TOWN OF RUTLAND

DRAFT

SELECT BOARD

MINUTES: September 23, 2014

Board members present: Steve Hawley, Mary Ashcroft, Joe Dicton, John Paul Faignant and Don Chioffi

The meeting opened at 6:43 P.M with the Pledge of Allegiance.

Board members reviewed the minutes of September 9, 2014. Ms. Ashcroft moved to adopt the September 9, 2014 minutes with corrections. Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

Board members reviewed the minutes of August 28, 2014. Mr. Faignant moved to approve the August 28, 2014. Ms. Ashcroft made a second to the motion. The motion passed by a vote of 4 to 0. Mr. Dicton abstained from the vote.

Rutland Economic Development Corporation (REDC) Executive Director, Mr. Jamie Stewart met with the Board and explained what his office is doing to help Rutland Plywood rebuild.

Mr. Stewart told the Board that REDC is a lien holder as a secured lender to Rutland Plywood, which will limit what he has to say.

Mr. Stewart made the following comments:

Has made sure he has all the resources.
The Department of labor became involved very quickly.
He said the vast majority of the employees are being picked up by other businesses in the region.
Adjusters are doing appraisal work to come up with a value for the business equipment.
Has been working with Rutland Plywood officials to identify possible new sites.
Working to identify programs at the state level and within REDC's resources to assist Rutland Plywood for a re-start.
He said at this point Rutland Plywood officials do not what they are going to do.
He said the Rutland Regional Planning Commission has offer to look at the Rutland Plywood site under the brown field program and determine what it will take to clean the site up.
He told the Board that Mr. Jack Barrett has been working hard to make sure his clients have a supplier.
He said it would take more than a year to re-start under the best scenario, by which time they would have lost their best employees who are finding other work.
He said he would have to put together a financial package if the company decides to re-build.
He told the Board that Rutland Plywood provided a group of people an opportunity, which is difficult for a lot of people to find.
He explained how tax stabilization would work vies a vies the Vermont Economic Council.
He said the Vermont Employee Growth Incentive (VEGI) would probably provide more benefits than tax the granting of stabilization.
He explained the differences between VEGI assistance and a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) award.

Mr. Dicton inquired as to what REDC can do to help the Diamond Run Mall. Mr. Stewart said that REDC does not spend a lot of time on the retail sector. Mr. Stewart said if the economic trends are good in the region then the retail sector will take care of itself.

Rutland County Senatorial candidate Mr.Tracy Carris met with the Board and explained what he would do if he is elected to the State Senate.

Mr. Carris made the following comments:

Mr. Carris said he is making a listening tour of Select Boards to see what each town wants out of Montpelier.
He explained his reasons for wanting to be elected to the State Senate.
He said one of the first things he would do if elected would be to create an economic development plan.
He said we should invest in infrastructure that will bring in digital software type companies.
He said the redevelopment of the old parking deck in Rutland City does not have to be done all at once.
He said economic redevelopment will be one of his key issues.
He said changes should be made to the Act 250 process to make decisions more uniform and predictable throughout the State.
He said he would create four or five Act 250 Boards, which would travel the State and act as a miniature Public Service Board. He said the Act 250 decisions would be more consistent throughout the State.
He said something has to be done with Act 250 so businesses can get consistent results.
He said drug users should go to a half way house or a work camp for six months following their release from a hospital program.
He said full prosecution under the law is needed for drug dealers, especially if weapons are involved.
He said Act 60 needs updated.
He said he is concerned Poultney will not have the money to have an AP teacher for calculus, biology and chemistry at Poultney High School.
He said school choice is only for the privileged that can afford to drive their children to Rutland while other people can not do so.
He said he would like REDC to get more involved in service and tourism.

