SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX
120 FIRST STREET
SWANTON, VT 05488
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REGULAR MEETING
Monday, October 9, 2017
7:00 PM
MINUTES NOT YET APPROVED BY
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau, Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Elisabeth Nance, Economic Development Coordinator; and Ch. 16.
Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.
1. Call to Order:
Neal Speer, Village President, welcomed all to the Regular Board of Trustees meeting and called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.
2. Agenda Review:
Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, stated he needed to have an Executive Session to Discuss Real Estate.
3. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, September 25, 2017:
Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, September 25, 2017 as presented. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Discussion: Eugene LaBombard asked about re-approving the Village Water Ordinances. Reg Beliveau stated he wanted to discuss it with Lynn Paradis and Mike Menard first and would put it on the next agenda. Motion carried.
4. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through October 6, 2017:
Chris Leach made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants through October 6, 2017 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach asked about the vendor Champlain Divers International because there are two invoices from them. Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, stated that they dove at the Hydro Plant and also at the Water Treatment Plant. He said they will provide the Village with a report and video of the findings. Motion carried.
5. Update on Rubber Dam:
Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, stated he had a conference call this past week and the rubber bag is due to arrive the second week of November still. He said the abrasion pad and anchor bolts will be here the end of October and PC Construction will remove the old bag then. Eugene LaBombard asked if they needed to install new bolts and Reg stated that they will test the old ones first and if ok they will keep them. He said Al Mosher ordered extenders to put on the old bolts so feels this will work just fine. Reg said PC Construction is concerned with the temperatures and water flow levels and doesn’t want things washed away during construction. Reg also said that the Highgate Library wants to do a live streaming of the installation of the rubber bag. He said he thought this was a good idea and said this would benefit the Village of Swanton as well as the public. Reg said October has been warmer than normal and he’s hoping that will continue. Adam Paxman asked if Reg was satisfied with the engineer so far and Reg said yes he was but said he was upset with HTE for delaying the shipment of the rubber bag. He said it was originally supposed to be here mid October not mid November. Reg said other than that he has no other concerns.
6. Sign Hydro Relicensing Contract with Enosburg:
Chris Leach made the motion to authorize Village Manager Reginald Beliveau to sign and enter into a Joint Agreement for Relicensing Services contract with Paul Nolan Esq. This joint contract will include Enosburg Falls Hydroelectric Project, FERC Project No. 2905 Missisquoi River – Project Relicensing as well as Highgate Hydroelectric Project, FERC Project No. 2547 Missisquoi River – Project Relicensing. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.
7. Water Allocation Request for Upper Ferris St:
Adam Paxman made the motion to enter into a Water Commissioner’s meeting at 7:16 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded.
Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, stated that Trudell Consulting Engineers is requesting on behalf of DDM Properties LLC to update their water and sewer allocations for a project at 35 Upper Ferris Street in the Town of Swanton. The property is currently vacant, and previously contained two mobile homes. The applicant is proposing to develop the property with two duplex dwellings and two single family dwellings. The duplex dwellings will have two bedrooms per unit and the single family homes will have three bedrooms each. They are requesting a total of 1,890 gallons per day (gpd) for the water allocation and a total of 1,260 gpd for the sewer allocation. Reg stated they have been through the zoning process and are now going before the Development Review Board. Chris Leach asked if they would pay a water and sewer connection fee for each unit and Reg stated yes they would. He said they would also need to purchase water meter packages for each unit as well. Adam Paxman made the motion to approve DDM Properties, LLC request for 1,890 gallons per day for their water allocation and to approve the 1,260 gallons per day for their sewer allocation at 35 Upper Ferris Street in the Town of Swanton. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.
Adam Paxman made the motion to exit the Water Commissioner’s meeting at 7:20 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.
8. Discussion on October 4th Economic Walk About:
Elizabeth Nance, Economic Development Coordinator, stated to the Board of Trustees that there were approximately 20 people who attended they October 4th Economic Walk About. She said she learned a few things from this walk through and also said that Ron Kilburn did a great job providing everyone with the history on each of the buildings they looked at. She said the best part about the walk thru was they talked about Certified Local Government and said the Village and/or Town of Swanton can apply to become a Certified Local Government. She said this is a great opportunity and hoped the Town or Village would apply for this. She said three property owners are meeting about the tax credit programs and she sent out 24 letters to property owners to remind them of the benefits of the Designated Village Center. Chris Leach said this tax credit is actually money that’s deducted from your actual tax bill. She said she would put further information about this on the Town’s website. Reg Beliveau stated that they are moving forward and have a lot of positive things happening. He thanked Elisabeth for putting it together in the designated area. Adam Paxman agreed and said they are seeing tangible results. Reg stated he wouldn’t have the time to put this sort of thing together and thanked Elisabeth for her update and for her help.
9. Close US Bank 1989 Interest Account:
Reg Beliveau informed the Board that the 1989 Bond has interest credits larger than the interest due for the remaining two years on the bond so the Village would like to close the US Bank Interest Account. He said it has a balance of $9.90 and the bank will move that amount to the Bond Principal Account. Chris Leach made the motion to authorize the Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, to close the US Bank 1989 Interest Account. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.
10. Any Other Necessary Business:
Chris Leach asked if the paving was finished in the Village. Reg Beliveau stated no it wasn’t and said it should be done by the second week of October. Chris asked if there was a punch list and Reg said yes there was. Reg said the side streets are done and some final areas are almost done. Chris Leach also asked about the lights on Merchants Row. Reg stated he needed to talk with Duane Couture, Electric Foreman, about this. Elisabeth Nance stated that property owners there are meeting regarding the new lighting there and having it up before daylight savings time.
Any Other Business: Adam Paxman stated he wanted to thank all the Fire Department’s who helped with the barn fire this past weekend. He said they all did a good job. He also stated he was disappointed in a lot of drivers because they didn’t pull over when they saw the emergency vehicles. He said people need to have more common sense and patience. He also stated that there are a couple of ducks in the swan pond keeping the remaining swan company. He said he’s not sure when he’s moving out yet and also said they transported Betty out of state for testing to determine her cause of death.
Any Other Business: Eugene LaBombard asked if there would be any paving in the Village and if there would be any new sidewalks put in. Reg stated the paving on South River and Lake Street to the State’s job is complete. He also said Fourth Street paving is complete also. Adam Paxman stated they did a great job.
Any Other Business: Neal Speer stated the Town of Swanton is putting in sidewalks on Robinhood Drive and also gave thanks to the Town for the trimming that was done on South River Street. He said this is keeping the shoulder clear and helped with pedestrians and with bikes.
11. Public Comment:
None.
12. Executive Session (If Necessary):
Eugene LaBombard made the motion to enter into Executive Session to discuss Real Estate at 7:45 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.
Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Executive Session at 8:12 p.m. Chris Leach seconded. Motion carried.
ACTION TAKEN: None.
Adjournment:
Adam Paxman made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 8:12 p.m. Chris Leach seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 8:12 p.m. Motion carried.
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Neal Speer, Village President Date
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Dianne Day, Village Clerk Date