Trustees Meeting 10/27/25

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SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, October 28, 2025

6:00 PM

PRESENT: David Winchester, Village President; Suzie Kelleher, Trustee; Neal Speer, Trustee; William “Bill” Sheets, Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Dan Chevalier, Troy Campbell, Lawrence Bouissey, and Troy Rocheleau, Matt Depatie, Fire Truck Committee; Sgt. Kyle Gagne, Swanton Police Department; Damon Broderick, Linda Wirts and Ch. 16. Via Teams: N/A.

To watch this meeting in its entirety, go to Northwest Access TV on YouTube. The video will also be posted on the Village’s website once available. Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried, unanimously.

1. Call Meeting to Order at 6 p.m.:

David Winchester, Village President, called the Regular Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.

2. Pledge of Allegiance:

Everyone in attendance stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. Agenda Review:

None.

4. Public Comment:

None.

5. Approve and Accept Minutes from Tuesday, October 14, 2025 as presented:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to approve the minutes from Tuesday, October 14, 2025, as presented. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

6. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, October 23, 2025:

Neal Speer made the motion to approve Village Warrants through Thursday, October 23, 2025 as presented. Suzie Kelleher seconded the motion. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

7. Review and Approve Swanton Village Fire Department’s Request for Mini Pumper Truck:

Dan Chevalier, Fire Chief, was present for this request as well as his truck committee Matt Depatie, Troy Campbell, Lawrence Bouissey and Troy Rocheleau. He explained how this committee has worked long and hard on designing a mini pumper truck and feels confident in their truck plan. He said this truck will work well for the Swanton community. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, stated the Village received three sealed bids and they were opened on October 22 at 2 p.m. He said the three bids that came in were from the following: Lakes Region Fire Apparatus, Inc. for $521,000; Desorcie Emergency Products, LLC (E-One) for $409,051 and VRS Sales, Shakerly Fire Truck Sales for $493,104. Bill said he met with the truck committee on October 23^rd at 6 p.m. to make sure all bids received were in spec and to make sure Desorcie met all specifications since they were the lowest bid. It was confirmed that Desorcie did meet all their specifications. Bill also said the long term plan is to reduce the fleet but still meet all the needs of the community. He said they will sell Engine 1 and Utility 6 before the purchase, which will be in late 2027 because it takes 900 days to build. Bill also said that to ensure the equipment set up, the Fire Department is requesting an additional $20,000 for fit up. He said there will be no additional impacts on taxpayers and there are no plans to ask for another truck until 2032. He said they are downsizing their fleet, will meet the needs of the community and will handle the costs internally.

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to approve the Swanton Fire Department to enter into a contract with Desorcie Emergency Products, LLC, to purchase a Mini-Pumper Truck. The total authorized expenditures are not to exceed $429,051, which includes $409,051 for the Mini-Pumper and $20,000 for equipment fit-up. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Motion carried.

8. Swanton Village Police Department Update with Chief Matthew Sullivan:

Sgt. Kyle Gagne was present for this discussion. He said the Village Police Department responded to 129 incidents in the month of September 2025 and the top ten calls for service were: 9 traffic stop, 9 citizen assist, 7 motor vehicle complaint, 6 citizen dispute, 6 theft, 6 welfare/suicide check, 5 family fight/domestic, 5 wanted person, 5 information report and 16 suspicious person/circumstance. Sgt. Gagne said there were 9 traffic stops which resulted in 7 tickets and 6 warnings which were associated with traffic. He said there was 24 arrests with 21 individuals and only 2 were associated with traffic stops.

Kyle said in the Town of Swanton they responded to 113 incidents in September and the top ten calls for service were: 32 directed patrol, 30 traffic stop, 9 sex offender registry, 6 crash, property damage, 6 suspicious person/circumstance, 5 citizen assist, 4 welfare/suicide check, 3 agency assistance, 2 fraud and 2 theft. He said there were 29 traffic stops which resulted in 10 tickets and 23 warnings. He said all tickets and warnings were associated with traffic. Kyle said there were 3 arrests with 3 individuals and all 3 arrests were associated with traffic stops. He said they also worked an additional 24.5 hours for the Town. Suzie asked what those hours entailed. Kyle said they did a speed study on Bushey Road. He said they’ve been very busy and hopefully their new hires will begin in January 2026. The board thanked Sgt. Kyle Gagne for his update.

