The March Town Board Meeting was held on March 3, 2016 at 7pm at the Town of Rochester Town Hall.
PRESENT:
Supervisor Chipman Councilwoman Chachkin Councilwoman Fornino
Councilman Drabkin Councilman Spano Town Clerk Gundberg
ABSENT:
Attorney Christiana
PLEDGE:
Supervisor Chipman opened the meeting and Councilman Spano led in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Charlie Fischer; regarding to traffic safety 40 mph is too fast on Queens Highway.
Bob Garrett stated last month there was a discussion of security at the Courthouse. We currently have 3 Constables and the Town was looking to hire 2 more. I see the revenue but where in the budget does this reflect where they get paid?
Supervisor Chipman stated you see no salary because there is no salary. The only paid constable at this point is the Court Officer and that’s paid out of the Justice Court fund.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Fornino to approve the minutes of the 02/04/2016 Town Board Meeting, 2/25/2016 Audit/Workshop Meeting.
Seconded by: Councilwoman Chachkin 5-0 aye, motion carried
SUPERVISORS REPORT: Filed with the Town Clerk
Supervisor Chipman clarified questions Highway Superintendent had in regards to Highway Abstract 13 of 15.The AID is being worked on now and should be completed within the next 4-6 weeks.
LEGAL UPDATES: Nothing to report at this time
SUPERVISOR’S UPDATE: Nothing to report at this time
LIASION REPORTS:
Councilwoman Chachkin: Addressed the local art work in the Town Hall meeting room. A series of exhibits of local Artists & local views will be on display for 3 months at a time. Planning Board: held 2/8 public hearing on minor subdivision application for 3 lots on Upper Whitfield road which is part of a national register; known as the Hellin property, the public hearing for the Hellin property was closed and a conditional final approval was granted. On the agenda for the 3/14 public hearing are two other minor subdivision for 2 lots each on Samsonville Rd and Rock Hill Rd, the proposed expansion of an existing use for 10 acre parcel for Agriculture & Tourism enterprise & commercial stable operation on route 44/55. Also the Planning Board amended 2014 conditional preliminary approval phases 2 and 3 of major subdivision known as Catskill Farms located on Dawson Rd will go from 15 lots to 8 lots.
HPC: 2/27 put together the program for approval advisory committee; HARP.
ZRC: held their 5th meeting; plan to go before the Town Board soon with clarifying regulating front yard setbacks & regulating small scale solar installations for private use accessory use. New section of the code; new use large scale of commercial solar farm is underway. Supervisor Chipman reiterated that there is a big push for farmers to put in solar farms to sell back to the grid.
RSC: 2/19 meeting it was discussed doing research on accident incidents statistics in the Town of Rochester, discussed clearing dates for field visit with Cornell. The Cornell local roads project field visit was cancelled after issues arose at the last meeting. After doing some investigation Councilwoman Chachkin stated that regarding the topic of legal liability for Highway accidents on Municipalities from what she can tell written notice laws aren’t that cut and dry as we were lead to believe or think. But she recommends Attorney Christiana to check her conclusions. From what Councilwoman Chachkin concluded written notice is definitely required for highway maintenance issues it is not generally required for defects in one kind or another, in things you have done ie: road markings & signs. One example if you put up a sign in the past and it is over grown with vegetation & cannot be seen you do not need to have written notice to have liability attached should there be an accident and should it be proved that the accident occurred do to the fact the sign was obscured. The law doesn’t work that way. If a sign is up it should be inspected regularly. Councilwoman Chachkin reiterated that Attorney Christiana should review her findings. When a municipality does an investigation of what to do to make the roads safer it may rely on expert opinion from experts such as Cornell without their law incurring written notice liability, their opinion is not considered written notice. Municipalities have qualified immunity when they examine the issues & get expert opinion then decide what to do. Yes, if it is brought up in court the Town should have a rational decision as to why something wasn’t done. The Town has a lot of leeway for making those decisions including resources. As long as we fully document why and how. These are the results that the Court looks at and that’s how the court decides. I think it is important that we understand this. We as a Town Board are ultimately liable legally and financially should it come to that for not fulfilling our duty to keep roads safe & we need to consider this for the future.
