Nov 132019
Holly Jarvis
Nov 102019
Unapproved Minutes
Braintree Selectboard Meeting
November 5, 2019
Present:
Megan O’Toole, Selectboard Chair Aaron LaRocque, Lt 10
Daniel Burson, Selectboard Member Bob Moyer, DRB Chair
Charlie McMeekin, Selectboard Member Linda Lubold, WRVA Rep.
Loren Bent, Selectboard Member Holly Jarvis, Admin. Assistant
Keegan Haupt, Selectboard Member Jeff Masterson, Road Commissioner
Ms. O’Toole called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.
The Board reviewed the agenda. Nothing was changed.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the minutes of October 22, 2019.
Citizen’s comments:
- Mr. LaRocque asked about the signs that the Town was going to put up on LaRocque Road. The status will be looked into and it will be on the next agenda.
Guests
- Ms. Lubold provided the semi-annual report. Randolph may potentially still leave the ambulance service.There is no timeline for a decision. White River Valley Ambulance Service (WRVAS) has been increasing transfers as a way to increase revenues. They have been looking at other ways to reduce the per capita rate. It seems likely that the per capita rate for FY21 will be lower.
- Mr. Moyer provided the Development Review Board’s (DRB) semi-annual report. A couple of interesting DRB hearings have occurred. Which have caused the DRB to provide some feedback to the Planning Commission (PC) about the bylaws.
- Kolbey Haupt about Tannenburg Bridge- tabled.
- Mr. Masterson provided the Highway Report. The beavers on Riford Brook Road were discussed, as was the turn around on Grantsworth Road, and the Thayer Brook Road culvert header repair project.
Old business- none.
New business
- Tractor sales options- tabled.
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the grant reimbursement request packet for the Grant-in Aid Bent Hill Road.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Bent, the Board unanimously approved the payment orders.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Bent, the Board unanimously approved going into executive session for a legal matters under 1 V.S.A. § 313(a)(1)(F).
On coming out of executive session, Ms. O’Toole made the motion, and Mr. Burson seconded the motion to do nothing, and remain in the negotiation class in the National Prescription Opiate Litigation.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously adjourned the meeting at 7:00 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Holly Jarvis
Oct 282019
Approved Minutes
Braintree Selectboard Meeting
October 22, 2019 at 6:00 pm
Present:
Megan O’Toole, Selectboard Chair Kathleen Juffre-Ernst: resident about bus route
Daniel Burson, Selectboard Member Jim Barlow: Town Attorney, LT 10
Loren Bent, Selectboard Member Paul Hannan: Town Surveyor, LT 10
Charlie McMeekin, Selectboard Member Paul Kendall: Resident, LT 10
Keegan Haupt, Selectboard Member Kelly Braman: LT 10
Mark LaRocque: LT 10
Jeff Masterson, Road Commissioner Aaron LaRocque: Resident, LT 10
Jessie Brassard, Treasurer Zac Freeman: RASTA, LT 10
Holly Jarvis, Admin. Assistant Kevin LaRocque: LT 10
Ms. O’Toole called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.
The Board reviewed the agenda, adding a conversation about repairs to a culvert on Thayer Brook Road.
On motion of Mr. Haupt, seconded by Mr. McMeekin, the Board unanimously approved the minutes of October 8, 2019.
Citizens’ comments
- Ms. Juffre-Ernst came to talk about the bus routes. She would like to find a way to have her children picked up by the school bus. She lives on Summit Road (a short private road off from Braintree Hill Road). The section of Braintree Hill Road that Summit Road enters is not a part of a bus route. She read the Superintendent’s email to her regarding his concerns about winter maintenance and turn around options of that section of Braintree Hill Road. The plowing/sanding routes have been planned to work with the current bus routes. It may or may not be possible to find a workable solution. It was unclear if the school would be willing to consider a change in a bus route if a workable change in the plowing route was found. Ms. Juffre-Ernst was asked to talk to the school some more about it and get back to the Town.
