d-r-a-f-t fileitems vii a under iii special announcements; changing vii c to read oct 28, 2017 ......

D-R-A-F-T

DURHAM TOWN COUNCIL MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2017

DURHAM TOWN HALL – COUNCIL CHAMBERS 7:00PM

MINUTES

MEMBERS PRESENT: Council Chair Kitty Marple; Council Chair Pro tem Ken Rotner; Councilor Firoze Katrak; Councilor Wayne Burton; Councilor Jim Lawson; Councilor Al Howland; Councilor Carden Welsh; Councilor Alan Bennett; Councilor Sally Tobias

MEMBERS ABSENT: None OTHERS PRESENT: Town Administrator Todd Selig; Economic Development Director

Mary Ellen Humphrey; Police Chief Dave Kurz; Town Engineer April Talon

I. Call to Order

Chair Marple called the meeting to order at 7:03 pm.

II. Approval of Agenda

Chair Marple moved to amend the Agenda by moving Unanimous Consent Agenda Items VII A under III Special Announcements; changing VII C to read Oct 28, 2017 and October 29, 2017 as a rain date; and moving VII F under Unfinished Business, item d. Councilor Welsh SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0.

III. Special Announcements

RESOLUTION #2017-30 proclaiming the week of October 15-21, 2017 as “Friends of the Libraries” week in Durham, NH

Councilor Rotner MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby adopt Resolution #2017-30 designating the week of October 15-21, 2017 as “Friends of the Libraries" week in Durham, NH. Chair Marple SECONDED the motion, and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Councilor Burton arrived at 7:04 pm.

IV. Public Comments (*) Bill Hall, Smith Park Lane, said at the last Council meeting, Administrator Selig noted that Smith Park Lane had been paved, which was something he (Mr. Hall) had advised 25 years ago, along with saying that the hill should be regraded. Mr. Hall also said he was pleased that Councilors Welsh, Lawson and Katrak spoke at that same meeting about the tax arrangement at Riverwoods, and said he thought other Councilors should be engaged on that issue. Mr. Hall also said he thought there had been a deceitful process involved concerning the Wagon Hill Farm barn restoration.

Durham Town Council Meeting Minutes Monday, October 16, 2017 –

Diana Carroll, Canney Road, said she appreciated the open and frank discussion at the last meeting on the Riverwoods project, and applauded the unanimous vote to hire a lawyer and not execute the land swap until the tax issue was resolved. She said there was more research to be done, including on the PILOT issue, and she spoke further on this. She said many residents were following this issue, and said one reason for this was that many of them had friends who lived at Riverwoods in Exeter and were once Durham residents. She said she’d learned that a Riverwood sales representative had said 86% of people who’d signed up to live at Riverwoods in Durham were not residents of the Town. She said she’d also heard 75% weren’t residents. She said for those who said the project was a direct benefit to the Town, she would say otherwise. She said for this project and others that sought not to pay school taxes, a quote from educator Derek Bok was appropriate: “If you think the cost of education is high, think of the cost of ignorance.”

V. Approval of Minutes - None

VI. Councilor and Town Administrator Roundtable Councilor Tobias said at the Agricultural Commission meeting this evening there would be a discussion about attracting more food production to Durham, and the challenges involved in doing this. She said she’d asked that the Commission also discuss the fact that the Trustees of the Trust Fund wanted input on possible uses of the Doe Farm. She explained that while the Town didn’t have a lot of say concerning the location of the Farmer’s Market, the Commission had a vested interested in where they went. She said the farmers at the market had indicated at the end of the season that they’d like a more centrally located spot for the market, and she said meetings had been set up with the owners of Madbury Commons, the Community Church and Three Chimneys about possibly locating at one of these properties. She spoke about trail work that would be done at the Oyster River Forest this weekend, by fraternity members, ROTC volunteers and others. She noted that the Conservation Commission had been discussing whether some UNH groups could perhaps sponsor some of the Town’s lands. She also said there had been discussion by the Commission about possible uses of the Doe Farm. Councilor Tobias noted that Strafford County was under a quarantine concerning the emerald ash borer, although none had appeared in the county yet. She said residents with questions on this should contact UNH Cooperative Extension. Councilor Bennett said the HDC/HC recently held a workshop on the many burial sites in Durham. He said there were over 75 of them, and said over time a lot of work would be done on a volunteer basis to help restore these sites. He said the Integrated Waste Management Advisory Committee meeting last week was devoted entirely to a very interesting talk by Alex Freed, a former student at Oyster River High School who while there convinced the school system to eliminate the use of plastic, and now ran a nonprofit that advised over 100 universities on waste management. He said


Mr. Freed said haulers were now charging by bulk instead of weight, which meant that when things like boxes weren’t compressed, the Town had to pay more. He said Mr. Freed provided some good information on managing wastes at the Orion and Lodges properties. He said the Committee would continue a conversation with him over time. Councilor Howland said at its last meeting, the School Board adopted a goal that the school budget couldn’t be raised by more than 3.25% over last year’s budget. He provided details on how the Board was trying to stabilize the budget, despite various costs including contract requirements and capital improvements they were trying to fund. He spoke about expected revenue from 148 tuitioning students from Barrington, and said the number of students was expected to level off at about 160. Councilor Howland spoke about the collaboration the EDC was doing with Parks and Recreation Director Rachel Gasowski concerning the Halloween event downtown, and noted the assistance from Kappa Sigma members and other volunteers for this event. Resident Lucy Gardner read the Resolution concerning the Friends of the Library, and thanked the Library Trustees and the Town for making this happen. She said the Friends were in their 21st year, and explained that they provided things like passes to museums, funds for concerts on the lawn, and funds for the Patch Program, which she noted had served 1000 ORSD students. She said the Friends were in the middle of their annual fundraising campaign, and she asked residents to become a Friend of the Durham Library. Councilor Rotner thanked Councilor Howland for pointing out the dilemmas the School Board was facing. He said enrollment numbers had held fast and were not in decline, and said a good part of this was that the School District was a lure for families. He noted the work done to catch up and address items in the CIP over the past few years. He said part of the dilemma now was whether to increase class size or cut programming in order to save money, and said at this point they didn’t want to have to go that route. He noted that he’d recently attended the second meeting of the committee that was addressing the Middle School, and said all possible options were being considered. Councilor Rotner said members of the Trustees for the Trust Funds were at the recent Land Stewardship Committee meeting, and said there would be continuing discussion with them about the idea of the Committee taking on the Trustees’ land management responsibilities. He spoke further about other items discussed at the meeting. Councilor Rotner said at the most recent Parks and Recreation Committee meeting, there was a formal presentation on plans for the rink at Jackson’s Landing. He said the Committee wanted to get feedback from residents on what was proposed. He said he’d like to see a Council Budget for 2018 that included fully funding a position for what Parks and Rec Director Rachel Gasowski felt was needed to adequately run the many programs the department was now involved with. He said she continued to bring great value to the community, and also needed to be able to live her life with her family.


