Minutes February 21, 2017
REGULAR MEETING – VILLAGE OF NORTHVILLE
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
The Village Board met Tuesday, February 21, 2017 at 7:00 PM at the village offices.
Present: John Spaeth, Mayor
Debra Ellsworth, Trustee
Matthew Ginter, Trustee
John Markiewicz, Trustee
Sue Sedon, Trustee
Wendy Reu, Village Clerk, Recording Secretary
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 January 17, 2017 Regular Meeting was made by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Sedon, and passed by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
PUBLIC COMMENTS – No members of the public present requested addressing the Board.
REPORT OF COMMITTEES:
Streets – Trustee Ginter reported that the crew has been continuing to remove snow and have been performing maintenance on all the snow equipment. The crew worked at tearing down the ceiling in the Bradt building so new lights and sheetrock could go up.
Water – It was reported that usage increased from 2,652,000 gallons in January 2016 to 2,828,000 this year. Water testing and operations were normal.
Fire – Fire Department Report for January 2017
| Village of Northville (0) | |
| Town of Northampton (1) | Smoke detector activation 1 |
| Town of Edinburg (2) | Stand by at Edinburg 1
Snowmobile accident 1 |
| Town of Hope (1) | Structure fire 1 |
| Town of Benson (3) | Smoke detector activation 1
Tree down on lines 1 MVA 1 |
| Mutual Aid Given (3)
Mutual Aid Received (0) |
Total Man-hours reported were 178.96
It was noted that David Clairmont resigned from the Northville Fire Department on January 9, 2017.
Code Enforcement – There were no permits issued during January according to the Code Enforcement report on file. The reported indicated there were two inspections performed.
Joint Youth – It was reported that the Joint Youth Commission would be meeting on February 22nd.
Comprehensive Plan – Trustee Markiewicz reported that the Comprehensive Plan Committee conducted a Public Hearing on February 1, 2017 and a follow up meeting on February 15, 2017. It was noted that approximately 85 people attended the Public Hearing and 35 people attended the follow up meeting. Trustee Markiewicz reported that the Committee will meet again on March 28, 2017 at 7 p.m. at the Bradt Building where they will be discussing changes to be made to the draft Comprehensive Plan based on public input. Trustee Ellsworth and Trustee Sedon stated they attended both meetings and felt it was good for the public to gain insight as to why we need an updated comprehensive plan. Trustee Markiewicz stated he felt the public didn’t understand at first what a comprehensive plan was but he feels they have a better idea now.
PAYMENT OF BILLS
Bills to be paid from the General Fund in the amount of $ 54,187.27, from the Water Fund in the amount of $ 11,894.11 were presented for payment. Motion to approve payment was made by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Ellsworth, discussed, and carried by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
OLD BUSINESS:
Mayor Spaeth reported that the draft Tree Ordinance that the Tree Commission members had compiled last fall was received back from the Village Attorney. A copy was provided for the Board to review and it was indicated there were only minor changes made to satisfy legal requirements. After discussion, the Tree Ordinance was tabled to the March meeting to give the Board time to review the document in its entirety.
Mayor Spaeth presented a revised Marketing contract for the Board to review. He indicated that as the Town no longer wanted to participate in the contract, the Village could either pare the contract down to accommodate the $ 5,000 budgeted for marketing or look to increase the contract amount. The Board discussed changes they would like to see in the contract. Art Simmons, Town Councilman in the audience, asked to speak about the Merchant’s Association booth that was being discussed regarding maintenance of materials available for the public. He stated that the booth was built with money from ten businesses in the Northville, Northampton, Edinburg, and Benson area and that the Merchants are supposed to be managing it but the group is no longer active as he understood it. Trustee Sedon stated there is a group of active merchants that continue to pay their dues. After continued discussion, the Board agreed that the position, as detailed, could be put out for bid to see if there were any interest expressed in it.
NEW BUSINESS:
Mayor Spaeth reported that there is a Smart Growth Grant cycle approaching that could benefit the Village regarding future Zoning changes. He explained that with or without an updated Comprehensive Plan, our zoning codes would need to be updated as they have not been reevaluated since the mid-1990s. After continued discussion, Trustee Ginter made a motion to move forward with a Smart Growth Grant application for zoning changes. The motion was seconded by Trustee Sedon and carried by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
Mayor Spaeth reported that a business property owner in the Village is interested in applying for an Anchor Project Grant. He stated that the individual is working with the CRG. He explained that the Village would have to apply for the individual and that the Village could draft an agreement with the individual that acknowledges responsibility for reimbursement to the Village for any costs associated with writing the grant. After continued discussion, the Board agreed to pursue the opportunity for the business property owner.
The Clerk reported to the Board that there were several Records Management Grant opportunities available for shared services. She stated that the Code Enforcement Officers for both municipalities and the Assessor would like to consolidate their records under parcel SBL numbers (Section, Block, and Lot) which would facilitate future searches on property records. After discussion, the Board felt it was appropriate to try to obtain grant funding for Records Management.
At 8:20 p.m., Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to enter into Executive Session to discuss a legal issue. The motion was seconded by Trustee Ellsworth and carried by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
At 8:45 p.m., Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to reopen the meeting to Regular Session. The motion was seconded by Trustee Ellsworth and carried by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
It was reported that no action was taken during Executive Session.
ADJOURNMENT:
There being no further business before the Board, motion was made to adjourn by Trustee Ellsworth, seconded by Trustee Sedon, and passed by voice vote with no one dissenting. The meeting was adjourned at 8:46 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Wendy Reu
Village Clerk
