Selectchair, residents spar over Indian Lake Dr. curbcut

Lebanon Selectmen Chair Chip Harlow, left, and resident Alex Cavallaro face off during Thursday's stormy selectmen's meeting. (You Tube image)

LEBANON - Selectmen Chair Chip Harlow and an Indian Lake Drive resident sparred on Thursday over a curbcut he made to run electricity under the road to his home.

Alex Cavallaro, a general contractor, said he conferred with the town's Code Enforcement Officer and Road Commissioner, who said the town had no ordinance regarding curbcuts, which Cavallaro took as tacit permission to do the work, he said today.

Cavallaro said he pulled permits a year ago and last month sought the input from CEO Mike Beaulieu and Road Commissioner Tom Torno.

"They said there were no ordinances," he said. "And they were there when I did it, and they didn't tell me to stop," Cavallaro said.

He said he did the job about three weeks ago, and that he had permission from the state DOT, CMP and Digsafe.

Earlier in the meeting Harlow told the board he was working on drafting a "curbcut policy" and would be submitting it for legal review before seeking the public's input at a Town Hearing.

He said that Cavallaro would be issued a permit after the fact.

Before Cavallaro arrived his wife, Summer, told the board, "You need an ordinance to support (your policy on curbcuts)."

"We don't need an ordinance, we have a policy," Harlow replied. "By legal we don't need an ordinance."

"What policy is that," Summer Cavallaro retorted.

"We're drafting one right now," Harlow said.

Alex Cavallaro then entered the meeting upon which Harlow told him, "We have been told they (Beaulieu and Torno) did not give you permission," which began a furious back and forth between the two.

Harlow stated that both Beaulieu and Torno had said during a department head meeting on June 13 that they had not given permission for the curbcut, a fact Cavallaro vehemently denied last night and today.

"I've never been fined or gotten a reprimand for not pulling the proper permits," he said. "I asked Mike and Tom and they said there was no ordinance. And they were there when I was putting it in and they didn't say stop or I would've."

He further said that the road hasn't been paved for 40 years and it's going to be paved next month. For now Cavallaro said he put gravel down over the trench.

Torno expects the paving to begin in late August.

Cavallaro said during the meeting on Thursday that he doesn't mind paying some kind of administrative fee or something like that but not a fine.

"I'm not gonna agree that I did something wrong cause I didn't," he said.

Cavallaro said during the meeting and again today he thinks Harlow has a "vendetta" against him.

"The first time I spoke with him about this he said, "Rip it up,'" Cavallaro said.

Harlow said during the meeting he had no vendetta against Cavallaro.