 and welcome to the October 7, 2019 Town of Essex Select Board meeting. Please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. And I often forget to say this, but if you do have a cell phone, please set it to vibrate or silent. And I would also like to ask that members of the audience refrain from texting or emailing board members during the meeting. That would be much appreciated. This is awful loud. Is that OK? You can hear me? OK, great. It feels really loud up here. So do we have any agenda additions or changes? Just two items to go with the firearms issue. It's just a couple of sample signage for Indian Brook and Saxon Hill. That can go up tomorrow if the ordinance is passed. And there are copies of those signs at the check-in table. Correct. Is that everything? Yes. Can I hear a motion to approve the agenda addition? So moved. Second. Second. All those in favor of the agenda addition, please say aye. Aye. Opposed? OK. Next item of business is public to be heard, which is the time when the audience can come speak at the mic regarding items that are not on the agenda. So Margaret. Is that working? Yes, very nice. This is in reference to leashing dogs at Indian Brook. And I had a couple of thoughts. There was a number of E. coli warnings where they had to shut the swimming, which says to me that people are not picking up after their dogs. So there's someone who goes to the park who takes a number of dogs so they can get out and run. And I know that person isn't carrying a poop bag for every dog. So I had a couple of thoughts. Could you limit the number of dogs to two per person, which would mean that whoever was taking the dogs to keep a closer eye on where their dog is? And secondly, could you request that anybody who takes a dog to Indian Brook carry a poop bag with them? Because I know I take my dog. She poops in the morning. If I'm taking her for a walk, I take her out. She poops in the yard again. Saturday I took her for a walk. And thank goodness I stuck a poop bag in my pocket, but she pooped again. So a requiring that everybody carry at least one poop bag and limiting dogs to two per person. Just some thoughts. Thank you, Marguerite. I will say that the town does supply poop bags at the entrance to the paths. They still have them, but they're still going always. Absolutely. And I'm glad you brought that up. Just if I could count, if I had a nickel for every email I've gotten about dogs, more than firearms and merger put together. And the board has not acted on any changes to leash laws at Indian Brook. We talked about it very briefly at one public meeting. And I'm hoping folks who are at home watching or who hear about this meeting can hear me say that we haven't made any changes to leash laws at Indian Brook at all. So we will have a discussion about it sometime in the future. Does anybody else have any comments that are not on the agenda? Yes. And Signorello, 166 Brigham-Havill, that is loud. Good evening, members, select board members. Even though I may be at odds with some of the things that happen at the board, I just want you to know that I recognize the tremendous amount of time that you all put in and appreciate that service. What I'd like to talk about briefly is something I heard at the last select board meeting. This was the joint meeting that just happened on the 24th. Mr. Mary quoted one of the KSV slides from the first survey. It's a commonly quoted slide, the one that says 7 out of 10 favor merger. Everybody probably knows that slide. It's used to justify almost everything that we're doing currently. In fact, at that very same meeting, 30 minutes was spent talking about a future charter committee, future charter committee, even though the results from the second survey haven't come in yet. Now, that second survey results might not favor merger at all. And I'm saying that for a reason. In that very same report that the 7 out of 10 slide is in, there's another slide. That slide says that 4 out of 10 are very familiar with the history of merger as it's happened. So 4 out of 10 were very familiar. That means that 6 out of 10 were not very familiar. So think about that. The 7 that said they favor merger, 60% of them weren't that well-informed about something very complex. I don't know that they were introduced to the taxation issues, the representation issues, the identity issues, the development issues that merger brings about. So if you apply that ratio, that 60-40 ratio, to those 7. And I have a feeling you may find, because the second survey goes into a lot more depth. It does talk about these issues of taxation, representation, and such. So the respondents will be much better informed. Good thing of that. So those 7, I believe, are going to turn into about 4.2. So you're going to be looking at, I have a feeling in the second survey, much more of a 50-50 kind of scenario. So what I'm basically saying is that a lot of weight has been put on that concept of 7 out of 10 favor merger. But the question wasn't asked in such a way that I think that you should be basing