HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-08-2019 Town Board Meeting Minutes ApprovedVirgil Town Board Meeting August 08, 2019
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TOWN OF VIRGIL REGULAR MEETING
August 08, 2019
PRESENT: Supervisor John Kaminski, Board Members Eric Snow, Matt Denniston, Gary Pelton, Attorney for the Town Pat Snyder, Town
Clerk/Collector Alane Van Donsel, David Coish Camden Group, Highway Superintendent Brit Morse, Wes Kryger Greek Peak, Jenae
Withy W2Operators, John and Sheila Morse, Mack & Sylvia Cook, Carole Rehkugler, Sara Sirois, Teri Pelton, Matt Hollenbeck, Dan
Haynes, Rich Stressler, Ralph Keeney, Donald Chu, Lori Megivern, Trisha Jesset, Patty Hans DePerno, Member Stiles excused
6:00 PM- PUBLIC HEARING ON LOCAL LAW #1 of 2019 TOWN OF VIRGIL TRANSFER STATION LAW
Town Clerk Van Donsel read the legal notice that was posted in the Cortland Standard on July 22, 2019, posted at the Town Hall and
the Town of Virgil website:
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the Virgil Town Board will hold a Public Hearing regarding proposed Local Law #1 of 2019, the Town of Virgil
Transfer Station Law. The local law will establish procedures and requirements for the use of the Solid Waste Transfer Station, including
limitations on the type and amount of solid waste that may be brought there. The public hearing will be held on August 8, 2019 at
6:00 PM at the Virgil Town Hall, 1176 Church Street, Virgil NY 13045. Copies of the proposed local law may be obtained at the Virgil
town hall, and may be viewed on the town website, www.virgilny.org.
COMMENTS: Community Member John Morse and owner of Virgil Recycling & Rubbish Removal had some questions about section
5B of the local law. Morse stated that his business is only does business in Virgil and he is a resident of Virgil. Morse read the section
of the local law that he was concerned with. It says it the transfer station may not be used by commercial haulers. Supervisor Kaminski
said you are not what we consider a commercial hauler, you are a residential hauler. You are helping out your neighbors and you’re
not bringing more than 3 cubic yards of trash to the transfer station. Member Pelton said he disagrees with that statement; they are
a commercial hauler. Kaminski thought they should be fine under the law. Attorney Pat Snyder says that Virgil Recycling and Rubbish
Removal would be prohibited under the law as it reads. They want to reword it to say, if you are a resident and you’re only picking up
trash in the Town of Virgil. Morse was concerned if he might have problems done the road. Member Dennison said that the purpose
of rewriting the law was because they were looking at the capacity of the system. They wanted to limit how much trash is being hauled
on any given day. Denniston feels the law is ambitus and feels they should look at the intent of the law, he feels it has to do with flow
control. Snyder would rather strike that sentence, if they are going to continue to allow Morse’s company to use the transfer station.
If you take away that sentence, you’d still be ok. Denniston said they might have to put some limitations on the amount of trash
dumped for flow control. Pelton feels that if they strike that line, they will have problems down the road. Pelton said most of the
problems wasn’t just from commercial haulers, he wanted to take care of the problem by dealing with commercial haulers first. Morse,
said that a lot of the problems come from builders who are bringing construction debris. Supervisor Kaminski asked three times if
there were any other comments, there were done. Supervisor asked for a motion to close the public hearing. Member Denniston
made a motion to close the public hearing. The motion was seconded by Member Snow. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston
and Kaminski. Nays-None
Ralph Keeney who resides at 2045 Route 392, addressed the board regarding water issues on his property. Supervisor Kaminski said
that he and the Highway Superintendent will come look at the situation. Highway Superintendent Morse said that the state has looked
at it and they would need to have retention ponds dug. They would have to go on current property owners land. Supervisor Kaminski
said he would be in contact with Keeney to see if there is anything that can be done to help him.
6:30 PM –THE REGULAR MEETING WAS CALLED TO ORDER
Supervisor Kaminski called the meeting to order, followed by the salute to the flag.