Rich Miller: NYSDOT is working with agencies for an on-line searchable database for accidents, tickets issued with each Town. This information will provide what roads, type of accidents, weather & time of day. More information should be available within the next two weeks. 30% of accidents within the Town of Rochester are state roads the remaining 70% are Town & County roads. Councilwoman Chachkin stated these are the kinds of statistics we need, the Town may be more protected by this study.
Councilwoman Fornino: 3/17/16 Community St. Patrick’s Day luncheon 11:30-1pm. 3/23/16 is the Children’s sleepover at the Community Center. 3/26/16 is the Annual Easter Egg hunt starting at 12pm.
Councilman Drabkin: ZBA: there is an appeal to the Code Enforcement Officer’s decision to not allow a business sign on Queens Highway called pies.com.
Councilman Spano: nothing to report
Supervisor Chipman: ECC: working on historical natural resources. There is a discussion on the pathway to colony farm. Department of Corrections want to put a solar farm in but it cuts the path for the training hill for hang gliders, and the view for the scenic byway. Assessor’s office: 3/1/16 was the exemption deadline. Supervisor Chipman received calls thanking the Assessor’s Office for the service they provide making calls to seniors that were close to the deadline. Hats off to the Assessor’s office.
NEW/OLD BUSINESS:
HAMLET OF ACCORD REVITALIZATION PROJECT:
Ward Mintz of the Historic Preservation Commission presented to the Board HARP (the Hamlet of Accord Revitalization Project). This project’s mission is to work with residents on Main St, businesses, organizations and local Government agencies, to restore and rejuvenate the hamlet of Accord’s careworn Main Street. The committee will work together to develop and interpret Main Street’s historical ties to the Delaware & Hudson Canal and the New York, Ontario & Western Railway, increase access to the hamlet’s scenic waterfront, and identify adaptive uses for derelict sites, the project aims to revitalize Accord’s Main Street as a vital residential and commercial place where residents and visitors can come together to live, work shop and play.
Resolution # 68 -2016:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Chachkin to appoint the following to serve on the HARP Advisory Committee;
Lynn Archer Ward Mintz Ron Sharkey
Mike Baden Peter Nelson Richard Travers
Britt Baker Bill Philliber Bill Woods
Greta Baker Susan Philliber Carl Chipman
Sherry Chachkin Regan Philliber Grace Bonney
Alice Cross Maria Reidelbach Julia Tershun
Elaine LaFlamme Alice Schoonmaker
Walter Levy Charlie Wyant
Seconded by: Supervisor Chipman 5-0aye, motion carried
DISCUSSION:
Councilman Spano stated that he has no problem with the revitalization project but reminded the Board a few years ago they decided not to apply for grants for sidewalks on Main Street and now today we want to build it up, isn’t this something we should look into?
Supervisor Chipman stated we would never have qualified for that grant.
Councilwoman Chachkin stated that this is a great way to link this with the rail trail.
Supervisor Chipman stated he would love to see transportation from Main St. to Minnewaska Park. This would help business on Main Street boom. Supervisor Chipman also stated that Councilman Drabkin is working on tree planting on Main St.
ADVERTISE FOR PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED LOCAL LAW # 2-2016: AMENDING CHAPTER 38 OF THE TOWN OF ROCHESTER CODE.
Section 1. The Town Board finds that it is necessary to update and amend Chapter 38 of the Code of the Town of Rochester regarding Alternates to the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals.
Section 2. The definition of ALTERNATE member in §38-3 shall be amended to read
“ALTERNATE MEMBER — An individual appointed by the Town Board to serve on the town’s Planning Board or Zoning Board of Appeals when a regular member is unable to participate on an application or matter before the respective Board as provided herein.”
Section 3 §38-4(A) of the Code shall be amended to read as follows:
A. The Town Board of the Town of Rochester hereby enacts this chapter to provide a process for appointing one alternate member to the Planning Board and one alternate member to the Zoning Boards of Appeals. The alternate member would serve when regular members are unable to participate on an application or matter before the respective Board.
Section 4 §38-4(C) shall be amended to read as follows:
C. Alternate members shall be required to comply with the training requirements as set forth in § 34-3 of this Code as a condition of appointment.
