TOWN OF RUTLAND

 

SELECT BOARD

 

 

 

MINUTES: March 13, 2012

 

Board members present: Stanley Rhodes III, Steve Hawley, Jim Hall, John Paul Faignant and Joe Dicton

 

The Meeting opened at 6:30 P.M.

 

 All rose for The Pledge of Allegiance to the United States Flag.

 

Town Administrator Mr. Joseph Zingale Jr., opened the floor to nomination for Chairman of the Select Board. Mr. Hawley nominated Mr. Rhodes as Chairman. Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

Mr. Rhodes opened the floor to nomination for Board Clerk. Mr. Faignant nominated Mr. Hawley. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Mr. Rhodes thanked Mr. Hall for his time serving as Board Clerk.

 

Questions from the floor:

 

Students from the forth grade at the Town Elementary School presented the Select Board with a copy of their “Blast to the past, Fly to the Future” Rutland Town Book, which was prepared by the forth grade class. The students explained they made the book to celebrate the Town’s 250th birthday.

 

The students said they also learned about the Town by visiting different people & places in our community. The students said they also learned about photography and how to edit pictures. The students told the Board they also drew pictures and maps of the different placed they visited around Town. The students thanked the community for all their support for the project. 

 

Mr. Hall moved to approve the 2-28-12 minutes with corrections. Mr. Hawley made a second to the motion. The motion passed by a vote of 4 to 0. Mr. Faignant abstained from the vote.

 

Mr. Rhodes read an invitation the Board received to attend the Eagle Scout Court of Honor for Mr. Andrew S. Burd at 7:00P.M on April 21, 2012 at the Grace Congregational Church.

 

Mr. Hall read a proclamation he wrote on behalf of Mr. Burd.

 

Mr. Rhodes congratulated and welcomed Mr. John Paul Faignant to the Board.

 

Town Clerk & Treasurer:  Ms. Marie Hyjek reported:

 

  1. Thanked all of the poll workers for their help with the election.
  2. Told the Board that the election results are posted on the Board in the Clerk’s Office
  3. Presented a Liquor license for consideration.

 

The Board reviewed the US RT 7 South Sunoco’s application for a liquor and tobacco license. Mr. Rhodes told Board members that Chief John Sly had reviewed the application and that there are no problems.

 

Mr. Dicton moved to sign and accept the liquor & tobacco license for Sandri US RT 7 South Sunoco. Mr. Hall made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

Mr. Rhodes congratulated Ms. Hyjek on her recent reelection.

 

Solid Waste Alliance Communities & Rutland Transportation Council:  Mr. Shields reported:

 

  1. No meeting, no report

 

Town Road Commissioner: Mr. Byron Hathaway reported:

 

1.       Told the Board that used chippers are selling for $9,000.00 to $20,000.00.  Mr. Rhodes told Mr. Faignant that Mr. Hathaway is pricing out new and used chippers because the shared chipper with Mendon needs to be replaced. Mr. Rhodes said there is $133,000.00 in the Highway Depreciation Fund.

Mr. Hathaway said he could get a new identical chipper for $30,600.00. He said the warranty is only for two years. Mr. Hathaway said he can also get a new 2008 model chipper complete with warranty for $26,500.00. Mr. Hathaway said the chipper for $26,500.00 is a drum chipper verses a disk chipper. Mr. Hathaway said the drum chipper is best suited for the type work done by the Town and Mendon. Mr. Hathaway said he and Mendon agreed to purchase the Bandit drum chipper at a cost of $32,900.00. Mr. Rhodes said purchasing with Mendon would split the cost.

Mr. Rhodes asked Mr. Hathaway if the Town uses the chipper enough to buy a new chipper. Mr. Hathaway said it would cost $3,600.00 a month to rent a chipper. Mr. Hathaway recommended the Board vote to purchase the $32,900.00 with the Town of Mendon.

Mr. Rhodes asked if the Town has any place to store the chipper inside. Mr. Hathaway said he does not have any space to store the equipment inside. Mr. Hathaway said Mendon would also store the chipper outdoors. Mr. Hathaway said the Town would get $1000.00 for the old chipper. Mr. Dicton asked if there is room at the Transfer Station to store the chipper. Mr. Hathaway said the chipper could be parked from time to time in the space where the snowplow is parked inside. Mr. Dicton said he would like to see a new chipper under cover.

Mr. Hathaway said there have been no problems or issues co-owing the chipper with Mendon. Mr. Faignant said it is a win-win for both towns. Mr. Hathaway cited the fact there is a Memorandum of Understanding with the Town of Mendon for the chipper. Mr. Hathaway will check into a custom tarp to cover the equipment.

Mr. Faignant made a motion to authorize the purchase as recommended by the Town Road Commissioner. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. Mr. Hathaway said the Town would be purchasing a Bandit Model 990 XP 12” drum style chipper, purchase price of $32, 970.56. The motion passed unanimously.

 

2.       Informed the Board he has received the draft Otter Creek Basin Plan. Mr. Hathaway emphasized the document is not a regulatory document rather a planning guide.

