MINUTES OF THE SHAFTSBURY SELECT BOARD

FEBRUARY 25, 2008

COLE HALL

SHAFTSBURY, VERMONT

Board Present: Wynn Metcalfe. Bill Pennebaker, Lon McClintock, Karen Mellinger, Cinda Morse

Others Present: Mitchell Race, Mike Gleason (Bennington Banner), Aaron Chrostowsky (Town Administrator), Susan Swasta (Recording Secretary)

1.       Call Meeting to Order: 

Chairman Wynn Metcalfe called the meeting to order at 7:03 PM. He asked if any Board member needed to recuse himself or herself from discussion of any topic on tonight's agenda. None did.

2.     Minutes:

February 18, 2008 Select Board minutes

Approval of February 18 minutes was postponed because Board members had not received them.

3.       Warrants:

The following warrants were presented for approval:

                   AP Warrant #38:               $ 42,923.45  (includes sand and gravel)

                   Payroll Warrant #34:                   $   9,470.28

Lon McClintock made motion to pay warrants. Cinda Morse seconded.

Karen Mellinger stated that she is uncomfortable with the purchase of an $1800 television by the fire department, given the Town's tight budget. After a brief discussion it was decided to postpone the payment and ask the fire chief about this purchase.

Mr. McClintock made a friendly amendment to the motion, specifying that warrants be paid with the exception of the reimbursement for the television, which will be postponed until the fire chief explains. Motion carried 5-0-0.

Aaron Chrostowsky said he had already left a message for Fire Chief Joe Vadakin.

4.       Public Comments:

There were no public comments.

5.       Swap Shed:

Karen Mellinger stated that Trevor Mance of TAM has applied to the state to do a swap shed at the Town transfer station, to cover his fine from the state. She said that the Bennington County Regional Commission (BCRC) is the third party involved and needs to make a presentation to the state, including a budget, before a swap shed is approved. Lissa Stark of BCRC has asked for the Board's input. Mr. Pennebaker stated that this is the draft of the language for Ms. Stark. They would like comment.

Mr. McClintock said that the key issue is being able to control the kind and amount if stuff that comes into the swap shed. The person in charge at the transfer station needs to have broad discretion in accepting things. He likes the idea of having a general list of approved items. He questioned the idea of tagging items with name, address, and phone number.

Mr. Pennebaker said that tagging might limit the problem of getting too many things they can't get rid of. Ms. Mellinger said they also discussed having people make a donation when they drop things off. Ms. Morse said this would be easier than chasing people down later through tags.

Mr. McClintock recommended starting slowly to see how much they are getting rid of before charging an upfront fee. He asked how much it costs to get rid of a ton of waste, and Mr. Pennebaker replied that it is $100 per ton.

Mr. Pennebaker said that the cost of a part-time attendant will need to be covered, since this will be extra work for the transfer station employee. This would not be an additional employee, but the present attendant. He assumes that maintenance of the swap shed would be part of normal Town building maintenance. The only extra expense would be electricity.

Chairman Metcalfe stated that the attendant would need a raise because this is an extra job duty. Ms. Mellinger said that she is sort of doing it as it is, and may welcome something to do in slow periods.

Ms. Morse asked what Trevor Mance's funding will cover; whether they see the TAM fine amount as covering set up and operating expenses. Mr. Pennebaker said these funds would cover capital costs, not operating costs. He said that they need to get an estimate for changes to the bay that will house the swap shed.

Ms. Morse said they also need to know the costs for BCRC to administer the swap shed. Ms. Mellinger stated that they expect the swap shed to be revenue neutral. Ms. Morse said that Board members will email comments. She asked that Ms. Mellinger and Mr. Pennebaker come up with a budget. Chairman Metcalfe confirmed that the swap shed will be located in the left bay, nearest the service door.

6.       Town Meeting Survey:

Mr. McClintock said that he had included questions on Cole Hall, roads, economic development, and the Town transfer station. He is seeking Board input on the areas he included, and other areas they would like to see included. Ms. Morse said that the survey needs a a general introduction of what they are doing and why. She stated that some of the questions are loaded, and that people are asked to make a decision but given no information. Mr. McClintock suggested adding a third response of "don't know." He stated that this isn't supposed to be an end result, but an effort to find out whether people have opinions.

