Swanton Village Meeting Minutes

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

February 22, 2022

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

INFORMATIONAL MEETING & PUBLIC HEARING

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

7:00 PM

PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Village Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau, Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Leonard “Joey” Stell, Chief of Police; Jason Butler, Fire Chief; Jason Cross, Assistant Fire Chief. Via Zoom: Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Elisabeth Nance, Economic Development Coordinator; Brian Savage, Town Moderator; Heather Buczkowski, Selectperson; James Guilmette, Selectman; Mark Rocheleau, Selectman; Nicole Draper, Selectman; Ed White Sr., Selectman; Cathy Fournier, Town Clerk, David Jescavage, Town Administrator; County Courier; Joanne Parah Reiter, Rich Kelley, Janet Sovoi, Betsy Fournier, Darci Benoit, Harold Garrett, John & Debbie Lavoie, Macy Dupont, Joel Clark, Marie Speer, Marcel Moreau, Nick Brosseau, Peter Prouty, Michelle Nordberg, Susan & Don Collins, Ron & Sandy Kilburn, Rene Bourdeau, Gordon Winters, Chris Sweeney, Oliver Manning, Jeanice Micheli, Lynn, Sally, Janine, Chris, Linda, Smith’s, Jay, Betty, Linda and Ch. 16.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

1. Call to Order:

James Guilmette, Town Selectman Chair, called the Town Informational Meeting to order at 7 p.m. Neal Speer, Village President, called the Village Informational Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

2. Pledge of Allegiance:

All stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. Agenda Review:

None.

4. Reading of Village of Swanton’s Annual Warning – Village President Neal Speer:

Neal Speer, Village President, read aloud the 2021 Annual Village Warning. Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, presented a power point presentation.

5. Power Point Presentation and Discussion of Village of Swanton’s Proposed 2021 Budget:

Reg Beliveau presented the following power point presentation:

Reg Beliveau informed everyone of the correction in the Village Report in the police budget on pages 22 and 23.

Tax Rate 2020 Actual vs. 2021 Proposed

General Fund 2020 Tax Rate = $0.0811 vs 2021 Tax Rate = $0.0931
Fire Department 2020 Tax Rate = $0.0497 vs 2021 Tax Rate = $0.0498
Police Department 2020 Tax Rate = $0.4228 vs 2021 Tax Rate = $0.4228
Highway Department 2020 Tax Rate = $0.3186 vs 2021 Tax Rate = $0.3186
2020 Tax Rate = $0.8722 vs 2021 Tax Rate = $0.8848 for a change of .0121

Taxes 2020 Actual vs. 2021 Proposed

2020 Actual on a $150,000 House = $1308.30; $200,000 House = $1744.40; $250,000 House = $2180.50
2021 Proposed on a $150,000 House = $1326.45 for an increase of $18.15; $200,000 House = $1768.60 for an increase of $24.20; and
$250,000 House = $2210.75 for an increase of $30.25

Proposed 2021 Taxes by Department

$150,000 House = General $139.65, Fire $74.70, Police $634.20, Highway $477.90 = $1326.45
$200,000 House = General $186.20, Fire $99.60, Police $845.60, Highway $637.20 = $1768.60
$250,000 House – General $232.75, Fire $124.50, Police $1057.00, Highway $796.50 = $2210.75

2020 Year in Review

Wastewater Treatment Plant

TMDL standards and Phosphorus reductions underway

3 manufacturers demonstrated 3 different phosphorus removal methods.

We will continue the 20 year evaluation of the wastewater plant.
We continue to perform routine maintenance
Flushing of Disinfectant Wipes are causing issues with our pump stations.
Change in staffing with Jason Starr moving to WWTF.

Water Treatment Plant

Performing well – continue to perform preventative maintenance.
Repaired both filters this year – done in house
We have begun the process to engineer a new water line across the river as a redundant source of water from our water plant
Change in staffing with Brian Bishop retirement and Tod Jones taking over plant operations.

