HomeMy WebLinkAbout4-11-07 TBM.pdf
TOWN OF ENFIELD
PUBLIC HEARING AND
REGULAR TOWN BOARD
MEETING MINUTES
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11, 2007
7:00 P.M.
A Public Hearing on the proposed 2007 Fire Protection Contract and the regular monthly meeting of
the Town of Enfield Town Board was held Wednesday, April 11, 2007 at the Enfield Community
Building, 182 Enfield Main Road, Ithaca, New York at 7:00 p.m. with Supervisor Owens presiding.
Present: Supervisor Jean Owens, Town Councilperson Jennifer Fisher, Town Councilperson Peggy
Hubbell, Town Councilperson Sandra Small, Town Councilperson Robert Harvey and Town Clerk
Alice Laue.
Others Present: Betty Tompkins, Ann Chaffee, Calvin Rothermich, Doris Rothermich, David
Dimmick, Diane Aramini, Amber Achilles, Jerry Achilles, Mildred Achilles, Roy Barriere, Carol
Barriere, Larry Lanning, Judy Hetherington, Charles Hubbell, Patrick Blais, James Whittaker, Pam
Whittaker, Greg Stilwell, Alan Teeter, Debbie Teeter, Karen Stevenson, Kirk VanDee, Gary Nesbitt,
William Eisenhardt, Ron Clark, Greg Stevenson, David Owens, Ann Owens, Ed Hetherington, Art
Howser, Kevin Morse, Monique Morse, Byron Smith, Carl Emery, Ben Giles, Scott Turcsik, Ray
Hubbard, Mary Jo Lovelace, Euguene Lovelace, Carolyn Tschanz.
Public Hearing – Proposed 2007 Town of Enfield Fire Protection Contract:
Supervisor Owens called the public hearing to order by welcoming everyone, reading the public
hearing notice published in the Ithaca Journal for the consideration of the proposed 2007 Town of
Enfield Fire Protection Contract, and opened the public hearing to those wishing to speak.
Diane Aramini: Asked what the difference(s) were in the contract presented tonight versus the
original contract previously presented by the Board to the Fire Company.
Supervisor Owens answered that there are a lot of differences and said that the contract is basically the
contract that expired 12/31/2006 with four/five additions, which are: (i) the Town reserved the right to
conduct audits at a cost not to exceed $1,000, (ii) the Fire Company will report to Town on a
monthly/quarterly basis in the same form and manner as agreed to in the contract extensions, (iii) a
representative of the Fire Company’s Board of Directors will be present at the Town’s regular monthly
board meetings, (iv) Fire Company will provide a written report on or before July 1, 2007 on current
debt restructuring, including what savings could potentially be realized, and (v) the Town Board
agreed to conduct a public hearing relative to Section 170 of the New York State Town Law for
information on a Fire District no later than July 1, 2007. It is substantially the same in terms and
conditions of the Fire Company’s 2006 contract.
Councilperson Small responded that she believed Ms. Aramini is asking what were the differences
between what the Town Board presented to the Fire Company versus what the Fire Company
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 2
presented to the Board. Councilperson Small then proceeded to highlight the items that were deleted
by the Fire Company from the Town Board’s proposed Fire Contract:
1) The language referring to the Fire Company being a not-for-profit corporation.
2) Decreasing the term of the Fire Contract from two years to one.
3) The date of the public hearing on the fire contract is omitted.
4) After the wording, the Fire Company shall keep and maintain in good repair and working
order, suitable and adequate fire-fighting apparatus, the phrase “in order to make the best
use of taxpayers funds “suitable” and “adequate” does not mean the most expensive”, and
the phrase “the Fire Company will always look to get the “best value” deal for any and all
items required by the department”, were omitted.
5) With respect to membership the following provisions were removed:
(a) The Fire Company has the responsibility for who is and who are not members.
(b) The Fire Company having the responsibility of establishing and maintaining a minimum
training standard.
