HomeMy WebLinkAboutTownBoard_Minutes_20190107Danby Town Board
Minutes of Organizational and Regular Meeting
January 7, 2019, 7pm
!
Present:
Councilpersons: Leslie Connors, Ric Dietrich (Supervisor), Jim Holahan, Matt Ulinski
Not Present:
Councilperson: Jack Miller
Others Present:
Town Clerk Pamela Goddard
Code Paul Hansen
Bookkeeper Laura Shawley
Public Ted Crane, Ronda Roaring, Bruce Richards, Susan Franklin.
Organizational and Regular Meeting Opened at 7:02pm
Privilege of the Floor
Ronda Roaring encouraged the Board to have the 2019 calendar updated on the Danby web site.
Crane further suggested that the web site home page, among other pages be updated.
Organizational Resolutions
Clerk Goddard distributed the annual Organizational Resolutions and outlined changes compared to
the previous year. The primary changes from previous years are the updated salaries, updating regular
Board meetings to the first and second Monday evenings, and naming Alexandra Pfeifer as Deputy Town
Clerk.
Supervisor’s Statement to the Board:
Robert's Rules of Order will be followed at all Town Board Meetings, except when special roll call vote is
necessary. Roll call will be alphabetical by last name, but with the Supervisor voting last.
All meetings will begin and end at times to be specified during January’s Organizational Meeting.
Method of claims for payment of all bills will be by voucher. Vouchers and items for the agenda must be
submitted to the Supervisor or the Town Clerk.
The Town Board will audit all bills. Research will determine which section of Town Law requires this
supervision.
All personnel matters will be discussed in executive session.
RESOLUTION NO. 1 OF 2019 - APPROVAL TO INVEST IDLE FUNDS
Resolved, that the Town Board of the Town of Danby authorizes the Supervisor to invest idle funds.
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RESOLUTION NO. 2 OF 2019 - APPROVAL OF YEAR 2019 SALARIES
•Town Board, Council persons, total 11,512.74 (2,878.19 x4) ................................
•Town Supervisor 28,417.20 ..........................................................
•Deputy Town Supervisor 2,878.44 ...............................................
•Assistant to Supervisor 8,817.80 ..................................................
•Bookkeeper 23,185.62 ..................................................................
•Town Justices, total 31,456.80 (15,728.40 x2) .......................................................
•Court Clerk 16,462.80 ..................................................................
•Highway Superintendent 61,449.90 .............................................
•Deputy Highway Superintendent 54,482.28 ................................
•Highway Secretary 29,412.72 ......................................................
•Town Clerk 38,993.58 ..................................................................
•Deputy Town Clerk 22,292.10 .....................................................
•Code Officer 53,704.02 ................................................................
•Planner 51,183.60 .........................................................................
•Water Plant Operator (West Danby) 13,397.70 ............................
•Water Plant Operator Assistant (West Danby) 3,705.66 .............
•Water Clerk (West Danby) 4,802.16 ............................................
Total $456,155.28 ...........................................................................
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby authorizes the Supervisor to pay the above salaries. The
salaries shall be paid prior to the first Town Board meeting of each month, and December payrolls will be adjusted to
meet all budget requirements.
RESOLUTION NO. 3 OF 2019 - PAYMENT OF BILLS
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby approves a blanket resolution to authorize the Town
Supervisor to pay utility bills, health insurance, freight, postage, contracts, and to conduct other normal proceedings,
such as payroll, in advance of audit in order to keep affairs moving on a timely basis, and be it further
Resolved, That a contract is not a bid award.
RESOLUTION NO. 4 OF 2019 - 2014 FINANCIAL REPORT
Resolved, that the Town of Danby Town Supervisor, in lieu of preparing a financial report under NYS Town Law
Article 3, §29.10, shall submit to the Town Clerk by March 1, 2019 a copy of the report submitted to the State
Comptroller required by Section 30 of Municipal Law.
RESOLUTION NO. 5 OF 2019 - TOWN OF DANBY OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER AND BANK DEPOSITORY
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby names the Ithaca Journal as its Official Newspaper and Key
Bank and Tompkins Trust Co. as banks for the depository of Town Funds.
RESOLUTION NO. 6 OF 2019 - OF DANBY ATTORNEYS
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby names the law firms of Miller Mayer, LLP and Thaler and
Thaler to represent the Town of Danby in all Zoning, Planning Board, and General Town of Danby business. The
Town Board reserves the right to seek other legal aid if it deems necessary.
