Meeting Minutes January 15, 2019

Northville Admin Comments are off Village Board Meeting Minutes

REGULAR MEETING – VILLAGE OF NORTHVILLE

Tuesday, January 15, 2019

The Village Board met Tuesday, January 15, 2019 at 7:00 PM at the village offices.

 

Present:            John Spaeth, Mayor

Steve Collins, Trustee

Sue Eckert, Trustee

                        John Markiewicz, Trustee

                                                Sue Sedon, Trustee

 

Wendy Reu, Village Clerk

Nathanial Matthews, Treasurer

 

Mayor Spaeth called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

 

            Motion to approve the minutes of the December 18, 2018 Regular Meeting was made by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Eckert, and passed by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

PUBLIC COMMENTS – Annette Richardson, along with Brenda Decker and Sadie Gander addressed the Board regarding offering their assistance to assist with the Doins and Parade in July. Mayor Spaeth indicated that he had received confirmation from the Civic Association that the ride company they had previously used went out of business and as such, they were not going to be doing the Doins or parade this year. He indicated Tom and Lisa said they would assist any group that stepped forward to do an event and that Tom Spencer was still looking at doing the fireworks. Mayor Spaeth continued by stating that at the recent CCC meeting, they discussed various organizations in the Village that might be willing to send a representative to a committee meeting to if a Doins Committee was formed. He asked the Board to consider whether the Village could be the official sponsor of the event and be the point of contact between the public and a Doins Committee. He indicated that the event would be covered under the Village insurance. The Board members agreed that there needed to be a Doins and it appeared that there were interested members of the public who would serve on the committee. Mayor Spaeth reported that SVAN had already scheduled an Elvis tribute band for Saturday, July 5th in the Waterfront Park so there would be entertainment. After continued discussion, Trustee Markiewicz made a motion for the Village to be the Official sponsor of the Doins/Parade and appointed Annette Richardson as the Chair of the Doins Committee. The motion was seconded by Trustee Sedon and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

Mrs. Richardson indicated that she would set up a meeting on January 23rd at 6:30 p.m. Village Clerk Reu indicated she would assist on the committee and obtain permission from the Town to use the Conference room for the meetings. Brad Buyce, also in attendance at the meeting asked if a press release was going to be sent out regarding the Doins and Mayor Spaeth indicated he had a meeting scheduled with the Marketing person.

REPORT OF COMMITTEES:

 

Streets – Trustee Collins read that DPW report provided by Highway Superintendent Dan Reidell.

Mayor Spaeth reported that the diesel pump is not working properly at the shared fuel depot. He indicated that one side of the double pump failed completely and that work had been performed on it by the servicing company in an attempt to fix the issue. He stated that the pump ultimately needs to be replaced and a new pump as been ordered. Mayor Spaeth stated that there is a shortfall in the amount of $ 3,300.00 to pay for the new pump. He indicated that Benson may be dropping out of the fuel depot participation and that a meeting was scheduled in February between all the parties to discuss how to proceed. In the interim, Mayor Spaeth reported that there is a credit card through Wex Fleet Services that municipalities can apply for that will allow them to purchase gas anywhere and be billed at state rate. After brief discussion, Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to apply for a Wex Fleet credit card for municipal fuel. The motion was seconded by Trustee Eckert and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

Water – It was reported that usage increased from 2,392,000 gallons in December 2017 to 3,180,000 this year. Water testing and operations were normal.

 

Fire – No report

 

Code Enforcement – The CEO’s filed his annual report with the Clerk. It was noted that 53 permits were generated in 2018.

 

Dog Control – No Report

 

Joint Youth – Nothing to report.

 

Marketing – No Report. Mayor Spaeth indicated he had contacted the Marketing director and had a meeting scheduled with her next week.

 

Park Use Requests – SVAN presented a park use request for the Summer Concert Series: July 6th, 13th, 20th, August 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th, along with a request for funding in the amount of $ 850.00. After discussion, Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to approve the park use request presented with SVAN, waiving the fee, and the funding request in the amount of $ 850.00. The motion was seconded by Trustee Sedon and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

Zoning Committee – It was reported that the Committee members will be receiving their final drafts shortly for review. Mayor Spaeth stated that it was anticipated that the Committee would be presenting the draft to the Board in March.