(c) The requirement that new and existing members pass a pre-membership physical and
periodic physicals.
6) Decreasing the payment schedule from eight to four installments.
7) The “hold harmless” provision was removed.
8) The provision not to bill any person’s individual insurance for any fire protection or rescue
services except what is permitted by law and that all monies collected as a result will be
reported to the Town and used to lower the Town’s payment to the Fire Company was
removed.
9) The provision which says that taxpayer funds shall not be used to fund any Fire Company
function where alcohol is provided by the Fire Company was removed.
10) The provision which says that any monies recouped by selling excess fire equipment paid
for with taxpayers funds will be reported to the Town and placed in a capital equipment
reserve account to be used only for replacement of new equipment was removed.
Councilperson Small added that this provision was noted as being a splendid idea in Mr.
Butler’s (Fire Company’s attorney) February 26, 2007 letter.
11) The provision requiring that all public hearing notices were to be published in the Ithaca
Journal was removed.
12) Although Fire Company members can come to the Town Board meetings to give a report,
the sentence referring to Town Board members attending Fire Company meetings was
removed. Councilperson Small noted that this item was looked at favorably by Mr. Butler
in his February 26, 2007 letter.
13) With respect to accountability, the following provisions were removed along with their
deadline dates:
(a) Reports showing vehicle mileage used during the calendar year by vehicle.
(b) A report on an annual basis showing the Fire Company’s complete equipment
inventory. Councilperson Small noted that this was an item that Mr. Butler said was a good
idea and certainly a very achievable objective.
14) The provision where the Fire Company acknowledges they are subject to the Open
Meetings Law and the Freedom of Information Law were omitted.
15) The provision where the Fire Company realizes that when receiving public funds it needs to
comply with State and Federal requirements and agrees to bring the fire hall in compliance
with the Americans with Disabilities Act no later than December 31, 2008 was removed.
16) The provision where the Fire Company realizes the importance of community activities
taking place at the fire hall and will allow and encourage use of the fire hall was removed.
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 3
17) The procurement policy was removed whereby the Town Board was asking the Fire
Company to adopt a policy and forward a copy of the policy to the Town Board by
December 31, 2007 was omitted. Councilperson Small noted that this was an item that Mr.
Butler said the Fire Company was undertaking to formalize and that he hoped to have a
policy in place soon and expected to share it with the Town Board.
18) The statement requiring the Fire Company to submit their fiscal audit to the Town Board at
the same time it does to the State was removed.
19) All the default provisions were removed.
20) A big item removed was the renewal provision that states that at least five months prior to
the expiration of the existing contract and no later than August 1 of each year, the parties
were to commence contract negotiations and that negotiations be completed by November
7. Councilperson Small noted that early contract negotiation was a provision that Mr.
Butler embraced and he suggested the August 1st date.
21) The provision for the formation of a Fire Protection Committee was removed.
Diane Aramini: Asked if Supervisor Owens agreed that the fire contract presented tonight is a good
contract.
Supervisor Owens commented that the contract the Town Board agreed to unanimously the night of
March 14, 2007 was the prior Fire Company contract that expired 12/31/06 with the four to five
additions that she had previously outlined.
Diane Aramini: Commented that the Town has not had a signed fire contract since January 1, but yet
the Fire Company is providing a service, the school has not closed, the Town still has mutual aid and
Town residents still have their homeowner insurance.
Councilperson Small added that the contract before the Board tonight is not the same contract that was
agreed to on March 14, 2007. She noted a couple of changes that were never discussed or approved by
the Board but somehow were now in the contract. The March 20th payment date was now changed to
March 15th, the amounts payable for March and May were changed, and the date for auditing of Fire
Company records was changed from January 1, 1995 to January 1, 2007.
Supervisor Owens responded that the two attorneys discussed, negotiated and changed the three items
and that is what got put in the contract.
David Dimmick: He urged the Board to reject the fire contract as currently written and to suspend any
future payment(s) to the Fire Company until the Fire Company can come to the table and be
accountable for all public funds and believes it is wrong to approve a contract with missing provisions.
