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[MESSAGE JSNF-285-09]

APPROVED Minutes of the August 6, 2013 Meeting of the Asharoken Board of Trustees

 Incorporated Village of Asharoken

Board of Trustees Regular Meeting

Held on Tuesday

August 6th 2013 7:30 P.M

At the Northport Power Plant

Approximate Attendance (24)

                                                                                                               

                               

Officers Present:

Greg Letica, Mayor

Pam Pierce, Deputy Mayor

Melvin Ettinger, Trustee

Laura Burke Trustee

Ian Jablonski, Trustee

 

Officials & Appointees Present:

Nancy Rittenhouse, Village Clerk

Bruce Migatz, Village Attorney

Ray Mahdesian, Officer- in- Charge

Doug Adil, Superintendent of Buildings

Marty Cohen, Conservation of the Environment

John Ross, Village Hall Expansion Committee Chair

Bill Raisch, Emergency Manager

Barry Bradley, Sanitation Operator

 

The Pledge of Allegiance was said.

Proof of publication was made.

 

Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve the regular board minutes for July 2nd, 2013, seconded by Trustee Burke.

 

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Mayor’s Report:

Mayor Letica reported, “That the Fourth of July celebration was a safe and joyful celebration of our nation’s independence.  Thanks go to Officer in Charge Ray Mahdesian and Police Commissioner Mel Ettinger. Additionally, thanks are in order to Marty Hakker for securing the fireworks and Harbormaster Joe Affrunti for acting as Safety Officer. The Village of Northport supplied the village with sawhorses which were used at the Bevin Road viewing area.  Thanks to our neighbors.

I had several conversations with the ACOE and National Grid to discuss the 45,000 CYD sand placements commencing this fall.  At my urging, National Grid and the ACOE agreed to start placing the sand 1000 feet from the west jetty.  This coincides with the first house on the strip. Previously, the start point was 2000 feet from the jetty and therefore by-passed many homes that needed sand.  I sent a letter in support of National Grid’s request for a permit to place the sand to the ACOE. I followed up on a request by several residents at the last meeting to have the sand place in front of the seawall.  The ACOE recommended against doing this due to the insufficient quantity of sand to properly restore this area and advised that the sand should go in front of the homes.  National Grid said that their responsibility was to bypass only their jetty and said that they would not place the sand at the seawall.

The village was informed by Senator Marcellino’s office of a $50,000 grant run by the New York State and Municipal Facilities program, the application was submitted on July 31st requesting grant money to assist in funding part of the village hall reconstruction. 

In addition the village also submitted a Letter of Intent on August 1st to the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program in order to be accepted as an applicant.  Once we receive notification that we are eligible to apply, a detailed application will be submitted for grant funding for the Village Hall reconstruction project.

There is nothing new to report on the start of the feasibility study.

The village filed the Annual Financial Report Update Document on July30th with the NY State Comptroller.

The road striping at the Bevin Road corner was completed.  I would like to thank the Village of Northport and their highway department for helping us out with this project.

We are looking into make a few alterations to the curbing near the catch basins west of Bevin Road, these repairs are fully reimbursable under the CHIPS (Consolidated Highway Improvement program).

FEMA has reviewed the estimates of the sluice repair on Bevin Road and only a portion is eligible by FEMA.  The additional work may be covered under CHIPS; we are in the process of getting confirmation. 

The village has engaged Northern Home Improvements to compile a detail estimate of damages to Village Hall, these estimates were $205,296.00 and damage to the contents totaled $32,837.00 directly related to Superstorm Sandy.  A FEMA meeting took place this morning with our State representative, Tim Kelly.  He has noted that the Project Worksheet for the Village Hall damages should be completed by the end of August and the final review from the project leaders should be completed by mid September.

Finally, I had the pleasure interviewing Tony Canino who is a prospective candidate to be added to our police department as a part-time police officer on July 31st.

