Minutes

City of Beacon Council Meeting

July 21, 2008

REGULAR MEETING

The regular meeting of the City of Beacon Council held at the Municipal Center, One Municipal Plaza on 7:00 p.m. was called to order by Mayor Steve Gold with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.

Council Members In Attendance: Mayor Steve Gold, Deanna Leake, Sara Pasti, Charles Kelly, Eleanor Thompson, Marlene Fredericks and Randy Casale.

Also in attendance were: City Administrator, Meredith Robson

City Attorney Richard Wolf

Media Represented by: Goldee Greene, Beacon Free Press

Residents at beginning of Meeting: 30

Mayors Comments to Address Concerns Brought Forward to the Council from Previous Council Meeting:

The following are some responses from the City to statements and comments made at the public sections of our July 7^th City Council meeting.

Mayor Steve Gold: I just want to mention this. We always like to hear what you have to say. However, if you have a problem, the best way for you to handle it is to contact City Hall and speak to our administrator Meredith Robson or contact me, the mayor and we can try to work your problem out. The council meetings run twice a month and you might have to wait two weeks before your problem is heard. It might be something that we can respond to quickly. It is really advised to do that. However, we appreciate your coming and expressing your comments so the council can know what some of the problems are and better serve you.

I have a few comments to make about the comments that we had from the July 7, 2008 Council Meeting. Because the council is not permitted by our guidelines to respond to what the public says and sometimes it becomes too much of a debate if I respond to what the public says. The way I am handling it is that I will read my responses at the following meeting.

Several Comments:

One person stated that the city does not have any codes referring to the use of 249 as mental health clinics and that we should have been ready for this.

Regarding the zoning question, the use of 249 for mental health services conforms to our current allowable use of professional offices. This use for mental health services has been accepted for years and is correct.

Someone stated that they did not want to have to send their children to the library with bodyguards.

Since the intended use of 249 is not any different than the use these same organizations are conducting now on Main Street, and in view of the statement made by the Chief of Police that there are very few times when officers are dispatched to resolve problems with both organizations, there appears to be no reason why Main Street will be affected by the move of the two organizations. There are plans by one mental health group to start a methadone program but that is not for 3-4 years, as stated by their director.

Regarding 249 in general, I am working to help facilitate a move for the three organizations that have signed leases, to move to another location off Main Street. I am also talking with the property owner about finding new tenants. As a backup plan, I am discussing with the landlord ways to reconfigure the space so the entrance will be in the parking lot and to create a tree and bush landscaped plaza also in the parking lot for people to wait outside, off Main Street. Another idea is to place a mural on the front of the building that pictures a map of Main Street. That will help use the building to flow people from the west to the east end of Main Street.

Michael Benzer, 162 Main Street talked about the County helping to get the community college to locate a campus at the old Beacon High School.

Mike, last spring County Legislator John Forman and I met with Dr. D. David Conklin, President of the Dutchess Community College regarding a campus at the old Beacon HS. His reply is that the Board has discussed this and they declined the option because they are concentrating their resources at the southern campus in the Town of Wappinger behind the Hannaford’s.

Kathy Deutermann, 27 South Brett Street: said it is extremely important that we get a fee schedule for the University Settlement Camp. We have to look at the fee schedule and not what they do for a living. Because it is not for profit, it does not mean that they do not have funds.

Cathy, the Administration has created a fee schedule that was used for the 2008 season. It was based on standards rates throughout the county, and then discounted for not-for-profits organizations. The Council will be reviewing it as a basis for our 2009 schedule of fees. While not-for-profits raise funds for operating costs, they rely on reduced fees to keep the burden of voluntary contributions to a minimum. This is especially true for small Dutchess County organizations.

Jerry Landisi raised the question of whether 249 Main Street will be required to pay property tax since not-for-profit organizations will be utilizing the space. I checked with our Assessor, Kathleen Martin. The building at 249 Main Street will pay property tax and be subject to the same property tax laws as any profitable corporation. This is because the owner of the building is a for-profit corporation.

