OFFICE OF THE SELECTBOARD
TOWN OF HALIFAX, VERMONT
REGULAR MEETING MINUTES
December 2, 2025
6:00 PM – Virtual Only due to declared local incident
CALL TO ORDER
Edee Edwards called the virtual meeting to order at 6:00 pm. Other Selectboard members present were Karen Christofferson, Rhonda Ashcraft, Randy Pike and Lori Marchegiani, all virtual. Members of the public online were Nancy McCrea and Stephan Chait.
CHANGES AND ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA
Due to the first sizable snowstorm of the winter with the heaviest snow predicted in the late afternoon, the board declared a local incident by mid-morning, and this meeting was held entirely remotely. That fact was posted in town, on the website, and via Mailchimp, citing 1 V.S.A. § 312a(a)(4).
No other changes or additions were made to the agenda.
OLD BUSINESS
Incoming credit card payments
Marchegiani updated the board on working with Five Fire Media to allow for secure credit card payments on the town website through a service called Hamer Enterprise, which is associated with M&T Bank. Patty Dow had first brought this to the board’s attention, and it was discussed in some detail on August 5, 2025. Fees will be paid by the taxpayer or applicants, for property tax payments or permit applications.
Marchegiani made a motion to use Hamer Enterprises to set up credit card payment services on our website. Christofferson seconded. Motion carried by voice vote, 5-0
Preliminary Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM) from FEMA
Edwards clarified that Town’s involvement with the FIRM updates mentioned at the last meeting is minimal. These maps are for the West River watershed, which is not our major drainage system. Edwards will notify relevant parties (Tom Fox, Kyle Farnsworth) if and when a meeting gets scheduled. There is no expected resident/structure impact here.
DVFIber versus Fidium for Town Garage
Edwards had forwarded Christofferson her past attempts to get other Town officials to request and schedule DVFiber connections as the board had discussed and agreed previously. It has not yet been done. Fidium’s recent marketing efforts and flyer did not give an actual quote for the garage, and it did have fine print to state the rates were only good for 1 year.
Christofferson described an outage and said she was concerned that DVFiber was not staffed and resourced for servicing. Christofferson agreed to follow up with DVFiber.
FY27 Budget
Key points covered on the Selectboard accounts included:
- Updating the public safety dispatching fees (6610) based on a new estimate from Southwestern New Hampshire Fire and Mutual Aid’s letter. We removed this amount from tonight’s order, as it is not due until 2026. Up 9.6%.
- Walking through lines 6110, Selectboard <stipend> to 6250 (Total of Town Office Expenses), with several things to circle back to.
- Selectboard stipends reduced by $100 each, though this is set by town auditors
- Edwards requested additional funding for administrative support. No change was made.
- Town Clerk stipend works out to $22/hour, $3/hr. less than listers. Put in a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of 2.8% increase. (No healthcare insurance benefits.)
- Small $200 annual increase in Planning/Zoning Secretary as town plan updates are under discussion.
- Town auditors level funded and left in. Still plan to vote for elimination of position at Town Meeting due to earlier vote for professional auditor, which voters can only authorize for that to be annual per VLCT.
- Town Constable/ACO increase $1000 based on role and time
- EOC Emergency Supplies and Expenses (Acct 6262) was increased from $2K to $8K due to significant underbudgeting last year. Generator maintenance at school, garage and Fire Company needs to be included.
HEARING OF VISITORS
No one wished to speak.
CORRESPONDENCE
Pike reported that Clark Road turnaround is substantially better and clear for winter. The property owner noted a damaged mailbox, but Pike confirmed it was not the road crew, with photographs of the path of the plow edge in relation to the mailboxes.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
November 18, 2025 Regular Meeting Minutes
Ashcraft made a motion to accept the minutes of the November 18th 2025 meeting minutes as amended. Edwards seconded. By voice vote, the motion carried 5-0.
November 24, 2025 Special Meeting Minutes
Pike made a motion to accept the November 24, 2025 Selectboard Meeting Minutes as amended. Marchegiani seconded. By voice vote, motion carried 5-0.
SELECTBOARD ORDER
The corrected amount of $11,292.23 was discussed. Board members Edwards, Christofferson, and Marchegiani will attempt to sign in person in the morning.
ADJOURNMENT
Ashcraft made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:38 pm. Pike seconded. Motion carried 5-0.
Respectfully submitted,
Edee Edwards
Secretary Pro Tempore
Recording link: https://youtu.be/1Kvxqm97mK4
