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May 25, 2006
Rush Town Board Minutes - 2006/05/24
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May 24, 2006
A regular meeting of the Rush Town Board was held on May 24, 2006 at the Rush Town Offices, 5977 East Henrietta Road and was called to order at 7:00 p.m.
Present:
Councilman Donald Knab
Councilman Thomas Doupe
Councilwoman Lisa Sluberski
Supervisor William Udicious
Absent:
Councilman Luther Keyes, excused
Others:
David Hou, Boylan and Brown
Charles Rinere, Fire Marshal
Gerald Kusse, Code Enforcement
Richard Anderson, 22 Harvest Lane
Jack Mould, Rush Lima Road
Ted Barnett & daughter, 117 Lyons Road
Donald Hill, Phelps Road
Fredric Calev, 2516 Rush Mendon Road
Jonathan Volpe, 33 Boulder Creek Drive
I Open Forum
Fredric Calev, 2516 Rush Mendon Road, asked if the Town Attorney had received a response from the attorney of the owner of 2500 Rush Mendon Road yet and if the Code Enforcement Officer had been allowed to make an inspection of the property. Further, Mr. Calev asked the status of the septic system installed on the property without a permit. Supervisor Udicious explained that in the matter of the septic system the Monroe County Health Department was the authorized agency that handles disposal systems and they were working on the problem. He also stated that when the Attorney for the Town reports to the Town Board with his findings that Mr. Calev will be informed of the result.
Jack Mould, 6542 Rush Lima Road, stated that he had given the Town Board copies of a suggested resolution that he felt the Town should direct to the Lima Town Board concerning the desire of Walmart to local a store in their town. His concern was for the increase in traffic that would impact the Town of Rush and pose a risk to its residents.
Ted Barnett, 117 Lyons Road and Donald Hill 620 Phelps Road also expressed their concern about Walmart’s expressed desire to locate in Lima.
Supervisor Udicious stated that since there was no common border with Lima and since there has not been a formal application requesting rezoning presented to the Lima Town Board, it is premature for the town to sent their comments to the Town of Lima. He explained that rezoning is a process that will take a number of months and that there are steps that must be followed by the Town and the applicant and that the Town of Rush needs more information before it would be appropriate to take a stand.
II Approval of Minutes
RESOLUTION #108
Supervisor Udicious moved that the minutes of the regular meeting of May 10, 2006 be approved as presented. Councilman Doupe seconded the motion.
Roll:
Councilman Knab aye
Councilman Doupe aye
Councilwoman Sluberski aye
Supervisor Udicious aye carried.
III Approval of Abstract
RESOLUTION #109
Councilman Knab moved BE IT RESOLVED, that having audited all the claims against the funds listed on the abstract, I move that all claims in the amount of $24,586.79 be allowed for vouchers #484 through #540. Councilman Doupe seconded the motion.
Roll:
Councilman Knab aye
Councilman Doupe aye
Councilwoman Sluberski aye
Supervisor Udicious aye carried.
IV Correspondence
1. Empire State Development Corp., May 12, 2006 re request for $100,000 from Community Capital Assistance Program for the purchase of property at 1911 Rush Scottsville Road, status of request.
V Reports of Officers and Committees
1. Town Board – Councilman Knab stated that the cause of the odor problem in the basement has been solved and repair is being made. Councilwoman Sluberski reported on the Zoning Board of Appeals meeting. Fire Marshal Rinere has submitted an article for the Newsletter on open burning and will have guidelines for fireworks also in the next edition.
VI New Business
1. Community Block Grant – Supervisor Udicious stated that he had received a letter from County Executive Maggie Brooks re: request for $10,000 for sidewalk between parking lot and new playground. Final approval will be received in late June with money available for project after August 1st.
2. Sign Code update – Councilman Doupe stated that he has met with the Supervisor and the Zoning Board Chairman and reviewed the changes that the ZBA would like to see in the update. Councilman Doupe stated that he will have a rough draft for the Town Board’s review in 3 to 4 weeks.
