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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 04/07/1975CORRECTION TO MINUTES OF APRIL 7, 1975 It was moved at the Countil Meeting of April 15, 1975, to approve the Minutes of April 7th with the following changes: Page 4, the 5th line of paragraph entitled Contact with City Employees, the word failures should be changed to feelings. CITY COUNCIL APRIL 7, 1975 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting in the Conference Room, Municipal Offices, 1175 Williston Road, on Monday, April 7, 1975. MEMBERS PRESENT Michael Flaherty, Chairman; John Dinklage, Paul Farrar, Duane Merrill, Catherine Neubert MEMBERS ABSENT None OTHERS PRESENT William Szymanski, City Manager; Richard Ward, Zoning Administrator; Carlton Deavitt, William Christie, Raymond Barrett, Sr., C. E. Bardier, Pamela Stetlson, Fred Stetlson John Tabaka, Peter Yankowski, Maurice Senesac Minutes of March 18, 1975, special meeting of March 24, 1975, and regular meeting of March 24, 1975 It was moved by Mr. Farrar, seconded by Mr. Merrill, and voted unanimously to approve the Minutes of March 18, 1975. It was moved by Mr. Dinklage and seconded by Mr. Merrill to approve the Minutes of the special meeting of March 24, 1975. Voted unanimously for approval. It was moved by Mr. Merrill, seconded by Mr. Farrar, and voted unanimously to approve the Minutes of the regular meeting of March 24, 1975. Disbursement orders These orders had been prepared and were presented to the members of the Council for their signatures. Barrett Street extension Chairman Flaherty stated that the Steering Committee at its recent meeting was not in favor of extending Barrett Street as a through street and had recommended that a permanent barrier be placed to prevent vehicular traffic from going through, and it was suggested that this would be proper action to be considered by the City Council. Mr. Farrar moved that it be the policy of the City of South Burlington not to extend Barrett Street, that it be terminated at its present location, and that also the City Manager be instructed to have the Highway Department erect a suitable barricade to prevent vehicles from going through. Seconded by Mrs. Neubert. Mr. Barrett recommended that the barricade be tight enough to prevent motorcycles from going through. Residents of Barrett Street attending the meeting complained about the motorcycles being a disturbance to the area, but were in agreement that the width of the sidewalk would also allow these vehicles to get through, even although it is against the law for them to be on sidewalks or on school property. Chairman Flaherty recommended that the City Manager be asked to contact the Police Department and also the principal of the high school regarding the problem of motorcycles. He also suggested that the City Planner study the traffic situation. Mrs. Neubert asked why the problem had been on the agenda for the Steering Committee meeting, and the City Manager explained it was because the developers had asked what the City planned to do about it. Mr. Christie asked what would happen if the developer comes in next year and wants the connection, would this start all over. Mr. Flaherty explained this is on record as being the feeling of the City. Mr. Deavitt then brought up the church parking problem, saying it was taking one's life in one's hands to come out from Barrett Street when there was a service at the church. The church has an ample parking lot and every Sunday the priest asks during the service that people please use the church lot, but they still park all over Hinesburg Road and on Barrett Street. The City Manager said he had contacted the State Highway Department because of previous complaints about parking on Hinesburg Road, over which the City has no jurisdiction, and he had received a letter from the department saying they were referring the problem to their Traffic Committee which will investigate the situation and get back to the City on it. Chairman Flaherty said something could be done on Barrett Street, the City has the right to put up signs there and ticket violators, even though it night not seem quite right to ticket cars whose owners were attending church. It was suggested that the church could be asked to announce ahead of time that the street would be posted and violators would be ticketed. Mrs. Neubert then brought up the question of the dead end street again, saying she would like to find out what commitment was made at the time of the subdivision approval. The City Manager said the developer won't build it, the City would have to build it and the City is not putting any funds into it. Mr. Parrar said the practical matter is that there will be no funding so there will be no extension. Mr. Farrar's motion regarding not extending Barrett Street was voted unanimously for approval. Philadelphia trip for school chorus Mr. Flaherty noted that a letter of appreciation had been received for the assistance given for the trip to Philadelphia. Final public hearing on proposed amendments to the zoning regulations Chairman Flaherty read a letter from Chairman Wessel of the Planning Commission saying they agreed with Council's recommendations and revisions. Mr. Farrar suggested checking the copy of the proposed amendments for accuracy. The Chairman said this section of the meeting could be adjourned to give the Council members time to go over the amendments for the next meeting. Mr. Ward said this would not accomplish anything as the corrections are the same except some of the numbers are different. Council then reviewed with Mr. Ward the final copy of the proposed amendments. Mr. Dinklage then moved that the City Council approve the proposed amendments contained in the document. Seconded by Mr. Farrar and voted unanimously for approval. Ballot items for the May 20, 1975, City Meeting Mr. Szymanski reviewed these items for the Council. Mr. Farrar moved that the Council strike Article 4 from the City Meeting warning. He said he felt