OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Bedford Town Council Meeting - August 12, 2026

Town Council — Wednesday, August 12, 2026
BodyBedford, New Hampshire
SessionTown Council
DateWednesday, August 12, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:11:05

Transcript — Verbatim
0:10

I'll first introduce the town's administrative assistant, Don Buford.

0:13

The town manager, Rick Sawyer.

0:15

Good evening.

0:16

Counselor John Bader.

0:17

Good evening.

0:18

Councillor Becky Sowell.

0:19

Hey, Bedford.

0:20

Counselor Matt Sullivan.

0:22

Good evening.

0:22

Counselor Laura Fehey.

0:24

Good evening.

0:24

Counselor Michael Strand.

0:26

Hey, Bedford.

0:27

Vice Chair Gail LeVec.

0:28

Good evening, Bitcoin.

0:29

And I'm Phil Griazzo, the town chair.

0:31

Would you lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance?

0:34

Please.

0:45

One nation under God indivisible for liberty and justice for all.

0:55

Okay.

0:57

First on the agenda is public comments.

1:01

Town council welcome citizen comments for up to five minutes prior to the start of the agenda.

1:05

The chair may allow public input during agenda items.

1:08

Individuals desiring items on the council agenda may contact the town manager's office by 4:30 p.m.

1:14

on Thursday prior to the meeting.

1:16

Anyone with a mobile device is asked to put it on mute, and if it goes off during the meeting, that person is expected to leave.

1:25

And the council has the ability to waive its own rules.

1:27

Is there anybody in the public that would like to make a comment?

1:33

Mr.

1:34

Snyder, please come on up.

1:37

Good evening, uh, Mr.

1:38

Chairman and uh members of council.

1:40

I'm Mark Snyder, and uh I'm uh one of the members of the board of directors of the Joppa Hill Educational Farm.

1:48

And I want to bring you some flowers that we've grown on the farm.

1:52

Uh I figured maybe you could uh liven up your meeting this evening, and uh and then tomorrow it can be taken take it to uh uh town offices and share it with the town employees.

2:04

Um I just want to tell you that it's been a very good summer at uh at the the Joppa Hill farm uh so far.

2:10

Uh just a couple of things to share with you.

2:12

Um we've had a lot of people there this summer.

2:15

Every day we've got uh what we call uh barnyard discovery and story time.

2:20

We've had no less than 20 families there every day.

2:23

The parking lot's been full.

2:24

So we're getting uh real really good penetration into the community.

2:28

People are loving it, they're loving to see the new pigs, the goats.

2:31

Uh I said this morning the the bunnies are a big uh a big hit.

2:35

So uh it's it's doing well.

2:37

Um we had 20 people attend gardening classes uh this summer, which was a good turnout.

2:43

Uh we have so we have subscriptions, so you can sign up uh for one of these every week.

2:50

Uh and uh we've had 12 people participating in that.

2:54

There's still four capacity for that.

2:56

My wife is one of them.

2:57

She loves getting these flowers every week, and it's uh it's a good deal.

3:00

It's like about a hundred dollars for the whole month.

3:02

So you know, you get four or five depending on the month, uh bouquets each week.

3:07

Uh or uh over the month.

3:08

And then um we've really done well at camp this summer.

3:11

We've had three hundred and fifty uh individuals participating in the camp program.

3:16

Uh you know, 50 50 every week.

3:19

It's been wonderful.

3:20

Uh and of that, 17 of them were uh scholarships provided through the uh Agnes Lindsay Foundation.

3:26

So things are going really well at the at the camp this summer and uh at the farm this summer.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning And Land Use███████████████████████████████31%
Fiscal Sustainability████████████████████20%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████████17%
Procedural████████████12%
Public Safety█████████9%
Pending Litigation█████5%
Public Engagement███3%
Arts And Culture█1%
Transportation Safety█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Bedford Town Council Meeting - August 12, 2026

The Bedford Town Council met on August 12, 2026, to address a range of items including public comments, recognition of the police department's accreditation, several public hearings, a financial report, and a lot restoration request. The meeting also included the town manager's report with updates on revaluation, community events, and drought conditions.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Mark Snyder, a member of the Joppa Hill Educational Farm board of directors, provided an update on the farm's summer activities. He reported that barnyard discovery and story time attracted at least 20 families daily, 20 people attended gardening classes, and 350 individuals participated in the camp program, with 17 scholarships provided by the Agnes Lindsay Foundation. He presented the council with flowers grown on the farm.

Recognition of Police Department Accreditation

  • Chief DeWitty and Deputy Chief Moyham announced that the Bedford Police Department achieved accreditation through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) after eight years of work. The certification was formally approved on July 24, 2026, at the summer CALEA conference in Omaha, Nebraska. The chief thanked the accreditation manager Claire Doyle, her assistant Monique Polakis, and all department staff for their efforts.