Public Works

Paving Project 2020

Completed small projects on Church St, Furman Place, Dunning Street

Sidewalk

First Street and York Street sidewalk and curbing

Replaced waterline –

Old 4inch to an 8inch on Depot Street

Adding 2 part time summer help for our Parks

Electric Department - 125 years old

We provided mutual aid to our neighboring utilities.
Continue to keep up on tree trimming in order to reduce outages during high wind and heavy snow events.
Performed line extensions for customers and upgraded some of our poles and lines.
Received a new Bucket Truck replacing a 15 year old truck
Tanner Benoit –

Graduation from Lineworkers College – 1^st Class LineWorker

Darcy Scott – Jay Speer retirement
Marc Longway moved into meter-reader slot to help with the transition to AMI metering and programming.

Hydro Plant

General repairs continue – E-maintenance program
Started the process of re-licensing, hope to be completed in 2023 (2 years out)
Performed repairs to the rubber bladder caused by the October flooding event in 2019.
Change in staffing with the hiring of Avery Mitchinson into maintenance and Hydro coverage.

Maintenance Department

Over 1500 individual assets throughout the Village

All entered in a preventative maintenance program
Ensures equipment is being visited and maintained per mfg specs.

Avery Mitchinson hire

Repairs to Bladder, Water Filters, turbines and other Village assets.

Front Office

Continue to provide top notch customer service while providing accounting, grant management, billing, accounts payable, human resources, IT support, job estimates and payroll to all the departments.
The staff improves their skills through continuing education by taking courses in accounting, customer service and general courses relating to the Public Utilities Commission, State Law and Efficiency Vermont.
Office closed due to COVID – modifications to the front office
Welcome Laurie Belisle to the front office billing staff.
Marc Longway moved into Meter-reader

Village Complex

Built in 1978
Village Complex houses the administrative offices, public works, electric, fire, police and Missisquoi Valley Rescue departments.
Several of the departments have outgrown their space.
The Village hired Wiemann-Lamphere, Architects to do an evaluation of the Complex.
A review of the plan shows the need to adjusted and change due to COVID-19 needs. Although this outbreak may not be with us forever, the need to improve our workspace and prevent any spread of colds or flu are important.

2020 Year in Review

Emergency Services – Police Dept

We were able to acquire a patrol boat and a new cruiser at no cost to taxpayers – Stone Garden Grant.

Special thanks go out to our First Responders for the “birthday parades” during our “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order during the COVID-19 outbreak. Also special thanks to TDI and Public Works for being a great community partner and joining in on the parades.

At this point in the presentation Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, gave some department highlights. She said she does not anticipate a rate increase in the electric, water or sewer departments. She said the Village saw a 1% increase this year in health insurance, her financial audit was now complete and the front office is closed due to Covid. She said they have done some building updates such as installing plexiglass in the office. She also said they are hiring an additional person for summer help to help with the Village parks. She said last summer the bath house at the beach was remodeled but then Covid hit and the bathrooms were closed to the public. She said in the fire department they purchased their final airpacks and are now putting those funds in an equipment savings account. She said they were able to level fund the fire department. Lynn said in the highway department they will make their final payment on the sidewalk plow and plan on purchasing a plow truck with savings account funds. She said she level funded this department as well. She said they haven’t seen any growth in the electric revenue and purchase power is going up. She said they will be going with AMI meters, have GIS mapping of their poles and lines and their trucks will have tablets in them to help pinpoint outages and look up poles. She said they will also be able to take pictures during accidents and storms. She said in the water department they have engineering for the new water line and have some grant money in this department. The sewer plant has been working on their 20 year evaluation and will continue to do so. She said the police department needed more room because of Covid and so they turned the board room into a patrol office and received grant money to do that.

25 Years of Service

Neal Speer, Village President and Chris Leach, Village Trustee, presented Wanda Sloan, Hydro Plant Operator, with a plaque for 25 years of service with the Village of Swanton.

