City Council

CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL MEETING CITY COUNCIL ROOM TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2004 7:00 P.M. PRESENT: Commissioner Thomas Curley, DPS Commissioner Michael Lenz, Mayor Commissioner Matthew McCabe, Finance Commissioner Thomas McTygue, DPW Commissioner Stephen E. Towne, Accounts ALSO PRESENT: Anthony Scirocco, Supervisor Phil Klein, Supervisor STAFF PRESENT: Patrick Design, Deputy Commissioner, DPW Erin Dreyer, Deputy Commissioner DPS Christine Gillmett-Brown, Deputy Commissioner Finance Debbie Harper, Deputy Commissioner Accounts Alicia Wardell, Deputy Mayor Matthew Dorsey, City Attorney PUBLIC COMMENT Dr. Janette Bruno, 7 East Cove Road, Town of Stillwater said she was a research scientist for General Electric. She said as part of her duties she evaluates technical aspects on projects. She said she was here this evening as a Commissioner from the Saratoga Lake Improvement District (SLIPD). She reminded Council members that SLIPD was created by NYS law to maintain the viability of Saratoga Lake. She said they are concerned of the potential negative impacts from using the lake as a resource. She said that she and a representative from Chazen Companies were here this evening to present comments to the Council on the DEIS. She said there were three major issues as follows: 1. Loughberry Lake B She said Loughberry Lake and the other City water sources were sound sources and the City did not need a redundant water source. 2) Ground Water: She said there is the option of ground water that would cost approximately half of what the cost is for the Saratoga Lake option. She also noted that ground water was less susceptible to contamination. 3. She said should the City decide to move ahead with a redundant water supply, the lake was not the better choice. She said it was highly susceptible to contamination, has a lesser quality, and there were substantial soci-economic costs to the community. Barbara Beal, Chazen Companies, 110 Glen Street, Glens Falls, said their firm was retained by SLIPD to review the DEIS. She said their firm is a 140 person consulting firm whose employees include: hydro geologists, planners, scientists, etc. She said she holds a masters focusing on water chemistry. She said the three main points of her presentation were as follows: 1. Redundant water supply: She said the City needs to focus on future supply demand and its sources. She said when the City stops focusing on redundancy a whole other host of options open up. She said there has not been a decline in the viability of Loughberry Lake and a redundant source is not necessary. She said the City=s DEIS for Saratoga Lake does not discuss a watershed management strategy for the lake. She said that if the City was to take a better look at its leaks in the water system, there could be enough savings to cover the minimal amount of 200,000. She said that in 2000 the City found 54 leaks which equated to 268,000 gallons that were being wasted. 2. Ground water sources B Barbara Beal said the most cost effective source is ground water. She said she agreed with the City=s consultant that it would not be cost effective to develop the Colonie aquifer as a redundant source, but if it was developed as a source it could cost less than half of the lake option and produce 1.5 mgpd. Barbara Beal said their conservative estimate is that ten well heads could be construction for the Colonie aquifer at about $8.2 million. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said this was not the purpose of the public comment period. He said that he would bring Barton & Loguidice staff to the next meeting to address these comments. He said comments such Page 1 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 as these should be submitted under the DEIS and then the issues can be incorporated into the DEIS and addressed. Dave Bronner said that now the elections are over with, there are consequences. He said there was a clear mandate from the voters on the Saratoga Lake water source issue. He said it was clear that the voters do not want Saratoga Lake as the water source. He also said the Council needs to look at residency requirements of elected officials. He said there needs to be a clear definition of the residency matter on the legal and actual residence. Tom Torgensen, 258 Caroline Street, said he was here this evening representing the Navy League on the sea containers that travel through the City. He said there are more than 6 million sea containers that enter the United States every year. He said that Canadian Pacific Railroad purchased the D&H Railroad so they could have a port in the United States. He said there is a huge volume of traffic coming into the rail yard in the City. He said that Saratoga Springs is being used as a transition point. He said his mission this evening was to have the Council make a request to state and federal governments for appropriations to allow the purchase of the General Electric Ion Tracking/Scanner. He said this piece of equipment would be able to scan all sea containers. He said the Navy League cannot do this by themselves and they need the assistance from the City. He said that it was the responsibility of each community to take the necessary actions to ensure the safety of their citizens. MAYOR=S OFFICE Proclamation (04-007) Mayor Michael Lenz read into the record a proclamation honoring former Mayor Kenneth Klotz for his years of service to the City. Council members wished him well. Conduct of the Council Mayor Michael Lenz requested that Council members forward