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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 05/21/1990CITY COUNCIL 21 MAY 1990 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 21 May 1990 at 7:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset Street I. Organizational Meeting Members Present Paul Farrar, Michael Flaherty, James Condos, John Dinklage, Also Present Charles Hafter, City Manager; Sonny Audette, Street Dept; Brian Searles, Lee Graham, Police Dept; Mary McKearin, Nancy McGann, Business Managers; Margaret Picard, City Clerk/Treasurer; Bob Chittenden, John Belter; Ruth Poger, The Other Paper Administering of Oath of Office Ms. Picard administered the Oath of office to re-elected Councilmen Michael Flaherty and John Dinklage. Election of Officers Mr. Flaherty nominated Mr. Farrar for Chairman. Mr. Dinklage seconded. There were no further nominations. In the vote that followed, Mr. Farrar was elected unanimously. Mr. Dinklage nominated Mr. Flaherty for Vice chairman. Mr. Farrar seconded. There were no further nominations. In the vote that followed, Mr. Flaherty was elected unanimously. Mr. Flaherty nominated Mr. Cimonetti for Clerk. Mr. Dinklage seconded. There were no further nominations. In the vote that followed, Mr. Cimonetti was elected unanimously. Set Time and Place for Regular Meeting Mr. Dinklage moved that City Council Meeting continue to be held the first and third Mondays of the month at 7:30 p.m. Mr. Flaherty seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Appointments to be made by a majority vote of the Council, City Charter, Chapter 3, Section 301 Mr. Flaherty moved the following reappointments be made: Margaret Picard: City Treasurer and Trustee of Public Funds; Stephen Stitzel, City Attorney; Richard Ward, Zoning Administrator, Urbach, Kahn & Werlin, Auditors; Charles Hafter: Grand Juror and City Agent. Mr. Condos seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Flaherty moved that Don Duell be appointed First Constable and Ernie LeMay and Troy Porter be appointed Second Constable. Mr. Dinklage seconded. Motion passed unanimously. II. Regular Meeting Comments & Questions from the Audience (not related to items on the Agenda) Mr. Belter expressed concern with the gun ordinance. He said they have a beaver problem and the State Warden told him to shoot them. The Police Chief, however, says this would be in violation of the Gun Control Ordinance. Mr. Farrar asked if there isn't another way to get rid of the beavers. Mr. Belter said no. He said the beaver have dammed up a retention pond and this is a serious matter. Mr. Audette noted the State won't help in these matters. Mr. Farrar said there is no provision to suspend or amend the Ordinance to grant immediate relief. Chief Searles said he didn't think he could give permission to violate an Ordinance and noted there is a person in the community who is objecting. Ms. Poger asked what would there be to prevent a kid with a gun from saying he was shooting beaver if the ordinance is amended. Mr. Hafter suggested a permit procedure that would require proof of insurance and prior review by the State Game Warden saying it is appropriate to remove the animals. Mr. Belter stressed he has a serious problem and the Ordinance doesn't allow him to protect his property. Mr. Hafter will draw up appropriate amendments to the Ordinance. 2. Discussion of format and scheduling for City Council appointments to various city Boards and Commission and other positions. Mr. Farrar suggested that new applicants and incumbents for Planning and Zoning Boards be interviewed. Mr. Hafter will check to see if other incumbents want to be reappointed. 3. Update on Regional Solid Waste District Mr. Audette noted the District now has 2 new members. Burlington has joined and Essex has voted to join. He didn't know if town and village would come in as 2 different entities or as one. Mr. Audette also advised that they are now interviewing for a new manager. Preliminary testing has been done on the Milton site and they have explored a site in Essex. Mr. Audette wasn't sure what came out of the Legislature. Mike Smith feels there will be good funding this year, and they may try to get site preparation done. They are continuing with a 92-day closure plan. Mr. Dinklage didn't feel closing landfills by a certain date was the biggest problem. He felt the dumping of hazardous materials was much more important. Mr. Audette felt the city had to leave itself room at the end so they can close the landfills. He didn't feel they could let people be lulled to sleep. He said the problem is that many landfills aren't being controlled properly. Mr. Dinklage said he would like to see it made easy for people to get rid of toxic materials safely. Mr. Farrar asked how long the present landfill capacity could carry the city. Mr. Audette said 4-5 years. Mr. Farrar felt that well run landfills should be allowed to stay open till at capacity and allow them to accept waste from other communities and thus save money. He asked if it would be possible to get legislation to that effect. Mr. Audette said they are hoping to get a press conference to discuss this and other issues. Mr. Dinklage felt a proposal should be drafted and presented. 