Grafton Town Board Action – Supervisor Darling Is Back

by Alex Brooks
Supervisor Ray Darling came back from several months of illness to chair the Grafton Town Board meeting on August 13. Marie Claus and Mike Crandall were not present.
[private]Rick Ungaro reported that the water damage to the Judges’ chambers has been repaired as has some water damage to the ceiling at the Senior Center.
Highway Superintendent Herb Hasbrouck said the furnace in the attic of the Senior Center building produces condensation water, which is normally drained to the outdoors through a pipe. But if that pipe gets plugged or frozen up, the condensation can back up and spill onto the ceiling. He said the pipe is clear right now but they may need to keep an eye on it next winter if there is a danger of it freezing up.
Ungaro also said he is seeking proposals for repair of the Town Garage roof but he does not have all the proposals yet.
The Supervisor’s report was presented. Barbara Messenger said she just received it and has not had time to review it, so she was not ready to vote on approving it. She said that she had met with Supervisor Darling and pointed out some of the things that concern her, and she said he is working on fixing those things.
Supervisor Darling said he has been in contact with the Comptroller’s Office about scheduling an audit. He expects them to get back to him in a week or two to set a date for the audit.
Supervisor Darling read a letter he had received from Joseph Shufelt urging the Town to reject a proposed gun range which is currently before the Planning Board. The letter cited numerous newspaper articles which recount incidents of stray bullets from gun ranges killing or injuring people nearby, and he urged the Town to put safety first. Darling said the Planning Board will be handling this issue and said he would pass the letter on to Planning Board Chairman Tom Withcuskey.
The Grafton Elementary School Committee report was on the agenda, but Barbara Messenger said the Committee had not met and she had nothing new to report.
Highway
Highway Superintendent Herb Hasbrouck said the Town has received some FEMA checks. He said he has completed the paperwork for all the projects except Dunham Road, so he expects to see the rest of the checks coming in soon. He said he is going back and forth with FEMA about the design of the Dunham Road project and it’s a slow process.
Building Inspector
Tom Withcuskey said he has issued 40 building permits to date this year and there are 35 still open from previous years. He sent two letters out about junk cars, and he is working on a couple of bank owned houses trying to get them cleaned up.
Ambulance
The ambulance squad had a busy month, responding to 24 calls and standing by for two events at the Park, a triathlon and the ROUSE picnic. They logged 161 volunteer hours in the ambulance, not including training, meetings or administrative work, and the ambulance traveled 610 miles. The ambulance was out of service this month for repair of brakes and LED lights. One new application for Junior membership was received.
Public Comment.
Pat Ivory asked if the Town was paying only the interest on the Senior Center bond or both interest and principal. Darling said he believed they were paying interest and principal but he would check.
Deputy Supervisor Cathy Goyer said she had spoken to Mr. Clemente about the Eagle sculpture in front of the Town Hall which he made and gave to the Town 11 years ago. He told her it has deteriorated too much to repair it, and it should be thrown out. Goyer said, “It was neglected for too long,” but Sue Putnam replied, “He used to take care of it. He never mentioned that it needed annual attention.”
Executive Session
The Board left in the middle of the meeting for 40 minutes to talk about “a personnel issue.” When they returned, they made no comment about and took no action on the matters discussed in that session.[/private]