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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-14-1998 MINUTES OF TOWN BOARD MEETING TUESDAY, APRIL 14, 1998 AT 7:30 P.M. Those present: Teresa M. Robinson, Supervisor Ellard L. Sovocool, Councilman Daniel J. Carey, Councilman Donald N. Palmer, Councilman Donald F. Scheffler, Councilman Francis Casullo, Attorney Also present: Liz Brennan, Rick Neville, George Totman, Rick Case, Joe Graham, Leslie Gifford, Kristie Rice. Supervisor Robinson announced that the Board needed to review and take action on the minutes of February 10, March 3, and March 10, 1998. Councilman Palmer requested a clarification of February 10th minutes regarding whether the position of Bookkeeper is part time or full time. LIZ BRENNAN, BOOKKEEPER- I've been putting in 6 - 6 1/2 hours a day. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Five days a week? LIZ BRENNAN- Yes. I was told it was full time. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I thought the position was a part time position. I didn't realize that this was going to make it a full time. I don't understand the difference. Maybe somebody can clear that up. What is the difference in treatment? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Well, I suppose, you can get some benefits that you didn't get before. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Specifically...? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Well, health insurance, if you wanted it. What else is there, Colleen? She's already on retirement. CLERK PIERSON- She'd get sick time. She would get vacation. You should know that, you two are in the bookkeeping part. I know one thing I can say for sure is that as far as the retirement system goes, we do not have any resolution in there saying that the bookkeeper position is six hours. Those resolutions are made when you create the positions. 1967 was when you created them all, I wasn't here, but when you created them all, you had to send to Albany the number of hours that each job entailed: highway department, eight hours, clerk six, or whatever it was. At that time we had no bookkeeping position. Have those hours been sent to our retirement system? To my knowledge the Board hasn't passed any resolutions saying what those hours are. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- No, probably not. Pg. 2, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting CLERK PIERSON- That's all I know about it. I do know that in your minutes of, I think, February 10th, I didn't read those again...no, it was January's, you automatically said that she was going to work for Rick an additional hour above what she was working for you. Now you say it's half and half, well what is it? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Well, actually, there's times when I'm working her more than he is. And other times he's working her more than I am. It depends on what time of the month it is whether she's doing payroll, whether she's doing the bookkeeping, or whether she's doing some other things that she has to do, and whether she's doing some things for him. RICK CASE, HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT- She's in my office from noon to six or six-thirty answering the phone, so she's taking clerical duties for that amount of time for me on top of doing the bookkeeping. Everything sort of ties right together. I don't know how you'd sort the time out percentage wise or anything. CLERK PIERSON- How long are the guys there? What time do they leave? I mean, what phone are we answering until 6:30? RICK CASE- She answers my phone. CLERK PIERSON- Until 6:30? How many calls do you get at night? RICK CASE- Several. During the winter we've had several calls. CLERK PIERSON- During the winter, yeah... RICK CASE- And we've had pot hole calls after 5:00. When the working public is coming home is when they want to contact us, and it's worked out very well. When I walk in at 6:00 in the morning, or she can also, and has called me at home, when there's something that needs my attention. So, having someone here after the normal operating hours has been very beneficial for the public service. CLERK PIERSON- I'd like to add just one thing to that. We got bogged down in our office with my Town Clerks work, Zoning Officer, whatever, all times of day, and you know what the answer to that was? An answering machine. Seventy dollars, freed us up so we could do our work and not have an additional person there. That's just something for the Board to think about, but it really worked. And George loved that once he got it. He came in, got his messages, and away he went. And I'm saying maybe that would work for you too..... RICK CASE- Well, the Highway Department has more emergency situations than the Zoning Officer, so, that's also something I think you should consider. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- As far as I know, she's busy most of the time with my work and her work. She also answers my phone all those times that she's here. I left here after 4:00, almost a quarter to five today, and I got a call that she just gave me when I came in. I can straighten around and make out a time Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 3 for the retirement system and make sure it is set so that we have something set down. But I'm not going to hassle about this. CLERK PIERSON- No, it's a Board resolution that has to go..... SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- That's what I'm saying, we'll do it, and I'm not going to hassle about it. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I'm just trying to get clear in my mind. Before, it was clearly a part time position, is that correct? And we added one hour....... SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- It wasn't, it wasn't...it was more than a part time position, but it wasn't a full time position at that time, I guess, because she was working five hours at that time. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Okay. Do we have guidelines what the distinction is between part time and full time? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Not really. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Well, I think we should do that. I think we definitely need to get the guidelines down as to what defines part time and full time. If that is not a part of the record, we should do that. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- How many hours a week is considered full time, forty or thirty five or...? COUNCILMAN PALMER- That's what I'm trying to get at. What determines part time and full time? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I'm considered part time. I'm here more than a lot of you people, and yet I'm considered part time. I'm just saying there is different things to consider than just certain things. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- For retirement purposes there's got to be a set hour I would think. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- We're looking at two different definitions. What the Town considers full time / part time and what the state retirement considers full time / part time. TERESA ROBINSON- The figures that we have sent in to the State are six hours and eight hours for full time....retirement. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- There's a six hour full time and an eight hour full time? TERESA ROBINSON- Yes. COUNCILMAN PALMER- What's the difference there? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Highway and general. Pg. 4, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting CLERK PIERSON- Highway, and they're listed individually. Town Clerk is now seven. The retirement system puts out a brochure that tells you how to evaluate these jobs between the highway, town clerk, bookkeeper, or whoever it is, elected officials verses non-elected officials. I have one of those books. The Town Board is supposed to sit down and determine how many hours are spent towards this retirement. I would be happy to give each one of you a copy if you want. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I'd like to see that. LIZ BRENNAN- That's when it's based on a salary. When it's based on an hourly employee, you go by the standard day, whether it's six hours for office help or eight hours for highway help. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Only salaries get the changes, like the Board's, when it comes to yours, you get three days a quarter, so..... LIZ BRENNAN- Because it's based on salary. And that's something that you have by resolution, what an elected official is going to receive, whether it's the Town Clerk or the Board or the Supervisor, how many days they're assigned because they don't do hours to divide by how many hours they've actually worked. When you work the actual hours for a standard day, you aren't so...... CLERK PIERSON- I'll get you the booklet, and you can read it yourself, and make your own conclusions. LIZ BRENNAN- I'll also make you copies of the exact page that explains it all. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Thank you. I think that we need that information. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- It's something we need to update. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I think we need to keep this on the agenda for future meetings so that we can get it fully resolved. It's just been left as a loose issue, and I think we need to get it resolved. LIZ BRENNAN- I'd like to see it resolved and appearing in the minutes as it should be. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Absolutely. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Make it part of the minutes then. Anything else? Moved by Councilman Palmer, seconded by Councilman Sovocool, to accept the minutes of the February 10, 1998 subject to further review on the issue of the full time / part time bookkeeper. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 5 Moved by Councilman Palmer, seconded by Councilman Scheffler, to accept the minutes of the March 3, 1998 minutes as presented. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. Supervisor Robinson asked about the meeting of March 10, 1998, and Councilman Palmer requested some clarification on some points before bringing it to a vote. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Page one, the Town Law Manuals, I believe were distributed by the Town Supervisor. That was the correction. CLERK PIERSON- I thought Peg handed them out. COUNCILMAN PALMER- No. CLERK PIERSON- Teresa, did you hand them out? Didn't Peg bring them from New York? COUNCILMAN PALMER- They came from New York. Teresa handed them out at the meeting here. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I handed them out, but Peg brought them up from New York. COUNCILMAN PALMER- And just for clarification, I'm just raising the question that since we passed the resolution to the support the recycling program, are we actively participating in recycling? CLERK PIERSON- Yes, we are. COUNCILMAN PALMER- On a regular basis? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- We, have been all along. They just weren't out because we didn't have the container. COUNCILMAN PALMER- But we have one now? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Yes. Go right out there in the corner and look. RICHARD CASE- Yes. They are right there. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I noticed them there tonight. Thank you. On page 17 of the minutes, second complete paragraph, the program is deferred compensation. And I'd like to have that item brought back so that we make a decision whether or not we're going to bring that program in for review. CLERK PIERSON- We may have some employees who are interested in that. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Yes, that's what I'm saying. We have the materials. I think we should make a decision if it's going to be made available to the employees and set up the necessary meetings to make it happen, so we can explain the program, and so that they know what the program is. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I have enough to pass out the folders to the fellows and Pg. 6, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting let them look or whatever they want. But as far as that's concerned a good share of them already belong to assurance...not all of them....but most of them..... COUNCILMAN PALMER- They have what? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- They have.....we call it assurance....when you have the money taken out for savings and like that. ATTORNEY CASULLO- I'm lost. What are we talking about? COUNCILMAN PALMER- We're talking about a deferred compensation program where employees can have money taken out of their pay and set aside for retirement purposes. It reduces your taxable income and that money is set aside into a future retirement program. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- It's something that you need to study because it lowers your Social Security payments too, so when you retire you get less from Social Security but more from a retirement plan. COUNCILMAN PALMER- But I think there are qualified people from this plan who could come out and explain all the particulars to the people. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- Yes, it's complicated, but it is a good benefit. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- There's no problem. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I'm not sure where that stands with the hourly paid people, if that has to be a negotiated item, but certainly, for the salaried people it could be presented and the facts could be made available to the hourly. Then decisions could be made later on. But at least get the information out there so that people are aware of what's available. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I have the folders, and I can get ahold of the people, no problem. CLERK PIERSON- Is that small enough so it could be copied so that each one of them could have one to review? I'd copy it. COUNCILMAN PALMER- It was a pretty good sized packet from what I saw. ATTORNEY CASULLO- They're normally a pretty good sized packet. I know we did something like that for our employees. It's similar. We just had the guy come down and do a presentation. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Yes. Most of those plans have a qualified person to come in and explain it and answer the questions so that you don't have to depend on a staff person to know that. Those programs have been around for ten years or better, and a lot of companies use them and a lot of municipalities have them. The Village of Groton has one. They've had it in place for years. It's for people who want to plan for their retirement. It's a vehicle to put some more money away if you want to. Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 7 ATTORNEY CASULLO- What Don's saying is it's probably just as well, as long as you have the information, to have the guy come down and make a presentation. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- That wouldn't cost the employer or the employee any money. CLERK PIERSON- Better have him come down. That's a lot of copying. Supervisor Robinson returned with booklets and information on the program and passed them around for the Board to look at. RICHARD CASE- I think the fellows in the highway department would be interested in hearing that, if you could get somebody to come down and speak. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Okay. Moved by Councilman Palmer, seconded by Councilman Carey, to accept the minutes of the March 10, 1998 meeting. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. Claim Nos. 45 to 62 of the Highway Fund in the amount of $15,240.06; Claim Nos. 57 to 90 of the General Fund in the amount of $12, 833.84 and Claim Nos. 124 to 129 of the HUD fund in the amount of $3,782.20 were presented for audit. Moved by Councilman Palmer, seconded by Councilman Sovocool, to accept the Highway Bills as submitted. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. Moved by Councilman Palmer to accept the General Fund bills with one exception which was one bill in front of the folder that was not vouchered for a copier machine. After discussion (see below) Councilman Carey seconded the motion on the floor to approve the General bills with the exeption of the copier bill. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Why? That's the machine that we have had out here that we have.....been paying installments on that, and we have the right to buy it. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I don't know if the rest of the Board knows what the arrangement is. I don't recall any specific arrangement other than there was a copier brought in to trial late last year for a month or two. And that's the last that I recall hearing. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- We had an arrangement to pay installments on it and then we were to buy it, if we had the money for it. CLERK PIERSON- It was leased. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- That's right, we had it on lease. And then we were to Pg. 8, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting buy it. Any more questions? COUNCILMAN CAREY- I have one question. Colleen, you use that Williamson Law Book Company? Do you use them every year, or is this the first year? CLERK PIERSON- Yes. Williamson Law now takes care of all our computers. I believe Liz has all IMA accounting and I have it. And it used to be IMA for $900, but now it's Williamson Law for $900 a year for maintenance and upgrading, etc. They bought the other company out. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Okay. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Any other questions? COUNCILMAN CAREY- I'll second the motion. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- You're not going to buy the machine then? COUNCILMAN CAREY- That's not the motion on the floor is it? The motion on the floor was to approve the General Fund with one exception. Well, I'll withdraw that second. As I understood it, when the Supervisor, I think it was mentioned at one of the meetings that she took the copier on lease with the option to buy. CLERK PIERSON- I understood it the same way. It was leased. We didn't have any money in the account. The Court system told us they needed a new copier and we couldn't afford it. So Teresa leased the machine for two months, I believe November and December, with the option to buy, or pay off in January or February, or whenever the Town had money in that account. I believe there was money budgeted in the 1998 account for that, it's up to the Board, but that's the way it stands right now. We've made two payments on it, November's and December's. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- That was a budgeted item then? CLERK PIERSON- Well, maybe not specifically. We put money in for equipment, knowing that we had this coming up because we knew that the Court would need one. I don't know if theirs is still working or not. They have been out using that one, which is no problem. We have enough of them sitting around here. In fact we have another one that maybe could be traded in although not with this deal, can we Teresa? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON No. It isn't the same company. No. And that doesn't.....both of them are shaky...sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. CLERK PIERSON- We bought all of these machines used and they get a lot of use. The one in my office gets an awful lot of use. Mine has a collator on it and we make a lot of copies. I believe the Court does too. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Where is this machine to be designated to be used? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Right where it is. It's in the kitchen right now. Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 9 That's where everybody can get to it and use it, and it is open for use. CLERK PIERSON- Someone else who uses that a lot in the kitchenette is the Zoning Officer. We don't have one out there now, but it gets a lot of use from him. It's accessible to any one to use it any time they want if they have a key to that door. I guess... what are we going to do with the other machine? That would be my concern. That sits there not being used. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Does it work at all? CLERK PIERSON- Actually, I haven't even been in there. Peg used it and she said it didn't work, so I didn't even go in there. However, there's no reason why I can't get it fixed. It's under the maintenance program. I could call them up and it wouldn't cost us to get it fixed. But if you bought this other one, I would put that one on the maintenance and take this one off. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- But get it fixed first, right. CLERK PIERSON- Yes, get it fixed first and maybe it would last, or maybe we could sell it, or I don't know, what do you want to do with it? We have four copiers here. Peg's can not be fixed. That's an obsolete copier. That one we'd get nothing out of. COUNCILMAN PALMER- So we have four copiers now, including this latest one? And we don't need four copiers. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- One doesn't work, so you've actually only got three, right? COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- One of them currently doesn't work, so you've got two working ones? CLERK PIERSON- I'm pretty sure we can get that one going by just calling them up and having them come down under the maintenance program. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- So if we can have that one fixed, why did we buy another one? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Pardon? COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- If we could have one fixed, that doesn't work, then why did we buy another one? I don't understand why we leased another one. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Because it wasn't working. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- Why didn't we have it fixed? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Well, my understanding was that it was going to cost quite a bit to have it fixed, but maybe I'm wrong. CLERK PIERSON- Wait a minute. You're talking about Peg's in here. That one is not fixable. You bought the other one thinking that we needed three, and Pg. 10, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting you were going to give Peg the one that sat in the kitchenette at the time, and that's the one that's not working now and is here on the other side of the Court Room. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Right. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- So we do need three. You better get that other one working, so we have at least two working all the time. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Well, I really think we need the machine. And as I told you before, we planned on it and if you're going to make an arrangement and set it up and then back off...... Moved by Councilman Carey, seconded by Councilman Sovocool to approve the purchase of the copier. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. Moved by Councilman Carey, seconded by Councilman Palmer to approve the HUD Bills as presented. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. Supervisor Robinson then invited Rick Neville to take the floor. RICK NEVILLE- I am representing the Groton Car Club tonight. We do have a Family Cruisers Car Club. A brief history: It's been around about three years. They are getting quite active in the community. Just recently we raised some money for the Groton Fire Department for their defibrillator for the other new ambulance that they have, to the tune of $125 from a bake sale. The other thing that we're doing is giving a scholarship to either a boy or girl in the automotive field, every year, for a deserving senior. We have forty family unit members, exactly how many people that is I don't know. This year is going to be our second year for the car show at Ross Field. Last year we had sixty-plus cars, so it is getting bigger and bigger. And if anybody does travel the car show circuit, they are getting quite popular. Now, getting down to what I'm here for. We want to do something community minded as an on-going project for the car club. We've asked different organizations what they have done and they kind of ear-mark one project and keep doing something with it year after year. I approached Teresa on something, and she suggested I go back to the car club meeting and approach them. And I got the okay from the car club to come and approach you folks. We are interested in doing something with the cemetery on Route 222, next to Bob and Tom Brown's place. It's a Civil War cemetery....Revolutionary War cemetery. There are some Groton people that do have some family members buried there. It's our understanding that the Town does do some maintenance up there. In the past I myself have been there. There is a lot of stuff planted there, myrtle and such. I think it's something that could be brought up to a better standard, leveled up and mowed, the gravestones set up, and general maintenance taken care off. And that's kind of why I'm here tonight. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I talked it over with Rick (Case) and he had no Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 11 objection to them working up there. It is something that the people see and it is something that the stones and some of it needs to really be repaired. It is something that somebody who is dedicated would do a good job, I am sure. It's our responsibility as a Town to keep the cemetery up. COUNCILMAN CAREY- You're doing this as a public service, not as an agent of the Town or an employee of the Town..... COUNCILMAN CASULLO- I think it's a great idea. Just as an example: I'm involved with a club in Cortland and we're going to clean a section of route 81. It's a great idea, and it's a great idea what this gentleman is suggesting too. I think though, just to take care of your concerns, they made us sign a waiver of liability. I think that's what we would have to ask here. I could put it together, that's no problem. I hate to bring it up but we just have to. It's certainly a great idea and I can put that together......you probably want to make some kind of resolution....... RICK NEVILLE- We do have our own insurance to cover any club function, through Dempsey's. RESOLUTION NO.19 ACCEPTANCE OF CAR CLUB'S OFFER TO MAINTAIN THE CEMETERY LOCATED ON ROUTE 222. Moved by Councilman Palmer, seconded by Councilman Scheffler. Ayes - Sovocool, Palmer, Carey, Scheffler, Robinson. Resolved, that the Town Board would gladly accept the Car Club's offer to provide maintenance to the cemetery located on Route 222 as a charitable contribution to the Town, and FURTHER RESOLVED, that subject to this approval, Attorney Casullo will provide the necessary waivers of liability to the Car Club for their signature. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Thank you Rick. Is there anyone else who would like to speak at this time? Liz? LIZ BRENNAN, BOOKKEEPER- You have your reports. I don't really have anything else to report except that the audit is finished and Rick Beals will probably have his report by our next regular Board Meeting in May, and he can present it at that time. Do you have any questions? Pg. 12, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- He was going to present it at this time, but it's his bad time of the year, and he asked if he could come next time, so I said yes. CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER'S REPORT: Building Permits issued through March 1997 were 16: one house, six mobile homes, two of which were replacements, and nine others. Building Permits issued through March, 1998 were 4: No houses, one mobile home, and three others. Life safety inspections are current through March 1998. "I would like to thank the Board for your support of this position during the time I served as your Code Enforcement Officer. I appreciate the common sense approach exhibited during a time when spontaneous knee-jerk reactions were prevalent. Unfortunately, people react to rumors and half-truths instead of trying to comprehend why things happen the way they do. A lynch-mob mentality tends to exasperate an already frustrating situation. Your calm, professional approach has been greatly appreciated. Thank you, George Senter." Rick? RICHARD CASE, HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT- At this time the Highway Department is in a transitional period between Winter and Springoperations. The Town of Groton's snowfall for the month of March was 19.1 inches. Total snowfall for the season is 88.4 inches. This is 13.4% above the average. This information has been provided by NOAA weather recorder Frank Ciccoricco. These are just Groton's numbers. During March the Highway Department was active in pothole repair, snow and ice removal, brush and tree control, equipment repair, beaver control, salt shed repairs, and a variety of other duties. The Town was recently inspected by PERMA, and receive a positive report. This report, to my understanding, has made the Town eligible for an additional 7% discount in insurance premiums. The inspection brought to my attention the fact that there is not a documented safety program in place. Liz Brennan researched a proper form for recording safety programs. As of March, the Highway Department has an employee safety program in place. During the month of March, the Deputy Highway Superintendent and I traveled to six used equipment dealers in search of a vibratory roller which would meet the Town's needs. The criteria set for this machine is: Equal to or more than the compaction rate of our current 12 to 15 ton static roller, with a drum width of no less than 66 inches. Hydrostatic drive. Diesel powered. Working spray bars and drum wipers. Low center of gravity, good operating brakes, and safety equipment. Good overall condition which would enable it to go to work without extensive repairs. A brand name machine which would enable the Town to purchase replacement parts for the next 5 to 10 years at a competitive cost. A price range of $60,000 to $80,000. With the knowledge of the upcoming paving and gravel season, we have intensified our research to New York State and Pennsylvania.A 1990 roller was located in Watertown, NY. The roller was on its way to Syracuse for preseason preventive maintenance and inspection for New York State paving requirements. Jerry and I took the opportunity to catch it in Syracuse. A complete record of repairs was made available, and we were afforded the opportunity to not only check it against our criteria list, but also to operate it. This Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 13 particular machine met all the criteria, except that the price at the time of inspection was $43,000. Rental is $4000 per month. No long-term lease- purchase agreement was available at the time. At the posted rental rate, this would pay for itself in just over two years, considering a five-month operating year. Therefore, the Highway Department is posting a notice of bid for one vibratory roller. The bid opening will be April 28, at 4:00 PM. I would request at least one day to examine the quotations and compare specifications. If a machine rises to the Highway Department's approval, I would like to tentatively set a date after April 29 for Board approval. If approved at that time, arrangements for funding and payment could be instituted. I believe we're going to need a Permissive Referendum for that. It has also been brought to my attention by Teresa and Colleen that April is the month for the Town of Groton Highway tour by the Board and Highway Superintendent. I look forward to making this tour and I am open for dates, preferably when all members could attend. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- What is a good date? RICHARD CASE- When the sun shines. That's up to you folks. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I know Dan's going to say a rainy day. A discussion was held among the Board Members, Supervisor Robinson, and Richard Case, and it was decided the Highway Tour would take place Saturday, April 18, at 10:00 AM. RICHARD CASE- Are there any questions on the roller? COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- You're going to let bids on it? You can't do that, can you? CLERK PIERSON- No, the Board has to do it. ATTORNEY CASULLO- What will happen, he can open the bids. He can have Teresa there to open the bids with him. It doesn't have to be a Town Board meeting to open the bids. He's not going to let the bids. The Town of Groton has to authorize the bid, that's clear. As far as the bid opening goes, that's okay, it doesn't have to be at a Town Board meeting. But the actual bids themselves have to be reviewed by the Town Board and the Town Board makes the ultimate decision. Generally speaking, and for purposes of simplicity, when it's something to do with the Highway Superintendent's Highway Department, you normally would take Rick's recommendations into account at a public meeting. What he thinks, you take into consideration if you want, but the ultimate decision is left to the Town Board. I mean Rick can certainly give a suggestion as to what should be done, that's part of his job, but the ultimate decision is up to the Board... RICHARD CASE- At the last meeting, Resolution 15, you granted me the............it's just a....we're not obligated to anything. We still retain the right to reject any and all bids. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- We don't have to take the lowest bidder either. Pg. 14, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting ATTORNEY CASULLO- You take the lowest responsible bidder. That doesn't necessarily mean it's the lowest bid. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- One might give us a little different specs and we would decide we want to spend a thousand more for.... ATTORNEY CASULLO- You just go on the record as to why you're not taking the lowest bid. You're obligated to take the lowest responsible bid. No, you don't have to take the low bid. COUNCILMAN PALMER - How does the Permissive Referendum fit in to this whole program? ATTORNEY CASULLO- Well, and I'm assuming this money is coming out of a certain account......and I believe it will be subject to Permissive Referendum. And what that would do, is once you award the bid, you have to put a notice in the paper that says this is what is going to be done, expenditure of X amount of dollars is going to be used for the purchase of this roller, it's subject to Permissive Referendum, and then the public at large, through the Town Law have thirty days to put together a petition to challenge it. If there's no petition, you can go ahead. It's because you're taking money out of a certain account. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Does that hold up the actual purchase process for thirty days? ATTORNEY CASULLO- Yes. RICHARD CASE- This is where the time element has come in. That's way I asked that if a roller surfaced that we would be interested, that we could set a separate meeting where you folks could approve or disapprove it, so that we could start the Permissive Referendum and...........I've written into the specs a 60-day, if they bid, they are bidding on a price that will hold for 60 days. I felt that we could get that done in 60 days. I also put in there subject to Permissive Referendum, so they're going to be aware of that when they bid. ATTORNEY CASULLO- Any idea how much you're going to take out of the account? RICHARD CASE- Right now, the lowest one that I've come across is that $43,000. I've also given them an option to bid or work into their equation a trade-in of that broken.......if we could get more than $400 out of it, it would be worth our while. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- Would it also be possible to rent the roller that we're planning on buying, subject to Permissive Referendum, so that you can get started before...... A short conversation continued about the complications of trying to rent a machine that they are also trying to buy. Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 15 COUNCILMAN CAREY- How much would it hold up your work, Rick, if we don't get this till June or July? RICHARD CASE- As a matter of fact, we've already started working on the gravel roads. We could be using the machine now, certainly not to an everyday extent, but in another thirty days I could be in a position of scheduling some work on the paving end of it. Like I said before, we've got, I'm guessing, 6 miles of gravel road.......some of it we've already started on and we haven't compacted it, we've just worked it over. That's why I say we could use this machine. In two years.............My concern is the timing, but I think this 60 days, if something comes up that we want, we get more aggressive then as far as the renting or what. I don't know if we can have a gentleman's agreement with the seller to pay him a month's rent and apply it towards the purchase price, I don't know how that works. ATTORNEY CASULLO- I think the bottom line to what Rick is saying is the bid opening is Tuesday, April 28th, and Rick is probably looking for a special meeting sometime soon after that date. So, your regular May meeting is May 12th, and Rick is looking for something between the 29th of April and the 12th of May. So if you so choose, you should set a special meeting for the purpose of reviewing and possibly awarding the contract for the roller sometime after April 28th. After discussing the matter, The Board decided that the Special Meeting would be held on April 29, 1998, at 7:30, for the purpose of reviewing the bids and possibly awarding the contract for the roller. ATTORNEY CASULLO- I'll do that notice. When do you need the notice by? CLERK PIERSON- I was just going to ask him. He's got a date all picked and everything. How many days ahead of time does it have to be in? RICHARD CASE- Excuse me? CLERK PIERSON- How many days ahead of time does your legal notice have to be in the paper? RICHARD CASE- Five. It will be posted tomorrow... CLERK PIERSON- Who has it? RICHARD CASE- The legal paper, the Town of Moravia Register.... CLERK PIERSON- Who did the legal notice? RICHARD CASE- I did. ATTORNEY CASULLO- I haven't seen it. CLERK PIERSON- I haven't seen it either. Pg. 16, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting ATTORNEY CASULLO- So, have you put your notice to bid in the paper yet? RICHARD CASE- It will be in tomorrow, yes, they're already.... ATTORNEY CASULLO- It's going to be in the paper tomorrow. He's okay. CLERK PIERSON- Fine. It's pretty hard to keep track of legal notices when you start letting everyone write their own. ATTORNEY CASULLO- What you need to do in the future, Rick, when you do a legal notice, you might want to give a copy to Colleen, so she has it. CLERK PIERSON- Because I have a lot of places that I have to post it. ATTORNEY CASULLO- Absolutely. But I don't think this is going to cause us a problem, as long as the notice went on the paper. Then I'll take care of the special meeting notice and give it to you. When do you need that to make sure that it gets in the paper? CLERK PIERSON- For the 29th? Well, I need them all by this Friday. ATTORNEY CASULLO- Okay. I will give you a special meeting notice this Friday for the purpose of holding a Special Meeting on April 29th at 7:30 to review bids received for the vibratory roller. That should be sufficient for the special meeting purposes. Teresa, do you mind if I just go over certain items, so that I can be on my way? You guys can certainly talk about this stuff later, when I'm gone. As far as the Cable Commission, I've looked it over for Colleen, and I think that it's a good idea that since the other municipalities are entering into this cable agreement, that Groton should be with the other communities. And I think Colleen agrees. That's my two cents on that. Jumping down to item 10, appoint the Code Enforcement Officer, that has to come sooner rather than later. I hope you are getting in a position to do that pretty soon. The most important item I want to talk to you about tonight, and I want to do it generally so we don't have to go into executive session, are these annexation petitions. First of all, with respect to the first one, and I guess it involves what's referred to as the Estate of the Hazel Hunter Property. To be honest with you, and I'll go on record as saying this, I wasn't to pleased with the way that this Town Board was put in a situation that it was put on the night of that meeting. As far as I knew, and maybe somebody on this Board feels otherwise, it was my understanding that when this Board agreed to meet with the Village Board, it was going to be strictly an informational type meeting about the possibility of annexation for some business purposes. That was my understanding of what was supposed to happen at that meeting. Apparently, it's my understanding, that at this meeting, all of a sudden the Town Board, you members, receive a petition for annexation that you guys knew nothing really about what the particulars were. I didn't think that was appropriate, and I made that clear to the Village's attorney. I thought that if that was going to happen that some advance notice, maybe even a phone call to Teresa so that she could have let you guys be aware before you came to this meeting that somebody was going to present