as much effort and planning on that one idea. I think you should have a plan B. I think that's about it. Well, the other thing I would say is this. When you're basing your major policy decisions on marketing surveys and poorly-controlled ones at that, you expose yourself to unexpected outcomes. So it's my observation that either we have the cart before the horse, or that it really doesn't make much difference what the second survey says. We're headed to a merger vote regardless. That's it. Thank you. Is there anyone else? Yes. Irene Renner, 15th Threshold Lane. I don't usually get dressed up for Halloween. But this is a very special year. And I'd like you to celebrate a little bit with me early. With apologies to Jethro Tall. Down at 81 Main Street, there's another merger date. A plan comes out of the archives from 1958. It's the same old merger story. Can we start over, please? Thank you. Irene, yes. Irene, we need to keep this to a reasonable amount of time. It will be. It'll be just two minutes. Thanks. Yep. Oh, there we go. Oh, I think we're back. Take two. Down at 81 Main Street, there's another merger date. A plan comes out of the archives from 1958. A costly tax shift from the village to thens in the town who just keep watching in the village. Oh, boy. But that merger, and it won't slow down. Results of the second survey in C. But the poor can hear feedback. Slow this merger train down. Please slow this merger train down. Slow this merger train down. S6 town. I have a thing to say on public to be heard on items that are not on the agenda. OK, hearing none. We will move on to item five, which is the public hearing to consider final passage of new and revised provisions to municipal ordinance chapter 6.08 firearms and chapter 9.04 parks. This is the opportunity for the public to make commentary on any aspect of the ordinance amendments that we're planning to make before we vote. So the public can speak, and then we will close the public hearing, and then we will bring the conversation back to the select board. Would anybody like to speak during the public hearing? Excuse me, Greg. Do you want just a quick recap of where you are? Of course. Absolutely. Thank you. So last month, the select board passed a few changes to the firearms ordinance. The way the ordinance is set up, the charger set up to pass an ordinance, you need to have passage, then more into public hearing, which we're having tonight. And then depending on that public hearing, if there's the board votes for final passage, the ordinance would take effect immediately. So just to recap, the proposed changes to the ordinance, excuse me, the board, or the ordinance is defining firearms, or definition of a firearm. It is specifying there is no discharge within Indian Brook Park, Saxon Hill Forest, and the tree farm, with the exception of Indian Brook and Saxon Hill, hunting would be allowed with firearms from October 15th through December 15th. At Indian Brook, there's still a 500 foot safety zone, around the high water mark of the reservoir. That would be prohibited year round for hunting within that area. And there's some housekeeping stuff, updating the fines in terms of penalties and violations of the ordinance. And in chapter nine, there's just some cleanup around matching the parks language with the proposed language for the firearms ordinance, and specifying that there is no target shooting on public property. All right. Thank you, Greg. Greg, do you wanna just briefly talk about? Oh, sure. Signage has been one of the big things that's been discussed. So there's some copies in the back. Pull them up here as well. If the ordinance is passed tonight, Ali can get this up at Indian Brook Park and Saxon Hill Forest within a day or two. As you can see, it's trying to be pretty straightforward as much as possible. Discharge of firearms prohibited at Indian Brook Park and Saxon Hill Forest, and it has the exceptions for hunting within firearms, hunting with firearms from October 15th through December 15th. And a little bit of language about hunters need to have a valid hunting license, must comply with seasons established by the state of Vermont, and it references the applicable sections of the ordinance, assuming they're passed tonight. Okay. Thank you. So I'm sure select board members have questions and comments, but we're gonna have the public hearing part first, and then we'll bring it back in for your questions and comments. So let's call the public hearing portion open. Does anybody wish to speak about the amendments to the ordinance as they have been presented? Sir. I'd like to speak on the firearms. Yes, sir. I lived on Brookham Hill for 47 years, and I've always shot at my place, and I had no problem. And now the town wants to take and shut down all the shooting on private property. That's not at all what we're discussing right now. Sir. Sir. Name? Name. Name is Douglas Chappard. Great, thank you. And my 249, Breckham Hill road. Thank you. Just to clarify, sir, we're changing the dates of hunting at public parks, Indian