TOWN OF SPRINGFIELD
SELECTMEN’S HALL – 96 MAIN STREET – THIRD FLOOR
REGULAR BOARD OF SELECTMEN MEETING
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2014 AT 7:00 PM
_________________________________________________________________________________________
MINUTES
A. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL:
Chairman, Kristi Morris, called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited and Roll Call taken.
Board Members Present: David Yesman, Vice-Chairman, Michael Knoras, Chairman, Kristi Morris, Stephanie Thompson and Peter MacGillivray.
Also Present: Town Manager, Robert Forguites, Comptroller, Jeffrey Mobus, Town Attorney, Stephen Ankuda, and Police Chief, Douglas Johnston.
B. MINUTES:
1. Budget Workshop, Meeting Minutes, January 16, 2014
2. Regular Board of Selectmen, Meeting Minutes, January 27, 2014
MOTION: Stephanie Thompson moved to approve Budget Workshop Meeting Minutes of January 16, 2014 and
Regular Board of Selectmen Meeting Minutes of January 27, 2014 as submitted. Seconded by Peter
MacGillivray
Vote: 5 Yes, passed unanimously.
C. ANY REQUESTED ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA:
Town Manager, Robert Forguites, indicated he was given a CERTIFICATE – NO APPEAL OR SUIT PENDING form today from Assessor, Cy Baily. Mr. Forguites was not aware of this form when the agenda was prepared. He said it is up to the Board if they would like to handle it tonight or wait until Monday, February 24, 2014. This form certifies there are not any appeals or suits pending against the 2013 Grand List. The Assessor and two, (2), Listers have already signed the certification. Mr. Baily is requesting the Board of Selectmen also sign the certification.
Vice-Chairman, Michael Knoras mentioned there were some appeals coming up; there is a meeting on Thursday, February 20, 2014. David Yesman said that was wrong; the meeting was for abatements. Chairman, Kristi Morris, asked if the Board would like to hold off until February 24th. Vice-Chairman Knoras stated he thinks the Board should wait. Again, Mr. Yesman stated it was an abatement meeting not a grievance meeting. Mr. Forguites commented the sooner the certificate is approved, it is out of the way. Chairman asked if there was someone from the Assessor’s Office that could answer questions. Mr. Forguites pointed out the Assessor and Listers have already signed the certificate indicating there are not any appeals or suites pending. Stephanie Thompson and Peter MacGillivray said they would not object to signing the certificate tonight.
MOTION: Peter MacGillivray moved to approve to add the CERTIFICATE – NO APPEAL OR SUIT PENDING
certificate to NEW BUSINESS, Number 4. Seconded by David Yesman.
Vote: 5 Yes, passed unanimously.
D. CITIZENS TO ADDRESS THE BOARD: None
E. PRIORITY BUSINESS: None
F. PETITIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS: None
G. BOARDS, COMMISSIONS AND DEPARTMENTAL MINUTES AND REPORTS:
1. Springfield Police Department, Monthly Report, January 14, 2014
Chairman Morris noted copies of the Springfield Police Department; Monthly Report of January 14, 2014 could be obtained at the Town Manager’s Office.
H. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS: None
I. OLD BUSINESS:
1. Dilapidated Properties – Mr. Forguites and Town Attorney, Stephen Ankuda, have been meeting on the dilapidated properties again and it looks like the Town is down to about four, (4), properties they are going to have to do something with. He needs to know how the Board of Selectmen would like to proceed and how much money they propose to spend. Attorney Ankuda explained there are a lot of options. The Town doesn’t have to do anything, the order says the Town has the right to take action, and a lien could be placed on the property. The Town would need to consider if they could recoup the charges of demolishing and carting away the rumble. The Town also needs to consider public safety issues by abating the hazards the property represents.