3. Engineer Report on the Works/Kavanaugh Road waterline extension – Supervisor Udicious stated that the Attorney for the Town had provided the petitioner John Streeter with the steps that were required for the extension of a water district. The Town has received an Engineers Report for this project from Mr. Streeter, which has been referred on to the Attorney for the Town. The next step will be determined by the completeness of this report and the Attorney’s direction.
4. Court Room Modifications – Supervisor Udicious stated that there were a number of court room modifications that had to be left out of the building renovation due to the cost. The court has provided a prioritized list of the items that may now be undertaken and Supervisor Udicious was asking for permission to have three of them completed. Millco Woodworking, who provided the interior trim for the
town hall renovation, has provided an itemized quote for the work to be done. It will not be necessary to bid this work due to the higher percentage of labor cost to material cost. The creation of a jury box, improved prisoner holding area and a fence with gates between the judge’s bench and the audience will cost approximately $15,347.00. The monies to cover this cost are in the contingency account.
RESOLUTION #110
Councilman Knab moved that the Supervisor be authorized to contract with Millco Woodworking for the construction and installation of a jury box, holding cell and fence between the bench and audience for a cost not to exceed $15,500.00. Drawings of the installations are to be provided for the town’s review prior to installation. Councilman Doupe seconded the motion.
Roll:
Councilman Knab aye
Councilman Doupe aye
Councilwoman Sluberski aye
Supervisor Udicious aye carried.
4. NIMS (National Incident Management System) – Councilman Doupe has volunteered to review the criteria provided and report back to the board how the various emergency response programs in place need to be modified or coordinated to provide the most efficient incident response system.
VII Open Forum
Jonathan Volpe, 33 Boulder Creek Drive, inquired about the increased cost of the after school program for the next school year and felt it was a very sizable increase. Supervisor Udicious explained that the board had reviewed the cost of the program with the cost to the town to provide it. A comparison report was provided by Councilwoman Sluberski with other similar programs in the area. A recommendation to increase fees was unanimously approved by the entire board. The program will be evaluated again next year to determine if revenues are meeting the costs. Supervisor Udicious stated that the program had not been priced correctly in the past and this resulted in large adjustment that the board felt needed to be made.
Executive Session
Councilman Knab made a motion to move into Executive Session to discuss pending litigation. Councilman Doupe seconded the motion and the board was all in agreement.
Time: 7:45 p.m.
The Board returned to regular session and adjourned the meeting by common consent.
Time: 8:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda G. Henry
Town Clerk
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Posted by gmadore at 11:52 AM
May 17, 2006
Rush Democratic Town Leader concerned about the future of Rush.
Dear Rush residents,
I am concerned about the Town of Rush. We presently have positive growth, which is good. At a recent Rush Town board meeting it was announced there was interest by a developer to build 4 – 6 hundred new homes in Rush. Others have been approached with similar offers. Look to Lima and the Walmart issue. We are at a critical stage; what will Rush look like in five years?
This leads to the question, do we have the will and ability to manage our future? So what do we do?
- Participate, pay attention and be proactive. Make a point to attend the various town meetings. Participatory democracy makes for stronger communities.
- I propose all voting and proposals for the School District be done during the May budget vote or fall general election which would maximize the potential turn out.
- It would benefit the residents of our town to have the Rush Town Website updated in a timely fashion with agenda’s, minutes, attendance and voting records for all town boards. For those without a computer, I encourage you to visit the town hall or the new Rush library to obtain information that impacts your community. This also means checking it regularly and discussing issues with friends and neighbors.
- The Rush Democratic Committee (rushdemocrats.org) purchased and donated the “American Farmland Trust Guide to Local Planning for Agriculture in New York” to the library. I encourage board members and Rush residents and farmers to review this guide. There is a wealth of information with tips for evaluating a town's attitude toward planning.
- Support the local farm and business owners in the town of Rush.
So how does this all tie together? It’s your money and your resolve.
Did you like your assessment? Do you know the issues? Let’s look at the money.
Your property assessment determines how much revenue is for the state. Are you aware that the local assessor works for the state but is hired by the town, yet the town has no control over the assessor’s numbers? Below are the tax numbers for a $150,000.00 home in Rush.
