November 2, 2011
The meeting was called to order at 6:30PM by Thomas “Hank” Pelkey, Chairman.
Select Board members present: Joseph Gagnon, Thomas “Hank” Pelkey, Thomas Hooker, Linda Weeden, and Allen Hitchcock. Also present: Dorothy Parkinson, John Weeden, Mike Warfle, John Haverstock, and Kelly Giard – Recording Secretary.
MINUTES
The minutes from the October 19, 2011 meeting were signed, with no corrections.
ORDERS
The Orders in the amount of $336,664.50 and payroll in the amount of $11,108.53 were signed, with the following comments:
A. Hitchcock inquired about the expense for 2 hydrants. J. Haverstock indicated that the were hydrants that were to be installed as part of the upgrade at the Village Green site and are water-project grant-eligible.
L. Weeden inquired about the expense to Green Mountain Rental for the use of a chipper. J. Haverstock indicated that this was actually for the rental of a bale chopper.
L. Weeden inquired about the expense to the Town of Mendon for property taxes. J. Haverstock indicated that a resident owns property in both Pittsford and Mendon and paid excess taxes to Pittsford. The extra portion was sent to Mendon on this resident’s behalf.
L. Weeden inquired about the payment to Rouse Tire Sales for backhoe tires. J. Haverstock reported that 3 bids were received and Rouse Tire Sales had the lowest bid.
J. Gagnon inquired about the expense for excavator transportation. J. Haverstock will research this to find the number of times that the excavator was moved.
J. Gagnon inquired about the expense for 2 shirts for the Police Department. Chief Warfle indicated that the uniforms are purchased by the Town and laundered by the officers.
J. Gagnon inquired about the expense to M & K Diving. J. Haverstock indicated that this was for the inspection of the footings of covered bridges following Tropical Storm Irene.
J. Gagnon inquired about the maturity date of the highway department loan. J. Haverstock will research this and report back at a future meeting.
TOWN MANAGER’S REPORT:
J. Haverstock reported on the following:
- Work is anticipated to begin during the week of November 7 on the remaining water service connections along Route 7.
- The water portion of Phase II of the sewer project is completed on Arch Street and the Arch and Pleasant Street sewer work is underway, with paving and winter shut-down approaching.
- The box culvert is installed on Arch Street and the concrete testing will occur on Thursday, November 3.
- The fundraising efforts for Tropical Storm Irene have netted approximately $50,000 and $26,000 has been distributed to date. A “thank you” letter was read and the recipient remains anonymous.
- The on-site portion of the external audit conducted by Sullivan & Powers is complete. A draft report is expected soon.
- There was a tractor-trailer accident on the library corner during the early morning hours of Saturday, October 22. A “thank you” was given to all that assisted in accident clean-up and an insurance claim is being prepared to be submitted to the owner of the vehicle.
- A meeting was held on October 20 for the residents that will have water disruption resulting from the Proctor water system abandonment. Mark Youngstrom presented the findings of a study that the Town of Pittsford backed by funding.
- The Town Offices will be open on November 11, Veterans Day.
- There will be a staff meeting on Thursday, November 3 at 9:00 AM and the members of the Select Board are invited to attend.
- Shawn Erickson reported that the State does the line striping on new pavement and there is no indication whether the Furnace Road section will be striped this year.
- The Rutland County Solid Waste District will be receiving yard waste through November 5 at the Gleason Road location.
- The Transfer Station permits are for sale and were due on November 1.
- Property taxes are due on November 10.
- The copier in the Conference Room has stopped working. The recommendation is to move the copier from the Town Clerk’s office and place a new copier in that office.
- A draft budget is anticipated for the next meeting.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
L. Weeden indicated that she has had residents expressing concern about the status of the Tropical Storm Irene fundraising and disbursements. T. Hooker indicated that there has been $26,500 disbursed, helping 25 – 30 families. An updated list will be reviewed at the next meeting of the committee and more funds will be disbursed.
OLD BUSINESS:
Potential Adoption of Police Policy & Procedures Manual:
Chief Warfle was present to discuss the Policy & Procedures Manual that is being drafted for the Police Department employees. The contents were discussed and Chief Warfle thanked the members of the Select Board for their input.
Chief Warfle will be working with J. Haverstock to finalize a draft and will be returning for the December 7 meeting, for further discussions and approval. The members of the Select Board would like to see this before the meeting so the contents can be reviewed before the discussion.
There was discussion concerning the topic of anonymous tips. Chief Warfle indicated that most other agencies receive and act upon information gathered via anonymous tips.
Discussion of Purchase of Additional Police Cruiser:
Chief Warfle has received local bids, as well as a bid from a New Jersey company that specializes in police cruisers. The members of the Select Board reviewed the bids and made comparisons. The New Jersey company includes all the equipment, except for the decals, police radios and antennas, in the base price, whereas the local suppliers only include the vehicle.
