Selectboard Minutes
Regular Meeting of January 28, 2018
South Hero Town Hall, Monday 7:00 PM
Board Members Present: Jonathan Shaw, Skip Brown (also Board Secretary), David Carter, Sharon Roy, Anne Zolotas (Left just before meeting for rescue call and returned at 7:50)
Board Members Not Present: none
Others Present: Janet Yates, Town Clerk and Martha Taylor-Varney, Admin. Assistant and ZA. Also see sign in sheet.
1. Called to Order:
-The meeting was called to order by Chairman Shaw at 7:00 pm.
2. Public Hearing:
-E911 has requested that new private roads be named and the lots numbered. Skip Brown made a motion to accept the names Lavin Lane for the new subdivision at 275 Rte. 2, and Community Lane for the PUD currently at 260 Rte. 2. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
3. Adjustment to Agenda:
-Delete 7.-A. from the agenda
4. Minutes:
-David Carter made a motion to accept the minutes of the meeting of January 14, 2019 as written. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
5. Public input:
A. none
6. New Business:
A. There was a complaint about a mailbox that was knocked after the current snowfall. John Beaulac and John Roy were in attendance to speak about this. Also, David Carter rode in a plow truck and saw that the weight of the snow, not the plow itself, can cause damage to a mailbox. Currently there is no specific policy for the Town to repair mailboxes or their posts. Note, that most mailboxes are in the Town ROW and that the USPS has specific guidelines for mailboxes and the construction of posts. Many posts may not meet the USPS specifications. The Road Crew suggests that a mailbox post be 18’ off of the centerline of the road, as this will give the plows more clearance. The possibility for a specific policy will be discussed in the future.
B. Mike Guernsey of the VFW was present to discuss a coin drop fundraiser on Route 2. David Carter made a motion to allow a coin drop on Route 2 in front of Malcolm Allen’s house on May 25, 2019 and October 12, 2019 from 9:00 am until 3:00 pm. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried. Note that it us ultimately up to VTrans to give the final approval.
C. David Carter made a motion to allow Mike Wickenden to update the Town website security certificate. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
D. David Carter made a motion to approve and sign the notice of Annual Town Meeting of South Hero Official Warning for March 2, 2019 and the Annual Town Meeting of South Hero Official Warning of the voting on March 5, 2019. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
E. The following Liquor License applications were presented:
-Chefworks, LLC/Roving Feast Catering. This is a mobile catering service that will be preparing some food at Wally’s Bagel and Deli.
-AIR Development General Store
-AIR Development Golf Shop
-Jolley Associates, South Hero location
-Keeler Bay Variety
-Snow Farm Vineyard
-Wally’s Bagel and Deli
David Carter made a motion to accept each liquor License application separately. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
7. 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.
8. Old and Ongoing Business:
A. The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is in the County and is about 100% fatal to ash trees. Anne and David have completed an inventory of trees in the Town right of way (ROW). There are 744 Ash trees counted and approximately 10% of them are over 24” diameter. Dead trees will have to be removed and there will be a significant cost associated with removing these trees over the next several years. There is an article drafted that will be included in the Town Report to begin a fund for the removal of infected trees in the Town ROW.
9. Announcements and Communications:
– See other business
10. Other Business:
A. Skip Brown made a motion to sign orders 19-15 and to pay the bills associated with the orders. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
11. Adjournment:
-Sharon Roy made a motion to adjourn 8:15 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 January 28, 2019
Discussion Items:
1. Apple Island Resort (AIR Development) was sent a Notice of Violation on Thursday (1/10), by both email and certified mail, for an unpermitted sign at the resort. The sign was removed on the 15th. The sign in question was the large free-standing sign advertising marina slips for the 2019 boating season. Received a sign application today.
2. I received a sign permit application today from AIR Development for the new sign structure that was erected in November. As there is no indication in the permit application as to the subject and wording on the sign, I have contacted the Applicant for further information before I can act on the application.
3. The Planning Commission has completed a final draft of the Sign Ordinance and is looking to schedule a public hearing for Wednesday, March 6th. The draft will be posted on the Town website. The Planning Commission hearing will need to be followed by a Selectboard public hearing. Once (if) the SB approves the Ordinance, it will become effective in 30 days.
4. I received an email from Vermont E911 with a reminder to include sugar houses on the E911 map. Do we have any here in South Hero?
5. A zoning violation at 310 South St., due to an accessory structure being within the 15-ft. setback to its northern neighbor, has been resolved. The garage structure was removed 2 weeks ago.
6. A meeting was held here in the Town Office on January 15 with representatives of Cathedral Square, a representative from Vermont Dept. of Housing and Community Development, 2 members of the Selectboard (Anne and David), representatives from CIDER, and the Planning Commission. Discussion included the prospect of creating a Neighborhood Development Area designation for the proposed location for a senior housing project on Carter Lane (behind the Health Center/Wally’s). This designation opens additional funding options to the developer. Discussion included the status of the draft Development Regulations, water and wastewater, village revitalization, fire suppression and NDA standards. The Planning Commission will continue this discussion at their next meeting on February 6th.
7. Should the road naming ordinance be changed so public hearings are no longer required? Recommend that the 911 coordinator make recommendations to the SB, since the reason for having a road-naming ordinance is to prevent confusion resulting from roads receiving similar names? If so, procedure? Abolish ordinance altogether?
-Planning Commission: The next meeting will be February 6, 2019. Edits have been completed on the draft of the Development Regulations updates. I will be meeting with Taylor Newton on Tuesday, 1/29 to work on formatting the final draft.
-Development Review Board: The conditional use and site plan review for the proposed SeaComm Federal Credit Union has been withdrawn.
-Upcoming hearing schedules include a variance request, a change in conditional use for the construction of a 2-family dwelling unit, and site plan and conditional use review for Seb’s.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha Taylor-Varney, ZA and Asst. to the Selectboard