Monday, September 16, 2024
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/97227911757#success (copy and paste the link into your web browser)
https//zoom. Us/join Meeting ID: 972 2791 1757 Passcode: 352680
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Angela Litchfield, Ann Golob, Katy Johnson-Aplin, and Mike Fitzpatrick (phone).
Absent: Jeffrey Chevalier.
OTHERS PRESENT: Cody Downer, Warren Roberts, and Austin Rice (BCTV).
Zoom: Jay Wilson (Road Foreman), Bahman Mahdavi, Kate Gehring (Planning Commission).
CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 6:03 p.m. by Selectboard Chair Angela Litchfield.
CONFIRM PROPERLY WARNED: Litchfield confirmed the meeting had been properly warned.
ADDITIONS/AMENDMENTS TO THE AGENDA:
Golob requested to add the Housing Grant Proposal presentation to Old Business.
Gehring requested to add West River Education District (WRED) forum meeting information to New Business.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
- September 3rd, Regular Meeting Minutes – Tabled to next meeting.
- September 9th, Special Meeting Minutes – Tabled to next meeting.
ROAD FOREMAN’S & ROAD COMMISSIONER’S REPORT:
- The Box Culvert on Depot Road is mostly completed, the guard rails are expected tomorrow. This project was started in March of 2018.
- The culvert on Depot Road near Duke Road was paved today, I may need to have them come back and do a little more.
- Adams Hill Bridge insurance claim has nothing new to report.
- The paving on Grimes Hill Road and in South Newfane Village should start this week.
- The culvert on Loop Road is going to start later this week.
- The borings in the gravel pit are expected to be done next week
Golob made a motion to accept the Road Foreman’s Report, and Johnson-Aplin seconded.
Discussion:
- Wilson mentioned contacting the Commissioner of Insurance for the State to see if they can assist. Litchfield said she would have the Administrative Assistant look into it and get in touch with the Commissioner.
Litchfield called for the vote to approve the Road Foreman’s report. The motion passed.
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
Citing 1 V.S.A. §313(a)(3), The appointment or employment or evaluation of a public office or employee.
Golob made a motion to enter the Executive Session, Johnson-Aplin seconded. The motion passed.
Litchfield invited Wilson to attend, Litchfield invited applicants to attend separately.
The Selectboard entered the Executive Session at 6:20 p.m.
Johnson-Aplin made a motion to exit the Executive Session, Fitzpatrick seconded. The motion passed.
The Selectboard left the Executive Session at 6:46 p.m.
Golob made a motion to hire Warren Roberts for the open position on the road crew, Fitzpatrick seconded. The motion passed. Litchfield abstained.
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT’S REPORT: None
COMMITTEE REPORTS: None
SCHEDULED MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC: None
UNSCHEDULED MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC: None
NEW BUSINESS:
Gehring stated that there are forums coming up for the West River Education District (WRED) to discuss the consolidation of the elementary schools. Meetings are in person and available via zoom; dates and locations are:
- Townshend Elementary School on September 18th, 2024, at 7:00 p.m.
- Jamaica Elementary School on September 26th, 2024, at 7:00 p.m.
- NewBrook Elementary School on September 30th, 2024, at 7:00 p.m.
Litchfield stated she would ask the Administrative Assistant to post on the Town Website.
OLD BUSINESS:
Housing Grant Proposal:
Kate Gehring and Ann Golob presented information about the proposed housing grant to incentivize Newfane property owners to create long-term rental apartments on their properties or within their homes.
Overview
The goal of the Newfane’s housing grant program is to support the creation of new long-term, rental housing in the town by reinvesting in what’s already here – committed property owners with great buildings and properties. The program is funded with $150,000 from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Owners of eligible apartment units can receive $2,000-$5,000 per year, for up to three years. The amount of annual award is based on the size of the unit created.
We chose this type of program in the belief that it would be the fastest way to create potentially 10 or more new units within the shortest period of time.
Criteria
The program offers grants to Newfane residential property owners who create new long-term rental housing units, or return rentals to the long- term housing market that have been off for over a year.
The new housing unit must be for year-round tenants. We want to encourage people living here year-round rather than those looking for a second-home or vacation-unit.
This might include:
- Newfane property owners adding new units via creation of an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) or an apartment through renovation or new construction.
- Newfane property owners transforming short term or part-time rentals into long-term residential units.
- Newfane property owners renting units that have been vacant for more than one year.
- Newfane residents returning apartments to rental market after evictions.
Exceptions:
Grants will not be given to rental properties that are for immediate family members, defined as a parent, sibling or child.
The program is limited to one grant per owner. The goal is to help as many property owners as possible.
