Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 01/19/1981CITY COUNCIL JANUARY 19, 1981 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, January 19, 1981 at 7:30 p.m. in the Conference Room, City Hall, 1175 Williston Road Members Present Paul Farrar, Chairman; Michael Flaherty, Martin Paulsen, William Burgess Member Absent John Towne Others Present William Szymanski, City Manager; Arthur Aldrich and Margaret Jennings, Vt. Agency of Transportation; William Shearer, Roland Boutin, David Nicholson, Thomas Sullivan, Hugh Marvin, Jeff McDonald, Jim Howley, Don Whitten Agenda additions The following items were added: 1) Review Zoning Board agenda 2) Receive a letter from the Planning Commission regarding floodplain zoning. Minutes of January 12, 1981 The January 12, 1981 minutes were approved by a motion by Mr. Flaherty, a second by Mr. Burgess and a unanimous vote. Disbursement orders Disbursement orders were signed. Interview Bill Shearer for a vacancy on the Zoning Board of Adjustment Mr. Shearer said he would like to serve on the board because he plans to live in the city for some time and would like to make a contribution. He is in real estate. Mr. Farrar asked if he had a philosophical approach to variances and he replied that he felt the intent of the applicant in requesting a variance was very important, but he added that the criteria for granting variances was set out already. He did not feel his work would cause a conflict for him. He had read the Zoning Ordinance and said the time required to serve would not be a problem. He said he would consider appointment to another board. Meet with representatives of State Highway Department on South Burlington Southern Connector Ms. Jennings described three alternatives for the road. The first was widening the existing road to 7 lanes, 2 more than are there now. The second is a new location which will bridge Bartlett Bay Road, terminate Holmen Road, and contain a traffic light at the railroad spur for the Farrell building. This will be an at-grade crossing. The Laurel Hill Extension will have a full interchange with this alternate and will bridge the road. The road will run between Champlain Water District and the Green Mountain Power substation and four homes on Queen City Park Road will be taken. Because this alternate is so expensive, Ms. Jennings said, they have some other plans which are the same to Bartlett Bay Road but which have different configurations for south-bound route 7 traffic. All these have at-grade crossings with Bartlett Bay Road, and do not include the Laurel Hill Extension. 5A is an at- grade crossing with a traffic light, 5B uses the Bartlett Bay and route 7 intersection for south-bound traffic, and 5C has a ramp over the line. Ms. Jennings said rebuilding route 7 would cost $7,300,000, the new location with the Laurel Hill Extension is $16,500,000 and without it is $14,900,000, 5A is $11,600,000, 5B is $11,700,000, and 5C is $12,400,000. The State sees no problem with at-grade crossings. It was noted that if the intersection with Bartlett Bay Road were to be at-grade, traffic activated signals should probably be used, because few cars use that road and traffic should not be stopped on the connector when it is not necessary. Ms. Jennings said the Council should sign a paper stating that it approved of the project, or one which said it approved of having a public hearing on the project. Because one paper said the Council approved of the project as presented, and three alternatives had been presented, the Council felt it would be better to sign the other, stating approval of holding a public hearing. Mr. Farrar read the letter, and Mr. Burgess moved to sign the letter of concurrence with the presentation of these plans at a public hearing. Mr. Flaherty seconded, and the motion carried 4-0. Mr. Hugh Marvin, Chairman of the Southern Connector Citizens Committee, noted that the committee had strongly favored alternate 4, which is the new location with separated crossing at Bartlett Bay Road and with the Laurel Hill Extension. He reiterated the reasons the committee had chosen this alternate (see Committee minutes). Mr. Farrar asked that a figure for the average cost of an accident be available at the public hearing. Mr. Szymanski said he would give copies of the letter the Citizens Committee sent to the State regarding this project, to the Council. Meet with attorney David Nicholson regarding tax interest and penalties on Best Haven Motel Mr. Nicholson said the figure he was discussing here was $3,477.60. He noted that the owner of the motel, Mr. Leonard Boutin, had not paid taxes on it since 1969. He gave Council members a packet of