Trustees Meeting 1/27/25

Web version

 SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, January 27, 2025

7:00 PM

PRESENT: David Winchester, Village President; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Suzie Kelleher, Trustee; William “Bill” Sheets, Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Duane Couture and Daren Plouff, Electric Department; Matthew Sullivan, Chief of Police; Steven Roy, Vice President of Wiemann Lamphere; Mike Connor, Sean Connor and Chris Lynch, Connor Contracting; Damon Broderick, Heather Lavoie, Linda Kelly, David Hemingway, Gordon Winters and Ch. 16. Via Teams: None.

To watch this meeting in its entirety, go to Northwest Access TV on YouTube. The video will also be posted on the Village’s website once available. Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried, unanimously.

1. Call to Order:

David Winchester, Village President, called the Village Board of Trustees meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

2. Pledge of Allegiance:

Everyone in attendance stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. Agenda Review:

Bill Sheets, Village Manager, stated he would like to add a 12a. to discuss and appoint an Ethics liaison for the Village of Swanton.

4. Public Comment:

None.

5. Approve and Accept Minutes from the Monday, January 13, 2025 meeting as presented:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to approve Minutes from Monday, January 13, 2025 meeting as presented. Adam Paxman seconded the motion. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

6. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, January 23, 2025:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve Village Warrants through Thursday, January 23, 2025 as presented. Suzie Kelleher seconded the motion. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

7. Review Presentation and Accept Connor Contracting Price for New Electric Facility Located at 124 First Street:

Steve Roy from Wiemann Lamphere Architects began this presentation by giving a little history about Swanton Village Electric:

Swanton Electric has been serving its customers since 1894. We serve customers in Swanton Village and parts of Swanton Town, Highgate and St. Albans Town. We are one of 14 municipal electric utilities in Vermont. Swanton Electric has some of the lowest rates in Vermont and has not had a rate increase since 2016. We are proud to serve our customers with 100% renewable electricity.

Steve said the Project Team consisted of William Sheets, Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Duane Couture, Electric Department Foreman; Daren Plouff, Lineman; Suzie Kelleher, Village Trustee; and David Winchester, Village President. He then showed an aerial view of 124 First Street and showed the proposed project site plan. Steve said there would be 9,725 square feet of vehicle and equipment storage space and 8,650 square feet of office and support space for a total of 18,375 square feet. He showed the floor plan which consists of offices, a board room, a training room and lobby. Steve showed each area highlighted and gave a brief description of each. Adam Paxman asked if the training room would be big enough to continue to hold Town and Village voting in. Steve said it was, he said it’s about 400 square feet smaller than the present auditorium but said it’s still big enough for that. Steve then showed the vehicle and inventory storage space in the garage as well as the outside parking areas and main entrance.

Steve then showed the information below that gives the cost breakdown. The total project cost is estimated to be $8,323,701

Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, showed the above impact information stating electric rates would increase 14.3%. The graphs below show the increase on a resident electric bill using 600 kWH and using 1000 kWH. For the 600 kWH customer they would see an increase of $11.39 per month or .37 cents per day. A customer using 1000 kWH would see an increase of $18.33 per month or .60 cents per day. She also showed a commercial account using 600 kWH per month and said they would see an increase of $13.09 per month or .43 cents per day and a commercial account using 1000 kWH would see a monthly increase of $21.06 or .69 cents per day.

Bill Sheets, Village Manager, stated the information presented tonight was more for the Board of Trustees and if they decide to accept this proposal he would then hold 4  public informational hearings to present this information to the public.

There was a discussion on the Elm Street entrance as well as the Brownfield work being done. Duane Couture, Electric Foreman, stated this is designed to be a 50-year building and is very cost effective. He said he enjoyed working with Connor Contracting and Wiemann Lamphere. David Winchester, Village President, said he is more than satisfied with the cost and said this is feasible. Suzie Kelleher, Eugene LaBombard and Adam Paxman all stated they were satisfied with this project as well. Damon Broderick asked about the outside parking spaces and Steve said there would be 26 parking spots.

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve the total project cost of $8,323,701 as presented tonight. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

8. Swanton Village Police Department Update with Chief Matthew Sullivan:

Chief Matthew Sullivan presented the board with the December 2024 statistics. He said the Village Police responded to 108 incidents in the Village in December with the top ten calls for service being 10 traffic stop, 6 mental health, 5 family fight/domestic, 5 found property, 5 welfare/suicide check, 5 crash/property damage, 5 agency assistance, 4 search warrant, 4 VIN number inspection, and 14 suspicious person/circumstance. He said there were 10 traffic stops with 2 tickets issued and 10 warnings.

Chief Sullivan said the police responded to 53 incidents in the Town of Swanton and the top ten calls for service were: 6 traffic stop, 5 motor vehicle complaint, 3 theft, 2 welfare/suicide check, 2 agency assistance, 2 alarm, 2 driving with license suspended, 1 juvenile problem, 1 custodial dispute and 12 directed patrol. He said they conducted 6 traffic stops and issued 4 tickets and 4 warnings.

