TOWN OF NORTH HARMONY
TOWN BOARD MEETING
MONDAY, 8/9/2021 7:00PM
ROBERT YATES, SUPERVISOR ABSENT
DICK SENA, COUNCIL PRESENT
LOUISE ORTMAN, COUNCIL PRESENT
STEVE SENSKE, COUNCIL PRESENT
MIKE PFEIL, COUNCIL PRESENT
OTHERS PRESENT: Brad Lawson, Zoning C.E.O.; Dan Strickland, Highway Sup’t.; Robin Miller, Bookkeeper; Jonathan Henck; Pete & Lynn Smith; Howard Peacock, Justice; Nancy Thomas, Town Clerk
- PLEDGE & MOMENT OF SILENCE
- 6:45 PM – SEQR & Public Hearing – Proposed LL #2-2021
In the absence of Supervisor Yates, Deputy Supervisor, Louise Ortman brought the Public Hearing to order at 6:45 PM.
SEQR & Public Hearing – Proposed LL #2-2021
A Local Law to Amend the Zoning Ordinance Sec. 403, Area Standards in the AG District to Allow Residential Accessory Uses and Non-Residential Accessory Uses to 24 ft. in height
Section 1. INTENT
The Town Board of the Town of North Harmony, as the local legislative body with the authority to enact and amend zoning regulations, enacts the modifications contained in this Local Law to the Town of North Harmony Zoning Law based upon the following findings:
It is the duty of the Town Board to encourage the most appropriate use of land within the Town of North Harmony.
The Town of North Harmony, and its inhabitants, will be best served if the Town strives to create a balanced and efficient pattern of land development that promotes economic stability and development, and
The modifications enacted by this Local Law will address the need to allow for an increase in the maximum building height for structures to 24 feet for residential accessory uses and non-residential accessory uses.
Section 2. AUTHORITY
This Local Law is adopted under the authority granted by: Article IX of the New York State Constitution.
Section 3. ARTICLE VI, Section 403, Town of North Harmony – ZONING DISTRICTS AREA STANDARDS SUMMARY TABLE, Agricultural District, Structure is amended as follows:
The maximum height of accessory structures for residential accessory uses and non-residential accessory uses shall be 24 feet.
Section 4. SAVINGS CLAUSE
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or part of this Local Law or the application thereof to any person, firm or corporation, or circumstance, shall be adjusted by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unconstitutional, such order or judgement shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder
thereof, but shall be confirmed in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph. Subdivision, or part of this Local Law or in its application to the person, individual, firm or corporation or circumstance, directly involved in the controversy in which such judgement or order shall be rendered.
Section 6. EFFECTIVE DATE
This Local Law shall take effect immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State.
Mrs. Ortman asked if anyone wished to comment on the proposed local law. There were no responses.
- MOTION # 120 OF 2021
MR. SENSKE MOTIONED THAT THE TOWN OF NORTH HARMONY TAKE LEAD AGENCY STATUS ON THE SHORT EAF FOR PROPOSED LL# 2-2021 A LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE SEC. 403, AREA STANDARDS, IN THE AG DISTRICT TO ALLOW RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY USES AND NON-RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY USES TO 24 FEET IN HEIGHT. MR. PFEIL SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- SHORT EAF PART 1 – PROJECT INFORMATION
Mrs. Ortman reviewed Part 1 of the EAF in its entirety for those present.
Mr. Senske asked that question 4. include Parkland under occurring land uses.
- SHORT EAF PART 2 – IMPACT ASSESSMENT
Mrs. Ortman reviewed Part 2 of the EAF in its entirety with those present. All questions were answered “no or small impact may occur”.
- SHORT EAF PART 3 – DETERMINATION OF SIGNIFICANCE
- MOTION # 121 OF 2021
MR. SENA MOTIONED FOR A NEGATIVE DECLARATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ON THE SHORT EAF FOR PROPOSED LL# 2-2021 A LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE SEC. 403, AREA STANDARDS, IN THE AG DISTRICT TO ALLOW RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY USES AND NON-RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY USES TO 24
FEET IN HEIGHT. MR. PFEIL SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 122 OF 2021
MR. SENSKE MOTIONED TO ADOPT LL# 2-2021 – A LOCAL LAW TO AMEND THE ZONING ORDINANCE SEC. 403, AREA STANDARDS, IN THE AG DISTRICT TO ALLOW RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY USES AND NON-RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY USES TO 24
FEET IN HEIGHT. MRS. ORTMAN SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 123 OF 2021
ON A MOTION MADE BY MR. SENSKE, SECONDED BY MR. SENA, AND NONE BEING OPPOSED, THE HEARING WAS ADJOURNED AT 6:52 PM.