Trustee Reports:

Deputy Mayor Pierce thanked everyone who was involved in the fireworks event.  She noted that she reviewed the village policy documents and emergency planning letter.  She attended a LIPA meeting at Supervisor Petrone’s office held on the 25th of July.  She noted that there is a meeting set up between LIPA attorneys and the Town of Huntington to begin talks on the tax issues.  She reviewed the vouchers for the month of July.

 

Trustee Ettinger thanked the Mayor for his comments; he noted that Ray Mahdesian and the entire police department deserve a tremendous amount of credit for their work during the fireworks event.  He noted that he met with the Mayor and Officer-in-Charge, Ray Mahdesian on a number of police matters.  He, Mayor Letica and Village Clerk, Nancy Rittenhouse met with two project management consultant companies and one has already submitted a proposal to the board for their review.  During the month he had discussions about various types of construction methods for the Village Hall project. He noted that he spoke with a building modular company called Westchester Modular Homes Inc.  He also met with Andy Baker from Northern Home Improvements and received cost estimates for damages to the existing building due to Sandy.  On July 17th he attended the court session.  On July 24th he met with Ray Mahdesian to review the potential part-time police officer candidate. He noted that he and Officer-in-Charge Ray Mahdesian test drove a new police car.  He noted that he reviewed the vouchers for the month of July.

 

Trustee Burke reported that she reviewed the new village policies and the vouchers for the month of July.  She also noted that the board should consider removing the sand in the back end of Duck Island Harbor; she received an estimate from LaMay & Sons for $2400.00 for a payloader and excavator and pointed out that the board should consider the removal of sand while the permit is still in effect and discussed the placement of the sand as well.

 

Trustee Jablonski, reported that earlier in the month  he discussed issues at the corner of Bevin Road, such as the catch basin area, the debris in the wetland and the wash over.  He noted that one of the issues is a residential water meter at the corner of Bevin Road; he noted that he is attempting to have the water meter moved away from the corner and further up on Bevin Road.  He also noted that he reviewed the vouchers for the month of July.

 

Mayor Letica reported that he has reached out to the DEC in order to have a permanent permit be put in place that will allow the village to remove the sand that continues to wash over and into the back of Duck Island Harbor.

 

Village Attorney:  Village Attorney Bruce Migatz reported that the Board of Zoning Appeals had two applications. One for a Special Use Accessory and one for a HVAC condenser and Generator, both were continued for a future date for more information.

 

Treasurer: Nancy Rittenhouse gave the report for Treasurer, Emily Hayes.  She noted that total vouchers for the month of July totaled $66,803.28. She reported that the village received $9631.28 payment from FEMA for the winter blizzard disaster.  Outstanding taxes due, total $33,606.28, and payments of $2,875.83 were made for tax grievance settlements for the current tax year.  In addition $3,043.80 was paid for the six month fire hydrant inspection.

 

Officer-in Charge:  Officer-in-Charge Ray Mahdesian reported on the fireworks event and noted that everything was conducted safely without incident.  He noted that the village received much cooperation from other agencies.  The marine unit participated in Operation SHIELD with the Sheriff’s Department.  The department has issued 70 water ski permits thus far for the season and no reported burglaries in the village for the month of July.

 

Sanitation Report: Barry Bradley reported that Big Blue is running well, trash pick-up was 41.83 tons, co-mingle were 4.0 tons and newspaper and cardboard was 3.64 tons a total of 49.47 tons.

 

Emergency Manager: Bill Rasich reported on two items; he is in the process of reviewing all our Emergency contact lists, and also reported that the final Emergency form is complete, this form will assist the village with information regarding special needs that our residents may have, especially during an emergency situation. He also thanked the Police Department for their work during the Fourth of July.

 

Village Hall Building Committee: John Ross reported on the preliminary meetings he had with Suffolk County Board of Health.  He also noted that he met with architect Bill Schaloff regarding SIPS panels that are being considered for the new village hall project; and also spoke with Gannet Fleming as well.

 

Conservation Board: Marty Cohen reported that the beach grass is growing very well on the repaired dune, and the beach lot owners are working well to build staircases and few people appear to be walking over the dunes.

