KPAA, EDC Director Leaves for Job in Stowe

Vermont Standard

10/6/2016 

By Curt Peterson

Standard Correspondent

Killington — After fourand- a-half years, Amy Morrison’s last day working for both the town and the Killington Pico Area Association will be Friday, Oct. 14. Morrison handed in her resignation two days before the Oct. 4 select board meeting.

“I’d just like to say a public thanks to Amy,” select board chair Patty McGrath said at the meeting. “During her time here the town’s marketing has advanced, we’ve developed a great collaboration with the Killington Pico Area Association, and her time and effort in this endeavor have been very valuable. I hope she comes back and visits us a lot.”

Selectman Chris Bianchi added, “And I hope we can hire her back.”

Morrison is leaving Killington to become the executive director of the Stowe Area Association.

Her Killington years began at the town offices as director of the Economic Development Commission developing tourism and promoting businesses. The Killington options tax of 1 percent on meals and accommodations was intended to fund the EDC. Morrison came to feel the Killington Chamber of Commerce and the EDC were working at cross-purposes, duplicating efforts and missing opportunities to grow the town’s economy with parallel but slim resources.

A collaborative including the former chamber and the EDC was negotiated and became the KPAA. Morrison remained the director of the EDC and, for a while, worked at the town offices part-time, then drove to KPAA to do work for them. Former Town Manager Seth Webb, Morrison and KPAA officials amended the arrangement, moving the EDC director’s files and other office gear to the Welcome Center on Route 4 where KPAA is headquartered. Webb explained she would be doing the same work, with the same division of compensation, and was only eliminating the wasteful moving back and forth between offices.

After some controversy the arrangement was approved by the select board. There are some residents who believe Morrison was working full-time for KPAA and being paid by Killington’s taxpayers through the town.

The common goal of KPAA and the EDC is to promote year-round tourism in Killington, and Morrison spent much of her time soliciting, organizing, supporting and executing events for all seasons, according to officials.

In other news, Town Manager Deb Schwartz gave a report on the first World Cup Table Top Exercise, which was held at the Killington Resort Base Lodge two Fridays ago.

“There were 40 people there,” Schwartz said. “It was quite a turnout.”

Schwartz cited attendees from several groups, including the state Department for Emergency Management, Vermont State Police, Rutland Ambulance, Killington Fire and Rescue, Killington Police Department, and 20 people representing the resort, as well as others.

“We developed a list of preliminary questions regarding areas where it would be good to coordinate,” Schwartz said.

FIS Ski, or International Ski Federation, is holding the 2016 Audi World Cup alpine skiing competition Nov. 26 and 27 at Killington Resort, and the town will see an influx of thousands of spectators, skiers, support crews and officials in addition to its normal winter crowds, so the town wants to be prepared.

Schwartz said the exercise is a good way to be ready for any unusual event, including emergencies. The next Table Top session will be in October.

In other business, delinquent tax collections were a major topic again, as Schwartz reviewed the current status to the Board.

“When we started this effort,” she said, “there was a little more than $309,000 owed in overdue taxes. As of September 30 we are down to $248,200.”

Schwartz sent out 68 notices to delinquent taxpayers, and 23 have paid their overdue amounts in full. 11 have signed or are going to sign payment agreements. In addition, she said 95 percent of current taxes due on August 15 have been paid, and taxpayers have prepaid $1.6 million for which they have not yet been billed.

“It’s a good thing,” she said.

Resident Andy Salamon asked how the 95 percent figure compares with other towns. Schwartz said she has only anecdotal evidence as an answer. The town of Ludlow has a higher percentage of current tax collections than Killington.

“People complained about our accelerating the tax payment schedule,” she said, “but Ludlow has much more strict tax collection rules than we do, and their taxpayers are more current than ours.”

McGrath noted that if a taxpayer in a Vermont town owes $100,000 in current taxes, about $15,000 goes to the town, and the other $85,000 is paid to the state to fund education.

“If a taxpayer doesn’t pay the $100,000, the town is still on the hook for the $85,000 education portion,” she said. “We have to pay that money to the state even though we didn’t collect it.”