Town School Board member, Mr. Josh Terenzini, met with Board members and made the following comments:

Told Board members that the school student population is 365 students, which is up 15 students from last year.
Two new full time teachers have been hired.
He told Board members that 307 of the students at the Town school ride the bus.
He said 85% of the students in the Town school ride the bus on a regular basis.
Mr. Terenzini said that because of the bus design many of the children can not be seen when riding on the bus
He said the School Security officer's hours have been increased to 10 hours or more peer week.
He said officer Ted Washburn may become certified in the DARE Program.
Mr. Terenzini inquired if the School parking lot could be included in future paving to be done by the Town.
He cited the fact that the Town could pave the school lot much cheaper than if the School hired a company to pave the lot. Mr. Hathaway said the application of asphalt is priced differently for roads verses parking lots. He said he would give it a try to see if he can get a better rate to pave the school parking lot.
Mr. Hathaway said he would submit a plan to the School Board which would improve traffic flow and safety at the school.

Mr. Chioffi inquired whether the School Board has tried to determine why there are non- bus riders. Mr. Terenzini said he will check with the assistant principal. Mr. Mike Rowe said kids are being picked up after school by their parents for many various activities in which they participate.

Mr. Rowe told Mr.Chioffi that all of the School's sports activities take place at Northwood Park and not behind the school, where they were previously held. He said parents pick up their kids and take them to Northwood Park.

Town Clerk Ms. Donna Zeller suggested a new road around the back of the school might lessen the student pick-up problems. Mr. Chioffi said a small bus could take all of the kids to Northwood Park, which would eliminate many pick-up in front of the school.

Town Planning Commission Chairman Mr. Andrew McKane reported:

Not present.

Town SWAC Representative Mr. William Matteson reported:

Reminded Board members that a Household hazardous Waste collection is scheduled for the weekend.
Told the Board that SWAC will be meeting in October.

Ms. Ashcroft made a motion to sign and adopt the municipal planning grant, acknowledging the Board's responsibilities. Mr. Faignant made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

Town Clerk & Treasurer Ms. Donna Zeller reported:

Taxes are in.
Told the Board she is now processing all of the late payments and that late fees and notifications would be sent out.
Told the Board that tax collection went well despite the fact a computer was down for two days.
Told the Board she has transferred a large amount of money from the Town general Fund to the School general Fund.
Informed the Board that she had received ticket revenues, which should have gone to the City of Rutland. Board members, Ms. Zeller and Mr. Zingale discussed the matter. Ms. Zeller said she checked with Chief Dumas and Mr.Washburn and that the tickets are Rutland City tickets. She said she did not know why the Town receives City traffic revenue and the City never receives Town traffic revenue.

Mr. Faignant told Ms. Zeller that the problem is because City police write “Rutland” and not “Rutland City” and then the revenue defaults to the Town. Ms. Zeller said she checked tickets on line and that The Town is designated as “Rutland” and the City is “Rutland City”.

She told the Board that some of the tickets say “Rutland City” and Rutland City PD” yet the Town received the revenue. Ms. Zeller said someone at the Judicial Bureau is randomly sending revenue to the Town and the City.

Mr. Zingale said in the past the mistake was not random rather it was consistent. He said all the errors had to do with the officers writing only “Rutland” instead of writing “Rutland City”. Ms. Zeller said she has the tickets and that they say “Rutland City PD “ or “RC PD” and the revenue came to the Town. Ms. Zeller said she has no idea why a ticket addressed “Rutland City PD” came to the Town of Rutland.

Ms. Zeller said it is a random mistake that is being made. Ms. Zeller said the City is owed $408.00 because the Town received their revenue. Mr. Faignant told Ms. Zeller that the Board has approved charging the City of Rutland $25.00 for each ticket and revenue the Town has to return to the City.

