FINAL VERSION AS
AMENDED AND APPROVED ON April 14, 2003. Attest: _________
Charlotte Town Meeting
Minutes
Tuesday, March 4, 2003, 9:00 AM
Charlotte Central School
Gymnasium
Eleanor Russell
Debbie Ramsdell
Paul Arthaud
OTHERS: various
townspeople (see clerk records)
The meeting was
called to order at 9:09am.
The items to be
discussed and voted on were as follows:
Clark Hinsdale III wanted to talk about the Common Level of Appraisal (CLA). He feels that the state has listed properties in Charlotte too high – he wants Charlotte to appeal the property values that the state has assigned to town properties. He feels that there is data out there that many citizens in town have (through refinancing, etc.) that would help the town by providing tangible information for the town to appeal to the state. He encourages everyone to consider appealing their property taxes in order to get more control of the finances in the community.
Dick Weed seconded
Mr. Hinsdale’s comments wholeheartedly.
He asked that everyone get behind what Mr. Hinsdale said. People only want to live in their own homes;
the town needs relief for the individual property owners. He feels it is
essential to the defeat of the CLA.
Charles Russell
(selectboard member) told how the CLA is derived by the state. The CLA is derived from the property sales
in the town. 190 sales occurred last
year, 3 of those sales on the lake sold for at least twice of what they were
listed at. One sale (for 2.75 million
dollars) raised everyone’s taxes 7.2 cents.
With the top 3 sales thrown out, taxes would go down around 14 cents. The selectboard is in the process of
appealing the CLA through a multi-stage appeal process with the state.
Eleanor Russell
(selectboard member) said that the town is attempting to appeal the state
policy.
Ed Amidon (state
representative) said it is a state problem that is hitting Charlotte very badly
because the property values are going up so fast in town. He said the state is attempting to change it
so that it does not have such a dramatic effect. They are trying to get a plan through the government that totally
erases ACT 60 and funds education differently in 2004-2005. It has not been modeled yet, so he could not
tell how it would affect the town of Charlotte. It taps into income tax and consumption and sales tax more than
it currently does. Also considering
putting a sales tax on beer. They are
trying to raise a substantial amount of money on sales tax, and move some of
the education funding from property taxes to income tax – by raising the income
tax rate 1.25%. There will be 2 grand
lists – one for non-residential property (where the only tax would be a
state-wide property tax) and one for residential property. They hope to stop the explosion of education
costs.
Ed continued to say
that he hopes the town realizes that the tax money in town is not caused by
local spending, it is an unintended consequence of the system currently put in
place by the state government.
Alison Lockwood
wanted someone from Charlotte Fire & Rescue to come up and talk about their
annual report, particularly references to efforts to negotiate with citizens
groups, anti-tower fundraising push, and efforts to block WIZN.
Eric Van Vlandren
(President, CVFRS) spoke about the contentious issues with the tower. They are working with the citizens group
asking them to exempt them from the legal issues because they feel their
transmissions are not causing any problems, rather the other transmissions from
the tower (including WIZN) are the problem.
Since CVFRS is the owner of the tower, the citizens group has so far declined
to exempt CVFRS. CVFRS have spent
around $30,000 in legal fees concerning the tower. It’s putting a drain on their finances as well as their time. CVFRS is pursuing their own options to
relocate the tower. The point of the
article in the town’s annual report is to raise the issue in front of the
public and state that we’re all in this together, lets try to solve the issue
without litigation.
Alison Lockwood
wanted a clarification on whether the litigation is current and what groups are
involved. The group is called Citizens
for Responsible Placement of Towers. No
one is sure of the name. There was a
community group organized by the town, also.
Martha Perkins asked
if everyone involved sat down and talked about this as an issue. Rick Pollack from CVFRS said that they
had. He said he has been with CVFRS for
6 years, and this lawsuit has preceeded his involvement with CVFRS. The hundreds of thousands of dollars spent
on this is all about replacing one guy wire, according to Rick. They are pursuing relocating to Mt. Philo.
