To get out of debt, Killington could see significant tax hike

Mountain Times
December 26, 2018

By Katy Savage
KILLINGTON— The town could see a significant tax increase in the future.
Town Manager Chet Hagenbarth said the town has accumulated about $2.2 million worth of debt, coming partly from about $588,000 of unfunded expenses from Tropical Storm Irene, and about $286,000 in golf course debt along with $250,000 in a repayment to FEMA.
Hagenbarth also expects about $14 million of future expenses, including the construction of a new $4 million public safety building, about $1.2 million in golf course upgrades, $3 million in recreation expenses and $7 million in road work.
“I don’t want to scare everybody,” Hagenbarth said. “There are significant projects that are going to have to happen. These are things that we are going to have to address.”
Hagenbarth presented options for borrowing money at a meeting Monday, Dec. 17. He projected tax implications for the next 10 years under different loan scenarios.
“Should we go borrow the money now while the money is cheap?” Hagenbarth asked.
Hagenbarth plans show taxes would see the largest increase in fiscal year 2021—the year loan payments would begin.
If the town borrowed money as needed, the current .40 tax rate per $100 of assessed property value would jump to .46 next year and to .51 in 2021. If the town borrowed money to pay for the projects up front and paid it back over 15 years, taxes would jump to .46 next year and then to .62 in 2021. If the town borrowed money up front and paid some of it back over 15 years and some of it back over 30 years, taxes would be .46 next year, then .62 in 2021.
A .46 tax rate would increase a resident’s property taxes on a $150,000 house by $148 while a .63 tax increase  would increase taxes about $325 for the owner of a $150,000 home.
After years of fluctuating tax rates, Hagenbarth wants to put the town on a sustainable path moving forward.
“We’re trying to account for all the things we have to account for,” Hagenbarth said.
Hagenbarth said the town could earn interest on money it borrowed early.
The Select Board also considered bringing back the 1 percent sales option tax to offset costs. The option tax was established in October in 2008 and rescinded in 2017.
“We really don’t want to kick the can anymore,” Select Board chair Steve Finneron told the audience. “On the front end it looks oppressive but it’s not. Everything that he’s presented—the town’s going to end up paying for it.”
The Select Board has not yet decided on a budget to send to voters on Town Meeting Day.
“It doesn’t seem to me completely exorbitant,” said resident Roger Rivera. “We have to get it done. Whatever way the voters approve it, I’m good with it.”
Some questioned if voters would support a budget with a size-able tax increase. Select Board member Jim Haff said it was up to voters to decide.
“It doesn’t matter, that’s what a vote is,” he said.

1 Comment

Norman C Holcomb

December 28, 2018 1:10:15 pm

 

So, what has happened to pay as you go? Borrowing always is more expensive.
$7 million in road improvements?? Why borrow??
$1.2 million in golf course improvements? Has a reserve fund been built? Why not?

Reply: Your comment is awaiting moderation.


Vito Rasenas
December 31, 2018 7:38:41 am

Because we were too busy spending 6 million on hay bales and assorted other quixotic fantasies.

Killington town seeks to limit vacation rentals

Mountain Times

December 18, 2018

By Katy Savage

A Killington vacation homeowner may need an Act 250 permit to continue renting his home.

Act 250 District Coordinator William Burke said the three-bedroom home on Estabrook Road has “potential for significant adverse impacts under Act 250 criteria” in a Dec. 13, 2018 opinion letter.

Homeowner Vincent Connolly has caused contention for renting his home out to 36 people or more through the website, Vacation Rentals By Owner (VRBO), despite water supply and wastewater systems that were approved for only a three bedroom home.

Burke cited wastewater, traffic and aesthetic concerns in his opinion letter.

Connolly’s home is in the Cricket Hill community, which carries a convenance established in 1972, saying “single private dwellings shall not be used for commercial purposes.”

Connolly’s neighbors have expressed concern about noise and wastewater overflowing into their yard.

