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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah. Select board meeting on June 23rd we have 3 members of the board with us, and we are going to be

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Plainfield VT Select Board: starting early here at 5 30, because we're going into executive session.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah. So the, you know, the flip board

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Plainfield VT Select Board: should be discussing this case privately, and we need to receive attorney client privileged information because it involves parties letting people know the town's thinking strategy before it's implemented. And that would be a problem for us. If folks, you know, haven't talked about things. So I'd like to make a motion to find that premature general public knowledge of the town's plan would clearly place the select board of substantial disadvantage in the litigation

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Plainfield VT Select Board: second, and all those in favor say, aye, aye, aye.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and did you have A. I have a second motion chair. Okay, I would like to motion to enter executive session under title one, section 3, 13, a 1 for 2 reasons, one to discuss the pending litigation, and 2 to receive advice.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Second, those in favor say, aye, aye, aye.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: vote 3 0 0 votes, 3 0 0 votes. We're going into executive session. We will come back at 6.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I've oh, okay, here we go. Yeah, it's very confusing. So we can let Brian in. And now, there's a bunch of folks joining. Yeah, yeah.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we're still audio, live video, live reporting in progress.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I'm just gonna use the rest.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Hello, welcome back.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Sorry to make you wait in that nice cool room.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Apologize for the convenience.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Welcome, Karen.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Oh, Hi, Karen.

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Karen Hatcher: Good to see you all.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: What's that?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yes, yeah. Yeah. Dan is here.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I think you just use the restaurant

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Plainfield VT Select Board: pretty good. I'll I'll email you back. I'm sorry

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I've been out of pocket all day. No worries, and it didn't make me

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Plainfield VT Select Board: so we're we need a motion to come out of the executive. This is what we're just talking about. Oh, okay, we're good. Okay. Do you want me to do this? Yeah. Do that all right. When we had an executive session. No action was taken in an executive session. The

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Plainfield VT Select Board: conversation was about 79, Bean Road in executive session. A short, probably vague update. The contempt case was completed. The defendant did not show up for the last hearing. The judge ordered that we are able to remove the trailer, the dog, the cat. Anything else that may be there? And that the town can recoup fees.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: The town is reviewing the decision and planning our next steps based on our legal rights. And so at this time just want to make a motion to follow the plan in place to follow the judge's order for 79 Bean Road, including having Carl Bissicks work with town officials to investigate our options

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Plainfield VT Select Board: a second, and all those in favor say, aye, aye, okay,

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So the 1st item on our agenda is

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Plainfield VT Select Board: any changes to the agenda that we can think of or has a question. Oh, sorry request from Dan. If we could move his segment up, he has an engagement. I don't know if he's on right now. But you'd like to give his presentation. Okay, that's okay, yeah, I'm on.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay. Dan's on. Okay, that's good to know we can do that. How about

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Plainfield VT Select Board: 1st report after 4 brands report or well, let's we can.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: okay, is that all right? Okay, let's do it right? Yeah. Right there, right before

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Plainfield VT Select Board: any announcements to make.

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Danie: Michael.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Good morning, Mike.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Just hit the mic right there.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Oh, yeah.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: yeah, we won't turn that off

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Plainfield VT Select Board: emergency management. The announcement is that we have website and on a couple of social media outlets. But everyone may not have heard. We have a blooming center at this building in Town hall 22

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and it's open from one to 6 in the afternoon. So if you feel overwhelmed at all, if you have any sense of

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that you can't get cool in your own house, and you need a place to come. We have a Wi-fi connection. We have tables, we have chairs, water bathrooms. Come and make yourself comfortable until you feel a little bit better.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you very far.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Those hours are one to what are the hours? One to 6. Yeah.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Any other comments on that? Okay?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Announcements. Right? That was announcements. That was announcements. We have a public comment, Kim

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Kevin Nolan, 134 Bean Road just wanted to let you know. There has been a lot of movement at the 79 Bean Road residence. One car was removed yesterday. They have

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Plainfield VT Select Board: fixed one other car, got all the wheels on it, and then devon moved his brown car around to the other side of the road. That one is driving home. Of course it got a hole in the windshield. They have dug out the hitch for the camper and moved everything around it. I'm hoping in that for the next week or 2 all that stuff's gonna be pulled out of there. I have not seen the dog. The dog house is gone. The dog is gone still there. But

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Plainfield VT Select Board: just there has been a lot of movement both. They work both days.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and they brought a flat, and then they take out of the car. I thought it was going to be the camp. So there is movement. Thank you. That's good to know. Thank you for the update

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Plainfield VT Select Board: any other public comment.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay, Dan, you wanna give us a report.

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Danie: Yeah, hey? Thank you for moving me to the beginning my annual training of 2 weeks turned into 3 weeks and been away, but starting to follow up on some stuff

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Danie: this, Kim gave a great update on the 79 Bean road. Finally, Progress and myself and Peter will be keeping an eye on that. And again, we encourage any communication from the residents there that can keep us informed.

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Danie: Several other small things. Just neighbor disputes. Again, my authority is limited in the town. It's basically just facilitating a conversation and trying to apply

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Danie: a common effect and some common sense and facilitate communication, so folks can work stuff out. I highly encourage you. If there's a dispute that you don't feel comfortable approaching the other party with reach out to me.

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Danie: and I'll touch base with everybody involved. Get the information and kind of give a

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Danie: hey? Here's a way forward.

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Danie: Here's a suggestion. Here's a way that it can be resolved between folks. And if

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Danie: hopefully, that works out 90% of things can be chalked up to ineffective communication which I try to streamline.

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Danie: If not, then

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Danie: there's there's other avenues. But at that point it's kind of out of my hand. We did have based on reports from people in the community some issues with

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Danie: speeding on Country Club road, which I was able to get in contact with the sheriff's department and adjust their

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Danie: patrol schedule to kind of do some targeted enforcement

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Danie: which to me makes more sense than just being out patrolling. We'd rather send resources that we're paying for to where there's a issue that's been identified. So I'd encourage people if there's issues with speeding, littering other things where we have a contracted

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Danie: patrol or enforcement capability that you reach out to me, and I can kind of be that intermediary between the town and the sheriff's department. Try and focus our resources other than that pending questions from the select board. That is

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Danie: all that's fit to print other than it's very hot.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah. Well, good to see you back and thank you for that. Do you have any any questions from? No questions.

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Danie: And frozen.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I think you've hit a wall. Good. Thanks, Dan. Thank you, Dan.

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Danie: Alright. Thank you. Stay cool.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah, you, too.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay. So town clerk's report, please.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Branton, town clerk just want to say the reappraisal is moving forward.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: obviously, we have not had an appraisal since 2,008. The property values are much higher

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Plainfield VT Select Board: people are very upset, but I think the Listers and town office staff have answered questions, and

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we are scheduled to have grievance hearings. As you know, the process is, and I sent a memo today.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: If somebody doesn't like the result of the grievance process. There's a Board of Civil Authority meeting.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and which is the Board of Civil Authority. In this case it's the select board the town Clerk and the justices of peace.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: We will have to adopt rules of process and I I sent around a draft of that. Then we have a meeting. Within 15 days after the Listers grievance ends. Within that 15 day period we start a meeting and then adjourn, go out. Look at properties.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: It's very hard to tell at this point how many properties are. Gonna go through the appeal of the grievance. But I'll keep you posted

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and let everybody know. And just to remind everyone

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Plainfield VT Select Board: this process was not initiated by the town. It's a State mandate. You do not have control over this. Yes, just a clarification. The grievance is a lot of these issues can be resolved on the grievance level. The rough numbers are that 15% of the people

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Plainfield VT Select Board: file agreements could be actually a little lower this year. All of the people who go through the grievance process. Another 15% then pursue.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thing, there are quorum questions that I don't know if any of these realized. But with this large body we can break up into groups of 3 to go and look at the properties and file reports, and and so forth, and just to remind everyone there are very specific reasons to grieve and to have a complaint.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: You have to show that mistakes were made by the listeners in terms of the raw data. That's 1 area. The other is to show

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that comparable properties

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Plainfield VT Select Board: are being charged differently than your property. Now, a little confusion on that comparable does not mean your neighbor. It means a house approximately the same size, with the same amount of acreage.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So you know, I think that it's going better than than I expected. So a lot of good communication coming out from from your office. So that's that was good. Yes, Dan the Lister. Grievance process. When does that end?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: On the 26.th Okay, so that's later this week. Right? Yes. And then

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Plainfield VT Select Board: then folks have within 15 days at the end of that to file? Or are they filing these? I think that the Listers will have an idea of who is filing. You have to file, or, in addition, I think, within 15 days. But we'll get a ballpark soon after the 26th of how many people were grieving to get you guys understanding

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Plainfield VT Select Board: what it is, my guess would be prior to a select board meeting, could have a hearing to start the process and then break up into groups of 3, reconvene the meeting.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and from when they file. We have 15 days to have the 1st meeting, the 1st meeting. Okay, I'll just note, because our next meeting, which falls into this is the July 14th meeting right? And we already have the zoning hearing happening the hour before the select board meeting. So we might just have a special yeah, just trying to figure out the timing of when you'll need us and others to.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah, yeah, Michael, I have a question for RAM. I'll come over to the owl. Yeah.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: one of the things that I've been watching pretty closely and went through the grand list after it was released

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Plainfield VT Select Board: is how the buyout properties are being treated, and I don't want you to answer in general. Right now. I just want to say that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we have been telling people for a year. Now that 27 properties are going to go off the tax rolls.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and about a 3rd of those properties have negotiated down the value of their property to nearly 0, like 7,000, 15,000, and yet all the properties designated for buyout. We have been told by the State, and we are therefore telling back to the public have no value. So how I want to actually do something more formal at the next Board meeting. But the question is.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: how do you say that a house we've said has 0 value, and therefore should be bought out, is at the same time worth double its pre-flood value?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Right. I had a rather heated conversation with somebody who's having an issue with this

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and I have appealed to Sandy headwister for clarification. My understanding is that the fema buyout would be

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Plainfield VT Select Board: the value of the house the day before the flood, correct in terms of what they're being bought out for. If they choose to take it. No, if they choose to take it, I'm just saying, Yeah, I don't know. I don't know in terms of the listers how their hands might be tied in terms of the process that's designated by the State. But I will check with Sandy, and I'll I'll get something on social media about it.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: What probably I would leave is an open question, because we have maybe 3 to 4 properties, maybe 5 that have been approved for buyout where the people are not likely to leave.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: But we have approved, or the Select Board has approved a list of 27, saying these properties shouldn't be lived in, they shouldn't, they cannot be resold. I've talked to a number of property owners, and they said, there's no way we could put this on the market. But we might stay here. So how do we negotiate? That is an open question. Yeah. And I'll ask Sandy. I do want to just point out that property tax rules are not necessarily

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Plainfield VT Select Board: just in terms of what people perceive. For example, if you lost 7 acres that is now underwater by the brook.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: You still pay tax on those 7 acres? It's a difficult question to answer.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and people are very upset about those sorts of rules, but I don't know that the rules are necessarily ideally designed. I don't know. I'll find out from Sand understood. I mean, they can ask for an abatement and a number of people who did lose acreage did get abatement. So that's part of the process. And I think I'm just open to exploring, because because our signing the buyout agreement in 2023, or 2024. Our meeting the town of Plainfield

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Would indicate that we saw the existence of that house in the floodplain as being a future danger to the occupants, and therefore it shouldn't be occupied, and if people do choose to live there, it is at very much at their own risk. So it has some just just to be clear. I want everybody to understand

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we cannot completely abate land. We can change the grade of the land, but land cannot be completely abated. Just so. Just sounds like further discussion. Any well, and I'll just know I know. I think it was in the Flood, Bill. It may have been in the budget on the State legislative level. There's a program that I think we're pretty sure went through. I was talking to the State representative about it last week.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: where the State lost Grand List revenue. So these this property tax revenue for for 5 years anything lost on the grand list because of the floods? The State would reimburse us 100 for 5 years and 50% for 5 years.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So I don't know that program supposed to be spun up. And there's, you know, I'm sure there's a lot of details, but it is something to look at, partly because it it one of these things where we we also don't. We want to make sure that.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: depending on how they're valuing homes in that we wouldn't want to 0 these out as non valuable and then not be able to get this groundless replacement money. So we just there's lots of different programs to look at. And a lot of the state we don't have a lot of, say, in how some of these state rules actually work. We can only work within like I don't think someone can. Can, you know, grieve I was flooded right like there's very specific things they have to grieve within the process.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I I could say, as a wishful thinking, that I would love it if the town