Motion by T. and seconded by A. Hitchcock to purchase a 2012 Dodge Durango police vehicle from Warnock Fleet Company in New Jersey, with a price not to exceed $26,950, as presented in the bid. Motion passed unanimously 5 – 0. When the vehicle is ready, someone will need to travel to New Jersey to drive the vehicle back to Pittsford.
Discussion of the COPS Grant:
Chief Warfle indicated that the town only has 90 days to accept the grant, and he will be out of Town from November 11 – November 30 and would like to get the acceptance signed prior to his departure. The general consensus of the Select Board is to accept the grant. J. Haverstock will be advertising for the new full-time police officer position, that will be federally funded for 3 years by this grant.
Other Police Business:
J. Haverstock reported that he has spoken with VLCT with regard to the possibility of civil penalties on someone who is found in possession of small amounts of marijuana. Chief Warfle indicated that there are municipalities who have implemented this and he will forward a copy of such ordinances for review.
Update on Zoning Administrator Search:
J. Haverstock reported that Kenneth Niemczek has accepted the position of Zoning Administrator, effective immediately. Mr. Niemczek will be working with Amy Loomis prior to her departure. The new office hours for the Zoning Administrator will be on Tuesdays from 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM and Thursdays from 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM.
Execution of Sewer Bond Re-Finance Documents:
The sewer bond refinance documents will be signed following Executive Session. A. Hitchcock clarified that this was not for all of the bonds, just the two older bonds, and would save the town thousands of dollars.
Other Old Business:
The minutes of September 21 and October 9 were reviewed for corrections. The corrections include adding the errors and omissions parcel numbers and owner valuation. There were no other changes to the minutes and were signed by the Select Board members.
NEW BUSINESS:
Adoption of Flood Hazard Regulations:
J. Haverstock reported that the Flood Hazard Regulations have been posted in compliance with statute. There were no changes to the prior regulations and there were no comments noted during the public meetings.
Motion by A. Hitchcock and seconded by T. Hooker to adopt the Flood Hazard Regulations as stated. Motion passed unanimously 5 – 0.
Sno-Mads Request for Access to Town Property:
The Sno-Mads have made request for snowmobile access along Town highways. J. Haverstock reported that Dave Markowski indicated that there was no change from last year’s map/request. A. Hitchcock indicated that the application should refer to a map. J. Haverstock will return the signed permission form to Mr. Markowski.
Motion by J. Gagnon and seconded by L. Weeden to accept the application. Motion passed unanimously 5 – 0.
OTHER BUSINESS:
J. Haverstock will be discussing safety concerns with the contractor and engineer of the Sewer Project. T. Hooker indicated that the Fire Department was not able to take fire trucks out of the station at one point in the last week. Shawn Erickson was able to see the issue that could have arisen and was able to move the trucks to the highway garage for accessibility. Other items include working in Route 7, as well.
J. Haverstock indicated that this was also discussed at the status meeting on October 25. The road conditions will be discussed at the status meeting on November 29.
A. Hitchcock also indicated that there should be adequate storage of documents on-site at the new Water Department Offices, as well as adequate duplicate document storage elsewhere. This will be discussed at a future meeting.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
J. Haverstock reported that there are Legal, Contractual, and Personnel Issues thus recommending Executive Session.
T. Pelkey made a motion and seconded by T. Hooker to go into Executive Session for Legal, Contractual, and Personnel Issues where premature knowledge would be damaging to the Town that may be jeopardized by public disclosure at 7:39 PM. The motion was unanimously passed.
In accordance with 1VSA 312 (b), where premature general public knowledge would clearly place the Municipality or person involved at a substantial disadvantage, the Board
unanimously agreed to enter into Executive Session for the purpose of Legal, Contractual, and Personnel Issues at 7:39 PM.
J. Haverstock and Helen McKinlay were invited to remain for Executive Session.
H. McKinlay exited at 8:04 PM.
The Select Board exited Executive Session at 8:14 PM, with the following action taken:
1. Execution of Sewer Bond Re-Financing Documents.
2. Motion by A. Hitchcock and seconded by T. Hooker to authorize the Town Clerk to spend up to $10,000 to upgrade operations and reconfigure the office to more efficiently process transactions. Motion passed 5 – 0.
3. Motion by L. Weeden and seconded by T. Hooker to authorize the Town Manager to execute a document affording settlement authority to an attorney representing Chittenden in a legal dispute with Mr. Murphy of Chittenden, in which both Pittsford and Pittsfield are named as abutting towns. Motion passed unanimously 5 – 0.
The meeting adjourned at 8:17 PM.
The next regular meeting will be held on November 16, 2011.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kelly Giard, Recording Secretary
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Thomas “Hank” Pelkey, Chairman
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Allen Hitchcock, Vice Chairman
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W. Joseph Gagnon, Selectman
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Thomas Hooker, Selectman
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Linda Weeden, Selectman