This page is maintained by Swanton Village, Inc and is intended to be the official online posting of public meetings and minutes in accordance with Vermont’s Open Meeting law (Amended July 1st, 2014).

Monday, December 23, 2013

Trustee Meeting Minutes - December 23rd, 2013

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX
120 FIRST STREET
SWANTON, VT 05488


REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, December 23, 2013
7:00 P.M.


PRESENT: Ron Kilburn, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Reg Beliveau, Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Gordon Winters and Channel 16.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

Ron Kilburn, Village President, welcomed all to the regular Board of Trustees meeting and called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m.

Ron Kilburn stated they would hear #3 first to accommodate our guest.

3. Gordon Winters Increased Water Allocation Request & New Water Connection at 218 Maquam Shore Road:

Adam Paxman made the motion to enter into Water Commissioner’s meeting at 7:12 p.m. to hear this item. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Reg Beliveau stated that the increased water allocation won’t be an issue but the new connection may be. He asked Gordon if he was aware that he would have to bore under the road because the Town of Swanton will not allow a cross cut on their road surface. Gordon Winters stated he is asking for an increased water allocation from the Village of Swanton and will coordinate with Harold Garrett from the Town of Swanton with regard to boring under the road for the new connection.

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve Gordon Winter’s request for an increase in water allocation from 280 gallons per day to 490 gallons per day, with coordination from Reg Beliveau and Mike Menard regarding the new water connection at 218 Maquam Shore Road. Chris Leach seconded.

Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Water Commissioner’s meeting at 7:22 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.


1. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, December 9, 2013 Meeting:

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, December 9, 2013 as presented. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Discussion: Adam Paxman asked Reg if he had any other thoughts on the “Watch Online” offer from Channel 16. Reg stated he talked with Dave Jescavage from the Town of Swanton and they are not going to do it. Adam Paxman and Chris Leach stated they would like to pass on it right now. Eugene LaBombard thought it was a good idea. Adam asked if the Village could pick and choose a certain meeting to be viewed, such as a public hearing. Reg stated he would find that out. Motion carried.

2. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Friday, December 13, 2013:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #646-#650 through December 13, 2013 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach stated they have paid a lot in purchase power. Motion carried.

4. Budget Discussions:

Electric Dept. -- Lynn Paradis explained to the Board that after the rate case she is going to review her depreciation schedule. She said this may increase expenses by about $484,000 and she said the Village is looking at another rate increase for 2014. She said they are working with VPPSA on that. Lynn also said there is work at the Hydro Plant that needs to be done. She said the line crew has two trucks that need to be replaced, one is a pickup truck and the other is a digger truck.

Lynn said in 2014 the Village will be working on a line of credit and will have to do a 108 filing that the Public Service Board will rule on. If approved it would then have to go before the voters. She said she has been working on this and has been forced to do it.

Water Dept. – Lynn stated that the first bond payment on the Water Plant Upgrade will be due in 2014. She said the Board of Trustees will have to approve a rate increase in the water rates. Reg Beliveau stated the voters are aware of and have approved the rate schedule through 2017. Lynn said Brian Bishop is using less chemicals since the upgrade and she has cut that line item in half.

Sewer Dept. – Lynn said they need to look at a new ultraviolet disinfection system for the Waste Water Plant. She said this is a safety issue at this time. She said the other issue at this time is the vactor, it’s a 1995 rig and rolls just about every day. She said they will need to lease or finance a new one.

Highway Dept. – Lynn stated they have budgeted to pave Fourth and Second Street after the Water Project is complete and also Canada Street. She said this budget does not reflect paving First Street.

General Fund – Lynn said there are no surprises in this fund. She said the fountain in the park needs attention. Reg stated he ordered some new trees for the park and also some new lights for Flat Iron Park.

Fire Dept. – Lynn said the new Fire Chief has worked very hard to keep this budget level funded this year. She said the two biggest expenses are dispatching and insurance. Eugene LaBombard asked about the dispatching costs. Lynn advised that what is in the Fire budget is only what the Fire Department pays. She said Missisquoi Valley Rescue is also billed and they pay approximately 74% of the bill. The Fire Department pays 24-26% of the bill and it’s based on per capita.

