Fairfax Selectboard Minutes of 08/25/08

Selectboard Members present: Judy Cleary, Bill Ormerod, and Bob Horr. Staff Members present: Erin McSweeney, Administrative Assistant to the Selectboard, and Don Pigeon, Road Foreman. Public Present: Please see attached sign in sheet.

1.Call to Order

Judy Cleary, Chairperson, called the meeting to order at 7:00PM.

2. Minutes

A. Bill motioned to bring the minutes to the table for discussion. Bob seconded. Bill offered one amendment.

B. Bob motioned to accept the minutes as amended. Bill seconded. All board members voted in favor of accepting the minutes as amended.

3. Items on the Agenda

A. Don Pigeon- Don and the board reviewed a letter of intent to purchase road salt through Cargill for $58.70 a ton. Judy signed the letter of intent. Don has not been able to reach Captain Sweeny of the Sheriff's Department regarding the speed cart. Erin and Don will work on the Better Backroads Grant application for a proposed bank stabilization project on River Road.

B. Linda Corey- Linda read information she prepared about gravel roads. Linda and other residents of Sam Webb Road attended tonight's meeting to ask the board not to pave any of the gravel roads in Town. She submitted a petition that has been signed by residents of Meade Road and one end of Cherrierville Road asking that these roads not be paved. Robert Lalancette indicated that the Town Plan refers to maintaining the rural character of the Town.

At a previous meeting, Linda submitted a petition, signed by the majority of residents on Sam Webb Road, asking the board not to pave the road. Bill informed Linda that the signatures on the petition for Meade Road and Cherrierville Road will be verified, as were the signatures on the petition for Sam Webb Road. The board will discuss the petition regarding Meade Road and Cherrierville Road at the next Selectboard meeting, which will take place on Monday, September 8th. Bill asked Don to provide information to the board regarding the cost of maintaining a gravel road versus maintaining a paved road.

C. Public Meeting - The Town Plan

Greta Brunswick of the Northwest Regional Planning Commission attended tonight's meeting to address questions about the current draft of the Town Plan. The Planning Commission held a public hearing in July. She indicated that the Town Plan defines the overall vision for the community, including the goals and policies for the next 5 years. Greta indicated that the Town Plan must be in line with state, regional, and Act 250 planning goals.

Greta clarified that Figure 4.9 on page 32 of the current draft refers to sites with the potential for providing sand and gravel; the information was extracted from the Geological Survey. Bob noted that there are no gravel pits in Town that have suitable gravel for use on Town Roads. The Town Highway Department trucks gravel from a vendor in Swanton.

Melissa Beerworth asked who is charged with upholding the goals outlined in the Town Plan. Mark Hunziker, a member of the Planning Commission, indicated that the general goals Melissa referred to at the beginning of the Plan are better defined in the specific sections of the Plan; the specific sections of the Plan also speak to who is responsible for upholding the goal. Mark indicated that all of the Town boards have some responsibility for the goals stated in the Plan.

Greta informed the Selectboard that any changes that the board would like to make to the current draft of the Plan should be submitted to her no less than 15 days prior to the board's next public hearing, which is scheduled for Monday, September 22nd.

The public hearing was closed at 8:00PM.

4. Other Business

A. The board reviewed correspondence from Godfrey Stephen regarding the property he owns at 8 Boissoneault Road. Mr. Stephen would like to change the use to a single family home, and will need additional municipal water and sewer. Erin will contact him to let him know that he should submit a new application for a preliminary sewer allocation, and advise him that he needs to drill a well, as there is no municipal water to allocate.

B. The board continued their review of the Zoning Administrator's and the Zoning Assistant's Job Description.

C. The board reviewed the Notice of Vacancy for the Town Clerk / Town Treasurer position, and recommended that some revisions be made. Erin will submit the revised Notice of Vacancy to the Fairfax News, Buyer's Digest, and the Vermont League of Cities and Towns for publication.

D. The board reviewed the fee schedule for Household Hazardous Waste Day, which is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, October 4th, at the Town Garage on Fletcher Road. By consensus, at a previous Selectboard meeting, the board agreed to increase the per household fee to $10.00; the other items on the fee schedule will remain the same.

E. Bill motioned to approve Fairfax Fire District #1's request to hold their annual meeting on Wednesday, September 24th, at the Fire Station. Bob seconded. All board members voted in favor.

5. Public Input

There was no additional public input this evening.

6. Executive Session

There was no Executive Session this evening.

7. Adjournment

Bob motioned to adjourn the meeting at 9:11PM. Bill seconded. All board members voted in favor. The meeting was adjourned at 9:11PM.

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Erin McSweeney, Administrative Assistant to the Selectboard