Public Hearings

  • Highway Safety Grant: The council opened a public hearing to accept a New Hampshire Department of Safety grant totaling $18,145 for highway traffic enforcement, including impaired driving, speed, and distracted driving enforcement, plus replacement of four radar units with 75% state reimbursement. No public comments were made. The council voted unanimously to accept the grant and authorize the town manager and police chief to execute documentation.
  • Indian Rock Road Acceptance: Director of Public Works Brian DeFosis presented the recommendation to accept Indian Rock Road (4,722 linear feet, 0.894 miles) as a Class 5 public way, constructed as part of the Governor's View and Preserve at West Bedford developments. The road has 39 lots, 95% built out, with a bridge rated NBIS 8 (very good condition). A $2,000 pavement crack sealing contribution was provided by the developer for minor defects. The stormwater maintenance contribution of $169,396.18 was received in December 2025. Two items remain: receipt of warranty deed and final as-built plans. Councillors asked about the bridge inspection, pavement lifespan (30 years expected), and accountability measures. DPW recommended tabling final acceptance to September 9, 2026. The council voted to table the action.
  • Technical Rescue Equipment Donation: Deputy Chief introduced Tom Green, President of the Bedford Firefighters Association, which donated technical rescue equipment (rope rescue hardware) to replace outdated gear. The association funds such equipment through fundraising. No public comments. The council voted unanimously to accept the donation.
  • CPR Training Equipment Donation: Deputy Chief and Tom Green presented a donation of CPR mannequins from the Bedford Lions Club ($1,985.95). The equipment will be used for department and community training. No public comments. The council voted unanimously to accept the donation.

Presentation of Annual Comprehensive Financial Report

  • Finance Director Matt Manino presented the 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR). Key highlights: the town received a Moody's AAA bond rating, the only municipality in New Hampshire with this top rating. Net position increased to $105 million, with 84% ($89 million) in net investment in capital assets. Unassigned fund balance at year-end 2025 was 13.67% of appropriations, within the policy range of 8–17%. The general fund fund balance increased by $3.4 million to $30.8 million, driven by increases in capital reserves and current use revenues. The town plans to use $1.25 million from unassigned fund balance for the 2026 budget to offset the tax rate. Councillors asked about audit procedures, asset valuation, and fund balance sustainability. The town manager expressed comfort with the current fund balance level.

Discussion Items

  • Request to Restore Involuntarily Merged Lots at 2 Hall Street: Planning Director Becky Hebert presented a request from property owner Ramazan Gench to restore seven lots (lots 194–200) that were administratively merged for tax purposes. Staff recommended a partial restoration of lots 194–197 as one parcel and 198–200 as another, due to a building straddling the line between lots 196 and 197—an overt action that legally merged those lots under state law. The applicant requested full restoration of all seven lots as originally deeded. The applicant argued that the deeds still show separate parcels and that no voluntary merger occurred. Councillors discussed the legal precedent and the applicant's options (subdivision or lot line adjustment with variances). After a brief recess, the applicant requested additional time to decide. The council voted to table the matter to the September 9, 2026 meeting.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved acceptance of the NH Highway Safety Grant ($18,145).
  • Tabled acceptance of Indian Rock Road to September 9, 2026, pending final documentation.
  • Approved acceptance of technical rescue equipment donation from Bedford Firefighters Association.
  • Approved acceptance of CPR training equipment donation from Bedford Lions Club.
  • Tabled action on the lot restoration request at 2 Hall Street to September 9, 2026.
  • Approved minutes of the July 15, 2026 meeting (with two abstentions).
  • The council entered non-public session under RSA 91-A:3, II(d) for consideration of acquisition of real or personal property.

Meeting Transcript

I'll first introduce the town's administrative assistant, Don Buford. The town manager, Rick Sawyer. Good evening. Counselor John Bader. Good evening. Councillor Becky Sowell. Hey, Bedford. Counselor Matt Sullivan. Good evening. Counselor Laura Fehey. Good evening. Counselor Michael Strand. Hey, Bedford. Vice Chair Gail LeVec. Good evening, Bitcoin. And I'm Phil Griazzo, the town chair. Would you lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance? Please. One nation under God indivisible for liberty and justice for all. Okay. First on the agenda is public comments. Town council welcome citizen comments for up to five minutes prior to the start of the agenda. The chair may allow public input during agenda items. Individuals desiring items on the council agenda may contact the town manager's office by 4:30 p.m. on Thursday prior to the meeting. Anyone with a mobile device is asked to put it on mute, and if it goes off during the meeting, that person is expected to leave. And the council has the ability to waive its own rules. Is there anybody in the public that would like to make a comment? Mr. Snyder, please come on up. Good evening, uh, Mr. Chairman and uh members of council. I'm Mark Snyder, and uh I'm uh one of the members of the board of directors of the Joppa Hill Educational Farm. And I want to bring you some flowers that we've grown on the farm. Uh I figured maybe you could uh liven up your meeting this evening, and uh and then tomorrow it can be taken take it to uh uh town offices and share it with the town employees. Um I just want to tell you that it's been a very good summer at uh at the the Joppa Hill farm uh so far. Uh just a couple of things to share with you. Um we've had a lot of people there this summer. Every day we've got uh what we call uh barnyard discovery and story time. We've had no less than 20 families there every day. The parking lot's been full. So we're getting uh real really good penetration into the community. People are loving it, they're loving to see the new pigs, the goats. Uh I said this morning the the bunnies are a big uh a big hit. So uh it's it's doing well. Um we had 20 people attend gardening classes uh this summer, which was a good turnout. Uh we have so we have subscriptions, so you can sign up uh for one of these every week. Uh and uh we've had 12 people participating in that. There's still four capacity for that. My wife is one of them.

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