Mr. Faignant said it is not a Rutland Town problem rather a State, Rutland City problem. Mr. Chioffi suggested the Town get the Town's designation changed from “Rutland” to “Rutland Town”. The Board instructed Mr. Zingale to speak to the Town attorney regarding getting the designation changed. Ms. Zeller cited other tickets and said that someone at the Judicial Bureau is just being careless. Mr. Chioffi said the Town has no identity and he cited the fact there are no State highway signs that say “Rutland Town”.
Ms. Zeller will schedule a Board of Civil Authority meeting and notify Board members.
Told the Board she is waiting to hear from the Board prior to paying VMS for water damage repairs. Mr. Hawley said that according to Chief Cioffi all of the water damage work is complete and to the department's satisfaction. Mr. Hawley told Ms. Zeller to pay the VMS bill.

Ms. Zeller said the total bill amount is more than the settlement amount the Town received for the damage. Mr. Hawley said to pay the amount the insurance paid the Town. Mr. Chioffi reminded Board members that they had agreed not to pay any more than what the insurance would cover.

Mr. Faignant said the Town would get its $1000.00 deductible back after the Town's insurance company goes after the responsible carrier.
Ms. Zeller told the Board that the next election will be on November 4^th. She told the Board she has receive the absentee ballots and a list of people who will receive a ballot.
Told the Board that LHS will be coming in to look at the town's machines. She said one of the machines at the Town school had given a weird error code.
Told the Board that City water & sewer bills would go out by October 2^nd.
Informed Board members that the deadline for The Circle is coming up. Ms. Ashcroft said the deadline for The Circle was the previous week.

Mr. Dicton suggested Ms. Zeller consider getting a spare voting machine to have as a back up. Ms. Zeller said spare machines are on-call on election day and are only an phone call away. Ms. Zeller said a spare machine would have to be tested and up-to-

date with the latest card.

Mr. Chioffi inquired as to the process Ms. Zeller will use to pick the poll workers. Ms. Zeller said it would be discussed at the BCA meeting. Ms. Ashcroft said it should be similar to what has been the practice. She said that practice has been the JP's and then the Select Board and who could work when.

Mr. Chioffi said for the past two individuals would tell Marie Hyjek whether they wanted to work or not. He said Ms. Hyjek would put you down if she could. Ms. Zeller said she already has a list of names of people who would like to work. She said the matter could be discussed at the BCA meeting.

Ms. Zeller said Orders will be ready for Board signatures by noon on Tuesdays.

Town Road Commissioner Mr. Byron Hathaway reported:

Mr. Hathaway inquired as to whether a letter of support had been sent to the State regarding the proposed Rutland Town / West Rutland community grant application. Mr. Faignant said a letter had been sent.
Told the Board he has begun working on the Transportation Alternatives grant for a Post Road sidewalk. Mr. Hathaway said he will schedule a public hearing regarding the grant application.
Mr. Hathaway cited the request for proposal (RFP) he had emailed to Board members regarding the construction of a sidewalk from the Adele Stanley Apartments to US RT 7. Mr. Hathaway will mail the RFP to prospective bidders.
Mr. Hathaway also cited the email he sent to Board members regarding pre-wet tanks. He recommended the Town purchase two pre-tank set-up s. he said he would switch the tanks between trucks so different contractors can use the tanks.
Mr. Hathaway said he has the money in his budget to purchase two set-ups at a cost of $2,200.00 to $2,400.00. He said the Town could save up to 15% regarding the amount of tonnage applied. He said it is almost a one year pay back for a tank. Mr. Faignant moved to have the Road Commissioner purchase two pre-wet set-ups. Mr. Dicton made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Hathaway told the Board has the information he need to apply for a storm water permit for a future Town Highway Garage. Mr. Faignant moved to have Mr. Hathaway apply for the storm water permit. Ms. Ashcroft made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Hathaway informed the Board that one of the Highway department's contract workers would like a letter from the Town stating that the individual is hired on an hourly basis, that they are dispatched by the Town and that the Town tells them what to do. Board members discussed the matter and said Mr. Hathaway should not write the letter as requested.

Ms. Ashcroft reminded Mr. Hathaway that the “Welcome to Rutland Town “ sign in Center Rutland needs to be repaired.

