The Village of Champlain

VILLAGE OF CHAMPLAIN
BOARD MEETING MINUTES
OCTOBER 5, 2009

A regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Champlain was held on Monday, October 5, 2009, at the Village Office, 1104 Route 9, Champlain, New York. Present were Mayor Moore, Trustees Gehrig, Martin, and Thomas Trombley, Clerk/Treasurer Munoz, Deputy Clerk Barcomb, Superintendent Sorrell, and Terry Lincourt. Trustee Kim Trombley and Codes Officer Tetreault were excused this evening.

Mayor Moore called the meeting to order at 6:50 p.m. A motion was made by Trustee Thomas Trombley, seconded by Trustee Martin and carried, to approve the minutes from the special Board Meeting held on September 1, 2009. Trustee Gehrig abstained from voting.

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig and seconded by Trustee Martin to approve the minutes from the regular Board Meeting held on September 14, 2009. Trustee Martin said Item #4 on his report should be corrected to indicate there was a problem with the pump not working, not the generator. All present voted aye to approve the minutes with this correction.

Report From Codes Officer Tetreault

Codes Officer Tetreault was excused this evening.

Report from Mayor Moore

1. He informed everyone that the Village crew would be flushing hydrants from Monday, October 19 through Friday, October 23, and that some water discoloration may occur.

2. He said Fall Pick-up days have been scheduled for Wednesday, October 28; Thursday, October 29; Wednesday, November 18; and Thursday, November 19. He reminded everyone no loose brush will be picked up, and lawn debris and brush no larger than 1” in diameter must be put in clear plastic bags.

3. He said the Village has been asked to approve a resolution of support for the proposed four-lane highway in upstate New York. He feels this will be a great thing for the area, comparing it to I-87 and how much that opened the area.

Report From Trustee Kim Trombley

Trustee Trombley was excused this evening.

Report From Trustee Martin

1. He said he, along with Mayor Moore, attended a seminar in Lake Placid recently on wastewater management for local officials, which was very informative.

2. He said the Shared Service Committee met recently with an engineer from Barton & Lougidice. He said the study is moving forward and should be completed by the end of the year.

3. He advised everyone that someone will be conducting leak detection throughout the Village and the Town later this week during the evenings.

4. He reminded everyone to get their flu shots.

Report From Trustee Thomas Trombley

1. He thanked Superintendent Sorrell and the crew for installing the safety mirror on the curve on Maple Street.

2. He said he also attended the Shared Service meeting on September 30th. He said Trustee Martin already covered the main points, and it was a very positive meeting. The engineers commented on the great shape of the WWTP, and he thanked everyone for their efforts there.

Report From Trustee Gehrig

Trustee Gehrig had nothing to report this evening. However, she did comment that the care of the flower barrels was tracked this summer, which may effect who gets them next spring.

Report From Clerk/Treasurer Munoz

1. She said the Board had been copied with the Revenues/Expenditures Report for September.

2. She said the October 1, 2009, water/sewer billing had been completed, with water totaling $51,273.58, and sewer totaling $74,887.47.

3. Purchase requisitions as follows:

            a. Concrete blocks (60)—A5142.2--$3300.00
            b. 34’ x 60’ salt shed—A5142.2--$8401.44

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig and seconded by Trustee Martin approving these two purchase requisitions. Some discussion followed. Roll call vote as follows:

                                    Trustee Martin                                  Aye
                                    Trustee Thomas Trombley            Aye
                                    Trustee Gehrig                       Aye
                                    Mayor Moore                         Aye
Motion carried.

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig and seconded by Trustee Martin to transfer funds from A909 to A5142.2 in the amount of $11,701.44 to cover the purchase of the salt shed and concrete blocks. Roll call vote as follows:

                                    Trustee Martin                                  Aye
                                    Trustee Thomas Trombley            Aye
                                    Trustee Gehrig                       Aye
                                    Mayor Moore                         Aye
Motion carried.

            c. Diesel tank & pump—A5110.2--$599.98

A motion was made by Trustee Thomas Trombley and seconded by Trustee Martin approving this purchase requisition. Some discussion followed. Roll call vote as follows:

                                    Trustee Martin                                  Aye
                                    Trustee Thomas Trombley            Aye
                                    Trustee Gehrig                       Aye
                                    Mayor Moore                         Aye
Motion carried.

d. Craftsman 4-pc. Tool Kit—A5110.2--$159.99

A motion was made by Trustee Thomas Trombley and seconded by Trustee Martin approving this purchase requisition. Some discussion followed. Roll call vote as follows:

Presentation Of Warrant And Payment

Clerk/Treasurer Munoz said there was one additional invoice to add to the warrant. This was for Valley Sanitation from Code A5110.4 in the amount of $90. A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig and seconded by Trustee Thomas Trombley to approve Warrant #5 for Voucher #143 through #175 from the General, Water, and Sewer accounts, including the additional invoice, in the amount of $21,222.81. Roll call vote as follows:

Report From Superintendent Sorrell

1. He said the Board had been copied with his report.

2. He gave proposals for new truck bids to the Board.

3. He requested that the 1989 International truck with the plow, sander, and wing be put out for bid as surplus property.

4. He said the switch that was ordered for the generator at the WWTP was wrong. The electrician is not sure if he will be able to get the parts to repair just the switch, as it is quite old. Mayor Moore said it is critical that this switch be repaired as soon as possible.