Councilor Rotner referred to the fact that President Trump had recently done away with the Clean Power Plan, and said tying this in with the Paris Climate Accord, he believed that the Town needed to send a message to elected officials in Washington, DC. He noted the statement that came from the New England states about coal fired power plants years ago, when acid rain was such a problem. He said he’d be happy to draft something, and also asked Councilor Burton if the Energy Committee perhaps wanted to be involved in this. There was discussion. Councilor Burton said the School Board and School District needed to do more concerning the future of the Middle School, and sooner rather than later. He said he didn’t think it was understood how bad the building was now. There was further discussion about the significant competition for state building aid that might be available because of pent up demand. Councilor Rotner said there were schools that were failing safety inspections that went to the head of the list, and noted that the Middle School hadn’t failed those inspections Councilor Burton noted recent hearings on SB193, which would establish education savings accounts for students. He said the Legislature wanted legislation like this, but didn’t want to spend money on failing schools, and said he hoped the bill failed. Councilor Lawson thanked Councilor Welch for the parking data for the downtown that had been collected, and said this was the first time that parking use in the morning, noon and afternoon had been looked at. He said the report on this data would include a comparison with previous data. He said parking was tight downtown, but said there were always spaces available somewhere in the core downtown, and said continuous adjustments would be made. Councilor Welsh said there was a lot that could be done to drive behavior. Councilor Welsh reported on the most recent Planning Board meeting. He said the Riverwoods team presented some positive changes to the building, which used some of the space more efficiently, created some bigger courtyards, moved the building further back from Route 4, and substituted sloping land instead of retaining wall in one area. He said overall it was a nicer plan. He said public comments included concerns about traffic, building height, parking and taxes. Administrator Selig provided a number of updates. He first noted that he and the Business Office staff were working on the 2018 Budget. Councilor Welsh said he’d like to see what Administrator Selig thought the priorities for the Budget were, and if they were consistent with the Council’s goals. Administrator Selig said the Council would see a Budget proposal that represented an increase in the tax rate of 2%; would see another proposal that kept the tax rate the same; and would also see a list of requests that were not included in those two approaches, for Councilors to consider. He said Durham continued to be involved in the Seacoast Reliability project. Among other things, he noted that despite the fact that the Town and the Durham Historical Association had requested that the DHA would be involved in looking at the issue of possible impacts to archeological areas along the proposed route, they were not informed about or invited to the meetings that dealt with this issue. He said there had been


discussion with the attorney representing the Town about possible next steps, and said this issue would continue to be followed very closely. Administrator Selig said following a discussion at the last Council meeting on the Riverwoods Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT), there had been discussions with Riverwoods about their purported tax-exempt status. He said an attorney had been hired to review Riverwoods’ filings, and to advise the Town. He said the court required mediation concerning the Beech Hill lawsuit would be held this week. He noted the ordinance the Council had passed this spring that added additional requirements for book sellers downtown, which had resulted in the Town getting sued. He said Superior Court had recently ruled in the Town’s favor, and the lawsuit was dismissed. Administrator Selig said he and Business Office staff were waiting for the Department of Revenue Administration to set the tax rate. He said almost all of Durham’s street lights had now been replaced with LED lights, and said the annual $62,000 lighting bill should be reduced by about $25,000. He said this effort furthered the Council goal of being more sustainable. He provided details on how the Police, Fire and DPW departments were working to make their vehicles more visible and safer on the road. He noted the current evaluation of the Town’s flood hazard overlay maps with Strafford Regional Planning Commission, to make sure they were reflective of anticipated sea level changes in the next 25-100 years. He said this project would come to the Planning Board at some point. He said paving was underway on several Town roads, using $250,000 in funds the Town had received unexpectedly from the State. He said the money was being put to good use in Durham, and was helping them catch up on road work that was needed. Councilor Burton asked how the School District negotiated a PILOT. Administrator Selig said the School District didn’t have the opportunity to negotiate on this but the Town did, and said the payment went to the Town, not the district or county. He said some PILOTS were based on just the local tax rate, but said they sometimes includes the county rate and/or the school and/or state tax rate. He said the negotiations with Riverwoods would all reside with the Town. There was further detailed discussion on this issue, as well as on the tax exemption issue. Administrator Selig said one of Riverwoods’ arguments was that they had never had school age children coming from their facilities in Exeter, and didn’t anticipate this in Durham either. He said they argued as some businesses and individuals did that if they were not contributing to the school cost, they shouldn’t have to pay school taxes. He said the answer to this was that someone paid that tax, and that there was a societal benefit


from everyone contributing for core services. He said that argument had been made to Riverwoods. Councilor Burton said Riverwoods argued that they brought a lot to the entire community. He said they also said Durham was a wonderful community, and said this was in part because of the school system. Councilor Howland asked if the kindergarten funds that would be coming from the State would go to the School District or to the Town. There was discussion on this. Administrator Selig also provided further details of ongoing discussion with Riverwoods on the PILOT issue.

VII. Unanimous Consent Agenda (Requires unanimous approval. Individual items may be removed by any councilor for separate discussion and vote)

A. RESOLUTION #2017-30 proclaiming the week of October 15-21, 2017 as “Friends of the Libraries” week in Durham, NH (This item was moved to“Special Announcements)

B. Shall the Town Council, upon recommendation of the Administrator, adopt RESOLUTION #2017-31 waiving the purchasing requirement of Section 7 within the Town's Purchasing Policy dated November 19, 2012, designating George E. Sansoucy, P.E., LLC of Portsmouth, NH as the sole source vendor to provide utility appraisal services for the Town of Durham's 2018 statistical update, and authorizing the Administrator to sign a 5-year contract with Mr. Sansoucy in the amount of $17,200 per year for said services contingent upon appropriation of said funds by the Town Council as part of the approved FY 2018 Budget and subsequent budgets?

C. Shall the Town Council, upon recommendation of the Administrator, approve a Special Event Permit application submitted by Durham Parks and Recreation Department requesting that a portion of Main Street be closed on Saturday, October 28, 2017, 3:00 - 6:30 PM (Rain Date: Sunday, October 29, 2017) for the Downtown Trick or Treating and Movie on Main event?

