HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-08-18 Town Board Minutes
Mee ng Minutes
Roll Call:
Town Board Joel Gagnon, Supervisor
Leslie Connors
Jim Holahan (absent)
Sarah Schnabel (via Zoom)
Ma Ulinski
County Legislator Dan Klein (via Zoom)
Town Planner David West (via Zoom)
Town Code Enforcement Officer Steve Cortright
Town Bookkeeper Laura Shawley
Recording Secretary Janice Adelman, Town Clerk
Absent: Jim Holahan, Councilperson; Sarah Schnabel, Councilperson
Guest Presenters: Marnie Kirchgessner, Danby Rep to Tompkins County Youth Advisory
Board, and the Tompkins County Recrea on Partnership
1. Call to Order at 19:07
2. Addi ons/Dele ons to Agenda
2.1. Resolu on asking the Governor to Suspend Open Mee ng Law re. In-Person
Mee ngs
2.2. Discussion of Broadband Access Improvement Op ons
2.3. Randall Estate Subdivision Moratorium Waiver Request - Schedule Public
Hearing Sept. 2
2.4. Workplace Violence Preven on Resolu ons (A) Resolu on Enabling the Town of
Danby Workplace Violence Plan and Threat Assessment Team and (B)
Resolu on Authorizing Safety and Security Upgrades — table resolu ons un l
next mee ng
2.5. Emergency Culvert Replacement Authoriza on — Miller Road
2.6. Budget Update and Poten al Adjustment
3. Privilege of the Floor
3.1. Town Jus ce Garry Huddle noted that NY State mandated masks again in the
court, while Tompkins County is encouraging employees to be vaccinated or be
tested weekly. Huddle asked if this is something that the town will be
Mary Ann Barr 2021
T he Town of Danby, New York
1830 Danby Road, Ithaca, NY 14850
https://danby.ny.gov
Town Board Regular Meeting + Public Hearing
Wednesday 18 August 2021
+1-607-277-4788 | townboard@danby.ny.gov
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
implemen ng.
3.2. Resident Kim Nitchman reiterated what she and husband Russ that they are very
much in support of the tax abatement on conserva on easements bill currently
poing through state legisla on. Nitchman strongly encouraged the town board
to support this once it does go through.
3.3. Residents Mark Solomon and Mr. Mullen stated that they were both present in
support of the Randall subdivision waiver request.
3.4. Resident Ted Crane congratulated the Town for ge ng to the next step of the
clean hea ng and cooling campaign (Schnabel noted that we are actually 4 short
of reaching this step). Crane also lent his support to Kim Nitchman’s comments
regarding the tax abatement on conserva on easements.
4. Emergency Culvert Replacement Authoriza on — Miller Road
Note: Anything that’s over $35k is required to go out for a bid except in an emergency.
Resolu on 129 of 2021 To ASSIGN THE PROJECT OF AN EMERGENCY
REPLACEMENT OF A COLLAPSING CULVERT ON EAST MILLER ROAD
Moved By: Connors Seconded By: Ulinski
WHEREAS: The Town of Danby is faced with an emergency situa on of a culvert
collapsing on East Miller Road.
WHEREAS: The Highway Superintendent has determined that this culvert presents a
danger to the public because of the possibili es of the road collapsing. There is a
danger to the surrounding residents of flooding because of the collapsing culvert
forming a dam, and not allowing for the water to pass through.
WHEREAS: According to General Municipal Law – GMU 103 [4] it states that if there
are circumstances that create an emergency because of the safety to inhabitants and
immediate ac on is needed to correct the situa on, the municipality is exempt from
the compe ve bidding process and the board or agency of a poli cal subdivision can
select a contractor for the immediate ac on needed.
WHEREAS: The Town is already working with a contractor on another project and that
contractor has agreed to correct the situa on immediately. This company has all of
their equipment in the area and the Town recognized the reputa on of this company
for fair and compe ve pricing of their services.
RESOLVED: The Town Board selects J.B. Excava on to repair the collapsing culvert on
East Miller Road. The quoted price for this project is $59,500. This amount will be
Page 2 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
paid from the CHIPS funds that are awarded to the Town of Danby by New York State.