The example given was that according to Town Law, every member of the Fire Company is required to
be approved by the Town Board. He would like to see a reasonable fire contract for all citizens of the
Town. He asked the Board to give some thought to the provision in the contract that says “If any
provision of this agreement is held invalid or unenforceable, all other provisions hereof shall
nevertheless continue in full force and effect.”
Councilperson Small responded that that is a standard clause in most contracts and if she was advised
to sign a contract with that clause in it, she would.
Greg Stevenson: As a career firefighter he puts a high value on fire protection and thinks the contract
seems reasonable for volunteer fire protection. He added that efforts had been made to find other
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 4
volunteer fire protection to replace what the Town would be losing and it was not successful. What is
on the table is reasonable and he would encourage the support of the contract.
Byron Smith: Does not believe there is any dispute with respect to the dollar amount. His concerns
were that at the March 14th meeting, the wording of the contract was totally ignored and that focus was
placed on the dollar amount of the contract. He wants and supports fire protection. The contract
presented tonight has nothing to do with the originally proposed contract submitted by the Town Board
to the Fire Company. He thought that the lawyers were pretty much in agreement on the terms of the
contract and now he finds out the wording of the contract was totally ignored.
David Dimmick: Does not want to be held hostage over a fire contract when it is inequitable to the
citizens of the Town and urges the Board not to support it.
Jerry Achilles: Asked who changed the wording of the contract.
Supervisor Owens responded that she typed up the contract with the changes and sent it to the
attorneys for consideration.
Debbie Teeter: Thought the Town Board did agree on a contract the night of March 14th and asked if
the contract before the Board was not that contract.
Supervisor Owens responded that the Board did agree to the 2006 contract with the four to five
changes that she previously read.
Councilperson Small added that the Board just received a day ago three more changes to the contract
that had not been discussed nor approved.
Debbie Teeter: Felt that some of the issues raised by Councilperson Small that had been omitted from
the fire contract, relating to training and physicals, may not need to be in the fire contract because they
are governed by State law. It sounded to her that the folks who did work on the fire contract did not do
their homework and felt that a few of the items made her suspicious. She urged the Town Board to
deal with whatever minor issues were presented and approve the contract. She added that she has
joined the Fire Company to try to understand what is going on and has learned a lot. She believes also
that although the Town Board may not have received financial documentation in the past, it appears
the Board is now getting that financial information and would like to see the process move forward.
Councilperson Small clarified that membership provisions do not necessarily have to be in the
contract, the Town Board could send a letter to the Fire Company saying th e same thing and felt that
the items needed to be addressed as it protects the Town from liability.
Councilperson Harvey added that every time the Fire Company goes out on a call, the Town is liable
and the Town is the employer. He said he would be happy to talk and show documentation stating so
to those interested.
Carl Emery: Felt the Fire Company needed to be accountable. If the Highway Department show
their expenditures, the Fire Company should also.
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 5
Supervisor Owens responded that the Town Board does not request that information from entities they
contract with such as the SPCA, Senior Citizens Council, Enfield Community Council. Quarterly
reports are requested and are being produced.
Ron Switzer: Spoke in his capacity as Fire Chief and said in March they came to table and negotiated
in good faith with the Town Board until late into the evening, an agreement was reached and he did not
believe that either side went away happy. There was give and take on both sides. He urged the Town
Board to authorize the contract. In response to the question of why the Fire Company is providing
service without a signed contract, he replied that the Fire Company is showing their good faith on
contract extensions by providing service to the Town. Mr. Switzer added that no member wants to see
the Town go without fire protection. The Fire Company has worked hard to try to avoid this. The Fire
Company has agreed on the contract and dollar amount and he felt it was time to move on.
Byron Smith: Asked if it was a clear assumption that the contract was never discussed line item by
line item. It appeared to him as though the dollar amount was discussed all night long and then
afterwards another interpretation of the contract was presented that did not bear any relationship to the
original contract except the dollar amount.
