Board of Trustees

Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 Meeting called to order at 7:37 pm MEMBERS PRESENT: Mayor Dennis Siry, Deputy Mayor Kevin Smith, Trustee Jessica Bernius, Trustee Whalen, Trustee O’Neill ALSO PRESENT: Village Attorney Bruce Kennedy AFD Chief Rob Waegerle APD Chief Bryan Burton Superintendent Bruce Hopper Building Inspector Bryan Donato Clerk/Treasurer Catherine Murdock Deputy Treasurer Tiffany Ladd Assistant to the Mayor Wendy O’Neill The salute to the flag was led by Chief Bryan Burton. Mayor Siry welcomed everyone to the November 9th Meeting of the Board of Trustees, conducted via Zoom Meeting. He then asked for a moment of silence for Babylon Village Mayor Ralph Scordino, who died recently, saying he was a friend and a great guy who devoted his life to his Village. Deputy Mayor Smith announced that: • A Veterans Day Service will be hosted by the village and the John J. Kreyer VFW Post at the gazebo on Broadway, Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 11 a.m. • Kiwanis Field of Honor – check the Village website for information and to purchase a flag that will be displayed in honor of a loved one/veteran. • The Bait Ul Huda Mosque at 64 Union Ave. announced their Ahmadiyya Muslim women group will be distributing Holiday Meals on November 21st from 11 am to 3 p.m. This is a drive up program to help out the community. • The ribbon cutting for Village By The Bay (Landtek) by the LIRR Station took place on 11/5/20 and 30% of the units are rented at this time. Trustee O’Neill commented that the units are stunning and they are a great entrance to the Village. The Trustees all wished them the best of luck. Mayor Siry then asked the Trustees to provide October Committee Reports: DPW (Trustee O’Neill): In addition to the ongoing work of DPW, the first week of the Village leaf pick up program started in November; DPW carted and disposed of 28.7 tons of C & D, 17.4 tons of yard waste. They began installing and repairing holiday lights for the downtown areas and the fire department’s trees; repaired and replaced streetlights and installed a new street light fixture opposite Peterkin Park in response to a resident complaint. They repaired the railing on the park gazebo that was vandalized again. Tree trimming and tree removals are ongoing, however, a stump located at 181 Richmond Ave. will not be ground by the Village (as the homeowner installed a driveway before the stump was removed -- without a road opening permit nor a driveway permit.) 1  Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 The department worked to clear a storm drain on the north east corner of Mole Pl. and Richmond Ave. (a site of large puddling) and removed silt cloth and approximately 16 cubic yards of debris from the basin and the connecting pipes. DPW also cleaned, polished and installed a memorial flagpole for ex AFD Chief Murney Lewis at the Bennett place fire house substation. They also repaired the air purification system in the Main fire house apparatus room, cleaned and swept the area surrounding the Village By The Bay apartments (LandTek) in preparation of the ribbon cutting ceremony. Additionally, they removed the old main firehouse generator’s mounting cement pad; conducted ongoing park and Village property maintenance including parrot feather removal in Avon Lake and maintenance around the area. The department continues to issue road opening permits and mark outs. They began replacing the cover for the diesel fuel sump in the highway yard to comply with the D.E.C. and Department of Health regulations. They also installed poles for two historical markers: one (1) in front of Park North School one (1) in front of Saint Mary’s church in preparation of a dedication ceremony. This is a Town of Babylon and Amityville Historical Society project. Parking meter calibrations and repairs are ongoing for the commuter parking lots and surrounding streets. Commuter lots are still under 25% capacity, and this lack of usage puts a burden on the battery-operated meters. They also placed barricades and trash cans in parking lot #15 (9/11) for the Bay Village Civic Association’s Shredder Day event this past Saturday. Amityville Fire Department (Chief Waegerle): The department has had 1,420 incidents so far this year and is expected to have approximately 1,800 by the end of the year. There have been 788 rescue calls to date, and this weekend there were 6 rescues on Saturday which is high. During the week, the average total number of AFD calls has been 4/5 a day. Justice Court (Trustee Bernius): Report was not delivered due to an audit going on. Senior Justice Court Clerk Shannon Kokoneshi subsequently provided the following: Grand total reported to the state $30,294.00 ($20,127.00 Village Justice; $5,427.00 Assoc. Village Justice; $4,740.00 Parking Violations). Penal/Criminal, Vehicle & Traffic, and Village Ordinances: 114 charges processed, 184 charges closed out, $25,554.00 collected in fines and surcharges. Parking: 95 tickets written: 46 tickets collected on; and $4,740.00 collected in fines and surcharges. Senior Center (Trustee Bernius): Dr. Kelly has agreed to allow the members of the senior citizen center use the conference room at Park North to show a movie on Wednesdays. Covid protocols will be followed. This will allow for much-needed socialization for the seniors. Parks Commission (Trustee Bernius): Parks Commissioner Corinne Budde and committee member Pat Cahaney are doing a tree survey to identify locations for planting trees. There was a meeting with Joan Donnison (Bay Village Civic Association), Frank Ianno, DDS, Corinne Budde, and Trustees Bernius and O’Neill to discuss putting large planters on the sidewalk in front of his dental office on Merrick Rd. (the area where a car recently went through Amity Sports.) 