City Council

Remote Winooski City Council Meeting Monday, November 2, 2020, at 6 PM • Attend online: https://zoom.us/j/95675248278 • Attend by phone: 1 646 558 8656 • Webinar ID: 956 7524 8278 • View our Remote Meeting Procedures and Public Comment Request Form at winooskivt.gov or call 802 655 6410 I. Call to Order II. Pledge of Allegiance III. Agenda Review IV. Public Comment V. Consent Agenda a. Approval: City Council minutes of 10/19/2020 b. Approval: Accounts Payable Warrant ending 10/29/2020: Payroll Warrant for period 10/04/2020 – 10/17/2020 c. Approval: Hickok Loan Agreements VI. Council Reports VII. City Updates VIII. Public Hearing: Charter Change Recommendations – 6:00 p.m. Special City Meeting Hearing on Charter Change Recommendations including All-Resident Voting, Administrative Changes, and Self-Governance Rights to be considered at a Special City Meeting held in conjunction with the November 2020 General Election – J Baker IX. Regular Items a. Discussion/Approval: Downtown Winooski – Presentation and Funding Request – H Carrington b. Approval: Resolution: Small Business Saturday – H Carrington c. Discussion: FY21 Quarter 1 Treasurer’s Report – A Anastasi-Hill d. Discussion: Update on the City/School Memorandum of Understanding – J Baker e. Approval: UVM Extension/Office of Engagement COVID Outreach RAPID Grants –J Baker f. Approval: Parks and Open Space Master Plan – R Coffey g. Approval: Cedar Street Closing – J Rauscher h. Discussion: 2020 Plan Reportout #3 – J Baker X. Adjourn 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  MINUTES The Mayor called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Councilor Colston lead the Pledge of Allegiance. Members Present: Mayor Kristine Lott Councilors: Hal Colston, James Duncan, Michael Myers and Amy Lafayette Officers Present: Jessie Baker, City Manager; Angel Lane, Assistant City Clerk; Heather Carrington Community and Economic Development Officer; Ray Coffey, Community Services Director; Jonathan Rauscher, Public Works Director; Eric Vorwald, Planning and Zoning Manager, Angela Aldieri; Finance Director; John Audy, Fire Chief; Paul Sarne, Communication Coordinator, Alex Anastasi-Hill, Treasurer Others Present: Seth Gillim, Page Feeser, Lauren Chicote, Liz Edsell, Meredith Bay-Tyack, Seth Leonard, Gwennie Talbot III. Agenda Review – Library Grant-last minute item to be added to the Agenda. MOTION: by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Colston to add item-Library Grant-to the Agenda as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. IV. Public Comment – Seth Gillim commented on the Parks and Open Space Master Plan. He stated that it is a fantastic document and is very excited about the changes. He wanted to point out the gaps on the map relating to the sidewalks. He pointed out that the sidewalks are missing on Maple St to Mallett’s Bay Ave. He would like to see those listed. V. Consent Agenda – MOTION by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Duncan to approve as presented the City Council Minutes of 10/19/2020. Voted and passed 3-0 Councilor Lafayette abstained. MOTION by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Duncan to approve as presented the Accounts Payable Warrant ending 10/29/2020, Payroll Warrant for period 10/04/2020 – 10/17/2020 and Hickok Loan Agreements. Voted and passed 4-0. VI. Council Reports – Councilor Colston-attended the ground-breaking at the High School. It was a great time in spite of the weather. He wanted to express his appreciation and acknowledge the team putting together the Working Communities Grant. Kudos to the team. Councilor Duncan-He is pleased to announce that 7 new trees have been purchased for Weaver and Maple Streets. He provided an update from the Housing Commission. He is very appreciative of the resources made available by Heather Carrington. The Housing Trust Fund is moving forward. Councilor Lafayette- Met with Downtown Winooski last week. They continue to recruit new members. She wanted to express her thanks for the Halloween in Winooski program as it brought back a sense of normalcy.  Councilor Myers-Echoed Councilor Lafayette’s comment regarding Halloween in Winooski. He wanted to thank everyone for their efforts, it was very much appreciated. He also wanted to wish everyone running good luck tomorrow on Election Day. Mayor Lott- Attended the final interviews for the Working Communities. Also attended a joint press conference with VT Gas who will be providing a 10% match for the Noise Mitigation Program VII. City Update – • Halloween in Winooski – 18th years of pumpkins Downtown. Thanks to all those who took part in making Halloween in Winooski was a success o Thanks to the over 2,300 visitors for their patience and compliance with COVID-19 safety precautions. o Thanks to the over 250 volunteers who helped to carve pumpkins through the “Pumpkin Pledge” o And special thanks to the City staff (Molly, Kate N, Barb, Josh, Nate, Kate A, Francine, Jenn, Gwennie, and Phoebe) who worked hard over the last few weeks and on the weekend to make this event happen for our community. • Election Day o 7 to 7 at the Senior Center o Will post results on our website ASAP o 2,500 of ballots received absentee o Thanks to Clerk’s • 149 pounds of prescription drugs were collected by the PD during last week’s Vermont Drug Take Back event • 133 Elm Street – as a reminder: o Notice of Violation was issued by the Zoning Administrator on August 10th. o NOV was appealed and a public hearing was held at the Development Review Board on September 17 th. o DRB upheld the NOV. o On September 23rd the Department of Environmental Conservation issued a Notice of Alleged Violation including a timeline for corrective action. o Recent updates: ▪ October 23rd, appellant filed a Notice of Appeal to the Vermont Superior Court’s Environmental Division appealing the DRB decision. ▪ City, on behalf of their alternate counsel, Stitzel, Page & Fletcher, filed an entry