Cavendish Update 11/20/15 News/Fire District 2/Events

View from where the Cavendish Train Depot once stood.

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11/20/15 Cavendish Update Contains:
1. Cavendish Related News
2. Tree Lighting and Caroling Return to Cavendish
3. Little Village Farm Announces New Format for Shareholders
4. Events
 
1, CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
Fire District # 2 (Cavendish Village) Informational Meeting 11/16/15 : The purpose of Monday night’s meeting was to provide information to the voters of Fire District #2 regarding the purchase of a new Rescue Pumper (approximately $500,000). A well attended meeting, lasting over two hours, the Prudential board and members of the Cavendish Volunteer Fire Dept. (CVFD) explained that due to age and reliability, the proposed truck would replace the department’s 1996 Engine 3 and the 1993 Rescue truck. While gratitude and respect for the work of the firefighters was expressed, there were over riding concerns about need and a number of people wanted to know why the town of Cavendish didn’t have one fire district, an issue discussed at length in 2005. The doubling of fire taxes for District #2 was viewed as prohibitive and ultimately those in attendance voted not to ballot on the truck purchase that had been scheduled for Nov. 24. A full report on the meeting, is available at The Dish.  For more information on the histories of the Fire Districts as well as what took place in 2005, when the issue of merging fire districts was discussed, see the Cavendish Historical Society’s blog post Town of Cavendish Fire Districts History. 
 
GMP Maps Solar Energy in VT: Green Mountain Power has created a 2015 Solar Map, which is updated weekly to show where solar is powering Vermont. “The goal of the map is to show developers and Vermonters where there are projects both connected and applied for that may limit the ability of additional projects.” Green Mountain Power released this information on the heels of announcing it will reach its net-metering cap in November or December. That means the utility will be legally allowed to reject net-metered energy, such as from home solar arrays. However, the company still plans to accept some projects, such as rooftop solar arrays. VT Digger
 
GMP Seeks to Raise Net Metering Capacity: Green Mountain Power is asking the state to raise the amount of renewable energy it can purchase from small, non-commercial installations. The utility announced last week that it reached its 112-megawatt net metering cap for solar power, a limit defined as 15 percent of a utility’s peak load. Green Mountain Power has asked state regulators for permission to buy an additional 7.5 megawatts (MW) of net metered solar power. VT Digger
 
Health Care Costs Push Vermont Schools Over New Spending Cap: Schools are facing a 7.9 percent increase in health insurance costs for employees, and local officials say that will push most districts over a spending cap lawmakers put in place last spring. The spending cap, or the so-called “allowable growth percentage,” is designed to hold increases in statewide education spending at 2 percent in fiscal year 2017. The cap is part of Act 46, the controversial education reform law that is driving district merger discussions in communities across the state. VT Digger
 
2. TREE LIGHTING & CAROLING RETURN TO CAVENDISH
On Sunday, December 6 at 6 pm, the Cavendish Town Elementary School PTO and the Okemo Valley Women’s Club will be jointly sponsoring a caroling and tree lighting at the Gazebo/tree on the Proctorsville Green.  This will be following by hot chocolate and Christmas cookies.
 
3. NEW FOMAT FOR LITTLE VILLAGE FARM SHAREHOLDERS: Do You Love Local, Fresh, Organic Produce? Do You Wish You Could Save up to 50% off Farmer’s Market Pricing? Cavendish’s only CSA, Little Village Farm is excited to announce a new format for shareholders as they enter their 7th year of farming! Sign up now online or download and print the 2016 debit-style CSA form. Choose your savings tier and 'shop' the farm stand weekly with 20-50% off retail pricing! Pay in full before December 31st, 2015 and receive 25% off all non-produce items for the entire season. FMI: Little Village Farm
 
4. EVENTS
Upcoming events for Cavendish include:
• Nov.20-22 (Friday-Sunday): Ski Swap to Benefit OMS at Okemo Base Lodge.
• Nov. 20 (Friday): CTES PTO Pie sale at Singleton’s and the Brew Pub in Ludlow 3:30-7PM
• Nov. 21 (Saturday): Holy Name of Mary Holiday Sale, Parish Hall
• Nov. 22 (Sunday): Raise the Roof Concert with House Blend, 4 pm Gethsemane
• Nov 25 (Wednesday): Okemo Valley Women's Club Pie and Bake sale 10-2 pm Singleton’s
• Nov. 26 (Thursday): Happy Thanksgiving
 
For more information on these and other events, go to the Cavendish Connects November Calendar.  For regional events, check out the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce Calendar.

