City Council

27 WEST ALLEN STREET WINOOSKI, VERMONT 05404 (802) 655-6410 CITY OF WINOOSKI (802) 655-6414 (fax) JESSIE BAKER CITY MANAGER MAYOR SETH LEONARD DEPUTY MAYOR BRIAN CORRIGAN mayor@winooskivt.org CITY COUNCIL COUNCILOR NICOLE MACE COUNCILOR ERIC COVEY COUNCILOR BRIAN SWEENEY Agenda Monday January 22, 2018 6:00 p.m. Claire Burke Council Chambers I. Call to Order II. Pledge of Allegiance III. Agenda Review IV. Public Comment V. Consent Agenda a. Approval: City Council Minutes of January 16, 2018 b. Approval: Payroll Warrant as of 12/31/17-1/13/18 c. Approval: Job Description: Accounting Clerk VI. City Update VII. Council Reports VIII. Regular Items a. Approval: Appointment of Mary Hussman (Alternate) to Full Member of Community Services Commission – R. Coffey b. Approval: Champlain Housing Trust: VCDP Loan Extension – H. Carrington c. Discussion: Services Agreement with Champlain Housing Trust for 57 West Allen Street - J. Baker d. Discussion: FY18 Policy Priorities and Strategy Update: Housing – H. Carrington e. Discussion: Planning Commission/Housing Commission Housing Goals Report – H. Carrington f. Discussion: Gentrification Monitoring Update – H. Carrington g. Discussion: FY19 Budget: Capital Improvement Plan – J. Baker h. Discussion: FY19 Budget: Administrative Services Proposal – J. Baker i. Discussion: Request to Use FY17 Fund Balance – J. Baker j. Discussion/Approval: FY19 Budget Discussion and Direction – J. Baker IX. Adjourn MINUTES The meeting was called to order by the Deputy Mayor at 6:00pm. The meeting began with the pledge of allegiance led by Deputy Mayor Brian Corrigan. Minutes of January 22, 2018 Winooski City Council Page 1 of 6 www.winooskivt.org Members Present: Mayor Seth Leonard Councilors: Brian Corrigan, Eric Covey, Nicole Mace, Brian Sweeney Officers Present: Jessie Baker, City Manager; Angela Aldieri, Assistant City Clerk; Heather Carrington, Community and Economic Development Director; Ray Coffey, Community Services Director; John Choate, Utilities Manager; Joseph Shaw, Deputy Director; John Audy, Fire Chief; Others Present: Courtney Blasius; Thomas Getz; Bryn Oakleaf; Kristine Lott; Pallas Ziporyn, Michael Monte, Champlain Housing Trust; Anna Wageling III. Agenda Review It was decided that item e. would be moved prior to item d. on the agenda due to the attendance of members of the public. IV. Public Comment No public comment was made. V. Consent Agenda MOTION by Deputy Mayor Corrigan, seconded by Councilor mace to approve the consent agenda as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. VI. City Update Ms. Baker stated that the Art in Nature event held on Sunday was went great and that about forty people showed up for basketball as well. On February 8th four on four dodgeball will be held at 6:00pm at the school; those interested are encouraged to sign up. The Community Services Commission will be meeting this Wednesday at 6:30pm in City Hall. The meeting will be focused on an update to the preliminary engineering for the pool. Interested members of the public are encouraged to attend. The next Noise Compatibility Program meeting is scheduled for tomorrow at 5:00pm at the airport. Those who are interested but not able to attend can follow the work toward a funding request to the FAA for noise mitigation efforts at www.btvsound.com. Ms. Baker noted that she would be attending this meeting on behalf of the City The first steering committee meeting for the Community Outreach Program to provide mental health support regionally will be held on Wednesday morning. This initiative is moving forward quickly. VII. Council Reports Councilor Covey stated that he was recently in the state of Georgia and met some people from Clarkston, GA which is a similar community to Winooski with only 1.4 square miles, 60 Minutes of January 22, 2018 Winooski City Council Page 2 of 6 www.winooskivt.org languages spoken, and a revitalization occurring. He noted it was good to make that connection and that we should foster relationships with communities like this that mirror our own. Councilor Sweeney reiterated that the Community Service Commission will be meeting Wednesday for those who wish to attend. Mayor Leonard stated that meetings with South Burlington and Burlington regarding Airport governance are progressing and he hopes to report back soon. There are two pieces of legislation in Montpelier related to the issue of governance or a charter change regarding the input surrounding communities would have. The Mayors Coalition will be having a press conference announcing the legislative goals they are supporting this year. Mayor Leonard noted he would be speaking in support of economic development for Vermont communities. The Planning Commission will be meeting Thursday night. He went on to thank staff and the Public Works Commission for the work on the Main Street Revitalization Project noting it was a tremendous lift. Councilor Mace stated that she and Mayor Leonard had met with Ms. Baker regarding a plan for the extension of the City Manager contract and annual evaluation. The plan is for Council to finalize at the February 20th meeting, but is an aggressive schedule. It was noted in the three and a half to four weeks there will be several opportunities to learn about the budget that