Selectboard Meeting Minutes – Oct. 4, 2012

 NEWFANE SELECTBOARD
MEETING MINUTES
October 4, 2012  – VIDEO

BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT:  Jon Mack, Priscilla Cotton, Gloria Cristelli, Chris Druke and Todd Lawley

OTHERS PRESENT:  Gunther Garbe, Johanna Gardner, Marshall Glickman, Patricia Grace, Rich Melanson (BCTV), Judith Perry, Meredith Perry

The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by Jon Mack, Chair.  Jon stated that he wanted to see the meetings go more efficiently.  He has requested that the Selectboard attempt to convey a summary, and not a full report, of correspondence in writing and have them distributed through Pat Grace.  Therefore, a tighter control over the Selectboard meetings could be put in place and that all agenda items, large and small, must go through Pat to be put on the agenda.  This process was agreed upon by the Selectboard at the beginning of the New Year.

MINUTES: 

A motion was made by Priscilla Cotton and it was seconded by Gloria Cristelli to approve the minutes of the September 19, 2012 meeting.  The motion passed with Todd Lawley abstaining because he was not present at the September 19th meeting.

ROAD BUSINESS:

Todd Lawley gave the Road Foreman’s Report.  The report is attached.

Todd stated that he had met with the Perrys regarding the road and property issues and, being that Meredith Perry was present at the meeting, he wanted to report that the agreement between the parties were that the Perrys would be installing fence posts along the property line with reflectors.  Todd will be putting down loam on the edge of the Perry property in the spring.  Todd suggested that the Perrys could check with the post office to possibly have the mailboxes moved to the opposite side of the road where there is a pull off.  Meredith Perry stated that she will be installing five foot high metal posts with reflectors.  A discussion ensued.

Jon requested Todd to get telephone numbers of the road crew to Pat Grace for road crew contacting when Todd was not available.

Chris Druke moved to approve the Road Foreman’s report, and it was seconded by Priscilla Cotton.

The motion passed unanimously.

SCHEDULED MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC:

Johanna Gardner, Newfane’s WSWMD representative, spoke on the New Mandatory Recycling Law.  Act 148 paperwork was submitted to the Selectboard.  This act is primarily trying to remove food waste and leaves from the trash.  Haulers of trash from Newfane to the Brattleboro landfill may have to change their trucks to have bins for compost waste.  Jon requested that Johanna send an electronic copy to Pat after the next WSWMD meeting for an update on the issues.  A discussion ensued.

Marshall Glickman spoke on the upcoming tax sale on seven properties.  Marshall has asked that a selectboard member be present at the Tax Sale on November 27th at 11:00 a.m. to represent the Town, as a potential buyer as a last resort.  A discussion ensued.  Marshall will provide the Selectboard with a list of properties being included in the Tax Sale. Chris Druke volunteered to work with Marshall to represent the Town.  A motion was made by Todd Lawley, and it was seconded by Priscilla Cotton, for Chris Druke to represent the Town of Newfane, to be the buyer as a last resort.  The motion passed unanimously.

UNSCHEDULED MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC:  None

NEW BUSINESS:

Community Service Worker:  Priscilla Cotton and Gloria Cristelli have been getting information on a non-violent offender required to fulfill approximately 26 days of community service to fill his obligation to the State of Vermont.  Gloria would like the approval of the Selectboard to have the individual work for the Town of Newfane for about 200 hours of work.  The Selectboard is required to sign a contract stating that $10.00 per day would be paid to the corrections department for the work done by the offender.  A discussion ensued.  Gloria volunteered to take on the responsibility to supervise this individual to work on Town projects.  The Selectboard members will email Gloria of projects that could be assigned.

A motion was made by Todd Lawley, and it was seconded by Priscilla Cotton, to approve the signing of the Contract with the Vermont Department of Corrections for the community service worker to perform work duties for approximately 26 days, under Gloria Cristelli as supervisor.  The motion passed unanimously.

