1
00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:12,000
uh the diversion. Okay. I'm Miranda
Porch and this is the special select

2
00:00:06,160 --> 00:00:17,279
board meeting of Guilford. Uh it's 9:30
and I'm officially opening the meeting

3
00:00:15,759 --> 00:00:19,039
and uh Chip.
>> Yes.

4
00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:24,400
» How about the rules of
>> Absolutely. Vermont's open meeting law

5
00:00:21,119 --> 00:00:28,640
1BSA 312H requires that the public be
given a reasonable opportunity to

6
00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:32,480
express opinions on matters considered
by the board provided order is

7
00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:36,559
maintained under reasonable rules set by
the chair. The select board invites

8
00:00:34,559 --> 00:00:41,040
public comment on each agenda item and
approach designed to support public

9
00:00:38,719 --> 00:00:45,440
engagement. Meaningful participation in
the board's decision-making process

10
00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:48,719
process to help keep the meeting on
track. Time limits will be applied.

11
00:00:47,039 --> 00:00:51,600
comment should remain focused on the
agenda item being discussed.

12
00:00:51,200 --> 00:00:55,760
» Thank you,
>> Chair.

13
00:00:52,800 --> 00:01:06,640
Okay. So for new business, we have the
municipal planning grant and I wanted to

14
00:01:00,879 --> 00:01:12,799
uh ask the select board for a motion to
allow Jenny Lavoy, the administrative

15
00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:19,040
service manager for the community
planning and development community

16
00:01:15,920 --> 00:01:23,920
planning and revitalization
department for the department of housing

17
00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:32,400
and community development.
to make a statement for our um for our

18
00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:34,320
meeting. So, I move that we do so. Is
there a second?

19
00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:41,600
» I'll second it.
>> Any conversation about it?

20
00:01:37,280 --> 00:01:47,840
» Okay. All in favor indicate by saying I
>> I uh abstaining opposed.

21
00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:49,920
» You're abstaining from having her speak.
>> Yeah.

22
00:01:48,399 --> 00:01:51,600
» Oh, okay.
>> Okay.

23
00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:57,640
» Okay.
Ask Jenny to unmute.

24
00:01:54,640 --> 00:01:57,640
Um

25
00:02:01,280 --> 00:02:08,360
» Jenny, did that work? Can you hear me?
>> Yes.

26
00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:08,360
» Great.

27
00:02:08,959 --> 00:02:14,480
» Good morning. My name is Jenny Lavoy.
Thank you for allowing me the

28
00:02:12,160 --> 00:02:17,840
opportunity to speak today. I am the
administrative services manager as

29
00:02:16,239 --> 00:02:21,280
stated with the community planning and
revitalization team within the

30
00:02:19,840 --> 00:02:25,040
department of housing and community
development

31
00:02:23,280 --> 00:02:28,720
and the administrator of the municipal
planning grant program for 10 years.

32
00:02:27,200 --> 00:02:32,720
This program is exceptionally
competitive and we consistently receive

33
00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:37,760
more applications than we can award each
grant round. For context of our program,

34
00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:42,160
municipal planning grant funds are
regionally aortioned based on the number

35
00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:46,959
of communities within regional planning
commission confirmed municipal plans.

36
00:02:44,959 --> 00:02:51,920
Communities in the Windham region
compete against each other for these

37
00:02:48,640 --> 00:02:55,760
funds. In fiscal year 26, the Windham
region submitted eight applications. Due

38
00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:59,920
to the high quality of these
applications, our department pulled in

39
00:02:57,680 --> 00:03:04,959
additional funds to fund five out of
these eight applications. The Guilford

40
00:03:02,720 --> 00:03:09,440
application essentially tied for first
place with only a 0.5 difference in

41
00:03:07,920 --> 00:03:12,959
scoring between the top two
applications.

42
00:03:10,959 --> 00:03:17,840
Reviewers specifically commented on
Guilford developing their first bylaw,

43
00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:22,159
the extensive public outreach proposed,
and the fact that Guilford was utilizing

44
00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:26,879
our program's brand new no required
match by the town for developing their

45
00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:30,959
first bylaw. Our department was excited
at the opportunity to showcase this

46
00:03:28,879 --> 00:03:36,159
project and award as a potential model
for other communities.

47
00:03:33,519 --> 00:03:39,440
Unfortunately, due to recent events, we
no longer have confidence that this

48
00:03:37,680 --> 00:03:44,000
grant award will lead to a successful
outcome and would be a good use of

49
00:03:41,360 --> 00:03:48,000
taxpayer funds. For these reasons, the
department is rescending this grant

50
00:03:45,599 --> 00:03:51,680
award. We do welcome the town to apply
in a future grant round once consensus

51
00:03:50,319 --> 00:03:57,439
has been reached on the best path
forward for Guilford. Thank you.

52
00:03:55,120 --> 00:04:05,840
Thank you, Jenny, for taking the time
and for your careful consideration of

53
00:04:00,720 --> 00:04:13,360
the grant. Okay, so select board members
and um the grant is basically no longer

54
00:04:11,760 --> 00:04:19,840
available
to us. And

55
00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:27,120
I personally
wanted to thank everybody for their

56
00:04:23,360 --> 00:04:33,680
engagement in this whole process. I
mean, we're volunteers.

