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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 11/15/2004CITY COUNCIL 15 NOVEMBER 2004 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 15 November 2004, at 7:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset St. Members Present: J. Condos, Chair; T. Sheahan, C. Smith, D. O'Rourke Also Present: C. Hafter, City Manager; D. Gravelin, Assistant City Manager; J. B. Hinds, Director of Planning & Zoning; S. Leblanc, City Assessor; L. Murphy, L. Isaac, Community Library; B. Carris, Recreation Path Committee; Rep. A. Audette, Dr. M. Estes, G. Verdon, Fletcher Allen Health Care; R. Farley, The Other Paper; Channel 17; S. Johnstone 1. Comments & Questions from the Public not related to Agenda items: No issues were raised. 2. Announcements & City Manager's Report: Mr. Sheahan: Regional Planning Commission meeting, 22 November, 6 p.m. Mr. O'Rourke: Stormwater Advisory Committee Meeting, Wednesday, 4-7 p.m. Mr. Condos: MPO Meeting, Wednesday, 7 p.m. Mr. Hafter: Special Meeting, 13 December, 7 p.m., to introduce the stormwater utility. Mr. Hafter said it appears the cost will be very favorable. Will attend the following meetings: Chamber of Commerce Board, Wednesday, Noon; CCTA Board, Wednesday, 5 p.m.; CUSI Board, Thursday, Noon. A new draft of the Municipal Transportation Plan has been received. Members will receive copies. South Burlington's Department of Planning & Zoning has been selected to receive an award for pollution prevention. The presentation will be Thursday, 2 December, 1 p.m., in Montpelier. Greg Magnant, an employee in the Highway Department has completed the "Vermont Road Scholar" program. On 8 November, on Williston Road, the South Burlington ambulance delivered its first baby. Mother and daughter are doing fine. The ambulance crew will receive "stork pins." 3. Update on Fletcher Allen Health Care: Dr. Estes noted that Fletcher Allen is one of only 126 "academic health centers" in the country. 40% of its physicians and 46% of its nurses are educated in Vermont. There are outreach programs in every Vermont County including care clinics in eleven locations. Fletcher Allen is a community hospital for Chittenden County. It is an NCI designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, a Level I Trauma Center and a Level 3 Neonatal Care Unit. Fletcher Allen also has a wide range of community benefits programs including a "stop smoking" program, free health ed classes, a senior "falls" program, a diabetes exercise program in conjunction with the YMCA and free screenings for blood pressure. Dr. Estes reviewed some of the economic impacts Fletcher Allen has on Vermont which include jobs in service, retail, construction, government, finance and real estate. The total personal income for these jobs is $847,400,000. There is more than $600,000,000 in net revenues. The "Five Pillars" under which Fletcher Allen operates are: focus on quality, operational efficiency, financial stability, culture of leadership, and research & education. Dr. Estes said Fletcher Allen is financially stable though it is not financially strong. Dr. Estes then reviewed the impact of Fletcher Allen on South Burlington. There are 9 clinical & non-clinical sites in the city employing 324 people. The hospital employs 643 South Burlington residents whose gross pay for 2004 will total $32,600,000. Mr. Sheahan asked if Dr. Estes felt that the trend to have off-campus clinical sites would continue. Dr. Estes said she didn't see that changing, as people want to get care as close to home as possible. 4. Update on Recreation Path Committee: Barry Carris, the new Committee Chair, gave Council members a list of the Committee members. He indicated that the goal of the Committee is to connect the whole community with rec. paths. The "vision" is to have no more cars in South Burlington. Mr. Carris indicated that at their next meeting, the Committee would begin reviewing what projects they want to work on including connections to other communities and new paths. Mr. Condos noted there is a scoping study in the MPO budget for connecting paths to Williston at very minimal cost to the 2 communities. 5. Presentation of South Burlington Community Library Space Planning Study: Ms. Murphy introduced Liz Isaac, new Chair of the Board of Trustees, and other Board members. Ms. Murphy then reviewed library operations for the past year. There are 4.42 FTE's of paid Library staff. In addition, the Library benefits from 1412 volunteer hours during the year. The Library is open 58 hours during the week. Circulation at the Library continues to increase and was up 8.5% over the past year. There has been a 50% increase in circulation in 5 years. Most of the patrons are community members; the remainder is BHS students. There are 8427 registered borrowers, a figure, which has more than doubled in 5 years. Library programs include books discussions, senior outreach, children's programs, concerts, and family nights. Ms. Murphy then reviewed space use improvements and continuing space challenges. These challenges include an increase in student populations, growing demand for use of the conference room, and near full capacity for shelving of books and materials. Funding has been received from grants and donations. Over $3000 has been received from the Friends of the Library. This is the 3rd year of the Freeman Foundation Grant. The $40,000 from the grant is being used for personnel to create a full time circulizer, increased