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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-06-23 Town Board MinutesTown of Danby Town Board Regular Second Monthly Board Meeting Wednesday 23 June 2021 at 7:00 PM via Zoom Video Conferencing https://zoom.us/j/97107232988?pwd=bHBJY3p5M2toYIFSZWpwbmtLaStkQT09 Roll Call : Meeting Minutes Town Board Joel Gagnon, Supervisor Leslie Connors Jim Holahan Sarah Schnabel Matt Ulinski Town Planner David West Town Code Enforcement Officer Steve Cortright Town Bookkeeper Laura Shawley Recording Secretary Janice R. Adelman, Town Clerk Guest Presenters: Chip Nolan, M&T Bank Zach Lind, Danby Rep to TCCOG Broadband Committee 1. Call to Order at 19:01 by Town Supervisor Gagnon 1.1. Additions/Deletions to Agenda 1.1.1. Authorize Computer Purchases Clerk and Code 1.1.2. Final Budget Transfers 2020 (https://onlyo.co/2UnlfkO) 1.1.3. Financial Update General (https://onlyo.co/3h2gJQG) & Highway (https://onlyo.co/2UxKrpl) Funds 1.1.4. Fund Transfer to Water District (https://onlyo.co/3j7sfwX) 1.1.5. Schedule Public Hearing Napierski Moratorium Waiver Request (https://onlyo.co/3zVoLDB) 2. Privilege of the Floor — none. 3. Correspondence — none. 4. Presentations 4.1. M&T Bank Rep Chip Nolan on House at 2687 Danby Road 4.1.1. M&T services a mortgage for the property held by State of New York Mortgage Agency ("SONYMA") which is currently in default; foreclosure proceedings have not yet begun. 4.1.2. Past practice is to run a financial analysis to determine feasibility of foreclosure and releasing the lien. M&T works with SONYMA so as not to leave abandoned properties for the communities to deal with. 4.1.2. Several potential options were suggested by Chip Nolan: —M&T/SONYMA forecloses on the mortgage and attempts to sell the property as -is Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 —M&T/SONYMA forecloses on the property, coordinates and completes demolition, then sells or donates the vacant land —M&T works with the Town to coordinate having the property demolished, then M&T/SONYMA proceeds to foreclose on the mortgage on the land —The Town demolishes the property and M&T/SONYMA releases the mortgage lien —M&T/SONYMA cease to pay taxes, allowing the Town or County to complete a tax foreclosure and handling the property as appropriate —The Town agrees to allow M&T/SONYMA to release its mortgage lien —Connecting with a local organization such as Habitat for Humanity or other neighborhood housing group 4.1.3. Planner West was previously the Housing Planner at Tompkins County and has many connections that he can put in touch with Chip Nolan. 4.1.4. The entity that covers the demolition costs depends on the situation. This tends to be at least a 2-year process; at the mercy of the court, particularly with the backlog of foreclosures prior to COVID. 4.1.5. Town Board Feedback — Board members were interested in discussing options with INHS or Habitat — The first step should be talking to INHS — Councilperson Ulinski proposed allowing Planner West to continue this discussion with M&T while also reaching out to local non -profits and have West move us in the right direction. —The Board thanked Chip Nolan for attending the meeting and for M&T's proactive conduct. 5. Reports 5.1. Zach Lind on TCCOG Broadband Committee 5.1.1. County contracted with Fujitsu to do the county -wide broadband study in which they look at all of the data they can get their hands on to determine where there may be dead zones in the county. Here are current take-aways: —Fujitsu determined there are 821 "under -served households". The method for getting to this number included looking at publicly available data and cross- referencing it with any other data they were able to get. Lind noted that this number is inaccurate. —Fujitsu identified these trouble areas in the county: South Danby; Newfield (with the largest areas that are under -served); rural parts of Dryden; some parts of Caroline. —Fujitsu is going to go back to the County (not the TCCOG Broadband Committee) with technical infrastructure plans including types of cables to run, locations, and cost. The County will get a general cost build out analysis and a recommendation of what should happen, but as a Township we won't get anything that specific. —Looking at two-phase build -out: Page 2 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 Phase 1: connecting to larger under served areas with fiber cables. This is problematic particularly with how to run the last mile service as well as the discrepancy between what the map says is under -served and what it's actually like walking the ground. Phase 2: ??? 