LIVERMORE — Selectpersons unanimously approved a change Monday night in the personnel policy regarding inclement weather and were told issues on the River Road would continue through the winter.
The board asked that the personnel policy be changed to transfer authorization for closing the Town Office or town operations from the town clerk and administrative assistant to the chairman of the Board of Selectpersons, vice chairman of the Board of Selectpersons and department heads.
The change also added the sentence, “Employees who are unable to report to work during inclement weather when operations are not suspended will not be compensated but may elect to use their accrued compensatory time, annual leave time or a personal day.”
The matter was tabled at the last board meeting when selectpersons asked to remove the sentence, “In the event inclement weather or other major event results in the temporary suspension of the routine town operations, affected employees will be compensated for their regular rate of pay for their scheduled work hours.”
In other matters, highway foreman Roger Ferland said there is another water issue on the River Road. At the Nov. 25 meeting, he shared information about a sinkhole in the vicinity of 728 River Road, near Mill Pond.
“Water is coming out right up to the pavement on the hill by (the home of) Angela Richards,” he said. “It’s all ledges on the other side.”
Selectperson Scott Richmond said there was another one on the other side by the Gibbs home.
“That one gets enough sun so it doesn’t bother,” he said.
Ferland said it was going to be an issue most of the winter.
“There’s not much we can do with it at this point in time,” he said. “If things like this appeared in the middle of summer, it’s something you could handle.”
Richmond said it should be put on the list next summer to get more drainage.
Ferland said there are places in town where 4-inch perforated pipes can be found on the sides of roads.
Selectperson Wayne Timberlake asked if they were coming out from under the road, to which Ferland replied yes.
Richmond said he spoke recently about the issue with his uncle, who said years ago roads were backfilled with clay.
“Seven or eight years ago, I cut open a lump and tried to dig out a rock that was supposedly there,” Ferland said. “I went down 3 feet. There was no rock. It’s just a clay lump.”
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