by Kieron Kramer
Forget the swallows at Capistrano, the robins and the geese, you know spring has sprung in Berlin when an emu arrives. So winter ended on Sunday, March 28, at 5 pm when an emu helped itself to some food in Pam Gerstel’s bird feeder walked around onto her porch and then wandered north on Route 22 towards the village. Gerstel’s home is on Route 22 south of Berlin village, and it was reported that many motorists stopped to eyeball the emu.
The incident was reported at the April 8, regular Town Board meeting last Thursday by Dog Control Officer Doug Goodermote who mentioned it in passing, saying “an ostrich passed through town.” Emus and ostriches are both ratites and are related to each other. The ostrich is larger and comes from Africa; the emu is an Australian bird. Town Supervisor Rob Jaeger called it an emu. Gerstel, who also called it an ostrich, said that it wandered over from an exotic pet owner’s property on Sand Bank Road, crossed the railroad tracks, visited her and was eventually herded by slow moving automobiles back down Route 22 and home.
In a humorous mood, the Town Board speculated that the emu could do for Berlin what the bald eagle nest in North Petersburgh does for that community – drawing bird lovers to observe and photograph the birds.
Goodermote had begun by reporting on two dog incidents. There was “a Park Avenue problem” that is under control. A golden retriever was attacking the neighbor’s dogs when they came out to answer the call of nature. Goodermote arranged for the golden retriever’s owner to take his dog inside when the other dogs have to go. And a pit bull on Hilltop Road was bothering the neighbors so Goodermote told the owner to tie up the dog. Since then the owner has moved to Greene’s Brook Road.
A Mind Of Winter
Although spring is here the Board is worried about next winter – specifically the garage space that the Town sanding/ plow trucks will need next winter. It turns out that Hoosick River Hardwoods (aka Cowee’s) will only rent the garage space on a month to month basis. Obviously, HRH wants to keep its options open, but that does not necessarily mean that they would pull the rug out from under the Berlin Highway Department. Board Member Sheila Hewitt suggested that a month to month lease would free HRH from legal entanglements “if they had to pull the plug.” By the same token it gives the Town the opportunity to withdraw, with 30 days notice, in case the Town finds other available space. The worry that the Town Board and Highway Superintendent Jim Winn have about winter garage space is not eased by a month to month lease even though, as Winn pointed out, that is how it has always been since the rental began. Town Attorney Don Tate said, “It is silly to call it a one year month to month lease.”
What rankles some Board members is that HRH is calling the shots. Board Member Richard von Schilgen is upset about the magnitude and the short notice of the rent increase. “It’s not a right way to go,” he said. He is also disturbed that the CEO of HRH’s parent company, Heartwood Forestland of North Carolina, will not participate in negotiations. He has questions, he said and asked, “Are they legally responsible to answer questions?” Tate told him “no.” Winn pointed out that the CEO of Heartwood Forestland has hired a general manager, Tara Cinney, and that’s the person to talk to. Hewitt said that HRH should have been more sensitive to Berlin’s budget process, implying that they should have waited until next year to raise the rent so the Town could budget for it. Well, it is quite presumptuous to think that a large corporation in North Carolina is concerned enough to solve the Town Board’s problems. There are local businesses, von Schilgen’s House and Yard being one of them, that feel a deep commitment to the community. Cinney is a local, but she has bosses to answer to. And Code Enforcement Officer Allan Yerton pointed out that HRH has a number of tenants who are paying around $500 per month now; in all fairness how can they not charge the Town at a similar rate.
Town Supervisor Rob Jaeger calculated that the rent increase will bring the cost to $2.75 per square foot. Cost per square foot is the way most commercial rental space is calculated. It doesn’t seem very expensive. Kent Goodermote said at the end of the meeting that “he wouldn’t bat an eye” at that expense to garage three trucks. But it’s not the amount of the increase, from $300 to $550 per month, that really rankles some. Von Schilgen wanted to clarify that even though he voted to continue renting last month, his feelings about the situation have not changed. Curiously, von Schilgen and Board Member Jim Saunders, who both announced at this meeting that they are against the rental, were deputized to meet with Cinney to have their questions answered and to try to get a commitment for the winter. However, the bottom line will remain the same – Berlin needs its own adequate highway facility. This has been obvious for a long time, ever since money was first put aside for this purpose about 15 years ago when Stan Goodermote was Town Supervisor.
