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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 05/04/2015 CITY COUNCIL 4 MAY 2015 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 4 May 2015, at 6:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset Street. MEMBERS PRESENT: P. Nowak, Chair; H. Riehle, C. Shaw, M. Emery, T. Chittenden ALSO PRESENT: K. Dorn, City Manager; T. Hubbard, Deputy City Manager; P. Conner, Director of Planning & Zoning; J. Louisos, B. Benton, T. Harrington, S. Quest, B. Gagnon, Planning Commission; J. Murray, Librarian; B. Finnigan and other members of the Library Board of Trustees; L. Bedinger, B. Nowak, P. Stabler, S. Dooley, B. Bull, 1. Agenda Review: Additions, deletions or changes in order of agenda items: No changes were made to the Agenda. 2. Comments & Questions from the public not related to the agenda: There were no issues raised. 3. Announcements and City Manager’s Report: Mr. Dorn: The Rotary is leading the effort to plan the city’s 150th anniversary celebration. They are interested in having a beer tent at the park (there would be a catering license). If members have an issue with this, they were asked to let Mr. Dorn know. The houses on Picard Circle came down this week. The area has been reseeded and looks good. Staff met with architects regarding the facility assessment. The city’s plan will be merged with that of the School District. The branding study kicks off tomorrow night with a leadership meeting at 7 p.m. Mr. Dorn recommended that Council members attend. The Master Planning/Vision Task Force will meet on Thursday evening. The Library visioning meeting was held last week and was excellent. Mr. Dorn and Mr. Hubbard participated in the Open House for Common Roots at the Wheeler Center. Met with Karen Walton, the new CCTA head. Council members reported on meetings and events they had attended. 4. Consent Agenda: a. Sign Disbursement b. Approve Minutes for 20 April 2015 Ms. Riehle moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Mr. Shaw seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 5. Joint Meeting with South Burlington Planning Commission: Ms. Nowak thanked Mr. Gagnon for his work on the Airport properties and for the presentation he made at the Airport. Ms. Louisos updated the Council on the Commission’s on‐going work. The biggest push is for the new Land Development Regulations which have many changes to the whole city as well the inclusion of the City Center. There were 2 major outreach sessions. It appears that public hearings will be set for early June. Mr. Conner noted that if the public hearings are in June, the Commission would then consider any changes brought by the public and then send the document to the City Council. The Council would then have a first reading with possible discussion and then warn its own public hearing. If the Council then makes any changes, another public hearing would have to be warned. Ms. Louisos noted the Commission is also working on the revised Comprehensive Plan. The hope is to warn a public hearing for later in the summer. Mr. Conner said the City Council would have to have two public hearings on the Comprehensive Plan. He noted the current plan expires in March, 2016. The hope is to have the document to the Council by summer. Ms. Louisos then noted some of the smaller tasks the Commission is undertaking including requests for changes in LDRs, presentations from various groups, street naming, etc. Ms. Nowak asked what has been the most challenging for the Commission. Ms. Louisos said it is hard for the public to picture what the documents are saying. The Commission is struggling to put things into a format that is clear to someone who is looking at it for the first time. Ms. Harrington added that it is also hard to know “where to stop” as one thing leads to another. Ms. Quest noted that even after the Form Based Codes Committee met for 2 years, people are coming to the Commission for changes. Mr. Shaw asked about the official map. Ms. Louisos said that is a big issue. The block standards that were originally proposed were hard to figure out, so the Commission has decided to use the official map to lay out the “bones” of City Center. Mr. Shaw said he would hope there is space for creative solutions and that everything isn’t mandated so thoroughly. Mr. Gagnon explained the “primary” and “secondary” street concept and noted that for the Official Map, only the “primary” streets would be delineated. Ms. Riehle asked if there are any topics that need to be in the Comprehensive Plan that might require more information of consulting work. Ms. Louisos said they have not yet encountered any. Mr. Gagnon added that the committee work was good, and the Commission has asked committees to review some of the Commission work. He didn’t feel there was an issue with needing more information. Ms. Quest noted that the Sustainable Agriculture Committee has taken a lot of the recommendations of things from the City Council. Ms. Louisos noted that committee is working without a staff member. Ms. Emery asked if the LDRs are for City Center only or for the whole city. Ms. Louisos said such things as stormwater considerations are city-wide, but the greatest number of changes relates to City Center. Ms. Emery asked if the Commission has looked at the East Terrace issue. Mr. Conner said the Commission has been briefed, but they have delayed any action until the City Council decides what direction to take. Ms. Nowak expressed concern with sub-committees going beyond the activities within their purview. She noted a proposed fund-raising activity by the Sustainable Agriculture subcommittee. She felt if that group wants to go in that direction, they should consider becoming independent of the city in the way that the Friends of the South Burlington Library operates. This particularly involves “ongoing tasks.” Ms. Nowak was also concerned with a recent letter that the Sus Ag group sent out in an attempt to match landowners with people who want to have gardens. She was concerned that this did not get reviewed by the City Attorney, and there are potential liability issues that could put the city in jeopardy. Mr. Shaw was concerned that Sus Ag is acting like