WINDHAM SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT DISTRICT
BRATTLEBORO, VERMONT
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
MINUTES OF MEETING
APRIL 14, 2011
BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT:
Louis Bruso, Jr., Chair, Jamaica; Ms. Jan Ameen, Vice Chair, Westminster; Dora Bouboulis, Brattleboro; Michelle Cherrier, and Lester Dunklee, Dummerston; Elizabeth Frye, Guilford; Lewis Sumner and Clifton Inman, Halifax; Dan Toomey, Putney; Irvin Stowell, Townshend; Nancy Meinhard, Wardsboro; Clyde Twitchell, Whitingham; Merrill Mundell, Wilmington and Scott Bushee, Winhall.
BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT:
Jane Southworth, Brattleboro; Bruce Capponcelli, Brookline; Phil Bartlett, Dover; Reed Cutting, Guilford; Stewart Barker, Jamaica; Tony Gordon and Stillman Vonderhorst, Marlboro; James Damato and Priscilla Margola, Readsboro; Albert Dupell, Stratton; Bob Spencer and Mike Coutermanche, Vernon and Tom Consolino, Wilmington.
WSWMD STAFF PRESENT:
George Murray, Executive Director and Cindy Sterling, Program Coordinator.
OTHERS PRESENT:
Cheryl Franklin and Tim Franklin
The meeting was called to order by 7:00 p.m. by Louis Bruso, Jr., Chair
1.) Introduction of New Supervisors:
None
2.) Election of Officers:
Motion made, seconded and carried to elect Louis Bruso, Jr. as Chair.
Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that Mrs. Knechtel has retired from the Board. Mr. Bruso stated that Ms. Knechtel served as Vice Chair to the Board of Supervisors and asked the Board for nominations for that office. Mr. Bruso nominated Ms. Ameen for Vice Chair of the Board.
Motion made, seconded and carried to nominate Ms. Ameen as Vice Chair.
Mr. Bruso told the Board of Supervisors that the next position to nominate is the District Clerk.
Motion made, seconded and carried to elect Kristen Benoit as District Clerk.
Lastly, Mr. Bruso asked for nominations for the Office of Treasurer. It was noted that the Treasurer could not be a member of the Board. There were no nominations offered.
3.) Program Coordinator’s Report:
Ms. Sterling informed the Board of Supervisors that the Windham Solid Waste Management District provided displays for the Town Meetings. The displays included the Recycling: What’s OK & What’s Not flyers, Project C.O.W. Flyer’s, Non-Toxic Household Cleaners pamphlets and samples of recyclable materials.
Secondly, Ms. Sterling told the Board of Supervisors that Mr. Toomey and herself have been working on the Board Of Supervisor’s Information Handbook. Ms. Sterling noted that the handbook might be completed by next month. Mr. Toomey briefly reviewed the outline of the Board of Supervisors Information Handbook with the Supervisors.
Ms. Sterling stated that she has been in contact with the towns about a “contact list” for future newsletters and informational packets.
Continuing, Ms. Sterling informed the Board of Supervisors that the Town of Brattleboro recently conducted a recycling survey. Ms. Sterling showed the Board of Supervisors the content of the survey package, which included a Project C.O.W. flyer, Recycling: What’s Ok & What’s Not flyer and the Brattleboro Recycling Survey. Ms. Sterling stated that the Town of Brattleboro received approximately 1,300 survey responses. Ms. Sterling reviewed the results of the survey with the Board of Supervisors. Ms. Sterling stated that she would like the District to conduct a survey, which would provide the District with statistical data and provide education to residents. She will discuss the possibly of a survey with the Planning/Operations Committee.
Lastly, Ms. Sterling informed the Board of Supervisors that the District is presently conducting its Rural Rovers, in which the District travels to individual towns and collects Household Hazardous Waste. Ms. Sterling noted that the original dates reported to the Board in March have changed. Ms. Sterling stated that all of the towns have received Household Hazardous Waste Flyers and sandwich boards will be utilized to advertise the event. Lastly, Ms. Sterling informed the Board of Supervisors that there is a charge for all household hazardous waste over the ten (10) gallon limit. The charge is $2.00 per gallon. In addition, the District is charging $5.00 per gallon for all latex paint in its liquid form. Ms. Sterling noted that residents do have the option of drying out the latex paint and disposing of it in their own trash or they can purchase paint harder, which the District can provide.
4.) MRF Report:
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that Mr. Kowalski was unable to attend tonight’s meeting. Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that the prices of commodities remain high. In addition, the quantity of materials, which has been low, increased this month.
