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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 11/04/2019CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 4 November 2019, at 6:30 p.m., in the Conference Room, City Hall, 575 Dorset Street. Members Present: H. Riehle, Chair; M. Emery, T. Barritt, T. Chittenden, D. Kaufman Also Present: K. Dorn, City Manager; T. Hubbard, Deputy City Manager; A. Lafferty, City Attorney; P. Conner, Director of Planning & Zoning; T. LeBlanc, Assessor; D. Crawford, N. Warner, L. Yankowski, R. Greco, M. Mittag, M. Ostby, B. Sirvis, K. Donahue, P. Leduc, J. Simson, B. Bowlin, P. O’Brien, L. Nadeau, P. DeMichele, H. & S. Barton, K. Datillio, E. Kohler, Ms. Smith, P. Smyer, J. Leas, J. Rankin, other members of the public 1. Instructions on exiting building in case of emergency: Mr. Dorn provided instructions on emergency evacuation of the building. 2. Agenda Review: Additions, deletions or changes in order of agenda items: Ms. Emery asked to add an “other business” item regarding a returning resident who wants to plant trees to honor his late parents. Ms. Riehle suggested having a formal program for that in the city. Ms. Riehle noted that item “C” should be removed from the Consent Agenda as it will be addressed at the next Council meeting (18 November). Mr. Hubbard asked to remove $2,000,000 in funds from the warrant as this will be addressed later in the meeting. 3. Comments and Questions from the public not related to the agenda: Mr. Donahue noted that 6 homes on Pinnacle drive were flooded during this last storm. The new stormwater ponds were finished this summer and were brought up to the new standards. The pond in question is #6, near 28 Pinnacle Drive. Mr. Donahue noted that no one had ever had water in their homes from the system built in 1995 until this storm. He added that people will be out of pocket as much as $30,000 from the damage to their homes. Mr. Dorn said the engineers need to recalculate what happened there. He noted that similar issues at Butler Farms a few years ago were addressed by people having backflow preventers. He added that he will talk to Mr. DiPietro about what they witnessed and whether there was flooding from other ponds as well. Mr. Donahue hoped this could be done as soon as possible as people want to start rebuilding. Mr. Mittag asked that the balance noted from the FY19 budget be used to replenish the Open Space Fund. He noted the Council had assured people there would be budgeting for park maintenance. Mr. Hubbard said there will be a report on that at the 18 November meeting. CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 2 Mr. Leduc expressed his gratitude to the City Council and to those involved in the new Food Shelf. He cited the power of the community to come together. On the first morning the Food Shelf was open, it served double digits of people coming. Donations are also being received. Mr. Hubbard noted that the city raised over $20,000. There is $11,000 in the account now. There have been in-kind donations and volunteers doing the work, which resulted in the cost being lower than anticipated. 4. Announcements and City Manager’s Report: Council members reported on meetings and events they had attended in recent weeks. Mr. Dorn: The Steering Committee will meet tomorrow with the City’s Legislators, 7 p.m., at the Middle School. There will be a special City Council meeting on Friday, 8 a.m., regarding amendments to the Land Development Regulations. The ribbon cutting for Market Street will take place at 11 a.m. on 13 November, followed by the groundbreaking for the new City Hall/Library/Community Center. Mr. Dorn will be at Harbor View tomorrow to discuss South Burlington issues. The Airport Sound Study report is now on the BTV website. Members should let Mr. Dorn know if they wish to comment. The bridge between South Burlington and Williston on Kimball Avenue is closed due to damage from the recent storm. People should not even attempt to walk across it. Signals on Williston Rd. are being re-aligned to address the added traffic. The city is looking to the state for emergency funding. If there is an “emergency” declaration, they city will look to FEMA for funding as well. The bridge was to be replaced, but this will now require speeding up that process. It may be necessary to remove the bridge completely because of the damage at both ends. Mr. Dorn stressed this is a dangerous situation. Mr. Kaufman noted the traffic backed up to Brownell Rd. this morning. 5. Consent Agenda: A. Approve and Sign Disbursement B. Approve Minutes for 3 and 16 September C. Accept Stormwater System Maintenance Agreement in connection with Sommerfield Avenue CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 3 A correction was made to the 16 September minutes in the section concerning the fund balance. The total fund balance is $314,000. Of this, $243,000.00 was added to the paving budget, and $80,000.00 was kept as a fund balance. Item C was removed from the Consent Agenda and will be dealt with at the next meeting. Mr. Barritt moved to approve items A and B of the Consent Agenda with the amendment to the 16 September minutes. