Amy Schaaphok Appointed To Town Board
by Alex Brooks
The Petersburgh Town Board held a special meeting on Friday evening June 10 primarily for the purpose of appointing a new Supervisor. Town Board member Alan Webster was nominated to be interim Supervisor, and was appointed by a unanimous vote. Webster resigned his seat on the Town Board in order to accept the Supervisor position, which left a vacancy on the Board. [private]Amy Schaaphok, who had gaveled the meeting open in her capacity as Deputy Supervisor, was nominated for the Board vacancy, and she was appointed by unanimous vote. Schaaphok ran for a Town Board seat last fall, and received 107 votes, but lost to Webster who got 170 votes, and Dennis Smith who got 120 votes.
At this point Town Justice Richard Snyder swore in Webster as Supervisor and Schaaphok as Town Councilwoman, and the Board convened to take up a few issues. Alan Webster thanked Peter Schaaphok for his many years (“decades,” said Webster) of service to the Town. He said taking the Supervisor position was an easy decision for him, given the urgency of the issues facing the Town, and the dedication and work ethic of the staff and Town Board members that he will be working with. He also said that he is accepting the position of interim Supervisor, and he does see it as an interim position, signaling that he does not intend to run for his own term as Supervisor next fall.
The Board was told that a price of $899 had been received for tablets for the Town Board in order to cut down on the use of paper. The Board did not have room in this year’s budget for such a purpose, so they agreed to consider putting it in the budget for next year.
The water delivery service being offered at Taconic’s expense will be supplied by WB Mason. They will supply 5 gallon bottles that can either be mounted on a cooler or fitted with a pump. To have a cooler, each resident will have to sign a service agreement saying that if the equipment is not returned or if it is returned damaged, the resident would be liable. Town Clerk Deidra Michaels said 15 to 20 people want the cooler systems. Michaels said the company is willing to supply one gallon bottles if people want them, but Taconic has not yet approved that option, so it is not being offered yet.
Michaels told the Board she has been informed that the deadline for submitting an application for the State water grant is June 20, so the Board scheduled a special meeting for Thursday June 16 at 6:30 pm to take whatever action needs to be taken to authorize submission of an application on behalf of the Town.[/private]