Candidates

Village President 1-year term - Neal Speer: Thanked everyone for their past support and asked for their continued support.
Village Clerk 1-year term - Dianne Day: Thanked everyone for their past support and asked for their continued support.
Village Trustee 3-year term – Chris Leach: Thanked everyone for their past support and asked for their continued support.
Collector of Delinquent Taxes 1-year term - Betty Cheney: Thanked everyone for their past support and asked for their continued support.

Neal asked if anyone had any questions. Heather Buczkowski stated she appreciates the Village hiring an extra person for the parks. Don Collins said he was pleased with all the level funding this year and asked why the general fund budget increased. Lynn stated this was for hiring an additional person for the parks and for the additional funds she put in the parks maintenance line item. Neal Speer stated there are some very enthusiastic residents who want Swanton Village to increase maintenance in the parks to make them more inviting and they are happy to do this.

6. Chamber of Commerce to Announce Citizen of the Year Award:

Adam Paxman said they received many great nominations this year for the Citizen of the Year award. Nick Brosseau, Chamber Vice President, said he would like to thank everyone for the nominations and said this year their award is going to Debbie Dubois Lavoie, previous owner of Flowers by Debbie. Adam congratulated her and said she is a true staple to the community and has been for 40 plus years. Neal Speer congratulated her and the legacy of her family.

7. Reading of Town of Swanton’s 2021 Annual Warning – Moderator Brian Savage:

Brian Savage read aloud the Town of Swanton’s 2021 Annual Warning. See Town Minutes for their power point presentation.

8. Public Comment:

Michelle Nordberg asked if they could explain how the Village and Town budgets are figured and taxed. Cathy Fournier, Town Clerk, said the tax rate is figured by the grand list. She explained how the grandlist is used to figure the General Fund and Highway Fund for the Town and how the Village uses just the Village grandlist for their tax rate. Lynn said the Village grandlist is only used for general, fire, police and highway. She said if you live in the Village you will get a tax bill from the Village and the Town. She said electric, water and sewer customers are billed monthly and that is not part of their taxes.

9. Any Other Necessary Business:

Nicole Draper said she is running for Selectboard again and looks forward to serving the Town of Swanton. Ed White Sr. said he is also running and has been appointed for the last four months. He said he hopes to be elected as well. James Guilmette said he appreciates everyone’s support and votes. Heather Buczkowski said she enjoys serving the Swanton Town community as a selectboard member and enjoys people calling and hearing their perspective on things. She looks forward to helping solve more challenges in the future. She said your voice matters and thanked everyone for their support. Harold

Garrett thanked everyone for the opportunity to run. He said he has a lot to offer and looks forward to getting peoples votes and said there is a great group of candidates this year and said he will support whoever wins. Michelle Nordberg said she isn’t known by many people but has learned and studied Swanton for the last six years. She said she appreciates the people running for Selectboard and not settling for status quo. She said she thinks she can do a great job and thanked everyone for their support. Chris Leach said he has been a Trustee for many years and enjoys being part of this team and looks forward to another three year term. Neal Speer said he has been Village President for many years and thanked everyone in the Town and Village for all that’s been accomplished in Swanton over the years. He said he hopes they can continue and said it’s just the beginning and he wants to keep the momentum going and said get out and vote because your vote counts.

10. Executive Session If Necessary:

None.

11. Adjournment by both Boards:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to adjourn the Board of the Trustees Informational Meeting and Public Hearing at 8:19 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 8:19 p.m. Motion carried.

_____________________________________ _______________________________________

Neal Speer, Village President Date

__________________________________ ___________________________________

Dianne Day, Village Clerk Date

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

February 15, 2022

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

7:00 PM

PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau Jr., Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Matthew Sullivan, Chief of Police; and Channel 16. Via Zoom: Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; and Joanne Crawford, Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

Call to Order:

Neal Speer, Village President, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance:

Everyone stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Agenda Review:

Dianne Day, Village Clerk, stated Janet Dimick from SPAN couldn’t make the meeting and will reschedule. She also stated that Joanne Crawford from the Abenaki Nation would be attending via Zoom for a Village Green request.

