Stephentown Town Board Action – Emu Riding Shotgun

by David Flint
In an otherwise mundane Town Board meeting Monday evening people got a laugh out of the Stephentown Dog Control Officer’s report which included responding to a call of a wandering emu. This was the same big bird that caused a stir up in Berlin the same day, March 28. Lynne Burns said it was Rensselaer County 911 that called saying the long-legged critter was spotted on Route 22 between Stephentown and Berlin.
Burns knew right away it must have come from Sand Bank Road in Berlin because she knows people there who have such a bird. So although she is only a Dog Control Officer and not responsible for roving emus, Burns set out immediately to help with the roundup.  But by the time she arrived at Sand Bank Road, the owner, with help from passersby, had retrieved the emu. And there was the feathered wanderer coming back down Route 22 sitting up pretty as you please in the front seat of a compact car. Burns said the bird was no worse for wear except for a nick on its toe, and back home it was doing just fine.
In addition to the emu call, Burns’ report included three dogs running free, one stray dog, one alleged case of animal cruelty and one dead coyote on Southard Road.
Burns also asked for and received the OK to use the Town Garage for a Rabies Clinic for dogs and cats that she is planning for Sunday, May 16, from noon to 3 pm.
Provost Road Redux
Joel Hunt opened up the Provost Road controversy again. The Town Board, after heated discussions at every Board meeting for many months, had finally agreed in August 2003 to let then Highway

Two "One Way" signs and two "Do Not Enter" signs mark the Rt. 22 end of Provost Road, but traffic from Rt. 22 often enters the driveway at left which is the entrance to Neil Gardner's Self Storage facility and timber holding yard. Some fear this is an accident waiting to happen. (David Flint photo)

