Grafton Town Board Action – NYS DOT’s To-Do List

by Erin Hogan
At the Grafton Town Board meeting on Thursday, January 14, Supervisor Allison Kirchner described a newsletter she had received from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYS DOT). This newsletter gave an overview of all the projects the State intends to take on this year. The NYS DOT’s to-do list ranges from the eastern to the western side of the state and includes NYS Rt. 2. At number 30 on the list of 83 projects, NYS DOT claims they will “resurface/rehabilitate the pavement” at an estimated cost of $15 million. But as Kirchner pointed out, Route 2 has been on the to-do list before and never got checked off. Also in this newsletter was a list of 93 bridges that need attention because they are in use with a low safety rating (three of which are in Rensselaer County).
Mail Time!
At this meeting much correspondence was received. The first letter Kirchner received was from David Lipinski who is in charge of the Stonybrook development. He was writing to inform the Board that the date that he was to provide $30,000 has changed from June 30 to September 30. This money is to pay the Town for gravel along South Long Pond Road. The reason for this change was because the gravel won’t be utilized until after the Sylvan Way project is completed which won’t be until the end of July. The Board deemed that this was an issue for the Planning Board and moved on.
Next, was a letter from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation requesting the use of the Town Hall on January 27 for the Great Strides Kick-Off. The Town Hall would be used from 5 to 8:30 pm. After reading this letter, the Board passed Resolution 36 authorizing the use of the Town Hall for this event.
Third in the mail box was a letter from the Rensselaer County Bureau of Research and Information Services (BRIS). This letter was about a change in the responsibilities concerning Rensselaer County E-911 addressing and data coordination duties. Duties formerly held by Lisa Sanders in the Bureau of Public Safety have now been taken over by the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) component of BRIS. Now, things such as tax mapping, zoning, emergency services and aerial photography will be taken care of by BRIS GIS. This way BRIS will be better able to distribute information within the County. For more information there is a BRIS website – www.rensco.com/gis.asp.
There was a letter from the Office of Community Renewal regarding the Everett Wagar Senior Center in Grafton. It had been brought to their attention by Valatie Mayor Gary Strevell that perhaps the Grafton Senior Center was not being used in compliance with the Limited Clientele National Objective. Strevell, who was issued a stop order by the State for violating the LCNO at the senior center in Valatie, thought that the Grafton facility was not being used as a senior center but as a place for Town business, which is forbidden under the Limited Clientele National Objective. The Office of Community Renewal investigated the situation, and in this letter declared that the accusations were unfounded and that the Grafton Senior Center is not only in compliance with the National Objective, it has been since its opening in 2007. On top of that the Town was commended by the Office of Community Renewal for “maintaining a facility that provides full time programing and services that address the needs of the Town’s senior population.”
The next communication received was a proposal from the Berlin Central School District regarding a Shared Services Grant. This grant would be split among the municipalities as would the cost of applying for it. BCSD asked Grafton to provide $20,000 towards a $200,000 grant. The Board decided that at this time, giving out that kind of money wasn’t in the budget, therefore they weren’t interested.
A letter was received from the Rensselaer County Legislature regarding the Fire Advisory Board appointment. The term for the current Fire Advisory Board appointee, Edward Fredricks III, ended on December 31, 2009. The Clerk of Legislature relayed in the letter that Fredricks had been a dedicated member and did a great job on the Fire Advisory Board and wanted to know if his term would be renewed or not. After passing resolution 34 Fredricks became the Fire Advisory Board member once again.
Reports
Highway Superintendent Herb Hasbrouck reported that the highway crew was staying busy sanding, plowing and maintaining equipment. When there was a short break from the snow, the members of the department took a chainsaw safety course. Supervisor Kirchner took this time to thank the highway crew for the hours put in and to let Hasbrouck know she appreciated the Department’s hard work.
Tom Withcuskey reported that so far in 2010 there are no new building permits applied for but that there are 60 outstanding. Also, Withcuskey made a note that the Planning Board meeting would be changed to Monday, January 25, because of the Martian Luther King, Jr. Holiday. From the Rescue Squad there were 8 reported calls.
Town Clerk Sue Putnam announced that every Wednesday, starting January 27, the Town Assessors would meet with any interested parties. The Assessors will make themselves available from 6 to 8 pm at the Town Hall.