Village Board

Village Board Annual Meeting Minutes April 7, 2026 Present: Mayor Fowler, Trustees Attoma, Brower, Farell, Zabelny Manager Shari Pearce Treasurer Danielle Kruger DPW Superintendent Jeff Pearce Asst Superintendent Chad McManus Code Enforcement Officer Ron Bragg Deputy Clerk Amy Harter Absent: None Guests: Grace Englebrecht, Dave Cuifo, Lydia Birr, Debbie Hebing, Ignatius LaDelfa, Daryl Maslanka, Jessica Gaspar, Ron Bodratti, Linda Judd This meeting was held in the Board Room and was available via Zoom. The meeting was called to order by the Mayor with the Pledge of Allegiance and a Moment of Silence. Legal Posting Confirmation: The Clerk certified that all postings were completed per guidelines. Roll Call: Mayor Fowler confirmed all were in attendance. Minutes Resolution to approve the meeting minutes of March 3, 2026. Motion made by Trustee Farrell seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 3-0-2 (Trustees Attoma and Brower abstained). Resolution to approve the meeting minutes of March 19, 2026. Motion made by Trustee Zabelny, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 3-0-2 (Trustees Attoma and Brower abstained). Resolution to approve the meeting minutes of March 24, 2026. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny, carried 3-0-2 (Trustees Attoma and Farrell abstained). Resolution to approve the meeting minutes of April 1, 2026. Motion made by Trustee Brower seconded by Trustee Attoma, carried 4-0-1 (Trustee Farrell abstained). 1  6:30 p.m. Public Hearing Mayor Fowler opened the public hearing at 6:34 p.m. for the 2026-2027 budget proposal. Public comments: Ignatius LaDelfa questioned the appropriation of $250,000 in the budget listed under capital reserves. Danielle Kruger explained these funds will be used to complete the DPW pole barn that was built in 2025. Mayor closed the public hearing at 6:35 p.m. Resolution to adopt the annual budget for fiscal year 2026-2027. The tax rate will $1.67/thousand. The total budget is as follows: Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. General $3,975,596 Water $ - 17,537 Sewer $ 407,349 Capital $ 250,000 Total $4,650,482 Public Comment Trustee Farrell asked for clarifications pertaining to meeting start times and responsibilities of the board. Mayor Fowler noted his appreciation for her comments and explained his position on matters including the start time of meetings and the appointments he has made. Recreation Report Tom Venniro was not in attendance, but submitted the following report via email which was read by Trustee Farrell: Tom started out congratulating all new Trustees. He and his entire team look forward to working with this Board and serving our community alongside you all. • Recreation Update o Special Events Recap  Friends Family Bingo Night at the Village Community Center – Friday, March 13 – 99 Registrants  Dinner with the Easter Bunny at the Village Community Center – Thursday, April 2 – 94 Registrants o Upcoming Special Events  Sources of Strength 5K Color Run (Village Community Center Grounds) – Saturday, May 30 • In Conjunction with the Northwest Community Health Fare • Thank you to the Village DPW for assisting with associated road closures during the race.  Annual Community Wide Garage Sale – Friday and Saturday, June 5 and 6 2   Clams and Bands (Parma Town Park Grounds) – Saturday, June 6  Summer Smash (Parma Town Park Grounds) – Friday, July 24 o General Program Update  Winter Spring Programming – Full season released and underway  2026 Summer Camp Registration opened on Wednesday, March 18. Some sessions are already full  2026 Summer program planning is underway. o Senior Center Update  Upcoming Meal and Show (Village Community Center) • Wednesday, April 22 – Free Dinner with the Rotary Club – 57 Registered (Full) • AARP Tax Services – Appointments began in early February and run through Friday, April 10. The service provided over 385 free tax filing appointments and all of our appointment slots filled several weeks prior to the start of the service. • Parks Update. o Dog Park Closing – On March 8 we decided to temporary close the Bark Yard Dog Park until further notice due to conditions. With some warmer weather arriving during that time, the ground conditions became extremely soft and muddy, causing damage to the turf from routine use. The grass in the Bark Yard is still very young and in its first full year of establishment. As the turf matures and becomes more established in the coming seasons, this should become less of a concern. We plan to reopen the park as soon as conditions allow. o Capital Projects –  Parma Town Park Splashpad – LaBella Associates has completed the engineering of the site and wastewater system a few weeks ago. We held two mobilization meetings in March. A detailed workplan has been developed with site prep beginning over the past two weeks. Our goal is to work diligently through the spring and have an official opening date during the start of the 2026 splash pad season.  