Selectboard hears $1.22 million estimate to resurface Howard Pond Road; budget shortfall shapes options

Selectboard member Rick/Main-Land urged careful planning for road repairs and led a wide-ranging discussion after hearing a resurfacing estimate for Howard Pond Road of $1,222,108, submitted to the board by meeting participant Jack Kutcha.

The estimate prompted the board to consider several financing options. Members discussed using a bond — which would require paying off the bond before additional road work could proceed — and breaking Howard Pond Road into approximately 3,200-foot sections for phased work. The town’s current roads budget is listed at $143,000; board discussion noted that adding $25,000 to the roads budget each year could allow for a project roughly every five years.

"There is no right or wrong way to fix the roads; it just needs to be done correctly," Rick/Main-Land said, urging attention to process and quality. Rick also told the board he believes Jack Kutcha’s $1.22 million figure is very high.

Selectboard member Frank S. Morrison Jr. suggested keeping Rick/Main-Land on as a consultant to oversee or advise on the road plans. Morrison also raised the possibility of posting Howard Pond Road year-round to reduce damage from heavy trucks, such as pulp haulers, as a cost-deferral measure.

No formal motion to pursue bonding or a specific repair plan is recorded in the minutes; the discussion remained exploratory. The minutes record a direction for administrative follow-up elsewhere in the agenda: Selectboard member Jim Barker asked Town Clerk Kelly Harrington and Ellie Andrews to itemize their timesheets to validate their time allocations, a separate personnel-administration request recorded during the same new-business discussion.

Next procedural steps were not recorded as formal votes in the minutes; the board left options on the table pending further review and potential cost confirmations.