Petersburgh Town Board Action – Town Hall Fixes Proposed

by Alex Brooks
Supervisor Siegfried Krahforst arrived at this month’s Petersburgh Town Board meeting with estimates in hand for work on the Town Hall amounting to almost $10,000. He said a drainage pipe had already been laid to carry the water away from the building, and he proposed to put up gutters to catch the water off the roof and feed it into the new drainage pipes. He said water getting into the basement is making the basement area of the building completely unusable; he feels the problem should be dealt with right away. [private]More generally, Krahforst feels the Town Hall building needs to be maintained in good condition and not allowed to deteriorate. He noted that very little work has been done on the building since the initial renovation work was done 15 years ago.
Other projects on Krahforst’s list included fixing water damage to the front entrance portico and closing up an old, disused exit door in the basement.
The quotes Krahforst brought to the Board were from Patrick’s Quality Painting and Remodeling of Stephentown. Repairing the front portico was quoted at $1,285, painting at $2,580, installing gutters at $3,460 and walling up the old exit door at $430.
Krahforst also feels that there is not enough light on the walkway from the parking area. He proposed to put up a light pole to light that area.  His son Benedikt of ACT electric provided an estimate for installing such a light for $1,850.
The Board agreed to have this work done, and Councilman David Alderman also pointed out that the building is not very handicap accessible. He urged that something be done to make it easier for people in wheelchairs or using walkers to get in and out of the building. Supervisor Krahforst said he will look into it.
The County Sheriff’s work crew has also been here this month painting and re-puttying some of the windows.
Tax Cap Override
Supervisor Krahforst proposed that the Board vote now to override the 2% tax cap because he didn’t know what fiscal problems might arise and he didn’t want to be constrained. He said the Board will strive to keep any tax increases as low as possible, and he would hope such an increase would be below 2%, but he felt it would be safer to have the ability to increase the tax rate to whatever is needed. The Board agreed, and an override was passed.
Water District
Krahforst said he had spoken with the Fire District Commissioners about providing some financial support for the Water District for the use of its hydrants for firefighting purposes and they were agreeable to the idea.  Krahforst did some research and came up with a figure of $160 per hydrant per year, which he said is lower than what the Berlin Fire Department or the Hoosick Falls Fire Department pays to their respective water system operators. This, he said, would amount to $2,080 per year as long as all the hydrants were in good working order. The Fire District would not pay, of course, for hydrants that are broken. The Board agreed to this, and the Water District will henceforth bill the Fire District for this on a semi-annual basis.
Krahforst also proposed an annual payment from the Highway Department to the Water District for water that it uses to clean the roads, but the $600 he came up with was admittedly an arbitrary figure, and the Board wanted a better rationale for determining the amount of the payment, so the matter was tabled.
Chargebacks And Reval
Assessor Craig Surprise said he is separating the Town’s assessment operations from the County computers and taking over some of the tasks formerly done by County employees and charged to Petersburgh taxpayers through a section of the County tax bill called “chargebacks.” He said the County charges Petersburgh taxpayers about $9,000 a year in chargebacks, and he hopes to reduce that by $2,000 to $3,000. The Board was interested in what else was charged to Petersburgh taxpayers this way, and Surprise said he would give his figures to the Town Clerk to be distributed to the Board.
Surprise also said it is time for a Revaluation. The last one was done in 2003. He proposed that the Board put money in next year’s budget to start the Revaluation so that the new values can be in place by 2015. The Board was agreeable to this idea. Surprise said he would have the “State guy” come talk to the Board at the June meeting so they can learn more.  Surprise said State aid of $5 per parcel is still in place for revaluations.
Other Business
Planning Board Chairman Dave Miller told the Town Board that the Planning Board is trying to finish up its re-write of the subdivision regulations. It will be discussing that at its meeting next Monday, March 26, at 7 pm, and he urged Town Board members to attend and participate in the discussion.
Supervisor Krahforst reported that he had received a letter from a Town resident saying that seven of the tax bill payments last January were lost in the mail, and he recommended that the Tax Collector have a post office box, which he felt is more secure than delivery to a mailbox on the road. The Board agreed to have the Town rent a post office box for the Tax Collector.
The Board appointed an Economic Development Committee for the Town of Petersburgh. The members will be Frank Sheldon, Jay Burdick and John Klein.
They also re-appointed Dennis Smith to another five year term on the Board of Assessment Review.[/private]