Supervisor Owens responded that the Town Board discussed with the Attorney for the Town and the
Fire Company for a good part of the evening. The Attorney for the Town was present, the Fire
Company talked with their attorney by phone. Discussion took place by the two attorneys over the
phone. This is how the negotiations process took place. Line item by line item was never discussed.
David Dimmick: Added that he participated in the Committee that drafted the original fire contract
and it was not that the Committee did not know what they were doing. He did not believe that the
contract addressed state mandated policies or procedures. What was conveyed by the contract is that
the Fire Company has never been accountable to the Town Board for taxpayers’ expenditures in the
detail the Committee thought this Town Board needed to have and felt it’s about accountability to the
citizens of the Town, which has been ignored for years.
Public hearing closed at 7:40 p.m.
Regular Town Board Meeting
The regular monthly Town of Enfield Town Board meeting was called to order by Supervisor Owens.
Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag: Supervisor Owens led the assemblage in the Pledge of Allegiance
to the Flag.
Privilege of the Floor: No one wished to speak at this time.
Approval of March 5, 2007 Emergency Special Town Board Meeting Minutes, March 11, 2007
Emergency Special Town Board Meeting Minutes and the March 14, 2007 Regular Town Board
Meeting Minutes:
Motion made by Councilperson Small, seconded by Councilperson Hubbell that the Town Board
approve the March 5, 2007 Emergency Special Town Board Meeting Minutes, March 11, 2007
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 6
Emergency Special Town Board Meeting Minutes and the March 14, 2007 Regular Town Board
Meeting Minutes.
Discussion:
Vote: Councilperson Fisher aye, Councilperson Hubbell aye, Councilperson Small aye, Councilperson
Harvey aye, Supervisor Owens aye. Motion carried.
Communications/Correspondence:
Supervisor Owens reported that she had received a letter from Howard Stamp in regards to family
member gravestones that were broken and needed repairs in Christian Cemetery. The letter and
attachments were given to Councilperson Hubbell for her review and action.
Committees/Board Reports:
Tompkins County Legislature: Greg Stevenson reported:
(1) Personnel Emergency Response Service Machines: This program is being administered
by the County Office for the Aging. Machines are placed in homes where there is need for
the subscriber to have a bracelet or pendant they are able to push if they become
incapacitated. This program is the key in helping older people stay in their homes. This is
huge in dollar savings in that it keeps older people out of assisted living facilities and
nursing homes. This allows them to stay home. Machines were getting old. Some money
was approved in 2007 which allowed the purchase of 189 machines. This program is
growing under the guidance of COFA.
(2) Board of Assessment Review: Is scheduled for Thursday, May 10th from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00
p.m. at the Community Building.
(3) Tompkins County Council of Government (TCCOG): The County is working on
possibly starting a Public Access Defibulation Program.
(4) Water Well Permits: Currently a permit is not needed to drill a water well. Efforts are
being made on the part of the Health Department to begin doing so. There is a public
meeting on April 24, 2007 at the Town of Newfield Town Hall.
(5) Emergency Communication System: Project has moved along to the point they are now
on the doorstep of a subscriber equipment component. What radios and communication
devices that are used out in the field by fire departments, law enforcement agencies,
highway departments, etc. – what radio components will be included in the project and
what subscriber equipment is not included and thus the responsibility of someone else.
(6) Highway Projects: He has looked at the five-year roadway rehabilitation program the
Highway Department is producing this month. Black Oak and Iradell Roads are scheduled
to be worked on. Toward the end of plan is the replacement of 1951 vintage bridge on East
Enfield Center Road. The design for the bridge is being proposed in 2010 at an estimate of
about $26,000+ and the work on the bridge is being proposed in 2001 at a cost of about
$500,000.
Beautification Committee: Debbie Teeter reports:
(1) She is working on getting a group of volunteers from Ithaca College for April 21st to do a
little prep work on places where plants are to go.