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Plainfield VT Select Board: had a uniform policy, because there are people who have highly valued properties that are now being sold now on the ground list, just for the value of the land, because they lost all or part of the building. Other people who have very damaged homes, who aren't even living in them, who are being tax appraised for twice the value of what their prior appraisal was, it doesn't feel consistent enough for me to able to say to any of these families.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I don't know how to prepare you for what's next, you know. So it's sort of well, I don't think it's a town policy, right? The Listers are following the state policy right? And so it's not a town town has not made a policy that the Listers are following. The State has made a policy that the Listers are following, so I don't know if we can make a town policy, and I don't know if we can answer the questions that the Listers should be answering. Well, I just know that some people very skilled, and it's no no harm. It's a good thing, but are skilled at negotiating

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Plainfield VT Select Board: property appraisal to reflect the loss they actually took, and other people are less skilled at that are still paying the full value, even though their house isn't even been lived in. So it's

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Plainfield VT Select Board: it's clearly a matter of skill, and the hope that I had was that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we could look at these properties and say a recommendation, perhaps, to the Lister. Well, I don't think we can do that because we, as a select board, sit on the Board of Civil Authority. So I don't think we can recommend to ourselves, I see. But what I can say is, if if they've already grieved because they think it's too high, the Listers have a process, and if it stays there they could appeal a walkthrough of the home as part of the appeal.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And so I'm I'm guessing that there are some things that can be done. Then I think there's people have to just go through the process. I don't think there's a way for us to go around the process right? There is a process. Yep.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay, thank you. You're all set

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Plainfield VT Select Board: That's good, Karen.

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Karen Hatcher: Yeah. Can you hear me?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah.

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Karen Hatcher: Great good to see everybody. Sorry to have missed the last meeting. I'm back from family stuff, and I'm brought back my baby girls germs. So now sick. But any rate here we are so wanted to just provide an update because it's been

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Karen Hatcher: a while and things are progressing, moving forward. But there have been a number of significant changes to the Grants group over the course of the last several weeks, and I wanted to make sure everyone was aware what was happening.

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Karen Hatcher: So

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Karen Hatcher: as most folks know, this group's been meeting since last August. So it's been, you know, good, long 10 months plus.

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Karen Hatcher: and folks have had to step back or make changes based on personal reasons and other commitments. So the end of this month Gary Smith has stepped down from being the Fema PA coordinator. As we know, Gary is a Lister, and also has family issues, family things to tend to. So so with Gary stepping away, we also had already seen Michael Zahner step back.

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Karen Hatcher: It made sense to me to take a look at what was really needed with this group. In terms of keeping all of the work moving. And so from this point forward, we're not quite, not exactly the Grants group. We are the town grants, administrator and and committees. So

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Karen Hatcher: so from this point forward I'll be interfacing with Fema, PA. And our integrity group consultants who have a really good handle on what's being done, and and getting all the projects submitted into the Fema portal, and we have a weekly check in, and so I feel pretty confident that all of that is in good shape.

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Karen Hatcher: I know that Josh and Keith Cuban are working diligently on the Federal highway grants

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Karen Hatcher: and the projects associated there, and I check in with Josh regularly to see what support he may need.

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Karen Hatcher: I am also going to be working with Pat Moulton, and the folks from the East Village expansion projects along with

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Karen Hatcher: a consultant to be named that will be funded through the ready group at Vhcb on the community development block, rat, Dr fund application.

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Karen Hatcher: What we what we know about that at this point is that there will be a pre application required. We didn't know that before last week.

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Karen Hatcher: We know that now. I'll be talking with Pat this week to try and get a regular meeting scheduled with her, and Arian should be back from his trip this week as well, so

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Karen Hatcher: we'll be convening to get the pre application worked on. We're hoping that Vhcb will give us one or 2 names of consultants who are ready to work with us. It sounded like they had those, but there was some question about pre-application requirements and such. And so we're ironing those things out, but hoping to have somebody on board to really take the helm of this grant application.

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Karen Hatcher: and we'll work with that person to make sure they have everything they need.

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Karen Hatcher: any of the other grants that have been in play things that money we've gotten from the Vermont Community Foundation and and other sources. I'll still oversee and make sure that we're doing the reporting and the things that are needed there. But but beyond what's

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Karen Hatcher: what I've just named to you, I'm not going to be able to take on anything else. So what I would like to put forward. And I think you guys have this on your agenda is that it might be a good idea to to put the word out to the community that an assistant grants administrator could be helpful.

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Karen Hatcher: Because that we know that there are other grants that are available, and I just don't have the bandwidth. And so if if other people, if there's another person that could be brought on to support

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Karen Hatcher: those kind of grant applications that would be really wonderful. So you know.

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Karen Hatcher: However, I can help that get that done. That'd be great. But I'm hoping because it's an appointment, and because, you know, Michael's honors gone, and that was his position. And now Gary's gone. So we've got we've got some movement and we have some some positions that are open, but I think the assistant wanted would be a good one to fill if we could.

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Karen Hatcher: So that's kind of the the where we are. If if if you have any questions, let me know.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Dan has a question.

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Karen Hatcher: Go ahead!

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Plainfield VT Select Board: The assistant Grants manager, whatever the role is, would that be something that you'd be able to put together like a a job description, including like hours required, or something to give someone a sense of what they would be agreeing to.

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Karen Hatcher: I guess so sorry.

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Karen Hatcher: I know I'm not even sure that there is a job description for for my the Grants Administrator. Honestly.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Just a sense of how much time and and effort you're.

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Karen Hatcher: Yeah, I I think it's it's 1 of those things that

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Karen Hatcher: If someone has an interest, we can tailor it to what they can do, you know, that's what we've done with all the other jobs to say. What what's your skill and how much time do you have?

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Karen Hatcher: And then we'll we'll we'll take that.

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Karen Hatcher: But mostly what we need are, you know.

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Karen Hatcher: we are aware that there are like arts that Arts council grants, and there are other smaller grants that are that are more, that are a more simple process than, say, Federal grants which are monsters, that that if someone has worked in a nonprofit and has done any kind of grant writing could probably step into that role and then work with the folks who are

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Karen Hatcher: seeking those grants like Michael could probably speak to this, but, like the the Disability Committee, has targeted a number of grants that could be helpful there at the Opera House.

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Karen Hatcher: but they could use someone who could who could help pull that together. And there might be. And Jamie from the Arts Committee might have for arts and recreation might have some grants that could be pursued if someone had the time to be able to help write those. So it's it's a matter of the ones that kind of show up. That could be, you know. There's even the even the Co-OP right the Co-OP building. And there was the preservation.

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Karen Hatcher: Vermont grants. You know, it's things. There's a lot of grants that get in play. And so it's just if someone has that kind of experience and interest we can. And it could be more than one person, you know. It's like, if you just want to hop on, we can. We could use the help.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yep, that's great. We'll we'll

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we'll take note of that and try to advertise that, Michael. You had a thought more than a thought.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Michael Billingsley. I had a aware of the a number of grants that are in play, and, as Karen rightly said, we

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Plainfield VT Select Board: some of them are for Town Hall. Very specifically, one is to air condition this room

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Plainfield VT Select Board: which I've already spec out, and would be about 22,000. Another is to pay the other half of a grant that I think might successfully be funded by the Arts Council has already been written by Keith Swan for 20,000, which is half the cost of a lift to replace this one which needs replacing, and they would require that we match half of it. So we need to find the other 20,000.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And I discussed some of this loosely with the Vermont Community Foundation, and they brought up the idea

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that they would be willing to fund as a capacity building

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Plainfield VT Select Board: bonus for the town of Plainfield. In this particular time frame, where we're still struggling

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Plainfield VT Select Board: to fund a position called Assistant Grants Administrator. So if Karen were to write a job description that would say, maybe a halftime position or something like that, Karen. And and then I've already helped Alice Merrill, the prior Grants administrator, write 2 grants that were both substantial, and I would help that person write these other grants that are in play. I don't want them to fall apart, and I definitely know that we need to have

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Plainfield VT Select Board: these works done in Town Hall. This room would become insufferably hot if we had another 2 days of heat, you know. So what I I hope is that yes, such a person will step forward in the town, but yes, we also might be able to find ways to fund them. So I encourage that approach. Thank you.

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Karen Hatcher: And I just would say also that at this point what I'm aware of is that there's I think the the board approved $8,000 as a stipend for the town grants. Administrator.

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Karen Hatcher: Effective. July one, right? So that that funding that fund is there. So

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Karen Hatcher: you know. And however you want to do this, I you know I haven't. I haven't. Actually

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Karen Hatcher: there was a there was a $4,000 stipend that

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Karen Hatcher: was like last year's money that we used in the 1st

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Karen Hatcher: 3 months, or whatever it was. So so

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Karen Hatcher: you know, if if you know, this is something that the Board feels is is important to fund, and we can get the funding through through the Vermont Community Foundation. Be good to put it in that in that stipend line, or some other line that could be

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Karen Hatcher: could be used to compensate folks who are doing the work.

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Karen Hatcher: So I mean

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Karen Hatcher: for me. It's like I wanna I wanna be able to get this done and and move things forward. And then but but ultimately.

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Karen Hatcher: you know, not looking for a job. So it'd be great to have something set up. So someone who is looking for a job, you know, could could move into it and then actually be compensated for it.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yep, we counted a lot of volunteers in this town. Yeah. I also want to bring you up to speed Karen on the and and Michael the dam project. Apparently there was some future. I had signed the document to allow for the removal of the dam

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and they had some rework on it. I had to re-sign it Saturday because it's due today, yesterday, I guess, or today.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So anyway, it's moving forward. It's fully funded.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And it's a matter of getting the steps in place that will make that happen. So just want you to know it's that's in the works, too.

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Karen Hatcher: Thank you.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yep.

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Karen Hatcher: Okay.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay. Thank you.

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Karen Hatcher: Thank you.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Glad you're back. Thank you, Darren.