 

Mr. Hall asked Mr. Hathaway if he had received any information regarding maintenance of the Cold River Road railroad crossing. Mr. Hathaway said he had no information.

 

Regional Planning Commission Mr. Fred Nicholson reported:

 

He reported doing business as usual.

 

Planning Commission: William Matteson

 

1.       Welcomed Mr. Faignant to the Board

2.       Will hold a zoning information meeting on 3-15-12. He told the Board that staff from the Rutland Regional Planning Commission would be present at the meeting.

 

Recreation Director: Mike Rowe reported:

 

1.       Baseball registration is ongoing

2.       Inquired regarding hiring summer maintenance personnel

3.       Informed the Board the big tractor needs new tires. He said the tires would cost $1,300.00 to $1,400.00

Mr. Dicton moved for the Recreation Director to spend approximately $1,500.00 to get new tires for the tractor for the spring. Mr. Hall made a second to the motion. Mr. Rhodes said the money would come from the depreciation account. The motion passed unanimously.

Mr. Rhodes opened the paving bids.

 

Wilk Paving                    $495,618.10

Frank W Whitcomb               $532,444.75

Fuller Sand & Gravel                 $499,073.00

Pike Industries                              $527,055.95

Peckham Road Corp                    $611,191.22

Mr. Hathaway said the Town has used both of the top two paving companies. He said the Town has had good luck with the two top paving companies. Mr. Steve Wilk said the way the Town bid the work is the fairest way to do so.

 

Mr. Dicton said he would like Mr. Hathaway to verify that all of the contractor paper work is in order prior to the Board voting to select a bid. Mr. Faignant moved to accept the Wilk bid as the low bid. Mr. Hall made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

The Board discussed relocating the Post Road Pump Station electrical panel. Mr. Rhodes said the price from Stantec is over $200,000.00. Mr. Rhodes cited the fact the Town has been working with Stantec (Dufresne Henry) for many years. Mr. Dicton said he would like to put the work out to bid. Mr. Faignant said it would be good to check and make sure we are getting a good price.

 

Mr. Dicton moved to put out to bid the engineering for the panel relocation at the corner of US RT 7 and Post Road. Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

The Board considered an additional sewer allocation in the amount of 420 gallons for the proposed KIA dealership. Mr. Hawley moved to approve the 420-gallon request. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously

 

The Board considered a request to change the Street name Robert Place to Sawmill Hill Place. Mr. Zingale told the Board that the individual making the request does not have a telephone landline but rather only has a cell phone. Mr. Zingale said if there were confusion regarding her street, the emergency responders would not be able to pinpoint here location. Both Mr. Zingale and Mr. Rhodes recommended the street name be changed.

 

Mr. Faignant moved to change the street name to Sawmill Hill Place. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

Mr. Rhodes cited the fact that the voters approved the $9,000.00 Fire Department request by 131 votes. Mr. Rhodes told Board members that he has prepared a RFP for the proposed Center Rutland Fire Station renovations. Mr. Rhodes read the RFP he prepared.

Mr. Rhodes cited the fact the $9,000.00 would not be available until July 1st. Mr. Rhodes said he wrote the notice to make sure the proper process is followed. He said anybody that is an arm’s length away from any of the architects that are going to be bidding or any of the construction people; stand back and just let it take its course.

 

Mr. Rhodes said Mr. Hall and Mr. Hawley would stay on the Fire Committee. Mr. Rhodes asked Mr. Hall to spearhead the RFP process. Mr. Hall said after an architect is selected the process of getting specific building plans would begin.

 

Mr. Rhodes cited his time on the Regional Recreation Committee and said the various architects made presentation with plans and graphs at no cost to the Committee because they wanted the job.

 

Mr. Rhodes asked Ms. Hyjek how much money is left in the building maintenance account for the Town Hall. Ms. Hyjek said there is $18,000.00 in the account. Mr. Rhodes cited the fact the $18,000.00 would pay for the new windows to be installed.

 

Mr. Hall moved to reappoint the following individuals:

 

Weigher of coal                 Israel Mac

Fence Viewers                  Fredrick Nicholson, Marshall B Fish, Charles Hemenway

Tree Warden               Fredrick Nicholson

Pound keeper                Paul Williams

Inspector of Wood              Byron R Hathaway

Jerry Stearns               Planning Commission

 

Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

Fire Chief: Joseph Denardo reported:

 

1.       Submitted an application for membership in the Town Fire department from Rutland City resident Ms. Billy Jo Leonard. Mr. Denardo said Ms. Leonard has experience with the Towns of Grandville and Randolph Center and is a graduate of the Fire program at Vermont Technical Center. Mr. Denardo said Ms. Leonard would be assigned to the Center Station. Mr. Dicton moved to approve Ms. Billy Jo Leonard’s application to the Fire Department. Mr. Hall made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

2.       Thanked the voters for support for the Fire Budget.

 

3.       Mr. Rhodes read the RFP he wrote for the Center Station work. Mr. Denardo cited the fact he had submitted a list of six items he would like included in the RFP notice. Mr. Rhodes said he left the six items out of his notice because the items would be considered during the bidding process. Mr. Rhodes said he did not want to include information that was submitted by one of the bidders.
Mr. Rhodes cited his time on the Regional Recreation Committee and how the Committed did not spend any money preparing plans because the various bidders were hungry to get the project. Mr. Denardo and Board members discussed whether to required only bidders with previous Fire Station work. Mr. Hawley said by not including the requirement the Town might get more bids that it other wise would. He said it should be fairly easy to determine which bidders have previous experience.

