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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 01/17/2023 CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 17 January 2023, at 6:30 p.m., in the Auditorium, 180 Market Street, and by Go to Meeting remote participation. MEMBERS PRESENT: H. Riehle, Chair; M. Emery, T. Barritt, Sen. T. Chittenden ALSO PRESENT:J. Baker, City Manager; C. McNeill, City Attorney; Chief S. Burke, Police Department; Chief S. Locke, Fire Department; M. Machar, Finance Officer; T. DiPietro, Public Works Director; H. Rees, Recreation Director; R. Fisher, Water Quality Superintendent; D. Brayton, HR Director; M. Mott, IT Director; M. Lyons, City Assessor; J. Murray, Librarian; Dr. T. Childs, School Board; G. Yandow, J. Nadeau, A. Cate, F. Kochman, K. Ryder, M. Norabaugh, G. Silverstein, D. Peters, S. Dooley, D. Cappell, E. Schait 1. Instructions on exiting building in case of emergency and review of technology option: Ms. Baker provided instructions on emergency exit from the building and reviewed technology options. 2. Additions, deletions or changes in the order of Agenda items: No changes were made to the agenda. 3. Comments and questions from the public not related to the agenda: No comments or questions were received. 4. Announcements and City Manager's Report: Council members reported on meetings and events they had attended. Ms. Baker: The Communications Union District has convened and has adopted by-laws. This will allow the city to complete the last mile of connection for the 22 properties in the city that are currently not served by broadband. When the project is fully underway, the Council may want to select a representative to that board. Three new Police officers have been sworn in and will go to the Academy in February. Two Police sergeants have also been promoted. CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 2 There will be a special Council meeting next Monday at 6:30 p.m. followed by a Steering Committee meeting. 5. Consent Agenda: a. Approve and Sign Disbursements b. Approve minutes from December 19, 2022, meeting. c. Accept the Easement Deed Community Center Access Easement and Market Street Access Public Roadway Easement from the South Burlington School District dated 19 May 2022 and the Easement Deed 146 Market Street from Allard Square dated 22 January 2020 d. Approve requests to the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission for their FY24 Unified Planning Work Program e. Approve the acceptance of Bay Crest Drive, Irish Farm Road, Haymaker Lane, and Harbor Ridge Road as City Streets Ms. Emery moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed 4-0. 6. Receive an Update on the Comprehensive Plan Outreach Plan: Mr. Conner advised that the city will host 11 public meetings in February and March. People can attend in person or remotely. The meetings will be facilitated by Joe Segale. Each meeting will focus on a different consideration (e.g. transportation). Mr. Conner noted that he had met with committee chairs and liaisons today to review what the Planning Commission has done and what is anticipated as future growth. The facilitator will gather public feedback on all of the areas using the Comprehensive Plan goals as a focus. This will be paired with other outreach as well as an on-line poll through City News. Committees will be asked to share additional issues with staff and with the Planning Commission. One of the key topics will be Public Safety/Public Works needs, and the public will be asked to share what they are hearing/experiencing in the community. Ms. Baker noted that those 2 areas make up 75% of the city's budget. Mr. Conner noted that refreshments will be available for those who attend in person. 7. Receive an Update on the Auclair parcel; consider allocating$309,033 from the Open Space Fund to support the Vermont Land Trust acquisition conditioned on a Right of First Refusal and approve a memorandum documenting the conservation: CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 3 Mr. Conner reviewed the history. He said the parties are getting ready to close on conservation of Parcel "B" and are inviting the Council to release funds allocated for this purpose. Mr. Barritt asked what the excluded areas are. Mr. Conner said one is at the north end of the property and will allow Bread & Butter Farm to provide some housing. He showed this area on the map. It encompasses 13 acres, and the city has a right of first refusal for those acres. Mr. Barritt moved to allocate the remaining $309,033 from the City's Open Space Fund toward the VLT acquisition of the Conservation easement on Parcel B, conditional on the execution of the acceptable Right of First Refusal on the so-called "excluded area" of 13.41 acres of Parcel B. