HARDWICK – Area residents and business owners have been wondering about the future of 9 South Main Street, home of the Clip Joint and Co. and upstairs apartment dwellers, following an oil spill and subsequent mitigation work in recent months. Fortuitously, Rural Edge (RE) Executive Director Patrick Shattuck was present at the August 7 select board meeting to review the various properties and projects now under RE’s management, including 9 South Main, pending a transfer of ownership from the Lamoille Housing Partnership.
According to Shattuck, in 2024, the Lamoille Housing Partnership and Downstreet Housing began discussions with Rural Edge to begin the process of transferring Hardwick properties to Rural Edge. Rural Edge was set to assume management and eventual ownership of 100 units from Downstreet, and 160 units from Lamoille Housing Partnership.
Shortly after the deciding vote, the third party property management association, Alliance Property Managers, announced they would cease operations by the end of the year. Come November, Shattuck says they were informed Alliance no longer had any employees whatsoever. Rural Edge subsequently agreed to assume management in December.
“What we’d seen at the beginning of the year, to what we took over, was quite different,” Shattuck began. “There were over 20 vacancies, units that hadn’t been vacated, hadn’t been turned over or readied for the next household. There were supposedly very few open work orders or repairs needed, but when we spoke to tenants, there were hundreds of items that had not been addressed,” he explained.
In addition to these unpleasant surprises, Shattuck informed the board several evictions had been started, but no further action had taken place. In November, the oil spill at 9 South Main Street forced the property to be vacated, which Shattuck said became a serious challenge. Because the oil spill was considered an environmental issue, insurance coverage was capped at $25,000.
“We got the funding to both remediate and rehabilitate the building, due to the design of the building. The oil tanks are on the first floor, but pump up to the boilers on the second floor. And so, when that oil spill happened, the failure occurred on the second flood, which really caused a dispersal of oil all over the structure,” Shattuck explained. The repairs to the Clip Joint and upstairs residencies have been completed, with a certificate of occupancy granted by the state two weeks ago. The heating system at 9 South Main has been refitted for propane, for both efficiency and sustainability purposes.
Police Chief Mike Henry was present to tell the board that radar signs have been placed on Church Street, West Hill Road and on Center Road. The East Hardwick Neighborhood organization is looking to get more signs in that area of town, having applied for a grant and received $2,500 towards one. Officer Joe Donna has recently completed his requisite 300 hours of field training, moving him up to Level 2. Recently hired Officer Robin French has left the department, having taken a position with Morrisville Police Department. Chief Henry and the board discussed amending Hardwick Police Department (HPD) trainee contracts to include a two-year employment commitment.
In other business, the board elected to join the Vermont-Alert system, used by the state and local responders to notify the public of emergency situations.
The board discussed throwing up Town Highway 316 off of N. Main Street next to 283 N. Main Street. After reviewing the maps, the board agreed unanimously to begin the process.
The board approved the submission by Community Development Coordinator Tracy Martin, for an application to Municipal Technical Assistance Program (MTAP) to support the hiring of Heather Carrington to work on two Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) projects.
Road Foreman Tom Fadden delivered his regular report, saying the crew is almost finished with sidewalk work on S. Main St. They will begin grant work on Tucker Brook Road, as well as mitigation work. The crew has been spot grading, as the weather remains too dry for calcium chloride to be effective.
The board approved some appointments. Kate Brooke was reappointed to the development review board for a three-year term. To the Hardwick Conservation Commission, Peter Moskovitz was appointed for a three-year term, and Joe Nudell for a two-year term.
Raymonda Parchment is a Hardwick Gazette reporter. She recently graduated from Vermont State University - Castleton with a Bachelor’s Degree in English. She is a strong supporter of freedom of speech, and the right to publish information, opinions, and ideas without censorship or restraint. She is a lifelong lover of the written word, and is excited to join the team as a staff member.
