committee hopes to be able to resume meeting just every other Thursday.

The meeting adjourned at 8:35 PM.

Respectfully submitted,