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed unanimously 6. Discussion with Blane Bowlin of Tyler Tech regarding the Citywide Reappraisal: Mr. Bowlin outlined the phases of the reappraisal process as follows: 1. Data collection (he noted they will start in the field tomorrow and will verify what the City Appraiser has in this fines, indoor and outdoor. Every property in the city will be reappraised. Appraisers will wear yellow vests and have IDs. They will make 3 attempts to enter a home during the week, then will go out on a Saturday. If they still can’t get in, they will send a form for verification.) 2. Data entry of any changes 3. Analysis of sales, etc. 4. Establishment of values by neighborhood 5. Hearings/adjustments 6. A formal appeal process Mr. Dorn noted there is an ad with this information in The Other Paper. There will also be a dedicated web page and information on other social media. Mr. Leblanc added that there will be a dedicated phone line for inquiries and an email address. Mr. Leblanc stressed that the city will not make any more money from the reappraisal. Some appraisals could go up, some down, some stay the same. He felt that since the Grand List has increased, taxes could go down. Mr. Leblanc also noted that he will do follow-ups with home owners to be sure the appraisers have been courteous. Ms. Riehle asked about basements that were flooded in the recent storm and may not be redone before the reappraisal. Mr. Leblanc said the home value is determined as of April 1st. He also noted that some repairs will need permits. CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 4 Mr. Mittag asked whether solar panels add value to a home. Mr. Leblanc said they do not in Vermont. A member of the audience asked what will happen if people don’t let the appraiser enter. Mr. Bowlin said they will estimate, take photos from the public right-of-way. He also noted that the structure plus the land equals the overall value of the property. Ms. Riehle asked about evaluating homes near the Airport. Mr. Bowlin said sales in the area have already taken that into account. Mr. Leblanc said they cannot change the value of homes until there is sales data. Ms. Greco asked whether people can be informed when appraisers will be in their area. Mr. Bowlin said they can. Mr. Leblanc added there will be information on the website along with pictures of the assessors and their vehicles. Mr. Barritt asked whether there have been background checks of the appraisers. Mr. Bowlin said there have. Mr. Leblanc said the goal is to make things as fair as possible. He noted that finished basements are a problem and can happen over time as can units above a garage. They try to pick up on these. He said if a homeowner is concerned about letting someone into the home, then don’t let them in. 7. Review and Possibly approve proposal from Earth Economics to develop a valuation model for various and many natural resource-related features of the Southeast Quadrant as a component of the overall Interim Zoning studies currently being undertaken: Mr. Kaufman moved to approve the proposal from Earth Economics and to authorize the City Manager to negotiate the terms of the contract. Ms. Emery seconded. Ms. Emery said she would like to model to go beyond the Southeast Quadrant as the IZ Open Space Committee did. Mr. Chittenden said he would vote against the motion. He didn’t feel it would let the city do anything more than it is doing now. Mr. Barritt said he didn’t want the cost to go beyond the stated price. If they can do parcels outside the SEQ without increasing the cost, he was OK with it; if not, he was opposed. CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 5 Mr. Hubbard noted the money for the study will have to come out of contingency money. Mr. Chittenden said he felt that money could be better spent. Mr. Nadeau asked why this is surfacing now. Ms. Riehle said the city has been looking for someone to do the study, and Jessica Louisos recommended this company. Mr. Nadeau said he talked to someone at the company and they won’t finish the study till the end of February which would require another extension to Interim Zoning. He said people are being held hostage by Interim Zoning, and this process is making it very difficult for them. He felt that even if this is approved, Interim Zoning should end in 3 months. In the vote that followed, the motion passed 4-1 with Mr. Chittenden voting against. 8. Public Hearing, Council discussion and possible action related to extending the time period during which Interim Zoning bylaws are in affect: Mr. Barritt moved to open the public hearing. Mr. Kaufman seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Mr. Barritt moved to extend Interim Zoning by three months. Ms. Emery seconded. Mr. Chittenden said he will vote against the motion as it creates uncertainty for landowners. He felt the city has done a lot to conserve open space and he supports that. He also cited the need for housing. Mr. Barritt moved to close the public hearing. Mr. Kaufman seconded. Motion passed unanimously. In the vote on the motion to extend Interim Zoning that followed, the motion passed 4-1 with Mr. Chittenden opposing. 