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Trustees Meeting 1/10/22

  • Monday, January 10, 2022
    7 PM – 9 PM

Village Trustees

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SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, January 10, 2022

7:00 PM

PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau Jr., Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Matthew Sullivan, Chief of Police; Hank Lambert, Swanton Enhancement Project; David Winchester; Jason Cross and Dan Chevalier, Swanton Village Fire Department and Channel 16. Via Zoom: Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Dillon Dupont.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

  1. Call to Order:

Neal Speer, Village President, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

  1. Pledge of Allegiance:

Everyone stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

  1. Agenda Review:

Adam Paxman stated he needed an Executive Session to discuss a legal matter.

  1. Public Comment:

None.

  1. Approve and Accept Minutes from Wednesday, December 29, 2021:

Chris Leach made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from Monday, December 13, 2021 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

  1. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, January 6, 2022:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants #124-#1 through Thursday, January 6, 2022 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

  1. Police Update with Chief Matt Sullivan:

Chief Sullivan stated that in the month of December the Swanton Village Police Department responded to 74 calls for service. He said there were 4 thefts, 24 traffic enforcement contacts, 3 motor vehicle complaints, 4 welfare checks, 1 domestic assault, 9 citizens assists and 3 citizen disputes. Adam Paxman asked if there was any speed control being done at this point. Chief Sullivan said yes and out of the traffic contacts there were 17 warnings issued and 7 were for speeding. He said there was also 3 tickets issued. He said there are officers out there and said he has a very positive impression so far. He said there are three young officers who are really interested in learning and seem dedicated to law enforcement and drug enforcement. He said he is very impressed so far and said he’s still getting his bearings as far as learning what the department is up to but said he’s very impressed. He said personally at this stage because he’s only one week in, he’s looked at their policies and they have some very good ones in place. He said he will look at training and staffing as well. He said they are down one officer and he will take a look at this and will be actively working on it. He said he has 3 or 4 looking to join the department at least on a part time basis.

  1. Approve and Adopt Village of Swanton 2022 Budget as Presented:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and adopt the Village of Swanton 2022 Budget as presented. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: Eugene LaBombard stated that this budget will keep our services where they are now. He said fuel expense is up and they need to keep their employees’ salary level up to be competitive. Lynn Paradis stated she adjusted the overtime and vacation pay line items and this will bring the tax rate increase to just under 8 cents on the grand list. She also showed them the increase in the water and sewer departments. She said she is seeing increases in fuel, maintenance repairs, and it’s difficult receiving items. She said they can’t get street lighting right now and have been waiting over a year for transformers to come in. Chris Leach stated he fully supports the budget and said this will ensure the services everyone expects. He said he feels confident that Swanton Village is presenting a good and prudent budget. Adam Paxman said he agrees and commends Lynn on all her number crunching because it wasn’t easy. He said this is setting up Swanton Village so that nothing is lost. Motion carried.

  1. Any Other Necessary Business:

Adam Paxman said his word for this week is KINDNESS. He said be kind and show kindness.

Any Other Business: Eugene LaBombard said he wanted to remind everyone to be aware of the Covid issues out there and be diligent. He said it’s changing, adapting, mutating and if they don’t get a handle on it soon it will affect the economy even more than it already has.

Any Other Business: Chris Leach said Eugene was a chemist and knows what he talks about. He said he’s glad the schools are open because it’s good for the kids to be in school. He said he’d like to thank the public works department for cleaning the streets and making sure they are safe.

Any Other Business: Neal Speer said he is glad to be here tonight because he was stuck in the I95 mess in Virginia. He said he also wanted to address an anonymous viewer who sent him information regarding the health concerns with the smart meters. He said they didn’t identify themselves but said VPPSA is aware of this claim and they wouldn’t endanger our customers. Neal also said they are dealing with brownfield issues with the Rivieria Hotel property and it’s becoming frustrating. He said the building isn’t down yet and hopefully they may use some ARPA funds on the cleanup and removal of this building.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau informed the Board that they have a joint meeting on Thursday, January 13th at 7 p.m. here at the complex with the Town Selectboard. He said they will discuss items that are of mutual interest and will also discuss ARPA funds. He said a public hearing will be held at a later time to get input from the public. Eugene LaBombard asked if this meeting was open to the public because of high cases of Covid. Dianne Day, Village Clerk, stated she would discuss it with Brian Savage tomorrow and let them know.

  1. Executive Session to Discuss Contract Matter and Legal Matter:

Adam Paxman made the motion to enter Executive Session at 7:26 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Chris Leach made the motion to exit Executive Session at 7:55 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: None.

  1. Adjournment:

Chris Leach made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 7:55 p.m. Eugene LaBombard seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 7:55 p.m. Motion carried.

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Neal Speer, Village President                            Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                Date