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed 4-0. Mr. Barritt then moved to approve the Memorandum documenting the conservation, agricultural, recreational, and other public benefit outcomes of the City's total approximately $915,000 funding. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed 4-0. 6. Public Hearing on the FY24 all Funds Budget and Capital Improvement Plan: Mr. Barritt moved to open the public hearing. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed 4-0. Ms. Baker introduced the Leadership Team members present at the meeting. She then outlined the challenges they had encountered in preparing the FY24 budget: a. Inflation b. COLA at 6.4% c. COVID recovery d. Maintaining services Grand List growth was at 1.75% of which 10%was in the City Center Grand List. The goals of the FY24 budget included: a. Addressing inflation b. Capacity to maintain the city's parks c. Restoring Police positions and the Deputy Police Chief d. Maintaining public works e. Restoring Firefighters CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 4 f. Restoring the Data Analyst position g. A second ambulance (21% of South Burlington calls are now having to be handled by other communities) The proposed budget accomplishes these goals in 2 years. The current budget represents a 5.7% increase which would cost the average condo owner $78.00 for the year and the average single family homeowner $117.00 for the year. With regard to Enterprise Funds, Ms. Baker noted that there would be a 1.64% increase in Stormwater fees ($1.44 for the year), an 8.34% increase in Wastewater charges ($30.00 for the year), and an 8.5% increase in water charges ($23.00 for the year, which includes additional water storage capacity). The budget also includes the voter approved 1 cent Pennies for Paths and 1 cent Pennies for Open Space. Ms. Baker noted that 86% of the city's buildings are within half a mile of a shared use path, and 88% of the city's buildings are within half a mile of a park/open space. There will be two ballot items on the March ballot: the final TIF district vote for 4 projects and a bond issue for upgrade to the Bartlett Bay Treatment Plant. Emerging issues include: a. Executive Team transitions b. Regional dispatch c. The bond vote on the water storage facility d. Recreation Center e. Marathon Health negotiations f. Fire code bargaining agreement There will be 3 informational meeting in February and March including a "Love Your City" meeting on Valentine's Day. Public comment was then solicited. Mr. Kochman questioned whether the budget could be modified between now and Town Meeting Day. Ms. Baker said the budget would be set with a vote at this meeting. It could be CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 5 changed mid-year, if needed. Mr. Kochman noted the hefty increase and said he would hate to see the budgeting dragged out. Ms. Riehle said she has been "sniffing" public response. She also noted there are some things not in the budget because they would have been too costly. She stressed that the Council feels this is an appropriate budget request to address the services the public wants. Mr. Barritt said the budget was a real "balancing act." He cited issues of inflation and "human capital concerns." Some people have been working many hours of overtime because of understaffing which is a quality of life issue. He noted that the Council usually aims for a 3% increase. Ms. Emery cited the need to invest in Fire and Police who need to be there for the community. She stressed the city does not want to lose the personnel it now has. Mr. Pfifer referred to a letter he wrote regarding a 911 call and mutual aid. He appreciated the support for public safety and noted the issue of recruiting and retaining Police and Fire personnel. He said this is not an "emerging issue"; it is here. The hours put in by Firefighters needs more attention. Ms. Riehle said the Council agrees, and that is why they are trying to address this as best they can. The effort needs to continue. Ms. Riehle also cited how proud the city should be of what those departments have accomplished with not as much budget as the Council would have liked. She also encouraged Mr. Pfifer to write a Letter to the Editor with his thoughts and to urge passage of this budget. As there was no further public comment, Ms. Emery moved to close the public hearing. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed 4-0. 8. Budget Discussion and approval of a FY24 General Fund, Capital Improvement Plan, and Enterprise Fund budgets with direction to send all to the Steering Committee and the voters: Ms. Emery moved to approve the Resolution amending the Capital Improvement Plan for fiscal years 2024-2033. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed 4-0. CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 6 Ms. Emery moved to adopt the FY24 General Fund, Capital Improvement Plan, and Enterprise Fund budgets, including ARPA funds. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed 4-0. 9. Approve the 2023 Town Meeting Day Warning and set the Public Hearing for March 6, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Emery moved to approve the 2023 Town Meeting Day Warning and ballot language and set a public hearing for 6 March 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed 4-0. 10. Consider and Possibly Approve an update to the Purchasing Policy: Ms. Baker noted the effort to modify city policies. She thanked Ms. Machar for her leadership in this effort. Ms. Machar said the policy includes the process by which federal grants should be managed as well as a purchasing policy. This was recommended by the State Auditor. The VLCT purchasing policy was used as a model for this policy. Mr. Barritt pointed out some typos to be corrected. Mr. McNeill suggested having staff review the entire document and bring it back to the next meeting. Members were OK with this. 11. Consider and Possibly Approve an update to the Grant Policy: Ms. Emery moved to approve the updated Grant Policy as presented. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed 4-0. 12. City Pension Plan Asset Update— Net performance Report from the City's Pension Fund Manager: Mr. Cappell of SEI reviewed the Executive Summary. He noted this was the second worst year of the past century on both the fixed income and the equity sides. It is anticipated that the new year will have many of the same headwinds, and there are fears of recession around the globe, especially in Europe. The Fed is expected to continue raising interest rates up to 6.1%to bring down inflation without going into recession. There are also fears of a slowing economy. CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 7 The good news was a positive return in the fourth quarter,just over 7%which brought the total year to a -11.65 return. Mr. Cappell felt the city's portfolio is well diversified and designed to perform well in the long term. Mr. Cappell also noted that in October 2022, some investment managers were replaced. Mr. Cappell then showed a chart of changes in bond yields which allow compensation for taking risks. It is not anticipated that bond yields will return to where they were. Mr. Cappell then showed the City of South Burlington Defined Benefit Plan review which indicated only one positive asset class last year. He noted that there are some positives in the beginning of this year, and it is not anticipated that this year will be as difficult as the last. The international equity market review was not as bad, and there was not as much fear of a recession because of the invasion of the Ukraine. There also wasn't overly cold weather and the need to heat homes. Mr. Cappell then reviewed economic themes as follows: a. There are not enough workers anywhere, particularly in the service industries. The U.S. has the tightest labor market. Worker compensation has gone up in order to address this, and this could be a problem with recession. b. The question remains as to when the Fed will pivot. The anticipation is the middle of the year, but it will happen only when the economy lands in a "divot." c. Policy rates surged in 2022 with more increases on the way, and they are not likely to return to where there were. Mr. Barritt questioned where the workers went. Some retired. 600,000 died of COVID, half of whom were employed. Some fell victim to opioid addiction. Some cannot find housing due to the housing crisis. Mr. Barritt also noted the effect of the pandemic on young people entering the workforce. He felt this problem will continue for a long time. Ms. Riehle also noted that the lack of child care also had an impact on the workforce. CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 8 Mr. Barritt said a decent immigration policy would reduce the problem. Ms. Emery asked what will turn this around. Mr. Cappell said it is important to look at the long term. The market is accepting that there will be a higher cost of capital. Rates could be higher for longer. He did not, however, see the need to make drastic changes but possibly review the situation again in August. Ms. Riehle asked about PPP money that wasn't spent. She felt this should be returned, but companies are sitting on it. Mr. Cappell said he wished he had an answer for that. Mr. Barritt said one upside is the freezing of Russia out of the gas market. Raw material costs are also going down as well as the cost of solar panels. 