of appearance. ▪ Appeal period for the DRB decision concluded on October 28 th and Staff is working with counsel to prepare formal action with the courts. ▪ State continues to pursue their action as well to enforce compliance with their regulations ▪ We will continue to update Council as new information is available. • CHT – Continue to work with them on a Development Agreement for a homeownership opportunity at the OCC. o See some site testing being done this week and maybe in future weeks o Anticipate bringing the Council documents for consideration in December • Winter parking ban o Overnight street parking is prohibited during winter parking bans in Winooski. o To receive up-to-date winter parking ban alerts, text ‘Winooski’ to 888-777 or register on-line. o Overnight street parking is prohibited in Downtown Winooski from 2:30 AM to 6 AM (December 1st to March 31st). o For the rest of the City, winter parking bans are made on a case-by-case, weather-dependent basis or for area-specific snow removal where overnight street parking is prohibited from 11 PM to 7 AM. o Landline users must retrieve their updates by calling the dedicated parking ban line at 802 655 3908 o Winter parking ban signs (East Allen St. near the Exit 15 off-ramp and entering Winooski via the Burlington/Winooski Bridge) will flash when a winter parking ban is in effect o Overnight parking in the Winooski Parking Garage on Cascade Way is available for $2 (pay at the kiosk or by the ParkMobile app) from 6 PM to 7 AM • Noise Compatibility Program o Eric Vorwald is working with Jones Payne and BTV to refine the data on the noise mitigation study to ensure that when funding is available for Winooski, they are using the most up-to-date data possible. • The Winooski Memorial Library was awarded a grant through the Vermont Department of Libraries for a one year installation of a public access Wi-Fi hotspot to provide Wi-Fi coverage in the outdoor spaces in front of the O’Brien Center. o The new device is being installed today, and should be operational by mid-week (announcement on FPF and social media forthcoming). This award (valued around $2,500) will help to bring improved internet access to residents throughout the day. • Jenny Hill will be joining our City team as our new Recreational Program Manager on November 9 th. Jenny brings a wealth of experience with event and program management, most recently as the Event Coordinator at the US National Whitewater Center in Charlotte, NC. We look very forward to her arrival, and to many exciting programs and events to come! VIII. Public Hearing: Charter Change Recommendations – 6:00 p.m. Public Hearing opened by Mayor Lott at 6:26 p.m. Mayor Lott shared some background information. Liz Edsell, Chair of the Charter Commission gave an overview of Article 1. She discussed All Resident Voting and noted the language changes. Some Discussion ensued. Mayor Lott reviewed Article 2. City Manager Baker reviewed Article 3 discussed the administrative changes. There were no comments from the public. Public Hearing was closed at 6:35 p.m. IX. Regular Items A. Discussion/Approval: Downtown Winooski – Presentation and Funding Request-H Carrington Ms. Carrington explained the request. Seth Leonard, Paige Feeser an Meredith Bay-Tyack all shared. Meredith expressed and defended the need. Seth made a statement about the future of Downtown Winooski. Paige expressed her thankfulness for the consideration of this request. Questions and discussion ensued. MOTION by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Lafayette to approve as presented the Funding Request for Downtown Winooski. Voted and passed 4-0. B. Approval: Resolution: Small Business Saturday – H Carrington Ms. Carrington reviewed the proposed resolution. MOTION: by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Colston to approve the Resolution as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. C. Discussion: FY21 Quarter 1 Treasurer’s Report-A Anastasi-Hill The Treasurer reviewed the report then opened the floor to any questions. Some discussion ensued. Mayor Lott thanked Treasurer Anastasi-Hill for his presentation D. Discussion: Update on the City/School Memorandum of Understanding – J Baker City Manager gave an update. Some questions and discussion ensued. E. Approval: UVM Extension Library Grant Application – R Coffey Mr. Coffey reviewed the grant. MOTION: by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Duncan to approve the UVM Extension Library Grant Application as presented. Voted and passed 4-0. Mayor Lott called for a 3 minute recess at 7:24 p.m. Meeting resumed at 7:28 pm. F. Approval: Parks and Open Space Master Plan – R Coffey Mr. Coffey explained and reviewed the plan. R Coffey shared how helpful Eric Vorwald has been in this process. Mayor Lott complimented the plan and the changes that have been made. She is very pleased with this iteration. Questions and discussion ensued. MOTION: by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Colston to approve the Parks and Open Space Master Plan as presented with the updates to the sidewalk maps. G. Approval: Cedar Street Closing – J Rauscher Mr. Rauscher explained the situation. City Manager Baker further explained the City’s responsibilities. Questions and discussion ensued. Some questions particular to zoning were answered by Eric Vorwald. More discussion ensued. MOTION: by Councilor Myers second by Councilor Lafayette voted and passed 4-0. H. Discussion: 2020 Plan Reportout #3 – J Baker City Manager Baker explained that the changes are marked in red. Mayor Lott had questions regarding housing standards as there are quality concerns. It was stated that an update to the Rental Registry Ordinance in the future. Some more discussion ensued over several different topics. X. Adjourn MOTION: by Councilor Duncan second by Councilor Myers to adjourn at 7:49 p.m. Voted and passed 4-0. ATTEST:______________________________________________ Assistant City Clerk