Selectboard Minutes
Regular Meeting of June 26, 2017
South Hero Town Hall, Monday 7:00 PM
Board Members Present: Jonathan Shaw, Skip Brown (also Board Secretary), Anne Zolotas, George Rice, David Carter (on speaker phone)
Board Members Not Present: none
Others Present: Sharon Roy, Town Clerk and Martha Taylor-Varney, 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:
-Discuss non-paved road condition to New Business
3. Minutes:
– Anne Zolotas made a motion to accept the minutes of the meeting of June 12, 2017 as written. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
4. Public input:
A. Brigitte Barrette of South Street was present to discuss unleashed dogs and car traffic on the Fish & Wildlife (F&W) access to the “bike ferry”. She has witnessed unleashed dogs that are not in the full control of their owner. She has not had a satisfactory response from the animal control officer and wonders if a leash law on the F&W access is possible. Also, she states that there appears to more traffic on the access than allowed for fishermen. Anne will speak to someone from F&W regarding these issues and will report back at the next meeting.
5. New Business:
A. Taylor Newton of Northwest Regional Planning (NRPC) was present to discuss the following items:
-NRPC had funding to help South Hero implement a Hazard Mitigation Plan. Such a plan will lessen the Town’s FEMA percentage if there is a natural disaster declared. The consensus of the Board is to have NRPC draft a plan to submit to FEMA at no cost to the Town.
-Since new zoning regulations are being drafted the subject of emergency access to new developments and driveways was brought up. The Planning Commission would like the SHVFD to be involved. Should such assurances that large fire apparatus have room to maneuver be regulated? More information will follow in the future.
-In 2000 a Scoping Study Grant for “traffic calming” on Route 2 was conducted and abandoned when the plans were done, changes were needed and the grant money ran out. Since that was done, speed limits on Route 2 have been reduced, but the number of cars passing through has increased. New speed limits and no passing zones are being implemented soon. (See the Administrative Assistant report for updates). The Board may wait to see if more should be done.
-The possibility of a public/private wastewater was discussed. It is too early to know more at this time.
B. The condition of the non-paved roads was discussed. Due to the retirement of Pete Rousseau, the road department is down to 2 men and a culvert upgrade is being worked on, so grading is overdue. The Road Commissioner is in charge of the roads, and will be advised the grading may be necessary instead of the culvert job.
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. South Street reconstruction project from Landon to Martin Roads updates:
-When the section from West Shore Rd. to Landon Rd. begins, there will be a detour from either Whipple Rd. to East Shore Rd. or from West Shore Rd. to Lakeview Rd. during the daylight construction time so that the contractor can work on 2 lanes at once. South Street will be open in the evenings and weekends.
B. The Fire and Rescue Emergency Services Building was discussed:
– The Fire and Rescue Emergency Services Building was discussed:
– A revised draft agreement between the Town and the users of the building was written by George Rice and David Carter. Note that this is just a draft and the SHVFD and SHR have not given input. The whole draft is filed with these minutes or on www.southherovt.org. Regarding “Obligations, Paragraph #1”, Wayne Tyrrell said that in his ten years as a member of the SHVFD he has never seen, nor heard of, a plan to do an “end run” to obtain funding from the town. He further stated that the mission of the SHVFD is to serve and protect the community of South Hero.
-No contract has been submitted to the Town, yet.
8. Other Business:
A. Anne Zolotas made a motion to sign orders 17-26B and pay the bills associated with this order. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
B. The bond for the Emergency Services building has been submitted and funds may be available as soon as August 3.
-David Carter made a motion to accept and have the Board members in attendance sign the Resolution and Certificate. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
-David Carter made a motion to accept and have the Chair sign the Loan Agreement. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
-Anne Zolotas made a motion to accept and have the Chair sign the Vermont Municipal Bond Bank (VTMBB) proposal. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
-Skip Brown made a motion to accept and have Board members in attendance sign the Municipal Tax Certificate. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
9. Announcements and Communications:
A. The Town received a letter from VTrans confirming the speed limit and no passing signs for Route 2, but no time frame for the change was stated.
10. Adjournment:
-Anne Zolotas made a motion to adjourn 8:50 pm. The motion was seconded, all in attendance so voted and the motion carried.
Respectfully submitted, Approved by,
_______________________________ ________________________________
Graham Brown Jonathan Shaw, Chair
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TOWN OF SOUTH HERO
Administrative Officer’s Report to Selectboard June 28, 2017
Discussion Items:
1. Fifth Monday in July – DRB and Planning Commission to meet with Selectboard. NRPC would like to attend to explain to the Board the proposed updates to the Development Regulations. Public Hearings with both the Planning Commission and the Selectboard will be scheduled in the weeks to follow. The Planning Commission is hopeful that these meetings will be well attended.
2. Have not yet received any bids for the RFD for auditing the Town’s financial statements.
-Planning Commission: Continuing to meet with NRPC for Development Regulations updates. Special meeting on June 21, 2017 in the afternoon with NRPC. Will meet with them again for, hopefully, the final draft. Drafts will be available to the Selectboard as soon as it is approved by the PC.
Letter from Terry Delano regarding a meeting with VTrans Traffic Committee regarding traffic issues on US RT 2 by the new Health Center: – June 14, 2017
As most of you probably know, the Agency of Transportation’s Transportation Committee meeting was held today in the AOT’s Board Room in the Davis Building in Montpelier. Sandy Gregg (Planning Commission), Dave Hobbs (Recreation Committee) and myself attended from South Hero. The Committee is chaired by Secretary Joe Flynn.
Among the items on the agenda was South Hero’s request to lower the speed limit on Route 2 in front of the Community Health Center to 35 MPH and to make the South Hero Village District a legal “No Passing” zone. The meeting did not start out as we hoped it would.
