[1:14] And you never know when an emergency situation will happen. That's why

[1:17] [music] the Fairfield Area Community Emergency Response Team or CERT C is

[1:22] here. Cert is made up of trained volunteers ready to take care of

[1:26] themselves, their families, and their neighbors when disaster strikes. Through

[1:30] 20 hours of hands-on training led by local emergency [music] management,

[1:34] members learn vital skills like disaster preparedness, fire safety, medical

[1:39] operations, and search and rescue. Join [music] C today and be ready to make a

[1:45] difference when it matters most. New members training will be on Saturday,

[1:48] January 10th [music] and 17th, 2026. Both training days will run from 8:00

[1:54] a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at [music] the Fairfield Community Center, 61 Water

[1:58] Street, Fairfield, Maine. The [music] class is limited to 20 participants and

[2:02] registration is required. To register, email info at fairfield-me.gov [music]

[2:07] or call to 074537911.

[2:12] [music]

[5:21] To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it

[5:26] stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice

[5:33] for all.

[5:42] Good evening everyone. Wish you an early merry Christmas and happy holidays.

[5:46] » Thank you. >> Quick reminder to please silence your

[5:50] cell phones.

[5:53] First order of business, public announcements. Details may be found at

[5:57] www.fairfield-me.gov.

[6:01] All non-emergency town offices will close at noon on December 24th and will

[6:05] be closed December 25th and the 26th for the Christmas holiday. All non-emergency

[6:11] town offices will be closed on Monday, January January 1st for the New Year's

[6:16] holiday. I don't think it's Monday. >> It's not Monday.

[6:20] » Wednesday. >> Wednesday.

[6:21] » What's holiday? >> Wednesday. January 1st.

[6:25] » In December, council begins reviewing appointment applications for

[6:29] » Thursday. Thursday, January. [laughter] Like, it's not Wednesday either.

[6:33] » Yeah, Wednesday's New Year's. >> We'll get there.

[6:36] » Thursday. >> In December, council begins reviewing

[6:40] appointment applications for upcoming volunteer positions on local boards and

[6:44] committees, including the following: budget committee, planning board, land

[6:48] use board of appeals, board of assessment review, and voter

[6:52] registration board of appeals. If you are interested in serving your

[6:55] community, please complete an appointment application form available

[6:59] online or at the town office. Appointments are made at the town

[7:03] council's January annual organizational meeting, which I believe is January

[7:07] 14th. Am I correct? >> Yeah.

[7:10] » Yeah. >> Dog licenses are due. Any dogs

[7:14] registered after January 31st, 2026 will receive a $25 late fee per dog. Proof of

[7:21] current rabies vaccination is required. There is still time to sign up for the

[7:26] cert training. Please email info@f fairfield-me.gov

[7:31] to reserve your spot. Uh that search training is two Saturdays

[7:36] right in January. >> Second and third Saturday

[7:38] » 10 hours each hours each day 8 to 6. >> And and I know we've had some very good

[7:45] » Yep. I'll talk >> anticipation started already. Yeah.

[7:48] » All right. >> Cops Care for Kids will be Friday,

[7:52] December 19th from 400 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Fairfield Community Center.

[7:57] Please sign your children up at the fairfield copscare.com.

[8:01] And when you walk in, the place is beautiful. We just did a quick walk

[8:06] through and I think kids will be very, very happy to see what the cops have

[8:12] done for them this year. The town office is hosting a diaper

[8:16] drive. Diapers and/or wipes of all sizes and brands can be dropped off at the

[8:20] town office or food pantry. The deadline is February 1st, 2026.

[8:25] Lawrence Public Library

[8:30] Library holiday party Thursday, December 18th at 3:30 p.m. New programs,

[8:36] community conversations on Tuesday mornings at 10:30 a.m. and Baby and Me

[8:41] playgroup on Friday mornings at 10:30 a.m.

[8:45] Second order of business, public hearings. We have none. The order third

[8:49] order of business, public comments. These comments will be limited to three

[8:53] minutes. Members of the public may speak to the council or request an opportunity

[8:57] to speak on a specific item that's on the agenda or may email comments for

[9:02] council to info@fairfield-me.gov by 4 p.m. day of meeting. Submitted

[9:08] content may be read aloud at this time. Do we have anybody who would like to

[9:11] make a comment or reserve time to speak on an item of the

[9:14] » question Max for for item 81? >> But he's part of the committee. So

[9:22] » what's that? he would be part of the committee that would give the

[9:25] » presentation. I want to present anyways. [clears throat]

[9:31] » Bob, how are you? >> I am well, thank you. Um, this is this

[9:35] comment will be directly directed to Stephanie with the cert

[9:41] training and your first aid portion. If you're

[9:46] looking for a injured person to maybe carry up and downstairs or twoman carry

[9:54] outside, whatever, I'd be willing to volunteer. I wanted to partake in a sort

[10:00] of training, but I just can't. So, I feel this is just another small way of

[10:06] me help [snorts] towards the town.

[10:10] » Thank you very much, Bob. Um, I will let Sarah know about this and I um if I need

[10:18] to get in touch with you to let you know of your services,

[10:22] I will call. >> Thank you so much, Bob.

[10:30] Anybody else? Okay, seeing none, we'll move on. Fourth

[10:34] order business, town manager and committee reports. Town manager report.

[10:38] All right. So, on November 25th, the code enforcement officer and I met with

[10:43] KB Cog staff to discuss a housing needs assessment that they are working on for

[10:47] the town of Fairfield. This assessment is funded through a housing opportunity

[10:51] program grant through the state. So, it is of complete free of charge to the

[10:55] municipality. Um, and it will give us a lot of things that we need. Some of it

[11:00] is some GIS mapping of some of our infrastructure as well as some good

[11:04] mapping for layouts of the community. So, we're excited about this project.

[11:08] um it's not anything that they've ever done before. They're using Fairfield as

[11:12] a guinea pig um to work out the process and then hopefully KV Cog hopes to be

[11:16] able to um make this process available to other communities that are members of

[11:20] of KV COB's um catchment area. So, we're we're excited about this process getting

[11:25] that started. November 27th and 28th, all non-emergency services were closed

[11:29] for the Thanksgiving holiday. December 2nd, the library was closed due to the

[11:34] weather. They were closed completely. The town office did close at 11:00 and

[11:37] all committee meetings on the 2nd were also canceled due to the storm. The

[11:41] December 4th I attended the ice arena steering committee meeting and the 16th

[11:46] of December I attended the building committee meeting. Just a couple of

[11:49] project updates for you. Budget prep continues at this point. Um we're

[11:54] waiting on some data from outside sources such as mainstate retirement,

[11:59] those sort of things that are big components within your budget that we do

[12:02] not have what those numbers are yet. We also are working on our meetings with

[12:06] our union contract renewals. So the hope is right now that we'll get those union

[12:10] meetings out of the way the first part of January. You'll have your budget and

[12:14] they will schedule the meeting tenatively for council being that is it

[12:19] the it's a fourth or the third weekend in January. It's the cert teams

[12:24] it's the third Saturday in January I think cert teams snow date. If they

[12:28] don't need that then we'll bump it to if they do need it we'll bump it to the

[12:30] 31st. Uh that's the tenant plan right now, but you'll have the budget by the

[12:34] end of January. Um and then also, uh the contract was signed for KRG First Park's

[12:40] new executive director this week. Um that press release was handed out to you

[12:44] tonight, so you have a copy of that. We're really excited about her getting

[12:47] started. Uh she was the uh director down at the Brunswick Landing, so we're

[12:51] really hoping her expertise is going to bring a lot more businesses to this

[12:54] region. So that's it for me. >> All right. Thank you.

[13:00] uh thank our department heads. We we have our monthly uh report. It's very

[13:05] in-depth. Thank you again. I'm just going to bring up a quick uh the

[13:11] reval is going on and I I just want to report that they have mentioned a little

[13:16] over 1.3 million in new um assessed value that they've done. So that will

[13:22] help our town revenue when we get in the budget process. So again, all

[13:26] departments, thank you. Yes. And that's value that will hit

[13:30] immediately, not not value that has to wait for the for bail to be complete.

[13:34] So, yep. >> Okay. Committee reports. We'll start

[13:39] with economic development. >> Well, as you heard Michelle say, we

[13:43] didn't meet on December 2nd because of the storm. And so, our next meeting is

[13:48] going to be January 6th at 3:30 here in council chambers. Um, just so you all

[13:55] know, we have seven more openings for the CERT C training. The CERT C training

[14:00] is on the second and third Saturdays in January with a snow date of the 4th if

[14:06] we need it. Um, it they are 10-hour days. People are asked to bring their

[14:12] lunch. Uh, it's open not just for Fairfield citizens, but for people in

[14:17] our surrounding area, um, from age from high school seniors on up. So, um,

[14:25] again, there are seven positions that are still vacant and we would love to

[14:29] have them all filled >> and that's it.

[14:33] » Dr. Towns and PFA, >> we had a probably a very uh robust

[14:38] meeting scheduled for uh December 2nd, but that one got snowed out. Uh, so we

[14:43] are rescheduling at this point to January 12th um for us. So, that was

[14:47] again meeting with the legislators and kind of going over the situation than

[14:51] our reports. So, January 12th, I think about six o'clock at that point. So,

[14:55] that'll be a uh that is a trying to look real quick.

[14:59] » Monday. >> That is a Monday. Yep.

[15:01] » Okay. I'm going to uh I'll do Ice Arena first since um building's going to be a

[15:06] little bit longer. Um so, Ice Arena, we met in in December. I totally forgot all

[15:11] my notes on my desk. Um, we met with Sheridan and we went over

[15:18] some of the plans that the prior group from Central Main um, youth hockey and

[15:23] the Alphon Center had. Um, they had a number of different plans, different

[15:29] price ranges, different sizes. What we have decided to do um, was see how much

[15:36] accessible land we have um, how much of it is going to be waste land that we

[15:41] can't use. what do we do with the PFA land like building a mound for maybe a

[15:46] sledding hill or whatever. Uh but we're going to take a backwards approach to

[15:50] come into this with what kind of size building can we have first of all

[15:54] depending on the amount of parking spaces that will be available. So our

[15:58] next next meeting will be in January and hopefully we'll have some more

[16:02] information at that time uh to bring back. So kind of a backwards approach

[16:06] but we would like to see you know what's our maximum footprint before we can do

[16:10] anything else. Dr. T am I leaving anything else?

[16:12] » No, those are big ones. I think backing into it and kind of looking what we can

[16:16] do. >> Yep.

[16:17] » Yeah. >> Um, next meeting is in January.

[16:20] Michelle, the other date cuz again I left my my notes. [snorts]

[16:28] » 22nd is what I had. >> 22nd at the wrong month. That's why

[16:32] » should be a Thursday I believe again. >> Oh,

[16:34] » yep. >> I don't Okay,

[16:36] » sure. [snorts] So tenatively January 22nd 6 p.m. right here council changes.

[16:41] » Okay. Um Peter building committee. >> Oh the building committee met last night

[16:46] at 5:00. Um

[16:50] we only had three members there and we discussed about the building RFP

[16:57] and I'm going to introduce Max who is going

[17:01] to brief that from a billing committee. we want

[17:07] » when we get to that item. It's it's an item on the agenda.

[17:10] » Okay. So, we'll wait till the last one. >> Yeah.

[17:13] » Okay. So, Max, we're going to put you off.

[17:19] [clears throat] >> Okay. That's it for the for committees

[17:21] for now. Fifth order business, the consent agenda. These items are

[17:25] considered routine or standard business and therefore will be enacted by one

[17:29] motion. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a

[17:32] council member so requests private consideration of this portion of the

[17:36] agenda in which event the item will be removed from the consent agenda and

[17:40] considered next on the agenda. Seeing none, item 25-124

[17:46] ordered that the Fairfield Town Council hereby waves the reading of and accepts

[17:50] the minutes for meeting 2025-20 held on November 19th, 2025.

[17:57] » So moved. Second. >> No, we got two more.

[18:01] » That's That's fine. We'll read them all. Item 25-125.

[18:06] Order that the town council hereby approves the treasures warrant number 91

[18:10] in the amount of 1,45,86822

[18:16] include but not limited to motor vehicle fees, MSAD 49 December allocation, main

[18:23] municipal employee health and OKConor GMC. Item 25-126

[18:29] order. The town council hereby approves and signs the sewer certificate of

[18:34] commitment in the amount of $164,92.50

[18:39] for the fourth quarter fiscal year sewer billing for the period of 10125 through

[18:45] 123125. How about now?

[18:48] » Now make a motion. Second. >> So I have a motion by council towns and

[18:52] second by councelor Tibido. Any questions?

[18:57] Seeing none, all those in favor. It's unanimous. 5-0.

[19:03] Six. Order of business. Discuss the traffic concerns raised by residents at

[19:08] 11:119 meeting. So this will be on the intersection,

[19:13] I believe, Norwalk Road and it >> was No, no, it was 10 lots, Davis Road,

[19:19] Martin Street, and Six Rod. The >> the four-way intersection on Davis Road.