Section 5. §34-4(D) shall be amended to read as follows:
D. The Chairperson of the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals shall designate the alternate member to substitute for a regular member for any application, matter or period of time (1) such regular member is recused due to conflict of interest; (2) such regular member has or will have extended absence from the Board of 2 or more consecutive meetings; or (3) to establish a quorum for a specific meeting. When so designated, the alternate member shall remain in place for all subsequent review of any specific applications until such time as the application is decided, except when seated to establish quorum for a specific meeting, and shall possess all the powers of a regular member of the Board. The Chairperson shall make such designation by verbal statement indicating which regular member is being substituted for and shall direct the secretary to indicate such designation in the minutes of each meeting or the specific application the alternate is substituted.
Section 6. A new §34-4(F) shall be added to the Code of the Town of Rochester to read as follows:
F. Alternate members shall not be seated with the regular members of the Board and shall not take part in the discussion of any application unless designated to substitute by the Chairperson.
Section 7. This local law shall take effect upon filing with the New York Secretary of State.
Resolution # 69 -2016:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Chachkin to schedule a public hearing for proposed Local Law # 2-2016: Amending Chapter 38 of the Town Code for 3/31/2016 at 5:00pm at the Town of Rochester Town Hall with the workshop meeting immediately following and for the Town Clerk to advertise the same.
Seconded by: Councilman Spano 5-0aye, motion carried
APPOINTMENT OF PLANNING BOARD ALTERNATE:
Resolution # 70-2016:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Chachkin to appoint Rick Jones to serve as the Alternate to the Planning Board with a term to expire 12/31/2016.
Seconded by: Councilman Spano 5-0aye, motion carried
APPOINTMENT TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION COMMISSION:
Resolution # 71-2016:
A Motion was made by Councilman Drabkin to appoint Danielle Dubord to the Environmental Conservation Commission with a term to expire 12/31/2018.
Seconded by: Councilman Spano 5-0aye, motion carried
APPOINTMENT TO THE CONSTABULARY:
Resolution # 72-2016:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Chachkin to appoint Dominick Fontana to the Constabulary.
Seconded by: Supervisor Chipman
DISCUSSION:
Councilman Spano stated he will abstain from voting until copies of application and employment history is reviewed.
Chief Constable Miller gave a brief overview of Fontana’s background.
Councilman Spano stated that contents of applicant’s background shouldn’t be discussed publically.
The Board agreed to table the resolution until all members receive copies of constabulary applications.
Motion not carried
SALES TAX REVENUE SHARING:
Supervisor Chipman gave a synopsis of events that took place last month at the County Level where Ulster County went before the Ways & Means Committee requesting changes to the percentage of sales tax the City of Kingston and remaining Town’s & Villages of Ulster County receive. Supervisor Chipman gave brief examples of the effects this could have on each Town & Village. Currently it would cut the Town of Rochester’s share by $ 50,000.00. He asked for the Board to support; Memorializing Resolution in Extending the 2011 Sales Tax Agreement between the County of Ulster and the City of Kingston for an additional Five Year Term.
Resolution #73 -2016:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Chachkin that;
WHEREAS, by agreement dated October 10, 2010, the City of Kingston and the County of Ulster entered into a Sales Tax Sharing Agreement (the “Agreement”), which provided for the County of Ulster imposing a county-wide sales tax, the City of Kingston refraining from imposing a sales tax, and for the net proceeds of the sales tax to be shared between the following municipal entities:
1. County of Ulster – 85%
2. City of Kingston – 11.5%
3. Towns and Villages (distributed based upon full valuation) – 3%; and
WHEREAS, said Agreement was to be in place for the period from March 1, 2011 to February 29, 2016; and
WHEREAS, the Town of Rochester projects a sales tax distribution of approximately $150,000 for FY 2016 based upon the Agreement’s distribution percentages; and
WHEREAS, Ulster County Government has proposed cutting the portion of the net sales tax revenue that is allocated to the Towns from 3% to 2%; and
WHEREAS, such a cut would have a severe impact on the Town of Rochester’s finances, and could potentially result in the elimination of public services currently provided by the Town; and
WHEREAS, it is in the best interest of the Town of that the current Agreement, which expires on February 29, 2016, be extended, in an unmodified form, for an additional five year period; and
WHEREAS, such extension of the Agreement would provid financial stability to the Town of Rochester, as well as to all other municipal entities located in Ulster County, now therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the Town of Rochester Town Board requests that the City of Kingston and the County of Ulster reach an agreement to extend the 2010 Sales Tax Sharing Agreement, which is set to expire on February 29, 2016, for an additional five year period, in an unmodified form; and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Town of Rochester Town Board calls upon its elected Ulster County Legislator, Ronald Lapp to support extending the 2010 Sales Tax Sharing Agreement for an additional five year period, in an unmodified form, and be it further
RESOLVED, that a certified copy of this resolution be forwarded to each member of the Ulster County Legislator, Ulster County Executive Michael Hein, and the Mayor of the City of Kingston.
