Selectboard Tackles Speeding, Trails, Potential Deficit, Wind and Dogs
by Nancy Wood,
June 30, 2011, page 1.....

Speeders beware
At the June 27 meeting, the Selectboard approved a contract with the Shelburne Police for traffic enforcement during FY 2012. The contract amount is $40,000, significantly more than the $25,000 spent (and $15,000 budgeted) for the current year. This will cover between 15 and 30 hours a week of patrol on Charlotte roads.
With the contract, the Selectboard will send a letter outlining its expectation that speeding on Town roads will be reduced, and that tickets will be issued to offenders when appropriate. Ed Stone raised the issue that the Shelburne Police may have the misperception that Charlotte does not want people to be ticketed. The lower than anticipated court fines and frequent complaints about speeding by residents were mentioned as evidence that speeders are being given warnings rather than fines. A prior arrangement for enforcement with the county sheriffs had the opposite effect, with higher court fines and residents unhappy with the treatment they were receiving at the hands of the law enforcers.

Cowboy Lewis/Knowles Trail
The Selectboard has taken the first step toward developing the easement granted to the Town when the Knowles farm property along Ferry Road was conserved. The Board approved the hiring of AgFence? for $1,900 to move the existing fence to the north edge of the easement that parallels the road from the railroad station access road to the Knowles homestead at the intersection with Lake Road. Chair Charles Russell said the purpose is to provide a safe path for people so they don’t have to walk on the road. At the prior board meeting, Robert Mack had argued that the road should be widened and the deep ditch moved north before doing a trail. At this meeting, JR Lewis was asked if it would be better to have the ditch moved and the road widened with the path along the shoulder, but he indicated it would be considerably more expensive.
Once the fence along Ferry Road is moved, the Selectboard said the Cowboy Lewis Trail would be mowed so it is usable, but it would not be otherwise developed at this time. It is hoped that some group, perhaps the Boy Scouts, would be willing to build a bridge across the stream that intersects the path making it necessary for pedestrians to cross back onto the road to bypass it.
It was left unresolved where the money would come from, other than out of next year’s budget. The Trails budget includes $1,000 for FY 2012, and Ed Stone suggested that should be used plus $900 raised by the Trails Committee. The committee was not represented at the meeting to respond.

Budget concerns
Town Treasurer Mary Mead reviewed current year financials with the board, warning of the possibility of a year-end deficit. While revenues are up $36,370 over budget as of June 27, spending is over budget even more, at $51,739 -- a shortage of $15,369. Cash is also tight, at just $59,925 in the bank as of June 27. Mead said that the Town will need to borrow about $300,000 in early July to carry it through until property taxes are paid in November. But the tax rate needs to be set first in order to borrow. She will close the books for the fiscal year on Monday, at which time it will be clearer whether or not there is a deficit.
The increase in revenue is due to larger than expected rents at Thompson’s Point, PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) from the state, recording fees and Fire and Rescue ambulance fees. The biggest areas of over spending were for the repair work on the Town Hall ($43,209 over budget) and employee health insurance ($20,786 over budget). These were balanced out by lower than expected costs in many areas of the budget.

A Windmill on Pease Mountain?
Green Mountain Power (GMP) has teamed up with Northern Power to erect a Vermont-made, 100kW community wind turbine at a customer site, and has invited farms, schools, businesses, non-profits and municipalities in its service territory to apply to become the host. The turbine would be just 121 feet tall, considerably smaller than the 400 foot commercial turbines across the lake in New York and under construction elsewhere in Vermont, and would not require new transmission lines. It is expected to generate enough wind energy to power 20-25 average Vermont homes. GMP will own, operate and maintain the turbine with no expense to the host. It will be net metered, and the host site will receive 10% of the energy generated, an estimated value of about $2,000.
Winslow Ladue asked that the Selectboard consider the idea, after it was brought to his attention by Suzy Hodgson, chair of the Energy Committee. Pease Mountain was mentioned as a possible site. However, Michell Lussier, an Energy Committee member, had pointed out in an e-mail exchange that the Pease Mountain area “appears to be marginal at best for the winds required for good wind power” based on information from three different wind maps of the area. This sentiment was echoed by Hans Ohanian at the meeting, who estimated the value of the 10% of the energy generated here would be closer to $1,200 per year than $2,000.
The board took no action on submitting a letter of intent to GMP.

Dog bite leads to impoundment
By state law, a dog that bites a person must be impounded for at least five days if it has not had an up-to-date rabies shot. Charlotte has opted for a 10-day period. Currently a local dog is separated from its owner and, lacking another kennel option, is spending its incarceration in one of Ed Stone’s horse stalls. The Selectboard urges dog owners to make sure their pets have current shots and are licensed.