BELLOWS FALLS-Most of the articles considered at Monday's Annual Meeting of the village were housekeeping items that passed without much comment or discussion.
But two of the articles - the $1.67 million village budget, and borrowing $650,000 to replace the Kissell Hill water line - prompted considerable discussion.
In the end, all the articles passed, including an amended Article 5.
Regarding the village budget, most voters stated that they were fine with the budget but were concerned about a couple of increases within it.
Municipal Manager Scott Pickup explained that most of the increase in any of the town department budgets was due to salary increases or, even more so, health insurance premiums, which were up as much as 40% or more this year.
He also noted that it looked as though the Bellows Falls Police Department would be fully staffed for the coming fiscal year for the first time in some years. Having more staff increased the budget as well.
The village budget passed unanimously after the discussion.
Most discussion centered on replacement of the Kissell Hill water line, which has connected a part of the town of Westminster to the Bellows Falls water supply for over half a century.
The village formalized agreements with the town of Westminster in 1997 and in 2007 which stated that Bellows Falls owns the water line and would be responsible for its replacement costs.
The 2,900-foot asbestos cement pipe water line, built in 1971, is "past its useful life," Pickup said.
"We can't maintain that line anymore," he said, adding that it's a project that has to be done.
Matching federal funds are available with the project's approval.
Trustee James McAuliffe explained that the vote gives the village the authority to explore whether the project is viable.
"We're not saying we will go forward. It's not a done deal by any means," he said.
One resident of Kissell Hill referred to it as a "cancer-causing line."
Pickup responded that he had never seen official documention of any health issues attributed to the water line. He added that the water quality is regularly tested and the reports from the tests "have never noted asbestos issues."
As originally written, the text of the article said that the money borrowed for the project would be repaid by "utilitycustomers in the water rate for Kissell Hill."
The $650,000 loan, in a 30-year note, would add about $52 per month to the water bills of Kissell Hill residents (on top of their actual water usage), village officials estimated.
Some Rockingham residents commented that it would be more fair if the cost of replacing the line were shared by all the water utility users, instead of just the families in that neighborhood.
They noted that this was how other water and sewer improvements around the village had been done.
Pickup noted that the stipulation was added because this was a section of line in Westminster, not Bellows Falls.
Town Clerk Kathleen Kelly estimated that, if the cost of the loan were shared among all the village's approximately 2,000 water users, it would reduce the increase to approximately $11 per year.
Pat Fowler put forth an amendment to the article to cut the section that singled out payment through the "water rate for Kissell Hill," and just end with an agreement that repayment of the construction loan debt would be "paid by the utility customers."
The amendment passed 17–10 by ballot vote. The amended article then passed unanimously by voice vote.
Village election results
On Tuesday, Paul Obuchowski won a 135-19 victory against Deborah Wright for village president.
Wade Masure and Taylor Pichette took two two-year village trustee seats with 125 and 127 votes, respectively, with Wright, the third candidate, receiving 32 votes.
In April, Wright also lost her bid for re-election to a one-year seat on the Rockingham Selectboard.
Donna Harty defeated Pamela Willard for village treasurer, 96–46.
Dennis Harty ran unopposed for village moderator, and Kathleen Kelly ran unopposed for village clerk; they won 149 and 141 votes, respectively.
Three auditor seats had no candidates.
Out of 2,038 registered voters, 157 ballots were cast, representing about a 7.7% voter turnout.
This News item by Robert F. Smith was written for The Commons.