Town Board Meeting November 7, 2022
OFFICIALS PRESENT: Police Chief P. Rickard, Deputy Police Chief M. Maresca, D. Bavoso Town Attorney, D. Hassenmayer, Highway Supt.
Following the Pledge of Allegiance, Supervisor Howell called the public hearing to order at 7:30pm for the Assessment of cost of removing an unsafe building located at (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 Route 211 West, Otisville. Public hearing ad is on table. Supervisor asked for public comment.
Attorney Bavoso: just for the board’s information, the statute in the town code does require personal service, if possible, on the person who now owns the property. That was achieved. I provided the affidavit of service for that. Essentially, the code provides that this public hearing needs to be held before this town board can adopt a resolution attaching that cost to the taxes for the property. I was contacted today by the attorney for the current owner. He indicated they would be here. One is coming from Ellenville and one is coming from Newburgh. If the board wanted to adjourn the public hearing to the end of the meeting, in case they show up, that would be fine.
There were no board comments.
MOTION TO ADJOURN PUBLIC HEARING:
MOTION offered Councilwoman Davis 2nd Councilman Carey to close public hearing at 7:31PM. All in favor: Carey, Howell, Davis, Jennings, Furman; carried.
MOTION TO ACCEPT THE PRIOR MEETING MINUTES:
MOTION offered Councilman Furman 2nd Councilman Jennings that the minutes of the 10-17-2022 meeting are approved as presented. All in favor: Carey, Jennings, Davis, Howell, Furman; carried.
CORRESPONDENCE read by Town Clerk Myers:
1. Resolution for the public hearing on Assessment of cost of removing an unsafe building located at (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 Route 211 West, Otisville
2. Letter from OC Real Property re: tax collector bond
3. Highway department budget modification
4. Resignation from Police Clerk Maureen Woods, effective 10-25-2022
5. Request from highway supt. to replace a street sweeper
6. Fall 2022 trash report
7. OC mortgage tax receipts for October 2022
8. Assoc of Towns corres. re: designation of delegate & alternate for the annual meeting in Feb 2023
9. Complaint re: 18 Blue Flag Lane
10. Building dept. reports for Sept. & Oct. 2022
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Councilman Jennings: fire calls for October were 12. Village tree lighting will be December 2, 6:30 at fire house. Next village meeting is November 17 at 7pm. Generator for youth center – was told 1st time that generator was shipped. Then was told I was given wrong information. Ours will not be in until January/February now. He will call them every month until we get the generator.
Councilman Furman: Dean and the guys took care of a few things over at Hidden Valley. He thanked Dean. MVYFL had their last game Sunday. Their season is over. He spoke re: rubber speed bumps (they get lagged into the road) for Finchville Tpk. by the ball park entrances. He got prices on a few. He went over everything with the board. He also spoke re: speed limit flashing lights – there’s a wide variety of those. He spoke re: LIGHT IT UP GREEN in honor of Veteran’s Day. If interested, you would replace your outside lights at your home with a green light bulb to honor those Veterans. He spoke re: 9:00pm routine: lock cars and house doors, leave front light on.
Councilman Carey: Boy scouts are supposed to come tonight to discuss potential Eagle Scout projects. The trunk or treat went great. He thanked everyone involved. All town board members contributed towards prizes for the trunks. He would like to have the tree lighting on Dec. 3rd. He spoke to Chief Rickard about including a move with the tree lighting night. He’d like to start at 6:30pm if that works for everyone. He reminded everyone to go vote tomorrow. He’d like to see about moving the election poll site from the senior center to the youth center. Board of elections would have to approve it. Mike Romano was here fixing outside lights. There were a couple out at the senior center as well. He is interested in going to the Association of Towns conference in February 2023. He does not have an answer for the pickle ball court.
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He does not think we can just paint over the clear coat. Maybe they can put down the tape temporarily.
Councilwoman Davis: Saturday is the Veterans Day parade. Starts at 11:00am. She invited any veterans form the village and town to join in the parade. November 16 is the planning board meeting at 7pm. She spoke re: light switches in the youth center. They are currently in the gym side of the building. She asked if they could be moved to inside the youth center rental side of the building for easier access.
HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT:
Supt. Hassenmayer informed the board that the restrooms at the park have been winterized. The doors at the senior center have been fixed. They are ready to dig for the addition. He hasn’t heard back from the mason. He will reach out. He spoke about the cars in the impound lot. There are 5 total. Tenke’s offered to buy them for $1500 for all 5 cars. The attorney had sent the owners letters last year. They had 10 days to get in touch with the town. He is seeking approval to purchase the sweeper.
POLICE DEPARTMENT:
Chief Rickard requested executive session for a personnel issue. Councilman Carey asked how we are making out with the woman walking the streets and banging on doors. Chief Rickard: she isn’t doing anything that she can be arrested for. State police have given her a ride to Middletown a couple times.