Police Dept. – Lynn said there is an increase in this budget this year because a cruiser needs to be replaced. She said the Swanton Town contract is in the budget and also the Student Resource Officer (SRO) with MVUHS is in the budget. Chris Leach asked if there was any talk about hiring a resource officer at the elementary school. Lynn said she hasn’t heard any talk of that.

Commercial Building Fund – Lynn advised the Memorial building needs repair but she said that building pays for itself. She handed the Board a list of equipment the Department heads would like to purchase in 2014.

She said the estimated tax rate for 2014 is .7159 and in 2013 it was .6847. Reg also informed the Board that this budget reflects another full time maintenance position. He said the primary responsibility would be at the Hydro Plant and this position is budgeted in the electric department. Reg said this individual would work along with Joe Letourneau and Greg Spaulding doing maintenance.

The Board agreed to have a budget meeting on January 6, 2014.

5. Grand List Discussion:

Chris Leach said they need to find ways to grow the grand list every year to keep taxes reasonable and asked for everyone to think about this. Eugene LaBombard stated that if you increase taxes every year you need to increase the grand list. He said we don’t have any land available for industry. Ron Kilburn asked if there were any resources they could look to for help. Chris thought the Regional Planning Commission may be able to help them. Reg stated industry stabilizes the rates in electric, water, sewer and also the grand list. He said the Village and Town work diligently together on these kinds of issues and would like nothing more than to see a large company come to Swanton Village or Town. Eugene LaBombard said the infrastructure is already here for a company to come in and set up. He also said that Molly and Hank Lambert’s efforts will help in bringing people here to Swanton. He also said the schools need to be good enough to support growth. Chris Leach said to continue to keep this item on our agendas and to also include it on the next JLB agenda. The board members agreed to write down their definition of expanding the grand list for their next meeting.

6. Any Other Necessary Business:

Reg Beliveau stated that the road crew and electric crew did a great job during the ice storm. He said we lent our electric crew to other departments and that says a lot about them. He said it’s a burden on the guys but they are glad to help where they can. He said he was glad mother-nature took care of them because getting the sleet was a good thing, it didn’t attach to anything. Reg said if they had gotten a full inch of rain this would have decimated the Village. He said they starting planning for this on Thursday and there are still more conference calls to come regarding this ice storm.

7. Executive Session (If Necessary):

None.


ADJOURN: Chris Leach made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 8:55 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. There being no further business at hand, Ronald Kilburn, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 8:55 p.m.



_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Ronald Kilburn, Village President                    Date


_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Dianne Day, Village Clerk                               Date


Monday, December 9, 2013

Trustee Meeting Minutes - December 9th, 2013

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX
120 FIRST STREET
SWANTON, VT 05488


REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, December 9, 2013
7:00 P.M.


PRESENT: Ron Kilburn, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Reg Beliveau, Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Molly Lambert, Hank Lambert and Sandy Kilburn; and Channel 16.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

Ron Kilburn, Village President, welcomed all to the regular Board of Trustees meeting and called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Ron Kilburn stated they would hear #3 first to accommodate our guests.

3. Discuss Downtown Improvement Program:

Molly Lambert thanked the Board for having her and Hank come in and explain what the Downtown Improvement Program is all about and what they are working on. She also thanked Sandy and Ron Kilburn for becoming involved in this group. She said this group is very interested in continuing to work on making Swanton a great place to live, work, play and learn. She said that is their mission. She thanked Rich Kelley and Reg Beliveau for work on their website. She said their next step was to establish a steering committee and they have Marie Frye, Ross Lavoie, Kathy Lavoie, Earl Fournier and Amanda Torrey. She said their objective is to formulate an action plan. Reg Beliveau talked about the survey that was sent out by the group and how they are working with these surveys. Chris Leach stated he would love to see more industry locate in Swanton. Molly stated when you see a community succeed people are proud to live here, you see the vibrancy and outside businesses are intrigued by that. Sandy Kilburn stated that some of the things asked for on the survey were art, music, food, walk-able and friendly access to river activities. She said they need to energize these things. Chris stated they have so much traffic going through Swanton, they need to find something that they want to stop for. Reg stated that a lot of money was spent on programs that went nowhere in the past, he said these things need to happen and need action. Chris Leach stated that this is a bedroom community and a lot of people aren’t here enough, they’re going to Chittenden County. Molly invited Chris to join their committee. Reg stated that Molly and Hank have a process and they need to work through it. He said this is a great group of forward thinkers. Molly stated that sometimes “singles” are better than “homeruns” and that you need to lay a foundation and it will mount. Ron Kilburn asked Molly and Hank to state their credentials from past jobs and experience.

