HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-05-10-TB-FINAL-minutesTOWN BOARD MEETING
Town of Ulysses
May 10, 2016
Audio of the minutes are available on the website at ulysses.ny.us.
The meeting was held at the Ulysses Town Hall at 10 Elm Street, Trumansburg.
Notice of Town Board meetings are posted on the town's website and clerk's board.
ATTENDANCE:
PRESENT:
Supervisor- Liz Thomas
1St Deputy Supervisor- Nancy Zahler
2nd Deputy Supervisor- Michelle Wright
Board members- John Hertzler (at 7:45pm), Michael Boggs, Rich Goldman
Town Clerk- Carissa Parlato
Attorney for the Town- Mariette Geldenhuys
Environmental Planner- Darby Kiley
OTHERS PRESENT:
John G. Wertis, Roxanne Marino, Phil Antweiler, Glynis Hart,
CALL TO ORDER:
Ms. Thomas called the meeting to order at 7 p.m.
GENERAL BUSINESS:
APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA
RESOLUTION 2016-97: APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA
BE IT RESOLVED that the Ulysses Town Board approve the agenda for May 10, 2016 with the
addition of appointment of a Town Board liaison to the Ag Committee; deletion of the
Sustainability Committee; add an executive session for the purpose of discussing a personnel matter
and acquisition of real property; addition of sidewalk discussion.
Moved: Ms. Zahler
Ms. Thomas
aye
Ms. Zahler
aye
Mr. Hertzler
absent
Mr. Boggs
aye
Mr. Goldman
aye
Vote: 4-0
Date Adopted: 5/10/16
PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR:
Seconded: Mr. Boggs
John G. Wertis requested that the board look at another possibility for the Route 96 sidewalk due to
concerns about safety. He encouraged the board to consider moving the sidewalk to the fairgrounds side of
the road, specifically further in on the fairgrounds property, on the other side of the trees.
Mr. Antweiler presented the flyer for the 50th anniversary celebration of the Jacksonville Community Park.
Ms. Marino encouraged the board to consider purchasing an electric vehicle as they look for a new vehicle.
REPORTS FROM REPRESENTATIVES:
(none)
TOWN REPORTS:
(see Appendix A)
OLD BUSINESS:
SIDEWALK DISCUSSION:
Mr. Wertis asked further questions and reiterated his requests. He also expressed concern about the lack of
communication and the placement of crosswalks in the current plan.
UPDATE ON ZONING UPDATE PROJECT
Ms. Zahler reported the following:
x The Zoning Update Committee has been meeting since last fall.
x The consultants will soon be working on draft zoning recommendations for the Ag district that can
be shared with farmers/landowners so that they can add their suggestions/comments.
x A focus group for Jacksonville residents is scheduled for Monday, June 6.
TOWN BOARD LIAISON TO AG COMMITTEE
RESOLUTION 2016-98:
BE IT RESOLVED that Liz Thomas be appointed as the liaison to the Agricultural Committee.
Moved: Ms. Zahler
Ms. Thomas
abstain
Ms. Zahler
aye
Mr. Hertzler
aye
Mr. Boggs
aye
Mr. Goldman
aye
Vote: 4-0
Date Adopted: 5/10/16
NEW BUSINESS:
Seconded: Mr. Goldman
ACCEPTANCE OF BID FOR VEHICLE FOR TOWN VEHICLE
Ms. Thomas distributed information on the bids that were received.
RESOLUTION 2016-99: ACCEPTANCE OF BID FOR VEHICLE FOR TOWN VEHICLE
WHEREAS, the Town of Ulysses needs to replace the vehicle used by Town employees for code
enforcement, planning, zoning and other town business, and
WHEREAS, the Town has budgeted funds for vehicle replacement and has solicited competitive
bids for a fuel-efficient vehicle to meet Town needs while reducing our impact on the environment,
now therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the Town accept the bid for a 2016 Toyota RAV 4 Hybrid from Maguire Toyota,
dated May 5th in the amount of $27,576.50 and further
RESOLVED, that the Town authorize payment of $27,576.50 from the budgeted B Fund account.
Moved: Ms. Thomas Seconded: Mr. Zahler
The group entered into a discussion on leasing a vehicle.