broken Saxon Hill, not any private property with this ordinance. Anyone else? Sir. Brad Keneson, Bixby Hill Road. Could you just be a little bit more explicit or are you gonna post the signs? Sure, we're looking to put them at the main trail heads at Indian Brook, also at the entrances where the trails come in from McGee Road and Brigham Hill Lane at Saxon Hill Park. They'd be put on the kiosks and the main entrance up into the biking section on the 90 acre parcel. Not around the perimeter of the property. Not at this point, no. Last meeting that I attended, I brought to your attention about the discrepancy in the definition between a federal definition of a firearm and your folks' definition of a firearm in such that you included the muzzle looters. Did you ever get a chance to look at that, compare one versus the other, and address that at all? We have looked at that. The police chief's recommendation is to stick with the definition that we have. We did want to capture muzzle looters that is part of the intention of the definition. And we do realize there's a discrepancy between the federal definition and its definition. Okay, I'd just like to go on record saying I think that might be problematic for you at some point in the future. But thank you. Thank you. Would anyone else like to speak on the amendments to the ordinance? Going ones? All right, then, oh, okay. We will close the public hearing. And. Yes. We will close the public hearing on the ordinance, firearms ordinance. Is there a second? Second. All in favor of closing the public hearing on the ordinance, please signify by saying aye. Aye. Okay. So our first item of business, therefore, is to discuss final passage or adoption of the new and revised provisions to the municipal ordinance, chapter 6.08 firearms and chapter 9.04 parks. Greg, do you have anything additional to? Happy to answer questions, but otherwise, I think we've gone over. Board members, what are your thoughts? Do you have questions, comments, Pat? Just housekeeping. In the motion that we have to recommend, references a section 6.08.04 file. Oh, just to remove, okay. We'll make the motion without that in there, yeah. Annie, do you have any comments or questions? Andy or Matt? No, I'm fine, thank you. Is that the motion? I have a couple of questions for Greg first. I just want to double check on the signage. Oh, me too, actually. Yes. Okay, so you're posting it on site, but are you going to put it on, I'm assuming that this information is going to go on the town website. Will you be doing an announcement at the front porch forum? We can do that. Yep. And this is a significant change in terms of dates and such, so I think it might warrant something in the reporter. It just feels like we need to educate the public. That was one of the biggest concerns throughout this whole conversation is how the public was going to know about these changes. So whatever we can do to get that word out would be a good thing. Sure. So you're calling here tonight and we can send a press release in as well. I hope so. Look for that in your email. And anything else? I don't really think it's an appropriate question, but I want to say it out loud anyway. The one for India, I had not realized before that I was looking at two, I'm sorry, two different signs. The one at Indian Brook Park, when I first moved to Essex, I was a young parent of very young children and my first thought would be to figure out where I could go where there was not hunting. And so I feel like the language, but I feel like I'm picking in a way that's, I don't know if that's an appropriate word, I'm sorry, I feel like I'm not, I feel like I'm being picking a way that's not appropriate maybe. But the outside of the hunting safety zone, I feel like it's talking about where, I guess that's the idea of the sign, right? I guess the sign is speaking to those who would like to utilize their firearms. Yes. It's a little bit of both. And what I forgot to add was that this map is gonna be that they posted along with it. So I guess because it's a little bit of both, I'm sorry to, I didn't mean to second guess you Greg, and I appreciate the conversation because, because it's a little bit of both. But yeah, it's just the people who, Ken Humphrey also wanted to let people know who are going there looking for a place where they're not around hunting that make them aware that there is hunting for two months of the year. I hope I didn't just sideway ask you. Does anyone else have any questions or comments about the ordinance, the amendments? All right, then if not, then I'll hear a motion. I move that the select board approve final passage of new and revised provisions to municipal ordinance chapter 6.08, firearms and chapter 9.04 parks. All changes shall become effective immediately. Is there a second? Second. All those in favor of amending the firearms ordinance as presented, signified by saying aye. Aye. Opposed? Okay, the amendments have passed. Thank you all. Thank you Greg and Evan and everyone who helped shepherd us through this very