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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 11/03/2003CITY COUNCIL 3 NOVEMBER 2003 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 3 November 2003, at 7:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset St. Members present: T. Sheahan, Acting Chair; C. Smith, S. Magowan, D. O'Rourke Also present: C. Hafter, City Manager; D. Gravelin, Assistant City Manager; J. B. Hoover, Director of Planning & Zoning; J. Dinklage, L. Kupferman, Development Review Board; M. Beaudin, Planning Commission; Police Chief L. Graham; Rep. A. Audette; Press: Ch. 17, Burlington Free Press, A. Johnston, The Other Paper; F. Cioffi, GBIC; G. Brown, CCRPC; B. Cosgrove 1. Comments & questions from the audience, not related to Agenda items: No issues were raised. 2. Announcements/City Manager's report: Mr. Smith: Will be making two presentations on the Regional Technical Academy. A vote is anticipated in March. Mr. O'Rourke: Stormwater Advisory Committee meeting, 18 November, 4-7 p.m. Mr. Magowan: Ambulance Committee met last Thursday and looked at possible facilities. Will meet again a week from Thursday. The issue will be on a December agenda. Mr. Magowan noted the enormous amount of help received from people coming from out of town. Mr. Sheahan: Regional Planning Commission meeting, Monday, 5:30. Also a meeting at UVM Hall of Fame Room in the Patrick Gym regarding the proposed UVM parking garage and traffic issues. Mr. Hafter: Asked Chief Graham to present a report: Chief Graham reviewed police dept. activity for September: 1700 calls for service 791 "incidents" 42 arrests 230 traffic tickets (98% increase over last September) 90 motor vehicle crashes, 7 with injuries (most accidents are minor and occur in parking lots) The Department is putting officers in UMall during the holiday season. They are also looking at a traffic system. Laptops are now in all cruisers, and the department is working to refine the system. Mr. Hafter: Attended training for the youth coalition, specifically regarding youth as resources in the community. There will be an effort to find young people to serve on several city committees. Lake Champlain Housing Board meeting 5 November. Natural Resources Committee meeting Thursday. They are working on a pesticide use ordinance for city properties and will come to the City Council for adoption. MPO has a working group on airport planning. They will meet 10 November, 1:30 p.m. 3. Report from GBIC on New Chittenden County Regional Economic Development Plan: Mr. Cioffi said the goal of the project is to develop focused strategies to promote good jobs and broad-based prosperity in Chittenden County. GBIC is seeking input from the public, especially from governing boards, Planning Commissions and DRB's. They are hoping to develop very focused strategies and thus have been doing a lot of research on factors that affect economic development in the County. Mr. Cioffi noted that the County is still losing job opportunities, even as the rest of the State is recovering. In addition, the State and the region's economic drivers are experiencing significant changes in the global marketplace. Job growth is lagging at many of the regional employers. Mr. Cioffi cited the city's leadership in the stormwater crisis and thanked Mr. Hafter and Ms. Hoover for their efforts in this regard. Mr. Brown then reviewed the planning process and time-line. He noted there were some good public meetings held recently at which people were asked to review some of the background data and provide their views. Mr. Brown noted that the current plan will build on past initiatives in the region but go even deeper. The vision statement for the project is: Our economy will be strong and diverse, with a base of globally competitive companies, providing meaningful and challenging jobs that are consistent with Vermont's culture, values and high quality of life. Mr. Cioffi then reviewed some of what they have learned so far: With technology advances happing so rapidly, you have to be flexible in order to be competitive. The regional population is aging and people are demanding more quality of life and more services. A potential threat is that the manufacturing sector is not recovering as other areas are. Service jobs are growing, but manufacturing is not. This makes the economy very vulnerable. Mr. Cioffi noted that the region exceeds both the national and state averages for people with post-secondary degrees. Mr. Cioffi then reviewed some of the types of economic drivers in the area. These include: specialized medical treatment services educational services travel/tourism connector and insulated wire manufacturing specialty plastics engineered electronics and electrical components Mr. Cioffi then asked the Council for its views on the vision, the