City Council

Winooski City Council Meeting Monday, October 7, 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 September 16, 2019 b. Approval: Payroll Warrant period 9/8/19-9/21/19 and Warrant ending 10/2/19 and Subsequent to Payout Warrant July and August c. Approval: City Engineer – Job Description d. Approval: UPWP – PCP Agreement VI. City Update VII. Council Reports VIII. Regular Items a. Approval: Event Permit: Pumpkin Festival – H Carrington b. Approval: Municipal Infrastructure Appointments – J Rauscher c. Approval: Appointment: Planning Commission Alternate Sarah Van Ryckevorsel – Eric Vorwald d. Discussion: CCRPC Annual Presentation – C Baker e. Discussion: East Allen Scoping Study – Alternative Selection – J Rauscher f. Discussion: FY21: Budget Goal Setting Session – J Baker and A Aldieri g. Approval: Grant Approval: Global FM for Community Risk Reduction – J Audy h. Approval: Parks RFP Contract – R Coffey i. Approval: Grant Approval: CSWD Container Application – R Coffey j. Approval: Community Services Scholarship Policy – R Coffey XI. Adjourn:  MINUTES The Mayor called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm and the Pledge of Allegiance was led by Deputy Mayor Colston. Members Present: Mayor Kristine Lott Council Members: Amy Lafayette, Mike Myers, Hal Colston and James Duncan Officers Present: Jessie Baker, City Manager; Angel Lane, Assistant City Clerk; Angela Aldieri, Finance Director; Jon Rauscher, Public Works Director; Eric Vorwald, Planning & Zoning Director; Ray Coffey, Community Services Director; John Audy, Fire Chief; Liam Keating, Assistant Fire Marshall; Heather Carrington, Community and Economic Development Officer Others Present: Adam Dubroff, Charlie Baker/CCRPC, Jason Williams, Jason Charest/CCRPC, Erica Quallen/VHB, David Saladine/VHB, Corey Mack, Shelden Goodwin, Mike O’Brien, Sarah Van Ryckervorsel, E. Churchill, Judy Lance III. Agenda Review - None IV. Public Comment Adam Dubroff, Winooski Hotel Group Managing Partner and owner of Lot 9 read a statement regarding the land swap between Lot 8 and Lot 9. He stated that the negotiations are at an impasse and came to seek Council’s guidance. Mayor Lott stated that the Council is aware of the situation and that this proposal could not be discussed at this time since it was not on the agenda for tonight’s meeting. A packet of material was left for each member of Council with the City Manager. V. Consent Agenda Motion by Councilor Duncan seconded by Deputy Mayor Colston to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0 VI. City Update  Reminder that the Mayor and I are hosting a Commission Orientation tomorrow night at 6:00 pm here. This is specifically targeted to all newly appointed Commissioners but all are welcome to attend to learn about service to Winooski.  Lot 7D RFP interviews today. Sincere thanks to Amy and Kristine for participating in these interviews as Mayor and Administrative Liaison.  Airport Updates o NEM has been published on BTVsound.com o Last NCP meeting on September 19th.  Next Public Hearing will be October 24th  Sound Mitigation Committee will reconvene in December to start developing the implementation plan of the NCP although it may not be approved by the FAA until the spring.  Pool Committee is scheduled for Thursday, October 17th at 6 PM. Community Services will be asking for feedback on operations as we build the FY21 budget.  Main and Mansion – E-court has remanded jurisdiction to the City. The DRB will meet to hear the appeal on November 5th.  Events and Programs o The Winooski Bridge Mural got started this past weekend in partnership with Arts So Wonderful. Many thanks to Liz Emmett, Bruce Wilson, and Olivia Miller for their efforts to organize this exciting project! There were roughly 50 people that showed up Saturday and Sunday this weekend to help paint, and we'll be out there again on Saturday, October 12th to keep working. Come join us! (Thanks to Kristine for coming by last weekend!) o We will be picking pumpkins on Wednesday, October 16th, and are still looking for a couple more trucks and trailers to speed up the process. Please contact Olivia Miller at omiller@winooskivt.gov.  o Mark your calendars for Pumpkin Carving on Saturday, October 19th from 9 - 5 at the Senior Center (with Sunday from 9 until we finish). Thanks in advance to the Winooski Police and Winooski Peace Initiative for hosting a BBQ at the carving event on Saturday, and to the Fire Department and Public Works for their support throughout the event. It takes a village to carve 1,000 pumpkins! o Friday, October 25 and Saturday, October 26th mark the Festival of the Pumpkins in Rotary Park, where upwards of 1,000 pumpkins will be on display. Also, Saturday, from 5 - 8 PM the Community Services Department will be hosting a family friendly Halloween event at the VSAC Community Room. More details are available on the City's website or Facebook pages, but come join us for this Winooski tradition! VII. Council Reports Councilor Colston – Met with Nicole Mace and Julie Hulburd to discuss the structure of the Equity Council. They agreed to follow Mayor’s Lott proposal to have a very clear focus during this first year especially pertaining to the Council’s construction and budget process. Councilor Duncan – On 09/09/2019 attended the airport meeting. This was the same day that the F35’s arrived. Councilor Duncan shared some of what transpired during the meeting. One thing that was mentioned is a request for a second environmental impact study to be done. Councilor Duncan also attended the CAC with the City Manager. Councilor Duncan stated that he was very impressed with the advocacy demonstrated by the City Manager for the city and was glad to be able to witness this in action. Councilor Duncan and Councilor Myers met with residents of 65 Barlow St to hear their concerns and discuss their priorities for the city with them. Mayor Lott – Recently attended two community dinners. They were very well attended. Also met at the Senior Center with a new American group of Napoli residents to hear their concerns/challenges. Mayor Lott stated that the “In the World of Winooski” newest episode is now available. Mayor Lott also attended the ribbon cutting and official opening of the mixed income housing at Casavant Overlook. The Chittenden