 

Tree Commission – No Report

 

TRANSFERS

 

Treasurer Matthews requested the following Transfers:

 

$28,750

From:   A9950.903      Cap Res. Fund – Street Equipment

To:       A9785.6          Installment Purchase – Principal

Reason- to cover first payment of Garbage Truck Lease

 

$675

From:   A9950.903      Cap Res. Fund – Street Equipment

To:       A9785.7          Installment Purchase – Interest

Reason- to cover first payment of Garbage Truck Lease

 

Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to approve the transfers as requested by Treasurer Matthews. The motion was seconded by Trustee Collins and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

PAYMENT OF BILLS

Bills to be paid from the General Fund in the amount of $ 47,102.65, from the Water Fund in the amount of $ 5,041.00, and from the Joint Youth fund in the amount of $ 250.00 were presented for payment. Motion to approve payment was made by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Collin, discussed, and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

OLD BUSINESS:  

Mayor Spaeth reported that the Town has sent the Intermunicipal Agreement for the shared garbage truck to their attorney for review. He indicated that the Town Board did approve paying for 50% of everything related to the new garbage truck.

 

            Mayor Spaeth reported he met with NYPA last week to discuss the paperwork process for starting the street light replacement program.   Mayor Spaeth indicated that the initial estimate he received from NYPA has increased to $ 133,000.00 to replace all the lights in the Village as National Grid requires two disconnects as a fail safe and that was not calculated in the original figures. He stated that the NYSERDA grant of $ 50,000.00 would be used toward the replacement. Mayor Spaeth stated he was working with Treasurer Matthews to find additional funding sources. He stated there was $ 31,000.00 in the HUD funds that could be allocated to the lighting project. Mayor Spaeth stated the base project without any decorative lighting was approximately $ 90,000.00. Mayor Spaeth indicated that several factors had to be considered such as illumination patterns, LED lights on decorative poles, etc. He stated that the price per pole was approximately $ 5,000.00 for pole, light, fixture and burying the wire underground. He stated that the 10-12 lights just on Bridge Street would cost approximately $ 50,000.00. Trustee Eckert stated that she felt we should narrow the decorative lighting to the commercial district and the remainder of the Board agreed. Mayor Spaeth stated that the lights in the park were not part of this project. He stated that they are owned by the Village and we could replace those heads with decorative heads in the future and upgrade them to include much needed surveillance cameras in the park. After continued discussion, Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to used the $ 31,000.00 in the HUD funds for the lighting project. The motion was seconded by Trustee Eckert and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

A request was received from the Rotary for additional Winterfest assistance. They were requesting that an area be coned off along the spillway to create a walkway to access the skating area on the lake rather than entering the area from the parking lot at the north end of the spillway due to open water areas. They also requested permission to operate a motorized “mule” on Village streets the day of the event to move supplies from one area to another.

Trustee Sedon asked why the UTV “mule” was necessary. Trustee Eckert asked who would be liable if they hit someone with the vehicle in the event that the Board gave them permission. As per the request to block part of the spillway to create a walkway, Trustee Eckert expressed concern that the area is narrow as it is for two-way traffic and she did not feel it was a good idea to further narrow it. After discussion, the Board came to the following conclusion:

They would not allow the Rotary to create a walkway across the spillway with cones but would provide them with cones to barricade off unsafe areas of the ice near open water.

They would not give approval for use of the UTV “mule” but they can’t stop them as they have no means of enforcement for the vehicle.

The Board requires a Hold Harmless Agreement that needs to be signed prior to the event.

 

Mayor Spaeth indicated that at a previous meeting, the Rotary requested a $ 500.00 donation from the Village. It was noted at the time that the Rotary was also requesting the same amount from the Town, which would have come from the Town wide fund that includes Village residents. The funding request was tabled to determine if the Town was donating from the Town wide fund. After review, it was determined that the Town was not approached by the Rotary for a donation. After a brief discussion, Trustee Sedon made a motion to donate $ 500.00 to the Rotary for Winterfest activities. The motion was seconded by Trustee Eckert and carried by voice vote as follows:

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                  0

Abstain:           0

 

Mayor Spaeth presented LOCAL LAW #1 OF 2019   Property Rental (final format) as follows:

 

            The Village of Northville recognizes the need to regulate rental properties. To achieve these stated goals, the Village Board creates a new chapter (86) titled Property Rental as follows

 

Chapter 86

Property Rental

 

 

86-1. Purpose; Enactment                                             86-4. Temporary Rental

86-2. Applicability                                                       86-5. Rental Property Registration

86-3. Definitions and Word Usage                     86-6. Enforcement and Penalties

 

 

86-1. Purpose; enactment

The purpose of this Local Law is to regulate the rental of homes within the Village of Northville. The Village recognizes that from time to time local residents have the need to rent their homes.

 

The Village recognizes that many of the properties that are currently being rented short term are in close proximity of existing residential property and that extensive short term rentals may cause disruption to the peace, quiet and enjoyment of residential members of the community and that some form of regulation is needed to prevent such disruption.

 

In addition, the Village of Northville hereby establishes a program for the enactment, enforcement, and administration for the purpose of periodic registration of all rental units within the boundaries of the Village of Northville. Landlords and rental property owners are therefore required to furnish emergency contact information and maintain an inventory of available rental housing units.

