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HomeMy WebLinkAboutApril 10, 2024 Town of Enfield Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes1 Town of Enfield Regular Town Board Meetfng Wednesday, April 10, 2024 6:30 PM In-Person at the Enfield Town Courthouse and virtually via the Zoom Meetfng Platiorm. Present: Supervisor Stephanie Redmond; Town Councilpersons; Robert Lynch, Cassandra Hinkle; Town Clerk Mary Cornell; Highway Superintendent Buddy Rollins. Virtual Attendance: Town Councilperson Melissa Millspaugh. Excused: Councilperson Jude Lemke. Call to Order: Supervisor Redmond called the meetfng at 6 :30 pm Privilege of the Floor: Councilperson Lynch led the assemblage in the Pledge of Allegiance. The EVFC in conjunctfon with FASNY will hold a recruitment day on April 14. Supervisor Redmond congratulated Town Councilperson Melissa Millspaugh on the recent birth of her son Emmett. Additfons and Changes to the Agenda: Discussion: Highway Superintendent Rollins would like to increase culvert permit fees. Correspondence: Uriel Carpenter had questfons on how decisions are taking place in our community and where the power lies. He would like to know if the planning board approves subdivisions, or if an elected official is in charge of approvals. A complaint about a property on Hayts Rd that has a large amount of trash on the property and the neighbors would like something done about this. Code Officer Teeter responded that he is aware of the property he had already spoken with the property owner and they had come to an agreement. However, they have not complied and he will follow- up with them and issue them a violatfon. Monthly Reports County Legislature – Randy Brown. The full report is on file with the Town Clerk’s office. Councilperson Lynch shared that Lisa Holmes has announced her intentfon to retfre as the County Administrator, effectfve December 31, 2024. Councilperson Lynch asked Randy the current status of the ECC resolutfon. Randy Brown asked for the verbiage of the resolutfon that the Town Board had posted. Town Supervisor’s Report – Stephanie Redmond. In the additfon of the normal dutfes of the Office of Town Supervisor, she went to the AG Summit. She met with Dan Woodring, the Hwy superintendent and Councilpersons at the proposed Skate Garden site. She went to the EMS meet and greet, and met with the TCSW folks, which she will discuss further later tonight. Highway Superintendent Report – Buddy Rollins. The highway crew thanks the board for giving them the Eclipse-day off. There are getting ready for spring projects. They purchased the two 10-wheelers that came with snow plows, etc. He was able to get them for $140,000. We should receive the trucks by next week. They have been busy with ditch work. They have been doing maintenance on the trucks. They currently have three trucks down. Code Enforcement Report – Alan Teeter. Alan is at training this month. Planning Board Report – Dan Walker. Mr. Scholl wants to move ahead with the special district and he will be drilling a test well. As soon as everything is in place the planning board will be bringing it before the town board. They are hopeful to have the site plan review law to the Town Board in a couple of months. He went over the Comprehensive plan himself and he thinks that we are on track and that the plan is stfll in good shape for Enfield. The PB will make recommendatfons on the next steps after they have finished their review. Supervisor Redmond brought up the concern by Uriel Carpenter 2 who wants to know if the road frontage regulatfons are a law or a policy. Dan said it is a local law and we have to follow the rules. Supervisor Redmond asked if the planning board would be approving this subdivision request or the town board. Dan replied that because it is a special district it will go before the Town Board. The response by Guy Krough on how much water control Towns can have is concerning, as Towns seem to be limited in what they can regulate. Dan shared that we do have a water protectfon plan that may offer some protectfons, but there could be some grey areas that we could utflize. Tompkins County Council of Govts – Robert Lynch. The full report is on file with the Town Clerks office and is posted on the Town Website. The county received a grant for the Rapid Medical Response Service, which covered the total costs for this year. He would like to County to contfnue to cover the total costs in future years. Lynch shared there will be a cost sharing meetfng tomorrow and he plans on attending that meetfng and he shared that Administrator Holmes has not talked of cost sharing for 2025 as of yet. Consent Agenda: Audit Claims: General Fund vouchers #79-101, dated April 10, 2024 in the amount of $19,993.82. Highway Fund vouchers #49-66, dated April 10, 2024 in the amount of $166,332.49. Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Minutes: March 13, 2024 Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Abstain; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Business: Culvert Permit Fee increase. Supervisor Redmond moved to increase the Culvert permit fees to $500 and Driveway permit to $50.00, Councilperson Lynch seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. AED Training – Postponed. Discussion: Update on Skate Garden and Park Grant. Greg met with folks from the Fingerlakes Trails regarding the park and created a trail. They were enthusiastic as the Fingerlakes trail is ~1,000 from the Town Land. They will provide costs on signs, benches, etc. They will be meet again on April 23 at 9:30 AM. They do have costs for the Skate Garden and he would like to apply for the parks and trails grant. He will need a resolution from the Town or a letter from the Supervisor in support of applying for the grant. He may not have a quote for the trails in time for the grant deadline of April 29, 2024. Supervisor Redmond suggested planting a hedge row to separate the park/trails from the Town Highway. Councilperson Lynch moved to authorize the Town Supervisor to apply for a parks and trails grant for a figure not to exceed $5,000 with the specific proposal/ projects to be decided between the Town Supervisor and the Deputy Town 3 Supervisor, and furthermore, authorize the Town Supervisor to send a letter of endorsement. Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Discussion: Update on WQIP grant. Supervisor Redmond is stfll waitfng on an update, she is hopeful to hear back by May. Discussion: CDBG Economic Development/Microenterprise grant. A Micro low or moderate income with employees of 5 or less. The amount each business can apply includes 20% for specific incidental expenses. The town would oversee the grant. There are specific requirements that must be followed. Supervisor Redmond moved to make a post on the Town Website and councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Discussion: Update on Enfield Road Clean up, Cemetery Clean-Up (a gentleman has taken some antfque roses from the Christfan Cemetery and he has 8 that are mature. He would like to make a memorial garden in the Chrisitan Cemetery), Enfield Clean Up Days. Stephanie met with TCSW. There is a grant which would cover approx. half of the associated fees for hazardous clean up (the current vendor Clean Harbor charges ~$2,000 a day.). MXI is another vendor that is in the area. Residents would need a waste permit and only Tompkins County residents can apply. The county accepts propane tanks at no charge (Teets takes them as well). Casella can transport tfres and they can take 25 per load and they are $3 per tfre. Highway will take paint as long as the cans are dry, no liquid can be in the cans. Supervisor Redmond will reach out to React. The board will consider Clean Harbor and Casella during budget season for next year’s Town Clean up. Discussion: Wildlife Resolutfon for Christfan Cemetery – Cassandra Hinkle. In the past they had hired a wildlife company to relocate the woodchucks and she would like to hire the same company again. Councilperson Hinkle moved and Supervisor Redmond seconded to contract with a service to handle the woodchuck issue at the Chrisitan Cemetery. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolutfon #35-2024 Paid day off for the Eclipse for Town Employees 4/8/2024. WHEREAS, recognizing the significance of the solar eclipse and the Town Board's commitment to the well-being of its employees, the Town Board of the Town of Enfield hereby aims to provide its employees with the extraordinary chance to witness the solar eclipse in its path of totality; now therefore be it RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Enfield officially designates April 8, 2024, as a paid holiday, with the sincere hope that all employees will take full advantage of this exceptfonal opportunity to observe the solar eclipse. Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. 4 Resolutfon #36-2024 – Approval of March 2024 Budget Modificatfons WHEREAS, it is necessary to modify the 2024 budget based on updated estfmates of revenues and expenditures in 2024, and WHEREAS, a detailed listfng and descriptfon of each budget adjustment by Fund has been provided to the Town Board for review as presented below, be it therefore RESOLVED, that the Enfield Town Board approves the budget modificatfons as outlined below. GENERAL FUND - A MARCH 2024 BUDGET MODIFICATIONS Current Increase/Modified Account #Description Budget (Decrease)Budget Revenues A4089 Other Federal Aid - ARPA -$ 8,955.00$ 8,955.00$ Total Revenue Adjustments 8,955.00$ Expenditures A1620.4 Building - Contractual 60,000.00$ 3,185.00$ 63,185.00$ A1620.42 Building - Maintenance and Improvements -$ 4,730.00$ 4,730.00$ A1620.43 Building - Web Hosting 10,000.00$ 1,040.00$ 11,040.00$ A1220.41 Supervisor - Contractual 1,500.00$ 500.00$ 2,000.00$ A1010.4 Town Board - Contractual 3,000.00$ (500.00)$ 2,500.00$ A1920.4 Municipal Dues 1,100.00$ 200.00$ 1,300.00$ A1910.4 Unallocated Insurance 40,000.00$ (200.00)$ 39,800.00$ A9080.8 Paid Family Leave 120.00$ 50.00$ 170.00$ A9055.8 Diability Insurance 1,420.00$ (50.00)$ 1,370.00$ Total Expenditure Adjustments 8,955.00$ Description of Proposed Adjustments: The majority of the recommend budget adjustments are related to ARPA funded projects, where both revenue and expenditure amounts are being added to the budget. Additionally, there are several areas where small amounts of contractual funding needed are covered by savinings in other accounts. This includes the AOT conference, Municipal Dues, and Paid Family Leave insurance. 