City Council

City of Winooski 27 West Allen Street Winooski Vermont 05404 Vermont’s Opportunity City 802 655 6410 winooskivt.gov Winooski City Council Meeting Monday, December 1, 2025, at 6 PM Attend in person: Winooski City Hall (27 W Allen St) Attend online: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84364849328 Attend by phone: 1 646 558 8656 Webinar ID: 843 6484 9328 Members Present: Mayor Thomas Renner; Deputy Mayor Bryn Oakleaf; Councilor Aurora Hurd; Councilor Alison Turkos; Councilor Elsie Goodrich Officers Present: Elaine Wang, City Manager; Paul Sarne, Communications Director; John Audy, Fire Chief; Angela Aldieri, Finance Director; Nate Eddy, Library Director; Jenny Willingham, City Clerk; Jesse Acri, Human Resources Director; Adam Hoffnung-Warantz, Assistant City Clerk Others Present: Tim Cece; Karol Cannon; Conner Daley; Clayton Clark; Jen Berger; Jessical Wignall I. Call to Order at 6:02 PM II. Agenda Review III. Public Comment Minutes: Karol Cannon gave comment and appreciation with the Main Street Revitalization Project and asked questions related to next year’s updates with update comments provided both by City Manager Wang and Deputy Mayor Oakleaf. In addition, Karol gave comments regarding the need for speed bumps and traffic calming measures on Richard Street, Lafountain, and Main Street. Discourse ensued about the feasibility and applicability of these requests, and it was noted that through a recent traffic calming assessment the need for additional measures was not warranted. Comment was made by City Manager Wang that these concerns are more related to an enforcement issue and communication with law enforcement is a more appropriate way to assist with this concern. IV. Consent Agenda A. Approval: Liquor Control Board Meeting Minutes of November 3, 2025, City Council Meeting Minutes of November 3, 2025, and November 12, 2025 B. Approval: Payroll Warrant October 26-November 8, 2025, and Payroll Warrant November 9-November 22, 2025 C. Approval: Accounts Payable Warrants November 2025 D. Approval: Grant for Business Support - Marketing Campaign Through City Construction Projects Motion: Motion to approve Consent Agenda by Deputy Mayor Oakleaf and seconded by Councilor Hurd. Motion carries 4-0 with Mayor Renner abstaining.  City of Winooski 27 West Allen Street Winooski Vermont 05404 Vermont’s Opportunity City 802 655 6410 winooskivt.gov V. Council Reports Mayor Thomas Renner: Mayor Renner thanks Councilor Hurd for their time and dedication to the city. On planning there was further discussion on Unified Land Use and Development Regulations, gentle infill, converting existing spaces to dwellings, like garages/attics, signage allowed in public districts, an alignment in documentation on affordable housing to correlate with priority housing. I also attended the Development Review Board last meeting where there was ample discussion from the public around the armory project, the DRB will be hosting another public hearing at the site of the armory, more details to follow but it will be advertised by the city. Planning meets December 11, 2025, and Finance will meet December 9, 2025. Please join Downtown Businesses and local craftspeople for the Holiday Pop Up Shop, this Thursday at 5pm https://downtownwinooski.org/events/holiday-pop-up/ Deputy Mayor Bryn Oakleaf: The Infrastructure Commission met on 11/20/25 for our annual joint meeting with the Finance Commission. We had a great meeting with three community members contributing comments and questions during the discussion. No votes were taken on proposed FY27 budget priorities, but the group did collectively express interest in the budget considerations for: • A more robust City Hall renovation rather than piece meal updates to WPD without considering updates to Council Chambers, bathrooms, and office space, etc. While a recent scoping study within the past five years may not be available, there may be a scoping study from 2019 that could provide a foundation for design options. • Funding for traffic calming measure implementation. No funding has been allocated to implement options identified in the Traffic Calming Manual since the manual was adopted in 2022. The next meeting is expected to be held 12/18/25. Councilor Aurora Hurd: The Inclusion and Belonging Commission will meet on December 17th, at 6:00 pm over Zoom. As a more personal update, I wanted to share that I will not be running for reelection this March. I will still be around but need to step back for a time due to some health and career matters. I appreciate everyone I have worked with and gotten to know in the past four years. And I look forward to continuing that work in a different capacity in the future. Councilor Elsie Goodrich: The Housing Commission met on Tuesday November 25th, and while we had a quorum, only three people were able to attend the meeting, so the commission voted to postpone the agenda until next month’s meeting, so more people could be present for the conversation. The Commission will meet next on Tuesday December 16th to discuss the CoRE changes discussion. Councilor Alison Turkos: There is a Safe, Healthy, Connected People Meeting upcoming on Tuesday, December 9, 2025.  