Pittsfield Select Board Regular Meeting Minutes
To listen to a recording of the meeting please click here: https://bit.ly/3p3ujIo
DATE: February 17, 2022
PRESENT: Ann Kuendig, AJ Ruben, Joyce Stevens
PUBLIC PRESENT: (via Teams) Brett Yates, David Larkin, Dean Macris, Robert Leitch, Susan Olsen
AGENDA MODIFICATIONS: Contractor Paperwork – Quality Paving NB5
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: February 3, 2022 Regular Meeting Minutes
February 10, 2022 Pittsfield Rescue Plan Community Meeting Minutes
CORRESPONDENCE:
1.Bee the Change – Response.
2.Citizen Concern/Complaint – Mears Inquiry
3.Citizen Concern/Complaint – Leitch Inquiry
4.Emergency Relief and Assistance Fund (ERAF) – report
OLD BUSINESS:
1.Sand Shed – Bid Timeline
2.ARPA – Community Meeting Results
3.ARPA – Rescue Plan Committee & Reporting Staff
4.Mask Rule
5.Grant Writers
NEW BUSINESS:
1.Saguaro Technologies – Independent Contractor Paperwork
2.Town Treasurer – January Financials
3.Direct Technical Assistance (DTA) grant – Program Request
4.Office Vacancies – Appointed and Elected
5.Contractor Paperwork – Quality Paving
NEXT REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, March 3, 2022 @ 6pm in the Town Hall
ADJOURN
Ann called the meeting to order at 6:09pm. Joyce seconded. All in favor. Ann presented one Agenda Modification (see above). AJ seconded. AJ moved to approve the Minutes of the February 3, 2022 Regular Meeting and the February 10, 2022 Pittsfield Rescue Plan Community Meeting Minutes. Seconded by Joyce. All in favor.
Pittsfield Select Board Regular Meeting Minutes page 2
February 17, 2022
CORRESPONDENCE:
1. Bee the Change – Response. Ann said she finally received a response from the organization regarding the Abrams property on Lower Michigan Road. The group will cover seeds and labor. Ann moved to approve the organization doing this work in the spring. AJ seconded. All in favor.
2. Citizen Concern/Complaint – Mears Inquiry. Tonia Mears inquired about the status of the mask policy passed in December. See OB4.
3. Citizen Concern/Complaint – Leitch Inquiry. Bob had sent a note to George and Ann requesting an update as to the status of Forsha Road and his property. Dean Macris the contractor responded that logs are being hauled out but nothing else is being done to the road while it is frozen. Trees have been marked for clearing/pruning. Dave voiced his concern that there isn’t a plan in place to address this type of situation, should it reoccur. It was felt that the Forest Service should be involved in the future. Ann said she felt that Dean should be communicative with the neighbors and that further mitigation can wait until spring. The Board felt that they could wait to see if this situation occurs again but not do anything now in anticipation. Bob said he would like to know what he can expect to see when he visits his property. Vehicle speed on the road was also brought up but Ann said that speaks to another issue. The Town has contracted with the Sheriff in the past, but he doesn’t deal with the side roads. Ann encouraged keeping lines of communication open with neighbors regarding issues of concern.
4. Emergency Relief and Assistance Fund (ERAF) – report. This report from TRORC shows that Pittsfield qualifies for a state match of 17.5%, which is the highest ERAF rating available. This is reflective of the Town’s efforts to participate in the National Flood Insurance Program, adopt VTrans approved road and bridge standards, adopt annually a Local Emergency Management Plan, have a current FEMA approved Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, and have River Corridor Protections in place.
OLD BUSINESS:
1. Sand Shed – Bid Timeline. Ann added that on February 8th, the Town received authorization to send out bids and this was done on February 9th. The bid letter was sent to the list of prequalified contractors. March 9 at 1pm is the deadline for opening the bids and then forward to Dubois & King. Construction is to be completed by August 1st.
2. ARPA – Community Meeting Results. Ann said she received a spreadsheet listing from Sarah Waight plus two additions. These will be posted, and the attached spreadsheet will be added to the Minutes of the meeting.
3. ARPA – Rescue Plan Committee & Reporting Staff. This committee will be made up of 7 members who can understand the program and its requirements. Currently there are two members (Kate Stiles from the PCC and Linda Colton as the business representative). AJ said he was willing to be the Select Board representative. It was felt that this would be a short-term committee. Several names were suggested to serve from the public. Trish will be asked to post a notice requesting volunteers. AJ suggested that their first meeting be held the 3rdweek in March. It was decided to postpone the reporting position for further discussion.
