Cheney Library Seeks Increased Support
by Alex Brooks
At the April 10 Meeting, Cheney Library Board member Emily Sanders spoke to the Hoosick Town Board about an initiative being undertaken by the Cheney Library to increase the annual tax levy that supports the library.[private]In 2001 voters in the Town of Hoosick approved an annual tax levy for the library of $45,000 which appears on the Town Tax bill. She said the Library is seeking to raise that amount to $95,000 per year, which is the Library’s current annual operating budget. Sanders said the annual stipend of $45,000 that the library receives has not been increased for 16 years, and during that time costs have continued to increase and gifts and donations have been declining. The result has been operating deficits, which have to be made up by taking money from the endowment that was left by Charles Cheney for the support of the Cheney Library. Sanders said each year they have been using somewhere between $10,000 and $20,000 from the endowment to make up the operating loss, but they won’t be able to do this forever, and they would rather not treat the endowment as a sinking fund. There is currently about $350,000 in the endowment.
Members of the Board asked Sanders what other revenue the library gets. She said they get $4,500 from Rensselaer County, and they get some gifts and donations and do fundraisers, but the total income is consistently less than total expenses. She said the Cheney Library currently ranks 26th among the 29 libraries in the Upper Hudson Library System in per-capita local support – it receives $7.21 per town resident, when the average for all the libraries in the Upper Hudson system is $25 per resident.
The Library will be seeking to raise its annual support by $50,000 per year, to a new figure of $95,000 per year. She said if this increase were approved, homeowners would pay $21 annually for each $25,000 of assessed value, instead of the $10 per $25,000 of assessed value that they are paying currently.
The Library Board is aiming to get a proposition on the ballot to increase the Library’s funding in the November 7 election in the fall of this year. To do that they need to get 210 signatures of voters who are registered in the Town of Hoosick. Sanders said they will soon be out asking voters to sign a petition to put the measure on the ballot.
HAYC3 Agreement Up For Renewal
Hoosick Supervisor Mark Surdam said the five year agreement between the Town and HAYC3 expires at the end of this year, so it is time to start negotiating a new agreement. He said Jenn Hyde had volunteered to serve along with himself on a committee to negotiate with HAYC3. Under the current agreement, the Town pays $2,000 a month rent for the space it occupies in the Armory, and it pays $10,000 annually to support HAYC3, and it provides $14,000 per year of support for Youth Center employees.
Supervisor’s Report
Surdam said he had heard from Honeywell, which has results from its testing of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in homes in the area of lower John Street, and is about to send letters to the homeowners whose homes were tested. Surdam said Honeywell will be setting up another public meeting in the next few weeks to talk about the results of its testing.
Surdam said he has completed the initial paperwork requested by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) to start the grant process for the ice rink refrigeration grant. He thanked Emily Sanders for helping him gather the information needed.
He said he and Sanders worked on the town’s response to the recent audit of the Town’s finances in 2015 and 2016. The draft audit has been given to the Town, but it is not final, so it has not been released to the public yet.
He also reviewed the Annual Update Document (AUD) for 2016 that Sanders had prepared before she sent it in. This document reviews how the budget compares with actual expenditures during the year.
Surdam also thanked Mayor Borge for his leadership and energy during his time as Mayor, and especially for all the work he put in dealing with the PFOA crisis.
Highway
Highway Superintendent Shiland said the new sweeper has arrived, and they have been sweeping the roads whenever weather conditions are favorable. He said he has not received any information yet on repair or replacement of the Cottrell Road Bridge.
The Board appointed Janet Deluca as the Pool Manager/Director for the upcoming season, and Tyler Rondeau as her assistant. It appointed Rachel Green as the Summer Camp Director, and Tyler Lindsey as her assistant. Katherine Danforth was appointed Swimming Lesson Coordinator. Surdam said training sessions are being scheduled for lifeguards, and applications are coming in.
The Board also approved becoming a member of the Northeast Ice Skating Managers Assn. at a cost of $150 with the thought that it would give the Town Board access to information and perhaps expert advice now that they are going to be operating a refrigerated ice rink.
In other news:
• Highway Superintendent William Shiland informed the Board that the Town playground had been vandalized. He said somebody had painted graffiti on some of the structures. The Hoosick Falls police are investigating.
• Supervisor Surdam informed the Board that LaBerge Group engineers have completed final plans for the bath house renovation at the pool and will be sending them over shortly for the Town Board to review. The Board plans to get these out to bid soon so that a contractor can be chosen and the job scheduled for construction in the fall.
• Councilman Sutton noted that Zach Taber is organizing a wrestling tournament for July 13-16 at the Town skating rink. He said this is a tournament that was formerly run by Mike LaPorte, which has attracted many competitors and been very successful.
• The Board congratulated Jeff Wysocki on his appointment to the Rensselaer County Legislature. Wysocki said he is working with Stan Brownell to get improvements made to the intersection of Routes 7 and 279, where there have been many accidents.
• Eric Sheffer said he would like to develop new channels for communication with the public through social media, but he said he needs to research it further before he can be more specific.
Upcoming Events
HAYC3 will hold a “Love Your Village” annual cleanup in partnership with Saint-Gobain on Saturday May 6, 9 am to 1 pm. HAYC3. Village-Wide Tag Sale will be held May 27. The 32nd Annual Wood Memorial 5K and Fun run, hosted by the Town of Hoosick Lions Club, will be May 20 starting at 9 am. [/private]