Property at 129 Tarbell Road:
Attorney Ankuda explained Structural Engineer, David Hindinger, performed the inspection and commented on a dilapidated cement block wall on the backside of the garage. Mr. Hindinger said the cement block wall was a hazard; some kid could be walking near the back wall and the wall could topple down on them. Attorney Ankuda said, by just knocking the wall down, even though it would be a mess, the hazard could be abated. The cleaning could be dealt with later on. The Board needs to decide if they want to teardown everything and dispose of it properly. Maybe that is not so important with a property out in the country, but it is important to abate the hazard.
Property at 42 – 44 Union Street:
Attorney Ankuda said he felt the property at 42 Union Street was like 129 Tarbell Road, but in a residential neighborhood. The order does not say to demolish the building but the garage is something that has problems. The property owner tried to sure it up, unfortunately, Mr. Hindinger felt like it was a waste of materials because the garage is still a hazard. If the garage is demolished, there are children all over the neighborhood. It will be an eyesore for people to see every day. The Town may want to abate the hazards and cart away the debris; it will be a bigger price tag.
Property at 9 Furnace Street:
Attorney Ankuda said there should be some action taken. The Town was going to tear down the property; we received a quote. About this time Ms. Pignato passed away. Attorney Ankuda was appointed as Administrator of the Estate. The law offices of Parker & Ankuda are collecting the bills. Arrangements are being made where the Town will not have to tear down the building. Currently, there is a Purchase and Sales Agreement for the properties of 9 and 7 Furnace Street. A condition of the sale is for the purchaser to tear down the apartment building, 9 Furnace Street within 60 to 90 days of purchase. The owners would live in 7 Furnace Street.
Property at 21 Cottage Avenue:
Attorney Ankuda commented the Town owns this property because of a tax sale. The Town is trying to sell the property. If it is not sold in a timely fashion, the Town needs to decide the best way to deal with this property. The decision would be to simply tear the building down and cart off the debris or spend money on repairs necessary to make the property okay. The property has been listed for sale on Craig’s List. Attorney Ankuda explained the Town would be spending some money dealing with it; and it may take a long time to recover the money.
Property at 23 Valley Street:
Attorney Ankuda stated Mr. Bishop has tried to work on the property himself. He has hired Bob LaBonte and Jason Waysville to look at the property and discuss the repairs. Unfortunately, the property is still is not in compliance with the Town’s order. The Town has a notice that indicates we can tear down the building at any time without further notice. Attorney Ankuda noted this property is similar to the Union Street property. If the building is torn down, leaving a pile of rubble, it is probably not the right thing to do. The mess would be sitting in the middle of Town. Cleaning up the rubble will be an additional expense.
Attorney Ankuda said obviously the Board of Selectmen is trying not to spend Town money on these properties, but we have 23 Valley Street and 42 Union Street; which he feels will require demolition and disposal. The 128 Tarbell property should really have the garage wall knocked down to abate the property.
Vice-Chairman Knoras wanted to know if these properties have owners. Attorney Ankuda pointed out Mr. Bishop was present to represent his property. Vice-Chairman Knoras wanted to know if the Town was isolating the owners; are we saying forget the owners they have no responsibility? Attorney Ankuda answered by stating the Town is entitled to file a lien on the property. The owners of the Tarbell property have never responded to the Town’s order. There is also a mortgage on this property; the bank sent a letter stating they did not have any interest in the property. Vice-Chairman Knoras then wanted to know who owned the property and if they lived there. Attorney Ankuda replied it was Mrs. Tarbell and she did not live there. The daughter actually owns the property now.
Attorney Ankuda and Vice-Chairman Knoras mentioned the property located at 248 Elm Hill, an old farmhouse. When the Town first announced the Dilapidated Building Project, these owners stepped up to the plate and took the responsibility to demolish their unsafe building. Both Ankuda and Knoras felt the Town should not disrespect these property owners by not enforcing the orders of the other property owners. Vice-Chairman Knoras stated everyone needed to be treated the same.
Vice-Chairman Knoras went on to say if it takes just knocking the wall down; knock it down. Attorney Ankuda commented it was just a minimum to abate the hazard. Attorney Ankuda asked Vice-Chairman Knoras how much money he wanted to spend up front while the Town tries to collect it later? Vice-Chairman Knoras didn’t think the Town would have to spend much money at all.