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Karen Hatcher: Bye, thanks.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay. Captain, we have a discussion about our

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Plainfield VT Select Board: discussion with Captain Deborah Munson and Sa. Donnelly.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Well, so if people can hear you in the room which they probably can is anywhere near here. This is the speaker for zoom. Yeah. Oh, okay, we can add a seat.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Let's move them in in a little bit, so we can make sure

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that Zoom picks up there. Yeah.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: don't want to have you make you stand there.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you for coming. And so I'm Captain Deb Munson. I oversee the atrium. I'll just do intros 1st before we get into anything. Okay.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I'm Michelle Donnelly. I'm the State's attorney for Washington County, and my name is Tj. Howard. I'm the station commander here in Berlin.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you all for coming.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So I reached out, probably almost 2 months ago. Now, at this point, because I just stepped into this position approximately 2 months ago. And so

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I also came into this position, realizing that there may have been a strained relationship between the law enforcement side of things due to a recent case that had happened. And granted, we can't talk about the case in itself. And I I would like to

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Plainfield VT Select Board: like, introduce ourselves. This is who we are. This is what we do is our intentions and move forward and move forward together, understanding that we are all growing from a case that probably didn't have

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Plainfield VT Select Board: the outcome that anybody wanted understood. If if that's a proper way, that's a good way to say it.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So like I said, I'm not new to the State police I've had. I'm almost on 15 years. I transferred over about 2 months ago into the A troop commander position which oversees all the northern half barracks, so I used to be in a position where I oversaw a lot of specialties that oversaw our Special operations unit. So it's very highly skilled

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Plainfield VT Select Board: people on what they do. They're all of our special teams that go out to all these major scenes. And now I've transferred over to overseeing a lot of people management, which is a very different. I'm sure there's folks in this room that understand that. And so I'm taking a deep dive into our barracks, and and how things are run in each barracks. I've

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I've known Tj. For his entire career, and so, working together with him very closely to build these relationships up, expect more of our troopers, even though we're doing it with less. I think everybody is doing that these days as well and just maintaining. I think his name was Danny said it in the beginning a lot of things are attributed to just

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Plainfield VT Select Board: for communication, and I think we can all certainly do a lot better with that. And that's part of why we came here today is to just instill that communication. Ensure that we do have open doors. Available.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Unfortunately, 24, 7, but I carry my cell phone with me wherever I go. My email is always up and running and we're very approachable people. Despite that maybe some preconceptions that some may have had. And so we just want to encourage.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: If something doesn't look right, does it sound right?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Maybe just have not a right field. Just please reach out to us. Because

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Plainfield VT Select Board: from my level I may not even have an understanding

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Plainfield VT Select Board: either. So getting Tj. Myself, or say Donnelly in on something that we may not understand or know is a problem from the beginning. We could probably fix it pretty quick, as opposed to when something is all said and done. Yeah, okay, that's that's great to know. Thank you for being open. One of the questions I have is, we've had a few issues over the years. Donnelly. Do you want to introduce yourself?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: She did say her name. Well, I guess. Do you want to say anything. Oh, oh, sorry what you do your role in this

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Plainfield VT Select Board: not to put you on the spot. But I thought that was what was happening.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Certainly. So I'm I'm the State Attorney for Washington County, and so that makes me the chief law enforcement officer for for for the county, and we prosecute cases after there are given to us by law enforcement. The investigations typically are complete by the time we see them. And my office.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: looks at what happened, determines what the appropriate charge is, and then those are arranged. They go to Criminal Court, where somebody will have access to a defense attorney, and then the case proceeds from there and it kind of, you know, similar to how Dan was talking about it. Earlier this evening is like you. You try to. You try to work out a resolution between the prosecution and the defense.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: both of you, bringing what you think are the best aspects of your side. You know, the defense might point out weaknesses in the State's case. The State might bring out the need for responsibility, and then we try to come to an outcome. I would echo what Captain Munson said about communication earlier in the process. If there is.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: if somebody is a victim in a case, or if they're a community member that has an interest in a particular outcome, getting involved earlier and letting that thought process known to somebody in my office. If they think that there's an issue or a particular outcome that you think is very important for a case to have.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: it's important to know that earlier in the process, because we take that into consideration to every case that has a victim, we have a victim's advocate in our office, and we reach out to and talk to victims about their perspective and what they are hoping to see in a case outcome. And those voices are really important. And then, you know.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: for community level crime. There are some crimes that don't have a particularized victim, but might be affecting the community as a whole. Those comments can also be funneled to our office because we we want to take all that into consideration when we're having resolutions. Every case is its own individual

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Plainfield VT Select Board: microcosm of something that you know. It's it's the one event that happened. But sometimes it can be representative of a lot of different issues that are bubbling up in the community. So we we want to know that context because that helps us make the most appropriate response is one that's going to be the most effective. Thank you. Okay, that's great. Thank you. We were just doing some introses.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay, sorry. I'm the watch commander tonight. So it's just answering phone calls for the most part.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: yeah. So my name is Cj, I work in Berlin. Been down here since April of 24

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I've met most of the town management in preparation for the elections last November. So that was a good opportunity to at least introduce myself. Most of it was over. The phone just trying to get to every town in Washington County is not an easy task. In a short period of time prior from Berlin. My specialty in the State was crash investigation. So that's what I did, as of my full time job.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: basically doing fatal crashes around the State. So,

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Plainfield VT Select Board: yeah. Born and raised Massachusetts. Been up here for a number of years. I'm happy to answer any questions that you guys have.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay. Thank you. I did have a kind of a policy kind of question, and that is, if there are recurring things happening that seem to require State police as opposed to say the sheriff. If there, I guess there's, I guess I would like to know.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: 1st of all, you'd like to build a file. I know that if there's recurring issues in the town in the town you would like to have us communicate with you, so you can

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Plainfield VT Select Board: build a file and eventually have a case. Perhaps

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that's a very broad question. Yeah. My problem is, I don't know what things to bring to you and what things to bring to you, and what things to bring to the sheriff's office. So what kind of contract with the sheriff's office? Yes, that correct. Do you know what their contract is for. What's their here for patrol traffic, primarily traffic related. So if there is something that is.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I'll use an example. When I I was a station commander up in the Derby barracks. We had reoccurring issues in a particular town surrounding. It sounds something similar to I don't know what's going on on Bean Road, but we had some reoccurring issues in a particular

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Plainfield VT Select Board: residents in this particular town. And it got to a point where we were receiving phone calls from the community all the time. And so finally the town came up with kind of a funneling system to get some information.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Excuse me to us, so that way we could ease that communication easier and quicker. And so a lot of the communication for those types of complaints came through the town, and then we worked together State police and with the town, and they're like that. They had a sort of a possible of getting paperwork issued and trying to come together, almost on a monthly basis, to talk about some reoccurring issue.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: to try and resolve it. And eventually it did get resolved. They're probably still trying to read these fees. Yeah. The other one I'm thinking about is involve a firearm which I know would be in your

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Plainfield VT Select Board: department and a recurring threats, and so forth. So if something like that was happening, you'd definitely want to know, to know, and and from from the witnesses, from the people who that's affecting or have that information, we'd like to know? We can. Always, we can start cases if it's not something that is indicative of a response. It's just something that people would like us to know. Right? We can still start information calls and all that stuff can be filtered through the local barracks. That's what I'm thinking. Yeah, absolutely. We don't like to get it to a point where

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Plainfield VT Select Board: it demands a visit. Yeah, you know, ideally, take all that information, and Lieutenant Howard can probably speak a little bit more to that, if need be. But we can certainly anyone can call in with that information. Okay? But if it's something like this Bean Road, where there's a ton of information that's coming in and compiled it, I can compile it and send it over to something, and I also want to express my thanks because, we also are in the position needing wellness checks

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and State police has performed several of those on my request, particularly with families in the Bean Road, more rural area. And it's always they've always been very responsive, very skilled, and it's been when necessary. Help us collaborate. Yeah, I mean, I'll just say, I mean, now that we're going to. I don't need to speak to the actual. What happened in the case, because you all can't do that. But I will say, like

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we found out the end result of the case, and we're not happy with what it seems like a very light sentence. For someone who injured someone very previously, and this person hasn't been able to work full time since and we reached out to the State's Attorney's office and I'm looking at the email here, where it was kind of acknowledged that there were some evidentiary shortcomings, and that their shortcomings are being addressed with Esp Berlin leadership as training issues for a new trooper.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And so it's like, Okay, well, there's a new trooper. There were problems when we reached out to the States to the State police, we got a letter basically saying that they investigated it, and no wrongdoing was done whatsoever, and that there was no training issue, and so, like, I think some of that kind of miscommunication feels like

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Plainfield VT Select Board: State Attorney said it was a State police issue. And then the State police actually in the letter said, basically, the State attorney just didn't charge for enough. I mean, it's wonderful any given day. Anything can we can do better? Yeah, I think. And that's something that I think we can all acknowledge, and pretty much anything we do always do better.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And like we've said, there are things that we could do better on absolutely. And one of those things is communication. One of those things is communication internally within the barracks. So we know what each other is doing. So we can help if we need to. Other troopers can help. I think we all know that there's staffing shortages everywhere. People are just trying to

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Plainfield VT Select Board: trying to get through the day and get through things. And if if there. That communication, even between the troopers themselves is slightly lacking. Some things

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Plainfield VT Select Board: don't get as good of a job as others, so that certainly something that we're improving on. And we're that's part of what I do is I come in and we've met with Tj. And the barracks of. We have to step this up. We have to do better our communication 1st and foremost, when Dan said it might be up. That's the backbone of it. We have to do better with our communicating, and especially with newer troopers, that may not have the experience

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we expect them to communicate, and we expect people to communicate with them on how to do the best that they can, and get through that and not let that fall through the cracks where

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Plainfield VT Select Board: might not have an ideal outcome?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Just wanna thank the captain

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and lieutenant and the district attorney for showing up. I wrote some very angry email

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Plainfield VT Select Board: to to all of you. I'm sure you've received it, I think. Just you're showing up here means a lot.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And I just want to say that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I think that there are in terms of communication. There are challenges.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: With our community. We had a very, very high profile individual

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Plainfield VT Select Board: who gained the system, committed a lot of violent acts

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and literally terrorized community for many years. So this is the context with which, unrelated to the case that happens. So when you suffer through that, and then you see somebody walk. It gets very frustrating. Now I think I would love to establish, especially with our constable, a route of communication. I'll give you an example of a situation where we have called the State police.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: It's 1 of these very difficult areas, because

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we have a mentally ill individual who for the past.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Oh, 7 years dumps food!

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Plainfield VT Select Board: He believes he's feeding the animals. Now. That sort of sounds a little funny, but it gets not very funny, because it puts dogs in danger, attracts rodents. We have a rodent problem

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and we really haven't. And we've gone through Washington County Mental health. I've talked to the State police about it. But once again, this is an example of a kind of a quality of life issue where somebody kind of brazenly does this craziness, and nothing's done. So I think if we could establish lines of communication, and when there is a high profile case in the community, somebody's injured, and this and that there should be a point person who explains

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Plainfield VT Select Board: what's going on, either from the police point of view or the district attorney point of view, because finding out after the facts.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: a result that's not going to be satisfactory is is also really frustrating. So once again, thank you so much for coming. And I look forward to.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: you know, building, you know, addressing issues. I don't know. Is Nicole on the call? No, no, okay. There was an incident actually, this past week.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Where? And I asked the person to come to the to the meeting regarding having to do with response time.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: They felt they were in a dangerous situation.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and you know there wasn't a call back for 4 or 5 h. Now

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I understand. You you have. I mean. I I remember I I looked at the number of

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Plainfield VT Select Board: officers assigned to Middlesex Parish a number of years ago.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and although there were 15 on the roster there really only 9 people working because of injury or whatever it was. And I I think that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: if there is this severely dire resource need.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: The town might be hopeful in being your advocates, because, you know.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: a 5 h response time to a critical situation

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that might represent the fact that you just don't have the manpower person power to address the issue. So

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Plainfield VT Select Board: you know, once again look forward to being in dialogue, and also perhaps advocating on your behalf. In terms of what the needs are if you get things such as that, here's your point. Person right here. Okay, well, the emails on the website, my email address and a lot of people reach out. I'm pretty candid and transparent.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And so I kinda I'll tell to you how it is, you know. Given the response Times.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I can't really speak to it right now, because I don't know what else was going on. Staffing absolutely was a challenge for a very long period of time almost a point of I hated saying it to people because it started to sound a little cliche. But it was a. It was a real challenge for us for a number of months, particularly in late last year, into early this year. And so that certainly is a factor in a lot of things.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Speaking to the the breadthrower, I remember someone did reach out to our office about that. And there's only so much we can do. We can only enforce the laws that are on the books. And so that is a bit of a sticky wicket. I reached out to the wardens to see if it was. You know we could.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I want to say, frame it. But are they baiting animals when they shouldn't be, and and something like that? But there really isn't an appropriate statute, that kind of fits that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: issue, and

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So all we can do is try to bring all the you know community partners together to see what can be done. If anything talk to Washington county mental health.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I wouldn't say once a week, but pretty darn close on a number of different issues. And there's only so much they can do at times right? They can only offer resources if people want them. So I just.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I want to kind of front load you with. I'm open to dialogue, but recognize there's a lot of limitations in Vermont. There are only certain laws, and there aren't a ton of them. So a lot of it sometimes comes to the State police as this backstop for community problems. But

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Plainfield VT Select Board: oftentimes it's not really a law enforcement

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Plainfield VT Select Board: issue. All we're doing is trying to get people in communication with somebody else to try to resolve it.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Well, I I would say that. I I certainly agree with a lot of what we said, but I would note that this individual's behavior has has gradually graduated to

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Plainfield VT Select Board: being potentially very dangerous. There was one incident where