- Mr. Freeman asked about the Braintree 3,5,7. He had heard quite a lot of positive feedback, but was wondering if anyone had heard any negative feedback. Ms. Brassard indicated that she encountered some people sitting in chairs at one of the intersections. People on bikes were stopped in the middle of the road talking to the people in chairs, and barely moved enough for her to get by them. She had heard of a few other comments about bikes taking up more than their share of the road. Mr. Freeman indicated that he always reminds the people at the event to abide by the rules of the road. He will make sure that reminder continues to occur.
Guests
- Mr. Hannan passed around a LiDAR map on which he overlaid the plotting of a number of road layouts. The LiDAR map clearly show that there is currently a course through the woods where Legal Trail 10 had been thought to be; a trail New England Forestry Foundation (NEFF) and Rochester/Randolph Area Sports Trail Alliance (RASTA) is currently using. He found three different layout records that when all three are considered together appear to match up with the legal trail and LaRocque Road quite well. It does appear as if a mistake was made in one of the layout records. This is not uncommon. The method used back when this layout was done involved measuring with a specially designed chain and a compass. The surveyor would note the measurements and directional readings and then the town clerk would copy those notes in the town record books, sometimes years later. On the map he showed the course as it was written in one color and the course with the added section in another. Both courses were purposefully off set from the course that was visible on the ground so that it could be seen as well. The assumption being made was discussed with him and the audience members. It was his professional option that this mistake in the old record isn’t a fatal flaw regarding the legal standing of the trail. The intent of the layout record was clear to him. Following this discussion, the Board asked Mr. Hannan to review the town records to determine if the trails were ever discontinued. He advised that a reasonable search for the discontinuance will be done.
- Jeff Masterson provided the Highway Report. The turn arounds were briefly discussed.
- Ms. O’Toole made the motion to pay Hilltop Construction the $195,000 for the construction of Tannenburg Bridge, Mr. Bent seconded the motion. There was a lengthy discussion, as the contract was for $190,000, with a clause stating that it could be increased by $5,000 with prior permission if unforeseen circumstances were encountered. Following the discussion the vote was taken and the motion failed (Mr. Bent, and Ms. O’Toole voted in favor, Mr. Burson, and Mr. McMeekin voted against the motion, Mr. Haupt abstained from the vote as Hilltop Construction is his brother’s business).
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board voted in favor of paying the $190,000 to Hilltop Construction now and invite Kolbey Haupt to the next Selectboard meeting to discuss the $5,000 (Mr. Haupt abstained, the other Board members voted in favor.)
- The Board discussed the repairs needed to a headwall on a culvert on Thayer Brook Road. On motion of Mr. Haupt, seconded by Mr. McMeekin, the Board unanimously agreed to ask four contractors for bids instead of advertising it, if that will not cause a problem with FEMA funding for the project.
Old business
- Mr. Burson reported that the time period the bidder had to accept the counter bid on the tractor has expired. He will look into putting the tractor on the muni-bid site.
New business
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Haupt, the Board unanimously approved the discharge of the mortgage for The Housing Foundation.
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved singing the following documents for the grant in aid reimbursement packet:
- Operations and Maintenance Agreement
- Transfer of Ownership Request
- The Board agreed to support the local collaboration for the Boston Fed’s Working Communities Challenge. The current plan is to focus the funding on expanding the availability of childcare in the area.
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the payment orders.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Haupt, the Board voted unanimously to go into executive session for personnel matters under 1 V.S.A. § 313(a)(1)(B).
On motion of Mr. Haupt, seconded by Ms. O’Toole, the Board voted unanimously to come out of executive session.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the addendum to the personnel policy to change how the full time highway personnel are paid for wintertime standby.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. McMeekin, the Board voted unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 7:50 pm.
