C70 ANNUAL REPORT Of The Town Officers Of The Town of COLUMBIA NEW HAMPSHIRE For The Year Ending December 3 2002 1 , INCLUDING REPORT OF THE SCHOOL DIRECTORS Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2009 with funding from Boston Library Consortium Member Libraries http://www.archive.org/details/annualreportcolu2002colu 643 r tfH INDEX Auditor's Transmittal & Commentary Letter 60 Auditor's Report 61 Comparative Statement of Appropriations 1 Comparative Statement of Receipts 1 Connecticut River Joint Commission - Headwaters Subcommittee Annua! Report 66 Coos County Transfer Station Report 48 Detailed Statement of Payments 38 Financial Statement 28 Invoice of Property 26 Minutes of 2002 Town Meeting 1 Planning Board Report 58 Resident Birth Report 63 Resident Death Report 64 Resident Marriage Report 63 Schedule of Town Property 29 School District Report 67 Selectmen's Report 6 Summary of Payments - Selectmen's Report 36 Summary of Receipts - Selectmen's Report 34 Tax Collector's Report 49 Tax Collector's Report - MS61 50 Tax Rate Calculation - 2002 27 Town Clerk's Report 30 Town information 2 Town Officers 4 Treasurer's Report 31 Treasurer's Report - Coos County Transfer Station 33 Trust Fund Report 65 Uncollected Taxes Listing 53 Warrant - 2003 Town Meeting 7 TOWN INFORMATION PHONE NUMBER: 237-5255 FAX NUMBER: 237-8270 MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 157 Colebrook, NH 03576 PHYSICAL ADDRESS: 1919 US Route 3 Columbia, NH 03576 E-MAIL ADDRESS: [email protected] BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETINGS: 2nd & 4th Monday of each month 6:00 p.m. PLANNING BOARD MEETINGS: 2nd Monday of each month 5:00 p.m. BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEETINGS: As needed "OWN CLERK/SECRETARY HOURS: Monday TAX COLLECTOR HOURS: TRANSFER STATION HOURS: TOWN OFFICERS OFFICER Poulin, Edward SELECTMEN'S REPORT As a Board, we finished up many projects this year. With the help ofan outside consultant, we wrote and adopted a Hazard Mitigation Plan for the Town. Having this Plan in place, will mean that the Town will be eligible for State and Federal grants to assist the Town in future projects. We finished the culvert work planned for under our Hazard Mitigation Grant. We were able to secure additional funds to complete some much needed work on Meridan Hill Road. Work has continued at the Keach Road Cemetery. The road into the cemetery has been extended and we hope to install fencing this year. We have also started selling lots in this cemeter>'. McCormack/Whitco Memorials has completed their work on cleaning and repairing stones in both the Lyman Cemetery and the Columbia Bridge Cemetery. The Keach Road Cemetery will be done this year. We & have been ordered by the Board ofTax Land Appeals to conduct a town-wide revaluation to be effective October 1, 2004. After interviewing several assessing firms, we choose and signed a contract with AVITAR Associates. They are based in Chichester. New Hampshire, but have a branch office in Milan so we are confident that they have a good understanding ofproperty values in the North Country. This is a huge undertaking for the Town but a necessary one. We are planning to have an informational meeting before the revaluation starts in order to answer questions and address any concerns that anyone has. After many years ofhaving Town auditors, the Town's books were audited by Francis J. Dineen & Company. We are pleased to report that he found them in excellent condition. During the past year, the Town Otl:lcials have attended various workshops and conferences. This enables us to keep up-to-date on law changes in order to better serve our residents. Norman Cloutier Eric Stohl Donald Campbell : WARRANT The Polls will be open from 1 1 :00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. To the inhabitants of the Town of Columbia, in the County of Coos, in the State of New Hampshire, qualified to vote in Town Affairs: You are hereby notified to meet at the Columbia Town Hall on Tuesday, the 1 1th day of March, next, at 7:15 o'clock in the evening to act upon the following subjects: Article 1 To vote to bring in ballots for election of Town Officers to be elected by ballot for the year ensuing. Article 2: To see if the Town v^ill instruct its Selectmen to appoint all other Town Officials as required. Article 3: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $80,000.00 for Town Charges for the ensuing year. Article 4: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $4,500.00 for extinguishing fires in said Town. Article 5: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $6,054.07 to help support the operation of the Colebrook Communications Center. Article 6: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $6,750.00 to help support the services of the Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital Ambulance Fund. Article 7: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $2,200.00 for the Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital Association to cover medical emergencies. : Article 8: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $3,000.00 for operating expenses of the Upper Connecticut Valley Home Health Association. . - Article 9: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $500.00 as a contribution for the support and services of the Upper Connecticut Valley Mental Health Service. Article 10: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $200.00 as a contribution for the support and services of the Vershire Center. Article 1 1 To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $7,500.00 to be added to the Town Cemetery Maintenance Fund previously established. (Board of Selectmen recommend this appropriation.) Article 12: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $650.00 for support of the Community Outreach Program. Article 13: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $4,000.00 for the support of the poor. Article 14: To see if the Town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $70,000.00 for the maintenance of summer roads. Out of this $70,000.00, $32,357.21 to be reimbursed by the State of New Hampshire Highway Block Grant monies. Article 15: To see if the Town will vote to reclassify from a Class VI to a Class V highway, pursuant to RSA 231 :22-a, that section of Carr Road from Bunnell Road to the property presently owned by Robert and Lucille Dumont, a distance of approximately ,500 feet. (By 1 Petition)