 

The Village Board of the Village of Northville, County of Fulton, State of New York, under the authority of the General Municipal Law and General Village Law, hereby ordains, enacts and publishes this chapter.

 

 

86-2. Applicability

This Law shall apply to all one, two or multi-family dwellings within the Village of Northville.

 

86-3: Definitions and word usage

 

  1. For the purpose of this chapter, certain words or phrases herein shall be interpreted as follows, except where the context clearly indicates the contrary. Words used in the singular include the plural, words used in the present tense include the future tense, the word person includes a corporation as well an individual and the word shall is always mandatory.

 

  1. For the purpose of this chapter, certain terms or words shall be interpreted as follows:Absentee Landlord – Any landlord whose primary residence is outside the designated boundaries of the Village of Northville as those boundaries may be defined at the time of regular, periodic property registration.Bed and Breakfast – An owner-occupied single dwelling unit in which at least one (1), but not more than four (4), sleeping rooms are provided by the owner-occupant as overnight/lodging facilities, with or without meals, for the accommodation of transient guests.Hotel – A facility offering transient lodging accommodations on a daily rate to the general public. It may provide additional services such as restaurants, meeting rooms, and recreational facilities. For purposes of this Law, this definition shall also apply to the term “INN.”Dwelling Unit – A building or portion thereof, providing complete housekeeping facilities for one (1) family.Immediate Family – The immediate family of the owner of a housing unit consists of the owner’s spouse, children, parents, grandparents, grandchildren or domestic partner.Landlord – Any property owner or designated agent who offers a housing unit for occupancy.Motel – A building or group of detached or connected buildings designed or used for providing transient sleeping accommodations where each accommodation unit maintains a separate outside entrance.

 

Rental Property – Any housing unit, commercial space, or units which are occupied by persons other than the owner or his immediate family, or for which a fee or compensation, monetary or otherwise, is received by the owner in exchange for such occupation.

 

Resident Agent – A representative of a property owner or landlord whose primary residence is within a 25 mile radius of the Village of Northville.

 

Temporary Rental – The rental of a permitted dwelling or dwelling unit to the transient, traveling or vacationing public for a term of less than 60 days with each new tenant being considered the start of a new term. For purposes of this Chapter the term “short term rental” includes SHORT-TERM RENTAL and VACATION RENTAL.

 

 

86-4. Temporary Rental

 

    1. The owner of a one, two or multi-family dwelling may rent the dwelling as a temporary rental subject to all terms and conditions of this and all other provisions of the Codes of the Village of Northville.
    3. If the residential premises contain two (2) bedrooms or less, the maximum number of persons allowed to occupy the premises during the period of rental may not exceed six (6) people for overnight occupancy.

 

    1. If the residential premises contain more than two (2) bedrooms, the maximum number of persons allowed to occupy the premises during the period of rental may not exceed twelve (12) people for overnight occupancy.

 

    1. It is the landlord’s as well as the renter(s) responsibility to ensure that the use and occupancy of a temporary rental premises is in compliance with the law of the Village of Northville and does not create undue or excessive noise or disturbance and that the same does not endanger the health, safety or welfare, or unreasonably interfere with the use and enjoyment of any person occupying neighboring properties. A formal written noise complaint from two or more property owners within 400 feet of the rental property, which has occurred between the hours of 9:00 pm and 8:00 am shall be considered as one method of documenting an excessive noise or disturbance condition.

 

    1. The premises are not to be rented for commercial purposes, or any other purpose not expressly permitted herein, such as concerts or weddings.

 

    1. All landlords offering a temporary rental must complete a registration form, and are required to pay a $25.00 registration fee per residence for each year they intend to offer temporary rentals. Such registration form shall be prepared by the Village Code Enforcement Officer and shall be approved by the Village Board. Village Board may from time to time modify the registration form and/or the registration fee by resolution of the Village Board.

 

    1. All motor vehicles, as defined by the Vehicle and Traffic Law of the State of New York, owned or operated by renters or guests shall be parked on the property being rented. No such vehicles shall be parked on a road for use by the general public.

 

    1. All rental agreements and advertisements shall clearly state the restrictions on parking and the number of occupants. In addition each renter shall be provided with a “Good Neighbor Brochure” as provided by the Village outlining all pertinent local regulations as well as what is expected of the renter with respect to noise, trash, parking and trespass on neighboring properties.

 

    1. Each short-term rental holder shall provide a 24/7 resident agent to deal immediately with all non-emergency issues, such as noise, trash and parking issues.

 

    1. Prior to the issuance of a permit each temporary rental shall be inspected for the installation and proper operation of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors as required by the Uniform Building Code of the State of New York.

 

    1. All landlords offering a temporary rental must comply with all applicable local, state and federal laws and tax requirements.

