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The Seabrook Water Restriction Ordinance

I have attached the Seabrook Water Restriction ordinance passed by the Board of Selectmen on July 7, 2016. (The text is also below)

The ordinance was necessitated by severe drought conditions, as well as by a winter that did not fully replenish our well system. If you have any questions or concerns please call the Seabrook Water Department at 603-474-9921 or the Town Managers office at 603-474-3252.

This post has been amended on Monday July 11, 2016, as the Board of Selectmen, in Special Session, further amended the water restriction ordinance by allowing the full watering of gardens on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, between the hours of 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. The Board also specifically excluded the non-commercial washing of cars. Those changes are reflected below.

Emergency Water Ban Ordinance

Notice is hereby given that the Seabrook Board of Selectmen, in their capacity as the Board of Water Commissioners, intends to formally adopt the following emergency ordinance regulating the excessive use of water at its meeting on July 7,2016 pursuant to the powers granted in Seabrook’s Municipal Water System Ordinance (the “Ordinance”), the Seabrook Home Rule Charter and the Revised Statutes of the State of New Hampshire, as amended:

WHEREAS, there exists in the Town of Seabrook (the “Town”) drought conditions which have created a critical situation for the water systems ability to meet peak summer demand; and

WHEREAS, an adequate supply of water is necessary for the public health and safety; and

WHEREAS, the Town’s Board of Water Commissioners are charged with promoting the implementation of prudent and effective water conservation measures, protecting the health and safety of consumers, protecting the Town’s source waters and safeguarding the public water supply; and

WHEREAS, under the current drought conditions, restrictions on the use of Town water for secondary purposes are necessary to protect the public health, safety and welfare;

THEREFORE, be it enacted pursuant to Section 6:5 of the Ordinance “Curtailment of Use”:

PROHIBITION OF THE EXCESSIVE USE OF WATER

1. The use of Town water in excess of current uses and amounts by persons, firms, or corporations is hereby prohibited, and the use of Town water outside of the primary domicile or place of business other than for drinking, cooking, and hygienic reasons is prohibited. Specifically prohibited is the filling of swimming or wading pools, the non-commercial washing of cars, the watering of lawns, trees, shrubbery, or gardens (except gardens operated for commercial purposes) and the utilization of irrigation systems in that use. The ordinance allows, as an exception, the use of “water buckets” only to provide water for non-commercial gardens, except on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, when normal watering will be allowed (for vegetable gardens only) between the hours of 7:30 p.m. through 8:30 p.m. Exception is also made for water used in the maintenance of livestock.
2. Upon notification of a violation of this ordinance the Seabrook Water Department shall have the authority to investigate the alleged violation and reserves the authority to terminate water service, pursuant to Sections 6.7 and 6.8 of the Ordinance, in the event that a violation is found to have occurred. Said water supply will remain turned off until the Water Department or Board of Water Commissioners are satisfied that the violation will not continue or recur.
3. The Board of Water Commissioners reserves the right to pursue additional legal action against violators of this ordinance to include injunctive relief, a cease and desist order, civil penalties, and criminal prosecution pursuant to Sections 12.10 – 12.12 of the Ordinance, where it is deemed appropriate.
4. There shall be, in addition to any other penalties provided by law a fine of One Hundred Dollars ($100) for each separate violation of this ordinance.
5. This ordinance shall be effective until October 1, 2016 or as may be determined by the Board of Water Commissioners in consultation with the Water Superintendent.
6. If any provisions of this ordinance or any portion of such provision or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance and the remainder of such provision and the application thereof to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby.


Seabrook Recreation Department Volunteer Policy

The Seabrook Board of Selectmen have adopted a policy governing how our Recreation Department will conduct background checks for those volunteering at the Recreation Department. This policy was written using national recreational best practices by Director Katie Duffey. It is important to have written policies that are clearly understandable and fairly administered. If you have any questions or concerns on this policy please contact the Office of the Town Manager, or our Recreation Director Katie Duffey.

Background Check policy 2016 Adopted


Senator Jeanne Shaheen Visits Seabrook

It was wonderful to have Senator Jeanne Shaheen visit Seabrook and talk about federal transportation funding, and how that funding impacts local projects, specifically the very critical Route 1 widening scheduled for next year. As always the Town of Seabrook recognizes and truly appreciates the work of the Rockingham County Planning Commission as well as the New Hampshire D.O.T. Both have been truly great partners for the Town on this project, and many others. We truly appreciate Senator Shaheen taking the time to visit, and for all of the federal assistance she has brought to Seabrook. The video of her remarks is attached.

ShaheenVisit


Periscope Interview with Water Superintendent Curtis Slayton

At the June 15th Board of Selectmen meeting Water Superintendent Curtis Slayton talked about the need for some voluntary water conservation by Seabrook residents. With two wells down for maintenance and with extremely dry weather our water system, on an 18 hour pump cycle, is bumping into its capacity.We used Periscope to do a live stream with Superintendent Slayton on that subject. This is a replay of that interview.


Congrats to Captain Seth Coleman

Today we swore in Seth Coleman as a new Fire Captain in Seabrook. Congratulations to Seth. It was our second utilization of the new Periscope technology. That video is below.

Seth Coleman Sworn In!
Seth Coleman is Sworn in as Fire Captain


Our First “Periscope” With Chief Edwards

The Town of Seabrook this week utilized the brand new technology called “Periscope”, which is a live video feed sent out through the “Periscope” app, currently available only on IOS devices. While the technology is new and there are not a whole bunch of users just yet I can say that I see real potential for some positive utilization for Town government. The app will actually let you ask real time questions, which can be answered by the folks doing the video. I hope to be able to bring some interesting live feeds out with Periscope, and I hope that we are able to get a little bit of interaction with residents as well. For now we are taking the technology for a test drive. Our first effort was “Five Minutes With the Chief” with Fire Chief Bill Edwards. I have uploaded the video to You Tube, so that we are able to show what went out live over Periscope. If you have any ideas for what might be an interesting use of the technology please drop me a line.