RESOLUTION NO. 7 OF 2019 - MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENT FOR TOWN MILEAGE
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby authorizes reimbursements for private automobile mileage
incurred on Town Business to be paid at the rate of fifty five cents ($0.55) per mile.
RESOLUTION NO. 8 OF 2019 - REAFFIRMATION OF TOWN OF DANBY PROCUREMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby reaffirms the Town of Danby Procurement Policies and
Procedures (as established in Resolution No. 24 of 1993, amended in 2004 and 2010).
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RESOLUTION NO. 9 OF 2019 - TOWN BOARD MEETINGS
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby regular monthly board meetings be scheduled at 7:00pm on
the first and second Monday of each month for the year 2019.
RESOLUTION NO. 10 OF 2019 - AUTHORIZATION FOR PURCHASE OF TOOLS, EQUIPMENT, ETC.
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby authorizes the of Danby Highway Superintendent to purchase
tools, equipment (other than motorized equipment), small implements, tires and tubes, etc. in the amount not to
exceed $2,500 at any given time without prior approval of the Town Board.
RESOLUTION NO. 11 OF 2019 - HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENTS REIMBURSEMENT
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby be authorized to sign an agreement that monies collected for
repairs and improvements of Town Highways in the amount of $170,000 (State Aid DA3501) be expended upon 70.2
miles of Town of Danby highways.
RESOLUTION NO. 12 OF 2019 - AGREEMENT TO SPEND TOWN HIGHWAY FUNDS - 2019
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 284 of the Highway Law, the Town Board of the Town of Danby agrees that
money levied and collected for the repair and improvement of highways, and received from the state for repair and
improvement of highways, shall be expended as follows:
1.General Repairs. The sum of $286,781 may be expended for general repairs upon 70.2 miles of town highways,
including roads, culverts, and bridges.
2.Improvements. The following sum shall be set aside or be expended for the improvements of town highways:
$170,000 in CHIPS money to be spent on projects to be determined by the Highway Superintendent at a later
date.
No money set aside for such improvements shall be expended, nor shall any work be undertaken on such
improvements, until the Town of Danby approves the specifications and estimates for such construction.
RESOLUTION NO. 13 OF 2019 - HEALTH CONSORTIUM APPOINTMENT
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby appoints Laura Shawley as its representative to the Health
Insurance Consortium.
RESOLUTION NO. 14 OF 2019- ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF DEPUTY TOWN CLERK
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby acknowledges the Town Clerk’s appointment of Alexandra
Pfeifer as her Deputy Town Clerk.
RESOLUTION NO. 15 OF 2019 - ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF DEPUTY HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby acknowledges the Highway Superintendent’s appointment of
Jack Shawley Jr. as his Deputy Superintendent.
RESOLUTION NO. 16 OF 2019 ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF COURT CLERK APPOINTMENT
Resolved, that the Town Board of the Town of Danby acknowledges the Town Justices’ appointment of John Norman
as Danby Court Clerk !
Moved by Ulinski, Second by Holahan. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Ulinski, Dietrich !
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Warrants
ABSTRACT #13 OF 2018:
GENERAL FUND
#542-570 for a total of $15,892.95
Moved by Ulinski, Second by Holahan. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Ulinski, Dietrich
HIGHWAY FUND
#328-345 for a total $60,965.11
Moved by Holahan, Second by Connors. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Ulinski, Dietrich
ABSTRACT #1 OF 2019:
GENERAL FUND
#1-22 for a total of $46,072.17
Moved by Connors, Second by Holahan. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Ulinski, Dietrich
HIGHWAY FUND
#1-3 for a total $95,529.62
Moved by Connors, Second by Ulinski. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Ulinski, Dietrich
WEST DANBY WATER DISTRICT FUND
#1-2 for a total $2,785.36
Moved by Connors, Second by Holahan. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Ulinski, Dietrich
Approve Minutes
MOTION - APPROVE MINUTES
Moved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby approves the minutes of December 10, 2018.
Moved by Ulinski, Second by Dietrich. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Ulinski, Dietrich
Abstain: Holahan
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Appointments
Clerk Goddard reported that all of the current chairs of the Planning Board, Board of Zoning Appeals,
and Conservation Advisory Council are willing and able to continue serving in this capacity.
RESOLUTION NO. 17 OF 2019- APPOINTMENT OF PLANNING BOARD CHAIR
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby reappoints Jim Rundle to Chair of the Planning Board.
