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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 09/21/1987CITY COUNCIL 21 SEPTEMBER 1987 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 21 September 1987, at 7:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset Street. Members Present Michael Flaherty, acting chairman; Francis X. Murray, Molly Lambert, George Mona Also Present William Szymanski, City Manager; Wendy Schroeder, Business Manager; James Goddette, Fire Chief; Margaret Picard, City Clerk/Treasurer; Albert Audette, Street Dept; Rep. vi Luginbuhl, Rep. David Kaufman; Art Hogan, Craig Leiner, Regional Planning; Sid Poger, The Other Paper; Gail Wheeler, Stephen Crowley, George Brady Comments & Questions from the Audience (not related to items on the Agenda) No issues were raised. Interview applicant for appointment to Red Rocks Advisory Committee Gail Wheeler was interviewed. She indicated that she lives in Queen City Park, so that Red Rocks is practically in her back yard. She spends a great deal of time in the park. Issues that concern her are cars & motorcycles in the park and litter. Mr. Mona moved that Gail Wheeler be appointed to the Red Rocks Advisory Committee. Mrs. Lambert seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Flaherty suggested having Bruce O'Neill convene a meeting of the Committee soon and have the other members meet Ms. Wheeler. Regional Planning report on their activities Mr. Hogan indicated Regional Planning is involved in many issues including solid waste, MPO, Winooski Park District, etc. Their main thrust, however, has been the transportation situation. He noted that there is a Governor's task force on transportation which includes 3 senators, 3 representatives, 4 lay persons (including Mr. Hogan). Their charge is to look at Vermont's transportation needs and possible solutions. The Committee has been briefed by the Agency of Transportation and will now hold a series of meetings in the state to get local opinions and possible methods of raising monetary fees to offset needs. Mr. Hogan noted there are over 2600 state road miles in Vermont with many backlogged projects. Over $1,000,000,000 is scheduled to be spent in the next 12 years. On 11,000 local roads in the state another $2,000,000,000 is indicated. With a population as small as that of Vermont, this is mind-boggling. $51,000,000 has been appropriated for the next 4 years. About $100,000,000 will be collected in fees per year. $151,000,000 versus a $3,000,000,000 backlog is a mammoth problem. In reality, the State is spending $20,000,000 less per year than a few years ago. State bridges pose a particularly serious problem. Mechanisms for prioritizing and for getting new dollars are clearly needed. There is unanimous consent that additional costs should not be applied to local property taxes. Mr. Hogan said he would suggest a 2-tier system by which federal standards would be applied only to federally funded roads and a new set of Vermont standards would be applied to non-federally funded projects. The latter would cut down on lane width, treatment on shoulders, clearance distance from the edge of the highway, etc. Standards for site distance and passing would not change. Craig Leiner presented the Council with the Airport Study which explores the relationship between the airport's management and how well the airport operates. Different management structures were reviewed. Mr. Leiner then outlined the Traffic System Management Study. This study included a detailed review on signalization in the Burlington central business district, Winooski central business district, and U.S. 7 and Williston Rd. in South Burlington. Accident histories were reviewed, traffic volumes studied, turning movements during peak hours were charted, etc. Williston Rd. was identified as an accident prone location. Level of service at signalized intersections was studied and this information will be useful to the Planning Commission as an objective data base to compare to developers traffic studies. The aim of the study was to identify quick, low-cost improvements. Researchers worked with the City Planner to include possible traffic from new developments and came up with future traffic volume estimates and revised level of service estimates. On Williston Rd, the report recommends a new intersection between the Mobil Station and Chittenden Bank (presupposing development of the area behind Gaynes). Though this is very close to another intersection, a good coordination plan would be workable, they felt. The only alternative access to the back parcel is through a residential neighborhood which they agreed was not viable. Mr. Mona noted the owner of the back parcel claims to have a right-of-way through Gaynes, but this has never been finally ascertained. At the Dorset St. intersection, they recommend 2 left turn lanes from Williston Rd. onto Dorset Street. At Hinesburg Rd/White St/Midas Rd, they recommend left turn lanes on the east and west approaches. At Kennedy Drive, the recommendation is to create an east and west left turn lane, also a left turn lane on Kennedy Drive. On Shelburne Rd., the recommendation is for 2 approach lanes on Allen Rd. for exclusive left and right turn lanes. Mr. Leiner noted the intersection is very close to warranting a signal. On Shelburne Rd, they would formalize the left turn to Allen Rd. by widening the road to include the shoulder. This would create a through lane and a left turn lane. With regard to the Green Mountain Dr. /Bartlett Bay Rd intersection, the recommendation was that any work be consistent with future plans for Shelburne Rd. Some small "cleaning up" improvements were also recommended at Laurel Hill Dr. and Brewer Parkway. Costs for this work were as follows: Williston Rd. $1,700,000 and Shelburne Rd. $2,285,000, with the Green Mountain Dr. location as the most expensive. Mr. Hogan noted that part of what is being discussed at the task force is the