City Council

Winooski City Council Remote and In-Person Meeting Monday May 2, 2022, at 6 PM Attend online: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84364849328 Attend by phone: 1 646 558 8656 Attend in person: Winooski City Hall (27 West Allen St - masks & 6' distancing required) I. Call to Order II. Pledge of Allegiance III. Agenda Review IV. Public Comment V. Consent Agenda a. Approval: Liquor Control and City Council Minutes of 4/18/2022 b. Approval: Accounts Payable Warrant for 04/28/2022, Payroll Warrant for 04/03/2022-04/16/2022, and Subsequent to Payout Warrant for 02/2022 VI. Council Reports VII. City Updates VIII. Public Hearing – Chapter 28 (Fees) Update 6 PM – A Aldieri IX. Regular Items a. Approval: Consideration of Applications for COVID-Recovery Business Grants – A Aldieri b. Approval: Event Permit Applications: Winooski Farmer’s Market, Winooski Wednesdays, and Juneteenth – R Coffey c. Discussion/Approval: Abenaki Land Acknowledgement and Land Rights Resolution – J Duncan/Y Gordon/P Sarne d. Discussion/Approval: Vermont Community Fund Grant – Y Gordon e. Approval: Deputy Health Officer Appointment – J Audy f. Approval: Local Emergency Management Plan (LEMP) – J Audy g. Discussion/Approval: Burlington Airport Commission Appointment – K Lott h. Discussion/Approval: 2022-2023 Policy Priorities and Strategies – Scheduling - J Rauscher i. Discussion/Approval: Settlement Agreement – after Executive Session – J Rauscher X. Executive Session a. Executive Session Pursuant to 1 V.S.A. §313 (1) (e) pending or probable civil litigation or a prosecution, to which the public body is or may be a party. (tentative) XI. Adjourn  MINUTES The Mayor called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Deputy Mayor Duncan led in the Pledge of Allegiance. Members Present: Mayor Kristine Lott Deputy Mayor James Duncan Councilors: Bryn Oakleaf, Aurora Hurd, and Thomas Renner Officers Present: Jon Rauscher, Interim City Manager/Public Works Director; Paul Sarne, Communications Manager; Angela Aldieri, Finance Director; John Audy, Fire Chief; Ray Coffey, Community Services Director; Yasamin Gordon, Equity Director; Jenny Willingham, City Clerk Others Present: Town Meeting TV, Joe O’Brien, and Meredith Bay-Tyack III. Agenda Review- none IV. Public Comment- Joe O’Brien discussed traffic concerns on the corner of Weaver Street and West Allen Street along with Main Street and Mansion Street. Mr. Rauscher will direct Public Works to inspect and recommend a possible safety measure. The traffic concern at Main Street & Mansion Street is currently under review and will be addressed with the Main Street project. V. Consent Agenda The Mayor split out the approval of Liquor Control & City Council Minutes of 4/18/2022 since Deputy Mayor Duncan was not present. a. Approval: Liquor Control and City Council Minutes of 4/18/2022 MOTION by Councilor Oakleaf seconded by Councilor Renner to approve the minutes as presented. Voted and passed 3-0. Deputy Mayor Duncan abstained b. Approval: Accounts Payable Warrant for 4/28/22, Payroll Warrant for 4/03/2022 – 4/16/2022, and Subsequent to Payroll Warrant for 02/2022 MOTION by Councilor Renner and seconded by Councilor Oakleaf to approve the items as presented Voted and Passed 4-0 VI. Council Reports Councilor Hurd- None Councilor Oakleaf – Municipal Infrastructure Commission met on April 21, 2022. Items reviewed were the draft of the Traffic Manual, Parking Management plan and a self-evaluation of the energy assessment to develop a policy and best practice guidelines. Additional updates of the stormwater ordinance. The next meeting will be on 5/19 at City Hall. In addition, Councilor Oakleaf (CSWD Board Commissioner) indicated there will be a presentation in the near future of a new materials recovery facility for CSWD. Councilor Renner- None Councilor Duncan- In honor of the Winooski Centennial, there will be a tree planting on 05/07 at 11:00 a.m. at Richards Park. In addition, there will be a Casavant Park Ash Walk to address the concerns of the Ash trees with a local forester. Mayor Lott- At the recent meeting with the School Board Chair, discussions arose around year- around transportation busing service along with resuming meetings on a regular basis. Mayor Lott and Councilor Duncan are working on an Engagement Strategy to resume the relationship between the City and School leadership. In addition, Mayor Lott met with the GMT representative regarding a state award to retain the “Fare-Free” for the upcoming year. VII. City Updates Mr. Rauscher spoke about the upcoming updates: • Green-Up Day at the Senior Center on May 7. The bags are available at City Hall and the Library. • Centennial Tree Planting on May 7th at Richards Park • 1-89 2050 Study Public Input meeting- The final meeting on May 10th at 6:00 p.m. • Thanked the Winooski Police Department and Winooski Partnership for Prevention for the successful Prescription Drug Take Back Day. • ARPA Survey for community members to take on-line. In addition, a multilingual in-person outreach plan to occur in the month of June. • Chittenden County Regional Emergency Dispatch- In 2018, Winooski approved the Chittenden County Public Safety Authority along with Burlington, Colchester, Milton, South Burlington and Williston during Town Meeting Day. • COVID Safety alerts: Chittenden County has joined more than half of all VT counties returning to “High” rates of COVID according to the CDC. • This is the end of the holy month- Ramadan. “EID Mubarak. Blessed Celebration or “Happy EID.” VIII. Public Hearing – Chapter 28 (Fees) update at 6:00 p.m.