long process. Thank you everyone for being here the entire time in like months. And yeah, thank you for that. Thank you for your engagement, for your recommendations and we hope to continue this conversation in the future. We appreciate your being here and taking part. Thank you very much. Okay, next item, 6B, discuss schedule of budget work sessions and watch the room clear. You don't want to stick around for budget talk? It's exciting stuff. Nothing. So Greg, whenever you're ready. Since the board has some meetings scheduled for the budget sessions already back in April, we had approved a schedule that looked at January 2nd, January 6th, 8th and 13th as budget work session days. We have talked a little bit about wanting, whether or not the board wants to keep that schedule or move to a one day budget session. So that's basically what we're here for tonight and just looking for some direction as we get into the budget season and how to plan ahead a little bit. So we had briefly discussed the possibility of a single day where we discussed the budget. Having sat at both tables, I can say that the multi evening way of the select board doing it is its own special kind of exhausting, but the sitting at the table all day at the trustees is also its own special kind of exhausting. So there's a lot to take in prior to the meeting. I've done both. I'm okay with whatever works, but I do want to make sure that we are not doing anything that overburden staff with the workload they already have. So this is not willing to die on this particular hill. So whatever you guys want to do is okay with me, Annie. And may I ask a question? Oh, absolutely, sorry. When we say all day, that's a Monday the 13th, right? That would be the, all day would be the Monday the 13th. We haven't proposed it yet. We haven't proposed it yet. If it were all day, I don't mind which way we go either. I'm open to all of it. But when it's all day, it would have to be a very specific day and I'd have to be very specifically. I mean, so do we all, but I'm anxious about that part. So if anybody could throw out an idea, a concept of what that might be. So you need to nail down the date as soon as we, as possible if that's the route we're gonna take. Yes, I wouldn't be able to agree to it without some working knowledge. I already have January through June planned. Absolutely, yeah. Not that you all don't, but it affects a lot anyway. I don't mean, I feel like I'm walking around this, but it looks like Greg might know more. I don't know, but that's part of the discussion tonight was to get a sense of is the board interested in a one day or keeping the traditional schedule. If it is interested in one day, we can, I'd like to hear a little bit, are we looking at a weekend day, a work day? Once they have some more of that sense, we can circulate a doodle poll or do some scheduling to go from there. The trustees have generally done one day, usually around the second week of December from about 8 a.m. to 3.34 with lunch at Lincoln Hall. On a weekday, you said? On a weekday. It's usually a Tuesday or Wednesday. Yeah, and then sometimes if it's on a Tuesday they would cancel the board meeting that night. So, yeah. Max. During that all day one, do you actually do your final deliberations and adopting at that same meeting? No, no, I'm sorry. The trustees would list, the department heads would come in on a schedule and review their portions of the budget with the trustees. The trustees would ask questions and work with staff to answer those questions and hear concerns. At the end of the day, the staff would have a sense from the trustees what it was they had in mind. I think by that point, the trustees would have said, okay, yeah, we're sticking with a 2% or a 3% or a level fund, like whatever they would confirm the guidance that they had offered, if I recall correctly. But no, you would not vote on the budget that day at all. They would come back to the board at a regular scheduled meeting. Andy. So Greg, I had asked you about the regulatory schedule and you kind of indicated that the budget needs to be finalized the week of the 13th. Correct. And to meet our, to have all the appropriate warnings and all that. So that's kind of the, I guess the bounding box. It's likely, hopefully after the new year, but before the end of that week of the 13th. For my perspective, the one concern I have is having enough time to review all the material. And in the past, I've taken, we have the schedule. We know which department's gonna be reviewed, which nights. And so I can take the weekend before to get ready for the coming weeks meetings. So I wouldn't want it to be too early in January if we were to do it in a single day. I would prefer, if we're gonna do it a single day, I'm open to the idea of doing a single day. I prefer a weekday, Mondays, Tuesdays or Fridays, to work best for me. And like Annie, knowing well in advance is would make it much easier to deal with, to make sure I don't end up with any work commitments that coincide. Okay. So. That's our