Dear Ward 6 neighbors,

My apologies for my delay in getting this preview posted on the day of the meeting.

Following a presentation from the Community Sailing Center, our deliberative agenda includes five key items:

• STATION ALERTING AT THE BURLINGTON FIRE DEPARTMENT. The Department is seeking approval and authorization to replace the existing fire station alerting system at a cost not to exceed $430,000.00. When lives are on the line, seconds matter. A modern station alerting system will ensure our firefighters rapidly receive reliable and critical call information in a variety of methods, reducing the time it takes to respond to emergencies, whether our members are in or out of the fire stations.

• The co-chairs of the JOINT COMMITTEE ON POLICE OVERSIGHT, Councilors Ben Traverse and Gene Bergman will provide an update on the work of their committee and plans for a Charter change for the March 2024 ballot. There are several changes they are proposing; I would encourage you to read their memo on Civic Clerk.

• We will be voting on contract amendments for the GREAT STREETS MAIN STREET PROJECT.

• We will be voting on a proposed ordinance change regarding THERMAL ENERGY SYSTEMS AND THE ASSESSMENT OF A CARBON POLLUTION IMPACT FEE following the approval by the voters in March 2023. It is in the public interest and in the interest of public health and safety to achieve a high degree of conservation of energy and, where possible, reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by requiring buildings to meet specified energy efficiency performance standards and maximum allowable heat loss standards. While there are exceptions, effective January 1, 2024, the carbon pollution impact fee would be equal to one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) per ton of greenhouse gas emissions attributable to a building's fossil fuel thermal energy systems over their lifetime, based on a net present value calculation at the time the permit application is submitted.

• Our last item is DISTRICT ENERGY. We will be voting to approve Burlington Electric entering into a Letter of Intent to provide steam to Burlington District Energy from the McNeil Plant to the University of Vermont Medical Center. The steam will replace most of the natural gas the hospital currently burns and will reduce the city's fossil fuel emissions from commercial buildings by 16 percent. This project has been decades in the making, has gone through many iterations and this vote will begin the formal process of bringing this project to fruition.

You can access the meeting in 3 ways: via zoom, in person or via the CCTV link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLljLFn4BZd2PwCge7lNoKug676jIf_iUA.

PUBLIC FORUM WILL BEGIN AT 6:30. You can sign up for public forum via this link: https://www.burlingtonvt.gov/citycouncil/publicforum or in person by completing a sign-up form inside Contois.

I encourage you to review these and other agenda items at: https://burlingtonvt.portal.civicclerk.com Once there, you can read the agenda and also subscribe to be notified when there are changes to city meetings. Please go to "subscriptions" and sign up to receive up-to-date information on meetings important to you.

As always, I welcome your questions, concerns, and comments, so please be in touch. Your voice matters and I am grateful for your input.

My best,
Karen

Event Info

Dec 29, 2024, 10:15 to 11:15 AM

Dec 30, 2024, 1:15 to 2:15 PM

Jan 4, 2025, 12 to 2 PM