Matt stated that his officers worked an additional 29 hours of service in December for the Town. He said nine officers worked on a drug warrant with 27.25 hours of overtime. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, said this is when they are working as One Swanton because drugs know no boundaries. He said this affects both Village and Town. Bill said someone asked if the Village would charge the Town for those additional hours worked and he said he would not. He said the Town is paying a fair amount for police coverage and when there’s additional hours worked on something like this it benefits everyone in Swanton. Chief Sullivan read the following incidents to the Board and said this is included in his report for the Swanton Village and Town’s Annual Report:

The Swanton Village Police Department had 21 search warrant incidents in 2024 which led to criminal charges and the recovery of evidence related to drug trafficking, fraud, and property crime. Similar to 2023, the volume is indicative of the great investigative work by SVPD officers. The norm for SVPD over the past decade has been approximately 5 search warrants per year. Most of the search warrants in 2024 were associated with drug activity in the community. Some examples of the investigative work performed by SVPD officers are:

On January 1, 2024, officers executed a search warrant on a vehicle resulting in the seizure of .5 grams of crack cocaine, drug paraphernalia, 25 wax folds commonly used for distribution of heroin/fentanyl. The vehicle was initially seized pending application for the search warrant on December 28, 2023, when the investigating officer made observations of the occupants engaged in drug activity. Karen Rich, 28 years of age, was cited to appear in court for Possession of Cocaine.

On January 6, 2024, officers executed a search warrant at a residence in Swanton and located large quantities of drug paraphernalia as well as a container with 1 gram of a white powdery substance the suspect admitted was heroin/fentanyl. Casey Cassani, 35 years of age, was cited to appear in court for Possession of Heroin.

On January 14, 2024, officers executed a search warrant at a residence in St. Albans. Officers located drug paraphernalia, and many different electronics that appeared to be stolen. Officers arrested Trevor Lacross, 33 years of age, on an arrest warrant and cited him for possession of 2.4 grams of Cocaine. Officers also arrested Kaleb Lavallee, 26 years of age, on an arrest warrant and Lavallee was also cited for possession of 2.4 grams of Cocaine.

On March 16, 2024, officers performed a motor vehicle stop after suspicion of the vehicle being involved in drug activity. The vehicle was operated by Christina Johnson, 46 years of age, and the front seat passenger, who refused to identify himself, was later identified as Davidson Altimo, 28 years of age. On March 21, 2024, officers executed a search warrant on the vehicle locating drug paraphernalia.

Also in March, the School Resource Officer obtained a search warrant related to vapes being distributed at MVU.

In April officers obtained and executed a search warrant related to a stolen kayak.

In September officers conducted an extensive investigation involving the sale of crack cocaine on Elm Street. A search warrant was obtained for a residence on Elm St. and was executed on October 1, 2024. Mary Hodgdon, 54 years of age, was cited to appear in court for the Sale of Cocaine. Also present at the time of the search warrant was a 30-year-old male from Springfield, MA who is believed to be the source of the cocaine. The investigating officer subsequently obtained multiple search warrants to further the investigation.

On October 27, 2024, officers stopped a vehicle for a stop sign violation after observing the occupants of the vehicle involved in suspicious behavior indicating possible drug activity. When interacting with the operator and passenger the officer observed drug paraphernalia in plain view in the vehicle. The vehicle was subsequently seized pursuant to application for a search warrant which was granted and executed on November 1, 2024. The search yielded 7 grams of methamphetamine, 2.2 ounces of cannabis, and an illegally modified .22 caliber pistol that had been turned into a short-barreled rifle. Steven Mashtare, 31 years of age, was cited to appear in court for driving with a Criminally Suspended License and possession of more than 2.5 grams of Methamphetamine. Kristin Reed, 38 years of age, was cited to appear in court for possession of more than 2.5 grams of Methamphetamine and possession of more than 2 ounces of Cannabis. The modified rifle is a federal crime, and this information was shared with the ATF.

The drug activity on Elm St. did not subside after the execution of the first search warrant on October 1, 2024. Officers continued to investigate the ongoing activity which resulted in the arrest of Davidson Altimo, 28 years of age from Springfield, MA on 11/22/2024 when he was observed leaving the residence at 22 Elm St. and subsequently fled from a traffic stop initiated on Robinhood Dr. resulting in him crashing his vehicle on Missisquoi St. and attempting to flee on foot. This vehicle was also occupied by a 23-year-old male from Springfield, MA. Search warrants were obtained for Altimo’s vehicle and phone. Altimo was found in possession of 30 wax folds that tested presumptive positive for heroin/fentanyl and was in possession of a zip-lock style baggie containing powder with an approximate total weight of 5 grams also testing presumptive positive for the presence of heroin/fentanyl.

