Williston Observer

By Tom Gresham
Observer staff

As the network of bike paths and sidewalks in Williston continues to expand, the Selectboard appears poised to approve an ordinance that would regulate the activities on them.

The Selectboard will hold a public hearing on a proposed sidewalk and bike path ordinance at 7:30 p.m. on Monday. Various drafts of the ordinance have already been reviewed by the Selectboard in recent months and survived the readings with only minor alterations.

The three-page ordinance includes penalties for those who violate any of the provisions. Fines range from $25 to $125.

Williston would follow municipalities like South Burlington in passing an ordinance governing bike and walking paths. Other communities, like Burlington, do not have an ordinance. Joanne Putzier of the Burlington Parks and Recreation Department said the city has posted rules for its bike paths, but not a formal ordinance.

Some users of the Williston’s sidewalks and bike paths sounded uneasy at the prospect of regulations.

David Bauer, who was preparing to go for a bike ride with his son, Jacob, and daughter, Kristin, on Monday afternoon, said he had never seen any safety problems on the path and believed an ordinance was unnecessary.

“It doesn’t seem like regulations is the way to go,” Bauer said. “I’d rather they left it up to people’s sense of individual responsibility. If they’ve had problems with people not being safe, then I’m not opposed to it. If they’re proactively looking to make some rules, then I’d have to say no.”

Steve Knowlden, an in-line skater who was using the bike path Monday, said the disparate users appeared to coexist peacefully and seamlessly in Williston. Knowlden said if Burlington did not have an ordinance for its bike path, he did not see a reason that Williston should.

“To me, it seems as though it would open up a can of worms,” Knowlden said. “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. It’s working fine the way it is now.”

Town Manager Rick McGuire said complaints about inappropriate behavior on the town’s sidewalks and bike paths have been scarce in recent years. However, McGuire said the town decided it had a legal need to enact a municipal ordinance for the paths.

McGuire said the ordinance could provide peace of mind for recalcitrant property owners worried about granting rights-of-way to the town for future bike path construction. McGuire said property owners often express concerns about their legal liability.

In a November letter to McGuire and Public Works Director Neil Boyden, attorney Joe Fallon said property owners have limited liability for those using paths if the use is allowed by state law or a municipal ordinance. Fallon recommended the town implement an ordinance.

“The main thing is to protect the property owner from any liability,” McGuire said. “That’s the goal with this.”

McGuire said town staff and the Selectboard did not want to create an ordinance that imposed onerous restrictions on bike path and sidewalk users.

“We tried to add something without getting too carried away with regulations,” McGuire said. “It’s not easy to enforce and we really haven’t had many problems.”

The ordinance includes provisions that give pedestrians the right of way on the paths, ban motorized vehicles and urge users to “travel only at such speeds and in such a manner as is safe under the circumstances.”

The many dog owners who take their pets for walks on sidewalks and bike paths could also face fines under the proposed ordinance. Dogs must be leashed, and dog droppings must be removed from the path and right-of-way.

McGuire acknowledged that enforcing the regulations will not be a top priority. He said fines could originate from citizen complaints or a police officer happening upon a violation.

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Directors seek better fields, more competition

By Tom Gresham
Observer staff

Six-year-olds will swing at balls perched on tees with bats seemingly as long as they are. Twelve-year-olds in the midst of startling growth spurts, teetering between being children and being teenagers, will peer in for signs from catchers, eyeing a target a mere 45 feet away for one final summer. Aluminum bats will ring; stiff, new mitts will pop; and parents will hoot encouragement from the stands.

Monday marks opening day for the Williston Little League and the approximately 320 boys and girls participating in the league’s five divisions. Ballplayers from the burgeoning local league will join nearly 3 million other youths around the world participating this season in leagues under the aegis of Little League Baseball and Softball.

The timeless action on the field will be the focus, as usual. However, the Williston Little League will be facing a number of changes in the next year designed to improve the league, and some of those matters will begin to be tackled this spring and summer, according to Dennis Lalancette, the league president.

Among the chief goals of the league board of directors is to improve its facilities and attract regional competitions to Williston. Little League rules dictate that the host fields for regional tournament games have certain specifications. Community Park, the field where the Major League of Williston Little League plays its contests, does not qualify, Lalancette said.

Lalancette said the league would be pleased to partner with the town to fund some of the improvements, but in order to do that the league will need to find new revenue.

Lalancette said the league does not want to hike current registration costs — $40 for one player, $45 for two, $50 for three — because the relatively low entry fee is something the league takes pride in.

Instead, the league is looking to improve its other revenue sources and hopes to launch a capital campaign to raise money for facility improvements.

