Town Changes Position of Road Agent to Elected

By Dan Bustard, Eagle Times, Claremont, N.H.

Mar. 17–Starting next year, the road agent in Goshen will become an appointed position rather than an elected one, residents decided at town meeting Saturday night.

The move comes as the controversy involving current road agent Mark Beaudry intensified after his indictment by a Sullivan County grand jury last week on a charge of possession of stolen property. Beaudry was suspended without pay in November.

Goshen Board of Selectmen Jim Carrick said the main debate focused on how the road agent would be chosen, with a request for an “unbiased” committee to make a recommendation to the board. Carrick said the board has discussed adopting this approach.

The change to an appointed road agent takes effect in March 2009.

Beaudry was indicted by a Sullivan County grand jury Wednesday on a charge of receiving stolen property after allegedly buying a plasma cutter from Alan Greenhalgh IV, a Goshen volunteer firefighter who was also indicted by the grand jury.

Greenhalgh allegedly stole the plasma cutter from the New Hampshire National Guard and sold it for an undisclosed sum to Beaudry, who sold it to the town for $450. The cutter’s estimated value is between $500 and $1,000.

Beaudry has been suspended without pay since Nov. 6. The indictments came after an investigation by Goshen police and New Hampshire State Police. Beaudry and Greenhalgh are scheduled to appear in Sullivan County Superior Court on April 4.

The road agent issue was thoroughly discussed during town meeting, and town officials are looking to set up a road department committee to better manage Goshen’s roads and the department.

“We need to look at this issue,” said Carrick, with the committee to offer advice to the board.

After not passing a year ago, a move to combine the position of town clerk and tax collector, and provide health benefits, received approval, along with a request from the floor for $1,500 more in the personal firefighters’ equipment fund to help emergency medical technicians get new uniforms.

Residents also passed two petition articles adopting tax exemptions for solar- and wind- powered energy systems, defeated articles for improvements to the town library and tree removal and other landscaping work in the Town Common area and created a $10,000 welfare capital reserve fund when welfare payments exceed what the town has budgeted.

“It’s only in case we get into trouble,” overseer of public welfare John Hopkins said.

Several topics sparked discussion and debate during town meeting, including questions over why certain funds were not properly transferred into capital reserve funds as approved at town meeting last year and the amount of money Goshen spends on legal fees.

Residents did approve an article including $41,000 in legal fees, though Fred Smith wondered when neighboring Lempster spends far less, around $3,500.

“I think they’re running the town and we’re not,” Smith said about the attorneys used by Goshen.

Carrick said planning and zoning activities represent the bulk of the legal advice sought by the town.

He also said the Lempster windmill project, and Public Service of New Hampshire’s plans to run power generated from the project to a substation in Newport rather than build a new one near the Goshen-Lempster line, was an issue the town needed to represent itself strongly on.

“Public Service really put the boots to the town of Goshen,” he said about the request to put up new utility poles higher than the 35-foot building limit residents had passed.

Carrick also predicted Iberdrola Renewable Energies USA will sell the project and cared nothing about the town, which accepted an $80,000 payment last year to drop its opposition to the new utility poles.

“They fought us over $80,000,” he said.

Residents also debated if town meeting approval should be necessary for the purchases of large pieces of equipment instead of allowing the board of selectmen and other officials the authority.

After voting down an amendment requiring a town meeting vote to expend reserve funds for a new fire department utility truck, residents approved establishing the reserve fund and placing $10,000 within the fund.

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Copyright (c) 2008, Eagle Times, Claremont, N.H.

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