4. Mask Rule – update. Ann said that the Board was to address these 45 days after its enactment. Ann proposed that since cases have been dropping, the mask mandate be lifted effective immediately. However, public places/businesses can request mask usage, for example the Town Office. AJ seconded. All in favor.
Pittsfield Select Board Regular Meeting Minutes page 3
February 17, 2022
5. Grant Writers. Ann said that she reached out to Quin-Town and contacted some other people. Tom Warholl in Randolph was recommended. She emailed him with an outline of what was involved, and he expressed interest. His fee is $70/hour. Ann said she could send him the application for the Fire Department grant and see how long it would take to complete. She will contact Tom.
NEW BUSINESS:
1. Saguaro Technologies – Independent Contractor Paperwork. Ann moved to approve the paperwork for 2021 and 2022. AJ seconded. All in favor.
2. Town Treasurer – January Financials. Joyce moved to approve. Ann seconded. All in favor.
3. Direct Technical Assistance (DTA) grant – Program Request. Ann said she received an email from Sarah Gallagher after she had a meeting regarding the DTA. FEMA would like to have a community education outreach person attend a Select Board meeting. TRORC personnel are also available. Sarah felt it was important to get people on the project who have experience. The generator was the original intent of the grant. Sarah and Ann have both spoken with George and currently there is no one area that consistently floods that would be a candidate. Ann expressed her concern that there is no one on the Town’s end to participate at meetings or do the work. Some names were suggested. They would need to have some knowledge of past flooding experiences. Ann said she would invite Alison Grenier from FEMA to attend the next meeting. Ryan Thompson, George, Greg, and Dave Colton will also be invited to attend if interested.
4. Office Vacancies – Appointed and Elected. The current listings were reviewed, and suggestions made where there were vacancies. The term of Elected Officials will be extended to the May Annual Meeting. Ann said that the Listers need to be contacted regarding the status of a contract for hiring an outside assessor.
5. Contractor Paperwork – Quality Paving. Ann moved to approve the paperwork. Joyce seconded. All in favor.
NEXT REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, March 3, 2022 @ 6pm in the Town Hall
As there was not further business to address, Ann moved the meeting be adjourned at 7:28pm. Joyce seconded. All in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha L. Beyersdorf, Secretary
Approved: March 3, 2022
/ /
Ann Kuendig Joyce Stevens A.J. Ruben
To listen to a recording of the meeting please click here: https://bit.ly/3p3ujIo
DATE: February 17, 2022
PRESENT: Ann Kuendig, AJ Ruben, Joyce Stevens
PUBLIC PRESENT: (via Teams) Brett Yates, David Larkin, Dean Macris, Robert Leitch, Susan Olsen
AGENDA MODIFICATIONS: Contractor Paperwork – Quality Paving NB5
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: February 3, 2022 Regular Meeting Minutes
February 10, 2022 Pittsfield Rescue Plan Community Meeting Minutes
CORRESPONDENCE:
1.Bee the Change – Response.
2.Citizen Concern/Complaint – Mears Inquiry
3.Citizen Concern/Complaint – Leitch Inquiry
4.Emergency Relief and Assistance Fund (ERAF) – report
OLD BUSINESS:
1.Sand Shed – Bid Timeline
2.ARPA – Community Meeting Results
3.ARPA – Rescue Plan Committee & Reporting Staff
4.Mask Rule
5.Grant Writers
NEW BUSINESS:
1.Saguaro Technologies – Independent Contractor Paperwork
2.Town Treasurer – January Financials
3.Direct Technical Assistance (DTA) grant – Program Request
4.Office Vacancies – Appointed and Elected
5.Contractor Paperwork – Quality Paving
NEXT REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, March 3, 2022 @ 6pm in the Town Hall
ADJOURN
Ann called the meeting to order at 6:09pm. Joyce seconded. All in favor. Ann presented one Agenda Modification (see above). AJ seconded. AJ moved to approve the Minutes of the February 3, 2022 Regular Meeting and the February 10, 2022 Pittsfield Rescue Plan Community Meeting Minutes. Seconded by Joyce. All in favor.
Pittsfield Select Board Regular Meeting Minutes page 2
February 17, 2022
CORRESPONDENCE:
1. Bee the Change – Response. Ann said she finally received a response from the organization regarding the Abrams property on Lower Michigan Road. The group will cover seeds and labor. Ann moved to approve the organization doing this work in the spring. AJ seconded. All in favor.
2. Citizen Concern/Complaint – Mears Inquiry. Tonia Mears inquired about the status of the mask policy passed in December. See OB4.
