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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2-8-2006 Regular Meeting TB.pdfApproved April 12, 2006 Enfield Town Board Regular Meeting February 8, 2006 at 7:00 PM Enfield Community Building -- 182 Enfield Main Road, Ithaca, NY 14850 Meeting called to order by Supervisor Jean Owens at 7:00 PM. Present: Supervisor Jean Owens Councilperson Peggy Hubbell Councilperson Sandra Small Councilperson Jennifer Fisher Councilperson Rob Harvey Town Clerk Alice Laue Others present: Stacey Crawford of Better Housing, Deputy Town Clerk Pat Dougherty, ECC President Carolyn Tschanz, Town Historian Sue Thompson, Dave Bock, Frank and Pat Podufalski, Jolee Carlisle, Calvin Rothermich, Douglas Willis, Mary Linton, Russell Carpenter, Ron Clark, Ed Hetherington Pledge of Allegiance: Supervisor Owens led the assemblage in the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC HEARING Stacey Crawford, Executive Director of Better Housing for Tompkins County fully described the projected federal program and all the things a person can receive including housing rehabilitation. Applications are due April 3rd. 52 households remain on the old waiting list. 19 families were helped by the last grant. A one-page survey went out to 998 Town residents recently. There will be another hearing next month to discuss specifically the application. The Public Hearing was closed at 7:15 PM. Privilege of the Floor: No one wished to speak. February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 2 Approval of Minutes: A motion was made to approve the December 29, 2005 Special Town Board Meeting minutes. Motioned: Councilperson Small Seconded: Councilperson Hubbell Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. A motion was made to approve the January 11, 2006 Town Board Meeting minutes. Motioned: Councilperson Small Seconded: Councilperson Jennifer Fisher Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Appointment of Deputy Town Supervisor. Supervisor Owens introduced David Bock as the suggested Deputy Town Supervisor. A motion was made to that affect. David gave a brief overview of his history, including the fact that he served as a Town Councilperson for 8 years. A motion was made to appoint David Bock as Deputy Town Supervisor for the Town of Enfield. Motioned: Supervisor Owens Seconded: Councilperson Harvey Discussion: Councilperson Harvey noted that Frank Podufalski was appointed Deputy Town Supervisor and asked if his resignation had been received. Supervisor Owens noted that she had Podufalski’s resignation. Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 3 Appointment of Code Enforcement Officers. Ron Clark noted that in the annual report, building permits are 10 – 11 permits lower than last year and the full value amount is down a couple of million. 2004 was an extremely busy year with a lot of bigger projects and bigger housing. Stick builts, roof repairs, garage repairs, pole barns, etc. were all down in 2005. A motion was made by Councilperson Rob Harvey to nominate Ron Clark as a Town of Enfield Code Enforcement Officer. Motioned: Councilperson Harvey Seconded: Councilperson Hubbell Discussion: Councilperson Harvey talked about a couple of people who had filled out applications for the position. Those applications are on file at the Town Hall. Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. A motion was made by Councilperson Rob Harvey to nominate Ed Hetherington as a Town of Enfield Code Enforcement Officer. Motioned: Councilperson Harvey Seconded: Councilperson Small Discussion: Councilperson Harvey reiterated his statement regarding the people who have filled out applications for the position. Supervisor Owens asked if he was proposing that either of those applicants be appointed. Harvey said no. [After the motion was defeated Supervisor Owens said, “maybe we can talk later.”] Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…no. Councilperson Hubbell…no. Councilperson Small…no. Motion defeated. Highway Agreement to Spend Town Highway Funds. Supervisor Owens read the Annual Agreement with Tompkins County on how to spend Town Highway funds. The sum of $132,400 may be expended for general repairs upon 44.45 miles of town highway. The Highway Department was asking for Board February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 4 approval for road improvements and repairs to approximately 1 mile of South Buck Hill Road (between W. Enfield Center and Harvey Hill Roads) costing about $65,000. All Board members must sign it. It will take effect when it’s approved by the Tompkins County Superintendent of Highways. A motion was made to sign the Annual