Board of Trustees

. Village of Walden Board of Trustees Regular Meeting June 5, 2018 Mayor Rumbold called the regular meeting of the Village of Walden Board of Trustees to order at 6:30pm. On roll call the following were: Present: Mayor Sue Rumbold Deputy Mayor Faith Moore Trustees Brian B. Sebring Larry Kraus John Ramos Dan Svarczkopf Lynn E. Thompson Absent: Also Present: John Revella, Village Manager Tara Bliss, Village Clerk Dave Donovan, Village Attorney Village Manager’s Report  The 2017 Water Quality Report is online as well as the 2018 MS4 Report.  We got notification that were selected as a Tree City USA again for 2017  Went over several projects regarding concerns we have had with NYS DOT with the Ulster Avenue Sidewalk Project Senator Larkin to assist us to get the project started as quickly as possible.  Met with our Special counsel regarding PBA and CSEA negotiations and also some personnel matters.  Discussed the Well Head Protection Plan with the Town of Montgomery Supervisor and his attorney.  Reviewed the health care costs with the PBA and CSEA for potential health plan changes as well as with the Village Treasurer.  Completed the interviews for the Recreation & Parks Department employees hired for the summer and the camp orientation was held tonight.  Discussed damages around the Village with the PD and DPW. Discussed the concerns of the Board and declared a state of emergency and allocated resources to clean up sidewalks, streets, and trees. We are still cleaning up this week. We are sending out our FEMA application for reimbursements tomorrow  Coordinated some relief efforts with the OC Emergency Management and DPW. They are working on volunteer groups to help clear debris from people’s yards.  We were able to act as a dry ice and water distribution center for NYSEG. We went through our supplies twice.  Reviewed the damages with the Mayor and the Town of Montgomery Supervisor and some items on the Rail Trail as well.  American Petroleum is looking for potential expansion at their facility at the end of Cherry Street. June 5, 2018 1  .  Had to cover for a few department heads the week prior to Memorial Day for a few conferences and time off requests before the end of the fiscal year.  Did meet with the Village Attorney, Village Engineer and Building Inspector some potential code changes.  Went with the Village Treasurer to meet the new audit team and discussed this year’s audit.  Went over some transition finances with the Building Inspector, Trustee Thompson, and the Treasurer.  Attended the Memorial Day Ceremony which was well attended and was very nice.  Attended the Association of Towns Villages and Cities meeting with Trustee Thompson and the Village Treasurer where they discussed the tax incentives due to the federal tax changes. Approval of May 17, 2018 Special Meeting Minutes Deputy Mayor Moore made a motion to approve the May 17, 2018 Special Meeting Minutes. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion carried. Trustee’s Committee Reports DPW Liaison– Trustee Sebring Trustee Sebring reported that he spoke with Fred yesterday. He wanted to commend DPW for all their work during the storm. They did the best they could and worked a lot of long hours alongside NYSEG waiting for them to come and get the wires out. He thanked Bubby Bezue for the work that he did as well. We also had help from the Town of Highlands, Village of Maybrook, Village of Montgomery, and Town of Montgomery who came to help us get cleaned up quickly. The water department replaced 7 meters. He got a comment from a resident about the patching of holes on Scofield Street he said they were done well. So kudos to our DPW for a job well done. Recreation & Parks Department and Valley Central School Board Liaison – Trustee Ramos Trustee Ramos reported that he spoke with Mr. Bliss a few times and the parks are up and running for summer camp. There still is some brush that needs to be chipped from the storm but the chipper was down so they are just working on it now. The School budget revote is June 19th. On June 11th there will be another budget hearing with the time to be determined. He will have the Clerk post it on our site. It would be great to have people show up to voice their support or opposition. It is at the high school from 6am to 9pm. Police Department and Justice Department Liaison – Deputy Mayor Moore Deputy Mayor Moore reported that she spoke with Chief Holmes about the vehicle mileage and use reports car. There is one car that was hit by a deer and needs to be repaired. The police awards will be held on Thursday, June 14th at 7pm if everyone would like to attend. Chief was appointed to the Orange County Police Advisory Board for another 2 year term. Officer Fries received a letter thanking her for her service during the storm. She read the letter into the minutes. Planning and Zoning Boards as well as the Building Department Liaison – Trustee Thompson Trustee Thompson reported that she met with the Building Inspector on several occasions and had email correspondence. He is moving forward with everything we discussed as a Board and that John directed him to do. The Fire and Safety Inspections letters went out and he is back to doing the inspections on schedule. He is a little bit behind but it is June 5, 2018 2  . because he was waiting for the letters to go out and he will be able to make that up. The Landlord registry letters went out again and he understands what he is to do with non- compliant landlords. He is really busy down there but everything is moving forward as the Board has directed. Mayor