RESOLUTION #19-072 APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Draft of the Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes dated July 11, 2019: Member Denniston moved to approve the minutes for July
11, 2019 regular Town Board Meeting with corrections. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow,
Denniston and Kaminski. Nays-None
Draft of the Special Town Board Meeting Minutes dated July 29, 2019: Member Denniston moved to approve the minutes for July
29, 2019 regular Town Board Meeting with corrections. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow,
Denniston and Kaminski. Nays-None
RESOLUTION #19-073 AUTHORIZATION TO PAY BILLS
GENERAL FUND FOR JULY 2019 NUMBER 008: Member Denniston moved to approve payment of the General Fund’s audited vouchers
numbered 203-233 in the amount of $17,982.37. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston
and Kaminski. Nays- None
HIGHWAY FUND FOR JULY 2019 NUMBER 008: Member Denniston moved to approve payment of the Highway Fund audited vouchers
numbered 1135-1148 in the amount of $90,066.66. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow,
Denniston and Kaminski. Nays- None
SEWER DISTRICT #1 FUND FOR JULY 2019 NUMBER 008: Member Denniston moved to approve payment of the Sewer District #1
audited voucher’s numbered 2072-2083 in the amount of $7,800.44. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members
Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays- None
WATER DISTRICT #1 FUND FOR JULY 2019 NUMBER 008: Member Denniston moved to approve payment of the Water District #1
audited vouchers 3038-3041 in the amount of $3,731.57. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow,
Denniston and Kaminski. Nays-None
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MONTHLY REPORTS
SUPERVISOR’S MONTHLY REPORT FOR JULY 2019 LONG FORM: Member Denniston moved to accept the Supervisor’s Monthly Report
in long form for July 2019. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays –
None
TOWN CLERK’S MONTHLY REPORT FOR JULY 2019: Member Denniston moved to accept the Town Clerks Monthly Report for June
2019. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays- None
FINAL 2019 TAX COLLECTING REPORT: Member Denniston moved to accept the Final Tax Collecting Report for 2019. Member Snow
seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays- None
SEWER DISTRICT OPERATIONS REPORT: Dave Coish was present from the Camden Group. Kaminski said that he called about the tank
and it’s not quite ready yet. He said he will call Coish as soon as its ready. Member Denniston moved to accept the Sewer Districts
Report. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays- None
WATER DISTRICT OPERATIONS REPORT: Jenea Withey was present. Kaminski asked if they were going to get started on installing the
new meters. Withey said they sent letters to the homeowners informing them that this job will start. They are working with the
homeowners to set up a schedule to make the swap. They will be targeting the oldest meters first. Member Denniston moved to
accept the Water Districts Report. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski.
Nays-None
ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER’S REPORT: Member Denniston moved to accept the Animal Control Officer’s Report. Member Snow
seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays-None
CODE ENFORCEMENT AND ZONING OFFICERS REPORT: A written report was submitted by Code and Zoning Officer Kevin McMahon.
Member Denniston motioned to accept the Code and Zoning Officers report. The motion was seconded Member Snow. Vote: Ayes-
Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston, and Kaminski. Nays- None
COUNTY LEGISLATOR’S REPORT: County Legislator Sandy Price submitted a written report. Supervisor Kaminski mentioned that Price
wasn’t available to attend the meeting. Member Denniston motioned to accept the County Legislators report. The motion was
seconded Member Snow Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays- None
HOPE LAKE OPERATIONS REPORT: Wes Kryger reported that attendance at the park was up this summer. He thought it may be due
to the fireworks event. He said that operations are going well. Member Pelton said he would like to have a meeting of the committee
after Labor Day and he would like to see the parks financial report at that time. Member Denniston motioned to accept the Hope Lake
Operations oral report. The motion was seconded Member Snow. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays-
None
HIGHWAY DEPT. SUPERINTENDENTS REPORT: Highway Superintendent Britt Morse was present and submitted a written report.
Morse said that the 2007 head gasket value needed to be resealed. He said that the cost to fix it is going to be between $5500 and
$6100, but he felt it was better than replacing the head gasket. Supervisor Kaminski said that the board needs to approve the Highway
Superintendent’s authority to approve repairs that exceed the procurement policy’s approved amount. The current approval is for
$3500 without board approval. Member Snow asked how the repairs on West River Road are going. Morse said that it has been graded
once, but the end near Rte. 392 needs to be hit again. He said they will be back over in a couple weeks. Member Denniston motioned
to accept the Highway Supervisor report. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and
Kaminski. Nays: None.
