This is an incomplete partial list of the town's warrants to be placed on the ballot for 2010
TOWN MEETING WARRANT
SB2
TOWN OF WINCHESTER
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
To the inhabitants of the Town of Winchester, in the County of Cheshire in said state, qualified to vote in Town affairs:
You are hereby notified to meet in the Town Hall in said Winchester on Saturday the 30th of January next 2010 at nine o’clock in the forenoon to discuss, debate and amend warrant articles #1 through # and to receive the reports of the selectmen, town treasurer and other town officers including the agents and committees and act thereon. Final vote will be by the official ballot on Tuesday, March 9, 2010.
You are hereby notified to meet in the Town Hall in said Winchester on Tuesday, the 9th of March next 2010 at eight o’clock in the forenoon to act upon the following subjects. The Polls not to close an hour earlier than seven of the clock in the afternoon.
ARTICLE 1. To choose all necessary Town Officers for the ensuing year.
ARTICLE 2. [$300,000.00 for matching STAG]
To be enacted, this article requires a 3/5 vote.
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen
Recommended by the Budget Committee
ARTICLE 3. [$817,000.00 Wheelock Brook Bridge Replacement: 80% from NHDOT, 20% from Bridge Replacement Capital Reserve]
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen -
Recommended by the Budget Committee -
ARTICLE 4. Shall the Town of Winchester raise and appropriate as an operating budget, not including appropriations by special warrant articles and other appropriations voted separately, the amounts set forth on the budget posted with the warrant or as amended by vote of the first session, for the purposes set forth therein, totaling $ ? Should this article be defeated, the default budget shall be $ , which is the same as last year, with certain adjustments required by previous action of the Town of Winchester or by law or the governing body may hold one special meeting, in accordance with RSA 40:13, X and XVI, to take up the issue of a revised operating budget only.
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen -
Recommended by the Budget Committee -
ARTICLE 5. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $40,000.00 for the Town’s share of State road grant reconstruction costs for bridges and place it in the non-lapsing Capital Reserve Fund established at the March 2006 Town Meeting under Article 19 for that purpose?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee 7-0, with 4 abstentions
ARTICLE 6. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $22,760.00 to be placed in the Capital Reserve Fund established under Article 16 at the 2006 Town Meeting for the purpose of performing the assessing update or revaluation of the real estate in the Town of Winchester scheduled for 2015?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee 8-3
ARTICLE 7. To see if the Town will raise and appropriate $24,800.00 as the fifth and final lease-to-purchase payment for the 2007 International dump truck, plow, and sander package?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee 11-0
ARTICLE 8. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $10,000.00 to be placed in the Capital Reserve Fund established under Article 7 at the 2009 Town Meeting for the purpose of future upgrades and/or purchase of the town’s computers and networking system?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Not Recommended by the Budget Committee 6-5
ARTICLE 9. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $6,000.00 to support the annual Pickle Festival?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee -
ARTICLE 10. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate an amount not to exceed $18,000.00 to be deposited in the Evergreen Expendable General Care Trust Fund established by an affirmative vote by the 1998 Town Meeting as Article 11; the source of these funds to be withdrawn from the surplus generated by the perpetual care funds already established for the care and maintenance of lots within the Evergreen cemetery, and not from taxation.
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee 9-0, with 2 abstentions
ARTICLE 11. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $10,000.00 to be placed in the Police Cruiser Capital Reserve Fund established at the March 2006 Town Meeting under Article 14?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Not Recommended by the Budget Committee 7-4
ARTICLE 12. To see if the Town will authorize the Selectmen to enter into a 3-year lease/purchase agreement in the amount of $65,000.00, to be paid in 3 annual principal and interest payments of $23,175.00 for the purpose of purchasing a 2011 Ford 1-ton dump truck, with central hydraulics system, flat bed dump body and plow set-up? At the end of the 3-year lease agreement, no additional payment will be required and the Town will own the truck.
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee
Article 13. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of up to $25,000.00 for the cleaning, repair, and refinishing of the concrete retaining wall at the Town Beach?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee
Article 14. To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $250,000.00 to finish chip-sealing approximately 9 miles of newly-shimmed roads, which are: Woodard Avenue, Ashuelot Street, Old Chesterfield Road, Pudding Hill Road, Rabbit Hollow Road, Forest Lake Road, South Scofield Mountain Road, South Parrish Road, and Mine Road?
Recommended by the Board of Selectmen 5-0
Recommended by the Budget Committee
Article 15. To see if the Town would be in favor of removing 52 streetlights at various locations within the Town?
Article 16.
Are you in favor of rescinding the municipal budget act as defined under RSA 32:14?
