LIVERMORE — The Livermore Select Board voted to use $150,000 from the town’s undesignated surplus to minimize a potential tax increase, while also addressing ongoing concerns about road repairs during the Sept. 3 meeting.

Chair Mark Chretien explained that without any funds from the undesignated reserve, taxes would increase by 1.5%. By using $150,000, the increase will be reduced to 0.085%.

Selectperson Scott Richmond made a motion to approve the use of $150,000 from the reserve, which passed with one opposition from Selectperson Brett Deyling. The town’s tax rate is set at $17.10 per $1,000 valuation.

The tax due dates are Nov. 15 and April 15, 2025, with a commitment date of Aug. 27 2024.

In other business, a resident asked how the town determines which roads are resurfaced. Chretien explained that the road committee surveys all roads and selects the ones most prone to washouts. “We choose the worst roads,” he said, emphasizing the need to address the most urgent repairs.

The resident responded, “Hopefully the list of roads gets smaller and smaller until you don’t have any worst roads left, right?”

Deyling noted that road conditions often deteriorate after repairs. “The roads that we had deemed the worst get done, but by the time we get back around to them again, they are the worst roads again,” he said, acknowledging the ongoing cycle of road degradation.

“We are trying to fix what is bad and maintain what we have already done.,” Richmond explained. He said it costs almost $500,000 to do a complete rebuild on roads.

When asked about the cost of repairs to Waters Hill Road, Chretien estimated it at $585,000, but Richmond believed the total was closer to $700,000.

The discussion shifted to concerns about Round Pond Road, which residents said had been partially repaired 17 years ago, leaving the lower half untouched until a recent patch job. One resident expressed frustration, saying, “We are wondering if we are going to be on the list. I’d like to see it paved once in my lifetime, we’ve been there for 30 years.”

Richmond assured residents that their concerns would be reviewed at the next road committee meeting.

Chretien added that River Road, the town’s longest road at 9 miles, still has 6 miles left to be repaired.

“I will probably not live long enough to see River Road done,” Richmond remarked, underscoring the long-term nature of Livermore’s roadwork challenges.

Richmond also mentioned that he wasn’t on the board when Round Pond Road was only partially repaired 17 years ago. The residents pointed out that the remaining section of Round Pond Road in need of repair is about 3/10 of a mile long.

A resident voiced frustration over the perceived lack of return on their tax dollars, noting they had paid approximately $70,000 to the town over 27 years with little to show for it. They highlighted the absence of a police department, reliance on a volunteer fire department, and the burden of funding education for other residents’ children.

In response, Richmond noted that about 65% of the town’s taxes go toward the school department. He assured the residents that road conditions, especially those like Round Pond Road, would remain a priority.