Incorporated Village of Asharoken
Board of Trustees Regular Meeting
Held on Tuesday
April 2nd 2013 7:30 P.M
At the Northport American Legion Hall
Approximate Attendance (30)
Officers Present:
Greg Letica, Mayor
Pam Pierce, Deputy Mayor
Melvin Ettinger, Trustee
Laura Burke, Trustee
Officials & Appointees Present:
Nancy Rittenhouse, Village Clerk
Emily Hayes, Village Treasurer
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
Joe Affrunti, Harbormaster
Barry Bradley, Sanitation Operator
Avrum Golub, Stormwater Superintendent
Tony Wenderoth, Superintendent of Highways
The Pledge of Allegiance was said.
Proof of publication.
Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve the regular board minutes for March 5th, 2013, seconded by Deputy Mayor Pierce.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Presentation was given by Meg Cleary one of the co-chairs for the Asharoken Building Fundraising committee. She reported that the total donations for the month of March were $27,600 and a $1,000 dollar pledge. Out of the total donations was a $25,000 donation made by the Albanese family in honor of their father. She also noted that letters were sent out to residents who have made pledges in previous years. She noted that since the last four months the committee has raised approximately $117,000 and pointed out that the new village hall will be a place where community members can come and attend events and other functions. Mayor Letica mentioned that during FEMA’s inspection they pointed out the importance of having the village hall be used as an emergency shelter for our residents which would help increase the funding from FEMA. Mayor Letica stated that he knew Tony Albanese since 1962, he loved Asharoken and it’s wonderful that his children are remembering him by providing a donation in his name.
Mayor Letica reported on the new police contract. He noted that we have come to an historic agreement, by treating our present employees in a fair and equitable manner as well as controlling our police costs needed to sustain the police department for our village. He noted that he thanked the PBA of Asharoken and the negotiations went very well.
He reported that we have a five year contract which takes it out of the mayoral campaign year. Salary increases were 2%, 2.5%, 2.5%, 3.0% and 3.0% these increases apply to present employees. New full-time officers will receive a pay freeze for the term of the contract, and new full-time officers hired after June 1st, 2012 must contribute 15% towards their health insurance costs and must work a minimum number of tours in order to be eligible for full night time differential pay.
We reduced the annual work year from 245days to 243 days and for the remaining four years to 240 days, this brings our duty chart more in line with other neighboring departments. We adjusted the bereavement leave for part-time officers as well as full-time officers. We cleaned up the language for clothing allowance to make it clearer. We did some adjustment to the time associated with appealing grievances. He thanked Deputy Mayor Pierce for all her hard work with the negotiations. Deputy Mayor Pierce did a complete analysis using other department’s information which helped tremendously in the negotiations. She was an advocate for the village. Trustee Ettinger also provided good advice and provided tremendous help. We had a real team effort.
Mayor Letica proposed resolution (2013-27) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken does hereby authorize the Mayor to sign the PBA contract beginning fiscal year 6/1/2012 to expire 5/31/2017.
Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Deputy Mayor Pam Pierce.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Mayor Letica invited Officer Josephson and Officer O’Connor to come up and sign the contract.
Officer Josephson who is the president of the Asharoken PBA thanked the mayor and the entire board, he noted that he can’t remember the negotiations going so smoothly and at the end we ended up with a fair and equitable settlement for both the village and the PBA.
A presentation was given by Town of Huntington representatives, Ed Carr, Deidre Butterfield and Philip Engelmann. They gave a short presentation on the draft Inter-municipal agreement that is being proposed to help preserve the water quality in Northport Bay. The agreement is between the Village of Asharoken, Northport Village and the Town of Huntington. The representatives spoke about the agreement and noted that it is important for the three municipalities to join together which helps give a higher rating when seeking state and federal grants. The committee will be made up of six council members, two from each municipality. The six member council would work as a group and each group would have veto power. The six member council will require a unanimous vote for grant matching funds; it will be an all or nothing decision.