To see if the town will vote to place 67% of the revenue generated from the tower to be located on town property in the conservation fund in accordance with RSA 31:113, and the balance to be deposited in the general fund. Further, to vote to reduce the amount of revenue generated by the land use change tax to be placed in the conservation fund from 75% to 50%?
Editorial comment: thereby reducing the total average payment into the conservation fund from tax revenues.
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37 comments:
It appears the the selectmen are making a power play to solidify their hold on spending our money. Without the budget committee, there wouldn't be much of a check and balance when it comes to budgets. To give a group of selectmen that have litte regard for the average taxpayer free reign over the checkbook, would be a disaster for the town. Shutting down streetlights is their solution to savings. Of course they like to give out raises and benefits to the insiders first. It is time for a taxpayers group in town with teeth.
What a great idea! Shut off streetlights, making our children and others walk home in the dark and promote more crime sprees and vandalism, what remarkable wisdom. And like the poster above says, paying out more raises and making sure THEIR families come first is horse manure. They all need to wake up or go home!!!
Same damn story, spend like drunken sailors and the hell with the rest, really is time for these idiots to go, all of them. What the hell does Dale need another truck for, they don't know how to use the equipment they have now, all they do is break things. This crap has got to stop and stop now!
Forget the dump truck and leave the street lights. Our children and senior citizens need to be able to walk along the streets. The truck should not be replaced as we need "trucks" and "equipment" to only be used for town work. I don't think that the depreciation on the truck has been used. Oops-was someone using ti when it should not have been used. Enough said!
Pay attention to the budget they are not angels and they read the blog!
See you at deliberative to cut even more money!
what was tax rate for 2008?
thanks
re: Article # 16:
There appears to be 2, maybe 3, possibilities here..#1. Rumor has it that the "tower to be placed on town property" cannot happen due to "something in the deed"; therefore, no revenue to decide. #2. Reducing the revenue from the Land Use Change Tax to go to the Conservation Fund from 75% to 50% (less would be better), but it doesn't address where the remaining % would go, such as (to the general fund.. Something to think about.
Here you go;
WINCHESTER - 2008
total evaluation - $281,468,836
town tax - $7.01
local education tax - $16.22 state tax - $2.27
county tax - $2.77
total tax rate - $28.27 tax commitment - $7,867,965 01-Dec-08
www.nh.gov/revenue/munc_prop/2008.htm
Regarding article 12 .. why do we need to have a new truck? I see other towns around us buying good used equipment way cheaper, why does Winchester need new everything? We are far from a big city and don't need new toys for the boys at the barn to play with.
How many state highways do you see getting chip sealed? Article 16 is a bunch of bull and just more wasted money.
What are your thoughts on recommending the following changes at DELIBERATIVE session:
Article 9: We the town's people of Winchester, New Hampshire choose to commend the Pickle Festival organizers for their years of dedication.
Article 11: We the town's people of Winchester, New Hampshire choose to commend the Winchester Police Department for their years of dedication.
Article 12: We the town's people of Winchester, New Hampshire choose to commend the Winchester Board of Selectman for their years of dedication.
Article 13: We the town's people of Winchester, New Hampshire choose to commend the Town Beach committee for their years of dedication.
Article 16: We the town's people of Winchester, New Hampshire choose to commend the Conservation Commission for their years of dedication.
I guess that Conservation Commission thinks that the tower is going to be a "go"? sneaky way to get more money...since they budget committee allotted them $12.
This most certainly can be accomplished by just having people show up at the deliberative session and standing together to send a message that we will no longer put up with run away spending and no accountability. For the past two years while most of us have struggled to get by, those at town hall have been rewarded with raises and cola adjustments on top of bonuses given out by our selectmen behind closed doors. Many dept. heads have spent well over their allotted budgets with no regrets and then go before the board asking for and getting more of our tax dollars in the coming year. How can you justify rewarding people year after year for failing to stay withing their budgets and costing some of us tax payers to lose their homes? It's about time we send them packing, elect good people who will work withing the system to lower taxes, not increase them. It is going to take all of us to accomplish this, don't rely on others to do this for you, you have to take responsibility to help make the changes that will affect us all.
FACT Went by a local business at 9:45 AM, the weather is 40degrees, the orange hwy pickup is sitting there running, no idea when it got there. Fact Went back by at 10:40 AM and truck is still there and still running no idea when it left. Fact That's 45 min. of sitting there running that i know of. ASSUMPTION This gives you some idea of the lack of respect and total contempt for the people who pay his wages. FACT Didn't see the driver. ASSUMPTION Dale talking about snowmobiling or what ever. Its time to make this guy who could care less about you run for the job, there are a lot of good people out of work that might want to save the town some money.
