http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/feeds/topics/hollis_tm2010 Daily news from The Telegraph of Nashua en-us dkiesow@nashuatelegraph.com onlineeditor@nh.com http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/687522-196/cost-doomed-police-contracts.html Towns officials across the region are heading back to the bargaining table after voters swatted away police union contracts, despite one town’s last-minute agreement. Officials in several towns used the words “too rich” and many of the towns failed to come to agreements with the local chapters of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Amherst, Hollis and Milford were at a stalemate with the AFSCME and selectmen told voters to reject the contracts even after fact-finders’ reports recommended the agreements be accepted. In Hudson, an eleventh-hour vote by selectmen at the Deliberative Session led to a last-minute new proposal, which the police union ultimately approved, but that didn’t make a difference to voters. Taxpayers shot down a proposed contract by 1,775-1,550. “Obviously, we’re disappointed and surprised, too,” said Hudson Police Sgt. Mike Gosselin, the local union president. Hudson’s police contract will expire June 30, and officers will then have to work without a deal before they can submit a new offer to voters next March. The current contract was signed in 2007, a year before state law made an Evergreen Clause part of municipal negotiations. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:04:05 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/675432-196/district-voters-ok-11.26m-budget.html HOLLIS – The voters who packed the Hollis/Brookline Middle School on Monday night for the annual Hollis School District Meeting passed an $11.26 million operating budget, a spending plan that is $382,003, or 3.4 percent, lower than last year’s budget. It wasn’t an easy sell, given uncertainty about the economy, concerns over a state law obligating communities to continue to pay salaries and benefits negotiated under expired contracts, and a mold problem at the upper elementary school that will cost almost $500,000 to fix. Before the vote, the operating budget was amended several times with requests that included adding $50,000 to retain a teaching position, $74,625 to retain a speech pathologist, and another, asking officials to cut $100,000. All of the amendments failed. It was clear from the beginning that voters would be scrutinizing every spending request, and discussions were long, and often heated. And throughout the meeting, school moderator Jim Belanger had to remind speakers that they had run out of the allotted time. By an 82-50 vote conducted by secret ballot, voters rejected a three-year teacher contract that contained $52,000 in increases for salaries and fringe benefits for the 2010-11 school. They also approved an article that allows the district to call a special meeting to allow voters to decide on a renegotiated contract. The Budget Committee approved the teacher contract article, 5-2, with the minority expressing concerns about the Evergreen Clause, a state law passed in 2008 that obligates communities to continue the terms of a negotiated contract after it expires and until the next one is settled. Budget Committee Chairman Chris Hyde, who dissented from the majority view, said he worried that there could be “larger values associated” with the contract in the future. The operating budget that passed included the cost of repairs at the Hollis Upper Elementary School, the result of an unexpected and expensive mold problem, the teacher contract and expendable trusts to pay for maintenance in the district. On Monday before the district meeting, the School Board revised what it was asking voters to spend for repairs at the upper elementary school, reducing the amount from $500,000 to $495,000. To pay for the repairs, voters agreed to a one-time, one-year expense that saves more than $200,000 in bonding fees and interest. The hit to the taxpayer is an increase of 72 cents per thousand of property valuation, or an additional $216 for a house valued at $300,000. The budget that voters passed includes $269,620 in increases over last year’s budget to cover teacher contracts and retirement, heating oil, health insurance premiums, and a new maintenance position. It also reflects a decrease of $530,130, chiefly the result of cutting four classroom positions and a special education speech position. Voters approved an article that allows the school district to receive an energy grant, $166,847 to be used to reduce the cost of lighting districtwide. Energy efficiency experts say more efficient lighting can save the district more than $23,000 a year. Funding will come from federal stimulus funds, a conservation block grant program, and Public Service of New Hampshire, and there is no tax impact. Hattie Bernstein can be reached at 673-3100, ext. