City Council

To be approved at 06-18-19 Barre City Council Meeting Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council Held June 11, 2019 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 John Steinman and Jeffrey Tuper- Giles; from Ward II, Councilors Michael Boutin and Teddy Waszazak; and from Ward III, Councilors John LePage and Rich Morey. Also present were Manager Steve Mackenzie and Clerk/Treasurer Carol Dawes. Absent: NONE Adjustments to the Agenda: Manager Mackenzie asked for an executive session to discuss negotiations, contracts and personnel. Approval of Consent Agenda: Council approved the following consent agenda items on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried.  Minutes of the following meetings: o Regular meeting of May 28, 2019  City Warrants as presented: o Ratification of week 2019-23:  Accounts Payable: $206,348.48  Payroll (gross): $128,310.41 o Approval of Week 2019-24:  Accounts Payable: $139,751.65  Payroll (gross): $133,421.39 o 2019 Licenses:  Animal Licenses:  Kerri Fredette, 8 Downes Avenue, 9 poultry  Allison Bresett, 20 Waterman Street, 7 chickens  John Santorello, 176 Elm Street, 3 pounds honey bees  Dan Smith, 23 Spring Street, 5 chickens  Michelle Carter, 44 Newton Street, 7 poultry  Anthony Slowik, 30 Maplewood Avenue, 5 chickens  Food Establishment Licenses:  The Snack Shack, 515 N. Main Street (seasonal) The City Clerk/Treasurer Report –  Water & sewer bills were mailed out June 1st, and are due by July 1st.  Property assessment grievance hearings are underway. The grand list is expected to be lodged around July 1st. Tax bills are scheduled to be created on July 8th. Council will need to hold a special meeting the first week of July to set the tax rate. Approval of Building Permits – Council approved the following building permits on motion of Councilor LePage, seconded by Councilor Steinman. Motion carried. Applicant Address Evared & Deborah Shedd 1 Blodgett Avenue Richard Freeman 4 Glenwood Avenue Marie Drury 1 Summer Street Metro Development LLC 322 N. Main Street 1 To be approved at 06-18-19 Barre City Council Meeting Warren & Nancy Wolfe 4 Park Street Venus Allen Dean 166 Fairview Street Dana & Brenda Maxfield 45 Merchant Street Liquor Control – Council approved an outside consumption permit application for Reynolds House, 102 S. Main Street, on motion of Councilor Morey, seconded by Councilor Steinman. Motion carried with Councilors Boutin and Tuper-Giles abstaining. City Manager’s Report – Manager Mackenzie reported on the following:  FY19 projected general fund deficit is approximately $224,000.  Sink hole on lower Prospect Street has been repaired.  The City rejected all bids submitted for the BOR alarm system. The RFQ has been clarified and sent to all those who submitted proposals.  The Pouliot Avenue storm water project has gone out to bid.  60% design development drawings for the municipal pool refurbishment project have been received.  The Rotary mural was installed on the Summer Street wall over the weekend.  Congressman Peter Welch will be in Barre for a short visit this Friday.  The Manager will be attending the first of three opportunity zones workshops next week.  VT Housing and Conservation Board will be holding its annual conference in Barre in October.  The Paths, Routes & Trails Committee is meeting tomorrow evening, followed by a meeting of the Traffic Advisory Committee.  The City is seeking volunteers for committee and board vacancies. Letters of interest will be reviewed at the June 18th meeting, and appointments will be made at the June 25th meeting. Visitors and Communications – Mayor Herring led the Council in a discussion on whether they should begin meetings with the Pledge of Allegiance. The consensus was not to add it to the agenda. Old Business – A) Ratification: Approval of Reynolds House Tax Stabilization Agreement. Council ratified their approval of the Reynolds House TSA from the May 28, 2019 meeting on motion of Councilor Steinman, seconded by Councilor Morey. Motion carried with Councilors Tuper-Giles and Waszazak abstaining. New Business – A) Central Vermont Medical Center Update. CVMC President and Chief Operating Officer Anna Noonan introduced other staff members attending the meeting with her: Dr. Mark Detman, Vice President Marc Gagnon, and Vice President Jim Alvarez. Ms. Noonan said CVMC’s goal is high quality care close to home. They are combining the Granite City Primary Care practice located in the Blanchard Block with Adult Primary Care located on South Main Street, and will be closing the Blanchard Block office in September. Many of the Granite City practice’s clients walk to the office, so CVMC is addressing issues of transportation to the new location. There was discussion on recruitment of new health care providers, partnerships with other local organizations such as Peoples Health & Wellness Clinic, and health care as a human right. B) #2019-03: 1st Reading Trash Ordinance – Composting. Mayor Herring opened the discussion for comments on the proposed ordinance revisions. There were a few small changes suggested, which were incorporated into the draft. 2 To be approved at 06-18-19 Barre City Council Meeting Council accepted the draft as amended and scheduled the 2nd reading and public hearing for the June 18th meeting on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Waszazak. Motion carried. C) Discussion on Suspension of J&D Taxi Service License. Chief Bombardier said there have been allegations of criminal activity associated with the vehicles and owner of J&D Taxi Service, which is licensed through the City of Barre. City ordinance allows the Council to consider suspension or revocation of licenses following a hearing, and the Chief recommended holding such a hearing. Council scheduled a special meeting for the hearing on Tuesday, June 18th, at 6:00 PM. Clerk Dawes will notify the business owner. Pending licenses associated with J&D Taxi vehicles and drivers will be held for action until after the hearing. D) Award of Annual Supply Bids. Public Works Director Bill Ahearn said his recommendation is