Agreement with Tompkins County to spend Town of Enfield Highway funds. Motioned: Supervisor Owens Seconded: Councilperson Harvey Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Committee Reports: Business Directory. Councilperson Small reported on the progress to date and has entered several new businesses into the Excel program Supervisor Owens supplied her with. Small expressed her disappointment in the fact that very little progress had been made to the directory in previous years and asked for financial support and Board commitment to the project. A motion was made that the Town Board of the Town of Enfield proceed with the development and support of the business directory. Motioned: Councilperson Harvey Seconded: Councilperson Hubbell Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Planning Board. Councilperson Hubbell said that the subdivision regulations were now available and would be given to the Town Board members for their perusal as soon as copies are made. Hubbell introduced Planning Board members Calvin Rothermich and Doug Willis and thanked them for attending the Town Board meeting. February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 5 Enfield Community Council. President Carolyn Tschantz announced, again, the Enfield Community Council’s Annual meeting to be held on February 13 at 6:00 PM at the Community Building. They will be reviewing last year’s programs, last year’s budget and summarizing last year’s programs. At the March 13th meeting, they will be talking about 2006 and its programs. Town Historian. Town Historian, Sue Thompson presented her annual report to the Board. [The report can be found in the 2006 Minutes’ Book.] She spoke of the Judah Baker plaque, the beautification project, and the walking/driving brochure of each town in Tompkins County, which will be written by each Town’s Historian. The total project will cost $8,425 with $6,625 from the grant and $1,800 from each Town. Thompson asked the Town of Enfield for $200 for support for the brochures . A motion was made authorizing the Town Supervisor to sign the letter for the Community Celebrations Grant application for the publication of the brochure (Touring our Towns), to take place in late Fall/Winter 2006 and Spring 2007. Motioned: Councilperson Small Seconded: Councilperson Fisher Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Personnel. Councilperson Small reported that paperwork has been submitted to the County Personnel for the Bookkeeper and Court Clerk appointments and for the 2006 payroll certification. Small asked Owens if she had followed up on the filing of the NYS Retirement membership forms and Owens replied she had. Small also noted that she had finished updating the Town of Enfield Policies and Procedures Manual and asked the Board if they wished to adopt it at this meeting. A motion was made to adopt the Town of Enfield Policies and Procedures Manual as updated at the end of January 2006. Motioned: Councilperson Small Seconded: Councilperson Hubbell February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 6 Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Old Business: Supervisor Owens opened the floor for nominations for the position of Attorney for the Town. She explained that Attorney for the Town is the correct title due to the fact neither candidate lives in the Town…which would then have made them Town Attorneys. A motion was made to name Mary Russell as Attorney for the Town contingent upon her being in receipt of her membership in the New York State Bar. Motioned: Supervisor Owens Seconded: Councilperson Small Discussion: Councilperson Hubbell was concerned because Russell had originally said she would get her NYS license in February and it has now moved to March 22nd. Councilperson Small was concerned about” ties” if her firm were hired to assist Ms. Russell in some way. Supervisor Owens said that Ms. Russell said she would be willing to associate with another firm. Councilperson Harvey asked about appointing her conditionally pending receipt of her license. He asked what would happen if she didn’t get her license for six months. Owens said the Board would revisit the appointment. Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…abstain. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…no. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Small re: 2004 Refund Check. Councilperson Small gave Supervisor Owens a refund check made out to Small for $645 for her non-attendance at the 2004 Association of Towns Conference. It was uncovered via an audit. Small endorsed it over to the Town. Small then asked if perhaps Switzer and Stevenson, who were unable to attend the conference, might have received refunds. Owens was sure that they hadn’t and added that she had inquired about same while she was there attending the conference and was unsuccessful in getting a refund. February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 7 Harvey re: Reimbursement Check. Councilperson Harvey received a reimbursement check from the Town for his attendance at the Rochester conference for new town board members in January, which was not signed by Supervisor Owens. He noted that the memo line did not have a budget line code on it for posting to the budget. Supervisor Owens and Bookkeeper Podufalski stated that the check stub had that information on it. Owens will sign the check. Annual Report. Councilperson Small asked about the status of the Town’s Annual Financial Report and wondered if it was going to meet the March 1st filing deadline. Owens stated she was working on it and if need be, she would apply for a 60-day extension from the State Comptroller. New Business: Home /Office. Councilperson Harvey spoke with the Association of Towns’ attorney about keeping personal and personnel records in the bookkeeper’s home where she has an office. The bookkeeper is in a wheelchair and Town offices were not ADA assessable. Although payroll records are pass worded, and bills needing checks are in her home a limited number of days, Harvey questioned the liability in the event of destruction or security breach. The Town could designate the bookkeeper’s home as Town office space and add it to the Town’s NYMIR coverage. Supervisor Owens had prepared and read a resolution designating same. Councilperson Harvey’s personal preference was to have the bookkeeper come to a Town building. After stating that the Community Building was ADA acceptable, Code Enforcement Officer Clark said that it wasn’t. The bathroom doesn’t work, the sidewalk is not acceptable, and there are no automatic door openers. Supervisor Owens said that because the Town needs to gather more information before discussing the resolution further, she was going to table the resolution. Intermunicipal Self Insurance Health Plan. Supervisor Owens disseminated copies of a proposed self-insurance plan. She looked into it 5 or 6 years ago and found it to be time consuming with no cost savings. She left it up to the Board to pick up on it, if anyone wished to. Councilperson Harvey had reviewed it and agreed with her. February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 8 Local Advisory Board of Assessment Review. Town Clerk Laue stated that we needed to appoint an assessment review Board by April 4th. There is a training session before the Board meets with residents who have complaints about their assessment. Supervisor Owens said the appointments could be made at the March meeting. Town Clerk’s Computer. Supervisor Owens and Councilperson Harvey have talked about replacing the 6 or 7 year-old Town Clerk’s computer. Owens showed Harvey a bid that was locked in for 45 days and said they could discuss it further. Deputy Town Clerk Dougherty asked about virus protection for the Clerk’s computer. Supervisor Owens said there was a bill in tonight’s stack (Zone Alarm) to be approved for the purchase of a 5-user package for virus protection and also firewall. After the order is made, the virus protection should be here in 3-5 days. [Supervisor’s laptop, the courts, the clerk and highway.] Beautification Booklet. Supervisor Owens met with Chris Gardner at the Cooperative Extension to discuss beautification projects for Enfield. Owens noted that a former supervisor, (Gary Fisher), had helped develop a list of projects that the Town might be interested in undertaking. The booklet can be reviewed at the Town Hall. Councilperson Small asked if these projects needed Town funds. Owens said no, only matching labor. Transfer of Appropriations. Supervisor Owens mentioned that previous Supervisor Fisher had inversed a couple of numbers in the budget last year and this needs to be corrected by a resolution before we vote to pay the bills. Resolution 2006 -#13 Transfer of Appropriations Budget Amendment #2 WHEREAS, the 2006 General Fund Appropriations line number A1910.4, titled Insurance Contractual in the amount of $24,250.00, is insufficient to pay the General Liability insurance bill for 2006, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the appropriation for expenditure account code A1910.4, titled “Insurance – Contractual”, is increased by $270.55 from $24,250.00 to February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 9 $24,520.55; and that the appropriation for expenditure account code A1990.4, titled “Contingency Account-Contractual”, is decreased