to his office by next Monday any concerns or suggestions they may have on the manner or structure of Council meetings. He said that he would bring those items back to the next meeting for further discussion and consensus. Shelters of Saratoga Mayor Michael Lenz said he thought it would be a good idea to have the not-for-profits in the City come before the Council to make a report/presentation on their organization=s activities. He said generally the Council only hears from not-for-profits during budget season. Janine Farmer, Executive Director, Shelters of Saratoga, said they have a 14 bed (10 male and 4 women) facility. She said last year they served 202 people with 75 percent of them being from the City of Saratoga Springs. She said this upcomng year they have a lot of plans. She said they are in the middle of rehabilitating a house into four apartments for low income seniors. She said they have received a lot of help from DPW. She said their goal was to have the work completed by the end of summer. She said they were currently in the process of administering a $400,000 grant for rehabilitation of owner occupied houses for low income. She said those individuals are eligible for up to $15,000. She said they have started 25 of those rehabs, have completed 10 and hope to 18 done by June. She said they also administer the RESTORE program which is an emergency repair program of $5,000 to low income individuals. She said that SOS is also working on obtaining grants for affordable housing for income families. She said they recently wrote a SHIP grant to serve those families. She said they hope to hire three more individuals to serve those low income families because those families truly are not having their needs met. She said they have a busy year ahead of them. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he appreciated the packet of information forwarded to him each month Page 2 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 from Janine Farmer. He asked about the trends and the needs of the community. Janine Farmer said the needs are generally with affordable housing, mental health related issues, drugs and alcohol. She said the numbers have not really increased from year to year. She said they have a 75 percent success in accommodating the housing needs of those who come to them. Commissioner Stephen Towne said this organization serves a need within the community and they were doing a great job. Mayor Michael Lenz thanked Janine Farmer for her presentation. Executive Session Mayor Michael Lenz requested an executive session on the open space land acquisition issue. Council members agreed. Civil Service Secretary Resolution (04-008) Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to adopted the Civil Service Secretary resolution as presented (Attachment A). Ayes all. Saratoga Hospital Capital Reserve Account (04-009) Matthew Dorsey, City Attorney, said because his wife is a partner in The Jones Firm, and that firm represents the hospital, Tony Izzo, Assistant City Attorney, would handle this matter. Tony Izzo said this was simply an action that supplements the Council’s approval in October 2003. He said at that time, the Council authorized the capital reserve fund and the action this evening would actually create the fund. Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to adopt the resolution authorizing the creation of a reserve fund to finance necessary traffic improvements in the Church Street corridor as presented (Attachment B). Ayes all. Deputy Salaries (04-010) Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the three percent pay raise, effective January 1, 2004, for the Deputy Commissioners. Ayes all. Labor Attorney Contract (04-011) Matthew Dorsey said this contract was the same as before except the length of time had been increased from one year to two. He said there was also a minor change on the last page whereby the text, “for failure or refusal of the other to comply with the terms and conditions of this Agreement” is to be deleted under Termination. Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Stephen Towne seconded to approve the labor attorney contract with Poklemba, Hobbs & Ulasewicz as presented. Ayes all. Recreation Department B Change of Hours for Director and Senior Account Clerk (04-012) Mayor Michael Lenz said the Saratoga Springs Recreation Commission had approved the increase in step within grade for Recreation Director and the Senior Account Clerk. He said the Director will be advanced from a grade 15, step 5 to a Grade 15, step 8 and the weekly hours increased from 35 to 38. He said the senior account clerk will be advanced from a grade 7, step 5 to a grade 7, step 10 and the hours increased from 33 to 35. He noted that the cost associated with the increase in step and hours for these individuals has been offset Page 3 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 by a $3,000 reduction in the Program Supervisor at the Ice Rinks and a $3,000 reduction in the allocation for the part time clerk position associated with the department. Bob Spratt said that with these increases, more responsibilities will be taken on as a result of the reduction in the program supervisors position as the ice rink. Mayor Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Matthew McCabe seconded to approve the increase in hours and salary as noted above. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he really had no problem with this motion, however, he would not support it because of the salary study. He said there had been recommendations in the salary study to change some employees. He said he had approached the Council on making some changes to his employees and he was told by the Council that they wanted to deal with this as a whole. He said he had a problem with piece mealing these increases when $40,000 was spent on a survey and nothing had been done with it. He said he would oppose this motion for those reasons. He said he would rather wait and deal with this as a whole. Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved to table the motion. No one seconded. Commissioner Thomas Curley said the City did do a lot of work on that study and it was time to address it. He said there are a number of individuals affected by the study and it should be used to rectify the shortcomings throughout City Hall. He said though that this increase in salary was not a market adjustment but rather a modification of hours. He said that the Council needs to continue to work on the salary survey and make some positive changes. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said he liked the philosophy that the Recreation Department used in that they contained their costs and are self reliant when proposing this change. Mayor Michael Lenz said that the survey would be brought back to the table for discussion. Ayes: four; Nays: one (Commissioner Thomas McTygue). Motion carried. ACCOUNTS DEPARTMENT Approval -- City Council Minutes B December 16, 2003 Commissioner Stephen Towne moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the December 16, 2003, City Council meeting minutes. Commissioner Thomas Curley said there was a procedural problem at that meeting in connection with the no all night parking in the city owned parking lots. Tony Izzo explained that by reading the minutes it appeared that the Council took action to amend the ordinance when in fact, they should have set a public hearing. It was agreed the minutes did not need to be changed, but rather a public hearing needed to be set to amend the ordinance. Ayes all. Appointment B Commissioners of Deeds Commissioner Stephen Towne appointed the following individuals, all from the Police Department as Commissioners of Deeds with a term of two years: Aaron Benware, Eileen Cotter, Todd Bengston, Sean Briscoe, Robert Jillson, John Lanzara, Thomas Mitchell, Jr. Andrew Prestigiacomo, John Sesselman, and Page 4 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 Gregory Veitch. Award of Bid Upon the recommendation of the Department of Public Works, Commissioner Stephen Towne moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to award the bid for caterpillar loader tires to GCR Truck Tire Center tires in the amount of $1,140/each (only bidder). This bid has been reviewed by the Purchasing Department and meets the City=s purchasing guidelines. Ayes all. Reassessment Update Commissioner Stephen Towne said in the spring of 2003 the City contracted with Cole, Layer & Trumble (CLT) to perform a citywide revaluation of more than 10,000 parcels. He said that CLT is one of the oldest firms in the country and they are the company who did the last revaluation. He said at this point they are nearing completion and will be done within the next four to five months. Dave Miller, CLT, said this revaluation is more like an update. He said they are using the data collected din 1998 and also going door to door as a follow up. He said from May through September 2003 they went out to all of the neighborhoods and did a drive by of the homes to look for changes. He said after all of the changes were noted, a data mailer was sent to the property owners which reflected the relevant information. He said property owners were requested to review the material and then send it back to them. He said after that time the properties then had a value placed on them which is where they currently are in the process. He said they are looking at information such as current sales, comparables and the current market to develop the assessed value. He said the Assessment Office will then review that information for accuracy. He said once that review had taken place, the final values would be set and notices then sent to property owners with the new value and the impact of the taxes based on that new value. He said those notices will go out in April & May. He said the property owners will then be afforded the opportunity to come into their office to discuss the new value. He said also during this time, there will be public meetings explaining the process, timetable and information on formal reviews. Commissioner Stephen Towne said it was his intention to be as open as possible on this process. He said he was anticipating at least two meetings with the public, one before the end of January. He said the next meeting with the public would give them the information on the timetable and the formal review process. He said CLT will then transfer their information to the assessment office and the tentative assessment will be sent out in early June. Vital Statistics Transition Plan (04-013) Commissioner Stephen Towne said that the transfer of the vital statistics operation from DPS to the Accounts Department was mandated by the new charter. He said he was here this evening to request Council support for his plan for transition. He said it was his intention to establish a temporary position to fill this function during the transition process. He said it had not yet been determined whether this workload is full or part time or whether it could be absorbed into the existing positions. He said he had spoken to the CSEA union and they are supportive of this proposal and the Civil Service Commission will meet tomorrow evening and discuss this proposal. Commissioner Stephen Towne moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to create a temporary senior clerk position, at an annual salary level of $27,381, for six months, effective January 8. He said the money was within his budget. He said that concurrent with this proposal, Civil Service will schedule a test for the this position and if it should become necessary to hire a full time individual, then there would be a list to draw from. Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked what happened to the existing position in DPS and why did that Page 5 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 employee not go to the Accounts Department. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the person presently doing the vital records function has a blended position and it was estimated that about 40 percent of her work was devoted to vital statistics. He said that person is also a very senior position and beyond what he wanted to pay someone for this function. Commissioner Thomas McTygue suggested that while the function now falls under the jurisdiction of the Accounts Department the work could remain in DPS. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said his department just recently took over the entire Engineering Department and did not ask for more help. He said there was no reason the existing individual could not continue to do the job. Commissioner Stephen Towne said if the function is in his department, the individual will be located in his department. He said he had several discussions with Commissioner Thomas Curley on this matter and Commissioner Thomas Curley wanted to maintain that individual for other duties and responsibilities. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said the workload continues to decrease in the DPS administrative office with the loss of the landfill, the building inspector and vital records but the administrative staff remains the same. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said his staff is the same size while taking on new functions. He said the budget has been adopted and now there is a request to create new positions. He said it was not fair to the taxpayers when the City is already paying individuals to do this job. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he was looking for some flexibility and this was a temporary position. He said it gives him time to review and to then make a determination on whether there needs to be a full time individual. He said the money was within his budget. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he had to figure out how to deal with his situation in taking on the engineering department and not getting requested positions and said Commissioner Stephen Towne should do the same. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said he would this motion tabled. Commissioner Stephen Towne said this was not a permanent position and he did not want the motion tabled. Commissioner Thomas Curley said his office has not grown over the years. He said the last set of upgrades were done to accommodate some individuals who had not had upgrades in 12 years. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that DPS has added position in both the police and fire departments that cost more than $200,000. He said his department was forced to make cuts. Commissioner Thomas Curley said his department has grown proportionately to the services that they provide. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said his has not. He said he had supported the additional personnel in DPW but the argument this evening was that there was an individual losing approximately 40 percent of her work and another individual being hired. Ayes: four; Nays: one (Commissioner Thomas McTygue). Motion carried. Cost Control Associates recommendations (04-014) Commissioner Stephen Towne said Cost Control Associates was engaged by the City last year to review the energy and telecommunication bills. He said under that contract, if the City accepts the recommendations from Cost Control Associates they would be paid 45 percent over 36 months. He said there is a one time opt out clause fee if the City desired Commissioner Stephen Towne said their review focused on two parts, billing errors & adjustments and recommending new plans for projected savings. He said under the billing errors & adjustments there was $8,500 in refunds issued. He said under the projected plan changes, they recommended different plans that would be beneficial to the City with about an $18,000 savings or $1,500 per month. He said if the City accepts the recommendation, the Cost Control would then invoice the City for $8,000 or 45 percent of that savings. Commissioner Stephen Towne said that subsequent to their review, it was determined that some of the savings projected by CCA (rate plan changes, state contracts and an internal consultant) could have been Page 6 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 achieved by the City on its own. He said because of that, he suggested that the City opt out of the contract for a one time fee of $6,945.26. He said the one time fee would relieve the City of paying any future cost saving benefits to CCA. Therefore, Commissioner Stephen Towne moved and Mayor Michael Lenz seconded that the City pay the one time fee of $6,945.26 to Cost Control Associates to conclude the telecommunications agreement. The amount will be paid by departments in proportion to their savings per year. He further noted that the remaining steps to be implemented were to be handled by Jamie Johnson, telecommunication specialist. Mayor Michael Lenz said this is an overall positive impact for the City with an estimated $18,000 savings. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he would like to see a breakdown of the costs to departments. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the payment to CCA would be from the reductions saved in the previously approved rate plan changes. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that may be so, but he wanted to see the material before voting on it. Commissioner Thomas Curley clarified that there were no changes to the companies for cellular service but rather just changes in the rate plans. Commissioner Stephen Towne agreed. It was agreed that Commissioner Stephen Towne would forward the material to Council members for their review and this would be placed on the next agenda. Risk Management Monthly Report Marilyn Rivers said the Safety Committee is working on goals and she hoped to those in the very near future. She said the fire evacuation committee had been meeting under Chief Cogan’s leadership and a fire evacuation plan had been crafted. She said it would be discussed and hopefully approved at the January 21 Safety Committee. She said the Safety Committee has also been working on the NYMIR loss prevention survey at City Hall. She said the fire doors are on order, the electricians are working through a list of miscellaneous items, the fire alarm system is on track and safety bulletins continue to go out to employees. Marilyn Rivers said that the MSDS sheets have been distributed to all departments in an identifiable large green binder. She said both the fire and police departments have master copies. She said under the fleet safety program the City has entered all drivers into the NYS LENS program, defensive driving will be offered in the first quarter of 2004 and the seatbelt campaign is under way. Marilyn Rivers said the fixed asset program is coming to a completion and she thanked everyone for working with her on this program. She said the fixed asset sheets would be distributed by the end of January. She said they were fairly comprehensive and asked that departments review them. FINANCE DEPARTMENT Payroll B Approval Commissioner Matthew McCabe moved and Commissioner Stephen Towne seconded to approve the following payrolls: December 19, 2003 -- $362,834.25; December 26, 2003 -- $378,884.44; December 31, 2003 -- $192,391.29 and January 2, 2004 -- $177,947.29. Ayes all. Warrants -- Approval Commissioner Matthew McCabe moved and Commissioner Stephen Towne seconded to approve the following warrants: 3DEC03- -- Warrant 2-32 Page 7 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 General Fund $ 107,587.02 City Center Authority 5,821.24 Water Fund 34,045.37 Sewer Fund 6,384.80 Capital Project 12,122.50 Special Assessment District -0- West Avenue SAD -0- Trust Fund -0- Debt Service -0- Community Development 500.00 $ 166,484.93 MC031231 B Warrant 2 - 7 General Fund $ 12,122.12 City Center Authority 193.51 Water Fund 2,712.00 Sewer Fund 2,368.59 Capital Project -0- Special Assessment District -0- West Avenue SAD -0- Trust Fund -0- Debt Service -0- Community Development -0- $ 17,396.22 MC301231 B Warrant 2 - 3 General Fund $ 582.72 City Center Authority -0- Water Fund 24.25 Sewer Fund -0- Capital Project -0- Special Assessment District -0- West Avenue SAD -0- Trust Fund -0- Debt Service -0- Community Development -0- $ 606.97 Ayes all. Budget Transfers Commissioner Matthew McCabe moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the budget transfers as presented (Attachment C). Ayes all. Budget Amendments Commissioner Matthew McCabe moved and Commissioner Thomas Curley seconded to approve the budget amendments as presented (Attachment D). Ayes all. Commissioner Matthew McCabe said that there had been some question about approving actions via memo and noted that this was for an item from 2003. He said under the new charter, approvals by memo were no longer and option. Other Page 8 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 Commissioner Matthew McCabe thanked fellow Council members and deputies for getting him acquainted in City Hall. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS Indoor Recreational Facility Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he had hoped to make a presentation to the West Side Neighborhood Association, however, they canceled the meeting due to the weather. He said he has proposed a smaller neighborhood recreation facility rather than a single large one. Bob Spratt, Chair of the Recreation Commission, said this is an issue that he had been working on for quite some time. He said the programs at the recreation department are suffering due to lack of space. She said scheduling and locations are problems. He said they began looking seriously in May 2001 when they began to gather information on the proposed size, cost, uses and feasibility. He said the committee appointed by then Finance Commissioner, Michael Lenz, began looking to identify locations that were suited for a facility. He said in November 2001 recommendations were made to the Council. Bob Spratt said the first issue was to acquire land. He said the second issue was to decrease the City=s dependency on the school, district, armory and the Town of Wilton. He said there was also the issue of the existing facilities of not being adequate in some circumstances. He said that in recent years, both the armory and the Town of Wilton facilities are no longer available. He said they have begun to use the