Trustees Meeting 4/28/25

Web version

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

& PUBLIC HEARING

Monday, April 28, 2025

6:00 PM

PRESENT: David Winchester, Village President; Adam Paxman, Trustee; Neal Speer, Trustee; Suzie Kelleher, Trustee; William “Bill” Sheets, Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Matt Sullivan, Chief of Police; Tim Smith, FCIDC; Duane Couture & Daren Plouff, Swanton Electric; Damon Broderick, Linda Cross, William Thompson, Stephanie Menard, Lisa & Donald Bourgeois, Linda Wirts, Chevon Cooper, Sean Connor & Mike Connor, Connor Contracting; Warren Stimets and Ch. 16. Via Teams: Nick Brosseau.

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 Regular Meeting to Order at 6 p.m.:

David Winchester, Village President, called the Village 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 Monday, April 14, 2025 as presented:

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve the minutes from Monday, April 14, 2025 as presented. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Motion carried.

6. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, April 24, 2025:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to approve Village Warrants through Thursday, April 24, 2025 as presented. Adam Paxman seconded the motion. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

7. FCIDC Update with Tim Smith :

Tim Smith isn’t here for this presentation yet so will move it to when he arrives.

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

Chief Sullivan was here for this presentation and began by showing the statistics for the month of March 2025. He said the Village responded to 147 incidents and the top ten calls for service were as follows: 26 suspicious person/circumstance, 12 traffic stop, 9 citizen dispute, 9 motor vehicle complaint, 7 juvenile problem, 7 disorderly conduct/noise, 7 family fight/domestic, 6 citizen assist, 6 agency assistance, and 5 alarm. He said they conducted 12 traffic stops, issued 2 tickets and 13 warnings. He said they had 14 arrests with 11 individuals. He also said there were 21 charges.

Chief Sullivan said the police responded to 59 incidents in the Town of Swanton and the top ten calls for service were: 16 traffic stop, 11 directed patrol, 4 alarm, 3 motor vehicle complaint, 2 citizen dispute, 2 agency assistance, 2 VIN number inspection, 1 driving license suspended, 1 citizen assist and 1 wanted person. He said they conducted 16 traffic stops and issued 11 tickets and 17 warnings. Matt said they had 4 arrests with 4 individuals, 9 charges and 2 arrests were associated with traffic. Matt said they worked an additional 5.5 hours for the Town of Swanton. He said he’s been busy working on additional policies for the department and they are: missing persons policy, investigative criminal policy, domestic violence response policy, grant funding and extra duty policy and pursuit and vehicle identification policy. He said they’ve hired a new part-time police officer and hopefully in the future when her children are a little older she will go full time. Matt said she is doing field training now and academy classes and they hope to get her to a Level 3 officer. He also said he has another part time officer coming back to work for the Village. He said he was an 11-year officer and is coming back part time as of now, maybe full time later. He said they’ve been very busy doing traffic enforcement and have already done 65 stops so far. He said the nice weather is bringing out the ATV’s and they’ve had some issues with that as well as excessive speeding. He said engineering can sometimes help with speeding like it has on Merchants Row with the new curbing that was installed. He said that has lessened some of the speeders in that area. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, urged residents to call the police if they see something like speeding happening so the officers can respond right away. Adam Paxman asked if the Chief was concerned about the number of suspicious person calls there were. Chief Sullivan said no because that is a catch all category and he would have to look at each one to see if it was concerning.

9. Motion to Open Public Hearing on New Vote for Electric Facility:

Adam Paxman made the motion to open the Public Hearing on New Vote for Electric Facility at 6:15 p.m. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Motion carried.