Be careful now, poor Dale will be whining to the BOS that someone on this blog is picking on him again. Never mind the FACT, that he's on our time doing nothing and that idling a vehicle for any length of time is harmful to the engine and other components; not to mention wasting fuel.
You would need an education to understand that concept!
Ah shucks!
He should a least get a gold star for stupid. In the real world he would get reprimanded or terminated.Remember this when hwy wants new vehicles. The police cruisers idle all day on detail work, maybe Dale wants to be a cop.
Detail police work on rte 10 Swanzey. If this is so good for the town how come Swanzey wasn't all over it. Maybe Bob could call area town managers and administrators and find out why they don't want this good deal for there town. I say let the PD buy there cruisers from detail money, and just hope one of officers doesn't fall asleep and hurt some one on there Winchester shift.
It was the Winchester SUV (perhaps the more expensive to run) up there on Rte 10, Swanzey detail this afternoon.
maybe the chip seal people give out the best gifts.
You mean besides the little stones left all over your yard, that they don't clean up? That stuff leaves one hell of a mess and it comes right off the roadway in a very short time. Waste of our money! Someone is surely getting a "gift" and it isn't us.
Re: Article 14 CHIP SEALING roads..
INCREDIBLE... Perhaps third time's the charm? Are you familiar with the Rte 10 end of Forest Lake Rd and the disaster created there by the 1st and 2nd attempt to seal in a year and a half? Disaster. Stones loose everywhere, on lawns, driveways, and being tracked on shoes scratching and ruining new vinyl flooring, etc. Take a look at that end even now and check out the aggregate loose on the shoulder of road. Is that what we want on all the other Article named roads in town? Not to mention the areas of scraped off stone the town snow plows cause.
Article #22 Shall the people of Winchester be given an early Christmas present by having the BOS all resign?
Why should we bother to have a group of people in office that neither listen to or heed the wishes of the people they are suppose to be working for? When we tell them they work for the town, we mean the people of town, not the town hall employees and themselves!!
What does the chip seal do to the paint on your car?
Reply to "I Avoid It"
Answer: chips it, oils it and sticks to it. Does the same to mailboxes.
The Chief at the PD can't take care of the vehicle he drives back and forth to his house and he wants another one? The unmarked car he is driving around town with has 4 bald tires on it! Bald enough that the front tire had the white cord starting to show through. I saw it parked at the bank and got pictures of it on my cell. Couldn’t believe it, if they ever have to use for some high speed duty someone surely will get hurt, especially with rainy or snowy weather that’s coming. What are they so busy doing down there that they can’t check the simple things or bring them to their mechanic? Saving money by skimping so they can buy another cruiser we say no to? Incompetent? Or, maybe they’re trying to save money for their lawsuit? Either way it puts us taxpayers behind the eight ball again.
Way to go selectmen - glad you’re right on top of the important things that go on in town!!!!!!!!
re: Chief and his bald tires. Isn't that a safety violation chief? Wouldn't you be writing up a ticket if you saw one of us riding around on tires that were clearly unsafe and a hazard to the public's safety too? Guess it's true, there's a double standard depending on who you are in town. What an example you set chief.
re: selectmen on top of things .. shhhhhh, don't wake them up, they'll be writing another warrant article for $25,000.00 for new tires for all town vehicles.
Well shoot folks, Dale needs that new truck to run back and forth to his gal's house and plow out her driveway while on our time. Don't want him to get in dutch with her now do you? Poor Dale, everyone knows he's a fool but the Board of Idiots he runs to all the time. Time for him to jump on the train out of town along with the rest of them.
The chiefs tires are just like the shirt with the hole in it that he saved to wear to the budget hearing. He knows what hes doing, hell he goes home more times a day then Dale used to before the informer came on line.
If there isn't money for tires - THERE SURE AS HELL ISN'T MONEY FOR A NEW CRUISER THEY WON'T BE ABLE TO TAKE OF.
I think DISGUSTED meant to say
"take care of"
.. and they're right. It's evident that these town employees haven't been taking very good care of the vehicles they have been entrusted to use, based on the high maintenance costs in both the Police and Highway Depts. Why continue to purchase new vehicles only to have them abused and torn up? Why not purchase good used vehicles like other towns do, at a fraction of the costs; or, find dependable qualified people who WILL take care of the town's property when entrusted with it's use?
Isn't his job to uphold the law? Isn't that why he has a badge? Didn't he swear to that or do Chief's not have to uphold the law because they are above it? Just curious how that works. Maybe motor vehicle laws don't apply?
If he's supposed to uphold the law and he didn't --- SELECTMEN --- you need to fire him. Isn't that what you're supposed to do when people don't follow the rules and put the town at danger?
You need to at least discipline him - don't ya think?
Lets see ---- 1 week's suspension for breaking the law and failing to lead by example?
Santa where are you?