Mayor’s Report:
Mayor Letica reported,”During the month of May I am happy to report that the village has completed or made major progress toward completing several important projects. The negotiations on the new police contract were completed and the new contract will be voted on by the board this evening. The village owes tremendous thanks to Deputy Mayor Pam Pierce who did the heavy lifting of compiling comparison charts of various other departments as well as being a very strong advocate for the village during the negotiations. Trustee/Police Commissioner Mel Ettinger provided well reasoned advice and was instrumental in helping get the final details resolved. I would like to also thank PBA President Jeff Josephson, PBA Secretary Brian O’Connor and Officer Jim Cox for negotiating in a professional, courteous and respectful manner.
The dune repair has mostly been completed with the addition of approximately 5,000 CYDs of sand. The delivery and spreading of the sand was completed much more quickly than expected. The terrific work of our police department allowed traffic to flow very nicely during the project and was a major component of finishing quickly. The contractor was very helpful to the village by repositioning some of the sand at the corner of Bevin Road and Asharoken Avenue at no cost to Asharoken. I would like to thank our residents and neighbors in Eaton’s Neck who were inconvenienced during this construction project for their understanding and patience. The village will be ordering beach grass from a nursery in Michigan and I expect to have the grass planted by the end of April. As I reported earlier the FHWA is paying for the cost of the sand and placement in full and 80% of the vegetation. The net cost to Asharoken will be approximately $3500 out of a gross cost of approximately $160,000. Village Clerk Nancy Rittenhouse, Conservation Board Chair Marty Cohen and Deputy Mayor Pierce combined their talents to make this project a success. Village Building Inspector Doug Adil provided a very good drawing of a set of stairs beach lot owners could build to crossover the dune.
Finally, the fence running west from the village nature preserve was repaired at no cost to the village by National Grid. I would like to thank Robert Allen, Manager of the National Grid Power Plant for his help in getting the fence repaired.
On March 7th, Trustee Laura Burke, Clerk Nancy Rittenhouse and I met with Robert Smith who is a bond counsel to discuss the various options that are available for the village to finance part of the restoration. Bob is a wealth of information and gave us a very thorough explanation of municipal financing. The village had two meetings with FEMA and our state representative Joe Ahouse to begin the process of determining if and how much money Asharoken can get for the damage to village hall. These monies will be applicable to a new building as well.
The village received notice from FEMA that our category A and B submissions for costs incurred from Sandy, in the amount of $103,074.63, have been approved and that we should expected federal reimbursement of approximately $77,305 within 4-6 weeks. It is expected that the village will receive approximately another $12,884 from New York State.
During the month I wrote a letter to Mark Gerstman, Acting Deputy Director NYSDEC to get clarification on how much money the village will owe for the feasibility study and also to request that the DEC does everything it can to expedite the process. (see attached letter) Deputy Mayor Pierce consulted on the letter as she had spoken to Mr. Gerstman last month. The monthly update from Sue McCormick of the NYSDEC reports: “We will have to wait for the Corps to get approval from the OMB before we can kick the FS back into gear. This will be in the Corps May 1st report to Congress. It will most likely be June before we can move forward”.
I met with the Duck Island Dredging Committee. They informed me that they contacted Suffolk Legislator Spencer who was very supportive of their request. They will continue their efforts on the ground work for this project. In response from a request from the Duck Island Dredging Committee I also reached out to Sue McCormack to see if was possible to dredge the sand out of Duck Island Harbor and place it on the beach. She responded that this idea was previously suggested and turned down but she was going to look into it some more and get back to us. Sue McCormack replied on April 2nd, 2013 and noted that “unfortunately there has never been an evaluation of Duck Island Harbor to be used as a sand source. In order to evaluate this, we would need to know sediment type, bathymetry, and if there are county plans for dredging in the area. Also, the volume of sand would not be sufficient for initial construction, and would complicate construction efforts with multiple mobilization/demobilizations. The recommendation for considering this area would be to evaluate the viability of Duck Island Harbor as a source for future re-nourishments. If this is found to be viable and it can be physically done and meet the engineering / environmental requirements, this could be less expensive than trucking in sand. You could request that the evaluation be done when the Corps gets into the design phase for the project.”
On March 12 Deputy Mayor Pierce, Clerk Nancy Rittenhouse and I met with Bob Allen and Charlie Tyler from National Grid. We discussed the scheduled 45,000CYD of sand placement mandated by the operating permit issued by the ACOE for the power plant. Mr. Allen reported that the project is scheduled to begin in mid September and will conclude by the end of the year. We agreed to meet again to finalize location of sand as well as prepare a letter to the residents. Mr. Allen was advised that priority for this placement should be the homes closest to the power plant which has the most beach erosion.
