Minutes of a Regular Meeting of the
Town Council of the Town of Ellicott
held at the
Administration Building,
May 1, 2006 at
7:00 P.M.
Present: Supervisor Tyler, Councilman Geisler, Councilman Pickett, Councilman Miller, Councilman Heintzelman, Town Clerk Erlandson, Highway Superintendent Shellhouse, Attorney Lasker, Legislator Spicer, Legislator Trusso.
Supervisor Tyler opened the
meeting at 7:00 PM and led the Town Council in the Pledge of Allegiance. Town Clerk Erlandson called the roll.
Motion
by Councilman Heintzelman, seconded by Councilman Geisler to accept the minutes
of the April 3, 2006 meeting as presented by the Town Clerk.
Town Clerk Erlandson read the
following items into the record:
1.
Notification
re the annual Southern Tier West Local Government Conference to be held
at Houghton College on May 18, 2006.
2.
Invitation
to the 9th Annual Community Foundation Golf Tournament at Moonbrook
Country Club on May 22, 2006.
3.
Letter
from the YWCA re the 10th Annual “Women of Achievement”
Awards.
4.
Falconer Fire Dept. Incident Reports: January – March 2006.
5.
Newsletter:
Chautauqua County Chamber of Commerce.
TOWN OFFICERS’ REPORTS
Councilman Miller reported that the Ellicott
Bldg. Committee met earlier today. He
outlined the issues the committee addressed concerning the Ellicott
Administration Bldg. He stated that the
committee agreed to hire a contactor to wash the windows on the outside of the
building. The committee also agreed to
hire a contractor to repair parts of the roof.
Councilman Geisler reported that he &
Councilman Heintzelman have been working with the Town’s health insurance
broker and CSEA representatives re health insurance issues. (Minutes 3/6/06 et. seq.) He reminded the Town Council that the Community
Blue health care plan in which most Town employees are enrolled will expire
at the end of 2006. He explained that
the policy is no longer available to companies with fewer than 51 employees
& the Town does not employee that many people. Mr. Geisler went on to explain that the current Community Blue
plan is specifically outlined in the Town’s labor agreement with the Ellicott
Police CSEA Unit as one of the two (2) health insurance plans available to
police employees. However, he reminded
the Council that the labor agreement does not expire until Dec. 31, 2007. Since the current health care plan will
expire at the end of this year, he & Mr. Heintzelman asked the CSEA to open
the labor agreement to discuss alternative health care plans. However, Mr. Geisler noted that the CSEA
wants to open the entire labor agreement to negotiation. In his opinion, this is unacceptable. He recommended that the Town Council notify
the CSEA that they will discuss health care only. The Council discussed the matter. Councilman Pickett expressed concern that should a new health
care plan be imposed on the police unit in 2007, the Town would have to make up
any differences in premium costs.
Motion by Councilman Geisler,
seconded by Councilman Heintzelman to notify the Civil Service Employees
Association (CSEA) that the Ellicott Town Council will agree to open the
current Labor Agreement with the TOWN OF ELLICOTT POLICE UNIT 6314-01 to
discuss health insurance only.
Adopted.
Ayes - 4
Noes - 1
Absent - 0
(Councilman Pickett Voted
No)
Town Clerk Erlandson asked for permission to
schedule a free rabies clinic at the Ellicott Highway Garage sometime in the
next several months.
Attorney Lasker commented on the recent
demolition of an abandoned house on Bentley Ave. He thanked the Ellicott Highway Dept. for expediting the
demolition. Mr. Lasker added that he
would negotiate an agreement with the owner to maintain the property.
Supervisor Tyler reported that a meeting has
been scheduled for June 9, 2006 at 10:00 AM to discuss possible concerns re the
new traffic light at the intersection of Warwick & Fairmount Ave.
RESOLUTION #52-06
Accept Bids for Highway
Materials & Services
Motion by Supervisor Tyler,
seconded by Councilman Pickett authorizing Highway Superintendent Shellhouse to
accept the Chautauqua County bids for highway materials and services,
excluding gasoline and diesel fuel.
Dog Control Ordinance
(Proposed)
– Councilman Pickett reported that he is continuing to review a proposed dog
control ordinance for the Town of Ellicott. He noted that the Town’s Dog Control Officer (DCO), Larry Belin,
expressed several concerns about the ordinance. Mr. Pickett intends to make several revisions to the proposed
ordinance. He also requested that the
Town Council increase the DCO’s gasoline allowance. He pointed out that Mr. Belin is currently
receiving only $60.00 per month for gas.
