The Board of Selectmen's regularly scheduled meetings are on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 6:00PM in the Selectmen's Chambers, 356 Main Street. This schedule is subject to change so be sure to check the Town Meeting Calandar for actual meeting dates and times. Call the Selectmen's office at 603-755-2208 if you have any questions
2008 Chairman's Report
The Board of Selectmen regretfully accepted the resignation of Deborah Lee as Farmington’s Emergency Management Director. Ms. Lee has held that position for five years and led us through two major floods, one in 2006 and the other in 2007. She was also instrumental in the adoption of the Town’s Emergency Management Plan. On behalf of the Board of Selectmen, I would like to thank her for a job well done. Fire Chief Richard Fowler was appointed as the new EMD and was soon tested with a major ice storm in early December. Chief Fowler along with Police Lieutenant Kevin Willey as well as all of the Town’s department heads passed the test with high marks and we are fortunate to have people like that working for our community.
We have two major issues that we need to deal with that have been mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) and they will be costly. The landfill has a closure date of 2010. The original date was 2003 and we have been able to get extensions that allowed us to raise more dollars to put toward closing of the landfill. We are requesting another extension so we can continue to raise revenue and limit the amount of bonding that we have to do.
The second mandate, and most costly, is the update of the wastewater treatment plant to meet the standards required by the EPA and DES. The Town has retained the services of the Wright and Pierce engineering firm to do the testing, permitting, and designing of the new plant that will satisfy the EPA requirements and be the least costly to the Town. The estimate of the cost of construction is approximately 12.5 million dollars,, some of which will be grant money. The question of who pays for the plant will require lots of discussion. As I see it there are three positions that have to come together. Some that are not on Town sewer feel that they should not have to pay because they have to maintain their own septic system. Those on the Town sewer say they were mandated to go on the Town’s system and agree that they
should pay the operation and management cost of the plant but cannot afford to pay the construction cost by themselves. The other position seems to be a little bit of both. As I said, this demands a lot of thoughtful discussion. Other than that, Farmington remains a wonderful place to live.
Respectfully submitted
Gerald McCarthy
Chairman
| 
