DRAFT - Minutes of Annual Town Meeting
Town of Pittsfield
Saturday March 9, 2024
Link To Recording
Moderator George Deblon called the Annual Town Meeting to order at 9am on Saturday March 9, 2024. There were approximately 51 people in attendance at the Town Hall. George led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Article 1. To elect a Town Moderator for the ensuing year
George Deblon was nominated by Terry Manley, seconded by Jen Howard, all in favor George Deblon elected Town Moderator for one year.
Tricia Abbondelo administered the Oath of Office to George Deblon.
Representative Jim Harrison was invited to speak. He spoke about the following:
Article 2. To elect the following officers, as required by law, for the terms indicated and to fill any other office vacant: Motion made to accept the article by Terry Manley, seconded by Herb Kuendig. All in favor, article accepted.
Article 4. Will the voters of Pittsfield authorize the Treasurer to collect taxes on real property in two installments, on or before the third Thursday of August and the third Thursday of November, by physical delivery to the tax collector by 5pm? A motion was made to accept this article by Terry Manley, seconded by Jake Hunt. All I favor, article accepted. No discussion, voice vote all in favor.
Article 5. Will the voters of Pittsfield approve closing the Sand Shed Reserve Fund and transfer the remaining balance to the Recreation Reserve Fund? A motion was made to accept this article by Ann Kuendig, seconded by Terry Manley. All in favor to accept. Discussion: Don Bass asked what we are going to do with it. Joyce Stevens replied to use for improvements to the playground. Amy Alton asked if it could just go into the General Fund. Dana Decker replied speaking about how long we have been talking about repairing the playground. Sandy Begin suggested leaving some in the Sand Shed fund and moving the rest to Recreation Fund. Joyce said the sand shed is complete. Don Bass would like to see some things happen for seniors as well. The basketball court will be redone. We have grant money that needs to be spent by September of this year. The paving company backed out one week before the projects start date. The Select Board has been discussing what to do with the entire area. They’d like to come up with stages of development to get things done. Amy Alton asked what other funds we can put the money into. All funds are listed in the Town Report. The Select Board feels like those funds are already adequately funded. Kris Sperber spoke about showing up at Select Board or Recreation Committee meetings to discuss use. Amy Alton wants to know if it can be put in the General Fund. Yes, it can be transferred to any fund the Town decides. We can amend the article if the Town wants to. Dana Decker asked if we could vote by ballot, yes if someone requests that. Jake Hunt spoke about the playground as a safety situation.
George called on the article again, voice vote, all in favor.
George took a moment to recognize Erica Hurd’s passing and what the Recreation area meant to her, Dana Decker spoke about the Pittsfield picnics she organized and fundraising for basketball courts that she did.
Tentatively, there will be a Pittsfield Picnic to remember Erica on August 11, 2024, that date being given to us by her husband, Christopher.
Article 6. Will the town authorize cannabis retailers in town pursuant to 7 V.S.A § 863? Cannabis retailer means a person licensed by the State Cannabis Control Board to sell cannabis and cannabis products to adults 21 years of age and older for off-site consumption. A motion was made to accept this article by Jeremy Rayner, seconded by Sandy Begin. All in favor to accept. Discussion: Jen Howard looking for clarification on what we are voting on. George clarified that we are voting to allow a retailer in town. AJ said we as a town have to say yes for this to be allowed. Joyce talked about how strict the rules are around buying. It was asked if we can add the 1% tax to this. If we did, we would have to add to all retail sales. It would have to be across the board. No One has come to ask to start a store, but to allow a retailer, the Town has to say yes to this article. The Town Plan can remain the same. Amy Alton asked how other towns voted, Killington, Bethel, Stockbridge voted yes. The closest dispensary is in downtown Bethel. Killington just passed this last Tuesday and there are 2 places waiting for it to pass, so we should see them pop in Killington soon. There are 4 or 5 in Rutland.
