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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-1993MINUTES OF TOWN BOARD MEETING MONDAY, APRIL 12, 1993 AT 7:30 P.M. Those present: Teresa M. Robinson, Supervisor Ellard L. Sovocool, Councilman Gordon C. VanBenschoten, Councilman Donald E. Cummings, Councilman Carl E. Haynes, Councilman Jack Fitzgerald, Attorney Also present: Leland Cornelius, Liz Brennan, Bob Bernhardt, Betty Sperger, Elsie DeCamp, George Senter, Dennis Jones and Rita Nedgray from Ciaschi, Dietershagen -CPA's Moved by Mr. Cummings, seconded by Mr. VanBenschoten, that the minutes of March 8th be approved as mailed. Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Robinson (Absent - Haynes). Claim Nos. 61 to 84 of the Highway Fund in the amount of $14,274.51; Claim Nos. 78 to 108 of the General Fund in the amount of $45,269.59; and Claim Nos. 10 to 11 of the Community Development Fund in the amount of $46.03 were presented for audit. ( Mr. Cornelius requested that Claim No. 84 of the Highway fund in the amount of $2,683.35 covering parts for the FWD plow be approved for payment since the parts will be in within a day or two.) Moved by Mr. VanBenschoten, seconded by Mr. Sovocool, that the bills be approved for payment including Voucher #84 when the parts are in. Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson. Supervisor Robinson stated that she would like to have the following put it the minutes: We would like to congratulate the crew and crew chief, Leland Cornelius, for the magnificent job that they did during the snow storm. DENNIS JONES & RITA NEGRI - CIASCHI, DIETERSHAGEN, SCHAUFLER, MICKELSON - CPA'S Passed out copies of the 1992 financial audit to Board Members. There are just a few things that I want to point out in audit. It went very well this year. The books and records were probably some of the best that I've seen so you've got a good clean set of books. Liz should be commended for the job that she's done as well as Teresa. Explained to the Board how the Combined Balance Sheets worked. The fund balance in the General Fund - Townwide is $383,000 of which $175,000 was appropriated for next years taxes. I would like to encourage you to think about setting up more reserves and possibly looking at setting up a tax stabilization reserve in the General Townwide as well as your Highway Townwide. You have a total fund balance of $266,000 in Highway Townwide. Tax stabilization is very useful in this sense. It's very easy to do and is a very useful tool that you can use to even out your taxes in future years. Also, I would encourage you to look at more capital reserves in addition to that. I think it's very prudent that you don't just start 1 eating away at this fund balance in large chunks every year. I think it ought to be planned by prudent budgeting as well as thru the reserves. When you get your State report they will comment on your large fund balances in General Fund Townwide and Highway Townwide. What they will say is that they would like to see unappropriated, unreserved fund balances of anywhere from 10 to 20 percent of your preceeding years budget. You might want to put atleast $100,000 in tax stabilization reserve. Essentially, what it does is it allows you to put money into a reserve that you can draw on in future years in the event something really comes up that it looks like you would have to raise taxes say 15 or 20 percent, it allows you to use some of that reserve to put against that budget so that you could bring increases in line with what you've experienced in the past and even out your tax increases. There are other ways of setting up reserves either capital reserves, repair reserves, insurance reserves or others. One way or another you need to address the issue. Discussed $58,000 encumbered at the end of 1992 for truck plus fund balance that will be used in 1993 for the remainder of the truck payment. The State does not like the idea of having excessive fund balances that are not in reserves. You have to be very careful in setting up a plan for reserve funds. One comment on noncompliance with Laws and Regulations is that the Town contracted with the Village of Groton to provide ambulance serve for all the residents who live outside the Village including those in the McLean Fire District. There is no authority for the Town to contract for such service within the boundaries of a fire district. Such a contract should be made by the Commissioners of the McLean Fire District with the Village of Groton Fire Department. It is recommended that the Town advise the McLean Fire District Commissioners of the need for the fire commissioners to enter into an agreement to provide emergency ambulance service within the district rather than the Town. LIZ BRENNAN - BOOKKEEPER - I don't have my usual report since we are changing the computer accounting program to Sharon's program that interacts with our payroll and going to be doing away with Williamson's accounting. I've got the abstracts printed out to April but we're in February catching up on information. This gives us cash receipts, cash disbursements, general journals, we can have a look at our accounts at any time. I think it will print out a more informative monthly report so that you can see how the expenditures are going and how the revenues are coming in. Once we've got it all set up and caught up, if I get it done before next month's meeting, maybe I'll mail the report to you. This program also prints the checks. Our problem is that the printer that we have doesn't have the wide carriage so that our regular checks will fit in it so as not to have to print new checks. Sharon would be willing to buy our printer. The wide carriage printer runs about $450.00. Sharon is writing up a proposal. She has installed everything and letting us try it. It gives you alot more information and very plain to see. It doesn't leave any questions. Councilman Haynes asked about purchase brackets for obtaining quotes. Liz said that with something like this, I think it might fall under the unique character of it because it works with her payroll program and it's something that you couldn't compare it so much with others. We have two quotes for the printer. I will have all the information for you at next months meeting. Town Clerk said she has a wide carriage printer that is not needed and would be happy to trade with Bookkeeper for the 2 standard width printer. Supervisor Robinson thanked Liz for her audit report. GEORGE SENTER - CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER - Year to date building permits issued. 