Respectfully submitted
Holly Jarvis,
Admin. Assistant
Oct 132019
Approved Minutes
Braintree Selectboard Meeting
October 8, 2019 at 6:00 pm
Present:
Megan O’Toole, Selectboard Chair Janice Thresher, Resident
Daniel Burson, Selectboard Member Jeff Masterson, Road Commissioner
Charlie McMeekin, Selectboard Member Jessie Brassard, Treasurer/DTC
Loren Bent, Selectboard Member Holly Jarvis, Admin. Assistant
Keegan Haupt, Selectboard Member
Ms. O’Toole called the meeting to order.
The Board reviewed the agenda adding a discussion about a mobile home park “mortgage”.
On motion of Mr. Bent, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the minutes of September 17, 2019.
Citizen’s comments: none.
Guests
- The Board reviewed Mr. Masterson’s Highway Report.
- Jessie Brassard
- The financial report was not yet provided. The reports will be provided following the audit, which is Nov. 6-7th.
- The credit card limit was discussed. The Board was ok with the limit increasing to $2,500.
- Tax sales were discussed. On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. McMeekin, the Board authorized the list of delinquent tax sales that Jessie provided, and approved the expenses and the terms of engagement for Jim Barrow for legal services to proceed with the tax sales. Mr. Bent abstained from the decision, the other four board members voted in favor of the motion.
- The Housing Foundation contacted Ms. Brassard and Ms. O’Toole a few days ago about discharging a mortgage between the Housing Foundation and the Town of Braintree from when the foundation originally bought Mobile Acres. It seems like it might be connected to a grant used in the purchase. They will be working with the Town’s Attorney regarding it, because what the Town’s role in this process should be is not clear.
Old business
- Dog Ordinance – the Board decided not to change the ordinance.
- The Board decided to wait and possibly add coverage for domestic partners to the Town’s Health Insurance next fiscal year, so that the added expense can be budgeted.
- Ms. O’Toole and Mr. Burson agreed to alternate participating on the new Fire Assessment Committee being organized by Randolph.
- Reimbursements to the Emergency Committee for hotel expense at a two day training, an hour away. On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded Mr. Burson, the Board voted unanimously to not reimburse for hotel expense but for mileage as if the emergency committee members has made two round trips.
- There was no new information regarding the tractor sale.
New business – none.
On motion of Mr. Burson, seconded by Ms. O’Toole, the Board unanimously approved the payment orders.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Bent, the Board unanimously went into executive session for personnel matters under 1 V.S.A. § 313(a)(1)(B).
No decision was made after coming out of executive session.
On motion of Mr. Bent, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board adjourned the meeting at about 7:30 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Holly Jarvis
Admin. Assistant
Sep 302019
Wednesday, September 25, 2019
Unapproved Minutes
Present: Tom Cooch, Linda Morse, Paul Shriver, Sandy Stephen
Guest: Paige Greenfield, Planner at Two Rivers-Ottaquechee Regional Commission
Mr. Cooch called the meeting to order at 7:00
No Public comments
Two Rivers-Ottaquechee Regional Commission (TRORC) Presentation
Ms. Greenfield enumerated the various ways in which TRORC might be able to help our commission and the Town:
- mapping, including new high-definition LIDAR maps
- environmental planning, including Emerald Ash Borer mitigation
- grants
- water quality work, such as riparian planting
- municipal planning
- transportation
- emergency management
- energy
2018 Knotweed Spraying Inspection
On July 26, Mr. Cooch and Ms. Richmond-Hall toured the areas sprayed last summer by Jerold Kinney. They agreed with the assessment given by Kinney to the Selectboard: some areas showed significant improvement, such as the guard rail patches along Thresher Brook Road. and the west side of Brainstorm Road north of Bruce Anderson. In other areas the spraying was much less effective, such as the section of Peth Road around the junction with Hockman Hill Road.
We do not yet have a list of the areas being sprayed this year.
September Newsletter
Mr. Cooch said he had not made any progress on another newsletter for this summer. The next issue will likely be next spring.
Fall Presentation
No one had any immediate ideas regarding a topic for a public presentation, such as those offered last year on deer yards and on vernal pools. It was agreed that commissioners would bring ideas to the October meeting.