Ms. Morse said that they have not done much to get information out, and that people need to know more before they can make intelligent decisions. The Board needs to do homework before asking these kinds of questions. Mr. McClintock noted that Cole Hall maintenance has been a Town Meeting issue for a number of years. Ms. Morse replied that it's only come up in reference to adding $10,000 to the sinking fund. Chairman Metcalfe said that people will want to know the costs of Cole Hall renovations, and any amount that is mentioned will be what they remember. He thinks they should be sure to say in the introduction that they are early in the process.

Mr. Pennebaker said that facilities covers more than Cole Hall, and that they are seeking more of a philosophical "how should we proceed" kind of information. Ms. Mellinger said that the Facilities Committee is struggling with what to do next and that people should be asked what they think about Cole Hall. Chairman Metcalfe said that there should be a Town-wide meeting just on facilities, having people tour the buildings and then meet. He thinks this is not a matter for Town Meeting.

After further discussion Mr. McClintock suggested changing the question to "how would you describe the condition of Town facilities," with a list of facilities and a list of conditions, including "don't know." They could also ask if people would be willing to attend a meeting on facilities, and whether a report from the Facilities Committee would assist them in determining needs. Ms. Mellinger said that just doing a survey puts people in the frame of mind to being thinking about facilities.

Ms. Morse suggested that Mr. McClintock look at the Economic Development Committee (EDC) planning grant-funded survey for ideas on questions. She thinks some of his questions are loaded. He agreed to look at the EDC questions.

There was discussion on whether a question on preserving the rural character of the Town should be included. Ms. Mellinger said this is emphasized in the Town plan. Ms. Morse said it also came out in the survey, but that people also wanted appropriate businesses. She recommended that economic development questions be run by the EDC.

Mr. McClintock said that the question on development is not as critical, but that he would like feedback on 3b, which deals with factors to promote economic development. Ms. Morse said she agrees except for "lower property taxes," and Mr. McClintock said he would remove that.

Ms. Morse suggested handing out the survey at the polls instead of at Town meeting. Ms. Mellinger recommended making them available at the back of the room at Town Meeting, as well as at the polls. Chairman Metcalfe said that further suggestions should be emailed to Mr. McClintock by tomorrow.

Mr. Pennebaker stated that he thought the survey questions on the transfer station were slanted toward closing it, and that they should be more neutral. Ms. Morse and Ms. Mellinger said that people should know what is and is not paid for by fees. Ms. Mellinger noted that fees cover free recycling that can be used by all residents.

There was a discussion of survey question number five, which asks if voting on issues related to the water system should be limited to those using and paying for Town water.  Ms. Morse said that water users are not the only beneficiaries. Mr. Pennebaker said that facilities like the school and fire station pay for their water. Ms. Morse stated that businesses are benefited, and this benefits the whole Town.

7.       Town Meeting Presentation:

Chairman Metcalfe reported that he, Ms. Morse, and Mr. Chrostowsky had cleaned up the presentation and put the long range planning stuff up front. He said that Board members should read it and email suggestions.

Mr. McClintock said that he wants to add information on Ancient Roads, and will address that. Ms. Mellinger pointed out a figure that needs to be changed. She also asked about increasing font size so that people can read the slides more easily. Chairman Metcalfe said that additions and corrections need to go to Mr. Chrostowsky by Wednesday.

8.       Other Business:

Mr. Pennebaker stated that there was an email from John Tiffany about a hazardous road condition. Mr. Chrostowsky said the area was sanded, but that the problem cannot be fixed until spring.

Mr. Pennebaker asked whether the Vermont League of Cities and Towns definition of decomposed budget applies to the Town budget and was told it does not.

Mr. Pennebaker said it looks like they have located an engineer for methane remediation. The contract proposal is for $3500. The engineer would be working with him, and agrees  with him on proceeding with pumping at the cap vent. Board members agreed to meet in a specially warned session next Monday at 6:00 PM, before Town Meeting, to deal with the contract.

Ms. Morse said that she will email everyone on the memo from the highway department on a personnel matter. She said that decisions have been made and communicated.

Mr. McClintock stated that there is a state program where the governor recognizes a volunteer of the year, He thinks that the Select Board should nominate someone, and is willing to fill out the application. Board members will circulate ideas on this.

The meeting adjourned at 8:28 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,

Susan Swasta