VILLAGE OF OTISVILLE:
Trustee Lattimer thanked the veterans for their service. Village tree lighting is December 2; between 6-6:30 Santa will be arriving. Patriot tree lighting will be 12/7 @ 6:30pm. Fall clean-up with the leaves is finished. The village park is being winterized. Men’s room at the firehouse project was completed. May/June, after the next budget they will try to get the other bathrooms completed. Dec. 3 & 4 the firehouse is holding a vendor event – does not have the times yet. He reminded everyone to vote. Lance is continuing his effort to get the street light at the corner of Baker Street & Sanatorium Avenue. There’s been questions about Santa and a parade – the village is hoping to do this with the town.
SUPERVISOR HOWELL reminded everyone to vote tomorrow. Wreaths across America will be on December 17 at 2pm at the Holy Name Church.
MOTION TO APPROVE THE TAX COLLECTOR BOND:
MOTION offered Councilman Carey 2nd Councilwoman Davis to approve the tax collector bond in the amount of $1,600,000.00 – copy on file in the town clerk’s office. All in favor: Davis, Carey, Howell, Furman, Jennings; motion carried.
MOTION TO APPROVE HIGHWAY BUDGET MODIFICATION:
MOTION offered Councilman Furman 2nd Councilman Jennings to approve the following:
Increase B2130 Refuse/Garbage revenue by $2,784.00
Increase B8160.4 Refuse/Garbage Contr. by $2,784.00; (payments from residents for fall clean-up)
All in favor: Davis, Carey, Howell, Jennings, Furman; carried.
MOTION TO ACCEPT RESIGNATION FROM MAUREEN WOODS, POLICE CLERK:
MOTION offered Councilman Furman 2nd Councilman Carey to accept the resignation from Maureen Woods, Police Clerk effective October 25, 2022. All in favor: Davis, Carey, Howell, Jennings, Furman; carried.
MOTION TO AUTHORIZE PURCHASE OF STREET SWEEPER:
MOTION offered Councilman Carey 2nd Councilman Furman to authorize the highway supt. to purchase a 2002 Freightliner with a Johnson sweeper for $20,000 ($13,520 will come from insurance settlement and $6,480.00 will come out of town budget). All in favor: Davis, Carey, Howell, Jennings, Furman; carried.
MOTION TO APPROVE TRAINING SCHOOL FOR JULIE MUSIAL, BUILDING INSPECTOR:
MOTION offered Councilman Carey 2nd Councilman Furman to approve training for building inspector Julie Musial 11/15/2022 through 11/18/2022 for $435.00. All in favor: Davis, Carey, Howell, Jennings, Furman; carried.
MOTION TO APPROVE THE VETERAN’S DAY PROCLAMATION:
MOTION offered Councilwoman Davis 2nd Councilman Furman to approve the proclamation as read by Supervisor Howell – see end of minutes. All in favor: Carey, Jennings, Howell, Jennings, Furman; carried.
MOTION TO APPROVE THE HIGHWAY UNION CONTRACT:
MOTION offered Councilman Furman 2nd Councilman Carey to approve the Mount Hope Highway Department Union Contract valid 1/1/2023 through 12/31/2026 and authorize the town supervisor to sign the contract. All in favor: Carey, Jennings, Howell, Jennings, Furman; carried.
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MOTION TO AUDIT THE CLAIMS:
MOTION offered Councilwoman Davis 2nd Councilman Jennings to approve the bills (abstracts 42, 43, 44):
Abstract 42: GENERAL A: #532-540 $ 3,450.00
SEWER: #91 $ 425.00
CAP RES: #2-3 $ 10,440.00
Abstract 43: GENERAL A: #541-548 $ 52,983.98
GENERAL B: #94-98 $ 29,841.19
HIGHWAY: #173-178 $ 1,668.36
SEWER: #92 $ 1,155.26
AMERICAN RESCUE: #7 $ 17,810.00
Abstract 44: GENERAL A: #549-562 $ 17,429.97
GENERAL B: #99 $ 442.17
HIGHWAY: #179-181 $ 8,163.70
SEWER: #93-94 $ 1,832.67
All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Marybeth Horzepa spoke re: Pocatello ladies auxiliary vendor/craft sale on November 12, 2022 at the Pocatello firehouse.
Diane Loeven: confirmed line up for parade is at 10:30am. She explained why the village tree lighting was moved to Friday from Saturday: due to vendor craft event. She thanked Dean for fixing the doors at the senior center. Senior Christmas party will be at the Erie in Port Jervis.