Public Comment:

Joanne Crawford, Secretary of Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi, would like to request permission to use the Swanton Village Green for a wellness/cultural event on Saturday, June 18^th. They would like to reserve June 25^th for their rain date as well. She said the event will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Port-O-Lets would be available. Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve Abenaki Nation of Missisquoi’s request to use the Village Green on Saturday, June 18^th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a rain date of June 25^th, for their Wellness/Cultural event. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: Eugene LaBombard asked if this would be similar in size to their Heritage Days. Joanne said no but said they would like to start that event again. She said this will be more informational related and the general public is invited to attend. Adam Paxman suggested she reach out to other organizations for more involvement. He said he would mention it to the Chamber of Commerce at this week’s meeting. Chris Leach also suggested she notify the Village police department so they’re aware of the event. He also stated this would be a great time to highlight their totem pole. Motion carried.

Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, January 24, 2022 Meeting as Presented:

Chris Leach made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, January 24, 2022 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, February 10, 2022:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #8-#14 through Thursday, February 10, 2022 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

Swanton Village Police Department Update:

Chief Matthew Sullivan stated the Village Police Department responded to 158 calls for service during the month of January. He said they have a new operating system so this number includes calls for both the Village and Town. He said he is working on separating the data. He said they issued 8 tickets and 22 warnings. He showed the arrests record and said one individual could have received more than one citation. Chris Leach asked if there was any more information on the death on First Street. Chief Sullivan stated he can’t say too much because it’s an active investigation. He said the Village along with Border Patrol were first on scene, secured evidence and realized this would be a very complicated case and contacted VCI (Vermont Criminal Investigation). He said VCI then contacted the FBI for their assistance as well. He said quite a bit of progress has been made and said the general public is not in any danger. He said he’s been very busy the last month with administrative tasks and has added two additional policies to the department. He said he’s been working on the Stone Garden Grant, staffing and scheduling and may potentially hire some part time officers from Burlington. He said one officer he hired is a level 2 officer and is also a liaison in social work. He said he’s been working on a new spreadsheet detailing how incidents were handled by the officers. He said this blotter would be available on a daily basis. He said he’s also been working on getting the officers additional training and that is going well. He said he’s also working on obtaining shields for the department. He said entering an incident without this piece of equipment is very dangerous. Chief Sullivan stated he would also like the Board’s approval to promote Cpl. Kyle Gagne to Sergeant. He said he’s done a fantastic job over the years and has really stepped up. The Board all agreed to this promotion. They thanked Chief Sullivan for his update.

Update on Hydro Plant Relicensing:

Reg Beliveau stated he didn’t have a whole lot to add to this. He said their license comes from the Federal government and they have to get relicensed every 30 years. He said water quality issues are what they are dealing with now. He said Morrisville has already spent $1 million dollars on their relicensing and haven’t gotten approval yet. Reg said they can still get approval without the water quality piece. He said the Agency of Natural Resources wants to see water constantly flowing over the dam for aesthetic purposes. Reg said this would be a loss of revenue for the Village. Reg said he will contact the state, have meetings with their attorney and the Governor if necessary. He said VPPSA is working on this as well. He is going to ask local businesses for letters of support and also talk with the Town of Highgate. He said if they don’t receive their license, they will need to purchase power and it will be very expensive. The Board told Reg they would help in any way needed. He said the Agency doesn’t negotiate very well. Reg also said the Hydro plant produced a lot of energy today and surpassed December and January’s generation. He said he’d like to ask Dan Chevalier from the Hydro Plant to come back in and give another presentation on the work they are doing.

Any Other Necessary Business.

Reg Beliveau said he received an email from Lamoille Valley Rail Trail (LVRT) because Swanton Village has been identified as a key stakeholder in the trail. The letter stated that they are developing a new management plan for the LVRT which will describe the community-defined vision for the trail, outline strategies for the management, maintenance and operations of the trail. It said they are planning a number of focused stakeholder sessions to engage in a discussion of the LVRT. Reg said a meeting is being planned and when he has solid dates he would let the Board know.