5.1.2. Lind offered two main concerns: 5.1.2.1. The 821 under -served households figure is too low; Lind noted that there is a difference between having access to high-speed broadband and having it actually work. 5.1.2.2. Lind noted that the committee doesn't have any authority or sway in this process; the committee does not provide any input along the way. Lind can only bring conversation points back but that's about it. 5.1.3. What can the TB provide to Lind to make the group as effective as possible or to take it to the next step? 5.1.3.1. Lind offered that unless TC has a line on a lot of money to lay the fiber, he is not optimistic about it. The Dryden model makes a lot of sense from a business perspective; but the build out to get to that last mile —which is the ultimate goal —practically speaking, it is not an efficient process when you outfit people who already have access and move to the rural locations after. It would be more effective to see the people who aren't connected get connected first, and then get others upgraded. 5.1.3.2. Councilperson Ulinski stated his support of Lind's participation on the committee and agreed that the most important thing at this point is to figure out how to get people who aren't connected connected because it is what consistently gets passed over. 5.2. Jim Holahan on Clean Heating and Cooling Campaign 5.2.1. Campaign and presentation scheduled for July 13 via Zoom with Lisa Marshall; a link is on the Town Calendar. Emily Bell will also talk about weatherization. 5.2.2. Other activities are in the works with tabling and distributing fliers. Outreach will involve social media and connecting with other organizations to help spread the word.People can also visit the website heatsmarttompkins.org/danby;as the campaign gets under way more will be added there. 5.2.4. NYSERDA has approved the Town to get started on the campaign to receive points for funding opportunities. 6. Fund Transfer to Water District Resolution 104 of 2021 To Appropriate Funds from the Fund Balance of the West Danby Water District For Line Repair Moved By: Schnabel Seconded By: Ulinski WHEREAS, the West Danby Water District has budgeted money each year to put into the fund balance in the event that there are unexpected water line repairs. Page 3 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 RESOLVED, the Town of Danby Town Board authorizes a budget increase from the fund balance to the SW8340.400, Transfer and Distribution, Contractual account, in the amount of $7,460.00 to cover the recent repair to water lines in the district Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 104 approved 7. Clerk's Contractual Line 1410.4 7.1. The clerk's contractual line had $300 assigned to it that should not have been. Last month was -$14 but this month is $77. 7.2. Shawley and Adelman will get together before the next meeting to discuss the expenditures and credit card purchases. 7.3. We can approved these warrants this month, but will need to revisit next month. 8. Consent Agenda 8.1. Warrants 8.1.1. General No 11 Vouchers 194 —210 for $27,824.14 (https://onlyo.co/3xlGBrJ) 8.1.2. Highway No 11 Vouchers 139 —148 for $19,796.28 (https://onlyo.co/3j7Pelo) 8.1.3. Water District No 11 Vouchers 19 —21 for $7,626.48 (https:Honlyo.co/2UlGHvK) Resolution 105 of 2021 To Approve Consent Agenda Moved By: Connors Seconded By: Holahan Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 105 approved 9. Old Business 9.1. Highway Audit eneFgy effieieney gF — Tabled until next meeting 9.2. Building Policy As COVID Pandemic Subsides in Tompkins County Page 4 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 9.2.1. Discussion on this was not straightforward. There was talk of following Tompkins County's procedures as well as erring on the side of caution and honoring the comfort level of the employees who will be present in the building on a day-to- day basis. 