5 Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolutfon #37-2024 Authorize Supervisor to Sign Engagement Letter with Cohen Law WHEREAS, the Town of Enfield needs to renegotfate the contract with Haefele, therefore be it RESOLVED, the Town Board authorizes the Town Supervisor to sign a contract with Cohen Law to assist with contract negotfatfons Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Discussion: Supervisor Redmond spoke with Town Legal Counsel Guy Krough who recommended Cohen Law to assist with franchise negotfatfons as the town may have missed out on ~$50,000 in revenue per year. Councilperson Lynch’s takeaway from reading all three past contracts is that the town engaged in agreements in a civil manner with a small company directly. The last franchise agreement was when Roy Barriere was the Town Supervisor and the record of that night showed that he opened the public hearing and no one spoke and then the town board unanimously voted to approve the agreement. He would like to invite both former Town Supervisor Barriere and Lee Haefele to attend the May meetfng before he would he would like to vote on this contract. Supervisor Redmond does not believe that we have the expertfse to negotfate on our own, which is perhaps why the other contracts went through so quickly. Councilperson Lynch shared that in a customer satfsfactfon survey discussed at a 2001 Tompkins County Council of Governments meetfng, Haefele of Spencer NY, received a ratfng of 3.7 (out of 5) and Spectrum received a 2.3 ratfng. We enjoy a good cable company, Lynch said, and he does not want lawyers to complicate negotfatfons. He would like to do this on a collegial bases and to keep in mind that franchise fees may get passed on to Town residents. Councilperson Lynch asked the Board “Why can’t we negotfate the contract with Haefele and then ask Cohen to review for a smaller fee”. Supervisor Redmond does not believe that the current board has the expertfse to negotfate a contract on our own. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Nay; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. HIGWAY FUND - DA MARCH 2024 BUDGET MODIFICATIONS Current Increase/Modified Account #Description Budget (Decrease)Budget Revenues DA4089 Other Federal Aid - ARPA -$ 50,000.00$ 50,000.00$ Total Revenue Adjustments 50,000.00$ Expenditures DA5130.2 Machinery - Equipment 116,768.00$ 50,000.00$ 166,768.00$ Total Expenditure Adjustments 50,000.00$ Description of Proposed Adjustments: The ajdustment recommended in the Highway Fund reflects the amount of APRA funds allocated for the puchase of a generator. 6 Resolutfon #38-2024 RESOLUTION AND SIGNATURE DOCUMENT TO APPROVE MCA & FUTURE AMENDMENTS TO MCA 7 Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolutfon #39-2024 Approval of the 2024 Amendment to the Municipal Cooperatfve Agreement for the Greater Tompkins County Municipal Health Insurance Consortfum 8 Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolutfon #40-2024 Authorizatfon to Renew Burial Coordinator Contract for 2024 WHEREAS, the Town of Enfield utflizes the services of Matt Lincoln for the burial coordinator in town cemeteries, therefore be it RESOLVED, the Town Board authorizes the Town Supervisor to renew and sign a contract for these services for 2024 Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolution #41-2024 Authorization to Renew Cemetery Maintenance Service Agreement WHEREAS, the Town of Enfield utilizes the services of Matt Lincoln for the Cemetery Maintenance in town cemeteries, therefore be it RESOLVED, the Town Board authorizes the Town Supervisor to renew and sign a contract for these services for 2024 Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolution #42-2024 Horticultural Services WHEREAS the area surrounding the Town Hall and bus stop across from the Town Hall needs regular mowing and beautfficatfon from May 1, 2024 to October 1, 2024, therefore be it RESOLVED the Enfield Town Board requests the Town Clerk post a request on the Town Website for hortfcultural services at a pay rate of $18/hr. Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolution #43-2024 A Resolution to Direct an Update of the Town of Enfield Capital Plan 2020-2029 WHEREAS, sound fiscal management demands that the Town of Enfield periodically revisit and revise its needs for capital investments to reflect current priorities and circumstances; and 9 WHEREAS, the Enfield Town Board on November 13, 2019 adopted the “Town of Enfield Capital Plan 2020-2029,” an outline of projected capital expenditures, equipment purchases, and reserve recommendations for the forthcoming decade; and WHEREAS, at a Public Hearing earlier that same month concerning the 2020 Town of Enfield Budget, in response to one resident’s comment, the meeting’s official minutes quotes former Town Supervisor Beth McGee as stating that both the Town’s Capital Plan and its Fund Balance Policy “should be reviewed yearly”; and WHEREAS, although the Town of Enfield stands half-way through the adopted Capital Plan’s 2020-2029 investment cycle, no such annual review of the Capital Plan has been conducted since its adoption; and WHEREAS, numerous departures from that Capital Plan, particularly as they affect Highway Department equipment purchases, have made it clear that the Capital Plan 2020-2029 stands woefully outdated, and that subsequent departures from that Capital Plan have bred ill-will among Town officials and have caused frequent disagreements among members of this Town Board; and WHEREAS, the failure to update and revise the Town’s Capital Plan stands at odds with the original intent of Town leadership, as stated in the official minutes; therefore, be it RESOLVED, that the Enfield Town Board hereby directs the Town Supervisor, together with the Town’s Finance Committee and Town Bookkeeper, should the Supervisor choose their assistance, to meet with Department Heads, and most particularly meet with the Highway Superintendent, and subsequently recommend to this Board a revised multi- year Capital Plan, said plan to cover the duration of time the Supervisor deems to be a reasonable and appropriate investment cycle; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Supervisor shall present such revised, recommended, multi-year Capital Plan to this Town Board no later than September 30, 2024, a deadline so that the Town Board and the public may be able to review the recommended revised Capital Plan and act upon it contemporaneously with the Town of Enfield 2025 Town Budget; and be it further RESOLVED, that an annual review of the Town of Enfield Capital Plan shall become a part of this Town’s Budget Policy, employing review procedures consistent with those embodied herein. Councilperson Lynch moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Discussion: Councilperson Lynch read the resolution, and shared the reason behind this is that we have a TOE Capital plan that was passed by the town board in 2019, and that plan in his opinion is woefully outdated. He thinks he was going by the current capital plan which is very rigid when he raised recent concerns about Highway Department equipment purchases. He said hopefully the update will help make a capital plan that can work better and be updated yearly. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. Resolution #44-2024 Deputy Town Clerk – $20 hr./paid bi-weekly/hrs. to be determined. RESOLVED, the Town Clerk appoints Pat Baker Supervisor Redmond moved and Councilperson Hinkle seconded. Discussion: Councilperson Lynch asked Clerk Cornell to share why this change was taking place. Clerk Cornell shared that former Deputy Clerk Laura Norman had resigned as she had gone back to the Board of Elections full time starting April 1, 2024. 10 Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. RESOLUTION #45-2024 A Resolutfon in Support of Tompkins County’s Initfatfve to Expand Broadband Internet Access WHEREAS, this Enfield Town Board has long believed, as was stated in the official Minutes of its September 12, 2012 Town Board meetfng that, “broadband internet access is an inalienable right,” and that the goal, consistent with that of New York State “is to get (the service) to everyone”; and WHEREAS, Tompkins County in 2023 issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to identffy partfes that could extend high speed broadband infrastructure to unserved locatfons in Tompkins County, including to locatfons in Enfield; and WHEREAS, seven bids were subsequently submitted to Tompkins County in response to the RFP, among them the bid by Point Broadband, said bid determined by Tompkins County administrators to be the preferred applicant toward serving five of Tompkins County’s towns directly, with Point Broadband also establishing sub-contractual agreements with incumbent Internet Service Providers in the Towns of Enfield and Ulysses to provide service within those municipalitfes; and WHEREAS, at a meetfng of the Tompkins County Legislature’s Housing and Economic Development Committee on April 3, 2024, Charles Bartosch, the chief executfve of Point Broadband, stated categorically that