1992: 13 building permits - 1 house - 1 mobile home - 11 others. 1993: 5 building permits - 0 houses - 0 mobile homes - 5 others. We do have 3 houses in the works and 2 inquires on mobile homes. I have completed the junk car search. Carol has to take info off the recorder and send letters. We went to John Andersons this morning. Bertha is in hospital. John showed up late. Took pictures and video's. Paul Cowles from County Solid Waste and Fran Casulo from Fitzgerald's office was with us. Fran is going to write a letter to Les to see if we can't set up some kind of definitive schedule of what we can do rather than go up there all the time. The conditions right now are not really too good for that sort of thing. He has cleaned up his front yard. John has had all kinds of problems today and seemed to be overwhelmed by them all today. Our life safety inspections are current as are our Motor Vehicle Repair Shops and multiple residences. We have one outstanding business. I also attended a seminar on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week as part of my training required by the State. LELAND CORNELIUS - HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT -Our new truck is in Syracuse getting the box on it. It should be ready in about three weeks. You have to set your road inspection. Roy Banwell on Spring Street has salt in his well. He would like to have us take a backhoe and dig around the casing and put some cement in there. He has had a geologist up there this week who said it is surface water getting into the well. He's not asking for anything other than us to help him dig up around casing. He's only about nine feet above rock. He did put in a Culligan system. I just wanted to let you know that we would be digging up there. Annual road tour was scheduled for Friday, April 30th at 9:00 A.M. BOB BERNHARDT - Accoustics in here aren't any better than they have been. We talked about a loud speaker system and cost at the last meeting and we had all kinds of guesses so we had an estimate. Handed estimate to Supervisor. Abe got the estimate from people who installed it in Church. For $2828 you can get a whole PA system, installation, training, program, the whole thing. The comments we hear are that people don't come to the meetings because they can't hear what's going on and they're right. That is for you to look at, or whatever you want to do. One other comment I would like to make, however, is that I'd agree with everything that these people who are setting here said, if we had a robust economy, but we don't and we haven't had in three years. Everything that this Board did last fall I believe was right. There's more to running a Town than making a balance sheet. You have to consider what is happening with the Federal Government. President Clinton still hasn't got his budget through. The unemployment, people right here in Groton who are affected by Smith Corona. In fact, the State of NY is the poorest as far as credit rating. Gov. Cumo sold us out again. He borrowed $500 million by selling the Thruway. So we're further in debt yet. It's going to drive our credit even worse. Those are the things that Town Boards need to consider and say what can we do to keep these people solvent. Do we have to have reserves 3 of 30 or 40 percent. It would be better to have it at 10 and that's about what you have according to his old figures. I think you did the right thing last fall. I think that all taxpayers all over the county would have been appalled, as appalled as I was, to hear him say he doesn't agree with cutting taxes. That's phenomenal. That's really wrong as far as I'm concerned. If we had a robust economy, by all means, bill them 40 or 50 percent. BETTY SPERGER - I'd just like to ask about the electric again. The electric in the highway garage. Supervisor Robinson said we're working on it. We need specs and bids.......... JACK FITZGERALD, ATTORNEY - Attorney Fitzgerald said that he has no problem with Bernie Thoma's proposed changes in Resolution No. 24 - Modify Loan and Security Agreement with Diversified Technologies, however, he has not communicated with Mr. Thoma. In the minutes of March 8, Resolution No. 24, Item No. 2 - He wants the interest rate to remain at 50 percent of prime. The other change is Item 3 - He wants it to read "To provide for monthly payments of interest only commencing February 1, 1993 until January 1, 1994 and then principal and interest payments to be renegotiated on a monthly basis commencing on January 31 for a term of five years. That's the part that I wanted him to explain to me because it didn't make good sense. Attorney advised that we would still have to get new loan documents or atleast an agreement modifying the existing documents. A resolution doesn't protect us, it just authorizes you to go do something. Now we need the new documents. I would say there is going to be a substantial change in paragraph three but you can authorize Teresa to go ahead based on the original resolution with the following changes - 1) Delete paragraph two since the interest rate will remain 500 of prime. 