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:57 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/667465-308/voters-to-decide-co-op-budget.html HOLLIS – Voters who attend the annual Hollis/Brookline Cooperative School District meeting on Wednesday will be asked to approve an operating budget of $18.45 million, recommended by the district’s Budget Committee, but not the School Board. The difference of opinion is likely to spark debate: During the March public hearing, for example, officials stopped taking public comments at 11:30 p.m., more than four hours after the meeting had begun. But they invited the public to remain and listen as the board continued to talk. At that meeting, the School Board proposed an $18.75 million budget to operate the district’s two schools and pay salaries and fringe benefits for 117 teachers and 83 support staff. Budget Committee members rejected that number, pointing to an existing $750,000 unreserved fund balance in the current budget. The Budget Committee has also suggested the School Board’s higher proposed budget would further increase the unreserved fund balance. Steve Pucci, chairman of the Budget Committee, said he and colleagues on the committee are concerned that the School Board is budgeting for possible contingencies, raising the bottom line at taxpayer expense. Pucci advocates appropriating funds based on actual spending and adding in the costs of salaries and benefits while maintaining as small a contingency as possible. He said that philosophy reflects financial practices in private business and industry. The meeting is set for 7 p.m. at Hollis/Brookline High School. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:54 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/667466-308/proposed-school-budget-2.3-less.html HOLLIS – When they gather at Hollis/Brookline Middle School on Monday, voters will be asked to approve a Hollis School District operating budget that’s 2.3 percent lower than last year’s. The $11.38 million budget was recommended by the town’s Budget Committee. The fiscal 2011 budget- making process was particularly challenging, given an unanticipated mold problem at Hollis Upper Elementary School that must be fixed next year. The School Board is asking taxpayers to foot the bill for a one-year, $500,000 expense to repair the building, increasing the school portion of the next tax bill. The proposed budget includes $269,620 in increases over last year’s budget to cover contracts, teacher retirement, heating oil, health insurance premiums and a new maintenance position. By contrast, the board cut $377,463 from the 2011 budget by eliminating four classroom positions and a special education speech position. The School Board is asking voters to approve an energy grant, available through federal stimulus funds, that could save more than $23,000 in lighting costs. If voters approve the proposed school budget, they’ll see a one-time increase in their tax bills in spite of the decrease in the operating budget. The increase would reflect the one-time expense of fixing the upper elementary school. To save more than $200,000 in bonding fees and interest, the district is asking voters to pay a one-time, one-year increase of 72 cents per thousand of property valuation. The school portion of the tax bill, with the school repairs figured in, would be $6.81 per thousand of assessed property valuation, up 72 cents from last year’s rate. The school district meeting, slated for the Hollis/Brookline Middle school gym, will begin at 7 p.m. Hattie Bernstein can be reached at 673-3100, ext. 24, or hbernstein@cabinet.com. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:54 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/667467-308/all-but-1-hollis-zoning-amendment-passes.html HOLLIS – A controversial attempt to change zoning laws to allow mulch and compost to be stored and sold at private businesses drew much of the attention in Hollis elections Tuesday. The motion, Amendment 6, was the only zoning change rejected: 928-828. The article was put on the ballot by petition. It arose from a battle between the town and Douglas Orde, who operates a “grandfathered” gravel pit on Depot Road. More than a year ago, the town said expanded operations at the site, including selling landscaping material such as bark mulch and compost, was a violation of zoning, and the town issued a cease-and-desist order. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:54 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/667473-308/town-meeting-election-results.html This chart shows results for many races in area elections Tuesday. Not all races are shown, if the seat was relatively minor or uncontested. Results are shown for a selection of warrant articles. Key: U - winner BROOKLINE TOWN OF BROOKLINE Board of Selectmen (2 seats for 3 years) John Carr - 480 U Clarence Farwell - 550 Jack Flanagan - 506 Road Agent (1 seat for 1 year) Paul Cambray - 382 U Gerald Farwell - 524 Finance Committee BROOKLINE SCHOOL DISTRICT School Board (1 seat for 3 years) U Ernie Pistor - 747 Moderator (1 seat for 3 years) U Peter Webb - 846 Treasurer U Russell Heinselman - 799 Clerk (write-in) Marcia Farwell - 19 HOLLIS TOWN OF HOLLIS Board of Selectmen (2 seats for 3 years) Spencer Stickney - 646 U Peter Band - 1077 U Mark Ledoux- 968 Budget Committee (2 seats for 