handling of money for local roads with use being considered as well as miles of road. A challenge grant has also been considered whereby the state would match and local money expended. Mr. Hogan said he would hope the legislature would enact a local development impact fee enabling legislation this year. Mr. Murray questioned inter-municipal commitments. Mr. Hogan said the committee is not looking into this but the city should work with its legislators to be sure there is enabling legislation to allow this to happen. Mr. Leiner said the need for a regional travel study has been identified and would include number of trips per household, number of vehicles per household, etc. It would be a mail/telephone survey which they hope will give information on travel patterns in the county. The goal is to produce a trip table on how many people go from one zone to another, the portion of travel for work/pleasure/non-work, etc., also information on through travel and trips out of the county. Mr. Audette said he hopes the committee looks at the State upgrading its employee force by hiring the number of people already authorized and funded. Mr. Hogan indicated this is already being looked at separately by the Secretary. On the solid waste issue, Mr. Hogan praised South Burlington's 2 representatives to the committee. He said the committee has applied for a small state grant and are working on a major grant. They have also been working out a recycling operation at the landfill which will cut down landfill costs. Mr. Audette reported that the Committee met with the State 2 weeks ago and recommended a phased program. The will probably go to the communities for some small funding, depending on what is forthcoming from the state. The Committee is moving faster than the State envisioned. They have a preliminary agreement on a landfille site that Burlington has in the Richmond area. He noted they are moving to the point where they will soon need some paid staff. Ms. Lambert raised the question of Act 250 rejections on projects approved by the City and contested by Regional Planning. Mr. Hogan said the Green Tree Park issue was one of poor site distance that would be made worse by a new road adding more traffic. They felt the development would be better served on the Shunpike Rd. Extension. They have similar concerns with a project on Dorset St. that is not creating a squared intersection. Mrs. Lambert asked if matters such as these can be handled before the Act 250 process. Mr. Hogan said sometimes they don't see things until after the local work is done. Rep. Kaufman suggested another legislator/city breakfast in November to discuss major concerns. He noted that the end of October is the deadline for initiating new legislation. He stressed there is a tremendous transportation crisis ahead. Politics plays such a major role and often overshadows the practical. Traffic as a meas of distributing dollars has never been politically viable. Receive proposed Central District Zoning and set date for work session Members agreed to consider the item on 19 October. Review 5-year capital improvement program for Fire Department and Water Pollution Control Department Chief Goddette said they are talking mainly about 2 pieces of equipment: a 4th pumper and a second tower truck. The 95 ft. tower truck is needed because of some of the new buildings being built in the city, particularly Harbor View and Timberlane. He stressed he is not asking for a fully paid department. He wants 2 people in the sub-station and 2 in the main station. He noted the difficulty in getting volunteers today and the difficulty of maintaining 40 people in the department. He would like a full-time training person who would also do fire fighting. The sub-station will be ready for use in March and will, to begin with, be manned by volunteers. George Brady expressed concern about the lack of safety equipment in the Department, citing bunker pants, alarms for men who collapse at fires, etc. Mr. Flaherty said these should be part of the regular budget, not the capital budget. In the Water Pollution Control Dept, Bartlett Bay will be close to full this year, so increased capacity is a major item. In addition, sewer systems on Meadowood Dr. and Country Club Estates are recommended. An engineering study for sewers in the Southeast Quadrant is another concerns as well as a permanent sludge disposal site. Mr. Whitten estimated needing one additional plant operator. Approve recommendations made at Joint City Council/Planning Commission meeting of 15 September 1987 1. Mrs. Lambert moved that the City Center Traffic Study be expanded to include intersections at Hinesburg Rd/Williston Rd, Hinesburg Rd/Corporate Way; Hinesburg Rd/Kennedy Drive; Williston Rd/Midas Rd. Mr. Murray seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 2. Mrs. Lambert moved that the city joint the appeal of the District Environmental Board denial for the development of Lot #9 of the Bartlett property. Mr. Murray seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 3. Mr. Mona moved the City join in the appeal of the denial on the Butler Farms project. Mrs. Lambert seconded. Mr. Murray said he did not agree with the city's approach to prime ag soils and felt the city should be more mindful of these concerns. The motion passed 3-1, Mr. Murray opposing. Review Planning Agenda No issues were raised. Sign Disbursement orders Disbursement orders were signed. Sign Police Contract Mrs. Lambert moved to approve the contracts for the years 1986-87, 1987-88, and 1988-89 with the stipulation that the contract not be made public until ratified by the Police Union. Mr. Mona seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Murray thanked Mr. Szymanski, Ms. Schroeder, and City Attorney Steve Stitzel for their hard work on the contract. As there was no further business to come before the Council, the meeting adjourned at 10:30 p.m. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.