Town Meeting Recap:
Selectboard Budget Passes, Despite Amendment Attempts
by Nancy Wood,
March 10, 2011, page 4.....

The cheerful mood of the just under 200 voters attending Town Meeting on Tuesday, March 1, was in stark contrast to the contentious atmosphere in 2010, but continuing concerns about economic hardship and the need for financial restraint were expressed.

Despite those concerns, town voters passed the Selectboard’s $2,700,420 budget on a voice vote, after lengthy discussion and several amendments.

Before the budget discussion, Vince Crockenberg and Dana Farley described the work of the committee studying the waste water needs in the West Village, and asked everyone to fill out a survey answering the question about whether the town should share its municipal septic capacity with private homes and businesses, and at what cost.

Then Selectboard Chair Charles Russell described various increases in the budget and changes in presentation. He explained the Selectboard’s rationale for budgeting zero dollars for the Conservation Fund this year, based on the size of the current balance in the fund and anticipated projects to be funded in the next several years. Clark Hinsdale spoke in favor of this decision; no one spoke against it.

The first amendment, introduced by Dan Rosen, would have reduced the $40,000 budgeted for Traffic Enforcement by $25,000, level funding it with the current year. Russell said the purpose of the increase was to have the Shelburne police provide 30 hours per week of enforcement of speed limits, and that the anticipated income from court fines would cover $15,000 of the difference.

Rosen said he supported speed control on Route 7, but he was “loath to see we can’t govern ourselves” on local roads. Several residents opposed the amendment and spoke of speeding problems and safety concerns near their homes on Greenbush, Mt. Philo and Charlotte-Hinesburg Roads. Selectboard member John Owen pointed out that the extra police presence in town would have the side benefit of discouraging future burglaries. The amendment was voted down by voice vote.

The second amendment, made by Joe Blanchette, would have removed the $5,000 budgeted for the Trails Reserve Fund. Russell indicated that the purpose of the money is to match potential grant funds, leveraging an additional $20,000 for trail development. Blanchette reiterated concerns from 2010 about using taxpayer money to support a “non-essential” amenity that private landowners provide in some parts of town and few individuals use. Town Clerk Mary Mead said that if a grant is won, there is other money that can be found in the budget for matching funds.

Charles Russell disagreed with Blanchette, saying many people will benefit from the trails that are being developed, including children who would be able to bike to the Little League fields from the West Village. He said it was a “small price to pay” for the huge benefits, such as healthy exercise and getting kids outside. Jim Donovan, Planning Commission vice-chair, encouraged everyone to think of trails as a safe transportation alternative, not just as recreation.

John Limanek, chair of the Trails Committee, described the trail system being worked on from Mt. Philo State Park to the Berry Farm, to the West Village, then eventually to the train station and on to the Town Beach. He said landowners along the route are enthusiastically offering easements, and that everyone, from children to the elderly, will benefit. He said the Trails Committee has lowered expectations after last year’s Town Meeting defeat and is planning lower-cost construction using gravel and grass.

Clark Hinsdale added that in tough economic times we need to keep volunteers active and should not discourage the volunteer spirit evident in the Trails Committee.

The amendment failed on a voice vote.
The final amendment to the Selectboard budget, by Stephen Brooks, also failed. It would have added $5,000 to the Trails Reserve Fund to be used exclusively to leverage 4-1 matching funds.

The most hotly debated issue of the morning came with Article 4 to exempt the Friendship Lodge #24 from municipal and education property taxes for five years. The Selectboard included this item on the agenda because traditionally it is voted every five years.

Many questions were raised about what and where the lodge is, why it is exempted from taxes, and what the cost is. Several people chimed in with the location, on the west side of Church Hill Road near the intersection with Mutton Hill Road. Mary Mead said the town is taxed for the education portion that must be paid to the state. (The cost to taxpayers for the education taxes on the lodge is $2,479.) Ron Purdum pointed out that the Friendship Lodge is the Masonic lodge, of which he has been a member for 40 years and was Master for eight years. He said the purpose of the Masons is to help people become better citizens, and that this lodge was re-organized in Charlotte in 1802. He said the town has voted favorably for exemption ever since.

Several voters pressed for further information and justification for the exemption and for a broader understanding of what properties are exempt in town and the process for making those decisions.