Ms. Thomas
aye
Ms. Zahler
aye
Mr. Hertzler
aye
Mr. Boggs
abstain
Mr. Goldman
abstain
Vote: 3-0
Date Adopted: 5/10/16
PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR:
(none)
MONTHLY BUSINESS
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
RESOLUTION 2016-100: APPROVAL OF MINUTES: 4/25,4/26
BE IT RESOLVED that the Ulysses Town Board approve the minutes of 4/25 and 4/26.
Moved: Ms. Thomas
Ms. Thomas
aye
Ms. Zahler
aye
Mr. Hertzler
aye
Mr. Boggs
aye
Mr. Goldman
aye
Vote: 5-0
Date Adopted: 5/10/16
Seconded: Mr. Goldman
BUDGET MODIFICATIONS
RESOLUTION 2016-101: BUDGET MODIFICATIONS
BE IT RESOLVED that the Ulysses Town Board approve the attached budget modifications to
transfer existing funds to pay for the town's audit and for ergonomic office equipment for the court.
A FUND BUDGET MODIFICATIONS
A1320.4 I Auditor CE lIncrease 1 $2000
This was a planned expense, however $2000 was put in the Auditor CE line and $3000 was put in the
assigned funds A915 Audit "reserve ". The total bill for the audit was $4000
A915 I Audit portion I Decrease 1 $2000
The balance in the audit portion of A91 S assigned fund will be $7,762 after this $2000 appropriation.
A1620.4 I Town Hall Equipment lIncrease 1 $367
There is a small amount of money left over from a previously awarded court grant. It was set aside to offset
future cost of court office equipment. A sit -stand desk was purchased for the court clerk to address action
items previously identified in an offiee-wide ergonomic assessment
A915 I Court grant portion I Decrease $367
The balance in court grant portion of A91 S assigned fund will be $0 after this $367 appropriation.
Moved: Ms. Thomas
Ms. Thomas
aye
Ms. Zahler
aye
Mr. Hertzler
aye
Mr. Boggs
aye
Mr. Goldman
aye
Vote: 5-0
Date Adopted: 5/10/16
Seconded: Mr. Goldman
APPROVAL OF CLAIMS
RESOLUTION 2016-101: APPROVAL OF CLAIMS
BE IT RESOLVED that the Ulysses Town Board approve payment of claims # 256-298 in the
amount of $56,979.54, noting that voucher #267 has been held.
Moved: Ms. Thomas
Ms. Thomas
aye
Ms. Zahler
aye
Mr. Hertzler
aye
Mr. Boggs
aye
Mr. Goldman
aye
Vote: 3-0
Date Adopted: 4/12/16
Seconded: Mr. Goldman
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
Ms. Zahler made a motion to move into Executive Session at 8:43pm for the purpose of discussing the
employment history and matters leading to the promotion, demotion, or suspension of a particular person;
and discussing possible acquisition of real estate where a public discussion may affect the price or terms.
This was seconded by Mr. Hertzler and passed unanimously.
Ms. Zahler moved to end Executive Session at 9:36pm, seconded by Mr. Goldman and passed
unanimously.
ADJOURN:
Mr. Goldman moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:37pm; seconded by Ms. Zahler and passed unanimously.
APPENDIX A:
TOWN REPORTS:
PLANNING BOARD/ZONING OFFICER- submitted by Ms. Kiley
Planning Board
May 4 - The PB discussed a 3 -lot subdivision on Trumansburg Rd (#1631 and 1635) and scheduled a
public hearing for May 17th.
The PB also discussed the sidewalk project from the village line to ShurSave. One member recommended
an option where the sidewalk would go through the fairgrounds property. No formal resolution or
recommendation was considered by the board.
Board of Zoning Appeals
No April meeting
Grants
Residential Energy Score Project — Working on revisions to the first draft. The revised draft will be
presented at the May 24th Town Board meeting.
Zoning Updates Grant — Low turnout for the farmland focused meeting on Thursday, April 14th, but it was
a good discussion of different subdivision scenarios.
Other meetings/issues
Cayuga Lake Watershed Intermunicipal Organization (IO) — Members are discussing ideas for a grant
proposal for this year's CFA.
Water Resources Council ()KRCI— 4/18: the WRC heard a presentation on emerging contaminants in our
watersheds, including better methods for detecting contaminants.
