Town of Grafton

Town of Grafton

Select Board Meeting

MINUTES

August 7, 2017

Select Board Members Present: Joe Pollio, Stan Mack,Cynthia Gibbs, Ron Pilette, Al Sands

Community Members Present: Chuck Wise, Suzanne Welch, Dave Culver, Matt Siano, David Rogers, Don Dougall, Kent Armstrong, Joan Lake, Emily Huff, Fact8TV, Sam Battaglino, Liisa Kissel, Bill Kearns, Peter Jeziorski, Dottie Cannon, Tom Cannon, Christine Tattersall, Eric Stevens, John Evans, Terry Pollio, Noreen Sands, Kurt Goodwin, Cathy Siano-Goodwin, Josh Ellsworth

Call to order: 6:00PM Adjournment Regular Meeting: 7:55PM

Adopt Agenda: Motion to adopt agenda with omission of Ed Bank/Act 46 (Stan) PASSED

Adopt MinutesJuly 17, 2017:Motion to adopt minutes (Stan) PASSED

Highway Report: Tabled, Danny Taylor was not present

Act 46/Ed Bank, Grafton Board of Education Chairman:Rescheduledfor August 21.

Bill Kearns

• Vtrans Mapping: Bill said that the Vermont Agency of Transportation did not approve a section of LT-7 due to the lack of documentation. Bill will follow up and it will be resubmitted in 2018.
• Emergency Management Chain of Command: Bill sent the Select Board an email about the chain of command. He said the Emergency Management Director should make a recommendation to the Select Board for the appointment of a Coordinator and Deputy Director. The Deputy Director would assume the emergency duties of the Director in the event the Emergency Director is absent. Bill said there needs to be more clarification of who is in charge. Al Sands suggested Bill, Joe, and he meet to go over this. Bill said it is important for the Emergency Director to be very familiar with the FEMA regulations on 44 CFR.

Update on Town Plan: Eric Stevens said that new members of the Planning Commission brought their ownvaluable expertise. Eric said they are working together in teams to complete the Town Plan and projects it will be finished within a few months. Chuck Wise said the process is moving along smoothly and he is getting summaries from members each week. Liisa Kissel said the current Town Plan expires in 2018 so they are feeling a sense of urgency. Sam Battaglino said he has noticed that there is too much absenteeism at the Planning Commission meetings. Ron Pilette asked if this reference was about an individual member,Eric replied yes. Dave Culver said the WRC worked with 3 pilot Towns in dealing with Act 174 and this could be a good resource for Grafton.

Town request to State of Vermont ANR for classification upgrade for Styles Brook, Willie Brook, Howe Brook: Al Sands said he asked to have this put on the Agenda. Al said there was a request from the Towns of Grafton and Windham regarding this reclassification, but doesn’t know who made the request. Al said he got this information from the Springfield office. Marie Caduto, Watershed Coordinator for the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, out of the Springfield office, responded to Al’semail for information, but her answer didn’t includewho the request came from. Al also said he received an email from Chris Campany. He said Chris didn’t say who asked for the reclassification either, but listed the people from Windham and Grafton that have met with Marie. Joe said this reclassification could have a tremendous effect on the Town and businesses within the Town. Joe wants a motion to stop this now, adding that there should be open and honest discussion about the matter. Liisa Kissel said that there is a misconception about the reclassification question, adding that there has been a lot of discussion at WRC meetings about clean water,which included the Willie, Stiles, and Howe Brooks. Liisa said there are studies being made by the State and if they are found to be A1 streams, then they would be reclassified. David Rogers asked whythese 3 streams are being studied and not all the streams in Grafton. Liisa said Marie Caduto should come to a Select Board meeting to clarify the situation. Suzanne Welch suggested the Town of Windham be contacted as well.

Houghtonville Dumpsite: Stan said that additional trash had been dumped at the site, adding that he would like to form a subcommittee with 2 Select Board members to look into the matter. Al suggested Vermont Fish and Wildlife be contacted. Motion for 2 people from the Board to look into the dumping problem (Stan 2ndRon) PASSED. Stan and Cynthia volunteered to be on the committee.

Architect Proposal: Joe said the Board met with Bill Badger, Historical Architect, at Town Hall to go over needed repairs. The first phase of the Architect’s Fee for the project would be $1,600.00. Stan said Bill has done many projects like this. Cynthia asked why the Town needs an architect and doesn’t just hire contractors. Ron said he would like to see someone oversee the project, adding that he was impressed by Mr. Badger, but he thought other architects should be contacted for their input. Don Dougall said to speak to the Historical Society about the architect they used for the Brick Meeting House. Al suggested contacting the Vermont Historical Preservation for names of other Architects. Don suggested we contact UVM to help with the project. Joe said the ultimate goal would be for Town Hallto be the center of the Town with all meetings being held there. Stan discussed the Historical Preservation Grant application that has to be completed by Oct. 2nd. Motion to hire Bill Badger for phase 1 to workwith a Select Board sub committee of 2 (Al 2nd Stan)PASSED with Ron voting NO. Stan and Cynthia volunteered to be on the committee.

Resident concern about speeding on Rte. 121: Peter Jeziorski suggested putting in a speed bump. Suzanne said she has noticed there are large trucks speeding down Main Street. It was suggested installing a flashing speed sign. Joe suggested some research be done and have it put on the next Agenda. Ron said 25mph signs be installed with streets that connect with Main Street.

Town Pond Update: Ron said he thought the pond should be tested weekly. Joe suggested Jay Karpin, Town Health Officer, be contacted to test 2 times a month. Cathy Siano-Goodwin asked about fresh water being introduced into the Pond. Al said that adding stream water and then putting back into the stream after it had been warmed could be a problem for the State. Dave Culver suggested installing an aerator.

Dog Census Update: Cynthia said most of the dogs in Town are now licensed.

Historic Preservation Grant: Stan discussed the criteria to get this grant adding that Grafton fits almost every category. Stan said it’s a $20,000.00 matching Grant and suggested the GIA contribute some funding. Al said we should apply for the Grant. Emily will contact Bill Badger about the Grant.

Other Business: Cynthia Gibbs gave a report on the SWWCSWMD meeting on July 27th. The Capital Reserve Fund has been reduced by $379,193.00 and the funds distributed to the Towns. Grafton’s amount will be $5,372.00. Cynthia recommended that the funds be put in a separate account in case it is needed in the future for the disposal of our solid waste. Josh Ellsworth brought up a concern about knot weed. He said it can be controlled with a herbicide when it is in its early growth stage. Joe asked if Josh could come to the next meeting with more information. Al asked if mowing expands the knotweed. Dave Culver said regular mowing helps to control it. Sam asked about deteriorating camps on Hinkley Brook Rd. There was discussion about guard rails that are needed on some Grafton roads.

Executive Session:Motion to go into Executive Session (Ron) 7:55PM. Motion to come out of Executive Session (Stan) 8:32PM

Date of next meeting

• Monday, August 21, 2017, Grafton Town Garage

Video of this meeting can be viewed on Fact8TV