Chris Davis from
CVFRS was not clear about why they couldn’t work forward since ideas were being
exchanged about how to handle the tower.
Anything was possible at that time.
They are ready and willing to move on the issues, CVFRS is still in town
and ready to listen. They would love to
identify a way to get WIZN out of here.
Bill Lockwood asked
about the contract with WIZN. The CVFRS
contract with WIZN goes to 2006. The
lease calls for them to have erected, maintain, and insure the tower, but no
dollars above and beyond that.
Question concerning unanticipated expenses on the town budget from Tina Flood, jumping $9000. Charles Russell explained how they were making it a more realistic number, it’s usually much lower and the expenses go way beyond the number.
Second part of
question from Tina Flood concerned town lands on page 10 concerning Ballpark
(Berry Farm). She believed that every
attempt was to be made to have the ball fields maintained with independent
funds. She was asked by the moderator
to hold off until Article 3.
Vote on Article 1: To hear the reports of the Town officers and to act upon the same.
Vote: Ayes have it.
Marty Illick moved Article 2, it was seconded.
Hazel Prindle said the date was moved to November 17th because the 15th was a Saturday.
Vote on Article 2: Will the Town vote to have Property Taxes payable on or before November 17, 2003 and to have payments made to the Town Treasurer 32 VSA § 4773?
Vote: Ayes have it.
Mike Yantachka moved Article 3, it was seconded.
Charles Russell talked about trying to hold all departments to a 3% increase. Except for Fire & Rescue, they were successful. The highway department has a slight increase for maintenance of gravel roads. The Ballpark (Berry Farm) line item is for the maintenance of the fields ($9,000). The School fields were transferred from the school board budget to the selectboard budget since the way Act 60 is written, it saves the town approximately $3500.
Eleanor Russell talked about the CVFRS budget. The main expense is the EMT salaries. There is a jump to $130,000 from $78,000 to help provide more coverage on a daily basis. CVFRS felt it was a number that they can run with in order to provide service for the town and actively look for volunteers.
Sylvia Knight was wondering if the costs of the school fields and ballparks included costs for herbicides and pesticides. Charles Russell said none of the money is going to pesticides. They will not be used on town lands.
Allen Jordan had a question about the $15,000 planning and zoning. He wanted to know what safeguards the commission put in the contract so that it is not similar to the West Village consultants jobs. Jeff McDonald, chair of the planning commission, said it will not be the same. Burnt Rock will help facilitate putting together zoning and sub-division bylaws together in one document.
Peter Nobes wanted help understanding the EMT budget. Rick Pollack said the membership is dropping – in order to keep their certificate of service, they need to be working 7 days per week, 365 days per year. They should be 3 people per day, but right now they are at about 2 people per day. CVFRS will provide training, there are several past members in the town that still live here. They would prefer to be more of a volunteer organization, but right now they need to hire people in the day. People can make a difference in all sorts of ways – the Charlotte News has been very generous in allowing CVFRS to advertise for volunteers.
Richard Bernstein wanted to know about the income projected of $27,000. CVFRS said they bill for service calls, and that is their projection of income for the year. R. Bernstein asked if their has been any thought of combining with other towns fire departments, such as Shelburne. CVFRS said staffing issues is commonplace among local towns. There does not seem to be a bright light at the end of the tunnel – how can it change for the better? Ambulances are not required for the town, losing the ambulance may be an alternative.
Shirley Bean said that there was a time when she needed the Charlotte ambulance. The ambulance could not respond since it was elsewhere, but the boys responded – Rick Pollack and Bob Stone in their pickups. She stressed that the town needs the ambulance, no matter how it affects taxes. She urges the taxpayers to support it.