[19:24] Yep. And you received a memo from Chief Gold.

[19:28] » Y

[19:40] pros and cons it looks like at this point.

[19:44] » Yeah. What do you What do you think, Dr. T? I mean, you look at it and just what

[19:47] he's saying, you do have the stops and maybe you'll have fewer uh t-bone type

[19:53] uh accidents, but you worry about the ones of people going straight on through

[19:57] because they're used to it not being a stop. You're worrying about the backup

[20:00] of traffic and the rear ending. So, I'm not sure which one's better or worse,

[20:04] but I definitely see it when it's out there and people that live out there uh

[20:08] can understand it.

[20:12] Yes, we added reflectors several years ago to help draw more attention to that

[20:16] area. The issue we had with like so if you did like blinking flashing lights,

[20:20] there's no there's no power supply and there's not enough we don't believe

[20:26] enough u visibility for solar generated lights in that area. So,

[20:32] » so basically that intersection where where six rod Martin stream connect

[20:38] there are no stop signs. There's stop both ways on Davis Road and 10 lots

[20:43] road. I think the I live on that road as well. So I think the problem that we're

[20:48] dealing with is this time of year particularly with sundown. I think

[20:53] you're going to see more of the accidents early morning when sun's

[20:56] coming up going down the six rod road from Martin Stream and accidents going

[21:01] through the four-way at night at twilight or or 4 to 5:00 um where the

[21:07] sun is is blinding in those areas I would say

[21:13] you know the blinking the blinking lights on the stop signs

[21:17] to to me would make sense because it's not really in either view of the done.

[21:23] Uh so if we were going to pursue it any further, I would look at that where

[21:26] those are really the only two stops. People are just blowing through those.

[21:31] They've been a stop sign for 70 years, as long as a road's been there. Um Six

[21:37] Rod Martin has never it's never been a four-way stop sign. So unlike what

[21:41] they've changed on uh Fairfield Street, Oakland Road, Gagnen Road, and County

[21:46] Road, um those are now a complete four-way stop. That was another bad

[21:51] intersection. Had a lot of accidents. Um >> well, the chief does say that there's

[21:56] only been three accidents since January 1st of 2023.

[22:01] Um there were eight crashes from 2020 to 2022.

[22:08] So in a period of 5 years has been total of 11.

[22:12] » Yeah. So

[22:17] » I I honestly think it's something we just we make note of it, keep it on our

[22:21] radar. It is a 35 mph zone through there. So six rod does change over from

[22:27] 45 to 35 about 9/10 of a mile going up right after you get by myself and

[22:31] Tommy's place. Um people people fly no different than any

[22:37] other road. So, um, I think we just make it a concern and and keep it on the

[22:42] radar. If it becomes more of a problem, then we readress it with maybe the

[22:45] blinking stop signs. >> Are there thoughts on like is is there

[22:52] really the situation they don't think that is enough power with the solar?

[22:57] » I mean, so I mean, you can always we could look at removing trees and and

[23:01] that kind of stuff, but um, that was the feedback that I received. I didn't

[23:06] actually drive out there and, you know, do a lookie around. Um, those units do

[23:10] cost anywhere between $1,000 to $3,000 a piece. And then there's battery

[23:15] maintenance and battery maintenance doesn't work real well in main winters.

[23:18] That's the other part of that. So, you create an expectation that there's going

[23:21] to be a light flashing and then that light goes away. Do you then in turn

[23:24] create a different hazard? So, that's why the chief also mentioned, you know,

[23:28] we would want to potentially look, you would potentially look at engineering

[23:31] study done in that area. Um, and because it's not a state road, you'd actually

[23:35] have to pay for that piece, whereas usually we when it's on a state road, we

[23:38] ask them to do it and they fit us in their schedule. Um, so I mean there are

[23:43] things that you could do, will they work? Um, so the reflector

[23:48] piece that was done, so he is stating, you know, that public works place stop

[23:52] signs on both sides at the end of 10 lots and Davis Road and added reflectors

[23:56] several years past. a clear downward trend. Eight crashes from 20 to 22 with

[24:02] only three since 1123 which supports the conclusion that the corrections reduced

[24:06] crashes. Next logical step would then in the process would be to change the

[24:11] intersection to four-way or add solar flashing stop and warning signs. So it'd

[24:14] be up to the council as to what you want to do.

[24:17] » I know that in the roads I don't believe it there it says stop ahead in the road.

[24:22] Would that make a big difference? Does does it Tom?

[24:25] » Okay. Well, I believe both Davis and 10 lots, right, Tom?

[24:28] » Yep. >> Y we've done a lot over the years to to

[24:32] prevent what's been happening. We've added stop ahead signs on both sides of

[24:37] the roads as you approach it. Then you got two stop signs instead of just one.

[24:41] You have reflective. Sorry, [laughter] >> he's new. Forgive him.

[24:45] » You also have the reflective strips that we added and we cleared the ditches of

[24:50] brush and everything else. So, it's quite a I mean, you I don't know if

[24:54] you're familiar with the Davis Road, but as you round that corner, just before

[24:58] you round the corner, there's two stop ahead signs right there. You have to be

[25:01] able to see them. And then as soon as you round the corner, you can see both

[25:04] stop signs instead of just one stop sign, which you normally have. So, we've

[25:08] done a lot over the past years to try to prevent this. And my opinion, I think

[25:13] it's just driver and attention and speed. Yeah.

[25:17] » Speed. Speed and attention. Absolutely.

[25:23] Thank you. Any other discussion on that for now? Do

[25:28] you ask for just a department of engineer uh department of

[25:31] transportation, you know, review and on their on their

[25:35] schedule? >> We can find out how much one would cost

[25:38] us. >> That'd be great.

[25:39] » Yep. [clears throat]

[25:43] » Okay. Thank you. We'll move on. Uh item two,

[25:48] » there was one more piece to that. It was the other letter that you also got from

[25:51] the Department of Transportation that was dated back in March. It was just a

[25:54] followup because there was a conversation about the rumble strip that

[25:57] was on the Norwalk Road. >> So, and in this letter, we had

[26:01] previously asked that rumble strips be put in and we were denied

[26:05] » um but in um 2025, we did we had asked for it again because they had done a

[26:11] 2019 review um and did not show any deficiencies in the highway signs or

[26:16] striping. The review did show the 50th percentile speed of drivers was 57 miles

[26:21] per hour and 85th percentile speed was 62 miles per hour. As a result of that

[26:25] review, we also determined that this segment of highway did not meet the

[26:29] threshold for installation of rumble strips at that time. Since then, our

[26:33] threshold for the installation of rumble strips has changed and promoted and

[26:36] prompted by your letter. I have worked with our folks overseeing rumble strips

[26:40] and reached an agreement with the installation of rumble strips that will

[26:43] be programmed in the Norwalk Road anywhere the speed limit is 45 mph or

[26:47] greater from town line to town line in those areas where the pavement

[26:51] conditions is sufficient to support these effective safety features. So,

[26:57] it it may be that the rumble strips that are there are not

[27:01] meeting folks expectations, but we were lucky to get what we got because they

[27:05] had previously determined we weren't even going to get those.

[27:09] So, I just wanted to follow up. I knew we had gotten something and and I wanted

[27:13] to give this to you so that you had that.

[27:14] » Those are in place. I drove out last night. So, I I think that will make a

[27:18] difference. Again, it's more the intersection where the old Melly Ranch

[27:22] is >> um by by Pirate Lane just after that. I

[27:26] think that's where we're seeing all these accidents. But again, it's

[27:31] » the road work has been done. Um the stop ahead is is already on the ground. It's

[27:37] there. It's just driver in attention and speed. They're blowing through a stop

[27:41] sign at the Melody Ranch. You're going on another road. I I don't know what

[27:45] we're going to do to deter or stop that. I saw a tractor trailer just missed a

[27:49] car about 20 ft the other morning. It was just like just she pulled the person

[27:54] pulled right out. Uh yeah, just driving her attention like oh my gosh. But yeah,

[27:59] it happens. >> I mean it's odd that we see it at that

[28:01] intersection, but you've got a place on the Culver Road. You know, Norwalk meets

[28:05] Kula Road the exact same way >> and we don't see that at that

[28:10] intersection. So I think just people coming off the back road from Scow

[28:13] Heaggan are not paying attention. and they're just blowing through that stop.

[28:17] So, >> was the original request though that we

[28:19] heard um I think I forget who it was requested rumble strips going across the

[28:26] road. This letter is referring to center line rumble strips.

[28:29] » Yeah. And they won't do those, >> right?

[28:32] » They won't do those skeleagan on 2011. They got straight in the middle of the

[28:36] road, >> right? I effectively still using north

[28:40] as group one cranking. >> They don't make a difference. Rumble

[28:44] strips don't make a difference. >> I just I just wanted for for clarity to

[28:48] for closure that the request was that we look into rumble strips going across the

[28:53] road and we know that's not going to happen. I think they only use those for

[28:56] the approaching a stop. >> They typically they use them like they

[29:00] have them at the approaches for the toll booths and that kind of stuff to slow

[29:03] people down, but they won't they I don't think that they will ever ever give you

[29:07] one for >> No. in the back road. a 45 mph road. So,

[29:10] it's not going to meet their description of of putting in rumble strips anyway,

[29:15] other than an actual stop light, which still isn't going to stop them if

[29:18] they're not paying attention. >> If you're on your cell phone and not

[29:21] paying attention, whether you're watching a Tik Tok or

[29:24] talking to somebody or screaming at your kid in the back seat, it it it has an

[29:28] impact on on everybody else around you. So,

[29:31] » it happens. I I'm happy we got the the median rumble

[29:35] strips and you know at least they're paying attention. Not going to hit a

[29:39] semi coming at him at 60 mph in the opposite direction.

[29:45] Okay. Well, thank you for those reports. Um item two, the fire chief's truck has

[29:51] been leed by Davis Vinyl. I think we've seen the pictures. Looks like

[29:54] » I actually saw it last night out there and touched it. We actually had a tour

[29:59] of this truck last night. Chief, are you happy with that?

[30:04] » Yep. >> Abs. Absolutely.

[30:06] » Any other discussion? >> Remove that.

[30:12] » Can we remove that off old business? >> Yeah.

[30:16] » Uh item three, committee meeting recordings.

[30:19] » Really haven't had any >> no meeting

[30:21] » committees to record. It's okay. >> We'll keep that for for next meeting.

[30:27] Seventh order of business to take action on the following items of business. Item

[30:32] 25-127. Order that the town council hereby

[30:36] authorizes the town clerk to issue a letter of approval to the Grover

[30:40] Hinckley American Legion Post 14 located at 86 Main Street to operate Bingo Bino

[30:47] Games of Chance and Cribage for the period of January 1st, 2026 to December

[30:52] 31st, 2026. >> So move

[30:54] » second. Motion by councel Lawrence, second by councelor Tibido. Any

[30:58] discussion? Seeing none. All those in favor?

[31:02] Unanimous. 5-0. Item 25-128.

[31:08] Order that the Fairfield Town Council hereby authorizes the town clerk to

[31:11] issue a letter of approval to the Fairfield VFW Memorial Post 6924

[31:16] located at 246 Main Street to operate Bingo Bino Games of Chance and Cribage

[31:22] for the period of January 1st, 2026 to December 31st, 2026. So move

[31:28] » second. >> Motion by council Lawrence, second by

[31:31] Council Tibido. Any discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor?

[31:36] Unanimous. 50. Item 25-129.

[31:42] Order that the town council hereby adopts the animal housing contract for

[31:46] January 1st, 2026 through December 31st, 2027.

[31:58] » Second >> motion by councelor Townson, second by

[32:01] council Lawrence. discussion.

[32:06] » Michelle, did they go up on their costs? The fee is exactly the same.

[32:10] » Yeah, the same.

[32:14] » Good question. >> Any other discussion?

[32:19] » And we did, just so you're aware, just for price comparison, did reach out to

[32:22] the Waterville Animal Shelter. Uh the chief has reached out to them a couple

[32:26] of times and has received no response from them. So,

[32:30] Any

[32:34] other comments or discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor?

[32:39] Unanimous. 5-0. [clears throat]

[32:43] Eighth order business. Council workshop and other business discuss the RFP from

[32:48] the building committee. Max Kenny, you have the four, please.