10. Discussion and Public Hearing on Proposed Electric Facility:

Bill Sheets, Village Manager, began this presentation by stating the Village purchased 124 First Street back in 2023 for $400,000 using ARPA funds. He said they asked the voters to support a public safety facility there but heard loud and clear that it was not supported, and the vote was defeated 70 to 30. He said they took what they heard at that time, which was to move the electric department next door and began to make modifications. He said their plan is to move the electric department as well as the administrative office staff next door freeing up space for the police department and public works. Bill said the zoning footprint hasn’t changed, they’re in the BRELLA program with the State of Vermont and are ready to go. Bill said the financial impact on electric rates would be .34 cents per day on 600 KWH and .54 cents per day with 1000 KWH. He said he feels this is a small impact to address the 50-year needs for this department as well as police and public works. He said mailers went out a few weeks ago highlighting details of the project. Bill said they cut this project by 10.25% which amounts to $852,886 taken off the price. He said they are asking for approval for a bond amount of $7,470,815. He also mentioned some of the things that were taken out which are brownsfield expenses, a generator, siding changes, HVAC changes and stone instead of asphalt in some places.

11. Public Comment:

Linda Cross asked if the Village has the go ahead from the State of Vermont to build. Bill said they still have some brownsfield work to do but have been reassured they are in the que and are fairly confident they have the go ahead. Bill Thompson asked how long this bond would affect the rates, would it go away after the bond is paid. Bill said this is a 30-year bond and the rates would not go back down. Discussion took place about the hydro plant generation, Swanton Village’s electric rates and how the Public Utilities Commission sets our rates. Chevon Cooper read aloud the Utility Rankings that were printed in our Village Annual Report showing 200 kWh Swanton ranks the lowest 5^th at $31.12; 600 kWh Swanton ranks 3^rd at $79.65 and for 1,000 kWh Swanton ranks 3^rd at $128.18. She also mentioned the three highest utilities being VT Electric Cooperative, Green Mountain Power and Washington Electric Cooperative. Bill stated even after this rate increase Swanton Electric will remain the lowest utility in the State because Ludlow and Orleans are going in for double digit rate increases. Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager, explained how our rates are set and what factors into filing for a rate increase. Mike Connor, Connor Contracting, explained how his company worked with the Village and architects to come up with the design of this building. He said working with a construction manager makes financial sense. Discussion took place on all phases of the project including design and building materials, electric rates and bond payments. Chevon Cooper said she would like to let everyone know that she is going to vote yes on this project and said she was very much against the $19 million-dollar public safety facility a couple of years ago. She said the public asked for a different solution back then and this is it. She also wanted to state that she’s heard people say if you don’t own land, you shouldn’t vote etc. She said she’s a renter and if her landlords’ taxes go up, her rent would go up so she in fact pays her share of taxes. She said she’s ok with paying more in her electric rates because that wouldn’t affect her landlords’ taxes. She said she apologizes to any rate payer who can’t vote if this raises their bill but still feels it is worth it. She said this way you can show your support for the police and public works in the rates and not in taxes. She feels this will show support for them and also for the community. The full power point presentation will be on the Village’s website.

12. Motion to Close Public Hearing:

Adam Paxman made the motion to close the Public Hearing at 7:50 p.m. Suzie Kelleher seconded the motion. Motion carried.

       7. FCIDC Update with Tim Smith:

Tim Smith, FCIDC, said he wanted to come in and give the Board an update on issues that pertain to Swanton as a whole. He said he’s been dealing with Swan Valley on decommissioning the lagoon there. He said this is a very lengthy and expensive process and they’ve had several meetings with the environmental conservation people and also dealing with Brownsfields. He said they will excavate the 7 acres of land there. Don Bourgeois asked if a brewery company could come in and use those lagoons as they are. Tim said yes they could and he talked with a few companies interested in that but nothing has been developed. Tim said he attended Apprenticeship Day and there were 45 businesses promoting their training and services. He said this is for 8^th and 9^th graders countywide. He said they are hearing more and more that college prices are skyrocketing and kids are looking at trades, military, etc. He said he’s heard that 8^th and 9^th grade is too early for this and he said yes but the earlier you talk with them it helps them. He said the 11^th and 12^th graders countywide do the business tour and the students can interact with employees who graduated from their high school and that resonates with them. He said they visited Mylan, BETA, Ben & Jerry’s, Barry Calebaut, VT Precision Tools and Border Patrol. Tim mentioned the two vacant commercial properties in Swanton, Swan Valley and the VT Brick Factory. He said both are in desperate need of capital investments and so they have no building to showcase what kind of businesses are needed in Franklin County. Tim said he recently met with Sean Connor about potentially building a 15,000 square foot metal building to grow business. He said they are looking to see if FCIDC can afford to do this and also said they have some land they could possibly sell to free up some capital.