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 7
(2) The first Welcome to Enfield sign is nearly done and should be completed by the end of the
week or beginning of next week. Ms. Teeter asked the Board how to facilitate the first
payment to Mr. DeGroat that was to be due after the first sign was completed. Mr. DeGroat
wants to hold the first sign for reference for when he does the second sign. Ms. Teeter is
thinking about going out this weekend to look the sign over and take some pictures. Board
members were encouraged to ride along. Ms. Teeter asked what the procedure would be
for getting a check to him. Councilperson Harvey suggested a Special Town Board
meeting. Supervisor Owens added that the Board had agreed to pay Mr. DeGroat $805
after the completion of the first sign. Supervisor Owens advised that the Town Board could
authorize the Supervisor to make this payment on confirmation that the work was done.
Supervisor Owens gave Ms. Teeter a voucher in the amount of $805 for Mr. DeGroat’s
signature. Motion made by Councilperson Harvey, seconded by Councilperson Hubbell
that upon submission of documentation showing completion of the first Welcome to Enfield
sign and provided that Mr. DeGroat signs the voucher, the Town Board authorizes the
Supervisor to issue a check to Mr. DeGroat in the amount of $805 for his work on
completing the first Welcome to Enfield sign.
Discussion:
Vote: Councilperson Fisher aye, Councilperson Hubbell aye, Councilperson Small aye,
Councilperson Harvey aye, Supervisor Owens aye. Motion carried.
Code Enforcement: Code Enforcement Officer Ron Clark distributed a monthly written report to the
Town Board prior to the meeting and gave a brief overview. He added that he spent 32 hours at the
Finger Lakes Building Officials Conference in Rochester learning about new codes and believes it will
be a busy summer.
Community Building: Councilperson Robert Harvey reported that the first floor is open, ECC can
move back in. Asbestos removal has been taken care of. Exercise class to start back soon. The courts
may be submitting a grant to the state to help offset some of the costs associated with its renovation.
Enfield Community Council: President Carolyn Tschanz reported that the Council is planning to
utilize the downstairs of the Community Building again. Teen and youth programs being held at the
elementary school. Reviewed programs offered to Enfield youth. Enfield Currents’ newsletter is to be
mailed by the April 15th and if you do not receive one, contact Ms. Tschanz. Enfield Summer Day
Camp will be held July 2, 2007 through August 10, 2007. There will be no day camp July 4th. Camp
to be held at Enfield Elementary School, regular hours 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Before and aftercare is
being offered at an additional cost. Costs for six hours of camp is $105 per child with any additional
children being charged $65 in addition to the $105. If you have three or more children, the total would
be $180, ages are 4 to 13 that live in Enfield or attend Enfield Elementary School. The Harvest
Festival will be held September 15, 2007 and they are looking for a chairperson. The next ECC
meeting will be May 14, 2007 at 6:30 p.m. in the Community Building. ECC and a group of other
community members have been looking into the interests of a new community building. There will be
another meeting to look at information gathered on Saturday, April 21 at 10:00 a.m.
Fire Advisory Board: Delegate Larry Lanning reported that the Fire Advisory Board meets the last
Monday of each month. Delegates from each town are to attend. Delegates and alternate delegates
total 21 throughout the County who attend the Fire Advisory Board.
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 8
Enfield Volunteer Fire Company: Fire Chief Ron Switzer highlighted the Company’s March report.
Sunday, April 24th will be the Fire Company’s last chicken barbeque of the year. Saturday, May 5th the
Fire Company will be participating in the school’s book sale. Fire trucks will be displayed.
Ethics Committee: Committee Chair, David Dimmick reported that the Committee is diligently
working on a document that is very close to being final. Three out of five people are participating on
the Committee.
Highway Department: Since Highway Superintendent Dave Miller was not in attendance, Supervisor
Owens reported that the County lost $16,000 in funding for hearing tests for highway personnel.