Parma Town Park Campus Site Plan - Since our last meeting on February 12, we received Conceptual Site Plan Adjustments, reviewed those and proceeded to provide LaBella with stakeholder input for further adjustment. • Next Steps Include: o Further Conceptual Site Plan Adjustments o Full Draft Plan Development o Draft Plan Shared for Review o Steering Committee Meeting #3 o Draft Plan Town Board Proposal • Miscellaneous o Part Time Recreation Office Clerk and Program Assistant Position – We are excited to welcome Alyshia O’Connor to the team as our Part-Time Recreation Clerk and Program Assistant. Alyshia comes with extensive high-level administrative experience and the perfect personality to align with our culture and mission. o Genesee Valley Recreation and Park Society (GVRPS) Annual Conference and Awards – We are excited to announce we received three awards at this event:  Exceptional Park Design – Bark Yard Dog Park  Inclusion Program of Excellence – Game Night Series  Outstanding Service – Sherry Farrell • Sherry has dedicated over 25 years to this department and community. That longevity is rare, and we are honored to celebrate her incredible impact. One of the highest honors one can receive, Sherry’s work embodies the name and essence of this award. In her current role, she provides far more than programs; 3  she creates a place where older adults find connection, belonging, and joy. Sherry has made a lasting difference in countless lives, and our community is stronger because of her. We could not be prouder to have her on this team, and our community is incredibly fortunate to experience her dedication and care each and every day. o America 250 – We are working with the Historical Society and other community stakeholders to provide programming and education in celebration of the 250th Anniversary of the United States. The most recent meeting was held on Thursday, March 12. Holiday on Main Street: Mayor Fowler stated the Recreation Department is seeking approval to utilize Main Street on December 12th for their Christmas event. The board is supportive of this request. The board will discuss the Village Tree Lighting event later in the year. Resolution to authorize the use of Village Streets on December 12, 2026 for the purpose of Holiday on Main Street Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0 Librarian Report Grace Englebrecht distributed the library’s Annual Community Report for 2025. Grace also noted there were over 4400 people that attended the library last month. Code Enforcement Ron Bragg provided his report including the recent flooding in the community, his inspections and workload. Treasurer’s Report Resolution: To renew two CD’s that mature Wednesday, April 3rd, 2026, for 30 days at a rate of 3.50% with Canandaigua National Bank. Motion made by Trustee Zabelny, seconded by Trustee Attoma. Carried 5-0. Danille Kruger reported the Village received $38,866.33 for unpaid taxes and it will be placed in the general fund. Public Works Report Resolution to approve summer DPW hours from May 4, 2026, until September 25, 2026, 7:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 7:00 a.m. – 11:00 am Friday. Motion made by Trustee Farrell, seconded by Trustee Brower. Carried 5-0. Resolution to increase the wage of Bayard Burch $ 1.50 per hour for his six-month evaluation. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. Large flooding event 3/31/26: Jeff reported there was a large amount of rain. Detention ponds, sanitary sewer and stormwater were overwhelmed; Village II apartments had a few buildings flooded from Salmon Creek rising and had to be evacuated. 4 Auction Vac Truck: The auction ended on 3/18/2026. The high bid was 197,000.00, which was far short of what we were expecting. Jeff will wait a month and put it back on the auction. Resolution to authorize the Superintendent to hire seasonal employees at a pay rate of $18.00/hour. Motion made by Trustee Farrell, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. Resolution to authorize the Superintendent to seek bids for streetlight maintenance effective immediately through December 31, 2029. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Brower. Carried 5-0. Manager’s Report Resolution to allow the use of streets and Community Center grounds on Monday, May 25th for the Memorial Day parade. Motion made by Trustee Farrell, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. Resolution to approve summer office hours from May 4, 2026, until September 25, 2026, office hours Monday through Thursday, 7:30 - 4:30 p.m. and Friday 7:30 a. m. – 1:30 p.m. Motion made by Trustee Brower, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5 -0. Resolution to authorize the Village Manager to attend the spring NYCOM conference meeting from May 13th – 15th; this is a budgeted item. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. RFP- Ambulance contract: Trustee Brower made two changes to the contract, Section 2.9 add the Village of Hilton and Section 3 is a different font. Daryl Maslanka, Town Councilperson, was in the audience noted he will make the amendments noted. The Town of Greece will be part of the tax district for the northwest properties that are located in the Town of Greece but have Hilton-Fire as their provider. He stated the proposal will be going out on May 1st for 45-day turnaround. There will be a provider selected in July, and a public referendum will be held thereafter. The tax receiver will receive the information for the September/October deadline for tax purposes. The contract will hopefully be executed January 1, 2027. Resolution to approve the Request for Proposal to solicit bids from ambulance companies that hold the Certificate of Need within our jurisdiction to create a district-wide ambulance tax district including the noted amendments. Motion made by Trustee Farrell, seconded by Mayor Fowler. Carried 5-0. Resolution to accept the resignation of Larry Speer effective immediately from the Hilton Parma Recreation Commission. Mayor Fowler motioned, seconded By Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. 