Weathersfield Select Board

Minutes

February 17, 2011

Present: Henry "Chip" Cobb

Norman John Arrison

Glenn Fisher

Gordon Eglintine

Dave Fuller

Others Present: Jim Mullen, Town Manager

Lisa Sargent, Recording Secretary

Wes Hazeltine, Highway Superintendent

Edith Stillson

Nancy Nutile-McMenemy

Christina G. Charest

deForest Bearse

Michael Todd

Bruce Cox

Gilbert Whittemore

Alan Hudson

Peter Korbet

1. Call to Order: Mr. Fisher called the Weathersfield Select Board meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. at Martin Memorial Hall.

2. Comments from Citizens and Select Board: Mr. Arrison said the group planning the 250^th celebration for Weathersfield will be meeting Thursday at 7:00 p.m. and everyone is welcomed to join.

Mr. Arrison noted it was Mr. Cobb's and Mr. Fisher's last regular Select Board meeting tonight.

Mr. Korbet said Drumlin Road was discussed two weeks ago and he found information since then stating the Town agreed to already maintain that road. Mr. Mullen said that is true however, there has been an error in paperwork so it will be corrected at the next Public Hearing.

Mr. Todd asked to put the Planning Commission back to a five member board, he said one member has resigned and one other member has only attended eleven out of twenty seven meetings.

3. Review Minutes from Previous Meeting(s): Mr. Cobb made the motion to approve the minutes dated February 3, 2011, Mr. Arrison seconded the motion. Corrections were noted. Motion carried unanimously.

4. Discus Fiber Connect, Weathersfield Proctor Library, Christina Charest: Mrs. Nutile-McMenemy said she is here on behalf of the Library Board of Trustee's and wanted to let the Select Board know that there is a push to increase broadband in Vermont and Fiber Connect was formed to help build the network through the State. She said Vermont Department of Libraries has come on board and Weathersfield Proctor Library feels it may make sense to participate. It was noted fifty three libraries in VT have been given the option to join and there will be a grant to purchase the modem and some new equipment.

Mrs. Nutile-McMenemy said Sovernet wants to talk with the Library, Select Board and School about using their system. She said rates have not been determined yet but hopefully when we talk to them at the end of March the rates will be available. Mrs. Nutile-McMenemy said if the Library goes this route they would have to sign a contract (which would be for five years) around January 2012, it is a one time offer and the system would probably go live around 2013.

The consensus of the Select Board was they would listen to the Sovernet presentation but there may be other options out there already (or soon) so we should take everything into consideration.

5. Comcast Coverage Map of Weathersfield: Mr. Mullen shared the map with the Select Board and said new initiatives will be welcomed throughout our Town.

6. Public Hearing on Repeal of Historic Preservation Bylaw of Zoning Regulations: Mr. Fisher read the Public Notice and opened the Public Hearing. Mrs. Bearse said the Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the Select Board repeal the current Bylaw. Mrs. Bearse said the Select Board could do this on their own or they could take it to the voters however, she said this is something that could be done tonight through a vote as the intent of the Bylaw was only to protect historic sites not to prevent development.

Mr. Fuller asked if the Planning Commission considered decreasing the distance to 100' from 300' or are they looking to just go to zero? Mr. Whittemore said they would like to just go to zero as far as this is concerned and then allow the general set back law to apply. Mr. Fuller asked if the 1879 building at the Perkinsville School site was a historic building, Mrs. Bearse said yes, that is on the State register.

Mr. Arrison asked if any areas of town were protected. Mrs. Bearse said some of the Weathersfield Center District. Mr. Arrison asked, if it was left in, is it from the property line or the structure? Mrs. Bearse said it's from the structure if the structure is being protected.

Mr. Cobb made the motion to repeal Section 6.11 in its entirety, Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion. Mr. Cobb withdrew his motion and Mr. Eglintine withdrew his second.

