Town Board - June

CLERMONT TOWN BOARD

JUNE 1, 2015

The Clermont Town Board held their regular meeting on Monday, June 1, 2015 at 7:00 P.M. Those in attendance were Supervisor Raymond Staats, Councilman Robert Desmond, Councilwoman Dawn Brownson, Councilman Evan Hempel and Councilman Kris Gildersleeve. There were four residents present.

The Supervisor opened the meeting with the salute to the flag.

MINUTES: Councilwoman Brownson noted a correction on the second page (page 20) of the May minutes under Historian paragraph to change ‘Pass’ to ‘Path’. A motion was made to accept the minutes with correction by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilwoman Brownson. All in favor. So carried.

TOWN CLERK’S REPORT: The Clerk read the May report and presented the Supervisor with a check for the General fund in the amount of $$2,549.14 and a check for the Trust and Agency fund in the amount of $2,175.00. A motion was made to accept the report by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilman Gildersleeve. All in favor. So carried.

CORRESPONDENCE:

  • GRIEVANCE DAY: The Board of Assessment Review and Assessor will meet on Tuesday, June 2, 2015 during the hours of 3 – 5 PM and 6 – 8 PM for anyone who is grieving their assessment.
  • WEB COMMITTEE: Last month the website had been suspected of being compromised and then it was targeted again and used up the resources on the server. This has been corrected and there have been no other issues.
  • CLERMONT FIRE COMPANY: The Clermont Fire Company will hold their steak bake on Saturday, June 13th at 6:00 P.M. The tickets are $22.00 each.
  • The Supervisor provided the Town Board with a copy of the budget and revenue report for May 31, 2015.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

  • SPEED LIMIT: Councilman Desmond reported that there have been requests to lower the speed limit on Turkey Hill Road in Clermont. Councilman Desmond has checked the posted speed limits on the Milan end and it is posted at 40 mph and there is no posting on the Clermont side, which results in a 55-mph zone. It seems reasonable that this should be posted.
  • Hudson Valley Distillery is holding an open house on June 20th from 12PM to 6 PM for their first anniversary of operation.
  • PARK: Councilman Gildersleeve has contacted several firms about a backstop for the proposed softball field on the twenty-acre parcel. He reported that the feedback is limited, because the companies seem to be busy. He suggested holding off on this for the time being. Supervisor Staats has spoken to DEC and if we can layout where the field will be and where we will need to dig. The engineer said they will dig down where the backstop poles will be to be used for the future. Councilman Desmond said we should get the layout of the field done. Councilwoman Brownson thinks that a more comprehensive plan can now be planned so that she has better information in order to apply for grants for this proposal.
  • PATH THROUGH HISTORY: Councilwoman Brownson reported that Town Historians of Livingston, Germantown and Clermont have been meeting. Germantown and Clermont will be holding a bike ride through Germantown and Clermont stopping at various historic sites, which will be held Saturday June 20, 2015 starting at 12:45 at the Parsonage in Germantown. There is a requested donation of $5.00 and you can register by calling Susan Raab at 518-965-0343.
  • VILLAGE GREEN COMMITTEE: The Village Green Committee will meet on Wednesday, June 3rd at 7:00 P.M. Tickets are available at Otto’s Market, Tousey Winery, Red Hook Chamber and at Town Hall.

OLD BUSINESS:

  • COMMONS ROAD SIGNS: There have been requests by residents to replace the speed limit signs on Commons Road that are inconsistent. The Supervisor has asked the County to check into this and signs have been ordered and the County has marked out where the signs will be going.
  • COMMUNITY HOUSE REPAIRS: The work list has been updated but the Supervisor was not able to contact more than one contractor. If anyone knows of anyone who would be interested in bidding on this project, let the Supervisor know.
  • MILL ROAD BRIDGE: Supervisor Staats met with Greg Fingar, County Highway Superintendent Bernie Kelleher and James Potts, Clermont Highway Superintendent about a turnaround on Mill Road for buses, trucks and snow plows. The County is proposing a turnaround called a hammerhead. This will be at the County’s expense with the property donated by Greg Fingar. This will be a permanent easement.
  • DEC: C. T. Male will be doing the survey of the Brownfield property. They should have been doing the work last week but there have been delays. Councilman Gildersleeve asked about the site distance for the driveway. The Supervisor said there is good site distance on Route 9, and shouldn’t be an issue. DEC is going to use our materials but it will not reduce our 10% cost, but they will use it to reduce the overall costs, which will reduce our cost overall.

