[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6321668,"mediaKeyId","2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1","parentId",2349259,"title","Select Board approves minutes, consent agenda, wastewater capital expenditure and two committee appointments","audioSeconds",3616,"startMs",7000,"endMs",3623000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1&start=7&end=3623","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1/thumbnail_7000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6321668/West-Swanzey/Cheshire-County/New-Hampshire/Select-Board-approves-minutes-consent-agenda-wastewater-capital-expenditure-and-two-committee-appointments","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6321668-330f7adc02bce1e62e60f0b53d64240f/orig.mp4?Expires=1774984014&Signature=ZDywsh-FDX8mxgN6b5A7dSpR5ySRbxFv6dHTl9WltqLQOFdXHIZo48VWO-6KKSNScTHNUM9Jc1Yn0MAO5-2sYeyw1XDvWDy68Doff3RYhjjM3V9ysjufrZRV1NDC0MbHyI-CoYCRrQgRv028D7Wve7sk13eVHerb2yhNut-We4j-HuKgLdNiK0RbvBouZMr0ZXSclMQyj~V5HXyq7W~L3WIQ-LKpTVJ9V0F2ZogBIkFzgSEpM42kiJwqc~sMVu0852XTFEddl0pYefwUkiEofw5F1qw1~YsOVOhv6oqvV8nE-Ap0AG3cUOUJJo6RvjOCCBsQo-XCDKc1F2-y0PUixQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Town Council of West Swanzey NH","date","2025-02-20T01:44:14.677Z","article","The West Swanzey Select Board approved several routine and administrative items including meeting minutes, a consent/dissent agenda, a wastewater treatment capital expenditure and two committee appointments.

Early on the agenda, the board voted to approve the minutes of its Feb. 12 regular meeting and approved the consent/dissent agenda; both motions were seconded and passed by voice vote. Later in the meeting the board considered and approved a motion authorizing a capital expenditure for wastewater treatment (motion made and seconded; vote: all in favor said “Aye”).

The board also processed nominations submitted to the Select Board: Stephen Bridal (nominated for the Capital Improvement Program Committee) and J. R. Copley (nominated to the Economic Development Advisory Committee). The nominations were presented and the board moved and seconded the appointments; members voted in favor.

No additional formal policy votes or amendments were taken on these items during the meeting; the actions were routine approvals of meeting business and appointments.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Swanzey Select Board: Febuary 19th, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Select Board approved routine minutes and consent items, authorized a wastewater treatment capital expenditure and approved two committee nominations during the meeting.","taxTitle","West Swanzey, Cheshire County, New Hampshire","taxId",75717,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6321673,"Resident urges clearer economic-development guidance and website updates to help small businesses",371,66000,437000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1&start=66&end=437","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1/thumbnail_66000.jpg","/articles/6321673/West-Swanzey/Cheshire-County/New-Hampshire/Resident-urges-clearer-economic-development-guidance-and-website-updates-to-help-small-businesses","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6321673-573b8d6518b8b43bbc6b6697617f2183/orig.mp4?Expires=1774984014&Signature=k1uvSLlFcO-IuEBAPIqayccEBZo7n~mD7wzxq0waVQY4dXWKBKUHdSQoFdC9pb0NZPwtv-Ebb9d-VfITsHRJHO89U4yM965iQTlpsx5ScoOxUvnhBEOc4xPElZFFRx3MY71dxK0TFn5QjPmy~NaWExuQADvgsjhyfo5TbQ8JBRVsDaHjdYji4XjNEbZFSsrpRyyBi2oLz-OKjoeOP5uxv99b~rPQqrvGhdDcWm6-JeytkISRkHuX7EPT2rGo318bwKAzdk1Kzpx1JuiUvCamB90HLocRsTziyVqFzTR44w0cwoaZxxyZ99FeURk7fa0YjSMS3HKHOC-DaXPwboEnjQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","A resident addressing the West Swanzey Select Board urged the town to make its website and site-plan review guidance easier to use for small businesses and to improve coordination between planning and economic-development committees.

The commenter, speaking during the public input portion, said she reviewed the town website with the perspective of a small-business owner and found it hard to locate application materials. “If I’m a small business owner, I wanna do this … So streamlining that management, making it easier, and more intuitive for people,” she said, adding that the proposal was meant as an opportunity to improve existing processes rather than as a criticism: “I wanna stress that this is an indictment of any staff or process currently in place in Swansea. Just an opportunity to make things better.” (Transcript spelling corrected to West Swanzey.)

The resident suggested several specific changes: a clear “Economic Development” header on the town website that leads to initiative descriptions and resources; a single entry point that explains typical application steps for prospective business owners; and a more current listing of available properties. She also asked whether the planning board still required some new businesses to come before it for consultation and whether volunteer help or navigation assistance might be offered to business owners.

Board members and staff discussed how planning review currently operates: staff (identified in discussion as Adam and Scott) said planning still reviews projects and that staff triage many inquiries to determine whether formal site-plan review is required. The board noted past turnover in the department and the absence of a dedicated economic-development staff member since 2018, which the commenter said had left some website initiatives stalled.