Seconded by: Councilwoman Fornino 5-0 aye, motion carried
Supervisor thanked the Board for their support and he stated that if this is approved it will take effect June of this year.
ULSTER COUNTY RESOLUTION 128 OF 2016:
The proposed resolution is to urge the State of New York to reduce the local share of safety net welfare spending from current 71% county share/ 29% state share back to the 50/50 which it was. Supervisor Chipman reviewed the struggle of the Tax Cap and fee’s getting pushed on to the Towns.
Resolution # 74 -2016:
A Motion was made by Supervisor Chipman to approve the following;
WHEREAS, the 2011-12 State Budget dramatically lowered the State’s fiscal responsibility in the Safety Net Program by shifting the cost to 71% county / 29% state, severing the historic 50% state / 50% county partnership; and
WHEREAS, this continues a long line of state legislative actions that has transferred the State’s constitutional and fiscal responsibility to care for the needy to county taxpayers, while providing counties virtually no control over eligibility for services and benefit levels; and
WHEREAS, the Safety Net funding shift also builds upon recent trends where the State has leveraged significant savings from maximizing available federal resources largely for state financial plan purposes only, at the expense of local property taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, the net effect of this state practice forces local property taxes to be higher than they should because available savings are being spent by the state rather than being user to lower the cost of state mandates which can provide direct relief to local property taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, nearly half of the states do not have Safety Net programs and New York is one of only 11 states that provide benefits to childless adults that do not have some disability; and
WHEREAS, most other states do not require counties to fund such a large share of public assistance costs; and
WHEREAS, counties in New York are required to finance the vast majority of Safety Net costs, putting in twice as much funding as the State; and
WHEREAS, for the first half of 2015, State data indicates that county Safety Net costs have increased by nearly 9% over the prior year; and
WHEREAS, Ulster County believes that the rising cost of providing shelter assistance to recipients is a major contributor to this increase; and
WHEREAS, the reduction of State funding support for Safety Net Assistance is part of a larger trend where the State has reduced its fiscal commitment for nearly every public assistance program including child welfare, adoption subsidies, food stamp administration, Safety Net, Child Support Enforcement, juvenile justice and programs designed to help recently released state incarcerated offenders return to the community; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the Ulster County Legislature calls on the State to gradually restore the historic 50/50 state/county cost sharing for the Safety Net program over a five year period, starting with an increase in county reimbursement for shelter assistance in order to lower the local property tax burden for homeowners and small businesses; and, be it further
RESOLVED, that the Clerk of the Ulster County Legislature shall forward copies of this resolution to Governor Andrew Cuomo, Assembly and Senate Majority and Minority Leaders, all Ulster County elected Assemblymen and Senators, the Assembly and Senate Social Services Committee Chairmen, the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Commissioner and the New York State Association of Counties, and moves its adoption.
Seconded by: Councilwoman Chachkin 5-0aye, motion carried
TRAFFIC SAFETY:
Resolution # 75-2016:
A Motion was made by Councilwoman Chachkin to rescind the Road Safety Committee.