Rumbold asked if the Fire and Safety Inspections were being done and not compromising his ability to conduct other inspections and other duties thus far, he is managing to do that extra work. Trustee Thompson replied that he is managing to do that but he would be very grateful if he had a little help but is on top of it right now. He’s doing what he needs to do. Check lists were produced. He’s just very very busy. Town of Montgomery & Library Board liaison – Trustee Kraus Trustee Kraus reported that he met with Ginny and the Library is doing real well. Working on the tax breakdown for the Village hoping the Town of Montgomery will pay a little more and then if they do the tax rate for the Village will go down which is a nice idea. Village Offices Liaison – Trustee Svarczkopf Trustee Svarczkopf reported that the office sent out water/sewer bills and tax bills so they are really busy in there and doing well. Mayor Rumbold asked about investigating new software do we know when that is coming. Treasurer Kelly replied we have a new company coming for a demo on Monday before we make a decision. Mayor Rumbold asked if Trustee Svarczkopf was familiar with any of the companies that provided demos and if he planned to attend the new demo. Trustee Svarczkopf replied that was prior to him joining the Board. He can’t make it on Monday but he can look at it afterwards. Basically, if it works for them it will be great. He really wouldn’t even know what he is looking at. He added that the Summer Youth Employment Program is looking for donations of about $2,700 if anyone wants to spread the word it would be a great cause to support. Mayor Rumbold explained that she and Supervisor Winchell from the Town of Montgomery. We will coordinate and check both sides of the trail to see what we can do to help each other get the trail cleaned up. There is leaves and debris. Check for damage from the winter and storm trying to coordinate our efforts as shared services to get things up to snuff where it should be. She read the list of community events into the minutes. Public Comment on Business of the Board Mary Ellen Matise commented about the proposed local law 3; where are we with this public hearing. Manager Revella clarified we had the public hearing already. Mary Ellen asked if it was up for action or just discussion. Mayor Rumbold replied possible action by the Board. Mary Ellen stated she didn’t hear much discussion on this topic. June 5, 2018 3  . Action Items Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties Attorney Donovan stated we held the Public Hearing on May 1 st. If the Board wishes to take action you would need to adopt a negative declaration under SEQRA and if not you don’t need to do anything. Trustee Svarczkopf made a motion to discuss Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties. Seconded by Trustee Sebring. All ayes. Motion carried. Trustee Svarczkopf asked about any changes. Attorney Donovan clarified that he did not make any changes to the law since before the public hearing. Trustee Svarczkopf thought we were going to try to get the form approved before we passed the law. Manager Revella stated we do not have a finalized form yet. We have a draft form. Trustee Svarczkopf asked if it is possible to say the law wouldn’t take effect until the form is completed. Manager Revella replied absolutely. Trustee Thompson would like to see the draft form and she is fine with it as long as she can take a look at the form. Deputy Mayor Moore would like the form presented to the Village Manager for his approval before finalizing. Trustee Sebring and Trustee Ramos agree. Trustee Svarczkopf made the motion for Negative Declaration under SEQRA for Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties. Seconded by Trustee Sebring. All ayes. Motion carried. Trustee Ramos made the motion to adopt Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties under the condition that the Board approves the registry form. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Moore. All ayes. Motion carried. Resolution 1-18-19: Pine Street Pump Station Bid Attorney Donovan explained that CDBG awarded us some money and we have to go out for bid and award the bid after it they are submitted. As part of the process we have to do a resolution allowing us to bid. Manager Revella added that we were awarded $454,000 to rehab the Pine Street Sewer pump station. It is from the CDBG Hazardous Mitigation program. The bid is to be turned into the Village by June 26th. Trustee Svarczkopf made a motion to approve Resolution 1-18-19: Pine Street Pump Station Bid. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion approved. Resolution 2-18-19: Moving HODAG Funds to Sewer Fund $275,000 Attorney Donovan explained that we have this bucket of money we received a while ago from HODAG and has been loaned out and repaid. There has been some questions since June 5, 2018 4  . we have that money whether or not a portion of that money could be used in our sewer fund. We reached out to HUD and they have issued an approval authorizing usage of that money in the amount of $275,000. It was likely that they would have approved that we use more of that money but this is the approval we have received. We will be keeping some of the money for other purposes. The Village Manager and Treasurer recommend transferring this amount form the HODAG fund to the sewer fund. Trustee Svarczkopf asked how much the sewer fund owed the general fund. Manager Revella replied $275,000. Trustee Svarczkopf stated that this will then pay that off. Trustee Ramos made a motion to approve Resolution 2-18-19: Moving HODAG Funds to Sewer Fund in the amount of $275,000. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Moore. All ayes. Motion approved. Bond Resolution 3-18-19: 2018-2019 Capital Projects Manager Revella explained that the Board approved with the budget and discussed during the budget session a list of capital projects to do this fiscal year and we would need to bond a total of $470,000 in order to do them. The items include: paving of Department of Public Works garage at an estimated maximum cost of $260,000; the purchase of a computer assisted integrated financial management and accounting system at an estimated maximum cost of $81,000; and the purchase of a loader and a curber at an estimated maximum cost of $129,000. Again, all of these items were discussed during the budget sessions and adopted in the 2018-2019 budget. Trustee Sebring made the motion to adopt Resolution 3-18-19 – Bond Resolution for Various Capital Projects in the amount of $470,000. Seconded by Trustee Thompson. All ayes. Motion carried. Turn the Town Teal Request for September 2018 Mayor Rumbold explained this request is for teal ribbons to be placed on the lamp posts and trees on Main Street and in the Square in the month of September. Deputy Mayor Moore stated that this campaign always brings awareness to the Village in her opinion over the last few years and she is in favor of doing it again. Deputy Mayor Moore made a motion to approve the Turn the Towns Teal Request for the month of September 2018 where teal ribbons will be tied to the trees and any decorative barrels in Municipal Square and on Main Street to increase Ovarian Cancer Awareness. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion carried. Shared Services Discussion Manager Revella explained that all the Counties in NY State were given a directive by the state of NY to work with the Towns, Villages, and Cities in each county to find ways to share services. There is a list of potential areas for savings he sent to the Board, some are realistic and some are not at all. There are additional meetings one in June and one in August and then there will be a vote in September by all the participating municipalities. The school districts and fire districts were invited but the schools declined to join saying that BOCES would be there to represent them. Fire districts said they would try to attend. The Villages, Cities, and Towns all came up with ideas to create cost savings for all of us June 5, 2018 5  . and some we can participate in such as the shared radio system throughout the County. There are some that are not realistic for us such as the fire district as they have their own Board and we can’t say what they have to do. There are other ones that don’t have any information they were just ideas thrown out at a meeting and don’t have any back up so we are trying to get some back up to see what could be done if anything. Paving, buying vehicles which we do now off of county and state bids. The big things that we do is that we have a sweeper and some don’t so we share equipment back and forth. The truck washing station in New Hampton is an idea but driving our trucks to New Hampton to wash vehicles is not realistic for us, if it was a different location maybe. We are going back and forth on a lot of those items now. He hoped the Board could take a look at the list and see if you are interested in anything that will save us money and try to prioritize them. Also any other ideas you might have that are not on the list as there is still time for that. He told them we are interested in anything that can save us money because the state promised that if we could show them a savings that they would match the savings by giving each municipality for that amount. Whether that happens or not he doesn’t know but they claim to have $200 Million in funding for this but we will see what happens. Mayor Rumbold stated it is worth noting that we work with other municipalities already. Manager Revella added that the Governor said that nothing you do already counts. Essentially if you have been sharing services you are being penalized. So if you have done nothing and start that counts but we can’t get any credit if we have already done sharing. Trustee Thompson said they talked about the fact that we can’t take a service we already share and manipulate what we call it; that is not acceptable. Manager Revella replied that is correct. Trustee Svarczkopf commented that for example most people said yes to salt; how would that work? Would it be a shared building with a certain amount of salt and we all chip in the same amount or we pay for what we use? Manager Revella replied that we currently all buy from the state bid and it is hauled to us as we need it for the amount we need. So we would say we need x amount for the year and this would work the same way, we all say how much we need for the year and it would be stored at a certain location and we take as needed. For us it makes sense for us to have a shared purchase as opposed to shared storage. If it’s stored 50 miles away that makes no sense to us but definitely buying makes perfect sense. Trustee Svarczkopf asked about paving how does that work based on we need it and Montgomery needs it. Manager Revella replied that right now we are all able to get assistance from the county for certain projects so we get on the list and it is first come first serve and they make time for you and if they have equipment and the dates we will try to make it work. It might not be the date we really want but it