President Rod I move to amend and adopt the agenda as follows first to note the final version of consent agenda item 3.18 the communication from counselor roof Regarding the counselor initiative fund request in support of highlight BTV 2019 Note updated action for consent agenda item 3.19 the communication from Doreen Kraft executive director of BCA Regarding highlight Burlington New Year's Eve quote to a do prove the above described amendments to the Burlington City Arts operating budget for FY 19 in order to incorporate additional income and expenses required to implement the 2018 highlight New Year's Eve event and the use of ten thousand dollars of unassigned fund balance To support the implementation of the event per CAO Anderson note revised version of consent agenda item 3.24 resolution authorize use of Conservation legacy funds to pay final costs to Vermont land trust to aid in acquisition of 311 North Avenue Board of Finance per CAO Note sorry per city attorney's office note final version of the memo for this agenda item per per Cindy white remove from the agenda item 4.03 the Resolution regarding a charter change on counselor recusal involving conflicts of interest This is counselor Hart and its request Note written materials for agenda item 4.04 business personal property tax gross receipts per CAO Anderson Note updated action for agenda item 4.04 business personal property tax gross receipts quote to refer their proposed Charter changes phasing out the business personal property tax to the charter change committee To review the language consider the amendments made in the council work session held on November 26th and report back to the council with recommended charter change language at its December 17th meeting per CAO Anderson per city attorney Blackwood and there will be additional Note agendaed sorry note updated action for agenda item 4.05 Permit reform per CAO Anderson So I'm getting lost here note updated action for agenda item 4.05 permit reform Quote to refer the proposed charter changes Implementing the organizational changes of the administrative's permit reform project to the charter change committee To review the language consider the comments made in the council's work session held on November 26th And we port back to the council with recommended charter change language at its December 17th meeting Per CAO Anderson per city attorney Blackwood So those are the motions that will be that are proposed for our deliberative agenda That come to us from the board of finance Correct city city attorney. Yes, okay So we'll need to be referring back to this Add to the agenda item 8.02 a communication from Eileen Blackwood our city attorney regarding an update on collective bargaining And then I wanted to also on Excuse me 3.13 the consent Communication regarding the Pine and Novel No Dell funding request We that was adopted by board of finance the action would be to To extend the funding With the following two conditions that BH the big heavy world will strengthen the collaboration with BCA To align youth concert performance Series to city-wide performing arts events and secondly that BH big heavy world will provide a three minutes oral report To the parks and parks arts and culture committee and or the full council within a year from the time this request was allocated I just wanted to add that language, which was accompanied the board of finance approval On 3.13 Thank You councillor no Dell that motion has been made and seconded now by councillor busher any discussion hearing none all those in favor of the Agenda as amended say aye They opposed Passes unanimously and it was that motion was long enough to enable me to go talk with mayor Weinberger and the city clerk's office I just want to make sure that count that someone was watching me to make sure I didn't miss anything As far as I know okay with that we will conclude that item and move on to item number two Which we are laid on and that's the public forum, and so I will open the public forum at 751 and The first person up to speak is Robert Herndon and to be followed by Liam Griffin The only other person who has scheduled to speak if anyone else would like to Formers are over here the table bring up to the city clerk's office. Good evening mr. Herndon. Welcome. Thank you. Is this work? Yes, I am Bob Herring Dean from Ward 4 I'm a Burlington Electric Commissioner, and I'll make one comment about that, but otherwise I speak as a citizen As a Burlington Electric Commissioner I support electric bicycles on roads and one-way roadside bike lanes such as North Avenue as a year-round cyclist I Am concerned that e-bikes are a quantum jump in motorizing our two-way bike paths, especially the Greenway I Asked that City Council and the Department of Parks Recreation and Waterfront Develop a coherent well-publicized and enforced policy about motorized vehicles on the Greenway At the moment there is no policy except silence While merchants and other constituents sell and promote many varieties of e-bike Burlington Electric offers rebates for some of these. I support that program With no regulation, we now have the possibility for 20 plus miles per hour motorized bicycles on the Greenway Some are electric assist, which means that the rider must pedal some for the motor to kick in Some require only pressing a throttle Surprisingly high acceleration is also possible. I can tell you that my experiences I took out a loner They really can jump This seems at odds with the intent of the Greenway The Greenway is a linear park It passes through seven city parks and several exercise sites The city's website shows photos of multi-use baby carriage pushers walkers kids and arms Roller butt bladers and conventional bicycles all confined into two-way traffic in a width of 11 to 13 feet Motors seem out of place here My own physician even as I support e-bikes in general is to ban them and all motors from the Greenway Low-speed exceptions for infer people should be considered however But my larger point is that we need an intentional policy rather than tacit acceptance or whatever comes along Please counselors assure that parks and rec and you Develop an intentional policy hopefully before the winter is over. Thank you Thank You mr. Herondine Liam Griffin is our final speaker tonight. Good evening mr. Griffin and welcome President Wright council mayor I brought everyone a book tonight Hopefully the book is a little bit longer. I won't read from the book I do just want to say thanks for all the work this summer and over the last couple years Starting to implement plan BTV walk bike The Genesis for purchasing this came out of a book discussion that we had with a group of friends at Battery Park. I Put a link up on Facebook and on Twitter and had a GoFundMe campaign funded within 22 hours to buy 14 copies of this from Phoenix books shop local So I've got a copy here for everyone on council the mayor and for Chapin I already gave him his copy and I ran a demo at the at the bagel and gave him his copy as well So I do want to say thanks the Willard flip the summer from north to south was a really big change in that part of town now To have Union going north and willard going south makes a big difference I rode part of Pearl Street on the way here to have a complete connection now from Battery Park I'll all the way to campus is huge. I know there's some folks Parents at my kids school who use the the new Greenway through the old north and on a regular basis You know the improvements on the Greenway have been huge I do want to say thanks in advance for some of the things coming up I know the Winooski corridor is a big point of discussion over the next couple of years as his main street So I hope that while reading this book everybody finds something It's it's called building the cycling city the Dutch blueprint for urban urban vitality I know Burlington is you know, it's not in the Netherlands The weather kind of seems right like it is right about now, but I hope there's something everyone can take away from reading this I found it to be really informative One size definitely won't fit all but I think there's approaches from a lot of the different cities that are featured in this book That could be applied to the city of Burlington. So hope you enjoy and thank you again. Thank you, mr. Griffin Appreciate that and with that We will close out tonight's public forum Move to item number three, which is the consent agenda and I will take a motion from councillor. No doubt President right. I moved to adopt the consent agenda as amended and to take the actions indicated Moved by councillor busher seconded by councillor busher, I should say And so all those in favor of Councillor Shannon I'd like to ask to divide the question and vote separately on 3.13 Okay, councillor Shannon is asking to remove item 3.13 I have a separate vote on that. Yes, okay so all in favor of the consent agenda as amended and amended again by councillor shen it's removing 3.13. Please say aye Any opposed So we have past the consent agenda taking the actions actions indicated and 3.13 Do we go to that now? Let's go. Let's go to that now and council. I'm gonna recognize you councillor shannon It's not consent. That's right. I'm excuse me. Did you want councillor shannon? Did you want to speak to this? That was not my expectation. Okay, so we just want to have a separate vote on 3.13 We should probably tell the public what this is though It is Why don't you just so the public understands what we're we're actually voting on The pine and no dell funding requests for city council initiative fund for big heavy world, okay So We don't need any discussion. So all those in favor of that motion. Please say aye Any opposed so the vote is 11 to 1 in favor with councillor shannon being the one no vote Right And So we have passed the consent agenda. I am now going to Recess the regular city council meeting to go to the board of civil authority, which is run by the mayor So I'll turn it over to mr. Mayor Thank You president right. I'll call to order the board of civil authority at 8 0 1 p.m And the first item on the agenda is the agenda Welcome a motion regarding it Councillor Paul makes a motion seconded by president right Discussion the agenda all those in favor of the motion. Please say aye. Hi any opposed Motion carries unanimously. We have an agenda that brings us to the Consent agenda and a welcome motion their present right move that we Pass the consent agenda and take the actions indicated seconded by Councillor Paul Discussion all those in favor of the motion. Please say aye. Hi any opposed the motion carries unanimously and Without objection the board of civil authority is adjourned at 8 0 1 p.m. Thank You mr. Mayor Now we will read we will reconvene the city council meeting regular city Council meeting at 8 o'clock and back to the deliberative agenda item number 4 4.01 as a presentation from Kirby Dunn the executive director of home share Vermont with Megan Tuttle comprehensive planner for planning and zoning and this is on the issue of Accessory dwelling units community workshop and discussion of next steps Good evening welcome Kirby and Megan. Thank you very much. Thank you for having us We're here tonight to give you