9.2.2. Confusion also arose from the Open Meetings Law requirement and whether a hybrid meeting set-up going forward would require allowing Board members to zoom in from locations in which the public could also attend. The county description did not mention this detail. 9.2.3. Clerk Adelman noted that the Library volunteers expressed concern that they cannot adequately serve patrons with the limited hours that are currently available to them. This led to the question of what it means that Town Hall is open to the public. Is a particular person responsible for the entirety of Town Hall when it is open? Are the open hours regular business hours? The consensus was that it would be up to the employees, in particular the Clerk, as to what open hours might look like. Also noted was the forthcoming Workplace Violence Report with its associated recommendations that may influence what open hours look like. Resolution 106 of 2021 To Adopt Tompkins County Rules for Re -Opening the Town Hall as of July 1, 2021 While Putting a Danby Policy in Place With the Caveat that Guidance From Any Higher Level Agency Requesting More Stringent Processes Be Enacted Without Needing Board Approval Moved By: Ulinski Seconded By: Holahan Discussion: —Councilperson Schnabel is still risk -averse and hesitant. But the Executive Order suspending the Open Meetings Law (and in -person public meetings) will expire July 5. The Board noted that we all need to think about how we feel comfortable moving forward in uncharted territory. Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 106 approved 9.3. Schedule Public Hearing Van De Bogart Waiver Request Resolution 107 of 2021 To Schedule Public Hearing on Van De Bogart Moratorium Waiver to be Held at the Next Town Board Meeting on July 12 at 7pm. Page 5 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 Moved By: Schnabel Seconded By: Connors Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 107 approved 9.4. Authorize Computer Purchases Clerk and Code 9.4.1. There is a need to make these purchases but an uncertainty as to where to move the money from. 9.4.2. Bookkeeper Shawley walked through various scenarios in which the money could be transferred with the expectation that additional income is added back to the funds as has been the case in previous years. Resolution 108 of 2021 To Transfer $3000 from Contingency Fund to the IT Line to Allow Purchase of Two Employee Computers Up To $5000. Moved By: Schnabel Seconded By: Gagnon Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 108 approved 10. New Business 10.1. Schedule Public Hearing Napierski Moratorium Waiver Request 10.1.1. An application to subdivide was started under previous Planner Haremza; Napierski subsequently suffered two separate medical complications preventing her from continuing the application. Resolution 109 of 2021 To Schedule Public Hearing on Napierski Moratorium Waiver to be Held at the Next Town Board Meeting on July 12 at 7pm.. Moved By: Ulinski Seconded By: Holahan Page 6 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 109 approved 10.2. Final Budget Transfers 2020 10.2.1. Bookkeeper Shawley completed the annual report and submitted it to the State. 