Any Other Business: Adam Paxman stated the Chamber of Commerce would like permission to hold their 12^th Annual Car Show in the Village Green on Saturday, July 30, 2022, with a rain date of July 31^st. Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve the Chamber of Commerce’s request to hold their 12^th Annual Car Show in the Village Green on Saturday, July 30, 2022 with a rain date of Sunday, July 31, 2022. Chris Leach seconded. Motion carried. Adam also stated his word for the week is ACCOUNTABILITY and said to hold yourself accountable.

Any Other Business: Eugene LaBombard said the road crew is doing a good job with the roads and also mentioned all the water main breaks they have been dealing with. Reg said they are working on Gallup Court again tomorrow and said they try and notify businesses and homeowners when they can but sometimes they can’t.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau said he received an email from Sarah Lunn with the Missisquoi River Basin Association offering goats and sheep to eat the Japanese Knotweed at Marble Mill Park. The Board agreed with this and said it was a good idea. Reg said he would coordinate more with Sarah and keep them updated if this is going to happen. Reg also mentioned the storm coming through and mentioned the potential for flooding. He urged everyone to sign up for VT Alerts so they can be informed of emergencies and evacuations. He urged everyone to just be aware.

Any Other Business: Neal Speer stated the Village will hold their Informational Meeting with the Town on Tuesday, February 22 at 7 p.m. at the Village Complex. Discussion took place on whether or not the public could attend. At first the Board said it should be via zoom only but then realized the Annual Warning stated in person or via zoom so the public can attend. They will require masks to be worn.

Executive Session if Necessary:

None.

Adjournment:

Adam Paxman made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 7:46 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 7:46 p.m. Motion carried.

_____________________________________ _______________________________________

Neal Speer, Village President Date

_____________________________________ ___________________________________

Dianne Day, Village Clerk Date

Monday, January 24, 2022

January 24, 2022

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, January 24, 2022

7:00 PM

PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau Jr., Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Brian Savage, Swanton Town Administrator; Earl Fournier, Town Selectman; and Channel 16. Via Zoom: Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Suzanne Washburn, and Gordon Winters.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

Call to Order:

Neal Speer, Village President, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance:

Everyone stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Agenda Review:

Adam Paxman stated he needed an Executive Session to discuss personnel.

Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, suggested the Board enter executive session prior to public comment. Chris Leach made the motion to enter executive session to discuss real estate. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Executive Session and enter Open Session at 7:16 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: None

Public Comment:

None.

Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, January 10, 2022 and acknowledge the Minutes from Thursday, January 13, 2022:

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, January 10, 2022 as presented and acknowledge receipt of the Thursday, January 13, 2022 minutes from the Town and Village joint board meeting. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, January 20, 2022:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #2-#7 through Thursday, January 20, 2022 as presented. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: Eugene LaBombard asked about the payment made to Nexom. Reg Beliveau stated that was for work done on phosphorus removal at the Wastewater Plant. Motion carried.

Approve and Adopt Village of Swanton 2022 Annual Warning as presented:

Neal Speer stated he talked with some locals and he thinks they should consider adding an article on the warning to get voter approval for the retail sale of cannabis. He said St. Albans Town has added it to theirs and they should too so they will know how the voters feel. Village Clerk Dianne Day added that to the 2022 annual warning. Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and adopt the Village of Swanton 2022 Annual Warning as presented. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Approve New Water and Sewer Rates to be Effective March 1, 2022:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to enter Water Commissioner’s meeting at 7:30 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve the new water and sewer rates to become effective on March 1, 2022. Chris Leach seconded. Motion carried.

Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Water Commissioner’s meeting. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Acknowledge 4^th Quarter SQRP Report:

Chris Leach stated he noticed an error in section 4a of the SQRP report. Village Clerk Dianne Day made correction to the report. Chris stated this is an internal report on how well we treat our customers. He said the Village does very well and response times are also very good. The board acknowledged receipt of the 4^th quarter SQRP report.

