Awaiting Taconic’s Response
by Alex Brooks
At the Petersburgh Town Board meeting held virtually on February 15, Ben Krahforst asked on behalf of the Water District Committee about progress on an agreement with Taconic stating its commitment to paying its part of the Water Infrastructure (WIIA) grant that is paying for renovation of the Water District facility. Krahforst, Heinz Noeding and Tammy Dunlop all expressed some urgency about getting this done, because The Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC), which is administering the grant, has said that it cannot disburse any funds from this grant until it receives Taconic’s written commitment to the project.
The Supervisor’s Report presented at the February meeting said that $151,448 is currently due to be paid to the Water District from the WIIA grant. The paperwork requesting release of these funds from the grant has been submitted, but it can’t be processed until the Taconic agreement has been received by EFC.
Krahforst said it has been two months since a letter was sent to the Town asking it to get this done, and outlining in detail the request to be made of Taconic. Supervisor Smith apologized for the delay, and said he would get moving on it right away. Although he hesitated to put any deadline on it, he seems to think it could be completed in a few weeks. He said it does not involve negotiation with Taconic – it is just about putting on paper what it has already agreed to do.
Krahforst also asked that vouchers from Assistant Water Operator Michelle Todd contain enough detail so that time she spends on WIIA grant activities or PFOA remediation activities can be separated from routine Water District maintenance activities, so that some of her time can be billed to the WIIA grant or to Taconic, as appropriate.
Krahforst also asked on behalf of the C-8 Committee to push DEC to undertake an immediate cleanup because of the very high concentrations of PFOA in two places on the Taconic campus.
There was an inconclusive discussion about the transfer station situation, focused mainly on ascertaining Berlin’s intentions concerning continued use of its station by Petersburgh residents, but the Board endorsed continuing to move forward with plans to construct its own station in case it is needed.
Heinz Noeding said while researching possible grants to get the Justice Court a records room, he toured the Town Hall basement and found much of it in very bad condition. Because of this the records room was too big a project for the Justice Court Assistance grant program, and Noeding went looking for other grant programs. He found a USDA program aimed at helping small rural communities build or renovate facilities. He proposed an extensive renovation of the Town Hall funded by one of these grants. He said the grant pays either 35% or 55% of the cost as an outright grant, and the rest in a low interest loan. But he said to get started with an application to this program, an architectural survey of the Town Hall would be needed. He suggested that Cedarwood Engineering could do a “quickie” survey of the building for this purpose, and guessed that such a survey would cost about $1,500. The Board acknowledged the need for significant Town Hall renovation, and agreed to seek a proposal from Cedarwood to provide an architectural survey of the building.
Heinz Noeding said he had helped the Fire Company apply for a grant to fund $140,000 in equipment purchases, including new turnout gear and an air fill station. They have not heard yet if any money has been awarded. Noeding said the Rescue Squad could apply to the same program for assistance purchasing equipment, or even a new ambulance, and he offered to assist them since he is already very familiar with the requirements of the grant program.
At public comment time, Katie Snyder Murray said she spent some time looking over Town vouchers and she had a number of questions. The first was why the Town can’t pay its bills on time, noting that it is paying late fees on some of its accounts. She also wondered how the Town decides who will be paid as an employee and who as an independent contractor and she expressed some concerns about nepotism in Town hiring, referencing the summer youth program.
In Other Matters:
• Petersburgh Fire Chief Mark Murray said 14 members of the Fire Company received their first dose of vaccine recently, and he outlined plans to get the fire hydrant at the Fire Station fixed.
• Dennis Smith said everyone on the ambulance squad either has been vaccinated or has an appointment to be vaccinated in the next couple of weeks.
• The Board heard a rumor that the Veterans Memorial Hall had been unsecured and the PVMCC was looking into getting security cameras. Supervisor Smith said he would discuss the matter with PVMCC leadership.