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Significant Change Anticipated for District Heat Construction Schedule

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 13:11:00 EDT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Significant Change Anticipated for District Heat Construction Schedule
April 26, 2013

Today the City announced significant schedule changes on the District Heat construction schedule starting next week. Starting, Monday, April 29th, Kingsbury Companies, LLC will have two crews working. One crew will remain at the State Street location and one will start on School Street.

On State Street, the water work currently underway will wrap up next week. In the following weeks, work will begin to lay the piping for the heat distribution system on Taylor Street toward State Street and turning right onto State Street. This work is anticipated to start on May 6th and continue until June 6th.

On School Street, work will begin on installing the piping for the heat distribution system to Union Elementary School. This work will start on at the Fairpoint parking lot on School Street on April 29th and is anticipated to end at the Union Elementary School on May 16th.

This schedule change is needed as the first shipment of pipe arrived this week without required fittings to install larger pipe in the center of the system. Kingsbury Companies, LLC currently has the material needed onsite to start work on the leg along School Street. In the interest of continuing work on the project, the decision was made to alter the schedule to allow the crews to move forward.

Efforts are currently underway to ease what is anticipated to be a challenging traffic flow around Union Elementary School during drop-off and pick-up times. Specifically, the City and Contractor are posting signage in the area, the School is partnering with the City to notify families, and the Montpelier Police Department has offered additional assistance starting next week to help facilitate safe and effective drop-offs and pick-ups.

Parking will be significantly reduced along School Street to allow two-way traffic to continue during construction. Vehicles parked on Cedar Street may experience significant delays exiting. At times during the construction on School Street, the sidewalk on the south side of the Street will not be accessible as the pipe is being installed.

For more information and an updated map of the construction calendar please visit us at http://www.montpelier-vt.org/, like us on Facebook for regular construction updates, or call our District Heat phone line at (802) 262-6200.

Public Meeting to discuss the Montpelier District Heat Project

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 12:48:00 EDT

The City of Montpelier will hold a public meeting on Monday, April 15th at 5:30 p.m. to discuss construction related to the Montpelier District Heat Project. Construction starts on April 16th on State Street. The meeting will be held in the Council Chambers at City Hall (39 Main Street.) More information on the Montpelier District Heat Project can be found here: http://www.montpelier-vt.org/. If you have questions about the meeting, please contact the City Manager’s Office at (802) 223-9502.

Assistant City Manager vacancy filled

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 12:15:00 EST

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Assistant City Manager Vacancy Is Filled
William Fraser, City Manager
March 8, 2013

Montpelier City Manager William Fraser announced today that Jessie C. Baker has been appointed to fill the vacant Assistant City Manager position. She will begin her duties on April 1, 2013. She replaces long time Assistant City Manager Beverlee Hill who retired in June to assume a part time position as tax collector for the city.

Baker has served as the Performance Improvement Manager for the State of Vermont Department of Health for the past two years. She previously worked for the City of Somerville, Massachusetts for five years in a variety of roles which closely mirror the responsibilities of the Assistant City Manager position. She rose quickly through the organization serving as Personnel Director, Aide to the Mayor, Acting Director of the Health Department and Senior Analyst responsible for assisting the Mayor in the supervision of City departments through regular monitoring of departmental data and implementation of short- and long-term improvement plans. Prior to her experience in city government, Baker spent six years working on policy and data based performance measurement in the area of children’s and family services.

Baker, 35, holds a Bachelors Degree in Anthropology and Psychology from Columbia University and a Masters Degree in Social Policy and Planning from Tufts University. She is a graduate of Harwood Union High School and a native of Waterbury Center, Vermont. She presently resides in Burlington and plans to relocate to Montpelier.

Fraser said, “Jessie brings a fresh perspective and considerable professional expertise to the city. Her contributions in Somerville helped draw national attention for the city’s data driven management and decision making approach. She is highly skilled and directly experienced in municipal operations. Her background in performance measures, project management and human resources fills some big voids in our organization. Because she has lived in the area for most of her life, she’s starting with some familiarity with the community. She is a great fit for Montpelier and the city government.”

Baker was selected from a very competitive field of 243 applicants hailing from 41 states and 2 countries. The selection process included an advisory committee consisting of former city council members, community representatives, department heads, and city staff. Her starting salary will be $69,000 annually.

Preliminary Election Results

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:53:00 EST

The City Clerk will post complete official results tomorrow. All ballot items passed and Jessica Edgerly Walsh was elected as the new city council member in the only contested race.

Article 1 - All those running unopposed were elected. In the District 3 Council race: Jessica Edgerly Walsh 295, Ron Wild 150, Steve Cook 109, Zack Hughes 70.

Article 2 - City budget. Yes 1693 No 572

Article 3A - School Budget Yes 1426 No 891

Article 3B - School Budget Yes 1209 No 1062

Article 4 - Recreation Budget Yes 1732 No 573

Article 5 - Mayor's Pay Yes 1782 No 527

Article 6 - Council Pay Yes 1775 No 535

Article 7 - School Board Pay Yes 1686 No 622

Article 8 - School Reserve Fund Yes 1660 No 580

Article 9 - City Infrastructure Bond $710K Yes 1851 No 448

Article 10 - City Sewer Bond $670K Yes 1749 No 530

Article 11 - School Bond $2.3M Yes 1401 No 875

Article 12 - Downtown Improvement District Yes 1216 No 1030

Article 13 - Library Budget Yes 1518 No 771

Article 14 - GMTA CIrculator Bus Yes 1539 No 748

Article 15 - Firefighter Petition Yes 1198 No 1098

Article 16 - Tar Sands Petition Yes 1650 No 643

William Fraser
City Manager