Don't ever let it be said that small town Selectmen's Meetings aren't worth attending. While the majority of the meetings are laid back and a lot of work gets done for the betterment of the Town, there are some days that just ALL goes right out the window.
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June 25, 2015, Lebanon Maine Town Office, 4:00 pm.
The video tape of the meeting is in 6 parts to break it down for ease in viewing the parts you want to see.
Select Board Chairman Ben Thompson opens the meeting and proceeds to the first item of the night. It seems Thompson thinks an Ethics Policy would be a good thing to have. It's something a previous Board had worked on, and Ben thought it would be appropriate to finish the project and have all Town employees sign it and for the Town to keep this signed copy in personnel files. Not much discussion is had on the Ethics Policy, but all three members agreed to take the information home, look at it, and visit the issue again on Monday, June 29th.
Speaking as a concerned West Lebanon resident, The Lebanon Voice Editor, Harrison Thorp engaged the Board in a discussion regarding speeding up the process of providing "Automatic Mutual Aid" for the areas of West Lebanon closest to the Milton, NH border. He explains to the Board how each call to a West Lebanon address would be sent through multiple dispatch zones to finally reach, and dispatch Milton's EMTs automatically.
"Nick says HE's ready", stated Thorp, leaving one to believe that it is our own Lebanon Fire and Rescue Chief who's holding this agreement hostage.
Selectman Thompson said that he was confident that Chief Daniel Meehan had been working on this project with Milton, NH Fire and Rescue Chief Nick Manique and that there had been quite a bit of discussion as to how that would work, and at what level of call Milton would be dispatched automatically. Since Milton NH also works on a non-paramedic level, all of the paramedic intercept calls would still require support from Sanford or Frisbie and that Milton NH calls require the same level of support, so whether the call would come through Milton or through Lebanon dispatch, the paramedic calls would still be coming out of neighboring towns.
When pressured individually by Thorp, Selectman Royce Heath seemed to think we should let the two Chiefs do their jobs and work things out, and Selectman Nadeau was in agreement with Heath's way of thinking.
The room grew quiet as Selectmen went to work on a series of Purchase Orders.
Thorp left the room with Lebanon Truth Seeker, Sandy Adams for a private conversation in another room.
SEE Part 1 of the Lebanon Maine Selectmen's Meeting of 6/25/15 HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCVNTSSJxVc
In the second part of our video, Lebanon School Summer Camp Director, Shirley Mathews arrived to go over some of the final plans for the Summer Camp that is starting up soon. More questions were answered for Mathews on the use of the Purchase Order system and how to utilize it. Mathews also spoke about a 2% raise this year for herself and her Camp Counselors, saying that she had spoken about this to the former Board at an earlier meeting. Thompson looked through several pages of old Meeting minutes and couldn't find any discussion regarding that issue and asked Jeanette Lemay to look into finding that discussion.
Thompson leaves the room to go to the Code Enforcement Officer's room to see if departed Former Selectman Paul Philbrick remembers the conversation.
SEE Part 2 of the Lebanon Maine Selectmen's Meeting of 6/25/15 HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9r6TKYNzvo
As part 3 of the meeting begins, the conversation continues about the discussion for a 2% raise for Summer Camp Director Shirley Mathews workers.
Select Board Chairman Thompson asks about different options for funding Mathews' needs, and while Treasurer Jeanette Lemay was in the room, Thompson asked her again about the long awaited "Procurement Cards" from the bank, to which the Town Treasurer, Lemay, stated that she'd been in touch with the bank and they keep saying "They're in Process".
SEE Part 3 of the Lebanon Maine Selectman's Meeting of 6/25/15 HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STeyJrYs0wE
Kurt and Brenda Zeller of Lebanon's 4X4 Proving Ground are on the Agenda as we begin part 4 of the video. The pair has been working with Clear Choice Events (no address or phone number given on their proposal) in creating a Country Music Festival that they are intending to hold at their facility on the Saturday before The Lebanon Festival, August 15, 2015.
The estimated amount of people is about 1500, so the couple realizes they need a Mass Gathering Permit in order to go forward.
Mr. Zeller says they have their Primitive Camping permit in hand from the State of Maine and that if folks have been drinking all day he'd rather have them stay and camp right there on his property.
There was some talk of other events in the making for later on in the year, including the possibility of the Proving Ground being the home for a Tough Mudder event and their desire to create a charity event to benefit Lebanon's newly combined Fire and Rescue Department.
When questioned as to why the couple chose the weekend before the Lebanon Festival, the couple explained they didn't think it would hurt Lebanon's town festival as they generally pull people from a different demographic group.
The Country Music Festival is also planning several old fashioned games such as a hot dog eating contest, a "horse shoe" toss using toilet seats, log sawing competition, and a lawn mower racing event.
After a brief discussion, Chairman Thompson sends the pair off in search of the Code Enforcement Officer, saying "Have Fun!" as they departed.