D. Shall the Town Council, upon recommendation of the Administrator, approve a Special Event Permit application submitted by Durham Parks and Recreation Department requesting that a portion of Main Street be closed on Saturday, December 2, 2017, 6:00- 8:00 PM (rain date: Sunday, Dec 3, 2017, 6:00-8:00 PM) for the annual Tree Lighting Ceremony?

E. Shall The Town Council adopt special meeting dates in November and December, 2017 for the purpose of deliberating the proposed FY 2018 Operating, Capital, and Special Fund Budgets and the 2018-2027 Capital Improvement Plan, and schedule a Public Hearing on the Proposed FY 2018 Budgets for Monday, November 13, 2017?.

F. Shall the Town Council, upon recommendation of the Administrator, approve the Engineering Design Contract with CMA Engineers, Inc. of Portsmouth, NH in the amount of $28,600 for the Longmarsh Road Culvert Replacement Project as part of the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and authorize the Administrator to sign associated documents? (This item was moved to “Unfinished Business”, Item D)

G. Shall the Town Council approve the Heritage Commission (or parties acting under the aegis of the Heritage Commission) to clean, maintain, restore, and preserve trusted and untrusted burial grounds in Durham in accordance with RSA 289:14-a?


Chair Marple MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby approve Unanimous Consent Agenda Items B, C, D, E, and G. Councilor Lawson SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0.

III. Committee Appointment - None IX. Presentation Items

A. Receive annual report from Economic Development Committee in accordance with Section 11.1(1) of the Town Charter-Mary Ellen Humphrey, EDC Director

Ms. Humphrey discussed some of the economic activity that had been occurring in Durham, including recently Celebrate Durham, which was an effort mostly by younger, media savvy business people in Town to promote the downtown, including in the summer. She said this effort had now taken on a life of its own, and said there were now weekly meetings, with the purpose of creating a dynamic downtown. She noted that Saxby’s had recently opened, and also said Hop and Grind would be opening soon. She provided some history on the establishment of the Economic Development Committee in 200. Using slides, she said the purpose of the Committee was to make recommendations to the Council to foster the stabilization of the residential tax burden through economic development. She noted that a number of projects had been done over the past few years, which had helped stabilize taxes. She showed another slide that showed how expenditures would be going up through 2022, and said $300 million in additional assessed value would need to be found in the next 5 years to cover these costs. She provided details on how the increase in costs would impact the tax rate. Councilor Lawson said Administrator Selig and Ms. Jablonski had put a lot of work into the Fiscal Forecast. He said ultimately there were many sources of revenue and the gap was made up with property taxes. He said looking out 5 years, an additional $2.5 million would have to be raised from property taxes, and said there were two ways to address this situation: raise taxes or try to promote an increase in the taxable valuation. He said the $300 million was the amount of taxable value that would be needed in 5 years to keep taxes level with where they were today. He said they were fortunate that they could look at this proactively rather than reactively. Ms. Humphrey provided additional slides to show school expenses coming up that would impact the overall tax rate. She also spoke about how on the Town side, the assessed value of properties as well as the budget impacted the tax rate. She said there were 3 choices: to do nothing and let taxes increase at an unsustainable rate (23% or more in the next 5 years); live within current revenues, which would involve cutting services and deferring capital improvements; or to find a way to grow the tax base by $300 million, especially the commercial portion, thoughtfully and in a way that protected the Town’s quality of life. She spoke about the value of the new construction in Town, including the student housing developments and the new Harmony Homes facility. She also noted the Riverwoods project that was currently before the Planning Board. She spoke about missed opportunities, and considered whether there could have been a better outcome for


the Young Drive project. She also noted that on the Harmony Homes site, 4 lots that could possibly have been developed were lost when that property was developed. And she pointed out that Riverwoods was using one of the few remaining business sites for a nonprofit enterprise. Ms. Humphrey spoke about the tired properties in Durham that if redeveloped could add value to the Town, including Mill Plaza, 66 Main Street, and Young Drive. She also noted that some business owners on Main Street were looking at conceptual designs for a possible project that could occur over the next 5-10 years. She spoke in some detail about the fact that the University was looking at creating a research park on a 60-acre parcel at West Edge, and said if this happened, the companies that inhabited the buildings would be taxable. She said it was debatable whether the land itself would be taxable. She noted that Technology Drive was near the site, which meant there was opportunity. She said she was already working on what commercial development could go there and spoke in some detail on this. She noted that if student housing had reached a saturation point, the Cottages would make a wonderful work and live area. She said there were some really interesting concepts like this that could come forward in the future. There was discussion about exactly which site was involved for the proposed research park. Councilor Lawson asked for follow up on this. There was discussion about the vision for the UNH research park, including whether it would include an incubator component, and what would be taxable. Ms. Humphrey said in conversations with the University, it had always been stated that the development there would be taxable. She also noted that UNH had opened an advanced manufacturing center at the Goss building, where students were being training in this kind of manufacturing. Ms. Humphrey said land use decisions should consider all of this in deciding where and how much commercial growth could occur in Durham. She said projects needed to be tempered with regard to neighborhood opposition, in order to consider the financial impact of such development on the whole Town. She said currently, there was virtually 100% occupancy of downtown retail space, and said if more space was built, they would come. She recommended that investors should be encouraged to come to Durham and work out the details of their proposals with the Planning Board through the conceptual design process. There was discussion about vacancies in commercial space at the Orion development downtown. There was also discussion about what was going on with the Young Drive property. Councilor Burton asked if there might be a commercial use for the Middle School property. Ms. Humphrey said she was sure there could be, and said there was some precedence for using schools for other purposes. Councilor Rotner asked Ms. Humphrey is she saw barriers that had made it or might make it more difficult for Durham to attract development in order to increase the assessment. Ms. Humphrey said she regularly attended regional meetings with realtors, and investment brokers who were looking for a return on investment. She said Durham


had a reputation, and said the perception was that it was difficult to do commercial development here. She said while some of the negatives out there weren’t deserved, it didn’t help to say it wasn’t true that the Town had this reputation. She said they didn’t want to attract just anyone, but said at the same time, the Town could be a bit more welcoming. She said this would take time.

