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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes of the Board Meeting May 18, 2009.pdf 1 Minutes of the Board of Trustees May 18, 2009 Village of Cayuga Heights Meeting of the Board of Trustees Present: Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron and Szekely, Supt. Cross, Ass’t Supt. Frisbie, Chief Boyce, Treasurer Silber, Fire Chief Tamborelle, Attorney Marcus, Clerk Manning Others: Sarah Hatcher, Linda Bors, Mindy Midland, Anita Watkins, Jenny Stein, James LaVeck, Eric Huang, Frank Collyer ************************************************************************* Mayor Gilmore called the meeting of the Board to order at 7:05 pm. Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Szekely Move to pass Resolution 6481 approving the minutes of April 20, 2009 as amended* Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. *Explanation of reason for amended minutes – Resolution #6467 originally showed Trustee Donner with a NO vote. Trustees Andolina, Supron and Szekely ABSTAINED as they were not present at the September 08 meeting in question. This vote resulted in NO ACTION as there were only 3 YES votes. Upon discussion at this meeting, it was determined that Trustee Donner meant to vote YES to the resolution as he was in favor of NOT amending the September 08 minutes. His YES vote made 4 YES votes which resulted in the Resolution passing. PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR Mindy Mindlin asked about the Independent Planning Board. Where does it stand? She also asked about the progress with the renovation of Marcham Hall, how much is the public going to be involved with the renovation project, and what is the relationship between the new Planning Board and the renovation project. Trustee Riesman described the development of a postcard which will be sent to every resident asking for interested individuals to join the Planning Board. Supt. Cross commented that the Planning Board would play no role in the planning or decision of the renovation project. The issues are not yet defined. Ms. Mindlin said that there are lots of ideas out in the public arena….one is to build another building for the police department and the court and leave Marcham Hall for administration purposes only. Laura Stevens spoke on her concern with wastewater sent through the WWTP. Has the Village sent reports to the DEC? Has the Village submitted a head works analysis to the DEC? There hasn’t been a public listing of contaminants going through the WWTP. Why hasn’t this all been made public? Mayor Gilmore stated that he will make no comment 2 until the head works analysis is completed. Atty. Marcus commented that the Privilege of the Floor is not a question/answer session. Supt. Cross invited Ms. Stevens to visit him in his office where he would answer her questions. James LaVeck asked how this board can justify what happens to the Community’s water supply behind closed doors. He stated that this was not just a Cayuga Heights issue and asked what the Village was withholding. Mayor Gilmore again stated that he is waiting until the head works analysis is done. Attorney Marcus stated that there is nothing being handled behind closed doors and that the decision to accept the drill water which was made by the previous Board was done in an open meeting. Ms. Stevens asked if the head works analysis was done yet and the Mayor answered no. Privilege of the Floor was closed at 7:35 P.M. At this time, Mayor Gilmore introduced Paul Tunison, General Manager and Michael Newman, Chairman of the Southern Cayuga Lake Intermunicipal Water Commission, otherwise known as Bolton Point. Mr. Tunison and Mr. Newman gave a short presentation on the past, present and future of the Bolton Point Water System, including a report on the addition of a 9000 gallon tank next to the existing Burdick Hill tank and the replacement of the Burdick Hill tank with a concrete tank. At 8:30 pm, the Department Reports began. Report of the Fire Superintendent – Report on file Supt. Tamborelle stated that the LifePak 15 machine has been ordered and then reminded everyone of the Fire Company Annual Yard Sale scheduled for May 30 and 31. Supt. Tamborelle also presented the Memorandum of Understanding between Bangs Ambulance and the Village of Cayuga Heights, which would allow Bangs Ambulance Service to station an ambulance at the Cayuga Heights Fire Dept. Discussion resulted in the following resolution: Motion by Trustee Donner Seconded by Trustee Bors Move to pass Resolution 6482 authorizing the Mayor to sign the Memorandum of Understanding between the Village of Cayuga Heights and Bangs Ambulance allowing Bang Ambulance Service to station an ambulance at the Cayuga Heights Fire Department. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. Treasurer Silber wanted to note that George Tamborelle works for Bangs Ambulance and brings the MOU to the Village as Fire Superintendent. The Agreement was prepared by Attorney Marcus and was reviewed by Treasurer Silber. Report of the Police Chief – Report on file 3 Chief Boyce discussed the no left turn issue onto Pleasant Grove Road from Chiaschi’s property as it pertained to the addition of the Chemung Canal Bank. At a previous board meeting, Trustee Bors urged us all to monitor the traffic flow, and the Chief has done that. He feels that the site distance is very good for someone pulling out of the driveway; therefore his recommendation is that it is safe for a left turn onto Pleasant Grove Road. The decision will have to wait for the Planning Board. Chief Boyce will draft a memo stating his findings. This brought up the subject of the new Planning Board and whether the trustees can act as the PB since members of the PB are not yet appointed. In order for this to happen, the local law establishing the Planning Board will have to be amended. The following resolution was offered: Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Riesman Move to pass Resolution 6483 scheduling a Public Hearing for 7:00 PM on June 15th before the regularly scheduled Board meeting to amend Local Law #2 of 2009 amending the effective date of the Planning Board to such time as members have been appointed. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. Report of the Ass’t. Supt. of Public Works – Report on file Ass’t. Supt. Frisbie stated that April was spent finishing up winter cleanup. Hanshaw Road will not be repaved until after the water project is completed. There was discussion on stolen street signs…more have been stolen this year than in the past. They are in the process of being replaced. Trustee Szekely commented on brush which has grown over the sidewalks on The Parkway. Report of the Mayor Mayor Gilmore reported that Trustee Szekely will meet with a Cornell sophomore who has expressed interest in working on the Village history. Szekely is currently working with others, looking for candidates for the historian position. The Mayor distributed a copy of the draft TCCOG resolution in support of the Council of Governments’ health benefits consortium for New York State shared municipal services program. The Mayor will vote in favor of the resolution; however he will state that July 1 is not a feasible date for the Village to vote on their support. Attorney Marcus has a draft agreement to review when the Board gives him the OK to proceed. However, it was noted that Laurie Johnson has already reviewed the agreement, so there will not be a need for Attorney Marcus to review. Mayor Gilmore then addressed Ms. Stevens in the audience, saying that she did not state the facts correctly. The Village voluntarily decided to stop taking drill water on April 1, 2009; the trucks stopped delivering on April 2. He is very encouraged that the Village will find out what is in the water. 4 Lansing Sewer – The Village would like to enter into an agreement with Lansing and the Mayor is asking the Board for their support to begin an agreement to expand our customer base to add 212 sewer units for the Warren Road extension (Warren Road Sewer District). Treasurer Silber stated that the contract has expired with all of our entities. A Memorandum of Understanding will make them all the same. We should make the change to proceed with gallons, not units. The Village will meter the entities for whatever they send us. Trustee Privilege of the Floor Trustee Szekely distributed a copy of a memo she prepared regarding the hiring of a part- time assistant for Brent Cross outlining the work he presently performs. She stated that Supt. Cross needs to do some work to get this moving forward, i.e. drafting a job description for a part-time person. The Mayor said that he will still look into sharing a person with the Town of Ithaca. Trustee Szekely also distributed a report on the public forum at the Women’s Community Building on May 6 entitled “The New Gas Drilling: What Local Governments Can Do.” The DEC is reviewing its recommendations, which were not very comprehensive. Attorney Marcus advised the Board that their focus should be for regulatory impact on the gas drilling industry - 1. begin with the village infrastructure 2. taxation – TCCOG will look into forms for taxing the users for the infrastructure 3. contribute your voice to an environmental impact statement. The Village should keep the dialogue going. TCCOG should come up with a template for a uniform policy. Roads in the Village that would have any likely reason for the kind of traffic that gas drilling trucks would travel on should be identified. Trustee Supron presented a brief DRAC update. There should be a finalized recommendation very soon as the recommendation is now in the hands of Attorney Marcus. The Mayor asked Trustee Supron to share some of her observations and goals for the Village since she is a new trustee. She stated that she has two projects that she would like to see move forward….the planned renovation for Marcham Hall and the creation of the Independent Planning Board along with a comprehensive plan for the Village. She then asked Trustee Riesman about the idea that was previously presented about having Cornell professors work on a Village comprehensive plan as part of their class project. Trustee Riesman stated that this is a definite possibility for the fall. She has had conversations with two professors, and it is now time for the trustees to discuss moving forward and approving funds for this project. Trustee Riesman can ask the professors to make a presentation to the Board with a proposal outlining their services, timetable and cost to the Village. There was discussion on whether to wait until the Planning Board is seated before this step is taken. It was suggested that the Board of Trustees would set up the project, but the IPB would do the actual work with the students. Attorney Marcus spoke about the Village of Lansing’s Comprehensive Plan, which was just completed. It was very involved, more than what we need. Ours can be as simple or as complicated as we want it 5 to