Board Discusses Whether Town Hall Needs a Comprehensive Inspection
by Thaddeus Flint
An unruly furnace at the Town Hall, possibly just one of several problems at the new building, could lead to expensive updates, it was heard at the April New Lebanon Town Board meeting.
[private]According to minutes of the April 11 meeting by Town Clerk Tistrya Houghtling, Supervisor Colleen Teal has “serious concerns” about the legality of a temporary fix of the furnace at the Town Hall. Teal would like to have the firm of CT Male Associates Engineering come and take a look at the entire building to see what other surprises might exist from the construction. At the February Town Board meeting, Teal noted that “numerous potential code violations” might exist in the building.
CT Male Associates has prepared a two part proposal to the Town. One component is a basic fire safety and property maintenance inspection at just the Town Hall addition. This would be $1,400. A full facility support services evaluation would be $5,200. Both evaluations would be $6,600.
According to the minutes, Supervisor Teal was “inclined to ask the Town Board to consider moving forward with the full inspection as it will allow us to evaluate the Town Hall addition and see what is lacking in any manner and make the appropriate plans to rectify it.”
Other Board members were, however, not so inclined to spend so much money.
Councilman Mark Baumli was of the opinion that paying for an engineer’s report on a problem when you can’t then use that report to go back to the contractor who created that problem was foolish. The warranty for the work is now long over. Baumli felt that building inspectors and Code Enforcement Officers could go through the building and identify problem areas at a much cheaper rate.
An interesting point one resident made at the February meeting, when the problems were first discussed, was how was it possible for a contractor to make construction errors in the very building the Town’s building inspector’s office was in and not have anyone notice it?
Councilman Chuck Geraldi was also against the expense of an engineer’s report. The problem has been identified. The simple solution is to bring in a mechanical contractor and fix the furnace. Councilman Kevin Smith, on the other hand, is satisfied with the repairs already done.
Funding of a new International Truck for the Highway Department was also discussed. The Town’s insurance company still has not yet provided the amount they will be paying for the previous truck, either the full $208,000 replacement or just $174,000. While an estimates for the new truck is now ready, the Board decided in a four to one vote, with only Councilman Smith against, to table the truck replacement purchase until April 26 so that a better idea of the exact funding might be known.
Every penny counts when it comes to the budget. A request by the Town’s judges to increase one member of the court staff’s pay by 15 cents was denied by a vote of four against the increase, and Councilman Smith abstaining. The general consensus was that pay increases should be done at budget time. Councilman Baumli felt that if the Board starts going about giving one employee a raise outside of budget time then another department might be troubled that one employee’s pay was increased and not another. The judges were asked to re-submit their request at budget time.
Another budget, this one for the schools in New Lebanon, was also discussed. New Lebanon Central School District Superintendent Leslie Whitcomb began the night with a presentation on the $11.6 million renovation project of the New Lebanon Jr/Sr High School and the Walter B. Howard Elementary School, which will be voted on May 16. Residents who would like to discuss the project further are invited to a community meeting on May 4 at 6:30 pm in the Walter B. Howard Elementary School library.
New Lebanon is looking toward a day when it will no longer allow junkyards within the Town. In a four to one vote, with Councilman Geraldi the only one against the idea, the Board voted for a motion to have the Town Attorney begin preparing legislation to repeal the current junkyard law in effect. According to Supervisor Teal, the Town hasn’t had a licensed junkyard in several years. This might come as some surprise to residents who drive past what most would agree are junk yards in some form or another every day. The key word here would be “licensed.”
Another vote, this one with all in favor, will allow the Nassau Co-ed Softball League to use Shatford Park as a second field when needed. The Board did stipulate that the League must give the Town three days notice of its intent to use the field. This way the Town could make sure that a rental of the pavilion in the park was not occurring at the same time.
Two other votes, also with all in favor, were made for appointments to the Planning Board and the Zoning Re-Write Committee. Elizabeth Brutsch was appointed to the Planning Board for the remainder of a 7 year term expiring in December of 2023, and Peg Munves of the Conservation Advisory Council was appointed to sit on the Zoning Re-Write Committee. [/private]