Fire District # 2 (Cavendish Village) Informational Meeting 11/16/15

The purpose of Monday night’s meeting was to provide information to the voters of Fire District #2 regarding the purchase of a new Rescue Pumper (approximately $500,000). A well attended meeting of close to 50 people and lasting over two hours, the Prudential board and members of the Cavendish Volunteer Fire Dept. (CVFD) explained that due to age and reliability, the proposed truck would replace the department’s 1996 Engine 3 and the 1993 Rescue truck. In identifying the number of issues with the existing trucks, it was stated that this is not a “nice to have” but a “need to have” situation.

The advantages of the new truck would include: increased ability to provide mutual aid; more efficient pumping and drafting capability; better turning radius than existing trucks; hold more firefighters than combined old trucks meaning more people could be on the scene quicker; meet current standards, which is not the case with existing trucks; and have a foam system for hazardous materials spill (currently don’t have this capacity).

This would be a 10 year lease purchase arrangement, which would double the Fire District #2 tax. For example a District #2 homeowner’s property valued at $200,000 is currently paying $94.2 per year in fire taxes. With the proposed truck, this tax would increase to $188.40.

In many ways the tone of the meeting was set by Evelyn Turco who read a letter to CVFD. She not only expressed her deep respect and regard for the volunteers, noting her own and her family’s long history with the department, but raised the question about need, cost and what’s the most realistic for the town. Could some of the unmet need be addressed in other ways, such as having Reading’s Fire Department respond to the Knapp Pond area?

The concern was raised that many in Fire District #2 were unaware of the informational meeting. While posted in the town’s “paper of record,” The Vermont Journal, under legal notices, there was little information that would alert voters to the issues, including the fact that if purchased, the new truck would double fire taxes.

Several audience members voiced frustration about the use of truck funds to purchase the off road vehicle without letting the voters know about it at the annual meeting, and questioned aspects of the “truck fund.”

However, there was one question repeated in a variety of different ways multiple times-Why isn’t there one fire district? Cavendish is one town so why two departments? Is there sufficient existing equipment and manpower to meet the needs of the town of Cavendish?

To the latter question the two fire districts have the following equipment and manpower:

• Fire District #1 (Proctorsville): Operates three trucks- a 3 year old pumper/tanker, the Quick Attack, which comes on-line Jan. 2016 and a 2006 pumper truck. They have 25 volunteers, 15 of which can be counted on to respond, along with a Junior Firefighter program. Since January 1, 2015 they report having responded to 107 calls.

• Fire District #2 (Cavendish): Operates four vehicles- A pumper tank and rescue truck, which are old, a 2011 Off Road Rescue/Utility truck and a 2002 Pumper/Tanker. They have 18 volunteers, 9 of which are considered “regulars.” Since January 1, 2015 they report having responded to 70 calls, an increase of 20 more than the total for 2014. This was attributed to their availability to respond to emergency medical service’s (EMS) calls.

To have a better understanding of the nature of the calls, The Vermont Department of Public Safety Division of Fire Safety’s report for 2014 was checked.  At the end of this document is a breakdown of incident reports for every fire department in VT.

In 2014, CVFD had 39 incidents all fire related (including 4 False Alarms and 5 cancelled), while PVFD had a total of 73 incidences, 53 fire (including 5 false alarms) and 20 EMS related (extrication 1, Medical assistance 16 and Motor Vehicle Accident 3).

The merger of the two fire districts is a complex issue that was discussed extensively in 2005. This is not something that can be voted on at town meeting. Rather, the vote must occur by fire districts, as these are separate incorporated volunteer entities not under the town or select board’s jurisdiction. While “egos” were identified as one reason the merger hasn’t happened in the past, with a half a million dollars on the line, it is apparent that this is an issue Fire District #2 voters want to see addressed.

For more information on the histories of the Fire Districts as well as what took place in 2005, see the Cavendish Historical Society’s blog post Town of Cavendish Fire Districts History.

In the warning posted in The Vermont Journal, a vote by Australian ballot was scheduled for Fire District # 2 on Nov.24. However, the warning was not done within the state’s specified time frame, meaning those present at Monday night’s meeting had a choice to decide whether to go ahead with a vote on Nov. 24, with the Prudential Board validating the vote at a later time; or cancelling the vote and rescheduling the warning for a new time.

Because the price of the truck increases after Dec. 1, the Prudential Board and CVFD members wanted to see the vote take place as originally planned. However, the majority of meeting attendees voted to cancel the vote for Nov. 24th.  Consequently, there will be no balloting for the proposed truck this month.

Contrary to a comment posted to Cavendish VT Facebook by a member of the Prudential Board, the meeting was not “hijacked by a petulant minority, fueled by personal bias against the Cavendish Volunteer Fire Department, which detracted Citizens who were there to actually listen and ask probative questions.” 

Those present expressed high regard for the work of the firefighters. Yet they have real concerns about costs, need, taxes and whether it wasn’t time to have a consolidated fire district since the two stations are located 1.6 miles apart. At a time when state taxes continue to rise, and the town is loosing residents because of it, voters need to ask tough questions and strategize resources for maximum town benefit. 