 

4.       Mr. Denardo inquired as to where reimbursement money is placed after being collected by the Fire Department. Mr. Rhodes said the money is used to reduce taxes. Mr. Denardo asked if some of the money could be place in the depreciation account. Mr. Faignant said the department’s line items should be reimbursed to cover cost and the rest of the money should go to reduce taxes.

 

5.       Chief Denardo told the Board that the Fire Department had an incident on Oak Ridge Drive and that there was confusion due to the house numbering and the Street name. Mr. Denardo encourage the Board to reverse their recent decision to allow a private road to not end in the word “Place” and to address the homes per the Town’s addressing system. Mr. Zingale said the Select Board chose not to listen to the Town Police Chief, the Town Fire Chief and himself, the Town 911 Coordinator when it voted to name the private road “Oak Ridge Dr” and not change the house numbers. Mr. Rhodes said he was the lone ranger and voted to oppose other Board members. The Board will discuss the Chief’s request at the next meeting. Mr. Hawley cited the fact all of the homes are on the private road and not on Atwood Drive.

 

6.       The Chief cautioned individuals to be careful when burning outdoors due to the dryness and winds.

 

Mr. Zingale briefed Mr. Faignant regarding the Farnham land gift to the Town. Mr. Zingale said the Farnhams have offered the Town three parcels of land off Hitzel Terrace, which the Town can use for stormwater mitigation. Mr. Hall moved to accept the property and quick claim deeds from the Farnhams. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

Town Administrator:  Mr. Joseph Zingale reported:

 

1.       Informed the Board he is going to have the Highway crew re-brick several manholes in Flory Heights. Mr. Zingale said the Highway crew had repaired a manhole on Post Road previously and did a good job.

2.       Told the Board the Town had spent $560.00 to have Giancola Construction replace the chimney lid on the top of the Town Hall, which had blown off. Mr. Zingale said the Town paid an additional $275.00 by keeping the lift vehicle an extra day in order to use it to replace the security lights on the Town Hall.

 

The Board and Mr. Hathaway discussed summer roadside mowing. Mr. Rhodes informed Mr. Hathaway that he had deleted the $500.00 a day penalty from the proposed contract. Mr. Rhodes said he did not think the penalty is necessary Mr. Hathaway said there is no sense in having “deadline” to get things done if there is no penalty.

 

Mr. Rhodes asked if the penalty was necessary in the past. Mr. Hathaway said it had not been with the exception of last year when Mr. Fred Nicholson was not able to complete the mowing when Mr. Hathaway wanted it completed. Mr. Hathaway said Mr. Nicholson over booked himself and was not able to complete the work when Mr. Hathaway wanted it done.

 

Mr. Nicholson said he did not disagree with Mr. Hathaway. Mr. Nicholson cited a contract he had with the State of Vermont for mowing as the reason he could not complete his town mowing on schedule.

 

Mr. Rhodes asked Mr. Hathaway for the proposed roadside mowing pay rate. Mr. Hathaway said he did not set a rate because of the risk that my setting a rate the contractor (selected) would be more an employee rather than contracted. Mr. Hathaway said typically when you put something out for proposal you do not set the rate.

 

Mr. Rhodes asked Mr. Hathaway how pay for the snowplow drivers is handled. Mr. Hathaway said the matter has been a grey area for fifty years. Mr. Hall asked how Mr. Hathaway pays summer contractors.

 

Mr. Hathaway said he is billed at their rates and if he does not like their rates they do not get hired. Mr. Nicholson told the Board he has no problem with the Town’s proposed roadside mowing contract.

 

Mr. Hall moved to hire Mr. Fred Nicholson for the agreed rate for the coming roadside mowing season from June 1st to October 20th.  Mr. Hall agreed to amend his request to make the hiring of Mr. Nicholson per the contract prepared by Mr. Hathaway. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously

 

Mr. Hall made a motion at 8:01 P.M. to go into executive to discuss; recreation personnel, tax appeal and the cobra insurance information. Mr. Hawley made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

 

Police Department: Chief John Sly reported:

 

Not present.

 

Mr. Rhodes declared the executive session closed at 8:25 P.M.

 

Mr. Dicton made a motion to accept Mr. Howard Burgess’ recommendation to accept the tax appeal agreement with Mr. John Ruggiero concerning the Cinema North property. Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously

 

Mr. Dicton moved to close the meeting at 8:29 P.M. Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.