[32:57] » Michelle, did the council get the most updated version? Yes, they did this

[33:00] afternoon. >> Um, I jotted some notes down just so I

[33:04] make sure I hit all the points that I wanted to. So, I'll read that. Um, and

[33:07] then at the end, we can certainly go through the RFP in more detail if

[33:09] there's any questions from the council. Uh, good evening, counselors. My name is

[33:13] Max Kenny. I'm the secretary of the current Fairfield Building Committee and

[33:17] was nominated by the committee to provide an overview to the council of

[33:20] the work completed to date and the proposed request for proposals RFP and

[33:26] what work we hope to accomplish in 2026. In the spring of 2024, the town's ad hoc

[33:32] building advisory committee completed their work with a report that identified

[33:36] major deficiencies with the existing police station, Lawrence Savire Station,

[33:40] and town office buildings. The committee recommended the town employer service to

[33:45] evaluate upgrades to the existing facilities or a potential new municipal

[33:49] complex. In the in the summer of this year, the

[33:53] current building committee organized and we toured the existing police station,

[33:56] the fire station, and town office buildings. There was a number of new

[33:59] committee members, including myself, that weren't on the prior building

[34:02] committee. So, we thought it was important that we got to see um the

[34:05] items firsthand. Um our findings were pretty eye opening

[34:10] and as one member put it, honestly, pretty embarrassing.

[34:13] Uh common deficiencies identified by the committee included lack of sec secure

[34:18] document storage space, outdated and broken kitchen and bathroom facilities,

[34:22] insufficient parking, inefficient and poor quality mechanical systems, sinking

[34:27] foundations, cracked walls, limited space for current and future department

[34:31] operations, and what we found most alarming was a complete lack of modern

[34:35] safety features in all of the buildings. um especially for operations that are

[34:41] public facing like the all of our departments are.

[34:45] Um believing that upgrades and/or replacement of the existing buildings is

[34:49] necessary, the committee visited newly constructed Scow Heaggan and Newport

[34:53] public safety facilities to review those spaces and get some lessons learned. Um

[34:57] these tours were helpful and gave us an idea of what is possible for Fairfield.

[35:01] Today we are asking the council for support to issue an RFP entitled space

[35:06] needs assessment and feasibility study for a new municipal complex. The

[35:10] committee members recognize that we are not qualified building professionals and

[35:13] recommend the town hire a qualified engineering consultant to perform the

[35:17] work outlined in the RFP. The RFP includes details on the existing town

[35:21] office, Lawrence Sav fire station and police station. We have also included

[35:25] design goals which are really a wish list of facility components identified

[35:29] by the department staff as priorities for upgraded or new facilities. The

[35:34] committee and staff are very aware that not all of these design goals will come

[35:39] to fruition, but our objective as part of this RFP is to identify costs and

[35:43] make cuts based upon the funding that we achieve.

[35:46] The work required in this RFP is broken down into seven strategic tasks that

[35:50] build on the work from each prior task. Task one is an independent space needs

[35:55] assessment for the town office, police and fire departments independent from

[35:58] their existing as well as proposed facilities. We want to know how much

[36:02] space is actually needed for the current and future operations of these

[36:05] departments. Phase two is a phys physical assessment

[36:09] of the existing buildings and determination if they can be upgraded to

[36:12] meet the current and future needs of the departments. If they could be upgraded,

[36:16] how much is that going to cost? Task three. The committee reviewed potential

[36:21] locations for a new municipal complex and we all agreed that one industrial

[36:25] drive next to the public works department is the most advantageous site

[36:28] within our community. Task three seeks a site evaluation to determine the

[36:33] feasibility of housing a new municipal complex at that one industrial drive uh

[36:37] location. Task four is to develop a conceptual

[36:41] design or to develop conceptual design alternatives for a new municipal

[36:45] complex. We are requesting design alternatives that include one combined

[36:49] building of all three departments as well as separate buildings um to house

[36:52] each or to house each each department individually. This task also includes

[36:57] cost estimates for the various alternatives.

[37:00] Task five is an ana is an alternatives analysis to compare the options

[37:04] including rehab of the existing buildings, a new combined building or

[37:08] new separate buildings. This step will include a recommendation from the

[37:11] consultant on the best option for the town to pursue based upon cost and

[37:15] non-cost factors. Task six is determine a funding strategy for the town to fund

[37:20] the recommended approach. The committee knows that grants will be key to

[37:23] completing any proposed project. We want to know from professionals who have

[37:27] experience obtain or supporting communities in obtaining these grants

[37:31] what are the best grants to go for and how best to position our community. Task

[37:36] seven is the last task is to determine next steps and evaluate project delivery

[37:40] strategies such as design build. With the council's support, we hope to issue

[37:44] this RFP to interested engineering and architecture firms in early January with

[37:48] proposals due in midFebruary. Issuing this RFP and receiving proposals

[37:53] does not tie the town to contracting with any consultant and the proposal is

[37:57] written in a way to allow the town to contract all work or complete the work

[38:01] task by task. Based upon the town of Fryberg's similar RFP issued in the

[38:06] spring of 2023, we anticipate that the cost of this work will be around $75,000

[38:10] and have several interested consultants submit proposals.

[38:14] Once proposals are received, we will review them as a committee and make a

[38:18] recommendation to the council on what tasks to complete and with which

[38:21] consultant. We anticipate that all of the work outlined in the RFP, if

[38:25] awarded, would be completed by the end of 2026. and I would welcome any

[38:29] questions that you have on the committee's work to date or the RFP

[38:32] itself. >> Thank you, Madam Council T.

[38:38] » Um, in the RFP, will the air exchange or the

[38:44] HVAC be addressed as well because that was one of the discussion topics for the

[38:49] old fire department was the air exchange and making sure that that it's vented

[38:54] properly. >> It certainly will be. We have uh we're

[38:58] asking a consultant to review the existing buildings and determine what

[39:03] would be required to upgrade them to meet current code and if as well as what

[39:07] it would look like to build a new complex and that certainly would have to

[39:10] meet those new codes. >> Okay. And also the counseling room that

[39:14] was mentioned in the RFP is that a shared counseling room between the fire

[39:20] and police department or will there be separate counseling rooms? In the design

[39:25] goals, we had indicated that we would like to have one large meeting room in

[39:29] this new facility um which would act as a training room for any department

[39:34] within the town as well as it could host council meetings in the future.

[39:40] » Um I know that the police have um

[39:46] um Steve Donu that's there to help out with counsel.

[39:52] » Yeah, thank you. chaplain. And I was just wondering if there should

[39:57] be a separate location where you could have a private conversation

[40:02] um and not feel like you're [clears throat] in a big room or

[40:06] invading other >> Yeah, absolutely. In the design goals um

[40:10] for the police department, there is a a goal um not to say it will happen, but a

[40:15] goal to have a small conference room for up to six people.

[40:17] » Okay. That's right. I did read. Um, and just so you're aware, the chaplain

[40:21] currently actually has hours that he holds here in the small room at the

[40:25] community center. Okay. >> Um, he already has space that he does

[40:27] currently use and it's here. So, it's not just it's not tied to any one

[40:32] particular department. So, staff from all departments will feel comfortable

[40:35] being able to visit [clears throat] with him and not necessarily know that anyone

[40:38] particular department knows who's going and who's not. So, it's done for privacy

[40:42] reasons. And [clears throat] then just for one more piece, um the the

[40:47] department heads and the town department staff that created these bulleted wish

[40:51] list pieces knew very much that they were wish lists and knew very much that

[40:55] as Max had mentioned that while we asked each department wants a small conference

[41:01] room, they understand that that may mean that there's one small conference room

[41:04] that that's these were all pieces of shoot for the sky and see where it

[41:08] lands. >> Right. It really revolves around what

[41:11] sort of funding the town can receive. >> Definitely. So, as I was reading the the

[41:16] the draft, it dawned on me that there's no holding cell for the police

[41:21] department. I know currently if you they arrest somebody and they have to take

[41:26] them up to Madison to the sheriff's department. Um, but is that something

[41:32] other police departments might have is like a holding cell?

[41:36] I don't believe we saw a holding cell at on either scouting.

[41:40] » They have they have intake rooms. >> Um and usually either [clears throat]

[41:45] there's there's an intake room where they're processed.

[41:48] » Um and then they know whether if they're going to be bailed, they get bailed from

[41:52] here or whether they go from here straight to the jail.

[41:55] » And those are noted in the RFP as two booking rooms. That's what those were

[41:58] called. >> Okay. Um, and is the plan for

[42:05] a multiple uh floors or a single floor situation? What's the want?

[42:11] » There are no plans right now. Um, we're going to be looking for recommendations

[42:15] from an architect or engineering company to help us with what's the most cost

[42:19] advantageous for the community. >> All right, that that's all I have. Thank

[42:24] you. >> Mhm. Council Kitchen.

[42:27] [clears throat] First, I want to say thanks to the committee for putting this

[42:30] together. I thought it was very well written. I do have a couple questions

[42:33] though. Uh first and foremost, uh I didn't get time to fully review the

[42:38] final proposed draft uh RFP that we got. >> It's very similar to what was presented.

[42:43] » Is there any any changes in them >> worthy of mention time frame? It was

[42:47] just the time frame. >> Okay. the time frame that we rolled out

[42:50] and then there were in the the original draft uh that council received um there

[42:55] were pieces such as number of employees in each department that needed to be

[42:59] refined because um one things that municipalities do well is we don't have

[43:05] a tendency to reinvent a wheel. So this proposal is very similar to the one that

[43:10] Fryberg had. So those pieces were left in as a placeholder for their discussion

[43:15] at their meeting last night with the department heads to ensure we had those

[43:18] detailed pieces correct. Um there were some minor spelling changes. There were

[43:23] some requests in the original piece um draft that you received that fell under

[43:30] one department um that actually got moved out and were put into the general

[43:34] overall building description because they found that it was while the fire

[43:38] department wanted it and the police department wanted it just better fit for

[43:41] just an overall building piece >> such as the wash bay for vehicles.

[43:44] » Yeah. The wash bay, right? Because all of our vehicles need to be washed. So

[43:49] like the the PD side of garages wouldn't necessarily need a wash bay for their

[43:53] vehicles and the fire department wouldn't necessarily need a separate

[43:56] wash bay and code enforcement also washes their car. So we moved washbay

[44:01] into the general building section as opposed to an individual department.

[44:05] Okay. >> Um and then the timeline was completely

[44:08] changed. Um [clears throat] originally the projection was much further out.

[44:12] This puts it back into being in January. Um it does require uh folks to

[44:18] pre-register for the mandatory presubmission meeting. Um and the reason

[44:23] for the registration quite frankly is so that because it is the winter months if

[44:28] something was to happen or there was an emergency we have the ability to contact

[44:32] people who are planning to attend that mandatory meeting with the rescheduling

[44:35] piece. Um and then >> we also added the a link to the building

[44:41] committee's website. >> Yes. which would have the prior building

[44:45] committee's report as well as some technical documents such as the geotech

[44:49] for the police station and then >> the dear go the deargo reports and the

[44:55] summit geotechnical engineering reports for the police department and the fire

[44:59] department that we had done in 24 um and also the building committee's prior

[45:03] report lives on that site so we added that link to that portion of our website

[45:08] so that they have access to all of that data without having to put it all in the

[45:12] RFP because it just makes it too large. >> I think that's about it.

[45:16] » And we we apologize for not getting a more complete draft sooner, but our

[45:19] meeting was last night. [laughter] >> A couple other things, questions I have.

[45:23] I didn't notice anything about and maybe it was just in the language. Uh

[45:28] homeowner assessment of I think we have two or three residences right out in

[45:32] front of that along Western A. How how that would

[45:35] » Well, that would be part of the site assessment that would be completed. It

[45:38] would look at environmental conditions, neighborhood conditions, traffic flow,

[45:43] all of that. >> Okay. Um, and I noticed in the in the

[45:49] meat of it, in the design goals [cough and clears throat]

[45:52] for the complex, uh, in one spot you put town council meetings, and another spot

[45:58] you put committee meetings intended to get citizen input. Um, in design goals

[46:04] for the town office department, would it be prudent to put uh at the end uh

[46:11] council chambers or something similar to that to accommodate the language of

[46:16] council meetings, committee meetings, etc. as mentioned later in the report?

[46:20] » Absolutely. We talked about having council meeting, committee meetings with

[46:23] the consultant that would be hired as sort of milestone check-ins and

[46:28] presentations of their report. Um, as far as actual physical space in the

[46:34] overall um, kind of building goals, we do have

[46:40] uh, somewhere in here.

[46:46] » It's like one of the last >> it just says a small meeting room under

[46:49] design goals. >> There's another town office,

[46:52] » right? So that was specific to the town office like daily functions that

[46:56] section. >> Okay. for the larger kind of gathering,

[47:00] emergency command center, police department, training room, potential

[47:05] count, town council location. That was that was separate. That was a that we

[47:10] envisioned as a larger room that could house several [snorts] more people than

[47:14] a small department meeting, which would be in the smaller sixperson conference.

[47:18] » Um, this may be split in hairs, but police department. Uh let me start with

[47:24] fire uh design goals for fire department uh bathroom shower space dedicated to

[47:30] fire department and the police department male and female locker rooms.

[47:33] Do we specify male and female uh bathroom shower space for the fire

[47:38] department? >> We had anticipated that any

[47:40] bathrooms/shower space would be genderneutral

[47:44] » would be what? >> Gender neutral individual spaces.