student hours during the summer, and creation of a logo and a Newsletter. Strategic planning efforts have included relations with the High School, fundraising, outreach, public awareness, and a facility use study. Ms. Isaac then reviewed the planning study. She specifically cited access problems, shelving problems, the lack of a community bulletin board, and noise issues. There are also issues of noncompliance with ADA. Any construction project would have to bring the Library up to code. Options for addressing these issues include: renovation/addition (which needs more study), and a separate building for the Community Library. Ms. Isaac said they would be looking for funding for further study. Mr. Hafter said that study should include square footage needs, assessment as to whether this can be accomplished on the current site, and costs. 6. Proposal on Strategy for NPDES Permits: Ms. Hinds noted that for the past 3 years Jeff Nelson has been saying the city should file a TMDL and the problems would go away. Ms. Hinds noted the city is in a very unique loop relative to the Clean Water Act, and the question has been whether there is a way through the maze. Ms. Hinds said she is recommending the city use the work it has done on Potash Brook and submit a TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load) plan. She feels the city can do the project that is already designed and funded. Ms. Hinds noted there are 4 major surface water in South Burlington that do not meet standards for aquatic life: Bartlett Brook, Centennial Brook, Potash Brook, and Monroe Brook. When these do not meet standards, they are put on a list with "impaired waters." This means a TMDL must be done. Mr. O'Rourke asked if the city would have to say why the waters are impaired. Ms. Hinds said yes, and indicated the issues are stormwater runoff and sediment. She noted that once you file a TMDL, you are no longer on the list and projects can go ahead. Without a TMDL, you run into the question of whether you can issue permits, what kind of permits, etc. A TMDL is a plan to reduce pollutants to acceptable standards. Ms. Hinds then outlined the approval process for a TMDL and noted that a TMDL is not appealable. The negative side to this is that a model may result in questionable results. However, Ms. Hinds noted that in Stratton, where they got a TMDL, the water quality is improving. She felt that over time it is possible to reduce 78% of loading of sediment into the brooks. Mr. Johnstone commented that people who have seen this are very enthusiastic about this approach. They feel it is the most expedient way to start cleaning up watersheds. Members were very positive about this approach. Ms. Hinds said she felt they could have a draft by February. Mr. Johnstone said the success in Stratton might help South Burlington. 7. Consideration of Approval of Grant Agreement and Related Documents for $30,000 VCDP Funding for the City Center Market Study and Buildout Evaluation: Mr. Gravelin said the paperwork is in order and he recommended signing. Mr. O'Rourke moved to approve the Grant Agreement for VCDP Funding for City Center Market Study as presented. Mr. Sheahan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 8. Consideration of Approval of Errors & Omissions to Current Grand List: Mr. Leblanc said the list includes some property changes that never made it to his desk. Mr. O'Rourke moved to approve the Errors & Omission to the Grand List as presented. Mr. Smith seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Leblanc there will be a large pack of errors & omissions related to Act 68 Homestead Declarations. The City will then have to send out about 200 new tax bills. 9. Consideration of Annual Entertainment Permit for Higher Ground: Higher ground will feature live music, comedy, DJ events, dance parties, TV for sporting events, and private parties (weddings, etc.). They are asking for every night, but they probably wouldn't be doing that. Most shows start at 9 p.m. Mr. Hafter said staff has no problem recommending approval. Mr. Sheahan moved to approve the annual Entertainment Permit for Higher Ground. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 10. Review Development Review Board Agenda for 16 November 2004: No issues were raised. 11. Review Planning Commission Agenda for 16 November 2004: No issues were raised. 12. Review Minutes of 18 October 2004: Mr. Smith moved to approve the Minutes of 18 October as written. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed 3-0 with Mr. Condos abstaining. 13. Sign Disbursement Orders: Disbursement Orders were signed. 14. Liquor Control Board: Mr. Smith moved the Council adjourn and reconvene as Liquor Control Board. Mr. Sheahan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Hafter presented a Second Class Liquor License Application from Anitra's Florist for sale of wine. He indicated that all approvals have been received. Mr. Sheahan moved to approve the Second Class Liquor License for Anitra's Florist as presented. Mr. Smith seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Executive Session: Mr. Smith moved the Board adjourn and reconvene as City Council in Executive Session to discuss litigation. Mr. Sheahan seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Regular Session: The Council returned to regular session. Mr. Sheahan moved adjournment, Mr. Smith seconded. The motion passed unanimously, the meeting adjourned at 10:00pm. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.