by David Flint
The Stephentown Town Hall will soon get a fresh coat of paint. The interior of the building has not been painted since it was built. The Town Board at their meeting Monday authorized the letting of a contract to Patrick’s Quality Painting, a company located in Stephentown. [private]The walls and ceilings of the meeting hall, the entry way, the hallways, the bathrooms and the kitchen will all be cleaned, prepared and painted for the price of $4,940. Another quote was received from Adam E. Squires, also of Stephentown, but the Board decided to go with the lower one.
The Board had earlier decided to also replace the carpeting in the meeting hall but with only $4,000 in the budget for both jobs, the carpeting will wait until next year. The additional money needed for the painting will come out of contingency or reserve funds.
Signs
Town Supervisor Larry Eckhardt noted that a number of street signs are missing. The ones he knows about include Wyomanock Road, Gentile Road and Saddleback Ridge Road. He asked for a survey of street signs so that all the missing ones can be ordered at the same time, possibly at a lower cost. New signs will also be ordered for the Transfer Station.
Insurance
The biggest bill paid this month by the Town Board was to the Town’s new insurance agency, Metz Wood Harder Inc., for renewal of the Town’s insurance contract in the amount of $24,782. Eckhardt said he has had some discussion recently with the agents regarding how well the Town is covered. The agents were able to find appraisals of Town properties, including the Town Hall, the Garage and the salt shed, appraisals that were paid for in 2011 by the New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal (NYMIR). They concluded that the Town is in pretty good shape as far as the amount of insurance versus the appraised values. The Board may, however, consider raising the amount of the umbrella insurance from the current two million dollars to possibly five million, which would be more in line with coverage that some other comparable towns have. Increasing the umbrella insurance to that level would cost the Town an additional $2,600 in premiums.
TRACs
Eckhardt said he had a request for a donation from the Youth to Youth group that is part of TRACs organization (Together Reducing Alcohol and Drugs in our Communities). The youth leaders are seeking to send representatives to an upcoming conference. Although the Town cannot make donations, Eckhardt said it is possible for the Town to enter into a contract with an organization for services to be rendered to the community. This was done some years ago with an organization seeking to raise funds for playground equipment at the Stephentown Elementary School. The Town also provides funds to the Library and the Historical Society in return for services. Eckhardt thought some such arrangement might be worked out with TRACs, and he will discuss this with TRACs leaders.
Transfer Station
Transfer Station Supervisor Agnes Hoffman reported that things are going well at the facility. There have been only a few complaints about the recent increase in permit fees and C&D dumping fees. The new permits have been received and will be available immediately for those buying new. Renewal permits will start to be sold in August.
Hoffman noted that the Fourth of July falls on a Friday and asked whether the Transfer Station should be open that day. The Board agreed that not designating the Fourth of July as a holiday was a slip up at the January Organizational meeting. They gave the okay to close the Transfer Station on July 4.
Deposits And Spending
The Town Clerk turned over the sum of $348.02 to the Supervisor for the month of May. The Transfer Station deposited a total of $7,707.
The Board audited and approved claims in the amount of $37,233 from the General Fund and $58,434.64 from the Highway Account.
The Board set its next workshop meeting for Monday, July 14, at 7 pm. This will be a busy meeting with Linda von der Heide from County Planning attending and a presentation from the Bella Terra Music Festival on their plans to reduce noise after 11 pm. The Festival is scheduled for August 21-24.
The next regular meeting of the Town Board will be Monday, July 21, starting at 7 pm.[/private]