- A. Aldieri Ms. Aldieri gave an overview of the proposed changes that were reviewed and introduced at the previous City Council meeting including: • Increase the cost of marriage licenses to be consistent with State Statute • Fees associated with the Public Records Request Policy • Public Works Director is proposing changes to the Street Department and Water Resources to streamline the permitting process while covering administrative costs to review applications • Planning & Zoning Administrator is proposing changes to the Zoning and Land Development fees. Mayor Kristine Lott opened the Public Hearing at 6:17 p.m. The Public Hearing closed at 6:18 p.m. since there was not any comments from the public. Ms. Aldieri stated the Ordinance will go into effect in Thirty (30) days. IX. Regular Items a. Approval: Consideration of Applications for COVID- Recovery Business Grants- A. Aldieri Ms. Aldieri provided the overview of the three (3) grant applications along with the associated guidelines. The City Council approved up to $100,000 of American Rescue Funding Plan funding to be used for business recovery efforts on January 24, 2022. The deadline to receive the grant applications was April 8th at 5:00 p.m. Discussion ensued over the lack of grant applications. Ms. Bay-Tyack, representing Downtown Winooski, conducted various types of Outreach to the local businesses. The Board reviewed the three (3) redacted grant applications and made recommendations for the grant based upon the rating criteria. Additional discussion from City Council regarding the guidelines, eligibility, and the submittal process. MOTION by Councilor Renner seconded by Councilor Duncan to approve the Grant Applications for Applicants B & C. Voted and passed 3-0. Councilor Oakleaf voted no. b. Approval: Event Permit Applications: Winooski Farmers Market, Winooski Wednesdays, and Juneteenth- R. Coffey Overview of the Event Permit applications was provided by Ms. Bay-Tyack including activities for kids, storytellers & music along with the addition of vendors. MOTION by Councilor Renner seconded by Councilor Hurd to approve the three Event Permit Applications Winooski Farmers Market, Winooski Wednesdays, and Juneteenth). Voted and passed 4-0.  c. Discussion/Approval: Abenaki Land Acknowledgement & Land Rights Resolution- J Duncan, P. Sarne, R. Coffey & Y. Gordon The Centennial Celebration Committee partnered with Chief Don Stevens of the Nulhegan Abenaki Tribe to create an Abenaki Land Acknowledgement and Land Use Rights resolution. This Resolution will be read during the Community Birthday Party on June 4, 2022. This was a collaborative effort to recognize the Abenaki Tribe. There will be an Abenaki Flag placed in Rotary Park to celebrate and honor the Abenaki Tribes. MOTION by Councilor Oakleaf seconded by Councilor Hurd to approve the Abenaki Land Acknowledgement & Land Rights Resolution. Voted and passed 4-0. d. Discussion/Approval: Vermont Community Fund Grant- Y. Gordon Ms. Gordon seeks to apply for the Equitable and Inclusive Community’s grant. This opportunity is presented by the Vermont Community Foundation and Vermont Leagues of Cities & Towns (VLCT). The amount sought by this grant is $10,000.00 MOTION by Councilor Hurd seconded by Councilor Renner to approve the application of the VCF grant. Voted and passed 4-0 e. Approval: Deputy Health Officer Appointment- J. Audy A recommendation by Chief J. Audy to seek the addition of a Deputy Health Officer to assist with the life safety and health issues during the course of daily duties. Bruce Palmer, Fire Marshall is selected to be the Deputy Health Officer. MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Oakleaf to appoint Bruce Palmer as the Deputy Health Officer. Voted and passed 4-0 f. Approval: Local Emergency Management Plan- J. Audy Chief Audy presented the annual statutory Local Emergency Management Plan. This annual document is required for federal funding. MOTION by Councilor Renner seconded by Councilor Duncan to approve the submittal of the Local Emergency Management Plan. Voted and passed 4-0 The Mayor called a 5-minute recess at 7:30 p.m.  g. Discussion/Approval: Burlington Airport Commission Appointment- K. Lott Mayor Lott provided an overview of Act H.454 to approve an amendment to the City of Burlington Charter to add a legal voter of the City of Winooski to the Board of Airport Commissioners. The meeting will be held on the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 4:00 p.m. Council members discussed the possibility of an appointment by a City Councilor or by a City Staff member. The next meeting will be held on May 18th. h. Discussion/Approval: 2022-2023 Policy Priorities & Strategies Scheduling- J. Rauscher Mr. Rauscher set the date for the City Council/Leadership team to discuss the upcoming goals and work plan. This will be on May 21st from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at a location TBD. Included will be the review of the master plan and internal recommendations. Discussion ensued regarding the invitation of the various Commission Chair or members. MOTION by Councilor Hurd seconded by Councilor Renner to approve the 2022-2023 Policy Priorities & Strategies for May 21st from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at a location TBD. Voted and passed 4-0 i. Discussion/Approval: Settlement Agreement- (after Executive Session)- J. Rauscher MOTION by Councilor Duncan seconded by Councilor Hurd to enter into Executive Session to further discuss this item. Voted and passed 4-0 MOTION by Councilor Renner seconded by Councilor Oakleaf to enter Executive Session at 8:00 p.m. and to invite Jon Rauscher, Interim City Manager/Public Works Director; Angela Aldieri, Finance Director; Kerin Stackpole, Attorney at Paul, Frank & Collins. Voted and passed 4-0. X. Executive Session a. Executive Session Pursuant to 1 V.S.A 313 (1) (e) pending or probable prosecution, to which the public body is or may be a party. (tentative) MOTION by Councilor Oakleaf seconded by Councilor Renner to approve and ratify the Severance Agreement and General Release and authorize the Interim City Manager to sign the document. Voted and passed 4-0. XI. Adjourn MOTION by Councilor Oakleaf seconded by Councilor Renner to adjourn the meeting at 8:10 p.m. Voted and passed 4-0. ATTEST: ____________________________________ City Clerk