Trustees Meeting 6/8/26

Web version

SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, June 8, 2026

6:00 PM

PRESENT: David Winchester; Village President; Neal Speer, Trustee; Suzie Kelleher, Trustee; Damon Broderick, Trustee; William “Bill” Sheets, Village Manager; Lynn Paradis, Assistant Village Manager; Dianne Day, Village Clerk; Jason Starr and Tod Jones, Swanton Wastewater Treatment Plant Supervisor and Operator; Stacy Raine, Joel Clark and Ch. 16. Via Teams: Michael Miller, Jennifer Jackman.

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 it is available. Unless otherwise noted, all motions carried, unanimously.

1. Call to Order:

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:

Suzie Kelleher stated she needs to table #10 and will reschedule for a later date. Village President David Winchester stated they will move #11 to #7a.

4. Public Comment:

None.

5. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, May 26, 2026, as presented:

Damon Broderick made the motion to approve the minutes from Monday, May 26, 2026 as presented. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Motion carried.

6. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, June 4, 2026:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion to approve Village Warrants through Thursday, June 4, 2026, as presented. Damon Broderick seconded the motion. Discussion: None.  Motion carried.

7. Stacy Raine, 21 Pine Street, and Jennifer Jackman, 1 Lefty Lane, Request a Conditional Use Permit for Additional Chickens under the Animal Ordinance Guidelines:

Stacy Raine was present for this discussion. She began by stating that she currently has 40 chickens at her residence at 21 Pine Street. She said the Town and Village maps are incorrect and said her property measures .77 acres. She also said she had the majority of her chickens prior to the Ordinance. It was stated that a .25 acre lot is allowed to have 15 chickens maximum and that larger lots can apply for more. The Board did the math on her size lot and stated that she is allowed to have 42 birds on her property. Stacy said some of her chickens are on the older side and said their lifespan is about 10 years. Damon asked if there were any complaints from any of her neighbors. Stacy said yes there were but that was because of her rooster and she got rid of him. She also said she gives her family and friends the eggs produced and also donates a lot of them to the Abenaki Food Pantry. She said she doesn’t sell any of the eggs. Neal Speer made the motion to approve a Conditional Use Permit for 42 chickens located at 21 Pine Street in Swanton due to the size of her lot. Damon Broderick seconded the motion. Motion carried.

Jennifer Jackman from 1 Lefty Lane was not present for this discussion. Suzie Kelleher informed the board that Jennifer owns a .25-acre lot and is asking to have 45 chickens. She said she has a 10x14 shed and she has had complaints from her neighbors about roosters and about hens getting loose. Damon Broderick said Stacy’s lot size allows her to have more but Jen’s does not. Suzie agreed and said she should be within the 15 birds due to lot size. Suzie Kelleher made the motion to deny Jennifer Jackman’s request for a Conditional Use Permit because her property is not larger than .25 acres. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Motion carried.

Jennifer came online via Teams shortly after this discussion and the board explained their decision to her. She was very upset that she would need to rehome 30 of her chickens because they are like pets to her. The Board apologized but said they need to enforce the Ordinance that they have in place or it was all for nothing. Suzie Kelleher amended her motion by stating that they deny Jennifer Jackman’s request for a Conditional Use Permit because her property is not larger than .25 acres and that she has five months (11/8/26) to rehome 30 birds. Damon Broderick seconded the motion. Suzie also wanted it noted that if the Village makes these Ordinances, then going forward, they have to enforce them. She said she feels bad for Jennifer but she’s not sorry for enforcing the Ordinance. Motion carried.

         7 a.   Review and Discuss Electronic Sign Options for the Village Green:

Joel Clark was present for this discussion and said at their recent selectboard meeting the Town approved Option #2 for a new electronic sign but then realized the Trustees need to approve it because it’s located in the Village Green. He said they would like permission to replace the sign with help from the Village. They discussed the lighting, the lettering and the brick finish. Joel said the lettering is very crisp and looks a lot like the sign at MVU. He said it’s very similar to what’s there now, not too big or boisterous. Joel said the existing sign has been there for 10 years. He said he’d like to work together with the Village to get this done. Suzie Kelleher made the motion to approve electronic sign Option #2 as chosen by the Selectboard for the Village Green. Damon Broderick seconded the motion. Discussion: The Board asked Joel if the new sign came with a warranty. He said yes and also said it’s the same company as the original. Suzie Kelleher asked about the funding for this sign and Joel said they would be using special ARPA funds to purchase this new sign. Motion carried.