Connolly, who has owned his home since 2005, is facing appeals at the town and state level.

Connolly received his first zoning violation notice from the town in October. Town Zoning Administrator Dick Horner said at the time that Connolly’s rental home far exceeds the town’s two people per bedroom capacity.

Connolly appealed the violation and the Zoning Board of Adjustment held a 4-hour public hearing Nov. 7, ultimately determining the appeal lacked merit.

Since then, Horner issued another violation to Connolly Nov. 21 for changing use of his single family dwelling into a commercial facility without seeking a zoning permit first. 

Connolly appealed that decision again Dec. 4. The Zoning Board of Adjustment will hold another hearing Jan. 17 at 6 p.m.

“I’m assuming we’re going to go to the environmental court with both violations,” Connolly said.

Connolly was looking forward to explaining his case before the state’s environmental court.

“We have done nothing to the exterior of the house to trigger Act 250,” he said. “Now we just need to get in front of a judge.”

Connolly and his lawyer have argued his home is grandfathered. Connolly, who lives in Colorado, purchased his home in Killington and started renting it in 2005. The zoning bylaws changed, limiting bedroom capacity, in 2006.

The Vermont Division of Fire Safety classifies the home as a hotel because of its sizable sleeping capacity. Connolly has stacked double-size bunk beds into the home’s existing bedrooms.

The more people Connolly’s home can sleep, the more money he can get on VRBO.

This isn’t the first time one of Connolly’s properties has been in contention.

Connolly received a zoning violation in Morristown in 2017 for a three-bedroom home he owns and rents there to 20 people at times.

Connolly appeared before the Morristown Planning Council after he received the violation for exceeding the town’s three-bedroom, six person capacity for short term rentals.

The town changed the zoning bylaws to work with Connolly.

“The select board wants those vacationers in town. They spend money here,” said Morristown Town Administrator and Planning Director Todd Thomas.

However, the Killington Select Board sees it differently.

The board is considering an ordinance to limit vacation rentals in Killington. “Our attorney is giving us some direction,” said Town Manager Chet Hagenbarth. “We’re getting more and more reports of people renting to many people.”

If the town pursued an ordinance, it would apply to all like properties. It is considering making the zoning language more specific, so that different rules could apply to different districts within the town. The Board will take this up again after the budget has been finalized.

Killington looking to keep $259,000 in FEMA funds

Rutland Herald

• By Keith Whitcomb Jr. Staff Writer
• 15 hrs ago
• Saturday, December 15, 2018

KILLINGTON — The town will try to hang on to a $259,000 payment the federal government made for bridge repairs after Tropical Storm Irene.
The Select Board met Dec. 3 for a regular meeting in which the board discussed issues with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) over repairs made to Stage Road and Ravine Road related damage caused by Tropical Storm Irene in 2011.
“We received a response from the FEMA appeal which is the first appeal of the withdrawing of the appropriation we received for the two bridges on Stage Road and Ravine Road,” said Town Manager Chet Hagenbarth at the meeting. “Last winter, after we appealed to Washington to get more money, the local office found that they had a loophole in the approval originally and asked for the $259,000 back.”

He said the FEMA decision was appealed in the beginning of April. The agency denied it, Hagenbarth said.
He added that the town has one more appeal option left. It can appeal directly to the FEMA office in Washington D.C. and lean on Vermont’s Congressional delegation to help it do so. He suggested the town seek out Mel Adams who served as Killington’s FEMA coordinator during the recovery period from Irene.
Hagenbarth said the appeal would likely cost the town between $5,000 and $8,000.
“… I’d rather go for the appeal at this point even if it does cost us $5,000 to $8,000,” Selectwoman Patty McGrath said. “I do believe with Mel’s help we have a better chance of retaining those funds.”
Hagenbarth said the town has 60 days — starting about a week prior to the Dec. 3 meeting — to file the appeal.
“It’s, let’s say $5,000 to $10,000, to get $259,000 not to leave our budget,” said Selectman Jim Haff. “We’re already in this far, it’s a no-brainer.”
Hagenbarth said he agreed and was simply looking for direction from the board. He said state officials he’s spoken to have put the odds of the town’s success in this matter at 20 percent.

