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, August 19, 2013

Trustee Meeting Minutes - August 19th, 2013

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


REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, AUGUST 19, 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; Cody Paradis; Boy Scout and Channel 16.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

Ron Kilburn, Village President, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

1. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, August 12, 2013 Meeting:

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, August 12, 2013 as presented. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach asked if anything came of the stop signs by Academy Street. Ron Kilburn pointed out an error on page two regarding Vtrans. Reg Beliveau stated he received a call from Brian Searles regarding First Street. Motion carried with corrections.

2. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Friday, August 16, 2013:

Chris Leach made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #599-#602 through August 16, 2013 as presented. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach asked about vendor Town of Fairfield for $1764.26. Reg explained that was for property taxes on Fairfield Pond. Ron Kilburn asked for more of an explanation. Reg stated Swanton Village owns approximately 4 acres of an emergency water service inlet at Fairfield Pond. Lynn Paradis stated its’ in the dam area part where the pipe comes out of the pond. Motion carried.

3. 250th Anniversary Conclusion Discussion:

Reg Beliveau stated he thought this event went very well. He estimated about 500 people throughout the day on Saturday. He said they received a lot of donations for the fireworks and he thanks everyone for that as well. Adam Paxman stated he heard the fireworks show was a phenomenal one and that everyone loved it. He said there were a lot of other events going on that evening so to have a good turnout was a good thing. He commended everyone on a good job. Reg stated that Fred Wiseman did a great job as well. Chris Leach stated he hoped there were lots of photos for memoirs. Ron Kilburn said he was putting together a thank you list and said he has kept all the newspaper articles, photos, etc. and every poster for the programs. He said he has a lot of memorabilia for a book for future generations. He also said they had a great committee with different backgrounds and interests. Reg stated you don’t have to look far if you’re looking for history in Swanton with the dig on Route 78, the Civil War cemetery by the Town Clerk’s office, two forms of government in Swanton that work well together, he said the lists goes on and on. The Board thanked everyone involved and said they were very pleased with how things turned out.

4. Any Other Necessary Business:

Chris Leach stated he read the Aldrich & Elliott contract and said no-where in the document does it state “as built” documents. He wondered if it should say that and asked Reg to check on that with Brad Aldrich. Reg stated he would do so. Eugene LaBombard asked when the bids would be opened. Reg stated on September 4th at 2 p.m. He said they had their preliminary bid meeting on August 14th and discussed all aspects of the job then.

Any Other Business: Adam Paxman asked Reg if there was an update on the utility pole ordinance yet. Reg stated not yet but will work on it. Adam also asked if the Police Department is still working on the parking complaint issue. Reg stated yes they are.

Any Other Business: Ron Kilburn stated it was time to get together with the Chief of Police and have a discussion regarding vandalism. He stated Village residents are very upset and said this is happening in broad daylight on the recreation path, on bikes, on mopeds, etc. Reg asked if this was being reported. Ron said it has been in the past but nothing has been done about it. Eugene LaBombard stated that “it doesn’t do any good” is the standard answer he hears. Ron stated this is unfair but needs to be addressed. He said this could lead to the formation of a citizens group. Adam said more eyes are better. Chris Leach said the sooner things are reported the better. Reg said the police need to know, they can’t respond if they do not know things are happening. Chris said residents can call the police department during business hours at 868-4100.

Any Other Business: Cody Paradis advised the Board he was there to watch the meeting and see how it works as a requirement for his merit badge, which is a rank communications badge. He said he is working on his Eagle Scout Project. He is putting up a 20 foot flag pole in front of the Franklin Town Clerk’s Office with a light on top of it. He said he is a senior this year at MVUHS. The Board wished him luck and thanked him for coming in.

The Board stated that they didn’t need an Executive Session for this next item, that they could announce this in open session.

Rick King announced that he is stepping down as Fire Chief and that the Department has recommended Tim Girard as the new Fire Chief. Tim stated this decision was not taken lightly and said a lot of thought went into it. Chris Leach said it is the most demanding position in a volunteer department. Tim said he has 40 years of service under his belt and has worked his way up through the ranks. Adam Paxman asked Tim what his vision was for Swanton. Tim said he was concerned with the Southern Growth District and more people traveling. He said he could see the need for some full time positions here for daytime coverage. He said to work on responding to calls, bills and maintenance they could remain busy. Chris Leach stated that Rick King has done a great job for the Department and they thanked him for his service. He said he worked diligently on getting the new fire truck for the Department, he said that’s a huge undertaking. Ron Kilburn congratulated Tim and wished Rick King the best. The Board thanked them both.

5. Executive Session to Discuss Personnel in Fire Department:

None.