3. Citizen Concern/Complaint – Leitch Inquiry. Bob had sent a note to George and Ann requesting an update as to the status of Forsha Road and his property. Dean Macris the contractor responded that logs are being hauled out but nothing else is being done to the road while it is frozen. Trees have been marked for clearing/pruning. Dave voiced his concern that there isn’t a plan in place to address this type of situation, should it reoccur. It was felt that the Forest Service should be involved in the future. Ann said she felt that Dean should be communicative with the neighbors and that further mitigation can wait until spring. The Board felt that they could wait to see if this situation occurs again but not do anything now in anticipation. Bob said he would like to know what he can expect to see when he visits his property. Vehicle speed on the road was also brought up but Ann said that speaks to another issue. The Town has contracted with the Sheriff in the past, but he doesn’t deal with the side roads. Ann encouraged keeping lines of communication open with neighbors regarding issues of concern.
4. Emergency Relief and Assistance Fund (ERAF) – report. This report from TRORC shows that Pittsfield qualifies for a state match of 17.5%, which is the highest ERAF rating available. This is reflective of the Town’s efforts to participate in the National Flood Insurance Program, adopt VTrans approved road and bridge standards, adopt annually a Local Emergency Management Plan, have a current FEMA approved Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, and have River Corridor Protections in place.
OLD BUSINESS:
1. Sand Shed – Bid Timeline. Ann added that on February 8th, the Town received authorization to send out bids and this was done on February 9th. The bid letter was sent to the list of prequalified contractors. March 9 at 1pm is the deadline for opening the bids and then forward to Dubois & King. Construction is to be completed by August 1st.
2. ARPA – Community Meeting Results. Ann said she received a spreadsheet listing from Sarah Waight plus two additions. These will be posted, and the attached spreadsheet will be added to the Minutes of the meeting.
3. ARPA – Rescue Plan Committee & Reporting Staff. This committee will be made up of 7 members who can understand the program and its requirements. Currently there are two members (Kate Stiles from the PCC and Linda Colton as the business representative). AJ said he was willing to be the Select Board representative. It was felt that this would be a short-term committee. Several names were suggested to serve from the public. Trish will be asked to post a notice requesting volunteers. AJ suggested that their first meeting be held the 3rdweek in March. It was decided to postpone the reporting position for further discussion.
4. Mask Rule – update. Ann said that the Board was to address these 45 days after its enactment. Ann proposed that since cases have been dropping, the mask mandate be lifted effective immediately. However, public places/businesses can request mask usage, for example the Town Office. AJ seconded. All in favor.
Pittsfield Select Board Regular Meeting Minutes page 3
February 17, 2022
5. Grant Writers. Ann said that she reached out to Quin-Town and contacted some other people. Tom Warholl in Randolph was recommended. She emailed him with an outline of what was involved, and he expressed interest. His fee is $70/hour. Ann said she could send him the application for the Fire Department grant and see how long it would take to complete. She will contact Tom.
NEW BUSINESS:
1. Saguaro Technologies – Independent Contractor Paperwork. Ann moved to approve the paperwork for 2021 and 2022. AJ seconded. All in favor.
2. Town Treasurer – January Financials. Joyce moved to approve. Ann seconded. All in favor.
3. Direct Technical Assistance (DTA) grant – Program Request. Ann said she received an email from Sarah Gallagher after she had a meeting regarding the DTA. FEMA would like to have a community education outreach person attend a Select Board meeting. TRORC personnel are also available. Sarah felt it was important to get people on the project who have experience. The generator was the original intent of the grant. Sarah and Ann have both spoken with George and currently there is no one area that consistently floods that would be a candidate. Ann expressed her concern that there is no one on the Town’s end to participate at meetings or do the work. Some names were suggested. They would need to have some knowledge of past flooding experiences. Ann said she would invite Alison Grenier from FEMA to attend the next meeting. Ryan Thompson, George, Greg, and Dave Colton will also be invited to attend if interested.
4. Office Vacancies – Appointed and Elected. The current listings were reviewed, and suggestions made where there were vacancies. The term of Elected Officials will be extended to the May Annual Meeting. Ann said that the Listers need to be contacted regarding the status of a contract for hiring an outside assessor.
5. Contractor Paperwork – Quality Paving. Ann moved to approve the paperwork. Joyce seconded. All in favor.
NEXT REGULAR MEETING: Thursday, March 3, 2022 @ 6pm in the Town Hall
As there was not further business to address, Ann moved the meeting be adjourned at 7:28pm. Joyce seconded. All in favor.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha L. Beyersdorf, Secretary
Approved: March 3, 2022
/ /
Ann Kuendig Joyce Stevens A.J. Ruben
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