will go before voters. There will be a CCTV presentation, a community dinner at the Senior Center, and a public informational meeting. There will be two other ballot items for voters to consider including the Wastewater bond and participation in regional dispatch. VIII. Regular Items a. Approval: Appointment of Mary Hussman (Alternate) to Full Member of Community Services Commission – R. Coffey Mr. Coffey stated that this is a request to move Mary Hussman from her current role as an alternate member of the Community Service Commission to a full member. The City received notice that Faisal Gill would be stepping down from the board. The term expirations for Ms. Hussman and Mr. Gill align and she is excited to step up her involvement. This would mean that there are now two vacant alternate positions with the commission. A new chair for the commission will be chosen Wednesday night. MOTION by Councilor Sweeney, seconded by Deputy Mayor Corrigan to approve the appointment of Mary Hussman as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. b. Approval: Champlain Housing Trust: VCDP Loan Extension – H. Carrington Michael Monte from Champlain Housing Trust was present to answer any questions. Ms. Carrington stated that we have received a request for the extension of a Vermont Community Development Program Minutes of January 22, 2018 Winooski City Council Page 3 of 6 www.winooskivt.org (VCDP) funded loan. This is largely a courtesy and formality as the Champlain Housing Trust acts as the administrator and custodian of the funds and the City has no legal standing related to the repayment. MOTION by Deputy Mayor Corrigan, seconded by Councilor Covey to approve the Champlain Housing Trust request for VCDP loan extension as presented. Voted and approved 4-0. c. Discussion: Services Agreement with Champlain Housing Trust for 57 West Allen Street - J. Baker Ms. Baker presented a service agreement for 57 West Allen Street also known as the Allen House. This property is owned by Champlain Housing Trust but is operated by the Howard Center. The agreement has been reviewed by City attorneys. The property is considered a tax exempt property but this agreement would allow the City to recoup costs for the services provided. Mr. Monte stated that this will allow Champlain Housing Trust to make improvements to the property which provides single room occupancy units and supporting housing to low income individuals who suffer from mental illness. This item will appear on the consent agenda for the meeting on January 29th. e. Discussion: Planning Commission/Housing Commission Housing Goals Report – H. Carrington Ms. Carrington stated that in 2016 the City council had received a housing needs assessment that recommended the creation of a housing commission. She recognized all the members who have contributed to the work and noted the high level of expertise that the different members bring to the commission. Since August 2017 when the commission was established they have met four time and focused efforts toward recommendations on rental housing given the number of proposed projects. Kristine Lott from the Housing Commission was present to review the data from housing research including median rents, income levels, and comparisons to surrounding communities. Pallas Ziporyn from the Planning Commission reviewed recommendations made for rental housing mix in some of the surrounding towns noting that Winooski has a larger share of rentals for housing stock than other communities in the area. The rental housing goals outlined were to maintain the current level of subsidized housing, to rehabilitate existing housing, to encourage construction of rentals for those with incomes in the 80-120% of average median income, to expand and balance the available rental stock, and encourage economic integration of neighborhoods. Ms. Carrington then reviewed the steps that the housing and planning commissions will take moving forward. Discussion from Council included source of data, the lack of response from 30% of rental housing, the locations of subsidized housing. Concerns were raised that by focusing on providing rental units for 80- 120% of average median income households that the units available for those falling below 80% median income would be reduced pushing those people out of the community. Discussion regarding economic integrations within buildings not just neighborhoods and comparable communities that more closely resemble Winooski rather than our direct neighbors followed. Discussion regarding a way to monitor the changing makeup of the rental stock to ensure that we incentivize the type of growth that is needed at a particular time and avoiding polarization of housing stock continued. It was noted that affordability within the vision could refer to affordability at all levels to create a spectrum of available housing that allows people to stay in the community as their lives change. Council requested some general policy direction and some target ratios that can be used as a benchmark to measure success. The discussion was then opened to the public. Bryn Oakleaf requested that the Council not make policy decisions until the data regarding single family homes is received to present a true view of what the balance of available housing is