BENNINGTON SELECT BOARD MEETING BENNINGTON FIRE FACILITY 130 RIVER STREET BENNINGTON, VERMONT 05201 MONDAY, JUNE 8, 2009 MINUTES BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Lodie Colvin-Chair; Sharyn Brush-Vice Chair; Jason Morrissey; Chris Oldham; Joseph Krawczyk; Matt Maroney and John Zink. ALSO PRESENT: Stuart Hurd-Town Manager; Scott Murphy-Director of Economic & Community Development; Jacqueline Boucher; Kathleen Boucher; Rebecca LeFevre; Kiah Morris; Bruce Lee Clark; Neil Goswami-Bennington Banner and Nancy Lively-Recording Secretary. At 7:00 P.M., Lodie Colvin called the meeting to order. 1.MINUTES - MAY 11, 2009 MINUTES - MAY 18, 2009 Sharyn Brush moved and John Zink seconded to approve the Minutes of May 11, 2009 as submitted. The motion carried unanimously. Sharyn Brush moved and John Zink seconded to approve the Minutes of May 18, 2009 as submitted. The motion carried unanimously. 2. WARRANTS The warrants were circulated for signatures after Mr. Hurd answered questions on the multiple Better Bennington Corporation monthly service charges, the speaking engagement at the Senior Citizens Center and the Department of Agriculture ladder truck bonding. 3. CITIZENS Ms. Jacqueline Boucher, as representative of the Bradford Street residents, claimed that the Morgan Street Community Garden is an "eye sore", has changed the serenity of the neighborhood and depleted the value of their homes. There are trucks and cars parking everywhere and constantly making U-turns. Residents are often unable to enter or exit their driveways. In addition to the water trucks for the garden, there are also State trucks - 20 in less than an hour - using Bradford Street as a construction detour. Ms. Boucher further stated that people are at the garden all hours of the day and night and that they allow their dogs to run free. Ms. Kathleen Boucher added that gardening has been in her family for years but these conditions are unsafe and some of the gardeners are "immodest". Ms. LeFevre spoke in support of the garden, that it "defines the direction that Bennington is going in" and is run by volunteers who are doing a good job. Ms. Jacqueline Boucher has requested that the garden have regular hours and that the Town put a privacy fence around the garden. The Board will discuss this situation and these requests. Mr. Krawczyk added that Bradford Street shouldn't be being used as a detour and Mr. Hurd will look into that. 4. FULLER ROAD RENAMING John Zink moved and Chris Oldham seconded to change the name of Fuller Road to East Fuller Road and West Fuller Road as presented. The motion carried unanimously. This change will be effective within a week or two for E911 and the post office. 5. SMOKE FREE PUBLIC PARKS ORDINANCE Bruce Lee Clark, a pre-law teacher at the Career Development Center, stated that his students had presented the Board a draft ordinance for consideration to regulate smoking in Town parks for the protection of the general public, especially the children. The students did most of the work on their own based on their own life experiences. During the process they had rejected smoking in cars and originally had unreasonably high fines. Community service is a consideration as an alternative to paying fines and the hope of the students is that their ordinance will be used as a starting point for the Board to tweak as they deem appropriate. Kiah Morris, the Community Coordinator for the Tobacco Free Community Partners, stated that they would do the public information/education piece and that several other communities already have smoke free parks. Board comments were as follows: Mr. Krawczyk: The students had spoken to the police and enforcement is an issue. The legislature has just added $.40/pack of cigarettes making Vermont's price higher than either Massachusetts or New Hampshire. It is important that we are not trying to control anything that takes place on private property. Mr. Oldham: Kudos to the students for their efforts. He couldn't support the ordinance as presented but certainly a variation of it. Mr. Zink: Enforcement is an issue but this type of ordinance is "long overdue". There are personal rights issues to consider and the property lines need to be more specific. Ms. Brush: Kudos to the students for their efforts. She likes the concept but enforcement would be an issue. Perhaps we could set up smoking and smoke free zones. Mr. Hurd will look into restricting certain areas for smoking and report back to the Board. 6. CLG GRANT APPLICATION Mr. Murphy stated that the Bennington Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) is requesting authorization to submit a Certified Local Government (CLG) grant application to join the Heritage Travel program, a web-based travel planning initiative sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to encourage travel to areas of great historic interest. The website will offer a comprehensive presence for the Town of Bennington's historic and cultural sites with the hope of increased visitation and associated economic development. The average historic traveler spends $623/visit. The grant will pay for Bennington's participation for two years and the HPC will monitor its success at our historic sites. Total project cost is $3,234 with the grant amount being $2,310 and the Town's 40% matching share of $924 in in-kind services. It was the consensus of the Board to authorize the CLG Heritage Travel grant application for $2,310. 7. 2009 LIQUOR AND TOBACCO LICENSE APPLICATION The 2009 First/Second Class Liquor License & Tobacco Application for Wal-Mart Store #2289 was circulated for signatures. 8. MANAGER'S REPORT The Board will meet in the Town Office Conference Room at 5:30pm on June 15, 2009, and June 17, 2009 if necessary, to discuss the FY10 Water and Sewer Fund budgets. Mr. Hurd reported that the Town issued 485 burn permits in 2008. We began charging the fee in July 2008 and generated $800 in fees during 2008. So far this year we have issued 374 permits generating $2,525 in fees. The Fire Warden gets $.15/permit plus mileage which we will pay at the end of the year. Sharyn Brush moved and Matt Maroney seconded to relocate the liquor license for the American Legion Clambake on August 8, 2009 from 12:00pm to 6:00pm. The motion carried unanimously. Mr. Hurd reported that we have raised the necessary funds for the Fourth of July fireworks with donations by individuals and businesses ranging from $10 to $3,000. 9. OTHER BUSINESS Mr. Maroney stated that the new crosswalks are starting to fail and will be a constant expense to the Town. Mr. Hurd noted that we have until the end of June to use up the rest of our grant funds and the system will then need to be evaluated. Mr. Maroney asked about the Ethan Allen Days figures all over Town and Mr. Hurd answered that the Bennington Rotary has taken over sponsorship of this event from the Northshire. It will take place on June 20 and 21, 2009 at Colgate Park. Mr. Morrissey agrees with Mr. Maroney on the crosswalks noting the expense of the sheriff's at the intersections. Mr. Hurd added that regulations require law enforcement presence at these locations. Mr. Krawczyk wanted to be sure that the Planning Commission warned their meetings and that the Board would have working sessions with the Planning Commission before any actions would take place. Ms. Colvin added that the public does attend their meetings. Mr. Krawczyk noted the good participation on Memorial Day and wished everyone a Happy Fourth of July. Ms. Colvin stated that there is a huge bush covering a Stop sign on Leonard Street and Mr. Hurd noted that the owner has been contacted to have that trimmed. 10. EXECUTIVE SESSION (IF NECESSARY) A.CONTRACT Executive Session was not necessary. At 8:20 P.M., John Zink moved and Joseph Krawczyk seconded the adjournment of the meeting. The motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Nancy H. Lively Secretary