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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 01/11/2017 SOUTH BURLINGTON CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES 11 JANUARY 2017 The South Burlington City Council held a special meeting on Wednesday, 11 January 2017, at 5:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset Street. MEMBERS PRESENT: H. Riehle, Chair; P. Nowak; T. Barritt; M. Emery ALSO PRESENT: P. Conner, Director of Planning & Zoning; Kevin Dorn, City Manager; Andrew Bolduc, City Attorney; Ali Schwartz, Jonathan Hart, Brian Kelley, Gale Kirby, Dean Kirby, Kathy Muller. 1. Agenda: Additions, deletions or changes in order of agenda items: Councilor Emery opened the meeting at 5:30 pm. No changes were made to the Agenda. 2. Open to the public for items not related to the agenda: No comments. 3. Discuss Airport Home acquisition program, Kirby Road Councilors, staff, and members of the public discussed the Airport home acquisition program affecting Kirby Road and Lily Lane. Residents of the Kirby Cottage noted that to their knowledge, each of the Kirby cottages have had offers for purchase provided. A resident at 52 Kirby Road indicated that they had just received a letter from the Airport initiating the process. Residents indicated that to date, one resident of Kirby cottages has already moved out. A new occupant is there now, an employee of the Airport. Kirby Cottage residents were asked about the construction of their homes. They indicated that their homes were constructed with 10” insulated walls and heating bills of $40 per month. It is a community of each other. One resident said “We’ll never find neighbors like who we’ve had here.” A councilor asked about the incentives that the Airport / FAA has offered. The City of South Burlington has not been informed about what the offers consist of, the councilor reported. Mr. Hart indicated the following: · A higher-level of appraiser being engaged by the Airport for home appraisals; · Fair Market Value for the homes; · A differential payment, to help you to get a comparable home (residents noted that the calculation of this differential payment was “mysterious” to them as they each had different figures. Another resident noted that it appears that the differential can vary but seems to equal out the difference in the value of the houses on Lily Lane); · Moving expenses based on two quotes provided by the resident, up to $8,000 and within a certain relocation distance; · Closing costs and attorney’s fees; · Interest rate differential (the Airport / FAA will buy points if there is a differential in the interest rate of the mortgage); · Cable / phone / Verizon hookups to be paid for · No realtor costs as the seller Residents explained that to their understanding, they have three options when provided with an offer from the Airport: · Accept · Reject. If rejected, however, a resident can change their mind and express interest in selling up until the end of the program. Different residents have heard different statements from the Airport’s representatives about whether there would be money remaining at the end of the program for sure or not. · Counter. However, one resident said that they had been told by the Airport’s representatives that any negotiations would be on the appraised value and not the differential, as the differential may go down if the appraised value goes up. Gail Kirby expressed concern about what would happen if the Airport purchased 4 of the 7 homes and the 3 remaining covenant-restricted ones were to stay. She expressed concern that the City of Burlington would then become the homeowners association and make all of the decisions for the HOA. What would happen then? Residents asked where Councilor stood at the moment on the release of the covenants for the three homes on Lily Lane subject to them. Councilor Emery said that once the land is acquired by the Airport, it cannot be used for residential use for 20 years per FAA guidelines. Plus another 20 years if another grant is awarded during that time. Councilor Nowak said that she had run the taxes and checked on the cost to the City for the value of the affordable units in taxes that would have been received if the three units had not been awarded as affordable units. The total was about $12,000 to $14,000 over their lifetime. Councilor Barritt said that he can’t give an indication at the moment, but understands the concerns of the residents and is listening. Councilor Riehle said she wants to know whether the homes can be moved. She is leaning towards Councilor Emery’s position, she said. She said that Council’s fiscal responsibility to the community makes this a difficult decision. A Sophie’s Choice. Mr. Dorn reported that Messier’s, a company specializing in moving of structures, had looked at the Kirby cottages and they believe the homes can be moved, certainly six of the seven and likely all 7. Mr. Hart asked what the residents can do. Residents and Councilors discussed possible communication with the Council, the Airport, and the Burlington City Council. Following discussion, Councilor Barritt moved the meeting be adjourned. Motion seconded by Councilor Nowak and approved at 7:38 pm. Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.