B. Receive annual report from the Zoning Board of Adjustment in accordance with Section 11.1(1) of the Town Charter - Sean Starkey, Chair

Chair Starkey said this year was a lot slower for the ZBA than the last few years, and said there had been 9 variance applications, 2 special exception applications, and 1 appeal of administrative decision application. He spoke briefly about the fact that the ZBA was a safety valve, so that given the Zoning Ordinance, owners could still make equitable use of their property. He said there were some very good members on the Board. Councilor Welsh said he had served on the Durham ZBA for 5 years, and said it was very interesting work and a good place to be involved in the Town, as long as one wasn’t afraid to make some enemies. It was noted that there currently was an opening on the ZBA.

X. Unfinished Business

A. PUBLIC HEARING AND ACTION ON ORDINANCE #2017-06 amending Chapter 153 "Vehicles and Traffic", Section 153-29 "Metered Parking Areas" of the Durham Town Code to change the hours of enforcement for parking regulations in Durham and updating the Town-wide Master Fee Schedule

Councilor Rotner MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby OPEN the Public Hearing on Ordinance #2017-06 amending Chapter 153 "Vehicles & Traffic", Section 153-29 "Metered Parking Areas" of the Durham Town Code to change the hours of enforcement for parking regulations in Durham and updating the Town-wide Master Fee Schedule. Councilor Tobias SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Richard Main, Newmarket Road, said he’d been the store manager downtown for Stewart Shanes, and Town and Campus, and said he’d been looking at the parking downtown for many years. He said this ordinance was possibly coming forward because he had requested it. He said the parking enforcement officers downtown were excellent. He encouraged the Town to use funds collected from this ordinance to continually upgrade technology in order to make their jobs more efficient and easier to do. He said he’d seen a great deal of improvement as a result of 2-hour parking, and said parking spaces were turning over. He said the biggest day downtown was Saturday, and said the lack of enforcement on that day had crippled his business. He said some people spent the entire day downtown, and said parking enforcement on that day was a necessary evil to make sure the spaces turned over. He said he saw evidence all the time that people wanted to shop downtown on Saturday but there were no spaces. He said he tended to


agree with the idea of extending parking hours to 8 pm during the week, and said he didn’t think this represented a big burden. Andy Smith, Woodridge Road, noted that he was the Director of the UNH Survey Center located on Madbury Road, and said he was concerned about the idea of parking enforcement from 5-8 pm. He said the Survey Center employed a significant number of people, and didn’t have a tremendous amount of money to work with. He said increasing parking enforcement past 5 pm would be a significant burden on the employees, and said if the Town moved forward with this, it would be important to be judicious about where the ordinance would be enforced. He noted that the Survey Center was open during the day, and between 5 and 9 pm. He said it was located at the corner of Madbury Road and Pettee Brook Lane. In answer to a question from Councilor Rotner, Mr. Smith said he and some employees who worked during the day had parking permits, but he said the 30-45 interviewing staff who worked in the evening and a total of about 100 employees didn’t have permits. There was discussion about how much these employees were being paid. Mr. Smith said they made $12-14/hr, and said the parking fee would have a significant impact on them. He said he’d lost employees who said they couldn’t afford to work there because of the parking issue. He said it wasn’t just students who worked there, and said the Survey Center employed people who needed the extra hours in order to make ends meet. Chair Marple said there was free parking available at the Middle School, and there was discussion. Mike Keahan, Bikram Yoga, said there was no easy solution to the parking issue downtown, and said he didn’t have one to offer. But he said he knew that his clientele would think twice if this ordinance passed. He said if any more restrictions were put on parking, this would hinder businesses significantly. He said his business had been in Durham for almost 3 years, and he noted that the biggest thing he’d worried about in terms of coming to Durham was the parking. Councilor Welsh asked Mr. Keahan whether by not having metered parking on Saturday, people couldn’t find parking spaces. Mr. Keahan said he wasn’t having that problem, but said more parking spots were certainly needed. He said things were getting to the point where he couldn’t grow his business. There was further detailed about the current parking situation and how/whether it might be improved with the proposed ordinance. Councilor Rotner MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby CLOSE the Public Hearing on Ordinance #2017-06 amending Chapter 153 "Vehicles & Traffic", Section 153-29 "Metered Parking Areas" of the Durham Town Code to change the hours of enforcement for parking regulations in Durham and updating the Town-wide Master Fee Schedule. Councilor Howland SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Councilor Welsh said he did think that something needed to be done about parking on Saturdays, and said if parking enforcement on Saturdays was adopted, he hoped something could be done to make longer parking available for people who needed it. He


also said he thought it should be in effect all of the time, whether UNH was in session or not, so people wouldn’t be confused. He said there didn’t have to be actual enforcement all of the time. He also said 8 pm seemed to be a good time to limit enforcement to. Councilor Lawson asked if it would be possible to go from a 2 hr parking max to a 3 hr max on Saturdays. Chair Marple noted that customers at Bikrum Yoga sometimes needed 4 hr parking. Councilor Welsh said they would never be able to satisfy everyone. Councilor Lawson said one of the concerns was that UNH had 3 lots, and did enforcement there now 7 days a week, from 7 am to 9 pm. He said he was concerned that if the Town didn’t have some effort to sync up reasonably with this, the word would get out to park downtown where it was free. Councilor Tobias agreed that it was harder to find parking downtown on Saturdays, and also noted that parking in Newmarket was a nightmare. She said there had to be a way to allow businesses to give passes to their customers. Chief Kurz said he’d worked on a system for this over the summer with Bikrum Yoga, which involved putting a placard on the dashboard, so parking enforcement staff wouldn’t issue a ticket if the time ran over. He said the idea was to charge $110, or $200 so that business owners could give them to their customers, and said this revenue would pay for the hours the Town would be losing. There was discussion about whether that system had worked out. In answer to a question from Councilor Lawson, Chief Kurz said they could change from a 2-hour parking maximum to a 3 hour maximum, but said this should be done every day or not at all. Councilor Lawson said he thought that with this ordinance, Main St. would start opening up available parking, which would be good for customers. He also said along Madbury Road past Pettee Brook Lane, students would no longer be motivated to park their cars there all day because it would cost them money, so those spaces would open up. He said someone wanting to go downtown for 2 hrs would be able to park there, and said someone wanting to park for 8 hrs would have to pay for this. He said what the Town couldn’t do was guarantee that someone would find a parking space directly in front of where he wanted to be. He said people might need to walk a block or two. He said he was sympathetic to business owners who needed to have 4 hrs of parking available. He also said he thought parking enforcement should extend into the evening hours because the University charged for parking until 9 pm. Chair Marple said she was fine with what was proposed, including being able to park on Madbury Road as long as one wanted, and paying for this. Councilor Howland said his daughter worked at Starbucks in Portsmouth on Market St., and needed to walk from where she parked her car to where she worked. He said he thought this ordinance was workable, and said he thought opening up parking spots on


Saturday was a step in the right direction. He said things could be tweaked further, and said he believed that ongoing dialogue on this issue would lead to a reasonable solution. Councilor Rotner noted that the Town was still trying to come up with structured parking for the downtown. Councilor Rotner MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby ADOPT (as presented) (as amended) Ordinance #2017-06 amending Chapter 153 "Vehicles & Traffic", Section 153-29 "Metered Parking Areas" of the Durham Town Code to change the hours of enforcement for parking regulations in Durham and updating the Town-wide Master Fee Schedule. Councilor Lawson SECONDED the motion. Councilor Welsh asked if with this Ordinance, people would be charged for parking every Saturday, all year. Chair Marple said yes. The motion PASSED unanimously 9-0.

