Wednesday August 1, 2012

BELLOWS FALLS -- Prior to a joint board meeting in the Rockingham Town Hall Lower Theatre on Tuesday, the Bellows Falls Village Board of Trustees voted to approve the warning for a special meeting slated for October.

The trustees gave the nod to a single article, established to see if the village’s voters will on Thursday, Oct. 4, amend the Bellows Falls Village Corporation Charter. There are 14 proposed amendments.

With the trustees’ approval, voters are warned to meet at the Masonic Temple at 61 Westminster St. to vote via Australian ballot. Polls will open at 9 a.m. and close at 7 p.m.

One proposed amendment will require the assistant clerk, assistant treasurer and commissioners of the Mary Arms Fund to be registered voters as well as residents and serve at the pleasure of the trustees. Another would expand the jurisdiction of the Water Utility.

There will be two public meetings to allow townspeople to express any concerns or ask questions about the proposed amendments. The first meeting is scheduled for the lower theatre at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 4. The other meeting is set for the same time and place on Wednesday, Sept. 12.

Once the warning was approved, the trustees’ meeting was adjourned and the joint meeting with the Rockingham Selectboard began.

With the final agenda item of the evening, each board individually approved of the Intermunicipal Police Agreement for a period

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of one year.

Parts of the agreement allow the Bellows Falls trustees to authorize Municipal Manager Timothy Cullenen to provide police resources for intermunicipal services and require the Bellows Falls Police Department to keep a time log of services provided in Rockingham for an annual report.

Selectboard member Josh Hearne voted against the approval.

The trustees also ratified the union contracts for the BFPD, the Bellows Falls Fire Department and the village’s water and wastewater departments. The Selectboard ratified the union contract for the highway department.

In other business:

-- In his manager’s report, Cullenen said Finance Director Chip Stearns will attend August’s meeting of the Board of Trustees and Selectboard to "give an overview of the past fiscal year and to bring you up to date on how things ended up."

-- Cullenen said Ed Howard, the cinema manager for the Bellows Falls Opera House, has submitted a letter of resignation/notice of retirement. Howard has been with the opera house for 22 years and Cullenen said he did a great job.

"I can’t say enough good things about him," the municipal manager said, adding that he has hired Rick Angers, Howard’s assistant, to replace him. Angers will start immediately, Cullenen said.

Selectboard Chairman Tom MacPhee said something special should be done to thank Howard for his years of service and Cullenen agreed.

-- On Tuesday, Aug. 28, the municipal manager told board members, there will be a special memorial event for the anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene and the beginning of construction on a new Bartonsville Bridge, which was completely destroyed by the storm. He said the event will start at 4 p.m. at the site of the bridge.

Domenic Poli can be reached at dpoli@reformer.com, or 802-254-2311, ext. 277.