you with an Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 17 annexation petition that night. My understanding was that you didn't think that was going to happen at that particular meeting. I could be wrong, but it was my understanding that it was a strictly an informational meeting. I'll be honest with you, and at this point I don't care, I also saw in a local newspaper that this Town was criticized because we didn't put in the paper that it was going to be a public hearing. Well, nobody told this Town Board that the purpose of that meeting was to be a, quote, an official public hearing. We were told that it was going to be an informational meeting. I guess I get a little defensive because this Town already is in litigation with this Sirens matter, and this Town Board didn't need, as far as I'm concerned, any adverse publicity giving the impression that this Town Board wasn't doing something that it was supposed to do. Quite honestly, we had no knowledge about the annexation petition, and it was my understanding that it was simply an informational meeting and in no way, shape, or form were we under the understanding that it was supposed to be an official public hearing. Now if I'm wrong, and any of you want to interject, feel free, but that's my understanding of what was presented to this Board. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- We were supposed to have 24 acres and we ended up at 100. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- I thought it was just going to be the Village and the Town Board, I didn't expect the Business Association and every other.... ATTORNEY CASULLO- I'm not getting into particulars.... SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- We would have had you come if we'd known..... ATTORNEY CASULLO- I just didn't like the way it happened, and I made the attorney for the Village aware of that. I didn't think it was fair to you guys. Second of all, with respect to the first petition, it becomes incumbent upon the Town to put some notices in the public for the April 21st meeting. I put together the legal notice because it said that's the information that was given to me from the petition didn't clearly state what exactly the property that's being annexed is, as far as a legal description goes. So, I used the legal description that was presented in the petition. I don't know any more than that. I get a letter from an attorney in Ithaca who represents a property owner near this land and he's claiming on behalf of his client that a portion of the land that was put in this property description was actually their land. Which leads me to the next issue. These petitions should be done with clarity so that there's no reason as to why the Town should be trying to figure out what property is seeking to be annexed. These people should be coming in with clear legal descriptions of the property that is desired to be annexed. It's not the Town or, quite frankly, the Village's responsibility to do this work for them. I don't know if you know, but there has been a second annexation petition that has been brought. At that point, the same thing, unsure as to the exact legal description of the property. Kristin Hazlett, who's one of the attorneys for the Village, called me the other day, and we came to the same conclusion. At this point we aren't considering these petitions complete until sufficient legal description of the property that is being sought to be annexed is provided to the Town and the Village. It's not Pg. 18, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting the Town's and the Village's responsibility to be determining what property the petitioners are seeking to annex. That's the petitioner's responsibility. They should be coming to this Board and the Village Board with clear legal descriptions of what is being asked to be annexed. And that's how I left it. Kristin agreed with me, and that's how we're going to consider it. We're going to obviously go ahead with the public hearing on the 21st, but as far as I'm concerned with the second one, until we get more complete or a more clear understanding of what exactly is being asked to be annexed, we're not considering the application. The Town, or Village, shouldn't be in the position of figuring out what the legal description is. That's for the petitioner to do. COUNCILMAN CAREY- So, Fran, what you're saying is the second petition, that we just got tonight, you would also have to hold a public hearing on that? ATTORNEY CASULLO- Absolutely. But before we're going to go through with that we're going to get a more accurate description of the property that petition is seeking to have annexed. We don't want to run into the situation that we already have the first time. Because we didn't have a clear description of the property to be annexed, we have some neighboring property owners saying that legal description used was incorrect. That is not the Town's or the Village's responsibility. COUNCILMAN CAREY- How can we hold a public hearing if we don't have a clear....... ATTORNEY CASULLO- Well, that's going to be one of the issues. Hopefully the petitioners are going to be here so they can explain that. COUNCILMAN CAREY- It ought to be explained ahead of time. To walk into a hearing...... ATTORNEY CASULLO- I agree with that. That's my issue number one. Had this Town had some clear understanding of what was going on, we wouldn't be in the position we're in with annexation number one. It would have given us some time to prepare. But what happened was you, at this informational meeting, were given this petition and the clock began to tick. So, we had to, by law, put the notice in the paper. Then what happens after the notice went into the paper, by law it's what we had to do, I get a letter. That's how they found it. They saw the legal notice, and that's when this couple got hold of this attorney and said that wasn't the correct description. COUNCILMAN CAREY- So what you're saying is that the informational meeting that the two boards were at, that wasn't a public hearing? ATTORNEY CASULLO- Well, as far as the Village was concerned, apparently it was a public meeting. As far as the Town was concerned, we didn't call it a public meeting because that's not what we understood it to be. And that's where my complaint comes. If everyone was on same page on this thing, we wouldn't be in the same position. What I told the attorney for the Village is that I have enough going on right now with this Town that I don't need to have this kind of stuff start happening. I've got enough to worry about with another litigating matter while we're waiting for a decision. This kind of Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 19 stuff didn't need to happen, that's all I'm saying. COUNCILMAN CAREY- As far as I'm concerned, I don't know how everyone else feels, that wasn't a public hearing. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- The way I understood it, we were invited to a Village meeting and we allowed them to have it here..... ATTORNEY CASULLO- Well, you read this certain article in a local newspaper, it was indicated that the Village considered that to be a public meeting because they noticed it. The Town didn't. But the Town never thought is was supposed to be a public hearing. The Town thought it was just supposed to be an informal informational type of deal. CLERK PIERSON- Three days before the actual meeting, I received a legal notice from the Village, stating that it was an official meeting. Then I got one from the Industrial Develpment Agency also saying it was an official meeting. So I called over to the Village and I asked him if it was and he said, "Well, yes it is. Somebody has to do it." He just assumed we were doing it to. That's not what they asked us for. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- The meeting that we had before with Dennis (Mayor Toolan) and he explained it, he said we will have a meeting and we will explain the rest of it to you. And we went in with the idea...... ATTORNEY CASULLO- You always should put a notice when the Boards are meeting, I want to make that argument. But what I'm saying is that we would certainly put a notice in there if we were under the understanding that this was going to be a formal joint meeting regarding a specific annexation. The way I understood it, it was just a general, about the possibility of an annexation. (Board members voice their agreement). And that's why we're in the problem we have with the first one. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- And that petition was signed that very day. ATTORNEY CASULLO- It was signed and apparently notarized by someone down in the Village Hall that same day. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- That's why we sat in the audience at the meeting, because it was the Village's meeting.... ATTORNEY CASULLO- Well, I'm not going to get on that in public, but to me there should have been more coordination and it should have been a little more up front. What really bothered me is that you went there that night, not suspecting that this annexation petition would be there, and really didn't have any idea what was going on. And I don't think that's right. CLERK PIERSON- Now, we're going to have this hearing on this one. ATTORNEY CASULLO- Yes, you are. CLERK PIERSON- The next one that I took in and logged in as being filed in Pg. 20, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting the office, what do we do with that? I didn't know that it wasn't complete. ATTORNEY CASULLO- What I would do with that, I just talked with Kristin Hazlett, and what I'm going to do tomorrow is get back to her. We're going to coordinate both how the Village and the Town are going to handle that. It's my understanding, after speaking with her, that we're not considering it complete until we have a more specific description..... CLERK PIERSON- So that date..... ATTORNEY CASULLO- That's okay. But I will coordinate that and I will get back to you on it. I guess the bottom line is that if we're going to do this, and if we're going to have the annexation issue, then everybody should be on the same page. Whether you're for it or against it, that's for you and the Village to decide, but if you're going to do this, everyone needs to be on the same page as to who's doing what and what's going on. In fairness to Kristin, she's been working with me, but I didn't like how the first annexation petition came to this Town Board. If anyone has a problem with that, they can take it up with me. As far as sticking up for this Town Board, which I feel I'm obligated to do, I didn't think that was the appropriate way to do it. There is one other issue before I leave. Apparently we're still waiting for Judge Rumsey's decision. That's the best I can tell you on that. The Judge, when he decides, he decides. As soon as I find out, I'll let you know. That's the best I can update you on that. I know some people have been asking me about it too. There's nothing the Town can do and there's nothing the other side can do. We're all just waiting for the Judge's decision, one way or the other. Once that happens, then I'll let you know. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Fran, we discussed last month about Thoma. Has that been resolved? ATTORNEY CASULLO- As far as I'm concerned, it hasn't been resolved. The objections that the Town noted are going to in discussions with Bernie. I don't want to go into executive session, but as far as I'm concerned they are certainly valid and if we can work out an agreement along the lines of the Town's terms, then so be it. If not, then there'll be some other course to take. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Not to change the subject, but back to Rumsey, how long does he have to make a decision? As long as he wants? ATTORNEY CASULLO- As long as he wants. COUNCILMAN CAREY- When does our moratorium expire? ATTORNEY CASULLO- We've got.....it won't take that long. I'm not sure, but I think he might have been in one of these terms when they send him away from here, like last year, I believe they sent him down to New York City, because they feel that these rural judges can go down and handle all the court congestion down in New York City. So sometimes they send a Supreme Court Justice down for a month or so. So, I'm not too sure that he hasn't been away, because in my dealings with him he has always been fairly quick with Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 21 getting the decision back. That leads me to the conclusion that he might have been away. I suspect that you're going to hear a decision, I would bet you, probably by the end of this month. I'll also keep you posted on these annexation issues. Colleen, what I'll do is get you a copy of that letter, and once I get it.....I'll let you know...... If there's nothing else, I'm going to leave a little early. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Okay. Thank you. George, do you have anything to tell us about the county, what's going on? GEORGE TOTMAN- I thought on the way over if anything had been happening lately that might be associated with the Town. I let you know at the last meeting about the McLean road. The last week has been more or less routine meetings. COUNCILMAN CAREY- How about that sales tax proposal that they're going to take off the text books? GEORGE TOTMAN- Yes, for undergraduates. And they're going to have to keep the graduates from getting the undergraduates to buy their books. Another problem that they have is that what books are qualified to be bought for that and who buys books for who. As I understand it, they're making a card system out for the undergraduates and they have to show the identifying card and the class that it's for and then they check with the professor to see if they need the book. It makes a difference in the total county of about $400,000. There will be about a 2 1/2% increase in taxes, if their figures are correct. I don't know how they can figure that out so fast. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Why, if the County has a surplus in the General Fund, why can't that surplus absorb some of that sales tax loss? GEORGE TOTMAN- We are pushing for that. I'm just telling you what the budget director of the County was saying. But that's basically what we're pushing for. And there's surplus in the DSS again from last year. That should be able to take care of that without raising the taxes. There's a certain element that doesn't like to use that money and keep it in the banks. They like to have an excuse for not doing something like this....we can raise the taxes because of this..... SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Anything else? Thank you. Next...discussion and action on participating in the joint contract with the Tompkins County Intermunicipal Cable Commission, with the municipalities of the consultant services for cable franchise negotiations at the rate of $2.00 per subscriber. Is there anything that you want to ask about that? COUNCILMAN CAREY- Is that $2.00 an annual fee? CLERK PIERSON- It's $2.00 per subscriber for the town cable..... our share would be $394, the cost to the Town of Groton, to hire an engineer to review and work with the Cable Commission on the new franchise which we're all going to use. All the townships are going to use the same one. It might be tailored to your Pg. 22, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting village situation, some of it. That's what they're looking for from Groton, is $394. GEORGE TOTMAN- Colleen, do I hear it correctly, that pretty near every town and the city is going along with this, except the Village of Freeville? CLERK PIERSON- Well, that could be. I'm not sure the Village of Groton is either. When I talked to Chuck (Rankin) about it, all he said to me was, "Well, we have them over a barrel. Their cable is on our poles." And he really didn't say, so I don't know about that. With the exception of Freeville, you're saying? GEORGE TOTMAN- Well, that's what I heard. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- When we had our Municipal Officials meeting Ben Curtis got up and explained it. We also had gotten a contract from the company itself, Time Warner, and none of them wanted to go with that so..... CLERK PIERSON- They have done a lot of work on it. That's the contract for the consultant services, there. I probably can copy all that for you. (Board Members indicate that they have copies) They figure that it will take them until about 1999 before we have a franchise agreement with Time Warner. We've been operating without one since 1994, on a temporary one. Really we don't have anyone on this committee. It would be nice if we could find someone that was willing to serve on that Cable TV Commission. Don, would you think about it? COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- I've been thinking about it. COUNCILMAN PALMER- Teresa, could I come back to ask George a question? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Sure. COUNCILMAN PALMER- I meant to ask you earlier. It's not part of your County report, but do you know if anything is moving along as far as that three-town study that's a part of the Adult Entertainment Program? GEORGE TOTMAN- I got a fax Thursday from the Town Attorney. What he said was that Mahlon Perkins had contacted him and Mahlon and Fran had gotten together and the three of them were going to set up a joint meeting. COUNCILMAN PALMER- They have not met.....(end of tape) GEORGE TOTMAN- ......Fran and the three of them were going to get together. Further discussion was held on the issue of the joint contract for Cable Consultant Service. It was made clear that the amount that would be charged to the Town was $394 which would cover the 197 cable customers who reside in the Township. RESOLUTION NO. 20 - JOINT CONTRACT FOR CABLE CONSULTANT Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 23 SERVICES Moved by Councilman Carey, seconded by Councilman Sovocool Ayes - Sovocool, Palmer, Carey, Scheffler, Robinson. Resolves, to join with the other municipalities of Tompkins County to secure a joint contract with Rice & Williams Cable Consultant Services, for the purpose of producing a franchise agreement with Time Warner Cable Company. The cost to the Town of Groton will be $394. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Grievance Day is May 11th, 3-6 PM. I'm going to be there. Is anybody else? CLERK PIERSON- You have to have at least one more person there. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- It's from 3:00 - 6:00. COUNCILMAN CAREY- I could work from 3:00 - 4:30. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- I'll take the rest (4:30 - 6:00). Moved by Councilman Sovocool, seconded by Councilman Scheffler that the Town Board does hereby authorize Town Clerk Colleen D. Pierson to attend the Annual New York State Town Clerks Association Conference in Saratoga Springs on April 19 - 22, 1998. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. RESOLUTION NO. 21 - PROCLAIM APRIL AS FAIR HOUSING MONTH Moved by Councilman Carey, seconded by Councilman Sovocool. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson WHEREAS , in accordance with the Title VIII Fair Housing Policy of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 and, WHEREAS, the Month of April 1998 has been designated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office as Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity as Fair Housing Month, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Groton hereby declares and proclaims April as Fair Housing Month in the Town of Groton Moved by Councilman Sovocool, seconded by Councilman Scheffler, to approve the intent of Groton Golf & Recreation Association, Inc., dba Pg. 24, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting Stondhedges Country Club to renew their liquor license for the period of April through October 1998. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. CLERK PIERSON- We had a hole in the roof. I contacted the people who installed it, and they were here today. They went up and fixed it. There was a seam in the membrane that apparently never got sealed. He fixed it and said we were all set. It's still under warranty. We had a ten year warranty on that. So, it's all fixed. He said if we had any other problems, just give him a call. Do you want this proposal from Linc Service brought up? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Yes. This guy called, and he wanted to know if we wanted maintenance on our air conditioning and heating and everything. So, he sent a proposal, and this is it. I didn't say we were going to get it or anything, but I wanted you to look at it. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Who's provided this maintenance in the past? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Who is that, from Binghamton....? CLERK PIERSON- Auchinachie. They're the ones who installed it. We bought it from them. They service us annually and it's around $350. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- Why would we need this other service then? CLERK PIERSON- I have no idea. I don't know. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- He called up and he wanted to come. So I figured that if he wanted to come and look it over go ahead. But it's a lot more than what we're paying now. COUNCILMAN CAREY- Yeah, recycle that. CLERK PIERSON- Okay, next, are we done with that? We don't want that? One more thing is we have to designate polling places for the election. RESOLUTION NO. 22 - DESIGNATE POLLING PLACES Moved by Councilman Sovocool, seconded by Councilman Palmer Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson Resolved, that the following locations be designated as polling places: District #1 - West Groton Church District #2 & 3 - Groton Town Hall District #4 - McLean Fire Station Town Board Meeting, April 14, 1998, Pg. 25 SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- The property that was John Anderson's, his granddaughter wants to repair the foundation and the whole house, and called to see if we would like to discuss it to some extent. As I understand it, the County was going to take that over for taxes...... CLERK PIERSON- We have a lien against it. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Yes, that's what I mean. So we have a lien against it. I don't know if you've ever been over by there. I don't know why anybody would want to live there, period, but it's going to be brought up for discussion. (It was asked where the property was located) Brown Road, you know where John Anderson's dump was? At that time we put a lien on it. We were in there for clean-up. We cleaned it up twice. I haven't been by there lately, but anyway, she wants to rebuild. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- We can't tell her....it's nothing to do with us. SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- We have a lien against it and she'd have to get a..... COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- Has she paid the back taxes? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- I don't know who's paid the taxes. COUNCILMAN SOVOCOOL- Or did she sell it? It was going to be up for sale wasn't it? SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- Oh, I don't think she could sell it without giving us our lien, and we haven't gotten anything. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- They can fix it up without paying the lien. CLERK PIERSON- You know, I think that if she came in and asked for a building permit, I'd have to giveit to her. I wouldn't have any reason to deny it. GEORGE TOTMAN- It would be to the Town's benefit to give it to her. The better she made the property, the more you could get out of it. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- That's what everybody is after, to improve the property. GEORGE TOTMAN- People have liens on their houses, but they can repair them......... SUPERVISOR ROBINSON- So, if she comes in for something, give it to her, huh? CLERK PIERSON- I don't see any reason why we can't. We have to give it to her. COUNCILMAN SCHEFFLER- It wouldn't be any different than anyone else, as long Pg. 26, April 14, 1998, Town Board Meeting as they do it according to the zoning and the codes. COUNCILMAN CAREY- How much is the lien? Is the lien worth more than the property? None of the Board Members recalled the amount of the lien or knew what the property was assessed for. Discussion continued for a short time. Moved by Councilman Carey, seconded by Councilman Palmer, at 9:45 PM, to go into Executive Session to discuss Code Enforcement Officer Applications. Ayes - Sovocool, Carey, Palmer, Scheffler, Robinson. The meeting was reconvened at 10:10 P.M. The Board made the decision to interview for the job of Code Enforcement Officer on April 22, 1998. There being no further business, Councilman Carey moved to adjourn, seconded by Councilman Sovocool, at 10:15 P.M. Colleen D. Pierson Town Clerk