SEE Part 4 of the Lebanon Maine Selectmen's Meeting HERE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6ucKm3g5yY
Part 5 of tonight's video opens with a question for Selectman Paul Nadeau. Resident and Lebanon Maine Truth Seeker, Deborah Dorey Wilson, went to the Lebanon Transfer Station on Saturday 6/20/15 to see Mr. Nadeau and wish him well on his last day before his resignation took place, but found that he was not there. Later, it was stated on the pages of the Lebanon Community News that Mr. Nadeau, along with Transfer Station Manager and fellow Selectman Royce Heath had been at the Memorial Celebration of the late Road Commissioner, Larry Torno. Checking the time cards for that day, they show that Mr. Nadeau and Mr. Patch had never signed out from the Transfer Station, and had both been paid for working hours while they were, in fact, at the Memorial Celebration for Mr. Torno.
Mr. Nadeau counters with the fact that he came in early that day, 6:30 am, and that he had been coming in early every day for quite some time, and stated that it was the first time since 1997 that he had ever left for anything. And then adding, "To be truthful with you.... I just forgot".
Selectman Heath just got angry, accusing Wilson of making Mr. Torno's Memorial into a "circus" but he is corrected by Wilson and fellow Truth Seeker Sandy Adams that this was not even about Torno's Service or who attended, but that it was about accountability and charging the Town for hours worked when the pair of Nadeau and Patch were not even there. (Heath was not scheduled to work on 6/20/25).
Once that issue is put to rest, just asking Nadeau to be honest in his position with the Town, Truth Seeker Deborah Wilson asks if the Town's business is over with for the evening and WATCH as Royce Heath tells her that, in fact, it IS OVER.
The pair of women turn off the video recorder and head out the door, leaving the trio of Selectmen to finish up on payroll checks and purchase orders.
SEE Part 5 of the Lebanon Maine Selectmen's Meeting HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZuzEQdKjbU
As Wilson and Adams were getting into their vehicle in the Town Office Parking lot, Selectman Royce Heath exited the building. That he was angry was easy to see, and he instructed Deborah Wilson that he had been mistaken in his word that there were no more items of importance on the Selectmen's Agenda for the evening. Heath stated there was, actually, one more item. Ms. Adams stayed in the car in the parking lot while Wilson entered the Town Office with the video camera.
***It was later told to me by two separate people who were in the Town Office at the time of my departure, that as I was getting into the vehicle, they heard Thompson raising his voice and saying, "You just lied to the public AND on camera! You need to get out there and get those women back in here!" At which point, Heath came out after me asking me to return.***
After only a brief moment, Selectman Royce Heath pulled out a torn yellow slip of paper and read from it. WATCH as Heath motions to take the $28,000. that had been earmarked as a savings for the Town of Lebanon and motions to place it into the Road Department budget. Before Heath has the entire motion out of his mouth, Selectman Nadeau seconds the motion and the vote is taken with Heath and Nadeau both voting to approve the motion and Thompson never even having the chance to make a statement or ask a question. No discussion. No reason. No idea what the money will be used for.
Watch as an obviously angry Selectman Thompson reminds the Dynamic Duo that budgeted money is not ACTUAL money and their hasty decision could leave the town, who had a very good chance of making it to the next tax appropriation date, lacking in cash flow and needing to take a TAN line of credit loan. It doesn't matter to Heath and Nadeau who stand firm in their decision, and yet deny every having any conversation about this prior to the TKO of Thompson only moments before. Thompson is almost pleading with the pair as he takes time to explain to Nadeau what he has just done. But Nadeau, making no sense in his answers to Thompson's queries, stands firm as Heath looks on.
Wilson asks what Torno is going to do with this $28,000 windfall gift from the two Selectmen, to which Heath, grinning from ear to ear, says he's going to "leave that up to Tommy".
Heath also adds that if Torno doesn't have the use of this money outlined to the Board prior to June 30th, the money would revert back into the General Fund of the Town, but we've got a pretty good idea that money's all planned out, and was not shy about saying so.
So, round 2 of the surprise TKO motions is in play, with all 3 Selectmen agreeing to invite Road Commissioner Tom Torno to Monday, June 29 meeting to hear where the money will be spent.
Meeting was adjourned on the SPEED MOTION so that we could be SURE there were no more roundhouse punches awaiting Selectman Ben Thompson.
WATCH TKO ROUND 2... SURPRISE MOTION costing Lebanon Taxpayers $28,000. in the Lebanon Selectman's Meeting 6/25/15 HERE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzdCAMSkV_c
All we can say at this point is WOW.
We're hoping the Lebanon Budget Committee is watching so that you can get a handle on this wild and crazy gift-giving before our TAN line of credit is out of control!!!
We were on track to not have to borrow any money this year, but now you can BET that a TAN loan is in our near future.