George called on the article again, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 7. Will the voters of Pittsfield approve the proposed 12 -month budget beginning July 1, 2024, to meet the expenses and liabilities of the town? A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Wuerthele, seconded by Jen Howard. Discussion; none. Randy moved to approve the article, seconded by Herb, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 8. Will the voters of Pittsfield authorize the Select Board to buy and sell real estate? A motion was made to accept this article by Terry Manley, seconded by Joyce Stevens. Discussion; none.
George called on the article again, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 9. To discuss any non-binding business which may come before the meeting? A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Wuerthele, seconded by Ann Kuendig. Discussion: Dog licenses are due by the end of the month, George reminded everyone that Randy is available here today to issue. Ann invited people to look downstairs, through cabinets and closets asking for people to let us know what kinds of events people want to have and if there is anything we need to include for equipment. Ann spoke about the Rental policy; it is posted on the Town website. Joyce invited the Town Hall Committee to stand up and be recognized. AJ spoke about needing volunteers and invited people to come to the Select Board meetings to plug in. Some positions are not a heavy lift, not very time-consuming.
With no further business to discuss George moved to adjourn the 2024 Town meeting at 10:03am, motion made by Terry Manley and seconded by Herb Kuendig to accept. Voice vote, all in favor.
Recorded by (s) Tricia L Abbondelo, Town Clerk
Approved by
Approved by
**************************************************************************************************************
DRAFT - Minutes of the Annual School Meeting
Town of Pittsfield
Saturday March 9, 2024
Article 1. To elect a Moderator for the year ensuing. George Deblon was nominated by Terry Manley, nomination seconded by Jen Howard, all in favor George Deblon elected School Moderator for 1 year.
Tricia Abbondelo administered George Deblon his Oath of Office.
Before starting the school meeting, George introduced Dick McCormick, State Senator, and invited him to speak for a few minutes.
He explained he is one of the 3 State Senators. He spoke about how much Pittsfield meant to him as he came through it as a youngster on his way to Bethel.
He spoke briefly about the school budget being a mess, inflation, health care. Dick spoke about flooding and global warming, that we are here, in it. He said, “global warming is now caused by global warning.” He feels we are past being able to stop global warming and just do what we can. He spoke about our rivers and erosion.
Dick came to announce his retirement. He was wished well and thanked.
Article 2. To hear and act upon the auditor’s report. A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Moran, seconded by Joyce Stevens. Discussion; none. Jen Howard motioned to approve this article, seconded by Mike Moran. Voice vote, all in favor.
Article 3. To see if the Pittsfield School District will vote to pay taxes in the same manner as the Town. A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Wuerthele, seconded by Terry Manley. Discussion; none. Voice vote, All in favor.
Article 4. To hear reports of the School Directors. A motion was made to accept this article by Sandy Begin, seconded by Jen Howard. Discussion: Kris Sperber has several corrections. She started by thanking Peter Dubois for being an important part of the board and explained he was working today.
Corrections:
Pg. 25 If we vote yes to the budget today the resultant homestead tax rate will be $1.2042.
The nonresidential education rate is anticipated to be $1.624; this is a statewide rate adjusted by the state by our CLA.
Pg.38 4th paragraph, Strike line saying “this resulting a homestead tax rate of $1.0737. Update the rate to $1.2042.
Pg. 39 Bookkeeping error: Elementary tuition, Killington Elementary is split on 2 lines, one being Killington the other being WCUUSD, those 2 lines should be combined for KES totaling $216,059.014.
Secondary tuition again split on two lines, WUHMS and WCUUSD should be combined, totaling $265,790.00 it is for Woodstock Union High School Middle School.
Pg. 41 This whole page should be struck, Kris gave a copy of the new document to replace. This all was changed by ACT 850.
