West Seneca Town Board Meeting Minutes 02/11/2008
Supervisor Wallace C. Piotrowski called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M. with 30 seconds of silent prayer followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL: Present -
Absent - None Supervisor Piotrowski read the Fire Prevention Code instructing the public where to exit in case of a fire or an emergency. The meeting was dedicated to the memory of John Dulinawka and Pat Hill. 3-A MINUTES TO BE APPROVED
3-B TABLED ITEMS 1. Assessment Board of Review fees per session for chairman and members Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to remove this item from the table.
Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, that the members of the Assessment Board of Review be subject to the call of the Assessor with fees set at $500 per session for each of the five members. On the question, Councilman Clarke stated that he was in favor of cutting costs, but the Chairman’s fee was cut in half and the other members’ fees were cut by $250. He had spoken with the members of the Board of Assessment Review and found that they did not always have just one meeting and sometimes met two or three times on some of the cases. Motion by Councilman Clarke, seconded by Councilman Bove, to amend the motion and set the fees for the members of the Board of Assessment Review at $850 for the Chairman and $650 for each of the other members. On the question, Councilman Bove stated that she had checked with a similar size municipality, the Town of Hamburg, and found that the Chairman of their Board of Assessment Review received $855 and the other members received $684. She thought the current members of the Board of Assessment Review were very competent and their fees should not be drastically cut, considering the activity in the housing market and the possibility of more assessment challenges. Supervisor Piotrowski stated that the Board of Assessment Review met on the first Tuesday of each June with a two hour afternoon session and a two hour evening session to hear assessment challenges, and then had one or two additional sessions in the evening to deliberate on the assessment challenges previously heard. He had spoken with the Board of Assessment Review members and they estimated their hours to be between 8 and 12 for the entire year. Supervisor Piotrowski noted that the voters of West Seneca wanted the Town Board to review the jobs in town and determine the fair market value for each job, and he thought that $500 was a fair wage for individuals working 8 to 12 hours per year.
3-B TABLED ITEMS 1. (continued) Councilman Bove questioned if $500 was an arbitrary figure. Supervisor Piotrowski responded that an average of 10 hours at $50 per hour would be $500 and he thought that was fair. Councilman Clarke stated that in some cases the members worked more than 10 hours. One of the members calculated that at $500 they would be making less than $20 per hour. Councilman Clarke did not think that was a fair wage. Supervisor Piotrowski thought there were a number of qualified individuals that would be willing to serve on the Board of Assessment Review at $500 per session.
On the original motion,
2. Designation of Official Newspaper Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, that this item remain on the table. On the question, Councilman Clarke questioned why the Town Board was not acting on this item. He thought this should have been settled by now and suggested that a designation be made at the next meeting. Supervisor Piotrowski stated that he was in the process of investigating this item and had been dealing with the NYS Attorney General’s Office and the Comptroller’s Office to find the cheapest method possible to save taxpayers’ money. Any required publications were currently being handled by the Bee Newspaper.
3. Appointment of Budget Officer Motion by Councilwoman Meegan, seconded by Councilman Graber, to remove this item from the table.
Motion by Councilwoman Meegan, seconded by Councilman Graber, to appoint Supervisor Wallace C. Piotrowski as Budget Officer for the Town of West Seneca with remuneration as stated in the 2008 budget. On the question, Supervisor Piotrowski noted that the town budget provided for the Supervisor to receive remuneration as Budget Officer and use of a town vehicle; however, he had declined use of the town vehicle at this time.
3-C COMMUNICATIONS 1. Supervisor Piotrowski re Retirement of Edward Kowalewski as Crew Chief/Deputy Highway Supt. Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to accept the retirement of Edward Kowalewski and terminate him as Crew Chief/Deputy Highway Supt. effective February 23, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel, noting that Mr. Kowalewski has served the Town of West Seneca for over 30 years. On the question, Councilman Clarke asked that an Executive Session be held to discuss filling this position prior to any appointment being made. Councilman Graber noted that the Town Board really had no say in the filling of this position; it was solely the jurisdiction of Highway Supt. Patrick Finnegan. Councilwoman Meegan thanked Mr. Kowalewski for his years of service to the town and commended him for a fine job.
2. Supervisor Piotrowski re Retirement of Timothy Riedy as Heavy Motor Equipment Operator Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Bove, to accept the retirement of Timothy D. Riedy and terminate him as Heavy Motor Equipment Operator in the Highway Department effective February 24, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
3. Supervisor Piotrowski re Appointment of Judith Seitz as part-time Food Service Helper Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to appoint Judith M. Seitz as part-time Food Service Helper at the Senior Citizens Center effective February 11, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
4. Councilman Clarke re Purchase of four defib units Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to table this item.
5. Town Attorney re Public hearing on Cold War Veteran’s exemption Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to set a public hearing for February 25, 2008 at 7:30 P.M. to consider Local Law No. 1 of the year 2008, Article VI of Chapter 109 Taxation of the Town of West Seneca Code, that would provide for a veteran’s exemption known as the Cold War Veteran’s Exemption for residential property of veterans who served during the Cold War, in accordance with Section 458-b of the Real Property Tax Law.