his firm intends to sub-contract with Haefele Connect, Enfield’s incumbent cable television franchisee, and with no other firm, toward providing internet access to unserved households in the Town of Enfield; and WHEREAS, the sub-contractual arrangement presented by Mr. Bartosch holds distfnct advantages for the Town of Enfield in that it would provide a much-needed benefit for those among its residents who currently lack high speed internet access; and WHEREAS, the County Legislature’s Housing and Economic Development Committee on April 3, 2024 unanimously recommended authorizatfon of the Partnership Agreement with Point Broadband, and recommended that Tompkins County appropriate $100,000 in County Contfngency funds toward “walkout” engineering studies that would take the first step toward extending such service, a recommendatfon which has been referred to the full Tompkins County Legislature for final adoptfon; therefore, be it RESOLVED, that the Enfield Town Board hereby endorses the proposed Partnership Agreement between Tompkins County and Point Broadband toward the expansion of highspeed Internet access to unserved households, and also the expenditure of $100,000 in County funds toward furtherance of that service, along with the Partnership Agreement’s implicit expectatfon that Point Broadband will sub-contract with Haefele Connect for service extensions within the Town of Enfield; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Clerk shall transmit a copy of this Resolutfon to the Clerk of the Tompkins County Legislature and to the Chair of the Legislature, the Hon. Daniel Klein. Councilperson Lynch moved and Supervisor Redmond seconded. Discussion: Councilperson Lynch this is a recent endeavor. OTTC is the provider for Ulysses and Haefele TV is the provider for Enfield. Tompkins County will provide the seed money for the initfal study and this resolutfon comes before the Tompkins County Legislature next Tuesday and will take some grant money to get started. This should help our residents that currently do not have broadband internet. Greg Mezey and Nick Helmholdt are they key contacts. Councilperson Lynch provided copies of the resolutfon. Vote: Councilperson Hinkle, Aye; Councilperson Lynch, Aye; Councilperson Millspaugh, Aye; Supervisor Redmond, Aye; Carried. 11 Discussion: ARPA Funds. Supervisor Redmond shared that Blixy had sent the updated list of the remaining ARPA funds, there were a couple of questions that she will ask Blixy to answer. The consensus of the board was to not allocate the remaining ~$2,000 as the construction at the Town Hall is still going on and there will be an additional expense for insulation that was not originally included in Cooley’s quote. Discussion: Late Fee’s dog license and updating the fee schedule in the Town Dog Law. Clerk Cornell shared that she would like to include a late fee of $10 for dogs that are renewed more than 30 days late. Councilperson Lynch inquired about a discrepancy in the current fee being charged for unaltered dogs. Per the change approved by the Town Board in late 2018 the fee should have been increase to $24, however, it was only increased to $22. Clerk Cornell will look into this more and asked that discussion continue at the next town board meeting. Clerk Cornell will also inform the Town Board if a Public Hearing is required to amend the current law to allow for late fees. Discussion: Earth Day Tree Planting April 21st – A tree will be planted on the Town Property by the Highway Department. Supervisor Redmond has not heard anything further from the Democratic Committee and she will reach out to Barbara Sadovnik. Highway Superintendent Rollins shared Barbara had stopped by to look at possible locations for the tree planting. Discussion: Subdivision Regulations. Sections 230-236. Councilperson Lynch looked at the regulations and suggested that we hold on specific recommendations until Councilperson Lemke gets involved. His only question is with the text 45-day window in the case of minor subdivisions be moved to 62 days. There may be a desire to expand it, which is his only comment. He was very concerned by the emails of March 20th of the limitations that the State of NY may place on Towns to control minimum and maximum amounts of water use. He would like to find out more details of what Deputy Supervisor Hutnik had shared with the board on the limitation’s towns have to control minimum standards. Discussion continued. Privilege of the Floor (Limited to 3 minutes for each speaker): N/A Announcements: Councilperson Lynch shared that the Enfield Volunteer Fire Company will be holding a recruitment day on April 14th from 10 AM – 2 PM. Clerk Cornell shared as a reminder to residents that compost can be dropped off by the Town Hall on Saturdays from 9 AM – 11 AM. Adjournment: Councilperson Hinkle motfoned to adjourn, adjourned at 8:43 PM. Respectiully submitted, Mary Cornell Mary Cornel