OLD BUSINESS
SCHOOL BUILDING UPDATE: Supervisor Kaminski said they didn’t make the deadline to put the school building vote on the November
ballot. He said that the town board has more questions they would like to be addressed. He said that one board member sent an e-
mail with 19 items that he would like to have addressed. Lori Megivern asked if the town received any other letters from the
Superintendent of schools. Kaminski said he hadn’t nor had the town clerk. Kaminski said that he is going to start working on the list
and he’s going to try to sort this out. Megivern asked about the school sign? Kaminski said he talked to Mike Hoose and he wasn’t
aware that the computer that runs the sign was taken out. Megivern asked if the board reviewed the summary of findings from the
bond council? Kaminski said that the opinion came through the city. He said that there are restrictions on the building, but if the town
bought it, that would limit the restrictions. Kaminski said that the school district had the building appraised and it came it at $360,000.
They have to see if the dormitory authority agrees on that price. Member Denniston said that if the school district decided to redeem
the bonds, they could release the building for a nominal price. Sylvia Cook said that according to the bond attorney’s letter, the
restrictions will remain in place until the bonds are in affect. The school district could refinance the bonds, which could extend the
terms of the bonds. Denniston said that the only reason to do that would be to get out from under the bonds. Sara Sirois asked if the
school district would have to pay off all the millions of dollars’ worth of bonds. It was mentioned that the district had had the property
appraised, perhaps to sell the building in an arm’s length sale. The building is worth what someone or some entity is willing to pay.
Cook said she was looking at the comps on the appraisal and she didn’t feel they were comparable. She said one building was built in
the 1950’s, one has 22 acres and one has a 4000 sq. ft bus garage. She said she is not a real estate agent, but her mind these are not
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comparable comps. She didn’t understand why they didn’t use the Truxton school building, instead they used a building in Schenectady
New York. She didn’t feel this was a good appraisal. She stated that the district hired an appraiser that lumped the comps on both
buildings. S. Cook said that when you read the comps that the school appraiser used, the properties they were using as comparisons
are much newer and many are one story. She feels that when looks at the comp process, they should look at the highest and best use,
such as was the property used for office space or medical office space. She stated that it’s going to cost a developer a small fortune to
convert this building into anything other than a school. Kaminski said that the school district had the appraisals done and he had no
control over the process. Cooks feels there are a few options according to the bond attorney. One option is to purchase the building
at an arm’s length sale at full market value. Cook then went on to discuss the different options. Sirois asked if there a rush? Kaminski
said the initial rush was to get the resolution on the ballot for November, but because he didn’t get that done, there no rush now.
Now Kaminski is going to work on the list. He said the email is available for the public. Some of the items on the list are: elevator
inspections, purchasing a lawn mower, security system and servicing the boiler. Kaminski said that he is going to try to work at a good
pace. He said If there are any other concerns, they can be added to the list. Trisha Jesset, who works for the county said she can help
gather information. Kaminski said that Stiles thought the cost of building the vaults was underestimated. They need to be made
fireproof with masonry. He said that at this point the town board has to decide if they want to take the building over and if they want
to go out to a vote. It was stated that he district has rented the building out for the next school year for the before and after school
care. Lori Megivern, was concerned that if town doesn’t have constant communication with the school superintendent, they will put
the building up for auction and it may be put up as an arm’s length sale to someone they know. Kaminski asked how the town board
felt. He wants to know if he should go to the next school board meeting? Denniston said he doesn’t have a problem with the Supervisor
sharing where we are at and why. Pelton said that the difference with Truxton is they had a bidder that came in and bought the
building and gave it back to the town. He doesn’t believe that Virgil has that. Kaminski said that two government agencies can trade
property, when it is at fair market value. If it went to bid, be doesn’t think the town could bid against someone. Member Denniston