an update as to Kirby. Could you pull the microphone in closer? Yes, thank you. All right, we're going to give you some updates on informational session that was held on accessory dwelling units in September and also Want to ask for your support on moving this issue forward at the at the city level and also to share with you some information regarding a Possibility of a grant application that could help us help us with this issue So for context One of the recommendations in the housing or one of the goals in the housing action plan Was to look at a number of housing options that could assist older adults with aging in place and under that recommendation of the housing action plan was the specific strategy to look at accessory dwelling units as a type of housing that could help Homeowners stay in their homes as they age and provide for more flexibility for having a family member or a caretaker live with them So as a planner in planning and zoning, I've been collaborating with staff in CEDO to actually Carry out this strategy from the housing action plan. We've been working together to research Both what's happening in Burlington in terms of the utilization of accessory dwelling units as well as what Is happening in other communities around both the utilization of these units and policy and other technical and financial resources That support them So that's how I became connected with Kirby is through the workshop that Homeshare Vermont hosted and speaking specifically about Burlington's Work or Burlington's local regulations around accessory dwelling units as you know Homeshare Vermont works to help elders stay in their homes and Provide affordable housing to someone who's looking for a place to live We see ten times as many people want to live in Burlington as we have homes available people willing to share their homes and Not everyone is Open to the idea of sharing their home It's a hard thing to do for some people some homes are really not set up well to share and In other cases some people are not set up well to share so Some people need a little more privacy in space And they want that separation of a wall Little more privacy of their own kitchen or their own bathroom. So our board of directors last year Put on the agenda for strategic planning the issue of accessory dwelling units. Is that something we could get involved with? Are there people out there who would be interested in looking at this? And we had learned that a lot of places around the country were really pursuing this as an affordable housing option Also as a way for for people to age in place So we put on this workshop in in September that that will tell you about in a few minutes And I think to build off of what Kirby was saying about why Homeshare Vermont was interested in I know also why AARP has expressed interest in accessory dwelling units We think about what other opportunities accessory dwelling units can provide from a larger housing policy perspective Kirby also already touched on one of the other benefits that we see from the city's perspective which is how accessory dwelling units are one of the tools that We have available to us to promote more housing availability and housing affordability in the research that we've been working on as part of our report We're finding that many communities are seeing accessory dwelling units provided at below market rate Do largely to lower thresholds and obstacles Associated with converting a small part of your home into a home versus building new development or multifamily development We're also seeing that in many cases the accessory dwelling unit actually provides some benefit to the homeowner financially in communities where housing costs are very high like they are in Burlington having a small apartment that a family member or Someone who you might share your home with can help provide opportunities for either income or other support structures that People might need in their living arrangement and then finally it's an opportunity for More flexible housing more live flexible living arrangements. We think about multi-generational living and how this is an opportunity that provides both the Connection but also the privacy that Kirby was talking about So as we think about accessory dwelling units We've been carefully researching how communities are balancing the benefits of accessory dwelling units With protecting neighborhoods and protecting the community from the potential ways these could be misused So we look particularly at zoning regulations and how accessory dwelling units are defined. They are if you think about you know having a home that has a basement or an attic or Space over the garage. These are often the types of spaces that are repurposed into an accessory dwelling unit So they're really small spaces inside of a home that are that are repurposed and incorporated within that home and importantly their Apartments that are in single-family owner occupied homes So that we're really looking at a type of housing that is intended to be the place where the homeowner is still going to live and That the housing will really be accessory to their main home Really fundamentally different than a duplex or a multi-family housing scenario and One other important thing that we look at are some of the zoning regulations in terms of the intensity of development when we think About accessory dwelling units one of the other benefits that many communities have discovered in accessory dwelling units as a housing type is their ability to fit well into the neighborhood character and to not Negatively impact to that negative character in Burlington while we permit Inclusion or accessory dwelling units They're required to meet all of the underlying requirements of zoning from a height perspective and setbacks and lock coverage So we're really talking about units that are integrated into the fabric of that neighborhood rather than being kind of new development in a neighborhood So in Burlington today, we've seen just over 40 ADUs that have been that we know of that have been developed since about 2003 so in the last 15 years And as we've been developing this report, we've been looking at what's been happening in other communities We've seen a pretty significant growth in accessory dwelling units in places like Brattleboro, which I think Kirby will talk about in a moment Over 50 in just a few years We've seen that the state has identified accessory dwelling units as a priority housing type and has actually explicitly called out accessory dwelling units in The state planning enabling legislation And we've also seen other communities develop either Programs funding or technical Megan. I'm sorry. Can you pull the microphone all the way in? Sure. Is that better? Thanks? Okay? I feel like I'm eating it, but no We can hear you better great. That's important So I was just saying that we've seen other communities from places like Brattleboro Montpelier even Weitzfield that have developed either funding or other forms of technical assistance to support homeowners with Creating an accessory dwelling unit in their home. So as Megan mentioned at the workshop that we held in September We had over 70 Residents from Burlington attend at the Heinenberg Community Senior Center I know a lot of you wanted to come, but weren't able to it was a very busy Saturday morning in the end of September so One of the reasons we're here tonight is to tell you a little bit about what happened We had some folks come up from Brattleboro and Brattleboro for a few years now has had a program that they've called apartments and homes and They provide a variety of services to help their residents in Brattleboro Put together accessory dwelling units They provide some technical assistance. They walk people through the process They help people with issues of design and permitting They talk to them about becoming a landlord and and how to do that They help them with the screening process and they follow up once someone has actually built an accessory dwelling unit So they have a very comprehensive Service program that they they help folks with they also provide some low-interest loan and grant funds And these have really made the difference these services this package of services have really made the difference So they came up and talked to us about how they've done this Over the last half a half a decade and the success that they've had we have 40 over probably very many years They have 50 over five years and that's a much smaller town Imagine what we could do in the city and the dent we could put in our housing Housing need if if we could come up with a hundred or 200 accessory dwelling units over the next decade at very little cost And very little difficulty So we heard from folks in Brattleboro about what they do we also heard from a Couple of residents in the south end of Burlington who put an accessory dwelling unit in their daughter's backyard So they were hoping to age in place they wanted to move closer to the grandkids and They put a unit in the backyard of their daughter and it's really an incredible home and They shared a lot of the lessons that they learned by doing that And that's one of the things that we're hoping to do with this project moving forward is to help people through this process And to try to standardize the process a little bit for people so everybody's not reinventing the wheel every time one of these units comes through the process and lastly we heard from from Megan who who talked about the zoning rules and Answered a lot of questions that people had and some of that information is is in your packet tonight Almost done. Well, let's Are you do you have more to you have more to go? Just let's finish the presentation Then I have people in the queue to speak so thank you So building off of what Kirby said about the number of participants that came to the workshop I was really surprised by how many people turned out and not only how many people turned out But how many people were there that already knew about Accessory dwelling units and knew what our zoning set at a basic level the questions were really detailed the owners that were there We're really interested in this issue So we heard a lot of really great feedback from them about some of the things that they've identified either in zoning or building Codes for the city that have presented challenges that we might want to look at and consider In order to really enable these housing units in a more robust way We used that question-and-answer period at the workshop to create a an FAQ document that we've provided in the planning office And that we shared with Kirby and with all of the participants that came to the workshop starting to actually build that Educational piece that that supportive technical assistance piece for people that might be interested in this housing option and further the information about accessory dwelling units is something we've been relaying back and forth with the Planning Commission and Looking at accessory dwelling units and in terms of our regulations is a draft recommendation in plan BTV in the draft update of plan BTV and something that the Planning Commission is definitely looking forward to being able to talk about In a wholesale way