Brandon Select Board Meeting

April 28, 2008

NOTE:  These are unapproved minutes, subject to amendment and/or approval at the subsequent board meeting.

In Attendance: Bill Hatch, Richard Baker, Kellie Patten, Mitch Pearl, Bruce Brown

Also in Attendance: Keith Arlund, Anna Scheck, Lee Kahrs, Chris Brickell, Captain Don Patch, Ethan Swift, Tom Schmelzenbach

1.  Call to order

The meeting was called to order at 7:00PM by Chair  Bill Hatch.      

a) Agenda Adoption - Motion by Mitch Pearl/Kellie Patten to adopt the agenda as written. The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero. 

2.  Consent Agenda

a) Approval of Minutes - April 14, 2008 - Board of Liquor Commissioners

                                       April 14, 208 - Select Board

Motion by Mitch Pearl/Bruce Brown to approve the Board of Liquor Commissioners minutes and the Select Board minutes of April 14, 2008, with the following correction. 

Mitch Pearl stated in the correction to the previous minutes, the correction should be Joe Pearl, not Joel Pearl.

The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero.

b) Discuss/Approve Road Closure Memorial Day Parade of May 26, 2008

Motion by Bruce Brown/Kellie Patten to approve the road closure for the Memorial Day Parade on May 26, 2008.  The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero.

Keith Arlund stated he has reviewed the request with Police Chief Brickell and everything is in place for the closure.

c) Approve Sylvester Property Quit Claim Deed 

Motion by Mitch Pearl/Richard Baker to authorize the board chair to sign on behalf of the select board, the quit claim deed for the Sylvester property.  The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero.

Mitch Pearl noted the approval is the acceptance of the deed.  Richard Baker stated the county should be filled in and the original is to be signed. Mr. Baker stated the board is actually ratifying something that had already been done. 

3.  Fiscal

a)  Warrant - April 22, 2008 - $9,113.38

b)  Warrant - April 28, 2008 - $39,573.05

c)  Warrant - May 14, 2008 - $56,527.25 

Motion by Bruce Brown/Kellie Patten to approve the warrants of April 22, 2008 in the amount of $9,113.38, the warrants of April 28, 2008 in the amount of $39,573.05 and the warrant of May 14, 2008 in the amount of $56,527.25. The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero.

4.  Town Manager's Report

Keith Arlund stated as Mr. Baker mentioned, they had attended the VCDP Awards Ceremony in Montpelier and received the ceremonial check.  Mr. Arlund stated Jason McKeighan attend the ceremony on behalf of Vermont Tubbs.  He also reported the town received the highest award in this grouping.  Mr. Arlund stated he has received the final grant agreement between the State of Vermont and the town, and he has forwarded a copy of the agreement to VT Tubbs for review.

Mr. Arlund reported a geologist team from the state was here last week. They did gravity and seismic work in the area of Wood Lane and McConnell Road. He would like to thank the Torreys for allowing the team to access their fields.  

Mr. Arlund reported there will be another mandatory walk-through of the Administration Building at the old Brandon Training School, as there is a lower opening bid price. 

Keith Arlund stated the Necessity Hearing for Segment 5 of the Route 7 Project will be held tomorrow morning at Rutland Superior Court.  There is an Act 250 hearing scheduled for June 24^th and 25^th.  A notice is being prepared to send to all statutory parties and others.  The meeting will begin with a site visit at Central Park.

Mr. Arlund wished to remind the board members there is a goal setting session scheduled for 7:30AM on May 1st at the town office.

Richard Baker noted the latest draft of the audit report has been received and will be reviewed.   

5. Education Update

Kellie Patten stated the 6h Grade Partnership held an event at Neshobe School and was well attended from every sending school to OV.  They had a great time and the next event is scheduled for June 14^th at the Pittsford Recreation area that will include swimming and a barbeque. This is the last week of the Everybody Wins program and the participants will be having a get-together at the Ball and Chain on Thursday at 12:15PM.

Ms. Patten reported the next PTO meeting is scheduled for May 5^th at 7PM at Neshobe library. The Track and Field Day for 3^rd through 6^th grade is scheduled for May 8^th, with May 9^th as a rain date. On May 6^th, the PTO is having their Staff Appreciation breakfast. On May 16^th, the 6^th graders will be at OV for the day and a Fun Night is scheduled the same day at OV.

Mitch Pearl stated he would like to mention if there is anyone from any Department at OV who would like an announcement made at the Select Board meetings, they should send the information to Mr. Pearl prior to the meeting.  He noted the OV Drama Department's Walking Stick Theater will be performing Alice in Wonderland on May 8^th, 9^th and 10^th.  He also noted the OV Community Connections meeting has been moved from May 7^th to May 14^th and will be held in the school library at 7PM, with Brad Frohloff as the guest speaker. 