a “standing committee.” Mr. Chittenden added that some of their tasks, while important, are outside of the scope of the city committee. Mr. Shaw agreed with Ms. Nowak’s suggestion that Sus Ag operate as a non-city group. Commission members were concerned that they were no prepared for this discussion. Ms. Emery suggested in the future, the Council might alert a committee as to what concerns exist. Mr. Shaw noted that the Design Review Committee has been working mainly with Form Based Codes. He asked if there has been any thought to expanding their role to consider Route 7 and/or Route 2. Ms. Louisos felt that is a good topic for discussion. Mr. Conner said one question is whether the approach should be more like a Form Based Code or a “design review” approach. Ms. Riehle asked whether the redevelopment of the former Friendly’s property is within the purview of the Commission. Mr. Conner said the DRB is in the process of deliberating on that. Ms. Louisos gave Council members a copy of the Commission’s proposed work schedule for the next few months. 6. Presentation on current activities and plan for the year ahead from the Library Board of Trustees: Ms. Finnigan said the Board is very happy with the new Librarian and with some good changes that have been made. She noted that Library use is up 10%, e-book use is up 58%, circulation is up 6% and program attendance is up 45% this year. A recent “Get Curious About Reading” event drew 90 people, and a Vermont authors event had 103 people participating to meet 12 authors. Mr. Shaw felt it was good to see the Library becoming more of a community center. Ms. Finnigan said they have embarked on a robust fundraising effort with a good committee spearheading it. There will also be a meeting with fundraising consultants. The Board is planning for a memorial for the former Board Chair at the Wheeler House garden. A steering committee (2 Board members, the Librarian and 2 community members) has been formed to undertake a visioning process. There will be some small focus groups, especially for children, teens and young adults. The hope is to have a visioning statement in June. Mr. Shaw noted that the 20-30 age group seems to be the least served. Ms. Finnigan said there is a younger adult book group that meets at Healthy Living. She also noted that group has “a lot on their plates.” The average participation in that group is about 6. Mr. Chittenden suggested serving coffee. Ms. Nowak said it is exciting to think that a new Library may become a reality. She stressed that it will take a lot of work, but added that the community has a lot of philanthropic people who can add to the effort. She expressed amazement at how much gets done with so small a staff. 7. Presentation from Community Justice Center on Current Activities and proposed office relocation: Ms. Bedinger said they are now located with the school officers, but they have exceeded their physical capacity. The Center does medication, victim services, defender re-entry, consulting with the schools and more. They need additional help with victim services, but can’t get anyone because of the space issue. They also can’t bring in defendants, which is difficult for the re‐entry program. There are often conflicts for the use of space for meeting times. Ms. Nowak asked what is the largest number of people they need to accommodate. Ms. Bedinger said the largest she can recall was 17 people plus staff. Ms. Bedinger said their hope is to utilize some of the space above the Police Department. Mr. Dorn reviewed the history of leasing space there and noted there is some remaining uncommitted space. The city is looking at the possibility of furnishing the whole area. Ms. Bedinger said Bob Miller did cost estimates and felt they wouldn’t exceed $40,000. He said he would pay for materials and would allow for reimbursement over time. Operating costs would increase by about $1,000 a year. Mr. Hubbard noted that Ms. Bedinger would take on the effort to raise the $40,000. Mr. Dorn stressed that $40,000 represents an enormous discount from Mr. Miller. Council members were fully supportive of the effort. Mr. Hubbard said Mr. Miller would do the work for this group when the work for the other tenant is being done. 8. Presentation of CSWD FY’16 Budget: Mr. Stabler said that projected revenues are $9,800,000. Tipping fees will increase at the recovery facility as they have seen a big drop in the prices they get (from $95 to $72 a ton). Expenses are up a bit, to $9,500,000. They are hiring people to help address state laws regarding education of the public and enforcement. By 2020, there will be a requirement to recycle all organics. The existing facility will be able to accommodate that (Mr. Stabler explained the new process). The CSWD General Manager will be retiring at the end of 2016. A search process is beginning, and the hope is to have someone on board three months before he leaves so as to have a smooth transition. The strategic plan is being completed. It particularly addresses new technologies. Mr. Stabler said he would love to continue to serve as the city’s representative to CSWD’s Board. Ms. Emery moved to approve the CSWD budget as presented. Ms. Riehle seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 9. Consider Appointment of Paul Stabler to the CSWD Board as the City’s Representative: Ms. Emery moved to appoint Paul Stabler as the City’s representative to the CSWD Board. Mr. Shaw seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 10. Continuation of Council Discussion regarding Housing-related Concerns in the East Terrace/Spear Street neighborhood: Mr. Dorn distributed information from the Police Chief relating to the types of calls to the Police from the area in the past 3 years. Ms. Nowak noted the increase in “officer and citizen reported parking” issues and also 5 calls regarding alcohol use. Ms. Nowak said that she went to the neighborhood to see if she could pick out the rented houses. She had a discussion with a resident of the area at that time. Ms. Nowak also said that she has had several conversations with Mr. Connolly who owns 5 houses on East Terrace and 4 on Spear Street. He called from Ireland and expressed the desire to be part of the