Selectboard Minutes
Regular Meeting of June 24, 2019
South Hero Town Hall, Monday 7:00 PM
Board Members Present: Jonathan Shaw, Skip Brown (also Board Secretary), Anne Zolotas, David Carter (arrived at 7:05)
Board Members Not Present: Sharon Roy
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:
– Change order of meeting: Move New Business before Public Input
3. Minutes:
-Anne Zolotas made a motion to accept the minutes of the meeting of June 10, 2019 as written. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
4. Public input:
A. Heidi Chamberlain of the Island Craft Shop presented a thank you card to the Selectboard for the quick response to the repairs of the building after a car ran into it. The shop was only closed for 2 full days since it was patched up in such a timely manner.
B. Ethelyn Dubuque of Granny’s Attic was present to ask if the thrift shop can use one bay of the lower level of the Old White Meeting House to stage already priced, replacement merchandise. David Carter made a motion to allow Granny’s Attic to use one bay to stage priced items for sale until October 31, 2019. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
C. Lieutenant Maurice Lamothe, Station Commander of the Vermont State Police, St. Albans Barracks was present to discuss police coverage in the Town now that the busy summer season is here. No major problems are noted at this time, and he feels that the VSP works with the Grand Isle Sheriff to provide adequate coverage.
5. New Business:
A. Joel Behrsing of VHB+Johnson Companies was present to discuss the discovery of a detectable concentration of PFAS in 2 of the 4 test wells at the former landfill at the end of Dubuque Lane. The landfill was closed in 1992, has been tested regularly since then, but the State only required testing for PFAS about 2 years ago. The initial test that discovered the chemical was done in November and a subsequent test was done in May. Mr. Behrsing explained that PFAS is in many products, including Teflon and fleece clothing; so that a source to see what items in the closed landfill leached this chemical will probably never be known. An action plan to test approximately 10 residential wells within 1 mile of the landfill and a pond that was dug to cap the landfill will be implemented to see if the chemical has traveled from the landfill area. A cost estimate and timeline will be supplied to the Selectboard soon. Note that the State required testing of wells within one mile of Phoenix wire since they use Teflon in manufacturing. There may be an overlap of tested wells, so the Town may not need to retest those.
B. Everett Dubuque submitted a draft of a Delinquent Tax Collection Policy for the Town of South Hero. David Carter made a motion to adopt the Delinquent Tax Collection Policy, as presented. 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.
B. Note that Arnold Zlotoff et.al. has appealed a decision by the DRB to the Vermont Environmental Court.
7. Old and Ongoing Business:
A. The latest draft of the Sign Ordinance was discussed. Some edits were made and will be posted on the Town website. The final iteration will be recommended at a future meeting.
8. Announcements and Communications:
A. See other business
9. Other Business:
A. David Carter made a motion to sign orders 19-26 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 approve and sign a Letter of Intent to Participate in the Municipal Road Grant Application process for a 80/20 grant. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
C. David Carter made a motion to re-appoint Doug Patterson and Michelle Gammal to the Planning Commission. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
D. Anne Zolotas made a motion to sign the Bourne Energy contract for fixed price propane for the upcoming FY. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
E. Anne Zolotas made a motion to go into executive session to for personnel/salary matters at 8:15 pm. Executive session ended at 8:30 pm. Upon exiting executive session, David Carter made a motion to adopt the 2019/2020 pay schedule as discussed. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
F. Anne Zolotas made a motion to go into executive session for legal and financial matters regarding the Zlotoff tax appeal case at 8:30 pm. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried. Executive session ended at 8:38 pm. Upon exiting executive session, David Carter made a motion to hire Dinse, Knapp, McAndrew, PC to represent the Town in the appeal of the DRB decision by Arnold Zlotoff et.al to the Vermont Environmental Court. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried
10. Adjournment:
-Skip Brown made a motion to adjourn 8:40pm. 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 June 24, 2019
Discussion Items:
1. No word yet on whether South Hero will receive a Northern Border Regional Commission grant for $95,000 for the replacement of the 2” water pipe from Hill Rd. to the proposed future site for senior housing (behind the Heath Center) to a 4” pipe. The total cost for the replacement is estimated to be $190,000 and Cathedral Square can apply for 50%. Ken Little and I wrote letters of support as part of the grant application. Cathedral Square says this is a longshot but felt it was worth a try. Although slated for South Hero specifically, Cathedral Square is the applicant.
2. The Vermont Community Development planning grant ($60,000) application is still under review.
3. I attended the Spring Planning and Zoning Forum June 18 at Lake Morey. The discussion on Municipal Planning Grants was especially good. Ross Brown of the DRB also attended.
4. Planning Commission members Doug Patterson and Michele Gammal have requested to be re-appointed to the Commission for another 3-year term. Michele has served for the past year finishing the term of a previous member whose term ends this month. An advertisement in the Islander looking for interested applicants turned up no one. I recommend the Selectboard re-appoint both Doug and Michele to another 3-year term.
5. The 5th Monday meeting with the SB, PC, and DRB, scheduled for July 29th will be warned as a special Selectboard meeting. The discussion will include a continuation of the discussion begun on May 1st with Taylor Newton of NRPC regarding opportunities, challenges, and potential funding sources for water and wastewater-related planning and infrastructure in South Hero Village.
6. I received an email synopsis of Legislative updates now that the 2019 Legislative session is complete. The SB may need to authorize the following increases in the fee schedule when the Statutes are updated in October 2019. Of note to my office:
a. Act 250 will continue to be under review at the next session in January 2020.
b. Municipal Clerk recording fees for deeds and most documents of public record from $10 to $15, and increased recording fees for survey plats to $25. The SB may need to authorize these increases as part of the fee schedule when the Statutes are updated in October 2019.
-Planning Commission: The final draft of the Development Regulations is being formatted and will be forwarded electronically to the Selectboard ASAP. The Planning Commission hosted a public session for the Old White Meeting House Outreach Committee at their June 19th regular meeting. Taylor Newton facilitated the public session and remained for the PC meeting to discuss the approval procedure of the Regulations. This discussion can continue at the 5th Monday meeting scheduled for July 29th.
-Development Review Board:
– Hearings scheduled this Wednesday (6/24) have been postponed to July 10 because the Board will not have a quorum for next week. Upcoming hearings include conditional use and site plan approval for a Brew Pub, Final Plat review for the Lavin 6-Lot subdivision, and site plan and conditional use review for a seasonal food truck. The DRB’s hearing schedule is currently full through mid-August. 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