Praise For Vietnam Vets Events
by Deb Alter
The Village Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, August 11, opened with praise and thanks to the people who organized the Viet Nam Veterans Welcome Home Celebration. Mayor David Borge lauded the many groups that had worked together to make the day happen. “It was quite the celebration,” he said, “It was the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen in the [Wood Memorial] Park.” He thanked Gail Smith, Tom McMartin and Joyce Brewer of Voice of a Vet, The Patriot Guard Riders (who were made Hoosick Falls citizens for the day), Heroes at Home, the American Legion, and all the people from the churches that made “miles of sandwiches.” “It was all about working together with organizations that help our veterans,” said Smith.
McMartin and Smith added thanks to the Highway Department, Police Chief Bob Ashe and his department, Charlie Filkins for filming the event, and Phil Leonard, the Town Historian.
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Borge also lauded Bill Gaillard who has been the leader of the Hoosick Falls Community Band for fifty years, and who would be honored the following night at the weekly band concert. He thanked Gaillard for his many years of service to the community through both his leadership of the band and with the Rescue Squad. The Board passed a resolution proclaiming “Mr. G’s” dedication to a life of giving.”
The spaghetti dinner at the Hoosick Falls Firehouse proceeds will benefit the Nick Colaneri Fund. The profits from the Texas Hold’Em Tournament on August 15 will also go to that fund. The mayor said that Officer Colaneri has been working regular shifts and has an amazing attitude. Chief Ashe said that the spaghetti dinner was organized by a group of young people that Colaneri had made a connection with while on duty who wanted to do something to help. There will be another fundraiser for Colaneri at The Sand Bar on August 22.
American House Demolition
The American House on Elm Street needs to be demolished. Building Inspector Mark Surdam and structural engineer Bill Cottrell inspected the building, inside and out, in June. The last owner of record is from out-of-town, and the Village intends to go after them to pay for the demolition, as it will be costly to tear it down. The Village will have to hire experts to assess asbestos and other potential health hazards in the building, and will have to follow official guidelines in the abatement process. The State will help defray part of the cost, but the burden will be mostly on the Village. The Board approved the resolution to accept the engineer’s report and to pay him $458 for his services.
Code Enforcement
The Village continues to successfully step up its code enforcement efforts. Building Inspector Surdam made approximately 55 inspections in the last month. Two cases were resolved in court, in a third, the landlord did not show up. Other property owners have been more cooperative and therefore did not have to go to court. A point system is used to determine who has to go to court or what fines are levied. Trustee Kevin O’Malley asked if the Village could request that building owners with boarded up windows paint the plywood grey to make them less obtrusive and look more like glass, the Village Attorney said that it probably needs to be written into the zoning laws.
Zoning Update Report
The new Village zoning laws are ready for the SEQRA review process. Barton and Loguidice presented copies of the report to the Trustees along with their analysis and recommendations. The goal is to streamline the zoning codes and make them more accessible to developers and others interested in bringing businesses to the Village. A reorganization of the current information will make it easier for people to find the information they need. The codes will eventually be digitized and put online. The next steps include the State environmental review process and declaring the intent of the Village of Hoosick Falls to be the lead agency in the zoning update process. Other interested agencies include the Town of Hoosick, Rensselaer County, and the State of New York, with which there will be a coordinated review. A public hearing will be scheduled for October.
Floodplain Regulations Approved
A motion was approved to have the Village Attorney draft a proposed local law to enact required regulations for the new Flood Insurance Study and Rate Maps into the Village of Hoosick Falls floodplain management regulations to meet the standards set by FEMA and the DEC.
PFOA Update
St. Gobain continues to test the water near their property concerning the PFOA situation. The Mayor said that they have been very cooperative with the Village in working on the problem and in communicating with neighboring properties. There will be a letter from the Mayor in the next water bill, updating residents about the process and progress of the Hoosick Falls water situation.
