Selectboard Budget Meeting Minutes 12-10-2024
Selectboard Budget Meeting Minutes 12-10-2024
TOWN OF RUTLAND SELECT BOARD OPEN MEETING
RUTLAND TOWN MUNICIPAL TOWN HALL
181 BUSINESS ROUTE 4, CENTER RUTLAND, VT 05736
DECMEBER 10th, 2024
- The meeting started at 5:30 P.M. with the pledge of allegiance.
- Board members present Mary Ashcroft, Joe Denardo, Kurt Hathaway, and Matt Getty
The board met to review the individual draft department budgets and the general budget.
Recreation Department
Reviewed each of the lines with Rec Director Mike Rowe.
Moved $4500 from the general budget for the Town seniors to the Rec budget.
A municipal retirement line was added, due to the plan to have a full-time rec director. A childcare contribution line was added as well.
The total draft budget is $207,211. The amount to be raised by taxes is $180,211.
Selectman Denardo moved to approve the draft budget of $207,211 total expenses and net total of $180,211 as presented. Selectman Hathaway seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
Discussed increasing the Rec depreciation account contribution to .0175 c from .0125 c. The intent is to reserve enough funds to offset a large portion of the anticipated cost to replace the pool. As of June 2023, there is $431,790. Selectman Denardo moved to increase the recreation depreciation to .0175 c from .0125 c. Selectman Getty seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
Fire Department
Reviewed each of the lines with Fire Chief Chris Clark.
Some changes were made based on expenses for the Public Safety Building moving to the general budget.
Discussed repaving the parking lot at the Center Rutland Fire Station. Some additional work to fix drainage will be done ahead of this. The project will be part of the next paving bid, but the expense may not come from the Highway budget. It is estimated to cost $64,000.
Selectman Hathaway moved to approve the draft budget of $262,538 as presented. Selectman Denardo seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0 .
Presented an application for a new member. Quentin Hall, from the Town of Mendon. All the prerequisites were met. Selectman Denardo moved to approve the application. Selectman Hathaway seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0. There are approximately 33 total members now.
Highway Department
Reviewed each of the lines with Road Commissioner Dave Sears.
Training is up to cover the cost of getting CDL licenses. The communication line now includes phone, internet, and radios.
The total budget is $1,113,339 with $993,339 to be raised by taxes.
Selectman Denardo moved to approve the budget of $1,113,339 with $993,339 to be raised by taxes as presented. Selectman Hathaway seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
Selectman Denardo moved to increase the highway department depreciation contribution from .005 c to .01 c. Selectman Hathaway seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
Discussed the equipment replacement schedule. A new plow truck can take up to 14 months to receive. Some dealers have a guaranteed buyback program. This will be discussed at a Highway Committee meeting which will be warned for Friday morning.
Selectman Hathaway moved to authorize Commissioner Sears to move toward the purchase of a new plow truck. Selectman Denardo seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
Police Department
Reviewed each of the lines with Police Chief Ed Dumas and Deputy Police Chief Ted Washburn.
Discussed the income lines. The School Resource Officer reimbursement line was discussed. This is a combination of multiple reimbursement sources. Discussed separating them out. One source was an anticipated grant for our K9 officer to participate in a state task force working on sex offender registry compliance. The number given to us was the total for all agencies, not just for our agency. Case hours can be submitted for reimbursement, but it is not known how much we would receive. The SRO reimbursement line will be $59,520.
The total anticipated income is $61,020.
Discussed the funds in The Cortina Inn Settlement fund and how they are used. Discussed the total budget for this current fiscal year and how much was to be raised by taxes.
The total draft budget is $754,155 with $543,135 to be raised by taxes.
Selectman Getty moved to approve the total draft budget of $754,155 with $543,135 to be raised by taxes. Selectman Denardo seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
Discussed the current fleet of cars and an approximate timeline for replacement. There is a title issue with our 2014 Dodge Charger. After discussion, the Town Attorney may need to get involved.
Selectman Getty moved to authorize the research of a new vehicle. Selectman Denardo seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0.
General Budget
Reviewed the Transfer Station income and expenses with station manager Larry Dell Veneri. Projections for income and expenses were added to the draft budget sheet. Discussed adding a restroom at the transfer station. No decision was made. The total expenses for the transfer station are $132,884. Total projected income is $57,500 for a net budget of $75,384.
Reviewed Planning Commission expenses with Planning Commission Chair Barbara Pulling. The total expenses are $10,550.
Reviewed Lister expenses with Head Lister Marcia Chioffi. There will not be a contract with G&K this year, the vendor has retired. Some things will need to be purchased to do the work in house they had done. There are no expenses related to reappraisal this year. The expense last year was specific to a contract. Discussed the compensation for the 3 Listers. With a vendor no longer offering us a service, there is going to be an increase in the workload for the office. The total number of hours worked in the office will increase. There was extensive discussion on this topic. A portion of the funds from the appraisal update will be moved to their payroll line. The total amount budgeted is $115,000.
Reviewed the anticipated income with Town Treasurer Kari Clark. Discussed making conservative entries. Discussed the appropriate way to account for the collection of delinquent taxes. This will be discussed with the Town auditor. Discussed the local option tax amount. The anticipated income for it will remain the same at $1.3M.
The total anticipated income is $1,685,390.
Reviewed remaining General Budget related expenses.
Discussed the reimbursement rates for the Selectboard. This will be set at $28,000.
The Town Clerk, Town Treasurer, Assistant Town Clerk and Treasurer and Town Administrator salary amounts appear to be incorrect. After discussion, this will be looked into by Ms. Clark and will come back to the Board with correct numbers.
The First Constable, Health Officer and Second Constable budget expenses were provided by those officials. No changes were made.
There are no significant projects or issues anticipated. Town Hall maintenance, professional services, and attorney costs were set accordingly.
New equipment is up due to the planned replacement of the Town Hall server.
Discussed the request from the Delinquent Tax Collector for the Town to pay for some of his software licenses. No decision was made.
Discussed generator maintenance and fuel expenses. This line was increased to cover the additional generator at the public safety building.
An increase was included for the cost of The Circle.
Discussed expenses for the Public Safety Building. Costs for sewer, telephone and internet were added based on projections. Maintenance and electricity were increased to reflect a full year of expenses. The initial amounts were intended for 6 months.
A total general budget number was not voted on due to needed updates to compensation numbers.
The timeline for the town report project was discussed. The best day for pre-town meeting is January 14th.
Selectman Hathaway moved to adjourn. Selectman Denardo seconded the motion. The motion passed 4 – 0. The meeting adjourned at 9:29 PM.
Respectfully submitted, Bill Sweet, Town Administrator.
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Mary Ashcroft, Chair
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Joseph Denardo, Clerk
________________ABSENT______________________
Sharon Russell
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Kurt Hathaway
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Matt Getty
Center Rutland, VT.