Voters approved a $2.5 million operating budget at Hancock’s Town Meeting Saturday and agreed to buy a pick-up truck for the Police Department and a used backhoe loader for the Highway Department. But they shot down a plan to improve outdoor WiFi access in town.
The WiFi proposal called for spending $35,000 to bring outdoor WiFi only to the downtown and the Fire Station and recreation fields near the station. The Hancock Improvement Association, a group that encourages private donations for projects, had pledged $15,000 to help offset the cost if the article was approved, but even $20,000 was too much for what resident David Carney described as “a really cool thing that we can’t afford.”
Dana Primiano, a member of the town’s Telecommunications Committee, described a plan to provide four access points – three along Main Street and one in the area of the fire station – that would allow people who were outdoors to use cell phones to send and receive calls and photos. Primiano’s slide presentation indicated the committee’s goal might be to eventually offer the entire town both wider and faster access, possibly with fiber-to-the-home technology, and he said this would be a good first step.
“Better WiFi and internet access in the downtown area is critical,” said Rod Perry of the Hancock Improvement Association. “The town needs to begin establishing some traction in the area of expanding broadband.”
Much of the feedback to the proposal was negative.
“We’re going to think about taking Old Home Day and ruining it,” said Carney, adding that he’d rather see people talking to their neighbors rather than staring at their phones. “This is crazy. We’re talking about helping tourists…. We just don’t need this.”
Primiano said improving internet access should be one of town’s top priorities.
“The demographics are not favorable,” he said, referring to number of young people living in town. “As other towns get connectivity, that’s where younger people are going to go.”
But voters weren’t convinced, and the downtown WiFi article failed on a voice vote.
As he presented the $2.5 million operating budget, Select Board Chair Erik Spitzbarth said the increase from last year’s $2.3 million budget would add 63 cents per $1,000 to the town portion of the tax rate. According to Spitzbarth, the jump was largely due to the impact of a bond for a new fire truck approved last year and increases in health insurance, salaries and benefits and legal expenses.
Some residents said the budget hike was too much and should be more in line with the cost-of-living rate.
“We’re increasing spending twice as high as what senior citizens can afford,” said Carney. “Now we’re jumping up 6 ½ percent… We have a lot of people having a hard time paying their property taxes.”
Carney asked how the Select Board would respond if someone were to propose an amendment to cut 1 ½ percent from the proposed budget.
“We were not happy where [the budget] came out,” Select Board member Laurie Bryan said. She noted that the increases due to the fire truck bond and insurance were beyond the control of the board and said most areas of the budget were “pretty much level.”
“It would be very difficult,” Bryan said, in response to Carney’s question about cutting the budget. “It would affect some of the services.”
Carney did not propose an amendment, but he commented that Hancock’s tax base is mostly residential and higher taxes will have an impact.
“We’re going to continue forcing working people out of our town,” he said.
The budget was approved on a voice vote.
During a break in the meeting, Spitzbarth and Bryan told the Ledger-Transcript that the increase in the legal budget, from $7,500 in 2018 to more than $120,000 this year, was related to an ongoing legal dispute with Fairpoint regarding tax abatements. The discussions have taken place in nonpublic session, but the board is budgeting additional funds that might be needed, depending on the resolution to the dispute.
The Police Department will be getting a new $45,000 four-wheel-drive Dodge pickup truck for its third vehicle. Voters approved the full amount, but $20,000 will come from an insurance claim on the department’s newest cruiser, which was totaled in an accident in 2018.
Police Chief Andrew Wood recommended getting a pick-up because it is not only less expensive than an SUV, but also has more clearance, which would be useful on back roads.
“It would better serve our community,” Wood said. “They are versatile. You can do a lot with them.”
In response to a question, Wood said the pick-up would be kept in Hancock and used by officers as a patrol vehicle. He said he would continue to use the department’s oldest vehicle to commute to his home and to respond when needed.
At last year’s town meeting, voters discussed at length whether to establish a policy to determine how many vehicles the Police Department should have, but never approved any policy. At Saturday’s meeting, Spitzbarth said the purchase of the pick-up “would bring us back to a fleet of three.”
Select Board member John Jordan, in response to a question from Carney, said the town needs to establish an overall police vehicle policy.
Carney said, “We’re proposing three vehicles. We have a de facto policy. Someone should type it up and put it somewhere.”
The police pick-up truck was approved on a voice vote.
An article to borrow $80,000 to buy a used 2014 John Deere backhoe loader to replace an aging 2003 backhoe was also approved. DPW Director Mia Lee said the 2003 machine has over 12,000 hours of usage, well beyond its life expectancy of 10,000 hours. While it’s a used machine, the 2014 backhoe has only 2,000 hours.
“We think it will serve the town needs well, and the price is right,” Lee said.
Resident Ben Billings, who works for the state Highway Department, said he is familiar with the backhoe Lee planned to buy. “It’s a really good purchase price for a really good machine,” Billings said.
Ruoff said the Budget Advisory Committee supported the purchase.
“We need to replace equipment when it needs to be done and not keep hanging on to it,” he said.
Ruoff estimated that the old backhoe would have a salvage value of $10,000 to $12,000.
The backhoe bond article, which required 2/3 approval by ballot vote, met that requirement easily, passing by a margin of 146 to 9.
Voters approved $60,000 to repair 1,100 feet of Duncan Road that has had extensive storm damage, including replacing five culverts.
Fred Heylinger, a resident of the road who said he has “a vested and muddy interest,” described the work as a stopgap measure. “Do we only get two fingers in the dike, or all five?” he asked.
Jordan said the entire road is on the town’s five-year plan and this work will benefit the final project. “We’ll get a better road,” he said.
Voters agreed to spend up to $35,000 for municipal fund accounting software.
They approved $20,000 for drainage analysis and soil depth studies at the Amidon Annex property next to Hillside Cemetery. The land was given to the town several years ago to be used for future cemetery expansion.
Voters also authorized $8,100 for the Fourth of July fireworks display, added $5,000 to the Meetinghouse Capital Reserve Fund and approved $5,000 for the Grapevine Family and Community Resource Center, $1,000 for the Grapevine’s Avenue A teen program, and $500 for the Community Volunteer Transportation Company programs. But they did not support $675 for the Hundred Nights, Inc. program, which is based in Keene but supports homeless people throughout the region. The Hundred Nights request initially passed on a show of cards vote, but a secret ballot vote was requested and the warrant article failed.