Additionally, I followed up on resident Anna Pollaci’s request to find out if there is construction projects planned for the boat ramp property. According the Huntington Deputy Supervisor, Pat DelCole , there are no plans to construct anything at this time. The village received notice that 11 SCAR cases from the 2012 grievance period are scheduled for May 17th, 2013. I reviewed the village records and discovered that the village lost a SCAR on October 6th, 2008.
Lastly, in December my wife Linda sent 2 sympathy cards that many Asharoken residents signed, to the citizens of Newtown. This week the village received a very nice postcard thanking us for our caring.
The village really had a good month. Following Sandy, the blizzard and a winter filled with nor’easters I am convinced that we have turned a corner and are on a really good upward trajectory.
Trustee Reports:
Deputy Mayor Pierce reported that she sent the DEC videos of the latest Nor’easter. Last week she met with the residents of Kew Court to review the sluice area. She noted that she reviewed the vouchers for the month of March. She thanked Steve Trombetti and Eric Maffei website volunteers for their volunteerism. She noted that they have spent many hours updating the website with our budget information, the mayor’s letters, the weather and important information for our residents to share. She noted that the website has a lot of information and she thanked them.
Trustee Ettinger noted that on March 6th and March 7th we had snow storm. He met with Officer-in-charge Ray Mahdesian and Village Clerk, Nancy Rittenhouse to prepare and contact the vendors needed to clear the road. We had significant splash over and flooding at the intersection of Bevin Road and Asharoken Avenue and a good amount of rocks ended up on the side. At midnight we closed the road for a short amount of time and opened it up to traffic. He noted that he met with Officer-in-charge Mahdesian regarding the police and marine budget. He met trustee Burke regarding design aspects regarding the new village hall and reviewed the vouchers for this month of March.
Trustee Burke noted that she met with an attorney that specializes in municipal bonds and followed up discussions with National Bank of Long Island and Munistat which is municipal bond advisory service. She noted that we are researching ways to borrow building funds in an effective way. We have an opportunity to borrow funds from our local bank and also are considering BANS (bond anticipation notes). She noted that we are considering FEMA reimbursement, the cost of the project and how much money we have on hand. We are doing a thorough job and continue our research. She noted that she attended several village meetings, reviewed the vouchers for March and minutes and assisted the mayor and village clerk on an as needed basis.
Village Attorney: Village Attorney Bruce Migatz noted that as the mayor reported we received the SCAR preceding scheduled for May 17th which will be handled by Roger Ramme. The article 78 in the Podell and ZBA matter is in limbo. He noted that he spoke with the attorney for the petitioner and his client is taking no further action, he noted that the action has to have closure to it, and a motion to have it dismissed may have to proceed if nothing is done.
The Zoning Board of Appeals, met on March 12th. There were four applications for the renewal for a Special Use Accessory permit. The applicants were 232 Asharoken, 497 Asharoken, 148 Asharoken and 144 Asharoken. They were all renewed. There was an application for 6 Beach Plum Drive for a set-back variance and has been continued to April 10th.
Treasurer: Emily Hayes reported that for the month of March we received a franchise fee for $6,397.00 and $40,189.00 for police revenue sharing from Suffolk County and $6,801.38 for mortgage taxes. The total vouchers were $181,040.67, a portion of the payments was for $148,771.20 for the dune repair.
Officer-in Charge:
Officer-in-Charge Ray Mahdesian reported that the department assisted with traffic control for the emergency dune repair project. The project went smoothly with no accidents or injuries. No reported burglaries in the village for the month of March.
Sanitation: Barry Bradley noted that the total trash pick-up for the month was 23.33 tons, co-mingle were 2.00 tons and newspaper and cardboard was 3.28 tons. Totaling 28.61 tons overall. Big Blue is running well.
Village Hall Building Committee: John Ross reported that he had a meeting with a member of the SCHD and several suggestions were made noting that a commercial sanitation system must be installed. He noted that we are waiting for the final approval from the DEC. Once we get the DEC permit we can move forward to get the approval from the SCHD. He noted that the building has been reduced in size from 4500 sq ft and was located right on the road, to a village hall that is proposed to be 2800 sq. ft. The building will be positioned further back from the roadway. He noted that we are making every effort to minimize the construction costs. He noted that we are getting positive feedback on the new building plans and things are progressing, but we have to wait until we get final word from the DEC.
