Candidates on ... smart growth for Rutland City and the region

Louras: I fully buy into the concept of smart growth. It's traditional, clustered development in city centers and town centers. I do say the 's' word, sprawl ... it's bad for city development.

Maintaining our traditional, clustered development in Vermont. It adds to our identity. The core of downtown is the core of the larger community and I will do whatever I can to make sure that core is maintained.

Trapeni: Obviously we don't have smart growth right now.

I brought it up two years ago, I don't understand why we're not encouraging putting people in the upstairs levels of those buildings.

I know the issue is that Rutland Town is getting all the development. I look at it this way as a businessman, those people who are working at Staples and Hannafords, a lot of them live in the city. They need a job, and it just so happens its in Rutland Town.

I think to say that urban sprawl or that type of sprawl we have down there on 7 is bad, I just don't buy it. ... I don't care if they do that type of business from here to the airport. We just don't have any type of space to have those types of businesses in the city.

Follow up from Randal: What about the condos being developed in the Sunshine building?

Trapeni: "That project on Wales Street is leaving something unfinished. They don't have any kitchens, any bathrooms."

He said that he had an elderly man come in and inquire about the cost of putting in a kitchen and bathroom, and was discouraged to hear the cost.

Louras: "It is to some degree build it and it may come. What was happening before wasn't working."

There are other places downtown, privately owned, where individuals currently do live downtown. He said it's a program that can and will work but it's new to the city and "we're still trying things."

Candidates on... energy efficiency

Randal mentioned that the school board is asking voters to approve a ballot item that will help them "button up" their buildings, and asked about the possibility of doing this throughout the city's buildings.

Louras said he would like to do an efficiency audit on buildings thorughout the city, but would like to do the entire assessment at one time.

Trapeni said he is in this line of business, and that we would not need to pay for an audit because businesses that think they may get the work would do it at no cost.

Rapid fire round:

Do you support the school's request for energy efficiency funds on the ballot?

Trapeni: Yes
Louras: Yes

Do you support the school budget as it appears on the ballot?

Trapeni: No
Louras: No

Why?

Louras: He said that they have other budgets prepared. Do they need to go with the base? No, probably not but somewhere in between the currently proposed budget and their smallest.

Trapeni: "They've already disclosed they have five tiers of budgets. ... They've already committed themselves that they have other budgets. Everybody in the city is strapped right now. My whole thing and my whole meaning in running for mayor is no new taxes."

He said that the proposed budget is as high or higher than South Burlington, where they have more students. He thinks the voters will vote the budget down the first time.

Candidates on the police department, DOC

Louras said that he spoke with Senator Patrick Leahy this afternoon and it appears likely that Rutland will receive an earmark for public safety through the Omnibus Bill that is set to be voted on next week.

Posed with the question, Trapeni said that it seems like the problematic areas in the city are limited to about five streets in the city, and he doesn't think that there is a "boots on the ground" presence in this area. In the summer months, he'd like to see officers on bikes in the neighborhoods as well.

Follow up: With the number of individuals being released into the community by the Department of Corrections, what is the mayor's role in making sure residents are safe?

Trapeni said he would like to see the state subsidize the city's police department if we are made to absorb this many people.

Louras said he began working on this issue a year ago this week, and has been meeting regularly with DOC.

He said he is also working to change the length of time that DOC requires these supervised individuals released into the community to remain here.

In the past six months he's been talking to the Barre mayor, who is up against the same problem. Louras is pushing the Rutland County delegation to make sure that the city's costs are reimbursed by the state.

Trapeni asks to follow up.

He said that one problem is people released under these programs are required to have jobs, but there are no jobs currently. He thinks this will only create a greater issue.

Trapeni on economic development

Randal: What would be your approach?

Trapeni said we need to get small businesses into the area, businesses that would be attracted to a small downtown. The city also needs to get people to realize that tourism is our biggest money maker for the city.

"We're the Green Mountain State, we need the green industry."

"A lot of people talk about retail in the city, and I am in retail. In order to develop retail we need to communicate with the tourist trade. ... We need to get the tourist trade to function in the City of Rutland."

Randal Smathers is the moderator for the night.

It's going to be a "conversation" he said. One hour.

First question from the creator of the Cartland Web site, Blanche Cart.

How do we manage the abandoned cart problem downtown? What can we do to give the city a low-cost face lift in this respect?

Trapeni: "Situation carts bring to the city is not so funny."

He said his business, right over the River Street bridge, often has to fend off the carts, and it is one of the most troubling problems he's seen the board have to tackle. 

Louras: Had the city attorney do some research into what is done around the country. He proposes what is done in Rome, N.Y. - consider the carts abandoned property, collect them and turn them in for scrap.

The board could create an ordinance to do so, he said.

Also suggests we could turn a negative into a positive, and perhaps poke a little fun at ourselves in the hopes of spurring debate. Carts as art? Races at Friday Night Live?

Live from PEG... it's the mayoral debate

So, we have about two minutes until kickoff of the first debate of the night. I'll be here all night, posting updates whenever the mood strikes me... we'll see.

There is still time to get down here, and quite a few empty chairs.

Pro-Business Coalition endorses candidates

After the College of St. Joseph forum for candidates for the boards in Rutland City and Rutland Town on Monday night, members of the Rutland County Pro-Business Coalition voted to endorse three city candidates and one from the town.

They are: Kevin Coleman, Tom DePoy and Dave Dress from the city, and Rod Cioffi from the town, according to Jim Eckhardt of the RCPBC Board of Directors.

A few more than 20 members were present for the vote, Eckhardt said. The RCPBC sponsored the forum.

Louras, Trapeni now on YouTube!

Apparently the mayoral candidates feel there's a demographic to be reached with YouTube videos.

Christopher Louras':

David Trapeni's:

Thoughts?

Public Safety Committee meets in executive session

Last night's Public Safety Committee meeting - between the aldermen, the mayor and city counsel and representatives of International Association of Firefighters Local 2323 - was held entirely in executive session to discuss an unfair labor practice charge the union brought against the city.

Here's some background on the issue.

$65,000 PVC pipe and fitting expense

In a story today about the city's YTD finances, I wrote:

In terms of expenses, the report shows that a line item for PVC pipe and fittings in the wastewater collection budget was over by about $65,000. Wilton was not sure what project or emergency may have caused the department to incur that cost. No one in the Department of Public Works could be reached Monday for comment.

Treasurer Wendy Wilton heard from Paul Clifford, DPW Commissioner, earlier today that the expense came from a sewer collapse on Baxter Street last summer.