Trustees Meeting 7/28/25

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SWANTON VILLAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

SWANTON VILLAGE MUNICIPAL COMPLEX

120 FIRST STREET

SWANTON, VT 05488

REGULAR MEETING

Monday, July 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; Matthew Sullivan, Chief of Police 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. Approve and Accept Minutes from Monday, July 14, 2025 as presented

Adam Paxman made the motion to approve the minutes from Monday, July 14, 2025, as presented. Neal Speer seconded the motion. Discussion: None. Motion carried.

5. Approve and Accept Village Warrants through Thursday, July 24, 2025:

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

6. Swanton Village Police Department Update with Matthew Sullivan:

Chief Matthew Sullivan was present for this update. He provided the top ten calls for service in the Village of Swanton for the month of June 2025. They were: 20 suspicious person/circumstance, 11 welfare/suicide check, 11 citizen assist, 10 motor vehicle complaint, 9 agency assistance, 7 VIN number inspection, 6 citizen dispute, 6 traffic stop, 5 threatening, and 5 theft. Matt said there were 150 incidents during the month of June. He said they issued 11 tickets and 5 warnings, had 14 arrests with 14 individuals and there were 22 charges.

Matt said there were 91 incidents in the Town of Swanton during the month of June 2025 and the top ten calls for service included the following: 21 traffic stop, 12 agency assistance, 10 directed patrol, 6 suspicious person/circumstance, 4 crash, property damage, 4 alarm, 3 motor vehicle complaint, 3 trespassing, 2 medical emergency, and 2 citizen assist. He said out of the 21 traffic stops they issued 5 tickets and 20 warnings, had 10 arrests with 10 individuals and had 12 charges. He said 6 of those arrests were associated with traffic. Matt said there were 12.25 additional service hours provided to the town during June.

He said they just acquired a new to them used cruiser and rather than purchasing a new one and have to outfit it they ended up getting a 2021 Chevy Tahoe from a company in Chicago. He said they’re in the process of selling cruiser #2 to the Village Fire Department. Bill Sheets, Village Manager, said that would be on their next agenda. Chief Sullivan talked about the issues they’ve had with some of their cruisers and said this is across the board.

Matt said the VT Criminal Justice Council did a surprise audit of their training records. He said they were able to give them everything they requested and were here for a substantial amount of time going through everything. He said they’re required to have 30 hours of training per year along with other certain disciplines. He said sometimes it’s necessary to request waivers to extend training hours and can be hard to keep track of but he believes they passed with flying colors. Chief Sullivan said one of their part time officers, Kelly Badeau, just completed a forensic interviewing class so will take on more NUSI cases. He said having someone with this forensic training to deal with children dealing with sexual violence is going to be very helpful. He said this is one of their most important jobs and she will be taking on these caseloads. He also said they have a $20,000 grant to fund her time dedicated to NUSI cases. He also said their other part time officer that is in training is doing very well. Matt said they also have to schedule an interview with a potential new officer candidate. Adam Paxman asked if the additional service hours worked for the Town were requested. Matt said no it’s part of their contract now. He said they try to hit at least two additional hours per week. Adam stated he mentioned it because he knows the department is short-staffed and asked if this needed to be revisited. Chief Sullivan said they are short-staffed and said covering vacations and sick time can be difficult, but they are covering shifts. Adam said he didn’t like the Chief having to cover shifts on the weekend. Matt said Don Gilbert has been covering weekend shifts for quite some time, and he said he really appreciates that. They also had a discussion on the drug activity in the community and the complications that come with that. He said the local motel adds to the problem because of the residents living there and this creates issues. He said they address them often. The Board thanked Matt for his monthly update.

7. Review and Approve Alternative #1 or Alternative #3 for the Merchants Row Bridge #6:

Bill Sheets, Village Manager, said it’s pretty clear as to what the recommendations and options are and handed out another packet of information that provides a middle ground. He said if they go with Option #1 the handrails and sidewalks didn’t get replaced but the bridge would last for the foreseeable future. He said construction for this would be in either 2027 or 2028. Bill said the change in this update is that the Village would still qualify for the 2.5% match with a modified closure. He said one lane would remain open and then a full bridge closure would take place for approximately 3 or 4 days. He said before they had to shut it down completely. Bill said residents might find it more erroneous to drive around and might not want to come back to the downtown area and shop. He said this gives them flexibility on whether or not they want to accept a hybrid alternative. Bill said the other option would mean the Village would have to maintain the bridge maintenance and repairs through 2035. Adam Paxman said his concern is the railings on this bridge. He said if they do the rehab then in one year the State says you need to replace those, that would be terrible. David Winchester, Village President, thought adding the railings and sidewalks was a good idea. He said he’s heard residents say they didn’t want this dragged out for too long. Suzie Kelleher said they need to listen to all the businesses in the area and also consider what they’re asking from the taxpayers. She said alternative #1 was far less expensive then alternative #3. She said she can’t justify adding $140,000 to the project just to have one way traffic able to come through. She said by closing it fully for 3-4 days then having it open to one way traffic is the best of both worlds. David asked if that was an option. Bill said the construction approach was up to the point where they do the overlay pour eastbound traffic could come through and westbound traffic would have to use the detour. Bill said that traffic flow might make a great deal of sense. David said he thought this added a lot of expense, safety concerns and issues that just aren’t worth it. He said he feels the residents got comfortable with the detour last year. Adam said he thought if one end was left open, be fully closed for 3 to 4 days while they do the overlay and still be eligible for the 2.5% match is a really good thing. David said you’re not going to get the same low cost. Bill said there will be an increase for traffic control, he said they’re responsible for 5% of that cost. David said they have a valid and tested detour and all the signage that they paid for. There was more discussion about the construction project and Adam said he would like to see the actual cost. Bill said they are amending the scoping report to include this new alternative and once the report is revised, they’ll share it with the Trustees for review and discussion. Suzie Kelleher made the motion to go with Option #1 with the UHPC Overlay with Targeted Substructure Repairs. Adam Paxman seconded the motion. Motion carried.

