Board of Trustees

Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 74 THREE THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY-EIGHTH REGULAR MEETING Rutherford Hall Village Hall March 27, 2013 A regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Scarsdale was held in Rutherford Hall in Village Hall on Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 8:45 P.M. Present were Mayor Flisser, Trustees Brodsky, Eisenman, Harrison, Lee, Mark, and Steves. Also present were Village Manager Gatta, Deputy Village Manager Pappalardo, Village Attorney Esannason, Village Treasurer McClure, Village Clerk Conking, Assistants to the Village Manager Azrelyant and Datino, and Administrative Intern Goodwin. ******** The minutes of the Board of Trustees Regular Meeting of March 12, 2013 were approved on a motion entered by Trustee Eisenman, seconded by Trustee Harrison, and carried unanimously. ******** Bills & Payroll Trustee Steves stated that he had audited the Abstract of Claims dated March 27, 2013 in the amount of $1,113,350.04 which includes $49,970.44 in Library Claims previously audited by a Trustee of the Library Board were found to be in order and he moved that such payment be ratified. Upon motion duly made by Trustee Steves and seconded by Trustee Eisenman, the following resolution was adopted unanimously: RESOLVED, that the Abstract of Claims dated March 27, 2013 in the amount of $1,113,350.04 is hereby approved. ******** Mayor’s Comments Mayor Flisser stated that she has a few comments this evening: “Considering the circumstances that the Board worked under, the accomplishments of the Village Board are quite remarkable: Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 75 • The Fox Meadow Drainage Basin Project at George Field Park and Cooper Green alleviating flooding and protecting the Bronx River and its habitat, and the beginning of the Sheldrake River Project to follow. • The Ardsley Road Pump Station Project ending alternate day water pressure problems and allowing us to move on with the Reeves-Newsome modernization by shouldering the water supply requirements during the new construction. • The opening of the Public Safety Building for Police and Fire and the beginning of a process for modernization of Fire House Number One. • New legislation for permanent home emergency generators and the revision of the Neighborhood Notification Law for home extension building. • Beginnings of change in the Building and Engineering Department. • Upgrade of facilities for residents with disabilities and the ongoing maintenance of a database for first responders. • The expansion of Rain Gardens; the demonstration of leaf mulching and the beginnings of the process in all our parks. • The publication of the Historical Research Survey and the beginnings of Historic District evaluation. • The Emergency Notification System which sent 180,000 messages during the Hurricane Crisis and the beginning of tech upgrades for the Village website and communications. • This recent budget, called “Heroic” by the Forum representatives, and the beginnings of the Village-wide revaluation project. You will notice that all of these include solid accomplishment and also require continued diligence of Village Boards to follow, and resident input and guidance. I leave it to you, and I wish you all the greatest success. Thank you.” ******** Board Comments: Trustee Lee: “First, I’d like to address Bob Harrison, and I’d like to say that your devotion and service to the Scarsdale community have been long and fruitful. Your contributions in this regard of course long predate your work on the Board, but certainly continued in your two years as Trustee. What stands out most to me about your efforts on behalf of Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 76 the Village are two things: your tireless advocacy for causes you believe in and your outreach and accessibility to our residents. As to the first of those, whatever the cause you espoused, whether popular or unpopular, you pushed for it in good faith and with dedication and the best interests of Scarsdale in mind. And as to the second, your outreach to our residents is unparalleled. Rare is there a Scarsdale event or happening when you’re not on the scene. If it’s a celebratory occasion you’re there to join the fun, and if it’s a problem occurrence, you’re there investigating and trying to help deal with it. Bob, your passion for Scarsdale’s betterment, and vigor in that pursuit, runs to your very core. I’m sure that we will see that continue in the years to come, and I very much look forward to it.” Madame Mayor, your work on behalf of our Village as Mayor has been outstanding. You brought many strengths to your role as Mayor, but I would like to single out three that I think have been particularly important to your success. First, you hold great respect for the principle of open, responsive government. As a result, you were ever so watchful that Board-member discussions be held out in the open before the community and the press, as required by the public meeting laws. Similarly, you have made sure that every resident’s communication with the Board has been answered and answered promptly. What you clearly appreciate is that an open and responsive government builds trust and respect between government and residents. Second, you have brought enormous energy to your role. And thank goodness for that because, to keep up with the job, Scarsdale’s Mayor needs deep reserves of energy. In addition to the heavy load of meetings, public appearances and speeches as the “face” of our Village, is the time required to promptly respond to the daily phone calls, letters, and emails with Village staff and residents. All this you have done with remarkable dispatch, while somehow maintaining a full-time medical practice in your professional life. And third, you have succeeded in harnessing the skills of the individual Board members and our talented