6.  Citizen's Public Forum

Captain Don Patch, C Troop Commander was present to discuss the dispatch proposal with the Select Board. He stated on June 30^th, the contract will expire and it was his understanding the board was considering not continuing the contract. A meeting was held about a month ago to discuss this issue and at that point, Colonel Baker offered to lower the contract to $2.82 per hour based on 16 hours per day for 7 days per week. This was the agreed to rate and number of hours and Captain Patch stated he had not heard anything back. He stated it does take time to process contracts and he was present to answer any questions on the offered contract. He noted they are in the process of come up with a fee structure for all users at the center. 

Keith Arlund stated he suggested in an email that they send a draft contract with the terms to review. They had presented contracts in the past, but were similar in nature to the previous ones. Captain Patch stated he will ask their Accounting Department to put together a draft contract noting the $16,423.00 per year. Keith Arlund stated he remembered the figure discussed to be around $11 to $12 thousand and he did not think it was that high. Police Chief Brickell stated Colonel Baker had noted a dollar figure of $2.82 and he was not sure how it was determined, but he thought the figure was to be around $11 - $12 thousand for Brandon. Captain Patch stated based on 16 hours per day @ $2.82 per hour for 7 days per week, it equates to the $16,000.00 figure. Mitch Pearl stated the problem is this town does not feel that it is being treated fairly, as we are paying for this service and other towns are not. He stated if we knew an appropriate user fee is being determined and all users were being charged; there would not be an issue. Captain Patch stated many years ago when the consolidation was done, they took on everyone that they had in the past. For years after, Brandon had their own dispatch service and when the Thomas Service decided to no longer dispatch, the department took on extra work, as Brandon did not have any service. The cost has been reduced and it is felt that it is fair.  He stated the select board is going to need to sign a contract in order to continue the service. Richard Baker stated the town is not asking the state to provide police services, as the town is paying $650,000.00 for their own department and there are 21 other communities in the state, with several of the communities in Rutland that they provide dispatch services, as well as being the sole source of police services.  He feels their department has a legal obligation and he does not care how the original contract was developed, but the town does not have the money in the budget. Mr. Baker stated the town would expect that on July 1^st, if a 911 call from our community was placed, we would expect the person to receive dispatching services. Captain Patch stated he would not leave a person or an officer in danger, with or without a contract.  Mitch Pearl questioned again the timeframe for instituting a fee to all users and Captain Patch stated he did not have an answer to that question.  Mr. Baker stated this is not Captain Patch's problem.

7. Discuss Possible Tax Sale

Keith Arlund stated there has been deliberations on this subject and Anna Scheck has provided a summary of where we are at this time. He stated this is not a pleasant thing to do and it is very time consuming and stressful on the staff and property owners. He stated a lot of the people are paying their taxes on time. Richard Baker stated it is not as bad as it looks, as the sewer fees are considered to be delinquent as soon as the first payment is due. Mr. Baker stated this does span several fiscal years and we collect more than $5 million in taxes.  Mr. Baker recommended prior to the next meeting, to have Anna Scheck comb the list and deliver a subset that would consist of all delinquent taxes and sewer fees totaling $500.00 or more and a breakdown of all delinquent taxpayers who owe for the 2005-2006, 2006-2007 and older tax years. Mr. Baker stated in the past, we have pursued collection on those greater than or equal to $3,000.00, however, one of the property owners has been delinquent since 2000 - 2001. There are several others where the taxes are current, but the delinquent sewer fees are mounting. Mr. Baker stated at the meeting on the 12^th, there would be some indication of the current year and that would give the board a pithier list of properties and we could consider the recommended action to pursue at that time. Mr. Baker stated it is time to take action, as we have not had a tax sale for a couple of years. Mitch Pearl stated the board should also discuss methods short of a tax sale to try to get people to pay, such as use of collection agencies. Keith Arlund stated we do provide a payment plan and Anna Scheck works diligently with many taxpayers who are making a sincere effort to pay their taxes.  

8.  Public Works Report

a)  Discuss Paving Contract Award

Tom Schmelzenbach stated he has provided the board with results of the competitive bidding and his recommendation for an award.  In January, he provided a status of where the town stands with the bond and at that time, there was $340 thousand.  Mr. Schmelzenbach estimates Pearl Street to be $290 thousand and in the $340 thousand, there was grant money used to leverage the bond.  Of that figure, he is asking for close to $140 thousand for the paving portion of the project. 

Richard Baker questioned when the bidders submitted their bids, was there a quantity they were bidding against. Tom Schmelzenbach anticipated a quantity, with the thought the town might decide to do some additional paving. He noted he also had invited the Brandon Rescue Squad to join in with this project.  If they decide to do paving, they would add a quantity similar to the Senior Center in the past.  Mr. Schmelzenbach stated he would verify the amount and if it changes, he will revisit the issue.