It was asked how ACT850 affected us. Kris felt we should speak about ACT 270 first. This is the one that tried to more equally count students and resources that they need. Low-income homes, where English is a 2nd language or more rural students, those students need more. Pittsfield is considered very rural, so we gained on that. She spoke about the 5% cap, it provided a benefit by applying an 8% discount, showing 6%, then 4%, then 2% if this educational structure stays in effect in the coming years. Kris anticipates a change. Another huge factor in our tax rate is the Common Level of Appraisal, CLA, this compares fair market value to what our town has value listed as. Pittsfield has 88% CLA, this is applied to tax rate which pushes the tax rate up. We have a high CLA, and everything has been done correctly. Jen Howard asked if something sells very high does that affects everyone, answer is yes. Betty spoke about the tremendous interest in buying property in town. There is a three year look back by the state. Any sale, high or low, impacts us all. Vaughn Micciche spoke about homestead vs non homestead. The definition was clarified by Kris Sperber, Joyce Stevens, and Betty Warner.
Voice vote, all in favor.
Article 5. Shall the voters of the Pittsfield School District approve a total budget in the amount of $1,014,593 for the 2024-25 school year. It is estimated that this proposed budget will result in education spending of $11,912 per equalized pupil. A motion was made to accept this article by Ann Kuendig, seconded by Sandy Begin. Discussion: Jen Howard, the word estimate does that mean we are looking at the building in Woodstock. Kris clarifies that we had nothing to do with that. It is Mountain View Supervisory Union that is directly involved, they did approve annual operating budgets. We are a satellite district of theirs and have nothing to do with the bond. The budgets were voted in, but they voted down the bond for the building. We have no financial obligation to that. Kris made sure we all understood the bond would not have impacted tuition.
Motion was made by Jen Howard and seconded by Randy Strong to approve the article. Voice vote, all in favor.
Article 6. To elect a School Director for a three-year term. A motion was made by Ray Rice, seconded by Joyce Stevens to elect Kris Sperber. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote, all in favor. Kris was recognized for her 18 years of service. She said she will stop doing this at some point and is looking for someone to come learn about it!
Article 7. To do any other proper or necessary business. A motion was made to accept this article by Herb Kuendig, seconded by Don Bass. Discussion, who is the recipient of the Jean Cover Sofield award, no one graduated last year, 4 students eligible this year letter will go out soon.
With no other business, the 2024 School meeting was motioned to be adjourned by Kris Sperber, seconded by Joyce Stevens at 10:40am.
Recorded by Tricia L Abbondelo Town Clerk
Approved by
Approved by
Town of Pittsfield
Saturday March 9, 2024
Link To Recording
Moderator George Deblon called the Annual Town Meeting to order at 9am on Saturday March 9, 2024. There were approximately 51 people in attendance at the Town Hall. George led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Article 1. To elect a Town Moderator for the ensuing year
George Deblon was nominated by Terry Manley, seconded by Jen Howard, all in favor George Deblon elected Town Moderator for one year.
Tricia Abbondelo administered the Oath of Office to George Deblon.
Representative Jim Harrison was invited to speak. He spoke about the following:
- Monies for municipalities for flooding assistance
- Hotel voucher program
- School education cap for Homestead tax rate.
- The hope for the State budget is to not raise taxes.
- Public safety laws, $900 felony
- Law enforcement - Police, 52-55 vacancies currently
Article 2. To elect the following officers, as required by law, for the terms indicated and to fill any other office vacant: Motion made to accept the article by Terry Manley, seconded by Herb Kuendig. All in favor, article accepted.
- Select Person for three years. A nomination was made by Terry Manley, seconded by Sandy Begin for Ann Kuendig for Select Person for three years. The motion was made by Don Bass and seconded by Jen Howard to close nominations and for the clerk cast one ballot for Ann Kuendig. Voice vote, all in favor, Ann Kuendig elected Select Person for three years.