ADJOURN: Chris Leach made the motion to Adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 7:35 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. There being no further business at hand, Ronald Kilburn, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 7:35 p.m.



_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Ronald Kilburn, Village President                    Date


_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Dianne Day, Village Clerk                               Date


Monday, August 12, 2013

Trustee Meeting Minutes - August 12th, 2013

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



MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
MONDAY, AUGUST 12, 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; Brian Savage, Michel Consejo, Donald Collins, State Representatives; Mike McCarthy and Jessica Edgerly-Walsh, Suncommon Solar; and Channel 16.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

Ron Kilburn, Village President, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

1. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, July 22, 2013 Meeting:

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, July 22, 2013 as presented. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach asked why the tax rate dropped from .6872 to .6847. I explained that the estimated tax rate printed in the Village Report was .6872 but because the Town grand list grew some it dropped the tax rate to .6847 for 2013. Motion carried.

2. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Friday, August 9, 2013:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #591-#598 through August 9, 2013 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

3. Delinquent Tax Collector Request to Hire Attorney to Complete Tax Sales:

Betty Cheney, Delinquent Tax Collector, sent a letter requesting that the Board authorize her to hire counsel Vaughn S. P. Comeau, Esquire, to assist in the completion of Village of Swanton Tax Sales. Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve this request as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

4. Approval and Execution of Construction Phase Services Agreement -- Brad Aldrich, Aldrich & Elliott:

Brad Aldrich explained to the Board that this Construction Phase Services Agreement takes them through the bid phase of this project. He said this will go out to bid on Wednesday, August 14, 2013 and bids will be opened on September 4th at 2 p.m. He said the total for this Agreement is $100,000. He also stated that the Scope of Work is standard and the State of Vermont has reviewed and approved this Agreement. Chris Leach asked if the on-site guy has met with Mike Menard yet. Brad stated he has and it is Chuck Magnus who supervised the Water Treatment Plant upgrade. He said he is familiar with the Village staff. Chris also asked if the climate for cost was looking favorable. Brad stated it looks pretty good and that this job would fit a fall schedule with some spring finish work. He said this will be attractive to some contractors and if it isn’t favorable they can always re-bid the job in the spring but he is cautiously optimistic. Reg informed the Board that Fourth Street will be widened and that Mike Menard got verbal approval from all Fourth Street residents for this. Ron Kilburn asked if all of Fourth Street would be widened. Reg stated it would be by about 3’ and that they would talk with the school principle when necessary and will re-route traffic during construction.

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to Approve and Execute the Engineering Services Agreement for Bid and Construction Phase for the Village of Swanton on Contract #3 -- Water Distribution System Improvements Project #13033. Chris Leach seconded. Motion carried.

5. Discussion on the Condition of First Street and Truck Traffic with State Representatives Brian Savage, Michel Consejo and Don Collins:

Chris Leach started the discussion by first stating that the Board is very frustrated by the fact that no one in VTrans returned any of Reg Beliveau’s phone calls or emails. Reg stated that Ken Roby finally returns his emails and has been doing so. Reg also stated that he heard Route 78 was scheduled to be re-paved in 2014 but Ken is now saying it won’t be done until 2015 or 2018. Reg stated he was concerned with the heavy truck traffic on First Street and said that Don Gilbert with the Swanton Police Department has been out more stopping trucks with the Department of Transportation (DOT). He said in March they had a road block set up, stopped over 200 trucks and issued approximately 90 violations for overweight trucks. He stated this is what is tearing up the corner of First St. and Grand Avenue.

Brian Savage stated the truck traffic has increased and this is a problem that isn’t going away. He said there is no way of getting a secondary route to I89 and that the immediate problem is First Street. He said he was very concerned about Vtrans not returning phone calls or emails and said he finally got in touch with Secretary Brian Searles and he stated there is no money in the budget. Brian stated his next approach would be to contact the Governor directly because this street needs to get fixed. Reg stated that the quote he received to re-pave First Street was $77,000 and he is requesting that the State at least split that cost with the Village. They discussed the possibility of putting concrete in on the corner of First Street and Grand Avenue all the way up to York Street. Chris Leach said at one time they threatened to adopt an Ordinance stating no trucks would be allowed through the Village. Ron Kilburn stated his frustration with this topic and said something needed to be done to correct it. He said this would end up costing the Village taxpayers more money in the long run and said they are footing the bill for all this truck traffic. Jessica Edgerly-Walsh asked how much an overweight truck fine was and asked if they could increase the cost of the fine.