another article could always be proposed when the City has the procedures planned, and Council needs more time to work on it. Motion seconded by Mrs. Neubert and voted unanimously. Mr. Szymanski referred to a letter from the City Attorney giving the opinion that there is nothing to be done about redistricting at this time. Discussion followed on this. Regarding reappraisal, the City Manager said there is no State law now that requires reappraisal according to an opinion by phone from the City Attorney. Mr. Farrar suggested that the proper way to proceed would be to prepare some amendment to the City Charter to clarify the situation in such a way that it will be unambiguous as possible, probably based on a formula rather than a number of years, by determining what the equity ratio is. Mr. Farrar moved that the Council approve the warning as amended. Seconded by Mr. Dinklage and voted unanimously for approval. Mr. Flaherty read aloud the resolution prepared regarding the issue for the acquisition of Lakelands Corporation land on Shelburne Bay. Mr. Farrar moved that the Council approve this resolution. Seconded by Mr. Dinklage and voted unanimously for approval. Mr. Yankowski questioned what would happen to the appraisal if the purchase didn't go through, would it be reappraised. Mr. Farrar said the agreement with Mr. Unsworth was made at the time of the reappraisal and to how the cost would be shared Consideration of the State retirement plan The City Manager explained that if a municipality has its own plan, it is not required to join the State plan. No action is required in this case except to write a letter stating South Burlington does have a plan. The State plan would be more expensive for the same benefits, and he recommended that the City not join the State plan. Mr. Farrar moved that the City Council instruct the City Manager to write the appropriate State officials that because the City has its own retirement system for its employees, the City does not wish at this time to participate in the State plan. Seconded by Mr. Dinklage and voted unanimously for approval. Appointment of Council member to Planning Commission sub-committee Chairman Flaherty explained this sub-committee is for the purpose of examining the City schedule for fees charged as it is felt there are inequities in some fees. The committee membership will be the City Planner, the Zoning Administrator, the City Manager, one member from the Planning Commission and one from the City Council. Mrs. Neubert moved that the Council appoint Mr. Dinklage to the sub-committee on fee schedules. Seconded by Mr. Farrar and voted unanimously for approval. Volunteers for Correctional Center Mrs. Neubert said she had attended a meeting that morning concerning a project to get volunteers for the Correctional Center. She had not offered any of the City's facilities but would be talking to the people of South Burlington and would be available to answer questions. If Friends of the Library wished to help in setting up a library at the Correctional Center, that would be one example of the kind of volunteer work that could be done. Review of sewer area charge and sewer construction fund The City Manager submitted three pages of statistics showing the breakdown of revenues, operating costs, and debt service for the Williston Road Sewer Area and the Shelburne Road Sewer Area, also an opinion from the City Attorney regarding the legality of sewer disposal charges for tax exempt property. Mr. Szymanski reviewed the figures in detail and the Council members felt they would like to study the report further before increasing the charges. The question of levying the sewer charge on all tax exempt property was discussed. It was felt that Mr. Spokes should research the question of Federal property. Community Development Funds Chairman Flaherty said the letter from the Community Development Fund program informed South Burlington that it could re-apply for these funds, but that the applicants are not being encouraged to do so. He said he could see no purpose in reapplying this time but he felt the City has a right to a little more information as to how its application was rated and guidelines for applying for funds next year. Mr. Farrar said the City should ask them for all of the ratings, copies of the proposals from other communities, and what criteria are used, what standards were used in judging each proposal, in order that South Burlington in the future would know better what to propose. Chairman Flaherty asked if Council thought they should resubmit. Mr. Farrar said he thought it would be a waste of time, but he did not think it a waste of time to ask them for this information, and that the City Planner should do this. Contact with City employees Mr. Farrar said that in his work with the Salary Review Committee he learned that some employees feel they never come in contact with the City Council, only the Department heads get a chance to discuss their problems with Council. He suggested that Council have one meeting a year when the employees of the various departments can come in and discuss their problems and failures. It would be good for both the management and the morale point of view to talk with the people who are doing the work. Meet as Liquor Control Board Mrs. Neubert moved that the City Council adjourn its regular session and convene as the Liquor Control Board. Seconded by Mr. Farrar and voted unanimously. The City Manager explained there are still problems with the parking lot at Arthur's. They have not posted a $1,000 bond for construction of the lower parking lot. Mr. Farrar questioned whether the City could legally hold back on the liquor license because of a zoning violation. Discussion followed, with a decision that the City Manager should check with Attorney Spokes to resolve the question. First Class licenses approved were: Second Class licenses approved were: Meeting of Liquor Control Board declared adjourned at 9:20 p.m. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.