CLERMONT TOWN BOARD

NOVEMBER 4, 2013

The Clermont Town Board held the regular meeting at the Town Hall on November 4, 2013 at 7:00 P.M. Those in attendance were Supervisor Raymond Staats, Councilman Edward Kahle, Councilman Robert Desmond, Councilman Evan Hempel and Councilwoman Nancy Moore. There were six other residents present.

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

MINUTES: A motion was made to accept the minutes of the October 7, 2013 meeting by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilman Kahle. All in favor. So carried.

A motion was made to accept the minutes of the October 21, 2013 special meeting on the Park and Budget by Councilman Hempel, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.

TOWN CLERKS REPORT: The Clerk presented the Supervisor with a check for the General fund in the amount of $1,362.43 and for the Trust & Agency Fund in the amount of $100.00. A motion was made to accept the Clerk’s report by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.

CORRESPONDENCE:

• The Supervisor handed out copies of the budget and revenue reports for October 31, 2013.

• The Town Clerk advised the board and thanked Elizabeth Jane Harte, daughter of the former Town Historian Anne Poleschner, for bringing in items and historical documents that relate to the Town. Our Historian Dianne O’Neal will be sorting these items.
• Web Site: No report

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

• PARK: Councilman Kahle reported that as was discussed at the special meeting, Grant Specialist Mary Howard has filed an application for a Community grant to Iroquois for the park.
• DEC: Councilman Kahle has been in touch with DEC regarding the report of a mountain lion. They have told him that they have not been stocking these animals, and he does not believe that there is a threat. They had a report of one in Delaware County and were able to get a DNA sample and this animal was found expired in Western Connecticut.

• PARK: Councilman Desmond has asked for information about the life of the tile fall surface by the manufacturer. He did get general information, which he will bring to the next workshop, that compare the different surfaces.

• HOVER FUND GRANT: The Town did receive the Hover Fund grant in the amount of $5000.00 for swings in the park. Councilman Kahle and Mary Howard were thanked for their work on that.

OLD BUSINESS:

• MILL ROAD BRIDGE UPDATE: The Supervisor is trying to coordinate a meeting between DPW’s David Robinson, Engineer Dean Knox and Supervisor Kevin McDonald of Livingston. The estimate to close the bridge is $175,000.00, limited rehabilitation, $600,000, full rehabilitation, $780,000. full replacement $1,000,000.00 including abutments on both sides and changing the angle. This has been tentatively put on the 2015 schedule to be addressed. Councilman Desmond also asked the Supervisor to discuss the galvanized Bailey bridge that Councilman Kahle had researched. It is thought that these could be a lot less.

• DATA COLLECTION: The Assessor has completed the fieldwork and has been working on getting the figures into the computer.

• AUDIT UPDATE: The letter received from the auditor, Raymond Preusser, CPA was read to the public. There was nothing noted regarding the financials in the letter, mostly internal controls and operational matters were discussed.

• PARK GRANT: Supervisor Staats also thanked Councilman Kahle, Mary Howard for their work on the Hover grant and the Hover Foundation for their consideration. The grant application to Iroquois had a deadline of November 1^st and Mary Howard did a good job getting the grant done. It was also discussed at the special meeting about joining with a not-for-profit 501C3 for grants and our attorney has said that it is permissible to do so.

NEW BUSINESS:

• SALES TAX: The Supervisor reported that we received $86,555.83 for third quarter sales tax, which is about $5000 more than last year. This should bring us to about what was budgeted to be received for this year if the last quarter comes in near this amount.

• 2014 BUDGET: Supervisor Staats recapped the budget for 2014. The expenditures was reduced by about $7000.00 from last year to $604,299. The revenues was increased to $439,119. The mortgage tax was increased by $5,000 and the Capital Equipment fund was increased from $30,000 to $35,000. There were raises given to the Highway Superintendent, Town Clerk, Tax Collector, Justices, Court Clerk, Building Inspector, Highway employees and building cleaner. The tax rate per thousand of assessed value will increase slightly from $.46 to $.48.