by $270.55 from $18,000.00 to $17,729.45. Motioned: Supervisor Owens Seconded: Councilperson Hubbell Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Resolution carried. Audit Claims: It was motioned that Supervisor Owens, on behalf of the Town Board of the Town of Enfield, be authorized to pay the following: - General Fund vouchers #28 - # 46 dated February 8, 2006 in the amount of $29,997.85. - Highway Fund vouchers #1 - #8 dated February 8, 2006 in the amount of $1,657.82. - Enfield Volunteer Fire Company voucher #SF-2 dated February 8, 2006 in the amount of $75,000. MOTIONED: Councilperson Small SECONDED: Councilperson Hubbell Discussion: [1] Councilperson Small asked that the Haefele bill be broken down between the Town and Code, as it was in the past. Supervisor Owens agreed to do that. [2] Councilperson Small asked that the $9.34 sales tax be removed, before payment, of the Rapid Forms invoice. Supervisor Owens agreed to it. [3] Councilperson Hubbell noted that there was no State Form with her W2 this year. Bookkeeper Podufalski said to make a copy of the Federal form and send it in. [4] Councilperson Hubbell questioned the purchase of 1,500 envelopes from Pioneer Printing for the Better Housing Survey mailing when only 998 surveys were sent. Supervisor Owens said there was a bulk price break in ordering that many and February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 10 the Town gets to keep the additional ones for its use. Hubbell then corrected the budget line to be used from 1480 to 8668.4. Owens agreed. [5] Councilperson Hubbell asked about stamps being charged to Town Board Contractual, 1010. Bookkeeper Podufalski said from the floor that the account should be 1110. [6] Councilperson Hubbell asked about the line item for the Zone Alarm distributor. It was charged to 1620.2 which is buildings and should be charged to the Supervisor’s laptop which is 1220. Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. Announcements: Supervisor Owens said, now that we have an Attorney for the Town, she’d like to ask Town Clerk, Alice Laue to put the old dog-control law and the new proposed one in the Councilperson’s boxes so they can be reviewed. The Board will start doing something with them soon. Town Clerk Laue reminded everyone that Barbara Lifton will be at the Town Hall on February 22nd at 7:00 PM for a question and answer session. Town Clerk Laue also reported that the Town had met its tax warrant. Councilperson Small commented that Supervisor Owens had reported in December 2005 that Ron Switzer was willing to make payment back to the Town with respect to the per diem check issued to him for his attendance at the 2003 Association of Towns Conference in NYC which he was unable to attend. She asked if anything had happened yet. Supervisor Owens said she had been instructed to use the Attorney for the Town and was referring Switzer to Mary Russell when she came on board. Privilege of the Floor: Mary Linton had a comment based on the earlier discussion on a home/office for the bookkeeper. She said she knew of multiple cases where persons with disabilities are allowed to work in their homes, and she had never heard that the home/office needed to be added to the Town’s insurance policy. She suggested it be looked into before making too big a deal of it, such as an insurance rider. February 8, 2006 - Enfield Town Board Meeting 11 Russ Carpenter asked about Capital Expenditures and the $350,000 in that account. Supervisor Owens explained that a certain amount has been set aside for the past 5 years and was designated to make improvements to deficiencies in the Town buildings without increasing the tax rate. Carpenter expressed concern that the Town is not being kept up the way it should be and he would like very much to see that happen. Frank Podufalski asked if the Town was accepting applications for a code enforcement officer. Supervisor Owens said that issue had not been discussed. Podufalski then said he had a problem with a public official (Councilperson Harvey) nominating a person and then voting against him. Councilperson Harvey said that is the only way any discussion about a nomination can be carried out…a nomination has to be made before discussion can occur. Supervisor Owens stated that we might need an executive session at some point to further discuss the Code situation. Adjournment: At 8:50 PM Motioned: Councilperson Hubbell Seconded: Councilperson Small Discussion: Vote: Supervisor Owens…aye. Councilperson Fisher…aye. Councilperson Harvey…aye. Councilperson Hubbell…aye. Councilperson Small…aye. Motion carried. ************* Minutes transcribed by Deputy Town Clerk N. Pat Dougherty .