Mr. Fuller made the motion to close the Public Hearing. Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

Mr. Cobb made the motion to repeal Section 6.11 in its entirety, Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion. Mr. Cobb said as far as retroacting this he feels the person needs to go back to the Zoning to address this on a case by case basis. Motion carried unanimously.

7. Reclassification of Town Highway, Crown Point Road and Drumlin Road: Mrs. Bearse said Crown Point Road will involve a lot of walking so asked the Board if they wanted to do this over a couple of meetings or in just one day. The consensus was to set it up for two days (two consecutive Saturdays). Mrs. Bearse said some parts of Crown Point Road have been surveyed and she is not sure if the whole road will have to be done again or only short sections. Mr. Fuller said the Army Corp may have a survey. Mrs. Bearse noted this will be a lot of paperwork; notices will have to go to all abutting property owners etc.

8. Highway

A. Bid

1. Review Bids Received for Medium Duty Truck and Body and Plow for Truck: Mr. Mullen said this is for information only, it shows the amount budgeted ($45,000) is the right amount. Mr. Fuller said we should be clear on price options; it looks like we can do it for less than $45,000. Mr. Mullen said he will put out a memo with recommendations once he and Mr. Hazeltine have time to review the bids further.

2. Award Gravel Bid: Mr. Mullen said the low bid was Butch Wilson Excavating and St. Pierre was second lowest. He said Mr. Hazeltine likes the quality of the gravel from Wilson better and recommends purchasing 4500 yard from him. Mr. Eglintine asked if we should award this bid before the budget passes. The consensus of the Board was to wait until after town meeting. Mr. Arrison made the motion to table this until after the Town meeting, Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion. Mr. Cobb said St. Pierre offered a second year price and thinks the Town should take that into consideration when making this decision. Motion carried unanimously.

B. Lavigne Road Bridge Update: Mr. Mullen said the Engineer he asked for a second opinion is only licensed in New Hampshire so he emailed the report and photos to a VTrans technician to see if the bridge would be eligible for a grant for an update. The VTrans representative said grant applications would be ready in a few weeks and he recommends the Town have an update to the 2003 study so Mr. Mullen has ordered one. He said the study will be ready in four weeks so the timing of this and the grant is the same.

Mr. Mullen said the Fire Commission recommended working on coming in from the other end but there is not a road left there at this point. He said the thought now is to lift the deck off and purchase a fifth beam, face the two abutments with concrete and replace the clips. Mr. Mullen has asked Miller Construction for a rough budget price to do this.

Mr. Mullen said he did some research on self rusting beams and a lot of things play a factor in what affects them. He said two major factors are pressure treated deck and salt - this causes the beams to deteriorate fast so his speculation is this is what has caused these beams to rust. He also has heard that painting them can make is worse.

Mr. Fuller asked how much the bridge repair cost in 2004. Mr. Mullen said about $34,000. Mr. Fuller said he thinks we are patching something that we shouldn't be and he doesn't think the fire trucks will still be able to go across. He said he feels we need to find an alternate route off Goulden Ridge Road. Mr. Arrison asked Mr. Mullen to look at both options.

C. Approve Replacement of Diesel Pump at Highway Garage: Mr. Fuller asked if other companies, other than Beardsley, could provide a replacement pump. Mr. Hazeltine said it is possible there are other vendors but this is a very competitive price and we need it as soon as possible. He noted Beardsley prices have been the lowest in the past. Mr. Arrison asked if it was time to go to a card system. Mr. Mullen said a card system is an additional $2,200. Mr. Fuller made the motion to have Beardsley replace the diesel pump at the highway garage at a price not to exceed $3,766. Mr. Cobb seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

9. Old Business:

A. Approve Written Decision to Lay out a Town Park on Perkinsville Green: Mr. Fuller made the motion to approve the written decision. Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

B. Review Mission Statement for Purpose of Perkinsville School Reuse Committee: Mr. Mullen is working on the Mission Statement and will get a date set up to have the first meeting of the committee as soon as possible.