Village professional staff to get things done. Counting your four years as Trustee along with your two as Mayor, the array of significant projects either initiated by you or guided forward by you during your Mayoral tenure constitutes a body of work of remarkable value to our community. So all told, all of us in the community have been most fortunate to have you serving the Village so vigorously and faithfully over these past years, and we thank you sincerely.” Trustee Brodsky: “Bob, I thought that this week's Scarsdale Inquirer captured the essence of Trustee Robert Harrison very elegantly when it dubbed him "Citizen Bob." Bob has an unflagging commitment to the Village of Scarsdale, that is evidenced by everything from Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 77 his never-to-be-equaled number of appearances at Village meetings to his email address, "proscars@aol.com." Bob's energetic efforts on behalf of the community and the residents have made him well known to an astonishing number of Scarsdalians, and I have consistently been impressed by the number of people he counts as friends. Bob brought great energy to his role on the Village Board's Personnel Committee, where I served with him for two years, and saw him conscientiously reach out to dozens of people encouraging them to volunteer for a Village Board or Council. Bob was also deeply interested at all levels of the Village's budget and financial operations, and he often engaged in independent research to support issues that he wanted the Board to discuss. While Bob may be retiring from Village Board service, I don't think that anyone who knows him, and I do think that every single person in Scarsdale may know him, expects him to step back from his love of the Village and his avid interest in Scarsdale's well being. Congratulations, Bob, on your two years of service as a Trustee, and your more than three decades of involvement in Scarsdale. Mayor Flisser, as you know, we start each Village Board meeting with a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, and because of where I sit and where the flag is, you face in my direction during the Pledge so I can hear you clearly and each time I note and admire the passion and conviction that you feel as you say the words. I did not serve with you during your four years as a Trustee, but in your role as Mayor, I have seen you to be as passionate a public servant of Scarsdale as you are a citizen pledging allegiance. Whether you were presiding over a Fourth of July parade, a Memorial Day tribute, a tree planting on Arbor Day, or considering a revision to the generator law, you have shown great love for the community. You believe strongly in process and communication with residents. Neither is an easy job. It can be difficult to manage a Board of seven very different personalities as they reach decisions, and it can be equally challenging to be the frontline recipient of every resident's letter, email, and phone call. As a Board we don't always agree and we certainly don't always get complimented about what we do. Thank you for your consistent commitment to process and to open dialogue with the community. Miriam, you have handled your two years as Mayor with a very personal sense of style, whether as shown by the big button pinned to your coat when campaigning that says Mayor, or your tote bag that also has your title. It is your sense of style but is also an open invitation to residents to talk to you anytime and anywhere and that's a very admirable and integral part of who I have seen you to be. I wish you the very best as you retire from the Village Board, but I also know that you aren't retiring at all as you continue your pediatric practice and you look toward a busy future. Congratulations and thank you for your service to our Village.” Trustee Mark: “I will start with Trustee Harrison. Bob—the number 3,000 you put in your letter explaining your decision not to run again for Village Trustee tells only part of the story of your dedication to Scarsdale. Yes, the number is large --over 3,000 Village and volunteer Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 78 organizations’ meetings, Scarsdale charity events and youth sports coaching practices and games – and is quantitative evidence of your unequalled level of perseverance and interest in our Village. It is clear that you are the Cal Ripken, Jr. of civic engagement and without a doubt a “ProScars”-dale resident, as your email address affirms. But what that 3,000 number does not adequately show is what we on the Board have seen over the past two years -- namely, your willingness to debate issues and to reach consensus on matters important to the operation of the Village. Yes, you were persistent in pursuing Village staff for numbers and operational data and engaged in a bit of detective work that from time to time seemed above and beyond what might have been expected of a Trustee. But your heart was set on doing your best for residents and when it came to discuss and decide on issues, what we came to see was that you were willing to engage in the give and take of decision making. You recognized that arriving at consensus was a critical part of the process to make solutions workable – and work. In addition, you labored tirelessly to recruit residents to serve on the Village Boards and Councils that offer them opportunities to focus their civic volunteer efforts. This winter approximately 70 positions had to be re-filled and/or re-enlisted. Working with Trustee Stacey Brodsky, you managed to come up with a list of qualified residents willing to re- enlist or step into the open positions. This was no mean feat. Village residents lead busy lives and as much as they care about Scarsdale, do not have a lot of time that is not already committed to their families and other activities. So finding the needed volunteers was an important and challenging task requiring considerable attention on your part. So