BENNINGTON SELECT BOARD MEETING BENNINGTON FIRE FACILITY 130 RIVER STREET BENNINGTON, VERMONT 05201 MONDAY, AUGUST 25, 2008 MINUTES BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Lodie Colvin-Chair; John Zink-Vice-Chair; Sharyn Brush; Matt Maroney; Joseph Krawczyk; Chris Oldham and Jason Morrissey. ALSO PRESENT: Stuart Hurd-Town Manager and Nancy Lively-Recording Secretary. At 7:00 P.M., Lodie Colvin called the meeting to order. 1.MINUTES - AUGUST 11, 2008 MINUTES - AUGUST 18, 2008 Sharyn Brush moved and John Zink seconded to approve the Minutes of August 11, 2008 as submitted. The motion carried unanimously. Joseph Krawczyk moved and Sharyn Brush seconded to approve the Minutes of August 18, 2008 as submitted. The motion carried with John Zink and Chris Oldham abstaining. 2. WARRANTS The warrants were circulated for signatures after Mr. Hurd had clarified that the Sherwin Williams expense was for crosswalk paint. The painted crosswalks have all been done and the crosswalk stamping will begin shortly. It is necessary to stamp instead of paint to be able to get the remaining 50% of the grant funds used to fund the stamping process. Overall, expenses will be monitored very closely. 3. CITIZENS None. Ms. Colvin stated that the Bennington Project Independence was still getting funding for their new facility and needed reaffirmation of the Town's support. The public was also urged to go see the excellent workmanship at BPI's future location on Harwood Hill. Chris Oldham moved and John Zink seconded to accept the Proclamation In Honor of Bennington Project Independence as presented. The motion carried unanimously. 4. PUBLIC HEARING - SOLID WASTE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN There were no citizens in attendance at the Public Hearing. Mr. Hurd mentioned that, without a Solid Waste Implementation Plan, the Town would not be eligible for grants or HazMat funding, as well as, subject to statutory violations and fines. Mr. Krawczyk noted that Bennington has a "good reputation" at the State level. Sharyn Brush moved and Chris Oldham seconded to close the Public Hearing - Solid Waste Implementation Plan. The motion carried unanimously. Joseph Krawczyk moved and Sharyn Brush seconded to submit the Solid Waste Implementation Plan to the State as presented. The motion carried unanimously. 5. AGENCY FUNDING - WHEN TO REQUIRE PETITIONS The question for discussion was 'Should the agency funding petition requirement remain as is - only need to petition when asking for an increase - or be required every so many years?' Board comments were as follows: Mr. Zink: More frequent petition requirements could stimulate the agencies to ask for more money and the agencies need to do a better job of promoting themselves. There should be a report with what the cost would be to the Town if the agencies weren't around. Mr. Morrissey: The voters will be voting on the budget when they will have been paying for their heating fuel for a while and the Board should make no changes this year. However, to petition every year would make the public more aware and better informed of how much each agency is asking for and how many of them there are. Mr. Oldham: The voters are informed and agencies should only need to petition if their requests are voted down. The evidence of what each agency does in on their financial reports and to fund or not to fund should be a voter's decision. Mr. Maroney: There should be a predetermined amount of money set aside to give out to the agencies and they should be required to apply for their portion of those dollars. Agency allocations could vary year to year. Mr. Krawczyk: The agencies need to do more promotion on their own behalf instead of relying on the Town for support and the Board should make no changes this year. The agency funding petition requirement will remain as is for this year with further discussion to take place after the March vote. 6. MANAGER'S REPORT Mr. Hurd reported that work on Vermont Route 7, Exit 2 will be completed by September 12, 2008 and be open to traffic on or about that date. It was the consensus of the Board to send a thank you letter to the Secretary of the Agency of Transportation. Mr. Hurd reiterated that the crosswalk painting has been completed and that the stamping process will begin soon with Town staff doing the grinding preparation to save money. Mr. Hurd noted that the tax rates have been completed and that the education tax for Bennington went down $.04 with the Town's rate dropping to $2.04 from last year's $2.13. 7. OTHER BUSINESS Mr. Krawczyk noted that Bennington Cooling and Heating was not satisfied with the response concerning their licensing. Bennington will be looked at for a licensing location. Mr. Zink asked about unlicensed dogs and Mr. Hurd responded that a letter is sent from the Town Clerk with citations issued if the dogs are still around. Mr. Maroney asked about tax sales and Mr. Hurd answered that work has just been finished on the water shut offs with all tax sale notices sent out to all interested parties. The Town will know about the sales, themselves, at the end of the month and the Board will get a list of all delinquencies. Mr. Hurd added that the Town will work with anyone to set up payment schedules to help them pay their taxes. Mr. Maroney asked if the old backhoe will be sold and Mr. Hurd replied that it will be sold either after it has been fixed or as is. Mr. Oldham thanked the Fire Department for their efforts on Battle Day Weekend. At 7:50 P.M., John Zink moved and Chris Oldham seconded the adjournment of the meeting. The motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Nancy H. Lively Secretary