By STEVEN JUPITER
BRANDON—The Brandon Selectboard convened for its regular meeting on Monday evening. All Board members were present, as were Town Manager Seth Hopkins and Deputy Town Manager Bill Moore.
After approval of the agenda and previous meeting’s minutes, Mr. Hopkins gave his Town Manager’s report, the full text of which is available on the town’s website in the Selectboard packet for 10/23/23. Highlights from the report include:
- The town has received settlement of the wind damage to the roof of the Town Hall. The damage was sustained during the tornado in July. Quotes have been solicited for the repair work.
- Tree Warden Neil Silins has worked with Mr. Hopkins and Board members Tracy Wyman and Brian Coolidge on a Tree Shade Preservation Plan that will be presented to the Board at a later date.
- Mr. Hopkins, Mr. Wyman, Mr. Coolidge, and Board member Tim Guiles met on 10/18 with Police Union Rep Chris Hoar and Brandon PD Officer Aidan Alnwick to begin negotiations on the new police contract. The next planned session will be on 11/21.
Mr. Moore then presented his Recreation Department report, the full text of which can be found on the town’s website in the Selectboard packet for 10/23/23. Mr. Moore thanked the coaches and sponsors for the fall soccer and flag football teams. He also announced open registration for the basketball season that will begin in November.
Mr. Coolidge asked Mr. Moore about the plan to hire paid “commissioners” to oversee the sports programs. Mr. Moore responded that he had a meeting set up with someone to oversee “non-traditional” sports, such as martial arts and dance. Mr. Moore advised the Board that the days of unpaid volunteer supervision are drawing to a close and that paid supervisors are the likely path forward.
“The idea that volunteers will solve our problems is not where we are right now,” said Mr. Moore.
Public Comment
During the Public Comment segment of the meeting, Mr. Coolidge conveyed dismay that the Brandon Police Department (BPD) had declined to send a representative to the Neshobe Elementary School to discuss the role of the police department in the community. Instead, Neshobe had reached out to the Burlington PD, which sent a K-9 unit. Mr. Coolidge saw this as “a wasted opportunity” for BPD.
BPD Chief David Kachajian was in attendance and stated that he had no recollection of an invitation from Neshobe School and that he would be happy to reach out to clear up any misunderstandings about what had happened.
Jim Emerson of the Brandon Energy announced a Button-Up event for homeowners on Wednesday, November 8 from 5:30 to 7 pm in the Town Hall. The event is meant to help residents weatherize their homes for greater energy efficiency in winter. Those interested can register online at Solarfest.org.
Budget Workshop Dates
Dates were announced for the upcoming series of budget workshops for fiscal year 2025:
Wednesday, November 8 from 7 to 9 pm
Monday, November 20 from 6 to 8 pm
Tuesday, December 5 from 6 to 8 pm
Monday, December 18 from 6 to 8 pm
All budget meetings are open to the public and will be held in the downstairs meeting area of the Town Hall. These meetings will not be available on Zoom.
Private Road Named
The Board approved the creation of a private road off Steinberg Road, to be called “Juniper Lane.” The new road had been warned as “Jupiter Lane,” but the requestor had asked for a last-minute change to “Juniper.”
Potential Police Contract with Goshen
The Board picked up a discussion it had left off at the previous meeting concerning the potential for a contract for police services between Brandon and Goshen. Currently, Goshen does not have its own department and relies primarily on the Vermont State Police (VSP) for law enforcement services. However, Brandon PD (BPD) is sometimes called to Goshen to assist VSP or to handle emergency calls that VSP cannot respond to quickly.
At a prior meeting, the Board discussed whether it made sense for Brandon to pursue a formal arrangement with Goshen that would compensate Brandon for the services of its police department. The Board invited BPD Chief Kachajian to Monday’s meeting to discuss the idea before deciding whether to authorize Town Manager Hopkins to begin talks with Goshen.
Chief Kachajian provided a model contract to the Board and suggested a compensation structure of a $4200 yearly fee plus $150 per call (the model contract can be found in the Selectboard packet for 10/23). The arrangement would involve emergency calls only. Any other services, such as traffic enforcement, would be add-on costs. Chief Kachajian did not believe that the anticipated volume of calls from Goshen would be a strain on BPD and saw Goshen as “an extension of Forestdale.” Over the last year, BPD responded to 4 calls in Goshen, one of which was a serious car accident.
Chief Kachajian emphasized that Brandon would remain the department’s priority but also advised the Board that the current state-run dispatch system would be ending in the near future and that it made sense to “regionalize” law-enforcement services to cut costs. The formal contract that the Brandon Fire Department has with Goshen was cited as positive example of such an arrangement.
