City Council

Winooski City Council Meeting Monday, August 19, 2019 6:00 PM Claire Burke Council Chambers 27 West Allen Street Winooski, VT 05404 Mayor Kristine Lott - klott@winooskivt.gov Councilor Hal Colston - hcolston@winooskivt.gov Councilor Jim Duncan - jduncan@winooskivt.gov Councilor Amy Lafayette - alafayette@winooskivt.gov Councilor Mike Myers - mmyers@winooskivt.gov Jessie Baker, City Manager - jbaker@winooskivt.gov I. Call to Order II. Pledge of Allegiance III. Agenda Review IV. Public Comment V. Consent Agenda a. Approval: City Council Minutes of July 15, 2019 b. Approval: Payroll Warrant ending 6/30/19-7/13/19, 7/14/19-7/29/19. Warrant ending 8/5/19, 8/13/19 and Subsequent to payout June. c. Approval: Hickok Street Loan Documents Water and Wastewater d. Approval: Town Health Officer Term to Expire on 8/31/2019 VI. City Update VII. Council Reports VIII. Regular Items a. Approval: Resolution Honoring Rita Martel – K Lott b. Approval: Appointment of Joe Perron to the Planning Commission – K Lott c. Approval: GMT Appointments: Austin Davis and Marcy Ryan (ALT) – K Lott d. Approval: Event Permit: West Street Block Party – H Carrington e. Discussion: Year End Financial Reporting from Treasurer – Alex Anastasi-Hill f. Approval: Commission Liaison Appointments – J Baker g. Discussion: Affordable Housing Trust Fund Recommendation – H Carrington h. Discussion: Goal Update: Infrastructure – J Rauscher i. Approval: Capital Improvement Budget Re-assignment – Main St. concrete repairs – J Rauscher j. Discussion: Personnel Hearing Process – K Lott i. Potential Executive Session Pursuant to 1 V.S.A. §313 (4) a disciplinary or dismissal action against a public officer or employee; but nothing in this subsection shall be construed to impair the right of such officer or employee to a public hearing if formal charges are brought: XI. Adjourn  Minutes The Mayor called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was led by Councilor Myers. Members Present: Mayor Kristine Lott Councilors: James Duncan, Amy Lafayette, Mike Myers, and Hal Colston Officers Present: Jessie Baker, City Manager; Angel Lane, Assistant City Clerk; Angela Aldieri, Finance Director; Heather Carrington, Economic Director; Jon Rauscher, Public Work Director; Eric Vorwald, Planning & Zoning Director; Paul Sarne, Communications Coordinator Others Present: Beatrice Hatin, Gloria Brosseau, Janet Hatin, Jean DeVarney, Marcella Ryan, Joe Gamache, Austin Davis, Matt Shagam, Robert Millar, Joseph Perron, Jessica Bridge, Sarah Roy, Abby Myers, Dakota Brizendine III. Agenda Review – None IV. Public Comment – None V. Consent Agenda MOTION by Councilor Colston seconded by Councilor Myers to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. VI. City Update  Today we issued a press release announcing our partnership with ParkMobile. App to pay for parking. Part of our customer service improvements to welcome folks to Winooski. Same app used by UVM and Burlington and the Airport. Both ParkMobile and Way to Park will be available for the transition period.  We are actively recruiting for part-time and Per-Diem Firefighters. As an innovative technique, Paul and Chief Audy, in partnership with CH 17 produced an amazing recruitment video. I encourage people to go to winooskivt.gov to watch!  Commission appointments upcoming – After we appoint liaisons tonight, you will be contacted to set up interviews with your staff liaisons and the candidates.  Continuing to work with Champlain Housing Trust on an affordable homeownership development at the front of the OCC space. A Pre-Development Agreement was signed last year. Over the next few weeks we are working with the City’s architect to ensure that we retain enough of the parcel to facilitate a City Hall move in the future according to the past space study needs.   Sister Pat is putting together a community event, “The International Day of Peace” that will be celebrated on September 21st from 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM at the Winooski Senior Center. St. Stephens is providing a spaghetti supper. The Council is encouraged to attend and all are welcome.  Volunteer Opportunities o Meals on Wheels Delivery Drivers o Senior Center Morning Support o Senior Center Nutrition Support o Circle Of Support and Accountability (CoSA) Community Services Programs  Winooski Wednesdays – September 4th with Wild Leek River  DIY Tuesdays: Autumn Edition o every Tuesday from 3 - 5 PM at OCC  Drop-in Youth Dance Program : August - September 2019 Thursdays @ 4 PM O'Brien Community Center  Adult 3 v 3 Basketball Tournament: Wednesday, September 11 and Thursday, September 12, 2019 o 6 - 8 PM @ West Allen Street Park o $35 per team o Registration Deadline: September 4  Winooski Memorial Library Pokémon Club: Fridays / August 23 - Nov 15 from 3:15 - 5 PM  Sign up for Football and Soccer on our website! VI. Council Reports Councilor Duncan – Remains primarily focused on the recommendations of expanding the equity dialogue. He will have more to report at the joint meeting of the City and the School this Wednesday. Councilor Colston – Continuing to work with the Equity Leadership Council. He will also report further at the joint meeting on Wednesday. Mayor Lott – She traveled to Springfield with Mr. Sarne and Ms. Carrington to accept a $450K grant from Northern Borders to be used to support infrastructure of underground utilities in the Main St project. She is very excited about this grant and gives special thanks to our Congressional Delegation for all their work. She also attended the Vermont Community Leadership Summit. The Mayor has also attended several meetings with our State Senators and Congressional Leaders and staff to discuss the future needs and priorities of our city. The Mayor reached out to a local mosque and met with some of the elders to share with them how the Council works and to hear some of their concerns. She stated that it was a very nice visit. Councilor Lafayette – Shared that French Heritage Day sponsored by Downtown Winooski was a success and very well attended, approximately 2,000 people attended the event this year. She also shared that Downtown Winooski is now gearing up for Halloween and looking for volunteers. Councilor Myers – He stopped by the pool to view the progress. He was told that the project is on schedule. Councilor Myers has started a discussion with the City and Senior Center and Winooski Housing Authority. This is in the very beginning stages, more to come at a later date. VII. Regular Items – a. Approval: Resolution Honoring Rita Martel – K Lott Mayor Lott read the resolution aloud to the room. Rita stated that she feels privileged and honored to have been born in Winooski and to have lived here her entire 88 ½ years. Rita stated her appreciation for the honor. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Colston to approve the Resolution honoring Rita Martel as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. b. Approval: Appointment of Joe Perron to the Planning Commission – K Lott Mayor Lott introduced Joe and expressed her appreciation for years of continued service. Joe stated that attending the meetings is the best hour spent of his week and that he walks away a richer person because of the experience. He is honored to serve in this role. MOTION by Councilor Lafayette seconded by Councilor Myers to appoint Joseph Perron to a two- year term as a full member of the Planning Commission, expiring June 30, 2021. Voted and passed 4-0. City Manager Baker requested a 3 minute recess @ 6:18 p.m. so that she and the Council could congratulate Rita Martel before she left the meeting. Mayor Lott called the meeting back to order at 6:21 p.m. c. Approval: GMT Appointments: Austin Davis and Marcy Ryan (ALT) – K Lott Mayor Lott introduced the appointees. Mr. Davis has been involved with the Chamber of Commerce and Ms. Ryan is a regular user of public transportation. Both welcomed the opportunity to serve and to seek ways to make improvements in our public transportation. MOTION by Councilor Myers seconded by Councilor Duncan to appoint Austin Davis as the Winooski Representative and Marcy Ryan and the Alternate to the Green Mountain Transit Board as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. d. Approval: Event Permit: West Street Block Party – H Carrington/Dakota Brizendine Ms. Carrington introduced Dakota Brizendine who has been the organizer behind the West Street Block Party. This will be the 5th Annual West Street Block Party. Mayor Lott asked about the history behind this event. Dakota shared that it was started to get the neighbors to know each other. It is  very well attended and all from the City are invited. Councilor Myers thanked Dakota for her involvement in making this event happen. MOTION by Councilor Lafayette seconded by Councilor Colston to approve the event permit for the West Street Block Party on Saturday, August 31, 2019 as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. e. Discussion: Year End Financial Reporting from Treasurer – Alex Anastasi-Hill Mr. Anastasi-Hill presented the memorandum to the Council and stated that he feels the City’s financial condition to be “very healthy” overall. Some discussion ensued. It was noted by Mayor Lott that parking ticket revenue was down by approximately $17K. Alex also noted the drop and will monitor it over the next quarter. The City Manager also shared that there had been an open position during this time period but now we are fully staffed. She also noted that the City does not take a hardline on issuing tickets but work to educate our citizens. The Mayor thanked Alex for his time and effort in providing the Council with this important review. f. Approval: Commission Liaison Appointments – J Baker City Manager Baker revisited the appointments and asked for feedback. Discussion ensued. The final appointments are shown in the table below. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Myers to approve the Council Liaison Assignments as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. Commissions Established and Appointed by Council Commission Related Staff Group Current Current Updated Meeting Time Liaison Liaison Planning Planning & Zoning 2 Thursday at Kristine Lott nd Kristine Lott Commission 6:30 (per Charter) (per Charter) Safe, Healthy, Community Services, 4 Wednesday th Hal Colston Hal Colston Connected Police, Fire at 6:30 and Jim People Duncan Municipal Public Works 2 Thursday at Mike Myers nd Mike Myers Infrastructure Department 6:30 Finance City Manager, Finance TBD None Kristine Lott Housing Community & 4th Monday at Kristine Lott Jim Duncan Economic 6:00 Development Charter City Manager TBD None Hal Colston Other Roles  Administrative City Manager As needed Amy Lafayette Amy Liaison Lafayette Downtown Heather Carrington As needed Amy Lafayette Amy Winooski Lafayette g. Discussion: Affordable Housing Trust Fund Recommendation – H Carrington Ms. Carrington, Jessica Bridge and Robert Millar shared the Draft version and reviewed with Council. Discussion ensued. There were several items discussed that Heather will bring to the next Housing Committee meeting for further discussion. h. Discussion: Goal Update: Infrastructure – J Rauscher Mr. Rauscher reviewed the handout and explained the overall the City is on track to meet the goals set for 2020. Some discussion ensued. i. Approval: Capital Improvement Budget Re-assignment – Main St. concrete repairs – J Rauscher Mr. Rauscher reviewed the issues and the pressing need to get repairs done to Main Street. Seeking to do a temporary fix that should last for 3 years to get us to FY21. This will improve the ride quality. Discussion ensued. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Colston to authorize the re-allocation of funds within the Capital Improvement Plan budget as presented. Voted 4-0. J. Discussion: Personnel Hearing Process – K Lott/Matt Shagam, Attorney The Mayor opened the discussion explaining the process and introducing Attorney Shagam to go into further detail. The Hearing Process was presented and some discussion ensued. Mayor exhorted the Council to not discuss the grievance prior to the hearing in order to remain neutral. Some discussion ensued. XI. Adjourn MOTION by Councilor Myers seconded by Councilor Colston to adjourn the City Council meeting at 8:11 p.m. Voted and passed 4-0. ATTEST:______________________________________________ Assistant City Clerk