Brian Waugh: knows the engineer dropped off the plans for the new field. He asked if the board had a chance to review it and decide where we are allowed to build. Supervisor acknowledged having the packet from the engineer. He spoke with Dean about it. He also had left it for the board members to review over the weekend. Councilman Jennings has a few concerns. He asked how many new kids are signed up for the new year. Mr. Lattimer: registration just opened. Right now, there’s only 22 but its so early. Jennings: I’m concerned because #’s go up, #’s go down. Building another field and then it doesn’t get used is a concern especially with that fencing. Lattimer: not looking for the fencing right away. Jennings: (the engineer) showed 2 different locations. Waugh: what did engineer recommend? Supervisor: the recommendation from the engineer was to have it across the street opposite the concession stand – parking lot side. Hassenmayer: but he referenced draining and everything which there’s drainage along Finchville Turnpike & it goes all the way down to the brook. It actually starts in the village. It’s been there for years. There’s no runoff that goes over the area on the ballfield side no. Engineer referenced that in his comments which is a valid point. Supervisor: (another location) was same side as the concession stand but closer to the football field from the driveway that goes to the back pavilion. Supervisor read the following from the engineer: The proposal on the same side of the street is a natural path for drainage that develops and composes the drainage issue for the other areas of the park and the road possibly. This would affect the field itself and the runoff at the park as it drains this wat. Furthermore, it’s been noted that it could be an issue with bedrock or tremendous cost amounts. Finally, the cost of levelling the area is immense compared to the already level across the street. It should be noted that it’s recommended that the LL and the municipality are responsible for the road; consider speed bumps and entrances are at the entrances to the park or existing crosswalk areas. Audience member: across the street is what he’s recommending? Supervisor: correct. Waugh: if you put it in the other area, you can make more speed bumps and crosswalks. Lattimer: what does he mean about the bedrock? Supervisor: that’s underneath the soil. There are no specifics on that. Supervisor: the note of having increased speed bumps at the entrance would be if you were across the street because you’re gonna have that much more traffic. Having the kids back and forth to the concessions/bathrooms is that many more trips you’re putting the kids in the street and across the street as opposed to the same side. Waugh: if you put it over there, you’re gonna have more kids walking along the street to get to the concession stand. It’s still a risk especially without a guard rail. Hassenmayer: there’s a path behind your ABC field. (inaudible) Waugh: the dugouts along the road, the kids are gonna run along the street. Hassenmayer: you’re gonna have to manage the kids. Audience member: if it’s easier and cheaper structurally, than what the engineer is saying, the other side of the street makes more sense, you put speed bumps down if – regardless. Hassenmayer: if you put it across the street, that field floods now as it is. We have zero drainage over there. I think it’s wrong to put it over there; that’s my opinion. Audience member: isn’t that why we consulted an engineer – to take all that into consideration? Supervisor: I would hope so. Councilwoman Davis: I don’t feel it’s appropriate to put it across the street. I said that in the spring & I still stand for that. I don’t think speed bumps are appropriate on Finchville Tpk either. Why would we put speed bumps Finchville Tpk? (inaudible)Hassenmayer: before we do speed bumps, I’d rather see a stop sign at the intersections in the park. There’s no special law for that it’s just the members of the board have to decide approvement and I’ll put them up. There’s no cost. They’re in stock. If we get an early snow storm, your $2,000 speed bumps are garbage. Councilman Carey: I looked to see what the engineer said and depending on the size – I understand the arguments for both sides of the road – I don’t have a problem with either. Can we have our engineer look at their engineer report?
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Supervisor: we can have our town engineer look at Fusco’s plan. He will hope to have an answer by next meeting.
MOTION TO RE-OPEN PUBLIC HEARING FOR ASSESSMENT OF COST OF REMOVING AN UNSAFE BUILDING LOCATED AT (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 ROUTE 211 WEST, OTISVILLE NY:
MOTION offered Councilwoman Davis 2ND Councilman Furman to re-open the public hearing at 8:14pm for assessment of cost of removing an unsafe building located at (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 Route 211 West, Otisville. All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
MOTION TO CLOSE PUBLIC HEARING FOR ASSESSMENT OF COST OF REMOVING AN UNSAFE BUILDING LOCATED AT (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 ROUTE 211 WEST, OTISVILLE NY:
MOTION offered Councilman Carey 2ND Councilman Jennings to close the public hearing at 8:14pm for assessment of cost of removing an unsafe building located at (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 Route 211 West, Otisville. All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
MOTION TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION AS WRITTEN FOR ASSESSMENT OF COST OF REMOVING AN UNSAFE BUILDING LOCATED AT (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 ROUTE 211 WEST, OTISVILLE NY:
MOTION offered Councilwoman Davis 2nd Councilman Carey to adopt the resolution for the assessment of cost of removing an unsafe building located at (SBL 10-1-46) 1641 Route 211 West, Otisville. All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
MOTION TO ACCEPT THE OFFER FROM TENKE AUTO:
MOTION Councilman Carey 2nd Councilman Furman to accept the offer from Tenke Auto FOR $300 per car to purchase and remove for a 5-car total. All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
BOARD COMMENTS:
Councilman Carey: reminded everyone to vote tomorrow.