The Board expressed concern that the proposal would stretch BPD’s resources too thin and perhaps jeopardize the safety of Brandon residents, but Chief Kachajian insisted that BPD had the resources to handle the increased call volume, which promoted Mr. Guiles to question whether BPD was in fact over-resourced.
Mr. Wyman asked what would happen if BPD officers were occupied in Goshen and a call came for assistance in Brandon. Chief Kachajian assured the Board that the volume of calls from Goshen was not that large but in any such scenario, assistance from Pittsford or VSP could be requested in Brandon.
Working out the per-capita costs of BPD for Brandon taxpayers, the Board suggested that the flat-fee-plus-calls structure proposed by the Chief potentially undersold the actual cost to Brandon taxpayers, who pay roughly $209 per head for police services every year. The proposed fee to Goshen would charge only $24 per head, though the services the town received would be less than those received by Brandon residents. An equal per-capita cost to Goshen would result in a yearly charge of approximately $36,000 instead of $4,200.
Mr. Hopkins advocated in favor of the proposal, noting that Brandon is a subregional hub and should be the leader in emergency services for the area.
Board member Cecil Reniche-Smith noted that as that hub, Brandon should seek to ensure that smaller communities could find ways to be as safe as Brandon residents.
Mr. Guiles opposed the proposal on the grounds that it would “enlarge” BPD.
Ultimately, Mr. Guiles moved that talks with Goshen not be pursued by Mr. Hopkins and Mr. Wyman and Mr. Coolidge joined him in opposition. Ms. Reniche-Smith and Board member Heather Nelson voted in favor of allowing Mr. Hopkins to open discussion with Goshen.
Adoption of Municpal Policies and Codes
The Board voted to adopt an updated set of policies and codes from the Vermont Community Development Program (VCDP) in order to remain eligible for grants through the program. Currently the Brandon Free Public Library is seeking money through the program, which would not be available if the town did not adopt the VCDP’s policies.
Discussion of Town Solar Project
The Board approved a plan to assess the Brandon Industrial Park as a potential site for a town-owned solar array. The proposed site is located off of Arnold District Road and has proved difficult to develop because of its rocky terrain.
Mr. Wyman expressed concern that the project for which the ARPA funds had been allocated was supposed to have the backing of both the Fire District and the School District whereas the project as presented seemed to be entirely a town endeavor. Mr. Guiles replied that both the Fire and the School District would be brought in when there was a formal proposal to move ahead on at a particular site.
Mr. Wyman also expressed concern about the future costs of decommissioning old solar panels. Mr. Guiles, Ms. Reniche-Smith, and Jim Emerson all assured him that the panels were designed to last for decades and even old panels could be resold or recycled, especially as the technology continued to improve.
Mr. Hopkins also stated that borrowing costs for such projects were lower for a municipality than for private borrowers, making the project more profitable for Brandon than for a private company. Even with the borrowing costs outlined in the proposal (which can be found in the Selectboard packet for 10/23), it is projected that accumulated cash flow from the project would range from $900K to $1.1 million over the course of 10 to 20 years. The town would need to borrow $531,089 to realize the project, according to the proposal.
The final vote to move forward with an assessment of the Brandon Industrial Park Site was 3 to 2, with Mr. Wyman and Mr. Coolidge opposed.
Municipal EV Chargers
The Board unanimously decided not to renew the warranty on the town-owned electric-vehicle chargers in the municipal parking lot behind the Dunkin’ Donuts on Conant Square. The cost to replace exhausted charger heads would be less than the cost of maintaining the warranty.
The Board also approved an increase in the rates charged to electric-car owners using the EV chargers. The rates went from $0.17/kWh for electricity and $0.75 per plug-in hour to $0.25/kWh and $1.25 per plug-in hour. The increase was seen as necessary to offset any upcoming replacement and/or maintenance costs while remaining competitive with surrounding communities that also offer EV chargers.
The surrounding discussion involved the extent to which Brandon needed to remain attractive to electric-car owners looking for a place to charge their vehicles and to what extent the chargers themselves would be an expense to the town. Currently, the chargers brought in enough to break even. The higher rates will allow the town to see a greater profit on them.
Electric Motorcycle for Brandon PD
The Board voted not to authorize the expenditure of $18,318 in grant money for an electric motorcycle for the Brandon PD. The money came through the office of Senator Sanders.
Mr. Guiles stated that he did not feel that BPD needed a second electric motorcycle, especially since its current one does not see much use. A discussion ensued between Mr. Guiles and BPD Chief Kachajian as to the value of an electric motorcycle to the department and whether the department was actually committed to renewable energy, a claim that Mr. Guiles disputed.
The voted not to approve the purchase order but will await further information from Senator Sanders’s office as to whether the grant money can be applied to something else.
Warrant
The Board’s final piece of public business was the unanimous approval of a warrant to cover expenses in the amount of $103,170.89.