B. PUBLIC HEARING TO RECEIVE A PROGRESS REPORT RELATIVE TO

THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT TOTALING $500,000 FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF AN ELDER CARE FACILITY BY HARMONY HOMES AT THE DURHAM BUSINESS PARK

Chair Marple MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby OPEN the Public Hearing to receive a progress report relative to the Community Development Block Grant totaling $500,000 for the construction of an Elder Care facility at Harmony Homes located at the Durham Business Park. Councilor Tobias SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Community Development Block Grant consultant Donna Lane said this public hearing was being held to report on the progress of the Strafford Economic Development Corporation CDBG loan to Harmony Homes to acquire the property in the Durham Business Park to build an elder care facility. Ms. Lane read her report into the public record. Community Development Block Grant funds are available to municipalities through the NH Community Development Finance Authority. Up to $500,000 annually is available for economic development projects, up to $500,000 for public facility and housing projects, up to $350,000 in emergency activities and up to $12,000 is available per each planning grants. All projects must primarily benefit low and moderate income persons. During a CDBG project, a progress update public hearing is required. The public hearing will update the public on, and take public comment on, the progress of the CDBG Project. This hearing is to report on the progress of the Strafford Economic Development Corporation CDBG $480,000 loan to Harmony Homes, or a subsidiary, to acquire the property in the Durham Business Park to build an elder care facility. The project was to create a minimum of 25 full time equivalent jobs, of which at least 60% of which would be available to low and moderate income persons.

The elder care facility building construction was completed this summer.


Harmony Homes by the Bay has created 26 new jobs which includes 12 full time and 14 part time positions. They expect to create more jobs by the end of 2017. Administrator Selig asked if there were any additional steps for the Town to take, as the holder of the grant. Ms. Lane said it was expected that there would be 25 full-time equivalent jobs, and said when that number was reached, the grant could be closed out. Councilor Welsh asked what happened if there weren’t than many jobs created. Ms. Lane said an extension would be needed. She said the worst-case scenario was that if the goal wasn’t met, the loan would have to be paid back faster. There was discussion that Harmony Homes was ramping up staffing but was trying not to rush things. Administrator Selig said it was a lovely facility, and there was further discussion. The public was asked for comments. There were no members of the public who came forward to speak on this issue. Chair Marple that the Durham Town Council does hereby CLOSE the Public Hearing to receive a progress report relative to the Community Development Block Grant loan totaling $500,000 for the construction of an Elder Care facility at Harmony Homes located at the Durham Business Park. Councilor Rotner SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0.

C. PUBLIC HEARING AND ACTION ON RESOLUTION #2017-32 authorizing the issuance of long-term debt not to exceed $4,305,000 for the purpose of bonding 2016-2017 capital projects and equipment purchases

Chair Marple MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby OPEN the Public Hearing on Resolution #2017-32 authorizing the issuance of long-term debt not to exceed Four Million Three Hundred and Five Thousand Dollars ($4,305,000.00). and Councilor Tobias SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. There were no members of the public who came forward to speak. Councilor Rotner The Durham Town Council does hereby CLOSE the Public Hearing on Resolution #2017-32 authorizing the issuance of long-term debt not to exceed Four Million Three Hundred and Five Thousand Dollars ($4,305,000.00). Councilor Welsh SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Councilor Rotner MOVED that the Durham Town Council does hereby ADOPT Resolution #2017-32 authorizing the issuance of long-term debt not to exceed Four Million Three Hundred and Five Thousand Dollars ($4,305,000.00). Councilor Howland SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Councilor Welsh said this seemed like a big chunk of money all at once, and asked if this had happened before. There was discussion about the interest rate, and it was noted that it would vary.


Administrator Selig said they had looked at debt service as part of developing the 2018 Budget. He said they were looking to pay cash for some items, and he provided some examples of this. Councilor Welsh said it was a good, conservative policy to pay cash for what they could, and said this would lead to more flexibility later on. Ms. Jablonski said in 2006, there was a bond of over $3 million for land conservation. She also said there was bond for $4.5 million for the Library another year. Councilor Rotner asked if it made sense to change the bonding strategy for some reason, and there was discussion. The motion PASSED unanimously 9-0.

D. Shall the Town Council, upon recommendation of the Administrator, approve the

Engineering Design Contract with CMA Engineers, Inc. of Portsmouth, NH in the amount of $28,600 for the Longmarsh Road Culvert Replacement Project as part of the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and authorize the Administrator to sign associated documents?

Council Chair Kitty Marple referred to an email from Town Engineer April Talon responding to a number of questions Councilor Welsh had relative to this project. She asked whether other Council members had any further questions for Ms. Talon. She noted that it is a complex issue and said there is a good question as to why the Town is proceeding with it. She said that certainly Ms. Talon felt strongly that it is a project worth pursuing. Councilor Welsh thanked Ms. Talon for responding to his questions.