[47:49] I only found one misspelling [clears throat] under design goals for

[47:53] the police department. Two interview rooms for the I'm assuming detective's

[47:57] office. >> Oh, thank you.

[48:01] There were more than that. [laughter] >> I only got to get that.

[48:06] » But we but we missed that one. >> Yeah,

[48:08] » you get a gold. >> We'll fix that.

[48:11] Uh,

[48:15] and then property information should be centrally

[48:19] located to Fairfield and Benton. Uh, I would just I know that we're going to be

[48:25] discussing EMS. Uh, if Benton ever decides not to go, is

[48:31] this primarily based upon uh Benton remaining with with Fairfield Fire?

[48:37] » It certainly is. Um, but we also recognize that a a substantial

[48:42] percentage of our community is here in the denser part of the community. Uh, so

[48:46] we feel as though even if Benton were to were to pull out sometime in the future,

[48:50] having that kind of mindset of still being closer to the town center makes

[48:54] sense.

[48:58] And >> that's something that certainly a

[49:00] consultant would help us help advise us um and do some studies on response time

[49:07] to the outskirts of Benton and the outskirts of Fairfield based upon this

[49:11] proposed location. >> Uh and again lastly, uh I think you guys

[49:16] did a great job writing this. Uh I read through the draft. I did notice like the

[49:20] days from March to February changed some things like that. I'm very confident

[49:24] with this and I would say that uh I applaud you guys for even asking them to

[49:29] consider upgrades to the existing building spite uh sites so that our

[49:33] taxpayers know that we're not just looking you know to spend frivolously if

[49:39] you know out of our pocket. We're asking for the whole meal deal.

[49:42] » Yeah, we certainly uh took that into consideration and we we're aware that

[49:46] sometimes retrofitting existing buildings can be just as expensive as

[49:49] building from scratch. Um so but we think it's important data to have. We

[49:53] anticipate that some buildings may not be even suitable for retrofit. I mean

[49:56] the police station is experiencing significant uh settling of their

[50:01] foundation. So it's very very likely that the police station will be

[50:05] identified as a building that cannot be retrofitted uh and that a new building

[50:09] is required. >> Thank you. I think you guys did a great

[50:12] job with this. That's all I have. Tim, >> just cuz I finally found the space. Um,

[50:18] section 4, complex structure. First paragraph, last sentence says, "The

[50:23] committee desires the facility to have a centrally located meeting room of

[50:27] sufficient size for staff meetings, town council meetings, and capabilities to

[50:30] act as an emergency operations center." >> Okay. Yeah, I missed that word.

[50:35] » Complex, I knew it's in there somewhere. >> Overall,

[50:39] » there's a lot of information in here. So, it's it's a it's a they're looking

[50:43] for a lot. Now, we did put out prior RFPs for our existing buildings before,

[50:48] if I remember >> for the repair of the existing

[50:52] buildings, and we got no bids. >> No bits. I just wanted to reiterate.

[50:55] » I asked that question last night, too. >> This is a a very different request than

[50:59] what we put out previously. We anticipate that there'll be several

[51:02] firms very interested in working with us.

[51:05] » Is there a cost factor at this point for the town with the RFPs? There's no cost

[51:11] of putting out the RFP other than a minimal cost for paying for its

[51:16] advertisement in a newspaper of general circulation. We typically use the town

[51:21] line. Um, and it's it's minimal. It's usually between $100 to $200 if that is

[51:27] that. Um, and the reason why we are definitely going to make sure we

[51:31] advertise it that way is that oftentimes with grant processes, um, a advert, uh,

[51:37] RFP needs to be advertised in a public newspaper in order to count. Um, our

[51:43] main goal actually is to ensure that it gets on not just our website, but there

[51:48] is an RFP section for a municipal association's website, which is where

[51:52] the majority of the firms go to look for these types of jobs, as well as we have

[51:56] contract uh contacts with the construction magazines. Um, and they

[52:01] typically will pick those up and put those out for us as well at no cost. So,

[52:05] that's our biggest goal. >> Thank you.

[52:09] » I just want to say I think it's a great report. I think it's a good first step.

[52:12] It's going to get uh us keep the ball rolling. I do like the aggressive

[52:16] timeline. So,

[52:18] » yeah, we would hope that by the end of 2026, we have a recommended approach, a

[52:23] funding strategy, and then 2027, we could really look at trying to acquire

[52:27] funding >> and I do like the three-pronged approach

[52:30] of looking at all options, whether it's, you know, retrofitting, whether it's a

[52:34] campus with several buildings or one single building. So, again, I appreciate

[52:37] you and the hard work of the the building committee.

[52:42] I'm going to reiterate everybody just said. You guys did a fantastic job. This

[52:46] is well written, well done, well thought. Council questions were

[52:49] fantastic. I think other than the the one grammatical error that Kevin found

[52:54] um with the timeline that we're looking at. I know it's a discussion item. I'd

[52:59] like to see us do an action right now. If somebody wants to make a motion.

[53:03] » I'll make a motion to accept the space needs assessment and

[53:07] feasibility study for a new Fairfield MUN municipal complex RFP.

[53:14] » Second. >> I have a motion by council Tibido,

[53:16] second by councelor Kitchen. Any other discussion?

[53:21] Seeing none, all those in favor? >> Am I allowed to vote?

[53:24] » Yes, absolutely. >> 5-0.

[53:28] » Thank you all. >> Thank you, Max.

[53:29] » Thanks, Max. Get this. >> Council Lawrence is on that committee.

[53:32] That's why he asked if he's allowed to vote

[53:35] » actually. Yep. >> Okay. Item two, discuss amending the

[53:40] road openings ordinances submitted by interim public work director

[53:46] Tom. Come on up.

[53:53] So, counselors, you have a memo in front of you. Uh the current fee structure for

[53:58] openings made within the rightway is currently at $50 and we've got a request

[54:03] to raise that to $75. Probably still doesn't cover Tom's cost, but I think

[54:10] it's a a reasonable request. Any questions for

[54:16] our interim public works director? >> I do.

[54:22] » Okay. [laughter] Um you mentioned the costs um for the

[54:26] paved surface, concrete surface and and other surfaces,

[54:31] » a curb replacement, driveway entrance. It's it's all here. When was the last

[54:36] time those were adjusted?

[54:41] » That's a great question. >> I don't have an answer for that.

[54:44] » Um >> because we're asking for um a

[54:46] non-refundable fee of $75 dollar payable.

[54:51] » Yeah. Right. Right. Now, you get a non-refundable fee of $50. The other the

[54:55] other costs that are listed that gets returned to the contractor

[54:59] » after the work's been performed after after so many days, it's it's in the um

[55:04] » 90 days and then year. >> So, all you really keep in the end is

[55:08] the $50 >> or soon to be 75.

[55:12] » Yeah. >> Yes.

[55:13] » All right. >> Are you asking why it's not more?

[55:17] » Well, I'm asking it. It seems like you're a concrete surface. I don't know

[55:22] how this all works. So, but that's $75 per square yard, but this is a

[55:28] contractor's guideline of what you have to pay and

[55:32] then it's reimbursed to >> Yeah. What what happens is is I I have

[55:36] to go out and inspect the site and see what they're digging up, take

[55:39] measurements. Uh I have to figure out what the cost to replace it is going to

[55:43] be. I have to do the paperwork, fill it out, and then they come in, they pay

[55:47] this this fee that I come up with. And then after that, you have to inspect

[55:52] their work that they're doing. Make sure it's compacted properly. And then for

[55:56] the next 3 years, you have to monitor the work to make sure there's no

[56:00] separation of the pavement or sinkage in the road.

[56:04] » Wow. $75 doesn't seem to be enough money if you ask me.

[56:08] » No, but I wouldn't mind seeing $100, especially if you've got to go back for

[56:13] 3 years to check. >> Yeah. You got to monitor the site three.

[56:16] I mean, we've all driven across sites that have been cut in the pavement and

[56:20] you get that dip or whatever and you get potholes. So, you have to keep an eye on

[56:24] it. Make sure the pavement doesn't separate and make sure it doesn't

[56:26] settle. >> I'm with you.

[56:31] I >> you got three years for the contractor

[56:32] to have to re repair the work. So, >> no, I I think it should be $100. So that

[56:38] fee schedule is more us recouping the public works director's time that he has

[56:43] to go out monitor measure. >> And to me it it would you should be more

[56:47] than what you're charging for concrete surface at $75 per square yard.

[56:53] » Michelle go ahead. >> Okay. So uh those fees were last done

[56:56] when you updated this ordinance in 2011. Th those fees that you asked about for

[57:01] the various different pieces. The biggest reason this exists and when we

[57:05] put in I think in 2011 is actually when we adopted this period um was its

[57:09] initial adoption. It's mostly to keep it so that the municipality is not on the

[57:14] hook for the work that has to be done by a contractor to get into the road. It's

[57:18] also not designed to be so expensive that it's cost prohibitive and

[57:22] interferes with the development. We're not doing it to add additional cost. Um

[57:28] what we're doing is trying to make sure we protect the municipality's interest

[57:31] which is why the funds get reimbursed back to the contractor when the job is

[57:35] satisfactorily done and completed and over time it's fine but they are

[57:39] required to care we they are required to honor it for the course of the three

[57:43] years. So this fee is strictly for um at time the the public works director wrote

[57:49] commissioner's work to do the preliminary investigation the tally

[57:53] sheets for the costs associated and the inspections afterwards which is why yes

[57:58] 50 was not enough and going to 75 we can easily put that to 100. The other thing

[58:03] we could do, because this is subject to a public hearing anyway, so it's not a

[58:07] decision you would make tonight. Um, and chances are a public hearing for this

[58:11] isn't going to come to you until probably the end of January, beginning

[58:14] of February. We have some other pieces. This is just one that was done early and

[58:18] relatively simple. We got it in front of you tonight. If you wanted us to go

[58:21] forward, we can take a look at those other pieces and see how far outside

[58:26] they are of the current cost because costs have gone up considerably since

[58:30] 2011. and the amounts that are here may not actually be protecting the

[58:34] municipality's interest. And we can look at those other things too at the same

[58:37] » I think that would be very advantageous. Yeah.

[58:39] » And I would part of our fee schedule. >> Yes. The rest.

[58:42] » Yes. And that's the other piece too is we want to pull this out and make it

[58:44] part of your fee schedule. >> Yeah. Cuz right now estates

[58:48] review the ordinance. There's no actual fee schedule

[58:52] » on the fee schedule. I guess >> I mean it's been 15 years since it's

[58:55] been reviewed. It's it's time. It's time.

[58:58] » I I'd like to see you. >> 2011 can't be the last time we did this.

[59:02] I wasn't here in 2011 and we redid this since I've been.

[59:04] » It was adopted in 2011, but the only thing that changed was 2016 and that was

[59:09] the driveway entrance. It was up to $35. We'll have to look at that.

[59:15] » But they get all that back, don't they? >> Yeah. Yeah.

[59:19] » Yeah. >> Yeah.

[59:20] » So, as I understand, the way I read it, there's two different things here. He's

[59:25] he's asking to change the non-refundable deposit from $50 to $75. That's the only

[59:30] fee. What we're asking is are the other charges per square yard adequate to go

[59:37] along with that. >> So that will come up in our fee schedule

[59:40] when we discuss our fee schedules. No different than [clears throat] parking

[59:43] tickets and so on. We just need to suggest that we make a a

[59:48] view a review that these paved surface concrete that you know the price per

[59:53] square yard is actually where it should be and will have to give us that

[59:58] information before we can make that judgment.

[1:00:00] » Your fee schedule you usually go over and readopt during your first

[1:00:04] organizational meeting. This will come with a public hearing afterwards with a

[1:00:08] stipulation when you do the ordinance amendment that the fees be moved to your

[1:00:12] fee schedule and and we'll be able to do that. They won't be part of your initial

[1:00:16] review cuz they're not in there yet. But yeah, we can do that easy.

[1:00:19] » Okay. So, we're we're talking about potentially moving this fee schedule out

[1:00:24] of this ordinance onto the fee schedule. >> Yes.

[1:00:27] » Okay, that makes sense to me. >> I think it we're going to review whether

[1:00:31] these fees that are in here for these types of surfaces are current enough to

[1:00:35] cover associated costs. Because basically if a contractor comes

[1:00:41] in and rips up the road and doesn't put it back, we have to,

[1:00:44] » right? >> So we need to know we have the money on

[1:00:46] hand to cover that cost. >> And and it's a just a deposit. So when

[1:00:51] the work's done, we reimburse to them. >> So

[1:00:54] » no different. Yeah. >> So uh are we in agreement to amend that

[1:00:58] to $100 all a non-refundable fee? >> I I agree to it.

[1:01:02] » All right. >> Okay. Thank you.

[1:01:04] » Adjustment as well.