Sylvia Sprigg asked why the Senior Center budget was increased when we’re talking about making cuts throughout the budget of the town. Debbie Ramsdell said the total increase was only $887. They took $2000 out of program expenses and put that towards the directors’ salary. Shirley Bean said the director works at least 25 hours per week because of the amount of work that she does. The center is occupied 5 days per week. The center made almost $2000 in programs last year, after expenses. Since the director was paid for less than 20 hours per week, she was not classified as a part-time employee and received no benefits. The selectboard increased her hours to 20 hours so she now qualifies as a part-time employee and can receive part-time benefits.
Shirley Bean wanted to amend Article 3 to add $4,597 to the budget to give the Senior Center director 25 hours/week.
Shirley Bean made the amendment, it has been seconded.
Clark Hinsdale III had a point of order – could you make line item adjustments to town budget? The moderator said you cannot make line item adjustments to the school budget, but you can to the town budget.
With the addition of $4,597 to the Senior Center budget, the expenses of the Senior Center in 2003-2004 would total $38,484. It would increase the overall selectboard budget by $4,597. Charles Russell (selectboard member) said it would affect the benefits line item as well.
Mary Mead said it won’t really affect the benefits because she won’t always
work 25 hours since she is an hourly employee.
You are just increasing the pool on which she can be paid from.
Larry Hamilton said 2 years ago he supported the Senior Center, but did not feel he would use it. He was wrong! The programs are very attractive and the director is terrific. He urges everyone to support the amendment.
Dan Rosen said he doesn’t begrudge someone making a living wage, but go through the budget. The town is taking on more and more responsibility and there’s a steady dripping of funds – this all starts accumulating. What kind of town does this become? Who can afford to live here?
Debbie Ramsdell (selectboard member) wanted to point out that this is not a board recommendation, and she does not support the amendment.
Clark Hinsdale III wanted to offer a substitute amendment to authorize the selectmans budget of $1,740,000. Clark Hinsdale III made the motion, it was seconded. This would reduce the budget by $33,906. This would moderate the proposed tax rate. If the town adopted the same municipal tax rate this year as last year, the budget would be approximately $1,740,000. How can we object to Act 60 and yet raise the town budget to this level? He wants to encourage the selectboard to manage the line items in the budget and not to micro-manage the town budget. He encourages the town to increase the budget by 7% but do it because of the growth of the grand list. Operate the town within the annual increases on the grand list. We need to have fiscal discipline.
Charles Russell (selectboard member) responded that the selectboard is trying to put together a budget that they feel they will reasonably spend. Coming up with an arbitrary number won’t help. The selectboard was using the philosophy that they were putting together a budget that they feel will reasonably be spent.
Eleanor Russell (selectboard member) was trying to figure out where to take out $33,000 – she couldn’t. She supports Clark Hinsdale III’s idea of trying to hold back the tax rate, but without cutting services, she does not see how.
Dan Rosen wonders how the town can object to Act 60 when spending more and more money. He urged people to think about their neighbors, not only themselves. He is disturbed about Ed Amidon’s comment on a tax on beer – that’s something people need!
Sophie ??? urged people to let the selectboard do what they are supposed to do.
Paul Arthaud (selectboard member) spoke about the large amount of time spent on the budget. Supposed we approved Clark Hinsdale III’s amendment. Where would you cut the money?
Allan Jordan felt that town meeting is for expressing the views of the town, and it should affect the selectboard.
MaryAnne Gatos feels the selectboard has done a great job, even though she doesn’t necessarily agree with everything. This is your opportunity to express what you do and don’t want – but she doesn’t support a bottom line cut.
Charles Russell (selectboard member) said you can’t plan a budget and expect revenues to come in higher.
Dave Schermerhorn agrees somewhat with Mr. Hinsdale – taxes are getting high,
people are going to have to make decisions whether to live here or not. He feels non-essential services could be cut
(though he can’t say exactly where) to make up the $33,000.
Clark Hinsdale III said the intent of his amendment is to make the increase in the town budget the same as the increase in the grand list.
