Notes for Tue, May 19 2026

—➢ Call Meeting to Order – THIS MEETING MAY BE AUDIO RECORDED ➢ Review Agenda ➢ Consent Agenda
o Meeting Minutes: 05/05/2026; 05/09/2026
➢ Appointments
o 5:30 PM Liam Cregan, Franklin Land Trust – Discuss Behl-Amter Conservation Restriction; Vote to Approve Conservation Restriction – Vote Anticipated

• Betsy Behl and Steven Amtur have 12 acres on South Road in Heath that they wish to put under conservation restriction. They have set aside 3 acres where they have a cottage and hope to renovate in the future. There does not seem to be an impact on the tax base.  Agreement with the Franklin Land Trust.

o 6:30 PM Board of Health – Discuss Town Nurse Position; Vote to Approve Job Description; Vote to Approve & Post Job Advertisement – Vote Anticipated

• Gene Garland and Sheila Litchfield attended for the BoH.
• ​Current rate is to low compared to responsibilities and other towns.  
• Priority items of essential duties:
• "Promotes health of individuals, families and the community through teaching, counseling and appropriate preventive and rehabilitative measures. Promotes early intervention, illness prevention and management. Encourages wellness, health, and safety of Town employees. Provides health education and serves as a resource person in the community. Performs screening services for members of the community; holds clinics for immunizations, blood pressure, etc. Advise when follow-up care is deemed necessary."
• Job will be posted on the town website tomorrow. BoH planning to do nurse interviews at their next meeting.

➢ Select Board Discussion/Decision Items
o Reorganization of the Select Board – Elect Select Board Chairman & Secretary; Appoint and/or Elect Liaisons & Representatives as Necessary – Vote Anticipated
o Annual Town Meeting – Review/Discuss

• All members felt it went well, praised the Finance Committee for their work and their participation.\ in the meeting.
• Feedback indicated that some do not like it on Mother's Day weekend and others do not like it on Saturday. SOme towns hold it in the evenings.
• Robyn would like to meet with Eric Sumner, the moderator, early next year to discuss the format of Town Meeting.

o FY ’27 Appointments – Initial Discussion & Planning

• Vacancy on the ZBA, 1 vacancy on the required number of members, but the HCC would like more.  The Cultural Council has a recommendation.

o End of Fiscal Year – General Discussion & Transition Planning

• Mia is working on improving reports from accounting.

o Office Assistant Position – Review/Discuss Recommendation from Interviewers & Job Description; Vote to Offer Position to Recommended Candidate – Vote Anticipated

• Four interviews were held, Olivia Girard was recommended. Other applicants will be contacted.
• SB voted to make an offer

o Boards’ Clerk Position – Review/Discuss Statements from the Board of Health re. Board of Health Clerk; Review/Discuss Job Description & Future of Position

• No applicants, posting was pulled
• SB is not sure how to move forward on this position. The BoH needs a clerk and wants to retain Cindy Garland for 5 hours a week while figuring out how to staff the other boards. The Planning Board needs a clerk. SB needs to know if the PB needs an STM.  Robyn to contact Doug Mason to determine needs.

o Town Center Kiosk – Review/Discuss; Approve NEW Proposed Location – Vote Possible

• Potentially move it between the current location and Community Hall. Will and Pat McGahan to speak with homeowner whose view is impacted by the sign.

o Jacobs Road Municipal Center Sign – Review/Discuss Design & Timeline – Vote Possible

• Reviewed the design and discussed the lettering and possible lower signs.

o MTRSD Enrollment Calculation Error – Review/Discuss Request from Charlemont Select Board