will eventually happen. Trustee Svarczkopf said it has a down and a positive. Trustee Thompson asked what he was pushing the hardest for. June 5, 2018 6  . Manager Revella replied that for the Village of Walden we talked about it a lot and the police department as well, it is dispatching and how that would work for us. Right now all municipalities want this because our local dispatching does a better performance than the 911 center if they can give us better service then we will talk about it but right now it is a disservice to the community to do. It is definitely something every municipality is talking about trying to do. The other is the shared radios due to the use of the same frequencies at the same time. Shared training and a big one for him is county-wide assessments. So the county office of real property comes and does all the assessments for all the properties county wide so you don’t have to have Assessors in every town, village, and city which would be a huge savings plus they would do the evaluations more frequently so you would have real numbers on the house. So say in 2003 when your house was worth a lot the taxes were a lot but in 2008 your house was worth nothing so it would be less so it would be a more real flow of what the values reflect in your taxes. The vehicles with purchasing, we do now purchase off of county bids. We would have a better bidding process from the county. Right now we go to Onondaga and Stueben County for vehicles to get a bigger list so everyone has a place to pull from instead of having to go to the other counties. Trustee Svarczkopf commented he sees combined insurance but he doesn’t see workers comp. Being as we are all State Insurance does it matter then? Manager Revella replied that it is not all State Insurance, there are a few different companies, we are all different. We talked about doing a health care conglomerate they would form which they have done in the past the County had it that everyone was a part of it they stopped it after so long for some reason and they are talking about doing it again. A conglomerate of municipalities would go out and market together for insurance, any kind of insurance. Trustee Svarczkopf as if it would give us more options or make it cheaper. Manager Revella replied it would be cheaper. Trustee Svarczkopf summarized that essentially we would all be signing on to whatever the conglomerate decided. Manager Revella confirmed. The other big one is our street lighting which a couple of our Trustees and our Superintendent went to a class on. We need to focus on that right now as it could be a huge savings, plus energy savings to be more green conscious as well. We are definitely looking into those options now. Trustee Thompson added that if the Board is interested, Dan and she did the abbreviated version of the NYSERDA training but she also attended the 3 classes with LULA and NYSERDA came up again. Carla at NYSERDA said she was willing to give a presentation to our Board. It could be tailored to our needs can take 15 minutes or up to an hour. John can set that up if everyone would like that. Trustee Svarczkopf added that one of the key things he took away from it, he’s been paying more attention to different municipalities as well as our since then, and ours in particular has a lot of different color lighting for example on Main Street which he never noticed before until this class but we would get the opportunity to buy those and make sure the Village looks correct as well. They are not too expensive. There is up front cost but not horribly expensive to buy. Can do LED lights get cost savings and he thinks is well worth looking into at least. June 5, 2018 7  . Manager Revella added that he thinks they have dimmers as well so you can turn it higher in some areas and lower in others and focus certain lights lower at different times of the day. Deputy Mayor Moore added we could probably get grants from NYSERDA as well. She is in favor of having a lighting presentation at a Board meeting. Trustee Ramos asked about the committee’s feelings on the court consolidation suggestion. Manager Revella replied that the State has put out a mandate for the arraignments now. We are talking to the County about the Sheriff’s Department doing those transportations as opposed to each municipality doing their own transportation to whatever location they choose by the DA’s office. We are concerned with that especially with our mandatory shift coverage plus transportation outside of town is 2 officers and is a huge cost and is the same in a lot of other municipalities to try and have that transportation for arraignments. He is strongly opposed to it as he feels if he is arrest somewhere he should be arraigned there as well not being hauled out somewhere else. We have an elected judge, we have a court, why aren’t they being arraigned here. There is no reason for that. We will see how that plays out. The Committee has asked the County to pick up whatever that is using the Sheriff’s office. Deputy Mayor Moore stated she had Carla’s contact information if he needs it. Public Comment Becky Pearson asked if there was a timeline on the abandoned properties law that you had to vote on it tonight and the form wasn’t ready tonight and you still voted on it. Trustee Svarczkopf replied that the law says what that form has to have on it we just don’t have the form, so making the form we know what has to be on it. Becky doesn’t feel you should have voted for it unless you have the form Mayor Rumbold replied we voted for it contingent upon the form being approved. Becky