OLD BUSINESS:

FEMA – Alternate Project:  Jon thanked all the Selectboard members who worked on the alternate project to meet FEMA’s deadline.  Jon would like to have a FEMA representative to work with the Selectboard to assist in getting the project worksheet processed.  A discussion ensued.

Jon stated that the Town now will vote.  The Selectboard will not commit to the projects until the voters approve.  The Special Town Meeting is scheduled for October 30, 2012 at 6:00 p.m. at Williamsville Hall.  Town Moderator, Deborah Luskin, will conduct the meeting and the Selectboard will be present to answer any questions for the alternate projects.

Pat Grace will ask Deb Luskin to attend the October 18th Selectboard meeting to discuss the details of conducting the Special Town Meeting.

Road Discontinuance:   Jon asked the Selectboard members if they should proceed with the Lynch Bridge Road discontinuance or should the Board discuss the process of closure of the road.  Chris Druke is working with VLTC to get advice and guidance on a title search on the 14 Lynch Bridge Road property.  Chris has been checking on the deeds surrounding the property in regards to easements or right-of-way status.

Jon stated that VLTC told him that the Town has the right to discontinue a road by following the proper procedures.  The road can be discontinued without the purchase of the property.  Jon also wants the process and steps that are required for road discontinuance.  The second issue is getting the title search done on the property.

A discussion ensued.

Todd Lawley made a motion, and it was seconded by Priscilla Cotton, to get a title search done by a law firm on the 14 Lynch Bridge Road property.  The motion passed.

Jon will contact Rich Perra for advice on an attorney to work on the title search.

Jon asked Chris to continue in her search with VLTC for the steps required for the road discontinuance and to have that process ready before the October 18th Selectboard meeting.

In a phone conversation with Jon, the owner of the 14 Lynch Bridge Road has expressed his desire to have right of first refusal to purchase the property back from the town.  Jon suggested that the Selectboard could offer Ed Monroe a settlement on the property, with the discontinuance of the road, as an alternative to the town purchasing the property.

Gloria Cristelli made a motion, and it was seconded by Priscilla Cotton, for Jon to contact Ed Monroe, after talking with Rich Perra for advice, to discuss a property settlement rather than a property purchase of 14 Lynch Bridge Road.  The motion passed unanimously.

Projects:  Jon reported that progress payment is being processed by FEMA and it should be available to us soon on the Green Iron Bridge.  A scope change was submitted by FEMA.  Jon has requested information on submissions from Christina Moore on partial payments and closeouts, but Jon was not successful in getting that information.   Christina has worked on the alternate projects only for the town in the past two weeks.  Christina reported to Jon that the State is backed up on project closeouts.  Jon will get an answer within the next two weeks.  Discussion ensued.

Ecosystem Grant:  Gloria reported that she received a letter from FEMA informing her that the grant has been denied.

Single Audit:  Chris Druke reported that she halted putting the project out to bid because Sullivan and Powers is all set up to do the audit.  Rick Brigham will be at the Town Offices on October 17 and begin the regular audit procedure. Rick is aware that the flood projects are individual projects.  Our existing contract with Sullivan and Powers includes scope of work for single audits.

Accelerated Payment Request:  Jon reported that there is a program that you can ask the State to make accelerated payments to the town treasury.  The request would need to be submitted no later than December 10.  Jon is requesting approval from the Selectboard, should the Treasurer feel that we need to apply.  Gloria Cristelli made a motion, and it was seconded by Chris Druke, to have Jon sign for the Accelerated Payment, if it is needed.  The motion passed unanimously.

AA “To Do List” The treasurer wants the Selectboard to be aware that the auditor will need several documents, some of which will be the responsibility of the administrative assistant and the Selectboard, with a checklist from the auditors of what is being requested.  Pat will go through the list of what is being requested.  Chris Druke and Todd Lawley volunteered to assist in gathering information for the auditor.