Superintendent Neil Gardner make the road one way from Route 43 to Route 22. Gardner had contended that the only other solution to the dust and maintenance problems would be to pave the road, but his cost estimate for that, questioned by some, was $100,000. After another year of discussion and two public hearings the Board passed a resolution in September 2004 to officially designate the road permanently as one way. The vote on this was 3-2 with Mike Angley, Tom Sherman and Craig Chittenden voting yes and Owen Cassavaugh and then Councilman Larry Eckhardt voting no. The discussions continued into 2005 with a number of requests from various people, including Fire Department officers, to return the road to two way traffic.
Now Hunt renewed the request that the Board consider reopening the road to two way traffic, saying he had seen five cars in the last two months backing down the hill after realizing they had turned onto a one-way road from Route 22. Others said they had seen traffic going the wrong way on the road, some turning off of Rt. 22 to enter the driveway to Neil Gardner’s Self-Storage site and timber holding yard. Cindy Rayman, proprietor of A Dog’s Best Friend boarding and training facility and the only resident on the road, agreed that people are going the wrong way but said that the signs on the Route 22 end of the road just need to be fixed. The one on the right, she said, is crooked and the one on the left is set back so that people think it refers to the driveway to Gardner’s storage facility. She also thought that GPS systems may not be showing the road as one way. Rayman asked for a weight limit to keep tractor trailer trucks and school buses off the road.
Eckhardt said the Board would reconsider the problem and entertain further discussion about possible solutions with the Highway Superintendent, Cindy Rayman and other residents. He wanted more input from residents, reminding them that Board members’ phone numbers are on the Town website.
New Road Grader
Town Supervisor Larry Eckhardt reported that bids for a new road grader had been opened at a special meeting on April 5 and the bid was awarded to Monroe Tractor for the price of $154,468, including trade-in and a five year extended warranty. He said the cost would be financed at 4.1% interest with three equal payments in May 2010, February 2011 and February 2012. It could, however be paid off early with no penalty if funds become available. Eckhardt said the Board did not want to draw down reserves too far, leaving the Town with no cushion.
Leasing The School Building
The Board passed a resolution authorizing the Supervisor to enter into a lease arrangement with the Berlin School District whereby the Town will have use of the former Stephentown Elementary School building for the coming summer youth program. The agreement has been reviewed by the Town’s attorney and the realtor, Win Morrison Realty, is aware that the agreement is in effect.
Muddy Water Fine Reduced
The Board passed another resolution authorizing the Supervisor to consent to an agreement with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) whereby a fine levied against the Town by DEC would be reduced by one half. Instead of $1,700, the Town will pay $850 for violating the terms of a permit that enabled the Town and County highway departments to make repairs to the Grange Hall Road bridge. Eckhardt said he and the Town’s attorney, Craig Crist, had met with DEC officials and argued that since the Town was required to fix the bridge by the State, the fine was not fair. DEC was adamant that there was a water quality violation, that a pump installed in a coffer dam to keep water away from curing concrete was supposed to dispense the water not directly back into the stream but rather through a filter area. They did, however, agree to reduce the fine and also agreed, at Eckhardt’s insistence, that in the future for any such job they would not just provide a piece of paper with instructions but would send someone out to assist with and supervise the work.
BAR Meeting Is May 24
The Board passed a third resolution, at Assessor Tom MacVeigh’s request, to establish the annual meeting of the Board of Assessment Review for Monday, May 24, from 2 to 4 pm and from 6 to 8 pm. The BAR normally meets on the fourth Tuesday in May.
Robinson Hollow Way
Eckhardt said he had received a certified letter from residents of Robinson Hollow Way requesting that the Town take over that road. Mary Lou Brown, who has a residence on that private road in North Stephentown, had appeared at the Town Board meeting in August asking about the possibility of the Town taking over maintenance of the road since the Board had recently approved the Town taking possession of nearby Nora Way, now called Nora Lane. She noted that both roads were part of the Boyer Estates development. Brown said the expectation when the development was formed was that the Town would assume jurisdiction over the roads but that never happened – until recently for Nora Way.
Eckhardt said he would acknowledge receipt of the letter and turn it over to Highway Superintendent Aldy Goodermote to investigate the propriety and feasibility of the Town taking over the road. But for the longer term he felt more discussion is needed on this topic and the Town’s policy needs to be reviewed concerning under what circumstances is it proper for the Town to take over “private driveways.”
Joel Hunt spoke up to say that everything needs to be spelled out specifically in Town planning documents. Developers, he said, will come and expect the Town to take possession and provide blacktop on their roads.  Brian Baker said the problem was that when the Nora and Robinson Hollow developments took place the Town had no rule for subdivisions at all. He sympathized with residents of Robinson Hollow Way because they pay taxes like anyone else but don’t get the same services that others get. But Joan MacVeigh noted that the road is so steep that there is no way the Town would take it over.
Eckhardt asked about policy in the current Town land use regulations. Code Enforcement Officer Dean Herrick said the NYS Fire Code required that roads meet the local fire department and rescue services needs.
It seems that Town policy is not really clear on this issue. Stephentown’s Land Subdivision Regulations specify that developers in their preliminary plat indicate “the width, location, grades, street profiles and construction specifications of all streets, roads or public ways proposed by the subdivider,” but cautions that “The approval by the Planning Board of a Final Plat shall not be deemed to constitute acceptance by the Town Board or require Town Maintenance of any street, road, way, easement facility, open space or recreation area shown on such Final Plat.”
Rensselaer Plateau
Eckhardt reported that he had attended an information and opinion gathering session at the Fire Hall put on by the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance. Since then he has received letters from Jim Bonesteel, President of the Alliance, and from other Town residents urging the Town to support the Alliance’s goals and DEC’s proposal to apply for the designation of a Forest Legacy Area. He asked Bonesteel, who was present, to speak to this issue. Bonesteel said the meeting at the Fire Hall was actually planned before DEC’s decision to apply for FLA designation. He noted, too, that the Rensselaer Plateau covers 105,000 acres in all or parts of ten towns, whereas the FLA would cover 196,000 acres in all or parts of twelve towns. The FLA designation, he said, would make the area eligible for federal funding for the state to purchase easements from willing landowners. It would give the landowners the flexibility to continue traditional uses of the forest lands, with no restrictions on non-participating landowners. If the FLA designation does not happen, people could still sell easements to the state.
Eckhardt wanted to know what value DEC places on support from municipalities. Bonesteel said DEC will send in their application in any case but he believed that support from the towns would carry significant weight. He noted that the public comment period has ended, but he believed that DEC would still accept letters from the towns.
Billy Hammersmith spoke up to voice his distrust of the FLA designation and other such plans for the Plateau. He said DEC had been after him to sell a piece of land on which he has allowed others to use a snowmobile trail. If one person should sell their recreation rights in an easement, he said, the State could and would shut down the entire trail to snowmobiles. Councilman PJ Roder, who is active in the Stephentown Trail Riders snowmobile club, said he disagreed with that statement and noted that any landowner can stop snowmobilers now from using trails on their land.
Eckhardt said the discussion just showed that more information is needed. The Board, he said, would take no action at this time. He just wanted everyone to be aware of what is being proposed. He suggested that the Town might hold public hearings or information sessions on this issue if deemed appropriate.
Transfer Station Credit Cards?
Eckhardt commended Stephentown residents for having the highest recycling rate in the state. The Transfer Station is working well, he said, but the Board was considering some changes to make it more self-sustaining. Right now, he said, Stephentown charges considerably less per bag of trash than other towns. Councilman Roder added that while Berlin runs its transfer station on a fund neutral basis using a ticket system, Stephentown runs a negative balance between $30,000 and $40,000. They said they were considering going to a “credit card” system that would eliminate the buying and selling of garbage bags and make for easy tracking. The card would be swiped for each bag of garbage dumped and residents could pay as needed to have credits replenished to the card.
The Board is also contemplating a departure from ERCSWMA to which they are now paying a $13,000 annual membership fee. Roder said, however, that ERCSWMA now has a new Director and they want to give him some time to see what he can do for the Town.
Deposits & Spending
The Town Clerk reported she had turned over to the Supervisor the sum of $480.53 for the month of March. The distribution from the Office of the State Comptroller, Justice Court Fund to the Town was $2,475. The Transfer Station deposited a total of $4,655. The Board audited and approved claims in the amount of $20,584.21 from the General Account and $17,021.91 from the Highway Account.
Eckhardt reported that the law suit from a driver who had an accident at the shut down Pease Road bridge, claiming his GPS said he could go that way, was settled out of court by the Town’s insurance company for $3,500. This disgusted several at the meeting.
The Board asked Highway Superintendent Goodermote to get a price for a road sign for East Road requested by a resident who says he will pay for it. The road is now designated only by the County route sign.
Dean Herrick reported that the project manager for the work at the Beacon Power frequency regulation site will visit him next week to talk about the next phase of construction. Brian Baker, asked about Beacon’s plans, said he understands that Beacon has hired upwards of 50 new people at their Tyngsboro plant and indications are that their “plan is to get up and going” on the Stephentown project.
The Board set their next workshop meeting for Monday, May 10, at 7 pm and the next regular Town Board meeting for Monday, May 17, at 7 pm.