14-B   COMMUNICATIONS

1.   Town Attorney re West Seneca Youth Hockey Association agreement

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Graber, to authorize the Supervisor to execute the West Seneca Youth Hockey Association agreement for the 2004-2005 season, noting that the fees will remain the same as last year.

14-B    COMMUNICATIONS

2.   Town Engineer re Union Road Lift Station Replacement Project, final change order & acceptance

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Graber, to approve final change order #1 for Nottingham Builders, Ltd., 2818 Harlem Road, Cheektowaga, NY 14225 for a net addition of $4943.90 and accept the Union Road Lift Station Replacement Project, Job No. U-0305, at a final contract amount of $140,398.90.

3.   Town Engineer re Purchase requiring Town Board approval

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to authorize payment of $3175 to National Vacuum Corporation for degreasing and cleaning the Warren Avenue lift station and two sanitary manholes.

4.   Highway Supt. re Bid date for purchase of trucks

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Graber, to set a bid date of November 10, 2004 at 10:00 A.M. for the purchase of vehicles for the Highway and Buildings & Grounds Department as follows: 1) medium duty dump truck; 2) stake body dump truck with lift gate; 3) one-ton flatbed pickup.

5.   Highway Supt. re Appointment of Dina Weixlmann as Secretary to Highway Superintendent

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Graber, to appoint Dina L. Weixlmann as Secretary to the Highway Superintendent effective October 25, 2004 at a salary of $30,686.98 per year and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.

6.   Highway Supt. re Termination of Joel Serafini as Sanitation Substitute

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to terminate Joel Serafini as Sanitation Substitute effective October 25, 2004 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.

7.   Highway Supt. re Appointment of Jarrod Trulin as Sanitation Substitute

Motion by Supervisor Clark, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to appoint Jarrod M. Trulin as Sanitation Substitute at a rate of $7.00 per hour effective October 25, 2004 and authorize the Supervisor to complete and sign the necessary forms for Erie County Personnel.

14-B    COMMUNICATIONS

8.   Chief Gehen re Attendance at Int’l. Assoc. of Chiefs of Police conference

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to authorize Chief Gehen to attend the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) conference in Los Angeles, California, November 13 – 17, 2004 at a cost not to exceed $1937.90.

9.   Building Inspector re Sign request of Mighty Taco

Motion by Councilman Osmanski, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to grant the request of Mighty Taco, 2884 Ridge Road, to erect two signs on adjacent property with one of them being an electrical lettering sign.

On the question, Councilman Osmanski stated that an existing sign was being reconditioned and moved to the edge of the property for better visibility. Also, there would be an entrance to the restaurant from Seneca Street and another sign would be located there.

14-C   REPORTS

ISSUES OF THE PUBLIC

PROPOSED SPORTS COMPLEX

Paula Minklei, 896 Orchard Park Road, referred to the earlier statements regarding the proposed sports complex and hoped that an agreement would be made public prior to being accepted by the Town Board and developer. She thought that the public should be entitled to input.

Councilman Osmanski stated that there was a lot of discussion concerning whether the Town Board wanted or would approve an agreement. This would be made public and they were looking for input from the public.

Don Grasso, 64 Lexington Green, was concerned about the town financing the project and did not believe there were any guarantees that the loan would be paid. He suggested that the Town Board do their research and find out exactly what the project entailed.

Supervisor Clark stated that the town would be receiving an agreement that allowed them to formally talk and engage in discussions with the developer. It would in no way bind the town to anything. Supervisor Clark noted that the Town Board members had not seen any detailed financial proposal yet, and until they did he thought it would be unfair for them to try to characterize how the town might be asked to financially participate. The project would have to meet certain criteria in his mind, such as if it was the right location, was it environmentally friendly, and was it an asset to the town and region. He would also want the participation of higher levels of government and other agencies.

ISSUES OF THE PUBLIC

PROPOSED SPORTS COMPLEX    (continued)

Roger Harris, 400 East & West Road, referred to a recent article in the West Seneca Bee stating that there were meetings with the developer, but no one from Slade Avenue was there. The residents of Slade Avenue did not want the facility on their street either. They were 24 residential homes surrounded by two banks, a hotel, Tops Market, K-Mart, a school, a small business and two entrances to the NYS Thruway. Mr. Harris noted that if the project were put on Clinton Street, it would only impact four small businesses and eight houses. The Slade Avenue residents felt that they had paid their dues long enough and suggested that the arena be moved to the Industrial Park.

