by Bea Peterson
At the Hoosick Town Board meeting on Monday, May 13, Highway Superintendent Louis Schmigel requested approval from the Board to purchase a New Holland roadside mowing tractor with cab and air conditioning from Capital Tractor. The price of the base tractor is $44,000 after discounts and an $8,000 trade in. The traded tractor is a 2005 and needs $7,350 in repairs. Full price for the new tractor is $62,000. [private]Schmigel said they can use the old mower on this tractor with modifications. Town Bookkeeper Tyler Sawyer said there is sufficient money in the Highway Fund Balance to cover the purchase. The subject of leasing or buying came up, and Councilman Bruce Patire advised moving the money and then checking the options. The Board approved the purchase at $48,000 with an additional $10,000 for parts and retrofitting. Schmigel said the Highway Department mows approximately 10 acres a week between the roads, the garage and the athletic field.
Playground Issues
Schmigel reported that the playground is ready but some of the items had to be removed. He reminded the Board that the playground is 20 years old. About 75 percent of the problem is normal wear and tear, he said. And 25 percent is vandalism. He said it took two and a half hours just to repair a slide. He concluded the playground is in dire need of help and doesn’t even have baby swings any more. He said the whole complex needs attention and is going downhill quickly. The last time sealer was put on the tennis court was 10 to 15 years ago and something needs to be done for the surface now. Councilman Mark Surdam suggested Schmigel make a punch list that the Board can review. Patire said he would get prices for fixing the tennis court.
Schmigel said he is getting flack from the highway crew because they don’t want to be volunteering to maintain the athletic field any more. Surdam said that, in theory, former Highway Superintendent Bill Shiland and the highway crew were a stopgap measure after Leo McGuire retired. Leo, he said, put in 70 to 80 hours a week in the summer. Having the Highway Department take over helped the Town out and saved money, he said.
Crew At Risk
Schmigel said that when he has people mowing the athletic field, it means there is no one flagging traffic while the rest of the crew is working on the highways and that crew is at risk from traffic. Suggestions included hiring summer help or contracting out the athletic field mowing. Questions included – would summer help be a union issue and are there job descriptions for the Highway Department? There was also some talk of hiring another Leo McGuire. Another opinion was that the community had built the playground once, perhaps the Town could engage the community to do it again.
Regarding the whole Town complex, Surdam said, “We are fortunate to have these special things, and we have a responsibility to make sure these things are taken care of.” He noted that the walking path around the complex is becoming overgrown as well.
Pool
Patire said Brandon Pools are very confident they can repair the pool and “get us through this year” at a cost of $2,200. He said it may not look particularly attractive, but it will stay together.
He also reported that Underground Technology had done some work looking at the structural integrity of the pool and they believed it was pretty much intact. He said they came out free of charge, and he suggested they wait until the end of the season for them to come again.
Comments
Surdam noted at the beginning of the meeting that Supervisor Cipperly’s prepared statement was not included in the minutes of the April meeting. The Board appeared to agree it should be included. During the Public Comment period of the meeting Chairman of the Hoosick Federal Credit Union Board of Directors Elise Melesky read a statement to the Supervisor commenting on the honesty and integrity of Credit Union President Jim Martinez. The Board holds Martinez in the highest regard and would not stifle his passion for the community, it said in part. She said the Board would meet privately with Cipperly to discuss any issues he had with Martinez and that they were prepared to seek a “cease and desist” order if necessary.
Fran Downing addressed the assembly noting, “Nothing has changed. It’s the same old soap opera with negative letters in the paper. It’s the same agitators stirring up trouble – the Town Board meeting should be strictly for Town business.”
Dairy Princess
Guest speaker at the meeting on Monday was Rensselaer County Dairy Princess Lindsey McMahon. She brought crackers and cheese for everyone in the crowded meeting room to sample. One of the goals of the American Dairy Association is nutrition awareness, she said. As Dairy Princess her role is to spread proper nutritional ideas wherever she goes, in school programs and in the mentoring program in which she is involved. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, she added, and milk offers the best nutrients after a workout.
Grievance Day
Town Assessor Tony Rice was not at the meeting because he was in his office to hear tax grievance complaints.
Town Historian Phil Leonard’s display board for this month was on Grandma Moses.
Supervisor Cipperly thanked Gail Smith and those involved in putting together the Veteran’s breakfast and the Community Alliance Church for hosting it. He thanked Benson’s restaurant for catering the event and American Legion Post 40 for their community efforts, and he presented them with a check as a token of the Town’s appreciation. He thanked the Rensselaer County Dairy Princess Program for its event last month at the Pittstown Rescue Squad where Lindsey McMahon was crowned Dairy Princess and Casey Greene as Alternate. He attended the Hoosick Fire Department Banquet held at the Pittstown Rescue Squad building. He thanked the Department for its continuing support of the Town. He also thanked the Pittstown Rescue Squad for their hard work and dedication in putting on these banquets, adding that their efforts don’t go unnoticed.
The Supervisor attended the ceremony and congratulated Evan Morier for working extremely hard to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout.
Councilman Jeff Wysocki said he had attended two Rensselaer County Farmland Protection meetings. He said the HAYC3 Hoosical Furnishing event was a good time.
Councilman Kevin Allard sent the Board’s best wishes to Town Planning Board Attorney Denis King who was recently injured in a plane crash in Hoosick Falls. He had a copy of the HFCS policy changes that he mentioned last month, and he wondered if there was interest in his coming up with a similar plan for the Town. The Board was interested, and he will do so.
Patire noted that changing to Marshall and Sterling Insurance last year produced a savings and this year the savings will be $919 over last year.
In other business the Board approved:
• $192.50 a year for annual inspections of five trucks;
• the appointments of Katharine Danforth and Julia Baker as Lifeguards and Water Safety Instructors, John Lancour and Samantha Brewer as Camp Counselors and Jeff Wysocki as Co-Director for the Pool and Summer Camp;
• a beverage license renewal for the Falls Diner Restaurant;
• several field trips to the Town Pool for Hoosick Falls Central School and Cambridge Central School classes;
• the North Hoosick Fire Department Kid’s Pool Dance on July 12 from 7 to 10 pm;
• swimming lessons for the youths in the towns of Schaghticoke, Petersburgh, Berlin and Stephentown.
The Board went into executive session to discuss the Town contract with HAYC3. There is still some language to be resolved so the contract was not signed.[/private]