Board of Selectmen December 20, 1999

TOWN OF CHARLOTTE

BOARD OF SELECTMEN

MINUTES

DECEMBER 20, 1999

MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Marty Illick

John Rosenthal

James Sheldon-Dean

Robert Mack, Jr.

Clark Hinsdale, III

OTHERS: Ed Everts

Nancy Sabin

Charles Russell

Shirley Allen

Harley Allen

Raven Davis

Patricia Coleman

Peter Coleman

Louis Cox

R. Avery Hall

Sandy Mayo

Mary Lighhthall

Holly Callery

James Callery

Martha Perkins

Dean Bloch

Dan Rosen

Edward Melby

Jean Melby

Jim Donovan

Spin Richardson

Michael Yantachka

Sylvia Sprigg

Eric & Deb Murray

Lora & Etna Merrill

Stephen Moore

David Hill

Larry Hamilton

Linda Hamilton

Jonathan T. Fairbank

Wallace R. Smith

Wendy Schroeder

________________________________________________________________

Chairman Illick called the meeting of the Board of Selectmen to

order at 5:40 p.m. in the Charlotte Town Offices.

BUDGET

Wendy Schroeder brought to the attention the Selectboard budget

worksheet noting the budget hasn't been changed from the

previous year with the exception of salaries.

Board of Selectmen -2- December 20, 1999

Schroeder said she had been working on the Fire and Rescue

budget as she felt the 20% increase the department had requested

was too much.

Schroeder noted that overall in the capital budget the operating

budget was up 5%, the growth in taxes was up 4% the Grand List

was up 1.4% and other revenues were up 1.7%; making the spread

between income and expenditures "too divergent."

Board members discussed the Selectboard budget. Mack suggested

increasing the budget for legal expenses from $11,000.00 to

$20,000.00, Hinsdale suggested having the west village septic as

a line item expense and cutting the advertising budget to zero.

Board members discussed the Town Clerk's budget. Mack noted

that health insurance needed to be addressed as the current

insurer is leaving the state. Rosenthal asked about having a

pay scale for employees and Schroeder responded the problem was

that once a long-term employee reaches the top of the pay scale,

their only option for a raise in pay was to expend their job

description. Illick offered the VLCT handbook was helpful in

comparing municipal salaries around the state. Mack questioned

why the budget for postage was so high and Schroeder answered

because the town report needs to be mailed out in the spring.

Board members reviewed the Planning and Zoning budget. Illick

suggested the P& Z office get a volunteer for filing old records

instead of paying for a temporary clerical position. There was

a discussion on the Deputy Health Officer position and Illick

offered the salary was based on a set number of hours regularly,

rather than on specific cases. Mack asked about legal expenses

and Illick responded that the Town Clerk had changed how legal

expenses were charged to budgets and Hinsdale went on to explain

that the bulk of legal expenses were charged to the Selectboard

budget, allowing the Chairman to decide how vigorously the town

would fight cases and that routine legal questions to the town

attorney would be billed to those specific offices. Board

members discussed the new printer and telephone line requested

by the P & Z office. Hinsdale noted the cost of $1,400.00 for

advertising and suggested that fees requiring notification of a

hearing cover the costs of advertisements. Hinsdale also

suggested to cover the cost of fireproof file drawers, that the

town could charge attorneys for title searches. Mack asked

about money for mapping and training that was not used and

Harley Allen responded the town has not been billed for that

yet.

Hinsdale spoke in favor of approving the Listers budget as they

had only requested a 1% increase. Illick suggested moving to

the next agenda item and reconvening on budgets Wednesday,

December 29, 1999 at 1:00 p.m.

ADJUSTMENTS TO AGENDA

Chairman Illick asked if their were and changes to the agenda

and Sheldon-Dean he wanted to update the board on a driveway he

reviewed on Dorset Street and Hinsdale said he wanted to review

the status on the Burns property AGREEMENT.

Board of Selectmen -3- December 20, 1999

PENDING LEGAL CASES

Zoning Administrator, Louis Cox, discussed pending legal cases

with board members and how to proceed with them. Cox discussed

having his advisements from the board put into the minutes of

the meetings and Illick stressed getting on the agendas to give

the board the proper time and attention warranted to the issues.

Board members and Cox discussed his memo of December 14, 1999

and board members gave the following directions to Cox: in the

stockpiling of mulch on Route 7 to wait and see what happens

since the recent court decision, in the Hutchins case to do a

scheduled site visit with Mack the next day and in the case of

Carol Hinsdale to write her a letter and ask her for

clarification as to why she does not feel she is in violation of

zoning ordinances and in all cases, to consult with the town

attorney for advice.