Any Other Necessary Business.

Adam Paxman stated the Chamber of Commerce would like permission to announce the Chamber’s Citizen of the Year award at the Village and Town Informational Meeting to be held on February 22^nd. The Board agreed to this. Adam also stated his word for the week is PATIENCE and suggested everyone have a little.

Any Other Business: Eugene LaBombard urged everyone to be careful and said he lost a family member to Covid 19.

Any Other Business: Chris Leach asked how the relicensing was going at the Hydro Plant. Reg Beliveau stated he had a meeting with the Agency of Natural Resources and said it’s not going very well. He said they are making demands that are unreasonable and will end up potentially costing the Village ratepayers a lot of money. He said it could raise the electric rates astronomically and the Town of Highgate would lose as well since their tax bill to them is based on generation from the Hydro plant. He said he is frustrated and is going to call the Governor and request a meeting with him to discuss what the Agency of Natural Resources are demanding.

Executive Session to Discuss Personnel:

Adam Paxman made the motion to enter Executive Session at 8:15 p.m. to discuss personnel. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Executive Session at 8:30 p.m. Chris Leach seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: None.

Adjournment:

Adam Paxman made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 8:30 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 8:30 p.m. Motion carried.

_____________________________________ _______________________________________

Neal Speer, Village President Date

_____________________________________ ___________________________________

Dianne Day, Village Clerk Date

Thursday, January 13, 2022

January 13th, 2022

MINUTES

SPECIAL SELECTBOARD MEETING

TOWN OF SWANTON

VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Village Municipal Complex, 120 First Street, Swanton, VT

Thursday, January 13, 2022 @ 7:00 p.m.

DRAFT MINUTES NOT YET APPROVED BY THE

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Minutes taken by Joe Cava, Administrative Assistant for

the Town of Swanton

Present: James Guilmette, Selectboard Chairman; Earl Fournier, Nicole Draper, Mark Rocheleau, Ed White, Selectboard Members; Brian Savage, Town Administrator; Joseph Cava, Administrative Assistant; Reg Beliveau, Village Manager; Neal Speer, Board of Village Trustees President; Dianne Day (Zoom user), Village Clerk; Adam Paxman, Eugene LaBombard, Christopher Leach, Village Trustee Members; Ron Kilburn; Darci Laroche; Lynn Paradis; iPhone; Gordon Winters; Michelle Nordberg

*All motions carried unanimously unless otherwise specified.

Call to Order

Mr. Speer called the Board of Village Trustees meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Mr. Rocheleau consecutively called the Special Selectboard portion of the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m.

Pledge of Allegiance – Mr. Speer led those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Discuss Village and Town Mutual Interest

Mr. Beliveau opened by saying that the Town and the Village is united in providing transparent services to the community with an open-minded approach to moving forward with the goals for the greater Swanton community. Mr. Rocheleau added expressing a need for a United Swanton. In the age of social media, we see a lot of self-guided interest that strays from these goals of unification.

Infrastructure Improvements

Expansion in the Southern Growth District

Mr. Savage spoke about the Vermont League of Cities & Towns and the COVID funding that is available for community projects. This funding has an extended deadline of the mid 2020s so there is time to allocate funding.

Mr. Fournier spoke about a Selectboard meeting with St. Albans Town for the mutual goal of expanding water and sewer infrastructure off Exit 20 in the Southern Growth District in Swanton. He emphasized the mutual growth potential for the Town and the Village. Joint meetings like this are an excellent start to the process.

Mr. Speer added that business expansion in Swanton is good for the Village and the Town because it adds to the tax base and provides long-term incentives for residential taxpayers. Mr. Speer continued by saying that the consensus from the St. Albans Town Selectboard joint meeting is to begin the next step in the process. This includes completing a feasibility study through an engineer to link the connections.