“For anyone who’s not familiar with this, we’re not asking for more money, we’re asking to keep the money that was given to us to do repairs after Irene,” Selectboard Chairman Stephen Finneron said. “FEMA is asking us to pay back this money. This is what the appeal is, so we’d keep the money; we’re not asking for more, we just want to keep what they gave us.”
Haff added that the town should contact Vermont senators Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders as well as Killington’s state Rep. Jim Harrison for assistance with the FEMA appeal.
keith.whitcomb
@rutlandherald.com

Killington looks to regulate rentals

Rutland Herald

Thursday, December 13, 2018

• By Keith Whitcomb Jr. Staff Writer
• 19 hrs ago

KILLINGTON — The town is researching a possible rental property registration program aimed at handling rentals that go through sites like Airbnb.
The Select Board talked about the program at its Dec. 3 meeting, directing Town Manager Chet Hagenbarth to further research the proposal.
Hagenbarth said Wednesday the town has had some issues with people renting out residential properties to scores of people, advertising the rentals on websites and apps like Airbnb and Vacation Rentals By Owner (VRBO).

According to Hagenbarth, the town’s zoning bylaws limit residential occupancy to two people per bedroom. Some properties are being listed on rental sites advertising that they can hold far more than the two-person-per-bedroom limit.
Hagenbarth said the town has had zoning-related issues with these properties. At least one involved an overloaded septic system.
Hagenbarth said it’s not clear yet what form the new program will take, be it an ordinance or a registration program.
“It will be specific to the issue we’re dealing with,” he said.
At the Dec. 3 meeting, Hagenbarth told the board he’s run the proposal by the town’s attorney, Kevin Brown, who said the town has the authority to create such a program but would need to adjust some of the draft language.

Hagenbarth said Wednesday that he’s in the process of getting more information by looking at what other towns have done since the issue has come up in other places.
Selectwoman Patty McGrath said at the meeting the program isn’t being sought to punish any one person, but is being done so that all will be treated evenly. She said these rental operations need to be held to the same standards.
The town was recently in a dispute with a property owner on Estabrook Road who is advertising with VRBO a home with between four and five beds that would sleep 28. Town bylaws only allow two people per bed. The home, at the time, was permitted with three bedrooms. Zoning Administrator Richard Horner issued a notice of violation to the owner, who appealed it, only to have the appeal ultimately denied by the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
Hagenbarth said if the new program is created it would likely apply to all rental properties. He said the main concern is septic systems being overloaded at these residential homes being run as if they were commercial hotels. He said commercial operations are already regulated.
keith.whitcomb @rutlandherald.com

District-wide school board meeting in Killington

Notice from Jennifer Innantuoni:

I am writing to let you know that for the first time ever (at least in the 14 years that I have been on the school board!), we are having a district-wide school board meeting in Killington. It will be held at the Killington Elementary School at 6pm on Monday, December 10th. Our meetings are traditionally held at the SU office located on the grounds of the MSHS in Woodstock. We decided this year, now that we are a merged board representing seven towns, that we would move the meetings to the member towns - and this is our chance in Killington. I invite you to come see how our meeting run and to give your input on the important issues that we are discussing. I hope to see some local faces on Monday night! Please spread the word!
Thank you, Jennifer (Iannantuoni) Chair KES Board

Designs for a new Killington Public Safety Building are nearly finalized

Mountain Times

December 5, 2018

Plans await cost estimates in advance of a Town Meeting Day vote

By Polly Mikula

The town of Killington has preliminary designs for a new public safety building. Plans call for a multipurpose 15,260-square-foot building to house the volunteer fire department, search and rescue, and town police department. The plans have six bays for firetrucks in the front of the building and two in the rear for light rescue and police, a hose tower, a DUI holding cell, lockers, offices and a public meeting room.