path, thoughts. I'm a fan of the single day, just because of my own work schedule. I'm all over the place, you know, Mondays, Tuesdays, I'm free, but Wednesdays, Thursday evenings, I'm not. So if we did it one day and I don't really need to take one day off of work, then that's easier for me. And not to get into too many specifics about it, but the week of the 13th, I am gone for a week that I can't change. So my preference would be one day, if everything's equal and no one has a, you know, feel strongly one way or another, I'd prefer the one. I'm willing to give the one day a shot. My concern is similar to Andy's, it's a lot of detail to go through, to prepare for that discussion. But, you know, we do get the budget before the holidays. So I'd be willing to give it a shot, try something new if we can find a date that works for everybody. Again, my preference is to do it the way we've been doing it, but I'm willing to give it a try. That's what the board likes, we'd like to do. And how do you guys feel about it? What will it do for your process around preparing the budget? For us, we have to put everything together beforehand anyway. Right. And getting all the department heads to come in in one particular day or that's always a feat, but it works for us. It also, it tends to start connecting dots. You know, if you start hearing themes or Over the course of the day. Over the course of the day or what we're trying to achieve and how people are adhering or being in that realm. Your thoughts? No, it's it's fewer meetings to warn, which is a little bit of time. We're working in the day anyways, you have fewer evenings. We'd have to coordinate the staff and same as you, as all of you, the earlier we can give our department heads notice, the better. So, and then the other thing is when we have meetings on the nights of board meetings, you're trying to really put a lot into and sometimes we have a light agenda and it works out beautifully and other times the world takes over and not so much. Andy. It's just, maybe you can give us your perspective from the trustees about public access. I know not very infrequently, does anybody show up for any of our evening budget meetings but is it making it more difficult if we do it during the day? I don't know. The trustees do not film them the day long. There have been one or two people in the audience for the whole day and other times there's been nobody. So I would say that the audience members are not often, like I remember several years where there was nobody and I remember a couple years where there was a couple people. And I'm hearing that a weekday is preferable to a weekend. Is that accurate? Okay. So if we were to do this, does this give you enough time to talk to your department heads and say give us some days? Yeah, I'm roughly looking ahead probably the week of January 6th and then maybe meeting the night of the 13th to after you've had the chance to digest a little bit and come up with that final number to warn public hearing on the budget. So after the single budget day, will there be one more meeting? That's what I'm looking at the 13th, maybe meeting the night of the 13th to have that cut down night or addition night and the final answer number. And then we have to have a public hearing after that. Is that the? Yeah, correct. Got it, okay. So we have the right. So you have the public hearing and then you have budget on meeting day. Once you have the public hearing and then we warn the article. Once you have a final number from your work sessions, that's what you want a public hearing on that number. And then after you have the public hearing, that's when you can warn town meeting with a budget number of next number of dollars. You look like you still have questions. Well, I'm just puzzling over the fact that we've come up with the final number later in January than you're asking for it this time. That's why I'm just wondering why. No, it's, last year was January 14th was the final number. And because the warning deadlines, we usually need to have that number by mid January because you have to warn the public hearing and the reporter usually by the last week of January. So when we had an additional meeting was the Wednesday of that week. Because what's on the schedule here is the last meeting is Monday the 13th. So it would have been, if we had another meeting would have been during that following week so that we could have it in time for all the warnings. Yes, and last year we were able to, sorry. I'm just thinking I'm misremembering that it was the 20th, 20 something that we had the final date, but that might have been the hearings and stuff. Most years it had been and then last year we were able to do it with one last meeting. I was just trying to buy myself more time to review. But I understand if it's the week of the 13th and especially if Patrick's gone that week it'd probably be best to have it the per part of the week. Matt? In case you can't find a date that works for everybody I'd like to just make sure that we have a backup plan. Yeah, let's, yeah. We