Selectboard Minutes
Regular Meeting of Monday December 9, 2024 at 7:00 PM
At South Hero Town Hall and via Zoom
Board Members Present: David Carter/Chairman, David Lane/Vice Chairman Skip Brown/Board Secretary, Steve Robinson, Anne Zolotas
Board Members Not Present: nonw
Others Present: Town Personnel: Sue Arguin/TA and Martha Taylor-Varney. Also see sign in sheet of in person and Zoom attendees. *Attendance SB 2024-12-09-2024
1. Called to Order:
– The meeting was called to order by Chairman David Carter at 7:00 pm.
2. Adjustment to Agenda:
– Only a change in the order of presentation
3. Minutes:
-Steve Robinson made a motion to approve the minutes of November 25, 2024. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
4. Public input:
A. none
5. New Business:
A. Phil Scott of the Recreation Commission presented the budget. The total is Recreation Commission budget request is $30,900.00.
B. The general Town budget and Road budgets were discussed. A final budget will be done by the January 13, 2025 Selectboard meeting.
-Note: The Board has not yet finalized any of the above amounts in the budget until the entire budget is finalized, and that the Town will vote for the budget on Town Meeting Day.
C. The State has enacted an ethics statute and all board, committee and commission members will have to take a training class. To date no classes have been announced. Steve Robinson made a motion to appoint Sue Arguin as the Ethics Liaison for the Town. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
D. The plans for a new Town Hall have been finalized enough to an extent where an estimate of the cost can be made. The Town will have to bond for financing for a new building. Anne Zolotas read the bond resolution as prepared by the Bond attorney. The Board has a few questions before adopting the resolution. Note that there are specific dates for warnings and public hearings. Anne read the timeline as given by the attorney. The Board has tentatively scheduled special meetings on December 18, 2024 and January 6, 2025 to finalize the bond information. Anne Zolotas made a motion to approve the invoice from the Bond Attorney to the Town. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
6. Town Administrator and ZA Reports:
A. See the written reports posted with these minutes.
B. David Lane made a motion to appoint Doug Patterson and Gareth Hunt for 3 year terms to the Development Review Board (DRB) and Tim Mullen as an alternate to the DRB for a 1 year term. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
7. Old and Ongoing Business:
A. none at this meeting
8. Announcements and Communications:
A. Anne Zolotas made a motion to appoint Kathleen Magill to the Conservation Commission. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
9. Other Business:
A. Skip Brown made a motion to approve and sign the orders 25-12 and 25-12A and to pay the bills associated with the orders. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
B. Town Clerk/Treasurer updates: no specific updates at this meeting
C. Recreation Commission (RC) update: See above
D. Road Department update: See above
E. Old South Hero Meeting House (OSHMH) project: The committee is still waiting to hear from the NPS and the State for various pieces of information. See the minutes of the committee for more info.
F. Lister Updates: Reappraisals will begin soon
G. Wastewater (WW) update: Test pits were dug at the Lavin property. The engineer has not made a final determination but it is hoped that there are sufficient soils to give enough septic capacity. In order to satisfy the purchase and sale agreement, some timelines are to be met by the Town. An RFP for phase 1 environmental assessment and a commercial appraisal are necessary within 60 days. See Attached *Appraisal and ESA proposals for Selectboard review 12.9.24
-Anne Zolotas made a motion to hire KAS Environmental and Engineering for the Phase I assessment. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
-Anne Zolotas made a motion to hire Gammal Real Estate for the appraisal. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
-Anne Zolotas made a motion to approve and have the Chairman sign a letter from the Board to Andy Julow at the Lake Champlain Economic Development Corp. in support for the wastewater project. See Attached *LCIEDC WW letter 12-2024
H. Town Hall Committee update: See Above re the bond info.
I. Tree Warden Update: The Town has signed a contract for work to be done at the beach and Keeler Bay Rd, but it has not happened yet.
10. Adjournment:
-Skip Brown made a motion to adjourn at 8:36 pm. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
Respectfully submitted, Approved by,
_______________________________ ________________________________
Graham Brown, Secretary David Carter, Chairman