To the Voters' of Cavendish Fire District 2

To the Voters of Cavendish Fire District Number Two,

I know that there have been some concerns raised about the validity of the posting and the publishing of the warning for the upcoming informational meeting on Monday the 16th and Australian ballot vote scheduled for the 24th of November. As your elected moderator, I've spoken at length with Mr. Jean Paul Isabelle, the Elections Administrator for the Vermont Secretary of State's office. With his permission, Mr. Isabelle's email correspondence with me about this matter is available for public viewing with the town clerk. If you would like to speak with Mr. Isabelle for yourself, please feel free to call the Secretary of State's office.

After discussing it with Mr. Isabelle and conferring with several elected officials, past and present, here is my understanding of the situation:

In paragraph (c) of 17 § 2641 VSA – Notice and Warning requirements, it states: “No such warning shall be required for municipal informational meetings at which no voting is to take place.”  So no matter what deficiencies there may or may not be in the warning, the informational meeting is legally valid since it has no warning requirements and no votes will be taken.

Which brings us to the question of the validity of the warning for the ballot. At this point it seems to have failed to meet the requirement of sufficient time between the initial posting and the vote. Note well, this is not due to the publishing date of the warning in the paper of record. The publishing requirements for a “bond-like” action are different from the posting requirements for the same action. It is easy to see how the confusion occurred. The posting requirement is:

The legislative body of a municipality shall warn a meeting by posting a warning and notice in at least two public places in the municipality, and in or near the town clerk's office, not less than 30 nor more than 40 days before the meeting.

There is no publishing requirement usually, but because this is a “bond-like” vote there are additional publishing requirements, but they don't have to be 30 day in advance. The publishing of the warning must be in the paper of record for three consecutive weeks; on the same day of the week; with not less than 5, nor more than 10, days in between the last publishing and the vote.  Although great effort was made to meet the specific publishing requirements, the posting requirement appears to be 3 days insufficient.

There are two ways that a municipality, Cavendish Fire District Number 2 in this case, can remedy this situation.The first of which is found in VSA 17 § 2662 – Validation of Municipal Meetings, which reads:

When any of the requirements as to notice or warning of an annual or special municipal meeting have been omitted or not complied with, the omission or noncompliance, if the meeting and the business transacted at it is otherwise legal and within the scope of the municipal powers, may be corrected and legalized by vote at a regular meeting or special meeting of the municipality called and duly warned for that purpose.

I specifically asked, and it was confirmed to me, by Mr. Isabelle, that for the purposes of validation, a vote by Australian ballot could be treated the same as the “meeting” mentioned above.  So, the Prudential Board can set a legally warned special meeting, with no publishing requirement, to validate the vote, after the vote has been taken.

The second way that the Prudential Board could remedy the noncompliant warning would be to cancel the vote scheduled for the 24th and then post and publish the warning for a new ballot.  According to my conversation with Mr. Isabelle, there still would be no requirement to publish the signatures of the Prudential Board members, or have the Fire District clerk “attest” to the warning. Although a new vote would usually be the preferable option to take, there are some significant financial considerations to this action. There is the added expense for another publishing of the warning, and the price for the proposed fire apparatus is set to increase on the 1st of December, so the amount to be voted on may have to be increased. This latter factor does at least explain, if not fully excuse, the mistake-causing haste in scheduling the vote.

Therefore, it is my plan at the scheduled and fully legal informational meeting, at which no votes will be taken, to “poll” the assembled voters as to what their preferred option for the Prudential Board to utilize.  This will not be an official vote, nor will it be binding on the Prudential Board, but it will be, in my opinion, the best legal option.

I'm grateful to be able to serve you in this capacity,

Rev. Abraham Gross

Moderator, Cavendish Fire District Number Two

Cavendish Update 11/13/15 SB Mtg/10G vs 4G/Events

11/13/15 11/13/15 Cavendish Update Contains:
1. Cavendish Select Board Meeting 11/9/15
2. Cavendish Related News
3. 4G Cell Phone Vs 10G Internet
4. Raising the Roof in Song
5. Holy Name of Mary Winter Berry, Food & Holiday Sale
6. Events
 