SENIOR CENTER

Rosenthal said he had talked with the town attorney and had been

advised not to put the Senior Center petition filed October 18,

1999 as an item on the Town Meeting warning as he felt there was

nothing useful that would come to the town by voting on the

issue. Illick said there was still much to be determined,

including building specifics, an operating budget, etc.

Hinsdale asked if the petition had included 5% of the registered

voters and offered if so, that the signers had a right to be

heard. Rosenthal said part of the problem the lawyer had with

the petition is that it budgets town revenue for an infinite

amount of time, which the town cannot legally commit to. Illick

advised there would be articles on the warning addressing the

Senior Center besides those on the petition and the board was

concerned with confusing the voters with too many proposals.

Rosenthal acknowledged the board did not act on the petition as

soon as it should have. Nancy Sabin said she didn't feel the

board was in favor of the senior center and Hinsdale replied the

board was all for it.

Rosenthal moved and the motion was seconded by

Mack:

* "TO APPROVE THE REQUEST OF THE PETITION OF OCTOBER

18, 1999."

Vote: 3 in favor, 2 opposed (Rosenthal, Mack).

Tricia Coleman asked the board members for written support of

the senior center and Rosenthal responded the board had already

done so in a letter to the Charlotte News and Sheldon-Dean added

the board is in support.

Hinsdale moved and the motion was seconded by

Rosenthal:

* "THAT THE BOARD MEMBERS INDIVIDUALLY SIGN THE LETTER

TO THE CHARLOTTE NEWS IN FAVOR OF THE SENIOR CENTER

BEQUEATHED IN WALTER IRISH'S WILL."

Vote: All in favor.

Board of Selectmen -4- December 20, 1999

PUBLIC HEARING - PROPOSED TOWN PLAN DRAFT 11/18/99

Sheldon-Dean moved and the motion was seconded by

Hinsdale:

* "TO OPEN THE HEARING ON THE PROPOSED TOWN DRAFT OF

NOVEMBER 18, 1999."

Vote: All in favor.

Chairman Illick said the board wanted to hear discussion on the

proposed Town Plan and noted the input would need to be complete

by January 10, 2000 to be on schedule for Town Meeting Day.

Illick said she had talked with the Planning Commission and was

advised the old plan could be readopted, but the Planning

Commission would prefer to move forward with the draft and

rewrite the controversial parts if necessary. Shirley Allen

asked about scheduling another hearing and Illick advised the

final hearing was set for January 26, 2000. Illick introduced

Town Planner, Dean Bloch, who discussed the new plan and offered

there were passages where the word "will" has several meanings,

including enforcement and/or strategy.

Mike Yantachka suggested defining forestry (on page 60) with

text from Judge Meredith Wright's recent ruling on Charlotte

Farm and Mills. Illick asked Yantachka to submit the text, and

Yantachka did. Steve Moore complimented the hard work of those

who worked on the plan, adding that much thought had gone into

the plan.

Nancy Sabin suggested checking the figures for the Recreation

and Library budgets on page 96, as she thought they were

incorrect.

Jim Donovan discussed his concerns with the mandatory guidelines

for historic districts on page 109. Hinsdale offered that a

historic district doesn't necessarily mean modern zoning, citing

many historic buildings are too close to the road, for example

to meet current zoning. Hinsdale added the intent was to help

homeowners keep up their historic property.

Spin Richardson and Harley Allen discussed their concerns with

overlays of districts as described on page 123.

Martha Perkins reviewed the strategy in the use of the word

"will" in the Town PLan and Illick stated she thinks the

vocabulary needs to be corrected to be more specific to the

intent.

Avery Hall discussed the references to Thompson's Point on pages

75 and 76, and his understanding the new septic system is for

camps only. Hall said he would submit his draft of how he feels

that paragraph should be worded.

Larry Hamilton stated he thought the references to "planting and

preserving" on page 124 should be more clearly worded.

Sylvia Sprigg said she thought the references on pages 110 and

103 referring to Industrial and Commercial agriculturally

related businesses should be more specific to what kind of

businesses the town does and does not include in that category.

Board of Selectmen -5- December 20, 1999

Hinsdale noted the board had yet to make changes to this draft

and Rosenthal asked who wrote the draft. Bloch explained the

Planning Commission took the existing plan and made changes to

it.

Shirley Allen asked about incorporating agricultural maps into

the plan and Bloch answered that 2 people had been hired to do

the agricultural maps, which are in the draft stage and waiting

for more data and asked residents to look at the draft maps and

make corrections. Shirley Allen asked why the map makers hadn't

talked with landowners and Hinsdale responded they may not have

had the time allocation.

Dan Rosen asked what qualifies an area as an agricultural

district and Bloch answered it is a general characteristic for

the purposes of planning, but not zoning.

