Dear Neighbors,

This Monday, the City Council will convene its second of two meetings for the month of September. My apologies in advance for what I know will be a long post. We have a lot going on this coming Monday.

The Council meeting will begin at 6pm with the first hours devoted to a public forum on the Livable Wage Ordinance. The Livable Wage Ordinance has been the subject of a great deal of debate. The Ordinance Committee, of which I am a member, has been working on this ordinance over the past few months and our proposed amendments are on the agenda for Monday night's meeting. We expect there will be a large number of community members at the meeting and have decided to set aside one hour for public forum devoted to this one topic.

Following this public forum, we will continue with our meeting at 7pm. We have a packed agenda which includes a full discussion and vote on a redistricting plan in addition to the first of two readings on the Livable Wage ordinance.

We will hold a public hearing on the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report from CEDO.

We will then review all the redistricting maps and scenarios that have been proposed. There are 6 of them. They are 4 wards/12 councilors total, 6 wards/13 councilors, 8 wards/16 councilors, 7 wards/14 councilors, 8 wards/4 precincts/12 councilors, 7 wards/13 councilors. I would encourage you to look at these scenarios online; I will give you the link at the end of this post. I would welcome your input.

In a nutshell, the redistricting issue is that our population has changed. The New North End wards have lost population according to the 2010 census while Ward 1 has gained population. We need to adjust the lines so everyone is fairly and equally represented. This has presented a challenge for us because while the New North End has lost population in numbers, this area of town tens to vote in healthy numbers; in Ward 1, the increase in population is related mostly to college students. As well, in Ward 6 there was an increase due to the construction of Redstone Lofts. Students often vote in their hometowns but because they reside here, they are counted in our census. The issue of how to redistrict the City has been challenging to say the least. These scenarios will all alter Ward 6 to varying degrees. Please take a look at them if you have a few minutes this weekend.

Please also keep in mind that whatever scenario gains the Council's support, that plan will go before you for your approval on Town Meeting Day in March 2014.

We will be voting on four other ordinance changes in addition to the Livable Wage. They are regarding side and rear yard setbacks, conditional uses in mixed use districts, downtown transition district expansions, and sanitation.

We will have a presentation from Andy Montroll, former Ward 6 City Councilor and also the Burlington representative on the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission of the Commission's Annual Report.

We have two resolutions to vote on. One is regarding finalizing a plan for diversity, equity and inclusion for the City of Burlington and the other is in favor of renewable energy resources and opposition to fracking.

We will have council committee reports, comments from councilors and the Mayor. Please keep in mind that you are welcome to come to a council meeting and speak to the Council on any subject you wish during our Public Forum which begins at 7:30pm. We will have a half hour of public forum in addition to the one hour forum devoted to the Livable Wage Ordinance.

Clickable agenda items can be found on the City's website:
http://burlingtonvt.gov/CityCouncil/Agendas-and-Minutes---DMS-Documents/City-Council/2013/20[...]da/ Please keep in mind that at all Council meetings are televised live on Channel 317 on Burlington Telecom.

As always, I welcome your questions and concerns. Please email or give me a call over the weekend or on Monday.

All my best,
Karen

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