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Minutes of a Town Board Meeting held Wednesday, December 12, 2018

State of New York
County of Fulton
Town of Caroga

Minutes of the regular monthly Caroga Town Board meeting held Wednesday December 12, 2018 at the municipal building located at 1840 State Highway #10 at 7:00 pm with the following persons in attendance by roll call:

Supervisor James K Selmser - Here

Council Member John Glenn – Here

Council Member Jeremy Manning - Absent

Council Member James Long – Here

Council Member Kent Kirch - Here

Other town department representatives in attendance were: Steve Putman – Highway Superintendent, John Delesky – BTI Coordinator, and Don Travis – building maintenance. There were 17 members of the public in attendance including a reporter from the Leader herald.

At 7:00 pm Supervisor Selmser called the meeting to order by asking to have the roll called. The flag salute followed. A moment of silence was held for Harry Macintosh who served the town in a number of capacities previously.

The guest speaker Jessica Waldorf from the NY Power Authority (NYPA) presented information and answered questions regarding a proposal to install LED street lights in Caroga. NYPA projects Caroga would save about $24,000 per year in reduced energy and maintenance costs. The transition cost is projected to be $140,000 to $165,000. NYPA would finance the cost over a 10 year period. Due to the immediate energy savings, the Town would see a reduction in overall costs (including the finance payment) starting in the first year. This New York State effort hopes to replace all 1.5 million street lights in the state and save municipalities millions in energy costs. The town of Caroga currently has 166 street lights.

Supervisor Selmser stated the asbestos bids discussion will be later in the meeting.

Public Speaking

Karl Ziemann stated the insurance for the polar plunge has doubled. They have paid the insurance for the last 9 of the 10 years. Last year they raised over $2,000.00 for the fire department. If the town does not pay the insurance they will have to subtract the insurance amount from the donation to the department this year. Maybe the town insurance would be less expensive. Council Member Kirch suggested contacting the town’s insurance company.

RESOLUTION #2018-139 to pay up to $400 for insurance for the Polar Plunge was offered by Council Member Kirch at the regular monthly meeting of the Caroga Town Board held on Wednesday December 12, 2018 at Town hall.

WHEREAS, Karl & Carol Ziemann attended the meeting this evening and discussed with the board the cost of the insurance for the Polar Plunge event held at the Caroga Lake Marina on January 1st each year, now therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the Caroga Town Board shall pay up to $400.00 for insurance for the polar plunge to be held at the Caroga Lake Marina 2279 State Highway 10 on January 1st 2019.

Seconded by Council Member Long

Adopted by a vote of 4 Ayes; Selmser, Glenn, Long, Kirch

Department Reports:

Assessor’s Report – Vickie Hayner submitted a written report.

BTI – Mr. Delesky reported he has enough material for next year. He received a 5% discount for purchasing for next year. The whole team is coming back next year.

Clerk/Tax Collector/Registrar – Submitted the monthly report to the board as well as the monthly financial report. The Clerk gave a check to the town board in the amount of $1275.00 from the 911 # Project as a return of the seed money they provided three years ago. The account is now flush.

The tax collector obtained a quote from the current software vendor BAS for the cost to put the tax program with a portal to pay online. The cost for the first year is $2,700.00. The annual maintenance fee would $600.00. I don’t feel it is needed at this time.

Code Enforcement & Sanitation – Mr. Duesler submitted a written report.

Blight – The town received 3 bids to remove asbestos from 2328 State Highway 10 Caroga Lake. 1. T.J. Bell Environmental Inc. 203 Sheer Rd Averill Park NY 12018 - $14,980.00

2. C & C Unlimited Inc. 6 Simmons Land Albany NY 12204 - $18,550.00

3. Orion Demo & Environmental Serv. 8D Petra Ln Albany NY 12205 - $10,495.00.

The bidders contacted CT Male for details on the project. The matter was tabled and Council Member Long suggested getting bids from companies to do the asbestos abatement and demolition at the same time. Supervisor Selmser suggested that John Duesler contact CT Male to apprise us and educate us.

Dog Control – 3 calls for the month 2 dogs not licensed in 2017, 6 unlicensed Jan – Oct.

Golf Course – FMCC asks for a donation for its 26th Annual Golf Classic tournament.

RESOLUTION #2018-140 to donate greens fees to FMCC 26th Annual Golf Classic Tournament was offered by Supervisor Selmser at the regular monthly meeting of the Caroga Town Board held on Wednesday December 12, 2018 at Town hall.

WHEREAS, the town received a correspondence Lesley Lanzi Chief Advancement Officer/Executive Director, Foundation of FMCC 2805 State Highway 67 Johnstown NY 12095 from Fulton Montgomery Community College asking for a donation to its 26th Annual Golf Classic at Rolling Hills Country Club Fort Johnson NY, and

WHEREAS, the Town board desires to donate greens fees for four people for the event, now therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the Caroga Town Board does hereby move to donate four greens fees from the Nick Stoner Municipal Golf Course for the event on May 22, 2019.