AOT staff recommended that a 40 MPH speed limit be set in front of the Health Center as far east as Heritage Lane, both east- and west-bound. The double-yellow “recommended no passing zone” would be extended to include that entire stretch of Route 2 between Tracy Road on the west end of the village and Heritage Lane on the east side. They also recommended against creating any legal “No Passing” zones in the Town. (For reference: a double-yellow line is legally just a suggestion not to pass, but a “No Passing” zone is mandatory and violations can be ticketed.)
At the end of the AOT staff presentation, we were invited to speak. Spirited discussion ensued, and when the questions were all answered to everyone’s satisfaction, a motion was proposed that would:
1. Eliminate the 40 MPH speed limit in front of the Health Center and replace it with a 35 MPH speed limit, extending from the existing 35 MPH zone in the village east to Heritage Lane; and,
2. Make the entire stretch of Route 2 between Heritage Lane on the east side of the village and just past Ferry Road (Route 314) in Keeler’s Bay on the west side a legal “No Passing” zone.
The motion passed unanimously.
From a Planning Commission perspective, this meeting went much better than we had a right to expect. Thank you to all who helped in this effort. We do not know yet when these changes will take effect.
George (“Terry”) Delano
Co-chairman, South Hero Planning Commission
-Development Review Board: 2 scheduled hearings on June 28; 1 on July 12. Pace for hearings is beginning to slow down a bit.
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TOWN OF SOUTH HERO
DRAFT OCCUPANCY AGREEMENT Presented to Selectboard June 26, 2017
Recitals
This agreement is between the town of South Hero (Town) and two organizations (also referred to as entities). Those entities are the South Hero Rescue Squad (Rescue) and the South Hero Fire Department (FD). The mission of each organization is providing emergency services to citizens and residents of South Hero. Both currently receive financial support from the Town for their normal operations. The occupied premises are the land and buildings that Town will be purchasing upon the completion of construction and obtaining title. The premises are further described as the land and buildings that the Town has identified as the future Emergency Services building, to be located on the north side of US route 2 and east of the village area of the Town.
The Town has voted to encumber the premises by executing a bond in order to obtain title of the finished and accepted building. This agreement is further conditioned upon entering into an additional contract, with the current owner of the premises, setting out the rights and responsibilities of the Town and the developer after acquiring title to the premises.
The occupied premises will be named the South Hero Emergency Services Building. The tenants, Rescue and FD, shall be equally responsible for the care, maintenance, and repairs of the building, subject to a Memorandum of Agreement (MOU) between them, and further subject to Town Selectboard’s approval, delineating their collective and individual responsibilities and obligations in occupying the premises.
Consideration
Consideration for the Town’s allowing the two entities the use of the premises shall be the transfer of ownership of all the real estate owned by each entity to the Town, unencumbered and without reservation. The Town, in turn, shall permit the exclusive use of the premises by the entities jointly, subject to the Obligations set out herein.
Obligations
The parties each agree that the following terms, conditions, and obligations set out herein shall apply to each entity, both individually and collectively, and any failure, refusal to comply, or loss of governmental certification may, at the option of the Town, terminate the occupancy of entity as a result.
1. Each entity shall submit a request for funding for the following fiscal year. The request shall be submitted no later than November 1st each year in the form and detail specified by the Selectboard. Once approved by the Selectboard, it shall be included in the Municipal budget request and voted at Town Meeting. Neither entity shall request the voters to approve a separate amount for any funding, other than as set out herein. The request shall be for the operations of the FD and Rescue to accomplish their stated mission.
2. Each entity shall periodically provide the Selectboard, but at least annually, with the budget requests, an itemized list of all receipts, of any kind, during the fiscal year, as well as all amounts in their possession as a capital fund, endowment, or cash on hand.
3. The expenses for the operation, maintenance, repairs, and insurance of the premises shall be the obligation of the Town. The entities shall submit a separate but joint budget request for said operations, no later than November 1st each year. Notwithstanding the Town’s obligation to finance these items, it shall be the specific obligation of the entities to insure that those items are completed in a fashion acceptable to the Selectboard.
4. The entities shall enter into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOU) between themselves, and approved by the Selectboard, to insure that the premises are properly maintained as required above.
5. The entities shall continue to operate under the IRS 501(c)(3) rule, so called, and file all required reports and returns. Any change in that status shall be reported immediately to the Selectboard.
6. Any disputes between the entities, of a non-professional nature, shall be brought to the attention of the Selectboard and the Board shall be the final arbiter.
7. The town shall provide reasonable casualty and liability insurance of the real estate. Entities shall provide all necessary insurance on personal property, whether owned by the Town or by the entities. Town shall be listed as additional insured on Town owned personal property. Insurance shall also include professional liability with the normal endorsements for the operation of a Fire Department and/or Rescue Squad.
8. Neither entitiy shall sublet or rent the premises or any portion thereof without prior notice and permission from the Selectboard. This shall not include allowing the entities to both agree to allow the use of a portion of the premises, without consideration, to local non-profit organizations.
9. Each entity shall maintain all necessary and appropriate licenses and certifications required to function as an emergency service organization within the State of Vermont. In the event any unsatisfactory reports, warnings, or suspensions of the entity or any of its members, such matters shall be immediately reported to the Selectboard and corrective action shall be taken by the entity. In no event shall operations continue for that entity without all necessary permits and licenses in place. Failure to do so after 60 days in non- compliance may, at the discretion of the Selectboard, immediately terminate this occupancy agreement with said entity.
Term of Agreement
This agreement shall be for one year and shall be automatically renewed unless either entity shall fail to comply with paragraph 9 above or, either of the parties provides a 90 day notice of non- renewal, at that party’s option, prior to the renewal date. For purposes of this section, the renewal date each year December 1st.