Evelyn Hicks, 276 Seneca Creek Road, stated that she had attended the West Seneca Historical Society meeting in September and advised them of the proposed project and the meetings of the Concerned Citizens for Responsible Growth. Mrs. Hicks left her name and phone number, but no one contacted her for any information. The meetings of the Concerned Citizens for Responsible Growth were open and everyone was welcome to express their comments and opinions. Their meetings were held on Tuesday night at 7 P.M. at Union Fire Company.

Clarke Fulkerson, 29 Maplewood Avenue, commented that the Seneca Mall site was a busy retail entity for 20 years, but Clinton Street was more rural and the size of the development would have inevitably caused an enormous amount of traffic. He commented on the type of development that was important for the town to have a strong economy and improve the quality of life.

Roger Harris, 400 East & West Road, suggested that a traffic density survey be conducted on Slade Avenue and on Clinton Street.

Supervisor Clark responded that if the project was proposed, proper environmental studies would be part of it and that would include a traffic study.

Sandy Krawczyk, 2827 Clinton Street, thanked the Town Board members for meeting with the Concerned Citizens for Responsible Growth. She commented on the size of the project and suggested that the citizens of Slade Avenue get their forces together so their voices and ideas would be heard. If the project were to go to the former Seneca Mall area, Mrs. Krawczyk hoped that it would go in an area that was conducive to its size with the least repercussions to the neighborhood.

Cindy Malzan, 236 Old French Road, stated that the Concerned Citizens for Responsible Growth were for everyone, not just the Clinton Street residents and not just the ice rink project. She welcomed everyone to attend their meetings.

STATUS OF CAZENOVIA CREEK ICE CONTROL STRUCTURE

Joe Kirby, 5 Singer Drive, questioned the status of the Cazenovia Creek ice control structure project.

Town Attorney Tim Greenan advised that the US Army Corps of Engineers awarded the contract to the contractor who would be building the structure. There was a slight problem with the easement for the access road, but that issue was resolved and the contractor was hoping to get in there immediately and start constructing the road. Mr. Greenan had requested a schedule and a copy of the final contract but had not yet received anything.

Supervisor Clark stated that the town had done everything they could with regard to the project, but they started to lose some control over it after turning it over to New York State and the Army Corps of Engineers. They were trusting the other agencies to get the project in before winter if at all possible.

ISSUES OF THE PUBLIC

MASTER PLAN

Amy Carpenter, 406 Woodward Crescent, questioned if there would be meetings to discuss portions of the Master Plan.

Councilman Osmanski responded that the Master Plan was out for review. They did not put a timeframe on it other than they would like the review time to be two to three months. He thought that they might begin holding public hearings and accepting written comments in January 2005.

David Swift, 3089 Clinton Street, stated that when the Master Plan was first discussed, the representative from Wendel Duscherer had stated that there would be large maps. Mr. Swift understood that there would be one at Town Hall and one at the Library, but the maps were not available. The small maps available on the Internet were very difficult to read.

Councilman Osmanski stated that he would contact Wendel Duscherer and have some larger maps available for viewing by the public.

Councilman Graber further commented on the maps and stated that they were not as recent as he thought they should be. Some streets that were constructed six to seven years ago were still not on the maps.

Councilman Osmanski stated that he would find out why they did not use the most recent maps.

PRESENTATION OF COMMUNICATIONS BY BOARD MEMBERS AND DEPARTMENT HEADS

HYDRANT ADDITION ON RIDGE ROAD

Motion by Councilman Graber, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to approve an additional annual hydrant fee of $229.08 to Erie County Water Authority (ECWA) for addition of one hydrant and valve assembly at 2884 Ridge Road in West Seneca Fire District #6, noting that ECWA will install the hydrant and valve assembly at no cost to the town or developer.

ENERGY SAVINGS WITH NYSEG SOLUTIONS

Councilman Graber stated that last year the Utility Advisory Committee recommended that the town go with NYSEG Solutions to save on energy costs, and to date the town had saved $18,000. Recently they opened up large-scale blocks of power for certain customers and the town joined in on that program. Estimated savings were an additional $60,000 in electric costs within the next two years.

W.S. POLICE BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION CONTRACT APPROVED

Motion by Supervisor Clark, seconded by Councilman Hicks, to authorize the Supervisor to execute a collective bargaining agreement for a three year contract effective January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2006 containing the terms agreed upon with the West Seneca Police Benevolent Association (WSPBA) and with final drafting of the language contingent upon approval of the attorneys for the town and WSPBA.