Purdum added there are 49 members of the Friendship Lodge, three from Charlotte, the others from Shelburne and other nearby towns. He added that it is a male organization and anybody can apply for membership. In response to several comments about gender discrimination, Mary Lighthall pointed out that the Order of Eastern Star is the Mason’s organization for women, and that there is also a children’s organization.

John Rosenthal introduced an amendment to reduce the exemption from five years to one year, with the expectation that there could be more information brought to Town Meeting next year. Eventually the amendment passed with a division of the house by 99 to 62 votes. Article 4 then passed by 97 to 64 votes, again requiring a division of the house.

The following article, exempting the Charlotte Grange #398 from property taxes, passed on a voice vote with little discussion. The cost to the town for education taxes on the Grange is $2,689.

Dave Perrin said a very important role of the Grange is maintaining the 1870 School House #10. He said the Grange Hall hosts a number of social functions. He mentioned the Grange’s involvement with the Tractor Parade and said the building is an important part of the current East Charlotte planning process. Heather Manning added that three quarters of the 34 members are from Charlotte, and the rest have roots in Charlotte. Donovan added that the Grange hosted most of the East Charlotte planning meetings, and Spin Richardson said Our Lady of Mt. Carmel churchgoers are allowed to park at the Grange.

The final large money issue, the $405,000 payment from the Fire and Rescue Capital Fund for a new Heavy Rescue Truck, also passed easily on a voice vote. Fire Chief Chris Davis and Assistant Chief Dick St. George pointed out the benefits of the truck. (An article by Chris Davis about the truck can be found in the February 24 issue of The Charlotte News, and by searching in the Town News archives on this website.)

At the end of the meeting several advisory motions were offered. Nancy Menard, a resident for 45 years, helped count votes last fall for the first time. She proposed a motion to have the Selectboard investigate the use and cost of voting machines, saying it was time to move beyond pencils and hand calculations. After several comments for and against, mainly based on the community-building value of the volunteer effort to count votes, the motion was voted down.

Martha Perkins offered an advisory motion for friendly signs at accesses to town roads from the ferry and Route 7 to reduce speeding, pointing out how much we love our community. The motion passed.

Annual Charlotte School District Meeting

At 1 p.m. Moderator Jerry Schwarz gaveled in the annual school meeting, commenting on the error in the warning, which had the incorrect date. Only about 20 people remained from the earlier meeting, when close to 200 voters filled the seats.

The School Board thanked the retiring member, Dan Luce, for his service.

Co-Principals Greg Marino and Audrey Boutaugh gave a presentation about approaches to education and behavior at CCS. They outlined their data driven approach to evaluating priorities and goals, which they described with the acronym SMART: Is it Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Reasonable and Time-bound? In response to a question about how they are dealing with bullying, and helping both the victim and bully, Boutaugh said they take all instances seriously and have been doing workshops about how to deal with it using a positive behavior support system.

Warned articles all passed, including setting the date and time for the next Annual Meeting on Tuesday, March 5, 2012, at 1 p.m.

Under other business two advisory motions were offered and passed with voice votes.

The first was by Patrice Machavern, who moved that there be an investigation of the disbursement of public funds for the use of the school, with the suggestion that some of the principal might be made available.

Heather Manning, a Trustee of Public Funds since 1995, said that only interest has been disbursed from the three funds set aside for CCS because there has been no request for principal. The three funds and current asset values as of June 30, 2010, include a CCS Library fund ($4,985), Breezy Point Library fund ($956) and Peterson Trust ($4,386).

The second advisory motion was suggested by Debbie Ramsdell and made by Moe Harvey, asking the School Board to make lunch available in the cafeteria next year for Town Meeting attendees, as was the custom in past years. Ramsdell said lunch on Town Meeting day used to be an important community event, and might help increase attendance at the afternoon meeting.

Fire Chief Chris Davis had the last word. He said that, “As fire chief and as a parent of a child in the school, this has been the best year ever for working together.” He said the administration and board were working collaboratively with the fire department, and that staff did an excellent job during the emergency evacuation of the school last month. He acknowledged that there were issues, but that they were minimal relative to what needed to be done. He added that they are continuing to meet, fine tuning emergency plans, as well as discussing how to make the gymnasium work for both a school and community evacuation site.