information on the issue. Mr. Nicholson reviewed how this situation had arisen and said that Mr. Roland Boutin had been given guardianship of his uncle, Leonard Boutin. He said Leonard Boutin had not paid his taxes, not due to a refusal to do so, but due to an inability to do so because he is mentally ill. The Boutins have now paid all taxes due plus all city coats incurred in its proceedings against Leonard Boutin. They are now asking that penalties on the taxes be waived. Mr. Nicholson cited some case law he had been able to find which might apply here. Mr. Roland Boutin said he would like to cooperate with the city as much as possible, but he asked why the situation had gone on so long and he cited problems with the business next door to the motel. Because of the amount of material given the Council, it was felt that the hearing should be continued to give them a chance to read it. Mr. Paulsen moved to continue this item to the next regularly scheduled meeting, which is February 2. The motion was seconded by Mr. Flaherty and carried 4-0. Update on sewer sludge disposal Mr. Thomas Sullivan of Webster-Martin noted that the city has been asked to upgrade its sewage treatment plant and he stated that as treatment gets better, there is more material left at the plant to dispose of. The least costly method of doing this is to leave it in liquid form and spread it on agricultural land. Mr. Jeff McDonald said the amount of sludge created at a treatment plant varied. Per million gallons of flow it could range from 1,000 lbs. to 200 or 300 lbs. The Council was shown slides of equipment spreading sludge on a field. It was noted that the time during which sludge could be spread on a field would be quite restricted - perhaps 2 months during the year, in the spring and in the fall. If spread on pasture land, no grasing can be done for about 4 months. It was estimated that a 1.2 mgd plant might require 160 acres of land for spreading. Mr. Jim Howley noted that there were 10 treatment plants in the area and that a regional sludge management authority might be needed. Some land might need to be dedicated to sludge management programs. He said that by the year 2000 1,000 to 1,500 acres of land might be needed to take care of the 10 plants, and he added that this had to be good land. Mr. Sullivan noted that landowners might be issued permits if they spread with sludge and groundwater quality would be monitored. Floodplain land can be used for spreading if it is properly managed. Based on a 90 day spreading time, Mr. Howley said Burlington would need 2 nurse trucks and 1 applicator. Taking care of the region would require about twice this amount of equipment. Cost of doing this would be about $150 per dry ton net. This includes costs such as the equipment, handling at the treatment plant, transportation, etc. and some of those costs will be incurred anyway. It was noted that land cannot be used in this way forever, due to the buildup of heavy metals, but as technology improves, the length of time a field can be used may increase. Meet as Liquor Control Board to consider entertainment permit Mr. Burgess moved to adjourn as the City Council and meet as the Liquor Control Board. Mr. Flaherty seconded the motion and all voted aye. Mr. Szymanski said the permit was for the Ground Round Restaurant. They want to have live music on Friday and Saturday from 9 p.m. to 1 am. There is also a giant TV screen and movies 7 days a week from 11:30 to closing. Mr. Flaherty moved to approve the entertainment permit for the Ground Round Restaurant as per the City Manager's reading of the application. Mr. Burgess seconded the motion and all were in favor. Mr. Flaherty moved to adjourn as the Liquor Control Board and reconvene as the City Council. Mr. Burgess seconded and the motion passed 4-0. Old Business Mr. Paulsen said he had received two calls from the Senior Citizens, who were concerned about the facilities in the new municipal building for them. They thought they were to have office and storage space plus facilities to prepare meals for 75-80 people. Mr. Burgess said they did have office and storage space and a small kitchen, but he did not think 75 meals could be prepared there. Mr. Szymanski said he and architect Jim Lamphere were to meet with the Seniors on Wednesday at 10:00. Review Zoning Board agenda There were no comments. Floodplain zoning Mr. Flaherty moved to receive the proposed zoning change from the Planning Commission and schedule a public hearing with appropriate advertising for February 23. Mr. Paulsen seconded the motion and all voted aye. The meeting was adjourned at 9:45 p.m.. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.