- Lister for three years. A nomination was made by Terry Manley, seconded by Jeremy Rayner for Herb Kuendig for Lister for three years. The motion was made by Jen Howard and seconded Don Bass to close nominations and for the clerk to cast one ballot. Voice vote, all in favor, Herb Kuendig elected Lister for three years.
- Auditor for three years. A nomination was made by Herb Kuendig and seconded by Sandy Begin for Candace Kadimik for Auditor for 3years, hearing no other nominations, voice vote all in favor, clerk to cast one ballot.
- Fire Chief for two years. A nomination was made by Jen Howard, seconded by Herb Kuendig for Dave Colton for Fire Chief for two years. No other nominations, voice vote, all in favor.
- Collector of Delinquent Tax for one year. A nomination was made by Herb Kuendig seconded by Randy Strong for Janice Stumpf for Delinquent Tax Collector for one year. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote all in favor.
- Trustee of Public Funds for three years. A nomination was made by Terry Manley, seconded by Jen Howard for Sandy Begin for Trustee of Public Funds for three years. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote all in favor.
- Trustee of the Roger Clark Memorial Library for three years. A nomination was made by Betty Warner, seconded by Cynthia Bryant for Amanda Barrett for Trustee of the Roger Clark Memorial Library for three years. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote all in favor.
- Trustee of the Roger Clark Memorial Library for three years. A nomination was made by Joyce Stevens, seconded by Betty Warner for Cynthia Bryant for Trustee of the Roger Clark Memorial Library for 3 years. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote, all in favor.
- Trustee of the Roger Clark Memorial Library for one year. A nomination was made by Herb Kuendig, seconded by Terry Manley for Micheline Bissell for Trustee of the Roger Clark Memorial Library for three years. Hearing no other nominations voice vote, all in favor.
- Cemetery Commissioner for three years. A nomination was made by Joyce Stevens, seconded by Cynthia Bryant for Chuck Colton for Cemetery Commissioner for three years. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote, all in favor.
- Cemetery Commissioner for three years. A nomination was made by Joyce Stevens seconded by Cynthia Bryant for Steve Martin for Cemetery Commissioner for three years. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote all in favor.
- Second Constable for 2 years. A nomination was made by Terry Manley, seconded by Jen Howard for Doug Mianulli for second constable for two years. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 4. Will the voters of Pittsfield authorize the Treasurer to collect taxes on real property in two installments, on or before the third Thursday of August and the third Thursday of November, by physical delivery to the tax collector by 5pm? A motion was made to accept this article by Terry Manley, seconded by Jake Hunt. All I favor, article accepted. No discussion, voice vote all in favor.
Article 5. Will the voters of Pittsfield approve closing the Sand Shed Reserve Fund and transfer the remaining balance to the Recreation Reserve Fund? A motion was made to accept this article by Ann Kuendig, seconded by Terry Manley. All in favor to accept. Discussion: Don Bass asked what we are going to do with it. Joyce Stevens replied to use for improvements to the playground. Amy Alton asked if it could just go into the General Fund. Dana Decker replied speaking about how long we have been talking about repairing the playground. Sandy Begin suggested leaving some in the Sand Shed fund and moving the rest to Recreation Fund. Joyce said the sand shed is complete. Don Bass would like to see some things happen for seniors as well. The basketball court will be redone. We have grant money that needs to be spent by September of this year. The paving company backed out one week before the projects start date. The Select Board has been discussing what to do with the entire area. They’d like to come up with stages of development to get things done. Amy Alton asked what other funds we can put the money into. All funds are listed in the Town Report. The Select Board feels like those funds are already adequately funded. Kris Sperber spoke about showing up at Select Board or Recreation Committee meetings to discuss use. Amy Alton wants to know if it can be put in the General Fund. Yes, it can be transferred to any fund the Town decides. We can amend the article if the Town wants to. Dana Decker asked if we could vote by ballot, yes if someone requests that. Jake Hunt spoke about the playground as a safety situation.
George called on the article again, voice vote, all in favor.