Councilman Furman reminded everyone to vote tomorrow.
Councilman Jennings asked if they were going to vote on the stop signs. Councilman Carey: will they stay up year-round? If they are up year-round, they’re gonna be abused. Councilman Furman: can we take the sign down and leave the post up? Hassenmayer: once they’re up – they’re up. He would do the stop lines, too. He won’t do this until the spring.
MOTION TO ENTER INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION:
MOTION offered Councilman Furman 2nd Councilman Jennings to enter into executive session at 8:19pm to discuss a personnel issue in the police department. All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
MOTION TO RECONVENE REGULAR MEETING:
MOTION offered Councilman Furman 2nd Councilwoman Davis to reconvene the regular board meeting at 9:56pm. NO ACTION WAS TAKEN IN THIS EXECUTIVE SESSION. All in favor: Howell, Davis, Carey, Jennings, Furman; motion carried.
MOTION TO ADJOURN:
MOTION offered Councilman Jennings 2nd Councilman Carey to adjourn the meeting at 8:06pm. All in favor: Carey, Howell, Davis, Jennings, Furman; carried.
The next meeting is scheduled for November 21,2022 at 7:30pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Kathleen Myers RMC
Town Clerk
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Proclamation
Whereas, November 11th is a federal holiday to honor the men and women whom served in the United States Armed Forces.
Whereas, The Town of Mount Hope recognizes the dedication and sacrifice our Veterans have made to serve and protect our Country.
Whereas, Through the service of our veterans our freedom and liberties are preserved.
Whereas, The Town of Mount Hope expresses its most sincere thanks and gratitude for your service to our country.
Therefore, be it resolved, The Town of Mount Hope proclaims November 12th 2022 as
Veteran’s Appreciation Day
In the Town of Mount Hope.
_________________________
Supervisor Matthew Howell
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RESOLUTION OF THE TOWN BOARD,
TOWN OF MOUNT HOPE
WHEREAS, Chapter 94 of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope addresses the issue of Unsafe Buildings within the Town; and
WHEREAS, Chapter 94 of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope allows the Town to enter upon private property to demolish and remove an Unsafe Building; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to §94-9 of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope, the Town Board held a public hearing was held on November 22, 2021, regarding property located at 1641 Route 211 West, Town of Mount hope, Orange County, New York, and further identified as Section 10, Block 1, Lot 46 on the Tax Map of the Town of Mount Hope. That public hearing was held open and adjourned to December 6, 2021, and again held open and adjourned to December 20, 2021, at which time it was closed; and
WHEREAS, all relevant testimony was heard during the public hearing; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to §94-13 of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope, an Order was issued by the Town Board declaring the Unsafe Building located on the premises to be a clear and imminent danger to the life, safety or health of persons or property in the Town and authorized the Building Department to remove such Unsafe Building under the Town’s emergency procedure; and
WHEREAS, the Town of Mount Hope engaged the services Ground Control Excavating, Inc. to demolish and remove the Unsafe Building on the premises for a sum of Sixty-Two Thousand and 00/100 ($62,000.00) Dollars paid by the Town; and
WHEREAS, the Unsafe Building was demolished and removed by Ground Control Excavating, Inc. in May of 2022; and
WHEREAS, §94-11 of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope allows the Town of Mount Hope to assess the cost of the demolition and removal of the Unsafe Building against the land on which such building is located, to be collected in the same manner as provided by law for the levy and collection of a special ad valorem levy; and
WHEREAS, the Town Board of the Town of Mount Hope held a public hearing regarding the levy of the cost of demolition against the land on November 7, 2022 and complied with all aspects of §94-12 of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope; and
WHEREAS, all those interested in speaking on the subject were heard during the public hearing held on November 7, 2022,
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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town Board of the Town of Mount Hope, pursuant to §94-11(B) of the Town Code of the Town of Mount Hope, shall assess the cost of such removal against the land on which the Unsafe Building was located, described as Section 10, Block 1, Lot 46 of the Tax Map of the Town of Mount Hope, and shall be levied and collected in the same manner as provided for in the Town Law of the State of New York for the levy and collection of a special ad valorem tax.
Motion made by: Councilwoman Amanda Davis
Motion Seconded by: Councilman Brian Carey
All in favor: Councilman Carey, Councilman Furman, Councilman Jennings, Supervisor Howell, Councilwoman Davis
All opposed: NONE
Abstentions: NONE
Dated: November 7, 2022
TOWN OF MOUNT HOPE
________________________________
KATHLEEN MYERS, TOWN CLERK
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