HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Natural Resources & Conservation Committee - 12/07/2022NATURAL RESOURCES & CONSERVATION COMMITTEE
Meeting minutes December 07, 2022 6:03 pm
Attending: David Wheeler (Staff Liaison), Jean Sebastien-Chaulot (Chr), Larry Kupferman (Vice
Chr), Helen Riehle (City Council Liaison), Katherine Boyk, John Bossange, Linda Bailey, Lisa
Yankowski. Michele Korpos (remoting in)
Absent: Drew Shatzer
1) Dave reviewed emergency procedures.
2) No Additions or deletions to the agenda.
3) No public comments nor attendees.
4) Linda motioned to accept the minutes from November. Larry 2nd. Minutes accepted
unanimously, Lisa abstained.
5) City updates from Dave
a. Andrew is officially, no longer employed by the city. We will miss him and wish
him well.
b. Dave has been sending annual reports to the city. He showed one of his graphs
with a running accumulation of secured grant funding for various projects over
years. Grants help deflect what the tax payers had to pay. Stormwater/waste
water facilities are in need of upgrades. Damage done to a pumping station
generator when a vehicle drove into the building. The repair costs will be
covered by insurance. All the graphs can be found on the city website under
Storm Water. Treatment efforts have removed lots of Phosphorus from waste
water and preventing it from going into local waterways. Dave sent us a copy of
the NRCC Annual Report to that he sent to the city council. Let him now about
any concerns.
c. Martha is now handling city finances and we have a new Human Resources
employee.
d. We had a quick review of working groups within the NRCC: Open Space, Tree
Canopy, local newspaper articles.
e. The Round Goby is a new invasive found in the Hudson River. Originally
introduced into the Great Lakes to help increase the size of bass for fishing- this
has backfired. They can survive in “poor waters” like Potash Brook and they eat
the eggs of native fish species. The Champlain Locks were to be kept closed to
prevent the Goby from migrating into Lake Champlain. The locks did open but were
being monitored. Round Goby | National Invasive Species Information Center
f. Larry mentioned that beavers are actively building a dam behind Queen City Park on
Potash Brook. This is not the first time.
6) ARPA Funds Update- Jean & Larry
a. The presentation was before the city council 11/30. Larry & Jean presented the letter
from our group. Lisa had attended in person and Helen was there as part of the city
council. Helen inquired how we thought the meeting had gone. Larry & Jean said how
what we were asking for was minor to what some of the other city committees are
hoping to get. Our requests are for a consultant as we work on the Open Space Plan,
the Emerald Ash Borer Treatment and for purchasing more trees for the city to increase
the canopy. Helen mentioned the presentation from Ms Katie Buckley and Mr Brady
from the VLCT (Vermont League of Cities & Towns). VLCT are advisors for cities & towns
and are available to answer and assist with ARPA Funds. Ms Buckley mentioned that
ARPA funds can be matched with Federal Grant Funds-this is an exception to regular
Federal grant programs. And it is a way to increase/extend ARPA funds to accomplish
more necessary work. Reference the meeting minutes, page 4.
i. Draft Minutes - City Council - 11/30/2022 (sbvt-records.info)
John asked who does the grant applications. Dave and Helen said it is usually
done by the various city departments. Larry passed around a handout on ARPA
Funding information from the state.
7) Comprehension Plan discussion
a. Planning is hoping to have a preliminary draft by autumn. There will be meetings for all,
by the areas or regions in the city and by specific topic groups. Linda was asking about
the age for some of the maps in the current plan. Dave believes they are to be updated.
The maps are used by the state and Act 250. John wondered how The Comprehensive
Plan is used in Act 250 hearing. Katherine then asked how the Open Space Plan
would/will work with the Comprehensive Plan. Especially pertaining to agriculture-
mentioned for it’s importance in the plan. Michele feels we need to bring more focus
and attention to small scale farming and agriculture. Promote it more. Perhaps find out
what the residents of South Burlington think.
b. The committee feels there needs to be more community garden space and maybe this
needs to be added to the Comprehensive Plan. Katherine reminded everyone the
concerns around fertilizing. Michele again wondered how updated endangered species
maps are. 70% on the SEQ is slated for conservation- this was another inquiry.
c. Larry thinks we should we should start with #C: What further information does the
NRCC need in order to provide feedback on the Comprehensive Plan, for the February
agenda.
d. Helen reiterated that the city has lots of information and are looking to hired someone
for GIS- get the information organized and able to be used easier.
8) Members updates
a. Chair- nothing
a. SB Land Trust- John - SBLT: wrote a memo to Paul Connor & Planning Committee to
encourage them to include more of the grasslands in the future land use map in the
Comprehensive Plan. The SBLT is also involved in helping to support the conservation of
the Long property. They have been talking to the Climate Action Group. The Land Trust
would to see new overlay maps indicating where identified grasslands are in relation to
future land use. Katherine inquired if the Trust believes there are more grassland area
than what is currently depicted
b. CVCP- John- Other towns are trying to get better updated information and mapping
too. Between the member towns- there is still a lot of open space, connected wildlife
habitat. We need to use our knowledge to better use.
c. Weed Warriors- nothing.
d. Airport Land use-Michele- She has not met with the manager. Helen asked what
questions Michele has, she – Helen, was just at an airport commission meeting. Helen
will follow-up. The commission is working on a new plan to link up the open land
Michele is asking about with the rest of the city
e. Open Space Committee- Katherine- we are close with the inventory . We are still
working on Wednesday, at 6pm at the library
f. Tree Canopy Work Group- John - They feel the ordinance needs to be gone over and
they are waiting to talk to the city arborist Craig Lambert. The NRCC is the Tree Board-
what does that really mean? Example, “ Remove 1 tree and replace with 9 others.”
Need to compare with what developers are doing too.
g. Drew is not in attendance. Katherine is working on her water article. Michele is
changing her topic to nesting birds for her article and will check in with the Other Paper.
h. Common Area for Dogs- Lisa - The new dog park at Wheeler Park has unofficially
opened and has been busy. There is still work to been done. There is a plan to renovate
Farrell Dog park due to drainage issues and new fencing is needed.
Meeting ended 8:14pm. Lisa moved to closed, Katherine 2nd