asked Mack Cook what was going on with Parker school. Cook said he’s not at privilege to speak on the matter, but they should be
submitting a proposal in a few weeks. Teri Pelton said she is not understanding what is wrong with an outside entity buying the
property. She said doesn’t the town have zoning to protect the town. M. Cook said he can speak of the downside. He said look at a
property that used to be Coopers tools. He said that property was sold at a bargain price and now it’s not being maintained. He said
the grass is over 4 feet tall. He said the city had to contract out the mowing at $4300 just to bring back in code compliant. He said you
have to think about this, if you’re not in control of a property. He said that the city has over 800 vacant properties, and they are paying
for them even though the city doesn’t own them. Megivern said that she was at a board meeting where they said they were going to
stop Reigning Miracle from building across from the golf course and look at what they have now. Sirois asked if the town had leverage
with making sure properties are being taken care of. Kaminski said that the town has laws. He said he toured low income housing and
he doesn’t want that be brought to Virgil. He said he wants the playground and walking trail for the community. He still feels that the
people should vote on this. Sirois asked if the law forced people to keep up the lawn. Kaminski said yes, but the law needs to be
enforced. The town would have to send codes and zoning over there and take them into court if they are not compliant. Kaminski said
that he is going to go down and talk to the school board. He wants to ask them to give the town a timeline and ask them if they plan
on selling the property. Kaminski said he gave it his best shot to get it on the ballot, but he feels he failed. Sirois said that before the
bond issue came up, they had ideas, but the bonds were a total game changer. She feels it threw the committee a curve ball. John
Morse suggested that the board include the cost of an engineer to design what the town would need to make the building functional
for town offices. Kaminski believed it was between $28,000 and $30,000 for an engineer.
NEW BUSINESS
DISCUSSION ON PROPOSED LOCAL LAW #1 OF 2019-TRANSFER STATION LAW: The board discussed Local law #1 of 2019, but they
did not take action. The board will reword it based on comments from the public hearing.
RESOLUTION #19-074 APPROVAL OF A SECOND PUBLIC HEARING ON LOCAL LAW #1 OF 2019: Member Denniston made a motion to
hold a second public hearing on proposed local #1 of 2019 and to make revisions on the law based on discussion from the first public
hearing. The public hearing will be held before the next scheduled town board meeting on September 12, 2019 at 6:00 PM. Member
Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays: None
SET DATES FOR BUDGET WORKSHOPS: The Town Board set the meeting dates for the budget workshops as September 17th and 24th,
October 1st and 15th 2019. There will be additional meetings held on October 22nd and 29th if needed. Budget workshops will be held
at the Virgil Town Hall 1176 Church Street, Virgil NY at 6:00 PM.
RESOLUTION #19-075 APPROVE TRANSFER STATION ATTENDENT WAGE: Member Denniston made a motion to approve the transfer
station attendant’s wage at $12.00 an hour capping the hours at 25 hours per week. Member Snow seconded the motion. Ayes-
Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays: None
RESOLUTION # 19-076 APPROVAL OF THE TRADE ON CAT LOADER LEASE: Member Denniston motioned to approve the trade-in of
the CAT Loader and extend the lease at $19,700. Member Snow seconded the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston
and Kaminski. Nays: None
DISCUSSION ON A NEW PICKUP WITH SANDER & PLOW: Supervisor Kaminski said that he would like to get the specs on this truck
and they will discuss this during the budget workshops.
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RESOLUTION #19-077 APPROVE THE HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENTS APPROVED REPAIR RATE: Member Denniston motioned to
approve the Highway Superintendent to approve paying for repairs on the 2007 truck not to exceed $6100. Member Snow seconded
the motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays: None.
SEXUAL HARRASSEMNT POLICY- Supervisor Kaminski said that the state has new guidelines on sexual harassment policies and training.
He said that he will revamp the towns policy to comply with the state rules. He would like to have it ready by the next town board
meeting so they can adopt it.
With no further business to discuss, Member Denniston moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:16 PM. Member Snow seconded the
Motion. Vote: Ayes-Members Pelton, Snow, Denniston and Kaminski. Nays: None
Respectfully Submitted by,
Alane Van Donsel, Virgil Town Clerk