related to housing policy for Burlington So from the workshop Based on the questions and the comments of folks there There were sort of three general areas that people Wanted to talk about one was just general education needing information Second area was policy changes and there was a lot of suggestions for different levels of policy changes And lastly was just financial assistance helping people sort of get started Could be a variety of ways we could we could take this so one of the reasons we're here tonight is because As you might have heard there was a 37 million dollar housing bond that the state passed and as part of that housing bond they have a small set of funds set aside for innovative projects and We have submitted home share Vermont has submitted a letter of intent to participate in that program at VHCB's request with an interest of looking at accessory dwelling units and home sharing and Seeing if this is something that the city would like to work together on so we have that letter of intent in If we are invited to apply for a full application, I expect that will be in January So we should find out in December so one of the reasons we're here tonight is to see what your interest is and See if you would like to take this journey together to pursue Accessory dwelling units in the city of Burlington as a way to help seniors age in place and help other people find affordable house Thank you. All right. Thank you for the presentation on that this important issue and We have a number of counselors lined up in the queue and we'll start with counselor Paul. Thank you Um So first of all, I I admire the work that home share does I think you provide a valuable mission to many people in Burlington And I think you know, I understand and I imagine most of us certainly understand that the accessory dwelling units can first for many people be the difference between being and remaining in their home and not remaining in their home one of the Concerns and I I got this from a couple of constituents that wrote to me over the weekend Was about enforcement you know, we're You know, we were probably pretty good as a city about creating these kinds of things But the enforcement part of it We still have to work on the enforcement part and it's it's not always easy to enforce certain things one of the things that You have in your hand your power point is that the in order to do this as an accessory dwelling unit the owner It must be owner occupied either in the primary unit so to speak and the or the accessory dwelling unit so The first question is how do you enforce that? the second is if Two years later after you've built the product after you built the accessory dwelling unit the For example, just as an example the older person if there's an older person and a caregiver on For whatever reason needs to go into an assisted living You know place so they're no longer living there or The for whatever reason the owner decides to sell Now we have plenty of examples in Burlington well, not too many but enough examples in Burlington where Property owner will decide to a land a property owner who is looking to rent Will buy a property like that and pretty soon there are Multiple people living in that none of whom own that property So that was the question that I got from a few constituents was how are you going to enforce that and what happens? When the owner is no longer living there? Thank you great questions. I can speak about enforcement just generally And that's something that we can follow up on more to get more information about enforcement around this issue, but one of the primary mechanisms that we utilize is a Actually a deed restriction on the property that requires that owner occupancy If that property is no longer owner occupied then there's a mechanism that actually requires some of the facilities of the unit to be Removed so that it no longer is able to function as an independent living facility and if the property is sold then those Requirements run with the property and a new owner would be required to either comply with the owner occupancy requirement Or have the facilities removed so that the unit is not able to be occupied on its own And if I might just ask is so if the if the owner still owns the property, but is no longer living there for For reasons like that the example that I just gave That deed has not changed. I mean that that property has not transferred So what is to prevent somebody from just having just renting it right? I think in that case it would no longer be considered owner occupied at that point So the same requirements would apply and they would be able to rent it because anybody can rent their house out It's just that the additional unit would have to be part of the primary residence We'd have to the kitchen or the bath would be removed right so that it couldn't be occupied separately from home so it'd be a single-family home again and That could be rented just like any single-family home could be rented today Okay. All right. Thank you. Thanks very much. Thank you councillor Paul I have councillor roof then busher Tracy and pine and please make sure you keep those microphones pulled away in so we can really hear My question is really quick. I know that the Rh residential high density is not an area contemplated for the use of this this sort of use rather For those people who live in Rh areas who say wow, this might be a good solution for me Could you break down in simple terms why this doesn't work in those areas? That's a great question, and I actually want to say thank you to councillor roof for bringing this to our attention So presently in our zoning ordinance accessory dwelling units are permitted in a single-family home and as such in the zoning There's a Part of our zoning in the use table that says that accessory dwelling units are permitted in RL and RM zoning districts Basically, wherever a single-family home could be built today So our zoning has a loophole that's left out and considering existing single-family homes So that's an item that's actually on the list. That's discussed in the report About whether or not we want to make a change to that regulatory tool To allow them in pre-existing single-family homes where a new single-family home wouldn't be allowed today Thank You councillor roof councillor busher than councillor Tracy So, thank you. I always love when home share comes here because it's it meant so much to Me and trying to work through issues with my mom in Massachusetts, and we're so lucky to have it in Vermont And so I want to support any initiative that offers an opportunity for people to What to Utilize home share even though they're not in the home, but maybe living in in an accessory unit So the pilot seems really appropriate. Here comes the downside for me And people have touched on it So There was a planning director whose name was Mark Eldridge who talked about The vulnerability of neighborhoods around institutions around the colleges and universities and how this Wonderful tool could be turned against the community and so I'm just going to speak to this a little bit So an example is in my neighborhood a Parent of a college student will buy a house Okay, but we'll put it in the name of their college students So it's owner occupied and so when you build an accessory unit You now are able to expand the number of people living and I don't know how Number of unrelated living in a structure now because now you've got a secondary structure Would now spill out and really impact a neighborhood in a very negative way And so this is a concern that I have that I haven't been able to wrap my head around I don't know enough about how how you can protect neighborhoods from this But I think it's really one thing that is very concerning to me Brattleboro is a small community and I think it's really important to see how Communities that are Homes to colleges and universities how they have dealt with this and are their protection Mechanisms like people are talking about so we as a community can advance something. That's really positive for some But not have it turn against us and create a problem that we can't once it's out of Pandora's box You can't put it back in so I'm so I'm so conflicted right now With with the desire to move forward because I want this to happen for so many people in Burlington But I am really concerned about how this tool will be used in the wrong hands And so I just really wanted to share those concerns with all of you. So thank you The the specific question about how other communities with Universities or colleges in them is something that we can add to the research that we do before the report is brought to CDNR but President right, might just say I think that counselor Paul's point about enforcement and you know, how do we really manage this? You know, it is it's a good thing, but how do you manage it so that it doesn't become a bad thing? Thank you Thank You counselor Bush or counselor Tracy to be followed by pine Dean and Mason counselor Tracy Thank You president right and thank you for the presentation To sort of general categories that I've noticed of tiny houses or accessory units that I've been seeing pop up or the ones that sort of convert A barn or some carriage house or something in in an older home kind of situation That's kind of a fixed situation But then I've seen already in place ones that are on wheels and then I know of another another friend building one off-site Planning to bring one on wheels into Burlington and place it behind an existing home Is there a distinction that you're drawing between? The the ones that are in place and the lot coverage and some of the regulations of those that are Fixed and in place sort of on the foundation and ones that are on wheels And that could maybe get moved at a later date when that use no longer makes sense for the home or where the Owner wants wants to move it. Does that make sense? So are you seeing that? So that is a question that came up at the workshop And is something I think that we need to have more conversation about the Today the way that we look at whether it's on wheels or whether it's on a Detached structure that's got a permanent foundation either way. We would consider it at under the accessory dwelling Ordinance the one kind of caveat to that is whether or not it's on the property for a certain period of time So we have provisions in our ordinance about temporary uses and there are different requirements for it Whether it's there, you know, less than 30 days whether it's our 30 to 60 days or whether it's there more than 60 days So there it's considered in a different way depending on how long it actually occupies the property But I think that one of the related things that was in the housing action plan was looking at small unit types and considering The different nuances of what these unit types are and how our ordinances treat them So I would say some of those questions are kind of related to some of the other housing action plan issues as well Thank you. Thank you. Councillor Tracy. Councillor pine and then Dean Mason her net Thank you, mr. President. I'd like to know if the if there's a Paper a white paper or a study of some sort that I thought that Cedar was working on