Selectboard Meeting Notes for December 14, 2022, 6:30 pm


Selectboard Members:

  • Marcia Calloway, Chair. Elected; term expires March 2023.

  • Robert Gere. Elected; term expires March 2023.

  • Aaron Lamperti. Appointed by the Board; term expires March 2023.

  • Mary Layton, Vice-Chair. Elected; term expires March 2024.

  • Roger Arnold. Elected; term expires March 2025.


What You Need to Know

Second Budget Review is Next Wednesday December 21, 2022

  • Please plan to attend and make sure the Selectboard hears what you want to see in the budget, especially with regards to the Norwich Police, Public Works, and Rec.

  • The Selectboard's job is to propose a budget. Our job as voters is to approve and pay for it.


Announcement of Interim Town Manager Appointment

  • We welcome Brennan to the town and are hopeful he can contribute to rebuilding town services. Initial feedback from stakeholders has been positive and we stand ready to support as he gets acclimated to Norwich.

  • The Selectboard has committed to providing the public with information about the hiring process that is subject to OML, including how many applicants there were, how many were finalists, what the backgrounds were of those who were considered, and how the board decided to hire Brennan.


Contract for Town-wide Reappraisal

  • If you’re not familiar with why this is critical, the State-wide education tax rate is in part calculated based on a factor called Common Level of Appraisal (CLA). CLA is a mechanism that the State uses to hold towns accountable to provide an up-to-date Grand List, which contains information on each town parcel and its assessed value. The last town-wide reappraisal was in 2016. Last year the penalty was close to 16% (CLA of 84.39%), effectively increasing the tax rate you pay by that amount (technically by a factor of 1/0.84) over what the formula is, based on the grand list.

  • In recent years the State has penalized Norwich by an increasing amount every year and the Listers have been trying to get the Selectboard to put the issue on its agenda as a time critical matter. It remains unclear why previous Selectboard chairs never put this item on the agenda, especially given how the failure to address the issue directly impacts how much Norwich residents pay in taxes. The Listers originally issued an RFP in April 2021, and received a response from the same firm that responded to the latest RFP. The State mandated in July of 2022 to contract with a reappraisal firm, which was just approved last week. The reappraisal, once completed, will reset our CLA to 100%.

  • The contract was approved 4-1, with Roger Arnord voting no.


Financing Director

  • Interim Finance Director contract was extended to April 2023

  • Arnold thinks he “cannot ethically” hire for this position, due to unspecified HR issues. He believes the town cannot hire anyone until these unknown issues are resolved. Layton says it’s not clear what issues remain. Lamperti thinks the issues need to be resolved, and agrees with Arnold, who is shocked and disappointed with Layton. Layton doesn’t think what happened with the previous finance director left “many unanswered questions.” Recent discussions about HR have been “all over the map.” There are “serious issues that need to be resolved.” The scope of the HR issues is still unclear.

  • Layton thinks that hiring should start now given the current market conditions. Calloway said things that happened in the past are not “necessarily proven or factual,” and cannot impact moving forward. The town needs people in place to run the town. The Selectboard does not have the scope or jurisdiction to try to be HR people, or to hire and tell other people who are elected officials or employees of the town, what to do.

  • Lamperti wants to wait until after they begin a process to “talk about the HR” environment and to put this off until later in January or February, “at least.”

  • Layton says that other departments also had “HR trauma” and the SB didn’t hold back in hiring. Moved to authorize a search for a permanent finance director. Motion passed 3 to 2. Layton, Gere, Callowa: yes. Lamperti, Arnold: no.


Kids Bridge over Blood Brooke to Huntley Meadow

  • Donations were given to an old Town Manager to be deposited in an account for the purpose of this bridge. The Selectboard is unable to locate those funds looking at the general ledger.

  • Stream alteration permit from State and DRB conditional use permit were approved.

  • The town completed studies to ensure that under flood conditions the bridge wouldn’t break up and cause property damage.

  • The Selectboard will ask the interim Town Manager to pick up the project and work with the parties involved.


Budgets

  • Mysterious $500k of ARPA Money for Tracy Hall

    • There was general confusion about Lamperti and Arnold claiming that the town will receive $500k of COVID relief funds to be used to renovate Tracy Hall.

    • Marcia called out that there's been no such discussion or vote, and expects it to come up in a future budget meeting.

  • Town Clerk

    • Bonnie Munday, the town clerk, is retiring after decades on the job. Members of the Selectboard, C. Metcalf and S. Richards thanked Bonnie for her service to the town over the past 30 years.

    • Budget proposal includes funding for education and training for a new clerk on the Board of Abatement, Board of Civil Authority, and running Elections.

    • There are a lot of unknowns, especially given printing costs for statutory meetings with the new equipment, and Bonnie worries about underfunding a new Clerk.

    • Marcia suggests asking Joyce to come up with projections and add a buffer

    • Bonnie would like to discuss succession planning with the Selectboard and consider adding an article to the town warning.


  • Listers

    • Proposing $50,000 be added to the designated fund to pay for the upcoming town-wide reappraisal of which $15k is expected from the State.

    • The Listers would like to change the stipend to a pool that’s paid by the hour for the person doing the work since the Listers have been picking up the administrative work that would normally be hired out.

    • The lister’s office is in need of a third Lister. If you’d like to learn more about the position in advance of when candidate forms need to be filed in mid January, reach out to listers@norwich.vt.us.

    • Listers continue to search for an assistant but haven’t been able to attract a candidate. The assistant position is a very specialized role requiring knowledge of statutory requirements and includes reappraisal responsibilities (appraisal challenges, etc). Candidates want flexibility and the Listers are not comfortable with remote work for this position.

    • Layton, Lamperti and Arnold raised the possibility of changing the Listers position from elected to hired. For more information, see the options spelled out by the Vermont Department of Taxes. The biggest risk of hiring an assessor seems to be that the town could be left without any assessor if the position cannot be filled, creating the same situation we’re currently in with our CLA.

    • Layton suggests letting the Listers department fall apart and then professionalize it. Lamperti agrees we need to “do something” about the Listers. No specific issues were discussed.

    • Marcia reminded the board that the Listers is an elected position and it’s not in the power of the Selectboard to discuss the structure of that organization.