City Council

MINUTES OF THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETING OF THE SCHENECTADY CITY COUNCIL June 11, 2012 The Meeting was called to order by the Council President Denise Brucker at 7:04 p.m. in Room 209, City Council Chambers at City Hall. Ms. Brucker called upon Reverend Stacy Midge of the First Reformed Church to deliver the invocation. Ms. Brucker called upon John Polimeni to lead the Pledge of Allegiance. The Deputy City Clerk called the roll and the following members of the City Council answered to be present: Present – Council members Lisa Perazzo, Carl Erikson, Margaret C. King, Vincent Riggi, Barbara Blanchard and Denise K. Brucker Absent – None Also Present –Deputy Clerk Charles W. Thorne and Corporation Counsel John Polster. PUBLIC HEARINGS: None APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Ms. Perazzo moved the minutes of the City Council meeting of May 29, 2012 be approved as submitted by the City Clerk. It was seconded by Mr. Riggi. Hearing no objections, Ms. Brucker declared the minutes approved as submitted. COMMUNICATIONS: Official: From the Mayor a list of appointments (dist 06/11/12). From the Commissioner of General Services a letter recommending the award the “Furnishing And Installing Electrical Service Upgrades For The Erie Boulevard Project - 2012” to Stilsing Electric, Inc. of Rensselaer, New York in the amount of $62,500. General: From Bellevue Preservation Inc., an email announcing their monthly meeting Thursday, June 14th, 7pm, at St. Paul's Episcopal Church Parish Hall, 1911 Fairview Avenue. Guest speaker will be Eric Shilling, Schenectady Building Inspector and head of Code Enforcement; public is welcome. Petitions: None Schenectady City Council Minutes June 11, 2012 2 of 4 COMMITTEE REPORTS: None PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR (LEGISLATIVE ITEMS) Ms. Brucker invited all who wished to address the Legislative Agenda to come forward. Seeing none she declared the Privilege of the Floor on the Legislative Agenda closed. INTRODUCTION OF AND ACTION UPON LOCAL LAWS, ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS: Ms. King made a motion that Council approves the Consent Agenda and the motion was seconded by Mr. Erikson. Consent Agenda – Ordinance No. 2012 – 08 Adopted Unanimously Resolution No. 2012 – 127 Adopted Unanimously Resolution No. 2012 – CS-10 Adopted Unanimously Resolution No. 2012 – CS-12 Adopted Unanimously Resolution No. 2012 – CS-13 Adopted Unanimously Resolution No. 2012 – 128 Adopted Unanimously PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR: Ms. Brucker invited all who wished to address the City Council on any matter of City business to come forward. The following speakers rose to be heard and their remarks are summarized: Joe Rodriguez, Schenectady – Complained that Moyston Street is rundown and neglected and said he would continue to come to meetings until something is done. Kevin Chaires, Schenectady – Complained about the condition of City streets and sidewalks. Lorrie Robinson, Schenectady – Stated that the Police response time is terrible. She cited an incidents that residents called five or six times when a fights were happening in the street. Paul Kaczmaieki, Schenectady – Stated that law enforcement and the Fire Department are out of control. He said that he has been burglarized several times since coming to Schenectady, a few months ago. Marva Isaacs, Schenectady – Complained about accumulating garbage across from 305 Duane Avenue. Tony Buonome, Schenectady – Expressed his disappointment that the legislation that would allow “Jack's House,” a medical hospitality house, didn't pass. P.D. Voorhis, Schenectady – Spoke on the ALCO Revitalization Project. Schenectady City Council Minutes June 11, 2012 3 of 4 rd Mary McClaine, Schenectady – This ad was in the Gazette on June 3 . It promotes Schenectady's Open House Tour and it reads “Exciting Things are Happening in Schenectady.” it also suggests calling Sue and Andrea for information. I called them and asked if they lived in the City. Both women said “No.” The articles that have been written about the City's open house tour claim that buyers are greeted by City and School officials who talk up the benefits of living in Schenectady. Unfortunately after those Sunday House Tours the city leaders return to hire people who do not live in Schenectady. Such was the case for the new code enforcement advisor. The five members who voted to hire a non resident