PERU – Selectmen voted Monday night to meet with the engineer and contractor to find out if changing the position of the planned sand and salt shed will cost the town more or less. No date was set.
About a dozen residents listened to selectmen explain why the 70- by 90-foot building is being built 30 inches below the level of old Route 108 and parallel, not perpendicular, to the highway.
Selectman Dennis Thibodeau said engineer Bill Whited indicated the $250,000 shed would fit on the site as currently planned, and that Whited and contractor David Trask have elected to use riprap on the back of the slope instead of filling and seeding.
Selectman Bill Hine said the shed had to be turned parallel to the highway because Whited thought the back of it did not have enough ground support if left perpendicular to the road. He also said elevation change was necessary because making the site level with the road would cause the slope to be too steep and too close to Route 108.
Dale Sweatt was concerned that trucks bringing in sand would be backing in at an angle.
Thibodeau said the road into the shed was straight.
Road Commissioner David Gammon said access into the shed was OK, but he was concerned about water coming off the roof and going onto the driveway. He suggested a culvert in the driveway.
Wayne Putnam said he thought the driveway was OK for a tractor-trailer, but, “I have a problem with the site being 30 inches below the road.”
Selectman Andy St. Pierre motioned to have a meeting with Whited and Trask to find out if the changes impact the cost of the building. The motion passed.
Also Monday, Sweatt wanted to know why his taxes remained the same while Hine’s property next door went down. Hine said his waterfront property was too narrow to be developed.
Dave Clements of the Worthley Pond Association reported that the group recently rescinded its opposition to the boat landing because the new owner of the beach/store property has posted it against use by the public.
John Shea of the association said members want to get volunteers to check boats for milfoil plants to protect the pond. He also said they need riprap on East Shore Road.
Selectmen voted to retain Jack Plumley as code enforcement officer
Selectman Rodney Jamison proposed cutting the selectmen’s secretary’s hours from 40 to 15, having selectmen do assessing instead of a professional, and hiring a town manager.
No action was taken.
The town office will be closed Monday and Tuesday, July 3 and 4, and reopen Thursday, July 6.
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