$3,043.00 (20.20%) school
$1,972.00 (13.15%) county
$637.00 (4.25%) town
$172.00 (1.15%) fire
What drives these numbers? One problem we have is COMIDA (County of Monroe Industrial Development Agency). Its stated goal is to level the playing field by offering tax breaks and incentives to encourage growth. On February 9th, 2006, Henrietta Town Supervisor James Breese was quoted in the Henrietta Post saying his constituents paid $504.00 extra in taxes from 2000-2004 to offset COMIDA. The organization Metro Justice claims that Monroe County schools forgave $11 million dollars in tax revenue and 593 jobs were not delivered. Small businesses are left high and dry while others get help at our expense. Why should COMIDA recipients not pay for education or deliver promises made?
Another factor is our participation. Last December only 5% of registered voters decided on a 20 million-dollar building renovation plan for the Rush-Henrietta schools. Whether you were for or against it, that’s a horrible turnout.
Development costs money. On average, developed property can cost a town in services needed $1.25 per dollar or more out of every tax dollar. Undeveloped can be as low as $.50 cents. These are realistic numbers from case studies all around Western New York.
An often-overlooked business is the working farm.
In 2004 New York State farms sold more than 3.6 billion dollars in farm products and spent nearly 2.8 billion on production expenses, much of which stayed in New York. I recently attended a public meeting in Lima featuring American Farmland Trust (farmland.org). Topics included Development rights, Agricultural districts, lot sizes as well as town strategies to manage all of this. This event attracted a large number of participants and the speaker discussed the facts and misconceptions about farming.
I believe all these issues interweave. Should we stop new construction? Should farm owners be penalized for selling land? These aren’t fair or practical measures. We do need to channel our energies into positive solutions to benefit the Rush I think most of us would like to see. Remember why we live and raise our families here and let’s enjoy the wonderful landscapes.
Thank you,
David Sluberski
Town Leader of the Rush Democratic Committee
dsluberski@rushdemocrats.org
http://www.rushdemocrats.org
(585) 533-1840
The Rush democratic committee always welcomes new participants.
Download .PDF version of this letter here.
Posted by gmadore at 11:36 AM
May 14, 2006
Introduction from Lisa Sluberski
Dear Rush Residents,
As a newly elected official I have been working very hard as your representative for the Town of Rush. I am the liaison to the Zoning Board as well as the Recreation Department. There are always important issues and I encourage everyone to participate in the democratic process. If you have any concerns please feel free to call me at 585-533-1840 or email lsluberski@earthlink.net.
Sincerely.
Lisa Sluberski
Posted by gmadore at 1:50 AM
May 12, 2006
Rush Town Board Minutes - 2006/05/10
Download full PDF of these notes.
May 10, 2006
A regular meeting of the Rush Town Board was held on May 10, 2006 at the Rush Town Offices, 5977 East Henrietta Road and was called to order at 7:00 p.m.
Present:
Councilman Donald Knab
Councilman Thomas Doupe
Councilwoman Lisa Sluberski
Supervisor William Udicious
Absent:
Councilman Luther Keyes, excused
Others:
Frank Pavia, Attorney for the Town of Rush
Charles Rinere, Fire Marshal
Gerald Kusse, Code Enforcement
Patricia Stephens, Recreation Supervisor
Fredric Calev, 2516 Rush Mendon Road
Pamela Vincent, Thunderidge Drive
Brianna Ryan, RHCSD
I Open Forum
Fredric Calev, 2516 Rush Mendon Road, stated he had received a flyer in the mail advertising the business next door and offering a variety of services that he considered as commercial. He also stated that the smells from the property make it difficult for him to open windows and he used as an example the burning of materials in a dumpster that is removed prior to the arrival of the code enforcement officer. He questioned how the town can allow this business to continue with the number of violations that are existing with that operation.
Supervisor Udicious stated that the matter is now before the Planning Board and would be resolved but perhaps not as quickly as Mr. Calev would wish. Any activity that is not legally allowed must be brought before the Planning Board with a request for a special permit, which may or may not be granted.
Attorney Pavia stated that the Planning Board has been asked by the Town Board to determine if the current operation at 2500 Rush Mendon Road is in excess of the scope of the approval granted by the Planning Board. A full inspection of the property and the structure by the code inspector needs to be made. Until full access to the
property is allowed, the code enforcement officer can not issue tickets for alleged violations. There has been no reply from Mr. Stevens attorney on the request for access.