for the job were not honest. They were not honest when they swore to uphold the law and they were not honest when they explained their vote. Non of the five told the voters that the new hire lived elsewhere. Their explanations were nothing more than verbal spital. The words that are spoken in the chamber by the city officials and the polices they make simply do not fit. Officials never address the issue of high taxes. They only tell us that the City is broke. And yet city spending is non-stop. For the first six months of this year taxpayers have paid more money on medical coverage for part-time Council members than was spent over the previous four years. It should not be. Citizens want lower taxes in Schenectady. The budget needs to be tackled in a constructive and meaningful way. That is Council's primary task. Get it right please. Reverend Theodore Ward, Koinonia Christian Ministries – Dear Mayor Gary McCarthy and Schenectady City Council Members, please consider releasing the city's charges either altogether or at minimum the interest charged to Koinonia Christian Ministries for the property at 1115 McClyman St. As one of the cities non-profit congregations, Koinonia Christian Ministries has been influential and very actively involve providing services such as food, computer training, Toys- for-Tots, a gun buy back program, city wide event WOW Jamboree, peace marching, youth bus trips, and spiritual direction. We liaison with various other community agencies such as Schenectady Inner City Mission, Schenectady City Mission, BNI, and others providing free services to the Hamilton Hill, Vale, and Mont Pleasant communities. We have been assessed water and sewage charges for a building that has no running water or toilets. Code Enforcement has recently processed a building permit to start work on the property transforming 1115 McClyrnan Street into a Church & Community Youth Center named as (F.L.Y .) FUTER LEADING YOUTH. The city first sent a bill of $35,000. I called only to learn it was an incorrect charge and it would be corrected. Those bills came in the same form as taxes in which we felt we were exempt and therefore ignored. Now that they have explained everything to us, we are being assessed with just over $9,300 for taxes and water. Again, I'm requesting the City Council to release school taxes and all water charges or at minimum remove the interest and penalties a monthly payment plan with us. Sincerely, Reverend Theodore Ward Senior Pastor K.C.M. P.O., Box 3421 Schenectady, NY 12303, 518-772-5077 Schenectady City Council Minutes June 11, 2012 4 of 4 Commissioner Wayne Bennett – responded to Lorrie Robinson, stating that attempts were made by the police department to address her complaints. He stated that he would speak with her after the meeting. Seeing no other speakers to come before the City Council, Ms. Brucker declared the Privilege of the Floor closed. Miscellaneous Business of the Council Ms. King – Complimented the new ALCO Museum Exhibit and thanked city staff volunteers and others for the garden tending around City Hall. She also promoted the upcoming Upper Union Street Strawberry Festival. Ms. Perazzo – Informed everyone about the upcoming Schenectady Gateway Plaza “Public Design Workshop” to be held at SCCC on June 12. She also complimented the Mont Pleasant Neighborhood Association for the hydrant painting and other clean up projects in Mont Pleasant. Ms. Porterfield – Cited information from an article regarding grants for creating jobs and stated that she is continuing efforts to match job seekers with employers. She also relayed a story describing how a “Good Samaritan” came to her aid at the corner of Brandywine Avenue and Albany Street, when she was having car problems. Mr. Erikson – Spoke on tonight’s contract awards, stating progress is being made attracting more bidders for City purchases. He stated more consolidation with the County need to be implemented and departments should not be procuring for themselves. He stated he is still in favor of a matching grant program, between the City and residents, for sidewalk replacement. Mayor McCarthy – Thanked the Woodlawn Park and City Hall volunteers. Ms. Brucker – Thanked the City Hall volunteers and recognized the efforts of volunteers in Mont Pleasant and Woodlawn Park. ADJOURN: Seeing no further business to come before the City Council, at 7:42 p.m. Ms. Brucker declared the meeting adjourned. A true record By Charles W. Thorne Deputy City Clerk