C. Policy on Use of Alcohol on Town Owned Property (Second Reading): Mr. Arrison made the motion to move the Policy on Use of Alcohol to the second reading. Mr. Cobb seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

D. Sign Safety and Wellness Policy: The Board signed the policy that they had previously approved

E. Preparation for Annual Town Meeting: Mr. Fisher will do a power point presentation and get with Mr. Mullen next week to review it. The Select Board went through the Warning and decided who will speak on which Article.

10. New Business

A. Review List of Town Roads by Number and Name: Mrs. Bearse went through the list of street names and noted there were several discrepancies. She said these discrepancies impact addresses, street signs and 911 information. The consensus of the Select Board was to clean up administratively and use the 911 information when possible.

B. Establish Weathersfields 250^th Anniversary Fund: Mr. Fuller made the motion to approve setting up a fund for the 250^th celebration. Mr. Arrison seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

C. Approve Method and Price to sell Town's F-150 Police Cruiser: Mr. Fuller made the motion to proceed with the sale of the F-150 and allow the Select Board chair to authorize the sale. Mr. Cobb seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

D. Sign Certificate - No Appeal or Suite Pending, Weathersfield Listers: Mr. Cobb made the motion to sign the certificate. Mr. Fuller seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

11. Board of Liquor Commissioners Mr. Fisher convened the Board of Liquor Commissioners. Mr. Mullen said he checked with Chief Brown and he did not have anything to report on any of the following requests.

A. Scott Rogers, LLC, dba Scott Rogers LLC: Mr. Cobb made the motion to approve the Second Class Liquor License and the Tobacco License Renewal for Scott Rogers, LLC, dba Scott Rogers, LLC: Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

B. HIYA, LLC, dba Hiya Convenience Store: Mr. Cobb made the motion to approve the Second Class Liquor License and the Tobacco License Renewal for HIYA, LLC dba Hiya Convenience Store. Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

C. JDS Hospitality Corp., dba Inn at Weathersfield: Mr. Cobb made the motion to approve the Fist Class Liquor License and the Outside Consumption Permit for JDS Hospitality Corp, dba Inn at Weathersfield. Mr. Eglintine seconded the motion. Mr. Fuller questioned the hours of outside consumption, Mr. Cobb said he believes it is because they serve brunch and host events. Motion carried unanimously.

12. Monthly Reports: Mr. Arrison said some monthly reports are not being received on a regular basis. No comments on the reports received.

13. Annual Appointments: None

14. Sign Treasurer's Warrants: Mr. Cobb made the motion to approve the Treasurer's Warrants as follows:

General Fund Payroll $15,791.77

General Fund Operating Expense $33,852.62

Highway Fund Payroll $14,620.76

Highway Fund Operating Expense $18,848.76

Solid Waste Management Fund Payroll $ 2,252.66

Solid Waste Management Fund Operating Expense $ 7,658.38

Grants $ 306.00

Library $ 583.00

Mr. Arrison seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

15. Future Agenda Items: Town Meeting will be the next meeting and then there will be a reorganization meeting for the Select Board.

Mr. Mullen said there is a mailing going out for those that have not kept current on their delinquent tax agreements and the next tax sale will be held April 14^th.

Mr. Todd said he would like the Select Board to review the conduct policy for all Boards on attendance. Mr. Arrison said he thinks there is a difference between being an appointed and elected. Mr. Todd asked the Select Board to also review the Statute language for having the Energy Coordinator sitting in on another Board.

16. Executive Session, Conduct Town Manager's Annual Performance Review: Mr. Arrison made the motion to go into Executive Session for personnel. Mr. Cobb seconded the motion which passed without dissent.

13. Adjourn: Mr. Eglintine made the motion to adjourn. Mr. Arrison seconded the motion which passed without dissent. The Weathersfield Select Board meeting was adjourned at 10:13 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted,

Lisa Sargent