Weathersfield Select Board Meeting — September 29, 2026

The Weathersfield Select Board met on September 29, 2026. (The transcript opens with "Monday, September 28th," which conflicts with the meeting metadata date of September 29, 2026; this summary uses the metadata date.) The board approved the September 14 minutes and the fiscal year 2027 highway financial plan (TA60), reviewed highway and transfer station operations, discussed a proposed municipal planning grant, approved a warrant totaling $178,319.10, and — after executive session — authorized the interim town manager to hire a part-time police officer and to let the unfunded resource coordinator contract expire on October 4, 2026.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the minutes of the September 14, 2026 meeting as presented (voice vote).

Public Comments & Testimony

• Kelly O'Brien clarified the September 8, 2025 board action on the Bo Sandpit: $52,500 for sand from DD Excavating and $15,000 for Act 250 engineering services from DuBois King, a total of $67,500, to be paid from the Highway Capital Maintenance and Improvement Reserve Fund. Actual spending was $35,411.89 on sand and $8,775 on engineering, so the negative balance discussed at the prior meeting should not have occurred.
• Patty Harrison encouraged the board to use Facebook, Front Porch Forum, and other social media to recruit volunteers and candidates, and urged the board to consider a policy preventing the same people from serving on both the planning board and the select board, arguing that overlapping membership weakens checks and balances.
• Jacob Chase raised the transfer station's deficit and suggested the board consider selling or leasing it as possible ways to raise revenue or address the deficit; he noted he had also posted about the issue on social media.