[1:01:09] Hey, item three, discuss Fairfield Benton emergency transport. So, I asked

[1:01:14] to put this on as a discussion item. Um, council also

[1:01:20] got an email Sunday the 14th from Delta again. Um,

[1:01:26] nothing new really from what Delta has been talking about four

[1:01:31] or five times already this year. Um, but I I would like I I'd asked to

[1:01:38] get a cost to see what it would cost for us to license as a transport

[1:01:44] service. Not to say we're going to do transport, just to get the process

[1:01:49] started, much like China has done. So, Travis, do you have an update on the

[1:01:54] cost for >> getting a transport license?

[1:01:57] » So, um, to to actually get the license itself, the cost is is minimal. There's

[1:02:02] a service license fee of $100 through the state of Maine and then a vehicle

[1:02:06] license fee of $60 uh per vehicle that's licensed. Um the where the other cost

[1:02:12] would come in would be um the equipment. Um you know, if we're going to do

[1:02:17] full-time transport, the cost of the second ambulance would need to be

[1:02:20] included. The cost of that equipment um um and then you have to get into the

[1:02:26] billing process. So cost to start a billing contract with the service. um

[1:02:30] those initial startup fees. Um those are the the kind of the you know the unknown

[1:02:36] costs at this point basically. Um without sitting down and figuring out

[1:02:40] what we're going to get for a second vehicle. Uh we would have to you know do

[1:02:44] either an RFP for billing services or research area business you know uh

[1:02:49] billing services to get a idea of what their percentage rates are right now. um

[1:02:54] typically it's 6% of your billables um or your return but um that could

[1:02:59] fluctuate you know a couple percentages here or there. So, so overall um to do a

[1:03:07] uh like a China based uh temporary license um whereas we would transport in

[1:03:12] the event that Delta is not available um uh that wouldn't um basically would just

[1:03:19] the cost of the license upgrade and the service license. Um, we have the

[1:03:23] equipment. Um, obviously doing on a temporary basis, we wouldn't need the

[1:03:27] second ambulance because it would, you know, we're just doing it on an as

[1:03:31] needed basis if Delta's not available. >> How often does that happen? Now, not to

[1:03:35] cut you off. >> No,

[1:03:36] » but how often does that happen currently?

[1:03:39] » Um, I I I'd have to go through Delta's reports, but I would say they um it's

[1:03:44] it's probably less than half a dozen times um when they do a quarterly

[1:03:50] report. So, so it's it's it wouldn't be a ton. Um,

[1:03:54] » half a dozen quarterly. >> Yeah, half a dozen quarterly. That seems

[1:03:57] to be their average going back through their their quarterly reports of how

[1:04:01] many times they have to call mutual aid. So, um I I would say at this point um

[1:04:06] you know >> maybe maybe on the high end 30 a year

[1:04:10] maybe. Um um >> but we but without looking at the

[1:04:14] numbers >> or we could ask you to get a temporary

[1:04:16] license in the event of those cases. >> Yeah, sure. Yep. Yep. that's something

[1:04:20] that we can pursue. Um, again, you know, it it it's time consuming. The

[1:04:24] time-consuming part comes with with the billing, getting a billing contract set

[1:04:28] up, um, getting validated with [cough] Medicare, main care, that would all be

[1:04:32] helped through the billing process. Um, so there's a lot of steps that would

[1:04:36] have to be taken. Um, and it's just time consuming cuz you're relying on, you

[1:04:40] know, you have to go through through Medicaid, you have to um, so it's kind

[1:04:44] of you're out there at liberty at that point. Um, but but to get the license

[1:04:48] itself, cost is minimal. Like I said, to do it full-time, there would be

[1:04:52] additional cost of the extra the extra vehicles, the staff, uh the equipment,

[1:04:57] that type of stuff. Does that answer? >> Yeah. No, absolutely.

[1:05:00] » You're going through. >> So, for for council, um [clears throat]

[1:05:05] I've given you an extra a note sheet that I did from we've met with Delta

[1:05:10] several times and last meeting we had Dr. Pay do a report that Travis asked

[1:05:15] for years ago, am I? >> Yeah, a couple years ago. a couple years

[1:05:19] ago. Okay. And they finally >> came in. So in se we've had Delta in

[1:05:24] here at least a couple times. >> They had meetings in September. We've

[1:05:28] only been on council for 12 months now. So this is an issue that it's at their

[1:05:33] foresight and they keep bringing this up and they keep sending it. Um, yes, I I

[1:05:39] think we need to do our due diligence and be prepared for what's in the best

[1:05:43] interest of our taxpayers and our citizens. When we put out um a second

[1:05:48] war article asking for additional fire, it was overwhelmingly this is a service

[1:05:53] that our that our people want. So, I made some notes for you just to go

[1:05:57] through and then I also included some of the paperwork from the KVMS report. So

[1:06:05] um from what Delta has given us with with the September meeting notes that we

[1:06:10] were held in in this packet along with our prior email for for this meeting. Um

[1:06:17] Fairfield and Benton make up 22.1% of the population of Del Delta service

[1:06:21] area. That's on page 22 of the KV EMS report. And you'll you'll see um the

[1:06:28] actual population of Delta. They're showing 41,769.

[1:06:33] Fairfield and Benton are 9,234. I believe that's on 2020 census is where

[1:06:39] they get those numbers derived from. Um, so that's that's where I'm getting the

[1:06:43] 22.1% of Delta's servicing area. Now,

[1:06:48] Fairfield Benton is 32.1% of Delta's insurance revenue and 28.2% of their

[1:06:55] total revenue. also on page 22 of that KVMS report. So you can see that the

[1:07:02] reason we keep getting all these letters and and concern is we drive a very big

[1:07:08] portion of Delta's revenue. >> Now Delta charges us a per capita fee

[1:07:13] not only for Fairfield but also Benton. We're a combined service. They like to

[1:07:17] separate it. We bill Benton for their percentage of calls as far as our our

[1:07:22] combined fire department um contract. So I always want to combine Fairfield

[1:07:29] Benton because we are one EMS service and we would hope to do if we move

[1:07:34] forward to do this with Benton. So again th those are your numbers. Um Fairfield

[1:07:40] Benton according [clears throat] to the again the EMS report had 1453 EMS calls

[1:07:47] in 2024. um that is on page 10 of that EVS report

[1:07:53] and that generated a 13% or they estimate a 13% lap in coverage over

[1:08:00] calls which um Chief Larry actually just reiterated

[1:08:04] it's going to probably be about 10 to 13%. We we estimate 30 calls that they

[1:08:10] can't get to. I have a concern with that where we have a contracted service with

[1:08:16] a monopoly private entity that charges us a per capita. It's not an RFP. It's

[1:08:21] not something we can put out for request to bid. It's basically a no bid contract

[1:08:26] that we have no say over. So in in 2022, we were paying zero for the service just

[1:08:33] like we were for the past 40, 50 years, whatever Delta's been in in business

[1:08:37] for. 2023 we incurred our first 15% a $15 per capita fee that [clears throat]

[1:08:45] went up to $25 in 2024. This year 2526 has moved to 35. The September meeting

[1:08:53] that Michelle and Peter attended it was mentioned 55 to 65. So again, these are

[1:08:59] costs that we cannot control. And now they may be telling 48 it who knows who

[1:09:07] knows what it's going to be. The reports showing an average of $30 and that's

[1:09:12] because we use our fiscal period of July 1st. So

[1:09:16] what our contract is July 1st through June 30th and it's at 35 per capita. So

[1:09:22] that's where I'm getting those numbers from. Um, Fairfield Benton

[1:09:28] according to the EMS report in 24 on page 11 had 363

[1:09:33] requiring calls of a paramedic. So again, Travis, correct me if I'm

[1:09:39] wrong. We go to an EMS call. We have paramedics on staff already. They're

[1:09:46] already servicing people until Delta shows up to transport. We just simply

[1:09:50] don't do the transport. >> Am I correct?

[1:09:53] » Yeah. No, correct. >> Okay. Yeah.

[1:09:55] » So, Delta sent a letter in September of 25 this year and it said in that letter

[1:10:02] um on page two of that September letter that we have that Fairfield Benton

[1:10:08] averages 40 paramedic calls per month or 492 calls per year. Yet, the report from

[1:10:14] the EFS shows 363 calls or an average of 30 per month.

[1:10:21] So, if we average 30 per per month that require a paramedic and we're getting 25

[1:10:28] or so calls for no show on a contract that we're paying to show up for every

[1:10:33] call, I have a problem with that. [clears throat] Delta's per capita cost

[1:10:40] of Fairfield Benton. We went through it already. Um, so my interesting notes

[1:10:44] when I was looking on Delta's website is their service area for Waterville. Their

[1:10:50] their Waterville office covers Albian, Belgrade, Benton, China, Fairfield,

[1:10:54] Oakland, Rome, Sydney, Smithfield, Basselboro. Approximate population of

[1:10:59] those towns is 363. Delta also covers an Augusta. They have

[1:11:04] an Augusta uh office and service as well that covers the towns of Augusta on a

[1:11:10] special call basis. Belgrade, China, Rome, Sydney, Smithfield, Somerville,

[1:11:15] Vasserboro, Whitefield, Windsor. Approximate population is 24,500.

[1:11:22] With those two servicing areas, they overlap coverage for certain towns,

[1:11:28] Belgrade, China, Rome, Sydney, Smithfield, Bassboro. Populations

[1:11:32] roughly 18,900. But there are towns that only are

[1:11:37] serviced by either one garage or the other which include Albian, Benton,

[1:11:42] Fairfield, Oakland, Somerville, Whitefield, and Winslow. So my question

[1:11:46] would be, do those towns get a discounted price where they don't have

[1:11:50] overlapping coverage? Is that why we're not having 25 to 30 of our calls not not

[1:11:56] being covered? Because we're paying the same per capita cost that all these

[1:12:00] other towns are paying. So

[1:12:05] everything we get from Delta is conflicting information. EMS report

[1:12:11] shows different than the letters that we receive. The numbers change all the

[1:12:15] time. What we do know now is Delta revenue for insurance billing is 620,000

[1:12:23] through March of 2025. not not through 25 which is a 10.1%

[1:12:29] increase over 2024. So again Fairfield Benton are 22% of Delta's calls of their

[1:12:36] population based where over 30% of their revenue and our per capita costs are

[1:12:43] going to go up again this July. I would like us to be in a position where we

[1:12:49] have set numbers. We're getting into budget budget season that we can give

[1:12:54] chief some direction on on asking what's it going to cost for the service. Yes,

[1:12:59] we know if we go to it, we need a second ambulance. That's an expensive cost. We

[1:13:04] know that we need an additional 2.25 people cuz we currently employ 10. We

[1:13:09] need to get to 12. If we get to 12, that covers what we need for the audit for

[1:13:14] the fire department, which is the four in four out rule. So when they show up

[1:13:18] for a fire call, we're fully staffed. We currently have three and four on Monday

[1:13:23] through Friday with a 40-hour position. So we could we could easily get to 12 by

[1:13:30] adding 2.25 personnel, a little over 300, $350,000.

[1:13:36] We go to a full transport service, and I'm not saying right now, but if we go

[1:13:41] to a full transport service, as Travis just said, he needs time to figure out

[1:13:46] billing. uh mutual aid from the other towns which which we

[1:13:52] already do for fire, but they need to be set up and and done. The letters that

[1:13:56] we've received for Delta, they there's some that

[1:13:59] » will say, "Well, if you do a mutual partner with us, and we don't send a

[1:14:03] paramedic, we're going to pay you $300 per call and we'll use your paramedics."

[1:14:09] Why would they ever send a paramedic if we have one?

[1:14:13] They're going to pay us 150 grand on an estimated amount of calls that doesn't

[1:14:18] exist because we know the actual calls are 363 that require a paramedic.

[1:14:24] I I'm just tired of of dealing every month or every other month with a new

[1:14:29] number, a new proposal. Um

[1:14:33] they're a private entity. It's not up to me to worry about how their business

[1:14:38] runs or how it operates. But they charge us a set fee per capita. They charge us

[1:14:42] a service that our citizens rely on heavily. We want we want paramedic

[1:14:48] service. We want rescue service. We need transport service.

[1:14:52] We have so many numbers in front of us they become convoluted. But in the end,

[1:14:56] what we can look at is we're going to pay X amount per capita at roughly

[1:15:02] 10,000 people. At 55 bucks ahead, it's going to be somewhere around $500,000 a

[1:15:07] year. We're around 9,200 people combined with Benton and the revenue that they

[1:15:12] generate is roughly $620,000. There will be some fees to go along with

[1:15:18] that 6% billing whatever whatever gets worked out. We need to get those

[1:15:23] finalized numbers, but in the end it's generating or costing about $1.1 to $1.2

[1:15:30] million to transport Fairfield Benton residents. we can do it

[1:15:36] for that or less. So, I would like council

[1:15:41] to allow Travis to get the uh temporary license for transport to start the

[1:15:47] process. Doesn't mean that we'll that we will transport. Does it mean that in

[1:15:52] June or July, whatever comes around that we're going to push this? But it puts us

[1:15:57] in a position where if Delta comes in and says your per capita is 75 or 80 or

[1:16:02] 100, and we have no say and no control, it gives us the opportunity to say,

[1:16:08] "Okay, we we buy another ambulance at 185, we hire two more staff at 300, we

[1:16:14] invest another four or $500,000, and we save 1.2 2 million

[1:16:20] » in a couple of years, >> maybe 6 months, maybe a year. I don't I

[1:16:26] don't know. It's all It doesn't It's going to take time.