5 Water Authority transition: Shari stated we are working towards a May 4th turnover date. Both the office and DPW are working on the checklist provided by the authority. Shari is in discussions with the authority regarding how final readings will be taken between the Village’s last reading date and when the authority obtains their first reading. The board has given Shari the authority to set a plan for the finals that best suits the office and residents’ best interests. The mayor will be signing the agreement tonight. Community Center pointing: Shari stated we had a bid opening on Wednesday the 1st; one bid was received; this is the company that normally does the pointing each year for the community center. This project will require more insurance as it involves work on the chimney area. Our insurance company is requiring a 10 million liability rider to complete the work, which increases the cost of the project significantly. The board has directed the Village Manager to schedule an inspection from the insurance carrier to conduct inspection of the job to determine the necessary insurance coverage. Citizen of the Year: Mayor Fowler would like to invite Nancy LePort to attend the May 5th Village Board meeting to accept this award. He would like to begin the meeting at 6 p.m. for this purpose. Resolution to begin the meeting of May 5th at 6 p.m. Motion made by Trustee Farrell, seconded by Mayor Fowler. Carried 5-0. The Mayor to make the following committee appointments: Deputy Mayor Jamie Attoma Village Board Liaison to the Town of Parma Sherry Farrell -3rd Tuesday at 6:30 pm Village Board Liaison to the Hilton CSD Shannon Zabelny -2nd Tuesday at 7:00 pm Village Board Liaison to the Zoning Board of Appeals Christine Brower -2nd Tuesday 6:30 pm Village Board Liaison to the Hilton-Parma Fire Commission Andrew Fowler -2nd Wednesday at 7:30 pm Village Board Liaison to the Hilton-Parma Recreation Jamie Attoma Commission -4th Wednesday 6:00 pm Public Relations Committee Andrew Fowler, Sherry Farrell, Shari Pearce. Amy 6  Harter, Fawn Cretelle-Galan Budget Committee Shannon Zabelny, Jamie Attoma, Shari Pearce, Danielle Kruger, Jeff Pearce, Chad McManus Community Development and Enhancement Committee Sherry Farrell, Christine Brower, Shari Pearce. Jeff Pearce Special Events Committee Andrew Fowler, Jamie Attoma, Shari Pearce, Jeff Pearce, Sherry Farrell Personnel Committee Andrew Fowler, Jamie Attoma Public Safety Committee Shannon Zabelny, Christine Brower, Shari Pearce, Jeff Pearce Registrar of Vital Statistics Shari Pearce Deputy Registrar of Vital Statistics Amy Harter Records Retention Officer Shari Pearce, Amy Harter Community Center Supervisors Shari Pearce, Chad McManus Village Historian Dave Crumb Assistant Village Historian Amanda Dudley Annual Resolutions: Resolution that the following banks are hereby designated as the official depositories for the Village of Hilton: Canandaigua National Bank and M&T Bank. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zableny. Carried 5-0. Resolution that Westside News is hereby designated as the official newspaper of the Village of Hilton. If it is found, however, that another newspaper is needed, then the Democrat and Chronicle is also designated as the official newspaper for the Village of Hilton. All public notices are also displayed on the website. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. Resolution If the Mayor shall call a special meeting, the notification procedure to the media shall be by telephone or e-mail from the Village Manger/Clerk as soon as the meeting is called. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. 7 Resolution to appoint John Steinmetz to a five-year term as Chairman of the Zoning Board of Appeals, effective immediately to expire March 31, 2031. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Brower. Carried 5-0 Resolution to appoint Paul Cliff to a five-year term as an official alternate member of the Zoning Board of Appeals, to expire March 31, 2031. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. Resolution to approve the following three operating policies as written below: Motion made by Mayor Fowler seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. The Board of Trustees hereby authorizes payment in advance of the audit of claims for the following expenditures which are due prior to the regular meeting date of the Village Board. All such claims shall be presented at the next regular meeting for audit and the claimant and officer incurring or approving the same shall be jointly and severally liable for any amount disallowed by the Board of Trustees: a) public utility services b) postage, freight, and express charges c) Monroe County and/or New York State Department of Transportation fees d) Blue Cross/Blue Shield medical insurance charges Reimburse officers and employees of the Village who use their personal automobiles while performing their official duties on behalf of the Village based on the rates published and approved by the IRS. Authorize the following petty cash funds: $125.00 for water & general transaction. Said funds shall located in the Village Office, 59 Henry Street and the following employees shall have access to these funds, Fawn Cretelle-Galan, Danielle Kruger, Amy Harter, Debbie Jones, Vicky Taylor, Maryalice Edwards and Shari Pearce. Resolution to approve the 2026-2027 Fee Schedule as presented. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Brower. Carried 5-0. Resolution to approve all the annual policies: Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. o Budget policy for 2026-2027. o Credit Card policy shall be renewed for one year as amended. o Facebook policy for the Village of Hilton shall be renewed for one year. o Fund Balance Policy for 2026-2027. Reinclude water o Investment policy for the Village of Hilton shall be renewed for one year. o Online Banking policy shall be renewed for one year. o Password policy for 2026-2027. 8  o Payroll policy for 2026-2027. o Procurement policy shall be renewed for one year as amended. o Reserve policy for 2026-2027. o Sexual Harassment Policy for 2026-2027. o Social Media policy shall be renewed for one year. o Travel policy for the Village of Hilton shall be renewed for one year. o Water and Refuse Billing Procedures/Policy as amended. o Whistleblower policy for 2026-2027. o Workplace Violence policy for 2026-2027. o Video Audit policy for 2026-2027. Resolution to renew the following leases with tenants in the Hilton Community Center with an increase of 5%: Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0.  Hilton Community Child Care  LaDanse Workshop  Apple Festival  Food Shelf (no rent)  Hilton-Parma Recreation (rent purposes only) Resolution to retain the law firm of Lacy, Katzen LLP, and Attorney, Anthony J DelleFave, on a fee basis when legal advice is needed at a rate of $ 295.00 per hour (no increase). Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. Resolution to continue our participation in the self-insured Upstate NY Municipal Workers’ Compensation Program. The Village Board hereby designates Shari Pearce as the Plan Director. Danielle Kruger as the Alternate Director and Jeff Pearce as the Plan Facilitator. Motion made by Mayor Fowler seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. Resolution to hire MRB Group as the Village Engineer at their current rate. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5-0. Vouchers Resolution to approve the vouchers with additions. Motion made by Mayor Fowler seconded by Trustee Zableny. Carried 5-0. Added at meeting Featured Media $312.56 Hilton Central School District $4,499.15 Home Depot $316.69 Lamont $203.28 Lowes $88.58 9 Parmenter $75.76 Tops $66.71 Tri-Delta $675.54 United Business Systems $181.65 Village Photographer $100.00 $6,519.92 TA $32,287.39 General $86,984.21 Water $41,014.55 sewer $5,362.20 Total $165,648.35 Village Board Reports Mayor Fowler presented a proposal for a summer concert series on the first Monday of June, July and August. The events will include four food vendors: two dinner vendors and two dessert vendors. Each vendor donates a $50 vending fee to one of the two designated nonprofit organizations. Food trucks will set up northbound on Henry Street. The Village will partner with the Town of Parma, Hilton Fire Department and Hilton Central School District. Trustee Farrell suggested offering “rain dates” be added. Mayor Fowler would like to close Henry St; by utilizing the Special Police. The DPW Superintendent will process the road closure application. Ron Bragg noted he will conduct the necessary safety inspections. Trustee Attoma suggested offering entertainment for children. Trustee Farrell asked to be added to the Special Events Committee, Mayor Fowler agreed. Trustee Zabelny asked how Not for Profits are chosen for events, Mayor Fowler said initially it will be larger groups used, then a lottery system would be offered. Resolution to advertise closing Henry Street from Gorton Avenue to West Avenue June 1st, July 6th and August 3rd, 5:00 – 7:30 p.m. with possible rain dates being the following Monday. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. Second Public Comment Debbie Hebing, 315 Parma View, questioned how many households did not pay their taxes. Shari Pearce will provide her with the information. Retirement Jeff Pearce reported he will be retiring July 31st after 36 ½ years of service. Mayor Fowler made a Motion to accept Jeff’s intent to retire, seconded by Trustee Farrell. Carried 5-0. 10 Resolution to advertise for DPW Superintendent through the website, local paper, Indeed and other social media outlets. Motion made by Mayor Fowler, seconded by Trustee Attoma. Carried 5-0. Adjournment Motion to adjourn at 8:25 p.m. made by Trustee Farrell, seconded by Trustee Zabelny. Carried 5- 0. Respectfully submitted, Amy Harter Deputy Clerk 11