Steve Baert

The Commission meeting included extensive discussion regarding staffing shortages at the mountain, leading to temporary closures, and subsequent plans to hire additional lift operators and request community assistance. Operational updates covered the resolution of issues with well number 2. Key agenda items involved reviewing cybersecurity training options for residents and leadership. Further discussions focused on the 2026 Budget, including the Budget Advisory Committee's opinion, ongoing work on the Recreation Fund budget, and the importance of community buy-in for metering discussions. The Commission also addressed ongoing negotiations with the WEA Board regarding the RMA, which could impact projected revenue. Appointments were made for alternates to the Planning Board and Budget Advisory Committee. Finally, the Commission selected GoTo as the remote meeting attendance vendor after discussion.

The meeting addressed several significant topics, including a discussion and suggested revisions for a letter to residents concerning residential water meters, which included referencing recommendations from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services and Verdantas. Staff updates noted no road plan progress due to winter conditions, an upcoming meeting regarding driveway construction impacting a trail, and confirmation that well levels dropped slightly but the system remains stable. Furthermore, progress on a second storage tank on Pegwood is pending vendor quotes for replumbing at Liberty Lane. Public comments focused extensively on residential water meters, discussing customer perception, the perceived ambiguity of a previous warrant article regarding meters, and the need for public education regarding benefits like quicker leak identification and improved operating costs.

The agenda for the WEVD Commission meeting included standard items such as the Pledge of Allegiance, Roll Call, and the Adoption of the Agenda. Key discussion topics involved a Request for Commission Action (RCA) for a public apology, committee and board reports (Planning, Water & Roads, Budget Advisory, Records & Retention, CIP), and general calendar items. General calendar items focused on the RMA negotiations, the 2026 Draft Budget, scheduling a bond hearing for snow plow financing (over $100k), website migration, migrating emails from Gmail to Outlook, and appointing D. Rose as an alternate to the Water & Roads Committee. The document also references discussions from the previous February 4, 2026 meeting, specifically concerning staffing challenges at Campton Mountain, security initiatives, water/roads department activities, and cybersecurity training options.

Key discussions included an operational issue in the Water Department on January 20, 2026, where both Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) for the wells failed, potentially due to a power surge, requiring conservation requests while a replacement VFD was expedited. Food & Beverage sales for the MLK weekend showed significant growth, nearly tripling year-over-year, leading to an overall 202% increase in lodge revenue. The commission approved an amendment to the MLK Weekend sales report headers. Buildings & Grounds efforts focused on snowmaking and maintaining facilities during high traffic. The commission addressed rumors regarding doctored photos concerning snowmaking power shut-off, which was treated as vandalism, and confirmed the investigation's findings. Discussions occurred regarding the CIP handbook and the Planning Board's role, Budget Advisory Committee report review, and the approaching deadline for the Pegwood Fence plan. The commission voted to authorize an expenditure of up to $3,950 for the Laserfiche records management service with RICOH, after noting an initial omission in the scope of work. Finally, the commission voted to adopt the Zoom webinar option for remote participation and approved revised Commissioner Meeting Procedures, deferring a decision on the proposed Employee Handbook changes regarding Personal Time Off (PTO) policy reorganization.

The Water Master Plan update discussed warrant articles for replumbing Liberty Lane and additional storage tank at Pegwood, noting potential bonding issues and the continued need for an aeration tank due to radon presence. The Roads Master Plan update indicated road borings would be completed by the end of March, with a report ready by the end of May. A significant water system issue involved a variable frequency drive (VFD) failure over a holiday weekend, resulting in the ordering of a replacement VFD and a second preventative replacement due to the age of the equipment; this prompted a discussion on revisiting the Water Improvement Plan for asset replacement scheduling. Road maintenance quality was praised, although the recent storm strained resources. Supply levels of sand and salt were confirmed to be sufficient, and a warrant article is drafted for replacing a repeatedly broken truck. In other business, clarification is being sought on the necessity of the aeration tank, test wells are being dug, and a broken 2016 truck is being repaired. Discussion on water metering highlighted past public resistance and suggestions for a phased installation approach, with a volunteer to craft a public outreach statement for the next meeting. The committee noted the system successfully ran on one well all week.