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Plainfield VT Select Board: it was a near assault of a or resident

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Plainfield VT Select Board: who was complaining to him about throwing. And it's not just bread.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: This is somebody who is taking leftovers or buying food, meat.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: bacon, salads, pasta. I mean, this is really not. This isn't somebody just throwing a few bread pills. And this is where I would say that it requires, as Tj. Said, some community resources wrapping around this person because it may not be the law side that can do something. It may not be just the mental health side, but

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Plainfield VT Select Board: coming together and having a discussion about this of what we can do, what resources are available might start towards a resolution as where, if it's 1

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Plainfield VT Select Board: one entity in and of itself may not be able to do anything. But if you pull the resources like Pj. Said, maybe we can pull those resources together and have a discussion about what can be done. That can be a solution to that, the start of one. I don't sounds like a pretty

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Plainfield VT Select Board: long history of an issue that I don't think is going to have an overnight solution. But having starting that discussion, might start, that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that would be my suggestion. Not only say that because, you know this isn't, it's just one person in one community, me and Michelle. There's a another individual in Waterbury who's a tremendous strain on every resource in that town, and it was just a week or 2 weeks ago we were talking about. What can we do to try to stop this right? It doesn't really fit perfectly in any bucket, but it's us just trying to come up with a game plan, which is what's the best thing we can do to try something.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and we'll try it. And if it works great, and if it doesn't, we come back together and we'll try something new. But I apologize if I misspoke. When I 1st heard about this individual, I think it was him or her throwing bread. And so I think it's

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Just recognize that you have to bring it to our attention if you don't get the response that you'd like from a particular trooper. And frankly, it could be someone from another office that doesn't know the backs, you know. One of the big issues we had from last year into this year was

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Plainfield VT Select Board: most days and nights. It wasn't necessarily personnel from Berlin responding to these calls, so they didn't really have the historical knowledge of the frequent people we deal with all the time. It could be someone from Royalton, Westminster, St. Johnsbury. So they show up, and they hear a name that all of us will be like, okay, like, we've had this pattern history with them. It's just another person, right? And they hear they're throwing meat on the side of the road and they go

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Plainfield VT Select Board: okay. Like doesn't seem like a big deal, right? Because they don't really recognize that. So those are the sorts of challenges that maybe you guys aren't aware of that. Maybe hopefully, this will be a lesson for you all. But, as the captain said, just reach out like it's it's not that plenty of towns already do. Sometimes they don't always like the the outcome, but all we can do is talk about it, and see see what we can try so great.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I also think that it's not. This particular situation. Sounds

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Plainfield VT Select Board: like the individual involved might have some. Oh, some other issues going on. You mentioned at the start of it that there might be a lot of mental health issues.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and that can be challenging. You know, if you're looking for a police, and then a criminal justice response that there might not. That might not be like the route to accountability that you might be looking for, because if someone has

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Plainfield VT Select Board: mental health issues to the point that they might not be criminally responsible for their actions because they might have it like that could in the end be an issue of competency or sanity. And so it could be that Vsp does respond. They respond beautifully. They write up a case they issue a citation.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: they send it to my office. We say we agree. A crime has occurred here, and we charge it. And then that person comes to court, and someone says this person can't participate in the criminal justice system because they don't have the mental capacity to do so. They're declared incompetent, and then we can't legally proceed with that case. And then there's not a legal outcome

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Plainfield VT Select Board: from my office, and I would end up dismissing those charges because there's just no legal way to hold somebody responsible if they're not, if they're not competent, or if they were not sane at the time that they committed that offense. And so, while I can absolutely recognize that this could be really upsetting at a community level, could be wreaking havoc could be causing safety problems

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Plainfield VT Select Board: for the neighbors or the entire town, and be really concerning it could also be possible that the criminal justice system, like the police and the prosecution, aren't going to really be an available solution to that problem

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Plainfield VT Select Board: in in the end, even if we, even if we went down that road and everybody turned to the line and did their their jobs.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: just right. It could still be that that isn't going to be in

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Plainfield VT Select Board: an outcome there, and a different resource might be more appropriate in a similar vein. We do also another thing that has been brought to my attention by a number of residents. We have an issue of people.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Using drugs in the park and ride and defecating around that sleeping overnight.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I'm sure we're not unique in this challenge. Do you have a recommendation on how to proceed with that kind of problem.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I mean, I think that you know, drug use in public places is something that many communities in Vermont are facing are really upset about that. It doesn't feel safe. It doesn't feel like their community. And so I think there can be a law enforcement response to that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: in Plainfield in particular, it might be, you know, it might be hard to patrol that area the way that, like some more common areas in municipalities that have their own police departments. Because you're all over all of Washington County that don't have a municipal police department are since essentially sharing the singular resource

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Plainfield VT Select Board: of the Berlin barracks. And so there are, if you are noticing an uptick of that, and that it's having kind of. And it's having this response. I think that it's possible, you know, bringing it to the attention of the Berlin barracks that there is increased drug use here. We'd like to see a policed. And you know, if there are resources to send

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Plainfield VT Select Board: a trooper out there occasionally, so that people know that this isn't an area that's not going to be welcoming to that. If people are committing crimes, then those can be charged by the Berlin barracks and sent to my office where we will charge and look for an appropriate resolution

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Plainfield VT Select Board: i'd like to offer acknowledgement that coming here is a step toward relationship building relationship building is a step toward better communication.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you. You're welcome. This is a piece of the puzzle.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And yeah, I can also understand the you spoke to the staffing challenges.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: That's real. That's happening.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I mean, I think I want to just acknowledge that the

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Plainfield VT Select Board: it might bring Holla to the family of the person affected by the event, and that brought you here.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that you know there were communication issues. It was not brought up in time, and we

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Plainfield VT Select Board: it it could ring hollow to this family.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And so I think I want to ask 2 questions. One, are there? Are there insurance? Is there insurance that the state of the State police carries, or the State's attorney's office carries for off on behalf of families who, like fell through the system? And or is there an appeal process

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that could reopen this on behalf of the family who is so deeply affected by the event that brought you all here. So I'll answer the second question first.st

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Plainfield VT Select Board: No, there, there wouldn't be an appeal process this this was this was done by a plea agreement. The only there'd be some very limited appeal right? There are very limited appeal rights that are all held by the defendant in that situation. We'll also say, though.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: without talking, going into too much detail about this case is that we have a victim's advocate in our office. So we had a deputy State attorney assigned to this case, and the victim had their own attorney, and we did communicate with all of those people before resolving the case.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and then again after, and it was confirmed to our office that they understood what the resolution was that they agreed with it and approved of it, and the only indication that I got that anybody was unhappy with this was after it had already been resolved by the by the town, not by the individual who was affected. The individual who is affected is their only communication to our

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Plainfield VT Select Board: was that they understood what was the outcome, and that they approved of it.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And so,

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Plainfield VT Select Board: you know, I, while I can understand why the town and and you know, friends and community members of this person are are disappointed in that outcome that wasn't communicated

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Plainfield VT Select Board: to us until afterwards, and to this day has never been communicated to us by the actual person who, you know the victims do have some rights in Vermont, and those rights were all honored, and the process was all honored in this situation, and the information we got back was that it was

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that it was approved that that they were, that they were in agreement.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I forgot. Insurance question.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: No, okay, I mean, thank you for clarifying.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you for clarifying. I think it's important to point out good.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I think your office should communicate with the victim himself, because I think.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: judging by what the victim told me. Judging by what you're saying.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: the person who was in charge of advocating for the victim did a complete disservice.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: You should not hold that position. That's my favorite, you know, and I can. I can. I can understand that when people are represented by attorneys, though, and like I myself am an attorney and the attorneys in my office, and the people who work for me, and you know both the victims, advocates, and then the attorneys for the professional rules of

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Plainfield VT Select Board: conduct say that when a party is represented that we're required to speak to the attorney and not to the party, and so they. It was represented to us that they were represented by an attorney.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: And so we are required to speak to that attorney, because otherwise we'd be right, except what I'm telling you is that the victim

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Plainfield VT Select Board: explained to me that he told a number of things to the To your office's victim advocate. That don't seem to have been passed on to you.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and that's something that are examined. That's on your end. That's not his attorney. I would really look into that.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: It's communication.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: That's good.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah, it comes right down to that. And I think we can all do.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: We can all do a bit better. And email, certainly we lose a tone, we lose context, we lose background information. In person. We gain, we gain physical expression, we gain a tone we gain some personal relationships that help conversations through as well. So sometimes shooting an email to say, Hey, can we meet?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Might be the start.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: or, Hey, I heard this. Can you get back to me. Maybe we can meet up. Maybe we can chat about this. I heard this. I heard that. How about? We just have a little conversation at some point before it gets to people being upset or not understanding a background context to things. And again, like I said, we could always we could always do better with our communication if something is missed.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: In the long in that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: timeline of things, maybe better communication from every one of us could help pick that up.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Well, I'll also say thank you very much for being here and expressing

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Plainfield VT Select Board: what you're expressing to us, and we appreciate it.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you very much. I know none of this conversation is easy for anybody so well. It's it's always comes down to personal situation and the pain that we know people feel, and I know you deal with it every day. So you're not surprised. But

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we, if we, if we can communicate with you and there's issues that we're concerned about. Or

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Plainfield VT Select Board: we can, we can talk to you. And that's the it's always going to be tenant. Howard. Yeah, you don't get a response. That word is not available, or something that you don't agree with or don't want. I'm always available. Second. Well, that's very appreciated. Thank you. Yes.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: thank you. Do you have any thoughts for us? Any questions? No, I think it's good that we got to stop down. Just meet meet all you guys. Because it's the challenges and concerns that you guys have are the same. And almost every single time it's you certainly aren't unique like that. And all we can do is take it one step at a time. Right? So getting to at least. Be. All of you guys in person is important.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Well, be and be aware we're grateful for the work you do. You know, we know it's it's difficult and at times scary and all that. But

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Plainfield VT Select Board: if we'll just keep talking about issues, I will send all of them with Dan Caddy, who's our constable? Very capable person, as you've heard. Just so you have his number.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: you know. There's some say relation. That was Dan. That was, yes, he's a National Guard, so he's sometimes deployed. Yeah away. There is something familiar about taking charge of that bean rope situation. I think you you all should

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Plainfield VT Select Board: know him, sure, and so forth. So I'll send that email. Thank you. And my email again, like Tj. Said, our contacts on the website. But, please, you've got it. Feel free to share it. Thank you. Thank you.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Thanks for telling me.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Hmm, okay.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Next item is the Ebeac report. Do we have anyone here? I don't see anybody from?

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Well, I don't see anybody they did. I will mention Christy Grant last week, did email, all of us, and update. Yes, and I didn't. Well, their minutes. Yeah, well, it's a pretty good summary, too. They have, like the the top things that happened at the beginning, and then minutes and they will be doing that after every meeting. So I mean one note about Eviac. Jared Birchmore reached out

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Plainfield VT Select Board: with a letter of resignation.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: It was with reservation, with, like, you know

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Plainfield VT Select Board: life, life situation. So I mean, I'm hoping that we receive from the chairs a nomination for us to to appoint to fill out that committee again. That would be the right way to handle it. Yeah.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah. And so there's no. There's no action on that now. But just to make sure everybody was aware that I'll know when we were doing the appointment process. We were down to the last spot, and Jared was one person as a flood affected central buyer, and Eli was another one was another who was in the same position. So maybe we yeah, we need to talk to him, because, you know, Eli's consent on the matter matters.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: He's not here. We can appoint anybody. Yeah, yeah, no, that's a good idea. I thought of that, too, because there were 2 of them and what they kind of yeah, either way

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Plainfield VT Select Board: emergency management report. Hi, part one, the introduction, the introduction.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: I have, just for the townspeople and for the record and for the recording. I wanted to make a couple of observations

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Plainfield VT Select Board: that hopefully will be helpful to everyone. There's so many people have been affected by the flood, so many people have not resolved what they would hope to be a final outcome for themselves, and I'm trying to speak to that to some extent, but we also have some looming problems, one of which is capturing my attention more than others. So I thought I'd focus on that one thing tonight.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: As a little bit of an announcement, I would say that a lot of the work that I do wouldn't be possible without the volunteers that I have working at my team, and it not only includes Liz Picknell, who's on the

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Plainfield VT Select Board: meeting today, but also I have to do. A shout out for Steven and Rita Bell, who have lost a house in this last flood completely and nonetheless, are constantly doing outreach on behalf of the neighbors that are still

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Plainfield VT Select Board: dealing with some kind of trauma associated with that

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and and the biggest part of that work on Brook Road, and I'm going to specifically talk only about the great Brook tonight is that the Cochrane family has been very frequently surfacing because of various complications in their lives that are made much worse by the flood or being displaced by the flood. And I was with Corey Cochrane on the 3rd of June today when he died this month when he died.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: and he and Steven and Tina were his support system and

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Plainfield VT Select Board: It was remarkable in a way that he was able to pass peacefully. So I just want people to know that he also was a huge volunteer for the town, although very unsung, often notifying us of things that were going on in the back roads that we otherwise would not have known about where he was concerned about the impact on someone else.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: So that said, I want to jump into what I'm focusing on, which is the section of the great brook between Brook Road Bridge

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Plainfield VT Select Board: in the village Number 21 and the Mill Street Bridge. And

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Plainfield VT Select Board: the reason I want to do that is because the history of that stretch of of brook means it's still

381
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Plainfield VT Select Board: merits not only a tremendous amount of attention, but also that a lot of caution. I will probably find myself evacuating people from the houses alongside that brook, and I wonder if you could put up the slide that I sent one of you, please.