2) The third paragraph will read "To provide for monthly payments of interest only commencing February 1, 1993 until January 1, 1994 and then principal and interest payments thereafter for a reasonable term. 3) Paragraph five should read "....before principal is paid in full. RESOLUTION NO. 26 - AUTHORIZE SUPERVISOR TO ENTER INTO MODIFIED AGREEMENT WITH DIVERSIFIED T.E.S.T. TECHNOLOGIES, INC. Moved by Mr. Haynes, seconded by Mr. VanBenschoten Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Groton does hereby amend Resolution No. 24 for the year 1993 as follows: Item 2 - delete Item 3 - To provide for monthly payments of interest only commencing February 1, 1993 until January 1, 1994 and then principal and interest payments thereafter for a reasonable term. 4 Item 5 - That the Borrower pay to the Lender the sum of $50,000.00 in the event Diversified T.E.S.T. Technologies, Inc. leaves the Town of Groton before principal is paid in full. Supervisor Robinson said that the Town didn't sign a contract with Ciaschi, Dietershagen, Schaufler, Mickelson - CPA's who did our financial audit. They had submitted a quotation for a three year period as follows: 1992 - $3,500; 1993 - $3,700; 1994 - 4,000. It was not known if these amounts included the Justice Court audit. They have already done the audit for 1992 which report was presented this evening. Consensus of the Board was that the rates are too high, since they should be realizing some efficiency over previous years and therefore should not be asking for a six or seven percent increase. Mr. Haynes said in the future we could bid this out and possible do a little better. For the time being, since they have already completed the 1992 audit, it was suggested that the Supervisor see if the 1992 fee is negotiable and if not pay the $3500 and renegotiate for next years proposal. RESOLUTION NO. 27 - APPROVE CIASCHI, DIETERSHAGEN, SCHAUFLER, MICHELSON'S PROPOSAL FOR 1992 AUDIT Moved by Mr. VanBenschoten, seconded by Mr. Sovocool Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Groton does hereby accept the proposal of Ciaschi, Dietershagen, Schaufler & Michelson to perform the 1992 financial audit for the Town for the sum of $3500.00. Supervisor Robinson said she hired Mr. Kessler to take care of trees and plants for the entire year for $13.00 per hour. He will bill us when he gets up to $100. He knows the plants and trees around the Town Hall and will take care of them. We are also getting an ornamental tree from the County. We are also working on figuring out how much money we spent on snow removal during the blizzard so that maybe we will get reimbursed for some of it. We have received a Recycling Agreement with Tompkins County for the recycling center in Peruville. One objection is that it says we will be responsible for the drop off center. We provide Supervisor at the center for which the County reimburses us. However, we are not responsible for maintaining, plowing, etc. This is the Counties responsibility. Supervisor Robinson will check with County to see if they will delete paragraph saying that we are responsible for snow removal. RESOLUTION NO. 28 - SUPPORT TOMPKINS COUNTY AREA DEVELOPMENT Moved by Mr. Haynes, seconded by Mr. VanBenschoten k, Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Groton does hereby support the Tompkins County Area Development by contributing to the 1993 investment in economic development in the amount of $100.00. Discussed expanding Simplex Fire Alarm System. It comes from an incident that happened one evening when someone left a cigar unattended in the entrance way which set the alarm system off. Thinking the alarm system was tied into the County, someone called County Fire Control advising them not to respond and was informed that Town system was not connected to County Fire Control. It was suggested that the Town consider expanding system to include highway garage and hooking up to fire control. The location of our current system is in the Clerk's office where it is inaccessible after hours. System should be located in a hallway close to an entrance so that personnel and fire personnel can easily get to the panel to detect where location of fire is. Simplex sells system but installation must be done by an electrician. Our priority is to get the electric corrected in the garage. Discussed bringing highway garage up to code, adding new lights in the garage and expanding the fire alarm system to include the garage and moving the panel. Supervisor will get bid specs prepared for next months meeting. Moved by Mr. Haynes, seconded by Mr. Sovocool, to authorize Colleen Pierson, Town Clerk, to attend the annual New York State Town Clerk's Association seminar in Buffalo on April 25 - 28, 1993. Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson. Discussed having Spring Clean -Up Days. There have been several inquires made regarding this. Last year we spent $12,000 in trucking. There is no place to dump trash this year in Tompkins County. There will be no spring clean up this year. RESOLUTION NO. 29 - DESIGNATE POLLING PLACES FOR 1993 Moved by Mr. Cummings, seconded by Mr. Haynes Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson RESOLVED, that the 1993 Polling Places be designated as follows: District #1 - West Groton Church District #2 and #3 - Groton Town Hall District #4 - McLean Fire Station The Groton Business Association will be holding their annual Spring Banquet at Stonehedges Gulf Coarse on April 24. Reservations are to be in by April 13. The Tompkins County Planning Department and Cooperative Extension are having a bus tour on Saturday, April 17. Tour leaves at 9:OOAM to observe areas in n Tompkins County for future water planning to include subdivisions, farmers, etc. RESOLUTION NO. 30 - ACCEPT 1992 FINANCIAL REPORT Moved by Mr. Haynes, seconded by Mr. Cummings Ayes - Sovocool, VanBenschoten, Cummings, Haynes, Robinson RESOLVED, that the Town Board does hereby accept the Independent Auditors' Financial Report for 1992 . There being no further business, Mr. Cummings moved to adjourn meeting, seconded by Mr. Haynes, at 10:15 P.M. Colleen D. Pierson Town Clerk 7