• FY20/21 school year error where Heath underpaid due to the calculation of the number of students.  Charlemont is currently does not appear to be including Charlemont.
• Request from the town of charlemont, From Wilder Sparks,  Date Sat 5/9/2026 6:49 PM
• To Robyn Provost ; Elissa Viarengo ; [email protected] ; BOS 1 attachment (37 KВ) Earmark letter of support.docx; To the Members of the Heath Select Board, I'm reaching out on behalf of Charlemont regarding the assessment error the Mohawk Trail Regional School District identified during the FY26 budget process. As you know, corrected enrollment data was applied to prior years, showing that Charlemont overpaid from FY21 through FY25. This analysis was completed and presented by William Lataille and shared with all member towns, and the underlying figures are not in dispute. We've looked into possible ways to address this, and there isn't a path through DESE or the district to correct past assessments. The alternative would be asking towns to consider reimbursing Charlemont through local appropriations. Given the scale of the overpayment and its impact on a small town like ours, we're pursuing a one-time earmark as a more practical way to resolve this without placing that burden on individual communities. We've drafted a short joint letter for towns to sign in support of this approach, and we'd really appreciate your town adding its name. Happy to talk more or connect you with William Lataille, Martha Thurber, or Sheryl Stanton if helpful. I'd also be very happy to come and discuss this or any other matter of mutual interest or concern with your board at your convenience. I've included a copy of the letter to be sent to the senator below for your consideration. Thanks for your time, Wilder Sparks Select Board Member Town of Charlemont

o Deerfield River Watershed Association – Questions re. Wild & Scenic Initiative

• SB has questions on how this will impact property owners
• "From Christopher Curtis Date Wed 4/15/2026 9:38 PM To BOS ; BOS 1 attachment (17 KB) Sample letter of support for DRWA 2026 Woodlands Partnership Grant.docx; Hello Selectboard members, The Deerfield River Watershed Association (DRWA) is working on an application for a 2026 Woodlands Partnership Grant for their initiative to continue working toward National Wild and Scenic River designation for the Deerfield River and its tributaries. DRWA received a Woodlands Partnership grant in 2024 and used it to successfully develop a study of the Deerfield River's eligibility for Wild and Scenic designation. This 2026 Woodlands grant application would maintain the momentum created by the 2024 grant and provide the funding needed to craft and adopt regional actions and river management strategies to protect the Deerfield River in support of the initiative to designate it as a National Wild and Scenic River. Funds would be used to work with communities on action strategies for local and state Deerfield River protection. DRWA originally submitted this grant application last year, but just missed receiving funding. Your community was not involved in the 2024 Woodlands grant or the Wild and Scenic Study. However, the completed study does recommend that waterways in your community (Mill Brook and North River, West Branch) should be protected as part of the overall designation package. Consequently, we would very much like to have your community engaged in this process as we move forward. We would greatly appreciate it if you would consider approving and signing the attached letter of support for our Woodlands Grant and becoming a partner in this initiative. Thanks very much for considering this, Chris Curtis"

o Highway Department – General Discussion; Taylor Brook Road Bridge; Colrain Stage

• Highway Dept was able to acquire a roller through an unpaved road grant
• Colrain Stage Road has been paved.

Road Paving; Chapter 90 Funds; Number Nine Road & Sumner Stetson Road

• Number 9 Rd will be chip sealed in August, culvert work will be complete.
• Mia to check on status of Sumner Stetson Road. 

➢ New Information/Updates
o Community Hall – Elevator, Cupola, & Storm Windows--No updates
o Sawyer Hall – Heating System --No updates
o Jacobs Road Municipal Center – HVAC; Interior Security Cameras; Roofing

• Security cameras have been installed.
• Roofing —almost done with the section needing repair.
• HVAC—no update.

o Tri-Town Landfill – Clearing of Vegetation; Invasive Species Eradication

• Knotweed area is bigger than first noted and there is an additional invasive species, Russian Olive.
• Still waiting on quotes.

o Town of Colrain Surplus Police Cruiser—No update
o Route 8A (Jacksonville Stage Road) Over Underwood Brook Culvert/Small Bridge

• 8A Bridge work: Waiting for concrete to cure to move forward
• Culvert: Applying for a STRAP grant (small town grants) to fix the culvert

New Information Updates
o ADA Transition Plan

• The transition plan funded by a grant has been received. 
• All the town buildings have prioritized recommendations.
• There is only a small window to apply for the accessibility grant which is only award once a year.
• Sawyer Hall ramp needs to be replaced. BoH feels it is dangerous. Robyn to try to get an architectural plan.​
• Community Hall—lower door/entry is too narrow, elevator remains an issue. 
• Transfer Station —no handicapped parking, not really accessible at all.

➢ Public Comment—resident commented that the new swing seats are installed at Community Park
➢ Mail
➢ New business that could not be anticipated 48 hours prior to the meeting
➢ Meeting Adjournment