9. Update from Affordable Housing Committee on status of committee initiatives (consider possible reduction of development review and permitting fees for required inclusionary dwelling units as part of zoning amendments under review by Planning Commission): CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 6 Mr. Simson advised that in a meeting with developers, they were told that there is a cost to developers for having to provide units at a lower price point. The committee has come to the conclusion that one way to provide/fund affordable housing is to have the whole community participate by waiving some of the permit fees for affordable units. This would be only for the inclusionary units. The committee felt that Planning & Zoning fees could be waived immediately; impact fees would be more complex a process and would have to be looked at individually. Mr. Conner said staff has run through some numbers. There is a cost of about $6000 in fees for new multi-unit development units (e.g., $800 Planning & Zoning; $2000 sewer, etc.) and somewhat higher for single family units (e.g., $1300 Planning & Zoning fees). The proposal to reduce/waive some of these fees would be applicable only in the Transit Overlay District and would involve about 10 units per year. This would add up to $10,000-$12,000 in Planning & Zoning fees for the year. Ms. Emery said she favors waiving Planning & Zoning fees as she felt this will tilt the scale to make housing more affordable. Mr. Conner asked whether staff should explore impact fees as well. Council members felt that can be discussed later. Ms. Ostby said the timing of this is perfect. With inclusionary zoning, a developer must be given an offset. The regulations now allow that to be only in the form of density. Developers say density isn’t always the answer. Waiving some fees would also show that the community supports affordability. Mr. O’Brien said it would be wise for the Council to look at all the fees. Ms. Riehle said the Council is looking at what it can do in 2 weeks. They can consider other fees at a later time. Ms. DeMichele said the City of Burlington offsets partial fees. The city should look at how this works in Burlington. Mr. O’Brien said he didn’t understand why this wouldn’t affect all affordable units and not only the inclusionary ones. He cited the affordable units at South Village where they got a density bonus, but the units have to be perpetually affordable. The Council asked Mr. Conner to come back with more information. CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 7 10. Update on City/School Collaboration: Mr. Hubbard referred back to the $2,000,000 removed from the warrants in the Consent Agenda. He noted that the School District has 13 days when they cannot meet payments. In the past, they have gotten loans to cover this. The suggestion is that the city lend the money to the School District at a lower interest rate. The money would be paid back with the interest when property tax money is received. This will ultimately save the tax payers money at no cost to the city. Ms. Emery moved to approve the $2,000,000.00 loan to the School District as presented. Mr. Chittenden seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 11. Consider and possibly approve a proposed prohibition of parking on a portion of Brookwood Drive and Sherry Road: Mr. Conner noted a history of parking challenges on both sides of the streets. The new building on the corner has added to the problems including an issue of emergency access. The recommendation is to allow parking on only one side of Brookwood and not at all on the first 150 feet of Sherry Rd. Mr. Conner added that there have been concerns with some driveways being blocked, so there would also be painted parking spaces outlined where they are allowed. Mr. Barritt and Ms. Emery noted the parking spaces in the parking lot of the new building are being underused, so they felt this makes good sense. Mr. Barton, a resident of Brookwood, said their problem is the new businesses. He was concerned that the current proposal would prohibit him from parking in front of his house or anywhere near it. He also cited problems with the owner of the new building who “hangs up on us” when they call to complain about the employees parking on the street instead of in the lot. Ms. Barton said if the indicated parking spaces are taken away, those employees will just go down the block further. She noted that it took her an 8-point turn to get out of her driveway. She also noted that at an event at the new building, neighbors called the police when things got so bad. They received no return calls from the city and no responses to emails. Ms. Barton said that the employees have told them they are not allowed to park in the parking lot. Mr. Conner said he would be happy to contact the property