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Trustees Meeting 4/6/20

  • Monday, April 6, 2020
    5:30 PM – 7 PM

Village Trustees

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SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

SPECIAL MEETING

Monday, April 6, 2020

5:30 PM

PRESENT: Neal Speer, Village President; Chris Leach, Trustee; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Eugene LaBombard, Trustee; Reginald Beliveau Jr., Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; and Chief of Police Leonard “Joey” Stell.

Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried unanimously.

  1. Call to Order:

Neal Speer, Village President, called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m.

  1. Pledge of Allegiance:

Everyone present stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

  1. Agenda Review:

Reg Beliveau stated he would like to discuss personnel under Executive Session.

  1. Public Comment:

None.

  1. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, March 9, 2020:

Chris Leach made the motion to approve and accept the Minutes from Monday, March 9, 2020 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

  1. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Friday, April 3, 2020:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to approve Village Warrants through Friday, April 3, 2020. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

  1. COVID-19 Update Pertaining to the Village of Swanton:

Chief Stell stated that as of 1 p.m. today there are 543 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the State of Vermont. He said the state is only testing certain individuals and at this time there are 29 cases in Franklin County but those numbers are at the low end of the spectrum. The only people being tested were people in the hospital, health care workers or very sick people. If you had mild symptoms you were not getting tested. He said the numbers are rapidly going up. Chris Leach asked how many patients were in Northwestern Medical Center. He said he believed their PICU unit was full and they are setting up 50 beds at Collins Perley Complex. He said these beds would be used for patients that need a bit more help than they could get at home, such as fluids and oxygen. He talked about the shortage of respiratory medicines as well. He said the CDC is recommending people wear a face covering while out in public. He said there are young adults in the 20 to 25-year age range that are testing positive for COVID-19 and are showing no symptoms. He said they are not recommending people wear gloves. He said the police department is seeing a reduction in criminal activity around the Village. He said they have had a few complaints about people gathering but it ended up being just a family going for a walk. He said that is encouraged activity for a family to do. He said his officers have masks they can wear if doing a traffic stop. He wants citizens to be aware of the potential scams out there now that the stimulus checks have been sent out. He said the IRS or Federal Government would never call and ask for any personal information. Chief Stell said the mortality rate from COVID-19 is very low and the majority of people with it are weathering this very well at home with mild to moderate symptoms. He said it lasts anywhere from 7 to 20 days depending on the severity of it. He said unfortunately the elderly are going to be the ones who have a hard time recovering from this as well as chronic smokers and people with underlying health issues or lung injuries. Chief Stell said he modified their schedule so that two officers are working at all times but, are able to be socially distancing as well.

Lynn Paradis stated her brother is in the service and is trying to get medical equipment and supplies as well as medications in from other countries. She said this is a 7-day a week job for him and he stresses to her how serious this virus is.

Reg Beliveau explained to the Board how each department is working through this pandemic and Eugene LaBombard stated the Village should continue to do this schedule for as long as it takes. Chris Leach just wanted to make sure nothing was getting pushed aside. Reg said everything was going fine considering. He’s said he’s been on edge wondering if he should keep this up. Lynn explained the office work schedule to the Board. She said herself and Al Mosher are working on the AMI proposal at home as well. Reg said he has been urging the employees to listen to the Governor regarding information on the virus. He said education is key during this pandemic. Lynn said they will never know if they are doing too much but will know if they haven’t done enough. Lynn said for the most part the customers have been understanding on how they are able to make payments now. She said she has been keeping up with her reports on the aged accounts receivable and the numbers are up a little right now. She explained how the Village isn’t able to do disconnects during this pandemic. Chris asked if the Village was still contacting past due customers. She explained how the Village is sending reminder notices but not disconnect notices. She said the Village hasn’t charged overdue interest yet and asked the Board what they thought about this. Reg also informed the Board that the State has put a lot of grant projects on hold during this as well. The Board advised Lynn to go ahead and pay the water bond payments as usual even though the State is allowing municipalities to put their payments on hold. The Board suggested Reg use his judgment and continue to operate as he’s been doing and if they run into an issue, they will address it. Adam Paxman suggested they continue this schedule and listen to the CDC and W.H.O. for pertinent information.                                                

  1. Any Other Necessary Business:

None.

  1. Executive Session to Discuss Personnel:

Adam Paxman made the motion to enter Executive Session to discuss personnel at 6:36 p.m. Chris Leach seconded. Motion carried.

Chris Leach made the motion to exit Executive Session at 6:57 p.m. Adam Paxman seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: None.

  1. Adjournment:

Eugene LaBombard made the motion to adjourn the Regular Board of the Trustees meeting at 6:58 p.m.  Adam Paxman seconded. There being no further business at hand, Neal Speer, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 6:58 p.m. Motion carried.

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Neal Speer, Village President                            Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                Date