Discussion Items

• Agenda review / executive session transparency: One member asked that executive session topics be listed on the agenda for public transparency; the chair indicated the topics were personnel and contract issues.
• Municipal Planning Grant (FY27): Land use administrator Ryan Martin, speaking on behalf of the planning commission, requested a resolution supporting an application for a state Municipal Planning Grant (maximum $50,000) to hire a contractor to rewrite and reformat the zoning bylaws, align them with the adopted town plan, and streamline permitting. The grant requires a 10% match (up to $5,000), spread over two fiscal years (about $2,500 per year). A contractor recommended by the regional commission provided a ballpark estimate of $51,000, and acting planning commission chair Brian Bosenberg had mentioned roughly $45,000. Ryan said the application must align with state planning goals, but the contractor would work under the planning commission's direction so the resulting bylaws would reflect the town's vision. Citing workload constraints (development review board applications jumped from two last year to eight or nine in recent months, and about 30 permits have gone through the office this year), Ryan said doing the rewrite in-house could take three to five years. The land use budget has no grant line item — only about $1,000 in mileage and training funds — so members asked whether in-kind staff labor could satisfy the 10% match and where any cash match would come from. No action was taken: the board asked Ryan to confirm whether in-kind labor is an acceptable match and to check with Steve on the general fund what money is available, before the December application deadline.
• TA60 Annual Financial Plan for Town Highways: Highway superintendent Ray presented the annual state highway budget certification required for state reimbursement eligibility; it was late because the town budget was late. The board voted to accept and approve the plan for fiscal year 2027 (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027), and all board members will sign as the legislative body.
• Highway Department Report (Ray): Completed work included the Center Road chip seal project (crack filling from Perkins Hall to Route 131, milling the steep hill on 131, shimming low spots, and chip sealing), roadside mowing and brush cutting (a few intersections remain), and Gerd Law Road ditching (about 25 loads of gravel, cost-shared under a grant with no match). Summer windstorm cleanup took the full crew about three and a half weeks and required a contractor for just under $8,000 to remove trees needing a bucket truck. Catch basins and culverts were cleaned using Springfield's vacuum truck under a shared-services arrangement at significant savings. Fleet work included the grader's 5,000-hour service (valve adjustment and pin replacements; oil leak repair scheduled for winter), the L22 one-ton truck getting wheel bearings and leaf spring repair in Springfield, and the F350 needing a new air conditioning compressor (which had caught fire), front axle, and front wheel bearings at $2,900 in parts and maintenance. On the sand pit, the permit has been with the state since September 15, with a DRB review on October 6; Ray bought 3,500 yards of sand but put out close to 5,000 yards. Ray flagged a possible clerical issue because DuBois King was not the engineer that did the work (MSK was), while Josh said the September 8, 2025 motion listed the correct amounts and company as voted. Grants received for 2027 include $23,000 for Well Orchard Road culvert replacements (three culverts) and $50,000 (no match) for 1,350 linear feet of guardrail on Reservoir under the Highway Safety Improvement Program; Ray hopes to add 150–200 more feet with town funds. Costs are rising: salt went from $98.25 to $106 per ton, and fuel was about $5.17 per gallon versus $2.90 last year; Ray topped off almost 10,000 gallons at the $2.90 contract price in June. The 30 Maple Street tear-down is expected during the third full week of October. Ray continues to build shared-services relationships with neighboring towns (for example, West Windsor brought a trailer to help haul the bobcat for repair).
• Transfer Station Report (Ray): The facility operates with one full-time and one part-time employee. Ray is exploring hiring 16- and 17-year-olds (excluding compactor operation) to expand the on-call list, and he will work with the insurance company, which classified the transfer station as the town's highest safety risk — a classification he suggested may reflect assumptions of a full sorting facility. Punch card sales access is being tested through a 90-day trial with a local business; a vending machine was too costly ($15,000–$18,000, plus $3,000 for winterization and Wi-Fi and software requirements). The bobcat was serviced, and the compactor software was updated so the vendor can fix it remotely. The town of Windsor asked whether Windsor residents could use Weathersfield's facility; Ray advised caution and said adding another town is not the answer to the facility's current fiscal problems. Financially, C&D transport cost was $87,000 as of June 30 and will grow with diesel around $6.30 per gallon; Ray projects surcharges roughly 50% higher and fears another $25,000 deficit by year-end. He plans monthly budget-actual reports and a material-by-material breakdown (C&D, trash, tires, propane) with the new accountant to make targeted punch-price adjustments. Board member Dave said the punch ticket price has risen substantially and cited his own tax bill going from about $20 to $63, and said he is ready to hear a plan to charge for recycling. Board member Joe proposed a recycling sticker at 50% of the trash sticker price (example: $60 trash to $30 recycling) plus $1 per five-cubic-foot recycling load, a $100 annual C&D sticker with C&D punches roughly doubled to $10, and a separate bulk stream covered by the existing trash sticker. The board agreed the problem is urgent, cannot be solved tonight, and must involve the other member towns (West Windsor and Reading); Joe will share his plan, and the existing deficit-reduction plan would raise FY28 sticker prices unless modified, so a proposal is needed before the next fiscal year.
• Town Manager's Report (Josh): Six applicants had applied for the town manager position as of Friday; the resumes are confidential while Gary Evans manages the search with weekly updates to the board. On the highway budget, pending the audit the highway fund is expected to have a fund balance of about $42,000; FY26 had budgeted a $102,000 use of fund balance, but expenses came to roughly $138,000, mostly due to truck repair overages. The excavator payment was made but had not been budgeted. The earlier grim picture partly reflected the May board vote to move money into the reserve and the unresolved fall sand purchase.
• Warrant: The board approved the warrant read by member Rob, with payroll totaling $36,489.58 and operating expenses totaling $141,829.52 (total $178,319.10). The breakdown included general fund payroll of $21,518.91 and operating expenses of $69,513.32; highway, solid waste, and library payroll and operating checks; and three individual items — Route 106 bank repair ($9,045), Bowen Hill scoping ($5,556), and wastewater feasibility study ($457.50). In response to questions, the board heard that the parks and recreation fest roughly broke even, coming in about $100 over budget, and that the $10,107 attorney check (check #2307) was a pass-through of legal fees paid by delinquent taxpayers — a washout with no cost to the town.
• Appointments and next meeting: The budget committee still has one opening with no applicants. The next meeting will be a special meeting on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, because the regular Monday falls on Columbus Day.

Executive Session and Post-Session Actions

• The board entered executive session under 1 V.S.A. § 313(a)(1)(A) and (B) to discuss personnel and contract issues; the motion was amended so the interim town manager and highway superintendent could join for one of the matters. After returning to open session, the board approved two motions by voice vote:
  • Allowed the interim town manager to hire a part-time police officer to fill a vacancy.
  • Allowed the interim town manager to let the resource coordinator contract continue as-is until it expires on October 4, 2026. The position was described as a temporary, unfunded 60-day position; continuing it would have caused a triple-digit increase in that budget item.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the September 14, 2026 minutes (voice vote).
• Adopted the TA60 annual financial plan for town highways for FY27, July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 (voice vote); all board members will sign as the legislative body.
• Approved the warrant totaling $178,319.10 (voice vote).
• Authorized the interim town manager to hire a part-time police officer to fill a vacancy (voice vote).
• Authorized the interim town manager to let the resource coordinator contract expire on October 4, 2026 (voice vote).
• Deferred action on the municipal planning grant resolution; Ryan Martin will check whether in-kind labor can satisfy the 10% match and identify a funding source before the December application deadline.
• Transfer station: Joe will share his sticker and fee proposal; the three-town committee will continue work, aiming for a revised plan before FY28 sticker price increases take effect.
• Budget committee vacancy remains open, with no applicants.
• Next meeting: special meeting on Tuesday, October 13, 2026.