382
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Plainfield VT Select Board: momentarily.

383
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Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay.

384
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Plainfield VT Select Board: thank you. And here in the room I'm going to use a pointer. But people will not be able to see this. If you're online.

385
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Plainfield VT Select Board: let me let me try to reduce go back far enough. So yeah, I'm gonna disappear, this visible. There you go.

386
01:12:43.070 --> 01:12:52.930
Plainfield VT Select Board: almost there you go. The houses are are close enough. All right. Let's just do with that.

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Plainfield VT Select Board: This section between what was the uppermost. You see the white X's, those white X's represent houses that have been completely made uninhabitable by the flooding. So when we talk about the restoration of this area, or when we talk about the future dangers in this area, we're not terribly worried about the impact on those houses because they're already a lost cause.

388
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Plainfield VT Select Board: So that includes and I'm just going to use 1st names for this, because if you know who they are, then you do and is Sarah's house?

389
01:13:25.541 --> 01:13:37.200
Plainfield VT Select Board: Michael and Yoko's house, and Susan Grimaldi, Susan's house, and where Hope Metcalf is living. Now put Pat's house, and then further down.

390
01:13:38.940 --> 01:13:56.200
Plainfield VT Select Board: people are living in the houses that are in solid white. This is the important thing I wanted to bring to everyone's attention. So then there are 2 different families living in Art's house here on Hudson, and then Peter and Lauren there, and Claudette, Christiana, and Walker here.

391
01:13:56.200 --> 01:14:10.559
Plainfield VT Select Board: Robert and his son here, and Jane and Owen here. Then, there are several other houses that are completely demolished, including the heartbreak which I guess I didn't, mark, but it's there the multiple houses that are completely unusable.

392
01:14:11.400 --> 01:14:22.979
Plainfield VT Select Board: My concern has been and continues to be for the house, the people that live in those houses. The reason they're there is not because they feel safe living there, it is because they are

393
01:14:23.270 --> 01:14:29.959
Plainfield VT Select Board: forced to live there through the fact. They put their house into the buyout program. They've been told they've been tentatively approved.

394
01:14:30.310 --> 01:14:41.399
Plainfield VT Select Board: and yet at the same time it may be a year before they see that money, and if there are further changes in Washington that are detrimental, they might never see that money, but they are told that

395
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Plainfield VT Select Board: to their house

396
01:14:43.290 --> 01:14:50.319
Plainfield VT Select Board: will be repeatedly endangered by flooding. It's not just that it's in the floodplain, but the brook is acting differently.

397
01:14:50.900 --> 01:15:00.460
Plainfield VT Select Board: and the fact that the brook acts differently is not just an outcome of the flood in July last year. It's also

398
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Plainfield VT Select Board: due to the fact that

399
01:15:03.350 --> 01:15:13.689
Plainfield VT Select Board: a number of changes were made by human beings to the brook. The 1st was one that Carl's very familiar with was was that the temporary bridge put in at the beginning of August.

400
01:15:13.910 --> 01:15:23.039
Plainfield VT Select Board: actually at the towards the middle of the end of July on Mill Street was too low, and our 1st major Rain event following. That was on August 8.th

401
01:15:23.090 --> 01:15:51.839
Plainfield VT Select Board: So about 3 and a half weeks after the July flood we got a new rainfall, and the rain came up to within 8 inches of the bottom of that bridge, and it was only an inch and a half, and so that was so alarming that, pulling a group of people together, the decision was made to raise the bridge, and that work was done in October, so that damage and that potential impediment to the brook was removed, and not only will be less likely to catch debris.

402
01:15:51.880 --> 01:16:16.759
Plainfield VT Select Board: but it also won't force the bridge. The bridge won't force the brook to spread sideways when the brook reaches high water, and that would, of course, do quite a bit of damages to the houses that people are still living in there. There are 22 people living in the houses that are outlined in white. So that's a lot of people, including 4 children. And what I can say is, I'm thinking about them

403
01:16:16.780 --> 01:16:25.429
Plainfield VT Select Board: a lot, and I interview them and talk with them about how they're feeling at the present. I got text today from several of those families.

404
01:16:25.790 --> 01:16:31.829
Plainfield VT Select Board: It's an ongoing process of of partly anxiety, partly the pain of the past and partly

405
01:16:32.060 --> 01:16:46.100
Plainfield VT Select Board: wanting their kids to be safe. So we have those factors that keep sort of driving me. And so what happened in December again, not necessarily. Something that everyone in town is aware of is, we had a

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Plainfield VT Select Board: about 5 inches of snow on the ground. We had a day of warm weather, and then we had rain, and that was only 1.7 5. Excuse me, 1.8 5 inches of rain, but the combination of a day of melting, and 1.8 5 inches of rain meant that the brook came up

407
01:17:04.560 --> 01:17:32.600
Plainfield VT Select Board: behind the houses on the Hudson. Let me just point out where that is, and you could do it, too. Francis rose in that area where the back of Peter and Lauren's house and the back of Art Ellenstein's house, and what happened is that the water came so high with less than 2 inches that it was literally lapping on Peter's greenhouse. In other words, completely covered his lawn, came up about a foot and a half.

408
01:17:32.920 --> 01:17:42.699
Plainfield VT Select Board: so I then sent an alarm call out to Joe Flynn, who is the head of V-trans, and the reason I chose to bring it to his attention.

409
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Plainfield VT Select Board: and I sent copies to this to all. The select board at the time was that in August

410
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Plainfield VT Select Board: someone, some active party, perhaps a Plainfield resident, perhaps not

411
01:17:54.590 --> 01:18:24.289
Plainfield VT Select Board: called V. Trans. And said, you've got to get all the debris out of the brook. Now the Plainfield Select Board did not request this agency of natural resources did not request this. We could not control it. We had a lot of difficulty communicating with the crews they could not reveal who they were working for. And what has happened is that after discussing it with Joe Flynn, kind of got an idea of who called when, why they went out there, and why, in a sense, they ignored the natural

412
01:18:24.590 --> 01:18:35.690
Plainfield VT Select Board: barriers in the stream that are created by woody debris. Those barriers slow the brook down, and as George Springsteen has so eloquently explained to me.

413
01:18:36.390 --> 01:18:50.269
Plainfield VT Select Board: all of those bars and and gravel beds and and and collapsed trees and stuff actually still act as a break, and the break for the water so, removing all that in August turned the

414
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Plainfield VT Select Board: 2 and a half mile stretch the steepest part of Great Brook down to the lower village that's depicted here.

415
01:18:56.610 --> 01:19:06.000
Plainfield VT Select Board: Turn that into a water slide. So if 3 inches of rain falls in the upper part of the brook. It arrives in the village as a lump of water

416
01:19:06.240 --> 01:19:19.330
Plainfield VT Select Board: less than 20 min later, whereas in the past. If 3 inches of rain fell on the upper part of the brook, it would be filtered through all those different barriers, and it would arise as a slow building pressed, and then drop again, and it wouldn't be a danger.

417
01:19:20.190 --> 01:19:24.620
Plainfield VT Select Board: It is what it is. We couldn't change. We couldn't have them put the woody debris back in.

418
01:19:24.980 --> 01:19:43.359
Plainfield VT Select Board: We asked for some kind of assistance. They finally hired a river engineer at the. After 3 weeks of removing debris they brought in a river engineer who looked at what they were doing, saying, Why are you taking all this woody debris out? I now know that that engineer is somebody who's very friendly to the interests of the town.

419
01:19:43.500 --> 01:19:52.530
Plainfield VT Select Board: and they slowed down the removal of all the debris completely, but as it stands it is pretty scary what the brook does when

420
01:19:52.800 --> 01:19:57.529
Plainfield VT Select Board: when water falls on it. So December 18, th

421
01:19:57.850 --> 01:20:04.979
Plainfield VT Select Board: that high water event that I mentioned a little bit earlier with the thaw, which followed only an inch and 0 point 8 5

422
01:20:05.600 --> 01:20:33.429
Plainfield VT Select Board: that could repeat itself next week. It could repeat itself in 2 weeks with 3 inches of rain, and we would actually see people having to be gotten out. On December 18.th I evacuated that part of the village, and I put them back up into shelter, Goddard because they weren't safe. Some of them went to hotels. Some of them went to the shelter, and we would need to do that again, and perhaps repeatedly, unless something were done. So I was told that nothing would be done until we finished

423
01:20:33.550 --> 01:20:34.560
Plainfield VT Select Board: our

424
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Plainfield VT Select Board: great book Scoping Study, which is something that Josh and Michael's honor got the funding for yeah, and that's not due to be in our hands until at the very earliest, the end of August.

425
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Plainfield VT Select Board: So I was kind of upset because I got a letter not upset isn't the right word. But I was. My concerns increased because

426
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Plainfield VT Select Board: the head of environmental conservation. Julie Moore wrote me a letter on the 17th of February, saying.

427
01:21:03.070 --> 01:21:14.730
Plainfield VT Select Board: unfortunately there is not a near term river management, project, or intervention that will make much of the difference in the village when there are when there is significant multiple inch

428
01:21:14.840 --> 01:21:16.360
Plainfield VT Select Board: precipitation.

429
01:21:16.670 --> 01:21:25.309
Plainfield VT Select Board: And then she said, maybe what I should do is just practice evacuations with the people who live along the brook and make sure they can get out quickly, because that's the best they could offer.

430
01:21:25.630 --> 01:21:32.540
Plainfield VT Select Board: So I kind of gave up at that point, thinking that we were on the on the lurch. And then, as Carl knows, out of the blue

431
01:21:32.800 --> 01:21:37.750
Plainfield VT Select Board: in April, we received an email from the agency of natural resources

432
01:21:37.790 --> 01:22:02.960
Plainfield VT Select Board: that they had actually assigned at the request of environmental conservation, which is the boss of agency of natural resources, they had been assigned to study the great brook, and to determine if there was any kind of strategy that would improve our chances of surviving. A rainfall like this was a totally great thing to hear, but but that was the 1st time we knew they were even working after 4 months

433
01:22:03.210 --> 01:22:08.640
Plainfield VT Select Board: of them doing so, and their 1st recommendation was

434
01:22:09.580 --> 01:22:21.889
Plainfield VT Select Board: surprising to me, because it hadn't even occurred to me. What I had asked them to do is on the south bank, which is the part. That is where Jenny's house is destroyed. The orange house.

435
01:22:22.090 --> 01:22:29.189
Plainfield VT Select Board: that at the south bank, if there is a retaining wall along the river that is 6 feet high.

436
01:22:29.410 --> 01:22:37.549
Plainfield VT Select Board: and because the river can't go in that direction the brook can't go in that direction. It's forced to go. Where did it go?