something And I wanted to know where that was because I didn't hear exactly when we might see that And if you either of you know if that exists if it's ready to come out and when we're gonna get our hands on So I yes, there is a white paper that Cedar has been developing That's something that planning and zoning has been collaborating with Cedar on the development of As far as when the timeline for that is I think that it's soon I think that it's a matter of just kind of getting things in the queue for CDNR So I'll let actually Neil and Ian follow up with you about the specific timing of when that might come to CDNR Okay, great. The fact that councillor busher mentioned that Mark Eldridge had concerns about this is an interesting one because Even though we have embraced the idea and our state legislature told all communities to make it an allowable use We really have done practically nothing in Burlington for the last 20 years on this particular issue. So I Don't think that's where we should be. I think we should be moving aggressively I think the idea of a pilot is a great one and addressing the concerns that councillors Have raised councillor Paul's concerns and councillor busher's concerns are legitimate I think they need to be addressed head-on and I think we can find a way to do both I really do. I believe this is a great part of our housing future and our solution to address the housing needs Thank You councillor pine councillor Dean Thank You president right just wanted to extend a very personal welcome to Kirby Dunn My mom was a member of the Homeshare Vermont board for many many years and I had the opportunity to be Attend quite a few events and it's been a great relationship I have a specific question about you mentioned in the example of Brattleboro that they had developed Some methods to actually encourage people to to take on and access your develop Unit development including you know information on property tax and design standards low-interest loans and loans and so forth Who administers those is that something that the city takes on or is there an independent? independent Organization that that offers that how does that get done? So there's a separate nonprofit that Does its work a lot through volunteers believe it or not? and They help people through this process, but it is supported by the city The grant funds and the low-interest loan money flow through the city and It is a smaller scale Place so I think it is a more doable project at a certain level In terms of you know the permitting and building process for sure a lot of the projects that they've done have been They call it apartments in homes. So most of these are not big additions or Big standalone units in the backyard. They are you know the attic the basement a Part of the a part of the home maybe above the garage Or instead of the garage But a lot of folks in Burlington have done a lot of that already you know a lot of people have turned their garages into living space and and You know especially in the smaller homes In the new north end in particular, but Yes, so so they've got an incredible volunteer group down there that has that has been running this and working with people And just to follow up. So are you seeing that to be similar what we should take on as a as a model as well? I think I think it's a harder process here So I think we'll be harder for volunteers to play as much of a role I would you know We are looking at possibly putting in some some funding for staffing in this grant request or something similar to that so that there is a One person that can help people through that through that process We're also looking at coming up with maybe some sample architectural plans couple standard plans that people could take off the shelf and modify for their particular need So just some real tools that people can use and some assistance. Thank you Thank You councillor Dean councillor Mason then I thank you president right Sort of picking up on councillor Dean's comments been on on the financial. I'm curious Where the policy change where it goes from here, you know, there appear to be a Number of potential incentives for us to consider in order to incentivize people to do these Is that going back to the Planning Commission who who's sort of owning taking that forward and I guess My second sort of question is, you know, if the state grant does not come through for whatever reason Where does this lie or what happens to these proposals? Sure, so I'll start with the report the white paper that the housing action plan directed that councillor pine asked about Is something that will include a number of recommendations for the city council and other boards to consider they span Regulatory tools education educational resources as well as financial or technical assistance tools Some of which can be done by the city others of which might be done through partner agencies So ultimately that will be up to the CDNR to evaluate and provide some direction to the city on which ones They would like us to pursue There are a number of them that do have to do with regulatory changes that the Planning Commission is anxious to have referred to them to discuss So that'll be something that they'll definitely take the leadership on and I think that this grant opportunity is something that Provided us sort of an extra boost of energy sort of early in the process To think about financial resources to assist with this that that was one of the major things that we identified in the research was Identifying some kind of funding source. So if that grant doesn't come through I think we'll be looking for other options as well Thank you, councillor Mason councillor Hartnett and then the mayor. Thank you I was just thinking about the enforcement enforcement piece of this and although it's a critical Peace in this whole thing. I over the eight years. I've been on the council I can't tell how many resolutions we pass where there was no enforcement and we passed in many ways And I know this is a little different when we talk about housings But I don't want enforcement to be the stop sign for this program, right? I mean we need to we need to move forward I think a lot of people don't maybe they do understand, you know, how much how important it is not only to maybe the senior That's living in that home, but actually the person that maybe might be sharing it. I Was involved personally as as you know and and so you have people that are Been abused domestic violence Individuals who don't feel safe in their home anymore have gone to home share and made a great partnership It's been amazing. You have people that lose their jobs and the difference of being on the street or home share is the difference Right and so when you put it in that perspective and you think about it, what a difference that this makes Yes, and force enforcement is important, but it can't stop us It just can't because we've been idle as councilor pine said for a long time on this program And it's helped so many individuals not only in this state, but in other states as well and I just think that we can figure out the enforcement piece and And the sooner we do that the better off So I I hope that you know, we see fast movement on this and I think it would be a huge benefit To everybody here in bro and tend to move forward on this. So thanks Thank you. Councillor Hartnett mayor Weinberger, and I think we're we're ready to conclude Thanks prisoner, right I want to thank Kirby and Megan for for bringing this forward and As well as the kind of parallel work that's been going on in CEDO, which is finally ripening this pursuing ADU's is something that has formerly been part of our housing action plan now since the council passed it back in 2014 I believe and you know, I'm among those that have been frustrated by the lack of Progress on this issue and that I do think it is one of the more significant ways that we can impact our affordable housing crisis and we Certainly the mayor's office always think of this as a as a hot crisis has been going on for a long time But that doesn't mean it is not something that is urgent and that we need to be Bringing every tool we can to address and this is a really significant tool that as the examples tonight Point out Has been you better utilized by other communities and has great potential to have a real impact on the creation of new homes I think it's really if you we talk a lot in This community about economy inequality and equity and this is really Make one of the most meaningful ways in which we can have an impact In local government on on equity. This is an equity issue with respect to Seniors who want to stay in this community. This is a real option for them to be able to stay despite Financial pressures in later years. This is we know that there are many many other types of households that struggle to Stay or get a place in this community and take advantage of the opportunities the economic opportunities that Burlington has This is a way to create substantial new homes for for them we And it's equity. I think this is important for us to think of it This is an equity issue in another sense, too And that we are a city that has done a lot for a long period of time to try to improve our affordable housing Situation and we know, you know through the work of that has been done over the last few years with respect to inclusionary zoning that That work has largely fallen to certain parts of the city not to the entire city and This is a way Really for the entire city. I think to share in that work and find a way for us to be become more Affordable broadly, so I will be strongly supporting this. I'm excited that this is moving to the point of Where we can start making on the ground change and look forward to the next steps in this Any other councilor who wants to speak on this? All right hearing none. Thank you very much Megan Kirby. We appreciate that presentation on this really important topic Thank you. I look forward to the next steps Item number 4.02 Is a report on residential parking management plan from Chapin Spencer Thank you, and I have with me John King from the Burlington Police Department as well. Good evening, Mr. King We understood thank you for having us tonight. We understood that you would like us to make this exceedingly brief. Yes So We were requested to come back after a resolution in May from Councillor Hartnett to Report back on the status of the proposed revisions to the residential parking permit parking program So to do that expeditiously we've put together a four-slide powerpoint and We will quickly highlight the proposed changes that will be considered by the DPW Commission on Wednesday night The eight administrative changes are listed here number one is Institute of Fee for residential permits The proposed amount is ten dollars per year per permit number two cap the number of permits per dwelling unit currently a Dwelling can have as many permits as there are cars that they have available We would like to cap this at four per Single family and three per unit on multi-unit parcels That's to help limit the oversubscription of parking on high-demand streets number three clarify the acceptable forms of documentation for Proving residency and John can answer