Charles Russell (selectboard member) said that the selectboard tried to set the budget as low as they could. This is the time of year the town can tell the selectboard what they want. The board is getting the clear message to keep the budget as low as possible.
Request to cease debate on the secondary amendment, Vote: Ayes have it.
Vote on secondary amendment “To reduce Article 3 by $33,906 to set a sum of $1,740,000”.
Chair can’t call it on the voice vote. Board of Civil Authority called up to oversee a Division of the House.
Vote: In Favor: 138, opposed: 93. Secondary amendment carries.
Primary amendment. The primary amendment still seeks to add $4,597 to the selectboard budget, which would then total $1,744,597.
Shirley Bean said they went to the selectboard originally asking for 25 hours per week for the director. Lunches are every Wednesday now, they feed anywhere from 20 to 45 people. This program is self-supporting, as is all their other programs. But the fact is that someone has to put all these programs together. There are a few fundraising projects coming up this year including an annual craft bazaar in October.
Nancy Wood wanted to know if passing the amendment to increase by $4,597, can the selectboard use it for anything or is the selectboard able to use it for anything?
Request to cease debate on the primary amendment, Vote: Ayes have it.
Vote on primary amendment “Will the town adopt the selectboards’ budget of $1,744,597”.
Vote: No’s have it. Primary amendment fails.
Question: If the pumper vote fails but the selectboard budget passes, what will happen to the fund money in the budget. Charles Russell (selectboard member) said it will sit in fire and rescue reserve fund. It cannot be spent for other items.
Alison Lockwood wanted to make an amendment to Article 3 – wanted to add $12,000 to selectboard budget to bring selectboards budget to $1,752,000. The motion was seconded.
Alison said there is cost-shifting from school budget to the town budget this year. There is $12,000 worth of cost shift on page 10 of the annual report. She feels she does not know how the selectboard will cover all the costs with the current budget. The town has accepted gifts of the library and the Senior Center, and now we need to maintain them. She feels this amendment will at least cover things that will save the town money.
Jessie Bradley feels that programs that are run well can pay for themselves. She feels we need to start thinking of these as revenue generating programs and that they’re an investment in the town.
Shirley Bean said the money that is made by the Senior Center by their programs and their lunches goes back to the town. She hopes that the hall can be rented out more frequently.
Levi James says she lives on a budget. She feels that perhaps next year, if the town gets some relief from Act 60, we could incorporate some of these things. But she has fixed dollars for the town government.
Dr. Richardson feels that we should vote against the amendment. He sees the problem as the selectboard not staying within the budget every year. He says the final number is a ballpark figure and you know the selectboard will go over that number.
Request to cease debate on the amendment, Vote: Ayes have it.
Vote on amendment to Article 3: ”Will the town adopt the
selectboards budget of $1,752,000 for the current fiscal year July 1, 2003 –
June 30, 2004 less anticipated revenues”.
Vote: No’s have it.
Request to call the question.
Request to cease debate on Article 3, Vote: Ayes have it.
Vote on Article 3: Will the town adopt the selectboards budget of $1,740,000 for the fiscal year July 1, 2003 to June 30, 2004 less anticipated revenues?
Vote: Ayes have it.
Mike Yantachka moved Article 4, it was seconded.
Vote: Ayes have it.
Bob Chutter moved Article 5, it was seconded.
Vote: Ayes have it.
Dick Weed moved Article 6, it was seconded.
Eleanor Russell (selectboard member) said the selectboard was initially against this, but they were convinced otherwise. Bank consultants advised the board that interest rates were at an all time low, and they crunched the numbers so that it would not increase the rate.
Eric Van Vlandren (CVFRS) said the current truck is 23 years old and they would prefer to give better service to the community. It would be irresponsible of CVFRS to not ask for money for a new pumper. Chris Davis said that the current truck was purchased in 1980 and refurbished in 1993. Dick St. George said CVFRS made the choice of putting this article forward for many reasons. They hope this apparatus will serve for 20 years and not have the down time that the current trucks possess.
