Stephentown Town Board Action – Special Meetings, Action On Budget Postponed

by David Flint
The Stephentown Town Board has appointed Bill Jennings to serve out the term of a Board seat left vacant last year after Larry Eckhardt was elected Town Supervisor. Learning that Board Members Mark Prescott and PJ Roder would not be available to participate in the regular November Board meeting scheduled for this past Monday, which would mean no quorum, the Board called a special meeting on Sunday and appointed Jennings to serve until the end of the year. In January he will begin serving the term to which he was elected on November 2.
Budget Action Postponed
However, one major piece of business on the agenda for Monday had to be postponed. Since Jennings is Treasurer of the Stephentown Memorial Library, he would have to recuse himself from voting on the 2011 Town Budget. Therefore the Board set another special meeting for Friday, November 19, at 7 pm for the sole purpose of adopting the Budget. The law specifies that they must adopt the Budget by November 20.
Surprised By Mortgage Tax Revenue
Eckhardt said he was surprised by an article in The Eastwick Press that indicated that Stephentown would receive $73,254 from the County as its share of the mortgage tax collected for the period April 1 to September 30. This would be an increase of $39,579 over the distribution for that period last year, a lot more than Eckhardt was expecting.
Liebenow Resigns From ZBA
The Board voted to accept the resignation of Jack Liebenow from the Zoning Board of Appeals. Liebenow said in his letter of resignation that his work schedule had prevented him from attending meetings. They then passed another resolution appointing Joseph Champion as Chairman of the ZBA until the end of the year. Another resolution authorized the Town Clerk to advertise requesting applications for this and all other appointed positions that expire on December 31. The deadline for submitting applications is December 17 at noon. Eckhardt noted that Bob Mittnight’s term on the ZBA is expiring so there will be two slots on that Board open for appointment. In addition, he said, the ZBA is in desperate need of a Clerk.
The Board also authorized advertising for Town Hall cleaning. Resumes and letters of interest for this position are also due to the Town Clerk by December 17.
New Dog Licensing Law
The Board set a public hearing to be held on December 20 to consider the passage of a Dog Licensing law. Such a law is necessary as the State recently moved the dog licensing function from the Department of Agriculture & Markets to the level of local government. Towns and municipalities that issue dog licenses will now assume these functions and establish their own fees and policies. Councilman Chris Demick said the Town Clerk or the Dog Control Officer will now license dogs. Any boarding fees incurred for stray dogs, including rabies shots, will be the responsibility of the owner.
Eckhardt said it was not clear what the cost of taking on these functions might be or what additional revenue could be obtained. Therefore they have made no change in the Budget for the Dog Officer operation until they have some experience with the new system. He estimated that currently only about 10% of the dog population in Stephentown is registered. Town Clerk Patty Gallup said that under these circumstances it would not be fair to raise license fees much because it would only penalize those who abide by the law.
Snowplowing Bid Awarded
The Board awarded a bid to Brian Hespelein for the year 2011for snowplowing at the Transfer Station and Town Hall, including shoveling and salting sidewalks. Hespelein’s bid was the only one received by the deadline of November 12. He will be paid $125 for the Transfer Station and $60 for the Town Hall.
Road Materials Bids
The Board passed a resolution to authorize the Town Clerk to advertise and request sealed bids on road work materials. Bid specs will be available at the Town Clerk’s Office beginning Monday, November 22. Bids are due to the Town Clerk by Wednesday, December 15, at noon.
Ronnie Demick To The BAR
The Board appointed Veronica Demick to a five year term on the Board of Assessment Review. Her term will expire on September 30, 2015.
Deposits & Spending
The Town Clerk reported she had turned over the sum of $869.17 to the Supervisor for the month of October. The distribution from the office of the State Comptroller, Justice Court Fund to the Town was $3,404. The Transfer Station deposited a total of $5,336.
The Board audited and approved claims in the amount of $19,601.73 from the General Account and $58,296.11 from the Highway Account.
The Board set a special meeting for Friday, November 19, at 7 pm to adopt the 2011 Town Budget and set its next regular meeting for Monday, December 20, at 7 pm, preceded by a public hearing on the Dog Control Law at 6:30 pm.