If you do not spend the time or the money to maintain your equipment or buildings, what happens? It fails - QUICKLY!!!!
Our town has a habit of not keeping up in the maintenance dept. ie: the sewer plant, the school, the library etc. If it did, we wouldn't be continually replacing everything (with brand new stuff).
Our town employees (not all) act like spoiled brats! Demanding new items.
When your household has a tight budget, do you go out and BUY brand new if and when something breaks? Are you in the habit of breaking things on purpose, so that you can buy a brand new item? Or do you look for something used that will do until you can afford new?
We have become a disposable society. Where it is some times cheaper to buy brand new than it is to repair something that is broken. But there is a great deal of instances in this town, where routine maintenance would have alleviated the need to replace.
We can't possibly be trying to keep up with "The Jones-es". Sad to say, but we are at the bottom or the rung and couldn't possibly look better by buying new.
Town employees - Please put annual maintenance into your vocabulary / agenda. Buy refurbished items and stop seeking out the new top of the line items. Hire people that know how to repair! Hire people that are competent enough to manage in a tight budget. Hire people that realize that it's NOT FREE money. Someone else worked hard for their cushy salaries, job security and benefits.
Went to the post office around 8:30AM today, the orange truck from hwy was in the town hall parking lot running{again}. Went by 20 min. later and its still running. hard to believe after all that been said about waste and arrogance.
Whoever was driving it didn't care about conserving fuel or anything else other than keeping their butt warm when they got back in it. Unlike the rest of us, they don't pay for fuel or repairs, we foot the bills.
If i ran the show i would be embarrassed by these actions. Trucks that never get shut of , the late to work and extended lunch and break crowd,and the general goofing off by some of the employees. Its not that hard to at least look like you care about your job. Looks like a lack of leadership.
Saw the pumpkin truck parked at hwy on the way to the recycle and it was shut off.Keep up the good work informer. Nice to know they are tuned in.
From my own observations at planning board meetings and from reading the very slanted minutes that have been posted that factually do not accurately portray those meetings I attended, I think the selectmen or perhaps one of us should submit warrant petitions and put it to a vote of the people to rectify serious problems I have observed and feel should not continue.
I'd like to see a warrant to prevent anyone but the secretary of the planning board to take and publish the meeting minutes in an accurate manner and to be signed by other members of the board as the selectmen do instead of the way they have been done by chairperson Margaret Sharra and signed by her and her alone. No other town's chairperson takes and publishes meeting minutes, why should we be different?
I'd also like to see some kind of a warrant to prevent a conflict of interest which I have seen several times at these meeting with Margaret, continuing to sit, direct and ask questions of the applicant(s); though she verbally had recused herself; but did not remove herself from the table or the room. This conduct can not be allowed to continue if we wish to have a fair hearing for everyone.
Lastly, I think that as a result of her previous actions and being named in a lawsuit over her shameful and unlawful conduct; that Margaret Sharra should be prohibited from any participation in any further Van Dyke matters. Her conduct and the resulting lawsuit has cost this town over $23,000.00 in legal fees so far. I think there should be a warrant that prevents any town employee, named in a suit, to continue to take part in any hearings, discussions or meetings so as to not have any decisions reached by the board vacated because of their unethical participation.
Some warrant articles I would like to see on the ballot –
1) The Chairman of the Planning Board cannot also take the minutes. Another Planning Board member MUST take down the minutes, write them up and sign and submit them.
2) On any Beaman matter, both Planning Board Chair Margaret Sharra & Dean Beaman must recuse themselves from the meeting and specifically must remove themselves from the chamber.
In the past, Margaret has recused herself, but remained as the Chair, directed the meetings, let the discussions, instructed the board and asked the applicant questions on behalf of the board.
3) If the Planning Board received advise from any attorney, the reply should be copied to ALL Planning Board members, so that they can make an informed decision and specifically NOT just Margaret’s oral interpretation.
4) AGENDA – the printed agenda must be followed in the order printed. The jumping around at the whim of the chairman can’t be allowed. In the past, an attorney that Margaret does not like was made to ist from 7 until 9:30 with his client; at the next meeting he and his client went on at 9 pm (Kathy Beaman went on first).
5) Planning Board Chair Margaret Sharra has lost her temper on many occasions at Planning Board meetings. She has been unprofessional on the Van Dyke matter - which has resulted to date in over $23,000 in legal fees for the town. She has threatened to call the police regarding the Dennis Whitcom matter and twice on the Van Dyke matter. Whereas, Margaret Sharra MUST recuse and remove herself from any and ALL Van Dyke matters.
6) As Chair of the Planning Board, Margaret Sharra cannot also be the under secretary of the Zoning Board. As a ZBA member, Ken Cole cannot be an alternate on the Planning Board.
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