1. CAVENDISH SELECT BOARD MEETING 11/9/15
Select board (SB) meetings are recorded by LPC-TV and are available at their website and on Comcast Television.  Written minutes are available at the town’s website.  The following was discussed at Monday night’s meeting:
• Snow mobile trail crossings for 2015/2016 season approved
• Cavendish Telecommunications Committee Update: TDS to establish 10 G Ring. The state’s now considering Cavendish as an underserved area and interested in the town being part of a pilot project to improve Internet connectivity.
• Transfer Station no longer receives reimbursement for E-waste but doesn’t have to pay for its removal. Metal hauler requires all scrap to be free of mercury. This change may require an additional attendant.
• Cemetery regulations are under review by the Select Board, the first since the 1980s. Reflect conservation of green space as well as a pricing structure to better provide a means of making the cemeteries self-sustaining.
• Flood Hazard Regulations: Presented at the Oct SB meeting by the Planning Commission, the board voted to meet separately to review for adoption.
• Other Town Issues: Within the next two weeks, the following areas will have late season paving-bottom ofBonts Hill , High St by the Town Office, and a patch at the Transfer Station. 
- Animal Control Officers will now have badges and be able to write municipal tickets for those in violation of the dog ordinance
- Interviews are underway with four viable candidates for water/wastewater assistant operator
- While the Cavendish Gulf Road was open this past weekend; it is currently closed while the culvert repair is being completed. This is on the Chester side.
- Still awaiting the report about the safety of the Depot Street bridge to determine if and when the bridge may need to be closed for the winter.
 
A full report on the Select Board meeting is available at The Dish. 
 
2. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
Respite Care Funding from Senior Solutions: Does your loved one have a diagnosis of dementia? As a caregiver, are you finding it difficult to meet your own needs while caring for your loved one? Senior Solutions (Council on Aging for Southeastern Vermont) has respite funding available through the Dementia Respite Grant. This grant, funded by the State of Vermont, supports paid respite opportunities for primary, unpaid caregivers in Windsor and Windham counties.  The elder’s income eligibility limit is $2,917.00 per month for an individual or $3,932.00 per month for a couple. FMI: Senior Helpline at 1-800-642-5119 and ask to speak to our Grant Manager.
 
GMP Poised to Top Net Metering Cap: Green Mountain Power says it has 52 megawatts of net-metered solar already built in its territory and has another 54 megawatts of net-metered solar in its queue. That amount of solar will put the company over its net-metering cap either in November or December. Reaching the cap means it no longer has to buy any renewable energy, including solar power, from them or do so at an increased rate. The company will file documents with state regulators on Friday to propose to extend net metering for households anyway. VT Digger
 
3. 4G CELL VA 10 G INTERNET
There is some confusion about 4G for cell phones versus 1G or 10G for Internet speeds. The term 4G stands for 'fourth generation' and refers to mobile network technology. The 10G that is being planned for TDS's Internet backbone for the Cavendish area refers to capacity-10 gigabits per second. Currently, the highest capacity TDS offers in the area (and not for all customers) is 15 Mbgs (Megabyte). There are 1,024 Mbgs in one gigabite. 
 
4. RAISING THE ROOF IN SONG IN PROCTORSVILLE
If you like the idea of a musical cup of coffee, you will love the next concert in the Raise the Roof music series in Proctorsville on Sunday November 22.  The spirited acapella group, House Blend, will fill the Gethsemane Episcopal Church with music from around the world that is spiced with energy, humor and a passion for singing.  House Blend is an assemblage of twenty performers who are self-proclaimed singing addicts whose repertoire includes gospel, village music from Africa and Eastern Europe, Renaissance madrigals, Bach, contemporary music---and anything else the group chooses to add to the mix.  The crisp acoustics in the 1890 Carpenter Gothic church, combined with their powerful voices, will create an eclectic, infectious harmonious brew of music that will raise the roof and fill your cup to the brim.  The concert will be at 4:00 at Gethsemane Church on Depot St. in Proctorsville (next to Crows Corner Cafe).  Your admission of $10.00 at the door will help Raise the Roof Concert Series to continue bring fresh live music to the local community at an affordable price.  And what a great way to spend a late November afternoon.
 
5. WINTER BERRY, FOOD & HOLIDAY SALE
On Saturday, November 21, 2015, the Holy Name of Mary Church Altar Society is having a Winter Berry, Food, Handmade Crafts, and Holiday Items sale.  The sale will be from 9:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. at the church hall on 803 Main Street in Proctorsville.  There will be homemade jams, baked goods, beans, candy, etc. as well as beautiful bunches of winter berries for decorating, knitted & crocheted items, holiday items, and much more. Come and pick up some special treats!
 
6. EVENTS
Upcoming events for Cavendish include:
• Nov. 13 (Friday):  Turkey Bingo at Cavendish Town Elementary School, 6-8 pm
• Nov 14 (Saturday): Christmas Sale at the Cavendish Baptist Church
• Nov. 16 (Monday): Public Information Meeting for Fire District #2 (Cavendish Village) regarding purchase of a truck
- Public information meeting on the Coolidge Solar Power Project (Barker Farm), 7 pm at the Ludlow Town Hall at 37 Depot St.
 
For more information on this and other events, go to the Cavendish Connects November Calendar.  For regional events, check out the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce Calendar.