II Approval of Minutes
RESOLUTION #105
Supervisor Udicious moved that the minutes of the regular meeting of April 26, 2006 be approved as presented. Councilman Knab seconded the motion.
Roll:
Councilman Knab aye
Councilman Doupe aye
Councilwoman Sluberski aye
Supervisor Udicious aye carried.
III Approval of Abstract
RESOLUTION #106
Councilman Knab moved BE IT RESOLVED, that having audited all the claims against the funds listed on the abstract, I moved that all claims in the amount of $37,708.68 be allowed for vouchers #446 through #482. Councilman Doupe seconded the motion.
Roll:
Councilman Knab aye
Councilman Doupe aye
Councilwoman Sluberski aye
Supervisor Udicious aye carried.
IV Correspondence
1. NYS DOT re requesting a meeting with interested parties to discuss the plans to replace the Route 15 bridge over the linear trail. Scheduled for May 16th.
2. Nancy Miller, Stonybrook Road re condition and future of the park on Stonybrook Road with recommendations
3. William Gaffney for Stevens Connor American Legion Post re Memorial Day parade
4. Memo from Recreation Supervisor re planned fishing derby
V Reports of Officers and Committees
1. Town Board – Councilman Knab reported that he has been working on the odor problem in the town hall and will be demolishing a wall in area of restrooms to investigate. Councilman Doupe reported that the Library Board of Trustees has two new members Mark Pilarski and Karen Fuller. He also stated that he has a meeting with Zoning Board chair Donald Van Lare to discuss the sign ordinance.
2. Town Clerk – Town Clerk Henry reported that Pitney Bowes has finally agreed to replace the faulty postage meter due to the number of services calls it has required.
3. Fire Marshal – Mr. Rinere reported that there had been a report of a brush fire on private land across from Industry. A call to the property owner revealed that she had received inaccurate information the rules for burning.
A letter will be issued to the property owner with the correction information and a warning that any future violation will result in a court appearance. It was suggested that the Fire Marshal submit an item for the upcoming Newsletter about the rules concerning burning and fire works. Mr. Rinere agreed.
VI Old Business
1. Employee manual – Supervisor Udicious suggested that a Workshop be held to discuss the revisions proposed for the employee manual based on the comments received. The Board agreed and Attorney Pavia asked that the revisions be passed through him prior to approval.
2. Recreation After school program – Councilwoman Sluberski has research the cost of three other programs in the area that offered after school care and each had a significantly higher cost for the 3.5 hour period that the after care covers. She recommended to the Town Board that the cost per hour for the 2006-7 year be raised to $2.50 for Rush children and $3.00 for non-Rush children. She also suggested that a reduction be provided for more than one child in the program and that payment be on a monthly basis rather than quarterly. These increase fees should cover the cost the program entirely based on 30 children per day. There was a lengthy discussion on the true costs of the program and the cost to the town not covered by fees. Councilmen Knab and Doupe did not support the recommendation to offer a reduced fee for a second child in the program. Councilwoman Sluberski stressed that she felt this was a very important benefit offered by the Rush program and should be offered to full time participants. Pamela Vincent spoke in support of keeping the program cost low to encourage people to use the after school services. Mrs. Stephens expressed her concern that with 16 slots opening in the fall that a significantly higher cost per child would not allow her to fill all the openings. She did understand the need to make the program more self supporting, however.
RESOLUTION #107
Councilman Knab moved that the recommendations of Councilwoman Sluberski to raise the cost per hour of after school care to $2.50 per hour for Rush children and $3.00 for non Rush children be adopted. There will be no discount offered for second or subsequent children in the program. The timing of payments to be made will be decided at a later date. Councilman Doupe seconded the motion.
Roll:
Councilman Knab aye
Councilman Doupe aye
Councilwoman Sluberski aye
Supervisor Udicious aye carried.
Councilman Knab moved that the meeting be adjourned.
Councilman Doupe seconded the motion and the board was all in agreement.
Time: 7:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda G Henry
Town Clerk
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Posted by gmadore at 11:25 AM