region's strengths and weaknesses, and the findings of the research. Mr. Magowan cited problems with health care costs. He also noted the parallel improvement of health care in Vermont. Mr. Magowan also noted that Act 250 is not a deterrent to manufacturing development. He felt the big issue is UVM and the funding of its programs. Mr. Magowan said he was not sure there is much that can be done to get manufacturing jobs as everything has led to those jobs going overseas. He felt that trade agreements need to be "re-thought." Mr. Smith agreed with Mr. Magowan on globalization issues. He didn't think the area could get costs down enough to compete. Mr. Hafter cited the numbers of people moving to the area because of the quality of life. People also point to the quality of K-12 education. He hoped the state keeps it commitment to continue to provide the level of education quality. Mr. O'Rourke felt laws are not the problem; it is the people who interpret them. Rep. Audette said the more the Legislature digs into Act 250, the more they realize it is not the problem. The problem is local planning. He felt that communities have to realize their responsibility to provide affordable housing. Mr. Dinklage felt that the UVM Engineering and Physical Science Departments are not as strong as they should be. He felt GBIC could be an important element in reinforcing that message. Also, the coordination between UVM and local industry is not what it should be, and most of the problem seems to be with UVM. Ms. Hoover said that recently there has been an infusion of money and talented people with regard to stormwater issues. She felt that UVM could play a major role in deflating the "NIMBY" problem and the importance of the Airport in infusing money into the area. Mr. Magowan cited the importance of Fletcher-Allen and the problems with their building project. Mr. Beaudin said the area needs to tap the potential of those who come here for the quality of life. Mr. Hafter addressed the question of where government leaders will come from and cited problems with the MPA program at UVM. Rep. Audette stressed that every aspect of the economy is important. 4. Consideratin of approval of city policy on conformance of City Charter Section 1309. Budget limitations with Act 68 Education Funding Act: Mr. Hafter reviewed City Charter provisions with regard to operating tax rate increases. He also reviewed the estimated residential equalized tax rate based on the current year. South Burlington's adjusted residential tax rate is 1.501 which, when equalized, is 1.774. The non-residential tax rate is 1.59 which equalizes to 1.879. Mr. Hafter noted that the City Charter Committee felt the new funding mechanisms do not conflict with Charter provisions. Members suggested that the City Attorney review the issue and also wanted to wait until a full Council is present before making a decision. Mr. Magowan question whether this "state aid" is the same as what the Charter speaks of as "state aid." Mr. Hafter said the City has been doing it that way since Act 60 went into effect. Members also suggested meeting with the School Board and asking them why they think this will 5. Consideration of appointment of DRB members: Mr. Hafter noted that 3 members are up for reappointment and all have expressed willingness to serve another term. There are no other applicants. Mr. Smith moved to appoint Mark Boucher and Chuck Bolton to 3-year terms and John Dinklage to a 4-year term on the Development Review Board. Mr. Magowan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 6. Consideration of adoption of Residential Anti-Displacement and Relocation Plan: Mr. Hafter reviewed the history and noted it is necessary to have a plan in order to receive VCDP grants. He felt there is no real impact on South Burlington since the city is not building housing that will be displacing anyone. Mr. Magowan moved to adopt the Residential Anti-Displacement and Relocation Plan as presented. Mr. Smith seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 7. Review DRB Agenda for 4 November 2003: No issues were raised. 8. Review minutes of 20 October 2003: Mr. Magowan moved to approve the minutes of 20 October. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed 3-0 with Mr. Smith abstaining. 9. Sign Disbursement Orders: Disbursement Orders were signed. 10. Executive Session: Mr. Smith moved the Council adjourn and reconvene in Executive Session to discuss contract negotiations and to resume regular session only for the purpose of adjourning. Mr. Magowan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 11. Regular Session: The Council returned to regular session. Mr. Magowan moved adjournment. Mr. Smith seconded. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 10 p.m. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.