Sandy Mayo asked if there would be an inclusion of who made the

maps and Bloch responded the maps would not be in the Town Plan.

Mayo suggested on pages 113 and 117 that references to the

Charlotte Land Trust be exchanged for "financial assistance form

other sources." Martha Perkins suggested using instead "a local

conservation organization," in place of the Land Trust.

Nancy Sabin suggested references on pages 92, 93, and 113 to the

senior center be deleted as they would be obsolete by Town

Meeting Day.

Larry Hamilton said he thought the use of "Agricultural

Districts" on map 33 was too formal and Illick suggested

replacing "District" with "Area."

Spin Richardson discussed his concerns with references to

containing sprawl on pages 103 and 106 adding he didn't think

the town has the capacity to fully contain growth, but added the

town has to have an overall land use plan.

Jim Donovan discussed his concerns with page 107 and offered

different strategies are being used across the country to

contain sprawl besides transferred development rights. Illick

added the purpose of the Conservation Fund was to assist the

town in keeping open space. Hinsdale stated his thinking that

good planning adheres to the values of the town.

Nancy Sabin said she thought the celebration of diversity on

page 131 needs expansion.

Charlie Russell suggested on page 105 getting rid of the

prediction of growth and on page 108 to have no minimum lot

size. Illick discussed on page 20, table six the prediction of

115 new houses in Charlotte in the next five years. Al Moraska

said he thought that projection would be close.

Sandy Mayo asked about "selling development rights" on page 120

in the rural district, asking for more clarification. Dan Rosen

advised he thought that in general development is a complex

issue and a Town Plan is meant to be a general document.

Board of Selectmen -6- December 20, 1999

Nancy Sabin questioned the wisdom of having only one housing

unit per five acres on page 48, asking whether that doesn't

penalize larger landowners.

Hinsdale offered the town is residentially zoned one to five,

which he sees as a more balanced approach than other towns and

that landowners' rights don't exist in a vacuum and impacts the

other residents of the town.

Illick suggested on page 95, adding language that reflects the

impact on the town of Act 60.

Shirley Allen asked about references in the plan to a

"development rights bank." Hinsdale suggested replacing that

language with "non-continuous PRDs." Jim Donovan explained a

development rights bank provides a seller with financial help

when a buyer isn't readily available.

Sandy Mayo asked about costs to the tax base for subsidizing the

Demeter project versus the cost of schooling the children of a

new residential family. Hinsdale replied when land is

conserved, the tax base is lowered and when a new family with

school aged children moves in, it increases the tax base, but in

both cases the town is not reimbursed by the state for preserved

land or tax loss due to Act 60.

Sylvia Sprigg offered that the town needs to make development

decisions based on soil types (for septic) and water

availability and the Town Plan needs to add more language about

what is best for the community.

Spin Richardson talked about the reference on page 22 to

affordable housing and suggested the town promote or accept job

creation. Ed Melby said Chittenden County Regional Planning is

going through their planning process and currently 70% of

residents live in urban areas versus 30% in rural and

Charlotte's growth is reflective of this.

There was a discussion of the definition of and feasibility of

affordable housing and how it might relate to the town.

Rosenthal noted the reference on page 111, encouraging housing

near the commuter rail and offered the train wouldn't show

feasibility for 2 years and he thought it shouldn't be treated

in the plan as a given. Al Moraska said the Planning Commission

had meant the reference to the train as a strategy and not a

policy.

There was a discussion of the plan verbiage using a description

rather than intention and Bloch directed residents to page 33,

where the plan addresses intentions.

Illick asked if board members and residents wanted to continue

the meeting and Hinsdale offered the board could take written

comments on the Plan until January 3, 2000.

Board of Selectmen -7- December 20, 1999

Hinsdale moved and the motion was seconded by

Sheldon-Dean:

* "THAT WE CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE TOWN PLAN

WITH THE CAVEAT THAT WE WILL ACCEPT WRITTEN COMMENTS

THROUGH THE CLOSE OF THE BUSINESS DAY, JANUARY 3,

2000."

Vote: All in favor.

Rosenthal asked for a recess until 10:00 p.m. and board members

agreed. The board reconvened at 10:05 p.m.

APPROVE MINUTES OF DECEMBER 6, 1999 MEETING

Chairman Illick asked board members if they wished to approve

the minutes of December 6, 1999. Sheldon-Dean asked to change

the second line of page 5 to read that he questioned the wisdom

of making modifications to the town right-of-way for the

driveway. Illick corrected on page 6 the spelling of "Dahagan,"

and on page 7 the motion to pay Joyce Wallace for "increased

insurance rates."