Mr. Landisi also stated his confusion that the City is not allowing the public to use the University Settlement Camp but it is okay for camps. The reason the City will not open the USC to the public is because there are many bungalows on the property that are not secured from unauthorized entrance. As such, the City would have to pay for someone to walk through the camp every night to remove anyone who illegally entered the bungalows. The summer camps that have been given permission to use the USC are supervised. The children are all accounted for both during activities and at dismissal time. The Council will be discussing the cost to board up all of the buildings at a later workshop.

Mr. Landisi also referred to signs at Hiddenbrooke that say, "no hunting, no fishing, no trespassing." The City will be reviewing all signage at Hiddenbrooke throughout the year. It was our intention to open the park to the public for the 2008 summer season even though there are several issues that need to be resolved.

Mr. Landisi also asked if there is going to be bus shelters by DIA and the Railroad Station? We do not have a schedule of when the trolley or the bus runs from that train station. This is the city's responsibility to do this. These are good suggestions and the City will look into them.

Public Comments: Pertaining to any item. Maximum time for this section is 30 minutes. Maximum time for individual public comment is 3 minutes.

Dennis Pavelock, 34 Judson Street: I am here tonight to make a proposal to the city council in regards to people who have made our city good and great. I am here to request that have a street named after Mayor Clara Lou Gould in her honor. I am in support of a building for this. The trees on Main Street have a little plaque at the base of the tree. I brought this up to the former city administrator that the plaques are fading and you can't see the names any more and they need to get new plaques. I hope you bring it to a workshop and discuss this. I hope that we can get this done before this year is over with.

Clark Gebman: In the past I have asked for the EAF file back in the City of Beacon as it relates to the Hiddenbrooke Purchase and despite the waiting for a year for one, apparently we have one that was produced by the City of Beacon with a signature of Joe Braun and the planner. The EAF was not completed it was blank largely across the board. It is a document that had no value. Your office needs to come to a conclusion as to my allegation that the property was an illegal purchase. Apart from my own self-interest, I wanted to take a minute out and respond to what I think is a very difficult challenging premise as presented to me by a member of the council. I would like to be allowed to build affordable housing.

Betty DiPompo, 6 Pierce Place: I have spoken to many seniors who have approached me on the tax increase and as I understand it, you are working on a payment plan for those that don't meet the $25,000.00. Please put it on the workshop so that we can notify the seniors in Beacon of a payment plan because they are a little nervous with the price of gas, heating their home, buying their food, and trying to stay in their house. Please put it on the agenda. I did talk to the city administrator about the tax increase. Many people are asking me, "Betty, what is the tax increase going to be." No one knows yet. Please try to find out because people are getting upset at the City of Beacon because they won't be able to stay in their homes. Thank you.

Mayor Steve Gold: We won't know what the tax increase will be until December. That is done when we do our Budget. What we have been working on is what is called the Capital Plan. That will be part of it but we will have to spend our money on but not everything. We are working on that and we have worked on that at the last workshop. Notes on that are published on the public website. Some of the decisions that we have made are posted on the city's website.

Betty DiPompo: Okay, I will tell the people that ask me that they will have to wait until December. I also want to bring up the parking meters on Main Street that are going back in. The people do not want the meters. They feel that you go to one part of town you have to put money in, then you go to another part of town, you have to put money in again. It is really going to hurt the businesses in Beacon. Please consider that. Thank you.

Hank Dutch: Regarding 249 Main Street, is there any truth that these permits had expired as far as it pertains to Mental Health use of that property? The next thing is that we were talking about trees last year, and I notice that the trees on Main Street between Veterans Place and Teller Avenue are really dead on the south side of the street. They need to be cut down. The third topic that I have is Spring Valley Street. We are concerned and aggravated that we are not going to do Spring Valley Street this year. We understand that there is a financial problem. What we are wondering, is there any kind of assurance that we can get that will get us off the wish list onto the agenda to get that work done next year? Can we modify the scope of the work rather than going the whole nine yards? Maybe we can just do the sewage/drainage that we need to keep the sewage out of Fishkill Creek. We can save a lot of money if we can cut back on the scope of the work. I would like to get some assurances for next year if that is at all possible.

