October 18, 2016 Minutes
REGULAR MEETING – VILLAGE OF NORTHVILLE
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
The Village Board met Tuesday, October 18, 2016 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
Excused:
Mayor Spaeth called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
Motion to approve the minutes of the September 20, 2016 Regular Meeting was made by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Sedon, and passed by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: Trustee Ginter (absent from meeting)
PUBLIC COMMENTS – Mayor Spaeth noted that there were several members of the public that were present and he asked if anyone present was in attendance to discuss a subject other than proposed senior housing. As everyone attending was there regarding the senior housing issue, Mayor Spaeth briefly addressed the proposed project with the public present. Mayor Spaeth explained that the senior housing project began as an effort to fill a need for senior housing in the Village. The Senior Task force had been working with developers but over the years it was determined that because of the demographics, the developers could not build enough units for it to be profitable for them and fill them with only seniors. He explained that a company called Pathstone approached the Task Force and proposed building 40 units that would be mixed units of senior and working class residents. He explained that their target area was Speculator to Mayfield and extending to Edinburg and Day. He stated that Pathstone had been looking at placing 24 units on Main Street, 8 units on First Street, and 8 units on Third Street. Mayor Spaeth reported that Pathstone failed to negotiate a sale with either of the two Main Street property owners they were in communication with. Mayor Spaeth stated they are still looking around for other parcels and that he has been working with the developer to try and get answers to the questions that the public may have. He did want to dispel rumors regarding refugees being housed in any of the units. With that, Mayor Spaeth opened the floor to the public.
Art Simmons asked if when the Task Force asked the Village for a sponsor if any funds were given. Mayor Spaeth indicated that the Village sponsored the Task Force on their grant application to try and obtain money for a planning study but there was no financial assistance to the Task Force by the Village. It was noted that the Task Force did not receive the grant they applied for.
Jerry Wildermuth asked why the State and subsidized housing was now involved. He asked why the Senior Task Force was not involved anymore. He stated that public housing was not what Northville needed and pointed to the City of Gloversville as an example of what can occur to the surrounding areas where these units would be located and the units themselves. He stated that property values would depreciate. Mayor Spaeth stated that per the information he received from Pathstone, they hire reputable management groups to manage their facilities. He stated they have a tight lease and the ability to evict and that the property would have a local manager.
Walter Johnson stated that Section 8 developments are dependent upon Section 8 funding from the government. He stated that Congress determines annually how much they will allocate toward subsidized housing. Mayor Spaeth stated that when the Pathstone project was first presented to him, he was told that it was not Section 8 housing. He stated that he did not become aware of that until the day this meeting when he pushed the developer for more information to provide to the public. He stated, at that time, he was informed that 14 of the 40 units are subsidized units.
Anna Johnson asked how we went from 12 units to 40 units. She stated that the Village is becoming more upscale and why not try to attract higher income residents. Mayor Spaeth stated that the number of units is based strictly on the economics for the developer.
Don Ferguson asked how the idea of senior housing started. Mayor Spaeth stated that the when the Senior Task Force was first formed and became a 501 C3, they looked at the need for elderly that couldn’t afford to stay in their homes yet wanted to stay in the community. He stated they conducted a survey approximately 10 years ago and the need for affordable housing for seniors was brought out in that survey.
Dennie Poulin stated that the Village can’t give away Village property unless they match the highest bid you can get. Mayor Spaeth stated he has been in contact with the attorney at NYCOM and is aware of the Federal Housing finance laws. He stated that based on legal opinion, under certain circumstance, the Village can direct sell to organizations if they meet criteria. He stated that another potential opportunity was the school purchasing it for a bus garage. He stated the Board has to decide what is best for the community at large if it has to go out for bid.
Tom Spencer stated he would purchase the property. He asked about potential environmental impact of the previous use of the property. Mayor Spaeth stated the Board would need to decide what was best for the community pertaining to future sale of the property. He stated that the fuel tanks were removed when the new fuel facility was built. He stated that no soil testing was done by the area of the former body shop on the property.
Linda Mosher asked what the zoning was for the First Street parcel that the Task Force owns. Mayor Spaeth stated that it was in an R-1 District. He stated that 6 years ago, the Board conducted a public hearing and amended the zoning to allow Senior Housing in the R-1 District.
Samantha Greenquist asked if there was a study done that said that we needed 40 units. Mayor Spaeth reported that the developer needs 40 units. There was not a study done that indicated we needed 40 units.
Bob Scott stated that public housing will detract from the Village. He stated we are turning in the wrong direction.
Bud Kolbe spoke and indicated that he had managed a Section 8 development. He stated he knows what the developer is telling the Village versus how it really is. He stated that the Section 8 department has the final say over who is allowed to rent the units. He stated that when they can’t meet their quotas, they will expand outside of their original target area. He stated he felt it was a difficult way to grow the Village.
Kathy Hathway stated she worked as a property manager also and she agreed with Mr. Kolbe. She stated that HUD subsidized projects draw tenants from wherever they can get them as long as they pass the criteria.
