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February 22, 2021 Minutes

Selectboard Minutes
Town Meeting information + Regular Meeting of Monday February 22, 2021 at 6:00 PM
South Hero Town Hall

Board Members Present in person or via Zoom: Jonathan Shaw, Skip Brown (also Board Secretary), Ross Brown, Anne Zolotas and David Carter.
Board Members Not Present: none
Others Present: Janet Yates, Town Clerk, Erin Morse and Martha Taylor-Varney. Also see sign in sheet of in person and/or Zoom attendees who interacted during the meeting. (Per VLCT, not all who viewed the meeting need to be included) Attendance SB 02-22-2021

1. Called to Order:
-The meeting was called by Chairman Shaw at 6:00 pm

2. Town Meeting Discussion of Articles:
A. Chairman Shaw advised of the rules of the meeting. He then read the articles as warned and asked for questions or comments:
-Article 1: no comment
-Article 2: no comment
-Article 3: no specific comment on the article, but Bob Buermann (citizen and Town representative to NRPC) was pleased that the road crew got grants for roadside ditching and was able to do the work in order to mitigate runoff into the Lake. He hopes that future grants will be applied for.
-Article 4: no comment
-Article 5: no comment
-Article 6: no comment
-Article 7: no comment
-Article 8: no comment
-Article 9: no comment
B. General comments made:
-David Hobbs asked that support for South Hero Rescue (SHR). He suffered a stroke and stated that the quick response time of approximately 5 minutes by SHR probably prevented a more major problem.
-Becky Kingston is new to Town and asked about seeing former budgets. Most of the recent Town Reports are online and have the information in them, or they are available to view in Town Hall.

3. Adjustment to Agenda:
-none

4. Minutes:
-David Carter made a motion to approve the minutes of February 8, 2021. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.

5. Public input:
A. Erin Morse presented a token gift to from the Board to retiring Town Clerk, Janet Yates and Selectboard Chairman Jonathan Shaw. Thanks for their good work for the Town!

6. New Business:
A. Mike Wickenden had resigned from the Recreation Commission (RC). The RC has a meeting in March and will make a recommendation to the Board for a replacement after their meeting.
B. David Carter made a motion to allow the newly elected Town Clerk/Treasurer to hire assistant(s) with a starting salary of $16.00/hour. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.

7. Administrative Assistant Report:
A. See the written report filed with these minutes in Town Hall or www.southherovt.org.
B. David Carter made a motion to approve and sign an access permit for sidewalk work in the State right of way for the proposed BayView Crossing senior housing project. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.

8. Old and Ongoing Business:
A. none at this meeting

9. Announcements and Communications:
A. See other business

10. Other Business:
A. David Carter made a motion to approve and sign orders 21-17 and to pay the bills associated with the orders. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
B. Anne Zolotas made a motion to go into Executive session at 6:40 pm for legal matters regarding the Zlotoff lawsuit. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried. Executive session ended at 6:50. Upon exiting executive Session, Ross Brown made a motion to approve the settlement agreement between the Zlotoff Foundation and the Town of South Hero as stipulated in the mediation agreement of February 22, 2021. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.

11. Adjournment:
-David Carter made a motion to adjourn 6:51 pm. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,                                        Approved by,

_______________________________ ________________________________
Graham Brown, Board Secretary                        Chairman

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Administrative Officer’s Report to Selectboard February 22, 2021

Discussion Items:
1. I was deposed on February 18 as part of the Zlotoff appeal of Zoning violations that is currently before Environmental Court.
2. The application for the Implementation Grant for Bayside Crossing was re-submitted last week. The previous application did not receive funding, but we are hopeful that this application will be approved. The VCDP Board meets at the beginning of April.
3. The Environmental Review for the Bayview Crossing project has been received by the Dept. of Housing and Community Development.
4. Cathedral Square asked that the Selectboard sign their application for an access permit for the proposed Bayview Crossing senior housing for work that will reconstruct and maintain existing sidewalk within the state highway right-of-way.
5. I will be attending a virtual ZA’s Roundtable this Thursday sponsored by NRPC. Subjects to be discussed include a presentation on Act 143 – Accessory On-Farm Businesses, and new legislation related to Accessory Dwelling Units (already covered by S. Hero).
Planning Commission:
The Planning Commission is now holding meetings via Zoom.
A. The Planning Commission is looking at its long-term schedule to update the Town Plan by August of 2023. Previously, the Plan was required to be updated every 5 years, but after the 2015 update the State requirements changed to every 8 years. NRPC will join the March 22 meeting to discuss this update and whether the Town should consider applying for an MPG.for this project.
B. No word yet on the “Better Places” grant application for a pocket park at the ‘honeymoon cottage’ ad a second behind the Worthen Library. There were many applicants, and the Commission is hoping that the uniqueness of South Hero’s application will help.
C. The Planning Commission has received positive feedback about a possible Small Business Saturday to include all the Grand Isle County communities in November. Michele Gammal will be meeting with Sherry Potvin of the Champlain Islands Economic Development Corporation and Randy Smith of Buy Vermont Local in March to further discuss ideas. The Commission agreed that the best date for this year would be the Saturday before Thanksgiving – Nov. 20th.
Development Review Board:
– The DRB is scheduling hearings into April 2021. All hearings are being held via Zoom for the foreseeable future. Several of these hearings are to complete the requirements for a mobile vendors’ license.
– Upcoming hearings also include a variance request, a CU/SP review for an accessory use, and subdivision.
– Recent DRB hearing decisions can be found posted on the Board outside the ZA’s office or can be emailed upon request.

Respectfully submitted,
Martha Taylor-Varney (ZA)