Seconded by: Supervisor Chipman
DISCUSSION:
Supervisor Chipman stated that this committee is not stepping on Wayne’s territory. It is an opportunity to investigate & find ways to improve. The Board’s job is when there is a problem we study the problem and look for a solution. After a report is complete then we can look at specific locations, but if you don’t have a study you don’t know where the problems occur.
Councilwoman Fornino stated that the Town has an elected official who is elected to look at roads, maintain roads, etc. We the people elect him to do it, why do we need a committee?
Supervisor Chipman stated the Highway Superintendent doesn’t study accident reports or driver behavior.
Councilwoman Fornino asked how are we going to change driver behavior? The individual has to want to change.
Councilwoman Chachkin stated that we don’t know the percentages yet, but she finds it hard to believe that so many people will ignore signs on the roads or not obey the law. She feels that more people want the roads to be safer, want the Town Board to look at this, won’t ignore the things we do to improve road safety and won’t ignore traffic laws and safe traffic techniques.
Supervisor Chipman stated Rich Miller brought up the topic of enforcement. Enforcement is one of the things we need to look at. It may not be the road, it may be the driver but these are the things we need to figure out. This is an aging population. Our area is based on tourism & travelers that do not know the roads and a sign or reflector may help. I find it shocking that tickets are down and accidents are up. That tells me there might be some correlation going on there. I’m not looking at making major changes to the roads.
Councilwoman Chachkin stated that it’s not always that simple. If the Town undertook this evaluation a lot of factors are to be investigated. There will be decisions the Town will have to make. It’s a matter of documenting decision making. What are we most concerned about? Liability or keeping people safe on the roads, we shouldn’t stop trying to keep roads safe.
Councilman Drabkin stated that we have a Highway Department to keep our roads safe. This is a problem throughout the country and we shouldn’t be getting involved. It would be like us telling the Judge how to do their job. We should concentrate on our responsibilities.
Councilwoman Chachkin asked what changed Councilman Drabkins mind from the 4-0 vote to approve the committee in the beginning of February?
Councilman Drabkin stated that it seemed like a bad idea at the time but he went with the decision of the Board, but after hearing interpretations and looking further he changed his mind. Carl and Sherry made compelling arguments but other arguments held true as well. Road safety is a complicated issue.
Councilwoman Fornino stated that if it is a road issue you contact the Highway Superintendent. If it’s a speed issue you contact law enforcement.
Councilman Spano asked why the Road Safety Committee was established in the first place?
Councilwoman Chachkin described an experience she had in late December. Because of this experience Councilwoman Chachkin began looking into alternatives to help people navigate the roads. She began looking at markings on the road but cost & liability heightened, so other alternatives were looked at. Councilwoman Chachkin stated she was in contact with Cornell for local roads project where she learned about other alternatives. The idea of forming a Road Safety Committee was to perform a field visit & investigate problem areas.
At the first committee meeting Councilwoman Chachkin, Rich Miller & Supervisor Chipman attended and it was suggested to name the committee traffic safety so it is clear that we are not trying to manage the roads. Any maintenance to the roads, ice, culverts, bridges are strictly Highway. The Cornell project director stated that other forms of road issues/ safety are the problems of the Town Board and anything that is done is Town Board responsibility and comes out of the general fund budget this is different from the highway maintenance budget. That was the rationale of asking for a road safety committee. When asked to put the committee name change on the agenda objections to road safety were raised. Issue with written notice & if Cornell came then we would be liable if we didn’t do anything they said we should do. I don’t think this is true but again please have Attorney Christiana review the findings as well.
Councilman Spano stated that he can feel the animosity. I heard Rich Miller give statistics that 1/3 of accidents were on state roads and the remaining 70% are Town & County Roads, but there is not enough information to determine if there should be a committee. The issue I see is we have no idea if these accidents are road maintenance & we have liability involved or other factors. Until I have the information this is a knee jerk reaction to a committee in which there may not be a necessity to. However, if Rich supplies the Board with data from the past 5 years or so we can look at his findings and make a determination. For now best in my opinion we wait and get data to make educated decision to make a committee or just take action on a specific location. The Highway Superintendent has his duties of a road. But if we have a rash of accidents on a specific road way the Board can direct the Highway Superintendent to review the road or signs, but we do not have that information and my feeling is to go along with disbanding the committee at this point.