George took a moment to recognize Erica Hurd’s passing and what the Recreation area meant to her, Dana Decker spoke about the Pittsfield picnics she organized and fundraising for basketball courts that she did.
Tentatively, there will be a Pittsfield Picnic to remember Erica on August 11, 2024, that date being given to us by her husband, Christopher.
Article 6. Will the town authorize cannabis retailers in town pursuant to 7 V.S.A § 863? Cannabis retailer means a person licensed by the State Cannabis Control Board to sell cannabis and cannabis products to adults 21 years of age and older for off-site consumption. A motion was made to accept this article by Jeremy Rayner, seconded by Sandy Begin. All in favor to accept. Discussion: Jen Howard looking for clarification on what we are voting on. George clarified that we are voting to allow a retailer in town. AJ said we as a town have to say yes for this to be allowed. Joyce talked about how strict the rules are around buying. It was asked if we can add the 1% tax to this. If we did, we would have to add to all retail sales. It would have to be across the board. No One has come to ask to start a store, but to allow a retailer, the Town has to say yes to this article. The Town Plan can remain the same. Amy Alton asked how other towns voted, Killington, Bethel, Stockbridge voted yes. The closest dispensary is in downtown Bethel. Killington just passed this last Tuesday and there are 2 places waiting for it to pass, so we should see them pop in Killington soon. There are 4 or 5 in Rutland.
George called on the article again, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 7. Will the voters of Pittsfield approve the proposed 12 -month budget beginning July 1, 2024, to meet the expenses and liabilities of the town? A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Wuerthele, seconded by Jen Howard. Discussion; none. Randy moved to approve the article, seconded by Herb, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 8. Will the voters of Pittsfield authorize the Select Board to buy and sell real estate? A motion was made to accept this article by Terry Manley, seconded by Joyce Stevens. Discussion; none.
George called on the article again, voice vote, all in favor.
Article 9. To discuss any non-binding business which may come before the meeting? A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Wuerthele, seconded by Ann Kuendig. Discussion: Dog licenses are due by the end of the month, George reminded everyone that Randy is available here today to issue. Ann invited people to look downstairs, through cabinets and closets asking for people to let us know what kinds of events people want to have and if there is anything we need to include for equipment. Ann spoke about the Rental policy; it is posted on the Town website. Joyce invited the Town Hall Committee to stand up and be recognized. AJ spoke about needing volunteers and invited people to come to the Select Board meetings to plug in. Some positions are not a heavy lift, not very time-consuming.
With no further business to discuss George moved to adjourn the 2024 Town meeting at 10:03am, motion made by Terry Manley and seconded by Herb Kuendig to accept. Voice vote, all in favor.
Recorded by (s) Tricia L Abbondelo, Town Clerk
Approved by
Approved by
**************************************************************************************************************
DRAFT - Minutes of the Annual School Meeting
Town of Pittsfield
Saturday March 9, 2024
Article 1. To elect a Moderator for the year ensuing. George Deblon was nominated by Terry Manley, nomination seconded by Jen Howard, all in favor George Deblon elected School Moderator for 1 year.
Tricia Abbondelo administered George Deblon his Oath of Office.
Before starting the school meeting, George introduced Dick McCormick, State Senator, and invited him to speak for a few minutes.
He explained he is one of the 3 State Senators. He spoke about how much Pittsfield meant to him as he came through it as a youngster on his way to Bethel.
He spoke briefly about the school budget being a mess, inflation, health care. Dick spoke about flooding and global warming, that we are here, in it. He said, “global warming is now caused by global warning.” He feels we are past being able to stop global warming and just do what we can. He spoke about our rivers and erosion.
Dick came to announce his retirement. He was wished well and thanked.
Article 2. To hear and act upon the auditor’s report. A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Moran, seconded by Joyce Stevens. Discussion; none. Jen Howard motioned to approve this article, seconded by Mike Moran. Voice vote, all in favor.