Councilor Welsh summed up the process of this project to date. He said that the project started out with a local problem in Durham with Route 108 flooding, so the first proposal from the Town was to fix that issue by raising the road and putting in a box culvert, which would solve the flooding problem. The Town of Newmarket has a problem with its McCallen Dam whereby water backs up on the Lamprey River and flows over to Durham’s side. Newmarket officials worry that the dam, with a 100 year storm event, will not hold because there would not be enough water flowing back into the Oyster River if the Town of Durham raised the road and put in a culvert because all the water would not be able to flow through. Ms. Talon said that in the case of Durham, it’s special in this area whereby the water jumps watersheds and flows north from Lamprey River, up Route 108, to the Oyster River. She said if one considers the difference between designing for a high hazard dam and the difference for designing for a box culvert on a residential road, they are two extremely different matters. Ms. Talon explained that everything was fine until the State of New Hampshire Dam Bureau became involved. Instead of passing 2000 CFS, the Town needs to pass 6000 CFS, otherwise the Dam Bureau believes it will mess everything up. She felt that Durham’s special situation with the watersheds helps it in a way because the Town is


eligible for FEMA funding, but it also hampers the Town currently because of the difference and situation with the Dam Bureau. Ms. Talon said she has had many conversations with Newmarket Planner, Diane Hardy, and that the Town of Newmarket is very willing to work with Durham regarding this project. Ms. Talon said she liked to blame it on the Dam Bureau. She said that to replace two twin culverts with a box culvert requires a wetlands permit, not a new dam permit, but the Wetlands Bureau would not support the project without the support of either the NHDES in general or the Dam Bureau. Ms. Talon said that the Dam Bureau informed Durham that its previous design, which passed 2000 CFS, was not adequate so Durham’s design engineer began working closely with Newmarket’s design engineers, Gomez and Sullivan, to ensure they were one in concurrence with the modeling together and on the same page. She said that in trying to pass the 6000 CFS, Durham needs a larger structure, which is more costly, and raises the Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) from 1.0 to 0.62. She noted that the FEMA BCA tool is complicated, but in essence considers and factors in the number of residents that are stranded. Therefore, if Durham says to FEMA that it has residents on Cold Spring Road that are stranded during this type of storm, FEMA wants Durham to take a BCA tool and attempt to quantify what that means, which she finds frustrating. She said the 0.62 BCA is with a $1.2 million project which would potentially satisfy the Dam Bureau, but not FEMA, because it is not cost-effective. Ms. Talon said her strategy would be, and what she would like to do and needs approval for the engineering contract is to continue to push the issue and continue to push the project forward. She felt that FEMA is looking for the Town to say that this project is important to the community. She noted there is a $600,000 FEMA grant involved and she felt it was important for the community to receive the grant for the project. Ms. Talon said if the Town gets another flood event similar to those that occurred in 2006 and 2007, Route 108 is still going to flood, as well as the Hamel Brook. She said NHDOT is not going to help the Town, and in fact, NHDOT decided not to replace the Hamel Brook bridge. Therefore, she felt the only way the Town will be able to advocate for itself is to continue to push the project forward, and in order to do that, she needs a contract to get CMA Engineering onboard to push the Wetlands Bureau. She said the six-month extension from FEMA expires November 30, 2017. The Town requested an extension on July 28, 2017, and FEMA did not respond to the Town until September 20, 2017, which resulted in six weeks lost. She said a wetlands permit has a 75-day review period, so it was unlikely that the Town would actually get a permit by the November 30th deadline. She noted that the contract with CMA is $28,600 of which 75% is reimbursable from FEMA. Councilor Howland asked if the $28,600 could be used to lower the cost to take the Town from 0.62 to 1.0 to make it a viable project so FEMA would sign off on it. Ms. Talon replied that she would try her hardest. Ms. Talon said another option that hasn’t been worked out yet is an additional tool FEMA provides that would allow the Town the potential to get from a 0.62 BCA to a


0.75 BCA. If the Town could get to a 0.75 BCA it could then argue, using the additional tool set that is downloaded, that there are natural resource benefits to be gained. She said the Town would take the two twin culverts that exist now, put them in a larger structure, and then it would have multiple environmental benefits. Chair Marple said it sounded good to her. Councilor Welsh said that it did not sound good to him. He said it seems like the Town is in tough spot and would like to know what its alternatives are. He said it sounds like the Town could invest a lot of money and FEMA could say to the Town “pound sand”; “you didn’t make 1.0 BCA”, “you’re not fixing the problem”, and “we (FEMA) have budget constraints”. Councilor Welsh asked what would be the Town’s fallback plan. Councilor Katrak asked if it was fair to say that the original proposal was worth $600,000, all of which would be paid for by a grant, but is now a $1.2 million proposal of which $600,000 -$800,000 is grant funding, and the Town is on the hook for $400,000. Ms. Talon said it would go from an $800,000 project to a $1.2 million, or an increase of $400,000. Councilor Katrak asked what the original out-of-pocket cost was for the Town compared to the out-of-pocket cost now. Ms. Talon responded that it would be $200,000 versus $300,000. FEMA would pay 75% for the full cost of the project if it is determined to be cost-effective. Councilor Katrak asked Ms. Talon if the Council approved the $28,600 contract what would be the best case scenario and what would be the worst case scenario. Ms. Talon replied the best case scenario would be that she could show FEMA that the Town wants the project to happen and would continue to push it forward. She also said the Town could reply back to FEMA that it is still moving forward, and that the Town may not have a wetlands permit to FEMA by the November 30th deadline, but these are the reasons the Town feels the November 30th deadline is unreasonable. She said the worst case scenario is that the grant goes away. Councilor Katrak asked if the Town is really doing this because it’s chasing a grant or because it really needs the project. Ms. Talon said she feels the Town really needs the project. Councilor Katrak asked what would happen if the project does not occur. Ms. Talon said that during heavy rain events, Route 108 will continue to flood and wash out and the Town will have stranded residents. Administrator Selig said from his perspective it was a very important project because during these flood scenarios, emergency personnel are not able to reach residents on Cold Springs Road and Bennett Road, and in these situations residents have used the railroad tracks to get medication, etc., which is very dangerous. Councilor Rotner said there are also costs incurred because of reconstruction of roadways. He said he felt the project was important. He also said there is FEMA money available to support the project. If the Town does nothing, the money will go away and


