MINUTES

March 20, 2017

Meeting opened at 7:00 PM by Mayor Flint.  In attendance were Mayor Kevin J. Flint, Trustee Edward A. Harvey, Trustee Louis A. Guido, Jr., Clerk-Treasurer Amy Herr, Dave Hajczewski, Int. DPW Superintendent and Dennis Laughlin, Village Attorney.  Also in attendance were Bryan and Jennifer Larrabee, Home Town Hauling, Tamara And Zeb Weaver, Weaver Sanitation, Andy Minnig, Tamara Saba, Conway Bishop, Elizabeth Schula, Leah Carpenter, Rick Brockman, Pam Noonan, Pam Plymell and Alice Hurwitz, concerned citizens. 

Bids were opened for the Refuse Removal Contract for the 2017-2018 fiscal year.  The bids were all received in a timely manner as prescribed in the legal notice and were fully completed.  The bids were as follows:  Home Town Hauling $45,100.00 with pickup on Wednesday, On Time Waste $45,900.00 with pickup on Thursday and Weaver Sanitation $50,000.00 with pickup day to be determined.  Those bidders present were thanked for their bids and advised that they will be notified of the successful bidder after the board had an opportunity to finish reviewing the bids.

 

The first item on the agenda was approval of the February minutes as members received in written form and the March 7, 2017 Budget Workshop Meeting that were read at the meeting.  It was upon motion of Trustee Guido, seconded by Trustee Harvey, unanimously carried, to accept the minutes as written.

TREASURER’S REPORT 

Checking Account		03/01/17 Balance
General		$138,051.78
Water		$57,412.90
Total Fund		$195,464.68
Trust & Agency		$567.07
Savings Accounts		03/01/17 Balance
Water System Repair Reserve		$ 2,897.04
Cemetery Capital Reserve		10,829.55
Unemployment Insurance Reserve		2,639.01
Water Debt Service Reserve		20,912.32
Parks & Recreation Reserve		3,571.01
Sidewalk Repair & Replacement Res		238.55
James Wait Basketball Court Fund		0.86
	Water	Taxes
Taxes Unpaid 2/1/17 Water Unpaid 2/1/17	$21,243.45
Billed in February	$53.34
Paid in February	$7,739.79
Unpaid 2/1/17	$13,557.00

It was upon motion of Trustee Guido, seconded by Trustee Harvey,

unanimously carried,

RESOLVED, to accept the report as given.

OPEN FLOOR

          Tammy Saba spoke to the board regarding her concerns with the plan to have a flat rate for water billing for single family homes in the village.  She stated that there would be no incentive for individuals to conserve water under this plan.  She also stated that it is unfair for those households who do not use as much water to subsidize the homes that use much more water.  She is opposed to any minimum charge for the water usage as everyone should pay for the amount they use.  She stated that everyone should have a meter that is working at their home so they are charged for the amount they use. 

          Other individuals present agreed that the water should continue to be metered and that they would be willing to pay for the cost of a new meter for their residence.  The consensus was that the meters should be a homeowner expense.

          Tammy Saba discussed some concerns she has with the Menento property on Lancaster Street since the fire at that property.  She is concerned about toxins going into the creek and that it smells bad.  It is believed that the family does not have the money to clean up the property.  Mayor Flint stated that he contacted NYCOM about this and was told that as a last resort the Village could clean up the property and assess the costs to be placed on the Property Tax Bill.  If the tax bill was not paid, it would then be sent to the County for collection.  Attorney Laughlin advised that the property can sit there without being cleaned up as long as the taxes are being paid.  If the taxes are not paid for three years, it would go up for sale at the Tax Auction in the fourth year.

          Pam Noonan discussed the problems with the feral cats in the village especially around Montgomery Street.  She was advised that there is nothing that the village can legally do as the feral cats are not considered to be a domestic animal under the New York State laws.

          Leah Carpenter asked about the status of snow removal on the sidewalks of the village.  DPW Superintendent Hajczewski advised that they are in the process of removing the snow as quickly as possible. 

DPW   

          DPW Superintendent Hajczewski reported that snow removal is being done around the village.  There is a tree that needs to be removed on Montgomery Street by the Plymell property.  DPW Superintendent Hajczewski has contacted Nate Waterman to evaluate it and have it taken care of.

ELECTION

It was upon motion of Trustee Guido, seconded by Trustee Harvey,

unanimously carried,

          RESOLVED to pay the Election Inspectors tomorrow following the election.

LEASE

         

It was upon motion of Trustee Harvey, seconded by Trustee Guido,

unanimously carried,

          RESOLVED to sign the new lease with the CVCFC for office space at the cost of $300.00 per month beginning on June 1, 2017.

 BENCHMARKING

          The resolution that was sent by Dan Sullivan, NYSERDA regarding Benchmarking was discussed.  It was given to Attorney Laughlin to review before a final decision is made on this.

WATER RATES

          Discussion was held on the water rates for the village.  It was decided to hold a Public Forum on Monday, May 1, 2017 in the Town Conference Room to receive further input from the community regarding continued metering of water or a flat rate for water.

REFUSE REMOVAL CONTRACT

It was upon motion of Trustee Harvey, seconded by Trustee Guido,

unanimously carried,

          RESOLVED to accept the bid of Home Town Hauling in the amount of $45,100.00 to provide Refuse Removal for the Village of Cherry Valley for the 2017-2018 fiscal year.

ANNUAL MEETING AND BUDGET HEARING

It was upon motion of Trustee Harvey , seconded by Trustee Guido,

unanimously carried,

          RESOLVED to hold the Annual Organizational Meeting and Budget Hearing for the Village of Cherry Valley on Monday, April 3, 2017 at 7PM at the Village Office.

CEMETERY

          The Village Cemetery will open on April 15, 2017, weather permitting.

AUDIT OF CLAIMS

After review by the board, it was upon motion of Trustee Guido, seconded by Trustee Harvey, unanimously carried,

RESOLVED to make payment on bills and budget modifications as follows:

General Fund	Ch. #’s 12295-12332	$13,873.19
Water Fund	"	$3,865.07
Total Fund		$17,738.26
Trust and Agency Fund	Ch. #’s 1894 & auto deductions- Social Security, Medicare, Federal, Retirement	$11.00 $2,008.39 $2,019.39

Budget Modifications

To                                                        From                                                   

A1450.4      $160.00                           A1450.1      $160.00

ADJOURNMENT

          The meeting adjourned at 9:35 PM upon motion of Trustee Harvey, seconded by Trustee Guido.

Respectfully Submitted,

Amy S. Herr

Clerk-Treasurer

March 24, 2017