The board agreed the town could do a better job of organizing existing online resources and that staff and committee members could explore highlighting available properties, updating business listings, and coordinating with the conservation commission on wetlands-related guidance. One select board member asked the resident to work with staff and titled contacts (including Katrina and Brandon Ward) to develop concrete edits for the site.

No formal action was taken; the item was public comment and direction to staff to follow up if the resident and board determine a specific work plan.","A public commenter urged the Select Board to streamline West Swanzey’s online resources and clarify the site-plan review process to make it easier for small businesses to find permitting information and for town committees to coordinate.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6321678,"Select Board approves three-year Waste Management contract; staff outlines recycling, compost and scale plans",2152,662000,2814000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1&start=662&end=2814","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2349259-87bfa7430cd3aad375d4c49394703bd1/thumbnail_662000.jpg","/articles/6321678/West-Swanzey/Cheshire-County/New-Hampshire/Select-Board-approves-three-year-Waste-Management-contract-staff-outlines-recycling-compost-and-scale-plans","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6321678-2bca7cf8af36fde116b3fc2a67674fa0/orig.mp4?Expires=1774984014&Signature=nubwvJJFAo1BhL6j-HdYtDacCtDNzBx6x-rbl6HoEd4E7JXOvXG51FkaNTu2GBc0LpwHX3MDObHokG96WUnHX4Ty9YVm6ReYx0pcVSOFoeFuFzFAFfACaBmEuDqcT5ou7zjXtjSge7Le~U29XVmZQ-IaO7AhSHgLa0fyl1Pp3GpKocV4sasHlJX7LVHSVs9~YBJ3odimARXr~lD2XPNutLHQsBuKlS10chXULbcPBGptT5qe9ypcRAjAMpTRLmI3SSN1XM7Eqp1ipaEhQX24DLOdjiJpBOpNTrrlejkj-a7pTHMoY~GDhQKir8ink15AF34NY3LTCKg7F-ssJj5S2Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The West Swanzey Select Board approved a three-year contract with Waste Management and spent the bulk of its meeting discussing transfer-station operations, recycling markets, and plans for a food-waste and plastics pilot.

A Solid waste staff member told the board the agreement is the town’s preferred revised offer and recommended moving forward. “I think we did a pretty good deal on that,” the staff member said while reviewing pricing scenarios and multi-year inflation adjustments. Board members then moved to authorize the contract; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote with all members saying “Aye.”

Staff presented a multi-page summary of the town’s historic hauling contracts and annual tonnage trends, noting wide year-to-year variation. The presentation included a 10-year overview and comparisons showing material flows for municipal solid waste (MSW), construction-and-demolition (C&D), cardboard and plastics. Staff said 2014 showed 320 tons in a cited example and described recent years as “ups and downs” driven by clean-outs and construction projects.

During the briefing staff outlined several operational changes intended to reduce costs and raise diversion: staggering container shipments to avoid partially filled hauls; routing mattresses and bulky items differently; a pilot to capture food waste and more aggressive separation of plastics by resin code; and creating a covered pad to reduce water weight in wood/organics containers. On plastics, staff described a phased approach: initially expanding beyond No. 1 and No. 2 plastics to capture additional resin types and later assessing baling or higher-level sorting if markets support it.

Staff also described plans for a small capital program at the transfer station: reorganizing container pads, adding a potential second compactor container, and a longer-term plan that would include a horizontal baler and an interior conveyor/bailer system to create denser, higher-value shipments. That project, staff said, could take two to three years to implement depending on funding and space.

On pricing details, staff reviewed vendor proposals and said the board’s counteroffer reduced the initial increases from the first proposal. Examples given in the presentation: C&D-related charges moved from an initial 17.8% increase down to an 8.9% increase with a proposed 4% annual escalation thereafter; other fees were described as moving toward a 7% first-year increase with a 4% escalation in subsequent years. Staff said the contract would begin August 1.

Staff said the town’s diversion rate last year was about 34 percent and set a goal to raise diversion to roughly 37–40 percent in the coming year. They also noted some line items in the budget: mattresses moved from $10 to $20 in fees and electronics were tracking roughly $15.20 over budget at the time of the report; staff said those figures were in line with expectations and market fluctuations.

Board members asked about on-site composting versus vendor shipping, container covers and drainage, costs of a scale and scale-house operations, certification for weights-and-measures, and how to avoid shipping partially empty containers. Staff said they would continue vendor research and pilot projects and would report back with more precise financial estimates.

The contract authorization was moved and seconded at the meeting; after no further discussion the board approved the three-year Waste Management contract by voice vote.

Board members also asked staff to continue pursuing recycling-market improvements and to return with a clearer implementation timeline and itemized cost estimates if capital equipment (a horizontal baler, enclosed building, or scales) is proposed.

The vote ends the immediate procurement decision; staff will carry follow-up work on pilots, site reconfiguration and the potential capital projects recommended in the briefing.","The West Swanzey Select Board voted to approve a three-year contract with Waste Management and heard a lengthy staff briefing on transfer station operations, recycling markets, composting pilot ideas and possible scale-house upgrades.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Select Board approves minutes, consent agenda, wastewater capital expenditure and two committee appointments

Resident urges clearer economic-development guidance and website updates to help small businesses

Select Board approves three-year Waste Management contract; staff outlines recycling, compost and scale plans