Planning Advisory Board (PABA— 4/26: Discussed outreach strategy for the Energy Road Map; adaptation
planning related to flooding; and other projects around the county.
ITCTC — 4/19: Discussed the 2017-2021 TIP update and other administrative updates.
Smart Growth workshop — 4/21: Attended workshop where realtors were the target audience. Good
information on smart growth principles; good hands-on exercises.g options.
Planning Advisory Board- Met on March 23rd and discussed the Agricultural District update, the County's
energy roadmap recommendations, the County's Plan measures regarding job diversity in the County, and
heard updates on the microgrid feasibility project and the DOT relocation.
TOWN CLERK- submitted by Ms. Parlato
LICENSES issued:
Sporting licenses
12
Disabled parking permits
8
licenses and renewals
43
-Dog
Marriage licenses
1
-Plumbing permits
1
FINANCIAL REPORT:
$1172.50 TOTAL Collected for fees & licenses
$830.91 stays in the town
$341.59 goes to the state
CLERK's OFFICE TASKS:
x Continued research on history of town reserve funds
x Sent out bid for landscaping
x Coordinated with other local clerks to send tax letter to escrow company with suggestions for next
year's tax payments
x Updated Water District 3 address list for G&G's income survey
x Routine tasks:
o Retrieved, sorted, vouchered mail
o Answered inquiries on various topics
o Took and wrote up meeting minutes
o Kept website current
o Sent listsery mssgs. to keep residents updated. (And received more requests to be added to
list)
TAX COLLECTION:
x Completed town collection. Tompkins County takes over now
x Answered various inquiries about tax payments/receipts
RECORDS MANAGEMENT:
x Continued reorganization of electronic files
x Created cheat sheets for staff on which records need to be saved and for how long
WATER DISTRICT TASKS:
x Posted water bills
x Worked with Water District Operator on new plumbing permits
x Updated reports for TTHM running averages and water usage
x Submitted Annual Water Quality Report
CONFERENCES:
Attended annual NYS Town Clerks Association conference in Saratoga Springs, NY from April 17-20.
(See attached report.)
CITIZEN COMMENTS/INQUIRIES:
Comment inquiry
Answer/re erraZ
What to do with asphalt that was
Had highway department contact resident to collect/dispose
sprayed into yard during paving?
of asphalt (County had done paving).
STAR Exemptions — not sure how to
Referred to County Assessment office
apply
CODE OFFICER- Submitted Mr. Myers:
In April 2016, 9 Building Permits were applied for. 2 Permits have not been issued due to incomplete
applications. The 9 permits include 2 new houses and a 360 kW solar installation. Total project costs
amount to $1,145,690. The fees collected for these projects are $3,832. The bulk of the fees came from
the large solar installation: $2,127.
ATTORNEY FOR THE TOWN- Ms. Geldenhuys
Ms. Geldenhuys reported that Mr. Sarachan will have a draft of the code enforcement law update
available for the board soon.
SUPERVISOR REPORT- submitted by Ms. Thomas
Zoning update
x Review and comment on presentation for agricultural community outreach meeting.
Water Districts
WD3
x Analyze and respond to news from the Town of Ithaca that water tank aerator expenses need to
be split. Discuss with town Engineers.
x Attend meeting with Town of Ithaca Facilities Committee about aerator. Hold special meeting
for public, TTHM Working Group and Town Board to assist in decision-making about TTHM
remediation method.
x Income survey — assist survey firm with letter going out to residents in WD3
Falls Road
x Notify residents of Falls Road by mail of upcoming construction activity.
x Set up meeting for Falls Road residents to discuss forming a water district.
Ag Committee
x Notify and thank all Ag Committee applicants of the Town Board appointment of members.
x Send email to members reminding them of committee procedures.
Sidewalks
x Respond to residents about 10' proposed sidewalk width.
x Attend public outreach meeting. Based on input from meeting and email/phone calls from
residents, draft resolution indicating preferences for sidewalk placement.