However, Mr. Pickett noted that the DCO is spending, on average,
approximately $72.00 per month on gas. He
recommended that the gas allowance be increased to $75.00 per month.
Increase Gas Allowance for
Dog Control Officer (Belin)
Motion by Councilman Pickett,
seconded by Councilman Geisler to increase the gasoline allowance of
Ellicott Dog Control Officer Larry Belin to $75.00 per month.
Adopted. Ayes - 5 Noes - 0 Absent - 0
Water Pump Station on School
Ave. –
Tabled pending survey & obtaining the necessary easements.
NEW BUSINESS
Hire In-House Technology Consultant (Woodbury) –
Town Clerk Erlandson reported that Ellicott Code Enforcement Officer Randy
Woodbury recently offered to provide computer
repair service to the Town for $40.00 per hour. Mr. Erlandson noted that the Town currently
has a computer consultant on retainer at $85.00 per hour. He explained that it is necessary to retain
the outside consultant for highly technical problems. However, he pointed out that Randy has often been able to fix
various computer problems
without having to bring in the consultant.
This has enabled the Town to save money. Mr. Erlandson stated that Randy frequently volunteers his time to
work on various computer problems in the Town Clerk and Assessing offices. In addition, Randy sometimes works on the
Town’s telephone system & is currently working on upgrading the Town’s
Geographic Information System. The Town
Council discussed the matter.
Councilman Miller assured the Council that Randy would work on these
systems only when needed. In addition,
he would perform the work on weekends and evenings so it would not interfere with his code enforcement duties. The Council discussed the matter. Councilman Heintzelman expressed
reservations Mr. Woodbury’s proposal.
In his opinion, Town employees should not be paid for performing extra
work outside of their normal duties. He
feels that it sets a poor precedent.
Supervisor Tyler also expressed concerns that there could be times when
a computer breakdown would have to be addressed immediately. Such a scenario would compel Randy to work
on the problem during his normal working hours. Town Clerk Erlandson will look into the possibility of hiring an
additional outside consultant. Tabled
pending further review.
“Paper Street” Maintenance –
Councilman Geisler discussed a problem concerning “paper streets”. He stated that a number of “paper streets”,
particularly in West Ellicott, have been used as “dumping” sites for yard waste
and other debris. He distributed pictures of one such “paper
street” near his home. He noted that
the Ellicott Code Enforcement Officer intends to send letters to residents in
the area asking them not to dump waste materials on the “paper streets”. The Town Council discussed the matter. Mr. Geisler asked whether the Ellicott
Highway Department has a policy
concerning the maintenance of “paper streets” in the Town of Ellicott. Highway Superintendent Shellhouse explained
that he currently does not have the manpower
to clean up the “paper streets”. He
also pointed out that although the Town maintains certain rights to the “paper
streets” it technically does not own them.
He stated that he is also opposed to abandoning the “paper streets”
since the Town might have a use for the property in the future. He reminded the Town Council that the
Highway Dept. operates two (2) brush disposal
sites where residents can bring biodegradable materials. Councilman Geisler will continue to look for
a solution to the problem.
Proposed Local Law #1-2006
Rezoning Request (Tanglewood Manor) – The Town Council
discussed a request to rezone two (2) parcels of property
located between Merlin and Gifford Avenues owned by Tanglewood Manor from
‘Residential’ to ‘Neighborhood Business’.
The request was referred to
the Ellicott Planning Board for further review. Supervisor Tyler recommended that the Town Council
schedule a Public Hearing re the matter.
Councilman Geisler asked several questions re the rezoning request.
Motion
by Supervisor Tyler, seconded by Councilman Miller to schedule a Public
Hearing for May 15, 2006 at 7:00 PM regarding introductory Town of
Ellicott Local Law #1-2006 to rezone two (2) parcels of
property located between Merlin and Gifford Avenues to ‘Neighborhood Business’.
RESOLUTION #54-06
Payment of Claims
Motion by Supervisor Tyler, seconded by Councilman Miller to pay 2006
current claims #421-522, inclusive, in the amount of $99,613.00 and charge
to the proper fund or account.
Adopted.
Ayes - 5
Noes - 0
Absent - 0
Motion
by Supervisor Tyler, seconded by Councilman Pickett to adjourn at 7:50 PM.
Carried.
Ayes - 5
Noes - 0
Absent - 0
_________________________________
Michael C. Erlandson, Town
Clerk