Also, the league will borrow an idea used by some neighboring leagues and hold a Hit-A-Thon fundraiser this year. Players will take pledges that will be based on the distance they can hit the ball off a tee. Lalancette said the event, which is scheduled for May 14, should be a big day, complete with a barbecue and team pictures. He hopes the event can produce an atmosphere akin to the opening days other leagues stage.

“It should be a fun multipurpose function,” Lalancette said. “All the players will gather together in one place and it will be a way to celebrate youth baseball and softball in Williston.”

The Little League was offered an electronic scoreboard for its Community Park field by Coca-Cola, but complications with the town’s zoning requirements have put that donation in question. The league would also like to explore the possibility of placing advertisements on the fence at the Community Park during the season, but has held off that discussion until the scoreboard issue is resolved.

In the meantime, the fields are undergoing largely routine maintenance this week. The 2005 season was originally scheduled to start April 25, but town officials did not expect to have the three fields ready for competition until May 1. Recreation Director Kevin Finnegan said Monday that everything should be ready by the end of the week.

The league moved the start of the season back a week to adjust, shortening the schedule from 14 games to 12 games. Lalancette said the shift marks a break from tradition for the league, which has for years opened its season the Monday after school spring vacation.

Lalancette said he has received only favorable feedback from parents and coaches about the schedule change. He said parents are pleased the season opener does not come so close to the end of vacation, while the coaches are enthused to get an extra week with their team.

“It’s nice we’ve got that time to practice now,” said Bruce Allen, a coach for a Triple A team. “Usually, half of the players are here and the other half are in Florida the week before the season starts. Now, we’ll have a chance to get everybody together and practice a bit.”

Lalancette said the numbers for Williston’s baseball and softball leagues are down a bit from a few years ago. Still, only the fall youth soccer league, which included about 450 kids last year, is a larger youth sports league in town.

The numbers should grow next year when the league considers allowing 5-year-olds to participate.

“There’s a lot of interest in Little League and we want to make sure we provide opportunity for everybody that we can,” Lalancette said.

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Board tells dog owners that leash law will not be enforced

By Tom Gresham
Observer staff

The Selectboard told concerned dog owners Monday that a proposed bike path and sidewalk ordinance would not prevent canines from running free — even though existing rules requires all dogs to be leashed.

Board members and Town Manager Rick McGuire said the proposed ordinance would not be vigorously enforced unless the town received complaints. Public Works Director Neil Boyden said he could not remember receiving a complaint about dog behavior on the town’s bike path and sidewalk in the past eight to 10 years.

“We’re not going to be out there patrolling,” Boyden said.

Dog owners who spoke at the meeting said they frequently walked their unleashed dogs on the stretch of the bike path that runs through Community Park, typically in the early morning hours. They said they maintained control of their dogs and avoided conflicts with other path users.

The town already has a dog control ordinance that forbids dogs from running free unless the dog is being used for hunting or is being trained for hunting. Therefore, people who allow their unleashed dogs on the town’s bike paths or sidewalks are already subject to a fine. However, the ordinance is not strictly enforced.

The proposed bike path and sidewalk ordinance, which the Selectboard will consider approving at a future meeting, includes regulations on uses of the path and sidewalks. A provision that prohibited motorized uses was altered at Monday’s meeting at the suggestion of Planning Commission member Kevin Batson to permit motorized wheelchairs and other vehicles for the handicapped.

McGuire and Boyden told the concerned dog owners that the ordinance was not developed to limit the current uses on the paths and sidewalks, including the practice of allowing dogs to run free. They said the ordinance was designed to limit the liability of property owners who allow paths to cross their property.

The town is currently speaking with property owners to ask for easements that would allow for construction of future paths.

Three property owners spoke at the ordinance hearing, asking questions about potential liability for incidents off the path and about the behavior of those using it.

“Our biggest fear is an uncontrolled impact on our property and our lifestyle,” said John Butterfield, a North Williston Road resident.

Kerstin Hanson, a North Williston Road resident, asked why the town was passing the ordinance if it was going to look the other way when it came to enforcement.

McGuire said the town would not ignore infractions, but would make enforcement decisions based on the complaints it receives.

Both dog owners and property owners ultimately seemed satisfied with the ordinance and with the municipal officials’ explanation of its enforcement.

Selectboard members seemed surprised by the lively crowd of 14 who attended the hearing.

“Last week, I ran a public hearing in Brattleboro with 700 people on nuclear waste and it was quieter than this,” said Selectboard Chairwoman Ginny Lyons.