understood but why not wait for it to be done. Mayor Rumbold relied Board approval means that changes can be made on it. Becky asked if the Street Sweeper is broken. Mayor Rumbold replied no it was out today. Becky continued that for Memorial Day in the square it was not picked up in the square, there were cigarette butts and she is not sure why that didn’t happen. Frist time in a long time that she saw people on the street for Memorial Day they actually brought their chairs and sat down along the parade route, but the square had dirt and butts and not sure why we couldn’t have cleaned that up before Memorial Day. She thought she saw in the Comptroller’s report the monies owed back to sewer was over $400,000. Manager Revella replied it was they already repaid most of that back this will make it fully paid. June 5, 2018 8  . Becky asked with the State of Emergency in Walden did residents and places in the Village of Walden get to recoup the money, is there a way to do that. Manager Revella replied that they would have to individually apply to FEMA as well. Usually FEMA covers if your insurance doesn’t which is unfortunate. Becky was thinking about the cemetery. Manager Revella replied they could file through FEMA as well. If have information they should coordinate through the Orange County Emergency Management. Mayor Rumbold added that they had to meet the threshold. The county had a website listed in the paper to apply through as well. The County is doing inspections now. Some of our citizens filed with the County. It starts with the County then to NY State then to federal government. Becky stated you talked about green energy tonight, did we think about green energy when we built the new DPW building that was just built. Manager Revella replied yes everything is e-qualified; insulation, radiant heat is the most efficient you can get. No solar yet but could do it potentially just didn’t have anything ready yet. Mayor Rumbold added that we really looked at the plans for that DPW building to make it as green as possible. We tried to be as energy efficient and as green as possible when we did the designs. Becky asked if the Manager’s contract is up. Mayor Rumbold replied yes, we are doing some of his evaluation this evening in Executive. Becky asked how you keep track of the outside work he does as an Attorney during the day. Mayor Rumbold replied he keeps track in the Village Manager’s report. Becky asked if he is allowed to use the Village offices for personal business. Mayor Rumbold doesn’t know that he does but he is entitled to a lunch hour like everyone else. She does Village work during her lunch hour in her office so she can imagine that he does the same. Becky didn’t know if you keep track and she’s heard folks say they met with him in the Village offices so she is not sure if that is ethical or unethical, just her thoughts. Eileen Mishk thanked everyone for putting a team together at the storm. She was very impressed at quick clean up. The response was unbelievable. She has been a resident for 36 years and has not been as fearful for herself and family as she has been for the past couple of weeks. It is her understanding that good friend of hers who lives on Sunset had her house broken into during the day. The Police Department responded very quickly and identified the individual quickly and were able to identify some problems and recoup some things that were turned into the local pawn shop. Shortly after that they had an idea who June 5, 2018 9  . the suspect was due to the surveillance from the pawn shop, he is a drug addict who lives on Alfred Place. He was not arrested as they didn’t have enough evidence at the time. About a week later he was found on Utopian Place trying to get into another home. The people had just installed new technology and he tried to enter inside and they talked to him and called the police and they got him. Again, no arrest was made and they questioned him and he confessed to the original breaking and entering. Still no arrest was made. To date he has not been arrested. So he is walking around someplace in Walden. This particular guy is walking up and down Wait Street looking in vehicles looking for an opportunity pretty much. To her, her husband is a retired cop, any other department who didn’t make an arrest and have good documentation after someone confessed to a crime it is a serious problem. Jerry says we’re safe because he has a gun but this is serious. She has seen a lot of people looking like they are half wacked out on drugs from wherever they are coming from. She saw 3 on Wait Street today. Where are they coming from and why is nothing being done to curb the problems that are happening? That being said she wanted you all to be aware of the concerns that a lot of the residents are having with Police response and follow through. Jennifer Kurisko wanted to bring attention to a serious concern that she as well of her neighbors, some of which are with her today. She also has a copy of 20 signatures to show you of those that could not be here. It is apparently obvious that we have an individual that lives in our neighborhood on Highland Avenue that has a record with law enforcement and as a resident she feels they are no longer safe. At all hours of the day and night we have witnessed and increase in brief visitation among cars to this location. Often the individual meets the car outside and hands an unknown substance to the driver. We are also concerned about the decline in this individual’s mental state. Many times she has walked out of her house and exposed her 3 year old