Speeding On Main Street
Several people came to the meeting to speak about cars speeding on Main Street. With the diagonal parking, the children on bikes and on foot, and people crossing at the various intersections and in between, the situation is dangerous. Various solutions were suggested, including lowering the speed limit, installing radar speed display signs, or putting out pylons or rumble strips. Chief Ashe promised to have his officers be more aggressive with the radar and to look into the speed limit question with the D.O.T. There was a general agreement that the situation needs to be addressed.
Grants
Mayor Borge reported he is continuing to work on grant applications for Woods Brook, for a Parks and Recreation Grant for the Greenway, for a second zoning grant to develop a master plan, and for a Clean Water Grant for further sewer study. He is also continuing to search for new grants for next year.
Police Report
Chief Ashe reported 112 calls last month; three were of a serious nature.The first incident involved an active burglary in Schodack in which the perpetrators came through the Village, in the second, the subject barricaded himself in his home around midnight. It was a very threatening situation, but the officers were able to get in and settle it safely. The third was a suicide threat in which the subject had a rifle. The sheriff and State Police officers were able to talk him down after a very intense hour, but everyone was safe.
Police Car Donation
Chief Ashe recommended that the Village accept the donation of a new K9 SUV from a former officer with the North Greenbush Police Department. The 2007 Chevy Tahoe is in excellent shape, has lower mileage than the current K9 vehicle, and has all the necessary equipment (lights. cage, and siren) already installed. Hoosick Falls would install a radio that they already own. The donor will even have the vehicle painted black to match the department’s other vehicle. The only cost to the Village would be insurance and registration, which is minimal. The Board voted unanimously to accept the donation.
Community Service
Two-hundred and fifteen hours of community service were logged in during the period from June 11 to July 31. The workers were supervised by Jerry McAuliffe and did maintenance chores such as pruning, weeding, mowing, and general clean-up. Considering the cost of paying people to do this work, it adds up to a sizable savings for the Village. There is also less recidivism due to the program.
Other Business:
• The Highway Department is helping HAYC3 round up the approximately 12 benches to be moved to the Armory for the Painting Hoosick Bench Project in late summer and early fall. HAYC3’s Hullabaloo Music and Art Festival will be the last weekend in September and will include the Hoosick is Illuminated project, which will feature a parade with people carrying luminaries they’ve made.
• The new Village Hall sign is now outside the Municipal Building thanks to the efforts of Trustee O’Malley and McAuliffe. The Mayor said “it’s nice to no longer be ‘that building across from the Post Office.’”
• The Board passed a resolution approving a lease agreement between the Village and the Hoosick Falls Youth Football and Cheerleading, Inc. The terms are ten years for $1 per year, the same as with the Little League.
• On Monday, August 10, all Village employees attended a mandatory workshop pertaining to workplace violence.
• Permanent “Snow Emergency” signs will be posted on certain Village streets instead of paper ones this winter.
• The Village Highway Department will be trimming trees around the Village that pose potential problems for the smooth operation of Highway Department vehicles in the winter months. Tree branches that encroach on the street will be cut back. The Highway crew will not cut branches located near power or utility lines. If residents feel there are issues around their lines, they are asked to contact the utility company.
• A motion to allow Mr. Ding-a-Ling to enter the Town Pool area, as per a pool staff request, was passed. Access had previously been denied so as not to interfere with the Ice Kreme Kafe’s business.
• A proposal for hiring the professional services of MRB Engineering to help with the necessary sewer line upgrades was discussed and a motion was approved. The Village has received a $3.8 million-dollar, interest-free loan to pay for the upgrades, and with the help of MRB, will be actively pursuing grants to help pay off the loan.
The meeting closed with a moment of silence in honor of Michael Bornt.
The next Village Board meeting will be on the third Tuesday of the month on September 15 at 6 pm due to Labor Day. The next Hoosick Rising meeting will be at the Senior Center on Church Street on September 22.[/private]