MOTION: A motion was made by Councilman Desmond to adopt the 2014 budget, seconded by Councilman Kahle. All in favor. So carried.

• RESOLUTION NO. 51-2013 to transfer funds from A1990.4 Contingency to the Assessors contractual account A1355.4 in the amount of $500.00. A motion was made by Councilman Desmond to approve this resolution, seconded by Councilman Kahle. All in favor. So carried.

• RESOLUTION NO. 52-2013 to authorize the Town Clerk or her designee to execute the agreement with Department of Environmental Conservation for the privilege of issuing licenses for hunting and fishing in New York State. Councilman Hempel did not have a chance to review the resolution. A motion was made by Supervisor Staats to approve the resolution for the Clerk to sign the agreement with DEC, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. Those in favor were Supervisor Staats, Councilman Kahle, Councilman Desmond, Councilwoman Moore. Councilman Hempel voted nay.

• Resolution No. 53-2013 Tobacco Free Zone for Parks in Town.

This was brought to the Supervisor by the Rip Van Winkle Tobacco Free Action of Columbia and Greene Counties to have a tobacco free zone in our parks. They will provide signs for the parks. Councilman Kahle does have concerns about people’s rights and Councilwoman Moore thinks it does make for a cleaner park. Councilman Hempel is wondering about the use of electronic cigarettes and if this would be allowed. Councilman Desmond does think there should be other restrictions, as well, but does not have a problem with this.

A motion was made by Councilman Desmond to approve this resolution, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.

SUPERVISORS REPORT:

• COURTHOUSE PROJECT: The project may be completed by the end of February or into March. The Judges have asked that the windows be replaced before they move back in. This could put it out to May before they could move back in, which they would not have a problem with. The estimate for the windows is about $400,000.00. It cost $10,000 per month for the use of the school in Claverack.

• PINE HAVEN: It is being determined as to whether or not a site located closer to the current home, which will be a two story unit, is acceptable for a new home. If so, the septic and water system of the old home could be utilized.
• COUNTY BUDGET: Supervisor Staats reported that it was fortunate that back payment of taxes and foreclosures, were received this year, and has helped to offset the budget shortage this year. The overall financial situation is better than last year, but these windfalls may not continue. The revenues are being looked at very closely. He will update next meeting.

• ELECTION DAY: Voting for the General Election is Tuesday, November 5^th from 6:00 A.M. to 9:00 P.M. The Election Day dinner will be served from 5:00 to 7:00 P.M. at the Community House.

• COMMUNITY HOUSE: The kitchen sink has been replaced at the Community House. Our Highway Superintendent picked up the sink. The Highway Department takes care of a lot of our maintenance on the buildings.

• PARK PARKING LOT: There have been multiple cars going into the parking lot at the ball field and spinning around messing up the gravel area. There was one person caught over this and he will be prosecuted. This will not be tolerated and the Town will prosecute anyone involved.

• ELECTION SIGNS: The Supervisor is hoping that the election signs will be picked up soon after election.

ABSTRACTS: A motion was made to pay General abstract #11, vouchers 273-297 in the amount of $4,559.88 by Councilman Desmond, seconded by Councilman Hempel. All in favor. So carried.

A motion was made to pay Highway #11; vouchers # 109-129 in the amount of $12,259.41 by Councilman Hempel, seconded by Councilwoman Moore. All in favor. So carried.

PUBLIC COMMENT:

Chris Nolan asked if the roads on either side of the Mill Road Bridge are a town owned road. The Supervisor explained that they are town roads, but the County owns the bridge. So any cost associated with the repair of the bridge is spread throughout the towns in the county. He also asked if the definition of Home Occupations could be further defined in the next round of zoning updates, because it isn’t as clear as it could be.

A motion was made to adjourn at 8:00 P.M. by Councilwoman Moore, seconded by Councilman Desmond. All in favor. So carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Mary Helen Shannon, RMC

Town Clerk