any questions on that Number four creating transferable permits currently either you have a sticker on a car or a guest pass That has limited rights these transferable permits would carry the same rights as a full sticker number five Provide one voucher for avoiding a mistaken ticket the city spends significant amount of time processing tickets that neighbors have mistakenly received from helping a senior citizen in the house or taking groceries and all sudden getting a $75 ticket and then the city spends time working on those void requests creating contractor permits So that there is a simple and clear process as you're renovating your home for getting permits for your contractors seven clarify policies for businesses and fraternities in our PP areas and number eight disentangling the regulation around car share vehicles from the residential permit parking ordinance next Then we heard from the public we went out with these to the two and to the public works commission and a city-wide front porch forum post to get input and Here are key areas where we've received input and changes we have made First one and this was not in your packet. This is just recently been put together So that's why we really want to take the time to highlight this slide as the DPW commission will be deliberating on ordinance language that incorporates these five changes Number one remove the fee for permits that ten dollar per permit per year fee on RPP streets that accept some level of public parking So we got a request on street Bradley Street, which is just recently adopted our PP But allows four hours of public parking on that street. They said hey We're making a choice to allow some level of public access on the street. Could you? Incentivize that so we have reviewed that and have proposed language to do that We also got a request to allow two-year permits instead of one-year permits currently There are two-year permits and the request was to maintain that So we have proposed language to do so third There was a concern about reselling of permits, especially the transferable permits So we wanted to make explicitly clear that we are prohibiting such acts and that has been written into the proposed ordinance language or People said hey if I'm completely renovating my house. I may need more than four contractors for vehicles Can you increase that so we increased it to eight and the last one? We've got a request for Property owners who do not live on the parcel to be able to get a permit if they need to come by for maintenance or other activities and we have Revised the proposed ordinance to do that next Last slide is what we've done and where we're going Done these outreach efforts. We've gotten public comment and we're going to the Commission on Wednesday John anything to add Not at this time all of the recommended changes we support I think it will improve the administration of the program and provide more Ability for the residents to get their permits and participate in the program All right, we'll open up to the council council hurt net and busher Thanks. I Do have an issue with I know you mentioned Bradley Street and so we incentivize them to reduce the $10 permit fee But sounds like you know, it's almost like they're letting us Do us a favor on their street. It's a public street. I mean We should be able to do what we want with that straight I mean the fact that we're even giving them residential parking alone Which we've given out way too much in the city particularly way too much in the south end. All right In fact, I don't think there's any residential parking north of BHS If I'm correct, so you think about all the residential parking we have and where it's located, okay? It's it's located in the south end So I wouldn't be in favor of waiving any fees Because we're allowing four hours of public parking on streets, and I hope we're going to continue to do that Not just Bradley but with other streets that request it and I would hope that you know We would really kind of put a hold on residential parking only It's an elitist system that we have in this city For a lot of neighborhoods really except for Ward 1 in my opinion and I Would hope that we would I'm glad this report came back But I think it's kind of half done and I really want us to continue to work on a better program for residential parking and reducing some of it and even considering In some areas in the city where we would eliminate residential parking for the summer months from May 15th to August 15th Where we have it now right and so they would be public parking on all those streets during that time period Basically, we have residential parking largely because of the University of Vermont Let's you know in the medical center and I understand that But to me there would be no reason to have residential parking on Summit Street Between May and August between May June July and August. I mean to me that would be right. I mean that's something we should look at when we're we're giving these residents really You know top treatment here for private parking is what it boils down to right? I mean It really you know, I I want to go to an event at UVM on In July and I want to park on Summit Street and walk up I can't do that and I pay taxes in this city and it's a public street It's just not right. We've gone way too far with residential parking So and I know once you it's counter-bushard just said once you give him something It's hard to take it back and I understand that but we need to figure a better way to do this And so I hope that this is you know, just a piece of what we need to work on Down the road. Thanks. Thank you. Councillor Hartnett Councillor Busher and then Councillor Pine so I want to thank you for The list of meetings that you've attended and how you've tried to get this these changes out to the public I you know, it was important for me that you went to all the NPAs and that you did front porch forum and So that's good And I read through this and I thought it was a good update and good information I did speak to Chapin in advance of this meeting There are a couple of things that I thought I just wanted to highlight one is that if indeed you need a replacement Sticker you have to pay $75 and I just thought you know if someone was in an accident and the sticker And the bumper was destroyed. I'm not so sure they really should pay $75, but that's just my two cents on that One of the things that you from that I really glad that you're responsive to the people that gave feedback also But one of the things that I I think I have an issue with I love the fact that I could get a Two-year permit, but I think we run the risk of having people move around a lot in the city And so if you're if you're given a two-year permit you may not live Next year in the same spot, but you might have a sticker that allows you to park in a place that is Now already occupied by another vehicle that actually does live on that street But it might be at least in Ward 1 neither near the hospital or near the university, etc So I'm not sure that is such a great idea even though It's convenient and I would benefit from that convenience, but I do think it needs to be thought through a little more carefully I Didn't understand how small businesses in in a residential area How they'd function? How do they how do their customers if they don't have off-street parking actually? Function, where do they park? I wasn't clear on this communication So if someone could enlighten me that would be important and for anyone who is a small business owner in one of these areas I think it's important for them to know also. There's no half a dozen businesses Within the resident parking area To that quickly come to mind is the India house dare you in the campus kitchen And there's a couple attorney offices downtown They all have guest passes currently so that they have they're registered in the program if their Customers get tickets. They just collect them put them in an envelope and send them down to me and we void them for In the same process for their employees. I do check their zoning requirements And if they have more employees and zoning requirement for parking They also just send me the tickets and we void them for them That's good information because I just didn't want to harm them or impact their business And so I wasn't clear exactly what happened. So thank you very much appreciate it. Thank you councillor busher councillor pine Thank you, mr. President. I It's one of those things back in the day when I was a city councillor that I got a lot of feedback from constituents in the Neighborhood around George Street and Johnson Street, and I lived on Peru Street And I saw evidence of downtown workers who would come to our neighborhood in the morning park in our neighborhood and then Many people don't have driveways. So people in the neighborhood had nowhere to park And so all resident only parking neighborhoods are not created equal really they're really not the same So please don't confuse a neighborhood that you think is doing it to keep people out When the neighborhood that's doing it to really allow themselves the flexibility of being able to park in their neighborhood where they live So there is really an actual legitimate need for neighbors that surround our downtown are really constrained for parking Buildings that were maybe originally intended for single-family occupancy are no longer single-family There's not adequate parking on site and the idea behind residential parking in those neighborhoods I think is a really legitimate issue and I do hear the concern there are the or the need for this type of Program near the University in the hospital as well So I don't I don't want to I don't want us to get off track and say that this is a bad policy I think it needs to be controlled. It needs to be managed But I think there's a lot of folks in my ward who have no options other than to park on the street And when downtown workers fill up the street spaces they have nowhere to park anywhere near home And that's not right. Thank you. Thank you councillor pine Councillor Mason, thank you president right Question and then a comment the question relates to the non resident owner permit I'm assuming that's not a transferable. Is that a so is that tied to a vehicle and a license plate number? Otherwise my concern would be You just gave you know now. That's that six permit that can be transferred to anyone the When you come in to get a permit you would have your choice The vehicle sticker goes on the bumper of your car related to that car The license plate will be indicated on the sticker if you select the hanging permit Then yes, you the hanging permit is designed that you could use it today Your wife could use it tomorrow or a guest could use it and you share it I think the value of limiting the permits to four for a family or three to a Dwelling unit is going to control a lot of the abuse And excessive permits that are out there. I checked this morning and right now I have Seven dwelling units in the city with nine permits per dwelling unit My comment sort of which goes beyond a little bit of this relates to sort of some of the policy concerns You know, I've personally been on the wrong side of a seventy-five dollar