8. Review and Acknowledge 2^nd Quarter SQRP Report:

Trustee Suzie Kelleher reviewed and acknowledged receipt of the SQRP report for the second quarter of 2025.

9. Discuss Promote Swanton Signage:

Suzie Kelleher said she just wanted to make sure the Trustees see the proposed signage that will be seen coming into the Village. She said they will revamp the website and will continue to meet and plan as needed.

10. Village Manager Update:

Public Works: They completed shoulder work on Lake Street in advance of paving beginning on or about August 7^th. They continue sidewalk work on Grand Avenue and will pour again early this week. Multiple smaller summer projects and continue to work on refining safety policy and procedure.

River Overlook Proposal results:

The Village received three bids for the removal of the existing River Overlook Structure and the replacement with a weather resistant composite material.

• Menard Handyman and Property Maintenance Services   $17,118
• Vermont Construction Academy $21,150
• Champlain Decks/ Renouf Construction $23,964

The project will be delayed until funding is identified to accomplish the work.

Brush Pile: We have entered a contract with Barnard and Gervais LLC to begin the work on our wetland buffer delineation and restoration plan at the Brush Pile located off Route 7. They were the lowest of three bids as announced and posted on the Village Facebook page. We will report additional details once we receive the report.

Hydro: We are in the final stages of presenting a plan, based upon the advice and expertise of engineers, to FERC for permission to repair the rubber dam. Contracts have not yet been finalized and will not be finalized until FERC allows repairs and even then, there are many variables built into the options. If all goes well, we will be preparing for work to begin on site around the August 18^th timeline.

Swanton Village Electric:

Electric Department Facility: On Thursday 07/24 the DRB issued a building permit. Based upon all factors we will be working towards an April 2025 start date. We will incorporate soil remediation into the bid package as that will provide us with the most efficiency. Bid packages are being developed and the current timeline shows an official groundbreaking in May of 2026, with a tentative completion date of March or April of 2027.

AMI: Advanced Metering Infrastructure for both Electric and water meters.

A.Cooper Mechanical continues to make progress with the installation of the new water meters. They have installed approximately 300 meters to date.

We have begun the installation of our new Electric meters, and we have installed approximately 300 to date. These go much more quickly than the water meters and our team in installing these as time allows between other projects.

The interviews for the open line maintainer position have concluded and Carter Abell was selected for this position, pending background. He will begin on August 18^th.

Water: We finally found the culprit to the alarm issue, which was activating irregularly and calling out on call personnel intermittently. We made safety alterations to the stairs on top of the reservoir so you can step through instead of swinging around the stairs to get on top of the reservoir. The plant continues to be running well.

Wastewater: The project continues and is on pace to be completed at the end of this year, or in the first couple of weeks in January. The Clarifiers are being worked on now, with the domes being removed for reuse and all mechanical components being removed and replaced.

11. Any Other Necessary Business:

Adam Paxman mentioned the car show and said they registered 189 vehicles. Suzie Kelleher said the Block Party was a success. Adam also said National Night Out will be held on Tuesday, August 5^th in the Village Green. Neal Speer said the swan pond has been filled and the birds are back in it.

12. Executive Session to Discuss Legal Matter:

Suzie Kelleher made the motion, seconded by Adam Paxman, to go into Executive Session at 7:08 p.m. to discuss legal matters where premature general public knowledge of the subject matter would place the Village or person involved at a substantial disadvantage.

Adam Paxman made the motion to exit Executive Session at 7:27 pm. Neal Speer seconded. Motion carried.

ACTION TAKEN: None.

13. Adjournment:

Neal Speer made the motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:28 p.m. Suzie Kelleher seconded. Motion carried.

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David Winchester, Village President                  Date

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Dianne Day, Village Clerk                                Date