437
01:22:37.730 --> 01:22:41.340
Plainfield VT Select Board: Cool. Hmm.

438
01:22:41.810 --> 01:23:02.939
Plainfield VT Select Board: just and stop the share. It's it's just me. And then you try to share again. It might chasing this down. Yeah, so this is, this is really good information. I know it's about

439
01:23:03.240 --> 01:23:31.849
Plainfield VT Select Board: protecting people. What? What actions can the Select Board take at this point, or you just want to get us aware of what? Where you're headed. Well, the reason I'm doing this tonight is because especially is because they're doing a meeting again on the 9th of June. Okay? And I wanted. I know there's no select board meeting before that. So I wanted at the very least to have a select board member at that meeting. I think, Carlos, you're the one who's likely to be able to do that. Yeah, I did say that that'd be July 9th July 9, th yeah. July 9.th

440
01:23:31.850 --> 01:23:53.790
Plainfield VT Select Board: So just reiterating what I'm saying, this area south of the brook is prevented from flooding until the water gets quite high by this retaining wall. So it comes up and it comes up. It comes up and it, and it goes over the backyards of the houses here, and ultimately it. It will go across Mills, Hudson Avenue and start to impact Robert

441
01:23:53.790 --> 01:24:02.480
Plainfield VT Select Board: and and Christiana Walker and Owen and Jane. It will cross Mill Street, I mean Cross Mill Street and Hudson Avenue the way it did before.

442
01:24:03.170 --> 01:24:24.700
Plainfield VT Select Board: And then finally, when it's deep enough, after we've had 5 inches of rain, it'll go over the retaining wall and start going into that area at the south side. And so what I asked them to do initially back in December, when I 1st wrote my letter of concern. I think it was December 30.th Is. I asked them what would be the benefit of removing that retaining wall.

443
01:24:24.750 --> 01:24:32.379
Plainfield VT Select Board: taking it out completely and lowering the south bank, which is a bought out property that's going to be demolished, no matter what.

444
01:24:32.380 --> 01:24:56.200
Plainfield VT Select Board: and take the lower the backyard there by a few feet, so the river could spread southward and away from those houses that are endangered. It wouldn't protect them from very high floods. They would still get flooded as before. But minor rainfall shouldn't cause flood evacuations. And so that would mean that minor rainfalls would be absorbed in that broader floodplain that would be created by this intervention.

445
01:24:56.510 --> 01:24:58.609
Plainfield VT Select Board: Secretary Moore

446
01:24:58.850 --> 01:25:12.390
Plainfield VT Select Board: had had said very clearly in her sort of We can't do anything about this letter that a river engineer had to be providing them with a scenario for relief.

447
01:25:12.390 --> 01:25:33.829
Plainfield VT Select Board: in other words, saying, Yes, do something, and we believe that doing something will make the brook safer. They needed a river engineer to say that so Stacey Pomeroy and Evelyn Boardman are both working for Anr, and they have presented us with models of what the brook looks like. Now. In other words, it's got very different boundaries, the yellow and the orange on this picture

448
01:25:33.860 --> 01:25:47.670
Plainfield VT Select Board: it's got very different boundaries of where it could go when it gets high water, and they are mapping that and doing models, both one d. Which is looking down like this, and 2D. Which is depth, and they are going to be presenting those to us on July 9, th

449
01:25:47.880 --> 01:25:49.150
Plainfield VT Select Board: the other

450
01:25:49.250 --> 01:25:57.120
Plainfield VT Select Board: first.st I don't know why they considered this, because no one asked them if this would be a solution. But there was a railroad abutment

451
01:25:57.290 --> 01:26:19.660
Plainfield VT Select Board: that follows the railway line as it used to cross over the brook, and that rail road abutment is very high embankment. It's about 45 feet high in here, and similarly off Hudson. It's about 30 feet high on the north side, and that abutment they're saying, you know, you make the brook a lot safer if we remove that abutment

452
01:26:20.210 --> 01:26:25.300
Plainfield VT Select Board: now, it's not entirely preposterous, but we're talking about

453
01:26:25.570 --> 01:26:29.700
Plainfield VT Select Board: hundreds of thousands of cubic feet of soil and

454
01:26:29.770 --> 01:26:56.160
Plainfield VT Select Board: granite rocks and things like that, and I thought a much simpler and less costly removal would be to take down the brook. Excuse me, the backyard of 107 Mill Street to a level where the brook could spread sideways into it comfortably. So we're going to see what we find out. We're going to see whether or not they would take the second approach, as opposed to taking out the bridge above it, which I don't think anybody's proposed putting up the money for

455
01:26:56.858 --> 01:27:03.330
Plainfield VT Select Board: finding the money to do. The removal of soil and the removal of those blocks is going to be a whole heck of a lot simpler.

456
01:27:04.023 --> 01:27:09.160
Plainfield VT Select Board: Now. Meanwhile, according to the budget that Josh put together

457
01:27:09.280 --> 01:27:30.730
Plainfield VT Select Board: watershed hydrology, and modeling in the great brook scoping study. Would. The early stage of that would be about $34,000, and the hydraulic modeling of the entire brook, including all the bridges and the impact of reconstructing Mill Street. I mean Brook Road. The impact upon the brook of doing that would be another $40,000.

458
01:27:31.420 --> 01:27:38.649
Plainfield VT Select Board: What I asked this team. That is Stacy Pomeroy and Evelyn Boardman, who's who are both very competent people in their fields

459
01:27:38.870 --> 01:27:54.120
Plainfield VT Select Board: to do? Because, he said, What more can we do? What would be the next best thing? I and Pat Molten and a few other people at that meeting, George Springson, being another, asked them, would they model the rest of the brook up to the top

460
01:27:54.250 --> 01:28:02.289
Plainfield VT Select Board: and and and not tell us what to do with the brook, or what to do with the Brook Road. But really, just show us what is the real

461
01:28:02.550 --> 01:28:21.220
Plainfield VT Select Board: topography of the brook now that has torn itself to bits and created a new version of itself. And so they are doing that, and they will be presenting that information to us also on July 9.th What time is this meeting on the 9.th Oh, geez! Where is it? It's at national life, at Anr's offices.

462
01:28:21.220 --> 01:28:41.160
Plainfield VT Select Board: And I believe it's 1 o'clock in the afternoon. Yeah, I think that's right. Yeah. Is it open to the public? It certainly would be open to you. No, I guess I'm I'm working. Not every small room people there might be people watching who might want to attend. And is it so? It's not open to

463
01:28:41.450 --> 01:28:55.849
Plainfield VT Select Board: with zoom it is, or actually, it's Microsoft teams. Will the credentials of that meeting be shared publicly. No, it's Allgov people. Actually, everybody at the meeting isgov and it's a room that's smaller than the Select Board Room

464
01:28:56.040 --> 01:29:11.659
Plainfield VT Select Board: at upstairs and municipal building. So it's tough to imagine it's not gonna be very, you know, open to. Yeah. Okay. But I mean, there's clarity. There is all we're looking for. Yeah, yeah, I think I think that's good. And what I can say looking forward is.

465
01:29:11.860 --> 01:29:25.680
Plainfield VT Select Board: I hope they come up with a proposal we can afford, because unless these people are given money to leave their homes and have another home, then they're going to have to be evacuated repeatedly, and I know a couple of them are just scared to death in the next flood.

466
01:29:26.080 --> 01:29:36.199
Plainfield VT Select Board: So that's my report. Thank you. Thank you. May we address with you like the question of the larger emergency management report. Yeah.

467
01:29:36.797 --> 01:29:43.729
Plainfield VT Select Board: I mean just to share the the model that the Grants group used. The Grants group.

468
01:29:44.270 --> 01:29:58.709
Plainfield VT Select Board: Hosted an event it was like, and we want to share with the town the full breadth of what we're doing right now. And there were enough Select Board members in attendance. That it was a warned meeting.

469
01:29:58.710 --> 01:30:13.910
Plainfield VT Select Board: If the scope of what you want to share is, you know, would otherwise subsume a select board meeting, we would invite you to select a date, a time that is reasonable for you to have all that information together, call it.

470
01:30:14.030 --> 01:30:41.029
Plainfield VT Select Board: and then, hopefully, we will have enough of us there to feel informed. Yeah, yeah, thank you. And then I think that's like the the scheme by which you get the space. You need to go into the depths of what you're holding. Yeah, I can. I have plenty more illustrations. I want the public to understand. And Carl has offered to help me find a date with me. Great, fantastic. Thank you. And I look forward to that. Thank you.

471
01:30:47.610 --> 01:30:55.530
Plainfield VT Select Board: Think we've yeah, that is what's next. Yeah, yeah.

472
01:30:55.760 --> 01:31:08.940
Plainfield VT Select Board: Do you want to say what you want to say for us about that? I mean, do you have thoughts about? Or should I just introduce it briefly. I mean, I think you've you've identified the need. Okay, like that is rising and growing. All right. Okay.

473
01:31:09.250 --> 01:31:14.840
Plainfield VT Select Board: so all thanks to Dan and Mo. Who and

474
01:31:14.970 --> 01:31:23.169
Plainfield VT Select Board: July of last year worked I don't know how many hours. Guys for about 3 weeks sell it, and took time off work and everything

475
01:31:23.330 --> 01:31:37.490
Plainfield VT Select Board: to work in the emergency operations center, tracking all of the donated and borrowed equipment that came from elsewhere. As it went out to volunteers, tracked all the volunteers themselves assigned people to go to different places where there were

476
01:31:37.610 --> 01:31:45.389
Plainfield VT Select Board: projects identified and help coordinate with nonprofit organizations on churches, etcetera. But we're offering help. So

477
01:31:45.790 --> 01:31:48.290
Plainfield VT Select Board: they had this database thing rolling, and

478
01:31:48.690 --> 01:31:51.500
Plainfield VT Select Board: people could plug into it. I mean, I was just amazed.

479
01:31:51.710 --> 01:32:03.310
Plainfield VT Select Board: And I know that we're not done having disasters. I don't want to have another one this year, for sure. But we're not done having disasters. So an emergency management coordinator basically does what Dan and Mo did.

480
01:32:03.420 --> 01:32:09.149
Plainfield VT Select Board: That's they stay in the Eoc, which is the downstairs area for the emergency operations center.

481
01:32:09.460 --> 01:32:33.070
Plainfield VT Select Board: They track what's going in. They call for additional supplies when we run out of stuff, they, if the fire department says we're going to have to be 8 h dealing with this brush fire or 8 h, they also would be the person or persons who would write and get donuts and snack food, or whatever to keep everybody going. It's every kind of resupply you can imagine.

482
01:32:33.480 --> 01:32:43.929
Plainfield VT Select Board: I did it in 2023, and it was almost impossible to be out in the field, going into people's basements at the same time to be at the Eoc doing this kind of thing. So it's a really helpful

483
01:32:44.060 --> 01:32:47.769
Plainfield VT Select Board: if someone is committed and is willing to.

484
01:32:48.040 --> 01:32:51.420
Plainfield VT Select Board: We're pretty close to me, and

485
01:32:51.590 --> 01:32:56.250
Plainfield VT Select Board: pretty close to at least half time for a few weeks.

486
01:32:56.646 --> 01:33:14.770
Plainfield VT Select Board: It really narrows the number of people and the type of person. Specifically, in the event of a disaster in the event of a disaster, not not all the time in the event of a disaster, but it'd be so lovely if somebody was pre-committed to do that. In other words, if we found that person before a disaster, instead of trying to find them on the fly.

487
01:33:15.030 --> 01:33:29.130
Plainfield VT Select Board: So that's my introduction that makes a lot of sense. Yeah, this is an announcement, friends, that this position is is identified already pre-identified, that the need is here

488
01:33:29.590 --> 01:33:38.249
Plainfield VT Select Board: and to yeah, it's an invitation to consider. Could you be the person to fill that post in the time of need?

489
01:33:39.480 --> 01:33:42.907
Plainfield VT Select Board: And folks should contact you if they're interested, contact me.

490
01:33:43.420 --> 01:33:46.799
Plainfield VT Select Board: and the Internet addresses on the website.