57
00:04:29,840 --> 00:04:39,840
We do the best we can. We make mistakes
and we

58
00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:47,040
uh we come together for the benefit of
the town that all of us love, no matter

59
00:04:42,639 --> 00:04:54,240
what our point of view is. My hope is
that the energy that people expended on

60
00:04:51,759 --> 00:05:00,400
considering their position with this
grant will lead to continuing

61
00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:08,000
uh public engagement and what kind of
future we want to see for our town

62
00:05:05,040 --> 00:05:15,680
because change happens. changes coming
from all over from our aging population

63
00:05:12,080 --> 00:05:26,400
from mandates from the state and from
our own vision for what we want here. So

64
00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:31,039
with that, you know, I will call for
adjournment.

65
00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:35,680
Uh I move that this meeting adjourn.
some second.

66
00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:40,960
» Well,
>> you should let the public speak to to

67
00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:44,639
express our opinions on You just said
it.

68
00:05:41,840 --> 00:05:47,840
» This was my motion, so I get to talk
about it. I think

69
00:05:46,560 --> 00:05:51,039
» this and doesn't it have to be
withdrawn? The motion that I originally

70
00:05:49,919 --> 00:05:53,360
made,
>> the grant has been rescended.

71
00:05:52,960 --> 00:05:59,280
» Okay.
>> So, there's no grant for Guilford to

72
00:05:55,919 --> 00:06:07,440
talk about. And I truly welcome Guilford
to talk about about their feelings, our

73
00:06:03,919 --> 00:06:14,319
feelings about land use planning or
zoning or whatever else we want to call

74
00:06:10,160 --> 00:06:20,080
it. Uh or alternative ways to look at
the affordability and the vitality of

75
00:06:17,280 --> 00:06:24,800
our town. But there's no grant
>> that's on the table anymore.

76
00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:30,639
» Okay. I would still like an opportunity
to speak about it. Well, where was he?

77
00:06:28,240 --> 00:06:35,039
» Um, can we give Janette?
>> So, I'm not sure. Well, if it's on the

78
00:06:32,960 --> 00:06:40,000
agenda, if it's [clears throat] it's not
on the agenda, I just I mean, I don't

79
00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:44,800
know if we're going to be pillaried for
talking about

80
00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:49,680
the thing was to consider the grant, not
to consider the issue that the grant was

81
00:06:46,720 --> 00:06:53,840
talking about. So, we might get in
trouble. I don't know.

82
00:06:51,840 --> 00:06:57,680
» You could talk about the grant. That's
what the meeting is about for future.

83
00:06:55,840 --> 00:07:04,400
There is no grant.
>> There's no

84
00:07:00,639 --> 00:07:08,880
» The word is open-ended as in future.
>> And you're talking about sustainability

85
00:07:06,479 --> 00:07:12,479
you just mentioned in the aging
population. Do you know why there's an

86
00:07:10,479 --> 00:07:16,960
aging population? Because your tax base
is increasingly

87
00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:24,160
unobtainable.
Um, I think that it will be wonderful

88
00:07:20,319 --> 00:07:28,160
for people to come together and discuss
all of these issues,

89
00:07:26,639 --> 00:07:32,000
» but this is not the
>> issue. It's called reality,

90
00:07:31,039 --> 00:07:36,400
» transparency.
>> May I speak? I've actually raised my

91
00:07:33,680 --> 00:07:38,720
hand and I follow.
>> Um,

92
00:07:37,039 --> 00:07:43,440
» please say your name before you speak
because I don't know.

93
00:07:39,759 --> 00:07:49,599
» Janet Tokar's Ashford. Um
I'm really excited to see this number of

94
00:07:47,120 --> 00:07:55,840
people thinking about the issue of
landbased food. Um

95
00:07:53,039 --> 00:08:02,080
land commission meetings are warned and
open to the public and I want to invite

96
00:08:00,080 --> 00:08:08,319
people to use the planning commission
meetings as a forum to have these

97
00:08:04,240 --> 00:08:11,759
ongoing discussions that we have the
grant has been rescended. that means

98
00:08:10,240 --> 00:08:16,319
that we don't have the funding, but that
doesn't mean we don't have the energy

99
00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:22,800
and commitment and desire to continue
this discussion. So, um my email address

100
00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:27,120
is available. Um I'm happy to stay after
this meeting to have preliminary

101
00:08:24,639 --> 00:08:33,039
conversations. So, I think we want and
need to have this conversation. Um this

102
00:08:31,199 --> 00:08:37,919
to your point, this heading is not that
forum, but we want to make other forums

103
00:08:35,919 --> 00:08:44,880
available to continue to have that
conversation. Thank you, Janette.

104
00:08:42,000 --> 00:08:48,880
Okay. Well,
uh, I move that we adjourn this meeting.

105
00:08:47,680 --> 00:08:53,680
Is there a second?
>> We did.

106
00:08:49,920 --> 00:09:03,760
» Oh, we did. Okay. I guess my nerves got
ahead of me. Okay. So, um, I will pull

107
00:08:59,440 --> 00:09:07,440
the uh, select board members. Um, Chip,
how do you vote? I adjourning the

108
00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:09,040
meeting. Mike
>> I

109
00:09:08,399 --> 00:09:10,800
» Tara
>> no

110
00:09:10,240 --> 00:09:14,000
» Sha
>> I

111
00:09:11,519 --> 00:09:16,320
» and Miranda says I so this meeting is
adjourned.