The Brandon Selectboard met on Monday evening to address a range of matters including a study to replace the highway department garage, financial updates, parking changes, and a proposed covered bridge event. Chair Cecil Reniche-Smith was absent.

Budget and Public Works

Town Manager Seth Hopkins reported that the FY26 budget concluded on June 30 with an approximately $150,000 surplus. Revenue came in at 104% of projections while expenses stayed at 99.8% of budgeted amounts, which Co-Chair Doug Bailey described as "pretty darn good budgeting."

The reserve fund currently totals $725,000, according to Hopkins's report. Selectboard member Ralph Ethier asked if it was a good time to use funds to pay down the remaining balance of about $130,000 on the police station building loan, which carries a 3.14% interest rate. Hopkins noted the potential to save $20,000–$24,000 annually in general fund costs by eliminating the payment.

Hopkins said that the town has procured road salt for the season. A contract was made for 1,000 tons of road salt at $106.50 per ton. This price is slightly above the budgeted rate of $105 per ton, which will result in being approximately $1,500 short of the budget if the full 1,000 tons are delivered.

The board approved the purchase of a nearly new Ego electric zero-turn mower. The mower, which has had very little use, was acquired for $3,500, compared to its retail price of $5,300, and is complementary to the Energy Committee's green fleet policy. Hopkins emphasized this is not a replacement for the gas mower, which will still be needed for larger properties like Estabrook Park. The Ego mower is more suitable for the smaller parks downtown.

Budget Committee and Workshops

Claire Astone was appointed to the FY28 Budget Advisory Committee. "I just want to say thank you on record for paying attention, hearing people's needs in the town, and doing such a great job with the budget," she said.

The selectboard set a schedule for the FY28 Budget Workshops, open to the public. The meetings will be held every other Monday from October 5 through December 7, on weeks when the selectboard does not meet, leading into December's budget finalization. The kickoff meeting is Tuesday, September 22.

Replacing the Highway Department Facility

The existing structure was described as "old 20 years ago" by selectboard member Jeff Haylon. The building is leaking, energy inefficient, and insufficient for current truck storage. The proposed assessment includes an eight-week pre-design study by Coe + Coe Architecture, a small firm in West Glover, Vt, from September through October.

Hopkins said that the estimated cost given by Coe + Coe of $3 million could be funded by a 20-year bond. If the selectboard decides to proceed with this funding method, a public vote would take place following the March 2027 town meeting.

Bailey suggested exploring alternative building types, including ClearSpan hoop structures commonly used for highway departments, while maintaining professional engineering oversight due to wetlands constraints at the site.

Board members agreed that regardless of the final construction, a professional study was necessary. The pre-design study by Coe + Coe will cost $10,000, which Hopkins said will come from the 1% local option tax.

Reappraisal and Assessor Services

At the last meeting, a proposal for a town-wide reappraisal of Brandon property values was introduced with four submitted formal bids. One of those bids was from New England Municipal Resource Center (NEMRC), for $247,200, and has a completion date of summer 2032.

Hopkins pointed out that NEMRC is also the current contracted assessor for the town on an ongoing basis. Hopkins said the cost for those services is less than $20,000 a year.

However, Hopkins told the board that NEMRC has announced a policy change: if Brandon selects another firm for reappraisal, NEMRC will terminate its ongoing assessor services contract.

Brandon uses NEMRC software for water and sewer billing, the grand list, property taxes, and the general ledger. Hopkins said it was not currently known if there might be compatibility problems with the software the town uses and the software another reappraisal firm might require, and that this subject requires further investigation.

No Parking Zone at Central Park

To improve safety around Central Park, the board designated a no-parking zone which Hopkins said was originally part of the Segment Six design, but never made it into the traffic ordinance. The designation was for an interim no parking zone as a stopgap measure until a complete rewrite of the ordinance, which he suggested was very complex.

Bailey proposed that instead of what was described as no parking "between the gazebo and monument" in the agenda, "it should start at the crosswalk where the parking on that side of the road ends, all the way down."

Public comment asked for clarity about the placement of the bus loading zone with painted lines, which Hopkins said could be done.

Covered Bridge Event Again Deferred

At the last selectboard meeting Deputy Town Manager Bill Moore submitted a request to close Pearl Street for an October 2 Sanderson Covered Bridge event. The request was deferred pending additional stakeholder input.

The proposed hours for road closure are 4:45 to 10 p.m., although Moore said that three hours of event time are planned, with buffer time for setup and cleanup.

Moore presented an email supporting the event from Josh Collier, Artistic Director of Opera Vermont and Barn Opera, which stated "it benefits all of us to open our beloved space to our community to remind all of us that Barn Opera House is not just for opera, but rather for community events."

Scott Scribner, who sits on the Vermont Covered Bridge Society board, expressed personal support for the idea and volunteered to help clean up after the event, saying that he expected the rest of the board would also support it.

Moore said that Brandon Fire Department’s Chief Kilpeck and Brandon Police Department’s Chief Kachajian had no issues with the potential closure.

However, Andrew Jackson, Chief of Operations at the Brandon Area Rescue Squad, raised concerns about emergency response delays. He said the closure could add approximately five minutes to response times for Long Swamp and Short Swamp residents.

Public comments about the duration of the road closure led Jan Coolidge to suggest a shorter event, which Moore acknowledged as a possibility but said it was less preferred. Bailey and Haylon said they were "on the fence" about the event.

The board concluded the discussion by tabling the proposal until the next meeting.

Read the minutes here.

Video forthcoming.