LONDONDERRY, Vt. – At the March 17 meeting, Londonderry Selectboard member James Ameden gave a report on exit interviews, which were held recently after multiple resignations from public bodies.
Common themes or factors consisted of the relationship between the selectboard and committees and commissions, the impact on the town and selectboard operations with a history of money and grants not being fully utilized, management of information in the public sphere, and overall meeting management.
Ameden reported that the goals moving forward as a town include to represent every perspective; foster unity; drive towards solutions for town issues; provide support and outreach to town committees; acknowledge differences; have the selectboard, committees and commissions, and the public behave with respect towards each other; encourage a civilized process when conducting town business, and seek trust and transparency in transactions; enhance communications among and between town bodies; and enhance public access to town information through an updated town website.
The selectboard plans to have monthly representation and reports from each committee and commission, as well as hold each committee and commission to open meeting laws so that the public is aware when and where meetings will be held, along with properly posted meeting minutes.
“At the end of this, I found as a board we need to do better representing and becoming accountable for ourselves,” Ameden expressed, emphasizing that the board needs to be able to properly lead and represent the town. “We are going to work at holding each other accountable, communicating with each other, and speaking up and voicing our opinions,” Ameden said, adding that they will expect the same from all of the town’s committees.
Board member Taylor Prouty agreed with many of the points made. “This process has caused the board to think about a broader look at what the town as a whole is doing and how information passes” between committees and the board. Prouty continued, “It exposed a need for us to support each other as selectboard members, and acknowledge differences, and respectfully have our own positions…the differences are the good balance of representation that is needed in a fair process.”
Board member Martha Dale said, “I would thank the public for being willing to share their thoughts about what was working well and wasn’t working well for them.” Dale expressed sincerity in taking the interviews and conversations seriously in order to identify specific things the board should do better. “We’re here as your representatives, and we want you to see how we’re making decisions based on information we’re getting from you.”
A resident thanked the board for conducting the interviews. She acknowledged that a lot of professional people, with years of experience, who dedicated their time, had resigned, adding that if there is a common theme, she hopes that impacts how the board’s leadership is formed and how everyone models their behavior in the future.
An update was then provided from the village wastewater committee, who said that the proposed wastewater ordinance was 95% complete. The selectboard confirmed receipt of the drafted document and will submit it to the town’s attorney for review, in order to keep the wastewater project moving forward. The committee’s goal is to have all interested property owners committed to the system, and to have the design plans finalized by summer. They noted that the selectboard will have discretion to allocate capacity to property owners based on need, or a first-come, first-served basis.
The board then elected Tom Cavanagh as chair and James Ameden as vice chair.
A change order for the town office renovation project was approved for $5,175 to upgrade the septic system fixtures, and an additional $13,750 for proper vault filing shelving systems.
The Londonderry Selectboard will continue to meet the first and third Mondays, at 6 p.m., at the town hall, until the town office renovation is complete.