Mr. Cooch suggested that the commission could host a workshop on making wood duck nest boxes that could then be stationed around Mud Pond in the Spring. This might or might not also involve a slide presentation and talk on wood ducks by someone from the ANR.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes for the past three meetings were approved: July (Ms. Richmond-Hall), June (Mr. Cooch), and May (Ms. Richmond-Hall).
The commission had already approved in June minutes for the May meeting submitted at the end of May by Mr. Cooch. Ms. Richmond-Hall subsequently submitted her minutes and these are the ones now posted and approved.
Mr. Cooch expressed his belief that the minutes needed to be sent out within five days of the meeting, both to the Administrative Assistant (by Vermont statute) and to all the commissioners. It is difficult to remember what transpired well enough to approve or make corrections if too much time has elapsed.
Next Meetings
Our next meeting will be on our normal 4th Wednesday, which is October 23. Our November meeting would normally be on the 27th, which is the day before Thanksgiving. We decided to cancel the November meeting altogether and hold our December meeting on the 11th.
Meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Cooch
Sep 202019
Approved Minutes
Braintree Selectboard Meeting
September 17, 2019
Present:
Loren Bent, Selectboard Member Paul Kendall, Stagecoach Rep.
Keegan Haupt, Selectboard Member Jeff Masterson, Road Commissioner
Daniel Burson, Acting Chair Holly Jarvis, Admin. Assistant
Mr. Burson called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.
The Board reviewed the agenda adding an executive session for personnel matters. A question about emergency management reimbursements was added to the agenda.
On motion of Mr. Haupt, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the minutes of August 20, 2019.
On motion of Mr. Bent, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the minutes of September 3, 2019.
Citizen’s comments: none.
Guests
- Paul Kendal – Stagecoach Representative’s Semi-Annual report: the status of a number of ongoing projects were briefly mentioned. Things are going well with the Stagecoach.
Reports
- Mr. Masterson provided the Highway report. The Highway Department has been working on Bent Hill Road this week. It was confirmed that a lot more speed limit signs will need to be installed before speed enforcement will be effective. Mr. Masterson will be meeting with a number of FEMA representatives on the 18th about a couple of projects.
Old business
- The Board again talked about a contract with Orange County Sheriff’s Department. On motion of Mr. Burson, seconded by Mr. Haupt, the Board unanimously agreed to hold off on contracting with the Sheriff’s Department until town meeting. Mr. Masterson will determine how many signs would be needed as a part of budgeting.
- The Dog Ordinance was tabled.
- The Board reviewed the extended warranty options for the Mack. On motion of Mr. Bent, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously selected the plans recommended by the salesman (the 84 months/250,000 miles, “Engine Plan 2”, and “Engine after Treatment System” plans for a total of $5,633).
- The Board briefly discussed the tractor auction. Mr. Burson will continue to work on sorting it out.
- Adding employee health insurance coverage for domestic partners was discussed. It was tabled.
New business
- The emergency management team went to a free two day long training. They stayed at the resort the training occurred at and are asking for reimbursement for the costs. There is enough in the training line budget, but the Town has not reimbursed this sort of expense recently (nor had there been a request to reimburse this sort of expense). The Selectboard is being asked if it should be reimbursed.
On motion of Mr. Burson, seconded by Mr. Haupt, the Board unanimously when into executive session for personnel matters under 1 V.S.A. § 313(a)(1)(B). On coming out of executive session no actions were taken.
On motion of Mr. Burson, seconded by Mr. Haupt, the Board unanimously approved the payment orders.
On motion of Mr. Burson, seconded by Mr. Bent, the Board unanimously adjourned the meeting at about 7:00pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Holly Jarvis
Sep 182019
Sep 112019
Sep 092019
Approved Minutes
Braintree Selectboard Meeting
September 3, 2019
Present:
Megan O’Toole, Selectboard Chair Thomas Cooch, Conservation Commission Chair
Daniel Burson, Selectboard Member Brian Jones, resident
Loren Bent, Selectboard Member Janice Thresher, resident
Julia Haupt, resident
Holly Jarvis, Admin. Assistant
Jeff Masterson, Road Commissioner
Jessie Brassard, Town Clerk
Ms. O’Toole called the meeting to order at 6:00pm.