Other
x Meetings:
o Court Shared services (4/13)
o General Code (4/14)
o Ag outreach (4/14)
o Meet with Town of Ithaca Facilities Committee (4/19)
o Comprehensive Plan review (4/19)
o Sidewalk public outreach meeting (4/21)
o Jacksonville Park cleanup (4/23)
o TTHM meeting (4/25)
o Town Board meeting (4/26)
x Sustainability Committee — review and comment on objectives.
o Have dialog about the difference between sustainability committee and conservation
advisory council
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x Wetlands — review new wetlands map and discuss how this fits into land preservation and
UNAs.
x Historic preservation — requirements for deed restrictions on historic buildings.
x Highway — enforce IMA on Falls Road.
x Enforcement vehicle — assist in replacement of Jeep for code enforcement office.
x Stormwater — participate in webinar on effect of proper ditch and drainage management on
water quality.
x Time off — 8 days
x Comprehensive Plan review — assist Darby and Sue with presentation.
x Budget — careful review of operating statement; review of financial impact on budget from
changes in personnel in 2016. Review detail of specific fund lines.
Resident communications
o Falls Road — 1 residents.
o BDT — complaint about survey crew
o Speed limit requests (2)
o Sidewalk along Rt 96 —many comments about 10' width. One about which side of road.
o WD3 — comments on TTHM remediation options (7 residents).
Repeating daily/weekly/monthly tasks:
x Respond to constant flow of questions from residents, volunteers and staff.
x Weekly review of topics with attorney for the town.
x Monthly review of county actions.
x Daily check-in with Town Hall staff.
x Periodic discussions with Zoning Officer over a variety of topics.
x Prepare agendas, resolutions, and background documents. Review topics with TB members,
conduct meetings, and review minutes.
x Review claims and budget, make suggested budget modifications to be approved by TB, review
payroll, sign checks,
x Periodic check in with Town Clerk and Deputy Supervisor re work load and coordination.
x Review county actions.
ACTING HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT -
x Continued to help the county haul stone- both parties keep track of time so it can be
redeemed in trade
x Clean up of shoulders from winter plowing
x Cleaned salt out of trucks
x Helped the Town of Ithaca with a one -day grinding project
x Performed routine maintenance on vehicles
x New employee started
x Replaced two road crossing pipes on W. Seneca Road and one on Houghton Road
1sT DEPUTY SUPERVISOR- submitted by Ms. Zahler.
Youth Commission
x On June 26th, the Recreation Partnership would like to make a presentation to the Town Board
on the structure, benefits and value of this unique inter -municipal partnership.
x Earth Day Clean Up- close to 100 students from the Middle and High School volunteered to
clean up the Village on Thursday, April 21st for Earth Day.
x Super Summer Sign Up was held at the Elementary gym for parents/caregivers on 5/4/16
x The Youth Commission will be exploring ways to coordinate youth recreation opportunities for
children in the Town and Village.
Village of Trumansburg
x Village Board is meeting on May 9th. Hopefully, updates on Water Rates and 2"d water source
progress & 2016-17 approved budget are expected.
x Working with Michelle Wright and Brian Snyder to arrange meeting to review first year billing
with MedEx.
x Sidewalk Project- responded to constituent re: speed limit. Town Board should re -visit its
recommendations on speed limits in Town on Rt 96 entering and leaving the Village.
Zoning Update
x The Zoning Update committee met on May 5th to review Ag Focus group meeting on April 14th
and to plan for a community meeting in Jacksonville on Monday, June 6th
x The new Ag Committee and Sustainability/Conservation Advisory Council asked the
Committee to clarify communication channels re: input on potential zoning changes.
x Recommendations on coordinating input to be proposed at Town Board meeting 5/10.
Jacksonville
x Discussions with ExxonMobil continue re: disposition of the properties they own in
Jacksonville are continuing.
x Phase I Environmental Assessment Report has been completed by GeoLogic and will be
available in the Clerk's office for review, once questions about the report are resolved.
x JCA community spring picnic and celebration of Park scheduled for Sunday, May 5th
Health Consortium
x Attended Wellness Committee on April 20th
x Contacted Blue Cross and Blue Shield re: interest in having representative visit Town to review
plans and benefits with Town Board members and employees. Date to be scheduled.
x See attached request to adopt a policy restricting covered employees plan changes.
March 2016 Request from Health Consortium to adopt a policy to restrict plan changes....