491
01:33:47.480 --> 01:33:49.119
Plainfield VT Select Board: Fantastic. Thank you. Michael.

492
01:33:49.600 --> 01:33:50.600
Plainfield VT Select Board: Great.

493
01:33:53.970 --> 01:33:54.840
Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay.

494
01:33:55.440 --> 01:34:11.909
Plainfield VT Select Board: Route 2. Intersection. The assistant Grant administrator. Oh, this was we kind of did that? Yeah, I guess, just to acknowledge that it is on the agenda, and and Karen already talked about it spoke to it. Yes, I mean to encapsulate again for those joining late.

495
01:34:12.700 --> 01:34:17.009
Plainfield VT Select Board: the the existing Grants group has had to narrow its focus.

496
01:34:17.857 --> 01:34:28.859
Plainfield VT Select Board: To be largely about flood, flood, impact, flood aftermath as well as potential village expansion.

497
01:34:29.030 --> 01:34:33.589
Plainfield VT Select Board: Meanwhile there are many, many other grant opportunities that the town

498
01:34:33.710 --> 01:34:38.349
Plainfield VT Select Board: has. You know before it that right now there's no one covering

499
01:34:39.010 --> 01:34:48.250
Plainfield VT Select Board: so looking for someone in a similar vein to step into that role to carry those threads, weave them when necessary.

500
01:34:48.470 --> 01:34:49.590
Plainfield VT Select Board: And

501
01:34:50.414 --> 01:35:03.550
Plainfield VT Select Board: yeah, I mean, if there's there's growth opportunity here, there are grants being sought to provide a salary even, or a stipend. I don't know what it's being called, but monies to step into this role.

502
01:35:04.007 --> 01:35:08.309
Plainfield VT Select Board: That's not guaranteed, but that's like in the works. And so again, are you

503
01:35:08.590 --> 01:35:12.870
Plainfield VT Select Board: possibly able to fill this need for the town?

504
01:35:13.030 --> 01:35:21.760
Plainfield VT Select Board: Thank you for considering Yup, and there is site and wise. There is $8,000 in the

505
01:35:21.910 --> 01:35:25.920
Plainfield VT Select Board: town budget for stipends for grants.

506
01:35:26.460 --> 01:35:50.909
Plainfield VT Select Board: I guess I'm unclear. How much of that is going to the existing Grants Administrator. I can clarify what Karen said, which is that the main Grants administrator had a stipend of 4,000 a year from last year's budget and raised to 8,000 a year next year's budget, and Karen spoke to that, and then there is no stipend for the Assistant Grants Administrator, but she suggested that some of the

507
01:35:50.910 --> 01:35:58.800
Plainfield VT Select Board: stipend that is being held for the Grants administration in general could be shifted to that. Yeah. Position that was generous support

508
01:35:59.100 --> 01:36:06.540
Plainfield VT Select Board: the minimum there would be a site. Yes, I mean, it's primarily volunteer, but there are costs that driving and

509
01:36:06.920 --> 01:36:15.739
Plainfield VT Select Board: time, and so forth. So, but there are apparently a lot of grants still that could be approached. Elevator

510
01:36:15.900 --> 01:36:22.530
Plainfield VT Select Board: art sculpture on the new Park, you know. Lots of things. It's literally every realm except

511
01:36:23.135 --> 01:36:32.270
Plainfield VT Select Board: flood support. Yeah. I mean, Karen is on the big, the big grant we're going for. And that's what her focus really has to be.

512
01:36:34.670 --> 01:36:35.710
Plainfield VT Select Board: Okay.

513
01:36:38.560 --> 01:36:45.450
Plainfield VT Select Board: anyone interested in that should go to Karen, I guess. Talk to Karen and find out what she sees in that role.

514
01:36:46.768 --> 01:36:49.360
Plainfield VT Select Board: So route 2 intersection.

515
01:36:50.350 --> 01:37:15.060
Plainfield VT Select Board: Peter and Patty both are on top of that. But they're not here, I mean. So what do we? What do we? Peter has sent a long, solid analysis that I wonder? If we summarize for the people if we can summarize it. That'd be good. I know it's pretty long. So yeah. So Peter and Patty have been deep in this. Yeah, the they're met with vtrans

516
01:37:15.540 --> 01:37:43.020
Plainfield VT Select Board: vtrans placed the blame on Federal highway. With concerns about utility. Historic reviews. Peter suggests. We ask our town attorney to file file a public records request with vtrans. So that's like potential for motion there. So between, when they met with V, trans. And Peter's suggestions, we received a letter on June 13, th from Patty Coborn, from Vtrans to all the select Board members.

517
01:37:43.110 --> 01:38:12.310
Plainfield VT Select Board: The letter I think that's what Peter said was underwhelmed. Well, I know. I just think, before you get to like doing a foia request and stuff, we should explain why he's responding to it. Oh, thank you. So the letter the letter is about the route, 2 intersection and it basically gives us the same map that we saw in the presentation in May. Of a much more scaled down. Version of the route, 2 intersection and the scope being pretty minimal.

518
01:38:12.530 --> 01:38:30.710
Plainfield VT Select Board: not a lot of change. To most of the things. There is a crosswalk, envisioned a sidewalk extension across the street to to a crosswalk but that this would be part of the route. 2 paving project currently scheduled for 2029. The underwhelming for for Peter, Young Bear was basically.

519
01:38:31.320 --> 01:38:42.339
Plainfield VT Select Board: we felt like we'd already said, like, that's not enough information. How do we dig in, how do we have conversations about other things that could happen? And despite that conversation, we get a letter that basically just reiterates

520
01:38:42.570 --> 01:38:57.939
Plainfield VT Select Board: a very minimal project. 4 years from now. That doesn't actually take away a lot of the danger involved in the curve. Because there's no light, for one thing. Well, yeah, I don't. Yeah, I don't know that in the original, even in the big scope there was ever a light.

521
01:38:58.450 --> 01:39:03.250
Plainfield VT Select Board: But it does. It isn't changing the grade. It isn't really. It's it's

522
01:39:03.520 --> 01:39:29.430
Plainfield VT Select Board: removing the the bars, the the handrails. But it's not really changing that island size. It's it's really not doing a lot. It's more. It it seems almost more cosmetic with then us getting a just on the other side of this property, getting a crosswalk which would obviously help with pedestrian because the sidewalk off from the bridge would be extended. But it's pretty minimal.

523
01:39:29.910 --> 01:39:30.800
Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah.

524
01:39:31.735 --> 01:39:37.589
Plainfield VT Select Board: so there is the opportunity for us to ask the town attorney to file a public records, request

525
01:39:38.080 --> 01:39:43.820
Plainfield VT Select Board: to see any new specifics that might emerge from that process, and

526
01:39:47.130 --> 01:39:56.689
Plainfield VT Select Board: and excuse me while I pick out what to summarize. Here, Bram, you have a thought.

527
01:39:57.970 --> 01:40:05.180
Plainfield VT Select Board: I think, that one of the things that Peter spoke of it's critical in this process

528
01:40:06.130 --> 01:40:09.400
Plainfield VT Select Board: is getting key players in State governments.

529
01:40:10.950 --> 01:40:18.970
Plainfield VT Select Board: You know we have the Marshfield Senator Purcell is very influential in transportation.

530
01:40:19.210 --> 01:40:22.010
Plainfield VT Select Board: and Cummings is a key player.

531
01:40:22.617 --> 01:40:29.090
Plainfield VT Select Board: And the rest of the delegation and representative Mihaly. I think that

532
01:40:29.900 --> 01:40:35.370
Plainfield VT Select Board: what's apparent is for it seems internal budget reasons.

533
01:40:37.150 --> 01:40:53.899
Plainfield VT Select Board: The V trans. Has backtracked on a commitment that they made, and and then we've signed a contract for it, and we signed a contract for it, and it was very demonstrative. I mean, I think I sent you the the numbers on how much is being spent on other towns along the 2,

534
01:40:54.310 --> 01:41:00.490
Plainfield VT Select Board: and I think that the key thing, I think would be for the Select Board to really have a meeting

535
01:41:00.730 --> 01:41:02.370
Plainfield VT Select Board: the State players

536
01:41:02.970 --> 01:41:11.630
Plainfield VT Select Board: and I'm not talking about, you know. I think if if Secretary Flynn wants to be involved with it, too. But I think that the key thing

537
01:41:12.310 --> 01:41:14.499
Plainfield VT Select Board: is for the Select Board to get

538
01:41:14.750 --> 01:41:30.839
Plainfield VT Select Board: State reps to just simply present the case. I mean that we fought for this for decades. You sent out a article in the Times, Argus in 69, and and David Strong and I pushed this

539
01:41:31.100 --> 01:41:41.940
Plainfield VT Select Board: so that they finally said, You know what you guys are investing in the bridge. You guys are investing in this. We really need to throw some money at this and solve the problem.

540
01:41:42.080 --> 01:41:47.870
Plainfield VT Select Board: and that just completely evaporated, for whatever reason. And I think that that we need

541
01:41:48.410 --> 01:41:52.710
Plainfield VT Select Board: a real commitment to address this.

542
01:41:52.830 --> 01:42:05.679
Plainfield VT Select Board: the the apparent safety issues. It is not for them to simply say, statistically speaking, yeah, no one has died. It's really not. We have paid a price

543
01:42:05.810 --> 01:42:09.389
Plainfield VT Select Board: as a town for that intersection we have.

544
01:42:09.590 --> 01:42:14.840
Plainfield VT Select Board: People are scared. This is the gateway to our community, and people are scared.

545
01:42:15.010 --> 01:42:22.999
Plainfield VT Select Board: and that has told, and, as I said, as a former road commissioner, many people just simply avoid the intersection completely.

546
01:42:23.410 --> 01:42:49.750
Plainfield VT Select Board: So I think that if the select board can really focus on getting the State players focus on this problem. So yeah, Peter says, engaging Senators Pertlick Cummings, Watson, representative Mahaley on the following 3 items specifically, or especially one is Asap, not 2029 immediately repaint the Crosswalk by the post office, which is faded.

547
01:42:50.950 --> 01:43:10.439
Plainfield VT Select Board: the an additional crosswalk at the library would be terrific. Yeah, yellow warning signs that all these crossings could even include electronic flashing lights activated by the pedestrian which are becoming the norm statewide. And they're solar powered. So they're simple, really? Yeah. So demanding that now, not 4 years from now.

548
01:43:11.039 --> 01:43:23.890
Plainfield VT Select Board: they're asking playing field to give up this major improvement. That was years in the making. The trade-off isn't even close to fair. If we must wait 4 years for any safety. Improvements like those are all things that don't need to tear up the road.

549
01:43:24.621 --> 01:43:37.469
Plainfield VT Select Board: That we should demand that they consider a traffic signal alternative for the intersection. We know that the temporary signals worked well during the Main Street Bridge reconstruction. They could review that

550
01:43:38.621 --> 01:43:44.649
Plainfield VT Select Board: moving on comments. If V trans is not willing to do these minimal things.

551
01:43:45.110 --> 01:43:55.199
Plainfield VT Select Board: we could stage actions. To, you know, increase to build pressure, to put pressure on those holding power here.

552
01:43:56.300 --> 01:44:06.519
Plainfield VT Select Board: Finally, the fact that it's the Federal Highway administration that controls both Us. Route 2 and the Brook Road, which is the federally designated connector to 302.

553
01:44:06.960 --> 01:44:25.279
Plainfield VT Select Board: That means this intersection is, in fact, the actual connection, and should be up to Federal standards, which means a T signaled intersection, which is what has, which is what was designed in the big project version. So then, you know, leveraging the fact that this is a Federal moment.

554
01:44:26.020 --> 01:44:29.989
Plainfield VT Select Board: For traffic, is a point of leverage for us.

555
01:44:30.790 --> 01:44:43.379
Plainfield VT Select Board: So that was that was Peter's summary of Peter young Bear's analysis following. He and Patty's meeting with Patty Coburn of Vtrans, and I'm seeing Betsy Sigler with a hand raise.

556
01:44:43.880 --> 01:44:45.160
Plainfield VT Select Board: Yes, Betsy.