Grant Payments
Grant totals would range between $6,000 and $15,000 per grantee and would be paid over a three-year period. The program requires the owner to prove that the apartment is rented out to a long-term resident tenant who is not an immediate family member.
Grant amounts are dependent on the size of the apartment.
- New studio apartment: $2,000 annually; for 3 years >> $6,000
- New 1 bedroom apt: $3,000 annually; for 3 years >> $9,000
- New 2 + bedroom apt: $5,000 annually; for 3 years >> $15,000
Three-step Process
Step 1: REGISTRATION
A property owner who has a plan to create a new unit, or return a unit that has been unoccupied for more than one year, registers with the town of Newfane using a simple form that is filed with the Zoning Administrator.
If the proposal meets the town’s criteria, then the registration holds that property owner’s eligibility to participate in the program for six months.
Upon registration, the Zoning Administrator (ZA) will confirm whether the owner’s project will meet the grant criteria and report to the Selectboard. The Selectboard will set aside the grant amount for that owner in a reserve fund of the town budget; and keep track of how much interest property owners have in the program.
The Selectboard may grant two-month extensions for certain hardship conditions, provided, however, that no more than two extensions are open at any time.
Step #2: GRANT AGREEMENT
Once the unit is ready for occupancy and meets state law requirements and Newfane’s Zoning Bylaw, and the owner has signed a lease with a new tenant, the registered owner submits the lease along with sworn statements by owner and tenant verifying this information.
The Zoning Administrator will notify the Selectboard at the first selectboard meeting after this information is submitted by the owner. The Selectboard and owner enter a grant agreement, which is a legally binding contract. The town commits to issue the grant amount to the owner every 12 months, for up to three years, provided the owner submits annual proof that the unit has been occupied by a long-term tenant for the preceding twelve months.
Step #3: PAYMENT
After the new unit has been occupied by a long-term tenant for 12 months, the owner submits proof of this occupancy to the town, via the Zoning Administrator.
Upon receiving and verifying the owner’s documentation, the Zoning Administrator will direct the town to issue the annual payment amount to the owner. Grant recipients may participate for up to three years.
Informational Meetings
Additionally, Gehring and Golob discussed the idea of creating a series of informational meetings to review issues related to being a landlord: How do I select a tenant? What should I include in a lease? How does eviction work if it comes to that? What are the prevailing rents in our area? What State laws must I comply with? What if my septic isn’t big enough for another bathroom, what then? Can I swap rent for chores or help around the house? What is the impact on my real estate taxes?
Discussion ensued including clarification that the program would be open to all Newfane property owners whether they are fulltime or parttime residents. There was also discussion about the fact that the proposal is to run this program for two years and if it isn’t fully subscribed or doesn’t seem to be working, the Selectboard would take the unused funds and reevaluate how they want to move forward.
Motion was made Fitzpatrick and seconded by Johnson-Aplin to move forward with this proposal and that Gehring and Golob would bring it to the Town lawyer for his review. Motion passed.
Town Beautification (Chevalier) -None
FEMA buyout of South Newfane General Store (Golob)
The inspection of the buildings for lead and asbestos was completed; neither was found which means we can move forward with the demolition of the site. Last week Wilson, Golob and Alyssa Sabetto from WRC worked together to finalize the RFP; with the help of Katie Bristol, Melissa Brown and Jay Wilson, the RFP was posted.
September 24th is the date for the on-site visit which is required for all companies submitting a proposal; proposals are due back to the Town office by October 2nd at noon.
We will be reviewing the proposals at our next Selectboard meeting, October 7, and will make a selection at that time. Just a reminder that one of the critical factors we will be evaluating all the proposals on is their experience in working with a FEMA clean-up site.
Personnel Policy changes/ recommendation (Johnson-Aplin/Chevalier)
Johnson-Aplin has shared the policy document with the Town lawyer; he has reviewed it and they are in the process of setting up a meeting to discuss it.
Town Website Design – Golob & Johnson-Aplin
Three proposals were received in response to our RFP. Bahman Mahdavi, our current web administrator, joined the discussion and gave his review of the background and qualifications of each. Discussion ensued.
Motion made by Golob to hire Curly Sprout from Williamsville for their option A proposal: Design only for $1,250. In addition, we allocated $4,500 for Mahdavi to implement the design and hire an intern to work with him and train on doing this type of technical work. Seconded by Fitzpatrick. Motion passed.
The Board thanked Mahdavi for his assistance and help on the RFP process as well as his dedication to maintaining the website for the Town for all these years!
CORRESPONDENCE: None
PAY ORDERS
- Payroll #11697 $5,507.63
- Payroll # 11698 $5,461.46
- AP #25005 $139,055.07
ADJOURN:
Golob made a motion to adjourn. The meeting was adjourned at 7:51 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Angela Litchfield, Chair