3 years) Paul Cain - 350 U Tom Gehan - 526 U Christopher Hyde - 750 Robert Labednick - 376 Basil Mason - 446 Moderator (1 seat for 2 years) U Jim Belanger - 1435 Zoning Amendment 6 - Landscaping materials Yes - 828 No - 928 (failed) HOLLIS SCHOOL DISTRICT Hollis School Board (1 seat for 3 years) U Robert Mann - 1215 Hollis School Board (1 seat for 2 year) U Rosemary Mezzocchi (write-in) - 222 Moderator (1 seat for 1 year) U Harry Haytayan - 801 Drew Mason - 777 HOLLIS/BROOKLINE COOP SCHOOL DISTRICT H/B School Board (Hollis rep.) (2 seats for 3 years) U James O’Shea - 774 U Steve Simons - 803 Bill Beauregard - 496 Heidi Cadwell - 671 Budget Committee (Hollis) (2 seats for 3 years) U Steve Pucci - 1084 U Darlene Mann - 1076 H/B School Board (Brookline rep.) (1 seat for 3 years) William Newsham - 305 U Fred Hubert - 425 Budget Committee (Brookline) (1 seat for 3 years) U Jim Colinas - 520 Christopher Adams -289 School Moderator (both towns) (1 seat for 3 years) Harry Haytayan - B 325, H 1172 U James Murphy - B 502, H 1209 Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:54 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/668350-196/voters-approve-town-hall-repairs.html HOLLIS – Town Meeting voters on Wednesday night approved repairs to Town Hall and some cleanup around Flints Pond, but rejected a collective bargaining agreement with police, fire and communications employees. Those were only three out of 10 warrant articles, and by the time they were dealt with, it was 11:35 p.m. As a result, Moderator Jim Squires recessed the meeting until Thursday night. Still on the agenda were the town’s operating budget and petition articles involving gay marriage and the government’s role in the Sept. 11 tragedy. Selectman Peter Band urged voters to approve the Town Hall repairs. “The roof is in terrible condition; it’s leaking and could collapse under a snow load,” he said, and the clock tower is filled with rot, and could collapse in a the wind. The special warrant article asked taxpayers to approve $400,000 worth of work, which would be a one-time, one-year increase, rather than a bond that would have included interest and other costs. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:54 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/665724-196/voters-turn-down-compost-change.html HOLLIS – A controversial attempt to change zoning laws to allow mulch and compost to be stored and sold at private businesses drew much of the attention in Hollis elections Tuesday. The motion, Amendment 6, was the only zoning change rejected: 928 no votes to 828 yes. The article was put on the ballot by petition. It arose from a battle between the town and Douglas Orde, who operates a “grandfathered” gravel pit on Depot Road. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:52 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/656972-308/flints-pond-cleanup-at-issue-for-town.html HOLLIS – Voters who attend the annual Town Meeting Wednesday will be asked to decide whether to let the town take $106,000 from a reserve fund created 16 years ago to cover some of the cost of cleaning up Flints Pond. The remainder of the cleanup money would come from the state, local fundraising and town conservation funds, according to the residents group Flint Pond Improvement Association. By contrast, a petition article that follows asks voters to discontinue the Flints Pond capital reserve fund and put the money in the town’s general fund. The article, No. 7 on the warrant, is supported by the Board of Selectmen and recommended by the Budget Committee. It hasn’t received the endorsement of the town’s Conservation Commission. “Cleaning up that pond is justified because the state, the DES, conservation, all these experts recommend it,” Selectmen Chairman Vahrij Manoukian said. “We have a body of water. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:43 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/658310-308/where-to-vote-tuesday.html Hollis: Hollis/Brookline High School, 24 Cavalier Court, 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Brookline: Douglass Academy, 24 Townsend Hill Road, 7 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:45 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/640572-196/bills-come-due-on-school-town-hall.html HOLLIS – An unexpected mold problem at Hollis Upper Elementary School that delayed the opening of school last fall and forced administrators to move students to other parts of the building had a similar effect on the school budget for next year: Requests for spending had to be shifted to accommodate a suddenly changed budget landscape. The need to fix the school and repair a wobbly Town Hall tower might be described as every small town’s financial nightmare. “Every year is the worst year ever when you’re on the Budget Committee,” said Frank Whittemore, a town resident since 1940 who’s in his third year on the Budget Committee and has served on the committee in previous years. But this year, the words “worst year ever” take on new meaning thanks to spending requests of $579,400 for the school and $400,000 for Town Hall, which is