be. It was decided that the professors would be invited to the June Board Meetings to give their presentations. Mayor Gilmore then asked Trustee Andolina to share his observations and goals with the Board at the June meeting. Trustee Andolina reported that he called Barbara Lifton’s and George Winner’s office regarding the proposed legislation designed to close the loophole on municipal employees being paid 2x for on the job injuries. Trustee Riesman reiterated the need for a timeline on the renovation of Marcham Hall. She would like to see it move forward. Supt. Cross stated that Clerk Manning is scheduling a meeting of the building committee to set a timeline, and reminded the Board that since this project falls on his shoulders, he needs to have the time to move this along. Trustee Riesman also reported that she is talking to a sign maker for a sign in front of the Village Hall designating “Village of Cayuga Heights”. Report of the Clerk Clerk Manning distributed copies of NYCOM’s Rules of Procedure for the Trustees. It was decided at a previous meeting last fall to use these Rules of Procedure rather than Roberts Rules of Order; however, a resolution was never passed to that effect. At this point, Trustee Szekely offered the following: Motion by Trustee Szekely Move to pass Resolution 6484 adopting NYCOM Rules of Procedure as the official rules of procedure with the “order of business” to be set by the Clerk to meet our circumstances. There was discussion on the wording of the section entitled “Privilege of the Floor” in the NYCOM Rules of Procedure. It was decided that more discussion was needed before this resolution could be passed. Therefore, Trustee Szekely withdrew her motion. Report of the Treasurer Due to a technical error in advertising the bond resolution for the water project from the April Board meeting, the following resolution was offered: Motion by Mayor Gilmore Seconded by Trustee Supron Move to pass Resolution 6485 re-adopting Resolution 6466 passed at the April 20, 2009 Board of Trustees meeting. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. 6 There was then much discussion on the difference between the dollar amount on the bond resolution for the water project that was passed by resolution at the April 2009 board meeting and the actual bid amount. Trustee Andolina offered the following: Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Bors Move to pass Resolution 6486 rescinding Resolution 6475 passed at the April 20, 2009 Board of Trustees meeting. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. Motion by Trustee Supron Seconded by Trustee Andolina Move to Resolution 6466 dated May 18, 2009 as follows: BOND RESOLUTION # 6466 DATED MAY 18, 2009. A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING, SUBJECT TO PERMISSIVE REFERENDUM, THE CONSTRUCTION Of IMPROVEMENTS TO THE WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, IN AND FOR THE VILLAGE OF CAYUGA HEIGHTS, TOMPKINS COUNTY, NEW YORK, AT A MAXIMUM ESTIMATED COST OF $1,260,000 AND AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE OF $1,140,000 SERIAL BONDS OF SAID VILLAGE TO PAY THE COST THEREOF. WHEREAS, the capital project hereinafter described has been determined to be a Type II Action pursuant to the regulations of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation promulgated pursuant to the State Environmental Quality Review Act, the implementation of which as proposed, will not result in any significant environmental effects; and WHEREAS, it is now desired to authorize such capital project and its financing; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the affirmative vote of not less than two-thirds of the total voting strength of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Cayuga Heights, Tompkins County, New York, as follows: Section 1. The construction of improvements to the water distribution system, in and for the Village of Cayuga Heights, Tompkins County, New York, consisting primarily of the replacement of water mains, as well as incidental improvements and expenses in connection therewith, is hereby authorized, subject to permissive referendum, at a maximum estimated cost of $1,260,000. Section 2. It is hereby determined that the plan for the financing of the aforesaid $1,260,000 maximum estimated cost is as follows: a) by the issuance of $1,140,000 serial bonds of the Village hereby authorized to be issued therefor, pursuant to the provisions of the Local Finance Law; and b) by the appropriation of $120,000 of available funds. 7 Section 3. It is hereby determined that the period of probable usefulness of the aforesaid specific object or purpose is forty years, pursuant to subdivision 1 of paragraph a of Section 11.00 of the Local Finance Law. It is hereby further determined that the maximum maturity of the serial bonds herein authorized will exceed five years. Section 4. The faith and credit of said Village of Cayuga Heights, Tompkins County, New York, are hereby irrevocably pledged for the payment of the principal of and interest on such bonds as the same respectively become due and payable. An annual appropriation shall be made in each year sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on such bonds becoming due and payable in such year. There shall annually be levied on all the taxable real property of said Village, a tax sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on such bonds as the same become due and payable. Section 5. Subject to the provisions of the Local Finance