 

Superintendent of Buildings: Doug Adil reported on several inspection reviews.  Two homes are being constructed on pilings, and another home is being lifted and moved back from the shore line, all due to Sandy.  Inspections performed for the month of July were 15.

 

 Resolutions:

 

Resolution (2013-95) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board does hereby approve the vouchers for the month of July 2013 in the amount of $66,803.28

 

Deputy Mayor Pierce made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Resolution (2013-96) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board approves the budget transfers for the month of July 2013.

 

Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve, seconded by Mayor Letica.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

 Resolution (2013-97) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board, does hereby accept the donation from the “Asharoken Building Fundraising Committee” in the amount of $11,100.00 for the new village hall project.

 

Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Jablonski.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Resolution (2013-98) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board does hereby authorize the Mayor to sign the 2013 Operation Shield contract, subject to village attorney’s approval in form.

 

Deputy Mayor Pierce made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Jablonski.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Resolution (2013-99) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board does hereby appoint Greg Letica as Commissioner of Public Works  for a one year term, to end July 2014.

 

Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Burke.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     Abstain

Motioned Carried.

 

Resolution (2013-100) Be It Resolved that the Village Board does hereby approve the tent permit for Paul Boronow at 6 Clamshell Lane for August 16th and removed August 18th, 2013.

 

Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Deputy Mayor Pierce.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Resolution (2013-101) Be It Resolved that the Village Board does hereby approve the tent permit for Laurie Kefalidis at 77 Bevin Road for September 5th and removed September 10th, 2013.

 

Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Deputy Mayor Pierce.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Mayor Letica discussed the board’s interview with Facilities Management Group; he asked the board if they are comfortable with the information they have in order to vote on the resolution.  Trustee Ettinger explained the proposal presented by Facilities Management Group. He noted that both he and Trustee Burke followed up on the references that were provided by Facilities Management Group and all of the responses were positive.  Trustee Ettinger also explained that Facilities Management Group would provide a cost estimate based on John Ross’s design, and also provide value engineering which will provide the village with ways to reduce costs.  If the preliminary cost estimate is in line with the village’s budget then Facilities Management Group will continue work on the competitive bidding package. If the preliminary cost is not in line with the village’s budget, than there is no cost to the village from Facilities Management Group.

 

Resolution (2013-102) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board does hereby authorize the Mayor to enter into a contract between the Village of Asharoken and The Facilities Management Group for Project Manager Services for the Village Hall Reconstruction project, not to exceed $36,762, subject to Village Attorney’s review of contract in form.

 

Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Jablonski.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Public Session:

Mayor Letica opened up the meeting to public session.

During public session five people communicated to the Board.

Issues that were brought to the Board’s attention were the following:

1.       Bidding process, estimates on the Village Hall project.

2.       Inquiry on the Retirement Incentive that was offered and expires on September 1st.

3.       Relocation of the proposed new Village Hall to the nature preserves property.

4.       Clarification on the Building Inspectors report about a residential project.

5.       Clarification on the flood light ordinance.

6.       Concerns about beach clean-up and who is responsible for items that get washed up.

7.       Question on the sale of a portion of Duck Island.


Mayor Letica made a motion to go into executive session to interview a prospective police officer, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

No action was taken during executive session. Executive session ended at 8:45 pm.

 

Mayor Letica made a motion to close executive session, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.

 

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Resolution (2013-103) Be it Resolved, that the Mayor does hereby appoint Anthony Canino as a Part-Time/Seasonal Police Officer for the Village of Asharoken, effective upon receipt of the completed medical records and approval by Chief Surgeon, Scott Coyne MD.

 

Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Jablonski.

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

Mayor Letica made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Trustee Jablonski.

 

Trustee Jablonski                                            AYE

Trustee Ettinger                                              AYE

Trustee Burke                                                  AYE

Deputy Mayor Pierce                                    AYE

Mayor Letica                                                     AYE

Motioned Carried.

 

        The August 6th 2013 Board meeting of the Board of Trustees was adjourned at approximately 9:10 pm.

                Signed: _____________________________________________

                Nancy Rittenhouse, Village Clerk