Tim said he’s had some conversations with Canadian companies about the tariffs. He said there was an assembly company that really wanted to be in Franklin County but ended up purchasing an existing building in Plattsburgh instead. He said those are some of the hurdles they face. Tim said Franklin County Field Days are still looking for land and he said FCIDC got them a $25,000 grant to cover legal fees and permitting fees if they find something. He said they also found small grants for a couple of local Swanton businesses. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, said he enjoyed the business day at MVU this year and said there were more kids interested in law enforcement than the electric department. He said the Village will be working with VT Works for Women in the hydro, electric, wastewater and public works departments and they are looking forward to that. Bill said the Village spends a lot of time with FCIDC and said Tim is right, you have to get the kids interested at an early stage.

Adam Paxman asked if there was anything new for the airport going on. Tim said he thought Jim Harrison was selling some land to FC Field Days but thinks that fell through. He said Jim plans on marketing the property. Tim said economic development is a long game. He said having BETA in St. Albans is great for the area as well as Vermont Precision Tools. He said he worked with them 20 years ago with 113 employees and today they have 250 employees.

Tim said another exciting project they are working on with Rep. Matt Walker is getting a Welcome Center between here and the Canadian border. He said they are in a location where one hour from the border there is 5 ½ million people so one is needed in this area. Tim said this would be great for the area and would educate people as to what they have to offer. He said the disheartening news is that the Canadian government has halted the plans to finish the last two miles of I35. Neal Speer asked if the plans for the expansion at the Highgate/Canadian border is still going to happen. Tim said yes that’s still going on and Bill Sheets said he could confirm that because he’s had conversations with them about the possibility of bringing Village water to the border. He said their cost estimate for that was 25 to 30 million dollars so they aren’t going to do it. The Board thanked Tim for coming in with his annual update.

13. Review and Acknowledge 1^st Quarter SQRP Report for 2025:

Suzie Kelleher stated the Trustees have reviewed and acknowledge the 1^st Quarter SQRP report for 2025. Chevon Cooper asked what kind of report this was and Bill Sheets told her it’s the Service Quality & Reliability Plan Reporting Form for the electric department. Suzie said she wanted to thank the office staff and the line crew for the perfect scores.

14. Trustee Kelleher to Discuss Upcoming Events in the Park:

Suzie Kelleher stated she would like to use the Village Green Park on Friday, May 30^th for Family Night from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. She said the band 3^rd Shift will be playing, the Library will be doing face painting and Swanton Recreation will have corn hole. She said she would like to do the same event on August 22^nd with the band Night Hawk and on July 25 she would like to hold another Block Party with the band Minced Oats from St. Albans. She said there will be a bouncy house, face painting and corn hole. She said they are not doing the cash cards like they did last year for the businesses, but if they want to be open during the event that would be great. Chevon Cooper asked who was paying for the bands. Suzie said SAC is, EJ Barrette’s donated $500 and the Village put $250 in their budget for bands in the park. She said SAC would pay the difference. Suzie asked if she needed a motion and Bill advised her no we would just add her to the calendar.

15. Village Manager Update:

MVU Apprenticeship Fair: Messenger article, internship with VT Works for Women, hybrid amongst most departments. VT Works for Women will be partnering with us for an internship with Hydroelectric, Water, Wastewater and Public Works. They will tour all facilities, our leaders in each department, as well as myself, will attend training prior to the internship beginning in June/July.

Public Works: The Street Sweeper was in the shop for repairs as it stopped functioning after a couple of days of use. It is back in operation, and we ask for the public’s patience as we fine tune the operation of this unit. Public Works installed the new smaller section of delineators in front of Merchants Row. We anticipate that our part-time summer mowing crew will start next week. We have Gary Bouchard and Brian Thompson ready to go in that role starting next Tuesday. We will begin hydrant flushing in the next few weeks and will post advance notice on our social media page.