Law, the power to authorize the issuance of and to sell bond anticipation notes in anticipation of the issuance and sale of the serial bonds herein authorized, including renewals of such notes, is hereby delegated to the Village Treasurer, the chief fiscal officer. Such notes shall be of such terms, form and contents, and shall be sold in such manner, as may be prescribed by said Village Treasurer, consistent with the provisions of the Local Finance Law. Section 6. All other matters except as provided herein relating to the serial bonds herein authorized including the date, denominations, maturities and interest payment dates, within the limitations prescribed herein and the manner of execution of the same, including the consolidation with other issues, and also the ability to issue serial bonds with substantially level or declining annual debt service, shall be determined by the Village Treasurer, the chief fiscal officer of such Village. Such bonds shall contain substantially the recital of validity clause provided for in Section 52.00 of the Local Finance Law, and shall otherwise be in such form and contain such recitals, in addition to those required by Section 51.00 of the Local Finance Law, as the Village Treasurer shall determine consistent with the provisions of the Local Finance Law. Section 7. The validity of such bonds and bond anticipation notes may be contested only if: 1) Such obligations are authorized for an object or purpose for which said Village is not authorized to expend money, or 2) The provisions of law which should be complied with at the date of publication of this resolution are not substantially complied with, and an action, suit or proceeding contesting such validity is commenced within twenty days after the date of such publication, or 3) Such obligations are authorized in violation of the provision of the Constitution. Section 8. The powers and duties of advertising such bonds for sale, conducting the sale and awarding the bonds, are hereby delegated to the Village Treasurer, who shall advertise such bonds for sale, conduct the sale, and award the bonds in such manner as he shall deem best for the interests of said Village, including, but not limited to, the power to sell said bonds to the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation; provided, however, that in the exercise of these delegated powers, he shall comply fully with the provisions of the Local Finance Law and any 8 order or rule of the State Comptroller applicable to the sale of municipal bonds. The receipt of the Village Treasurer shall be a full acquittance to the purchaser of such bonds, who shall not be obliged to see to the application of the purchase money. Section 9. This resolution shall constitute a statement of official intent for purposes of Treasury Regulations Section 1.150-2. Other than as specified in this resolution, no monies are, or are reasonably expected to be, reserved, allocated on a long-term basis, or otherwise set aside with respect to the permanent funding of the object or purpose described herein. Section 10. Upon this resolution taking effect, the same shall be published in full or summary form in the official newspaper of said Village for such purpose, together with a notice of the Village Clerk in substantially the form provided in Section 81.00 of the Local Finance Law. Section 11. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 36.00 of the Local Finance Law, this resolution is adopted subject to permissive referendum. The question of the adoption of the foregoing resolution was duly put to a vote on roll call, which resulted as follows: Trustee Andolina VOTING AYE Trustee Bors VOTING AYE Trustee Donner VOTING AYE Trustee Riesman VOTING AYE Trustee Supron VOTING AYE Trustee Szekely VOTING AYE Mayor Gilmore VOTING AYE The resolution was thereupon declared duly adopted. Treasurer Silber explained the need for a resolution to permit coverage of projects pending borrowing. The following resolution was offered: Motion by Trustee Riesman Seconded by Trustee Szekely Move to pass Resolution 6487 authorizing an interfund loan of up to $500,000 from the general fund to the sewer fund to provide bridge financing for the phosphorus treatment project. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. Motion by Trustee Szekely Seconded by Trustee Riesman 9 Move to pass Resolution 6488 approving the transfers dated 5/18/09 listed below: Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. From: To: Amount A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A01210.410 Mayor Contr Exp $ 100 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A01420.410 Attorney Contr Exp 8,000 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A01620.440 Village Hall Utilities 1,200 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A01620.450 Buildings: 825 Hanshaw 100 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A01640.410 Central Garage: Contr Exp 4,000 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A01640.440 Central Garage: Utilities 1,000 A01680.200 Info Tech: Cap Exp A01680.410 Info Tech: Contr Exp 1,000 A03410.430 Fire: Insurance A01990.400 General Fund Contingency 17,500 A03410.410 Fire: Contr Exp A03410.480 Fire: Station Maint 850 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A05010.100 Street Admin: Pers Serv 8,000 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A05110.100 Streets: Pers Serv 20,000 A01990.400 General Fund Contingency A05110.410 Streets: Contr Exp 3,000 A08020.400 HCS: Planning Contr Exp A01990.400 General Fund Contingency 4,000 A08160.200 Refuse: Eqpt A01990.400 General Fund Contingency 8,800 A08160.200 Refuse: Eqpt A08160.460 Refuse: Tipping Fees 3,000 A09040.800 Emp Ben: Workers Comp A01990.400 General Fund Contingency 18,500 F01990.400 Water: Contingency F08320.410 Water Supply: SCLIWC 2,520 G01990.400 Sewer: Contingency G08120.410 Sewer Lines Contr Exp 3,000 G01990.400 Sewer: Contingency G08130.490 Sewer Plant Eqpt Maint 6,000 The abstract of vouchers was presented. Motion by Trustee Supron Seconded by Trustee Andolina Move to pass Resolution 6489 approving Abstract of Audited Vouchers dated 5/18/09 and any amendments in the amount of $248,669.00 and instruct the Treasurer to make payments thereon. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. Report of the Clerk – Clerk Manning reported that tax bills would be mailed at the end of May. Report of the Supt. of Public Works Supt. Cross spoke on the following projects. Work Directive Change No. 1-G: The contractor for the Phosphorous Project at the WWTP has encountered other underground pipes in the proposed path of the new pipe to the new phosphorous filter station. Therefore, Stearns & Wheler has directed the Contractor to lower the new pipe to go under the existing pipes. Since this is an “unforeseen condition,” the contractor will do the work on a “time and materials” basis. The cost is not to exceed $4,000. The following resolution was offered: 10 Note: Resolution numbers out of order Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Bors Move to pass Resolution 6491 authorizing the Mayor to sign the Work Directive Change No. 1-G as an amendment to the contract with C.O. Falter Construction Corp. up to $4,000. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. 2009 Water System Improvement Project: the bids were opened on May 14 and the apparent low bidder was Chicago Construction (who worked for the Village last fall) with a base bid of $856,917. Depending on certain alternates, the price could go up by another $114,294 (for extra footage). There is also an option for smaller pipe, but the credit is only $21,094. Supt. Cross recommends that the Village accept the low bidder and take the alternates for the extra work for a grand total of $971,210, which is much less than the engineer’s estimate of $1,250,000. The following resolution was offered: Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Donner Move to pass Resolution 6492 authorizing the Mayor to sign the contract with Chicago Construction Co., Inc. for (amount to be determined) pending final approval of the Village Treasurer and Attorney review of the legal and financial terms and conditions, which contract would not be signed until the expiration of the permissive referendum period of underlying bonds. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. Drill water Head works analysis: Stearns & Wheler Engineers have provided a formal proposal to complete the head works study for a fee of $28,100. Supt. Cross recommends that the Village move forward with this work as it could lead to the option of taking drill water in the future, but more importantly, it would be documentation of the treatment that was already done. If this work is not authorized, Supt. Cross assumes that the Village will be billed for the work that has been completed to date (mostly data collection and set-up). The proposal predicts 180 days to finish, including submittal to NYSDEC and other work related to modification limits in the local law, etc. The following resolution was offered: Motion by Trustee Szekely Seconded by Trustee Riesman Move to pass Resolution 6493 authorizing the Mayor to sign the contract with Stearns & Wheler to complete the head works analysis NTE $28,100. 11 Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron, and Szekely voted YES. The 2008 MS4 Stormwater Annual Report will be ready to be filed in the Clerk’s Office by the June 8 board meeting. The Clerk will advertise that the report is completed and available for inspection, and it will be put on the website. Report of the Attorney Attorney Marcus reported that he worked on the Memorandum of Understanding for Fire Chief Tamborelle between Bangs Ambulance Service and the Village of Cayuga Heights. He is also working with Police Chief Boyce for Livescan Equipment sharing between the members of the group entitled Law Enforcement Technology Shared Services (LETSS) consisting of Tompkins County, the City of Ithaca, and the Villages of Cayuga Heights, Dryden, Groton and Trumansburg. Attorney Marcus is also reviewing the DRAC proposal. Mayor Gilmore asked about the contract with the Village of Cayuga Heights for the police to give Court help to the Town of Ithaca. Treasurer Silber will take care of the review of that contract. Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Supron Move to pass Resolution 6494 entering Executive Session at 11:25 PM for two reasons both concerning matters leading to the appointment or employment of a particular person or corporation. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron and Szekely voted YES. Motion by Trustee Andolina Seconded by Trustee Riesman Move to pass Resolution 6495 coming out of Executive Session at 12:20 PM. Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron and Szekely voted YES. Motion by Trustee Riesman Seconded by Trustee Supron Motion to adjourn the meeting at 12:20 PM Mayor Gilmore, Trustees Andolina, Bors, Donner, Riesman, Supron and Szekely voted YES.