owner. CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 8 A member of the audience suggested “resident parking only” on those streets. Mr. Conner said there presently is no structure for that. There would have to be a whole system set up (IDs for allowable cars, etc.). He stressed that the important concern now is having access for emergency vehicles. Another Brookwood resident said they have been a residential community and the city has pushed a commercial use into that community. He said they feel like they are living “in a commercial parking lot.” Ms. Riehle suggested the Council send a letter to the building owner regarding the issue and asking that he find parking for his employees in other lots. Mr. Datillio thanked Mr. Chittenden for bringing this issue forward. He said he has seen their residential neighborhood turn into a commercial one, and from a very small business to a very large one. They want to be a residential neighborhood again. He felt the city let in a commercial business that doesn’t care about them. He cited over 200 years of combined residency by people on Brookwood. They didn’t complain about UMall or Hannaford, but this is enough. The new building owner is taking away their right to get their streets plowed, to have emergency services. He felt it was the City Council’s responsibility to tell the owner his employees have to park in their own parking lot. Ms. Riehle assured residents that their issues were not falling on deaf ears. She hoped the neighborhood could be returned to resident use, but said it may not happen overnight. The city will try to work with the businesses as to how they need to fit in. Ms. Sirvis said this is an example of what can happen because the Council voted to eliminate minimum parking requirements. And this issue occurred when there were requirements. Mr. Kaufman said he agrees 100% with Mr. Datillio that residents have a right to have their street returned to a neighborhood street. Ms. Riehle suggested starting with one side of the street parking, marking out parking spaces and working with the new building owner and other owners to find parking for their employees. A member of the audience said the process for “residential parking only” should also be started. CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 9 Mr. Datillio said “no parking” isn’t going to solve anything. The employees have been told to park on the street. If they park in their own lot, the problem is solved. Mr. Nadeau said there once was a “resident parking only” prohibition. That should be looked into. Ms. Riehle said it will take some work to get there. Mr. Dorn said it will require an Ordinance process, and it needs to get better before that process. Mr. Conner suggested no parking on Brookwood from Sherry Rd. to Dorset Street as a safety measure, and striping of parking spaces on the north side of the street. He felt Sherry Rd. is too narrow for parking. Members agreed. 12 Presentation and Discussion with representatives of the applicant in connection with advanced notice of an application for a Certificate of Public Good to install a new utility pole on property located at 255 Quarry Hill Road and thereon install an antennae and associated equipment to be filed with the Public Utility Commission: Ms. Kohler noted that on 2 October they filed a 60-day advance notice to the municipality, property owners, etc. This expired on 2 December. They will then be in a position for a full filing. The proposed light pole with antenna will be 37 feet tall at the top of the antenna. They have been deploying a number of these in the area. Mr. Barritt asked if there is a height restriction in the area. Ms. Smith said they used the light standard for that area. Mr. Barritt then asked how far the pole is from the corner of the building. Ms. Kohler said 100 feet southwest from where it was originally proposed. Mr. Barritt asked if it can be even further from living spaces. Ms. Kohler said this location is agreed upon with the building owner. She said it is extremely safe. She herself would be happy to live there. Ms. Kohler noted that ATT won the bid to deploy a nationwide network. It will carry the frequency to support the First Net Network and will be available locally for public safety uses and priority uses in an emergency. Ms. Emery asked Ms. Lafferty what the city can do regarding location. Ms. Lafferty said there are limitations. They can’t discriminate among providers and can’t consider health impacts. She noted that the application hasn’t been submitted yet. The city can participate at the Public CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 10 Service Board which will have to take the city’s comments into account but may not act on them. Mr. Barritt reminded the applicant to check the height of the light fixture. 