City Council

To be approved at 07-11-17 Barre City Council Meeting Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council Held July 5, 2017 The Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council was called to order by Mayor Thomas Lauzon at 7:00 PM at Barre City Hall. In attendance were: From Ward I, Councilor Sue Higby; from Ward II, Councilors Brandon Batham and Michael Boutin; and from Ward III, Councilor Lucas Herring. Also present were City Manager Steven Mackenzie and Clerk/Treasurer Carolyn Dawes. Absent: From Ward I, Councilor Jeffrey Tuper-Giles; and from Ward III, Councilor Anita Chadderton. Adjustments to the Agenda: NONE Approval of Consent Agenda: Council approved the following consent agenda items on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Herring. Motion carried.  Minutes of the following meetings: o Special meeting on June 27, 2017 o Regular meeting on June 27, 2017  City Warrants as presented: o Approval of Week 2017-27 (warrants were signed by Acting Mayor Herring on July 3rd):  Accounts Payable: $188,738.53  Payroll (gross): $119,558.55  2017 Licenses & Permits – NONE The City Clerk/Treasurer Report – Clerk Dawes reported on the following:  Tax bills will be finalized tomorrow and sent to the printer. They’ll be in the mail by July 15th.  Beginning to work on FY17 audit.  Prepping for VTRANS grant monitoring visit on July 13th. Approval of Building Permits – Council approved the following building permits on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Herring. Motion carried. Applicant Address David & Pamela Erickson 5 Murray Street James & Carrie Pontbriand 55 Palmisano Plaza Liquor Control – NONE City Manager’s Report – Manager Mackenzie reported on the following:  Public Works Director Bill Ahearn started today.  Continue design planning for renovations to the former police department portion of City Hall.  Pool repairs came in under the $35,000 budgeted amount. Total cost approximately $15,000.  Water main break yesterday evening on Nelson Street. Repairs were completed by this morning.  Minor flooding along Gunner’s Brook during heavy rain storms over the weekend. Manager Mackenzie showed photos of lower Gunner’s Brook where one of the trash racks is placed. Photos showed the effectiveness of the trash rack, and the removal of the Harrington Avenue bridge as a choke point. There was discussion on the water main break. Manager Mackenzie said people may be experiencing discolored water, as dirt was dislodged in the pipes during the break and repairs. The water is safe to drink and use. The Manager encouraged people to run their cold water taps for 5-10 minutes to help clear out the discolored water. The question was raised if water service customers will receive a rebate due to running water 1 To be approved at 07-11-17 Barre City Council Meeting to help clear the lines, and purchasing bottled water for drinking. Manager Mackenzie said there will be no rebates. There was discussion about how word of the water break was spread during the event, and creating a consistent message and distribution plan. Everyone thanked the DPW crews for their hard work in making the repairs. Visitors & Communications – NONE Old Business – NONE New Business – A) Council approval of FY18 Municipal Tax Rate and Local Agreement Rate. Clerk Dawes reviewed her memo and calculations on the FY18 municipal tax rate, and recommended the rate be set at $1.7781. Council approved setting the rate as recommended on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Herring. Motion carried. B) Approval of Resolution 2017-10: Corporate Authorization Resolution for Community Bank to Open TAN Investment Account. Council approved the resolution on motion of Councilor Herring, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried. C) Purchasing Licenses for City Councilor Emails. Councilor Boutin led the discussion on setting up barrecity.org email accounts for Councilors. There was discussion on the cost, ease of responding to public records requests, termination of email addresses once a Councilor leaves the Council, forwarding emails to the next person to hold the position, and ownership of the email address and contents of the email file. Councilor Boutin will continue his research. D) Award Smith Street Bike Path Construction Contract. Manager Mackenzie reviewed his memo, and recommended the contract be awarded to low bidder Don Weston Excavating, Inc. The Manager said the bid is under the projected cost, and past experiences with the company were positive. Council approved the contract award to Don Weston Excavating, Inc. on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Herring. Motion carried. Round Table – Councilor Higby reminded people to visit with Councilors at next Wednesday’s concert in Currier Park. Councilor Herring wished his mother and daughter happy birthday. Councilor Batham said Councilors will be at Espresso Bueno on July 22nd from 8:30 – 10 AM. Mayor Lauzon said Councilors will be touring the municipal swimming pool after this meeting adjourns. Executive Session – NONE The Council meeting adjourned at 7:57 PM on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried. An audio recording of this meeting is available from the City Clerk. Respectfully submitted, Carolyn S. Dawes, City Clerk 2