Wallingford Fire District No. 1

 MINUTES OF THE PRUDENTIAL COMMITTEE MEETING
 November 28, 2007

The official copy of these minutes can be obtained at Wallingford Fire District #1 Office.

Called to Order:  Chris Rabtoy called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m.   Also present were Chris McPhee, Rose Regula and Stephanie Biagini/Clerk-Treasurer.    

Visitors:  Scott Sendra and Sandy Switzer  

Approval for Minutes:  C. Rabtoy made the motion to approval the minutes for October 24, 2007 .  R. Regula seconded the motion.  No further discussion.  Motion carried (2/0).   C. McPhee abstained.  

C. Rabtoy made the motion to approval the minutes for November 14, 2007 .  R. Regula seconded the motion.  No further discussion.  Motion carried (2/0).   C. McPhee abstained.  

Prudential Committee Pay Order:  C. Rabtoy made the motion to approve the pay orders as presented.  C. McPhee seconded the motion.  No further discussion.  Motion carried (3/0).  

Old Business:  

Lodge Deed:  C. McPhee explained that the deed was reviewed by the attorney and is free and clear of encumbrance to transfer the title.  There is a change of use clause for in which the property would be used for recreational purposes.   

Caretaker Agreement:  C. McPhee will check the status with the attorney regarding the agreement.  

Town & Fire District Contract:  C. McPhee explained that the attorney requested the Prudential Committee to make a list with basic points such as duration of the contract and the provisions they would like to have.  The committee members will be prepared to review them for the next meeting.    Once the proposed contract is drawn up by the attorney, the committee will make arrangement to meet with the Select Board for their review and consideration(s).  

Draft Contractors/Snowplowing Agreement:  The committee discussed the issue of cost for VLCT to combine the both agreements.  C. McPhee will check with the attorney on his cost and see if there is a “boiler” contract that could be generated.  

Fire Hydrant/Water Leak:  The Elm Street hydrant needs to be fixed it had been hit by a snowplow and Deerfield Drive near the hydrant there’s a water leak.  C. Rabtoy made the motion to obtain quotes and they would be reviewed by the committee to make a decision on who would be performing the work.  C. McPhee seconded the motion.  There was discussion regarding what budget line item the work would be paid out of.   Since the hydrants are not only used for fighting fires but also used for water.  The line item to pay for the work would come out of the Water Fund.  No further discussion.  Motion carried (1/0).  R. Regula apposed.  

Water/Sewer Rates:  The committee reviewed a list from R. Regula on questionable readings that she had since the meeting in October 24, 2007 .  C. Rabtoy had requested the information so that the rates could be set and the bills could have been due sooner.  The clerk had suggested that if there were only a handful of questionable readings, that possibly the committee could have set the rates and addressed the questions at a later date.  Some of the questionable readings were on residents that occupy their homes on a part time basis and their meters had not advanced, on empty houses with no readings and a home that seemed to be occupied by more than what was conveyed by the landlord.  So compromises needed to be met by the committee in order to move forward with setting the rates.  The clerk will notify those residents that visit on a part time basis, requesting them to call the Fire District office to tell us when they would be in town, so that their water meters could be checked.   

C. Rabtoy made the motion to set the Water Rate at $4.04 per thousand gallons and the Sewer Rate at $5.95 per 1,000 gallons.  There was discussion as to when the bills would be due.  The clerk offered to have the office open the last weekend of the December including New Years Eve Day so that residents would be able to pay their bills by the end of the year.  The bills would be due by January 10, 2007 .  C. McPhee seconded the motion.  No further discussion.  Motion carried (2/0).  R. Regula opposed.  

New Business:  

Budget 2008 Meetings:  The committee set the following schedule with alternate dates for the 2008 budget meetings:

Monday, December 3, 2007 (Lodge/General Fund) @ 8:30 a.m. , Wednesday, December 5, 2007 (Water/Sewer Fund) @ 6:00 p.m. and Thursday, December 13, 2007 @ 6:00 p.m. (Fire Protection Fund).  The clerk will contact all the participants and post the dates accordingly.  

Public Comments:  None.  

Other Business/Announcements:    

Proposed Committee to Locate Fire Ponds in Rural Communities:  An e-mail was received by the Town Administrator requesting the committee’s thoughts on formulating such a committee.    The request will be addressed to the W. Allen for his opinion.   

New Holland Tractor:  The tractor has been fixed and the snowplow attachments should be all set for this years sidewalk plowing.  C. McPhee suggested a brief note be placed in the bills addressing the following considerations:  trim back their trees that my over hang onto sidewalks, when snowplowing to keep the sidewalks cleared and to refrain from pushing snow towards the fire hydrants.  

C. Rabtoy said that he would contact the Vermont Department of Transportation regarding the snowplows that move the snow onto the sidewalks.   

Prudential Committee Stipends:  The committee members will be issued their yearly stipend checks.  C. McPhee requested that he only be paid for the meetings that he had attended.  The clerk mentioned that J. Shaw was on the board for the first couple of months of the year and R. Regula had been appointed in March, should their checks reflect their time on the board?  The committee agreed to prorate the checks accordingly.  

Executive Session:  None.  

Next Meeting:  The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Prudential Committee will be held on November 28, 2007 @ 7:00 p.m. – Town Hall.  

C. McPhee questioned whether or not the meeting that was scheduled for Wednesday, December 26, 2007 could be moved to Friday, December 28, 2007 @ 6:00 p.m. – Town Hall – Please note date change.  

Adjournment:  C. Rabtoy made the motion that the meeting be adjourned.  C. McPhee seconded the motion.  No further discussion.  Motion carried (3/0).  Meeting was adjourned at 8:20 p.m.  

Respectfully Submitted:

Stephanie P. Biagini - Clerk/Treasurer                                       Date Approved:   December 12, 2007

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