to vulgar language, self- destructive behavior, as well as nudity. As a proud resident of Walden she is bringing this behavior to your attention because it has escalated and because she feels more can be done by law enforcement. Just this past weekend law enforcement has been called to her neighborhood 4 times and on the way here there was a drug deal right outside her house. This past weekend again law enforcement has been called to her neighborhood 4 times to deal with confrontational situations involving this individual. We are increasingly fearful of her actions and those that come to visit her. We have called Police when witnessing these suspicious visitors and often they arrive after the fact even when given a detailed description of the vehicle. It is our understanding that our actions within our neighborhood are being used with the loss of her children. Her actions are affecting the children of this neighborhood and our quality of life. The confrontations have become so escalated that we are afraid they are becoming close to physical violence with the resident. Recently she was calling out neighbors to fight and threatening to kill us. She has displayed a bb gun and aimed a sawzall directly at them during those times of conflict. We are concerned that the police response is often slow and even though they are doing their best there has got to be more that can be done. She knows that Police have targeted other problem areas in our Village with great success, why can’t we get the same response. She FOILed the number of calls and there have been 61 phone calls in relation to this individual in that last 21 months. Mary Ellen Matise thanked the Village for the storm clean up. She had a tree that snapped during the storm and another on this past Sunday off the same tree. She is trying to remember what happened at previous meeting and it is gone with the wind as it has been a long 3 weeks for her. Her concern is about the property laws we are passing. Did we June 5, 2018 10  . ever get an answer from the attorney as to whether or not we can really enforce it? The discussion at the last meeting left it kind of hanging in the air. Port Jervis can have it as it is grandfathered in. Attorney Donovan interjected that this law carved out mortgagees and banks. The Port Jervis law included those but it is clear to him that they are preempted by the NYS Zombie legislation. We do have an opinion in and email from the counsel for NYCOM indicating that the law targets specifically homeowner and would be legally sufficient which he shared with the Board. This law was obviously modeled by the Port Jervis law and takes out references against foreclosures and banks as that is left up to the state to do poorly. Mary Ellen wasn’t clear that had been taken out. Thought that was all left up in the air. Interested in knowing if we are going to go forward and look at the whole issue of housing. There is a lot of property damage especially after the storm and a lot of people will have a hard time dealing with that damage and waiting for insurance and other issues that will drag on. But also she noticed that there is different housing programs going on through RDAC and some others and wondering if we can’t still go forward with looking at the whole thing globally and where we are going with housing. There are other programs happening and it would be great if you could tell us what is happening out there as there is a lot of activity on the internet and is not really discussed here. Mayor Rumbold stated we could put that on the agenda for a future meeting. Mary Ellen added that this is where it should be discussed. Also the question about the Comprehensive Plan now we can get back to it now that the storm is over. Manager Revella replied that they are working on the remaining chapters first and then we will meet to go over them. As comments come up from the first chapters please send them so she can correct them. No meeting date has been set yet, not until the rest of the chapters are done and people have had some time to get some feedback. Anita Vandermark asked if the state has taken care of the matter on Highland Avenue and East Main Street sidewalk giving way. Manager Revella replied no, we did a temporary fix with the promise they would come back and fix it when they had time. Anita asked if there was a date given. Manager Revella replied no there was not but they finished patching so maybe soon. Anita added that the Vendor Bazaar is this Saturday from 9am-5pm at the Teen Center. They could use a hand with the event and all proceeds will benefit the Harvest Fest. Would love to have you attend that as well as the monthly Walden Community Council meetings with the Harvest Fest committee meetings at 6:30pm. The next one will be on the 13th at Wallkill Valley Federal Savings Bank at 7pm. Mayor Rumbold added that just for the record, the Village did fix the gigantic pot hole at the end of Main Street as the state didn’t have time to do the work there either. We did the work and they gave us the material. Eileen asked if there was a plan for DOT to fix Main Street as it is an atrocity. June 5, 2018 11  . The Clerk announced that any pot holes on state roadways can be called into DOT at 1- 800-POTHOLE. They tend to hear resident complaints more than Village of Walden complaints. Eileen stated that many people driving through our Village don’t realize it is a state road and it is not the Village’s responsibility. Manager Revella added that this problem started because they shifted the lanes some years ago and underneath it was concrete