Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-10-10 Danby Town Board Minutes of Regular Meeting October 10, 2011 Present: Supervisor: Ric Dietrich Councilpersons: Leslie Connors,Kathy Halton,Dan Klein,Dylan Race Others Present: Town Clerk Pamela Goddard Code Office Sue Beeners Bookkeeper Laura Shawley Public Ronda Roaring,Frank Kruppa,Ted Crane,Ed Lisbe Budget Review commenced at 6:34pm Bob Chase presented a proposed budget for the Danby Community Council to Laura Shawley. She will review this proposal and report to the Town Board.There was a general discussion about finances for youth services. Q&A with Laura Shawley included clarification that money required for employee benefits (such as the state retirement system)went up 56.57%. The bulk of this is in the Highway Department. This is a challenge for all municipalities. Some of these increases are offset in other expenditures. Shawley reviewed reserve accounts with the Board,including the pension reserve fund. There was a discussion of the Highway Equipment Reserve, and whether equipment(such as the grader) and be refurbished instead of replaced,in order to save funds. Shawley described the process of quar- terly receipt and expenditure of funds, and informed the Board that the Town"is not broke."Reserve funds will carry over into the next fiscal year. Shawley and Dietrich presented four different budget options ranging from pursuing a tax cap over-ride to waiting to make decisions about use of the fund balance and additions or deletions to fund reserves until later in 2012. Dietrich explained reasoning for not pursuing a property tax cap override. There was a discussion regarding options to put funds in the pension reserve our of fund balance. There was interest in passing the proposed balance budget and delaying a decision to fund reserves out of the fund balance until later in 2012. The Meeting of the Danby Town Board was opened at 7:10pm. Privilege of the Floor Lisbe expressed concern about an ongoing code enforcement issue at a property located on Dawes Hill Road. Lisbe stated that he was unable to sell his property due to the problem with accu- mulated junk on that property. This has been a problem for several years. He asked what actions by neighbors would be most supportive of the effort to clean up this property. This is currently an open case before the Town Justices. The plaintiff is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 11.After consulta- tion with the court clerk, Lisbe was encouraged to appear at the court date and ask to testify as to the depth of the problem. Planning Board Interviews Members of the TB interviewed Frank Kruppa and Ted Crane for the current vacancy on the Planning Board. Each candidate was interviewed individually and was asked about their areas of ex- perience and expertise,philosophy of Town planning, interest and ability in assisting with an upcom- ing review of the Danby Comprehensive Plan, and other matters.The candidates were also asked Town Board_Minutes_20111010•Tuesday,October 18,2011 Page 1 of 3 whether they would be interested or willing to serve on other Boards, such as the Board of Zoning Appeals. Clerk was directed to contact Gay Garrison regarding her interest, as she missed her scheduled interview. The TB opted to decide on this appointment during a subsequent meeting. Warrants and Minutes HIGHWAY FUND #147-158 for a total$70,674.47 Moved by Connors, Second by Race. The motion passed. In Favor: Connors, Halton, Klein, Race, Dietrich GENERAL FUND #411-442 for a total $10,362.20 Moved by Klein, Second by Connors. The motion passed. In Favor: Connors, Halton, Klein, Race, Dietrich WATER DISTRICT #050-054 for a total$2,544.75 Moved by Race, Second by Klein. The motion passed. In Favor: Connors, Halton, Klein, Race, Dietrich RESOLUTION NO.101 OF 2011-APPROVE MINUTES Resolved,that the Town Board of the Town of Danby approves the minutes of September 12,2011. Moved by Klein, Second by Race. In Favor: Connors, Halton, Klein, Race, Dietrich RESOLUTION NO.102 OF 2011-APPROVE MINUTES Resolved,that the Town Board of the Town of Danby approves the minutes of September 19,2011. Moved by Halton, Second by Connors. In Favor: Connors, Halton, Klein, Race, Dietrich Request to Dispose of Outdated Equipment Clerk Goddard presented a proposal to dispose of outdated equipment.Authorization for this ac- tion was granted to the Clerk several years ago. The authorization, however, required a list of specific equipment ID numbers. Records Management Assistant, Mary Ann Barr has compiled a list of this equipment. The equipment will be taken to the electronics recycling center at the County transfer sta- tion. RESOLUTION NO.103 OF 2011-AUTHORIZE DISPOSAL OF EQUIPMENT Resolved,that the Town Board of the Town of Danby authorizes the Town Clerk to dispose of three pieces of outdated, unused equipment; a Sharp plain paper Facsimile machine serial#27143489, Microline Pin Printer ID #B2KML320TURBO, under-counter computer keyboard platform/drawer by FELLOWS. Moved by Klein, Second by Connors. In Favor: Connors, Halton, Klein, Race, Dietrich Road Use Law Update Dietrich and Halton gave an update on meetings with Delta Engineer Steve Mesmer and Town Attorney Guy Krogh. Some engineering"deliverables"are still in process. Even so, the law is at a state where it could be passed. Mesmer explained the provisions in the law which direct enforcement at the developer level rather than on specific haulers. Most standard construction truck traffic will fall Town Board_Minutes_20111010•Tuesday,October 18,2011 Page 2 of 3 under customary or"baseline"traffic and not trigger this law. Determination of thresholds will be made by the Highway Superintendent and Code Enforcement Office. There was a discussion about the October 17 Q&A meeting with Mesmer,Krogh, and members of the Town and Planning Boards. Mesmer will present specific"real life"examples of how this law would work. The TB will possibly set a public hearing for the Road Use Law during this meeting. There was a discussion of whether a secondary,broader public information is needed. Informing haulers about the law and inviting discussion through the Highway Department may be sufficient. Biomass Boiler Project Update A"kickoff'meeting will be held at the Highway Depai linent on Oct. 12.A timeline will be dis- cussed between the contractor, engineer, and Town staff. Town Response to rdSGEIS There was a continued discussion about various efforts to respond to the rdSGEIS. Halton and Dietrich reported that a countywide second stage meeting to discuss part II of this document will be held at the Women's Community Building on Saturday Oct. 15. This is supported by the Danby Gas Drilling Task Force among many others. The GDTF is still discussing its response. Short Reports Reports were distributed from the Town Justices,the Highway Depai intent, and the Code En- forcement Office. Halton reported on the TCAT public meeting held on Wednesday October 5. This was well attended. Ridership is up 14%.No routes will be cut,but fees will rise for certain zones. Town Clerk's Report Goddard reported on activity in the Town Clerk's office during September. Monthly Income and activity includes 14"DECALS"transactions for$219.55 (income to the Town,most of the fees go to the DEC),45 dog licenses ($537), 6 building permits($1,173), and miscellaneous revenue($30 dona- tion to the library). Milage Rate Beeners asked a question regarding the current milage rate used by the Town of Danby for official business. It is currently$0.50 a mile.After discussion, it was agreed that the rate should be updated to be in keeping with the current rate approved by the IRS. Adjournment The Meeting was adjourned at 8:40pm. Pamela S Goddard,Town Clerk Town Board_Minutes_20111010•Tuesday,October 18,2011 Page 3 of 3