Supervisor Chipman stated that this was the purpose of forming a committee to investigate to see if there is a problem in the first place.
Councilman Spano stated that he understands edge lines & reflectors and data will come into play but as of right now the information is incomplete. We don’t know which roads if any have a problem. Once we see the information and identify the issues then we decide what the next steps are we don’t need a committee for that.
ROLL CALL VOTE TO DISBAND COMMITTEE:
Councilwoman Chachkin nay
Councilwoman Fornino aye
Councilman Drabkin aye
Councilman Spano aye
Supervisor Chipman nay
3-2, motion carried to disband Road Safety Committee
Resolution # 76-2016:
A Motion was made by Councilman Spano to direct Rich Miller to do an investigative report on traffic safety; providing motor vehicle accidents with contributing factors within the Town.
Seconded by: Councilman Drabkin 5-0aye, motion carried
OLD BUSINESS:
Councilman Spano asked for an update on Giles Edwards?
Town Clerk Gundberg stated that foreclosure procedures have begun and $ 13,000 is owed to the Department of Finance.
Councilman Spano asked if the NYRISING money has been allocated yet regarding Community Center extension?
Supervisor Chipman stated that blue prints were just presented on 3/1/16. NYRISING hires the contractor.
Councilman Spano asked if anything can be used towards the Court House?
Supervisor Chipman stated that it wasn’t possible to use NYRISING monies for the Courthouse, but Rich Miller is working on grant information regarding the courthouse.
Councilman Spano asked about the Rail trail maps that the Town contributed $ 5,000.00 to.
Supervisor Chipman stated that the first kick off meeting was last week.
Supervisor Chipman also stated that the Bridge in Accord will begin August of 2016. The bridge will be 12 ft higher, and the plan is not to build up the stream, a buffer will be placed by Rondout Gardens.
Councilman Spano asked if this is going to affect local businesses?
Supervisor Chipman stated it will be one lane traffic so traffic may back up a bit but the businesses should be fine.
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD:
Bob Garrett stated that he understands both sides of the road/traffic problem. A Driver License is a privilege, it’s the responsibility of the person to stay within the speed limit, use caution in certain weather conditions. I would like to see more enforcement. Regarding accidents more times than any the driver is at fault, I’m not sure if there is any way to correct or fix that problem.
Highway Superintendent Kelder discussed the Bridge Flood Project. Over the years he has rescued many people from the flood area of where it floods over Mombaccus and where it floods in front of the Schoonmaker stand. He question’s the fact of raising the bridge on the Mombaccus to get the water out and nothing to the road in front of Schoonmakers because that floods also. This project is taking care of one situation but until two bypass culverts are placed underneath the Accord bridge the Town is still going to continue to have flooding there with large floods you will not stop it. You will stop the overflow by raising the Mombaccus but you will still flood up by Schoonmakers so travelers will not be able to get through that way. So this needs to be addressed and I don’t think DOT looked at putting culverts under the Accord bridge but it is needed to relieve water pressure. The Kerhonkson bridge was built and no longer floods but it is pushing the water towards Accord and the Accord bridge can’t handle it. So until that’s addressed the Mombaccus bridge is just piece mealing. If something isn’t done with Schoonmakers where is the water going to go? Through Accord further down to the firehouse and flood out Main St. because the water has to get out.
Councilman Drabkin suggested a letter go to the DOT specifically addressing this issue. It is important to go on record that this is something that needs to be addressed.
Supervisor Chipman stated with the help of Highway Superintendent Kelder he will write a letter to the NYSDOT.
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
A Motion was made by Councilman Spano to enter into executive session at 9:02pm to discuss a personnel issue with the Constabulary.
Seconded by: Councilwoman Fornino 5-0aye, motion carried
A Motion was made by Councilman Drabkin to reconvene the meeting at 9:25pm stating no monies expended nor action taken.
Seconded by: Councilwoman Fornino
ADJOURNMENT:
A Motion was made by Councilman Drabkin to adjourn the meeting at 9:26 pm.
Seconded by: Councilwoman Fornino 5-0aye, motion carried
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen A. Gundberg
Town Clerk