as we are now at the last Village Board meeting that you will attend as a Trustee, I want to personally thank you for your service on the Board and to wish you and Terri the best in the years ahead. Mayor Flisser -- You find yourself at the end of a long and busy road of civic volunteerism in the Village. In your past six years on the Board, the last two as Mayor, you have seen many important Village projects start – and stop – and start again. Coming to the end of your Mayoral term you can look with pride on the actual completion of a number of important infrastructure projects begun by prior Boards on which you served and which after many years have come to fruition. You mentioned them in your opening remarks, but they bear repeating. They include: - completion of the renovation of the Ardsley Road water pumping station, - completion of the renovation of the Public Safety Building, - completion (or near completion) of the South Fox Meadow storm water management project, and - completion of the Popham Road Bridge. - You have also seen the completion of two important legislative initiatives: the adoption of model code provisions that address issues of affordable housing, and the liberalization of the Village Code provisions relating to permanent emergency generators. And, among other things, we witnessed the launch of the first Village-wide property reassessment since 1969, a project expected to improve the fairness of the allocation of the property tax burden among all residents. Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 79 In short, your tenure on the Board has been notably filled with challenges ably met. In addition, your encyclopedic knowledge of Roberts Rules of Order, kept meetings on track and running efficiently. There are still a lot of things to accomplish -- but that will always be true as the one constant in Village life is change. What we will do about the pressing needs of those who live along the Sheldrake River, how the revaluation is completed and implemented, the overhauls at Reeves Newsom and Fire Station No. 1, living with the County’s renovation of the Crane Road bridge and surviving the next big storm are among the items you have had to address, but the completion of which will have to await future agendas. If you wish to offer your input on these and other Village matters, it will be welcomed, but if you have set your sights on other means of contributing to civic affairs, we wish you the best in those endeavors. For now, we thank you for your many years of dedicated service to the Village and wish you all the best for the future.” Trustee Eisenman: “Trustee Harrison, the definition of a gadfly is a person who is an irritant or who upsets the status quo by posing upsetting or novel questions, while at the same time, it may be accepted as a description of honorable work or civic duty. In this latter sense I would suggest to you that Trustee Bob Harrison has admirably lived up to the description. Perhaps the most famous of gadflies was the philosopher Socrates. During his defense when on trial for his life, according to Plato's writings, Socrates pointed out that dissent, like the gadfly, was easy to swat, but the cost to society of silencing individuals who were irritating could be very high. Socrates said "If you kill a man like me, you will injure yourselves more than you will injure me," because, as he said, his role was, "to sting people and whip them into a fury, all in the service of truth." Bob, you have admirably filled that role, and I for one am grateful, because you kept us on our toes. I know you care deeply about Scarsdale. You were always courteous in your disagreements and you have worked for many years to bring forth your point of view. Good Luck, good health, and God Speed for the next chapter. Miriam, Mayor Flisser, we are here this evening to honor and thank you, our outgoing Mayor, who served first as a Trustee for 4 years and then as Mayor for the last two, very eventful years. I won’t forget when I first arrived to be sworn in as a Trustee three years ago and met Miriam outside Village Hall, where she not only welcomed me as a new member of the Board, but with startling generosity, before I really understood what it was about, offered to take the bills for me my first weekend as I was then the top of the alphabet. Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 80 Miriam and I share a common background, coming as we do from WW II refugee families, arriving in New York as strangers from a foreign land and then overlapping as class mates at NYU Heights campus, which, alas exists no more. Mayor Miriam Flisser has worked hard for this community and has always striven to be open and communicative, answering all correspondence, all phone calls, all e-mails and while it is certainly true that you cannot please all of the people all of the time, she has shown unfailing commitment to her office and for that I think she deserves our praise and our thanks.” Trustee Steves: Trustee Harrison – “Bob, intermittent involvement in the Village a number of us share; the sustained commitment you have shown shows a deep core of concern, love and support for the community. You have been a voice for many but what you need to know is that you have been heard. We don’t always agree, but I can tell you that people approach things in the back of their mind with the thought, ‘What is Bob going to say, what is Bob going to ask?’ , in a constructive way. To be prodded, to be pushed, to not be allowed to comfortably settle into an opinion is an important part of being a public official. You’ve helped us all do that and we appreciate the time that you’ve spent with us. Mayor Flisser – “Miriam, I have said earlier that you have enthusiastically and energetically embraced the office of Trustee and then Mayor. But what I didn’t focus on earlier this evening is that I’ve always been struck by the speeches you made. At the Memorial Day service ceremonies, at the Greenacres Fourth of July, and in particular a short but meaningful speech you made at the September 11th event at Crossroads. To be a true public official there has to be a depth of concern, not only for the community but for individuals; understanding that the community is made up of individuals. Without that fundamental base, the rest of it doesn’t work and the rest of it doesn’t make sense. That’s how I really got to know you – in those words and sentiments. As we walked in together, you graciously offered to give me guidance as I move onto my next responsibilities and I warmly thank you for that and I thank you for all you’ve done.” Trustee Harrison: “We had a terrific dinner before this meeting; it’s too bad that it couldn’t be taped and that the whole community could see it. Although there may be some things we wouldn’t want to share. Let me talk a little about each of my colleagues. Although first and foremost I want to thank my wonderful wife, Terri, sitting out there in the audience for putting up with all the meetings that I’ve been to for 33 years. We are moving into our 70’s and we look forward to our bucket list and do many things that we haven’t had the opportunity to do. So I really want to thank you, dear, for everything. Forty-four years of marriage and we’re still together. David Lee – David, it’s really been a pleasure getting to know you and see you grow as a rookie Trustee which you no longer are, you’re a full Trustee. You’ve done the bills Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 81 which is a baptism. The community should know that every 12th week, the Mayor doesn’t have to do them, the six Trustees rotate doing the bills for our wonderful Treasurer Mary Lou. David and I worked together with the Parks and Recreation Council meetings, we were very involved in their discussions and the field usage fee for ISO’s. David is a bike rider that I see passing my house on Fox Meadow Road, avoiding any potholes and wearing his safety helmet. I appreciate some of the things that David has brought to fore. He raised the issue of $600,000 of overtime for the Fire Department and David, I give you an assignment to follow up on that next year. Next, my dear friend and I mean that deeply and sincerely, Stacey Brodsky. We didn’t know each other before we ran together for our first two year term. Stacey, it was your idea to meet me on the back porch of Starbucks, which I didn’t even know existed. We discussed our new roles as Village Trustees, we gave each other our backgrounds – your legal background, my business and financial background. We did not always agree, but I think we came to agreement and consensus on most issues. We had exhausting fun, particularly this year on the Personnel Committee for two years. Good luck to the next person, whoever that may be. This was a long year for Personnel – 70 Boards and Councils Members up for renewal or retirement. Forty new applications from residents of our great community were received, just showing what Scarsdale is about. Many, many phone calls and emails and several two hour phone calls going through the list. As I kidded Stacey earlier, when’s the last time she had a two hour phone call with David Brodsky, her husband. Thanks, Stacey for your great leadership including areas of affordable housing, the generator law, and now up and coming, the Historic Preservation Law. Don’t forget that future Section 8 to the Generator Law on noise abatement when you start to get neighbor complaints in the future. Trustee Eisenman – Kay, thanks for your beautiful comments on Socrates; I really don’t like the inference of gadfly. When I looked it up in the dictionary it says ‘stinging bee’, and it does mention some other things. And of course the Scarsdale Inquirer came up with “Citizen Bob” and I do like that. I want to correct the Scarsdale Inquirer. They said I attended 2,800 meetings of the Village Board. Now, there’s two Village Board meetings a month, there’s 12 months in a year, that’s 24 meetings a year. That would mean I attended Village Board meetings for 116 years. I’m not that old. As Trustee Jon Mark said that he read the Letter to the Editor that it was 3,000 plus various meetings of the School Board, Village Board, Scarsdale Forum, I won’t go through them all. And coaching 70 teams and so on. I hope the Scarsdale Inquirer might correct that since I haven’t been around for 116 years. Anyway, back to Kay – Kay, thank you for your great leadership on sustainability, bringing to the forefront leaf mulching which is an asset to the community and which will continue to grow. I think all of our 20 plus parks will do leaf mulching this coming year. And you had your hands full with the Municipal Services Committee, particularly with the 200 plus signature petition we got. You did an excellent job of running the public meetings to discuss how we could improve things in the Building Department and Engineering Department. Thanks for saving me several times when I was fumbling for my papers. Jon Mark – I could talk about Jon all night and it would be all good. Thanks for your leadership on the Land Use Committee which I served with you on, steering our way through 2-4 Weaver Street and the concerns of the Heathcote Coalition, affordable housing, and now Historic Preservation. You did a nice two page piece on the selling of bonds two Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 82 summers ago; talked about two million dollars for road resurfacing. Somehow that memo got put somewhere so I want you to bring it back out next year. Don’t worry about the Triple A rating, we are Scarsdale. I know you get a tremendous amount of emails, thank you for handling many emails from our residents. Jon, if you need a ride home after a Village Board meeting, and I’m in the audience, I’m available unless you want to take Stacey’s ride. Trustee Steves – Bob, thanks for your leadership of the Finance Committee during