LEYDEN — The Selectboard discussed the return of town-owned equipment, regional policing and upcoming road construction during its meeting Monday.
Before a crowd of about 25 attendees at Town Hall, the board shared its plans to obtain and sell outstanding town equipment. Some of the equipment is held by Dan Galvis, the town’s emergency management director and former police chief who retired in October after the Selectboard reviewed racist content from emails he shared with town employees and officers between 2015 and 2016, an incident that Galvis says has misrepresented him.
According to Selectboard Chair Bill Glabach, the $1.5 million value ascribed to the total property inventory, some of which has been sold and is not in Galvis’ possession, is inaccurate and does not reflect the age or condition of the equipment. Other equipment, Glabach said, was “cannibalized” for spare parts.
Galvis, who was present at Monday’s meeting, said he sold one or two military cargo trailers and transferred others to other towns, though he could not name where.
“This has been going on for 20 years,” he said. “I don’t remember that far back.”
Galvis previously told the Greenfield Recorder he is in the process of returning the Humvees on his property and has some non-lethal weapons that are still in the packaging and never used. He also said he has at least seven generators, including some that can only be used for parts.
When reached by phone on Wednesday, Municipal Assistant Michele Giarusso said Galvis returned the non-lethal weapons at Monday’s meeting. She said the Humvees have not been returned.
When pressed by residents during the meeting, the board did not name the location of an uninsured 2019 trailer that has not been sold.
“Just because this stuff was free doesn’t mean it belongs to anyone except the town of Leyden,” Finance Committee Chair Ginger Robinson said. Leyden received the equipment through the Law Enforcement Support Office (LESO) Program, which transfers excess military equipment to non-military law enforcement agencies.
The board moved to sell returned items as surplus on Municibid, an online auction site for government agencies.
“Hopefully we can put that behind us,” Glabach said.
Public Safety Advisory Committee Chair Elizabeth Kidder’s update for the board included a discussion of a potential agreement with Bernardston for shared policing services.
Four regular officers and State Police currently cover Leyden. Interim regional policing would mean Leyden’s Police Station would become a substation for Bernardston. Leyden’s fleet of police cruisers would be turned over to Bernardston and auctioned off. The money from those sales would in turn support Bernardston’s maintenance of its current fleet.
“The state is looking favorably on any kind of consolidation,” Glabach commented.
The proposed agreement has not yet been signed by the two towns, according to Bernardston Selectboard Chair Robert Raymond.
The Public Safety Advisory Committee has also applied for an Efficiency and Regionalization grant that would allow the town to partner with the University of Massachusetts Boston’s Edward J. Collins Jr. Center for Public Management to conduct a public safety services feasibility study. The grant application was due Feb. 10 and the committee expects to hear back by early April.
Glabach and Kidder said they’re excited to work with Bernardston.
“We’re really going back to the original concept,” Glabach said, referring to the early 18th century “Fall Town,” which included Leyden, Bernardston and part of Colrain. “We can’t do it by ourselves.”
“We will have a police department,” Selectboard member Erica Jensen said. “I think that’s key.”
Highway Superintendent Bill Brooks spoke about planned projects to drain, widen and remove trees from parts of East Hill Road.
Each of the 22 trees set to be cut down will have a hearing, Brooks said, adding that he has already spoken to most residents whose trees are coming down. Two utility poles will be relocated to allow for drainage and to move the road 2 to 3 feet west.
While no paving will be done, about 2,000 yards of material will be used to stabilize and upgrade the existing road. No major elevation changes will be made.
“We didn’t think it’d be a good idea to pave any of it,” Glabach said.
Paving roads now would deplete the town’s Chapter 90 funds, which are used for equipment and other projects.
Funding for the East Hill Road project will come from a Small Town Rural Assistance Program (STRAP) grant from the MassWorks Infrastructure Program. Brooks said the work will be completed by summer 2023.
Glabach said whether the road repairs hold up without repaving will serve as a model for future projects.