City of Winooski 27 West Allen Street Winooski Vermont 05404 Vermont’s Opportunity City 802 655 6410 winooskivt.gov VI. City Updates Elaine Wang, City Manager, gave the following updates: The Fiscal Year 2027 budget process begins tonight with the Overall Budget & General Government Presentation. Community members are encouraged to get involved in the process – the proposed FY27 budget and all budget meeting information is provided at winooskivt.gov/fy27. Budget meetings occur during City Council meetings on Monday nights (or Tuesdays where there are holidays) and will take us through the end of January - we’ll have presentations for each City department before the City Council takes the final budget vote on January 26. Then in February, we’ll host a community event at the Winooski School District (details to come) – all of which leads up to the Town Meeting Day election on March 3, 2026, where community members will vote on the budget and other items such as City Councilors, and more. Speaking of public participation - please check out our new Public Meetings page! At the beginning of every month, community members can look ahead to all of our City Council, board, commission, and committee meetings by visiting winooskivt.gov/meetings. A once-a-month news update will go out announcing that month’s meetings, and, where possible, we’ll continue to share meeting information on our other communications channels. We hope this provides a new, central location to find out about public meetings. Residents are always encouraged to participate, ask questions, and provide feedback during public meetings. It’s that time of year – winter parking bans began today! As a reminder, there is no overnight street parking from 2:30 AM – 6 AM in Downtown Winooski from December 1 – March 31. For everywhere else in Winooski, overnight winter parking bans are made during winter storms and for snow removal where street parking is not allowed from 11 PM to 7 AM. To sign up for our winter parking ban alerts, text the word ‘Winooski’ to 888 777 or register at nixle.com. For full details, please visit winooskivt.gov/parking. Help save a life by joining us for the blood drive at the Winooski Senior Center (123 Barlow Street) on Thursday, December 4, 2025, from 12 to 4:15 PM. You can schedule online at redcrossblood.org/give or by calling 1 800 RED CROSS. Visit the news updates section at winooskivt.gov for current promotional details. The Operation Fire Cuffs toy drive has begun - this cherished local tradition unites neighboring public safety agencies to bring toys and joy to children at the Golisano Children’s Hospital at UVM Health. Donations can be provided at the Winooski Fire and Police Departments – for donation specifics, visit the news updates section at winooskivt.gov. VII. Regular Items A. Discussion: Review of General Fund Reserves - Elaine Wang, City Manager and Angela Aldieri, Finance Director Minutes: Finance Director Angela Aldieri gave an overview of the fund balance reserve policy from 2021 which maintains best practices for reserving thirty to forty-five days of operating expenses. Mayor Renner asked for a brief explanation of capital projects and discussion ensued with the Finance Director related to the capital project policy for projects that are over a defined amount. City Manager Wang interjected about potential expenses not currently assigned but may need additional support: Champlain Pedestrian Bridge, brownfield concerns related to a parcel in the city, a staffing model analysis, the wastewater treatment plant and its vulnerability for flooding, as well as garage lighting. These all need to be considered as future requests throughout the fiscal year. Fiscal Year 2025’s balance is healthy, even after having reserve funds, and with the estimated scope of work, the City will still have reserve funds.  