Chet Enders stated that he is aware that the Village can sell the Third Street property to anyone depending on terms and condition. He stated that if we sell to this developer, it will be Section 8 housing, which is low income housing.
Beth Junquera stated that she understands that there is a target area but legally you can’t stop or refuse people from other areas.
Walter Johnson stated that “rental assistance units” is just a clever financial term designed to make money for people who make money, meaning the developer.
Jerry Wildermuth asked how we went from the original 10 units to 40 units. Mayor Spaeth stated that it came about from the economics of the developer.
Mayor Spaeth explained to the group present that there are only two actions this Board can take regarding this proposed project. He stated they could not move forward with a proposed zoning amendment and they could choose not to sell the property to the developer. Both of these actions would have a negative impact on this proposed project.
Jane Ferguson asked why the Task Force hasn’t raised enough money in the last 10 years to get a private developer to build eight to ten units for senior housing. She stated that there were many other uses for the Third Street parcel. Mayor Spaeth stated that he was not asking this Board to take any action tonight on the Third Street property. He stated they needed time to step back and determine what steps they need to take to move forward.
Don Ferguson asked the Mayor if he felt there was a need for this project. Mayor Spaeth indicated that he felt there is a need for senior housing, not 24 units but definitely eight to ten units.
Dennie Poulin pointed out students with special needs cost the district a substantial amount of money. He stated that if the project was limited to just senior housing, there wouldn’t be that additional burden on the school district and taxpayers.
Anna Johnson stated that all she is hearing is negative things about this proposed project and she felt that allowing it to come into the community would downgrade the community.
Bob Ellsworth stated he felt Northville is a great place to live and it scares him to have a subsidized housing development in the village. He cautioned the Board that it was something that needed to be fully explored and stated that they had options to not change the zoning to allow the project and not sell the Village owned property to the developer.
Art Simmons stated he agreed with Mr. Ellsworth and asked the Board for their individual opinions on the project.
Trustee Ginter stated that people need to understand that the Board has no power to say yes or no to this project. He stated that if they put the project in an area where zoning already allows multifamily units, there is nothing that can be done to stop that. The Board does have the ability to change zoning in areas where multifamily units are not allowed but he cautioned that the Board has to be careful with spot zoning. Trustee Ginter stated that he appreciates the opinions he is hearing from the group at this meeting. He stated that he was not in favor of changing zoning, continuing by saying that zoning is here for this reason.
Trustee Ellsworth stated that she is a Village resident who lives on S. First Street near the area where one of these structures would be located. She stated she has the same concerns that are being voiced at this meeting. She indicated that the Third Street property was just cleared and the Board has been in discussion of what to do with the parcel. She stated that no decisions have been made at all. Trustee Ellsworth stated that with this new information regarding the proposed project, she doesn’t want to see zoning changes. She stated that the Board is not sponsoring some big project to bring in subsidized housing, rather that this is a project proposed by a developer.
Trustee Markiewicz stated he agreed with his fellow Board members and stated he could not support a project of this nature and would be against zoning changes.
Trustee Sedon stated that she agreed. She stated she lives in a Commercial district and would be against changing zoning to accommodate this project. She stated she has reservations about the project. She urged the group present to continue attending meetings where they can voice their concerns and keep informed of any developments on this project if it moves forward.
Mayor Spaeth stated that a zoning change to allow a project of this nature would affect every parcel in the R-1 District. He stated that he has spent countless hours to ensure that Board had as much information as possible regarding this project. He stated he has as many questions about the project as the group present does. He thanked the members of the public for their input.
REPORT OF COMMITTEES:
Police – Mayor Spaeth cited the statistics in the police report for September, which is on file. There were 41 complaints handled, seven of which were criminal. A total of 195 man-hours were expended.
Streets – Trustee Ginter reported that the crew had begun picking up leaves. He reported that they were also working on various projects around the Village and assisting with the renovations in the Clerk’s office.
Water – It was reported that usage decreased from 2,746,000 gallons in September 2015 to 2,573,000 this year. Water testing and operations were normal.
Fire – Fire Department Report for September 2016
| Village of Northville (4) | False Alarm 1
Standby for Edinburg 1 Smoke Detector Activation 1 |
| Town of Northampton (6) | Downed Powerline 1
MVA 2 Vehicle Fire 1 Tree on powerline 1 Carbon monoxide incident 1 |
| Mutual Aid Given (1)
Mutual Aid Received (4) |
Caroga Lake |
Total Man-hours reported were 114.29
Mayor Spaeth reported that it was determined that the fireman’s vacant lot was not insured by the Fireman’s Association. He stated that it has been added to the Village policy. Mayor Spaeth stated that now that the lot was covered by liability insurance, it would be plowed by the Village. After discussion, Trustee Ginter made a motion to have the Village plow the Fireman’s Association vacant lot. The motion was seconded by Trustee Markiewicz and carried by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
Code Enforcement – Mayor Spaeth reported three building permits were issued during October according to the Code Enforcement report on file.