[1:16:30] » You know, maybe if we decide we do it this year, we still have to contract

[1:16:34] with Delta for 6 months. I don't know what the transition period will may be.

[1:16:38] Chief Larry will tell us that and we'll trust him on that. Um, but I would like

[1:16:42] us to at least get that temporary transport license if it's minimal, if

[1:16:47] it's really only a couple hundred dollars.

[1:16:49] and allows us to not worry about those 30 people that aren't going to get

[1:16:54] transported this year. >> Well, I I did a pros and cons list after

[1:17:00] I saw this on the agenda. >> Um for an intermittent transport permit,

[1:17:08] uh for the pros available, um we'd be available to assist with mutual aid.

[1:17:14] We'd be able to transport our own residents.

[1:17:18] We'd utilize the vehicle to its full potential.

[1:17:22] Um, paramedics would be used for what they were trained for. The cons,

[1:17:29] and I'm sure there's more. I I This is >> No, it's a good

[1:17:32] » I did. It's only one ambulance. So, when in use,

[1:17:37] it's not able to go to another emergency.

[1:17:40] » So, but then that's happening now anyways. Correct.

[1:17:44] » Yeah. >> Yeah. and then you have mutual aid. Um

[1:17:49] there would be more wear and tear on the vehicle.

[1:17:53] The paramedic would not be available to do another call. Um yeah, I think that

[1:17:58] happens sometimes now because a paramedic has to go to with Delta to the

[1:18:03] hospital. So it's it's time consuming. Um there would be an increased expense

[1:18:09] for supplies because of more usage. Uh I and again

[1:18:15] » hold on on that one. Would there be an increase in supplies or are already

[1:18:18] using our supplies? >> If we did start doing some transporting,

[1:18:22] we would utilize probably a little bit more supplies. Um I don't think it would

[1:18:26] be a substantial cost, but um but you know, trans, you know, if especially if

[1:18:31] we say we transport to Augusta, we may use extra supplies that we wouldn't have

[1:18:35] used if we were just, you know, non-transporting that call. Um if that

[1:18:39] makes sense. But but I don't think it would be a large call. But it's minimal

[1:18:43] » full-time transport, you know, doing the full-time transport, then yes, our our

[1:18:47] medical supply budget would probably triple.

[1:18:50] » So, and again, if we are going to be doing transporting, who's going to do

[1:18:55] the billing, >> right? Yeah.

[1:18:57] » You know, that needs to be worked out. And of course, we'd need to have more

[1:19:00] staff. >> Um, I think it's a good idea to go and

[1:19:05] get the intermittent um trans. Is it intermittent or tren?

[1:19:10] » So I so I've been doing a lot of research on main and mass and they don't

[1:19:14] really define it. Um so I'm still waiting on some clarification but in

[1:19:18] essence there's a couple different models. Um Albian fire for example does

[1:19:23] uh they have an agreement with Delta that if there's a rescue call in Albian

[1:19:27] um Albian does some PDM coverage now Monday, Wednesday, Friday I believe.

[1:19:31] Don't quote me on that. Um so if if Albian gets a call and they have two

[1:19:36] people available um it's an agreement with Delta that they will cancel Delta

[1:19:40] at that point and they will do the call and transport

[1:19:43] » and we could have >> but Delta still gets dispatched every

[1:19:46] single call >> really.

[1:19:47] » Um so in our case I you know I think we would start with if Delta's unavailable

[1:19:53] in essence we would be Delta's first mutual aid choice instead of them

[1:19:57] calling Waterville Winslow Clinton >> for our town.

[1:20:00] » Yeah. for our town, then they would call us, you know, say, "Hey, we're

[1:20:03] unavailable. You guys are going to have to transport this call." And if we have

[1:20:06] the staff and the resources available, we would we would do that. Um I I I

[1:20:12] don't know. Um I'd have to get clarification on whether or not we could

[1:20:16] go mutual aid and transport. This may be limited to Fairfield and Benton, but I I

[1:20:21] have to clarify that. >> All right.

[1:20:23] » So, it to me it's a step in the right direction. We're being proactive by

[1:20:29] getting that intermittent transport permit. It in case an emergency, we're

[1:20:35] covered. >> Sure.

[1:20:37] » I think it's a good idea and it will give us some time to iron out some more

[1:20:42] details. I know that there's been talk about the paramedic intercept program.

[1:20:47] » Um, from what Delta has supplied us for information, I like the basic idea of

[1:20:53] it. Um, I think it's worthwhile, especially if we take a look at mutual

[1:20:57] aid in all of our areas. Um, we'd be functioning more as a a district. And I

[1:21:04] really like that idea. So, I'm in favor of the chief going for um the

[1:21:10] intermittent transport permit. And and like I said, this will be a

[1:21:13] [clears throat] this will be a rather lengthy process, but at least if we can

[1:21:16] start in that direction and and start those, you know, start rolling in that

[1:21:20] direction and and we can narrow things down and gather up gather up the

[1:21:24] information. Yes. >> Yep.

[1:21:26] » So, when you say lengthy process, what does that mean?

[1:21:29] » I don't know to be honest with you. Again, we're at the mercy of um we have

[1:21:33] to do we have to find a billing service. Um we'd have to enter into a contract

[1:21:37] with them. I would assume there'll be a startup cost to that. Um so so you know

[1:21:43] we're going to essentially have a startup cost with no revenue coming in

[1:21:47] to offset that. Um so that's going to have to be whether or not we have the

[1:21:51] budget for that. Um that's going to have to be looked at. Um, and then we're at

[1:21:55] we have to get validated through Medicare, main care, and with the state

[1:22:00] of the federal government right now. That could that could take months,

[1:22:05] » but that's with a different kind of permit, right? That is

[1:22:08] » it's just so you have to be you have to be um set up in the Medicare system to

[1:22:13] to bill a Medicare patient and receive that funds back to get reimbursed. Um

[1:22:18] you can't just you can't just bill a patient um and they cut you a check.

[1:22:22] that there's a there's a whole process that has to be done with and and the

[1:22:25] billing company would assist us with that and setting all that stuff up.

[1:22:28] » Would you have to do that with the intermittent transport permit?

[1:22:31] » Yeah, cuz if we if we transport then we have to bill for those services. So

[1:22:35] what's the difference between having an intermittent

[1:22:39] whatever the verbiage is and a regular? >> So so there it's a different process. Um

[1:22:45] if we were going to take over essentially uh Fairfield and Benton for

[1:22:49] transport um Delta currently is the primary transport for Fairfield and

[1:22:55] Benton. So in essence, you have to apply for that and you have to make your case

[1:22:59] and appeal to the state of Maine that that um Fairfield Benton Fire Department

[1:23:05] can enhance that service by taking that over. Um so they look at you have to you

[1:23:12] have to go through your response times. Um there's a whole host.

[1:23:15] » So this would be the first step in proving that data.

[1:23:18] » Yeah. Absolutely. Yep. Yep. So, initially

[1:23:22] to the council, I mean, initially hearing this, I I would say

[1:23:28] no. Um, only because I have so many questions going. I haven't read this

[1:23:34] yet. I haven't had time to take this. I don't know what questions to ask. I

[1:23:38] don't know. Um, okay, we get that we that comes back. What is the what is the

[1:23:43] swap process on that? How do we get here from there? who says, "Okay, the license

[1:23:50] came in the mail today. We're going to start doing it tomorrow." What is that?

[1:23:53] What's that process look for like for us as a council to say, "Okay, yeah, go. It

[1:23:58] might take a couple months. It might come back quicker or longer." What do we

[1:24:01] do in the meantime? Just let them do that. Or we say, "Yeah, go ahead. You

[1:24:04] get your license, start transporting." I feel uncomfortable with that because of

[1:24:08] all the different >> That's not what I'm asking for. I'm

[1:24:11] asking to get that intermittent license started so we can get the pieces in

[1:24:16] place. What's the billing going to cost? What's the training? What's what's the

[1:24:20] time period? So that when we do come down to having to make that decision to

[1:24:25] actually transport, we can make the right inform.

[1:24:29] » So we need that data before we make that decision.

[1:24:32] » I think it's going to force it. Yeah. >> Michelle,

[1:24:35] » so I think you have to think about this as being the first step in a very long

[1:24:39] process and continued conversation, although you kind of took that first

[1:24:43] step a long time ago. Um these are all pieces in which would not happen in a

[1:24:48] vacuum and they would have to be happen with council, right? So a contract for

[1:24:52] billing services more than likely is going to require council approval. Um

[1:24:58] but what the chief is trying to explain to you is that this is not a process in

[1:25:04] which so so Delta right now has to by contract give us 30 days notice that

[1:25:10] they're no longer coming. Mhm. >> We would never ever be ready to take

[1:25:14] this on in 30 days. >> I understand.

[1:25:16] » Okay. So, but what we're not going to do because of the work that is involved in

[1:25:21] all of this is just go randomly doing it without the council saying that that's

[1:25:25] what we should be spending our time on because there are too many steps and it

[1:25:29] is time inensive >> and that's and that's where I'm unclear

[1:25:33] is what are those steps. So there's the licensing piece, but in order to even

[1:25:38] apply for the license, the billing piece needs to be set up. The billing to set

[1:25:44] up the billing piece, we have to set up our pieces with Medicare and Medicaid

[1:25:49] reimbursement pieces. So ambulance billing is just like medical insurance

[1:25:54] billing. It's it's you know, so if you go to, you know, just like if you were

[1:25:57] at a doctor's office, we have to set up all of those parameters in order to have

[1:26:01] the ability to do that. we would shop for the best company to provide that

[1:26:06] service which that is a service right now that Delta Ambulance actually does

[1:26:10] you know provide to to other organizations and there are

[1:26:16] we don't know if there are setup costs because we haven't shopped it and asked

[1:26:21] so that's a step in a process that we would do there's enough municipalities

[1:26:25] out there that do bill for ambulance billing that we would be able to contact

[1:26:30] all of them and be a you know Travis would be able to find out what their

[1:26:34] services are and have those conversations with them.

[1:26:36] » Normally the way those work is that their fees are taken from what they

[1:26:41] collect. They get a portion of that, right? That incentivizes them to do

[1:26:44] their work. Um, so but we have to set all those pieces up before you even send

[1:26:50] a copy of that license, which is five pages, six pages.

[1:26:54] » And that's what I'm asking. What's that? >> That all has to be done before we can

[1:26:56] even mail that into the state. So that's the pieces that

[1:27:00] » you are already chief of Clinton as well who did transport service who did

[1:27:05] billing. >> So these are things that you already

[1:27:08] have knowledge of. >> Yes. Yeah.

[1:27:10] » So I I understand it may be timeconuming paperwork consuming but you do have the

[1:27:15] knowledge. This isn't something that's >> going to be unique and you know who

[1:27:20] Clinton used for billing. You knew the process. I mean I'm an insurance guy. I

[1:27:25] know how it it's not that hard to get set up for for assurance.

[1:27:29] » No, you're just you're just at the mercy of how fast.

[1:27:31] » So I all I'm trying to do, Kevin, is get the process rolling. I don't think

[1:27:37] » I just I'm trying to understand. That's why

[1:27:39] » that portion's not going to be as long drawn out. Um and I'm not saying we

[1:27:43] don't be a good partner with Delta. I'm not saying we're we're going to move

[1:27:46] away from Delta. Maybe Delta does Clinton's billing. I don't know.

[1:27:50] » Yeah, they do actually. >> Okay. So if they do, maybe that's an

[1:27:53] option. this this is what we're looking at,

[1:27:56] » you know, do you want to do the >> That's why I said my initial take when

[1:27:59] you threw that out there was no. I was like I instantly went defensive. No, I

[1:28:03] don't even know what's going on. Yeah. >> Hearing this process and what it take

[1:28:07] what is going to transpire. >> I think our community needed to hear

[1:28:12] this conversation on what is entailed in this process. It's not just, hey, you're

[1:28:17] going to apply for a license. It comes in the mail. Next thing you know, it's

[1:28:20] trans we're transporting. Oh, we're already doing it. We might as well do it

[1:28:24] anyway. That case. So, what the process is and then what our role is as a

[1:28:30] council through that process once we say, yeah, go ahead with the license.

