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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 10/20/2003CITY COUNCIL 20 OCTOBER 2003 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 20 October 2003, at 7:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset St. Members present: J. Condos, Chair; T. Sheahan, S. Magowan, D. O'Rourke Also present: C. Hafter, City Manager; D. Gravelin, Assistant City Manager; D. M. Fogel, President, University of Vermont; L. Seavy, B. Penniman, G. Babcock, B. Vaughan, University of Vermont; B. Bull, A. Johnston, H. Head 1. Comments & questions from the audience, not related to agenda items: No issues were raised. 2. Announcements and City Manager's report: Mr. O'Rourke: Stormwater Utilities Committee meeting, 21 October. Mr. Sheahan: Regional Planning Steering Committee Housing Coalition meeting, Monday, 6 p.m. Mr. Hafter: Ray Belair attended the County Court House meeting regarding proposed repairs to the building. There will be a $1,800,000 bond on the March ballot. Mr. Hafter noted that the ballot is getting "crowded." Mr. Sheahan asked what happens if the bond fails. Mr. Hafter didn't know. He said the work is necessary and wondered if the State would chip in. The Fire Department won a $29,000 grant for equipment. The Recreation Department got a $3,558 facilities grant which will be used for the playground in Szymanski Park. The Pension Review Committee met and confirmed the allocation and maintained the investments. The City Charter Committee will meet tomorrow at 5 p.m. to discuss possible Charter impacts of Act 68 and the possibility of local option taxes. The Correctional Facility Liaison Committee will meet on Wednesday, 4 p.m. On Friday, there will be an all-day meeting of the Youth Coalition Committee. The CCTA Board will meet on 29 October at 5 p.m. Community Health Officers will meet on 30 October to discuss SARS, Quarantines, etc. Lake Champlain Housing will be holding an open house for the affordable housing project on Farrell St. Members are invited to attend. On 24 October, a reception will be held for Dr. Raied Qaaish of the Jordanian Parliament who is visiting under the auspices of the U.S. State Department's International Visitor Program. The reception will be held at the Library. 3. Consideration and acceptance of Aspen Drive and Sherry Road Extension as public streets: Mr. Hafter said both roads meet all requirements. They will be added to the city's mileage so there will be a slight increase in state aid. Mr. Magowan moved to accept Aspen Drive and Sherry Road Extension as public streets. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 4. Consideration of approval of Capital Equipment Refunding Note and Borrowing Resolution; Police Department computers and communications system: Mr. Hafter reviewed the history and noted this is for the new Police dispatch system. The loan is for $70,000 at 2.1% interest. Mr. O'Rourke moved to approve the note and resolution as presented. Mr. Magowan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 5. Review Development Review Board agenda for 21 October 2003: No issues were raised. 6. Review minutes of 7 October 2003: Mr. O'Rourke moved to approve the minutes of 7 October 2003 as written. Mr. Magowan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 7. Sign Disbursement Orders: Disbursement orders were signed. 8. Presentation from University of Vermont President Daniel Mark Fogel on future vision for the University and town relations: Mr. Sheahan noted that the city has had a great relationship with the University that he hopes will continue. President Fogel said the University values that relationship and noted that there are many University lands which lie within South Burlington, and many University faculty, staff and students live in South Burlington. The President also noted that all of the 10 cities which have been designated as "Top 10 Cities" are university towns. President Fogel said that "quality" is the heart of the University's vision for the future. He hopes to see UVM be competitive at the highest level in scholarship, research and creative activity. He also hopes the UVM will become the nation's premier environmental university with world class programs. In a survey which involved 641 random calls, Vermonters were asked to rate UVM. 88% of those responding rank their UVM experience as good or excellent. 81% would encourage a child or relative to choose UVM. 80% agree that UVM helps the economy and job growth in Vermont. 72% agree that UVM offers good value for the educational experience it provides. President Fogel cited several indicators of rising quality at the University including: an increase in undergraduate applications, an increase in the first to second year retention percentage in the last 2 years, an increase in faculty productivity, a 35% increase in faculty grants and awards since 2001, and athletic achievement. President Fogel noted that UVM is a "complex" institution. It has a unique public/private character with land grant and extension elements. It also has 8 colleges and schools. The President then reviewed a "benchmarking" study done with 20 public peer colleges/Universities. 123 attributes were considered. In a number of these attributes, UVM ranked #1, including the number of classes with under 20 students and the fewest classes with more than 50 students. Unfortunately, UVM also leads in price with a cost last year of $8288 for instate tuition/fees (this is going up 4.5% this year). President Fogel noted that other universities' costs are going up at a faster rate than UVM's. In-state tuition is held at 40% of out-of-state tuition be legislation. UVM is moving up in SAT scores. The graduation rate has also increased from 67% in 2000 to 69.7% in 2003. President Fogel expects this to increase to 75% by the year 2008. UVM rates very low in salary rating, in the bottom quintile. They are moving up quickly and hope to soon be in the middle range. UVM is the smallest university of its type with only 10,314 total student enrollment. President Fogel expects this figure to reach 11,882 by 2008. The low enrollment also contributes to the high cost of a UVM education. The President stressed that there is no way to meet the University's budget without increasing enrollment, but he also stressed that UVM still wants to be the smallest institution of its type. The President then showed projected faculty additions to serve student enrollment. He noted that all positions are tenure-track. There is a commitment to maintain a faculty/student ratio of 16-1. The President added that department will be rewarded for providing what students need. Increased enrollment will require an additional 1375 beds on campus, not including private partnership arrangements. There is a potential for more housing on the recently acquired Trinity campus. The University is looking at partnerships private enterprise. The hope is to have the campus become more residential. The Honors College will be located on campus. A student union will also be built to make campus living more appealing. President Fogel then reviewed proposed bonding for residences, student commons, deferred maintenance ($130,000,000-140,000,000), research facilities, parking, and academic renovations. The University is looking to cut energy costs. The President said he felt that the health of surrounding communities depends on the health of UVM. Mr. Hafter asked about a proposed new arena and how the University would work with communities on something like that. President Fogel said UVM does not have a good assembly center for a major speaker, graduations, etc. He felt such a facility would contribute to the economic vitality of the whole state. Mr. Magowan asked how constrained is UVM by "geography." President Fogel said UVM was very fortunate to acquire the Trinity Campus. He acknowledged there are still some issues, but he felt the capacity is there. Housing is always an issue. Mr. Magowan asked if the recent problems at the Medical Center have affected the Medical School or interest rates on bonds. President Fogel said he did not feel bond rates would be affected, as UVM is not tied to Fletcher Allen. He added that it is always bad for UVM if Fletcher Allen falters and the need is for the Medical Center to be strong. He felt that physician training and patient care are still second to none in the country. Mr. Hafter suggested the University try to sell some of their bonds to Vermonters. President Fogel said they try to "buy Vermont" whenever possible. Mr. O'Rourke commented that it is good to hear the President say all the positive things about UVM to the press. Ms. Head noted a major change in Burlington housing regulations which means that much of the housing used by students has now become single family housing. She asked if this has impacted UVM. President Fogel said he was not aware of an impact. UVM is concerned that some off-campus housing may not be safe and they are looking for ways to have Burlington improve its code enforcement. Members thanked President Fogel for sharing his vision and again confirmed the good relations between the University and the city. As there was no further business to come before the Council, the meeting was adjourned at 9:40 p.m. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.