Mayor Spaeth reported that CEO Edwards has received complaints about neglected properties. One complaint was regarding unmowed grass and rodents at the vacant parcel. CEO Edwards provided documentation from the International Property Maintenance Code to the Board in which excessive plant and weed growth is addressed. The document addressed that it is up to the municipality to determine the height of weed and plant growth that would be deemed as excessive. Trustee Ginter reported that the Town established 10” as the excessive height amount. The Board agreed to establish the same height as the Town. Mayor Spaeth indicated he would look into whether our current code established a penalty for a violation of this International Code and if not, we would need to amend our code.
Joint Youth – It was reported that there would be a Joint Youth sponsored Halloween event at the school on October 29th.
Comprehensive Plan – Trustee Markiewicz reported that the committee is continuing to review the final draft and anticipated presenting it to the Board in December.
Park Use Requests – Mayor Spaeth reported there were no use requests for review.
TRANSFERS:
Treasurer Matthews requested the following transfers:
$3,000.00
From: A5110.1 – Streets – Personal Services
To: A1620.1 – Buildings – Personal Services
$4,500.00
From: A1620.402 – Building – Repair/Maint.
To: A1620.2 – Buildings – Equipment
Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to approve the transfer as presented by Treasurer Matthews. 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
PAYMENT OF BILLS
Bills to be paid from the General Fund in the amount of $54,583.13 from the Water Fund in the amount of $3,123.44, from the Joint Youth Fund in the amount of $ 171.91, and from the Capital Reserve Water System Improvements in the amount of $ 11,192.00 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 demolition had been completed on the Third Street property. He stated that the chances are very good that we will have to do some soil remediation on the property prior to selling it. He indicated there are Brownfield Grants available for such purpose but we would need to move quickly as the deadline to apply for those grants is in December. Trustee Ginter asked if we would leave the property as is. Mayor Spaeth stated that if we were looking at pursuing selling to the school for a bus garage, the school might not be eligible to apply for Brownfield Grant funds. After continued discussion, Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to pursue testing at the Third Street property to assist with a potential Brownfield Grant application. 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 asked the Board what their feeling was about moving forward with a Main Street Planning Grant application. He explained that it would cost approximately $ 2,000 to have an application completed for a study grant. He explained that the study grant would assist the Village to determine what type of Planning Grant to further pursue. He indicated that the owner of the 5&10 Store was interested in applying for an Anchor Project Grant and that Johnson Family Farm and Bonnie’s Boutique, tenants in a Main Street building, were interested in applying for a Main Street Revitalization Grant. Trustee Ginter questioned whether the individuals interested in grant funding could put together their own application. He asked why we needed to spend tax dollars to identify these individuals if they are already interested. Trustee Ginter stated he felt the Village could sponsor these individuals at no cost if they prepared their own grant application. Trustee Sedon stated that if there was interest, those people should attend meetings and express their interest. She stated in the past, the Merchant’s Association held a meeting about grant funding opportunities and only two individuals showed up, none of which were the potential applications mentioned tonight. Trustee Ellsworth stated that she didn’t want to spend $ 2,000 dollars of taxpayer money and not have any interest. Trustee Sedon pointed out that the owners of the buildings have to have interest in the grant project because it is a 25% matching grant program. After continued discussion, the Board agreed to not pursue a Main Street Planning Grant.
NEW BUSINESS:
Mayor Spaeth reported to the Board that before moving forward with any sale of the Third Street property, the property would need to be declared as a non-necessity by the Board. Trustee Ginter made a motion to declare the Village owned Third Street parcel as a non-necessity to the Village. 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
A request was received from NCS to conduct their Halloween Parade on Monday, October 31st at 1:00 p.m. They requested that streets be blocked off along the parade route of Center, Main, Bridge, and Third Streets and that a police officer assist with the parade. Trustee Ellsworth made a motion to approve the parade request presented by NCS. The motion was seconded by Trustee Markiewicz and carried by voice vote as follows:
Aye: Trustee Ellsworth, Trustee Ginter, Trustee Markiewicz, Trustee Sedon
Nay: 0
Abstain: 0
Mayor Spaeth presented a proposed amendment to the Investment Policy that was adopted by the Board at the Organizational Meeting in April. The amendment added the following item: Brokerage CD not to exceed $ 250,000 per issuer. Trustee Ginter made a motion to amend the Investment Policy as indicated. 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
Mayor Spaeth presented a Discharge of Mortgage for a HUD on property formerly owned by Carol and Margaret Jewell at 411 Bridge Street. It was noted that the mortgage was for a 5 year forgiveness loan, which was obtained in 1995. Trustee Markiewicz made a motion to approve the Discharge of Mortgage for the former Jewell property. 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 presented a parking lot agreement renewal between the Timeless Tavern and the Village. It was noted that the agreement was the same as previous agreement that recently expired, with the only change pertaining to the business structure of the Timeless Tavern and Wood 88, LLC. After review, Trustee Ellsworth made a motion to renew the parking lot agreement with the Timeless Tavern as presented. 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
ADJOURNMENT:
There being no further business before the Board, motion was made to adjourn by Trustee Markiewicz, seconded by Trustee Sedon, and passed by voice vote with no one dissenting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. The next meeting is November 15, 2016.
Respectfully submitted,
Wendy Reu
Village Clerk