4. Presentation of June 1, 1990 Reorganization Plan for the S. Burlington Police Department Chief Searles said he had seen a need to "tune up" the Department. He then highlighted the elements of the new plan. He noted police organizations are traditionally based on a military model, but there is a question of whether this model is appropriate. He said they try to make it work well. Chief Searles said one concern had been that lieutenants weren't playing a significant enough role in the Department. This also meant the city wasn't getting enough in return for the investment they had made in these people. In addition, lieutenants weren't feeling much different from sargeants. In the new plan, there will be 3 divisions: Prevention Services, Criminal Investigation Services, Support Services. This new organization does three things: first it puts emphasis into prevention, then it puts the Department in a planning mode to try to measure what it is doing, and finally it provides an atmosphere for a number of people to get more from their jobs. He felt the new plan would also help get the Department accredited. Lee Graham then gave out information on how the reorganization fits into accreditation. He said it meets the need to establish measurable goals and objectives for each division which will then fit into the goals and objectives for the whole Department. This is one standard of accreditation. The Department has requested that a City Council member act as liaison with the Police Department for accreditation purposes. Councilman Condos was selected to fill this position. Regarding Drug Enforcement and Prevention, Chief Searles said he felt education is the most important element. He said the city is participating in a regional task force in this area. They have a new "weapon" at their service: the government can seize assets of a major drug person and divide up these assets among task force members for efforts in drug combatting. He presented the first check received in this way in the amount of $13,137. He said they expect more by the end of the year. Mr. Dinklage complimented the Chief for the high number of arrests related to domestic violence. Chief Searles said this is part of a new "pro-arrest" police for such situations that was adopted at the beginning of 1990. 5. Schedule Public Hearing on amendments to the Zoning Regulations regarding floodplains Mr. Flaherty moved to schedule the public hearing on amendments to the Zoning Regulations regarding floodplains on 18 June 1990. Mr. Dinklage seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 6. Minutes of 9 April, 16 April, 30 April and 9 May Mr. Condos noted that in the Minutes of 9 April, p. 2, paragraph 5, the motion was seconded by Mr. Flaherty. In the Minutes of 16 April, p. 5, the word that did not print completely was "remained". Mr. Flaherty moved to approve the Minutes of 9 April, 16 April, 30 April and 9 May as written or amended. Mr. Dinklage seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 7. Planning Agenda 5/22/90 Question was raised as to the mixed use at Chine Lite. Sign Disbursement Orders Disbursement orders were signed. 9. Liquor Control Board Mr. Flaherty moved the Council adjourn and reconvene as Liquor Control Board. Mr. Dinklage seconded. Motion passed unanimously Mr. Hafter presented a special events permit for Club New England for 2 June 1990, 8 p.m to Midnight. Previous such events have had no problems associated with them. Mr. Flaherty moved to approve the special events permit for Club New England for 2 June. Mr. Dinklage seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Executive Session Prior to going into Executive Session, Mr. Stitzel noted that Chittenden Bank has no objections to Mr. Farrar and Mr. Condos participating in deliberations as long as disclosure is made. Mr. Farrar and Mr. Condos noted that both of their wives work for the Chittenden Bank. Mr. Flaherty moved the Council adjourn and reconvene in Executive Session to discuss personnel issues, Dorset Street damage compensation deliberations, and to resume regular session only to adjourn. Mr. Dinklage seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Adjournment The Council reconvened in regular session. Mr. Flaherty moved to adjourn, Mr. Condos seconded. The meeting adjourned at 10:15 PM. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.