the Town will still be facing the problem. He views the $28,600 as a leverage to keep the opportunity in order to receive the FEMA money. He felt it was worth the wager. Administrative Selig said if ultimately the Town cannot bring the BCA down to a level that works for FEMA and loses the grant, he envisioned coming back to the Council at a future budget cycle requesting funds from the Town for the entire $1.2 million to do the project. He said the Town cannot do the first proposal because it will not be permitted by NHDES. Bill Hall, Smith Park Lane, said the reason Cold Spring Road is not accessible during flood events is because Bennett Road is flooded in two places between Packers Falls and Cold Spring Roads. He said it may cheaper to raise the berm west of the Highland House. He felt that Route 108 should be raised to cut down on the amount of water that needs to be absorbed by the Lamprey River. He said maybe it’s time to look at what it takes to get from Packers Falls Road to Cold Spring Road because that’s just a matter of fill. Councilor Lawson said he looked at it as spending $30,000 really to put together the information required to get a 245-day extension from the director, which bothered him considering where this project is. However, he still believed that the information gathered in this process will have value even if the director doesn’t grant the 245-day extension, and for that reason he would support the approval of the $28,600 contract. Ms. Talon pointed out that the $28,600 is still eligible for the 75/25 split. She said the Town will receive 75% for everything that was previously spent on the project almost two years ago. Administrator Selig said there is a second grant application that has not been funded yet and asked Ms. Talon to speak to the Bennett Road issue that Mr. Hall referred to. Ms. Talon replied that the Bennett Road grant application did not include the Packers Falls Road side of Bennett Road. She said there is an approved CIP project “Bennet Road Culvert 2012”and her understanding is that project was originally approved with the intention to spend funds for the “dip” on Packers Falls Road. Ms. Talon said that when the Town originally put out an RFQ for the culvert work, CMA Engineers put together a preliminary design for both the LaRoche and Beaudette brook culvert replacements. She said if those two small projects were done, then Cold Spring residents could come up to Route 108, and should the Longmarsh Road project occur, then residents could get out that way. Ms. Talon said it is her understanding from Dam Bureau communications that because the area is so sensitive, and with the Route 108 project, no projects or impacts can occur that would change the water surface elevation in that area or affect the split. She wondered if a project on the Packers Falls Road end would make hydraulic changes. Councilor Welsh asked Ms. Talon to look into that matter further. Ms. Talon said she seemed to recall in talking with DPW Director Mike Lynch his feeling was that by raising the road it would somehow need to have a retaining wall structure which would increase the cost significantly. She said the road profile is also a


consideration because there is a significant dip in that area, and that the impacts would extend far out on both sides for that type of project. Councilor Welsh said it sounded as if Route 108 will continue to flood, even once the Route 108 project is completed. Administrator Selig explained that when the Town went after the FEMA grants it engaged the NHDOT and encouraged them to look at the Hamel Brook crossing location where it also washes out and to come up with a solution. Ms. Talon said NHDOT removed Hamel Brook from the Route 108 project because they determined that although it is hydraulically insufficient, it’s structurally sufficient and did not warrant replacement. Chair Marple MOVED, that the Town Council does hereby, upon recommendation of the Administrator, approve the Engineering Design Contract with CMA Engineers, Inc. of Portsmouth, NH in the amount of $28,600 for the Longmarsh Road Culvert Replacement Project as part of the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant Program and authorize the Administrator to sign associated documents. The motion was SECONDED by Councilor Welsh and PASSED unanimously, 9-0.

XI. New Business Receive progress report on the 2017-18 approved Town Council goals updated as Of September 30, 2017 Administrator Selig noted the update he’d provided in writing, and reviewed several items in it. He first made note of the things the Town had been doing over time to be open and transparent, and said this really benefited the public. There was discussion that Friday Updates were always available by email on Friday, but posting them on the Town website sometimes happened on Saturday or Monday because of technology challenges. Administrator Selig said this problem was being worked on. Continue cooperative and collaborative efforts with UNH to enhance mutual intellectual, cultural, environmental, social, and economic benefits associated with hosting New Hampshire’s state university. Administrator Selig said the 66 Main Street concept was taking a long time. He said the Town continued to engage on this, and said UNH had put out a revised RFP and got three responses, which were being vetted. He said if there was a viable project, there would be further discussion between UNH and the Town. There was discussion about the proposals, one of which didn’t involve the 66 Main St. property. Administrator Selig said UNH wanted a project that included that property, and said the proposal being reviewed now looked at both 66 Main Street and the parcels across the street. Councilor Katrak said he’d heard a rumor that UNH was thinking that it wanted to sell the land, get $3 million back, and give up on the project. Administrator Selig said he knew UNH wanted to recoup its initial investment and was frustrated that it had been so difficult to find a project that worked at this location. He said if the three proposals fell by


the wayside, he thought Durham and UNH would have to discuss how UNH wanted to proceed. Councilor Katrak said an implication was that if they sold the land, the most likely buyer was student housing. He said someone needed to discuss if there was truth to the rumor and if so, the implications of this, and said it was important to do this well before UNH sold the land. There was discussion about the proposed Zoning change that had failed, which would have prevented multi-unit student housing downtown. Councilor Katrak said if this had passed, if UNH had sold the land the Town would be protected. But he said since it didn’t pass, a question was whether the proposed Zoning change should be reconsidered, if the rumor was true that the land would be sold. Administrator Selig said at this time, he thought they should wait for more information. There was discussion about the 600 sf per person requirement, and whether it made student housing not viable. Councilor Lawson said with Mill Plaza the issue was the timing of when the Ordinance change went through. He said 600 sf was not proposed to make it unviable, and just moved student housing down into the same economics as other housing so that it was no longer the high return on investment. He said the idea that leaving the 600 sq ft per person requirement in place prevented student housing in the downtown was therefore incorrect. He said student housing was an attractive possible revenue stream for a developer, and said he agreed that for those concerned about a downtown with more student housing, it was a real possibility. Administrator Selig said UNH as well had been very clear that they didn’t want student housing there either. Councilor Katrak said instead of trying to guess what UNH would do, it would be good to informally think what the best course of action was for the Town. Administrator Selig agreed. There was discussion that the former fraternity at 66 Main St had paid taxes. Durham/UNH continue to actively work toward developing economic activity off campus that is tied to the research taking place on campus for our collective benefit. Administrator Selig said a real shift in thinking was occurring. He noted that historically broadening the tax base had meant student housing, but said when he talked about it now, he was thinking about the West Edge research park concept, and about the Town working around the University’s research capabilities to develop taxable property with high value jobs, and adults who would help support businesses the Town would want to develop downtown. Councilor Lawson said if they had done that presentation 5 years ago, they would have been speaking about the need for student housing and projects like Capstone. He said it was a positive transition that they were having that conversation earlier tonight, and said nowhere was student housing being mentioned. He said that was a big change from 5 years ago, and said a technology park was in many ways transformational for the Town in positive ways Administrator Selig also noted that developers were now looking to do housing downtown that wasn’t student housing, and not elderly housing, but instead was housing