County Homeless Alliance meeting was attended by Mayor Lott. Then the City Manager and Mayor Lott had a meeting with the new Principal of the Winooski schools. Councilor Lafayette – On 09/30/2019 Downtown Winooski hosted a small group focus session with local business owners to discuss their concerns. The primary one is the lack of foot traffic in the area. Mayor Lafayette stated that Downtown Winooski is recruiting new board members. This year Downtown Winooski is co-hosting the Pumpkin Festival. Councilor Myers – Nothing to report VIII. Regular Items a. Approval: Event Permit: Pumpkin Festival – H Carrington This is the first year that the event will be sponsored and organized by the City in partnership with Downtown Winooski. Because the event is co-sponsored by the City, staff recommends waiving the $200 Rotary Park use fee. Ray Coffey was also available to answer any questions. Some discussion ensued. One question raised by resident Corey Mack was what is the City going to do with the pumpkin innards. Ray Coffey assured that the waste from the pumpkins will either go to a local pig farmer or will be composted properly. MOTION by Councilor Layfayette seconded by Councilor Myers to approve the Festival of Pumpkins Event Permit Application as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. b. Approval: Municipal Infrastructure Appointments – J Rauscher J Rauscher spoke to the quality of the applicants as did Commission Member Corey Mack. Three current members were presented as were four new members. MOTION by Councilor Myers seconded by Councilor Lafayette to approve the new candidates to the Municipal Infrastructure Commission as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Myers to approve the current members as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. c. Approval: Appointment: Planning Commission Alternate Sarah Van Ryckevorsel – E Vorwald Sarah Van Ryckevorsel was presented as an Alternate on the Planning Commission by E Vorwald. There will remain one open alternate position with Sarah’s appointment. MOTION by Councilor Colston seconded by Councilor Myers to appoint Sarah Van Ryckevorsel to the position of Alternate on the Planning Commission as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. d. Discussion: CCRPC Annual Presentation – C Baker Received the Annual Report presentation by Charlie Baker/CCRPC and Mike O’ Brien. CCRPC is a critical partner as the City implements its strategic vision. The City Manager thanked Mike O’Brien for his leadership on the CCRPC. Mike O’Brien spoke on the value of the City team for their assistance. Mayor Lott expressed how tremendously beneficial CCRPC is to the City. Charlie Baker took questions and some discussion ensued. e. Discussion: East Allen Scoping Study – Alternative Selection – J Rauscher Erika Quallen/VHB, Jason Charest/CCRPC, Dave Saladine/VHB were present to review the packet and address questions. The presentation was reviewed and several questions were raised. Resident Judy Lance questioned the amount of traffic and if the changes on E. Allen St could handle that flow. Nate Dagesse a local developer was hoping to see more on street parking in the future and questioned how this could be brought in. J Rauscher did explain how on more on street parking could work. The main concern is pedestrian safety and calming the traffic through the City as stated by J Rauscher. More discussion ensued as the presentation continued. Recess called my Mayor Lott for two minutes at 759 pm. Meeting reconvened at 802 pm f. Discussion: FY21: Budget Goal Setting Session – J Baker and A Aldieri Council’s goals and priorities were discussed as the City Manager and Finance Director seek guidance in preparation of the FY21 budget. Councilor Colston expressed his desire to see the Youth of the City supported. Councilor Myers shared the concern of the residents regarding the poor condition of many of the the sidewalks. Mayor Lott stated that there are several projects committed to and adding new initiatives at this point should be avoided. The City Manager shared the possibility of a new finance system with the State that may replace NEMRC. There would be additional cost with the new system but statewide it would have a dramatic impact in a positive way. More discussion ensued. g. Approval: Grant Approval: Global FM for Community Risk Reduction – J Audy Chief Audy introduced our new Assistant Fire Marshall/Fire Captain Liam Keating. Liam spoke to his experience and stated that he is very glad to be here. He was welcomed by the Council. Chief Audy explained the grant and that its purpose is to educate the residents in safety. Councilor Lafayette was glad to hear that the video produced would offer different translations to reach all of our diverse community members. MOTION by Councilor Myers seconded by Councilor Colston to approve the FM Global Fire Prevention Grant Program as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. h. Approval: Parks RFP Contract – R Coffey R Coffey reviewed how and why Omnes was choosen. Some discussion ensued. Mayor Lott spoke to the fact that the Master Plan has this incorporated into it. She also like their proposal. MOTION by Councilor Lafayette seconded by Councilor Duncan to approve the Parks and Open Space Planning Contract Award as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. I. Approval: Grant Approval: CSWD Container Application – R Coffey R Coffey explained how the grant would work and why new upgraded receptacles are needed. The funds for this grant would come from the existing CSWD Community Clean Up Fund allocation. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Lafayette to approve the Grant Approval: CSWD Container Application as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. J. Approval: Community Services Scholarship Policy – R Coffey R Coffey reviewed the documents and the changes that were made since the last review. Some discussion ensued. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Colston to approve the Community Scholarship Policy as presented. Voted and passed 4 – 0. XI. Adjourn MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Lafayette to adjourn th City Council meeting at 8:52 pm. Voted and passed 4 – 0. _____________________________________________ ATTEST: Assistant City Clerk