Village of Ballston Spa Community Center, but it causes confusion for scheduled. He said they were thankful to maintain the use of the school district, Skidmore and Ballston Spa, otherwise their programs would be in jeopardy. He said that in April 2002, then Mayor Kenneth Klotz appointed him as the chair of the Multipurpose Facility Task Force with the charge of developing cost estimates, acquiring a firm for design and construction and the oversight of construction. He said for the next seven months they work on this issue meeting with various interested and affected parties. He said he talked the surrounding towns and also solicited the needs of the community to determine the minimal requirements. He said on November 19, Commissioner Thomas McTygue approached that committee suggesting that the facility be placed on the west side. Bob Spratt said that the committee found that idea exciting Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he had spoken to the school district and also addressed the school board. He said since that time the suggestions from interested parties had been taken into account and the firm of S.D. Atelier was asked to develop some conceptual renderings. He said that Peter Loyola, architect was also utilized. He said the proposed building is about the size of four basketball courts and it would meet the City=s needs. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that when he suggested this location it was imperative to have the school agree with the proposal. He said he had met with the West Side Neighborhood Association, unfortunately it was not fully announced to that neighborhood so there was some concern expressed. He said there was a second meeting scheduled but that was canceled due to inclement weather. He said there is another meeting scheduled for next Monday evening at the Knights of Columbus. He said this is an exciting proposal and there is support for it. He said that many of the neighborhood questions will be answered at the meeting. He said the issues of the wading pool and parking had been addressed by Peter Loyola in the new design. Susan Davis, S.D. Atelier, said the renderings that the Council members were about to look at were in the conceptual stage and not the final design. She said they were the issues of mass, scale, design and blending it into the neighborhood. She said this would not be a metal building. She said appropriate material and items Page 9 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 such as dormers, clerestory lighting, shed extensions and maintaining the street level heigh would be taken into consideration. Peter Loyola said he looked at the mass of the building and then oriented the greenspace and parking around that mass. He said the structure would sit back about 50 feet from Beekman Street. He said they could provide 49 spaces in the proposed parking area and 25 spaces directly adjacent to the building. He said there were 30 on street parking spaces bringing the total to 100 spaces. He said they also looked at the wading pool concerns and moved the pool and playground equipment slightly further down on Division Street. He said they also incorporated outdoor basketball courts. Commissioner Stephen Towne clarified that there would be 100 parking spaces. Peter Loyola said there would be 74 on site and approximately 30 on the street. Commissioner Stephen Towne expressed some concern with balls from baseball games going to close to the playground and wading pool. Peter Loyola said there is a fence and he did not believe it was an issue. Linda Terricola said they only schedule the younger children at this location, so the fence would be adequate. Commissioner Stephen Towne said he would like to see more detail on that matter. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked about the height of the structure. Susan Davis said it would be about 35 feet and a two story home is at about 30 feet. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said he was also willing to take this project to the Planning Board to get their recommendations on site plan issues. He said that it was not necessary, but he believed this would make it a better project. He said this is all preliminary and there is still room for discussion. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked where the City stood with the School Board. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that they were waiting to see the response from the West Side Neighborhood Association. Church Street Parking Lot RFP Commissioner Thomas McTygue suggested that an executive session for a workshop on the Church Street Parking Lot RFP be set for Monday, January 12, 5:30 p.m. Council members agreed. Parking Lot Restrictions Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there has been concern expressed by the merchants near the Algonquin parking lot. He said that DPW has been monitoring the parking in this lot and there are still cars in the lot every morning. He said he was not requesting that cars be towed every morning, however, at the minimum they should be ticketed. He said the signs are up and it is enforceable. He said he needed cooperation from DPS in order to get the lots cleaned. He asked about the parking ticket devices that were purchased in conjunction with the DBA and whether they were being used. He said it was his understanding that they were not being used. He said that was a $30,000 investment and asked what was the status. Commissioner Thomas Curley said those devices are being used. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said in a meeting that he was in with Asst. Chief Jim Cornick and Deputy Commissioner Erin Dreyer it was stated that those devices were not working. Commissioner Thomas Curley said he too has gone into the lots very early in the morning and there appears to be three habitual users. He said they have put those individuals on notice. He said they are also writing tickets. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that every morning there are six or seven cars in this lot. Commissioner Thomas Curley said that on the mornings that he went there were three or four vehicles. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that tickets need to be written. Commissioner Thomas Curley said once the ordinance is adopted, it will allow the City to tow cars. He said the ordinance needs to be clarified first. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said at a minimum the cars need to be ticketed. Commissioner Thomas Curley they will continue to ticket. Tony Izzo said the ordinance needs to be amended first. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said that the existing signs say no all night parking and the new signs are more explicit. He said the no all night parking needs to be enforced. Commissioner Thomas Curley said his department will cooperate. It was agreed a public hearing would be set for Tuesday, January 20 at 6:55 p.m. Page 10 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 Snow plowing only Commissioner Thomas McTygue announced the acceptance of the following streets for snow plowing only: Tyler Drive and Cliffside Drive in the Woodlands/Waters Edge Development. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked for clarification on this matter. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said there are details that still need to be worked out on these streets before he is willing to give them full acceptance. However, during the snow plowing season, he does accept streets for this purpose only. He said once the contractor fulfills the terms on the conditions for acceptance, the streets will be given full acceptance. Other Commissioner Thomas McTygue asked that the City=s Supervisors report back to the Council on Catholic Charities and the reduction in their budget from the County. The supervisors said they would report back to the Council. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY Parking Lots Commissioner Thomas Curley said if the DPW finds cars in the parking lots during the restricted hours, they should contact the Police Department and someone would be sent over to ticket them. Donald Ure property B Update Commissioner Thomas Curley said this has been a lengthy ongoing situation but they are making progress. He said the court has ordered the parcel to be cleared and they have made significant progress in removing a large portion of the material. He said they are down to removing the vehicles and trailers. He said the City has been working with his attorney’s and the Donald Ure is paying all of the expenses in connection with the removal. He said the material is being removed and placed in storage until April 30 which will allow Donald Ure time to go through the material. He thanked Tony Izzo, Assistant City Attorney for the assistance in this matter. First Night Commissioner Thomas Curley said that First Night went very well with only three arrests. He said there were plenty of police on staff with the cost borne by the First Night event committee. Commissioner Michael Lenz said it was a good night and a great deal of thanks goes out to the volunteers who make this happen. He said there were some serious incidents in surrounding communities but ours went well. He commended DPW in their efforts to clean up after the event. SUPERVISOR Phil Klein reported that the County is undergoing expansion of the existing jail to increase its size by another 48 cells. He said the work will be done within 60 to 90 days. He also said the airport runway project is complete at a cost of approximately $1.2 million. He said the County also purchased two parcels at a cost of $80,000 to extend the safety zone of the runways and that amount is 90 percent reimbursed by the FAA and NYSDOT. He said the Maplewood Manor recently underwent renovations on their energy program with an estimated $131,000 savings generated on their energy bills at that facility. Phil Klein said the County’s recycling plant is doing well and revenues will exceed those of 2002. He said that metal has been a strong product this year. Page 11 of 12 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, January 6, 2004 Phil Klein said the County’s water committee will meet within the next seven to ten days and he hoped to make a presentation on that meeting by the end of January. Phil Klein said that employment at Maplewood Manor has been an issue over the years. He said they have adopted a tuition assistance program and have identified candidates for that program. Phil Klein said that at the request of Commissioner Thomas McTygue he would check into the Catholic Charities matter. EXECUTIVE SESSION Commissioner Thomas Curley moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to go into executive session at 9:20 p.m. Ayes all. Council members returned at 9:50 p.m. and reported that no action was taken. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Thomas Curley moved and Commissioner Thomas McTygue seconded to adjourn the meeting at 9:50 p.m. Ayes all. There being no further business, Mayor Michael Lenz adjourned the meeting at 9:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy Moran Approved: Clerk Page 12 of 12