City of Winooski 27 West Allen Street Winooski Vermont 05404 Vermont’s Opportunity City 802 655 6410 winooskivt.gov City Council asked for a full list of potential expenditures with high demands, yet understanding there are limited funds. B. Discussion: Fiscal Year 2027 (July 1, 2026-June 30, 2027) Budget Presentation and General Government Review - Elaine Wang, City Manager Minutes: Per the Council-approved Fiscal Year 2027 (July 2026 -June 2027) budget schedule and in compliance with the Winooski City Charter, the City Manager proposed a General Government budget for FY27 to inform City Council’s decisions for their budget to propose to voters. The City Council directed staff during their October 6, 2025 meeting to develop a “strategic investment” budget and allocates additional resources to priority areas recommended by staff. The City Manager’s proposed strategic investment budget would result in a projected 6.47% tax rate increase. A larger portion of the increase is made up of salary increases driven by union contracts, and contractual increases, including for Downtown Winooski and Green Mountain Transit. Mayor Renner proposed a break starting at 7:33 PM for five minutes ending at 7:38 PM. Discussion ensued related to a living wage increase for Grade 2 city employees, Police department’s needs, public works projects, and proposed traffic calming study reductions. The City Council requested City Staff to provide more information related to the costs of these projects not included in the proposal for future meetings. C. Discussion/Approval: Green Mountain Transit - American with Disabilities Act (ADA) Assessment Methodology - Elaine Wang, City Manager and Paul Sarne, Communications Director Minutes: Green Mountain Transit (GMT) shared their FY27 assessment with service reductions and ADA methodology, with an asking increase of 5.5% for the municipality. For municipalities with service, the average increase is 6% and reduction in services is less in the municipality than others (16% reduction in services for urban operating areas, yet Winooski had only a 9% reduction). Currently GMT has a budget gap for FY27 and there may be a need for more service reductions. GMT also recently was IRS recognized as non-affiliated non- profit and they are looking to fundraise and access non-profit grants for future sources of funding. The ADA methodology was changed without the City of Winooski’s approval but asked City Council for retroactive approval. There is high volatility for paratransit services and many of these services for residents are for transportation outside of the city. Deputy Mayor Oakleaf opined that the assessment made sense for the cost due to vitality goals for residents. Motion: Motion to approve, retroactive to July 2024, Green Mountain Transit’s ADA Assessment Methodology by Deputy Mayor Oakleaf and seconded by Councilor Goodrich. Motion passes unanimously. D. Discussion: Goal Updates: Housing, Municipal Infrastructure, Economic Vitality, All/Cross-Cutting - Elaine Wang, City Manager and Paul Sarne, Communications Director Minutes: Communications Director Paul Sarne gave an overview of the new Language Access Procedure which involved collaboration with the Winooski School District and will be updated every August during enrollment based on language needs. The City has unveiled “I Speak” cards to assist those who need interpretation services throughout many city municipal locations. Not only are on-demand services now a part of this procedure but they are also available for planned interpretation services as well. This service is available as a mobile application for those that require American Sign Language interpretation services too. The State of  City of Winooski 27 West Allen Street Winooski Vermont 05404 Vermont’s Opportunity City 802 655 6410 winooskivt.gov Vermont is helping to fund this program, and the City is only responsible for the per-minute translation services. City Council shared their appreciation for the work the city has done to implement this new program. E. Discussion/Approval: Winooski City Council Legislative Priorities - Mayor Thomas Renner Minutes: Mayor Renner outlined specific discussion points to give to the State Legislature in Burlington on December 12, 2025, at 8 AM related to housing, affordability, public safety, social services, and support. City Councilors gave their feedback about strengthening specific language for various talking points as well as formatting concerns. Mayor Renner appreciated the feedback and asked the Council if they want to approve this at the next meeting as part of the Agenda Review to which the Council agreed. Adjourn Motion: Motion to adjourn by Deputy Mayor Oakleaf and seconded by Councilor Goodrich. Motion passed unanimously. Meeting adjourned at 8:52 PM. Attest: ________________________________ Adam Hoffnung-Warantz, Assistant City Clerk