Regular Town Board Meeting of the Van Buren Town Board, held at the Van Buren Town Hall, 7575 Van Buren Road, Baldwinsville, New York on November 15, 2011 at 7:30 pm.
Ms. Mary Frances Sabin Councilor
Mr. Derek Shepard Councilor
Mr. Howard Tupper Councilor
Mr. Harold Johnson Councilor
Ms. Patricia Dickman Councilor
Mr. Claude Sykes Supervisor
Absent: Mr. Ronald Dudzinski, Councilor
Mr. Jeff Brown Attorney
Mr. Jason Hoy Engineer
Mr. John Virginia Deputy Highway Superintendent
Mrs. Lynn McCormick-Precourt Town Clerk
Pledge of Allegiance and Roll Call.
Citizens Comments: None
Approve minutes of the 11/1/2011 Regular Town Board meeting:
207-11-000 MOTION BY Ms. Sabin, seconded by Mr. Johnson, to approve the minutes of the 11/1/2011 Regular Town Board meeting as published.
Ms. Sabin – Yes, Mr. Shepard – Yes, Mr. Tupper – Yes, Mr. Johnson – Yes, Ms. Dickman – Yes, Mr. Sykes – Yes
All Ayes – Motion Carried & Adopted
Assessor’s Report:
Ms. Golden said the renewals for senior, enhanced star and disability exemptions have been mailed and are entered as received. Agricultural, firefighters and non profit renewals are ready for mailing in December.
Ms. Golden said all special district changes have been entered for 2012 and the file frozen for rate calculation and county/town billing.
Ms. Golden said an updated file has been received for SDG which will allow attachment of pictures for new parcels.
Ms. Golden said an updated V-4 standalone file is expected from ORPTS for 2012 valuation processing.
Ms. Golden said data collection and valuation review continue for the 2012 assessment roll.
Mr. Golden said the one day seminar critiquing appraisals was very interesting and well attended. A discussion indicated interest in expanding the class to two days for a more in depth appraisal review.
Ms. Golden said the seven central region employees expected to be unemployed have been saved by an approved contract with the state.
Ms. Sabin asked if there was more traffic in her office this time of year.
Ms. Golden said the office tends to be busier when the bills go out and when people are renewing their exemptions. She said in between there are still deeds and other exemptions to process.
Ms. Sabin asked if she could keep track of how many people come into the office.
Ms. Golden said yes, they actually did keep track for the county consolidation study and she can also try to get a copy of those numbers.
Ms. Dickman asked which tax return seniors need to show for their income for 2012 exemption renewal.
Ms. Golden said 2010.
Supervisors Comments:
Mr. Sykes congratulated all the elected officials on their re-elections and congratulated Mr. Shepard on his election to the County Legislature.
Mr. Sykes held up two signs that were removed from the spring at Whiskey Hollow and read them aloud:
“Save the Hollow, Sykes and his bobblehead buddies raised our taxes 50% yet fail to maintain the road taking away your right to get water here. Vote against Sykes.”
In marker in the corner, “Not politics, need water”
And in marker over the entire sign, “Cut off politics”.
The other sign,
“They’re going to shut the water off. If you elect Sykes they’re going to shut the water off and continue to ignore maintenance on this road. We care about the Hollow and community that gets water here. We are community members not politicians. These are are the facts.”
Mr. Sykes said that is what he wants to address tonight are the facts.
He said the town has no intention of closing the road and as good as he is, he cannot stop water from flowing. He said the spring is owned by “Save the County” and only the Town Highway Superintendent can close a road, a Town Board cannot close a road.
Mr. Sykes said the road has been plowed up to the spring with a turnaround for the past couple years and that’s what will continue to happen this year. He said it would be crazy to plow the entire road the full length every time it snows, there are no businesses or homes on the road.
Mr. Virginia said he is the one who looked into making this a seasonal road. He said the road is in bad repair and they have been there filling potholes recently, but plowing the entire length of the road all winter long just makes those potholes worse in the Spring. He said they will continue to plow the whole road when necessary, but will not do it every time it snows. He said the road to the water along with a turnaround will be maintained throughout the winter as it has in the past.
Mr. Virginia said the decision to make this a seasonal road was not made lightly, but tax savings, along with the perils to those who have to plow it, were taken into consideration.
Mr. Sykes said he always welcomes people coming in to the Town Hall or calling him, Board members or the Town Clerk with any questions they have about any issues. He said the people here are always able to give the public the facts.
Ms. Sabin asked about the water samples that were taken that showed coliform in the water.
Mr. Sykes said an individual took a water sample to a private lab a few years ago and brought him in a copy of the report and he shared the results with the public. He said there was coliform in the water which is a precursor to E-Coli. He said he knows many people get their water from there and have not gotten sick, but he felt he should share those results.
Mr. Sykes said there will be a grand opening ribbon cutting at Faith Ridge senior living condominiums on Land Rush Way on Thursday, November 17th at Noon if anyone is interested in attending.
Councilor Committee Reports and Comments:
Mr. Shepard said the contract negotiations with the office workers union are continuing.
Mr. Tupper said he will be attending a meeting on the pros and cons of consolidation at the Holiday Inn in Liverpool conducted by Bond, Schoneck & King.
Ms. Sabin thanked Mr. Sykes for looking into the Vehicle and Traffic Law about the signs that can be posted near Reynolds Elementary School.
Mr. Sykes said the Highway Department installed new signs this week.
Ms. Dickman asked about the new stop signs in the new area of Harbour Heights, particularly the ones on Silversides Way.
Mr. Sykes said Silversides Way is a very long road and with no controlled intersections it was going to be a dangerous situation unless there were some stop signs installed.
Highway Superintendent Comments: None
Citizens Comments:
Mr. O’Neill asked about the traffic on Rt. 31 near Commane Road and said he has a friend who says it’s difficult with the cars coming up Rt. 31 to turn out of Harbour Heights.
Mr. Sykes said the town has requested the State DOT to look at reducing the speed on that section of Rt. 31 three times and they continue to say the current speed is sufficient.
Mr. Sykes said he will contact them and ask if it it worth making a formal request for them to look at it again.
Engineer Comments:
Mr. Hoy said both the Maple Road sidewalk and Seneca Knolls drainage projects are underway.
Mr. Hoy said there was a stormwater article in the “Green” section of the Post Standard and this is one of the items of educational outreach that is done as part of the intermunicipal consortium of municipalities for MS4 stormwater compliance.
Attorney Comments: None
208-11-000 MOTION BY Ms. Dickman, seconded by Ms. Sabin, to adjourn to the next Regular Town Board meeting on December 6, 2011 at 7:30 pm.
Ms. Sabin – Yes, Mr. Shepard – Yes, Mr. Tupper – Yes, Mr. Johnson – Yes, Ms. Dickman – Yes, Mr. Sykes – Yes
All Ayes – Motion Carried & Adopted
Meeting closed 7:51 pm
Respectfully submitted,
Lynn Precourt
Town Clerk
Dated: 11/16/11
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| November_15_2011.doc | 38 KB |