Molly thanked the Board and stated she would keep them regularly informed on what’s going on with the Downtown Improvement Program. She also mentioned the Front Porch Forum that was created on Facebook.

1. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, November 25, 2013 Meeting:

Chris Leach made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, November 25, 2013 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach stated the Eagle Scout project is called the Military Service Appreciation Monument. Motion carried with change.

2. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Friday, December 6, 2013:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #643-#645 through December 6, 2013 as presented. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach asked about the VPPSA payment for $44,976.77. Reg Beliveau stated that the Village is over budget about $345,000 on purchase power this year. Motion carried.

4. Northwest Access TV “Watch Online” Service Request:

Reg Beliveau informed the Board that Northwest Access TV (Channel 16) is offering the Village an internet video hosting service called “Watch Online.” “With this additional service, meetings that are recorded can be stored online for viewing at any time, from any location on any type of internet-capable computer or mobile device.” The cost of this service is $50 per meeting and covers all expenses for preparing the meeting video for online viewing, hosting the video without commercials and support for your website manager to place the video on the Village’s website. The Village meets twice per month so this would cost $100 per month. The Board discussed the pros and cons and asked Reg to talk with Elizabeth Malone at NW Access TV and ask about storage, the ability to track residents with the computer, how much interest there is in this, and if we could use their website instead of the Village’s. Reg stated he would bring back further information when he had it.

5. Any Other Necessary Business:

Chris Leach asked if the Village was doing appraisals this year. Reg stated yes they would be by the end of the year. He said they would be scheduling a meeting with the Board in the next week or so to work on budgets. Chris stated he read the cost of living (COLA) this year is about 1 ½% Eugene LaBombard stated that the Board did very well with insurance this year and wanted to keep that in mind when discussing wage increases. Chris Leach also stated he wanted to sit and discuss the Grand List and asked that I put it on the next agenda. He also asked if anything happened with the downtown camera. Reg stated he has not heard back from them as of yet.

Any Other Business: Adam Paxman stated he attended the Fire Department’s Christmas party on Saturday night and three awards were handed out. He said two Firefighter of the Year awards were presented to Ronnie Greeno and Dustin Robtoy. Adam stated a Years of Service award was presented to Garth Lizotte. Adam wanted to remind everyone that Christmas in the Park will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14 with a tree lighting ceremony at 4 p.m. He said the Cub Scouts will be helping to decorate the park. Adam also stated on December 2nd he attended an Incident Command Center meeting and it was very enlightening. He said it touched on what the role of a trustee would be in the event of a disaster and/or emergency action plan. He also reminded everyone the next JLB meeting will be held here on Wednesday, Dec. 18th at 7 p.m.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau informed everyone that on Friday, Dec. 13th from 6 to 8 p.m. four local businesses will have Santa Claus and activities for the kids. These businesses are Champlain Insurance, The Village Cone, Katie’s Pet Grooming and the Hair Loft. He said there will be a scavenger hunt and hot cocoa. He also stated the Water Project is complete until spring at which time some places will be top soiled and re-seeded.

Any Other Business: Ron Kilburn stated at the JLB meeting on Dec. 18th they will be discussing the water and sewer lines that feed the Fourth Street Garage and whether or not bigger lines need to be installed. Reg stated it depended on what was going in there.


Any Other Business: Chris Leach asked if anyone has heard anything about the Space Challenger Center and what the status of that project is. They agreed they would ask about this at the next JLB meeting.


6. Executive Session (If Necessary):

None.


ADJOURN: Adam Paxman made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 7:58 p.m. Chris Leach seconded. There being no further business at hand, Ronald Kilburn, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 7:58 p.m.



_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Ronald Kilburn, Village President                    Date


_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Dianne Day, Village Clerk                               Date