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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.



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Ronald Kilburn, Village President                    Date


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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                               Date