Nancy Thomas
Town Clerk
REGULARLY SCHEDULED TOWN BOARD MEETING 7:00 PM
- MINUTES: 7/6/21 & 7/12/2021
- MOTION # 124 OF 2021
MR. SENA MOTIONED TO ADOPT THE MINUTES OF THE 7/6/2021 AND 7/12/2021 TOWN BOARD MEETINGS AS PRESENTED BY THE CLERK. MR. SENSKE SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- RETIREMENT OF DAN STRICKLAND – HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT 8/31/21
Mrs. Ortman said Mr. Strickland will be retiring on 8/31/21 and she and the board would like to congratulate him and thank him for 16 years of service to the Town. She said we appreciate his service and will all miss him. He was presented with flowers, cookies, and a round of applause.
- SEWER UPDATE – Groundbreaking Ceremony has been postponed until 8/30/21 11:00 AM at BOCES
- HARMONY HISTORICAL SOCIETY 2021 FOLK FAIR SATURDAY, 9/18/21 10 AM – 6 PM
- PUBLIC COMMENT:
PETE SMITH – QUIGLEY PARK
Mr. Smith asked when construction on the sewer would begin.
Mrs. Ortman said she does not know the exact date, but it will be very soon.
DAVE LUTSCH – ALMAR DR.
Mr. Lutsch asked about the situation with the Olson’s Highland Ave. ROW at the lake.
Mr. Sena said he and Supervisor Yates had spoken to Mr. Olson and been assured that there were no violations of town ordinances or laws.
Mr. Senske said that any issues that persons with deeded access to the ROW have with Mr. Olson are now a civil matter and they will need to handle them through their attorney’s.
- CORRESPONDENCE: The following correspondence has been received by the Supervisor and is available for review:
1. Assessor – Property Transfers June 2021 – A/V $805,500; S/P $1,292,000 (+ $486,500.00)
2. Chautauqua County Sales Tax 3rd Qtr. – received $211,562.95
Mrs. Ortman said for reference 3rd quarter sales tax in 2020 was $143,021.56. For the year of 2021 sales tax collections are greater than 2020 by 19.5%.
3. National Grid – Traffic Signal 4 corners Stedman Change Request/Authorization Forms
Mrs. Thomas said this is for the traffic light at the 4 corners of Stedman and there were no changes to that light and that is what was reported to National Grid.
4. NYS-DEC James Sacco – Results of Transfer Station Inspection 7/10/21
Mrs. Thomas said the DEC had inspected our transfer station on Saturday 7/10/21. The inspector had mailed the results of that which was mostly satisfactory but with 2 questions regarding documentation. She said as a result a copy of our DEC Transfer Station Permit has been placed in the break shed and Mr. Sacco will do another inspection at some point. A copy of our contract with Beichner has been provided to the DEC and any request for landfill tickets, etc. will be taken care of by the clerk.
5. Southern Tier West –
- 2021 Fall Planning & Zoning Webinars
- Grant Writing Essentials Virtual Training
6. Dan Sonnenreich – email 8/6/21 re condition of Hadley Bay
Mrs. Ortman said Mr. Sonnenreich’s letter is about the poor condition of Hadley Bay (weeds and algae). She said she had spoken to Mr. Yates, and he has a great deal of information and will contact him when he returns.
- OLD BUSINESS:
- NEW BUSINESS:
- 2022 TOWN OF NORTH HARMONY BUDGET REQUESTS DEADLINE 9/1/21
- HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT – SUPERINTENDENT AND DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT POSITIONS
Mr. Sena said Mr. Strickland is retiring soon and there has been an M.E.O. retirement and an M.E.O. who has resigned recently. He said he has thought over the matter for a long time and he thinks the best thing for the town is to have the most responsible person in the Supervisor’s position which he feels is Mr. Hinsdale. He said he understands there are residency issues with the position and Mr. Strickland has
provided him with information from other towns who have changed their law to allow a non-resident to fill the position. He proposes we investigate changing the town policy on residency for the Highway Superintendent position and the Deputy Superintendent.
Mr. Pfeil asked if he is suggesting this for any position or for all appointed positions in the town.