Altimo was subsequently charged with Trafficking Heroin. The statute provides that possessing an amount consisting of 3.5 grams or more with intent to sell or dispense shall be imprisoned for not more than 30 years or fined not more than $1,000,000.00 or both. There shall be a permissive inference that a person who possesses heroin in an amount of 3.5 grams or more intends to sell or dispense heroin. Altimo was also charged with Possession of Regulated Drugs (Depressant, Stimulant, Narcotic), Gross Negligent Operation, Excessive Speed, Eluding a Police Officer, and Reckless Endangerment. Altimo is on probation in Massachusetts for armed robbery according to his probation officer.

On November 17, 2024, officers observed a U-Haul truck at several different locations known for drug activity in Swanton. Officers were advised this vehicle was reported as stolen to the Williston Police Department that evening. Officers located the vehicle in the McDonald’s parking lot and observed drug paraphernalia in the cab of the truck. The truck was seized while officers applied for a search warrant and the operator, Emily Robtoy, 34 years of age, was cited to appear in court for Operation without Owners Consent, Impeding Public Officers, and Resisting Arrest. The passenger in the vehicle was a 30-year-old male from New York.

Upon obtaining a search warrant for the vehicle officers located approximately 70 wax folds containing heroin/fentanyl, .15 grams of crack cocaine, and 17 suboxone strips. Emily Robtoy was subsequently charged with Conspiracy to distribute Fentanyl, Fentanyl Trafficking, Possession of Cocaine, and Possession of Narcotics.

The continuation of drug activity on Elm Street led to officers obtaining another search warrant for the residence in the month of December. This search warrant was not executed until January 2, 2025. Upon execution of the search warrant officers located approximately 19 grams of crack cocaine in an area occupied by Marques Jubrey, 23 years of age, from Springfield, MA. Jubrey was flash cited to appear in court for Sale of Cocaine and Possession of Cocaine. It is noteworthy that Jubrey was also arrested in March of 2023 upon SVPD officers executing a search warrant in Highgate where Jubrey was located in possession of 13.23 grams of crack cocaine and officers located an additional 2.4 grams of crack cocaine in the residence as well as 73 wax folds containing heroin/fentanyl.

In sum, most of the above investigative work is related to drug distribution in Swanton Village and Town. There are an extreme number of hours worked associated with these complex investigations by many officers. Bill Sheets asked the Chief if his department ever uses the imbedded mental health workers on any of their incidents. Chief Sullivan said yes they do, he said he calls NCSS and NMC. Both agreed they are very good at what they do. The Board thanked Chief Sullivan for his update and for all the work him and his officers do for Swanton.

9. Review and Adopt Electric, Water and Sewer Budgets for 2025:

Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, explained to the Board that there were minor changes in the remaining funds that needed to be adopted. She explained the budgeted losses and also said they decided to not increase water and sewer rates in 2025. Adam Paxman made the motion to adopt the electric, water, sewer and commercial building fund budgets for 2025 as presented. Suzie Kelleher seconded the motion. Motion carried.

10. Authorize Village Clerk to Sign Declaration of Official Intent and Resolution Certificate for Indebtedness for the Proposed Electric Facility Bond:

Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, stated these documents pertain to the Village of Swanton being able to recoup any cost incurred prior to the bond vote and that it is in the best interest to go out to bond for a project of this size. Eugene LaBombard made the motion to authorize Village Clerk Dianne Day to sign the Declaration of Official Intent and Resolution Certificate for Indebtedness for the proposed electric facility bond. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

11. Approve 2025 Annual Warning:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve the 2025 Annual Warning as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

12. Review and Acknowledge Receipt of 4^th Quarter SQRP Report for 2024:

Suzie Kelleher acknowledged the 4^th Quarter SQRP report as presented.

12.a. Appoint a Municipal Ethics Liaison:

Bill Sheets, Village Manager, stated the Vermont State Legislators enacted Act 171 and it went into effect June of 2024. The primary purpose of the bill is to set minimum statewide standards while allowing municipalities to adopt supplemental (or maintain existing) ethics policies that do not conflict with the statewide code, and develop individualized policies and procedures related to complaint investigation and tracking. Many municipalities may already have such policies or procedures in place. Adam Paxman made the motion to appoint William “Bill” Sheets, Swanton Village Manager, as the Municipal Ethics Liaison. Suzie Kelleher seconded. Motion carried.

13. Village Manager Update:

None.

14. Any Other Necessary Business:

Adam Paxman stated they are beginning to plan for the upcoming Memorial Day Parade and said if anyone is interested in helping out or joining the parade, to reach out to him or to Joel Clark.

15. Executive Session to Discuss Legal Matter and Personnel:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion, seconded by Adam Paxman, to go into Executive Session at 8:25 p.m. to discuss legal matters and personnel issues where premature general public knowledge of the subject matter would place the Village or person involved at a substantial disadvantage. Motion carried.

Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Executive Session at 9:02 pm. Suzie Kelleher seconded. Motion carried.

16. Adjournment:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to adjourn the Regular Meeting of the Board of the Trustees at 9:03 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. There being no further business at hand, David Winchester, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 9:03 p.m. Motion carried.

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David Winchester, Village President                  Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                Date