Belmont selectmen’s meeting disrupted by Wareing Road questionsNitpicked -

By GAIL OBER, LACONIA DAILY SUN

BELMONT — A few residents who still have questions about the upcoming Wareing Road paving project hijacked the selectman's meeting Monday night by peppering the board with questions ranging from the minutes to the intent of the project.

The disruptions started when Chairman Ruth Mooney made a motion to accept the minutes of the prior meeting, which is always the first action item on the agenda.

Before Jon Pike could say "second," former selectman candidate Kevin Sturgeon said he didn't feel the minutes accurately represented a question he asked about Wareing Road at the previous meeting and that he didn't get an answer.

Sturgeon said Tuesday he is running again in 2017. He said he only keeps bringing it up because he and his friends care so deeply.

Before Mooney could answer, former selectman Brian Watterson asked if the board was even able to alter minutes.

Town Administrator Jeanne Beaudin said that any statements made by members of the public during the meeting would be reflected in the minutes for the meeting at hand.

"Even if they're inaccurate?" asked Watterson.

Mooney said the minutes were accurate and said any comments made by Sturgeon and Watterson would be included in Monday's meeting.

The issue surrounding Wareing Road, in the eyes of Sturgeon, Watterson and a handful of their supporters are multi-fold. Sturgeon, in a letter to The Daily Sun Sun during election season, said that if the new owners of the sand pits previously owned by Parent Sand and Gravel, are willing to move their scales from Shaker Road to Wareing Road and use the improved road to haul directly to Route 106, he would like to see that in writing. In addition, he felt that doing $316,000 of road work on a dirt road, if it is to benefit one company, should be paid by the company and not the taxpayer.

Selectmen, and the majority of Belmont voters who approved the warrant article on Election Day, say their goal is to stop the heavy gravel trucks from going to Shaker Road, onto Main Street, and potentially destroying the village area roads that were rebuilt two years ago as part of the Village Restoration Project. Sturgeon agrees that everything possible should be done to preserve and keep heavy trucks from going through there.

A second issue is that the town is only reconstructing Wareing Road to the entrance for the gravel pit scales. Sturgeon believes the entire road down to South Road should be paved. He said it is two tenths of a mile.

Mooney, at times losing her temper with the constant interruptions of the meeting, said that, in her opinion, where the construction stops is irrelevant because South Road is also gravel.

"All I want to do is pave the last two tenths," Sturgeon replied.

"You're going to dirt anyway," said Pike, referring to South Road.

As the board began to get back to business, Sturgeon asked what the town was doing about finding a backup well. Returning once again to the issue of Wareing Road, Sturgeon said that if water is found on the Nutter property, which is on the other side of Wareing Road and abuts Route 106 to the south, he fears that the town would have to tear up a newly reconstructed Wareing Road to bring the water to Belmont.

Selectmen said they are testing a number of sites because of recommendations given to them in 2014, when a town resource study was performed. Mooney said not enough sites have been tested to determine where a well could be drilled and noted that wherever it is, could cost as much as $500,000 just to locate and drill the well. She noted that there has to be a 400-foot area wellhead protection area, which rules out most town-owned property.

Wareing Road is slated to be on the Belmont selectman's agenda on May 2 and Sturgeon is on the agenda. District 7 Sen. Andrew Hosmer is also scheduled to give a legislative update.

Meetings begin at 5 p.m. in the Corner Meeting House.