Town manager search enters interview phase
Aug. 18, 2022 | By Lisa Scagliotti Out of a field of 31 applicants to be Waterbury’s next municipal manager, town officials this week planned to interview seven candidates with the goal of narrowing the field to two or three finalists.
Waterbury Select Board Chair Mike Bard and Vice Chair Dani Kehlmann shared that update at Monday night’s Select Board meeting. The search committee working on recruiting a successor to Municipal Manager Bill Shepeluk is in the process of now working with applicants that answered an employment ad seeking to fill the town government’s top management position by November. Shepeluk plans to retire at the end of the year.
The job posting attracted 31 applicants and the committee members working with a consultant from the Vermont League of Cities and Towns sorted through to rank and select a group for a first round of interviews.
Bard explained that each member reviewed letters and resumes and ranked the applicants. “It’s a diverse group,” Bard said. “Most have some experience in Vermont.”
Bard said many were from the Eastern U.S., with the farthest hailing from Los Angeles. Kehnmann said only six or seven in the applicant pool were women and none were selected for interviews.
“I would have liked to have included some women,” Bard said, adding that experience requirements led the committee to eliminate the women candidates in the first cut.
The initial round of interviews was being done online, they said. Those chosen for the next round will be asked to visit to interview in person to meet town staff and see the community.
The search committee also would like to involve community members in this final phase of the selection process.
Following Monday’s meeting, the committee announced that it would invite interested community members to participate in upcoming meetings with finalists to provide feedback to the committee. It would mean a time commitment of up to three hours on a day to be scheduled with the applicants, as well as about another 30 minutes on a second day to share input with the committee.
For more information or to volunteer, anyone interested should email Kehlmann at danikehlmann@waterburyvt.com by Friday, Aug. 26.
The search committee is composed of representatives of the Select Board, the Edward Farrar Utility District Board of Commissioners, and the Library Commission.
Minutes and agendas for the search committee are on the town website, waterburyvt.com, in the select board section.
Park planning progresses
Planning for Hope Davey Park and the recreation lands near the Ice Center in downtown Waterbury is moving along with SE Group, the Burlington consulting firm the town hired recently for the project. Town Director of Planning and Zoning Steve Lotspeich and select board member Alyssa Johnson gave an update of the $50,000 planning project that voters approved on Town Meeting Day.
The consultant is working with town officials and a steering committee made up of community members representing various recreation groups. They have mapped sensitive wetland areas and are looking to create a master plan for future uses in the two popular areas.
The group has two meetings coming up that the public is invited to participate in. The first is a site visit planned for Friday, Aug. 26. The committee and consultant will visit both park locations starting at Hope Davey at 9 a.m. and convening at the Ice Center around noon, Lotspeich said. Members of the public are welcome to join.
The next is described as a “visioning” drop-in meeting to be held on Sept. 15 at the Hope Davey Park pavilion from 5 to 7 p.m. Community members will be encouraged to stop by to ask questions and offer their input to the planning exercise.
The planning group aims to have a report by December. Lotspeich said he hopes the exercise can also include a process to involve the community in coming up with a name for the recreation area near the Ice Center that includes playing fields, the entrance to the Perry Hill mountain bike trails, the dog park and the site of a proposed skatepark.
“We’re generally on schedule,” Lotspeich said. “We’re trying to keep it moving.”
The process was started as a way to sort out competing interests among park users and to plan for future recreation development in both locations.
Along those lines, Shepeluk said he has continued to receive some complaints regarding the disc golf course at Hope Davey this summer. He said he would ask park users to not take it upon themselves to make any changes.
“We want people to know it’s OK to go play on the course, but they shouldn't be moving holes, cutting trees,” he said. “We ask for everyone’s patience. Hopefully we’ll address some of the issues with this master plan.”
Speeding concerns on Stowe Street
The recently paved Stowe Street is a big improvement for motorists but it poses a challenge for drivers to adhere to the 25 mph speed limit. Shepeluk and select board members have heard from local residents, particularly those who live along Stowe Street voicing concerns about speeding.
The board discussed options for additional enforcement by Vermont State Police troopers assigned to Waterbury or even contracting with the Washington County Sheriff’s Department for additional patrols.
Shepeluk shared observations he made during a 30-minute stretch late Monday afternoon where he observed traffic on upper Stowe Street near one of the feedback signs that flashes a vehicle’s speed.
Of the 56 vehicles that passed by, 10 were traveling at or below the speed limit; 25 were between 25 and 30 mph; 18 were between 30 and 35 mph; and three were over 35 mph with the fastest going 38 mph, Shepeluk said.
“Speeding is a fact of life,” Shepeluk said. “Nobody likes it.”
Public Works Director Bill Woodruff described strategies for line-painting that still needs to be done and how lines along the shoulders could be placed to narrow the driving lanes and thereby encouraging drivers to slow down.
Kehlmann summed up the discussion with a motion the board supported unanimously to request more attention to speed enforcement from the existing state trooper patrols, paint the new lines to narrow the travel lanes somewhat, and to prioritize a sidewalk extension project across from Brookside Primary School to increase pedestrian safety, especially for students.
An art project by middle-school students looks to paint the large electrical box at the corner of Main and Stowe streets that contains equipment for the traffic signal. Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
Student art for Main Street
Finally, the board heard from local art teacher MK Monley who is working with middle school students on a project to paint two large town-owned electrical boxes along Main Street that contain controls for traffic lights at the Stowe Street and Park Row intersections.
A second project would recruit students to design artwork to paint on the electrical box at the corner of Main Street and Park Row. Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
Several students recently met with Monley and artist Julio Desmont at MakerSphere art space to brainstorm a design for the box at Stowe Street, Monley said.
The students would like to paint a train around the four sides of the box with each side representing a different season, she said.
The group would aim to get the first box done before school starts. Another group of students would be recruited to work on the second box, Monley said.
The board welcomed the effort, voting to approve the plan Monley explained.
Other business
In other business, the select board also:
Agreed to write a letter of support for Waterbury Ambulance Service Inc. as it applies for a state grant for its new station project.
Approved liquor licenses for the Old Stagecoach Inn and Salt LLC catering company.
Received an updated town emergency management plan with updates by Fire Chief Gary Dillon. The board agreed it should schedule a training session with Dillon to review the processes outlined in the plan.
Voted to hire a consultant to update several town financial policies and procedures as outlined in recent annual audits of town finances.