by Alex Brooks
The Grafton Town Board meeting on May 12 began with the highway report. Highway Superintendent Herb Hasbrouck said Babcock Lake Road suffered a lot of damage this past winter. It’s a County Road, and the County has tried to patch it, but apparently they do not have the resources to fully repair it. The County Engineer said he would need an allocation of 600 to 800 tons of asphalt mix to repair it properly. Code Enforcement Officer Tom Withcuskey said, “It was very bad this winter. They came out and worked on it and patched some holes, but it still has some bad holes in it.”
[private]Town Supervisor Higgins encouraged everyone who is concerned about it to write to County Executive Kathy Jimino to ask her to allocate the 600-800 tons of asphalt needed to repair it. Withcuskey said, “There’s a lot of traffic on that road. A lot of emergency vehicles come through there. It should be fixed.”
FEMA Money
Supervisor Frank Higgins said the Town of Grafton recently received a check from FEMA for $44,667.48 reimbursing the Town for emergency road repairs undertaken after storm damage. Higgins said help from NY State Senator Kathy Marchione’s office was instrumental in getting the check. He said FEMA still owes the Town about $85,000 in road repair reimbursements, but he has no idea when such a sum might be paid.
New Truck
Grafton received just one offer of a truck for sale in response to its request for truck bids. This was for a 2001 International 4900 single axle dump truck with a sander on it, but no plow, from Delurey Sales & Service in Hoosick. The price was $14,000.
The Town received $14,900 from its insurance company for the truck that was in an accident and was declared a total loss so they have the cash available to buy this replacement.
Rick Ungaro asked Herb Hasbrouck if he might want to wait until more FEMA money arrives and buy something newer. Hasbrouck said he needs the truck now, and he has no confidence that more FEMA money will come in anytime soon. “We may not see that money for a year. We had to cry and beg to get the check that we did get.”
Board Member Barbara Messenger made a motion to buy the truck offered by Delurey, and it passed unanimously. The Board also authorized Hasbrouck to dispose of the old truck and get as much money for it as he can.
Higgins then asked Hasbrouck to share with the Board his proposal to buy a new truck with the FEMA money recently received. Hasbrouck said he would like to buy a new Ford F550 truck on County bid for just under $50,000. The Board agreed to this and authorized purchase of a new F550 for a price not to exceed $50,000.
County Lease Of Senior Center
Supervisor Higgins described the problems with the heating system at the Senior Center last winter. He said Hasbrouck spent a lot of time last winter trying to make the system work. As part of this effort, he found a specialist who knows this type of system well and asked him to come in and work on it. This contractor worked on repairing the system and submitted a bill for $200. Higgins said the County is supposed to pay this bill but is refusing to pay it. Higgins said he is “not pleased with the response I am getting from the County.”
Higgins said the lease agreement with the County gives the Town just $1 per year, and in exchange the County agreed to pay all costs of use and occupancy, including all maintenance and repairs. The only exception is that the Town agreed to plow the parking lot and mow the grounds.
Carol Rozbozom, the County Commissioner of Unified Family Services, sent Higgins a letter saying the Town is responsible for repairs to the heating system and has always paid for such repairs. She accused Higgins of trying to “shift Town expenses on to the County program.” A copy of the lease agreement supplied to the Eastwick Press by Supervisor Higgins seems to support his side of the argument. It says repetitively and emphatically that the Tenant, the County, will bear all costs of operation and maintenance of the premises. For instance, it says, “Tenant assumes full responsibility for the maintenance and repair of the Premises.”
Some in the audience were surprised to hear that the County pays Grafton only a dollar a year to use the Senior Center and asked for an explanation. Board Member Mike Crandall was the only one who was on the Board at the time the lease was signed, and he said he didn’t recall how they came to such an agreement.
Casino In East Greenbush
Higgins said he received a visit from a representative of the company that is proposing to build a large casino resort in East Greenbush, who asked the Town to pass a resolution supporting the project. The letter from Saratoga Casino and Raceway said building the casino is expected to cost $300 million and will create 1,700 construction jobs and 1,700 permanent jobs for people who will work at the casino. In addition there may be secondary economic activity created by the casino which would generate additional jobs. The most compelling argument, though, was that the casino would generate $5.7 million annually in Rennselaer County tax revenue. This could reduce County property tax on homeowners in Grafton. The Board voted 4-0 in favor of a resolution supporting construction of the casino in East Greenbush, with Rick Ungaro abstaining.
Valente Mine Expansion
Supervisor Higgins read an April 30 letter from Grafton Town Attorney Sal Ferlazzo to Nancy Baker at NYS DEC asking her to suspend consideration of the Valente application until the company makes a formal application to the Grafton Planning Board for a Site Plan Review. The letter said, in part, “The blatant refusal of R.J. Valente to apply to the Town of Grafton can no longer be tolerated. Indeed, the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation clearly notes that the Town is an involved agency and that the Town should be intimately involved in the DEC’s review of this matter based on the significant local considerations.”
There was no word yet on what the DEC response to this letter will be.
Insurance Gap
Higgins reported that he had received a letter from Lee Pollock, the Town’s insurance agent, saying he had discovered a gap in their insurance coverage. He said years ago, when the Town switched to the County Workers Compensation plan, apparently no one noticed that it provides no employer’s liability insurance. This covers claims against the Town arising out of employee injuries. Employees cannot directly sue the Town, but third parties who are sued by the employee can countersue the Town. Higgins consulted Town Attorney Sal Ferlazzo about this, who said cases of this kind are rare, but when they occur the Town could get stuck for substantial damages and attorneys’ fees. Pollock offered a policy covering this for $1,263 per year. Barbara Messenger said, “We would be exposed” if the Board declined the insurance. Rick Ungaro said he thought the coverage is needed but wondered where the Town would get the money for an unbudgeted item like this. They decided to purchase the insurance on a motion from Rick Ungaro, seconded by Marie Claus.
Big Bags
Herb Hasbrouck said people are bringing contractor bags to the Grafton transfer station that hold three regular bags. Currently, the fee for regular bags is $3 and is $5 for contractor bags. He suggested they think about revising the fees. Mike Crandall said if they hold three times as much garbage, they should be three times the price – $9. Supervisor Higgins and others thought that was a bit high to dispose of a bag of garbage. They settled on $7, and a motion to that effect passed 3-2 with Mike Crandall and Rick Ungaro voting against it.[/private]