City Council

To be approved at 05-15-18 Barre City Council Meeting Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council Held May 8, 2018 The Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council was called to order by Mayor Lucas Herring at 7:00 PM at Barre City Hall. In attendance were: From Ward I, Councilors Sue Higby and Jeffrey Tuper-Giles; from Ward II, Councilors Brandon Batham and Michael Boutin; and from Ward III, Councilor Richard Morey. Also present was City Clerk/Treasurer Carol Dawes. Absent: From Ward III, Councilor John LePage; and City Manager Steven Mackenzie. Adjustments to the Agenda: NONE Approval of Consent Agenda: Council approved the following consent agenda items on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Batham. Motion carried.  Minutes of the following meetings: o Regular meeting of May 1, 2018  City Warrants as presented: o Approval of Week 2018-19:  Accounts Payable: $175,560.61  Payroll (gross): $128,799.80 o Community Development Warrant:  Payable to Granite City Grocery out of ACCD grant: $5,375.00  2018 Licenses & Permits – NONE The City Clerk/Treasurer Report – Clerk Dawes reported on the following:  Fourth quarter property taxes are due by May 15th.  Barre City charter changes bill H.925 passed the Senate on Friday, May 4th. The bill should be going to the Governor for his signature. Clerk Dawes said the Promise Grant, received by the Barre community to benefit children from birth to six years old, is in flux with the state. The recreation department has several camps and workshops ready to start registrations, however, they are on hold until the grant is squared away. The Clerk requested that the Council authorize use of Brusa Trust funds to fill the gap until the grant funds are available, so as to allow the recreation programs to proceed. Council gave unofficial approval, and will give formal approval at next week’s meeting. The Clerk distributed a memo on the responses to her RFP for the $1,150,000 note approved by the voters at the March 6th Annual Town Meeting. The Clerk said based on offered borrowing & investing interest rates, and the estimated timelines for use of the funds, it is her intention to move forward with the Vermont Municipal Bond Bank. Approval of Building Permits – Council approved the following building permits on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Higby. Motion carried. Applicant Address Nicholson Holdings Inc. 248 N. Main Street Gianni Badeau 38 Merchant Street Jennifer Hawkins 12 Bolster Avenue Liquor Control – NONE 1 To be approved at 05-15-18 Barre City Council Meeting City Manager’s Report – NONE Visitors and Communications – North Main Street resident Stanley Sabens II said when his family owned the Knoll Motel there were stormwater catch basins along the street. These basins have filled in over time, which allows water to run across the road. The water freezes and creates dangerous ice in the winter. Mr. Sabens said the drainage should be opened back up. He voiced support for the purchase of police cruisers on the agenda this evening, but said other departments have equipment needs, also. He said it’s best if the City can use local vendors instead of going out of state, as is proposed. Old Business – NONE New Business – A) Mayor Proclamation for Falun Dafa. Mayor Herring read the proclamation naming May 13, 2018 as Falun Dafa Day, and presented it to local falun dafa practitioner Te Chen. Ms. Chen said she’s been practicing falun dafa for more than 20 years, and encouraged others to give this meditative practice a try. B) Discussion/appointment of Deputy Mayor. Councilor Tuper-Giles made the motion to name the most senior Councilor in attendance or available to serve as acting Mayor when Mayor Herring is unavailable. The motion was seconded by Councilor Batham. Motion carried. C) Aldrich Library Grant application approval – Council approval to pursue a Vermont Community Development Program application for the renovation of the Children’s Library. Councilor Batham noted for the record that he serves as the Council liaison on the library board. He said his position does not create a conflict in discussion or action on this issue. Library executive director Sarah Costa reviewed the children’s room renovations project, and said the total cost is just over $300,000. Most of the funding has been received through private donations and grant funds. The library is requesting Council authorization to apply for a Community Development grant in the amount of $90,000 to complete fundraising. Council granted approval to apply for the grant on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Higby. Motion carried. D) Discussion/Approval of Developer Enterprise Fund Payments Beckley Hill – Fecteau Residential Inc. Department of Public Works director Bill Ahearn said Fecteau Residential is planning a housing development between Beckley Hill and Rudd Farm Drive, and there are concerns about the existing infrastructure, and its ability to support the development. There are three issues that need to be addressed: 1. Improvements need to be made to support the water allocation; 2. Replacement of piping to handle enhanced pressure to fire suppression systems; 3. Replacement of a private