Mr. Sena said the information he has received from other towns is specifically for the Deputy Superintendent not to be required to be a resident of the town, but must be a resident of the County that the Town is in. He said North Harmony should do this to get the most responsible and qualified person for the position.
There was discussion and Mr. Robbins said for the Deputy Superintendent to reside outside the town would require a Local Law adoption; for the Superintendent who is elected, it would require a Local Law subject to mandatory referendum.
Mr. Pfeil asked Mrs. Johnson to investigate this matter and advise the board.
Mr. Strickland expressed support for Mr. Hinsdale as Deputy and said it would be in the towns best interest to support him as well as he is very qualified. He said Mr. Post has indicated that he will not continue as Deputy past Mr. Strickland’s retirement date of 8/31/2021.
Mr. Pfeil said Mr. Strickland cannot speak on behalf of Mr. Post.
Mr. Strickland said that was understood between him and Mr. Post from the beginning.
- BAN PAYMENT ON NEW TOWN OFFICE BUILDING (Due 8/27/21)
Mrs. Miller said the principal payment the town intends to make on the BAN is $160,000.00. She asked the board if they would like to also include against the principal the amount in the General Fund Reserve of $63,322.00 that was set aside in 2018 when Mr. Stow was Supervisor. She said she had discussed this with Laurie Finn at M&T, and it is allowed.
It was discussed that the board had also previously agreed that all funds received from the sale of town properties (i.e., gravel pit, etc.) would also go toward the BAN principal.
Mr. Robbins said there used to be a law that stated you could not increase the principal payment above the amount of the initial payment on the BAN but that is no longer the case.
- MOTION # 125 OF 2021 (AMENDING MOTION #112-2021)
MRS. ORTMAN MOTIONED TO AUTHORIZE THE SUPERVISOR TO MAKE PAYMENT ON AND EXECUTE ALL DOCUMENTS NECESSARY TO RENEW THE NEW TOWN OFFICE BUILDING BAN WITH M&T BANK AT AN INTEREST RATE OF 2.9% AS FOLLOWS:
Ban Principal $640,000.00
Principal Payment $320,000.00 (includes GF Capital Reserve $60,000 and Proceeds
Int. @ 2.9% $ 18,508.44 Sale of Gravel Pit $100,000)
Total BAN payment $338,508.44
Ban Renewal Amount 2022 $320,000.00
MR. SENA SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
TOWN BOARD
8/9/2021 (Pg. 6)
- REPORTS
PIERRE CHAGNON, LEGISLATOR
Mr. Chagnon’s written report indicated the following:
Two noteworthy items from last month’s County Legislature meeting:
(1) We approved submitting grant funding applications for the South Chautauqua Lake Sewer District Phase 2 extension from Stow to Prendergast Creek to complete public sewers on the west side of Chautauqua Lake; (2) We authorized the 2022 levy of participants’ share of the Chautauqua County workers’ compensation self-insurance plan costs, with North Harmony’s share going down by $7,769.76 which is a 10.5% reduction.
ANNE GOLLEY, ASSESSOR
TOWN OF NORTH HARMONY
ASSESSOR’S REPORT
August 2021
In August we’ve been working on filing the school assessment rolls with Chautauqua Lake, Panama, and Sherman School Districts. They will use the assessment roll to calculate their school tax rates for each municipality for the upcoming September school tax. We have also forwarded a final copy of the Town of North Harmony Assessment roll to the County Real Property Tax Service for their office to produce the school tax bills.
Thank you for your continued support of the Assessor’s Office.
HOWARD PEACOCK, JUSTICE
Mr. Peacock read the following report into the record.
COURT REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF JULY 2021
August 9, 2021, Board Meeting
$26,388.00 in fines, fees, and surcharges was collected by the Court and was given to the Town of North Harmony CFO for the court cases reported to the NYS Comptroller for July
2021. We opened 386 new cases and closed 229 cases.
Respectfully Submitted,
Katie A Zimmer, Court Clerk
August 9, 2021
Mr. Peacock requested that a name plate be ordered for the Court Clerk as she does not have one. It was suggested that Art Sample or Geer Dunn should be able to do this.
DAN STRICKLAND, HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT
Mr. Strickland said the highway is still waiting for Nova chip, which will be after he leaves. He said we have a new probationary M.E.O., Austin Davis who comes from the Village of Mayville and received a high recommendation from Jeff Angeletti.