10.2.2. The last bit is to move money from one line to another to cover any negative balances in any line items. Resolution 110 of 2021 To Approve the Final Budget Transfers For the Year Ending December 31, 2020. Moved By: Schnabel Seconded By: Gagnon RESOLVED that the Town Board approves the following budget transfers for the year ending December 31, 2020. GENERAL FUND From Line Description To Line Description Amount Al010.400 Town Board Contractual Al010.100 Town Board Salaries $ 0.40 Al220.113 PT Account Assistant Salaries Al220.110 Bookkeeper Salaries $ 12.00 Al220.400 Supervisor Contractual Al220.120 Assistant to Supervisor $ 0.06 Al410.110 Deputy Town Clerk Salaries Al410.100 A1410.400 Al420.400 Town Clerk Salaries Town Clerk Contractual Attorney Fees $ $ $ 1,376.61 553.44 2,134.42 A1410.480 Legal Ads A1410.400 Town Clerk Contractual $ 306.24 Al990.400 Contingent Account Al910.400 Unallocated Insurance $ 444.90 A5010.400 Highway Superintendent Contractual A3310.400 Traffic Control $ 1,134.99 A7150.100 Lifeguards A9060.800 Health Insurance $ 2,532.08 A7620.400 Senior Citizens A9060.800 Health Insurance $ 5,000.00 A8010.130 Code Enforcement Salary A8010.110 Planner Salary $ 2,287.02 A8010.140 Zoning, General Support A8010.110 Planner Salary $ 111.51 Page 7 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 From Line Description To Line Description Amount A8010.200 Zoning Equipment A8010.110 Planner Salary $ 500.00 A8010.400 Zoning Contingency A8010.110 Planner Salary $ 2,235.14 A8020.120 Planning Personal Services A8010.110 Planner Salary $ 1,500.00 A8020.400 Planning Contingency A8010.110 A8020.100 Planner Salary Planning Personal Service $ $ 129.53 649.91 A9030.800 Social Security A9060.800 Health Insurance $ 2,796.92 From Line Description HIGHWAY FUND To Line Description Amount DA5110.400 General Repairs -Contractual DA5110.100 General Repairs -Salaries $ 3,055.30 DA5142.100 Snow Removal -Salaries DA5110.100 General Repairs -Salaries $ 4,716.84 DA5130.400 Equipment -Contractual DA5142.400 Snow Removal -Contractual $ 10,879.54 From Line Description WATER FUND To Line Description Amount SW8320.400 Power & Pump; Contr. SW8310.100 SW8310.400 Water Admin-Salaries Water Admin-Contr. $ $ .20 538.96 Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Resolution 110 approved 10.3. Financial Update General & Highway Funds 10.3.1. Detailed reports are available from Bookkeeper Shawley 10.3.2. General Fund Summary (not including amounts held in reserve) Total Revenue $ 1,072,629 Total Expenditures ($ 1,029,002) Amount Added to Fund Balance $ 43,627 Total Fund Balance on 12/31/2020 $ 489,439 Page 8 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 10.3.3. Highway Fund (not including amounts held in reserve) Total Revenue $ 1,510,167 Total Expenditures ($ 1,476,752) Amount Added to Fund Balance $ 33,415 Total Fund Balance on 12/31/2020 $ 414,717 10.3.4. Water Fund (not including amounts held in reserve) Total Revenue $ 83,445 Total Expenditures ($ 36,940) Amount Added to Fund Balance $ 45,505 Total Fund Balance on 12/31/2020 $ 371,856 10.4. Initiation of budget process 10.4.1. Supervisor Gagnon stated that a Capital Projects wish list should be the first step to give a sense of what to address over time which will enable the town to prioritize items as well as to be informed about what are our upcoming needs. 10.4.2. Shawley recommends a three-phase process: 10.4.2.1. Capital projection wish lists from both Highway and Town Hall as well as departmental feedback for their expectations. 10.4.2.2. Reviewing all line items to bring any repeated fluctuating lines to a more stable place. 10.4.2.3. Using the results from (1) and (2) to inform Shawley and Gagnon moving forward to consider assessments, tax caps, and tax rates. 10.4.3. Getting this ball rolling will require budget workshops to start happening in July; consensus appeared to favor adding a separate meeting after the Moratorium update meetings on the third Monday of each month. The Moratorium and Budget Workshop meetings will be separate events, back- to-back at 7pm and 8pm, respectively, with separate agendas. Resolution 111 of 2021 To Schedule Budget Workshop meetings starting in July on the 3rd Monday of the Month at 8pm (following the Moratorium meetings). Moved By: Connors Seconded By: Holahan Vote: Councilperson Aye No Absent Connors X Holahan X Schnabel X Ulinski X Gagnon X Page 9 of 10 Town of Danby Town Board Meeting 23 June 2021 Resolution 111 approved 11. Discussion of Next Meeting Agenda 11.1. Highway Energy Audit 11.2. Public Hearings 11.3. Workplace Violence Update? 12. Adjourn at 21:23 Submitted by Janice R. Adelman Town Clerk Page 10 of 10