CLERMONT TOWN BOARD MEETING
SEPTEMBER 4, 2012
The Clermont Town Board held its regular meeting on Tuesday, September 4, 2012 at 7:00 P.M. due to the Labor Day Holiday. Those in attendance were Supervisor Raymond Staats, Councilwoman Nancy Moore, Councilman Robert Desmond, Councilman Edward Kahle and Councilman Evan Hempel. There were four residents present.
Supervisor Staats opened the meeting with the salute to the flag.
MINUTES: The minutes of the August meeting were approved on a motion made by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilman Hempel. All in favor. So carried.
TOWN CLERK’S REPORT: A check in the amount of $120.50 for the General fund was presented to the Supervisor. A check in the amount of $1000.00 for Trust & Agency for Recreation fees was presented to the Supervisor. A motion as made to accept the Clerk’s report by Councilman Hempel, seconded by Councilman Desmond. All in favor. So carried.
CORRESPONDENCE:
- There was no correspondence.
- The Supervisor reported that a check was received from the law firm of Freeman- Howard for the basketball hoop at the Little League field. The town attorney is Andrew Howard of this firm.
- Website: Councilman Hempel reported that the meetings are now on the website. Once the past months minutes are approved, that month’s video will move from the front page to the minutes page and the current months meeting will appear on the front page.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
- GRANTS: Councilman Kahle received grant information for replacement of new historic plaque. If any one knows of any historical point of interest or building that needs a plaque, let him know.
- TOWN HALL INSULATION: The insulation has been installed in the Town Hall, and the Supervisor said it was very reasonable and looks as though they did a good job.
- HYDROFRACKING: Councilman Kahle has spoken to a representative from NY Rural Water. He would be able to come to a meeting after September to speak of groundwater in relation to the aquifers. Supervisor Staats has not heard from Supervisor Brown about further meetings in Germantown but he will contact him.
- Councilman Kahle asked about a letter, which was sent in regard to yard debris at a County Route 8 residence. The Supervisor said it was forwarded to the building inspector and he will follow up about the outcome.
- HYDROFRACKING: Councilman Desmond went to the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals regarding the issue of hydrofracking. He felt that the Planning Board was in favor of banning fracking because it is not consistent with the Master Plan. The Zoning Board of Appeals wants more information on fracking. They cited that fracking might diminish the need for solar and wind energy which is better for the environment. It was suggested that the members of the boards attend the meetings regarding fracking and then possibly hold joint meetings with the town.
- Councilman Hempel had no school report.
- Councilwoman Moore will be updating the emergency preparedness plan for the fire district and the website.
- The Town Clerk reminded everyone that Thursday, September 13th there is a state and local primary from the hours of 12:00 PM to 9:00 PM for Republicans, Conservatives and Independence party voters. The town offices will be closed on that evening.
- The Town Clerk also reminded residents that all dogs should be licensed. The licenses are very reasonable, $3.50 for a spayed or neutered dog, $10.50 for unspayed or unneutered and must have proof of a current rabies vaccination.
OLD BUSINESS:
- MILL ROAD BRIDGE UPDATE: At last months meeting, Councilman Kahle suggested looking into purchasing a bridge, which were less costly. The County did look into it but said it would cost $400,000.00 for the size required. Supervisor Staats will check on these numbers. The County may seek a bond to repair the many roads and bridges which need repair in the County.
- SURVEY: The survey map has been completed for the donation of land by George W. Saulpaugh & Sons and the Clermont Cemetery Society and the public hearing will be held at the Planning Board meeting on September 12, 2012 at 7:30 PM.
- CHURCH PAINTING AND REPAIRS: Work was scheduled to start today but with the weather may have been delayed. The work is scheduled to be done by September 27th.
- NYMIR REPORT: Last month Supervisor Staats walked through all buildings with a representative from NYMIR. They have suggested several things which should be done such as smoke detectors, sanding and painting the fire escape, repairing siding and painting the west side of the Community House, installing GFI electrical outlets, exit sign in courtroom and updating policies. Councilwoman Moore requested a new screen for the back door of the Community House. Councilman Desmond mentioned alarms for the buildings. These can be looked at during the budget workshops.