necessary to keep employees and visitors safe because of serious structural problems. “The fact that there are two problems at the same time that are very costly is very unusual,” said Whittemore, an owner and operator of Brookdale Fruit Farm. “These two projects are really necessary to do, and it puts an extra burden on the decision-making process.” In addition, the town rejected a fact-finder’s recommendation on a contract for the local union that represents police, fire and communications department employees because of the increased costs that would be passed on to taxpayers. The teachers in the school district agreed to a contract that the Budget Committee supported Thursday night during a meeting, reconvened to finish business left hanging last week at the end of a public hearing on the proposed school budget. The volunteer budget overseers aren’t supporting a warrant article asking voters to support a fact-finder’s recommendation for a contract with town police, fire and communications department employees. “What the fact-finder recommended is out of line with the economic conditions the way they are,” Whittemore said. “As Budget Committee members, we need to vote that part of the budget down, which in the long run would be a fairly good savings to the town.” The school building and Town Hall repairs, on the other hand, are “absolutely necessary,” he said. During the reconvened meeting of the School Board and Budget Committee, Bill Beauregard, vice chairman of the School Board, presented a budget pared from the week before at the public hearing. The School Board’s 2011 proposed budget includes $269,620 in increases over last year, mostly for costs related to contracts, teacher retirement and heating oil. By contrast, the board cut $377,463 from the 2011 budget by eliminating three classroom teachers and making cuts in its contingency, tuition expenses and other areas. The board slashed an additional $198,125 between Feb. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:33 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/638466-308/hb-co-op-officials-propose-18.75m-budget.html HOLLIS – Officials in the Hollis/Brookline Cooperative School District are proposing 10 warrant articles that voters will decide on at the annual meeting in March, including an $18.75 million budget to operate the district’s two schools and pay salaries and benefits for 117 teachers and 83 support staff. On Monday, the school board and the board’s budget committee welcomed public comment on proposed spending for the 2010-2011 school year during a public hearing at the Hollis/Brookline Middle School. The meeting was scheduled for 7 p.m., but it did not get underway until 7:20 p.m., allowing plenty of time for latecomers to find seats, and for school officials to distribute a packet of handouts, including a draft of the warrant articles, a chart on student enrollment projections, a tax impact statement and the proposed budget, which included pages of detailed accounts of school spending. Following public comment, which ended around 11:30 p.m., the cooperative budget committee voted 4 to 3 to reduce spending by $250,000. There is a $750,000 reserve balance in the current budget, but the school board is not supporting the cut. There were lengthy discussions about the reserve balance, and board members asked the district’s new finance director for explanations. Business Administrator Mark McLaughlin joined the district on Dec. 1, after the previous administrator, who said working for three districts was too much for one person, left to take another job. During opening remarks, Steve Pucci, the chairman of the cooperative budget committee, encouraged the audience to ask three “simple” questions. “What are the facts? What do they mean? And what do we do?” Pucci said. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:32 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/638467-308/committee-offers-up-warrant-articles-for-school.html HOLLIS – Only a handful of residents attended the public hearing on the school district budget at Town Hall, and only one remained, when about four hours later, the Budget Committee agreed to reconvene this week. The committee planned to tour the Hollis Upper Elementary School on Wednesday afternoon to survey repairs and see where a proposed $500,000 would be used to make the lower level of the building fully functional again. The classrooms on the lower level were closed for about half the school year after officials found mold just before the start of the school year. Children and teachers were moved to makeshift classrooms in other parts of the building. The district has spent about $250,000 so far for cleanup, testing and the replacement of all the ceiling tiles on the lower level using money from a contingency fund. Officials said the contingency fund was unusually large, in anticipation of more spouses and family members of employees signing up for health care benefits, a response to the declining economy, that did not play out. Meanwhile, the town is asking voters to support a warrant article for $400,000 to make critical repairs to the bell