[1:28:35] » Yeah. And and that could be just, you know, like like uh Chairman Martin said,

[1:28:39] that could be just as simple as okay, we'll just do it on a an emergency

[1:28:43] basis. If Delta's unavailable, that's what we're going to do, you know. Um, so

[1:28:46] that there's different but we in order for me to get that process rolling on

[1:28:51] researching the the the billing services and starting that whole process. I need

[1:28:55] that direction from me. >> A question I asked the doctor

[1:28:59] [clears throat] at the last meeting was in in that report in the KV EMS report

[1:29:05] uh all the data was based on still transporting to Waterville. Yeah.

[1:29:08] » Uh and he didn't have that data. What is what are you seeing throughout your

[1:29:12] community on what is the transport times out of pocket once you decide to

[1:29:18] transport a patient from Fairfield, Clinton, Benton to Augusta and back? And

[1:29:24] then how would that hurt our our fire force?

[1:29:27] » Sure. And that's something that we'll have to we'll have to gather some data

[1:29:30] on and uh Waterville has has been really focused on that data for the last well

[1:29:36] since inland closed essentially. So, I will be able to get that data from

[1:29:40] Waterville and and I can we can uh they break down how many times they've gone,

[1:29:44] you know, this year versus when Inland was open. Um what their transport times

[1:29:48] are and then we can kind of gear that towards Fairfield, right? If if we come

[1:29:52] from, you know, if we transport somebody from uh the back road, you know, we

[1:29:56] should be able to guesstimate, you know, okay, it's going to take us,

[1:30:00] » you know, 35 minutes to get to Augusta. We're going to be there for 20 minutes.

[1:30:04] It's going to take us x amount of time to get back. We should be able to lay

[1:30:07] all those out with with that data. So, and come back to you with that

[1:30:11] information. >> I think that would that would be good

[1:30:13] information. >> So, not to make it more convoluted, but

[1:30:16] [clears throat] let's say we have a call for Fairfield or Benton.

[1:30:20] » Mhm. >> And they're on a transport already to

[1:30:23] Augusta. Delta's on a transport. We have a contract service with Delta. They get

[1:30:28] a call to Vasboro. And then they get a call Fairfield. What are we going to do?

[1:30:33] » Yeah. Ex. So that and that was my question.

[1:30:37] » Well, that already exists for us because Delta's not using

[1:30:40] » well two ambulances either. >> Well, I would have to get to to two

[1:30:44] ambulances before we got to a to a transport service. Obviously, it's going

[1:30:48] to be a cost. But everything that we're asking, all the questions we're asking,

[1:30:53] those same exact problems already exists with Delta.

[1:30:57] » But they couldn't give me that. They nobody could give me that answer when I

[1:31:00] asked them at that last meeting. >> They don't want to. They know the

[1:31:03] answer. It's and and I don't know the answer, but it is the exact same time

[1:31:08] and the exact same problem that we will have. The only difference is we have

[1:31:13] control over our personnel, >> right?

[1:31:15] » And and our mutual aid contracts. It may be with Delta.

[1:31:19] » Sometimes they get three calls and two LMS is

[1:31:23] » got one out. So >> So it was kind of interesting. Last

[1:31:26] night went to discussion with Dr. Pay uh and and Kevin was there too. So there

[1:31:32] were only the two of us. There weren't three. So, it's all good. Uh, no special

[1:31:35] meeting, but it was really interesting because he actually did call out uh and

[1:31:39] mentioned Fairfield and Benton and the fact that he actually showed some

[1:31:43] sympathy for our situation, which was a little different from our meeting. He

[1:31:46] said, "We have a responsibility. We're looking at a fire department that we're

[1:31:50] trying to staff appropriately to for the safety of our citizens. And to do that,

[1:31:55] we're looking at because fire is not a service that is compensated for, right?

[1:31:59] Ambulance EMS is a service that can be compensated for. So we can receive

[1:32:04] funding that way. That is one way to staff your fire department to this

[1:32:08] proper funding level staffing levels doing that you know. So he actually said

[1:32:14] I can understand where they are. I have you know he he was saying I have my hat

[1:32:18] talking about >> why we are having this conversation.

[1:32:21] » Yeah. But but we're having this conversation in a totally different, you

[1:32:24] know, he realizes what we are doing and what we have to our first and foremost

[1:32:28] concern is making sure that our citizens are taken care of and they're safe and

[1:32:34] that we do it the best possible price for the taxpayer and that's what we're

[1:32:38] trying to look at and I think that's what's important in this situation. I

[1:32:41] know do I think regionalization is actually a really good option. I'd love

[1:32:45] to see that to make for more efficiencies but that's not not going to

[1:32:49] happen in the next 6 months. It's not going to happen by the next how many

[1:32:52] years? But I think it's happening hopefully. I'm sure chief would would

[1:32:55] tend to like to have that. >> Yeah. Yeah.

[1:32:58] » And you see what we have with mutual aid on the on the fire end making sure we

[1:33:01] have that on EMS. Um but I I think we have to do our due diligence and have to

[1:33:05] be prepared because we don't know what's going to come in 6 months. And and I

[1:33:10] think that was you know that's been China's direction as well that um they

[1:33:15] they wanted to start that process and do it on an interimm basis or as an as

[1:33:19] needed basis in the event that if that 30-day window does ever come to fruition

[1:33:26] when Delta says, "Hey, unfortunately we're not going to be coming in 31

[1:33:30] days." Now they have that in place. Um, and that's essentially what we're trying

[1:33:34] to do here to get to that point where in case something happens um um then we're

[1:33:40] not behind the eightball and 8 months down the road we can start transporting.

[1:33:44] » The the basis of my question [clears throat]

[1:33:48] to me simply was what is the out-ofpocket time now that we have to

[1:33:54] transport only to Augusta and will that hurt our current fire department if they

[1:33:59] are out of pocket for that long? >> Sure. Yeah. I mean it's going to yeah

[1:34:03] it's going to deplete us our personnel availability for sure. Um uh but we we

[1:34:08] do still transport to the um so there I think last time I talked to Chief Ross

[1:34:14] in Waterville they had seen a pretty substantial like I'm just using throwing

[1:34:18] out numbers. Say they went to say they went to uh AC and Augusta um 30 times in

[1:34:24] a month that that went up by 20 25 calls when Inland closed. You know just I'm

[1:34:30] just using rough numbers. Kevin, in that report, in that in that EMS report

[1:34:34] » with that 13% overlapping calls, they actually added an hour for transport

[1:34:39] service to to develop that 13% overlapping call.

[1:34:44] So that hour would cover trip to Augusta and back. That is in that report Dr. Pay

[1:34:50] gave us in in our last meeting. That's why I came up with that 13%.

[1:34:54] » All right. Because I missed that cuz that's why I asked him the report showed

[1:34:57] transport. I could throw out so many numbers. It'll make everybody's

[1:35:01] [clears throat] head spin. I'm just trying to keep it easy. The num the like

[1:35:05] I said, Travis asked for that report years ago and now all of a sudden we're

[1:35:09] getting it. Okay. I didn't ask for Delta to send a letter. I didn't ask for Del

[1:35:14] Delta. We don't want to deal with Delta, but we keep getting it. We we keep

[1:35:18] getting different information, different numbers. Yeah. I mean, we we've been

[1:35:22] asking, you know, what's the billing, what's what's the collectibles, what's

[1:35:26] this, what's that, what's the calls. Well, we know the calls because Travis

[1:35:30] the Q&A, the Q&A. Travis does these reports and and we, you know, we pointed

[1:35:36] that out to Dr. Pay in the last meeting where he's like, "Well, you have to do

[1:35:39] this and you have to do that." No, we already do that.

[1:35:41] » Mhm. >> Oh, okay. A lot of the services they

[1:35:45] deal with are volunteer or part-time departments and they they don't run like

[1:35:49] us. Oakland went full-time. Fairfield's full-time. Clinton's probably full-time,

[1:35:55] but they're on their own now. So, I don't know if they have any other

[1:35:58] full-time >> apartments or towns that they service

[1:36:02] other than Fairfield, Benton, and Oakland. And I and again, I could be

[1:36:05] wrong. I don't know Smithfield, Belgrade, Rome. I don't know how their

[1:36:08] process works. I just know that the numbers we receive from Delta are not

[1:36:15] the numbers that we receive from the EMS report are not the numbers that we

[1:36:19] receive that we know are factual that Travis presents us in our in our monthly

[1:36:25] reports. That's what I'm trying to go by. Again, I don't want to throw out all

[1:36:29] these numbers. Well, they said this and they said that.

[1:36:33] » All I can go by is the actual factual knowledge that we know, right? that

[1:36:38] » and it changes because you've got a private entity that has a monopoly and

[1:36:42] we're at their mercy and they provide a good service and they provide a service

[1:36:46] that our citizens want and a and a service that we need but we're getting

[1:36:50] to a point where it's unaffordable and I don't know if they're going to be there

[1:36:54] tomorrow cuz I don't know if Oakland's pulling out or Belgrade. We know China

[1:36:58] has already moved to go to that intermittent license whether they act on

[1:37:02] it or not. So that's all I'm asking our council right now. Let's get the process

[1:37:07] rolling with the intermittent license. >> So, I just want to I just want to be

[1:37:11] clear. I like I said from the very beginning, I'm a data driven person. I

[1:37:15] like the data. I'm concern my primary concern right now is the human factor

[1:37:20] side of the Manning and what it would take when it gets there. And I through

[1:37:24] this conversation, I understand that there is a process for that other than

[1:37:29] just saying, "Yeah, go get your license." So, I feel comfortable. Thank

[1:37:33] you for the conversation. I believe in the data. It's just what data we get.

[1:37:38] Um, and >> so, so even with that, even with that

[1:37:41] data, what I just told you 13% adding that hour transport, they they Dr. Pay

[1:37:47] told us 13% is going to be our overlap coverage. That's where the the mutual

[1:37:52] agreements have to come in. We've got to give Travis the ability to say, "Okay,

[1:37:54] Waterville, Winslow, China, Albian, whoever's local, we need to set up these

[1:37:59] agreements. what's it going to cost if we if we have that second call and

[1:38:03] Winslow has to come and they're going to charge, you know, $300 for for a

[1:38:07] paramedic fee. That will all be decided once we give Travis some direction and

[1:38:12] we'll know. Um I I was just wondering what's the license fee. I already know

[1:38:16] we need more staff, right? And Dr. Townsen just said that. And we know what

[1:38:20] it's going to cost. You know, we know we need 2.25 people because we have a a

[1:38:26] 40-hour position that we can convert to full-time. So, we know the exact cost of

[1:38:30] what our manpower will cost. It's chief, what's what's a second ambulance going

[1:38:36] to cost? Not necessarily that we're going to use the second ambulance, but

[1:38:41] what's the lasting years if we do decide to do full transport? Luckily for us, he

[1:38:46] knows cuz he's run those types of services. And and then when we do get to

[1:38:51] that point, because we're data driven, we have to factor in how often are you

[1:38:56] replacing this equipment? How much more are the supplies? What are the added

[1:39:00] expenses? And make sure we budget that so that when the ambulance is is up for

[1:39:07] service or needs to be replaced, those funds are there. Just like we're dealing

[1:39:12] with building at this point, you know, every politician seems to kick the can

[1:39:16] down the road. And nobody wants to deal with saving for tomorrow. But when

[1:39:21] something becomes 50, 60, 70 years old and [cough] it's no more functioning,

[1:39:26] it's the problem of the people sitting in the chairs now and it [snorts] hurts.

[1:39:30] But we have to be more practical, do our due diligence, not be put in a position

[1:39:35] where Delta says, "Well, I'm sorry, in 31 days we're not coming." Not that

[1:39:39] that's going to happen, but we don't know. It's a private entity. We have no

[1:39:44] idea what what their fiscals are. They could be making millions. They could be

[1:39:48] losing millions. hospitals lose millions and we just had one fold. I don't want

[1:39:52] us I don't want our citizens to be in a position where well you guys been

[1:39:56] talking about this for two years and you haven't done anything about it. How long

[1:40:00] are you going to keep talking about it? And that's what we hear and and again I

[1:40:04] I just don't want to throw out too many numbers like we have been doing when we

[1:40:09] met with Benton. There's too many whatifs. So if we can give Chief Larry

[1:40:13] and say okay let's let's apply for this intermittent license. What's it going to

[1:40:18] take to get billing on board to get contracted with Medicare and Blue Cross

[1:40:23] and Medicaid and and whoever? And then what are additional costs if we had to

[1:40:29] go full-time service? Maybe we want to when we know what those

[1:40:34] costs look like. my own opinion, I think we will pay it will never be a money

[1:40:40] maker, but it will pay for your supplies and it will pay for your personnel,

[1:40:44] which right now we have no revenue source to offset those costs. That's

[1:40:49] down the road. Right now, I just I'm asking council, let's start the process.