- VILLAGE GREEN BBQ: Chairwoman Tami Connolly reported that the Village Green lost approximately $1100.00 on the event. There were fewer to turnout, which may have been due to the heat.
NEW BUSINESS:
- BUDGET: A budget workshop for tentative budget will be held on Monday September 24th at 7:00 P.M.
- BROWNFIELDS: CT MALE, engineers for the Brownfields project has asked for additional information, which has been sent and the Supervisor is hoping to hear back soon.
- DATA COLLECTION FOR 2013: Data Collection needs to be done for 2014. It will have to be included in the budget. The Supervisor would also like to find someone who would be interested in taking the course for certification or we will have to hire someone, which is more costly. It would probably take approximately four months to complete the data collection. Councilman Desmond suggested getting two people in case one person dropped out or to split the parcels.
- TRUCK BID: Received one bid for the purchase of the 1983 dump truck from Baroni Recycling Inc. of Pleasant Valley. The bid was for $2,050.00. A motion was made to accept the bid by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.
- BATHROOM SINKS: Supervisor Staats received a quote from Harkins Plumbing to replace both men’s and women’s bathroom sinks in the town hall for $676.00. A motion was made by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilwoman Moore to accept the quote to replace both sinks. All in favor. So carried.
SUPERVISORS REPORT:
COURTHOUSE: The Supervisor reported that the bids for the Courthouse renovation were awarded and work should start soon. Renovations will be done when court is in session because they could not find a secure location to relocate the court employee’s.
PINE HAVEN HOME: This will be discussed at the October meeting because it was not on the agenda for September.
HOME HEALTH AGENCY: It was voted down by the full board to sell the agency. He asked the Director of Health what could be done to improve the economics of the department. Her response was that there was nothing that could be done. The agency that was willing to buy the Home Health Agency would have covered the citizens just as well as the County does, but because some of the employees of the department have political ties, in his opinion, it was voted down.
SOLID WASTE: The County is considering privatizing the solid waste department. We are loosing money on the solid waste department, but there are many people served by this agency.
DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S BATHROOM: The office of the DA should not be in the same building as the Dept. of Human Services. He agrees that he should have a separate bathroom for security reasons. It is expected that the Supervisors will approve it through finance because it has been identified where the funds are coming from.
HOMELESS SHELTER: The contract which was presented locked the County into a cost which had no detail about how many patrons were covered and the charges if usage dropped. This will be discussed at future meetings.
COUNTY BUDGET: In past years, the budget committee would meet with the budget officer, but this year the Chairman let each department head put in there budget requests and it will go to their home committee to be determined. There has been spending over the budgeted amounts.
CLERMONT STEAK BBQ: The Clermont Fire Company will hold the Steak BBQ on Saturday, September 8th at the Route 9G firehouse.
ABSTRACTS:
A motion was made by Councilman Desmond to approve Highway abstract #9, vouchers #84 to 92 in the amount of $3,972.83, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.
A motion was made by Councilman Hempel to approve General abstract #9, vouchers 211-234 in the amount of $3,426.12, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
- Judy Blessinger-Neary asked if the board is going to consider having a bookkeeper and an accountant and an independent audit, in light of the recent Town of Taghkanic’s audit by the State Comptroller. The Supervisor noted that we would be budgeting for an independent audit for next year and requesting resumes for the bookkeeper, engineer, attorney and accountant. Councilman Desmond also discussed the checks and balances, which are in place for the payment of bills and the Supervisor verifies checks, used and signs all checks. There are bank statements and reports, which are available for the Town Board to review each month. Councilman Kahle did have a person interested in the bookkeeping position, but they needed more detail of the job. He will follow up.
- Judy also asked about the school tax issue of multiple payments that she has brought before the board and the County. Supervisor Staats said that nothing has been determined yet.
A motion was made to adjourn at 8:00 PM by Councilwoman Moore, seconded by Councilman Desmond. All in favor. So carried.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Helen Shannon, RMC
Town Clerk