5.) Reorganization:
- Designation of Meeting, Place, Time and Date: Mr. Bruso stated that the Board of Supervisors increased the number of regularly scheduled Board Meetings last year from five (5) meetings to ten (10) meetings. The meetings are held in the months of January, March, April, May, June, August, September, October, November and December. Mr. Bruso asked the Board if they would like to discuss reducing the regularly scheduled meetings from ten (10) per year to eight (8) per year. Ms. Ameen noted that the Board of Supervisors could call Special Meetings when necessary. The Board was hesitant to reduce the number of regularly scheduled meetings.
Motion, made, seconded and carried to continue with ten (10) regularly scheduled meetings to be held at this location at 7:00 p.m. on the second Thursday of those ten (10) months.
- Official Newspapers: Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the official newspapers of the Windham Solid Waste Management District are the Brattleboro Reformer and the Deerfield Valley News.
Motion was made, seconded and carried that the Board of Supervisors designates the Brattleboro Reformer and the Deerfield Valley News as its official newspapers.
- Committee Status: Mr. Bruso stated that the District has the following standing committees:
- Executive Board, which is made up of Planning/Operations Committee Chair, the Policy/Personnel Committee Chair, the Finance Committee Chair, and the Vice Chair and Chair of the Board of Supervisors;
- Planning/Operations Committee;
- Policy/Personnel Committee; and
- Finance Committee
Motion made, seconded and carried that the Board of Supervisors continue with the same standing committees.
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the Policy/Personnel Committee currently consists of two (2) people and anyone interested in volunteering to be part of that committee or any other committee can contact Ms. Ameen, himself or just “show up” for the meeting. Mr. Bruso noted that it is up to the individual committees to decide who their standing chair will be, except in the Executive Board, where the Chair of Board of Supervisors is the Chair of Executive Board.
6.) Approval of Minutes – January 13, 2011:
Motion was made, seconded and carried to approve the Minutes.
7.) Approval of Check Registers – (January 2011, February 2011 and March 2011):
Mr. Murray explained various expenditures and responded to board members’ questions regarding expenditures for the months of January 2011, February 2011 and March 2011.
Motion made, seconded and carried to approve the check register.
8.) Financial Report:
Mr. Bruso stated that Mr. Grandmaison, the District’s Accountant, was unable to attend tonight’s meeting and asked Mr. Mundell to summarize this evenings Finance Committee Meeting for the Board.
Mr. Mundell informed the Board of Supervisors that the Finance Committee did not have a quorum and therefore, no recommendations were made at the meeting. Mr. Mundell stated that the Finance Committee reviewed the check registers for the months of January 2011, February 2011 and March 2011, discussed the year-end revenue projections in relation to the upcoming FY 2013 Budget, and discussed additional income potential for the District and what the Charter allows.
The Board of Supervisors discussed the gas income from the Brattleboro Carbon Harvest Project. Mr. Murray noted that the production of gas has been lower than anticipated and Brattleboro Carbon Harvest is considering drilling two (2) new wells to improve the gas generation.
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the District has purchased a new Lull. The net cost of the new Lull was $42,000. The Executive Board did approve the purchase. Mr. Murray noted that a claim has been filed against Abele Tractor to recover the costs associated with the repairs of the old Lull.
9.) Director’s Report:
Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that Brattleboro Carbon Harvest Energy did hire a new mechanical engineer to run their facility here at the District. The new engineer will be responsible for this facility and the development of the greenhouses.
Secondly, Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that commodity prices are up considerably and asked the Board to refer to the graph in the Financial Statements located on page 13.
Next, Mr. Murray told the Board of Supervisors that truck maintenance costs are over budget. Mr. Murray met with TwinState Trucking, the vendor utilized to maintain the District’s trucks, to inquire about the expenses. TwinState Trucking informed Mr. Murray that the quality of the components and parts in the trucks are poor, there are issues with the emissions and sensors and several of their other clients have similar issues.
Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that Vermont’s new E-waste Bill is confusing and at this point, the Windham Solid Waste Management District will not be a designated collection site for the program. Mr. Murray stated that there will be four (4) designated collection sites set up in Windham County, one in Brattleboro, one in the Wilmington/Dover area, one in the Winhall/Jamaica area and one in the Westminster area. The Board of Supervisors discussed Vermont’s new E-waste program.
Continuing, Mr. Murray told the Board of Supervisors that there are proposed Bills in the legislature that could affect the District. The Bills include Bill-218, in which “producers of packaging and printed materials would be required to develop, implement and fund a program to expand the amount of such materials collected and recycled;” Mercury Lamps Bill S-34, in which the Bill “would require manufactures of mercury-containing lamps to establish a free and convenient recycling program for fluorescent bulbs;” and Bill H-11, which is a pharmaceutical take back program. Mr. Murray reviewed the bills with the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors discussed the proposed legislation.