our many meetings, particularly in the first year with the Tax Cap and the Budget deliberations. This year the sewer tax, you guided us through and we had great discussion. We have an old sewer system which has to be attended to. And residents can keep their sewer tax down if they turn down your sprinklers or reduce your water usage. It’s in your hands – you can keep that average $60.00 per year per household down. Bob, if I asked too many questions at some of the Finance Committee meetings, I apologize but hopefully I brought out some extra ideas of how we can keep the tax rate down. We did well at 4.8% although it isn’t under the tax cap which would have been next to impossible this year. You provided leadership in the past, Municipal Services - Cayuga Pond, South Fox Meadow. I very much liked your interview in the Scarsdale Inquirer about how you were interested in reaching out to our residents and I wish you all the best in your new position as Mayor. I know you will be an excellent Mayor and do a terrific job. Finally, and most importantly, Mayor Miriam Flisser. Miriam, you and I go back a long, long way in our efforts to open up government and make Scarsdale an even better place to live. Remember the Voter’s Party, which some of the younger members of the community may not. In 1999, we brought out 2, 200 people that voted in the Village Election. We had good debate; there was concern about tunnels in Scarsdale. The Voter’s Party got one candidate elected and you and I missed by about 20 votes – you had about 5 more votes than I got to your credit. Here, as years have gone by, some old Voter’s Party candidates became members of the Village Board. I do want to remember our beloved Voter’s Party Chairman Les Levin, may he rest in peace. Without his efforts in setting up the Voter’s Party Primary in the election campaign, we would have never done what we did in 1999. Your six years on the Village Board, four as Trustee and two as Mayor have been outstanding. You have been accessible to our residents, you have responded to our residents’ concerns, you have been badgered by some because of Hurricane Sandy which was an unprecedented storm and you were cool under fire and you took on Con Edison. You cut some ribbons – the Public Safety Building, the Ardsley Road Pumping Station, and I’m sure you will be at the ribbon cutting at the Popham Road Bridge. Miriam, I’ve always admired your background of being in a DP camp to your Holocaust survivor parents. My parents came from abroad also. Coming to America, the land of the free, and you worked your way up to become a wonderful pediatric doctor, and then a Trustee of the Village of Scarsdale, and then Mayor of the Village of Scarsdale. What a great life. Congratulations.” Mayor Flisser: “I’m the one who set the rule to return all resident’s calls, and if you sent us an email, we’d send you an email. If you sent us a letter, you’d get a letter. And we did it, we answered them all. I want you to know that it wasn’t all me, I didn’t do it alone, I had a lot of help. I had members of the Board, who are still doing it, and I had John Goodwin on the staff who helped me as well. The Village Board that you see before you, the work that we Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 83 do when you watch us on television, is the endpoint of a long, legislative process. Even though it looks like we meet twice per month, we really don’t. We have committee meetings more like twice a week, and besides that we go out to organizations and Boards and Councils as well and provide liaisons to work with them. I’ll start out by thanking David Lee who was our freshman, for his work with our youth, with Parks and Recreation and for his continued work with the geese which we are going to hear more about tonight. Thank you. I thank Stacey Brodsky for her leadership in significant legislation. As you know this Board created some important laws that have to do with generators and notification law for residents who are going to build extensions and I thank Stacey for helping us to craft this and as well as her critical assistance too - on the Personnel Committee, the Boards and Councils are a key part of this. I want to thank Trustee Mark for his work on thorny land use issues as well as crafting careful answers to residents’ questions and to questions from members of the Board as well. I want to thank Kay Eisenman who was my classmate in college. We worked on Chaucer together there and that was in Middle English. My English wasn’t that great at that time, so for me, Modern English, Middle English, it was the same kind of project. It was a lot easier for me – it was English as a foreign language in any respect. Anyway, we did work on that and we met again here in Scarsdale. I thank her for her work on sustainability, leaf mulching and help keeping Scarsdale green. I also would like to thank my Deputy Mayor Bob Steves for his careful attention to the finances and the budget process. The residents of Scarsdale owe him a debt of gratitude for the work that he’s done. I thank Robert Harrison for his informal view of the role of the Trustee and his involvement with residents’ causes. I’m going to thank staff members who sit at the table down here – that’s Al who sits up here and Wayne, Steve, Mary Lou, Rita, Justin, John, and Donna for their hard work as well. And to Harvey, who took the pictures documenting everything that we did here. So thank you all. Really, it was a definition of teamwork. We got a lot done, but it really was teamwork that did it. Thank you.” ******** Public Comment At this time Mayor Flisser opened the floor for any public comments. Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 84 Dan Hochvert, speaking on behalf of the Scarsdale Forum, stated that it is his privilege to express the Forum’s appreciation to the two members who are leaving this Board. He stated that he is sure that the Forum would agree with all of the previous comments concerning the departing members of the Board. He did pick up on one of Trustee Eisenman’s comments, “You can please all of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can’t please all the people all of the time”, but Bob sure tried. There is a corollary that most people don’t recognize when you try to please some of the people all of the time and that is you displease some of the people at the same time. Yet Bob stayed with the course and probably please more people than displease people by your wonderful efforts. The Forum also appreciates his time before he was a member of this Board. Some might view this as a culmination but we hope you will rejoin the effort of the committees that you served on for many years before you joined the Board. He stated that he also wanted to recognize something that he thought was true; that the Scarsdale Tennis Team’s success is probably due to Bob’s effort with youth in this Village. The Forum hopes that he will be an active member of the forum. Mr. Hochvert continued in regard to Mayor Flisser. He stated that she has served as a Trustee who always sought the best for residents. She didn’t miss a single Board meeting, but he did not recall her ever missing a committee meeting. She probably went to every single liaison she had as a Trustee. As Mayor she continued it, only accelerated it and the number of places she appears is truly amazing. There were pictures shown earlier this evening and there may have been a hundred or so. There should have been 1,000. The Forum membership will always appreciate her six years of service. Jeannie Mackler, 5 Lenox Place, thanked Mayor Flisser and Trustee Harrison. During the Mayor’s four years as Trustee and two years as Mayor, she has exemplified the words dignity, honesty, transparency, and courtesy. We have admired you greatly and are grateful that you have led the Village during times of difficult circumstances. We know that she worked very hard and stood up to Con Ed. She also thanked the staff for their help during Hurricane Sandy –Benny Salanitro, Eric Gerringer, Steve Pappalardo, and John Goodwin. Mayor Flisser is an amazing person outside of being a Mayor, she is a pediatrician. She thanked her and wished her and her husband Harvey good luck. Ms. Mackler next addressed Trustee Harrison and stated that they appreciate everything he has done for the Village. He has been an exemplary citizen and stood for what residents wanted and dialogue and transparency. They appreciate all the time and energy he has given to the Village. They were very pleased that he was elected two years ago but is sure that his wife Terri will be very glad to get him back. She thanked all those on the Village staff and the volunteers on the Village Board that work so hard. She thanked each Trustee individually for serving. Claudine Giselle, a Scarsdale resident, stated that as a representative of new residents with small school age children, she wanted to thank everyone on the Board for their volunteer service. She stated that she felt it was too bad that the Mayor could only serve for two years; it might be nicer if the Mayor was an employee paid by the Village and worked for 5-10 years because in her opinion, a lot of things are slipping through the cracks. As a new resident, she noted that Trustee Harrison reaches out to all the new Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 85 people; it’s really wonderful and they notice it. He’s a great neighbor and they are so happy that they have someone like him in the Village. As there were no further public comments, Mayor Flisser closed the public comment portion of the meeting. ******** Mayor-Elect Steves presented Mayor Flisser and Trustee Harrison with a gift of engraved silver plates on behalf of the Village and its residents in appreciation of their service. Trustee Brodsky presented Mayor Flisser a gift to acknowledge her tireless work and as their leader from fellow Board members Trustee Steves, Trustee Eisenman, Trustee Harrison, Trustee Mark, Trustee Lee, and herself. ******** Finance Committee Trustee Steves reported on the Statements of Expense and Revenue for the first three quarters of fiscal year 2012-2013. General Fund appropriations were 73.46% spent as of February 2013, which is up 0.76% from 72.70% in 2011-2012. The figures include the cleanup from Hurricane Sandy. General Fund revenues other than property taxes are $11,638,622 through February 2013 compared to $12,034,881 through February 2012, a decrease of $396,259. After adjusting for the sale of land related to the Crane Road Bridge Project, revenue other than property taxes is actually up $506,741. Revenue from Parking Permits and Meter Revenue continues to be steady, showing an increase of $136,100. Revenue from delinquent taxes is also up $185,800 compared to last year as the Village continues its collection efforts for delinquent taxes. Miscellaneous revenue included a one-time receipt of $75,000 from Boulder Brook based on the Village’s agreement with them. Other revenue categories increased over last year: revenue from Licenses and Permits increased $146,700 over last year offsetting declines in investment earnings ($34,200), Recreation Fees ($58,100), Departmental Fees ($20,300), and Mortgage tax revenue ($38,400). Revenue from Court Fines increased $51,400. The actual collection of Village taxes through February 28, 2013 is at 99.13% which is down 0.19% from the 2012 collection percentage of 99.32%. ******** Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 86 Upon motion entered by Trustee Steves, and seconded by Trustee Mark, the following resolution calling for a Public Hearing on the Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Tentative Budget was adopted by a unanimous vote: WHEREAS, pursuant to § 5-508(3) of the New York State Village Law, a public hearing must be held on the Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Tentative Budget on or