13. Winooski Valley Park District Annual Report and Request for Funding: Mr. Warner reviewed the history. He noted the District now manages 753 acres. The most recent acquisition is at the mouth of the Winooski River. They will re-naturalize the site. The District has done significant work in South Burlington (Red Rocks, etc.) as a contractor and are now doing similar work for other towns. This is in the budget as a source of revenue. They have been able to keep budgetary growth down to 2.6%. This will include catching up on deferred maintenance. They are looking to acquire some property in Williston and the City of Winooski Memorial Park. Mr. Warner thanked the city for its continuing support. 14. Consider and possibly approve minor change to City Center portion of Official Map for a Roadway Segment on the North Side of Williston Road near Dorset Street: Mr. Conner explained the nature of the Official Map. This request is for a minor change. Joe Larkin and the adjacent property owner have a deal in which they would share the road. This does not affect with Williston Road/Dorset Street alignment, and actually may improve that intersection. Mr. Chittenden moved to approve the minor change to the Official Map as presented. Ms. Emery seconded. Motion passed 4-0 (Mr. Kaufman was away from the table during this vote). 15. Council review and discussion related to a proposed MOU between the Cities of South Burlington, Winooski and Burlington on matters related to Burlington International Airport: Ms. Riehle reviewed the history of a previous MOU which reached an impasse. She noted that South Burlington and the other 2 cities are trying to make some progress. CITY COUNCL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 11 Ms. Riehle noted that the City of Burlington came back with a structure of what each community can do. It creates somewhat of a process going into the future. Ms. Riehle then outlined her concerns as follows: a. On p. 3, there should be more specificity relating finding additional dollars b. A section “n” should be added to require Burlington to pitch in to a “local match” Ms. Emery said if you make a decision that impacts people, you should be prepared to help mitigate that impact. Mr. Chittenden said he felt South Burlington should be billing the Airport for Mr. Dorn’s time, Mr. Conner’s time, etc. He didn’t feel any South Burlington money should be spent until that is done. Ms. Emery said she felt the MOU should address evacuation plans. She noted the Vermont Yankee did this. It should also address health issues such as hearing, cardio-vascular, school attention deficit, migraines, increased cases of cancer near the Airport, etc. It should also focus on the 5 homes in the 75dB zone. Mr. Barritt noted there are no evacuation plans for anything (fire, flood, small plane crash, etc.). Ms. Emery said she gets phone calls about this. Mr. Chittenden said this shouldn’t be the city’s plan; it should be the Airport’s. Ms. Emery questioned what “h” means: no taxes while the house is being insulated? Ms. Riehle said she would get information on that. Ms. Emery also felt that for each new noise exposure map there should be a new NCP. Ms. Riehle said South Burlington shouldn’t be told how to spend the money that comes to it. Mr. Kaufman said that should be deleted. Ms. Emery also felt there should be no military takeoff that reach a certain level until there is sound mitigation. Mr. Leas said the MOU may have some value and that the city shouldn’t shut up about what it wants. He noted that while other planes are getting quieter, the F35 isn’t. He felt the noise CITY COUNCIL 4 NOVEMBER 2019 PAGE 12 can’t be mitigated by insulation and they should be talking about cancelling the F35s. Ms. Emery said South Burlington is “being taken.” She added Burlington is doing the same thing with the proposal near Red Rocks Park. She felt the city needs to be more forceful in defending its residents. A member of the audience said there is a lot of neglect in letting these planes fly over the city’s children. She questioned why the Airport hasn’t ordered noise monitoring equipment and said it is absurd that takeoffs are being allowed at this time with no sound mitigation. She also noted that someone in Col. Smith’s entourage told her: “You can always move away.” She asked if that is what the National Guard stands for. Ms. Rankin said the MOU should have something about noise measuring and felt there is a reason it hasn’t happened before. If this had been done of the past few years, there would be data. Ms. Riehle said all the comments will be added to the MOU discussion and they will see what happens. 17 Reports from Councilors on Committee Assignments: No reports were presented. 18. Other Business: Ms. Riehle said the city should create a process for “memorial trees.” Mr. Barritt noted a missing 25 MPH sign on Spear Street at Quarry Hill, so the police can’t ticket speeders. He also asked for an energy/efficiency report from Lou Bresee, addressing dead trees on Dorset and Spear Streets, and a discussion regarding the selling of confiscated guns, which he felt should be destroyed. As there was no further business to come before the Council, Mr. Kaufman moved to adjourn. Mr. Barritt seconded. Motion passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 11:25 pm.