stick with this and we can't make it, absolutely, yeah. So leave those on the calendar for me. So Andy, you said Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. Monday, Tuesday, or Friday are best for me, yeah. That's the week of the 6th. Get it out now. Yeah, I said the 13th, but then remembering Patrick saying he's not here that week, are you able to call in at some point or? Are you completely unavailable? No, I'd be available through the week, certainly for calls, just have to arrange it. I mean, it would be a few time zones. The 13th is my travel day, so that's the only day when I'm flat out unavailable. So I am unavailable the 9th and the 10th. I would prefer the Monday because that's the one day the legislature won't be in session that week, but understanding that Monday might be rough for staff. Monday the 6th? I can do that Monday. You can, yeah, something okay. Monday the 6th would almost be a harder one for me, but I think I'd rather just stay silent and work around. I think I can figure it out and leave it be. I think I have a... I'll do the 6th work for Max or Andy. I can answer you in one second. Well, that's up to you guys. Yes, it works for me. So let's hold one 6th, hold for maybe even like an 830 start. We'll have breakfast bagels, stuff like that. I will offer to make my world famous brand muffins for you guys and bring them warm, feels that. Well, that's a lot of build up. World famous. For your ukulele to keep us going, Annie. If we could confidently end by three. Well, about confidence? I can read by three. Right, exactly. I'm sure you can step out of it. But that's okay to be, that you don't see me again after three o'clock? Absolutely. I mean, you would of course in the future end of that day. Absolutely. Now, just double checking. Do we have a board meeting that night? We do. We do. We can do it. Is it just us? I can be back for the meeting. We have a joint meeting that night. Right now it's scheduled as a joint meeting. So can we reserve the possibility of canceling the select board part of that meeting? Because if there is business, we can get it done during the budget day. We squeeze it in. The trustees have definitely done that. I'm just trying to make it easier on folks who have an all day budget meeting and then a select board meeting and then a joint meeting. Annie. To be clear, I know that you're not talking about this, but to be clear, I can get to the meeting in time as well. Oh, just the evening one as well? Yes, it's only between three and six thirty. That's absolutely fine. Absolutely. Maybe just keep that in the back of your mind. Okay. So eight thirty to three is sure. Is that something like eight or eight thirty to three? Maybe we'll do a working lunch. Yes, I think we're going to need that for that. Sorry to devolve into scheduling in a public meeting, but. No, you're all here. Yeah. Got to have some audience here. So. Okay, so it sounds like we're booking that, though. We'll, that's the date. We will schedule our department heads. In any time, we'll keep these other dates open until we confirm. And then you will get us the budget book by December 16th. Was that the date? Okay. So we have from December 16th until January 6th to closely read the budget and come up with our questions, think about what we need to know and be prepared for that day long meeting. Thank you for being willing to try something different. You can also pose your questions in advance. Yeah, absolutely. Actually would prefer that, probably. I absolutely would. Okay. I think Sarah would. Are there days that the town offices are closed or is it just the holidays? Or is it, you don't have a forced week? Great, well, great question. We were off January 1st. 24th, 25th, January 1st. And I believe something goes all fall on a weekday. We also have the 20th. I just want to make sure we know it's okay that we send you stuff on Christmas Eve. And you can send it. You can send it. I was going to press for the week before like January 3rd, but I'm very free on January 3rd is what I'm saying, but I know this. We don't require they be in triplicate. So looks like we're looking at January 6th, 8 to 3.30. So hold that on your calendars, but also hold the evenings in case we can't get the department chairs. And please, when you get the budget, and it'll be all digital, so we'll get a packet with the budget in it and start reading through it as soon as you can and get your questions into Sarah and Greg and Evan. You can do them over time, but get them in before Christmas, if possible. Yes, Annie. I am going to press one more time. I know it's annoying, but I am very available on the second and the third, but I don't think that's as useful. I'm available all day on the second and the third. What does that do for other board members? Shortens the time for review. Right. It does. Yeah, I like the sixth. Yeah, I'm not sure I'd be back in town on the second. Let it go. It's too close to January 1st anyway, really, I think. Thank you. Annie, thank you for being flexible. Well, I appreciate