before the fifteenth day of April, with notice of such public hearing published in the official newspaper; now therefore be it RESOLVED, that the Village Board of Trustees herein schedules a public hearing for Tuesday, April 9, 2013 at 8:00 PM in Rutherford Hall in Village Hall to receive comments on the Fiscal Year 2013-14 Tentative Budget filed on March 19, 2013; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village Clerk is hereby directed to publish notice of said hearing pursuant to Village Law. ******** Recreation Committee Upon motion entered by Trustee Lee, and seconded by Trustee Steves, the following resolution regarding Authorization to Execute an Agreement with Geesebusters of East Northport, N.Y. was adopted by the vote indicated below: BE IT RESOLVED, that the Village Manager is herein authorized to execute the attached agreement with Geesebusters of East Northport N.Y., in substantially the form presented, for services and equipment associated with addressing the geese habitats in the Village and to take all administrative acts necessary to successfully complete the program. AYES NAYS ABSENT Trustee Brodsky None None Trustee Eisenman Trustee Harrison Trustee Lee Trustee Mark Trustee Steves Mayor Flisser ******** Municipal Services Committee Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 87 Upon motion entered by Trustee Eisenman, and seconded by Trustee Mark, the following resolution to award VM Contract #1145-HVAC Systems Service and Maintenance Contract – Village Hall, Public Library, Supply Field Building, and Public Safety Building was adopted by the vote indicated below: WHEREAS, the Village currently has a single HVAC system service and maintenance contract for the Village Hall and Public Library which includes three HVAC systems, one at the Village Hall and two at the Public Library; and WHEREAS, the current VM contract was awarded by resolution of the Village Board on February 12, 2008 for a two year term and has been renewed for three additional one year periods in accordance with the contract, expiring on April 1, 2013; and WHEREAS, Village staff prepared bid specifications for a new HVAC service and maintenance contract for the Village Hall and Public Library while adding the recently renovated Supply Field and Public Safety Buildings, and the Village Manager reports that he publicly advertised for the receipt of bids on February 8, 2013 under VM Contract # 1145 – HVAC Systems Service & Maintenance Contract Village Hall, Public Library, Supply Field Building and Public Safety Building and notified eight contractors; and WHEREAS, VM Contract # 1145 provides for a two-year contract term with an option to renew for three additional one-year periods at the sole option of the Village; and WHEREAS, the work covered under VM Contract # 1145 includes inspection, preventive maintenance and repair of all heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment for the four buildings; and WHEREAS, the bid proposal also required that the contract provide the Village with an hourly labor rate for repair / replacement work that is beyond the scope of work included in the contract, as through this mechanism, the Village will have the option to use the HVAC contractor to perform HVAC work at each building on a time and material basis utilizing the established hourly labor rate and will reimburse the contractor for the materials used to make the repair / replacement; and WHEREAS, on the bid opening date of March 12, 2013, two sealed bids were received and opened for VM Contract # 1145 – HVAC Systems Service & Maintenance Contract Village Hall, Public Library, Supply Field Building and Public Safety Building, with the apparent low bid, meeting the contract specifications received from Clean Air Quality Service, Inc., 161 Brady Avenue, Hawthorne, NY 10532, for the total two year cost of $111,000 Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 88 ($42,600 for the Village Hall, $27,600 for the Library, $19,200 for Supply Field Building and $21,600 for Public Safety Building); and WHEREAS, Village staff has reviewed the bids, checked references and discussed the contract scope with a representative of Clean Air Quality Service Inc., who conveyed a clear understanding of the scope of work and comfort with the bid; now therefore be it RESOLVED, that VM Contract # 1145 – HVAC Systems Service & Maintenance Contract Village Hall, Public Library, Supply Field Building and Public Safety Building, be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, Clean Air Quality Service, Inc., 161 Brady Avenue, Hawthorne, NY 10532, for a total two year price not to exceed $111,000 subject to adequate budget appropriations; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village may utilize Clean Air Quality Service, Inc., to perform time and material work for services beyond the scope provided for in VM Contract # 1145 at the bid rate of $125.00/hour and shall reimburse the contractor for materials used to perform the repair / replacement work; and be it further RESOLVED, that the cost for VM Contract # 1145 – HVAC Systems Service & Maintenance Contract Village Hall, Public Library, Supply Field Building and Public Safety Building, be charged to the Department of Public Works, Fire Department, Police Department and Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department General Fund operating budget accounts as determined by the Village Treasurer; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village Manager is hereby authorized to execute VM Contract # 1145 – HVAC Systems Service & Maintenance Contract Village Hall, Public Library, Supply Field Building and Public Safety Building, on behalf of the Village of Scarsdale with said Clean Air Quality Service, Inc., 161 Brady Avenue, Hawthorne, NY 10532, and undertake all associated administrative acts; and be it further RESOLVED, that pursuant to Section 2.12 of the Village Internal Control Policy, this