RESOLUTION NO. 18 OF 2019 - APPOINTMENT OF BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS CHAIR
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby reappoints Earl Hicks to Chair of the Board of Zoning Appeals.
RESOLUTION NO. 19 OF 2019 - APPOINTMENT OF CONSERVATION ADVISORY COUNCIL CHAIR
Resolved, That the Town Board of the Town of Danby reappoints Matt Ulinski to Chair of the Conservation Advisory
Council.
Moved by Connors, Second by Dietrich. The motion passed.
In Favor: Connors, Holahan, Dietrich
Abstain: Ulinski
There was a brief discussion regarding term appointments for the Planning Board, BZA, and CAC.
The incumbents have all expressed their interest in serving another term. In addition, Ted Crane submitted
an application for the Planning Board. Further consideration of these appointments will take place at the
next TB meeting.
Code of Ethics
Ulinski gave a brief update on the status of the draft revised Danby Code of Ethics. Draft #5
incorporates suggested changes received through comments. The document is currently being reviewed
by the Town Attorney, with further revisions recommended by him. There are concerns about the “future
employment” section and potential conflicts with NYS Labor Law. Ulinski hopes that a final draft will be
available, and posted on the Danby web site, in time for the next meeting of the Town Board. He further
estimated that the Code of Ethics policy would be ready for consideration of adoption at the first TB
meeting in February. Ulinski will circulate the final draft when it is available.
Code Report
Paul Hansen made a report regarding progress on the bus shelter installation at the Danby Community
Park across from the Town Hall. The concrete pad was poured before the end of year 2018. Hansen
estimates that the shelter structure will be installed by TCAT during the month of January. In addition, the
bus shelter at the Danby Fire Hall is being rebuilt for better accessibility.
Fire Inspections are in progress. Those structures on a three year cycle are all up to date. Hansen is
currently working on structures which fall into a one year inspection cycle.
Short Reports - Court, Town Clerk
Clerk Goddard read correspondence advising the town that Justices Huddle and Klinger will now
hold Danby Court on Tuesday mornings, starting at 9am. Similarly, District Attorney representation will
continue on the first Tuesday of the month, but at 9am. This change takes effect on Tuesday February 5,
2019. Justice Huddle will take a medical leave of a few weeks, for knee replacement.
Further court reports will be presented at the next TB meeting. The monthly Town Clerk’s report for
December 2018 will also be presented at the next TB meeting.
Clerk Goddard circulated a thank you card from the directors of the Danby Community Park
Association. Copies of the 2018 municipal animal shelter and animal control inspection reports from the
NYS Dept. of Agriculture were circulated. There were no problems for 2018, with all categories marked
satisfactory.
Supervisor Dietrich reported on an upcoming meeting for staff to plan grant and project management
for 2019. Some aspects of grant management may be contracted out to an outside agency.
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Historian and Documents Management Reports
Clerk Goddard presented a Historian’s report on behalf of Mary Ann Barr. Barr outlined several
public education and historical research projects undertaken during 2018. Barr asked for the Board’s help
in identifying possible volunteers to help with Danby history projects. “The need could be filled by one-
time volunteers who want to spend a few hours poking into Danby history, or it could be people who
would be willing to give an hour or so on a monthly basis.”
Barr also submitted a Document Management report for 2018. Major projects include clearing
duplicate documents from what had been the Bookkeeper’s office when this was prepared for use by the
Danby Planner. Barr has been reviewing documents stored on 3.5 inch data diskettes from Carol
Sczepanski’s tenure as Town Clerk. This is an ongoing project. To date, several sets of minutes or partial
sets of minutes for the Town Board and Planning Board have been located. These begin to fill gaps in the
historical record, in the years 2006-2010, where no documents had previously been available. There are
still some gaps, due to locked or encoded files on the diskettes and computer. Additionally, some minutes
were never created.
Highway Report
Laura Shawley made a brief report on road conditions, on behalf of Carl Seaman and Jack Shawley.
Dirt roads, such as Fisher Settlement Road, have been problematic this year due to cycles of freeze and
thaw and frequent rain. They have been laying a lot of gravel on these roads, in an attempt to improve
drainage on these roads.
Progress has been made on the highway wash bay building. There is now enough information to
proceed with a cost estimate and seeking bids for the work.
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 7:45 pm. !!!!!
______________________________________
Pamela Goddard, Town Clerk
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