The building will be located off Killington Road on a four-acre lot just southeast of Woods Road, across from Peppino’s and the Mountain Sports Inn.  Voters approved the land purchase for a public safety building last year and the town has been working on designs for that site, since. The plans are expected to come in under $4 million. Town Manager Chet Hagenbarth said he expects to have a solid number for citizens to vote on at Town Meeting Day, March 5, 2019.

If voters approve the bond to build a public safety building, construction would likely be in the summer 2020, due to scheduling the new bond payments to begin after other current debts are set to retire, Hagenbarth said.

“The goal is to keep the debt service flat,” he explained.

The designs for the public safety building have been led by the Fire Department Facility Review Committee, a group of citizen volunteers who were originally tasked with weighing options for the town when the current fire department building was found to be in violation of state code in 2013.

Citizens on the committee include: Steve Finneron (chair), Otto Iannantuoni, Vito Rasenas, Andrew Salamon and Richard Kropp.

After deciding that fixing the current fire house was not in the town’s best interest (due to high costs and compromises), the committee began searching for alternatives – beginning with a new site.

After vetting 13 properties, the committee put the 4-acre site to a public vote. The 30-year, $634,000 bond to secure that land passed 102 to 84 on Sept. 5, 2017.

Included in that bond was the purchase of the 4-acre parcel for $525,000; civil engineering designs for $21,500; and fees for schematic architectural design and construction estimate for $87,500.

Since then, the committee has been working on a future building design.

“It’s been a tedious process, but very educational,” said Finneron, who is the chair of the Fire Department Facility Review Committee and the chair of the Select Board. “Who knew that you had to have a specific drain in the holding cell so that folks couldn’t flush narcotics, for example … or that the slope of the floor in a fire station ought to be a specific angle so that the floor stays dry … there are so many particulars that make big differences,” he said.

The Fire Department Facility Review Committee frequently consults with the Killington Fire Department, Killington Police and Killington Search and Rescue to ensure that the design specifics meet their needs, Finneron said. It also has hired DEW Company as the construction manager to oversee the bidding process and (eventually) the buildout of each part of the construction process, should voters approve the building plans on Town Meeting Day. Additionally, the committee hired Northeast Collaborative Architects (NCA) as the design firm, which has worked on many similar municipal buildings and has given the committee multiple options to solve identified needs.

The public safety building does not trigger an Act 250 hearing as the project is under 10 acres, Finneron noted.

The site and the preliminary design will allow the town to expand the building for future uses, as they arise in the future, Hagenbarth said. “The design is intentionally expandable, unlike pre-engineered buildings which do not allow for future changes,” he said. “We must evaluate costs for the best value over time. If we focus too much on saving pennies now, it will cost us dollars later.”

“This building will be part of the town for 50-60 years,” added Finneron. “We need it to be able to grow and change with the town’s needs …  We need to consider the cost of maintenance over time,” he said.

Finneron and Hagenbarth both said they hope all public safety services could be consolidated in the new public safety building, including an underground cistern for the fire station. However, “all options are on the table” Finneron said.

The current fire station could continue to serve some functions, particularly if obstacles are found that limit possibilities, such as a cistern, at the new site.

“The preliminary plans are now mostly finished,” said Finneron. “Now we’re just tweaking a few details and working on the right materials to use.”

“We’re also at a stage where we’d love more community input,” he said. “What can you bring to the table? Do you have ideas or solutions we’re not thinking about? If so, come to our meetings!” Finneron said.

The Fire Department Facility Review Committee will be presenting the preliminary design to the Planning Commission to ensure compliance with local zoning regulations on Dec. 12. Visit killingtontown.com for the date and location of the next review committee meeting .

Courtesy NCA
An illustrated concept of the front of the proposed Killington Public Safety building. The multiuse building is designed to house the volunteer fire department, search and rescue and town police department with room for expansion. Voters will be asked to approve the plans in March.