PRESENTATION OF COMMUNICATIONS BY BOARD MEMBERS AND DEPARTMENT HEADS

W.S. POLICE BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION CONTRACT APPROVED    (continued)

On the question, Supervisor Clark stated that there was compulsory arbitration in New York State, so if the town dealt with the police and could not reach an agreement, everything would be submitted to an arbitrator hired by the state. The arbitrator would then tell both parties what the contract would be. Supervisor Clark commented on contracts awarded by arbitrators and noted that they were still extremely expensive and unrealistic for these economic times. The agreement reached with the WSPBA included 2¾ percent wage increases for 2004, three percent for 2005, and three percent for 2006. However, they were able to reach monumental givebacks with regard to health insurance. The potential was there to save $80,000 to $130,000 per year in health insurance costs. Supervisor Clark was not happy with the wage increases, but thought that they had more than made up for them through the reduction in health insurance costs.

SETTLEMENT WITH AMERICAN REFUEL

Supervisor Clark stated that four to five years ago the Town of West Seneca took some bold action when they thought they were being treated unfairly while negotiating with a company for solid waste. The town joined with other communities and filed a suit on this matter and they recently reached a favorable resolution.

Motion by Supervisor Clark, unanimous second, to enter into an agreement discontinuing the litigation against American Refuel and an agreement with the other municipalities concerning division of the proceeds.

On the question, Supervisor Clark stated that this action was before Judge Makowsky in the Supreme Court in Erie County. They could now clear the matter, move forward, and give some good results to neighboring communities who stuck with the town during the litigation. Supervisor Clark hoped that this would send a message to the corporate community that municipalities could not be taken advantage of, and they would be very actively pursuing the best deal possible for the taxpayers.

HUD PROJECTS

Supervisor Clark referred to a letter from Town Engineer George Montz regarding Wildwood Avenue. The town had performed a HUD sidewalk and tree replacement project on Wildwood Avenue about 20 years ago. The Engineering Department recently inspected the sidewalks and approaches on Wildwood Avenue and found that they were generally not bad except for a few offset slabs. Mr. Montz recommended that as a public relations gesture in this case only, the Highway Department remove some problem trees and replace the sidewalk in front of two or three residences that were especially bad. Another HUD sidewalk project was really not necessary at this time. Supervisor Clark suggested that this item be removed from the grant application and they concentrate on the other two HUD projects instead.

BUDGET MEETING SCHEDULED

Supervisor Clark noted that the budget meeting was scheduled for Wednesday, November 3, 2004 at 7:00 P.M. at the Town Hall.

PRESENTATION OF COMMUNICATIONS BY BOARD MEMBERS AND DEPARTMENT HEADS

MEMBER ITEM FOR EMERGENCY GENERATOR PURCHASE

Highway Supt. Pat Finnegan thanked County Legislator Tim Wroblewski for the member item money made available to purchase emergency generators for the signals.

Councilman Graber noted that part of the member item was $10,000 towards the gas light conversion.

UPDATE ON SENIOR CITIZENS RECREATION AND FITNESS FACILITY AREA

Town Attorney Tim Greenan updated the status of the proposal to create a recreation and fitness facility area at the Senior Citizens Center. The lower 5300 square foot portion of the building was not significantly used, and Mr. Greenan suggested to the senior citizens’ Board of Directors that this area be improved. The board was in agreement with proceeding with that subject to the Town Board’s approval. Two sources of funding for improvements were also identified. They would be applying for a Community Development Block Grant for $90,000 for the project along with funding from a New York State grant. A budget was put together and the project should be able to be done within the grant funds they were able to acquire.

Supervisor Clark stated that he would do his best in the competition for the grant money and try to persuade his fellow mayors and supervisors that this was a good project and should be supported. Supervisor Clark also commended Assemblyman Higgins who thought that he could come up with $100,000 in state funding for this project. If the project proceeded, some groups that used the Senior Citizens Center would be displaced. They tried to outplace the smaller groups by giving them some meeting rooms at the Kiwanis Youth Center, but some of the groups they would no longer be able to accommodate.

ADJOURNMENT

Motion by Supervisor Clark, seconded by Councilman Osmanski, to adjourn the meeting at 9:00 P.M.

PATRICIA C. WISNIEWSKI, RMC/CMC
TOWN CLERK