Conservation Efforts Along Dover Road:  Todd Lawley reported that there is a pile of grubbings along the ditches and a rock pile that needs to be taken out.  No work can be done until after the buy outs are completed.  Jon will work on the Community Development Block Grant and what is required.

Byways Program:  Jon felt that the program would be beneficial to the town businesses.  Jon will contact John LaBarge, Program Manager for State Byways, and Laura Sibilia, Brattleboro Development, to try to get a meeting scheduled to put a proposal together for the byways program.  We should try to get others area towns involved.  Jon will be requesting a representative for the town.  Priscilla Cotton has agreed to work on this project.

Bridge #14 Bond:  The bond application is now completed and the signatures will be needed for the Resolution and Certificate and Loan Agreement, to be returned to Attorney J. Paul Giuliani.

Municipal Park & Ride:  Pat reported that the Park & Ride Grant has been granted for $25,000.00.  The town has three years to complete work to be done in the Town Offices parking lot.  Projects will need to be discussed, as to what the projects should be.

HMGP:  Round 3 – Gloria reported that there are still problems with Stratton Hill Road.  The house on this property wasn’t damaged but it has lost its septic system.  Gloria will look into the issues with the home on Dover Road, next to Mason’s property and the septic system on Stratton Hill Road.

279 Dover Road:  Todd explained that the elevation is now higher than it is supposed to be to be considered to be in the flood plain.  Rocks and boulders will need to be removed to bring the level back down to where is was before Hurricane Irene.  There will be no buy out for that property until the work is done.

WRC:   Jon will get the information to Gloria Cristelli to write up something.

Cell Towers:  Jon had a conversation with Steve Morse in which he has stated that our ordinance still counts and the cell tower company can’t just build something, and we’re not going to be overruled.  Jon will contact VTel to get information on what their plans are for building a cell tower on top of the Sheriff’s office.

River Rock Parade:  Gloria Cristelli will modify the draft letter, of thanks, to the parade organizers.  Jon will review the letter before it is sent.

OLD BUSINESS:  Todd Lawley asked what the time frame for closing the Williamsville Hall.  Todd made a motion, and it was seconded by Chris Druke, to close Williamsville Hall from November 1, 2012 through the beginning of March 2013, just prior to the town meeting.  The motion passed unanimously.  Pat Grace will send a letter to the Williamsville Hall Committee to inform them of the closing schedule.

Todd will have the water pipes drained.

CORRESPONDENCE:  A letter was sent to the Selectboard by Nancy Rysz indicating that she had not gotten a response from the Selectboard on a previous letter written on September 9, 2012.  Gloria Cristelli had, in fact, spoken with Nancy on the issues of her letter soon after receiving it.

Gloria reported that Nancy hadn’t finished the Emergency Watershed project until spring.  Gloria told Nancy that she would be receiving refund money and that Gloria would check with the town treasurer to see if the money had come in.  Nancy also stated that she would not be removing the reflectors from the edge of the road.  Gloria reminded Nancy that the reflectors are in the town’s right-of-way and that they will need to be removed.  A discussion ensued.

Todd suggested that the Selectboard review the VLTC State Statute on right-of-way obstructions.  Gloria will look into this and get the information back to the Selectboard at the next meeting.  Pat will get a letter to Nancy letting her know that we’re looking into the reflector placement issues.

Jon reminded the board that correspondence must be received by Tuesday before a Selectboard meeting so that it there is adequate time to review the materials prior to the meeting.  Unless the issues are an emergency, items received within 48 hours of the start of the meeting will be postponed until the following meeting.

American Red Cross:  A letter was received for supporting them.

Michael Fuller Letter:  Gloria presented a letter written by Michael Fuller, dated March 8, 2012 to the Selectboard.  A discussion ensued.  Jon felt that this issue is now moot.

Post Construction Noise Study Letter:  Jon stated the letter indicated that the new power station that was installed does not create noise.

Waste Water System Permit:  Jon doesn’t know why it came to us.  Gloria reported that a copy is sent for recording and one to the Planning Commission.