to award contracts to the low bidders with the exception of the bidder for powdered activated carbon due to minimum order restrictions, and cationic polymer, as additional testing is necessary for the low bid product. Council approved acceptance of Mr. Ahearn’s recommendations on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Waszazak. Motion carried. E) Review of Tax Anticipation Note RFP Responses. Clerk Dawes distributed a matrix of TAN RFP responses, and said based on her review and calculations, she will be accepting the proposal from Community Bank. The TAN paperwork will come to the Council for approval at next week’s meeting. F) Clerk/Treasurer Annual Review; Set Compensation. Councilor Morey said after reviewing the compensation comparisons included in the Clerk’s annual review packet, he moves approval of a 3% salary increase, instead of the 2% being requested by the Clerk. The motion was seconded by Councilor LePage. Councilor Tuper-Giles offered an amendment to set the salary increase at 3.5%, seconded by Councilor Steinman. Motion carried on the amendment. Council then voted on the original motion as amended. Motion carried. The Clerk thanked the Council for their confidence in her performance. G) Approval of 2019 Bonds Documents. Clerk Dawes reviewed the three bonds included in the documents:  $900,000 for biosolids improvements at the wastewater treatment facility  $560,000 for a variety of general fund projects  $2,500,000 for water and wastewater projects The Clerk said all three bonds are included in the same bond documents, but will have individual payment schedules and timelines. Council approved the documents and authorized the Mayor to sign on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Steinman. Motion carried. H) Authorization to Award Keith Avenue/Pearl St Project Bid to DuBois Construction Co. Manager Mackenzie said this agenda item title is in error, as Council authorized the award at the May 28th meeting. The Manager said he met with DuBois Construction and together they were able to reduce the bid cost by $133,000 without affecting the quality of the project. The contract will be signed next Tuesday. 3 To be approved at 06-18-19 Barre City Council Meeting I) Discussion on Council FY20 Priority List Items. Mayor Herring led the Council through a review of the priority list. Some highlights include:  Use of the Wheelock House will be on next week’s agenda for discussion.  Bid package for sale of 5 Second Street will be ready by the end of the month.  Bid package for sale of other City-owned parcels will be ready by the end of July.  There will be a review of parking fees.  The municipal plan will come to Council in July for re-adoption. J) Discussion of Roosevelt Historic Plaque, and Statement of Support. Councilor Waszazak said he is seeking a Vermont historic plaque for City Hall Park to commemorate Teddy Roosevelt’s speech in the Park on August 31, 1912 while on his Bull Moose campaign for re- election as president. He read resolution #2019-03 in support of the plaque. Council approved the resolution on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by councilor Boutin. Motion carried. K) Follow up on Smoking and Skateboarding Signage. Manager Mackenzie said he believes the signs exist, and asked where they should be installed. Councilor Tuper-Giles suggested they be installed at all playgrounds, City Hall Park, and along N. Main Street. The Manager will work with Mr. Ahearn on installation in appropriate locations. Round Table – Councilors thanked the Barre Rotary Club, Paletteers, City staff, Vermont Granite Museum and others for the new mural installed on the Summer Street wall over the past weekend. Councilors also thanked those who attended last Tuesday’s ward meetings. Councilor Steinman said he would like to see the high school adopt a community service program that encourages student to assist people with disabilities and the elderly. Councilor Waszazak said last Saturday’s March for Medicaid was a wonderful event. He congratulated the Barre businesses chosen in this year’s Best of the Best awards, and Hadestown for winning eight Tony awards Sunday evening, including Best Musical. The musical has Vermont and Barre ties. Councilor Tuper-Giles said June is Pride Month, and he reminded everyone to celebrate acceptance. He also noted high suicide rates among LGBT community youth, and suffering borne by the trans community. He said Outright Vermont is a great support resource. Councilor Boutin suggested included City staff at future ward meetings. Councilor LePage said the Community Garden Committee is meeting tomorrow afternoon at the library. Councilor Morey said some of the suggestions offered at the ward 3 meeting included holding a community waste day, listing volunteer organizations on the City website, and making sure City bathroom facilities meet national standards for gender access. Mayor Herring reported on the following:  CW Print & Design’s ribbon cutting is Friday at 2:00 PM.  Flag Day is Friday, June 14th.  Father’s Day is Sunday, June 16th.  All the cobblestones have been set around the Boy Scouts monument in Depot Square. 4 To be approved at 06-18-19 Barre City Council Meeting Council will hold a special meeting on Monday, July 8th, at 7:30 AM to set the municipal tax rate. Executive Session – Councilor LePage made the motion to find that premature general public knowledge of negotiations, contracts and personnel issues 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 8:58 PM to discuss negotiations, contracts and personnel under the provisions of 1 VSA § 313 on motion of Councilor Tuper-Giles, seconded by Councilor Steinman. Motion carried. Manager Mackenzie was invited into the executive session. Council came out of executive session at 9:30 PM on motion of Councilor Boutin, seconded by Councilor Morey. Motion carried. No action was taken. The Council meeting adjourned at 9:30 PM on motion of Councilor Boutin, seconded by Councilor Morey. Motion carried. There is no audio recording of this meeting. Respectfully submitted, Carolyn S. Dawes, City Clerk 5