Superintendent of Buildings Report: Doug Adil, building inspector noted that he attended the ZBA hearing for 6 Beach Plum Drive. He attended a conference in Stony Brook. Performed 15 inspections, many were bulkheads and rock revetment projects. He provided sketch drawings for beach lot owners to use in construction of a walk-over staircase. He assisted a homeowner who was working with the SCHD. He reviewed the final drawings for a property that is being re-built due to hurricane Sandy.
Harbormaster: Joe Affrunti noted that he is getting the police boat ready to be put in the water and is working on the marine patrol schedule.
Superintendent of Highway: Tony Wenderoth reported on the sluice area. He noted that we have contacted three contractors to provide an estimate for the shoring up of this area that was washed out by Hurricane Sandy. He reported on the area across from the seawall, he noted that before our permit expires the village we should pull out more of the sand that was washed over. He noted that on Bevin Road in front of the LaRosa property, a portion of the edge of the roadway has been washed away. He noted that sand should be placed and filled into this area. He discussed a conversation he had with an interested buyer of the DeCanio home. The home does not have a Certificate of Occupancy, he conducted the inspections, but the current building inspector will have to complete the inspection once the house is finished. He noted that a requirement was made by the owner of the property who sub-divided the property to install a catch basin in the area between Pheasant Lane and Bevin Road. He commented about the stairs over the dunes. His suggestion was to place two stairs 400’ apart from the ends and 700’ from each other. He discussed the importance of snow fencing. Mayor Letica noted that the snow fencing will be installed this fall.
Duck Island Dredging: Joseph Affrunti noted that he attended the committee meeting and they met with Legislator Spencer on March 11. Legislator Spencer is trying to get Suffolk county areas in Huntington dredged and Duck Island was on the list of one of the areas that they were looking at.
Conservation Board: Marty Cohen reported that the sand is down, and he noted that we are waiting for the delivery of the beach grass. Marty noted that he has read a lot about beach grass and most of the information points out that the beach grass helps build the dunes up.
Stormwater Superintendent: Superintendent, Avrum Golub noted two things. On March 14th he attended a DEC meeting that discussed the design of new updates for run-off reduction for property of 1 acre or greater. He referred to the municipal agreement and noted that we are an individual MS4 but are responsible to meet all of the requirements of the permit. He noted that the MS4 encourages municipalities to cooperate with towns and adjacent villages along with non-traditional MS4’s, such as department of transportation, school districts and federal facilities.
Resolutions:
Resolution (2013-28) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board approves the budget transfers for the month of March 2013.
Motion was made by Deputy Mayor Pierce, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-29) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board does hereby approve the vouchers in the amount of $181,040.67 for the month of March 2013.
Deputy Mayor Pierce made a motion to approve, seconded by Mayor Letica.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-30) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board, does hereby accept the donation from the “Asharoken Building Fundraising Committee” in the amount of $27,600.00 for the new village hall project.
Trustee Ettinger made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Burke.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-31) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby approve the 2013 Annual Village Election polling place to be the Eaton’s Neck Fire Department located at 55 Eaton’s Neck Road, Northport, NY 11768 held on June 18th, 2013 during the hours of 12 noon to 9:00pm.
Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Deputy Mayor Pam Pierce.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-32) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby approve and adopt without revision the budget for the fiscal year ending 5/31/2014.
Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-33) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby approve the Tax Warrant for the fiscal year ending 5/31/2014.
Deputy Mayor Pierce made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Burke.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-34) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby appoint Village Treasurer, Emily Hayes and Village Clerk, Nancy Rittenhouse to collect taxes that may be due for the fiscal year 2013-2014, between the hours of 9:00am and 3:00pm except Saturday and Sundays and Legal Holidays.
Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded Trustee Burke.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-35) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby authorize, that pursuant to Section 1428 of the Real Property Tax Law the Warrant and Tax Roll for Collection of Village taxes of the Incorporated Village of Asharoken will be filed with the Village Treasurer for the fiscal year beginning June 1, 2013 Taxes will be received at the Village Hall trailer, One Asharoken Avenue, Asharoken, from June 1, 2013 daily from 9am to 3pm except Saturdays and Sundays and Legal Holidays until and including July 1, 2013 without penalty. Five percent will be added to taxes received after July 1, 2013 and one percent for each month thereafter until paid in full.
Mayor Letica made a motion to approve, seconded by Deputy Mayor Pam Pierce.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-36) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby approve the amendment to the 5/31/2012 fiscal year financial budget, for account A4095.000 Emergency Disaster Reimbursement account in the amount of $277,324.00 and account A8760.00 Emergency Disaster Expense account in the amount of $277,324.00.
Deputy Mayor Pierce made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-37) Be It Resolved, that the Village Board of the Village of Asharoken, does hereby approve the scheduling of a public hearing on Tuesday, May 7th, 2013 to discuss the MS4 Annual Stormwater report for year end 3/09/2013.
Deputy Mayor Pierce made a motion to approve, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Resolution (2013-38) Resolution for the Department of Transportation Master Agreement for FHWA funding.
The reading of the resolution was waived by Trustee Burke.
Village of Asharoken
Project Pin Number: 0989.03
Project Name: Asharoken Emergency Relief-Asharoken Avenue
Resolution (2013-38)
Authorizing the implementation, and funding in the first instance 100% of the federal-aid, of a transportation federal-aid project, and appropriating funds therefore.
WHEREAS, a Project for the Asharoken Emergency Relief-Asharoken Avenue, P.I.N. 0989.03 is eligible for funding under Title 23 U.S. Code, as amended, that calls for the apportionment of the costs such program to be borne at the ratio of 100% Federal Funds for Emergency work in the amount of $175,323.00 and 80% Federal Funds for Permanent Restoration work in the amount of $14,766.00.
WHEREAS, the Village of Asharoken desires to advance the Project by making a commitment of 100% of the non-federal share of the costs of $2,953.20
NOW, THEREFORE, the Village Board, duly convened does hereby
RESOLVE, that the Village Board hereby approves the above –subject project; and it is hereby further
RESOLVED, that the Village Board hereby authorizes the Village of Asharoken to pay in the first instance 100% of the federal and non-federal share of the total project Asharoken Emergency Relief-Asharoken Avenue work for the Project or portions thereof; and it is further
RESOLVED, that the sum of $190,089.00 is hereby appropriated from the Village of Asharoken’s Operating and/or Reserve funds and made available to cover the cost of participation in the above phase of the project; and it is further
RESOLVED, that the sum of $2,953.20 is hereby appropriated from a combination of the Villages Operating and/or Reserve Funds and are made available to cover the cost of participation in the above phase of the project and it is further
RESOLVED, that in the event the full federal and non-federal share costs of the project exceeds the amount appropriated above, the Village of Asharoken shall convene as soon as possible to appropriate said excess amount immediately upon the notification by the Village Board thereof, and it is further
RESOLVED, that the Mayor of the Village of Asharoken be and is hereby authorized to execute all necessary Agreements, certifications or reimbursement requests for Federal Aid on behalf of the Village of Asharoken with the New York State Department of Transportation in connection with the advancement or approval of the Project and providing for the administration of the Project and the municipality’s first instance funding of project costs and permanent funding of the local share of federal-aid and state-aid eligible Project costs and all Project costs within appropriations therefore that are not so eligible, and it is further
RESOLVED, that a certified copy of this resolution be filed with the New York State Commissioner of Transportation by attaching it to any necessary Agreement in connection with the Project and it is further
RESOLVED, this Resolution (2013-38) shall take effect immediately.
Resolution (2013-38) was voted on by a Roll Call:
Trustee Catanzano Absent
Trustee Burke AYE
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Public Session:
Mayor Letica opened up the meeting to public session.
Barry Bradley pointed out the Smith’s staircase that folds up near the dune maybe a good idea.
Joan Hauser asked why the village is not planting Rosa Rugusa as well as American Beach Grass. Marty Cohen noted that Rosa Rugusa has now been designated a NYS invasive species and the village is encouraging the beach lot owners to plant other plants, like beach plums, beach heather, etc.