- 6 MONTH PROBATIONARY APPOINTMENT OF 2 NEW HIGHWAY M.E.O.’S
- MOTION # 126 OF 2021
MR. SENSKE MOTIONED TO APPOINT AUSTIN DAVIS AS A PROBATIONARY HIGHWAY M.E.O. EFFECTIVE 8/9/2021 AT A RATE OF $18/HR ($27/HR OT) AS RECOMMENDED BY THE HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT. MR. SENA SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 127 OF 2021
MR. SENSKE MOTIONED TO APPOINT STEPHEN E. PIHL AS A PROBATIONARY HIGHWAY M.E.O. EFFECTIVE 6/7/2021 AT A RATE OF $18/HR ($27/HR OT) AS RECOMMENDED BY THE HIGHWAY SUPERINTENDENT. MR. SENA SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
BRAD LAWSON, ZONING C.E.O. (Copy of Report in Minute Book)
Mr. Lawson reviewed his report for those present. He said the Planning Board continues to work on a Solar Law to address large arrays and it will be discussed with Don McCord at tomorrow nights meeting. He also noted that the town needs to begin updating the Comprehensive Plan in the area taking into consideration the sewer extension and water infrastructure to hopefully follow.
JOHN STOW, DCO
The following report was read into the record:
We had several calls this month. The first call was for a dog running loose in the 4 corners of Ashville. They had just returned the dog to the owner when I arrived. The next call was an odd one. An individual from Celeron brought his dog to Ashville, tied it to a tree with a short leash, and left it there intentionally. Luckily there was a witness who confronted the man and called the Sheriff’s Department. They responded and found the individual who admitted to leaving his dog behind intentionally for adoption. The dog was taken to the Humane Society. The guy is still tied to the tree (not really!). The third call for a dog wandering in Ashville Bay. I found the dog and the owner, and they were given a warning. The last call was a lost dog on the Overland Trail in North Harmony State Forest. I recommended th-0y call a Forest Ranger to assist in a search. They assisted in the search and were able to locate the dog.
NANCY THOMAS, TOWN CLERK (Copy of Report in Minute Book)
Mrs. Thomas said she had nothing further to add to her written report.
TOWN CLERK REPORT JULY, 2021
Disbursements
Paid to Supervisor for General Fund $2,440.77
Paid to NYS DEC for Decals $ 64.28
Paid to NYS Animal Population Control $ 40.00
Paid to NYS-DOH Marriage Licenses $ 45.00
Total Disbursements $2,590.05
ROBERT YATES, SUPERVISOR (Copy of Report in Minute Book)
Mrs. Ortman reviewed the Supervisors Report for those present.
Disbursements July: $38,428.60 GF Savings $861,560.26
ARPA Funds $409,552.40 Spec. Dist./BPU $ 31,740.12
Cemetery Funds $42,492.81 Health Mgmt. $ 14,098.09
Capital Fund Checking $11,895.62 Capital Fund Sav. $ 70,605.62
Mr. Robbins asked if the Special District/BPU funds were amounts that we owed to the BPU.
Mrs. Miller said the town collects for connections to the water lines and those funds are retained for maintenance to the lines. She said that account also includes Special Light District and Sunrise Cove.
- MOTION # 128 OF 2021
MR. SENA MOTIONED TO ACCEPT THE REPORTS OF THE TOWN CLERK AND SUPERVISOR AS PRESENTED. MR. SENSKE SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 129 OF 2021
MR. SENA MOTIONED TO APPROVE THE GENERAL FUND VOUCHERS AS AUDITED AND REVIEWED EARLIER IN THE AMOUNT OF $20,514.31. MR. SENSKE SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 130 OF 2021
MR. PFEIL MOTIONED TO APPROVE THE HIGHWAY VOUCHERS AS AUDITED AND REVIEWED EARLIER IN THE AMOUNT OF $155,108.17. MR. SENA SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 131 OF 2021
MR. SENA MOTIONED TO APPROVE THE CAPITAL FUND VOUCHERS AS AUDITED AND REVIEWED EARLIER IN THE AMOUNT OF $875.60. MRS. ORTMAN SECONDED. YES (4): SENA, ORTMAN, SENSKE, PFEIL. NO (0). THE MOTION WAS CARRIED.
- MOTION # 132 OF 2021
ON A MOTION MADE BY MR. SENA, SECONDED BY MR. SENSKE AND NONE BEING OPPOSED, THE MEETING WAS ADJOURNED AT 7:55 PM.
Nancy Thomas
Town Clerk