water line being maintained by the City. Mr. Ahearn said the City and Fecteau Residential have developed a proposal that would share the costs of the required upgrades, with Fecteau’s exposure being capped at a certain dollar amount. There was discussion on planning for future development, and the City’s responsibilities associated with private water lines that have come to be maintained by the City over time. Jim Fecteau of Fecteau Residential, and their developer Joe Wilson, said they are comfortable with the proposed projects and cost-sharing formulas. Mr. Fecteau said the development will create 88 housing units and connect Rudd Farm Drive with Beckley Hill. 2 To be approved at 05-15-18 Barre City Council Meeting Council approved the payment agreement as recommended by Mr. Ahearn on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Tuper-Giles. Motion carried. E) Authorize Police Dept. FY19 Cruiser Purchases. Mr. Ahearn said the City’s capital equipment plan is being consolidated under the public works department. He said the information on the cruisers was compiled and provided by the police department. The proposal calls for purchasing two cruisers – one new and one used – from an out of state vendor. There was discussion on using out of state or local vendors, warranty services being provided by the manufacturer, location of local dealers, and economy of in-house routine maintenance. Mr. Ahearn said the City went through a competitive bid process for the cruisers, and while the base new cruiser is less expensive from the local dealer, the final fit-up costs are less expensive from the out of state dealer. Council approved purchase of both cruisers as reported by Mr. Ahearn and recommended by Deputy Chief Larry Eastman on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Tuper-Giles. Motion carried. F) Approval of Memorial Day Parade. Clerk Dawes said the Barre Veterans’ Council requests authorization to hold the annual Memorial Day parade on Wednesday, May 30th, and use of the auditorium in case of inclement weather. They also request that flags be flown at half-mast that day. Council approved the parade on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Higby. Motion carried. G) Review and/or Approval of Proposed Fee Changes. Clerk Dawes reviewed the proposed change in the fine for an expired meter parking ticket, increasing from $7 to $8. The Clerk said the $7 fine has been in place for at least eight years. The Clerk asked Council to review all other fees, and this item will be on next week’s agenda for any additional discussion and/or approval. The intention is to have all new fees go into effect as of July 1st. Councilor Higby said she will work with the Parking Committee to look at increases to the parking permit fees. Round Table – Councilor Higby congratulated the artists who created the new Vermont Granite Museum entryway statue. She said she attended a wonderful Vermont Philharmonic Orchestra performance this past Sunday at the Opera House. Councilor Higby said with regards to recent comments about toxicity on Facebook, those who are making such comments should step up and join a committee or service club in support of the community. Councilor Morey said Green Up Day was a huge success, and reminded people of tomorrow evening’s neighborhood watch informational meeting at Alumni Hall at 6:00 PM. Councilor Tuper-Giles said last Saturday’s bike safety rodeo was fun, and people are commenting to him with praises for the early street sweeping this season. Councilor Boutin said he attended the Granite Museum’s kick-off this past weekend, and they have done a great job with that cultural facility. He said tomorrow is the last in the series of constitution discussions at the library. Mayor Herring made the following announcements:  The Vermont Granite Museum has become a community arts and cultural foundation.  The sharps forum on May 2nd had much valuable information about safe disposal of sharps.  Green Up Day was a huge success, with over 400 bags distributed in the Barre area. 3 To be approved at 05-15-18 Barre City Council Meeting  Bill Ahearn will be emptying the downtown cigarette “buttlers” the last Friday of each month.  There will be a free tree give-away on June 2nd. You can register for up to 2 trees on the Arbor Day website. The City will use any unclaimed trees. Executive Session – Councilor Batham made the motion to find that premature general public knowledge of a personnel issue to be discussed would clearly place the City of Barre at a substantial disadvantage should the discussion be public. The motion was seconded by Councilor Tuper-Giles. Motion carried. Council went into executive session at 8:23 PM to discuss a personnel issue under the provisions of 1 VSA sec. 313 on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Batham. Motion carried. Council came out of executive session at 8:35 PM on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Tuper-Giles. Motion carried. No action was taken. The Council meeting adjourned at 8:36 PM on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Tuper-Giles. Motion carried. An audio recording of this meeting is available from the City Clerk. Respectfully submitted, Carolyn S. Dawes, City Clerk 4