Michel Consejo stated that Swanton needed to get out and stop more trucks and fine them for being overweight. He said this is where the issue is at this time and suggested more police officers get trained and certified so they can stop and inspect the trucks and fine them if necessary. He said once the word gets out that Swanton Village is stopping trucks for being overweight it might get better. Adam Paxman stated he at least wanted the State to care about the issue they are dealing with. Michel stated he was here at the Village when the Governor said First Street would be re-paved in full. Mike McCarthy asked when the last time First Street was completely re-paved. Reg stated it was at least 20 years ago. Mike stated that Ken Roby testified that Class I roads were getting on a 15 year schedule and said this should be moved up in the que.

Chris Leach mentioned an alternate truck route on Route 78 West. Don Collins asked him if anyone ever sat down with an engineer and mapped this out. Don also said they should get in contact with Rich Tatro and Brian Searles regarding this. Mike McCarthy also stated Reg should come and testify before the Transportation Committee. The Board discussed their action items to be: Train and certify more police officers to make more truck stops, draft an alternate truck route, local representatives would contact the Transportation Committee members and the Board would appear in Montpelier to testify before that committee. Michel Consejo also suggested that whenever Reg emails someone in Montpelier to also copy him, Brian and Don so they are aware of what’s going on. Don said he would get in contact with Brian Searles and have more dialogue on this project and move forward with it. Mike McCarthy also stated he would advocate to make sure something gets done regarding First Street. The Board thanked Brian, Michel and Don for coming in and discussing this topic with them.

6. Sun Common Discussion -- Solar Panels & Net Metering:

Mike McCarthy stated he wanted to come in and introduce himself and Jessica to the Board to make them more familiar with Sun Common. He said this company was started a year and a half ago and they put together the idea of more homes, businesses and schools going with renewable, safe energy such as solar panels at an affordable price. He said they have installed over 500 systems to date in Franklin and Chittenden Counties. Chris Leach asked how much of his tax dollars were going to subsidize this program. He said he is all for low prices but it frustrates him that Swanton Village sells electricity for 11 cents per kilowatt but has to buy it back from the market at 17 cents per kilowatt. Elizabeth stated that all energy is subsidized and said there are incentives to go solar. Mike said they have one customer in Swanton Village and a few in Swanton Town. He said Sun Common installs the panels with no upfront costs so that more people can afford them. He said their customers pay a monthly lease to them and they will sit down with a customer beforehand to see if it is feasible for them to enter into this lease. The Board thanked Mike and Elizabeth for coming in and introducing themselves and their company to them.

7. Any Other Necessary Business:

Don Collins stated that he was riding his bike on Church Street and said he is concerned at how the traffic flows by the Town Clerk’s office. He questioned who has the right of way by Church, Farrar and Academy Street and suggested stop signs be put up on all three streets at that intersection. He said it is very dangerous there. Reg stated he would go and look at it. Brian Savage also discussed the island being removed on Academy Street and said he would prefer it go back in with the keep right sign.

Any Other Business: Eugene LaBombard stated that when Ben & Jerry’s held their coin drop for the Relay for Life traffic was backed up way down to the liquor store. He feels they shouldn’t impede traffic to that extent and said he would take that into consideration when there is another coin drop request.

Any Other Business: Adam Paxman stated he would like to thank everyone involved with the Car Show this year. He said he received a lot of great feed back and said the event was a great success and he thanked the Village crew. He said the Chamber of Commerce would also be hosting a workshop on Tuesday, September 17th from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Village Complex on VT Health Connect and said this is open to the public. He said with the new health care system coming this workshop will be beneficial to all. He also stated that the Chamber is working with a local resident to refurbish the “Welcome to Swanton” signs.

Any Other Business: Chris Leach stated the new utility poles on Gallup Court look great and said it was a job well done.

Any Other Business: Ron Kilburn asked about the NEPPA Conference being held in Stowe August 25th-28th. Reg stated Lynn Paradis would be sending them all the information on it this week.

Any Other Business: Ron Kilburn informed the Board about the schedule of events for the 250th Anniversary Celebration being held on Saturday, August 17th from noon to 9:00 p.m. He said there will be a History Walking Tour with Fred Wiseman, National Night Out would be ongoing in the Village Green, Presentation of the Legislative Proclamation, Community Photograph, History Tour by horse drawn wagon, MVU Rock Band and Fireworks would end the celebration at Marble Mill Park.

Reg Beliveau informed the Board that he would need an Executive Session to Discuss Personnel.

8. Executive Session (If Necessary):

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to enter into Executive Session to Discuss Personnel in Fire Department at 8:41 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded.

Chris Leach made the motion to exit Executive Session at 9:00 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: The Board accepted the Fire Department’s recommendation for the new Fire Chief.

ADJOURN: Chris Leach made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 9:00 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. There being no further business at hand, Ronald Kilburn, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 9:00 p.m.




_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Ronald Kilburn, Village President                    Date


_____________________________________          _______________________________________
Dianne Day, Village Clerk                               Date