in Winooski. Tom Getz made inquiry as to how many of the subsidized housing is subject to long term affordability requirements. d. Discussion: FY18 Policy Priorities and Strategy Update: Housing – H. Carrington Minutes of January 22, 2018 Winooski City Council Page 4 of 6 www.winooskivt.org It was noted that this is the second goal update on housing. Discussion regarding the welcome packet translation intention, the Housing Improvement Loan program access for interested community members followed. f. Discussion: Gentrification Monitoring Update – H. Carrington Ms. Carrington stated this is the first update on gentrification since the baseline data was presented in August 2017. In August four gentrification markers were identified as having been met. Current data indicates that we are down to two markers. This indicates that Winooski is experiencing a revitalization rather than gentrification. Discussion regarding the dataset, changes that form based code could cause to gentrification, and the need for future monitoring followed. Ms. Carrington recommended six month review of this data in the future. g. Discussion: FY19 Budget: Capital Improvement Plan – J. Baker Ms. Baker noted that many of the items being presented have been brought up during the course of budget presentations in the last several weeks. She went on to review the governing documents and principles for the Capital Improvement Plan. The FY2018 capital projects that have been completed were presented and a summary of the capital items requested. Mr. Audy presented the proposal for the purchase of a new fire truck outlining the risks to the City and how the proposed purchase allows the City to maintain current capacity while looking to the future. Discussion regarding the items included for street and sidewalk capital followed with specific interest in how the work with the trees and pavers in the downtown would be completed. Additional discussion regarding the use of capital funding for debt service and a need to look at debt capacity followed. Mr. Choate presented the capital plans for the water and wastewater departments. Specific discussion regarding the bonding of the headworks project followed noting a resolution would be brought to Council at their next meeting. Ms. Baker went on to present the emerging issues related to capital project planning including the new Public Works Director and the implementation of the new procedures surrounding the plan creation. It was noted that a full picture of the improvement needs would help to tell a story to the community and explain why an increase in funding may be needed. The meeting took a brief recess at 8:33pm. Meeting reconvened at 8:36pm. h. Discussion: FY19 Budget: Administrative Services Proposal – J. Baker Ms. Baker stated that in the leadership proposed budget the office manager position was reduced to 30 hours per week while retaining two part time employees. Both of the existing part time staff have resigned in the last couple of weeks to take full time jobs. A significant internal process has been undertaken to determine how to best staff the administrative department. The option presented tonight is a proposal for three full time staff with a total financial cost of $29,000. This is partially offset by additional general fund contributions and savings from the treasurer position restructuring with approximately $12,167 remaining unfunded. The proposal is to add this to the leadership proposed budget. These positions would have slight changes to purpose that would allow the Clerk’s office to fully support the Council and move the Staff Accountant away from taking meeting minutes. i. Discussion: Request to Use FY17 Fund Balance – J. Baker Ms. Baker presented a request for the use of FY17 fund balance. It was noted after the request of $100,000 for the fire truck down payment, $15,673 to fund the remaining capital improvement plan shortfall, and $6000 for the municipal planning grant match that over $395,000 would remain as unassigned fund balance to allow flexibility for emerging issues. j. Discussion/Approval: FY19 Budget Discussion and Direction – J. Baker Minutes of January 22, 2018 Winooski City Council Page 5 of 6 www.winooskivt.org M.s Baker stated that this item is on tonight’s agenda to get feedback from Council regarding what they would like to see next week as the budget proposal to minimize the amount of live editing needed. Discussion followed regarding the addition of the administrative proposal which caused the increase to rise above 2 %. It was asked if this addition was the best possible use of the funds. Council requested that staff bring back six proposals, three around the 1.91% increase and three around the 2.15% increase with the preferred alternative noted. Additional discussion regarding where fund balance was being used to cover operational costs followed. This resulted in Council requesting that staff consider ways to bring a portion of the THRIVE director position back into the general fund. IX. Adjourn MOTION by Council Mace, seconded by Deputy Mayor Corrigan to adjourn the City Council meeting at 9:50pm. Voted and passed 4-0. ATTEST: ___________________________ Assistant City Clerk Minutes of January 22, 2018 Winooski City Council Page 6 of 6 www.winooskivt.org