but the lanes to the right by Sohns there is nothing underneath there so it keeps collapsing due to the trucks on the right hand side there. So if they were to shift the lanes back to where they were they wouldn’t have these problems every year as it would fix it. They had to call all sorts of people to try to get approval so he had them meet onsite again as they switch personnel all the time so you have to keep telling the same story to the new person. Anita added that there will be a Girl Scout troop selling baked goods on Saturday who are raising money to clean the soldier’s monument at the cemetery. Mayor Rumbold stated that Faith had a death in her immediate family so a lot of us will be going to that and not able to make it on Saturday. Becky Pearson reminded everyone about the Flag Day ceremony on Sunday at 1pm at Veterans Park. Hope everyone can make it. Stacey Jonigan asked about the information that was given to the Clerk where it is going to go. Manager Revella stated the petition will go to the official minutes of the Village and the comments will be addressed internally with the department. Stacey added that the Police have been called so many times so they are aware of the drug deals going on about an hourly basis on this street. When will they stop it? It is very blatant and her father sits on her porch as he’s allowed to and she doesn’t know what kind of mood these people are in or what they could do something to her dad or these kids and it has been going on for years at this point, 3 that she knows of. She doesn’t understand it. Trustee Svarczkopf replied that there was a similar issue on his street and the police asked him to set up a camera in his house pointing towards it as they need evidence to prove anything. As a community you guys are fed up with it at this point so if it is a hard thing to ask. Jennifer asked what if we have already done that and the police have surveillance and descriptions and they don’t want to see it. Mayor Rumbold replied that is something that has to be addressed internally between the Manager and the Chief. We hear you. Jennifer replied she is ready to get out of Walden. Mayor Rumbold replied she understands, she lives on Highland Ave herself. Being the Mayor she talks to other officials in other towns and everyone is having the same issues. It is something we work on constantly. We can’t talk about what we may be doing at this time as this is a public meeting. There are things that are worked on with the Manager and June 5, 2018 12  . the Chief and the department all the time. She gets it, it is very frustrating and even more so when we do what they want us to do and we end up in court and it doesn’t end up the right way. Everyone has rights both homeowners and residents. We have to make sure all I is dotted and t is crossed. All she can say is we discuss it all the time there are discussions and strategies and it takes time. She understands you don’t want it to take time you want it resolved but we can’t force someone to move from their home. That is the bottom line. We hear you and we understand it. We know there are issues in our Village as well as there are everywhere and we try to deal with them as diligently and expeditiously as we possibly can. She knows that doesn’t help when you are the ones that have to live with it every day. Manager Revella wasn’t sure if everyone knew that he and Sgt. Werner met with a group of residents in that area about those concerns. He hopes those incidents weren’t after we had that meeting but if your concerns are being ignored please make sure that he is aware of who they spoke to and when because that is obviously unacceptable. Stacey said there is another person who just got out of jail is in that house selling drugs. So now we have to worry about 2 people doing that in that house. Eileen asked if something were to happen to the residents on Highland whether it be a shooting or something and the Police and the Village are aware of it who is responsible. If her husband had to shoot someone for coming into their house there may be a problem. An arrest was not made so who is responsible. Attorney Donovan stated that it is extraordinarily difficult to answer hypothetical questions so he generally avoids answering as it depends on circumstances at the time. As a general rule he can tell you that Village would have immunity in a case like that as a general rule but in terms of what might happen on a specific situation it is very difficult to give a firm answer. It is also difficult for the Board as they are not empowered to arrest someone. Everyone on the Board is aware of that there have been conversations already communicated to the PD and the Manager and Board would do everything they can. But they are not in apposition where they can conduct an investigation and make an arrest. They can’t get involved in that, everyone knows that. Obviously you are here because you are frustrated and you want some action and he thinks the Board heard that tonight and will be conveyed appropriately. Hopefully everyone wants their quality of life and being safe in your home which is totally understood by the Board and the Village will do what they can. Stacey asked with that said, do we take matters into our own hands by taking photos or videos. Is that what we are supposed to be doing right now? Manager Revella replied we can’t direct you to do that. Trustee Thompson asked if this was similar to what was going on several years back on Valley Avenue. Manager Revella replied yes. Trustee Thompson explained that residents over there met with