for adults who wanted to live downtown in an urban environment. He said he’d conveyed to them that right now this would be a hard sell because residents would automatically be thinking about student housing. He said he’d told them to come up with a plan that convinced people that it would be something other than that, and would be interesting for adults. Councilor Howland said what they didn’t want to happen with development out at the West End was to bypass the Town. He said a hotel downtown would tie it in to the downtown. There was discussion that UNH wanted a hotel, and wanted to put it downtown. Administrator Selig said if UNH found that it wasn’t feasible to put it downtown, they’d find a place to put it, and said he could see it being located at the West End. Councilor Burton said a big advantage of a technology park was that once businesses left the incubator, they were likely to stay in the area. Councilor Lawson said the concept of the business park wasn’t just about incubators and companies that exited the area, and he spoke further on this. Administrator Selig said another element to work through was that nationally the incubator business parks worked better when there was common space for people to get outside and get a cup of coffee, and housing available. He said that more comprehensive model was what UNH was looking at. He said the Town would want to make sure that it engaged closely with them to make sure that this model complemented, and didn’t take away from the downtown. He said they didn’t want two centers. Councilor Tobias spoke about how the research park could increase the need for office space and housing downtown. Administrator Selig said previously UNH had been looking at the Goss property, but hadn’t been successful in negotiating a purchase. He said they had now shifted their focus to the West End. He said he would get clarification on the location of the proposed research park. Negotiate equitable agreements for the delivery of services and provision of infrastructure used by both the Town and UNH. Develop long-term policies that reduce the financial burden on the Town while maximizing synergies that exist for both entities to maximize scarce resources. Administrator Selig said positive progress had been made over the past 24 months, to work through issues with UNH around roads and policing. He said he hoped in the next 6 months there would be a deal on those items, and possibly on others. Continue revitalizing Durham’s commercial core in ways that enhance the sense of community and better provide for the needs of our residents and align with the new Master Plan. Administrator Selig said a lot of effort had been made on the Celebrate Durham effort, which involved a new crop of business people downtown. He said that group and the DBA were trying to find some synergy.


He noted that said the owners of Hayden Sports/Launder Center, Young’s, DHop, and Mariner Realty were working together to come up with a possible redevelopment along Main Street. He said this was good news, with long term business owners with vibrant businesses that residents frequented, who were interested in doing something together, but were thinking 5-10 years out. Administrator Selig said the Colonial Durham redevelopment process had been a disappointment to him personally after spending a lot of time trying to find a middle ground and make the project workable for the broader community. He said good progress had been made, but said interested citizens still had concerns about the project. He said Mill Plaza had moved part of the way to meet their needs, but said there hadn’t been a workable solution. He said he was still hopeful that a solution could be found. He said it was under undeveloped lot that drained into the brook, pond and estuaries and needed redevelopment. He said his concern was that if a solution wasn’t found, the property would not be redeveloped for several years, and said this was a disservice to the broader community. Councilor Katrak MOVED to extend the meeting beyond 10:30 pm. Councilor Welsh SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Councilor Katrak asked what the status was of what the developer was doing. Administrator Selig noted two variances the developer had needed, and provided details on them. He said one would allow Rite Aid to have a drive thru and one would allow a variance from the required placing of residential and commercial space in the development. He noted that many residents attended the ZBA meeting and expressed opinions that the variances should be denied, and said the ZBA ultimately denied both of them. He said Colonial Durham requested a rehearing, and the ZBA granted this for the application concerning placement of residential and commercial space, but not the drive thru application. He said his understanding was that without the drive thru, Rite Aid would not move to a new building on the site. He also said residents of the neighborhood had asked Hannaford to relocate on the site, but said to date Hannaford had said no. He said the Town had made a strong case to Hannaford about relocating on the site, but said it was taking Hannaford a long time to consider this. He spoke further on where things were, and where they might go from here. Councilor Burton asked if there was a time limit on the settlement agreement. Administrator Selig said he believed Colonial Durham had a year from when the conceptual design process was closed by the Planning Board to provide an application. He spoke further on this, and said if the applicatnos was withdrawn, or the Planning Board then denied the application, or the denial was appealed and wasn’t sustained, the new Zoning requirement of 600 sq ft per person would apply. He noted that Colonial Durham had inquired about extending the one year time frame since they had been before the ZBA for several months.


Strive to maintain Durham’s small town character, rural pastoral gateways, and cultural history.

Administrator Selig said a lot of time had been spent on the Future Land Use chapter, and he noted the great work of the Future Land Use Subcommittee, including the forum held in the spring and multiple outreach sessions that were done this summer to help develop the chapter. He said the subcommittee was on track to bring a draft of the chapter to the Planning Board in early November. He spoke about the process from there, and said the chapter could potentially be adopted by the end of the year. He noted that this was a Council goal. Councilor Katrak asked if the chapter would include new language on self-standing solar arrays. Administrator Selig said probably not because that issue had come up so recently, but he said the Energy Committee was looking at the issue, for commercial solar applications, and the Planning Board working group was looking at residential solar applications. There was discussion. Councilor Welsh said the Planning Board appeared to be deferring to the Energy Committee on this issue, and also wasn’t looking to make more changes to the Zoning Ordinance until after the Future Land Use chapter was completed and accepted. He spoke further on this. Administrator Selig said the people working on this acknowledged that the risk of additional solar trackers was small given that they were heading into the winter season. There was further discussion. Strengthen the community and enhance its social capital by: Supporting an array of recreational, artistic, and educational opportunities; Administrator Selig said the Parks and Recreation Committee has done some fabulous work in providing a robust array of programming that meets the varied needs of the community. Move forward with a plan for the development of a structured parking solution, potentially in conjunction with UNH, to addressing downtown parking needs within the Central Business District, helping to foster a Park-Once-and-Walk system. Administrator Selig said not much progress had been made on structured parking, but said the reason was that they had envisioned this being tied to a development. He said those development possibilities were moving very slowly. He updated everyone on progress made on the expansion and upgrade of the Police Department facility. He noted that he had updated the Council earlier on the Seacoast Reliability project. He said it had been a significant resource demanding topic, and noted that there had been great support from Councilors Katrak, Burton and Rotner. He said there had been a great working group collaborating on the Wagon Hill farm shoreline erosion stabilization project.


He said the Land Stewardship Committee had been doing great work, and with Ellen Snyder had made some real headway on the management of Town conservation lands. In regard to the Council goal of providing housing options for Durham’s aging population, he noted that Harmony Homes had come on line, and also noted the current Riverwoods project before the Planning Board.

XII. Non public Session (if required) - None XIII. Extended Councilor and Town Administrator Roundtable (if required) XIV. Adjourn (NLT 10:30 PM)

Councilor Tobias MOVED to adjourn the meeting. Councilor Howland SECONDED the motion and it PASSED unanimously 9-0. Adjournment at 10:45 pm Victoria Parmele, Minute taker

d-r-a-f-t fileitems vii a under iii special announcements; changing vii c to read oct 28, 2017 ......

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