by Deb Alter
At the Hoosick Falls Village Board meeting on Monday, November 10, the Board discussed the closing of the Oak Mitsui plant, the resignation of Trustee Jeremy Driscoll, who has moved out of the village, the possible closing of the Center Street railroad crossing, a Monolith Solar project, a pilot project by MicrOrganic waste water treatment and the purchase of a piece of property by HooRWA for the Village, among other things.
[private]The proposed closing of the Center Street railroad crossing was the result of a routine review by the NYS DOT and Pan Am Railways. Mayor Borge explained the procedure that must be followed before this can happen. It is a four to five month process during which there will be public hearings sponsored by the Village and Pan Am. Residents, the fire and police departments and the rescue squad will have the opportunity to get information, ask questions and voice opinions. An arbitrator will have the final say.
The Monolith Solar Representative was not able to be at the meeting, so Mayor Borge presented its plan to put in a megawatt system that can be controlled remotely. The proposal is to install the system over the old landfill site, using space that would otherwise go unused. Monolith will not have to go deeper than 18 inches into the ground – the maximum allowed for a landfill site – in order to install the system. The new system will feed electricity to the Village and help the Village save up to $65,000 in electric bills each year. To put that in perspective, the Mayor pointed out that the Village is now saving $6,500 per year from the panels on the roof of the municipal building. The Village spends about $85,00 per year for electricity for the streetlights, so the new megawatt system would allow considerable savings for the Village. The new system will come at no cost to the Village, which can decide at anytime to stop the program for any reason.
Paula Kamperman gave the Greenway Property Purchase presentation. HooRWA has reached an agreement with Mr. Skorupsky, the owner, to purchase the almost six acre parcel for the Village. It is located between the Greenway and the Hoosic River near the southern end, under the River Street Bridge. The property is an excellent spot for putting in canoes and kayaks as well as being a nice flat place for benches or a picnic area. There is easy access to the location, with plenty of trees, foliage and nature. Students from area schools will be able to study ecosystems and estuary environments there. The Board agreed that the purchase, which comes at no cost to the Village, is an excellent one with many possibilities for future uses.
FEMA has updated the Flood Plain maps for this area. There will be a Rensselaer County Flood Mapping Open House on Tuesday, November 18, from 4 to 8 pm at The HAYC3 Armory.
There will be a public hearing pertaining to Local Law #1 at the December Village Board Meeting from 6 to 7 pm. This law pertains to overnight camping in Hoosick Falls.
Superintendent of Schools Ken Facin presented a quick overview of the proposed HFCSD Capital Project. The project addresses no-frills issues of safety, necessary physical plant updates and cost savings for the District. The project is directed at updating and fixing things that haven’t been dealt with since the building was constructed in 1961. Details about the project and the dates and times of presentations are available on the HFCSD website.
Facin also recognized the success of the HFCS sports teams, including the football and field hockey teams. He noted that the arts were equally as important as sports in the continually improving quality of education at HFSC.
Ed Holland, the Hoosick Falls Building Inspector, is looking to work part-time, so the Board agreed to advertise for a code enforcement officer. Mayor Borge emphasized that there will only be one position, but that they would advertise for both a full-time and part-time officer to keep all options open. There is a Rensselaer County Civil Service list for full-time code enforcement officers that must be looked at if the Board opts for the full-time position.
After the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of the meeting, there was a moment of silence in honor of Jean Mahar and all who have served in our Armed Forces.
Village Treasurer Denise McMahon reported that the Annual Report for fiscal year 2103-2014 has been filed with the NYS Comptroller’s Office and is available to view in the Village Office. Everything financial is looking good in Hoosick Falls, she said, and the Mayor concurred.
Brent Solina of MicrOrganics introduced a wastewater treatment pilot project that his company would like to implement at the Hoosick Falls Sewage Treatment Plant. They are also working with Brown’s Brewery. The pilot will test the feasibility of treating wastewater using electrodes instead of the huge blowers that are used now. Without using chemicals or gasses or any other substances that could harm the environment, they hope to create a new way to clean the water that goes back into the system. Solina explained the process, saying they were composting water the way we compost in gardens. The project would not cost the Village anything. MicrOrganics is fully insured. Right now it is a small-scale, short term academic project but could lead to a better way to treat wastewater. He suggested that local science students could get involved and learn a lot.
Solina paid Hoosick Falls a huge compliment when he commented that the Hoosick Falls Sewage Treatment Plant was the cleanest he had ever seen. “So clean you could eat off the floor,” he said.
Mayor Borge talked about the excellent quality of Hoosick Falls’ water, saying that it exceeds DEC standards and requirements. It is constantly tested, even for things for which tests are not required by regulations. Hoosick Falls has state of the art polyfilters in their facilities.
Jeremy Driscoll resigned from the Board of Trustees since he has moved out of the Village; the Board will appoint his replacement. This person will serve until the next election in March 2015. At that time that Board position will be up for election to serve a one year term, until March 2016, at which time the slot will be open for election to a regular two year term.
Assistant Police Chief Harold McClellan gave the Police Report, which included a total of 83 calls and nine arrests. Officer McClellan also shared that he had completed special training and was now certified in handling cases that involve emotionally disturbed persons. He is one of only 100 police officers in the four-county region that has this certification.
Ted Kolinkowski of Barton & Loguidice read the Declaration for Sequence Development and Parsons Outpost which included information about environmental impact and parking studies and Historic District regulations compliance. The Board adopted the resolution accepting the Parsons Outpost SEQR. The Village will act as the lead agency for the grant. “This is the last major hurdle to getting the funding from the NYS Empire Development Corporation,” the Mayor said.
The Rogers Avenue tank and valve repairs have been completed, and the tank is now filled. As predicted, the cost was about $75,000.
Motions that were approved included:
• accepting the resignation of Jeremy Driscoll;
• advertising for a public hearing for Local Law#1 of 2014;
• approving the acquisition of the Skorupsky property;
• the approval of the Center Street water break claim;
• a review of the proposed Public Access to Records of the FOIL policy;
• the appointment of Dennis Casey to the Village Zoning Board for 2014 to 2019, and
• advertising the second public hearing (a presentation and workshop) for the Zoning and Planning updates on December 3, 2014 at 6:30 pm at the Hoosick Falls Senior Center.
Announcements
• Trustee O’Malley congratulated Matt Brownell on being named Bowler of the Year by the Troy Bowling Association. This is the first time ever that a Hoosick Falls bowler has received that honor.
• The HFCS sports teams were congratulated on their successful seasons.
• The Village Transfer Station will be closed on Tuesdays for the season beginning December 1.
• Snow emergency information will be available on the Village website and notices will be posted in designated areas. The snow emergency will be in effect the day after the snowstorm.
• Thanksgiving and Christmas trash pick-up schedules will be – regular Thursday pick-ups will take place on Friday and Friday pick-ups on Saturday.
• HAYC3’s request for use of Wood Park for the Hoosick Hullabaloo on September 25, 26, and 27, 2015 was approved.
• The Isabel McGuire Scholarship Cabaret at Hoosac School was a tremendous success and enjoyed by all who attended. Everyone agreed that the venue was excellent and that Hoosac School was a good neighbor.
• Cookies for Operation Christmas Cookies can be delivered to Suzanne Fitzpatrick at 78 Mountain View Way from November 30 to December 5. They will be packed for shipping on December 5. Crisp cookies travel best.
• The HAYC3 sponsored Halloween Parade was attended by more people than ever.[/private]