ticket on Summit Street I had the privilege of attending sort of the grand reopening at the alumni house along with you know hundreds of others on a beautiful Saturday afternoon in the summer and I and many others were chagrin to sort of walk out Just you know a row of seventy-five dollar tickets, you know on a beautiful Saturday afternoon on the You know the widest street in town And it did make you sort of think this doesn't seem right, you know for those of us whether taxpayers or not it's a public street So those are the sort of areas where I do think we need to think is this right, you know And should we be doing that that's a topic for another day, but I felt compelled to sort of share my own personal story In light of some of the comments. Thank you Thank You councillor Mason any councillor Shannon Thank you, and thank you for working on this. It's a Very touchy subject as we all know And impossible to make everybody happy, but I think you have been very responsive to the constituent feedback that you've gotten I Am a little bit concerned about the issue that councillor Mason Mason just raised which is about The stickers versus the hang tags and the transferability of the hang tags Do we think that if you're if you're allowed for stickers per vehicle? Do we think that we need to have transferable hang tags doesn't that just lend itself to selling them Which is a thing. I mean we can make a rule that you can't sell them But if we don't have any ability to know whether that's a hang tag that was sold or a Hang tag that was issued to you because it's not connected to a license plate I'm wondering if it would be sufficient to allow the for stickers and then have In addition to that you get a guest pass which is a hang tag, right? And the guest passers being termed guest pass will be eliminated and the transferable pass will be available Janssen One of the examples I use is the family Where you have the husband with a car and a truck the wife with a car and two children with cars There's five vehicles, but you only can have four stickers. So that means one car Will never be allowed to park on the city street if you didn't have the transferable pass That you could have hanging inside the door and whoever's on the street grab it and go park That seems like in the in these areas that we are talking about that seems I Wonder if that's a real case. I think it's a real case in the suburbs for sure, but in these in these areas with Highly restrictive parking access. I wonder if it might be better to maybe limit the number of trans hang to hang tags to say even if you said three stickers and one hang tags So there's some transferability. I'm just offering that as a discussion. You can you can check that with the feedback that you've heard Rather than just mine, but you know what people in the community are telling you Because I am a little bit suspicious that that feature is being used by families And I think it opens us up to some abuse the the ordinance Does having it that each dwelling unit can only have two transferable passes So we are and two stickers only so for four permits to To have to be stickers you have to be stickers Okay, and you can have up to two transferable for that very reason that people were concerned on the advisory committee of having four transferables per unit that could move and to know each residential street is a different zone So you can't sell your transferable pass to someone on another street unless They're coming to park in your neighborhood and then that behavior Can be more easily identified so we can change this and revise it as we need to But this was what the advisory committee kind of came up with with the staff that was seemed a reasonable balance Yeah, that sounds good. Thank you Thank You councillor Shannon councillor Hartnett just a comma Councilor pines remarks any street that doesn't have jive ways obviously should have residential parking But that doesn't mean if it was a single family home once and now someone bought the place And he's running it to seven people or six people that we should provide all of them with parking spaces now And so I think the other the flip side of that is I know a lot of people that would love to come downtown But I can't afford the parking right and so they do try to find a space or two to walk downtown and come and shop and stuff and so I think we need to realize that now and I just think This overall needs to be rehauled and I would hope that we would entertain putting a committee together a person from each ward maybe and to relook at how we do residential parking And I think there's a better way to do it and I'm not saying what we do now is all wrong But I think there's a lot of room for improvement here And I think there's a lot of streets that we have residential parking on that don't warrant it Thank You councillor Hartnett councillor jang and then we are ready to move forward Thank you, and I think these are a couple of questions and the first one is That's your property value goes up if you have a street parking Next to your door on the street are there any ties between you understand the question? Yes, I think I do councillor jang We have not studied whether there is a correlation between Property values and whether or not there's residential parking on the street There are a number of factors related to availability of parking that do drive property values whether it's off-street parking on-street parking and proximity to other parking resources so The RPP does in high density high demand areas Provide a higher likelihood that a resident can find parking adjacent to their home So looks like this is a Report from a resolution that was introduced by councillor Harnett, right and I do remember If I remember correctly that that was a component like one of the question that came up if there is any correlation between street parking and property value and Here looks like it was not something that you studied Yes That is correct the motion the original resolution included a sentence asking for that work to get done that there was a Amendment to strike that from the resolution. I was just checking the minutes from the meeting They're deleted lines 27 through 30 to through 29. It was unanimous and the motion carried So that work was not kind of directed to be done by the council and was not done Thank You councillor no councillor jane continue Yeah, so what I want to get down I think I'm okay. Thank you Thank You councillor jane councillor no Dell. I'm sorry president right I will be as brief as possible first I wanted to say we did not see John King very frequently and we really it's good to have you here with us tonight Thank you, and thank you for all your work for the city over the years What's that commander excuse me excuse me commander King Get with the program no Dell yeah, so I wanted to reflect on councillor jane's comments Which is which is I do think that in the area of parking we're making a lot of changes that impact people's access to parking enhancing it in some cases so and and reducing it in others and These changes in policy don't have anything to do with what you gentlemen are working on But they they do get I think they should be taken into account in in assessment in our assessment And if the city makes decisions that are to have an adverse effect on people's property values I think we need to look at that in our assessment project process. That's just a very large global comment, but There there are some inequities that get that get created and I think if we it's our way of saying we we're gonna We're gonna pick we're gonna equitably allocate the cost of the policies that we adopt Thank you councillor no Dell any other councillor Hearing none. Thank you for the presentation. What when will we hear about this again? So this is going to the DPW Commission this Wednesday where they will vote on this and then it will take Approximately a month for the ordinance to get published if approved and then We have talked about sometime earlier in the new year these changes going into effect, right? Thank you another quick comment shape and mention counterfeiting the permits We are you're familiar with the motor vehicle sticker you have on your car from inspection The permits will have that type of material built into them so they can't be counterfeited Right great. Thank you, mr. King and mr. Spencer Item number four point oh three has been removed and will reappear at a later date So we'll move on to the next item four point oh four City council had work sessions earlier this evening on three important items potential charter changes Which were the business personal property tax permit reform and the downtown improvement district we are have Potentially some very big and exciting charter changes before the voters and the first one before us tonight is 4.04 and it's the business personal property tax both in the Work session and then at the board of finance and so I will recognize councillor nodell on that Thank You president right I moved to refer the proposed part of charter changes Phasing out the business personal property tax to the charter change committee to review the language Consider the comments made in the council's work session held on November 26th and the comments made in the board of finance meeting of November 26th and Report back to the council with recommended charter change language at its December 17th meeting after second I'll Second by councillor Hartnett councillor nodell. Thank you president right. I Slightly changed the language in the motion To add that we want the charter change to also consider comments made in the in the board of finance And I will wait and let councillor Paul address that Since they refer to some ideas that she brought to us But this is just to be brief. This is about Taking this business personal property tax, which is a very confusing name for a tax But it is the tax on machinery and equipment and it it raises about a million dollars a year We're one of the few communities in our area that imposes this tax and very arguably has an adverse effect on Business viability and attracting businesses into the city of Burlington and we want businesses paying good paying jobs in the city of Burlington so this would Create a true exemption at forty five thousand dollars Which does not currently exist that is exist it doesn't exist universally and it would make it a universal exemption and it secondly Establishes a deadline for eliminating the tax altogether, but does it in such a way that the there will not be an a Too much difficulty in absorbing the lost revenue in terms of our annual operating budgets So I want to acknowledge the great leadership that our president has shown on this issue other councillors have as well And I would just this was a this was a resolution that we unanimously Adopted in January of 2018 and here we are in the same year actually taking action So I think it's it's really wonderful. Thank you. Thank you councillor. No doubt councillor Paul Thank you, so thank thank you to councillor Nodell for adding that language we did have a very productive conversation about the about this at the board of finance and You know one of the things that I think we all are aware of