[1:40:54] Let's get this intermittent license started. Let's give Travis the ability

[1:40:57] to find out the exact questions that you and Council Tibido have asked. get those

[1:41:02] numbers so we can move forward and have something prepared when we get into our

[1:41:06] budget season. >> Fair.

[1:41:10] » And I'm sorry to make it so again convoluted. It's it's there's a lot of

[1:41:14] numbers and it is data driven, but I think I just wanted clarity in the

[1:41:19] process. >> It's hard it's hard to keep it simple

[1:41:21] because there's there's too many moving pieces.

[1:41:23] » Yeah. >> Very complex. But but to make it as

[1:41:26] simple as possible, we need to start the process.

[1:41:29] And if it's a minimal fee of a couple hundred, I I want us to please do it.

[1:41:36] » Do we need a motion and or what that motion will include?

[1:41:41] » Make a motion we start um the process of intermittent um um transport.

[1:41:48] We'll >> second that.

[1:41:50] So, I have a motion by council Lawrence, second by Council Townsen. Do we have

[1:41:55] any other discussion? It's It's a very vague motion, but I think that's kind of

[1:41:58] where it needs to be, right? >> I would just add to old council business

[1:42:01] so we can get updates on the process. >> Absolutely right.

[1:42:04] » You just may very well end up with weeks though that it's going to say we have

[1:42:08] nothing new for you. Just be aware. >> That's nothing new.

[1:42:11] » Yeah. >> On the radar.

[1:42:13] » Yep. >> Very good. That's all I have.

[1:42:18] Any other discussion? Do we have a motion and a second? All those in favor?

[1:42:23] Unanimous. 5-0. Thank you. Sorry for being l lengthy. And um Travis, I know

[1:42:28] we discussed this heard it last night. Um ambulance is what? Coming in

[1:42:32] tomorrow. >> Yes. Yeah. Uh the new ambulance will be

[1:42:35] delivered tomorrow. >> Okay.

[1:42:37] » Um so I don't know what time yet. I'm still waiting from Kyle to get an actual

[1:42:41] time. >> And um I know you have to do training,

[1:42:43] too. >> Yes. Yeah. So, so once we get the

[1:42:46] vehicle, um we'll do a final inspection, make sure everything's the way it's

[1:42:49] supposed to be. Um and then we'll start our training process. So, each each

[1:42:53] employee will be required to put um uh you know, several miles of of road time

[1:42:58] on it. Um and then we'll start the process of stocking the vehicle. So,

[1:43:03] it'll be it will be several weeks, if not a month or two before we actually

[1:43:08] utilize chance to do the training, then apply for the in

[1:43:12] » and then it's there cuz it's a different vehicle, right? And we like we like all

[1:43:15] our people to be comfortable with driving it, especially winter time. You

[1:43:18] know, it handles different than the pickup wheel. And um so we want

[1:43:21] everybody to be comfortable. >> Just one more question. I know we've

[1:43:24] already voted on it and moved on, but we still have Med One.

[1:43:28] » Yes. Yeah. >> So if we if we do finally get to that

[1:43:31] process and we're set up and ready to go and our ambulance goes, we could still

[1:43:35] serve >> with Med One. We just transport.

[1:43:38] » Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And and that's this new vehicle will be just that. It

[1:43:43] will be a first response vehicle. Um, it will have some pros though. You know, if

[1:43:46] we're at a motor vehicle accident in the middle of February, we can get that

[1:43:49] patient inside while we wait instead of waiting outside, you know. So, so

[1:43:53] there'll be a lot of benefits to it. Um, or we can simply scoop the patient, get

[1:43:57] them in the back of the truck where all of our equipment is and treat that

[1:44:00] patient better because all of our equipment's right there, you know. So,

[1:44:03] and then when Delta arrives, we can simply take them off our stretcher and

[1:44:06] put them on Deltas and and they can go. So there'll be a lot of pros to having

[1:44:10] this this vehicle for sure without even transporting.

[1:44:15] » Fantastic. Thank you. Thank you council as well. Great discussion.

[1:44:21] » Okay. Discuss annual organization meeting, elected officials, municipal

[1:44:25] and state protocols, annual reminders. So we have all our normal protocols. I'm

[1:44:30] going to just go through them all. Code of conduct, executive session, freedom

[1:44:35] of information act, records, disposition, vacancies of boards and

[1:44:39] committees, town council administrative policy, and then we'll get into the memo

[1:44:44] from the town clerk. Do we have any questions on the

[1:44:48] code of conduct, all our forms? You would Michelle, did you want to add

[1:44:54] anything to that before we get to the memo from town?

[1:44:57] » Um, just that it's all standard business. Usually you just start your

[1:45:00] review process now so that when we get to your organizational meeting um you

[1:45:04] can either you know we have time to make changes now and then you just adopt

[1:45:09] everything at your next meeting or you can make changes at your next meeting

[1:45:13] and and go forward. But it just gets you really talking about it and thinking

[1:45:16] about it. Um normally it's a much larger process when we have new counselors

[1:45:20] coming in uh because all of you have been here before. It's all kind of going

[1:45:24] to be routine for you but it is part of our process every year. Um, and we just

[1:45:29] like to keep things consistent. It's always good to review.

[1:45:36] » Any questions from council? If we could, please go over those before our

[1:45:41] organizational meeting if you want any changes made before that. [snorts]

[1:45:45] » Yep. Any feedback you have, whatever >> your code of conduct and they're all in

[1:45:49] there and get those signed and into Britney as well.

[1:45:54] » Okay. Memo from the town clerk. So, we all have a memo. I think it's just some

[1:46:00] um clean up, some wording. You want to present that, Britney?

[1:46:04] » Sure. So, the in the town council administrative

[1:46:10] policy, there's a section in there um about um absentee voting hours and voter

[1:46:16] registration vot um hours. In the current verbiage, it states that

[1:46:20] the week prior to any election shall include extended hours on Monday from

[1:46:25] 4:30 to 6:30 to allow for voter registration.

[1:46:30] That is not what the statute says. Um the statute is very specific as far as

[1:46:39] um towns with populations of more than 2500 shall accept voter registrations on

[1:46:45] the last five business days that the clerk's office is open before any

[1:46:48] election day. And it has to be from the hours um of 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.

[1:46:56] The old language stated it's for um absentee voting. It's not for absentee

[1:47:02] voting. It's strictly just for voter registration for the last two hours that

[1:47:07] we remain open for those extended sorry the extended hours. Um so I'm just

[1:47:12] cleaning that up to be more specific on what the statute actually states.

[1:47:18] » Okay. So absentee voting those that last word we're going to strike

[1:47:22] » to to get current with state ordinance I believe state statute.

[1:47:26] » Yep. >> So we need to amend [clears throat] our

[1:47:28] administrative policy. And then on the last line on the voter registration

[1:47:32] hours is where that uh in the evening from 5 to 9

[1:47:37] » on the back of that page. We need to add that. Yep.

[1:47:45] » Yep. So it's really just cleaning up some different changes and I think one

[1:47:48] of these was a recent change too to the law for clarification

[1:47:53] purposes. So, and this has always lived in council administrative policy

[1:47:58] governing election processes. And this is just to make sure we stay in

[1:48:01] compliance with the law the way it's currently written.

[1:48:05] » So, and those will be you're not even expected to do that tonight. That'll be

[1:48:09] part of the administrative [snorts] policy when you do that review. We just

[1:48:13] really wanted to bring this attention to you beforehand. We think

[1:48:16] » as of right now, I think this is probably the biggest thing that we have

[1:48:19] coming for administrative policy because we did that review not that long ago,

[1:48:22] too. Um, but this will be a change that's coming and we just wanted you to

[1:48:25] have the opportunity to review it and ask any questions beforehand.

[1:48:28] » So, this just cleans up our language and administrative policy to match state

[1:48:32] statute. Any questions for Britney? I think they're pretty straightforward.

[1:48:36] [clears throat] >> Just to be clear. So, in the

[1:48:38] administrative policy, uh, section 108, you're looking at

[1:48:42] changing paragraph three to read what this now says.

[1:48:48] » Yes. So this whole paragraph here will change to this.

[1:49:02] Any other questions?

[1:49:08] » Okay, I think we're good on that one. Discuss other council business. Council

[1:49:12] Kitchen. Uh, I really have nothing other than I walked through uh the community

[1:49:18] center and saw what the police department's doing for our youth coming

[1:49:22] up on Friday. Uh, don't forget to sign up your children for that and I'm sure

[1:49:27] I'll echo everybody else. Have a happy holidays and we'll see everybody back in

[1:49:32] January.

[1:49:36] » Well, I last weekend I attended the history houses uh Christmas open house.

[1:49:42] They did a wonderful job. I'm very proud of these dedicated volunteers that have

[1:49:50] um brought Mrs. Smith's house back to life. Um they work hard. They they do a

[1:49:57] wonderful job and I just want to thank them uh for what they are doing. Um I

[1:50:03] also are you going to talk about the sheltering workshop, Peter? So, and like

[1:50:09] um Council Kitchen, I'm very much impressed with what the police

[1:50:14] department is doing with our youth. Um they've been doing the

[1:50:20] fixing up the community center here for several years now and this year they've

[1:50:24] really outdone themselves and we're very fortunate to have such dedicated people

[1:50:31] uh in our departments that will do this for the benefit of others.

[1:50:36] That's it. >> Towns

[1:50:39] » pretty much the same. It was a great walk through there. It is uh kind of

[1:50:42] brings out the uh child in you to walk through. Uh so hopefully maybe it's open

[1:50:46] from uh 4 to 7:30 on Friday, December 19th and go to Fairfield's Fairfield

[1:50:53] copscare.com. But it's really really fun in there. Um and I just want yeah wish

[1:50:58] happy winter solstice. That means the days are going to get longer. So it's

[1:51:02] it's coming. It's coming coming. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah and uh peace

[1:51:06] and joy. So, >> thank you, Council Lawrence.

[1:51:10] » Okay, I got um several um this Friday um at the Graange is a senior lunchon from

[1:51:16] 11 to 2. That's um December 19th. And don't forget on December 22nd,

[1:51:24] the New Lawrence um elementary school is going to have a ribb cutting ceremony.

[1:51:29] So, >> 27th.

[1:51:30] » 27th. >> 27th.

[1:51:31] » That's at 1:00. >> Yep.

[1:51:34] And on December 11th, I attended uh the cooling and warming center and disaster

[1:51:41] emergency shelter training here um at the community center. [clears throat] We

[1:51:47] had 14 individuals attend this event. One was on Zoom, but actually 13 live

[1:51:54] here. So, a two-hour training. We had two counselors, myself and um councelor

[1:51:59] um Tibido. Five town employees attended this and seven um Grange

[1:52:07] members attended and 14 and all total um um residents attended that training

[1:52:15] and also too I I took a tour of the community center last night but I saw

[1:52:19] more tonight and police has done a fantastic job for our kids. Don't forget

[1:52:25] to attend that. And I like to wish all the residents a merry Christmas and a

[1:52:29] happy new year and see you in January. >> Okay. I [snorts] want to thank all our

[1:52:34] committees um building committee. Fantastic job. Thank you. That's a lot

[1:52:41] of work and and a long drawn out process. Uh our interim

[1:52:46] public works director, Tommy, thank you for tonight. You made it through. I hope

[1:52:50] we make it a full-time position. I'd love to see that happen. and he's a

[1:52:53] longtime employee. Um, wish your staff a lot of safety. It's snow season. Uh,

[1:53:01] please be aware. Um, a lot of questions usually we see online about salt and

[1:53:06] sand. There is a a sand pile down by public works. Is it limited to two

[1:53:11] buckets? Am I >> two buckets? Yes. For a storm.

[1:53:14] » So, two buckets for a storm. You just heard

[1:53:16] » main I forgot to say Main Street does look good, too.

[1:53:19] » What was that? Yeah, >> Main Street does look good.

[1:53:21] » Main Oh, M. Yeah, absolutely. So, again, I want to thank our department heads.

[1:53:26] Again, all the counselors have said this place looks absolutely fantastic. If you

[1:53:30] can be around, um, come check it out, do a walk through. That's Friday 4:00 right

[1:53:36] here at the community center. Um, I want to wish all the staff, employees,

[1:53:40] citizens, council members a very merry Christmas and happy holidays. Please be

[1:53:45] safe. Um, it's it's a lot of tragedies lately. Too many that we see. um just

[1:53:53] keep everybody in your best interest and be on your best behavior and please be

[1:53:58] safe. So that's all I have. It's been a fantastic year and thank you all for

[1:54:03] your support. So with that, our next regular meeting

[1:54:10] of the Fairfield Town Council will be on Wednesday, January 14th, 2026 to be held

[1:54:15] as a hybrid meeting in council chambers and via Zoom at 6:30 p.m.

[1:54:20] At this time, council will recess, sign all documents that require the

[1:54:24] signature. Council members, make a motion to go recess. Second.

[1:54:30] [laughter]

Fairfield Town Council

Transcript