that you guys even heard me say it. Well, and we'll make room for you on the sixth when you need to depart. Well, I'm already canceling half the day, but it's all right. I'm just a little bit. If they should feel any better, I'm going to take a vacation day. Yeah, me too. And he's going to take a vacation day, so thank you for taking one for the team. So just a question. Do you, Patrick, and Annie, have access to last year's budget? So at least have you ever looked at it? They are on our Google page. Yeah, I'm pretty sure I have access to them, but I have not reviewed it. No, it's a good idea for me to go back to room. Just take a peek at it and see what's in there and what you want to expect. On our Google Drive, if you go to the town of Essex Select Board and the Select Board Meeting Packets, there's the 2019 and the 2020 budget right here. Yeah, I'm looking at it. That's a great idea. Yeah, yeah, they have been. It's a great idea. Awesome. Town meeting. OK. Have we answered all your questions? Good. Thank you. That was great. All right. If there aren't any other observations about the budget schedule, we can move on to the consent agenda. I move approval of the consent agenda with Select Board Comments. Is there a second? Second. And any discussion of the consent agenda? All right. Hearing none, we have a motion and a second on the table. All those in favor of approving the consent agenda, please say aye. Aye. Aye. Opposed? All right. Consent agenda is all set. Reading file. Select Board Comments. Andy. So Elaine and I attended the Vermont League of Cities in Towns Town Fair. I was the voting delegate at the annual meeting. And in that meeting, Elaine was elected to the board of VLCT. So I'll be serving in that role. Congratulations. Congratulations, Elaine. Thank you. I also wanted to bring up, I attended a session on the ongoing saga of marijuana legalization. And I just wanted to make a couple comments on that, that the current bill, I guess, is being considered has some shortfalls. One of the concerns that VLCT has is that the legislature is not thinking about giving municipalities the ability to opt in rather than opt out. So I guess if it was an opt in scenario, they would make it legal then each town would have to decide whether or each municipality would have to decide whether or not to allow cannabis establishments within their borders. If it's an opt out, then all of a sudden, once the legislation passes, it becomes legal everywhere. And if you don't want it, you have to vote not to have it, which makes it difficult for establishments that are already preparing to be ready for when it becomes legal because as long as there's nothing in zoning that would restrict you from where they could be or anything because they're agricultural, if they're growing, they could be considered an agricultural use. And so there's a number of concerns that were brought up. And the league is going to publish a proposed resolution that they're asking municipalities to consider either passing as is or modifying and passing to let the legislature know how we feel about what's being considered for legalization. And that should be coming out shortly, certainly before the next session starts because it's expected that this will come up pretty quickly in the session because it was deferred from last year. So I guess that's coming. And I'd like to recommend that once and available, we schedule some time to have a discussion about it and determine what language we want to put in there. Chief Gary was also in that session. And so he heard everything that they have to. He'd be good to have in the discussion as well. That was it. Thank you. Thanks, Andy. Oh, the other thing. Sorry. Ann was there. There were two sessions about public outreach that were really excellent offered by the South Brunswick. And actually, Evan, I think you were in those ones as well. So there was a lot of good information that was shared about public outreach and alternatives there. So yeah. And then the other thing that they discussed, which you might remember, we wrote a letter of support several months ago to the LCT about a resolution for self-governance. So that bill, which they have tried to get through the state house for many, many years, actually made it through the Senate last year. Yeah. And stalled in the house. So they're going to pursue it this year. And they may come to their member towns and ask for resolutions to either from elected boards or by vote of the public to support self-governance. Whatever entity or format it winds up being, because it was changed over the course of time as it went through the Senate. But it's still very much in play. And they're hopeful that this year it will actually pass. So we'll see what happens with that. Was there anything else anyone wanted to bring up? All right. Well, if there's no further business, I'll hear a motion to adjourn. So moved. Is there a second? Second. All those in favor of adjourning, please say aye. Aye. All right, we're adjourned. Thank you very much, everyone.