In light of a recent dog bite complaint, Selectboard member Terry Macaig, the town health officer, said he has never received a report of a dog bite case at the community bike path.

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Manager complains about ‘shotgun’ legal strategy

By Tom Gresham
Observer staff

Several Williston municipal officials remain listed as defendants as a developer’s lawsuit against the town nears trial.

The Village Associates suit, which seeks a sewer allocation for a proposed housing development near Taft Corners and unspecified punitive and compensatory damages, has been scheduled for trial May 25-27 and June 21-22 in Chittenden Superior Court. The suit was filed in the spring of 2003.

Despite the sustained efforts of the town’s attorneys to have the town officials removed as defendants, the lawsuit still lists Town Manager Rick McGuire, former Town Planner Mike Munson and Public Works Director Neil Boyden.

A judge ruled on May 12, 2003 that the officials could not be removed as defendants in the lawsuit, and Judge Meredith Wright, the Superior Court judge who will be hearing the case next month, has not responded to the town’s renewed request, made in April 2004, to remove the officials from the suit.

McGuire said the lawsuit does not expose town officials to financial liability, because they are each covered by professional liability insurance. The insurance company that holds the policy has an attorney contributing to the town’s defense.

Still, McGuire said, he does not believe he or the other defendants should be included in a lawsuit for doing their job. He said the Village Associates’ tactic of including officials in the suit suggested “a shotgun approach.”

“I don’t understand why I’m listed,” McGuire said. “All I was doing was administering a town ordinance. Why I’m being sued for doing my administrative duty, I don’t know.”

In its request to dismiss the suit against the officials, town attorneys said the officials were being sued in their capacities as town officials, which was identical to suing the town. Therefore, the suit only had one defendant, the attorneys argued.

However, the Village Associates attorneys cited preceding cases to argue that the question of whether the officials were acting in their official capacity could only be answered at trial.

Village Associates also argued that the inclusion of the officials was necessary for the plaintiff to receive “complete and adequate relief” financially in light of the town’s assertion that punitive damages could not be found against a municipality. Removing the officials, Village Associates argued, would also preclude its claim of punitive damages.

An attorney representing Village Associates did not return a message seeking comment on the case.

Village Associates filed suit against Williston after it did not receive a sewer allocation for a large multi-use project proposed for property on Zephyr Lane near Taft Corners. The project, which would include 110 residential units, had received phasing allocation from the Development Review Board for the first phase of the project. Many of the units are designed to meet the town’s “affordable” designation.

The Selectboard did not release enough sewer capacity to serve the Village Associates project, citing the dwindling capacity the town had at the time. The town recently received 200,000 new gallons per day of sewer capacity through an expansion at the Essex Junction wastewater plant.

Village Associates has argued the town’s denial of a sewer allocation for the project amounts to a refusal to allow the project to proceed. The developer said the refusal conflicts with the town’s comprehensive town plan goals of promoting affordable housing and development in the Taft Corners district.

Meanwhile, the town says the denial was made simply because there was not enough sewer available for the project.

Wright was also the presiding judge who ruled July 8, 2003 to deny the Village Associates’ request for a preliminary injunction preventing the town from handing out sewer allocations until the lawsuit had been decided. At the time, Wright appeared favorably disposed to the town’s argument that Village Associates’ inability to land a sewer allocation was not the result of illegal tactics by the town.

McGuire said there are no active discussions between the town and the Village Associates regarding a possible settlement to the suit. However, the Selectboard met with attorney Paul Gillies in a closed-door meeting Monday and possible settlement terms might have been part of the discussion.

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By Tom Gresham
Observer staff

Scott Seitz was hired last month to fill an opening in the Williston Police Department.

Seitz, with four years of police experience, joined the force qualified as a full-time officer, meaning he can move quickly into the rotation. He was trained at the Vermont Police Academy and is familiar with state laws, Detective Sgt. Bart Chamberlain said.

Chamberlain said Seitz’s readiness to handle shifts immediately is critical because of a current officer shortage. The police department has two openings in its force, and two officers are currently unavailable.

Officer Jamin Whitehead is attending the police academy, and Detective Mike Lavoie remains sidelined with a shoulder injury suffered last August. Lavoie will have a second surgery on the shoulder later this month and is not expected to return to duty until this summer.

Seitz has work experience with the Barre and Northfield police departments. He occasionally worked with Williston Officer Dan Gowans during the latter’s time in the Washington County Sheriff’s Department, and is friends with Officer Scott Graham.

Seitz most recently worked for the police department in Fort Myers, Fla., but he said Vermont was a better fit for his family.

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