ENFIELD — Residents voted to preserve traditional Town Meeting and expand the Selectboard from three to five members during a busy, yet chilly, session outdoors at Huse Park on Saturday.
Voters also approved two multimillion-dollar bonds to renovate Whitney Hall — home to the town offices and library — and to build a facility for the town’s police, fire and EMT departments. Those items helped bring out what supervisor of the checklist Nancy White called a record 300 voters. Usually, around 100 people vote in the floor portion of Town Meeting.
“I’ve never seen a turnout like this,” she said.
In order to switch to so-called SB 2 voting, which would shift Town Meeting format from a traditional floor meeting to an information session followed by Australian ballot voting, a three-fifths majority needed to vote in favor. Of 177 ballots cast, 96 voted for the change and 81 against, meaning the measure failed by 10 votes.
Enfield voters currently elect town officials and decide zoning amendments via Australian ballot on New Hampshire’s March Town Meeting Day and typically hold a floor meeting the following Saturday.
During the discussion that preceded the vote, many residents spoke passionately in favor of keeping traditional Town Meeting, some hearkening back to a process that has been in place since Enfield became a town, before the Revolutionary War.
“Yes, I want to stay back in time,” Wendy Piper said.
The country has gotten more divisive, and traditional Town Meeting forces people to interact in person and be civil, she argued.
Current Selectboard member Kate Stewart and incoming Selectboard member Erik Russell supported switching to SB 2, while Selectboard Chairman John Kluge wanted to keep the traditional floor meeting.
“Think about what we’ve done here today,” Kluge said, citing earlier discussion on the bond votes. “We’re grappled with challenging issues, and we’ve done a great job.”
Stewart and Russell both said that, while they love traditional Town Meeting, they were concerned about people having an opportunity to vote.
Stewart, who spoke while holding her 7-year-old daughter, Coralie, said that while some people are able to bring their children to Town Meeting or block off time to attend, it’s not always possible.
“It’s just not realistic to expect everyone to do the same thing as you,” she said. “I would ask you to consider whether it is fair to put barriers” to voting.
Some who supported SB 2 said it would improve voter turnout, noting that people cannot use absentee ballots to vote on the issues discussed during the floor meeting.
Fewer people spoke about expanding the Selectboard to five seats. The measure needed a simple majority and passed, 79-49. New members will be elected in 2023.
Both bond votes needed a three-fifths majority to pass. The $5.8 million bond to renovate Whitney Hall passed, 196-85.
The amount will be slightly offset with about $244,000 from the Library Building Capital Reserve Fund, which means residents needed to approve borrowing the remaining $5.5 million. The town and the library’s board of trustees are pursuing grants and fundraising to bring the cost down.
The $7.26 million bond for the public safety facility was much closer to failing. There were 270 votes cast, meaning 162 votes were needed for a three-fifths majority. The yeas hit exactly that mark, approving the bond, 162-108.
At the beginning of the discussion about Whitney Hall, Town Manager Ed Morris said interest rates on a 30-year bond are currently 3% but are expected to rise. Each percentage point would increase the project’s cost by $1.2 million. He also cited construction costs that he expects to continue rising and the expensive cost to maintain the inefficient building, which was built in 1900 and 1901.
While some residents who spoke against the project recognized that something needed to be done to maintain the building, the cost of the project was a concern.
“I’m sick of hearing it’s just a slice of pizza or cup of coffee a week,” Dave Stewart said of cost comparisons. “It’s ours to give up.”
Even more residents spoke about the bond for the public safety facility, which would combine the Union Street Fire Station, the Depot Street Station where the town’s single ambulance is stored and the police station on Main Street on yet-to-be-purchased land on Route 4. Morris described it as a “health and safety issue,” pointing out how diesel fumes can impact the health of first responders.
“I absolutely agree that the ambulance building is inadequate and needs to be replaced,” Tim Lenihan said. “I can’t say the same for the others.”
He added that crime is down and police officers are responding to fewer calls.
“I don’t know how we can ask for more when we’re doing less,” Lenihan said.
Enfield Police Chief Roy Holland said he had identified $2.3 million in grants that the town could apply for to offset the costs. But grants, he cautioned, may not always be available.
Among the people who spoke in support of the proposal were first responders themselves, including Richard Martin who serves as the EMS chief and is a captain with the fire department.
“It’s just an old building and it isn’t meant for what it is,” he said.
There were also concerns about how contaminants picked up by the ambulance at the Depot Street facility could impact patients and that the current facility is affecting the ability to recruit volunteers.
“I was appalled by where the ambulance comes out,” said Rob Malz, recalling a tour he took of the facilities.
Voters also approved a $7.57 million municipal budget, which included raises for town workers and three new full-time positions. The town will hire a full-time maintenance worker who will be responsible for keeping up repairs on the town’s buildings, a recreation director and assistant town clerk. Currently, the recreation director and assistant town clerk are part-time positions. The budget is roughly $400,000 more than last year’s $7.15 million budget.
A simple majority was needed to pass the budget, and Jean Patten requested a paper ballot vote. It was approved by a vote of 140-54.
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
