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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 02/20/2007CITY COUNCIL 20 FEBRUARY 2007 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Tuesday, 20 February 2007, at 7:00 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset St. Members Present: J. Condos, Chair; M. Boucher, S. Magowan, D. O'Rourke Also Present: C. Hafter, City Manager; D. Gravelin, Assistant City Manager; T. Duff, Planning Commission; A. Clift, G. Blankenheim, J. Jaeger, K. Lesser, S. Casale 1. Comments & Questions from the Audience, not related to Agenda Items: Ms. Clift noted that South Burlington will be celebrating its sesquicentennial in 2015. She also said that the city is losing the people who know the city's history and suggested that some effort be started to prepare for this occasion. Mr. Boucher suggested she talk with the Steering Committee. Mr. Condos recommended talking with people such as Sylvia Smith, Sonny Audette, and Bill Cimonetti. 2. Announcements & City Manager's Report: Mr. Hafter reported on the following: a. The Council's second budget workshop will be on 22 February, 7 p.m. b. The 5 March agenda will include interviews for the City Charter Committee. People are urged to apply. c. The CCTA Board will meet on 28 February, 5 p.m. d. The Steering Committee will meet on 15 March, 7 p.m. 3. Presentation from Vermont Organized Communities Against Landfills (VOCAL) re: proposed CSWD Project in Williston, VT: Mr. Casale stressed that this is not a "Nimby" issue. There are both health and capacity issues. Many homes were built in the proposed landfill area without any notice to buyers of the proposed landfill siting. Mr. Casale said Williston bound themselves to an agreement and gave away the right to change anything. Some of the issues that concern VOCAL include: a. No definitive start/finish date b. Lack of local voice c. Proven health threats d. Failure of "new technologies" e. Violation of Airport Safety f. Definitive erosion of property values Mr. Casale said the Tom Moreau of the Solid Waste District had told him that the landfill would not be needed. The new capacity at Coventry could handle the area's needs. Mr. Casale noted that population growth has leveled off. In addition, 17% of household recyclables are still not being captured, which would reduce the amount going into a landfill. In addition, construction and demolition waste are not taken for recycling, which is another 29% of solid waste. Mr. Casale said there is no plan to capture and recycle organics, which are the cause of health risks and which represent 36,250 tons annually. Mr. Casale said a landfill needs to be fed. He felt that even if it were possible to reduce the waste stream, that wouldn't happen, because it would be needed to fill the landfill. Mr. O'Rourke questioned whether new technology would just be ignored. Mr. Casale said if you have the land, you need the tipping fees to be responsible to your stakeholders. He added that there is a lot of money invested in this, and now they have to make it pay off. Mr. Casale then addressed the Airport issue. He noted that birds smash into planes and bring them down, and birds hover over landfills. Both the EPA and FAA recommend 6 miles between and airport and a landfill. The distance between the Williston site and Burlington International Airport is 2.5 miles. Mr. Casale then showed aerial views of the Coventry and Moretown landfills showing how isolated they are, and then the Williston site surrounded by housing. Mr. Casale also addressed the polyethylene landfill liners. He noted they are damaged by household solvents and the weight of settling trash. He quoted an environmental engineer at McGill who said there is "almost no chance it won't rip." Mr. Casale said Tom Moreau also said he couldn't guarantee that it wouldn't rip. Health concerns cited by Mr. Casale include acute respiratory infections in children and lung cancer. In New York State they have found elevated instances of these in the areas around landfills. Mr. Casale cited a list of chemicals found in landfills and their possible affect on health. He added that there are other chemicals for which they don't yet know the detrimental affects. Mr. Casale said there is also an issue of ground water contamination. In a statement made on Channel 17, the danger of this isn't to Williston but to those "downstream" such as South Burlington. Mr. Casale again stressed that the landfill is unnecessary. He said if it is put there, there will be an effort to get waste from other places to put into it. There is almost 30 years capacity left in existing facilities, and by then Mr. Casale said there will be proven new technologies to address the issue. Mr. Casale said that Tom Moreau has said he wished he'd done more to alert the residents of Williston. He did write a letter to the local officials, but they did nothing. Mr. Magowan asked what VOCAL wants of South Burlington. Mr. Casale said South Burlington should "be aware" and guide their CSWD rep. Mr. Magowan said those representatives are independent, and the Council can't tell them what to do. Mr. O'Rourke said this presentation needs to be made to the CSWD Board. Mr. Casale concluded by saying there are already 2 leaking landfills in Williston, right next to this site. 4. Public Art Competition for Healthy Living, 222 Dorset Street: Ms. Hinds explained the "public art" concept for the "blue zone" area near the former Lake Buick location soon to be Healthy Living. The aim is to create a gateway to the City Center. The challenge is that this site will be a supermarket with 4 rows of parking, a sidewalk, etc. To address this, a design competition is proposed to challenge the working artists in the community, including students and others who don't typically become involved in the public process. Ms. Hinds reviewed the Planning Commission's involvement in this concept and the work of John Zwick. Mr. O'Rourke asked where the funding would come from. Ms. Hinds asked for a process similar to the Stormwater Utility. Mr. Hafter said that was funded from general fund revenues until there was income to pay it back. Ms. Hinds said if the Council gives them a budget, they will stick to it. Ms. Hinds indicated that funds would include: concepting, creating/installing the art work, involvement in a public process, and a modest honorarium to the artists. Ms. Hinds also noted that if this doesn't happen, there is a stipulation in the Healthy Living approval, that they would have to come back to the DRB for the standard sidewalk, landscaping, etc. The DRB was OK with this. Mr. Condos asked Ms. Lesser when Healthy Living would be breaking ground. Ms. Lesser said April 1. She also noted that she is investing "everything" in this space. Mr. Condos felt this is the kind of thinking that is needed to make the City Center happen. Mr. O'Rourke agreed. Mr. Boucher was not convinced about the funding method. Ms. Hinds offered to show members the spreadsheet they have been working from. Mr. Magowan moved to approve the expenditure of $70,000 as outlined in Ms. Hinds' memorandum. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed 3-1 with Mr. Boucher opposing. 5. Review the Agenda for the Development Review Board Meeting of 20 February 2007: No issues were raised. 6. Review and Approve Minutes from Regular City Council Meeting of 5 February 2007: Mr. Magowan moved to approve the Minutes of 5 February as written. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 7. Sign Disbursement Orders: Disbursement Orders were signed. 8. Consider Entering Executive Session to Discuss Real Property Acquisition and Litigation: Mr. Magowan moved that the Council meet in Executive Session for the purpose of discussing real property acquisition and litigation and resume regular session only for the purpose of making a decision on real property and/or adjourning. Mr. Boucher seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 9. Regular Session: The Council returned to regular session. Mr. Boucher moved the city exercise the option for purchase of the Scott parcel. Mr. Magowan seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Mr. Magowan moved adjournment. Mr. Boucher seconded. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:15pm. 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