Mr. Hathaway told Board members that it was decided that the geographic limits for the Rutland Town / West Rutland Stronger Communities project will go from the Rutland Town Hall to the Whipple Hollow Road in West Rutland.

Town Fire Chief Mr. Frank Cioffi reported:

Mr. Hawley reported that the fence has been installed at the Center Rutland Station.
He said the remaining VMS work should be complete in two weeks.

Mr. Dicton inquired regarding the Johnson Energy drainage issues. Mr. Hawley said the Chief is still working on the problem. Mr. Hawley said the problem is because of a State mandate. He said the drainage was never engineered with the State. He said the Chief would continue to research the matter and will report back to the Board. He said the Chief will also address drainage off the roof before he sets the planters.

Town Fire District #1 Chairman, Mr. Howard Burgess, asked when the fire hydrant would be raised. Mr. Hawley said the item is on the Chief's list. Mr. Chioffi said some of the items should have been done months ago.

Mr. Sherman Hunter Town Representative to the Rutland Regional Planning Commission Reported:

He said that at a recent meeting Mr. Ed Bove was approved as the new Executive Director of the Rutland Regional Planning Commission.
Mr. Hunter said the RPC also approved a solar farm proposed for Pittsford. He said the RPC had previously reviewed the proposal.
Mr. Hunter informed the Board that the City of Rutland Municipal had been approved by the RPC and that the Town of Rutland Plan has been sent back with recommendations.
He said RPC Commissioners also spent a lot of time looking at the Regional Plan update. He said the Commissioners worked on wording and grammatical mistakes.
Mr. Hunter informed Board members that Green Mountain Power made a presentation to the RRPC regarding what they are doing and where they are going. He said all of GMP's solar farms are in Rutland City.

Ms. Ashcroft asked Mr. Hunter if the Town Plan comments were sent to the Planning Commission or the Select Board. Mr. Hunter said he thinks it would go back to the Town Planning Commission.

Mr. Fred Nicholson told Board members that the RPC made commented regarding:

The Town encouraging and strengthing agriculture and forestry industries in town.
Encourage the manufacturing and marketing of value added agricultural and Forestry and encourage sound agricultural and forestry practices.
Mr. Nicholson said under the Natural Resources section there are comments regarding:
Improving the quality of air, water, wildlife and land resources.

He said the RPC feels there is a confusing policy on page 46. He said the other comments had to do with the different fonts and formatting used in the document.

Town Police Chief Mr. Ed Dumas reported:

Mr. Chioffi read the following Police report.

These are the stats of the Rutland Town Police Department for the previous two weeks:

-Calls for service within this period: 45

- Total calls year to date in 2014: 625

Total calls year to date in 2013: 276

-Types of calls assigned

Directed Patrol, Public Speaking, Property Damage, Vandalism, Citizen Assist, Animal Problem, VIN inspection, Suspicious Person / Circumstances, Welfare Check, Agency Assist, Burglary / Residential alarm, Motor Vehicle Crash wit Bodily Injury, Solicitation, Theft, 911 Hang Up, Fraud, Intoxicated Persons, Motor Vehicle Crash; property damage only, Juvenile Problem and Drugs.

Closed Cases: 43

Number of Arrests: 3
What Types of Arrest: Retail Theft (x2) and Reckless Endangerment

Motor Vehicle Stops: 19
Vermont Civil Violation Complaints (Tickets) Issued: 6
Total Fine Amount : $1222.00 dollars
Total Fine Year to Date $23,426.00 dollars

Total number of Patrol Hours: 141.5

Chief Dumas: 22.5
Captain Washburn: 76
Officer Gamble: 43

Total number of Admin hours: 45

Chief Dumas: 38 (35 admin, 3 training)
Captain Washburn: 4 (2 Admin, 2 Training Hours)

Officer Gamble: 3 (3 Training hours)

Special announcements:

Both new cruisers are on back from equipment installation and are on patrol now. We are waiting to hear back from Awesome Graphics on when the cars can be brought in to have the graphics applied to them. Rutland Town PD was awarded the grant for the

License Plate Reader unit. Once the paperwork is completed then unit will be installed on one of the new patrol cars. The Department of Homeland Security has agreed to forward Rutland Town PD the money so there is no out of pocket expense for the unit or installation.