Review of agenda: the Board added a utility permit for ECFiber to install cable in an underground crossing on Brainstorm Road for the Kennedy’s property. Moving the meetings in October was also added to the agenda.
Citizen’s comments – none
Guests
- Mr. Cooch provided the semi-annual report of the Conservation Commission. The commission has had two main focuses in the last six months. Which were combating Poison Parsnip on Route 12, in conjunction with the Randolph and Brookfield Conservation Commissions, and maintaining and improving of the Thayer Brook Natural Area. They have also published a couple newsletter, reviewed the results of the road side spraying, and talked with the Planning Commission some about a wildlife corridor they are considering.
Reports
- Mr. Masterson indicated that the Highway Department has been doing general maintenance and ditching. The paving projects are almost done.
- The Board reviewed the one bid which came in for the excavator work for the Bent Hill Road project. On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved J.L. Smith’s bid of $12,950.
Old business
- The Board considered a contract with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. Two questions had been looked into. The first one was, does the town gets the fines from speeding tickets on 12A or 12? The answer was no, the Town only gets the proceeds from tickets on Town roads. The seconded questions was, is it possible to get reports about the services provided to Braintree. The answer was yes, reports are automatically provide. Mr. Bent asked if our speed limit sign are currently adequate for enforcement. This will be looked into.
- Dog Ordinance – was tabled.
- Extended warranty for the Mack – was tabled.
- Update on the tractor auction: Mr. Burson has learned that the tractor cannot be withdraw from the auction (as they were originally told), but that a counter offer to the highest bid can be submitted. The tractor’s bid came in at $14,400. The letter from residents, indicating that they think the tractor should not be sold, was reviewed as a part of the conversation. On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board agreed to a counter officer of $25,000. The tractor will be talked about again at the next meeting.
New business
- The Board reviewed and signed the fire service contract.
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved the utility permit access for ECFiber’s cable to cross Brainstorm Road underground.
- On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved moving their Oct. 1st meeting to Oct. 8th, and their Oct. 15th meeting to Oct. 22nd.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Burson, the Board unanimously approved payment orders.
On motion of Ms. O’Toole, seconded by Mr. Bent, unanimously approved adjourning the meeting. Adjournment was at 6:45 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Holly Jarvis
Sep 032019
BRAINTREE, VERMONT, September 3, 2019 – With the town-wide reappraisal of all property well underway, the Braintree Board of Listers reminds residents and property owners that much work remains. The professional appraisers from the Vermont Appraisal Company have already visited over 100 properties on the northeastern part of Braintree and are continuing to work their way westward. The Board of Listers has been mailing appointment notice cards to property owners 10 – 14 days ahead of the appraisers’ visit, allowing time to reschedule visits when necessary. Property owners in the Braintree Hill/Bent Hill/Thresher Road areas of town should be receiving appointment notices in the next several weeks.
The first phase of the reappraisal involves visiting and assessing “developed” properties only. This excludes properties that contain only land with no dwellings, camps or outbuildings. The typical visit takes 30 – 45 minutes and, with the owner’s permission, involves taking exterior measurements and photographs of all buildings on the property. In addition, and again with the owner’s permission, an assessment of the interior of the dwelling is made. Property owners are reminded that in order to make the most accurate and complete assessment of their property, the ability to appraise a dwelling’s interior is crucial.
The town-wide reappraisal is a year-long process concluding in the summer of 2020 with the completion of the 2020 Grand List on which next year’s taxes will be assessed. Property owners will receive written notice in the spring of 2020 indicating any changes in the assessed value of their property. This notice will also include instructions for how to contest (or “grieve”) any change in assessment.
For more information please contact the Braintree Board of Listers at 802-728-9787 extension 5 or via email at braintreelisters@gmail.com