Mr. Forguites said it would cost something to knock it down. David Yesman also offered an observation on the Tarbell property. He felt if the back garage wall was knocked down, the Town might want to consider knocking down the roof. This would make a big pile of rubble; plus it is a two, (2), car garage.
Attorney Ankuda wrapped up his update by stating these are the abatement issues that need to be dealt with to protect the public. That would seem to be the obligation of the Board of Selectmen.
Vice-Chairman Knoras wanted to know if the owners were paying taxes on the Tarbell property. Mr. Mobus commented the bank started the foreclosure process; but paid the taxes to keep the property out of a tax sale a few years ago. Mrs. Tarbell has not paid taxes for about 4 years. Mr. Mobus felt when the bank went to look at the property, they realized maybe they didn’t really want the property; they never transferred title or concluded the foreclosure act. Currently, there is one year of taxes due on the property.
Mr. Forguites went on to say the Bank does not intend to assert any interest in the property; they have walked away from it. Vice-Chairman Knoras wanted to know if the Town could get title to the property and find a buyer that would tear down the buildings. Attorney Ankuda said the Town would have to purchase the property at Tax Sale, wait a year, and there would be Tax Collector fees attached to the property. The whole process would take about 1-1/2 years. The other choice would be for the Town to spend money to abate the hazard and file a lien against the property.
MOTION: David Yesman moved to have the Town mitigate the hazard of the garage wall with the least
amount of disturbance to the rest of the structure and pursue a lien against the property
located at 129 Tarbell Road, N. Springfield, VT.
Seconded by Peter MacGillivray.
Peter MacGillivray commented the Board of Selectmen have spent a lot of time and effort over the last few months, the Town has an ordinance, there is a liability and the Town needs to follow through with the dilapidated property decisions.
Chairman Morris asked for further discussion. Mr. MacGillivray mentioned Mr. Yesman’s observation of the integrity of the roof. Mr. Yesman commented the corners were in place; the middle was out; he wondered if there were enough of the corners in place to keep the roof up.
Robert Forguites stated if the Town goes ahead with the motion, he will contact the Structural Engineer, Mr. Hindinger, to inform the Town of the best way to mitigate the hazard.
Chris Coughlin, resident of Springfield, stated he had a couple of questions. He suggested the Town consider if 129 Tarbell Road would be a buildable lot in the future with reference to septic and water. He suggested maybe the land is unusable for habitation.
Vote: 5 Yes, passed unanimously.
David Yesman suggested discussing 23 Valley Street because Mr. Donald Bishop is present this evening. Mr. Bishop corrected Mr. Yesman stating the property is actually 25 Valley Street. Town Attorney Ankuda said the Town is only discussing one, (1), of Mr. Bishop’s properties and that is 25 Valley Street. Attorney Ankuda went on to state Mr. Bishop has made some efforts to meet the compliances; however, this has not been achieved. Attorney Ankuda stated under the order issued by the Town, the property in question may be torn down and the Town could file a lien on the property at any time without further notice. He also stated the project looked to be more than a teardown; it was also going to be a cleanup issue too.
The Structural Engineer, Mr. Hindinger, also expressed his concern for the potential of brook flooding at this property and across the brook. Mr. Bishop shared in his report from his Structural Engineer, Mr. Waysville, that if Mr. Bishop finished the wall that he started, it would put his building in compliance. Mr. Bishop went on to say he doesn’t believe the land across the brook is actually his land. He also stated his biggest problem is that he doesn’t have a place to store the items from 25 Valley Street. Attorney Ankuda simply stated that was not his issue, a lot of us would be in the same boat as Mr. Bishop.
Chairman Morris reminded everyone the only property being discussed was 25 Valley Street; just the structure.
David Yesman commented the Board of Selectmen has been through the entire process with Mr. Bishop. The Town has provided him extensions at his request so he may put the property in compliance and to this day has not.