13. City Pension Actuarial Update— FY22 Pension Valuation: Mr. Schait reviewed the two funding methods: Unit Credit and Entry Age Normal (which has a higher liability now but slows over time). He noted that in 2019 the city's plan was frozen to new entrants, and the plan will slowly become more mature until all members retire. Mr. Schait then showed a chart of recommended city contributions based on a growth value of assets. This will increase this year. Mr. Schait reviewed the funded status of the plan in actuarial value. Accrued benefits are 98.92% funded (95.2% in market value) and entry age normal liability is 87.93% funded (82.73% in market value). He then reviewed the historical funded status and compared South Burlington's numbers to other communities. He said South Burlington is very well funded and not in a bad spot now. Mr. Schait then reviewed mortality assumptions, employee turnover (unchanged), long term rate of return (unchanged at 7.25%) and assumed retirement age (53 for public safety workers and 65 for non-public safety workers). There are 68 active employees in the plan (a number that is shrinking over time). 52 have left employment but are not taking benefits. 93 are getting monthly payments (a number that is growing). The average age of employees is 41.45 for public safety and 56.47 for non-public safety. The average retirement age is 63.89 for public safety and 75.65 for non-public safety. CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 9 16. Consider adopting a Short-Term Rental Ordinance and associated implementation steps and provide direction to staff: Ms. Emery reviewed the history and noted receipt of emails from residents regarding being bought and turned into short-term rentals. Sources of concern include the loss of the character of neighborhoods, the competition with the hospitality industry, and the non-payment of Rooms and Meals taxes. People are skirting the regulations such as the one-acre minimum and the requirement for the owner to live in the building. Ms. Emery also noted that the Affordable Housing Committee is eager to see something brought forward. She suggested staff look at some language and draw up a proposal including what they can do with current staffing and what additional staff may be needed. Mr. Barritt said he liked the spirit of this and cited the need to take action. He was particularly concerned with the non-payment of Rooms/Meals taxes. He supported a rental registry both for long- and short-term rentals. Mr. Barritt also noted a safety concern from the Fire Department for smoke alarms, etc., when older homes are rented out. He felt there should be hard-wired, interconnected smoke alarms. Mr. Riehle agreed this should be looked at. She also liked a connection to a rental registry. She cited safety issues when buildings are not maintained. Ms. Riehle asked Sen. Chittenden if he has heard anything Statewide. Sen. Chittenden said he had not heard anything about rekindling State interest in a Statewide Rental Registry. He agreed with Mr. Barritt about safety concerns and supported South Burlington pursuing a rental registry. Ms. Riehle noted that communities differ, and what would work in South Burlington would not work in Barnet. She suggested the State could come up with some options, but she felt each community should handle this on its own. Ms. Emery suggested beginning with the LDRs as a lot of homes are out of compliance. Ms. Baker said the real magic is having the staff to enforce the regulations, and that should be done first. She felt staff would be very responsive to that. She asked for time to bring this back to the Council when there is a new Council, as this is a long-term issue. CITY COUNCIL 17 JANUARY 2023 PAGE 10 Mr. Barritt noted that the shine is wearing off the airbnbs because of the non-advertised costs (e.g. cleaning costs). Ms. Baker said as the community changes to a majority of residents living in rental units, there has to be thought about drawing those people into the picture of the community. The safety of all residents has to be considered. Ms. Riehle said it is important to connect that to the Comprehensive Plan. 17. Opportunity for Councilors and the public to share information and resources on Climate Change: Ms. Emery said she was heartened that ecosystems are being looked at in Vermont. These are the basic living blocks of civilization and important in the long term. Ms. Emery also cited the need to invest in public safety. 18. Other Business: No other business was presented. 19. Consider entering executive session to consider negotiating and securing a real estate purchase: Mr. Barritt moved to enter Executive Session for the purpose of discussing the negotiation or securing of real estate for purchase or lease by the City of South Burlington, inviting into the session Ms. Baker and Mr. O'Neill. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed 4-0. The Council entered Executive Session at 9:35 p.m. As there was no further business to come before the Council Mr. Barritt moved to adjourn. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 9:50p.m. Clerk