tower and roof at Town Hall. Neither spending request was proposed with a plan to bond the project. Instead, if passed, taxpayers would be asked to make a one-time payment: an additional 47 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, or $141 on a home assessed at $300,000, on the school portion of the tax bill for the HUES repairs; and an added 32 cents per $1,000, or $96 for a home valued at $300,000, for the Town Hall repairs. If all of the town’s money warrant articles pass, taxes on the town portion of the tax bill would increase 67 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, or $201 on a home with an assessed value of $300,000, a 13.4 percent increase. The Budget Committee voted to support the Town Hall repairs, and Chris Hyde, the Budget Committee chair, said following the engineer’s report Tuesday, Feb. 9, he was convinced the repairs are urgently needed. Neither town nor school officials recommended bonding the high price tag repair projects, saying in a difficult economy, they wanted to avoid further debt. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:32 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/638468-308/candidates-on-the-economy.html Does the current economy change the way a town should negotiate contracts with its employees? Why, or why not? Please be specific. Spencer Stickney: Yes, it does. Just like economic times in the past as well as those to come. We all try, as we should, to give our employees as much as the position they carry warrants. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:03:32 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/613066-196/co-op-board-budget-panel-hearing-set.html HOLLIS – The town Budget Committee will meet with the Hollis/Brookline Cooperative School District School Board tonight at 7 at the Hollis/Brookline Middle School to conduct a public hearing on the proposed budget. The process begins with a review by the Budget Committee of the proposed School District budget and includes time for taxpayers to ask questions or make comments to the Budget Committee. The Budget Committee ultimately decides whether it will accept the budget, and if it says “yes,” the budget goes before voters on election day. The proposed budget, which reflects no increases over last year, includes three money warrant articles: the operating budget, costs associated with salaries and benefits for professional staff and the same for support staff. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:00:22 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/604972-308/committee-holds-tight-to-frugal-budget.html HOLLIS – Anyone who thinks democracy isn’t an endurance sport hasn’t attended a New England town meeting, or the public hearings that precede them. On Tuesday night, voters, selectmen, and the seven members of the Budget Committee gathered in the Community Room at Town Hall for a public hearing on the proposed 2010 budget that began at 6:30 p.m. Five hours later, the crowd had thinned to about a dozen hearty souls who stayed till the bitter end, close to midnight. There was a lengthy discussion about the second warrant article, which asks voters to approve spending $400,000 to make minor, but critical, structural repairs to the Town Hall. Last year, voters turned down a request that was roughly twice as expensive, to make extensive repairs to the building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Several years ago, a structural engineer told officials that the clock tower and steeple might collapse in a strong wind, and recently the town administrator sent employees home during a particularly windy day. Peter Steffensen, the professional engineer the town hired to study the town hall and recommend repairs, told voters and officials, during a detailed, and often technical presentation, that he was recommending repair of the steeple and roof to ensure public safety as well as historic preservation. The Board of Selectmen is recommending 4-1 that the town make the repairs. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:59:53 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/604977-308/school-board-voters-discuss-budget-proposal-at.html BROOKLINE – The handful of voters who attended the public hearing on the proposed Brookline School District budget for fiscal 2011 received a cut-and-dried briefing on Thursday, Feb. 4, at Captain Samuel Douglass Academy. “If we had any money at all, we would look at hiring another teacher, buying new textbooks, spending more on maintenance,” said board Chairman David Partridge, saying the School Board had cut expenses to the bone. The total proposed budget for fiscal 2011, which begins July 1, is $9.02 million, or roughly $483,000 more than last year’s budget. School Board Vice Chairman Beth Lukovits presented the draft budget, pointing to a $9,300 decrease in special education and a $3,909 reduction in supply costs. Lukovits told taxpayers that the proposed budget covers expenses negotiated in teacher and support staff contracts and holds the line on spending for workbooks, textbooks, library books and other materials. Budget increases