City Council

To be approved at 10-09-18 Barre City Council Meeting Special Meeting of the Barre City Council Held October 2, 2018 The Special Meeting of the Barre City Council was called to order by Mayor Lucas Herring at 6:00 PM at the Police Department in the Barre Public Safety Building, Barre, Vermont. In attendance were: From Ward I, Councilors Sue Higby and Jeffrey Tuper-Giles; from Ward II, Councilor Michael Boutin; and from Ward III, Councilors John LePage and Rich Morey. Also present were City Manager Steve Mackenzie, Fire Chief Tim Bombardier and Deputy Fire Chief Larry Eastman. Absent: From Ward I, Councilor Brandon Batham. Chief Bombardier and Deputy Chief Eastman gave a tour of the police and dispatch side of the Public Safety Building. The special meeting adjourned at 6:45 PM. There is no recording of the meeting. Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council Held October 2, 2018 The Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council was called to order by Mayor Lucas Herring at 7:05 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, Councilors John LePage and Richard Morey. Also present were City Manager Steve Mackenzie and City Clerk/Treasurer Carol Dawes. Absent: NONE Adjustments to the Agenda: The Hope Cemetery monument cleaning agenda item is deferred to next week. Other agenda items will be rearranged to accommodate those in attendance. 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 Special meeting of September 25, 2018 o Regular meeting of September 25, 2018  City Warrants as presented: o Approval of Week 2018-40:  Accounts Payable: $279,929.87  Payroll (gross): $126,397.46  2018 Licenses & Permits – o Taxi Driver’s License:  Louis Whittier, Green Cab The City Clerk/Treasurer Report – Clerk/Treasurer Carol Dawes reported on the following:  Early voting is available for the November 6th General Election. We’ve mailed out more than 250 to those who have requested early absentee ballots to date.  The Board of Civil Authority continues property tax assessment appeal hearings on Thursday, October 11th at 6:00 PM in the Council Chambers.  The Board of Abatement will hold hearings before the Council meeting on Tuesday, October 16th. 1 To be approved at 10-09-18 Barre City Council Meeting  Local options taxes went into effect yesterday. Approval of Building Permits – Council approved the following building permits on motion of Councilor Boutin, seconded by Councilor Higby. Motion carried. Applicant Address Kenneth Benjamin & Isabella DeJesus 17 Cabot Street Therese Taylor 45 Granite Street Liquor Control – NONE City Manager’s Report – Manager Mackenzie reported on the following:  Water line flushing begins tonight and runs for the next two weeks.  The City is expecting to receive two responses to its RFP for general, liability and workers compensation insurance services. Responses are due by the end of the week.  Completed interviews of Finance Director candidates yesterday. Expect to have an offer out by next week.  The fall yard waste drop off schedule runs October 13 – 28. Visitors and Communications – NONE Old Business – A) Status Review of Capital Projects. There was a brief discussion on the timeline of the municipal pool refurbishment project. Additional discussion is deferred to next week. New Business – A) Public Hearing – Warned for 7:15 PM: 2nd Hearing for Proposed Charter Changes to be voted November 6. Mayor Herring opened the public hearing at 7:18 PM and invited questions and comments from the Council and those in attendance. Hearing none, the Mayor closed the public hearing at 7:19 PM. B) Approve Warrant for November 6, Local Election. Clerk Dawes said the agenda item should read “approve warning” instead of “approve warrant.” The Clerk reviewed the processes associated with charter changes. Council approved the warning for the November 6th local election for charter changes on motion of Councilor Batham, seconded by Councilor Higby. C) Update on Hope Cemetery Monument Cleaning Program. This item is deferred until next week. D) Overview of Police Department Operations. Police Chief Tim Bombardier said 19 of the 20 positions in the department are filled. There are 6 full- time and 2 part-time dispatchers, 6 part-time officers, and a part-time detective assigned to the state’s attorney’s office. The Chief said departments statewide are having difficulties filling positions. There was discussion on the hiring process, domestic violence calls, internships through Norwich University, arrest and conviction statistics, neighborhood watch groups, rising overdoses and how they are handled, the City’s community outreach specialist, effects from legal marijuana, rising calls for service, mandated fair and impartial police training, and school resource officers. 