Alison Lockwood feels CVFRS does an awesome job. She wondered if CVFRS could sell the current truck to help finance the purchase of a new one. Also, are there grants available for purchasing a truck? Does EMS have grants for purchasing thermal imaging cameras?
Eric said CVFRS owns no thermal imaging cameras. It’s possible to sell apparatus to purchase a new one. The 1980 truck has a value of $15,000-$20,000. CVFRS feels having a 2nd truck around is better for the community than to have an extra $15,000. CVFRS writes grant proposals every year via the federal government, but there is a limited pool of money available. CVFRS received about $3500 of grant income last year, yet they applied for over $100,000 in grant money.
Peter Coleman said he did some research and Shelburne, Hinesburg and Ferrisburg have obtained equipment recently through donations, subscriptions, user fees, etc. What sort of fund-raising efforts has CVFRS looked into in recent years? Chris Davis said they’re open to fund-raising and donations, but it takes time to set these things up. Rick Pollack said the subscription service requires a lot of maintenance, and CVFRS said the primary focus is to get up and running. They are looking into these issues for the future, but the immediate goal is to get up and running as a top rate ambulance service.
Gail Hogan said she moved here in May from Bridgewater, Connecticut. She said every summer, they put on a fair and everyone in town helped. They had a waiting list of people interested in joining the fire department.
Patricia Donaldson wanted to offer strong support for this issue. She feels it is unrealistic to get this issue through fund-raising. You can supplement the funds through fund-raising, though. The new truck has more horsepower (can pump more water), can bring 6 people to the fire, and it would get the fire under control quicker. She said the vote today is to authorize the use of money we started gathering in 1999.
A question was raised on the old fire truck – how is “old” measured? It has just under 40,000 miles, but the issue is reliability. Salt has been eating away at the wiring, etc. It consistently spends 15 to 20 days every year being worked on – and during this time it is out of service.
Request to call the question.
Request to cease debate on Article 6, Vote: Ayes have it.
Vote: Ayes have it.
Dr. Richardson moved Article 7, it was seconded.
Paul Teague said that in the event a recreation grant becomes available, they often require a 10-20% note to match the 80-90% from the state. In case such an opportunity arises, the intent is that this money would be used to provide the match from the town. There are no current grants that they are aware of.
Alison Lockwood asked what sort of improvements are they thinking of? The answer was primarily trails – sidewalks, transportation paths.
Alison Lockwood asked if there is a master plan out there for the future – the town is getting all these gifts that need to be maintained, what is the 5 year projection for the trails, for example? Jessie Bradley said that’s a discussion that is part of the planning process.
Vote on Article 7: Will the Town vote to expend a sum not to exceed $4,500 from the Recreation Fee Fund for use as the Town’s financial match if it is awarded a grant from the State of Vermont for capital improvements to Town recreational facilities?
Vote: Ayes have it.
Alison Lockwood moved Article 8, it was seconded.
David Hill spoke about ways to reduce household emissions. The last 25 years have been warmer, globally, than the average. Temperatures are rising, yet emissions in the U.S. since 1990 have increased 12%. We’re not reducing our greenhouse gases.
What can you do in Vermont? Several industries in Vermont are environmentally sensitive – maple sugaring, farming, tourism, etc. You can purchase appliances that would use much less energy than what you have at home now. Use solar hot water and solar energy. Buy fluorescent lamps. Purchase energy-efficient cars.
This is not being addressed currently at the national level. So, by default, it comes down to the grass roots level. Internationally, the U.S is one of very few countries that have decided to not sign the Kyoto protocol.
Gail Hogan was wondering how the usage would be monitored in homes, etc. David Hill said that emissions are tied to energy use, so the 10% challenge gives recommendations and strategies on how to change. Since it is strictly voluntary, no one is going to come after you if you sign up and don’t reach 10%. Ten per cent is seen as a good place to start.