also include an adjustment to substitute teacher pay and a rise in fuel costs. Partridge said the school district underbudgeted for substitutes at the academy last year and increased the line item to reflect actual costs. The town’s finance committee is recommending the School Board’s spending requests, which will appear as warrant articles on the ballot at Town Meeting, by a vote of 2-0. Lukovits said the district will realize savings through an in-district preschool program started last year: By educating special needs children locally, the district eliminates costs for transportation and programs outside the community, and it also recovers some revenue by charging tuition for “typically developing” peers, children without special education needs, who attend the preschool program. Before the public hearing, the School Board met to ratify the district’s support staff contract, a three-year accord that provides a 1.25 percent cost of living increase in the first year and 1 percent increases in the second and third years at a cost of roughly $23,000 to the taxpayers. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:59:53 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/605682-196/school-budget-recommendations-still-up-in-the.html HOLLIS – After four hours of debate at the public hearing on the school district budget the Budget Committee decided to reconvene next week after a school tour. Only a handful of residents attended the hearing at Town Hall on Wednesday night. The committee decided to tour the Hollis Upper Elementary School on Wednesday afternoon to survey repairs and see where a proposed $500,000 would be used to make the lower level of the building fully functional again. The classrooms on the lower level were closed for about half the school year after officials found mold just before the start of the school year. Children and teachers were moved to makeshift classrooms in other parts of the building. The district has spent about $250,000 so far for cleanup, testing and the replacement of all the ceiling tiles on the lower level using money from a contingency fund. Officials said the contingency fund was unusually large, in anticipation of more spouses and family members of employees signing up for health care benefits, a response to the declining economy, that did not play out. Meanwhile, the town is asking voters to support a warrant article for $400,000 to make critical repairs to the bell tower and roof at Town Hall. Neither spending request was proposed with a plan to bond the project. Instead, if passed, taxpayers would be asked to make a one-time payment: an additional 47 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, or $141 on a home assessed at $300,000, on the school portion of the tax bill for the HUES repairs; and an added 32 cents per $1,000, or $96 for a home valued at $300,000, for the Town Hall repairs. If all of the town’s money warrant articles pass, taxes on the town portion of the tax bill would increase 67 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, or $201 on a home with an assessed value of $300,000, a 13.4 percent increase. The Budget Committee voted to support the Town Hall repairs, and Chris Hyde, the Budget Committee chairman, said following the engineer’s report Tuesday night, he was convinced the repairs are urgently needed. Neither town nor school officials recommended bonding the high-price repair projects, saying in a difficult economy, they wanted to avoid further debt. But resident and school district official Tom Enright told the board during the public comment period of the meeting that they might have considered a short, commercial loan. “It’s too late now,” Hyde said Thursday. On Wednesday night, he said, the Budget Committee found “too many variables we couldn’t explain.” The Budget Committee will reconvene next Thursday. Hattie Bernstein can be reached at 673-3100, ext. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:59:53 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/604491-196/budget-panel-also-rejects-contractfor-fire-police.html HOLLIS – Count members of the town Budget Committee among those who think a proposed contract for police and firefighters isn’t in the best interest of the town. The seven-member committee was unanimous in rejecting the collective bargaining contract between the town and AFSCME Local 3657, which represents police, fire, and communications departments. The union accepted a fact-finder’s recommendation for the contract, following an impasse and mediation. Conversely, the town rejected the fact-finder’s recommendation, which called for higher across-the-board raises due to changes to employee contributions for health insurance. The town provides health insurance through a self-insured plan that it administers, but the town negotiated with the union to change to a traditional health care plan administered by an insurance company, in order to cut costs. Since the town rejected the contract, the issue must now go before the voters. If voters reject the fact-finder’s recommendations, the town and union are required to negotiate all over again. The