Trustees Meeting 3/11/19

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SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, March 11, 2019

7:00 PM

PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau, Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Karen Drennan, Selectwoman; and Ch. 16.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

1.      Call to Order:

Neal Speer, Village President, welcomed all to the Regular Board of Trustees meeting and called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

2.      Agenda Review:

None.

3.      Swear in elected officials for 2019: Neal Speer, Village President (one year term); Eugene LaBombard, Village Trustee (three year term); Dianne Day, Village Clerk (one year term) and Betty Cheney, Delinquent Tax Collector (one year term) were sworn in on March 6, 2019 to perform duties:

Neal Speer, Village President, repeated his Oath of Office and was sworn in for a one year term; Eugene LaBombard, Village Trustee, repeated his Oath of Office and was sworn in for a three year term.

4.      Appoint a Treasurer for the Village of Swanton for 2019 and swear in:

Chris Leach made the motion to appoint Dianne Day as Village Treasurer for a one year term. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried. Dianne Day repeated the Village Treasurer Oath of Office and was sworn in for a one year term.

5.      Motion that the Swanton Village Board of Trustees adopt Robert’s Rules of Procedures for the rules of procedure for the Village Trustees for the upcoming year through March 2019:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to adopt and follow the Robert’s Rules of Procedures for the ensuing year for the Swanton Village Board of Trustees procedures. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

6.      2019 Official Voting Results:

Neal Speer, Village President, read the Official Return of Votes for the Village Officers as well as the Official Return of Votes for all of the budget items that were voted on March 5, 2019.

7.      Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, February 11, 2019 and Minutes from the Informational Meeting Monday, February 25, 2019:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept Minutes from the Monday, February 11, 2019 meeting. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried. Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve and accept the Minutes from the Monday, February 25, 2019 Informational Meeting as presented. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

8.      Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Friday, March 8, 2019:

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Village Warrants through Friday, March 8, 2019. Chris Leach seconded. Discussion: Chris Leach asked about the SS VT Solar LLC invoice. Motion carried.

9.      Discuss and Approve New Fire Truck Loan:

Reg Beliveau informed the Board that Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, received quotes to finance the new fire tanker and ladder trucks. Her quotes for the tanker with a 12 year term were as follows: Vermont Municipal Bond Bank (VMBB) 2.32%, Peoples Trust 3.49%, Community Bank 4.32%, and Union Bank 3.93%. Her quotes for the ladder truck with a 15 year term were as follows: VMBB 2.59%, Peoples Trust 3.79%, Community Bank 4.45%, and Union Bank 4.05%. Reg also stated that Lynn received quotes for the bond anticipation financing and they are as follows: Peoples United 2.35%, Peoples Trust 1.60% and Union Bank 2.10%.

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve and accept Vermont Municipal Bond Bank’s interest rate of 2.32% on a 12 year term for the Fire Department’s new tanker truck and to accept Vermont Municipal Bond Bank’s interest rate of 2.59% on a 15 year term for the Fire Department’s new ladder truck. He also made the motion to accept People’s Trust 1.60% interest rate for the bond anticipation financing for the trucks. Chris Leach seconded both motions. Motions carried.

10.  Any Other Necessary Business:

Eugene LaBombard stated he was contacted by an individual stating they would like increased lighting by the Post Office on Grand Avenue. He said it’s very dark in that area. Reg stated he would drive that way after the meeting and check it out. Chris Leach also stated he would like the Post Office to have a mailbox available for residents to be able to drive up to and deposit their mail. He stated the Village should work with the Post Office on this.

Any Other Business: Adam Paxman stated the Chamber of Commerce met with Efficiency Vermont and they are offering free energy visits for businesses interested in becoming more energy efficient. He said there is also financing available. Adam stated Efficiency Vermont is also looking into programs for homeowners. Reg stated so far he knows of 10 to 12 businesses that have taken advantage of this program. Adam stated the library is interested in this also.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau stated he was contacted by Caleb Rupp from the Swanton Library asking permission to hold a Children’s Farmers Market in the park this summer. The Board requested Reg find out how often they want to hold this or if it’s a one weekend event. Reg stated he would get more information and come back to the Board with it.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau stated Lynn Paradis is asking permission to close the checking account that was needed for the MVUHS waterline replacement project. Eugene LaBombard made the motion to authorize Lynn Paradis to close the MVUHS waterline replacement job checking account. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau stated the Town of Highgate has been awarded a VCDP grant by the Secretary of the Agency of Commerce and Community Development to study putting municipal water at the Highgate Airport. He said Swanton Village has agreed to monitor the planning grant for this project and he needs to sign the permit application on behalf of the Village. Adam Paxman made the motion to authorize Reg Beliveau, Village Manager, to sign the permit application for the Town of Highgate VCDP grant for the Highgate Airport Project. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau informed the Board that the electric department received a couple of quotes for a new bucket truck. He said Clark’s Truck Center quoted them $83,934 for an International chasis and $175,805 for the bucket. He said they were also quoted $4562 for a 7 year, 150,000 mile extended warranty. Reg said their other quote came in from Kenworth and was very similar on price but the electric crew felt the cab on the truck was too narrow. Chris Leach made the motion to approve the Village of Swanton’s Electric Department to purchase a new bucket truck from Clark’s Truck Center for $259,739 and to add an extended warranty for $4562 if they deem necessary. Eugene LaBombard seconded. Motion carried.

Any Other Business: Reg Beliveau informed the Board that he is going to NEPPA this week. Chris Leach asked Reg to discuss distributive generation and how they need to recognize what a burden it is to all electric companies. Reg stated he would send them a copy of the agenda.

Any Other Business: Neal Speer stated he would like to recognize Rise VT and the Swanton Recreation Commission for all that they do for Swanton. He said they were both overlooked at their informational meeting and said they should have been recognized that evening. He said Betsy Fournier and Debbie Winters have been involved in several projects in Swanton and he thanks them for their service.

11.  Public Comment:

Adam Paxman read the following notice from the Swanton Arts Council: The Swanton Arts Council would like to thank the Village Trustees for the opportunity to sketch them as part of our Model Citizen event. We appreciate your service to our community and we look forward to many more meetings and sketches. Please note the following community events that are being sponsored by the Swanton Arts Council: The 4th Annual Spring Youth Art Show which will be held on March 22nd & 23rd at the Swanton Village Complex and the Spring Handmade Craft Sale to be held on April 6th at the United Methodist Church and at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. More information on these and other SAC events can be found on the SAC website or Facebook page. 

12.  Executive Session (If Necessary):

None.

13.  Adjournment:

Adam Paxman made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 7:53 p.m.  Eugene LaBombard seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 7:53 p.m. Motion carried.

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Neal Speer, Village President                           Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                               Date