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 129 approved on 18 Aug 2021
5. Correspondence - none
6. Presenta ons - none
7. Reports
7.1. Randall Estate Subdivision Moratorium Waiver Request
Resolu on 130 of 2021 To Schedule Public Hearing for Randall Estate Moratorium
Waiver Request on 13 September 2021 at 7:00pm
Moved By: Ulinski Seconded By: Connors
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 130 approved on 18 Aug 2021
7.2. Workplace Violence Team Report
7.2.1. Not only is this a requirement of NYS law that we have a workplace
violence plan, but an incident in 2019 highlighted the fact that the
Town had no protocol in place.
7.2.2. Consultant Gina Lord was hired and completed mul ple assessments
resul ng in the reported sugges ons and recommenda ons for moving
Page 3 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
forward and pu ng protocols in place.
7.2.3. The plan addresses a procedure to follow, including officially banning
weapons in Danby Town Hall; internal communica on opera ng
procedures when dealing with an emergency; lock-down opera ng
procedures; and employee safety repor ng procedures.
7.2.4. Jus ce Garry Huddle noted that when the panic bu ons were first
installed, he tested the panic bu on and found that the Town
Supervisor was the only one alerted to the panic bu on—not any
security opera on. [Ulinski noted that tes ng will be implemented on a
regular basis.]
—Huddle also commented on the security cameras, no ng that prior
to tonight’s mee ng, the cameras captured a sole individual walking
through the empty parking lot in the rain. He subsequently called
the Town Clerk to let her know and see if there were any problems.
7.2.5. Addi onal report recommenda ons include more training put in place
with a Threat Assessment Team formed to ensure all of the protocols
are implemented and reviewed on a yearly basis.
7.2.6. It is important to point out that this Workplace Violence Report is about
workplace violence and is not a sexual harassment policy. This does not
mean that sexual harassment would not count as workplace violence
but that sexual harassment needs a separate policy.
7.2.7. The next steps are to bring the resolu ons to the next mee ng when
more board members are present.
8. Budget Update and Poten al Adjustment
8.1. Items were charged to Town Clerk’s contractual that should have been charged
elsewhere, resul ng in $813.50 to come out of that line.
RESOLUTION NO. 131 TO APPROVE AN ADJUSTMENT OF EXPENSES BETWEEN LINE ITEMS
Moved By: Connors Seconded By: Ulinski
RESOLVED: The Town Board approves the adjustment of expenses between line items as
follows:
Fund Transfer from Transfer to Amount
Gen A8020.4 Town Clerk Contract. $813.50
Gen A8020.4 Planning Contractual 129.52
Gen A1345.4 Purchasing Contractual 163.46
Gen A8010.4 Zoning Contractual 131.51
Gen A7410.4 Library Contractual 332.03
Gen A1620.42 Website Email Maint 56.98
Page 4 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 131 approved on 18 Aug 2021
9. Consent Agenda
9.1. Warrants
9.1.1. General Fund No 15 Vouchers 274–291 for $33,518.88
9.1.2. Highway Fund No 15 Vouchers 191–201 for $24,693.35
9.1.3. Water District Fund No 15 Vouchers 25–27 for $105.78
Resolu on 132 of 2021 To Approve Consent Agenda
Moved By: Gagnon Seconded By: Connors
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 132 approved on 18 Aug 2021
10. Old Business
10.1. Phone System Discussion and Possible Vendor Selec on Tabled un l next
mee ng
10.2. Email Archiving Op ons (N-Able vs Jatheon)
10.2.1.Discussion involved email policies around access to email
Page 5 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
content and the need to protect against ransomware.
RESOLUTION 133 of 2021 To Spend Up To $1600 From the Website Budget Line to
Purchase N-Able Email Archiving and Security Services With the Caveat to Further
Research the Need for Addi onal Security.
Moved By: Ulinski Seconded By: Gagnon
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 132 approved on 18 Aug 2021
10.3. Further Considera on of Fire District Flag Pole Funding Request
10.3.1.Councilperson Ulinksi suggested a cost-sharing approach and
asked if they had a resolu on.
10.3.2. Ulinski will reach out to District Commissioner Joe Freedman to
discuss.