Ms. Frye informed the Board of Supervisors that the Planning/Operations Committee recently held a meeting with three State Representatives, Ms. Sarah Edwards, Mr. Oliver Olsen and Mr. Mike Hebert. The meeting, which was open to the public, discussed the above referenced Bills and was very informative for both the District and the Representatives.
10.) JP Morgan Resolution (Authorize Transfers):
Mr. Bruso explained that Mrs. Knechtel, who has retired from the Board, was an authorized signer on many of the District’s accounts. Therefore, the Board must elect at least one new person to be an authorized signer on the JP Morgan account, the Fidelity account and the People’s United Bank account.
Mr. Bruso explained that the JP Morgan account is an investment account that consists of the District’s Treasury Bonds that mature twice a year.
Motion made, seconded and carried the Board authorize Lou Bruso, Jr., Michelle Cherrier and Dan Toomey as signatures for the JP Morgan Account per the resolution.
11.) Fidelity Resolution (Authorize Transfers):
Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that the Fidelity Account is presently utilized for the employees HRA Health Insurance claims and expenses.
Motion made, seconded and carried the Board authorize Lou Bruso, Jr., Michelle Cherrier and Dan Toomey as signatures for the Fidelity Account per the resolution.
12.) New Authorized Signer for People’s United Bank (People’s United Bank Resolution):
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the District would like to have three (3) active Supervisors approved as check signers for the District’s checking account. Mr. Bruso noted that all checks over $5,000 require two authorized signatures.
Motion made, seconded and carried the Board authorize Lou Bruso, Jr., Michelle Cherrier and Dan Toomey as signatures for the People’s United Bank per the resolution.
13.) Premium Only Plan Resolution (Health Insurance/Choice Care Card):
Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that the Premium Only Plan Resolution is for Choice Care Card, which is the company that manages the employees HRA Health Insurance payments/expenses. Mr. Murray explained that there is a particular plan for part-time employees, so that Choice Care Card may take a portion of the health care premium, prior to taxes.
Motion made, seconded and carried to approve the Premium Only Plan as presented.
14.) Windham Solid Waste Management District Purchasing Policy:
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the Windham Solid Waste Management District Purchasing Policy has been tabled that last couple of meetings. Ms. Ameen explained that the policy was a V.L.C.T. model that has been modified by the Policy/Personnel Committee. Ms. Ameen reviewed the Purchasing Policy with the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors reviewed and discussed the purchasing policy. Changes to the policy were suggested. Ms. Ameen stated that she would make the suggested changes to the policy and represent it to the Board at the next meeting.
15.) Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct for Members of the Windham Solid Waste Management District Board of Supervisors:
Motion made seconded and carried to table the Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct for Members of the Windham Solid Waste Management District Board of Supervisors until the next meeting.
16.) Committees:
Planning/Operations Committee:
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the Planning/Operations Committee was discussed earlier in this meeting.
Executive Board:
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the new Lull was already discussed with the Board of Supervisors. Mr. Bruso stated that the Executive Board evaluated the Executive Director’s position and noted that the results of the evaluation are available to members of the Board upon request. Lastly, the Executive Board has been working on the Accountant’s Contact. The District’s attorney is reviewing the document. Mr. Bruso noted that the Account’s Contract does expire tonight and asked the Board to extend his contract until the District’s attorney can review it.
Motion made and seconded that the District ask its accountant to extent his contract for an additional two months while we have the document reviewed by an attorney.
Motion amended, seconded and carried that the District ask it’s accountant to extent his contract until June 30, 2011 while we have the document reviewed by an attorney.
Finance Committee:
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the Finance Committee was discussed earlier in this meeting.
Policy/Personnel Committee:
Mr. Bruso informed the Board of Supervisors that the Policy/Personnel Committee was discussed earlier in this meeting.
17.) Executive Session – (if needed):
None
18.) Other Business as Legally Allowed:
Ms. Cherrier stated that a town resident inquired about the new roll-off containers in the Town of Putney and asked when new roll-off containers would be installed in the Town of Dummerston. Mr. Murray explained that the District has a capital replacement schedule that includes the purchase of two (2) new roll-off containers per year. In addition, some of the older roll-off containers will be painted and repaired.
Mr. Murray informed the Board of Supervisors that the District presently has a safety deposit box at Citizen’s Bank. Based on conversations, with Mr. Grandmaison, the only contents in the box are the titles to the District’s trucks. Mr. Murray stated that the District will purchase a fireproof safe, close the safety deposit box and store the titles on-site.
19.) Adjournment:
Motion was made, seconded, and carried to adjourn the meeting at 9:35 pm.
Kristen Benoit
District Clerk
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