9. Discussion on a Policy for Swanton Village Water AMI Customers:

Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, said there are just a handful of customers who want to opt out of the water meter exchange program. She said the problem is there will be no way to read these old meters or use our handheld. Lynn said the software program will only last so long and getting a new software program for just a few customers would defeat the purpose. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, said they could do one of three things. One being do nothing, two being they shut their water off and three being they add a significant fee on both the water and sewer for these opt out customers. He said if a new software is needed to be able to read these meters, those customers would need to cover the costs of that software. Lynn said a neighboring utility has added $50 on to the water and $50 on to the sewer for those who want to opt out. Suzie suggested finding out just exactly how much the software will cost to determine how much the fee should be. She said the fee should cover the handheld, the software program and the time it takes to go and read their meter. Bill said the neighboring utility is Morrisville and said they have figured it out and the $50 fee on each seems to cover the cost. Lynn also reminded the Board that the water and sewer is not regulated by the State of Vermont like the electric department is. She said the Board sets the rates and policies in the water and sewer departments. Suzie Kelleher made the motion to enact a policy beginning January 1, 2026 to add an additional $50 fee to the water charge and an additional $50 to the sewer charge on monthly bills for customers who are opting out of the water meter exchange. Neal Speer seconded. Motion carried.

10. AMI Project Update:

Our AMI work continues with more than 830 water meters and 3,000 electric meters installed. We have seen some progress, at least in terms of responsiveness from the various vendors involved in this project. The entire front office team and the line maintainers remain committed and busy seeing this project to its completion. Lynn said they are close to being able to put in 3 phase meters but has been told they should wait a bit. She said she feels like the process is improving. Dianne Day, Village Clerk, stated now that she’s done with collecting taxes, she’s had time to help schedule water meter exchanges, and they are now booking into the week of November 17^th. She urged customers to call and schedule their exchange. She said the pros outweigh the cons, but if anyone has any concerns or questions they can stop by the office and any one of them will be able to help them.

Bill said the electric crew is also working on various line upgrades, including Cross Street, Rollo Road, and Baker Road in Highgate.

11. Orman E. Croft Hydroelectric Generating Facility Dam Repair Update:

The old rubber dam has all been removed from the site, savings us disposal costs.

Unit 4 is down for repairs to an external pump. We are waiting for a new thrust bearing pump and will install that as soon as it arrives.

Velergy has begun early work on the planning grant that we received from the State of Vermont.

This week we hope to create and post a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a Clerk of the Works, owner representative, for the Village as we enter a more long-term solution for restoring the dam to its permitted height.

WVNY/Fox 44 came to do an interview on the $60,000 grant from the State of Vermont.

Day to Day impact: The current status creates significantly more maintenance work. The team must operate the trash rake more frequently and this will be the expected norm for the next couple of years.

Operational Efficiency: The Hydro team is also working to fine tune operations of the individual turbines to maximize production. We have never been in this exact situation, and we will continue to learn and evolve over the next several months. We have been able to produce approximately 3 MW’s consistently when we get mild rain events.

12. Village Manager Update:

MVUHS: The MVU Tours of the Police and Fire Departments, as well as Hydro, were successful and we are done until next semester. I want to thank everyone who participated to make those a success for both MVU and for the Village of Swanton.

Public Works: We are making great progress in pulling back material in the brush pile, with the surveyor on site today to make sure that we are clear of the buffer zone. While most of the work is done, we need to wait to hear from the State on next steps. We anticipate this area to remain closed to the public for the near future.

We have scheduled the installation of insertion values for December 3^rd. Insertion Valves are installed live, and we have a vendor coming in to work with our team to get all three done in one day.

Public Works continues to work with A. Cooper Mechanical to perform water shutoffs as they change out water meters.

They still need to winterize hydrants, which take a couple team members a full week to get them all. They are also working on the maintenance of off summer/fall equipment and ensuring that all winter equipment is ready to go.

Wastewater: We are still on schedule to substantially complete in January. The crane is on site to put the cover back on Clarifier one and begin work on Clarifier two. Electrical is nearly done work at the site. The sludge pumps should be back online later this week. The filter building is waiting for siding installation, and the primary office area still needs to be completed.

Reminder: We will be hosting a Joint Special Meeting of the Swanton Selectboard, here at the Village Complex on November 12^th at 7 PM. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss Local Option Tax.

13. Any Other Necessary Business:

Neal Speer said the Board attended a joint meeting with the Selectboard last week and said it went very good. He said they discussed Promoting Swanton and the Local Options Tax and said it was a great meeting.

14. Proposed Executive Session to Discuss Customer Accounts and Personnel: Discuss the Proposed Approval to Write Off Outstanding Electric Department Invoices:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion, seconded by Neal Speer, to go into Executive Session at 6:47 p.m. to discuss customer accounts and personnel where premature general public knowledge of the subject matter would place the Village or person involved at a substantial disadvantage. Motion carried.

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to exit Executive Session and Re-Enter Open Session at 6:58 pm. Neal Speer seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: Suzie Kelleher made the motion to authorize the Village of Swanton to write off $26,037.43 in the electric department in uncollectible funds for 2025. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Motion carried.

15. Adjournment:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to adjourn the regular board of trustees meeting at 6:59 p.m. Neal Speer seconded. There being no further business at hand, David Winchester, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 6:59 p.m. Motion carried.

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David Winchester, Village President                  Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                Date