Julian Varrichio asked about the white lines being the fog line. He asked if the village has a bike path and was concerned about the bike traffic. He inquired if there is any regulation that is not being enforced and in the case of a catastrophic accident would the village be responsible. Village Attorney noted that we need more facts to be able to answer that question. Mayor Letica noted that bicycles are supposed to ride on the side of the road. Julian noted that he just wanted to make sure that we are enforcing what’s in place and that everyone is covered.
Meg Cleary discussed a bike incident that occurred and the family won, because sand was on the roadway. Meg Cleary asked if you can ban bike riding on Asharoken Avenue.
Village Attorney noted that the trend is to encourage bike riding and not to prohibit it. He noted that New York State has adopted regulations called “Safe Street” where some of the new roads that used state funds, must have bike lanes added to those streets.
Tony Wenderoth discussed village hall, and noted that he got a wild guess estimate of $50,000 to raise the building. He discussed lifting the building, but the problem is that the building has been added on to. He talked about the condition of the soil and the soil maybe made up of birdseed and the village may have to take core samples, for the sanitation system. He noted that the conduit pipe that is located by the right side of the property should be considered. He noted that we may be able to use the old sanitation system and not have to go to the SCHD. He mentioned that he spoke with an insurance company to get a price per sq ft. and commented about the cost of the building. Mayor Letica noted that we are only finishing the first floor of the building. We still are in the process of getting bids to complete the project. He asked permission to put holes in the floor to see what the floor base is made up of. Mayor Letica noted that a hole is already present in the village hall. Mayor Letica noted that we should not move forward with doing anything to the old building yet, and to find out what kind of estimates come in for the new village hall.
Doug Adil, building inspector noted that the Health department would not approve anything until we have test borings done. Doug noted that John Ross works hand in hand with a New York State engineer to review the plans as well.
Deputy Mayor Pierce noted that the police area makes up an 112sq.ft. an the village offices are in 341 sq. ft. She noted that the area is used by the board of trustees, district Attorney’s during court night, ZBA hearings, and the police area is not adequate. She noted that she reviewed the new plans and the size of the new village hall is not excessive at all.
Drew Mendelsohn asked if the village has considered repurposing the current village hall into a police station and then building a much smaller village hall. He noted that several villages have this type of set up. He noted that even though the police have a small area, the main area is not used 24/7. He also mentioned the dunes, and pointed out that there are different ways to plant the beach grass. He noted that if the dune washes out again, the worst thing that we could do is build a seawall. He noted that would be the wrong thing to do. He noted that we have to build the dune correctly, installing the snow fence will help and planting different species of plants. He offered his help and information. He also mentioned a beach project being done in Mississippi where the beach is being put back and in order to stabilize the beach, beach grass is being planted all the way down into the water.
Mayor Letica noted that a lot of what you are suggesting is more applicable once we have the complete restoration of the beach, and the dune is really acting as a buffer to protect the roadway.
He noted that Suffolk County, public works provided our design of the dune and noted that this was the proper dimensions recommended to build the dune.
Marty Cohen noted that the beach grass will be placed mostly on the sound side of the dune.
Meg Cleary noted that maybe we can get Stony Brook students to provide assistance for this project.
Debbie Masterson asked about the feasibility study. Mayor Letica noted that until the Army Corps gets funding, they cannot start on the feasibility study.
Jeff Bartells discussed the sea grass and talked about the sea grass that is along our shoreline, has disappeared. The sea grass overtime protects the shoreline and absorbs the wave action. He also discussed E-waste collection and pointed out that there are collections sites in Huntington. He discussed air quality and the drinking water and the public health assessment. He pointed out that Northport is located near the LIPA stacks and Covanta and gets its fallouts. He mentioned to go to the website Freelance-investigations.com and look for the August 11th and March 20th stories from 2010.
Mayor Letica made a motion to close the public session, seconded by Trustee Ettinger.
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
Mayor Letica made a motion to adjourn the meeting, second by Trustee Ettinger
Trustee Ettinger AYE
Trustee Burke AYE
Deputy Mayor Pierce AYE
Mayor Letica AYE
Motioned Carried.
The April 2nd 2013 meeting of the Board of Trustees was adjourned at approximately 9:40pm.
Signed: _____________________________________________
Nancy Rittenhouse, Village Clerk