Article 3. To see if the Pittsfield School District will vote to pay taxes in the same manner as the Town. A motion was made to accept this article by Mike Wuerthele, seconded by Terry Manley. Discussion; none. Voice vote, All in favor.
Article 4. To hear reports of the School Directors. A motion was made to accept this article by Sandy Begin, seconded by Jen Howard. Discussion: Kris Sperber has several corrections. She started by thanking Peter Dubois for being an important part of the board and explained he was working today.
Corrections:
Pg. 25 If we vote yes to the budget today the resultant homestead tax rate will be $1.2042.
The nonresidential education rate is anticipated to be $1.624; this is a statewide rate adjusted by the state by our CLA.
Pg.38 4th paragraph, Strike line saying “this resulting a homestead tax rate of $1.0737. Update the rate to $1.2042.
Pg. 39 Bookkeeping error: Elementary tuition, Killington Elementary is split on 2 lines, one being Killington the other being WCUUSD, those 2 lines should be combined for KES totaling $216,059.014.
Secondary tuition again split on two lines, WUHMS and WCUUSD should be combined, totaling $265,790.00 it is for Woodstock Union High School Middle School.
Pg. 41 This whole page should be struck, Kris gave a copy of the new document to replace. This all was changed by ACT 850.
It was asked how ACT850 affected us. Kris felt we should speak about ACT 270 first. This is the one that tried to more equally count students and resources that they need. Low-income homes, where English is a 2nd language or more rural students, those students need more. Pittsfield is considered very rural, so we gained on that. She spoke about the 5% cap, it provided a benefit by applying an 8% discount, showing 6%, then 4%, then 2% if this educational structure stays in effect in the coming years. Kris anticipates a change. Another huge factor in our tax rate is the Common Level of Appraisal, CLA, this compares fair market value to what our town has value listed as. Pittsfield has 88% CLA, this is applied to tax rate which pushes the tax rate up. We have a high CLA, and everything has been done correctly. Jen Howard asked if something sells very high does that affects everyone, answer is yes. Betty spoke about the tremendous interest in buying property in town. There is a three year look back by the state. Any sale, high or low, impacts us all. Vaughn Micciche spoke about homestead vs non homestead. The definition was clarified by Kris Sperber, Joyce Stevens, and Betty Warner.
Voice vote, all in favor.
Article 5. Shall the voters of the Pittsfield School District approve a total budget in the amount of $1,014,593 for the 2024-25 school year. It is estimated that this proposed budget will result in education spending of $11,912 per equalized pupil. A motion was made to accept this article by Ann Kuendig, seconded by Sandy Begin. Discussion: Jen Howard, the word estimate does that mean we are looking at the building in Woodstock. Kris clarifies that we had nothing to do with that. It is Mountain View Supervisory Union that is directly involved, they did approve annual operating budgets. We are a satellite district of theirs and have nothing to do with the bond. The budgets were voted in, but they voted down the bond for the building. We have no financial obligation to that. Kris made sure we all understood the bond would not have impacted tuition.
Motion was made by Jen Howard and seconded by Randy Strong to approve the article. Voice vote, all in favor.
Article 6. To elect a School Director for a three-year term. A motion was made by Ray Rice, seconded by Joyce Stevens to elect Kris Sperber. Hearing no other nominations, voice vote, all in favor. Kris was recognized for her 18 years of service. She said she will stop doing this at some point and is looking for someone to come learn about it!
Article 7. To do any other proper or necessary business. A motion was made to accept this article by Herb Kuendig, seconded by Don Bass. Discussion, who is the recipient of the Jean Cover Sofield award, no one graduated last year, 4 students eligible this year letter will go out soon.
With no other business, the 2024 School meeting was motioned to be adjourned by Kris Sperber, seconded by Joyce Stevens at 10:40am.
Recorded by Tricia L Abbondelo Town Clerk
Approved by
Approved by
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