the Police Department and formed an official neighborhood watch and it was incredibly helpful in that situation. Jennifer replied yes and we met with them and since then it has gotten worse. She is out every single time we come to our house threatening us. June 5, 2018 13  . Mayor Rumbold reiterated that they are doing the right thing by contacting the Police Dept. Kristine Hickey explained they are frustrated because now school is out and all the kids are outside playing and she is worried that someone will be outside with a hammer smashing windows as she did this winter. Is she going to come after her with a hammer? Cristy Satkowski stated she has an order of protection against her for 2 counts of endangering the welfare of her children and she has violated it 5 times. She clearly has no respect no care. Jennifer added that when they police were called about that violation of the order of protection it took 7 hours for the police department to get there as they said they were held up with a robbery. Payment of the Audited Bills Trustee Ramos made a motion to pay the audited bills. Seconded by Trustee Sebring. All ayes. Motion carried. Correspondence Trustee Thompson stated she got an email from John Mancini from NYCOM about setting up a class to be held here in the Village. Is that moving forward? Manager Revella replied yes, they corresponded so not sure why he reached out to you again, please forward it to me. Miscellaneous Comments from the Board of Trustees Trustee Thompson stated that when she was at one of the presentations there was a gentleman there from the Wallkill Rivershed Alliance who is also interested in presenting to our Board. Deputy Mayor Moor reminded everyone that Aryn’s Army is holding a sip and paint at 3 North Street on Thursday evening from 6:30-8:30pm. The Village Treasurer and Police Department worked together to get a $1,000 grant for National Night Out from Target. Trustee Ramos attended the May 17th 2018 Orange & Sullivan Partners in Justice and just so everyone knows Jacobowitz and Gubits law firm please congratulate them on 50 years of service to business, nonprofit and individuals throughout the Hudson valley. Mayor Rumbold wanted to commend the civilians in the Village who helped each other during and after the storm. She saw people jumping out of trucks with chainsaws to clean streets. Letting people into their homes to let them shower and eat which is a testament to who lives in our Village. There are letters in your packet to send to the municipalities who sent us help after that storm. We were one of the hardest hit areas after that storm. Executive Session Deputy Mayor Moore made a motion to enter into executive session to discuss PBA & CSEA Collective Bargaining Negotiations, 105-F, and personnel history of a particular person. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion carried. Reconvene Trustee Svarczkopf made a motion to reconvene the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Moore. All ayes. Motion carried. June 5, 2018 14  . Village of Walden Board of Trustees Regular Meeting June 5, 2018 Motions & Resolutions Approval of May 17, 2018 Special Meeting Minutes Deputy Mayor Moore made a motion to approve the May 17, 2018 special meeting minutes. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion carried. Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties Trustee Svarczkopf made a motion to discuss Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties. Seconded by Trustee Sebring. All ayes. Motion carried. Trustee Svarczkopf made the motion for Negative Declaration under SEQRA for Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties. Seconded by Trustee Sebring. All ayes. Motion carried. Trustee Ramos made the motion to adopt Local Law 3 of 2018 – Abandoned Properties under the condition that the Board approves the registry form. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Moore. All ayes. Motion carried. Resolution 1-18-19: Pine Street Pump Station Bid Trustee Svarczkopf made a motion to approve Resolution 1-18-19: Pine Street Pump Station Bid. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion approved. Resolution 2-18-19: Moving HODAG Funds to Sewer Fund $275,000 Trustee Ramos made a motion to approve Resolution 2-18-19: Moving HODAG Funds to Sewer Fund in the amount of $275,000. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Moore. All ayes. Motion approved. Bond Resolution 3-18-19: 2018-2019 Capital Projects Trustee Sebring made the motion to adopt Resolution 3-18-19 – Bond Resolution for Various Capital Projects in the amount of $470,000. Seconded by Trustee Thompson. All ayes. Motion carried. Turn the Town Teal Request for September 2018 Deputy Mayor Moore made a motion to approve the Turn the Towns Teal Request for the month of September 2018 where teal ribbons will be tied to the trees and any decorative barrels in Municipal Square and on Main Street to increase Ovarian Cancer Awareness. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion carried. Payment of the Audited Bills Trustee Ramos made a motion to pay the audited bills. Seconded by Trustee Sebring. All ayes. Motion carried. Executive Session Deputy Mayor Moore made a motion to enter into executive session to discuss PBA & CSEA Collective Bargaining Negotiations, 105-F, and personnel history of a particular person. Seconded by Trustee Ramos. All ayes. Motion carried. Reconvene Trustee Svarczkopf made a motion to reconvene the regular meeting of the Board of Trustees. Seconded by Deputy Mayor Moore. All ayes. Motion carried. June 5, 2018 15