Gathering Place Open House Invitation:  Thursday, October 11, 2012

Marc Gray Letter:  Marc is requesting the Town of Newfane to hire him to provide services for shoveling, sanding and salting on steps and walkways during the 2012-2013.  Todd Lawley made a motion, and it was seconded by Priscilla Cotton, to hire Marc Gray to do the shoveling, sanding and salting on steps and walkways during 2012-13 winter months at the Town Offices and Williamsville Hall, during months of being open at $27.00 per hour.  The motion passed unanimously.

EXECUTIVE SESSION:

A motion was made by Gloria Cristelli, and seconded by Priscilla Cotton, to enter into Executive Session at 8:48 p.m.  The motion passed unanimously.

The Selectboard came out of executive session at 9:20 p.m.

PAY ORDERS AND SIGNATURES:

Jon noted that signatures are required for the pay increases that was discussed at a prior meeting, which now includes Jay Wilson as receiving a 5% increase, along with the others.

There was also a contract with the Rescue, and a renewal for vehicle registration for Jon’s signature, for a truck that is being traded in.

Signatures were required several times on the Bridge #14 Bond documents.

A motion was made by Gloria Cristelli, and it was seconded by ­­­­Chris Druke, to approve the Pay Orders.  The motion carried unanimously.

Payroll                                                                                  Total Pay Orders:

$3,384.07 – September 25, 2012                                $397,856.75

$3,439.17 – October 1, 2012

ADJOURN:

A motion was made by Chris Druke and seconded by Priscilla Cotton to adjourn at 9:25 p.m.  The motion passed unanimously.

Respectfully submitted,

Patricia Grace, Administrative Assistant

 October 4th 2012

Road Foreman’s/Road Commissioner’s Report

    1] Roads:  The roads are in good shape. We are continuing to grade them as well as doing some ditch work and we have also been replacing rotted culverts. We have some more culverts to get done before winter.

2] Equipment:  The 06 Sterling is still at Tenco, having some dump body work done on it. We have done some service work on the trucks and we are starting to get them ready for winter.  We have started to put up some of the signs but we are still waiting for the posts to come. They should be here next week.

3]   Steve and I worked with Dan Hull on several things for FEMA . We had to take readings down Dover Road to determine whether there was too much fill put back by the rock pile on Dover Road. Dan is still waiting word on that. And we marked out work to be done on Hunter Brook Road. We had a pre bid at Hunter Brook Road on Tuesday night and the bids have to be back by Monday.

4] The bank stabilization work on Smith Brook and South Wardsboro Road and Wiswall Hill bridge is done. Todd Brown got that bid. He also got the Adams Hill road work and he is working on that also.

5] Fitzpatrick’s got the bid for Stratton Hill slide. They are supposed to be starting on that soon.

6] Winter Sand Bids: Fitzpatrick’s got the sand bid and will be starting on that in the next week or so.

7] Perry Property: I met with the Perrys about their concerns.  They are going to try to mark out the edge of their lawn with high fence posts with reflectors on them so people can see them and so the road crew will be able to see where the edge of the lawn is when they are plowing. I also suggested that they get a hold of some one from the post office to see if the line of mail boxes could be put on the other side of the road where there is already a pull off. The other thing they are going to do in the spring is to have a load of loam spread out to the edge of the road and seed it so people can see it is lawn.

8] Christopher had a dead tree complaint on Cemetery Hill. Steve and I went and looked at it and marked it. I will get a hold of the tree warden and have him see if Green Mountain Power will cut it. It may fall on wires. If it does fall, it could do damage to the cemetery.

9] Had a complaint on drainage on Parish Hill Road. We went and met with the land owner and tried to work something out with her. Not sure if we were successful or not. It is all established drainage that has been that way for years. Christopher said that it should be left alone.

Thank You

Todd Lawley/Road Foreman

Christopher Williams/Road Commissioner