557
01:44:45.530 --> 01:44:54.799
Betsy Ziegler: Yeah. Hi, I just was going to say, I think the best action one action we can take is to meet with our governor.

558
01:44:55.250 --> 01:45:13.019
Betsy Ziegler: You know he cares about playing field supposedly, and he he we need. He knows we need help, and that's 1 thing he could do is help us get this intersection really changed the way it should be. And I also wanted to just say

559
01:45:13.320 --> 01:45:20.430
Betsy Ziegler: that in the design that was that the town approved we it did include a light.

560
01:45:21.490 --> 01:45:23.800
Plainfield VT Select Board: So we were coming.

561
01:45:24.470 --> 01:45:26.570
Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah, I thought, I thought of that.

562
01:45:27.030 --> 01:45:43.560
Betsy Ziegler: Yeah, we come to a T, and you know you wait for the light or whatever. But it would just be. It would just eliminate so much stress that exists at that intersection, and it really impedes our development as a town.

563
01:45:45.460 --> 01:45:47.190
Plainfield VT Select Board: That's it. Thanks.

564
01:45:48.330 --> 01:45:49.749
Plainfield VT Select Board: Can I add to that?

565
01:45:50.000 --> 01:45:54.780
Plainfield VT Select Board: Oh, yeah, go ahead. I I also wanted to suggest Doug Farnum.

566
01:45:54.860 --> 01:46:05.619
Plainfield VT Select Board: perhaps as a pathway to the Governor, but Doug had on several occasions said to me directly that he would. He would be looking forward to finding ways to help us.

567
01:46:05.680 --> 01:46:28.510
Plainfield VT Select Board: and I believe, was part of the leverage in getting this Anr. Study done with Great Brook, and I think, if you know, in terms of meeting with the Governor, you could probably start with Doug and ask if that would be set up. May I ask, what position is Doug Farnham? I don't know. He's the State recovery officer. Pat Moulton works for him right next to the governor. Yeah. And I know Doug right consultant.

568
01:46:28.920 --> 01:46:47.950
Plainfield VT Select Board: He grew up in this. He grew up in town. Yeah, he's a good guy. He stopped in the day after the flood in July. He stopped in here in person with his wife and said, what can we do for you? Yeah, I'll check in with Doug and see what he suggests. Just a point of information. The property owner

569
01:46:48.110 --> 01:46:54.309
Plainfield VT Select Board: across from the playing field in that that building. 20 School Street. Yes, 20.

570
01:46:54.410 --> 01:47:20.450
Plainfield VT Select Board: That attorney has written a series of letters and is, wants to be an active voice in the project. I don't know what that means exactly but I also think if anyone has a connection to Mike Davidson, as he is interested in the Playing Field Inn, and hasn't purchased it yet, but that negotiation is ongoing. I think he would be another person

571
01:47:20.520 --> 01:47:31.870
Plainfield VT Select Board: who could possibly be a helpful advocate in this process. If anybody knows. Yeah, those are. Those are good connections. I think when we have, I think we do need to get together with this.

572
01:47:32.210 --> 01:47:33.489
Plainfield VT Select Board: this group of

573
01:47:34.250 --> 01:47:41.620
Plainfield VT Select Board: powered people and we should invite Mike and the owner of the I forget his name. But Ruben Ruben, yeah.

574
01:47:42.950 --> 01:47:49.479
Plainfield VT Select Board: User Sarah Fields, yeah, you said the you sent it out. Yeah, I I have it since.

575
01:47:51.700 --> 01:47:58.180
Plainfield VT Select Board: that's good suggestion. They they I mean they they're a butter. So they kind of need to be involved.

576
01:48:01.610 --> 01:48:04.364
Plainfield VT Select Board: Well, let me check with Doug. I'll do that, and

577
01:48:04.710 --> 01:48:28.799
Plainfield VT Select Board: see what he he suggests we do. And then the other thing, and it may may be best once, Patty, since Patty and Peter were the ones that met with. Be trans before I do think maybe from by July 14, th if we could ask them to create a letter of response. Even if we're going to do this legislative meeting and do all these other things. I think a formal letter of you know this isn't good enough.

578
01:48:28.860 --> 01:48:39.660
Plainfield VT Select Board: We need short term projects. We need a much better long term. Plan would be good, and I think Peter's, Peter and Patty are probably the people to to write that, probably with assistance from

579
01:48:40.043 --> 01:48:52.370
Plainfield VT Select Board: Josh and Bram and others. But it would be great if you know we could, when they get back from being away. If we could ask them to engage on that, I think Peter would happily do that? I think so, too. Yeah, yeah.

580
01:48:52.500 --> 01:48:53.500
Plainfield VT Select Board: agreed.

581
01:48:55.620 --> 01:48:58.039
Plainfield VT Select Board: Right? Okay, good.

582
01:49:02.810 --> 01:49:05.540
Plainfield VT Select Board: I guess that's it. On that subject.

583
01:49:08.320 --> 01:49:24.081
Plainfield VT Select Board: 20 School Street. We're just talking about that. This is why I know their names. I'm looking at their zoning violation. So Karen has sent a message. Karen is not able to be here today? I can offer an update from Karen. Yeah,

584
01:49:25.160 --> 01:49:26.280
Plainfield VT Select Board: The

585
01:49:27.310 --> 01:49:47.030
Plainfield VT Select Board: Karen had asked the lawyer to start the permit process. If the owner or the owner's representative of 20 School Street fills out a zoning permit application. There is no further action by the town for the violation. I'll be unavailable for the meeting, I'll be out of town. So this is in process. Basically, we're waiting to see if

586
01:49:47.630 --> 01:49:54.650
Plainfield VT Select Board: they fill out a zoning permit application. And if if they do not fill out that application.

587
01:49:54.810 --> 01:50:23.670
Plainfield VT Select Board: Karen is going to know about it and tell us, yeah, yeah, it sounded like it was. It was a communication from the attorney. Mr. Rubin, I guess, is the trick. Is the owner to Karen that they're supposed to. They're supposed to meet on this exact issue. Fantastic? Yeah. It sounded like it was like select board. Due diligence was there? Was there responsibilities that we were carrying here to attend to, but it sounds like there is not. Well, I will just I will, I mean, I will just say so.

588
01:50:23.780 --> 01:50:44.170
Plainfield VT Select Board: I hopefully they deal with it. But so this is the old hardware store. When it was turned from the old hardware store, from commercial space into more multi family dwelling back at least 2022 or sooner, they never got any permits, and then, when they added a 4th apartment, they never got any permits, and so they are. You know

589
01:50:44.550 --> 01:51:10.740
Plainfield VT Select Board: several years out of compliance and had multiple warnings based on this paperwork. Yeah. And I have a point of information for you about 20 School Street, which is in conjunction with the Bachelor Removal Project, which is 20 School Street, is identified as a property that will receive substantial financial assistance through the grant that we're writing that you pointed out. We're getting likely to get in that the

590
01:51:10.750 --> 01:51:30.089
Plainfield VT Select Board: shoring up of their foundation and reinforcing of the structure will be done at no cost to them, so they they are going to receive substantial assistance from through the town, and an additional fund of information as to Dan's point that this has gone on for years without addressing the rules of the tenant.

591
01:51:30.633 --> 01:51:57.490
Plainfield VT Select Board: I have once again circled with an expert in ticket writing to try to coordinate with. We might start with zoning to get our books, our laws and ordinances in order, and then begin that process, because if we had that process in place, we would have, you know, a really good legal case. To go forward as it is now

592
01:51:57.880 --> 01:52:00.229
Plainfield VT Select Board: would be difficult. Yeah.

593
01:52:00.370 --> 01:52:05.620
Plainfield VT Select Board: But well, but I mean I do wonder if through the town we were.

594
01:52:06.130 --> 01:52:08.680
Plainfield VT Select Board: if they haven't resolved it.

595
01:52:08.890 --> 01:52:21.469
Plainfield VT Select Board: If they're expecting a bunch of money to help keep their building from falling into the river into the river if they're not in compliance, I wonder, you know, is that a leverage point where they can like? I mean, like, if we're going to give you all this money to

596
01:52:21.790 --> 01:52:23.950
Plainfield VT Select Board: basically improve your property.

597
01:52:24.220 --> 01:52:35.603
Plainfield VT Select Board: you should at least follow town rules. Yeah, yeah. I mean, it seems like a minimum requirement. Let's see, let's see what they do. They're they're supposedly working on permits. Karen's on it. That sounds like

598
01:52:36.390 --> 01:53:01.569
Plainfield VT Select Board: Get it in compliance, and then make sure that they they follow the rules from now on. Do the tickets that we're talking about come with fines, we can. We can do that has to be expressed in the ordinance, but it would be. I think it's up to $800, and it's per offense so that could add up

599
01:53:01.830 --> 01:53:22.919
Plainfield VT Select Board: unequivocal demonstration by the town. You're in violation. Here's why we sent you a notice and all that. Yeah, yeah. And and it's it's a much more complicated process than I originally thought. But we have to try. That's probably why it doesn't exist right now. But yeah, it made me think while you were talking about the

600
01:53:23.730 --> 01:53:25.340
Plainfield VT Select Board: the animal feeder.

601
01:53:26.207 --> 01:53:28.239
Plainfield VT Select Board: Problem, can we

602
01:53:28.770 --> 01:53:45.240
Plainfield VT Select Board: do we have any reason to think about an ordinance? Or I mean, I hate to keep adding things. But I think, yeah, I mean that that situation is so strange because it falls. I mean, I've heard all the lines. But well, it's not our problem, this and that. But yeah.

603
01:53:45.600 --> 01:54:00.319
Plainfield VT Select Board: the scary thing is is that I think that that individual is getting more aggressive in his antics. And there was an incident where there was almost a physical fight between him and a resident. So I I don't know in terms of

604
01:54:00.430 --> 01:54:17.567
Plainfield VT Select Board: what we, what the town has purview over because it fall. Maybe I don't know. I'll it's a tough one. But it just. It just occurred to me while you're describing. Yeah. And not only that, but you could also look at it as a general ordinance about disposing of

605
01:54:18.360 --> 01:54:37.829
Plainfield VT Select Board: who compost or rubbish on? On town property that isn't put into a container. I mean, it could just be as simple as we have a solid waste thing that talks a lot about people dumping on private property. So maybe we can expand that. Yeah, yeah. Good thought. My son has a game camera.

606
01:54:37.910 --> 01:54:53.929
Plainfield VT Select Board: That's solar powered. I know it's battery powered. But it's amazing night daytime, I mean. So if we're interested in finding out where he's doing it, it sounds like it's in the same place most of the time. There's also

607
01:54:54.190 --> 01:54:55.810
Plainfield VT Select Board: it's not just really.

608
01:54:56.320 --> 01:55:03.340
Plainfield VT Select Board: They have a session with bicycles for children. And that's where you see all those bicycles around.

609
01:55:04.010 --> 01:55:07.980
Plainfield VT Select Board: What else sounds like a big mental situation.

610
01:55:10.194 --> 01:55:16.109
Plainfield VT Select Board: Hey, Carl, can I make a motion to accept the minutes from the June 9th

611
01:55:16.450 --> 01:55:24.799
Plainfield VT Select Board: all those in favor? Can I also make a motion to approve the accounts payable for June 18, th and payroll for June 12th and June 18.th

612
01:55:25.340 --> 01:55:30.340
Plainfield VT Select Board: Yeah, he's second all those in favor. Aye, aye.

613
01:55:32.240 --> 01:55:49.289
Plainfield VT Select Board: may I announce the date for the next select Board meeting? Please do. July 14, th at at 6 5 Pm. Because we have. We have the zoning. Hearing from 5 pm. To 6 pm. And then the regular select board meeting at 6 pm. It's a good thing we have somebody with a memory. Thank you. Dan. Okay.

614
01:55:49.600 --> 01:55:56.180
Plainfield VT Select Board: okay. 5 Pm. May I make a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7 54 pm.

615
01:55:57.470 --> 01:56:05.629
Plainfield VT Select Board: Second. Always in favor. I thank you. Fantastic. Good night.