Seconded by Council Member Long

Discussion: Council Member Glenn thought Mr. Jennings should be contacted to see if he wants to donate the use of his carts.

Adopted by a vote of 4 Ayes; Selmser, Glenn, Long, Kirch

Highway –Mr. Putman and the board discussed upgrading the electrical panel in the highway barn. A quote was received from Fulton County Electrical for $2,910.00. Mr. Putman may have a box the town can use. Mr. Senzio will be contacted to make sure the cost of labor is included in the quote. The clerk asked if there was a second quote per the procurement policy. Supervisor Selmser stated it was thought to be an emergency. Another vendor will be contacted.

Mr. Putman wondered why the park had lights on every night. He noted there are other street lights the town may not need. They were installed in the 60’ & 70’s. He stated of the 166 street lights there are about 30 not working. The project discussed earlier with National Grid would map the current and proposed lighting. Council Member Long would like Mr. Putman’s opinion on which lights were not needed. He noted lights at major intersections are important to have. The clerk stated that the park light is on because our neighbor wanted a light moved to shine on her property now that she is alone there. That is why the park light is on.

Mr. Putman was asked earlier about a bill for Kerosene. He explained that is what heats two town building yet. We just put a kerosene furnace in the highway barn.

Mr. Putman noted the problems in the Town of Broadalbin due to under-funding the highway budget and the huge increase next year. That is why he comes to the board and the Town of Caroga has upgraded tremendously. He asked the board about a notice he received from Milton Cat on the loader. He asked the board about the plan to have a new loader in 9 – 10 years for free. If the board has changed the plan he needed to know. He thought the board would have brought up their awareness on the purchase agreement for the loader. Every three years the town trades in the loader after 9 years we would have one for free. We were ½ way though. Mr. Putman will get in touch with the CAT dealer to see if we can continue on in the program. Council Member Glenn wanted to do the same program with other equipment.

Mr. Putman noted the Gradall parts are twice as expensive and can only be obtained from the company and our machine is too big for our roads. It was noted that the grader will be obsolete eventually as the dirt roads change to blacktop.

Mr. Putman stated the surplus generator at the county is not a good fit for the town. He also discussed the need for a salt/sand shed. Supervisor Selmser noted there is grant funding which would need to be submitted by the middle of July. Reimbursement was dropped to 50%. Council Member Manning has information on this. Council Member Kirch wanted to talk about this at the January meeting.

Mr. Putman noted already the number of people plowing snow across the road has tripled making hazardous conditions. A letter was drafted to hand out to the property owners. A press release will also be issued. He noted the town could make a local law to charge people for cleaning up after them or put a set fine in the law. There are about 30 people doing this. The letter would serve to put people on notice. State law is in place. The letter will be sent to the town attorney.

Council Member Glenn asked if the beavers down by the outlet had been trapped. The clerk will check.

Lake Steward Program – Council Member Glenn reported that he hopes the grant process applications will be available soon.

Town Hall Building – The town received an additional quote ($5,502.00 new unit) from Appolo Heating for the heater in the code office. The leak is getting worse. The quote for just the part was $2,200.00 plus labor. Supervisor Selmser stated this would create mold problems in the future. Council Member Long suggested cutting the pipe and capping it. The heater in the judge’s office also has problems. Supervisor Selmser will contact Joe from Appolo.

The clinic was inspected – the door and ramp failed. The hospital replaced the door today.

Lakes Management Program – Council Member Long is working on a Lakes Management program document. It is useful in obtaining funding. The document will record the various programs already in place in town. It is being done by email.

Youth – A Nitrate test needs to be submitted by 12/31/18 to NYS Department of Health. A test was submitted on Tuesday.

Supervisor’s Report – Financial reports were given to the board members. Today $100,000.00 was transferred from the money market account to the general fund.

Supervisor Selmser recently attended an Assoc. of Towns and Villages meeting. They discussed FOIL, heard from a person from the MEGA Organization regarding municipal out sourcing utilities. It is a state organization that does not cost any money to join. He will try to get more information. He also noted there is a new national program (First Net) being rolled out to provide emergency communication nationwide. It will be a priority system for first responders. There will be 22 new towers in the Adirondack Park. There are 4 bands on the transmitters.

Council Member Kirch acknowledged the 3 new homes on the building/code office report. Supervisor Selmser noted there would actually be 6 in total. Building permit revenue is now about $9,000.00 above budget. Another deposit was made yesterday for $1,500. Council Member Kirch thought the assistant code position cost was covered for the year.

New Business:

Council Member Long discussed with the board the need to appoint a chairman of ZBA. He stated Ken Coirin “does not want to serve beyond December 31, 2018.” Council Member Long stated there will be business before the town’s reorganizational meeting most likely. Supervisor Selmser noted there will also be another term up on the ZBA.