solution. He wants to meet with neighbors on both streets. Ms. Nowak said she thought a “win‐win” solution was possible, though there may be a need for more regulations. There are a number of owners who live in Chittenden County (not in the rental properties). Ms. Nowak felt they should also be responsive to neighbors’ concerns. Mr. Connolly will be in the US during the week of 25 May for about a week. He will then go back to Ireland for a month and then return permanently. Ms. Nowak suggested offering City Hall for a meeting between owners and neighbors. Owners would be told that if they don’t attend, there will be actions taken that they will not have a say in. Ms. Nowak also noted that UVM has a person who goes to residences in Burlington where students reside and gives students the “do’s and don’ts” of living in a community. Ms. Riehle felt any letter to owners should indicate the concerns and issues of neighbors and possible identified solutions in other communities. She noted that some homes are clearly in violation as to the number of unrelated people living in a house. Mr. Chittenden noted there is a UVM department that should be invited to the meeting as well. Their function is to deal with things such as this. Ms. Nowak asked members and neighbors to suggest to the City Manager by the end of the week things that should go into the letter. Mr. Dorn noted there is precedent in the City Charter for a “public forum” when there is an issue of concern (he read this passage). Mr. Shaw agreed to be temporary Chair of the forum, and Mr. Chittenden offered to participate as well. Ms. Nowak also noted that she stressed to Mr. Connolly that where there are as many as 6 or 7 unrelated people living in a house, this is a violation of the city’s regulations. Ms. Riehle moved to establish a neighborhood forum at a time and place to be determined for the East Terrace and Spear Street neighborhood for the purpose of soliciting ideas and to discuss concerns regarding issues that have been raised about non-owner residents. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 11. Recommendations to Council for Auditor: Mr. Hubbard reviewed the process for selecting an Auditor. He noted that after the RFP was sent to 14 firms, the city received 2 proposals, one from the existing Auditor. Both were good proposals but with very different costs, one being twice as much as the other. The search committee decided not to interview the applicants. Mr. Chittenden, who represented the Council on the committee, said the committee’s unanimous choice was RHR Smith. Their price is within the city’s budgeted amount. Mr. Chittenden said the committee also recommended that in the future, RFPs be sent out earlier in the year when first are not bogged down at tax time. Mr. Chittenden then moved to appoint RHR Smith as City Auditor. Ms. Riehle seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 12. Convene as South Burlington Liquor Control Commission to approve the following: a. Gonzo’s HD Sports -- Outside Consumption Permit Mr. Shaw moved that the Council reconvene as Liquor Control Board. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Shaw expressed concern that Gonzo’s is located in a strip mall. Ms. Nowak noted that there are only 2 businesses in that strip mall and one closes early. Mr. Shaw was also concerned with the possible use of parking spaces for outside consumption, not only in this location but if other places choose to serve alcohol outdoors. Ms. Nowak noted they would still have to get DRB approval where that issue would be addressed. Ms. Emery moved to approve the Outside Consumption Permit for Gonzo’s HD Sports as presented. Ms. Riehle seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Ms. Emery moved to reconvene as City Council. Mr. Shaw seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 13. Other Business: A. Items Held from Consent Agenda No items were held from the Consent Agenda. Ms. Riehle raised the question of ideas for employee recognition. The Council will take this up at a future meeting. Ms. Nowak reminded the Council of the need to have a review of the City Manager. As there was no further business to come before the Council, Mr. Shaw moved to adjourn. Ms. Riehle seconded. Motion passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 10:00 p.m. Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works. April 23, 2015 Janice Ladd City of South Burlington 575 Dorset Street South Burlington, VT 05403 Dear Janice: Attached please find copies of the Chittenden Solid Waste District Proposed FY 2016 Budget. CSWD is scheduled to meet with the City of South Burlington on Monday, May 4, 2015 at 6:30p.m. Please forward the attached copies to your City Council for their review. Also, please note that the front cover of our FY 16 Budget refers to a website www.cswd.net , where a complete detailed copy of our budget is available for review. The Board of Commissioners approved sending the Proposed FY 2016 Budget to Member towns for their approval on Wednesday, April 22, 2015. Below is Section 4. (b) of the Chittenden Solid Waste District Charter. Within 45 days of the approval of the budget by the Board of Commissioners, the legislative body of each member municipality shall act to approve or disapprove the budget. The budget shall be approved if approved by the legislative bodies of a majority of the member municipalities. (For such purposes, each member municipality shall be entitled to one vote.) A legislative body that disapproves the budget must file with the Board of Commissioners a written statement of objections to the budget identifying those specific items to be changed, and failure to file such statement of objections within the forty-five (45) day period shall constitute approval by such municipality. A legislative body that fails to act to approve or disapprove the budget within the forty-five (45) day period shall likewise be deemed to have approved the budget. As stated above, each member municipality may choose to approve or disapprove the budget prior to June 6, 2015. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thank you. Sincerely, Amy Jewell Administrative Manager Cc: Paul Stabler, Rep. Mark Boucher, Alt.