Space Committee
The issue of Town facilities is now firmly in the lap of the Space Committee led by Board Member Sheila Hewitt. Her committee has met, with its first priority being the “finding of a temporary or permanent home for the Town Clerk’s Office.” To accomplish this quickly it was suggested that the Watipi Building be renovated for this purpose. The building needs renovation anyway, Hewitt said. Not only would the Clerk’s Office be there, but other departments could have desks there as well, and the Historical Society could be housed in the back, she said. She said the seniors could still meet in the north end, and presumably the youth commission might still have use for space in the building. The American Legion and their auxiliary would still be welcome, she said, but they might prefer to take over the Cherry Plain Polling place and turn it into their own Legion building. Hewitt said she would talk to John Cornwall of the American Legion about this. The back lawn of the Watipi Building could be used for parking, she added.
This could be a costly renovation since the building would have to be made ADA compliant and, as Billy Hammersmith suggested, may need a new septic system that he thought might cost $25-30,000. Jim Winn strongly suggested that the back lawn of the Watipi not be used for parking since the drywell and septic system are back there and a six foot sink hole appeared when some teenagers drove over the lawn recently. Some plans would have to be developed to determine if so many entities could be expected to use the space there without conflict – conflict that occurs now with a lot less usage. In answer to Kent Goodermote’s question at the end of the meeting, it was stated that there were no restrictions put in the deed when the building was donated to the Town by Tom and Ted Cowee in 1954 to be used by the Boy Scouts and the Campfire Girls.
The Space Committee’s second suggestion was that the Town purchase the small lot just to the north of the Town garage which is currently being used to store highway materials. Hewitt thought that the purchase of this parcel would give some clarity to the footprint of the garage. This has been suggested before, and the problem is still that there is a cloud on the title. Town Attorney Tate said it might cost as much as $15,000 to have an action to quiet the title. A donation or a quitclaim deed does not solve the problem since neither would guarantee that some unknown individual won’t appear with a title claim. The parcel is at most one acre.
The third suggestion was that the Capital Fund be split up so it can be used for projects other than a new Town Garage. Jaeger has contacted the State Comptroller’s office about doing this, and they will get back in touch with him, he said. As far as he knows, a specific project such as the one suggested for the Watipi Building could be paid for out of the Capital Fund if authorized by referendum.
Jane Fitzgerald suggested that a barrier be put up so no one will drive into the sink hole at the back of the Watipi when the Board workshop is held there on April 28. Winn said he would put up a snow fence to which she replied, “We can drive over a snow fence; that’s no problem.”
A question was raised by Pam Gerstel, at the end of the meeting concerning the make-up of the committees. In response Hewitt said she had chosen a diverse group. It is composed of the Town Historian, a County highway person, a construction person and a designer, she said, and added, “to me this makes sense.” Gerstel said she had volunteered. Since she is Chair of the Planning Board, she might have some expertise to offer. So the question is – why are volunteers turned away from this committee? The Board arbitrarily decided to have five members on this committee when it was constituted several months ago, but last month, when a similar issue surfaced, the Board agreed that it could change the number of members of the committee.
Wrinkle Of The Week
The Board received a letter from Laurie Leckonby, the realtor representing Berlin Lumber, informing the Town that the asking price on the property has been reduced to $495,500. Jaeger read Leckonby’s letter, which said that the price has always been negotiable from the beginning, a fact which perhaps was not made clear to Town residents. Von Schilgen asked how this could be brought back up to the public since the purchase was already defeated in a referendum. “Because it’s cheaper,” several people at the back of the room yelled out. Jaeger said that this is a matter for the Space Committee to handle.
High Grass
A rather long conversation on hiring a contractor to mow the Town lawns resulted in Board Member Carl Greene being authorized to procure this service. An unsolicited bid received by the Board instigated the discussion, and the bid, in turn, had been instigated by von Schilgen, whose company has done the mowing for a number of years, first for free and then for $500 per year. Feeling there might be a conflict of interest now that he is a Board member, von Schilgen expects not to be involved in the mowing this year. Several Board Members and audience members suggested ways that would allow von Schilgen to continue to have the high privilege of continuing the mowing.
Board Member Jim Saunders wanted the mowing to be put out to bid, and the Board seemed ready to do this, perhaps because they had already received a bid, until they were forcefully reminded by Tate that they had just developed a procurement policy to avoid the bidding process for such a small expenditure. He said that if this was put out to bid in spite of the procurement policy every small expenditure might also have to be bid upon. The Board decided to stick to its policy. Since the grass is getting high, von Schilgen offered to have his company mow the lawns for free until a contractor is hired.
Water Troubles
Two incidents in Water District #2 could have had disastrous consequences. On Wednesday night, April 7, there was a fire at the home of Walter Knightes when, according to Jaeger, the kitchen stove flamed up. The structure was saved by the Berlin Fire Department, but in the process it was discovered that the valve on the fire hydrant on North Main Street near the First Baptist Church was stuck. Water District #2 Supervisor Jim Winn said that he would put in a new hydrant right away. On Monday the six inch water main at the Park Street bridge across the Little Hoosic River sprung a massive leak that ran behind the bridge abutment and threatened its integrity. The leak was fixed on Wednesday. The County Engineer came out to inspect and determined that the abutment was not damaged.