 

86-5. Rental Property registration

  1. All landlords must initially register with the Village of Northville on or before December 1st in the year this chapter becomes law. Upon adoption of this chapter, initial registration will begin as soon as practicable after this chapter is effective. It is the responsibility of the property owner to register any rental property or properties, and failure to do so constitute a violation of these regulations and is subject to the penalties set forth herein.
  3. All absentee landlords must have an emergency contact person (Resident Agent) for each rental property.
  5. Should the property change ownership at any time, the new owner of the registered dwelling shall re-register the dwelling within sixty (60) days of assuming ownership.
  7. Registration Procedures:Properties shall be registered on a form provided by the Village of Northville and signed by each owner or resident agent of the property being registered. The following documentation shall be provided by the owner or managing agent at the time of registration:
  1. Proof of ownership of the property: (copy of deed)
  2. Proof of residency of each owner
  3. A certification in a form acceptable to the Village Code Enforcement Officer by each property owner or managing agent attesting to the total number of persons legally allowed to occupy each rental property owned or managed by such person within the Village as of the date of registration; and or modified within this Code.

 

At the time of registration, all absentee landlords are required to designate a Resident Agent for service of process of a violation of this chapter. If that Resident Agent’s residence should be removed from the Village of Northville during the yearly registration period, another agent must be designated for the duration of that period. Service of an appearance ticket as defined by New York State Criminal Procedure Law upon said agent shall constitute good and sufficient service as if the landlord had been served themselves within the Village of Northville or Fulton County. No landlord who designates an agent pursuant to the provisions of this article may asset the defense of lack of notice or lack of in person jurisdiction based solely upon the service of process upon his designated Resident Agent. The failure to provide the name and address of an agent for service of process shall be a violation of this chapter punishable by a fine not to exceed two hundred and fifty dollars ($250.00).

 

The Village of Northville Code Enforcement Officer shall provide copies of all rental property registrations filed with the Village to the fire department servicing such properties by July 1st of every year.

 

It shall be unlawful for any landlord to offer any unit for rent or to allow any rental unit to be occupied without having first registered as a landlord as required herein within the time prescribed for such registration.

 

86-6. Enforcement and Penalties

  1. Penalties for any violation of Section 86-4 of this chapter shall be $250 per day for the first violation, $500 per day for the second violation and $750 per day for the third violation. In the event the Village receives 3 (substantiated) complaints, regarding unrelated violations occurring at a property within any consecutive 24 month period and the owner(s) of registered temporary rental premises are found to have violated any provision of this law, the Village of Northville Code Enforcement Officer shall have the discretionary authority to suspend or revoke the registration of any temporary rental premises where such violations have occurred.
  3. Penalties for any violation of this chapter shall be subject to the following, in addition to those imposed by other applicable code or ordinance including, without limitation Village of Northville Code, Zoning Laws, and the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
  4. Any persons, firm, or corporation who violates, disobeys, neglects, or refuses to comply with any of the terms of this chapter shall be guilty of a violation and be subject to one or more of the following remedies:
  1. A fine not to exceed two hundred and fifty dollars ($250.00) per offense
  2. A penalty of 250.00 to be recovered by the Village in a civil action,
  3. The Board of Trustees of the Village of Northville may also maintain an action or other proceeding in the name of the Village in a court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance of this law.Each week or part thereof that a violation continues shall be deemed a separate offense.

 

  1. The Code Enforcement Officer of the Village of Northville is hereby authorized to issue and serve appearance tickets with respect to violations of this local law.

 

86-7. Effective Date

 

In accordance with Village Law and Municipal Home Rule Law, this law shall be effective upon filing with the Office of the New York State Secretary of State.

 

After brief discussion, Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to approve Local Law #1 of 2019 – Property Rental, to schedule a Public Hearing on said Local Law, and to request a 239-M review be completed by the Fulton County Planning Department prior to the Public Hearing and complete the required SEQR for submission with the Local law. The motion was seconded by Trustee Sedon and carried by voice vote as follows:

 

Aye:                 Trustee Collins, Trustee Eckert, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon

Nay:                 0

Abstain:           0

 

The Board established that the Public Hearing for Local Law #1 of 2019 would be held on Tuesday, February 19, 2019 at 6:30 p.m. with the Regular meeting to follow.

 

NEW BUSINESS:

The Board established that there would be a Budget Workshop meeting on Monday, March 11, 2019 at 6:30 p.m.

 

CORRESPONDENCE:

Notice of an application for a liquor license for Sue Correll was received and filed with the Clerk.

 

ADJOURNMENT:

There being no further business before the Board, motion was made to adjourn by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Collins, and passed by voice vote with no one dissenting. The meeting was adjourned at 8:37 p.m.

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

 

Wendy L. Reu

Clerk