RESOLUTION #2018-141 to appoint Doug Purcell Chair of the ZBA was offered by Council Member Long at the regular monthly meeting of the Caroga Town Board held on Wednesday December 12, 2018 at Town hall.

WHEREAS, Council Member Long discussed with the board the need to appoint a new chairman for the Zoning Board of Appeals, and

WHEREAS, Ken Coirin has served admirably but no longer desire to continue to serve beyond December 31, 2018, now therefore be it

RESOLVED, that Doug Purcell of 604 S. Shore Road East Caroga Lake shall serve as Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals effective January 1st 2019 and shall run until December 31, 2019.

Seconded by Council Member Kirch

Discussion/question from the Clerk, will Mr. Coirin stay on the board? Absolutely was the response.

Adopted by a vote of 4 Ayes; Selmser, Glenn, Long, Kirch

Supervisor Selmser passed out information from the town’s insurance carrier CDPHP regarding required information that has to be given to people enrolled in the program. He wanted the board members to be aware of it.

Supervisor Selmser stated he received a permit issued from New York State to plow the parking lot at Kane Mountain. The town had to supply an insurance certificate.

The supervisor received a thank you note from Cassandra Izzo regarding holding her wedding at Sherman’s on August 10th, 2019. There is another request for another wedding in 2020. No discussion was held at this time on the request. It was noted that the car show date will be on Sunday July 28th 2019.

No action or discussion on the correspondence from CAC took place as Council Member Manning was absent this evening.

Supervisor Selmser received word from CT Male that the explosive testing on the closed landfill site was done today.

Council Member Long reviewed the history on the sale of SBL # 83.6-3-2. Paperwork is ready to be signed by the Supervisor.

RESOLUTION #2018-142 to authorize Supervisor Selmser to sign documents was offered by Council Member Long at the regular monthly meeting of the Caroga Town Board held on Wednesday December 12, 2018 at Town hall.

WHEREAS, Council Member Long gave background information about the history and the process to sell the town owned property located at 2103 State Highway 10 and identified as SBL #83.6-3-2, and

WHEREAS, Council Member Long presented a deed, New York State form TP584, RP5217, 1099S, and 1099F forms to complete the transfer of ownership of the property due to the sale, now therefore be it

RESOLVED, that Supervisor James Selmser is hereby authorized to sign each of the documents as necessary with the proper notarization for the transfer of the property.

Seconded by Council Member Kirch

Adopted by a vote of 4 Ayes; Selmser, Glenn, Long, Kirch

Correspondence:

11/21 Transfer Station Holiday Hours – Does not affect Caroga Transfer Hours

11/26 Clayton Sitterly e-mail re: any action on purchase proposal for Sherman’s

11/27 Info. on NYS Broadband Program Phase 3 Public hearings

11/30 letter CAC request for use of Sherman’s Property 2019

12/4 TEM – specializing in smart LED lighting

12/6 for a resolution to support Cell Coverage for all NYS Residents & Visitors

Council Member Long made a motion to pay the bills as presented for audit. Council Member Kirch seconded the motion. All board members were in favor of the motion.

Supervisor Selmser asked if there was any other business. Council Member Glenn noted the correspondence from Clayton Sitterly. He thought it was something the board needed to be pursue.

Council Member Long stated “we’ve already been discussing it Jack.” He noted the board received it at the last meeting. Supervisor Selmser stated “It is a contract with the town which we already discussed in executive session.” Since Council Member Manning was absent some board members didn’t want to discuss it. Council Member Glenn stated he wanted to reach out for more information.

Council Member Long stated that we are asking George to sign a release of our obligations if we were to sell to the Caroga Arts Council. In discussions with the town attorney it was stated that there is always the potential that he could prevail in a court. Council Member Long continued to give his thoughts on the potential outcome of the Sherman’s property. Council Member Kirch stated before any moves are made there would be informational meetings or a public hearing. Council Member Long noted any transfer of real property under New York Town law is subject to permissive referendum.

At 8:49 pm Council Member Kirch made a motion to adjourn. Council Member Long seconded the motion. All board members were in favor of the motion.

Former Council Member Sturchio asked about the use of Morey Road this winter. Council Member Long stated Girvin & Ferlazzo is not serving us well in the last several months. Council Member Long stated recently the firm of Dunn & Dunn has taken over the process of negotiating the 7 parcels on Morey Road. Supervisor Selmser thought it might take another six months.

The board adjourned at 8:52 pm.

Respectfully Submitted,

Linda M. Gilbert RMC, CMC

Caroga Town Clerk

General #’s 377 - 417 $23,586.98

Highway #’s 212-231 $21,792.44

General Park – No vouchers/expenses

Prepaid #’s 229 – 245 $76,382.22

Copyright © James McMartin Long 2017–2024