11.New Business
11.1. Amendments to Conserva on Easement Template Table un l next mee ng
11.2. Declara on of Lead Agency — Norbut Solar Farm Planned Development
Zone (DRAFT PDZ Language)
Resolu on 134 of 2021 To Declare the Town of Danby as the Lead Agency in the
Norbut Solar Farm Planned Development Zone
Moved By: Gagnon Seconded By: Connors
Page 6 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 134 approved on 18 Aug 2021
11.3. Resolu on 135 of 2021 Urging Limited Suspension by Execu ve Order of
the New York Open Mee ngs Law
Moved By: Gagnon Seconded By: Connors
Whereas, on March 12, 2020, in an effort to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, otherwise
known as COVID-19, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo issued Execu ve Order 202.1 which, in part,
suspended por ons of Ar cle 7 of the New York Public Officers Law and did so “to the extent necessary
to permit any public body to meet and take such ac ons authorized by the law without permi ng in
public in-person access to mee ngs and authorizing such mee ngs to be held remotely by conference
call or similar service, provided that the public has the ability to view or listen to such proceeding and
that such mee ngs are recorded and later transcribed;” Governor Cuomo successively extending such
suspension by Execu ve Orders on a monthly basis through June 25, 2021; and
Whereas, on June 24, 2021, by Execu ve Order 210, Governor Cuomo rescinded Execu ve Orders 202
through 202.111, including Execu ve Order 202.1, effec ve June 25, 2021, the Governor concluding at
that me that “the State of New York [has] successfully fla ened the curve of COVID-19 cases in New
York,” and that, therefore, the Execu ve Orders were “no longer necessary;” and
Whereas, since the issuance of Execu ve Order 210, the increased prevalence of the Delta Variant of
COVID-19 has caused a resurgence of coronavirus cases throughout the United States, New York State
and Tompkins County, said resurgence promp ng local governments to reinstate public health advisories
that call for the indoor masking of individuals, whether vaccinated or not, and recommend limita ons on
the size of indoor gatherings, including municipal mee ngs; and
Whereas, the Governor ’s rescission of Execu ve Order 202.1 now requires that the Danby Town Board,
as well as all municipal governing boards throughout New York State, convene in-person mee ngs at a
Page 7 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
central loca on and allow full public a endance and par cipa on therein; and
Whereas, the Town of Danby, like many municipali es throughout New York State, finds itself with
limited mee ng facili es that may not provide adequate social distancing for either Board members or
mee ng a endees, and further, that the Danby Town Board senses among both its own members and
the Town’s other residents a serious and growing concern regarding the public’s health and safety amid
the coronavirus’ resurgence; and
Whereas, no legisla ve remedy to this problem through amendment of Ar cle 7 of the New York Public
Officers Law is likely to occur before January 2022; therefore be it
Resolved, that the Danby Town Board respec ully requests that the Governor of the State of New York
immediately re-impose through Execu ve Order those por ons of previous Execu ve Order 202.1 that
suspended por ons of Ar cle 7 of the New York Public Officers Law—commonly referred to as the “Open
Mee ngs Law”—so as to permit municipal governing boards and other, similar municipal bodies to
conduct public mee ngs remotely in a manner similar to, and with like restric ons, as Execu ve Order
202.1 permi ed, and that such suspension con nue un l such me as the Delta Variant and any
similarly-lethal variants of COVID-19 have successfully been controlled; and be it further
Resolved, that a copy of this Resolu on shall be transmi ed to The Hon. Kathy C. Hochul, Lieutenant
Governor and New York Governor-Designate; the Hon. Peter Oberacker, New York State Senator; Dr.
Anna R. Kelles, New York State Assemblymember; the Hon. Leslyn McBean-Clairborne, Chair, Tompkins
County Legislature; and the Secretary of the Tompkins County Council of Governments.
Vote:
Councilperson Aye No Absent
Connors X
Holahan X
Schnabel X
Ulinski X
Gagnon X
Resolu on 135 approved on 18 Aug 2021
11.4. Discussion of Broadband Access Improvement Op ons
11.4.1. The main issue is the need for people, in this day and age, to
have access to the internet. It’s not a ques on of building a
new system, rather, hooking people up to a system.
Page 8 of 9
Town of Danby Board Meeting Wednesday 18 August 2021 at 7:00PM
11.4.2. Councilperson Ulinksi will talk to Lee Haefle; he would like to
see someone do the necessary survey.
12. Discussion of Next Mee ng Agenda
13. Adjourn at 21:07
Submi ed by Janice R. Adelman
Town Clerk
Page 9 of 9