Highway Superintendent would like the Town to pay the $40 per person for highway employees to
have the hearing tests, which are OSHA mandated.
Personnel Committee: Councilperson Small reported that an informational meeting was held on
March 19th to go over the Town’s health insurance options for its retirees. The next step is to have a
full Committee meeting to go over all the information and decide how best to proceed. Meeting
scheduled for April 30, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. at the Community Building.
Planning Board: Councilperson Hubbell reported that the Planning Board discussed whether the
Planning Board was an advisory board or if it had authority to make decisions and the need for this to
be researched. People in attendance spoke on wind energy. Planning Board would like to have a joint
meeting with the Town Board to discuss the wind energy proposal. Meeting scheduled for May 2,
2007 at 7:00 p.m. at the Community Building.
Tompkins County Council of Government (TCCOG): Supervisor Owens highlighted items that
were being discussed - volunteer fire fighters, an update in Planning Board training, availability of
training in the county, and limitation of travel on trucks carrying hazardous waste materials.
Old Business:
Town of Enfield Fire Protection Contract 2007
Motion made by Councilperson Fisher, seconded by Supervisor Owens that the Town Board approve
the adoption of the Fire Protection Contract 2007.
Discussion: Councilperson Small asked that the changes be put back to what was agreed to at the
March 14, 2007 Regular Town Board meeting. The payment schedule date on page 2, #7 be put back
to May 20, 2007 and the date on page 3, #9b be changed back to 1 January 1995 as it was originally
agreed. Councilperson Harvey added that he wants the amounts payable for March and May put back
to what was originally agreed to at the March 14th meeting as well. Councilperson Small commented
that the payment amounts for the past three years have always been $135,000 up until March 20. This
year by paying the Fire Company the disputed $95,000 brought them over the $135,000 by $3,750,
which constituted an overpayment. Councilperson Small suggested that since changes had been made
after what had been agreed to at the March 14th meeting, that some of the provision removed from the
original contract should be put back in.
Supervisor Owens asked Fire Chief Switzer (who was in attendance) if the Fire Company was in
agreement with these changes. Fire Chief Switzer had no problem with these changes but did not want
any repercussion to happen to the Fire Company. Supervisor Owens confirmed that the figures and
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 9
dates would be switched back to what was agreed to the night of March 14th. Councilperson Hubbell
expressed her concern also that the fire contract should have never changed from what was agreed to
on March 14th and could not understand why additional changes were made and felt if the Fire
Company continues to insert changes, the Board should have the opportunity to make a few also. She
added that she felt the public hearing on the fire contract was illegal because the proposed fire contract
was not available to the public the day the notice of the public hearing was published in the Ithaca
Journal.
Vote: Councilperson Fisher aye, Councilperson Hubbell no, Councilperson Small aye, Councilperson
Harvey aye, Supervisor Owens aye. Motion carried.
Supervisor Owens said that the changes and/or corrections will be made after the Town Board meeting
and that a clean copy will be printed for execution. Councilperson Small volunteered to proof the
contract as corrections were being made. Town Clerk Laue said she would like President Hubbell and
Supervisor Owens available at the same time to attest to their signing of the contract.
Local Law #1 - 2007- A Local Law Providing for the Administration and Enforcement of the
New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code
Supervisor Owens reported that based on last month’s conversation, she called the Association of
Towns and they strongly recommended that the Town Board approve the Local Law so that the
Town’s Code Enforcement Officer is working under the NYS Law. Any additions or changes that are
to be made would be an amendment to the law. She added that the Town has no way of knowing if
changes will be made or when they would be made. Code Enforcement Officer Clark clarified that the
State wants the present farm buildings to maintain their safety, it is not that the farmers are going to
have to follow a building code. Farmers are protected by the agricultural law and do not need a
building permit. NYS code enforcement officers really do not have the right to go in and force NYS
code on agricultural buildings as long as they are being used strictly for agriculture.