8. Swanton Village Wastewater Department Update with Jason Starr and Tod Jones:

Jason Starr and Tod Jones were present for this update. Jason began his power point presentation by showing that they’re in the home stretch of their upgrade. He showed the new effluent pumps that were installed, the new phosphate remover filters, all the new electrical and new clarifiers that were installed. Jason showed the office renovation with new countertops and cabinets. He also talked about the lime micro mixer they’re repairing. Jason said they sent out their UV racks for refurbishment and talked about the solid’s auger repair they did. He said the auger works so much better now. Jason then went on to discuss the maintenance part of his job and said they have installed cameras at Marble Mill, Bells Pump Station and the Swanton Beach. He said they are repairing fire alarms at the Complex and cleaning water filters. Jason then showed the work orders and corrective actions for 2026. He said at the Wastewater plant they installed a new drain line for the centrifuge; at the Water Treatment plant they worked on the UV light system; at the Hydro plant they worked on unit 4 high lift oil pump and at the Complex they are working on bathroom fixtures. He showed the following corrective actions: Wastewater 28, Water Treatment 17, Hydro 26 and Complex 65. He then showed the following work orders: Wastewater 475, Water Treatment 450, Hydro 2000 and Complex 670. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, said they often get accused of not maintaining their properties, but this clearly shows how much work is being done at each of the plants. The Board thanked Jason and Tod for coming in and giving an update on their plant. He also said they are hoping to have an Open House in September.

9. Approve Swanton Village Staff Pay Increase for 2026 and Approve Swanton Village Manager’s Employment Contract:

Suzie Kelleher motioned that the Swanton Village Trustees approved an annual budget for the electric department that resulted in an average of 4.4 percent increase for calendar year 2026 when factoring in all positions. This approval occurred during the budgetary approval process and included all salaries, overtime, and benefits. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Damon Broderick abstained because he wasn’t Trustee at that time. Motion carried.

Neal Speer motioned to confirm that the Swanton Village Board of Trustees entered a four-year contract between the Village Manager and the Swanton Village Trustees that was approved on December 8, 2025. The contract is effective from January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2029. Suzie Kelleher seconded the motion. Damon Broderick abstained because he wasn’t Trustee at that time. Motion carried.

10. Present Ronald and Sandra Kilburn Proclamation:

Tabled until further notice.

11. Review and Discuss Electronic Sign Options for the Village Green:

Moved to 7a.

12. Village Manager Update:

Hydro Update: The interim solution has been submitted to FERC, and we are awaiting a response. Dan and the team continue to work on the 401-licensing response.

We had our FERC Dam Safety inspection last week, attended by the State of Vermont. That seemed to go well, we will receive a letter in about a month.

We are in the process of setting up a meeting with State officials to discuss 401 licensing next steps.

HYDRO Operations: The most recent rain event, we are temporarily back at 6 megawatts. This will likely reduce quickly unless we get more rain later this week.

Fire Department: We participated as instructors and students this past weekend at the North Country International Fire Training Service in Alburgh. The topics were vehicle extrication, and fire strategy. The FD is attending a joint training course this evening in Highgate related to ladder operations and hose handling.

Electric: We officially received funding from the Department of Public Service for our tree trimming grant and that work will begin in July to help ensure that we keep outages to a minimum. As a reminder the PUC Public Information hearing is on June 18^th at 6:30 PM, when we present and 7:00 for public comment.

Building Update: The project is progressing well. Earlier today the FRAC tank was pumped out, and it will be removed soon. The contaminated soil/water was nearly non-existent. All footing and walls have been poured, and work continues on the sewer main in the building footprint. Bill said they should take a tour of the property at their July 13^th meeting. He said they will meet at 5 p.m. and have their meeting at their regularly scheduled time at 6 p.m.

Public Works: They are actively getting all potholes repaired, lawns fixed from winter plow damage and general maintenance. We are beginning to paint pavement markings, and we are beginning to clean storm basins with the Vactor.

The street sweeper continues to work well, and we will be back out this week doing clean up.

Water: The water team, assisted by maintenance, did the multi-year deep clean cycle for one of the clarifiers. This is a multi-day job requiring several people to complete.

The two large danger trees near the lagoons and utility lines were removed last week. Chemical pumps having issues have been returned to the vendor for examination to determine why they are having difficulty with communicating with the rest of the system.

We have a diver coming this week to examine our intake, clear well, backwash tank and the reservoir.

Cyanobacteria testing will begin next week.

AMI: We have less than 10 water meters left to install. The board will need to revisit opt-out fees based on actual costs as soon as we have installed the final water meters.

We have approximately 72 Electric meters remaining to install and are waiting for an order to arrive to begin those installations.

13. Any Other Necessary Business:

Suzie Kelleher said she’d like to invite Karina Dailey, Corrie Miller and Chris Smith back to discuss a feasibility study on the Lower Swanton Dam at their 9/14/26 meeting. She also said all the banners are in but are missing grommets so she purchased the kit needed and her and her husband will spend the next week or so doing that. She said the line crew will put banners up as their work schedule allows and asked the families for their patience.

Any Other Business: David Winchester, Village President, said local artists will probably be doing artboards with the 250^th celebration in mind. He said he would like a copy of the SPAN contract, so people know exactly what is allowed and what isn’t as far as words and numbers go.

Any Other Business: Neal Speer said a new development is in the works behind Hannaford’s and is in the very beginning stages. It was mentioned that they’ve invited the developer to attend their next board meeting to present his development to the Board.

14. Proposed Executive Session if Necessary:

None.

15. Adjournment:

Damon Broderick made the motion to adjourn the Regular Meeting of the Board of the Trustees at 7:35 p.m. Neal Speer seconded. There being no further business at hand, David Winchester, Village President, adjourned the meeting at 7:35 p.m. Motion carried.

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David Winchester, Village President                              Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                             Date