is that there are a number of businesses Who have left the city because of this tax There are other businesses that have moved their Machinery to the best of their ability outside the city limits so that they don't have to pay this tax and you know over time that does have an impact on on jobs and on Revenue coming into the city Not this revenue, but other revenue and so what I had suggested was that Well, I didn't want to go and change the Charter change I Was hopeful that We might be able to work actively towards eliminating the the tax instead of an FY 26 Hopefully in a shorter period of time perhaps by FY 20 24 the information that we have on the Proposal for the elimination of the tax says that the and what would be referred to Charter change would be it says at the very bottom the tax on the business personal property Would be eliminated effective July 1 2026 and councillor Nodell after what I had said Suggested that perhaps we be we say that it would be it should be eliminated no later than On July 1 of 2026, so that information will go I'm sorry. I thought somebody said something on that that information would go to the city attorney who acknowledged it There probably is a little bit more that needs to be done with that But would certainly be a part of the conversation At Charter change so whatever we can do I think to eliminate it the sooner the better it is a lot of money And I would also as well like to acknowledge that the You know the 45,000 that we we did We did come up with it a couple of years ago We went from 25 to 35 to 45 and the reason we went to 45 was because of President right so there were a lot of people who benefited from that and hopefully a lot more will in the years to come Thank you. Thank you councillor Paul Any other councillor councillor pine Just real briefly for members of the public It may appear that we're this is a corporate giveaway. That's what people might say is why are they giving Taxes back to companies in Burlington the problem with this tax is it really taxes the wrong thing it taxes Investments it just discourages companies from investing in and growing their businesses here. It doesn't actually tax their profits It doesn't tax their wealth. It does it's not based on ability to pay. It just is a tax that's applied To businesses because they own equipment. It's a it's kind of a bizarre concept I think it goes back to the day because Burlington and Winooski were were big mill towns at one point that mills Maybe had these huge, you know pieces of equipment and just made sense to do it that way So it's incredibly antiquated and I just want folks to know Don't worry. This isn't some big, you know corporate giveaway here This will benefit the smallest businesses that are trying to make a living and provide decent family jobs So I just want folks to know about that. Thank you councillor pine councillor shannon Thank You president right I wanted to thank our CAO bet the Anderson who really has done the heavy lifting on On this and has brought this back to us in a timely manner and really thoughtful And it's not easy to figure out how to eliminate taxes But the proposal That we have before us is an excellent proposal for all of the reasons that councillor pine just stated I just wanted some clarification that when the statement is made the charter change committee should consider The comments at the board of finance since I wasn't at the board of finance Those are the comments that councillor Paul just summarized and then that's the full extent of it. That's correct. Okay. Thank you Which is basically Potentially, you know do it no later than 2026 and earlier if possible Counselor jang Yeah, I Think I want to thank you for bringing this resolution here in front of us Yeah, president Genadel and many others who crafted it and brought it here in front of us for us to have discussion and then put it But Beth again, I think reading your memo was just incredible I think you have done an incredible Wonderful job and I want to thank you for that But at the same time, I do feel like we need to find a better mechanism Maybe, you know, I think it is important. We want businesses the smaller. They are we want them to thrive We want them to succeed here in this community, but at the same time if we eliminate this cup This tax in 2020 2016 There might be some gap in terms of funding for the city I mean for the business is to understand it and also the community to understand it there might be We are hopeful that there will be all the revenues that will be coming such as a tip and and and all of that Me personally, I do think that we The charter chains we need to explore all the mechanism as well And I think one of them was at least for those businesses in the beginning to not be taxed At all to not be taxed at all But maybe down the road maybe in five ten years and they can start being taxed on the value of their Properties on that but eliminating it to me It is just that the taxpayers the homeowners will Work hard to pay the the difference, you know That's based on my understanding based on I read and I look forward to follow this specific issue until It come back to us for voting. Thank you. Councillor Jane. Councillor busher So, thank you. So one of the things that I did address at the board of finance Was the fact that had the administration thought of Any other way besides increasing the municipal tax rate To bridge this financial gap had they thought of any other way so that there wouldn't be that shift small that it may be to the the taxpayer and That discussion is still being contemplated and will continue But I think all of us understand the value of eliminating this and wanting to move forward and understand that that Short-term cost shifting that we want to mitigate as best we can so That's part of the equation not part of the Motion, but part of the equation that will be looked at. Thank you. Thank you councillor busher. Mr. Mayor President right. Thank you The way The motion got written up for the board oxenite called for this the charter change Committee to finish its work and refer this back for the December 17th meeting There's a lot of moving parts with these three charter changes the way that the we had proposed and Trying to kind of get through everything that needs to is that the referral back actually be for December 10th so that This of the three charter changes would be ready for action at the December 10th meeting, so just wanted to Raise that for consideration. I believe the Charter Change Committee is set up and to have two meetings between now and the 10th and be able to do that So just want to raise that I guess on substance to I do support this for reasons stated earlier won't Thank You mr. Mayor Councilor Nodell president right what would be the mechanism for changing the date to the December 7 December 10th of report back Do you want to go through an amendment process? I think that we can can we just substitute the date I Think we could just I'd like to substitute the report back date to December 10th Okay, okay, so we're we're substituting the date to be So moved and seconded yes, and all those in favor of that technical amendment say aye Opposed okay, so it's December 10th, but I would like to also me. Yes continue So on this issue of of shifting taxes to the homeowners When you have a tax like this can actually shrink the tax base And I would argue that there's a tax shift going on right now I think a case could easily be made that there's been an ongoing tax shift To homeowners as businesses have left the city of Burlington have decided to move their equipment other places So I think in the long run this will build the commercial and business tax base Which is so important to every home or in the city of Burlington Should be interested in having a strong and vital commercial tax base And that's also very much linked to the downtown improvement district and many other things that we are working on right now So so I I just wanted to kind of respond to this argument that doing this will shift taxes on to homeowners I do not think so. I think it will stop a cost shift that has been going on for quite a while Thank You councillor Nodal Councillor Hartnett. Yeah to my point exactly I'll even make the case that I think you know that it will pay for itself That it won't even come to that point where we're going to the residents for a tax increase that they'll this will free up a lot of their resources and Finances to improve their businesses that that will include that will increase their businesses for gross seas Sales retax seats and we'll see this before any increase to the taxpayers. There's no question Thank You councillor Hartnett. I think we should be ready for a vote So the vote is to send this to the Charter Change Committee to come back to us by December 10th considering the The Comments from the Board of Finance all those in favor, please say aye Any opposed that passes unanimously and we have moved the business personal property tax onto the Charter Change Committee to Come back to us on December 10th The next item is permit reform Who is going to put permit reform on the table for us Councillor Shannon, I am confused because that's not Was that added there's gender permit reform is on the is on the agenda to be potentially Move to the Charter Change Committee. Okay, sorry Mr. President point of order but of order councillor Pine we get like a five-minute recess on this what to do next yes We're in recess for five and we'll be back in it will be five minutes What city councillors, please take their seats? City councillors, please take their seats and we are going to Reconvene the city council meeting back They're still not listening All right, we're reconvening the city council meeting at 925 back from the Recess as we said in five minutes and I will look to councillor Shannon for a motion I Move to refer the proposed charter changes implementing the organizational changes of the administration's permit reform project To the Charter Change Committee to review the language but withholding consideration of the merger of the planning department with CEDO and Consider the comments made in the council's workshop session held on November 26 and report back to the council with recommended Charter Change language at its December 17th meeting with the expectation that the Proposal regarding the planning department and CEDO will be forthcoming Thank You councillor Shannon second by second by councillor Nodell So then just to be clear this will go to the Charter Change Committee for the year meeting on the 29th and It will be now just to discuss the merger or Consolidation of the three departments that's proposed right now of zoning building and code and the further part of this reform proposal will be The mayor may call a special meeting for that on December 3rd We'll have a board of finance meeting on the downtown improvement district starting at 530 That everyone is invited to And councillor Shannon just to clarify that our meeting won't only have that but also the business Property tax. Yes. You got a lot of work Put information councillor Nodell should the report back be December 10th as with the other one or not No, not. Okay discussion by the city