Illick noted Zoning Administrator, Louis Cox has requested at

change on page 7 for the minutes to read: "Zoning Administrator

Louis Cox presented a letter to the Selectboard concerning a

notice he had sent to Jeff Hutchins that he was dumping and

filling in violation of Hutchins's open space agreement.

Hutchins has appealed the notice violation, and the full appeal

process could take many months, Cox said. Meanwhile the dumping

is continuing despite Cox's orders to cease. Because the fill

work could be difficult to remediate in the event the notice of

violation is upheld, Cox requested support from the Selectboard

for the filing of a court order for an injunction against

Hutchins. Mack suggested that Cox go look at the site as Mack

thought there was no longer a problem. Cox said he had asked

Hutchins for permission to visit the site and Hutchins had

declined. In any case, the burden of proof is on the property

owner at this point, Cox said. Mack repeated his suggestion

that Cox go look at the site. The board asked Mack to accompany

Cox to visit the site the following day before taking action."

Rosenthal moved and the motion was seconded by

Hinsdale:

* "TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF DECEMBER 6, 1999 AS

AMENDED."

Vote: All in favor.

BILLS/OTHER BUSINESS

Board members reviewed and signed bills.

Sheldon-Dean reviewed a letter he had drafted concerning the

site inspection he and Town Planner, Dean Bloch, performed at a

subdivision on Dorset Street Extension. The letter outlined the

reasons why the selectboard opposed a "Hidden Drive" sign for

northbound traffic at the site and the sign installation should

not be required for granting a Certificate of Occupancy.

Board of Selectmen -8- December 20, 1999

Sheldon-Dean moved and the motion was seconded by

Rosenthal:

"TO APPROVE THIS LETTER TO BE SIGNED BY THE

CHAIRMAN."

Vote: All in favor.

Hinsdale discussed the progress with the option to buy the Burns

property, saying Earl Burns's attorney, Robert Eastman, is not

convinced that the option to buy the property being signed over

to Richard LeBoeuf, is in his client's best interest. Eastman

claims the option is not transferable and the December payment

is overdue. Hinsdale said he had called LeBoeuf's attorney,

Michael Clapp, on several occasions and had not been able to get

in touch with him. Hinsdale suggested scheduling a meeting of

all the stakeholders to the deal. Spin Richardson asked what

Eastman's concern was and Hinsdale replied that Eastman thinks

his client is better off with the town holding the option.

Richardson said buyers were lined up for $700,000.00 of the deal

and speculated bank financing for the rest would not be a

problem. Hinsdale said he didn't want the option to expire and

then have the property sold off in separate pieces and

recommended the town make the December payment and get the

stakeholders together to write a letter of intent while the town

holds the option. There was a discussion on getting the

stakeholders together for a meeting December 29, 1999 at 6:00

p.m.

Rosenthal asked if the Land Trust was able to pay on the option

and Hinsdale responded no. Rosenthal said his patience was

wearing thin on this issue.

Nancy Sabin asked if the town was abandoning the offer of

property for a senior center from Happy Patrick and Mack advised

that Patrick's land doesn't percolate.

Hinsdale moved and the motion was seconded by

Mack:

"TO PAY THE DECEMBER OPTION PAYMENT CONDITIONAL ON

RECEIVING THE WRITTEN EXTENSION DOCUMENT THROUGH

AUGUST OF 2000 TO PURCHASE THE BURNS PROPERTY AND

SECONDLY THAT WE CONVENE A MEETING OF THE

STAKEHOLDERS IN THE BURNS PROPERTY TO MOVE FORWARD

WITH THE PROJECT WITH THE COMMUNITY HOLDING THE

OPTION."

Vote: 2 in favor 3 opposed (Illick, Rosenthal,

Sheldon-Dean).

Board of Selectmen -9- December 20, 1999

Hinsdale moved and the motion was seconded by

Mack:

"TO PAY THE DECEMBER AND JANUARY OPTION PAYMENTS

CONDITIONAL ON RECEIVING THE WRITTEN EXTENSION

DOCUMENT THROUGH AUGUST OF 2000 TO PURCHASE THE

BURNS PROPERTY AND SECONDLY THAT WE CONVENE A

MEETING OF THE STAKEHOLDERS IN THE BURNS PROPERTY TO

MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PROJECT WITH THE COMMUNITY

HOLDING THE OPTION."

Vote: 4 in favor 13 opposed (Rosenthal).

Rosenthal said he wanted to change his vote in the interest of

unanimity of the board in the Burns property.

Sheldon-Dean moved and the motion was seconded by

Hinsdale:

"TO ADJOURN."

Vote: All in favor.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:47 p.m.

Minutes submitted by:

Debby Flynn