5. He said the crew has been painting pipes at the WWTP.

6. He said USGS came today and did water samples for the U.S. Geological Survey.

7. They are working on a way to get the concrete blocks for the salt shed to the water tank on Prospect Street.

8. He said he called the company who we are purchasing the floats from for the WWTP and lift stations; however, he has not received a call back yet.

9. There was some discussion about the water meter at GSA, and Mayor Moore said we would have to set up a meeting to talk with them about it. Clerk/Treasurer Munoz mentioned the engineers from Barton & Lougidice also want to talk with them.

10. Mayor Moore asked how we did with the water flow test, and Superintendent Sorrell said we pumped 347 gallons/minute, with 90% recovery time within 80 minutes.

Correspondence

Letter to Phil Payette regarding moving the stone in front of his property to the Village Park on Main Street.

Letters to unsuccessful superintendent position applicants.

Letter to Barbara Robbins at Northern Housing thanking them for their donation to the Village.

Correspondence from Celine Paquette regarding dedication of History Center and two plaques within the Village.

Mayor Moore said Mrs. Paquette is delaying the re-dedication of the history center until the spring or summer. At that time, we are planning to re-dedicate both plaques.

Old Business

1. GSA meter—There was some discussion about this issue.
2. Town of Chazy shared services request (water).
3. Zoning law changes.

Mayor Moore informed the Board that the agreement between customs and the Village for their repeater tower located on the water tank is up for renewal. We are checking with other municipalities to find out if and what they charge for similar services. Another concern is liability if any of the Village’s property/equipment gets damaged because of this tower.

New Business

Clerk/Treasurer Munoz read the following resolution:

RESOLUTION TO SUPPORT THE CONSTRUCTION OF A FOUR LANE HIGHWAY IN
ST. LAWRENCE, FRANKLIN, LEWIS, JEFFERSON AND CLINTON COUNTIES AND URGE THE ASSISTANCE OF ELECTED STATE AND FEDERAL OFFICIALS TO MAKE IT A REALITY

Whereas, the economic impact of North Country transportation improvements is a key component of the North Country Transportation Study, and

Whereas, the economic development impact analysis has measured the value to the regional economy of efficiency gains through user benefits such as reductions in travel time, reductions in operating costs, and reductions in accidents due to improved safety, and

Whereas, the gains through increased social and economic development opportunities due to improved transportation access will reduce unemployment rates, reduce government transfer payments such as social welfare and unemployment insurance, and increase employment in the region, and

Whereas, the transportation improvements can enhance access to labor, customer, tourism and supplier markets, as well as to intermodal transportation facilities, making the overall region more attractive to transportation-dependent industries, and

Whereas, the construction of a four-lane highway within the boundaries of St. Lawrence, Franklin, Lewis, Jefferson and Clinton County will begin to address the transportation improvements necessary to foster such economic growth, and

Whereas, our elected New York and Congressional representatives can be assured that the Village of Champlain adamantly supports such four lane highway construction,

Whereas, the Village of Champlain urges New York State Commissioner of Transportation, Ms. Astrid C. Glynn, to cooperate with local transportation taskforce groups to push for the construction of a four-lane highway within St. Lawrence, Franklin, Lewis, Jefferson and Clinton County, and

Whereas, a copy of this resolution, be forwarded to Commissioner Glynn, New York State Department of Transportation; Governor Paterson; New York State Senators Griffo, Aubertine and Little; New York State Assembly Members Scozzafava. Russell and Duprey; United States Senators Schurner and Clinton; Congressman McHugh; St. Lawrence, Franklin, Lewis, Jefferson and Clinton Counties; the Development Authority of the North Country; and the Citizens Coalition for Economic Infrastructure Development.

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig and seconded by Trustee Thomas Trombley approving the resolution as presented. Trustee Martin asked that the correct senators be listed on the final resolution copy. Roll call vote as follows:

The Board then discussed the property maintenance issues with 1163 and 1165 Route 9 and the former Pampalon building on Church Street.

Executive Session

A motion was made by Trustee Martin, seconded by Trustee Thomas Trombley and carried, to enter into Executive Session at 7:22 p.m. to discuss a personnel issue and competitive bidding questions. The Board came out of Executive Session at 7:26 p.m. No motions were made in Executive Session.

A motion was made by Trustee Thomas Trombley, seconded by Trustee Gehrig and carried, to advertise for a Public Works Maintenance Person through One Work Source and the Village website.

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig and seconded by Trustee Martin to approve going out to bid for a 2010 truck with plow, as specified by the specs that the Board was copied with. The bid opening will be held on October 23, 2009, at 1 p.m. at the Village Office. Roll call vote as follows:

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig, seconded by Trustee Martin and carried, approving the sale, through sealed bids, of the 1989 International truck with sander, sander, wing, and slusher. The bid opening will be held on October 31, 2009, at 1 p.m. at the Village Office.

Executive Session

A motion was made by Mayor Moore, seconded by Trustee Gehrig and carried, to enter into Executive Session at 7:32 p.m. to discuss a personnel issue. The Board came out of Executive Session at 7:34 p.m. No motions were made in Executive Session.

A motion was made by Trustee Gehrig, seconded by Trustee Thomas Trombley and carried, not to waive the probationary period for Larry Sorrell for the Superintendent of Public Works position. The Board had the option to waive the 12-week probationary period, as this was a permanent promotion for Mr. Sorrell.

Adjournment

There being no further business to come before the Board this evening, a motion was made by Trustee Gehrig, seconded by Trustee Martin and carried, to adjourn the meeting at 7:42 p.m.

Donna Barcomb
Deputy Clerk