Mr. Leach added that the electrical infrastructure is already built up in the area from the construction of Tractors Supply and Handy car dealership. Mr. Beliveau added that the electric supplied to Handy’s is from Green Mountain Power (GMP) and recommended bringing them to the table in the future as well.

General Infrastructure

The hydro facility in Highgate is a good example of towns working together to meet mutual energy and infrastructure goals according to Mr. Beliveau. He also added that the upcoming expansions planned for the Highgate Airport are an excellent example of how one town’s project is beneficial for surrounding communities.

Mr. Beliveau expanded that in addition to the Highgate Airport project there is a rise in the need for housing, which can spill over from Highgate into Swanton. An important mention is that Swanton has the second lowest energy rates in the State of Vermont, which is a huge selling point for Swanton. This is important when compared to other forms of renewable energy like solar power. Solar power fields have a limited life span, where hydro is still in continuous operation. The startup for hydro is more expensive, but its lifespan justifies the cost.

Mr. Savage raised a concern with 911 addressing. He will be working with the State, but Swanton has one of the worst systems in place in the State for structuring roads, buildings, and addresses. The process will involve renumbering properties along certain roads and renaming roads to prevent duplicate road names.

Downtown Bridge Improvements

Mr. Beliveau made an important note that the Town has been fighting since 2011 to make necessary repairs to the bridge in the Downtown Village sector. This previous summer the damage to the expansion joints could be heard echoing down the river. Funding has finally been secured to fix the bridge, but it could cause significant disruption to traffic patterns.

Mr. Savage recommended coordinating the downtown bridge project with the Beebe Road Culvert project. Both projects will cause major traffic disruption.

MVU Sidewalk Project

The current update for the project according to Mr. Guilmette is securing easements along the state highway for the sidewalk and crosswalks. Ms. Draper recommended connecting it with sections of the rail trail down Waugh Farm Rd.

Merchants Row Streetscape Study

A streetscape study on Merchants Row and the Village Green has been completed and Ms. Nance is working on grant funding to implement project phases. Mr. Fournier recommended making the downtown more pedestrian friendly with expansions in small businesses within the area. According to Mr. Speer, architects have been contacted to redesign merchant’s row. The Masonic Lodge for example is 3500 sq. ft. upstairs and down for a total of 7000 sq. ft. which is a lot for a small business retail space.

Planning for the 2023 Municipal Plan

Updates

Mr. Beliveau had a request from Mr. Daniel on the Planning Commission about having a joint meeting to discuss planning and zoning and the goals as they relate to the 2023 Municipal Plan edits. Mr. Speer stressed the importance of local input from community residents.

Ms. Draper agreed that more community input is essential for understanding the needs of the communities. Ms. Draper expanded on this community collaboration by talking about the relationships between the Recreation Department, Public Library and Book Mobile and how these services appeal to a variety of community groups. She expressed underutilized areas like the Fourth Street property and Marble Mill Park are up and coming areas and are assets for greater community use beyond Swanton.

Mr. Speer spoke about the Village’s goals to update and expand water and sewer infrastructure while being good environmental stewards. Part of these goals also involve working closely with the State of Vermont and the Federal Government according to Mr. Savage.

Mr. Leach described the regional plan as an almanac laying out the groundwork for planning, but it does not specifically delve into what types of businesses or how many employees an employer hires for new businesses. He also stressed a need to do a study for Route 78 and how trucking can be rerouted, so it doesn’t tear apart the road fabric through the Village of Swanton. He also emphasized that the Highgate Airport project is a big deal because the increased air traffic provides growth to the surrounding community.

Adjournment

Mr. Paxman made a motion to adjourn the Board of Village Trustees meeting at 8:31 p.m., seconded by Mr. Leach. Motion carried.

Ms. Draper made a motion to adjourn the Special Selectboard meeting at 8:32 p.m., seconded by Mr. White. Motion carried.

Respectfully Submitted,

Joseph Cava, Administrative Assistant