Motion by Richard Baker/Kellie Patten to authorize a purchase order for Pike, at a unit cost of $63.27 per ton, in an amount not to exceed $137,637.00 for the Pearl Street segment.  The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero.

Tom Schmelzenbach stated he will be reporting the findings on the sewer study in conjunction with the Neshobe Farm at a subsequent meeting.  Mr. Schmelzenbach reported tomorrow evening at the Brandon Rescue Squad building, there will be a meeting held by the Regional Planning Commission relative to the Neshobe River. They have sent out invitations to various people who were directly affected.  Mr. Schmelzenbach reported he had a meeting today concerning the Heritage Family Credit Union. With regard to the retaining wall between the building and West Seminary Street, construction will necessitate working in the town right of way and would encompass excavating one lane of that road to construct the wall.  His intent is to enter into an agreement with Heritage concerning provisions of safety for the traveling public and would entail a deposit to ensure the road would be reconstructed to the condition of what it is today. This would include repaving and repacking.  He has discussed this issue with Mr. Arlund and he will write a letter of agreement to the contractor. He noted they plan to construct this in the relatively near future and he does have a sketch of the plan. Richard Baker stated this is a historic structure and he questioned if the archeology people have reviewed the plan. Tom Schmelzenbach stated this will be a new wall with new components. Richard Baker recommended the existing marble wall that was installed be salvaged and put in a secure location under the town’s control. Mr. Schmelzenbach stated he would word the letter of agreement that this issue would be the onus of the contractor to be sure that the research has been done. Richard Baker stated with this being a late 1900^th century structure, he does not want it being trucked off to the land fill and he does not understand why they do not just reset the wall.  Tom Schmelzenbach stated he will make sure this topic is addressed.

Mitch Pearl asked what the latest information on was on the storm water. Tom Schmelzenbach stated at the town's expense, he went through the motion of locating the sewer line to have consultant work completed on the drainage design of this project. He met with an engineer and reviewed that portion of the project.  He stated the intent was if a parking area was going to be constructed, the drainage should be taken care of prior to the parking area construction. Mr. Schmelzenbach will look into this situation again. Kellie Patten stated if they are going to be digging there, it needs to be done correct the first time. Tom Schmelzenbach stated it was understood there was potential to enter into a cost-sharing project with Heritage. Mitch Pearl stated he wants to make sure this is taken care of and Mr. Schmelzenbach stated he will look into it and report back at the next meeting. Keith Arlund stated there was a message from Mei Mei Brown concerning this subject. Richard Baker stated the marble has considerable value to the beautification of the town and may be used in some other location.

9.  Committee Reports/Announcements                     

Kellie Patten stated the Preservation Trust Conference will be held in Brandon this year on May 2^nd and will have many activities going on in town. Last Thursday, Ms. Patten reported the drug awareness meeting was very well attended and provided people the opportunity to voice their thoughts and concerns. She noted one criticism heard was the meeting ended too abruptly and people had hoped it would have gone longer.  Several people suggested that Brandon provide a similar meeting to hear more of the public's suggestions and comments. She stated the meeting was very interesting and some of the comments were quite stirring.

Richard Baker reported the Rutland Regional Transportation Council held its annual meeting on establishing priorities and there were 16 communities represented. He noted the council will be ratifying their decision at the May meeting.

Bruce Brown stated the Tree Committee has met with Tom Schmelzenbach concerning the purchase of larger trees for the town with the $5,000.00 grant received. He noted Mary Cliver is also working on this project.

Richard Baker stated there was a meeting held a week ago on the Churchill House bridge and most of the money is being spent on engineering. The consultant appears to be at square one with having design alternatives and a local concerns meeting, however, the consultant feels the bridge will be built next year.  

Ethan Swift stated we did have a public forum last Thursday and there had been some good discussion. The process has gone very well and they have moved along in the timeline. They have satisfied the contract with the Regional Planning Commission and are grateful to have a good product from the Planning Commission. The committee is reviewing the land use ordinance and are reviewing Chapter 117.  Mr. Swift stated in the next few months, they will be fine-tuning the document and will be sharing it again with the public and the Select Board as it continues to evolve.

With respect the Regional Planning Commission, when the regional plan was adopted he was unable to attend the meeting and he would like the Select Board to consider appointing an alternate for the instances when he is unable to make the meetings. Mr. Swift stated Jennie Nixon would be a good alternate and he would appreciate the Select Board’s consideration on this item.