2 To be approved at 10-09-18 Barre City Council Meeting Chief Bombardier said there will be a public safety forum at the Elks Club on October 8th, and a bike ride/BBQ/classic car show at Wilkin’s Harley Davidson on October 13th as a fundraiser for a police dog. E) Board of Civil Authority Duties. Clerk Dawes reviewed the make-up and duties of the Board of Civil Authority and Board of Abatement, and noted Councilors are members of each board. F) Proclamation Naming November 1st as Extra Mile Day. Mayor Herring read the proclamation. Clerk Dawes said the people listed in the proclamation are this year’s Joint Service Club community service honorees, who will be honored at the annual dinner on October 10th. Old Business – continued B) Continue Discussion of Council FY20 Budget Goals & Objectives. There was discussion on capping the tax rate increase at 2%, and offering a consistent level of support to the Aldrich Library. There was discussion on the Central Vermont Public Safety Authority. Manager Mackenzie said they are scheduled to present a progress report at next week’s meeting, and there will be a joint Barre City/Montpelier City Councils meeting on November 14th. C) Review of Council Decorum and Ground Rules. Mayor Herring reviewed the ground rules and rules of procedures previously adopted by the Council. It was noted the rules of procedure are to be re-adopted annually, and that hasn’t happened. There was discussion on possible revisions to the rules of procedures to reflect current practice with regards to acting mayor, and allotting times for agenda items. The policy ad hoc committee will review the rules of procedure and bring proposed revisions back for discussion and adoptions. The Manager will work with the Mayor with regards to allotment of times for agenda items. Mayor Herring said he sent around information from the Secretary of State’s office and Vermont League of Cities and Towns with regards to use of cellphones and texting during Council meetings. The Mayor also said Councilors should be careful about group messages, which may violate the open meeting laws. Round Table – Councilor Higby said the recent Kavanaugh SCOTUS hearings may cause stress and PTSD in people who have been sexually assaulted, and she encouraged anyone experiencing such to contact Washington County Mental Health. She said October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Councilor Morey encouraged people to attend this weekend’s Rocktoberfest at the VT Granite Museum. Councilor Tuper-Giles said Central VT Council of Aging is starting a Memorable Times Café at the Vermont History Center on October 17th, and the 3rd Wednesdays thereafter. He encouraged all to help those affected by domestic violence. Councilor Boutin said last week’s candidates’ forum went well, and noted that the candidates are our neighbors and deserve our respect. Councilor LePage said everyone deserves self-worth, self-esteem and self-love, and we can all be our own best advocates. He said as we near the elections we should disallow generalities and demand specifics. 3 To be approved at 10-09-18 Barre City Council Meeting Councilor Batham distributed a handout about the November 6th school Act 46 vote, and encouraged people to support the merger. Mayor Herring said tonight was the final facility tour and department overview, and noted they have been valuable in understanding the City’s operations. In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month he noted he had a benign lump removed when he was a teenager, and encouraged men and women to be tested. He said he is wearing purple this evening in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The Mayor reminded of the public safety forum at the Elks Club October 8th, and the Joint Service Club community service dinner at the Canadian Club on October 10th. He said he toured the self-powered rail cars in Barre Town, and will arrange for a Council tour in the near future. There will be an opportunity zone forum at the Blanchard Block on November 8th. The time is still to be determined. The Barre Partnership has asked the Council to judge the holiday windows, so Councilors will need to come to the October 30th meeting prepared to cast their votes. There will be no meeting on Tuesday, November 6th, due to the general election. The meeting will either be rescheduled to Monday, November 5th, or canceled, depending on pending agenda items. There will be no meetings on Tuesday, December 25th, and Tuesday, January 1st, however there may be a make-up meeting on Wednesday, January 2nd. Executive Session – NONE The Council meeting adjourned at 9:23 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 4