A question arose – isn’t there a home kit that will permit you to do an energy audit at home. Dave Hill said there are a number of resources available, including home energy audits.
Jill Avalof said she supports this article. She feels that anything we can do at the grassroots level to support this motion is a good thing.
Sylvia D’Avignon said we need to move towards conservation rather than digging up more oil in the arctic resources.
Request to call the question.
Vote: Ayes have it.
Alison Lockwood moved Article 9, it was seconded.
Vote on Article 9: Will the Town
vote, on an advisory basis to encourage every citizen and business owner in
Charlotte to participate in the 10% Challenge program to reduce their own
greenhouse gas emissions by at least 10% and ask community officials to reduce
the emissions of Town buildings and Town fleets by at least 10%. Note: This article is advisory only.
Vote: Ayes have it.
Advisory Motion:
Alison Lockwood made the following advisory motion: Will the town vote on an advisory basis to notify the president of the United States that the citizens of the town of Charlotte oppose war with Iraq.
Sylvia Knight said this policy will affect what happens here in Charlotte. Funds will be affected (transportation, environmental programs, civil interactions, etc.). All will be affected by the massive expenditures for war. Furthermore, our civil liberties are being eroded in this process as well. It is important that the town make the president aware that the quality of our lives will be affected if this war goes ahead.
Clark Hinsdale, Jr., said this is a small number of people to vote on such a motion as this. He doesn’t feel the group that is here now can possibly represent the town of Charlotte, and he will be voting no.
Vote on advisory motion by Alison Lockwood, “Will the town vote on an advisory basis to notify the president of the United States that the citizens of the town of Charlotte oppose war with Iraq”.
Board of Civil Authority called up to oversee a Division of the House.
Vote: In Favor: 42, opposed: 21. Advisory motion carries.
Dr. Richard Bernstein had concerns about a recreation committee. He feels the town is at the point where it could use a recreation department that would oversee ball field maintenance, recreation programs, maintenance on rec paths, the beach, etc., which would be funded by a predictable line item on the budget. He would like to create an advisory motion to the selectboard to create a rec committee that would be funded by a 2 cent increase on the tax rate.
Question: What does 2 cents turn out to be in dollars – the answer is roughly $78,000 per year. Paul Arthaud said that the selectboard is working on a new department, parks and recreation, that would put all recreation items under that umbrella. The selectboard is already in that research phase and is being put together.
Clark Hinsdale, Jr., asked if he was remembering correctly – the rec department had a hard time getting members, keeping a chairman. Bunky said he is no longer chairman.
Dan Rosen said the motion makes sense where we are right now since we get things by gift or grant, and then the town needs to maintain them. But are we thinking about the direction the town is going in? It has always been more piece meal. He feels that these things can be run privately, not part of the government and therefore not a taxpayer burden.
Paul Arthaud said that there are lots of subcommittees that don’t know what the other hand is doing, but that’s the reason for incorporating it under one umbrella. If you separately bid things out, it would cost thousands of dollars more. But, if you put it in one contract, many dollars are saved.
Jennifer Cole said the Affordable Housing Committee was talking about putting together an additional warning to add 2 cents to the tax rate to create affordable housing in town. But they decided not to do it this year because of the burden of Act 60.
Jessie Bradley said that if the programs that are being run are paying for the person who is running them, the outflow will have a strong inflow and balance each other.
Vote on advisory motion “To create a recreation committee that would be funded by a 2 cent increase on the tax rate”.
Vote: No’s have it, Advisory motion fails.
Debbie Ramsdell said she has been working on the medical marijuana issue for the last couple of years. She stated that the questionnaire has a question concerning medical marijuana, and she would appreciate it if people voted for that issue.
Alison Lockwood noticed that the town constable position was removed from the ballot, and how did that occur without public input? The answer was that it happened last year, and the reason was to add a 2nd constable.
Motion to adjourn.
Ayes have it.