Regular Town Board Meeting Minutes Halcott Grange

September 16, 2019, 6:00 pm

Present: Town Supervisor Alan White, Council members Alan Reynolds, Innes Kasanof, Judy DiBenedetto, Highway Superintendent Russell Bouton, Town Clerk Patricia Warfield, Halcott Code Enforcement Officer John Mathiesen, Mark Carabetta Miles & Macbroom Inc., Matt Trueheart Miles & Macbroom Inc., Gale Neal DCSWCD, Phil Eskeli NYCDEP. Public: Al Doubrava. Present: 7:00pm Councilwoman Yukari Day

Meeting Opened with the Pledge of Allegiance at 6:00 pm.

LFA Presentation: After discussion with FAC and Board members, MMI’s recommendation is to relocate the Town Highway Garage, either to higher ground on the existing property, or to a new property that is not within or accessed through flood-prone areas. These choices were discussed at length with relocating to a new parcel as the preferred solution. The final public meeting will be held Saturday, October 19, 2019 at which time MMI will issue the final LFA report; which when adopted, allows the Town to be eligible to look for funding sources going forward.

Approval of the minutes of the August 19, 2019 meeting: Motion to approve by Councilwoman Judy DiBenedetto, 2nd by Councilwoman Innes Kasanof, Councilwoman Yukari Day: aye, Councilman Alan Reynolds: aye, Supervisor Alan White: aye.

Approval of the minutes of the August 28, 2019 special meeting to open bids: Motion to approve by Councilman Alan Reynolds, 2nd by Councilwoman Innes Kasanof, Councilwoman Yukari Day: aye, Councilwoman Judy DiBenedetto: aye. Supervisor Alan White: abstain.

Highway Superintendent’s Report: (A) Greene County Solid Waste will be bringing a closed container box with openings cut in for the Town to be used for all recyclable material. (B) A muffler guard was delivered to the highway garage and mistakenly dropped off behind the recycle bin where it was accidentally taken. The highway department will look at the security camera tapes to see if they can find out where it went. (C) The mower is off the John Deere tractor because a step was ordered and the old mower has a broken shaft so fall mowing will need to be done later in the season.

Voucher vote: General Abstract #G0919 – vouchers 133 – 140 = $1,465.18. Highway Abstract #H0919 – vouchers 141, 142, 144 – 146 = $4,470,92. Motion to pay bills by Councilwoman Yukari Day, 2nd by Councilwoman Judy DiBenedetto, Councilwoman Innes Kasanof: aye, Councilman Alan Reynolds: aye, Supervisor Alan White: aye.

Finance Chair Report: (A) Finance Chair Innes Kasanof presented the monthly finance report. (B) The 2020 Tentative Budget was presented to the Board for discussion and review. Included in the budget is a conservative 3% pay raise and money to pay for a deputy clerk and a deputy to the finance chair. These positions would each be paid $1,000.00 for the year. There was also discussion in regards to starting a Building Reserve Fund.

Clerk’s Report: Billy Haynes/Dumpster fee (Aug/Sept): $300.00. The Town collected and disbursed $300.00 for the month of August.

Other Business: (A) Public access the Turk Hollow lean-to and State Land has been restored with the installation of a new culvert. This information will be included in the next Times of Halcott. The Board thanked Highway Superintendent Bouton for getting this long standing problem taken care of. (B) Motion to appoint Jamie Vogler as Deputy Town Clerk by Councilwoman Innes Kasanof, 2nd by Councilwoman Judy DiBenedetto, Councilwoman Yukari Day: aye, Councilman Alan Reynolds: aye, Supervisor Alan White: aye.

Next Meeting: LFA Final Public Meeting Saturday, October 19, 2019, 10:00 am, Halcott Grange Hall Public Hearing on the Proposed 2020 Budget October 21, 2019, 7:15 pm,

Regular Board Meeting to follow.

Motion to Adjourn at 8:45 pm by Councilwoman Yukari Day, 2nd by Councilwoman Innes Kasanof, Councilwoman Judy DiBenedetto: aye, Councilman Alan Reynolds: aye, Supervisor Alan White: aye.