Selectboard Minutes
Regular Meeting of February 27, 2017
South Hero Town Hall, Monday 7:00 PM
Board Members Present: Jonathan Shaw, Skip Brown (also Board Secretary), Anne Zolotas, Carol Tremble,
George Rice
Board Members Not Present: none
Others Present: Sharon Roy, Town Clerk. Martha Taylor-Varney, Administrative Assistant. Also see sign in sheet.
1. Called to Order:
-The meeting was called to order by Chairman Shaw at 7:00 pm.
2. Adjustment to Agenda:
-none
3. Minutes:
– Anne Zolotas made a motion to accept the minutes of the meeting of February 13, 2017 as written. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
4. Administrative Assistant Report:
A. A written report was submitted. A hard copy with discussion points can be seen in Town Hall filed with these minutes or on www.southherovt.org.
B. The consensus of the Board is to have Martha go to an informational grant program meeting in Swanton on March 16, 2017.
5. New Business:
A. Emily Alger of South Hero Land Trust (SHLT) was present to discuss the Tracy Woods Conservation Project. The development rights will be purchased and there will be permanent trail easements through the managed woodlands. There will be no negative tax implication to the Town as the property is already in current use and will remain as such. The Recreation Commission is in favor of the project. She has asked for a letter of support from the Selectboard. Chairman Shaw asked that a draft letter be submitted for the next Board meeting.
6. Old and Ongoing Business:
A. South Street reconstruction project from Landon to Martin Roads updates: The State is still vetting the bids, and the process is moving forward. This project will begin in April or May of this year.
7. Other Business:
A. Carol Tremble made a motion to sign orders 17-18 and pay the bills associated with this order. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
B. The Town meeting informational session is Saturday March 4th and the voting by Australian ballot is on Tuesday March 7th. There was a misprint in the Town Report with a transposition of the dates and a correction will be posted to FPF.
C. Angolano & Co. will not be doing future audits, so he will not honor his contract with the Town. An RFP will be posted to find a new audit company.
8. Public input:
A. David Hobbs, Chair of the Recreation Commission (RC), was present to discuss the fact the RC has 7 members and wishes to have a youth member. Carol Tremble made a motion to allow the RC authority to appoint a youth member without confirmation by the Selectboard. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried. Said youth member will be an advisory member with no set term and will not have voting rights on the RC.
9. Adjournment:
-George Rice made a motion to adjourn 8:00 pm. The motion was seconded all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
Respectfully submitted, Approved by,
_______________________________ ________________________________
Graham Brown Jonathan Shaw, Chair
___________________________________________________________________________
Administrative Officer’s Report to Selectboard Feb 27, 2017
Discussion Items:
1. Park and Ride: The Planning Commission has decided to use the balance of the grant money for landscaping the facility. Sandy Gregg has put together a proposal for SB approval.
1. South Hero DRB Alternate – Liza Kilcoyne appointed as a DRB Alternate. Took part in March 22 DRB hearing.
2. Submitting an ad for a new member to represent South Hero on the NRPC Board. Will appear in the March 7, 2017 issue of the Islander. Will also post the ad in the Town Office, Post Office, and Library.
3. Bob Buermann asked to be reappointed to the NRPC Board, to be effective April 1.
4. Brian Costello of Local Motion would like to meet with the SB and the contractor on the South St. project to discuss bicycle routes during the construction and to try to alleviate issues involving bikes during that’s time.
5. Email from NRPC regarding grants through the Northern Border Regional Commission, a Federal/State partnership for economic and infrastructure development in the northern counties of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. Available grants include the following purposes – transportation, telecommunication, or basic public infrastructure, in addition to others. Information session on Thursday, March 16, from 9-11:30 at the Swanton Village Offices (among other locations). Applications available March 1, 2017; Letters of Intent due April 30; and final applications due June 2nd.
Planning Commission: Continuing to meet with NRPC for Development Regulations updates. Feb. 15 meeting cancelled due to weather and has been scheduled to March 1st.
Development Review Board: First hearing was February 22, 2017 and will continue on March 8. Anticipate the schedule for hearings will become very active soon.