Winn brought in the three foot long segment of the six inch diameter cast iron water main where the leak had sprung and rested it in front of the Board’s conference table in the Town Hall. Winn guessed that the main was installed in the 1940s and noted that the inside was very clean. The pipe was cracked lengthwise and the joint had also cracked open. This joint had been located under a large tree stump, forcing the leak down into the fill behind the abutment. Also, a new water line was put in near the Library because of a couple of leaks there.
What A Pity
Sheila Hewitt reported on the Youth Commission. She had received a call from Jan Brooks at the County Youth Services asking for a head count for the lunch program. Hewitt determined from the conversation with Brooks that the sharing of youth services by Berlin and Petersburgh was not going to happen. “I think the two directors [Tammy Osterhout and Cindy Mars] are arguing,” Hewitt said. “We need a mediator.” Supervisor Jaeger will contact Petersburgh Supervisor Peter Schaaphok to find out what’s going on. Hewitt said that Annette Bell is willing to supervise the summer swimming program.
Clean Up Day
Rev. Matthew Olson of the Seventh Day Baptist Church announced that members of that Church will participate in a clean up day on May 29, with a rain date for May 30. Litter will be picked up from the sidewalks and from the sides of the roads in Town. Olson wanted to know what will happen with the litter that is picked up. Kent Goodermote said that the transfer station accepts roadside trash for free. Transfer Station Head Ivan Wager was not present to confirm this. Hewitt said that the Legion has orange bags left over from their adopt-a-highway work that they would donate. That way the attendants at the transfer station could determine which trash being brought in was part of the clean up day project and not charge for it. So far, the plan is to have the volunteers bring the litter to the transfer station. Obviously, the Town would pay the hauler more for the higher volume of trash. Even more obvious is that volunteers are encouraged to be a part of the Seventh Day Baptist community project.
Budget Education
Jaeger wants to inform the public about long range budget issues. The 2010 tax levy was held to last year’s rate by using $40,000 from the fund balance, he said. Jaeger wants to balance the yearly operating budget so that the fund balance is not continually being drawn down. He also wants to develop a capital fund for bridges across the Little Hoosic. There are four bridges across the river, and Jaeger is convinced that the State will not have the funds to give to Berlin to replace them if they fail. Each bridge would cost between $750,000 and $1 million to replace, he said. The Town would have to issue bonds to pay for the bridges unless a capital fund is begun soon.
It takes money to run a community. The Berlin Board and Highway Department don’t waste money. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of ways for a town to raise revenue.
NIMS Training
Jaeger read a letter from Bruce Hake, Assistant Chief of the Berlin Fire Company, saying that the Fire Department and the Berlin Board were in 100% compliance at this time with the required NIMS (National Incident Management System) training. The letter goes on to say that the Fire Department “is unsure of the NIMS training that the Berlin School District has received and is unaware of NIMS certification for personnel there.” Jaeger emphasized how critical school personnel will be in the event of an emergency. For example, if people need to be evacuated from town, the school buses may be the most efficient way to do this, he said. He added that Pat Shuhart and Kenny Masterson at the school bus garage are NIMS certified.
No Shared Services With BCS
Jaeger announced that he had decided not to call a special meeting in order for the Town Board to determine whether it should participate in a shared service grant application with BCS. The meeting would have to have been held before the application deadline on March 31. Tate had already determined that the grant would have been a reimbursement grant, which means that Berlin would have to spend the $200,000 and wait for reimbursement from the State, which seems to take longer and longer. Given the Town’s finances it is unlikely that the Board would have voted to be part of the application anyway.
Other Business
• Winn reported that the Highway Department is working on truck maintenance and pot hole filling.
• Code Enforcement Officer Allan Yerton reported that there were 8 or 9 new permits issued this month.
• Vic Lewin reported that the ZBA would be deciding on the Cherry Plain cell tower at their meeting on April 15.
• Board Member Carl Greene said that the Little Hoosic River Watershed Association had a successful annual meeting.
• Derek Burhans was appointed to the Board of Assessment Review. This gives the BAR three members and avoids its being taken over by the County. Two more volunteers are needed. “Your neighbors won’t hate you,” Jaeger said.
• Jaeger reported that as of Thursday morning there had been 430 new visitors to the Town website. There is lots of information on the site including the minutes of the ZBA meetings on the Cherry Plain cell tower. “It is a well received addition to the Town,” Jaeger said.
• Jaeger thanked a new member of the community, Michael Harrington, who went home after dumping trash to get his electric meter which was used to repair the cardboard compactor at the transfer station.