council anybody any city councillor Hearing none all those in favor, please say aye. I may opposed and We have unanimously moved that part of this proposal to the Charter Change Committee and the mayor May call a special meeting to deal with the other part of this reform proposal Thank you, we will move ahead now to committee reports Committee chair that would like to report activity to the city council council art now. Thank you Just want to let everyone know that the pack me the pack committee will be meeting here in Contoy's on December 6 At 6 o'clock one item on the agenda, and that's the auditorium And so we will be taking public input. It will be kind of a town hall meeting I'm kind of jealous of these cards when I saw these today I'm in hopes maybe we could get something in the mail to the public about the town hall meeting On the 6 here at 6 o'clock. It will be the only agenda on the pack You know probably I we haven't I think it's 6 to 7 30. I hope for a big turnout It's December 6 from 6 to 7 30 And I'm hope I'm hopeful we'll get a big turnout and I think people are pretty pretty passionate about this issue in Brownington and it's really the future of the auditorium. That's that stake. So I hope you will all come. Thanks Thank You counsel hardnet other committee chairs counsel Shannon the charter change committee will be meeting to discuss the business personal property tax elimination and The permit reform issue on November 29th. So that's this Thursday at looked it up I think it's six o'clock in conference room 17 All right, it's six o'clock Thursday conference room 17. I'm gonna come from the time. All right. If you find that it's different I'll recognize you again. So we five o'clock. It's five o'clock. Okay, five o'clock not six o'clock. All right other committee chairs Hearing none we will move on to city counselors on general city affairs councillor, Nodell Thank You president right. I wanted to bring to the public's attention two community meetings this week The first is on Thursday November 29th, it's a town hall meeting about the idea of creating a downtown improvement district It'll be held at 5 30 in the Burlington City Arts space in the second floor and We're really especially hoping to hear from people who live in and around downtown Because we just really this impacts them It would be a benefit to people living downtown and we need their advice on how the city should move forward with this option This is a will be we expect a charter change for March But we're holding and we counsel and have some decisions to make but we wanted to hear from the public before we made those decisions and so Please come out this Thursday 5 30 and learn about the downtown improvement district and offer your advice The second meeting is an old North End meeting about public safety on Wednesday of this week Which is the 28th? We're meeting at the old North End Arts Center 5 30 in response to residents concerns about recent gun violence on the street On North Shemplain Street, and there's actually been two recent incidents and deputy chief right will be there So that will be at the old North End Arts Center at 5 30 this Wednesday the 28th and we will get information about the status of those cases and Advice on you know, what what do we do about gun violence in our neighborhood? Thank you Thank You councillor no doubt councillor Hartnett Thank you. I just wanted to give a couple updates on some resolutions Obviously the one that was on the agenda tonight that was pulled Given the load of the charter change committee and the timing of this I just thought it was better that we we pull this. It's not time-sensitive and we can Bring this back in the future. So people wanted to know why it was pulled I wanted to give an explanation of why why I did so Second there's a resolution will be coming to you on the 10th councillor Deng and I have been working on it And it's in regards to NPA NPAs and enhancing NPAs and so you'll see that in your packets Before the following next meeting take a look if you have any questions contact the councillor Deng or myself and The third thing I want to talk about is we had a kickoff I think last week for two week we can have to go for highlight first night here in Burlington and we thought we we had some Funding pieces to that here tonight, but my concern is people think we don't have first night this year Right and it's going to happen and it's a great program and there's been a lot of time and effort and resources spent So anything the council can do to talk this up and to get it out there The bracelets are already on sale They're pink bracelets this year. They're here Adam Ruth got one on right there That's you know ten bucks for an adult five for children. There's also going to be An opportunity to you know have scholarships for families, so it's very affordable It's going to be a great night And I hope that we can start kind of building some momentum and start talking about this great night here Couple quick things bomb fire brand new event this year bomb fire down at waterfront It's going to be great and the fireworks are going to be a eight It's going to be a great event and so I just really want to start bringing attention to people. All right. Thanks Thank You councillor Hartnett any other councillor on general city affairs hearing not councillor Jane Yes, I forget last time to talk about this at our last meeting, but I wanted to take the time to really appreciate and Let Burlingtonians know that I'm very humble for all the votes that you gave me as Justice of the peace. Thank you very much. It touched my heart really. Thank you. Thank you councillor Jane any other city councillor Hearing none Next item is update from council president. I don't really have any updates. I do want to thank Every city councillor for their diligent work on these charter changes. I mean, this is a very ambitious timeline for us three very important Charter changes and we're trying to get a lot done here. So and also appreciate the work of the Charter Chains Committee upcoming in the next couple of weeks and lastly, this is not really an update But so council just have to indulge me for just two seconds But I was told my councillor busher recently that councillor Hartnett had stopped by to talk to her about something And she was out raking the leaves and he held the bag for her as she's raked up the leaves And so I was driving down her street and she was shoveling snow So I just want to say I won up to councillor Hartnett. I got out and shoveled her car out That's my update All right with that Thank you for that indulgence We will go to mayor Weinberger To wrap us up and although we do have an executive session for a brief update Mr. Mayor, thank you president right now. That's a difficult update to to follow here I have to or an easy one make more trips down East Avenue If you can update mine if you can top mine I want to hear what it is Let me echo Your thanks to the council for the Work we've gotten done tonight starting with a unusual beginning of the meeting as early as 4 30 this afternoon and Appreciative and I know the staff that Work to get these three charter changes to this point are appreciative that we have found a way to to advance You know significantly advance that work and look forward to the additional hard work together in the weeks ahead Just Someone along the same lines that council Hartnett pointed out we need people to understand that they're say highlight opportunity As council Hartnett noted coming on December 31st that there the Burlington is open for the community to come out And celebrate New Year's just as we have been for for many years in the past The same is true for the holiday shopping season Burlington businesses are very much open for For this important time of year for all of our retailers. We celebrated successfully small business Saturday this this past weekend I was out with my family saw a ton of people out as well And we hope that continues all the way through this season The concern out there that there might not be sufficient parking this year We're happy to report that that at the busiest times over the last week There have always been hundreds of available spaces within three blocks of Church Street So I think it's important that we get the message out on that as well that that just as in past holiday seasons The city downtown it is a place you can park if you need to come to downtown by car To do your shop. There is also as was announced last week a Promotion to make parking more affordable and you can get information on that At in a variety of places including the city's website president right, I'll leave it at that tonight and Look forward to seeing the council again in a couple weeks. Thank you, mr. Mayor, although maybe next week, right? Yes, there will we will we will be in touch quickly about the details of a special meeting for next week Yes, thank you. Thank you So item number 8.0 2 is an update I understand a brief update an executive session on Contract negotiations. Yes a brief. Yes a brief update and I'd like to get provide you legal advice and Update you on matters premature disclosure of which would put the city at a disadvantage Okay, and who will need to be staying on this The mayor's office staff and the CAO. All right. I will Is that it I recognize councillor mason. Thank you president right. I'd like to make a motion for a finding consistent with city attorneys statement Okay, is there second second by councillor nodell Any discussion hearing none all those in favor of the finding please say aye. We're voting actually in the corner over there I Hate to break that up Any opposed Okay, we have the finding councillor mason based on the finding. I'd like to make a motion that we go into executive session Councilor mason has moved to go into executive session councillor jane has seconded it all those in favor please say aye The opposed we will move into executive session and there's no action needed correct Okay, so I think it's gonna be brief channel 17. Do you mind waiting for hopefully we'll be out quickly


The objective of this study was to assess the effects of virtual reality balance training on chronic stroke patients who had a history of reduced global strength, reduced anticipatory balance, and a history of falling. Thirty participants were recruited through purpose of sampling and randomly assigned to either an experimental group, exergaming group, EGG, or a control group, traditional training group, TBT. Participants were assessed for their physical abilities prior to the start of the interventions using the Berg balance scale, BBS, and the timed up and go test, TUG. Afterwards, they underwent six weeks of either EGG or TBT. At the end of the intervention period, all participants were reassessed using the same tests. Results showed that both groups improved significantly in terms of BBS scores, but only the EGG group showed significant improvement in TUG scores. This suggests that virtual reality balance training may be beneficial for improving balance and reducing falls in chronic stroke patients. This article was authored by Memawona Oslam, Kratolain, Pashminafayas, and others. We are article.tv, links in the description below.