SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – At the Springfield Selectboard meeting on March 13, VTrans Scoping Engineer Laura Stone gave a presentation on the proposed culvert replacement project, which plans to replace a section of a 4-foot-wide by 3-foot-high corrugated steel pipe arch culvert on Route 106 with a new 8-foot-wide by 6-foot-high precast concrete box culvert. The culvert is owned by the State of Vermont, and the project will be 80% federally funded and 20% state funded. Stone mentioned the surrounding area is considered a wildlife habitat, and the culvert is a very important structure from a fishery standpoint. Baltimore Brook is a direct tributary to the Black River and adds quality cold-water habitat for several important fish species. Constructed in 1958, the current culvert is below industry standards, and in disrepair.
Stone explained that they planned to complete the project in two phases of construction, maintaining two-way traffic over the bridge throughout.
Springfield Town Manager Jeff Mobus reported that the town had received eight bids, and with an estimate of $189,250, Neil H. Daniels was awarded the project. Mobus mentioned that the cost of the project would primarily be covered under a structures grant, and the rest would come out of bridge and culvert funds. All voted in favor of accepting the bid and moving forward with the construction project.
Mobus requested that the board acknowledge receipt of the job descriptions for the animal control and evidence technician positions, which were reviewed. Some adjustments were made before the motion was presented and unanimously approved.
The upcoming town audit was discussed, with Mobus quoting an estimate of $35,000 from CPA firm Mudgett, Jennet & Krogh-Wisner, P.C., to conduct the audit for the sixth year. Board member Everett Hammond interjected, “I think we discussed this a year ago but, at some point, maybe general accounting standards, or maybe the State of Vermont suggested switching auditors every 4-5 years. Did you ever check into that at all?” Hammond asked Board Chair Kristi Morris, adding, “I’m inclined to hold off until I get that answer. It was because if a town uses the same group over and over again, they could be missing something.”
Mobus replied that the audit could not be scheduled until they engaged an accounting firm. Hammond suggested the board approve the audit pending confirmation that it was not a requirement to change out the auditors. “One thing is that there are fewer and fewer companies doing audits now,” Mobus replied. He stated that he thought the directive was more of a “best practices suggestion,” but that he would look into it. The motion was passed under the condition that Mobus would ensure no state or county guidelines were being violated.
Consideration of road postings for restricted access on certain roads based on vehicle weight limits and road conditions was presented to the board by Mobus and Public Works Director Jeff Strong. The discussion included enforcing a $100 fine for vehicles violating the signs.
Matthew Priestley of Crown Point Excavation commented, “I think we’ve been here before. These guys are doing a great job working with us, in fact the communication from the highway department is much better than it was in the past.” He added, “We’re not looking to damage your road, we’re the ones still paying taxes in order to fix the roads, and we have a very limited time to haul logs.” Priestley detailed the issues truckers face due to weather, multiple mud seasons throughout the year, and a small delivery window of midnight to 8 a.m.
Morris made the point that, “This is Springfield, Vt., and it’s called Springfield for a reason. We have water coming out of the hills all around us, and water, plus freezing temperatures, with the way the roads are paved with laminate layers, is a formula for failure.”
Mobus gave the board an update on 25 Union Street, commenting that the town received ownership of the property the previous week, and Mobus had taken a recent walk-through with Road Foreman Donny Turner to assess what repairs were needed. Mobus reported that he would keep the board informed as more information was being gathered, but the plan would be to fix the issues, and sell the property with the intent to turn it into residential housing.
Mobus presented the public safety and Covid updates, which were both generally upbeat. He reported that, over the past seven days new daily cases of Covid have decreased by 30%, new daily hospital admissions have increased 5%, but the percentage of hospital beds occupied by Covid patients has decreased 28%. Mobus thanked the voters for approving the town budget, enabling the purchase of new equipment for the police department and animal control officer.
Regarding the appointment of the town constable, Mobus told the board, “Paul Stagner’s term as constable expired as of the town meeting.” He said he’d spoken with Stagner and recommended the board reinstate him to the position. The board approved Stagner’s appointment unanimously.
The board voted to approve a revolving loan request from Black River Crossing, LLC, to do energy efficient work at their property located at 27-31 Main Street, including the removal and disposal of asbestos containing materials. The loan, for $25,000 at 5% interest, charged over a 10-year payback, will be funded by the town loan fund, which, Mobus reported, holds about $560,000 in total funds.
Finally, in his manager’s report, Mobus thanked Springfield voters again, and announced that Kristi Morris and Michael Martin were re-elected as selectboard chair and vice chair, and that the board would continue to meet on the second and fourth Mondays of the month.