NEW BUSINESS:

  • TURKEY HILL ROAD: In Milan, the speed limit is 40 mph and because it is unposted on the Clermont side it is the legal speed of 55 mph. Our Highway Superintendent feels that it should be reduced to 40 mph. There is a process to follow to request a town speed limit be reduced. A resolution must be passed and forwarded to the County Engineering department to review. It will be sent to the Columbia County Traffic Safety Board for a recommendation and then to the Department of Transportation in Poughkeepsie. Councilman Hempel feels that we shouldn’t request a certain speed limit but go with what DOT says. Councilman Desmond recommends that we have it consistent with Fitzsimmons Road in Milan. A motion was made by Councilman Desmond to prepare a resolution to request a speed limit change on Turkey Hill Road in the Town of Clermont, seconded by Councilman Gildersleeve. All in favor. So carried.
  • The Clermont Planning Board sent a lead agency designation request for a site plan application submitted by Ripley Hathaway for convention center/special events. The Town Board will decline being the lead agency and remain an interested party. A motion was made by Councilwoman Brownson to approve the lead agency request by the Planning Board, seconded by Councilman Desmond. All in favor. So carried.

SUPERVISORS REPORT:

  • PINE HAVEN HOME: The Nursing home is going through a transition period and it will probably be close to a year before it is resolved. They are seeking employees to fill positions.
  • SALES TAX: The sales tax has leveled off in the County, which is good for our budget.
  • ROADS: The Supervisor reported that Route 9G from the Dutchess County line to Germantown would be repaved by the State. The County will be repaving a portion of Lasher Road and County Route 33 will be paved this year from County Route 6 to Germantown. They also have been working on County Route 31 from County 14 to Route 9.
  • SOLAR PANELS: The County has been looking at solar panels for the County. They have looked at Remote Net Metering, which would service the entire county properties. There is also remote site metering which they looked at for the Public Safety building, which uses a lot of electric. They are still getting information.

ABSTRACTS:

A motion was made by Councilman Gildersleeve to approve General Abstract #6, vouchers #136-163 in the amount of $7,853.59, seconded by Councilman Hempel. All in favor. So carried.

A motion was made by Councilman Hempel to approve Highway abstract #6, vouchers #53-73 in the amount of $12,581.32, seconded by Councilman Gildersleeve. All in favor. So carried.

A motion was made by Councilwoman Brownson to approve Trust & Agency #4, vouchers #10-20 in the amount of $1,570.42, seconded by Councilman Hempel. All in favor. So carried.

PUBLIC COMMENTS:

Chris Nolan had a fire at his house last Friday. He thanked the Fire Department, the Police, Ray Tousey and Kimberly Peacock for helping to put it out. There were some pedestrians walking who noticed it first and alerted everyone. He spoke about a walkable community and the Community Barbecue held in August, which unites people.

Doug Gilbert made a statement on his new fence that he put in. At the planning board in the fall it was assumed that an agreement would be made between himself and Mr. Tousey as to what kind of fence would be put up between their two properties. He does not think Mr.Tousey had any intention of putting up anything other than a privacy fence. Mr. Gilbert has put up a locust split rail fence on his property between himself and Mr. Tousey. He was told to discuss this issue with the planning board. Councilman Desmond

commented on the appointment of the planning board members and that they are an autonomous board, the town board does not have control over what they do. If you feel that there is cause, it can be appealed to the Zoning Board of Appeals or an Article 78 in court. Mr. Gilbert feels that it is something between himself and Mr. Tousey.

A motion was made to adjourn by Councilman Gildersleeve, seconded by Councilman Desmond at 8:00 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Mary Helen Shannon, RMC

Town Clerk

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