Budget Committee vote came Tuesday night during a marathon five-hour public hearing on the proposed 2010 budget attended by voters, selectmen and members of the Budget Committee. The meeting continued Wednesday night, when the Budget Committee voted 5-1-1 to amend the proposed 2010 operating budget to $8.19 million. That amount is $1.08 million, or 12 percent, less than last year’s $9.27 million operating budget. Ray Valle abstained from the vote. The budget proposal includes the collective bargaining contract but does not include money appropriations voted on separately, including warrant articles. The four selectmen present at the meeting approved the revised budget unanimously. In addition, the Budget Committee on Tuesday voted unanimously to support Article 2, requesting voters to raise and spend $400,000 for Town Hall repairs. The Budget Committee did not support an article for $845,117 in expendable trust funds, said “yes” to an Old Home Day Special Revenue Fund, $50,000 to be offset by revenues from the event, and discarded and reworked articles dealing with restoration of Flints Pond and an Ash Street sidewalk project. Also on the warrant are petition articles asking voters to amend the state Constitution to define marriage and to ask the state’s congressional delegation to pursue a new, independent investigation related to the events of Sept. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:59:52 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com//www.cabinet.com/hollisbrooklinejournalhollisnews/594878-308/hollis-spending-plans-to-be-heard.html HOLLIS – Officials say they are hoping for good turnouts Tuesday and Wednesday nights next week, when public hearings are scheduled on the town and school budgets for 2010. The Budget Committee will recommend budgets to be presented to voters in March, with an eye toward holding the line on spending without compromising public services. “The overall economy is tough, and what we’re endeavoring to do is keep the tax rate under control while still providing good quality services,” said Chris Hyde, chairman of the Budget Committee. According to Hyde, the proposed operating budgets for the town and school are “flat,” a situation that is beginning to “put some strain on the system.” Hyde said the situation is tenable, at least for the short-term. “The budgets are driven by salaries and benefits,” Hyde pointed out, adding that on the school side, a collective bargaining unit is continuing the bargaining process. A contract the town has with the union representing police, fire and communications department expired March 31 and is stalled at an impasse. Hyde said officials are concerned about the pressure of a state law passed two years ago, The Evergreen Law. It requires towns and school districts to preserve contract provisions, even after a contract has expired, if the two sides are unable to reach a new agreement. In theory, a bargaining unit could continue to receive previously negotiated benefits indefinitely, in a case where it was unable to reach an agreement. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:59:47 EST http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/528952-196/dump-petition-on-ballot-in-march.html HOLLIS – Voters at Town Meeting in March will be asked to decide whether landscaping-materials businesses will be allowed on certain properties comprising more than 20 acres along state roads, thanks to a successful drive to get a petition warrant article on the ballot. Douglas Orde, owner and operator of Hollis Construction, initiated the petition drive. For years, Orde operated a gravel pit on Depot Road, an operation officials agreed was “grandfathered” from the town’s zoning ordinance. But more than a year ago, after the town building inspector determined that expanded activities at the site violated zoning rules, a cease and desist order was issued. The order barred Orde from taking in and selling back mulch, loam, gravel, compost and other landscaping materials. Orde appealed the cease and desist order to the Zoning Board of Adjustment in December 2008 and requested a rehearing the following month. After his request for a rehearing was denied, he appealed the decision to Hillsborough County Superior Court. He went before the board a third time to apply for a variance, which was denied and not appealed. His trial was scheduled for later this month, but the court granted the parties’ motions to put the case on hold until after the Town Meeting vote. Orde’s attorney, Jed Callen, said that if the petition warrant article fails, Orde plans to “go forward” with the court appeal. The zoning amendment would allow Orde’s business and similar ones on about 10 town properties that are zoned residential agricultural, but only by a special exception from the Zoning Board of Adjustment and with site plan approval from the Planning Board. This means that neither Orde’s nor anyone else’s landscaping materials business would have carte blanche permission to operate. The Board of Selectmen recently approved the petition warrant article, and the Planning Board on Dec. Mon, 10 Jan 2011 14:55:01 EST