Mr. Swift stated along the lines of the local Planning Commission, he reported that Matt Carmoli will be moving away and he wanted to recognize the good work that Matt has done for the Planning Commission and he will be missed. Mr. Swift stated they will want to fill his position and he would like to suggest a possible change to the bylaws in reducing the members from 9 to 7, which would make it easier to achieve a quorum and might make the process of tweaking the documents a little easier. Richard Baker questioned how many people have been appointed and Mr. Swift indicated there are 7 members right now. Bill Hatch noted the number of members has usually been 7 and there has not been any intent to increase the number of members.  Mr. Swift noted on occasion, there have been issues with getting a quorum and he does agree with having a robust number, however, at the same time it is difficult to obtain members and retain members. He stated many other towns have gone to a smaller number to make the committee more clear and consistent, but it is purely the Select Board's decision.  Ethan Swift stated he has felt in the past that we still have unfilled positions on the Planning Commission and have been asked what we are going to do about it. Bruce Brown stated in past history, the number had been set at 7 and it was assumed there has always been 7 members.

Ethan Swift stated with respect to the changes in the BLUO map, he suggests trying to have a joint meeting of the Select Board and the Planning Commission to get a better understanding of what changes need to be made and why.

Richard Baker stated one of the things that has served us well when writing the town plan was the Planning Commission and Select Board meeting jointly; as once the formalized process of approval kicks in, it becomes a challenge to meet the needs to the community.  He stated when ready, he would strongly encourage the Select Board and Planning Commission meet to discuss the interpretations so that we are all on the same page. He noted the Select Board is having a goal setting session at 7:30AM on Friday. We need to get out, as quickly as possible, the latest version of the Brandon land use ordinance. There have been many hearings and perhaps we should set a date to kick off the final round of this item. Mitch Pearl stated it should be a single item meeting. Ethan Swift stated as far as insuring the consistency between the Town Plan and the BLOU, it would be good to do.   

Mr. Swift stated Mr. Arlund and other people have agreed to meet as a selection committee for the Zoning Administrator position and he would like to encourage that this appointment be done in a timely manner. 

10.  Old/Other Business

Richard Baker stated we talked briefly about the land use ordinance. As a subset, Mr. Baker noted many of our adjoining communities are warning public hearings because they intend to formalize flood maps and he would like a report on this at the next meeting. Ethan Swift stated Charlie Jakiela attended a workshop on this subject and he had resolved the issue in changing the language to reflect the proper references to the changes in the NFIP plan. Richard Baker stated if there are not approved bylaws, property owners will not be able to get flood insurance and he does not want to inadvertently jeopardize the equity of our property owners. Keith Arlund stated Charlie Jakiela had attended the meetings and there was not a lot of significant changes for the Town of Brandon. Mr. Jakiela had the bylaws reviewed and comments were made. There were not a lot of comments to the regulations when Mr. Jakiela reviewed this with the flood plane people. Ethan Swift stated the new flood plain ordinance had to reference the digital flood plan maps and it was the specific reference that had to be changed. Keith Arlund stated this item needs to be followed up on and completed. Richard Baker stated we need to lay out a tentative timetable for the hearings, meetings and updates on the land use ordinance, recognizing they will be in pencil and able to be changed if we need to. 

Richard Baker stated we had a developer with whom the Town Manager negotiated, then made a sewer capacity allocation and wrote a letter in 2006, which was contingent upon the developer meeting some requirements.  To date, the down payment has not been received, nor anything else done on this issue, but an Act 250 permit has been received.  Mr. Baker stated the Town Manager should write a letter to the developer indicating they had not fulfilled either side of the requirements to date.  The developer had given the engineers approval to move forward and the engineer acknowledged receipt and we provided them with copies of the application and have not heard from them since.  Richard Baker stated when the Act 250 application had been approved; it was based on some reasonable agreements. Mei Mei Brown stated until construction commences, there is no violation.

Motion by Richard Baker/Kellie Patten to adopt the grant resolution regarding the community block grant for VT Tubbs.  The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero.

Motion by Richard Baker/Kellie Patten to authorize Mr. Arlund to sign all of the appropriate documents to formalize this relationship between the State of Vermont and Brandon. The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero. 

Bruce Brown would like to acknowledge the activity of the Police Department on speeding enforcement. 

Keith Arlund noted the second meeting in May falls on a holiday and questioned if the board wanted to consider a different day for this meeting.  Richard Baker stated in the past, the board has sometimes had a single meeting and moved the first June meeting forward.  This item was tabled for discussion at the first meeting in May.

11.  Possible Executive Session

No executive session was required.

12. Adjournment

Motion by Bruce Brown/Kellie Patten to adjourn the Select Board meeting at 8:17PM. The motion passed unanimously - 4 to zero. 

Respectfully submitted,

 Charlene Bryant

Recording Secretary