RESOLUTION NO. 2016 — APPROVAL OF GUIDELINES FOR MEMBERS CHANGING
PLANS
WHEREAS, the Consortium has over 100 plan combination options that any of our partners can by
resolution add to their list of plans available to their employees, and
WHEREAS, the recently adopted "metal level" plans (platinum, Gold, silver, and bronze) as well as
Medicare Supplement have different actuarial conditions for setting premiums than the other
Consortium plan offerings, and
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WHEREAS, employees frequently changing between these five plans or between any of these five
plans and another Consortium plan can have adverse consequences with not enough premium being
raised to cover claims, and
WHEREAS, employees staying with their selection of one of these five plans for a period of at least
three years will allow for adequate capture of premium for claims, and
WHEREAS, the Consortium does not want to interfere with municipal partners offerings and
employees ability to choose, and
WHEREAS, the qualifying events that allow changes in benefit plans at the time of the event are:
marriage, divorce, legal separation, annulment, birth, change in legal custody status, dependent ages
off, adoption, death, start of or loss of employment, start of or loss of eligibility for Medicare or
Medicaid coverage, change in residency, and
WHEREAS, the Consortium Benefit Plans are administered on a calendar year basis, now therefore be
it
RESOLVED, on recommendation of the Audit and Finance Committee, That the Board of Directors
recommends to our municipal partners that they each adopt a policy that will restrict changing from the
platinum, gold, silver, bronze, and medical supplement plans to another plan for three years after
coverage begins,
RESOLVED, further, That the Audit and Finance Committee recommends that the Board of Directors
adopts the policy that all non -qualifying event benefit changes are submitted to the medical plan
administrator by December 1 for implementation on January 1.
3/16 Penalty adopted for municipalities not complying with dependent verification process....
RESOLVED, further, That should any of these employers not comply with this request (to update
dependent eligibility) and complete the dependent verification process with 30 days that the
Consortium will assess an additional premium equal to the average cost of claims for one person per
month per unresolved contract.
2nd DEPUTY SUPERVISOR- submitted by Ms. Wright:
x Emergency Prep Plan Update
o Continuation of plan development
o Mediated a panel of experts at Minnowbrook Resiliency for Local Leaders conference
in the Adirondacks
f This helped with development of TOU plan and made professional connections
o Met with Carissa and Sarah re: team work and action items on plan development
x Code/zoning vehicle purchase research through NYS centralized purchasing
o After receiving multiple bids on a range of specs from the NYSOGS, Liz, Tom, Darby
and myself met to analyze the models that had been submitted.
f It was decided at that meeting that the best fit for their use was a Toyota Rav4
Hybrid for the following reasons: gas efficiency, ground clearance, passenger
capacity
o Wrote and distributed bids to regional dealerships
o Collected bids for Rav4 Hybrid
x TAP Sidewalk Grant Project:
o Co -hosted meeting with Fisher at Fire Hall
f Individual mailing sent to residents directly on project route
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f Approximately 30 people in attendance
x Water District 3: continued work with Liz on a variety of aspects of this project
x Ag committee: informal meetings with Wertis
BOOKKEEPER REPORT- submitted by Ms. Wright:
x Audit
o The auditors were at the Town Hall for three days, during these three days I was busy
throughout the day providing them documentation based on requests. Additionally,
they have had many follow up questions that have kept me sporadically busy.
o Overall I am excited to see their suggestions and look forward to improving our system
based on both what they see and what we identify as priorities.
x Financial calculations
o Mid -year projections for salary and benefits lines based on all the personnel changes
we've had this year
x Personnel
o Paper work for new employee S. Stewart including enrollment in the NYSLRS
x New software transition
o Review of water district accounting with Ted Jones from Williamson
f Historic issues settled up
o Fully implemented and almost caught up!
o The new lag time between actual and reporting will be approximately two weeks (i.e.
April's financial report should be available by mid-May)
x Work with the Highway
o Regular informal meetings with Dave
o Payroll and voucher work
x Regular duties
o Payroll
f Processing and accounting
o Banking
o Water district accounting
o NYSLRS (retirement system)
f Annual payment calculation
f Monthly reporting
o Payments: regular appropriations & vouchers
f Vouchered expenses
f Health Insurance
f Other regular payments
MR. BOGGS:
Mr. Boggs reported that he has been working on some recommendations for WD3.
MR. GOLDMAN
Mr. Goldman gave an update on the Planning Board, noting that the group has found some
discrepancies in the zoning law.
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Respectfully submitted by Carissa Parlato on 5120116.
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