contract may be extended annually by the Village Manager for three additional one year periods subject to the availability of adequate budget appropriations and in accordance with the federal and State indices identified in the contract, as long as all other contract terms and conditions remain unchanged. AYES NAYS ABSENT Trustee Brodsky None None Trustee Eisenman Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 89 Trustee Harrison Trustee Lee Trustee Mark Trustee Steves Mayor Flisser ******** Upon motion entered by Trustee Eisenman, and seconded by Trustee Mark, the following resolution to award VM Contract #1146-Furnish and Deliver Water Pipe Fittings and Accessories was adopted by the vote indicated below: WHEREAS, in order to adequately maintain and repair the potable water distribution system, the Village annually bids and procures water pipe fittings and accessories; and WHEREAS, the Village Manager reports that he publicly advertised for the receipt of bids on February 22, 2013, and notified five vendors of VM Contract # 1146 - Furnish and Deliver Water Pipe Fittings & Accessories; and WHEREAS, the contract documents include forty-one (41) separate line items which may be awarded separately by the Village to various bidders based on their pricing; and WHEREAS, on the bid opening date of March 12, 2013 four sealed bids were received and opened; and WHEREAS, two bids did not include the required bid deposit in accordance with the bid documents, including the apparent lowest bidder, Vellano Brothers, Inc,; and WHEREAS, Village staff reviewed and compared all the bids on an item by item basis and determined that the lowest responsible bids for all forty-one (41) individual bid items, as identified on the March 12, 2013 Bid Tabulation sheet attached hereto and made a part hereof, were received from Schmidt’s Wholesale, Inc., P.O. Box 5100, 150 Jefferson Street, Monticello, New York 12701 for the lump sum total of $16,433.78, based on the estimated quantities provided; now therefore be it RESOLVED, that VM Contract #1146 - Furnish and Deliver Water Pipe Fittings & Accessories, be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder Schmidt’s Wholesale Inc., P.O. Box 5100, 150 Jefferson Street, Monticello, NY 12701, for all forty-one (41) of the bid items, at the unit bid prices identified on the attached March 12, Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 90 2013 Bid Tabulation sheet, not to exceed budgeted appropriations; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village Manager is hereby authorized to execute VM Contract #1146 - Furnish and Deliver Water Pipe Fittings & Accessories on behalf of the Village of Scarsdale with said Schmidt’s Wholesale, Inc., P.O. Box 5100, 150 Jefferson Street, Monticello, New York 12701; and be it further RESOLVED, that the cost of items purchased pursuant to VM Contract # 1146 - Furnish and Deliver Water Pipe Fittings & Accessories be charged to the Water Department Budget, Account EWS-8310- DSTRB-OP/MT-400 423; and be it further RESOLVED, that the Village Manager is hereby authorized to undertake administrative acts as may be required pursuant to the terms of the agreement. AYES NAYS ABSENT Trustee Brodsky None None Trustee Eisenman Trustee Harrison Trustee Lee Trustee Mark Trustee Steves Mayor Flisser ******** Other Committee Reports On behalf of the Personnel Committee, Trustee Harrison reported that the Personnel Committee has had a very active period over the last couple of months. He and Trustee Brodsky have worked on the 70 members of the Boards and Councils who would either re-up or retire or move to another Board/Council. They had a terrific response to their announcement of the availability of positions on the various Boards and Councils – 40 new applications from residents. The Personnel Committee will be forwarding the nominations to the new Village Board who will vote on Tuesday, April 9th at their first meeting under the new Mayor and two new Trustees. There are still a few openings and openings do occur during the year. There are currently openings on the Advisory Council on Youth, the Advisory Council on Scarsdale Senior Citizens, the Advisory Council on Human Relations, and the Council on People with Disabilities. To apply for a position, the applications may be found at the Scarsdale Village website, www.Scarsdale.com, click on “Boards and Councils” and fill out the application. The site also includes information on all 17 Boards and Councils. Village Board of Trustees 03-27-2013 P a g e | 91 ******** Liaison Reports Trustee Harrison reported as liaison to the Cable Television Commission. He stated that this Commission has recently become more active and they would like to do more programming on the Village’s cable station, Channel 75/43. Residents are encouraged to contact the Village Manager’s office to procure the paperwork. ******** Written Communications Village Clerk Conkling reported that there were two (2) written communications received since the last meeting: • A letter from Lika Levy, with her comments regarding the Fiscal Year 2013- 2014 Budget. Trustee Mark’s response to her letter is included. • An email from Henry Landau, 47 Chesterfield Road thanking the Mayor and Trustees for their leadership, expressing his gratefulness and stating that he will miss the departing members. ******** Future Meeting Schedule Mayor Flisser announced the following future meeting schedule: • April 9, 2013 – Agenda Meeting – 7:30 P.M. – Trustees’ Room • April 9, 2013 – Board of Trustees – 8:00 P.M. – Rutherford Hall ******** Mayor Flisser announced that on Monday, April 1, 2013 at Village Hall, the swearing-in will be held of our new Mayor and Trustees. Everyone is welcome to attend. There being no further business to come before the Board, on a motion entered by Mayor Flisser, seconded by Trustee Steves and carried unanimously, the meeting adjourned at 9:50 P.M. Donna M. Conkling Village Clerk