2  Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 Amityville Police Department (Chief Burton): 14 Arrests (125 for the year), 429 blotters, 48 cases, 103 citations, 1 field interview, 55 medical-aided, and 28 traffic accidents. He noted overall activity is down due to the Covid pandemic but it is picking up. Chief Burton gave credit to Officer Eric Kreuder who apprehended individuals stealing tires and rims from Security Dodge. Mayor Siry added that many residents were alarmed by the cars racing around the area on Friday evening. He learned from the APD that this took place outside of the Village. Building Department (Deputy Mayor Smith): A report was provided following the meeting. Revenue: $6,950.00; 19 Permits Issued; 5 Permits Closed; 35 Inspections Performed; 14 Notices of Violation Issued; 8 Violations Corrected; Fire Marshal performed 10 Fire Safety Inspections; Fire Marshal performed 4 plan reviews. The Mayor asked the Building Inspector to investigate a dumpster that is sitting on Ocean Avenue and poses a danger, as it has no lights or reflectors. Mr. Donato will look into the matter right away. Mayor’s Actions: Mayor Siry requested the approval of the Board of Trustees minutes from October 26, 2020 MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Bernius and seconded by Trustee Whalen Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Approve the hire of Claire Drotman, 5 Silo Rd., Commack, NY 11725 as a Call-in EMT/Paramedic at the hourly rate of $21.50, effective 11/13/2020 and approve a Waiver of Residency MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee O’Neill and seconded by Trustee Whalen Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Approve new members of the Amityville Fire Department Juniors: Yeison Capellan, Sara Macomber and Anna Macomber, and approve a waiver of residency for Yeison Capellan MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Bernius and seconded by Trustee O’Neill Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays 3  Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 Deputy Treasurer Request to approve abstract from October 22nd – November 3rd MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Whalen and seconded by Trustee O’Neill Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Clerk/Treasurer Request from Siegel & Sitler, PLLC for legal services rendered October 2020 re: Defense of Article 78 Proceeding in the amount of $3,300.00 (A1420.440) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee O’Neill and seconded by Trustee Whalen Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request from Siegel & Sitler, PLLC for legal services rendered September 2020 re: Defense of Article 78 proceeding in the amount of $5,775.00 (A1420.440) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee O’Neill and seconded by Deputy Mayor Smith Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request from Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC for legal services rendered through 9/30/20 in the amount of $4,995.00 (A1420.440) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Deputy Mayor Smith and seconded by Trustee Whalen Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays 4  Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 Request to pay GSB for Supplemental Enhanced Cancer Rider effective 1/1/21 invoice 147203121 customer C06427 in the amount of $15,398.00 (A1910.430) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee O’Neill and seconded by Trustee Whalen Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request to pay Rosemar Contracting for additional resurfacing work October 2020 in the amount of $131,518.75 (HR5110.5) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Whalen and seconded by Deputy Mayor Smith Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request to pay Nelson & Pope for Construction services for Project N19X378.001.000 Amityville Pavement Mgmt. 2019 in the amount of $7,805.00 (HR5110.5) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Bernius and seconded by Trustee Whalen Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request from Peter Litvinoff for Richmond Auto Body to wave the $100 accident roster fee for its 2021 towing license MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Whalen and seconded by Trustee O’Neill Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays 5  Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 Request from Department of Public Works Request to pay Dynaire Service Corp. for service contract, 21 Ireland Pl., in the amount of $5,675.00 (A1623.460) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Whalen and seconded by Deputy Mayor Smith Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request to pay Magniflood for decorative pole base and fixture in the amount of $5,760.00 (A5182.419) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Bernius and seconded by Trustee O’Neill Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request to pay Sprague for 4000 gallons of gas in the amount of $5,876.80 (A1625.410) MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Bernius and seconded by Trustee O’Neill Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Request from Building Department Request from Michael Esposito, Vittorio’s Restaurant, 184 Broadway to temporarily enclose a portion of sidewalk on Greene Avenue with a roof overhang and canvas awning/tent MOTION to APPROVE was made by Trustee Bernius and seconded by Trustee O’Neill Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Mayor Siry and the Trustees said the Board actively wishes to support local businesses. Trustee O’Neill expressed concerns about the safety of portable heaters to which Building Inspector Donato stated that the Village Fire Marshall is knowledgeable and will check in with the restaurants in town. 6  Board of Trustees Minutes November 9, 2020 Public Commentary Donelle Cronin, 32 Mole Pl., asked the Board to clarify the services provided under the Siegel & Sitler invoices, to which Mayor Siry replied it is for the Village’s legal defense of Article 78 cases. She stated that the Village has spent hundreds and thousands of dollars on Article 78’s, dating back to previous work done by Attorney Richard Handler. As the meeting closed, Mayor Siry reminded everyone that the Saturday after Thanksgiving is Small Business Saturday. encouraging everyone to shop local and support Village businesses. With no further comments, the Mayor requested a motion to adjourn. MOTION to ADJOURN was made by Trustee O’Neill and seconded by Trustee Bernius Vote on Motion: Mayor Siry aye Deputy Mayor Smith aye Trustee Bernius aye Trustee Whalen aye Trustee O’Neill aye Motion Carried: 5 aye 0 nays Meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m. _________________________________ Catherine C. Murdock Clerk/Treasurer 7