Town Recreation Director Mr. Mike Rowe reported:

He cited the email he had sent to Board members regarding the wording for the bleachers at Northwood Park. Ms. Ashcroft said the plaques are for the Eagle Scout project for the bleachers and the dugout plaque for thanking Comcast Cares.
Soccer is up and running.
The Halloween party will be on October 30^th at the Town School from 6:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M.
Mr. Rowe asked the Board to either start the meeting at 6:30 P.M. or at 7:00 P.M.

Town Administrator Mr. Joseph Zingale Jr. reported:

Informed the Board that it was Ms. Ashcroft that made a second to the motion to make Mr. Fred Nicholson the Town's voting VLCT Delegate.
Presented an easement between the Town of Rutland and the Cunninghams on Hitzel Terrace in connection with the Town's planned MS4 project. Mr. Zingale said the easement was prepared my the Town attorney Mr. Kevin Brown and that he had mailed a copy to the Cunninghams.
Informed the Board that he had the Town Clerk record in the Land records the Courcelle survey map of the Center Rutland station land.
Mr. Zingale informed the Board that he had calculated the amount of revenue from solid waste disposal verses the disposal cost. He said for a year period the Town paid $23,136.50 to dispose solid waste and collected $37,903.00 during the same time period. He said under the new solid waste law the Town would be required to raise the per bag disposal rate if disposal charges exceeded revenue from ticket sales.
Told the Board he is still holding a donation request from the Housing Trust of Rutland and also the final 1% Black River Design bill.
Informed the Board McLaughlin Plumbing is checking several meters in Flory Heights to determine which type work best prior to making a decision on purchasing new meters.
Informed the Board that he had issued a flood hazard conditional use permit to the Town of West Rutland and a second permit to the Town of Rutland for planned work.
Told Board members that Ms. Ashcroft, Mr. Burgess, Bill Matteson and Mr. McKane would be holding a Skype video conference with the Town of Shelburne Planning Commission regarding the Town's adoption of the Solar facility Siting

Standards.
He told the Board that he would be working in the field with Mr. Hathaway locating several manhole prior to the scheduled Dufresne inspections.
He told the Board that Mr. Andres Torizzo would be filing a storm water report with the State of Vermont for the Town.
He reported there is no new news regarding the Town possible real estate purchase.
Mr. Zingale read from Mr.Stan Rhodes November 10, 2013 field notes regarding the Johnson Energy drainage problem. In the notes he cites a concern regarding Don Marsh's grades.
Mr. Zingale cited the research done by the Town attorney regarding whether the Cold River Road is a 3 or 4 rod road. Mr. Zingale said according to Mr.Brown he would need to do considerable more research to determine the matter. He said Mr. Brown's best guess is that the road is a 3 road road.

The Board reviewed packet correspondence.

The Board considered the Fall softball league agreement for the use of Dewey Field. Mr. Dicton said the organizers of the league forgot to submit the agreement. Mr. Hawley said a Certificate of Liability Insurance has been submitted to the Town.

Mr. Faignant moved for Mr. Hawley to sign the agreement. Mr. Chioffi made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Mr. Rowe said the use fees has been paid.

Mr. Hawley read the public hearing notice for the October 9, 2014 Town Plan adoption hearing.

Mr. Hawley read an offer from the Credit Union of Vermont for the free use of their public meeting space.

Mr. Hawley suggested the Board's proposed public meeting space use policy not charge a group in which the Town has a member, such as SWAC.

Mr. Dicton made a motion at 8:55 P.M. to go into executive session to discuss the Barker land with Mr. Howard Burgess and Mr. Mike Rowe. Mr. Chioffi made a second to the motion. The motion passed unanimously