City Council

To be approved at 07-16-19 Barre City Council Meeting Special Meeting of the Barre City Council Held July 9, 2019 The Special Meeting of the Barre City Council was called to order by Mayor Lucas Herring at 6:00 PM at The Wheelock Building, 135 N. Main Street. 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 Buildings and Community Services director Jeff Bergeron. Councilors and members of the public toured the building and discussed possible future uses by the Barre Partnership and a proposed teen center/drop-in site. Mayor Herring adjourned the meeting at 6:47 PM. There is no audio recording of this meeting. Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council Held July 9, 2019 The Regular Meeting of the Barre City Council was called to order by Mayor Lucas Herring at 7:02 PM at Barre City Hall. In attendance were: From Ward I, Councilor John Steinman; 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 (arrived 7:10 PM) and Clerk/Treasurer Carol Dawes. Absent: From Ward I, Councilor Jeffrey Tuper-Giles. Adjustments to the Agenda: Mayor Herring said he will add appointment of Amy Gaylord to the Tree Stewardship Committee under old agenda items. Approval of Consent Agenda: Council approved the following consent agenda items on motion of Councilor Waszazak, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried.  Minutes of the following meetings: o Regular meeting of June 25, 2019 o Special meeting of July 1, 2019  City Warrants as presented: o Approval of Week 2019-28:  Accounts Payable: $179,973.17  Payroll (gross): $131,395.13 o 2019 Licenses:  Entertainment Licenses:  Faith Community Church, Currier Park, Sunday, July 14th. 6AM – 2PM.  Barre Partnership. Annual license. Approval includes condition that BP coordinates all events with the appropriate City department or staff.  Fireworks Permits:  Barre Heritage Festival, Saturday, July 27th at dusk. 1 To be approved at 07-16-19 Barre City Council Meeting The City Clerk/Treasurer Report –  Property tax bills have been sent to the printer and will be mailed out next week. The first quarter due date is August 15th. Approval of Building Permits – NONE Liquor Control – Council approved a temporary outside consumption permit for The Quarry for Saturday, July 27th, on motion of Councilor Steinman, seconded by Councilor LePage. Motion carried with Councilor Boutin abstaining. Visitors and Communications – NONE Old Business – Added) Appointment of Amy Gaylord to Tree Stewardship Committee. Amy Gaylord expressed her interest in serving on the committee, and her past relevant experience. Council approved the appointment on motion of Councilor Steinman, seconded by Councilor Morey. Motion carried. New Business – A) Discussion and/or Approval of the Vermont Youth Project. Mayor Herring said Robin Katrick, who was scheduled to present on this topic, is unable to attend this evening. The Mayor said the project will be led by the schools, and he asked Council to offer its support. Councilor approved supporting the project on motion of Councilor Morey, seconded by Councilor Waszazak. Motion carried. B) Discussion and/or Approval of the CVPC BUILD Grant Application for Passenger Rail Service. Mayor Herring said the City has been asked to offer its support of the CV Regional Planning Commission’s application for a grant to study options for passenger rail between Barre and Montpelier. There was discussion on the age of the proposed train cars, efficiencies of busses as compared to trains, flexibility of bus lines, numbers of current commuters, and parking needs for rail service. Council approved supporting the grant application on motion of Councilor LePage, seconded by Councilor Waszazak. Motion carried with Councilors Boutin and Steinman voting against. C) Personnel Policy Introduction. Human Resources director Rikk Taft reviewed the table of contents for the draft personnel policy handbook. Mr. Taft said there are still some details to be worked out. Manager Mackenzie said he expects all parts of the policy to be completed by September 1st. D) Authorization to Execute Avenu Enterprise Solutions 5-year Renewal Contract for Digital Land Records Recording and Archiving. Clerk Dawes reviewed the history of recording systems in Barre City, and the digital process currently being used. The current 5 year contract with Avenu that expired in May, and the Clerk recommended approval of the new 5 year contract. The cost increase is approximately 8% over the previous contract. Councilors approved acceptance of the Avenu contract on motion of Councilor Steinman, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried. E) Discussion and/or Approval of Food Vendor Policy. Mayor Herring asked Councilors to share any thoughts or ideas for additional revisions to the policy. Clerk Dawes said the new zoning ordinances include language associated with food vending, and that 2 To be approved at 07-16-19 Barre City Council Meeting language needs to be reviewed when revising the current policy. There was discussion on where the City’s licensing programs duplicate state programs, and how to eliminate or avoid the duplications. City Manager’s Report – Manager Mackenzie reported on the following:  Attended state meeting re. opioids. The state is party to litigation around opiates and pharmaceutical companies.  Attended Green Mountain Transit’s NextGen hearing. Proposed changes include a permanent route between Barre City and Hannaford’s in South Barre, which will allow regular bus access to the Senior Center, Health Center and playground/pool complex.  Several potential contractors attended the pre-bid meeting for the Pouliot Avenue stormwater project. Bid opening is July 24th, with Council set to award the contract at its July 30th meeting.  Reviewed ice time usage with Buildings and Community Services director Jeff Bergeron. The upcoming season has 650 of its 1,000 hours of ice time already booked by larger groups. There will be additional bookings by one-off events, and time set aside for public skating.  The Manager will be on vacation next week. Fire Chief Doug Brent will serve as acting manager. Round Table – Councilor Waszazak thanked those who attended the tour at the Wheelock building earlier this evening. Councilor Boutin said the Senior Center is holding an indoor tag sale this Saturday. All are welcome. Councilor LePage said he enjoys receiving feedback from his constituents. Councilor Morey wished everyone a belated Happy 4th of July. He encouraged people to sign up for the Heritage Festival to be a vendor, enter the parade, or be a volunteer. Mayor Herring wished everyone a belated Happy 4th of July. Executive Session – Councilor Boutin made the motion to find that premature general public knowledge of contract 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 Morey. Motion carried. Council went into executive session at 8:02 PM to discuss contracts and personnel under the provisions of 1 VSA § 313 on motion of Councilor Boutin, seconded by Councilor Morey. Motion carried with Councilor Waszazak voting against. Council came out of executive session at 8:26 PM on motion of Councilor Waszazak, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried. No action was taken. The Council meeting adjourned at 8:27 PM on motion of Councilor Waszazak, seconded by Councilor Boutin. Motion carried. An audio recording of this meeting is available in the Clerk’s office. Respectfully submitted, Carolyn S. Dawes, City Clerk 3