3-C COMMUNICATIONS 6. Town Attorney re Contract with Independent Health for Health & Wellness Program Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to enter into an agreement with Independent Health for the town to become an authorized vendor for Independent Health and provide health and wellness services through its facilities to Independent Health members, noting that the town will be paid by means of a debit Master Card issued to its members that would then be accepted by the town upon submission of a registration form to Independent Health. On the question, Councilwoman Bove questioned if this included the Silver Sneakers for Medicare or just Flex Fit. Councilwoman Meegan responded that this was just Flex Fit. Councilwoman Bove stated that she was hoping to get the Silver Sneakers through Independent Health, but was informed that it was not possible because the YMCA and Gold’s Gym were within a five mile radius. Councilwoman Meegan stated that Independent Health would let the town know if anything changed with regard to the Silver Sneakers.
7. Town Engineer re Purchase of emergency generator for Union Road pump station Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to authorize the purchase of a Generac Power Systems, Inc. natural gas engine generator set with automatic transfer switch and other appurtenances from Better Light and Power, 2140 West Henrietta Road, Rochester, NY 14623, at a total NYS contract price of $20,504.
8. Town Engineer re 2007 Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project, final change order & acceptance Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Bove, to approve final change order #1 for United Survey, Inc., 25145 Broadway, Cleveland, OH 44146, for a net deduct of $25 and accept the 2007 Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project, Job No. S-0703, at a final contract amount of $262,185.
9. Town Engineer re Purchase requiring Town Board approval Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to authorize payment of $2500 to WNY Stormwater Coalition for the town’s annual membership fee.
10. Highway Supt. re Military leave of absence for William Geary Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to grant a military leave of absence for William Geary for January 25, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
3-C COMMUNICATIONS 11. Highway Supt. re Military leave of absence for William Geary Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to grant a military leave of absence for William Geary effective February 9 – 24, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
12. Chief Gehen re Status change for Senior Clerk Melissa Hender to part-time seasonal Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to change the status of part-time Senior Clerk Melissa A. Hender to part-time seasonal effective February 16 – March 16, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
13. Chief Gehen re Rate increase for part-time Public Safety Dispatchers Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to grant a rate increase effective January 1, 2008 to the following part-time Public Safety Dispatchers that have reached their required service hours: James McCullough - $11.95 per hour (5400 hours) and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
14. Chief Gehen re Status change for Public Safety Dispatcher Richard Galli to part-time seasonal Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to change the status of part-time Public Safety Dispatcher Richard Galli to part-time seasonal effective February 1 – 29, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
15. Chief Gehen re Appointment of C. Koehler & D. Nowicki as part-time Public Safety Dispatchers Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to appoint Christopher D. Koehler and Diane M. Nowicki as part-time Public Safety Dispatchers at a rate of $10.95 per hour effective February 12, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
3-C COMMUNICATIONS 16. Town Clerk re Purchase requiring Town Board approval Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to authorize payment of $2860 to Brown’s River Bindery, Inc., One Allen Martin Drive, PO Box 8501, Essex, VT 05451, for preservation and rebinding of the following books: Oaths of Office 1915 – 1923; Oaths of Office 1923 – 1929; Record of Arrests (Police Department) 1906 – 1951.
17. Code Enforcement Officer re Out-of-title pay for Robert Pinnavaia Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to approve out-of-title pay for Robert Pinnavaia January 14 – 18, 2008 at the Code Enforcement Officer’s hourly rate in accordance with Article 27 of the White Collar Labor agreement and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
18. Recreation Director re Status change for Theresa Boltz to part-time seasonal Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilwoman Meegan, to change the status of Theresa Boltz from part-time to part-time seasonal effective February 4 – 29, 2008 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.
3-D REPORTS ISSUES OF THE PUBLIC STATUS OF NOISE ORDINANCE Amy Carpenter, 406 Woodward Crescent, questioned the status of the Noise Ordinance. Town Attorney Edwin Hunter advised that Deputy Town Attorney Paul Notaro had received provisions from other municipalities and was in the process of working on the Noise Ordinance. Chief Gehen was also working on the technical part of the issue with regard to being able to accurately measure decibel levels and the equipment that would be necessary. They were moving forward but wanted to be sure that the end result was right so it would be enforceable. Chief Gehen stated that there was a Noise Ordinance currently in effect for the town, but it specifically stated between the hours of 11 P.M. and 7 A.M. and determination of an unreasonable noise level was left to the judgment of the officers responding to the complaint. Councilman Graber noted that he would like to see a public hearing scheduled and amendments to the Noise Ordinance adopted by spring so they would be in place prior to the season when noise becomes an issue. Mr. Hunter stated that he would make Mr. Notaro aware of this time frame and would offer his assistance if necessary. He hoped to have the amendments adopted by April.
ISSUES OF THE PUBLIC HIRING OF GRANTWRITER Amy Carpenter, 406 Woodward Crescent, questioned if there were any plans to hire a grantwriter for the town. Supervisor Piotrowski responded that there were no plans at the present time to hire a grantwriter, but the Town Board would be reviewing this option during the next several months. PRESENTATION OF COMMUNICATIONS BY BOARD MEMBERS AND DEPARTMENT HEADS ADJOURNMENT Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilman Clarke, to adjourn the meeting at 8:00 P.M.
_______________________________________ PATRICIA C. DEPASQUALE, RMC/CMC |