Motion made by Councilperson Harvey, seconded by Councilperson Fisher that the Town Board
approve the adoption of Local Law #1 – 2007: A Local Law Providing for the Administration and
Enforcement of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
Discussion:
Vote: Councilperson Fisher aye, Councilperson Hubbell no, Councilperson Small aye, Councilperson
Harvey aye, Supervisor Owens aye. Motion carried.
Fire District Public Hearing
Supervisor Owens asked if the Board was ready to set a public hearing to hear public comment on
forming a fire district. Consensus of the Board was to move the item to the May agenda.
Councilperson Small suggested that at the same time the public hearing is set, she would like to see the
Fire Company’s debt restructuring document and would like to move on the forming of the Fire
Protection Committee.
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 10
Audit Claims:
Supervisor Owens presented monthly bills and vouchers for payment. Motion made by Councilperson
Fisher, seconded by Councilperson Harvey that the Town Board of the Town of Enfield authorizes the
Supervisor to pay:
- General Fund Vouchers #76-92 dated April 11, 2007 in the amount of $14,400.71
- Highway Fund Vouchers #16-26 dated April 11, 2007 in the amount of $11,618.74
- Enfield Volunteer Fire Company Voucher #3 dated April 11, 2007 in the amount of
$95,000.00. (EVFC voucher was prepaid 3/15/2007.)
Discussion: Supervisor Owens to call Erhardt Propane to see why the hot water bill is so high and get
back to Councilperson Harvey. Councilperson Hubbell said there were two bills from Bowers being
charged to the Highway Fund and General Fund and did not understand why. Supervisor Owens
subtracted the amount from the General Fund. Councilperson Hubbell commented that in 2005 after
additional 911 house numbers were purchased, the Board at that time decided that would be the last
time and if residents wanted them, they were to start paying for them. She asked and Supervisor
Owens confirmed there was $250 in the budget for additional numbers. Councilperson Hubbell asked
Supervisor Owens to be more specific on vouchers relating to health insurance. Councilperson Small
had some reservations with respect to the Fire Company’s voucher being label “post approval”.
Supervisor Owens explained that “post approval” meant the Board was approving the voucher after the
fact. Councilperson Harvey added that the Fire Company voucher should include some wording to the
effect that the March payment was an overpayment and that the difference would be voucher for in
May. Additional wording was added.
Vote: Councilperson Fisher aye, Councilperson Hubbell aye, Councilperson Small aye, Councilperson
Harvey aye, Supervisor Owens aye. Motion carried.
Announcements:
1) Spring Clean-up Week: May 7 – 10th 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
2) Local Advisory Board of Assessment Review – May 10th at the Community
Building – 3-6 p.m.
3) Rabies Clinic – May 10th Town Barn – 7-9 p.m.
Councilperson Small asked what the outcome was on the Lee Diminishing Lien situation. Supervisor
Owens reported that it has been taken care of by closing out one lien and reopened another lien in the
new owners’ name for a five-year term.
Privilege of the Floor:
Debbie Teeter: Farm Bureau and NY State Agriculture and Markets is trying to get the word to
farmers about the confusion with the Administration and Enforcement of NY State Uniform Fire
Prevention and Building Code.
Jerry Achilles: Is confused about which fire contract was being discussed.
Diane Aramini: The fire contract should be out to the public before a public hearing not the night of.
Public Hearing and Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes – April 11, 2007 11
Mary Jo Lovelace: The Planning Board and Town Board meetings are not being published in the
Ithaca Journal. Town Clerk Laue commented that she has made the request that regular meetings be
published and will make the request again.
Adjournment:
Motion made by Councilperson Hubbell, seconded by Councilperson Harvey that the April 11, 2007
Regular Town Board meeting adjourn.
Discussion:
Vote: Councilperson Fisher aye, Councilperson Hubbell aye, Councilperson Small aye, Councilperson
Harvey aye, Supervisor Owens aye. Motion carried.
Meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Alice Laue
Town Clerk