Dewey Street Update: The cost estimate for the Dewey Street water line upgrade is $75,000 if we use a contractor. Dean Ryan believes that Public Works can complete this project with his staff in early October for less than $25,000. This is yet another example of doing things internally to save money where we can.

Jones Court Stormwater: The Trustees have received the draft proposal from Watershed Consulting for the Jones Court Subdivision. The proposed solution, if approved by the Trustees, will be sent to the homeowners for review. As a reminder, this is a proposal that will still need approval from the State of Vermont, and we would have five years to implement this solution and identify funding.

Hydro: We are in run of river mode from April 1 through May 31^st. Up to this point we have been spilling regularly, and production is maxed out at 90 percent due to Unit 2 being down. Last week contractors attempted to finalize repairs to Unit 2 and things looked promising until the vibration in unit 2 returned when the unit was operating above 50 percent. To be cautious, the unit was shut down until we could find time to dewater the unit and check the turbine. The current plan, pending water level conditions, is to attempt those repairs, as well as concrete/crack repairs in the scroll cage, the week of May 19^th.

Swanton Village Electric:

AMI: We are making significant progress with AMI, or Advanced Metering Infrastructure. We will be mailing out information in the form of bill inserts soon explaining the next steps. We are hopeful that all software upgrades will occur soon so that we can begin the process of meter replacement.

Fiber Installation/Security: Crossbow Communication is staging next door, and they are in the process of installing fiber that we ordered last fall. This will allow us to enhance and upgrade our system as it relates to switches, Scada, security, etc. We are also working to get our security system installed at various village properties.

Water: As is the norm for this time of year, the water plant is battling turbidity issues based upon Lake Champlain conditions and rough water. We did add significant media to both filters, with a total of 210 bags of sand and 107 bags of anthracite required between both filters to reach optimization. We had most of this in stock and are awaiting delivery on the rest. This has seemed to have a positive effect on the operation of the filters.

Wastewater: The May 19^th special meeting of the Board of Trustees to visit the Wastewater Facility has been warned and we are locked in.

On Tuesday/Wednesday of last week the Bypass for the Force Main was moved back to its original path. We had a total of five pump/Vactor trucks on scene with approximately 25 personnel between Kingsbury and Swanton Village for the 10 PM kickoff. The reconnect took approximately 90 minutes and went perfectly. The centrifuge experts are going to be on scene early next week and the unit is anticipated to be commissioned on May 12^th.

Annexation if 124 First Street: I testified on Wednesday April 16^th in House Government Operations related to H.364, the bill introduced to annexing this property. House Government Operations favorably moved this forward, and it has moved to House Ways and Means, as required by law and process. This bill was passed unanimously in both House Government Operations and Ways and Means.

On 04/25/25 I was contacted by House Transportation Chair Matt Walker, who was a Co-Sponsor of this bill. He advised that on April 25^th this bill was voted out of the House and has moved onto the Senate for a vote.

16. Any Other Necessary Business:

Don Bourgeois asked about the swans in the park and he was advised to contact Suzanne Washburn from the Chamber of Commerce because that’s who carries the swan permit. Suzie Kelleher advised him that the Village and Town both contributed ARPA funds to help make the swan pond bigger but said the Chamber takes care of the swans.

Any Other Business: Adam Paxman said the Memorial Day parade is Monday, May 26^th at 2 p.m. and begins at the Mary Babcock School. He said they are looking for participants and to contact him if interested.  He said the fire department is offering a free BBQ for the community after the parade. Adam also said there are no parking signs on the south end of the park and he would like them at the north end as well. Bill said he would look into that. Suzie Kelleher said the Hometown Hero banners have been ordered and will go up as the electric crew has time. David Winchester said he talked with Joel Clark and the big flag in the park needs to be updated because it’s getting tattered. Bill said he would look into that as well.

17. Executive Session if Necessary:

None.

18. Adjournment:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to adjourn the Regular Meeting and Public Hearing of the Board of the Trustees at 8:48 p.m. Neal Speer seconded. There being no further business at hand, David Winchester, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 8:48 p.m. Motion carried.

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David Winchester, Village President                  Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                Date