Selectboard Minutes
Regular Meeting of April 8, 2019
South Hero Town Hall, Monday 7:00 PM
Board Members Present: Jonathan Shaw, Skip Brown (also Board Secretary), David Carter, Sharon Roy, Anne Zolotas
Board Members Not Present: None
Others Present: Janet Yates, Town Clerk and Martha Taylor Varney, ZA and Admin. 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:
-add to Other Business: Choose attorney for delinquent tax collection
3. Minutes:
-David Carter made a motion to accept the minutes of the meeting of March 25, 2019 as written. The motion was seconded, Anne Zolotas abstained, the others in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
4. Public input:
A. Martha asked on the behalf of MKN, Assoc., that they would like to apply for a grant for an EV charging stations at 260 Route 2. It was questioned who pays for the electricity at public charging stations. Most are paid by the consumer, but more info will be needed and the matter will have to go before the DRB if the charging stations are approved. David Carter made a motion to send a letter of support to MKN to forward to the grant administrator for EV charging stations at 260 Route 2. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
B. Brad Kline of West Shore Rd. asked about paving the rest of West Shore Rd. He was advised that East Shore Rd. was to be paved from Landon to Whipple last fall, but that the early snow prevented the paving. The plan is to pave it this spring. West Shore Rd. will most likely be paved sometime in the future, but that the Town is hoping for a rolling State grant in the near future to update paving on deteriorating Landon Rd., and that will take priority.
5. New Business:
A. The term of the lease of the former rescue building to the Island Craft Shop was finalized. It will be effective May 1, 2019 for a term of one year. The rent will be $350.00/month including electricity for 12 months, and the tenant being responsible for propane heating and water. The Town will pump the septic tank before they take possession. David Carter made a motion to approve and sign the lease with the terms stated. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
6. 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.
7. Old and Ongoing Business:
A. Fund balance policies were discussed. Apparently, when the grant for South Street was awarded approx. 15 years ago, the policy for maintaining fund balances was different. The State would like the Town to update the policy to be in compliance with current rules. More info will follow on updating the policy.
B. The signage for Whites Beach was discussed. Since there is to be a new ordinance in effect for the upcoming beach season, signs need to be ordered now to so that they can be installed when the ordinance takes effect. (See the full ordinance on the Town website.) The consensus of the Board is that up to 2 parking stickers/year will be available to Town residents at a cost of $5.00 each and a total of 50 out of town stickers/year will be available for $25.00 each. The price and number of stickers will be reviewed at the end of this season. The Recreation Commission will compose a letter explaining the rules to be handed out with the stickers.
C. After the audit, there appears to be is a budget deficit for approximately $52,054.00 for FY 2017/2018, mostly due to lower tax revenues and higher than expected legal fees. There are funds available to cover the deficit and there was never a working capital problem. David Carter made a motion to allocate $35,054.00 from the re-appraisal account and $17,000.00 from the judicial fines account to cover the FY 2017/2018 deficit. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
8. Announcements and Communications:
A. See other business
9. Other Business:
A. David Carter made a motion to sign orders 19-20 and to pay the bills associated with the orders. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
B. David Carter made a motion to hire The Law Office of Matthew Little, PC as attorney to assist the Delinquent Tax Collector prepare for tax sales, or attorney Charles L. Merriman if there is a conflict of interest. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
C. Sharon Roy made a motion to approve and sign the “Financial Plan, Town Highway” and the “Certificate of Compliance for Town Road and Bridge Standards and Network Inventory” submitted by the Road Department. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
D. Bill Rowe is resigning from the Northwest Solid Waste District (NWSWD) Board. The Town will place an ad for a new South Hero NWSWD Board member in the Islander and FPF.
10. Adjournment:
-Skip Brown made a motion to adjourn 8:45 pm. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
Respectfully submitted, Approved by,
_______________________________ ________________________________
Graham Brown Jonathan Shaw, Chairman
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Administrative Officer’s Report to Selectboard April 8, 2019
Discussion Items:
- Jonathan Shaw has been confirmed as the Municipal Authorizing Official is for the Town’s grant application through Cathedral Square related to proposed senior housing.
- The Certified Flood Manager’s exam has been scheduled for May 3rd in Berlin. There will be a review class prior to the exam but no schedule for that yet. Deadline to apply is April 19.
- The final draft of the Sign Ordinance has been given to SB members this evening. We need to schedule when you want to add it to the agenda for action.
- A new “road’ was required by the DRB as part of an approval of a 2-unit dwelling on Hill Rd. The road is actually a driveway that serves an existing home at current address 25 Hill Rd. and will also serve the two new dwelling units. The new road name is required because there is no room for 2 additional 911 numbers within the current numbers on the north side of Hill Rd. Chrissie Mack has proposed the name “Mable Way.” There is currently a “Maple Ridge Lane” in South Hero but “Mable Way” seems (to me) to be different enough as not to be confused. This will be a driveway that serves a parcel that can not be further subdivided due to the size of the lots. The driveway extends within a private ROW for its entire length. It is the SB’s judgement as to whether a full Public Hearing should be required for the naming of this ‘road.’
- I received a notice this morning for upcoming Rivers and Roads training. This training is a joint event with ANR and VTrans and was put together after Irene to help provide training on river (and, I assume in our case, lake) dynamics and how that interacts with our roads and infrastructure. Contact me for further information and training dates if interested.
- I will be attending the 2019 Town Officers Education Conference in Rutland this Thursday (4/11). This conference is sponsored by UVM Extension. I’m especially interested in an afternoon session on Citizens Assistance Registry for Emergencies being presented by VT e911.
-Planning Commission: Completed the sign ordinance draft and will have a final draft of the proposed Development Regulations updates for their April 17 meeting.
-Development Review Board: -Upcoming hearing schedules include a 6-lot subdivision, a revision to one condition of the Richardson Conditional Use and Site Plan approval for 138 Ferry Rd., and an appeal by the Zlotoff Foundation for two notices of violation from the Zoning Administrator. Copies of recent decisions are posted on the board outside the ZA’s office.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha Taylor-Varney, ZA and Asst. to the Selectboard