Josh Riccobono, Beacon Resident: I am proud to introduce Nicole Morra who is opening up a floral shop in town at 528 Main Street. This arrangement was actually in a raffle, which Council Member Randy Casale had actually won so we wanted to present him with a floral arrangement. Her shop is called See The Fruit. Feel free to come by. Her hours are between 1:00 pm and 6:00 pm, Thursday to Saturday.

Hattie Hess: I have one problem since I have lived here. I have been here for twenty-five years. I'm here to discuss the fence that is behind public parking next to pleasant ridge. I would appreciate it if people would stop reaching over and taking things from our back yard. The fence is totally destroyed. I would appreciate it if the town could do something about it in the near future. There is vandalism and cats are making their homes back there and it is a real nuisance for me. I have not said anything for years but since you are fixing Beacon up, I thought I would bring it up too.

No further comments.

Public Hearings: None.

Community Segment:

Guest Speaker: Kathy Deutermann – National Night Out

For those who do not know me, I am Kathy Deutermann and I am the President of the Community Watch Program. At this time last year, we had quite a bit of trouble on our streets. At that point we decided that it was time to take our neighborhood back. To address this young lady, "no we are not neighborhood watch. We do not go in orange vests with walkie- talkies. We are community watch. We are aware of our surroundings and make our surroundings safe. You train your eye to look for the small details. You do tell what you see. We cannot stop crime unless we tell the police who cannot be around twenty-four hours a day. It is our job as citizens to aid in that. We do not advocate anyone going out to try to apprehend anyone. The problems in Beacon have been youth oriented. When we first band together and became a group, we decided that maybe there is not enough for children to be doing in this city. We have joined forces with the Beacon Youth Service and other agencies. One of the things that we have done is to sponsor the "National Night Out." This is a nationwide movement. It is celebrated every year on the first Tuesday of August. This year it is August 5. I am proud to say that Beacon is the only community in Dutchess County that is participating. It gives us a chance to live up to our name and show people how to do things right. We are joining 14,000 other communities and 35,000,000 people that night. It is billed as America's Night Against Crime and its slogan is "Let's give Crime and Drugs a Going Away Party." And that is what we plan to do with a party in the park. We are dedicated that day and that night to the youth of Beacon. We will have free refreshments, entertainment, and many fun things to do.

Mayor Steve Gold: Read and Presented Kathy Deutermann with a Proclamation for National Night Out.

Whereas, the National Association of Town Watch (NATW) and Target are sponsoring an unique nationwide crime, drug and violence prevention program on August 5, 2008, entitled “National Night Out;” and

Whereas, the “25^th Annual National Night Out” provides an unique opportunity for Beacon to join forces with thousands of other communities across the country in promoting cooperative, police-community crime prevention efforts; and

Whereas, the South Brett Street Neighborhood Watch Program plays a vital role in assisting the Beacon Police Department through joint crime, drug, and violence prevention efforts in Beacon and is supporting “National Night Out 2008” locally; and

Whereas, it is essential that all citizens of Beacon be aware of the importance of crime prevention programs and impact that their participation can have on reducing crime, drugs and violence in Beacon; and

Whereas, police-community partnerships, neighborhood safety, awareness and cooperation are important themes of the “National Night Out” program;

Now, therefore I, Mayor Steve K. Gold, do hereby call upon all citizens of Beacon to join the South Brett Street Neighborhood Watch Program, the National Association of Town Watch and Target in supporting the “25^th Annual National Night Out” on August 5, 2008.

Further, let it be resolved that I, Mayor Steve K. Gold, do hereby proclaim Tuesday, August 5, 2008, as “National Night Out” in Beacon.

Approval of Minutes: Council Meeting Minutes for the following:

Council Meeting - June 16, 2008

Motion to approve minutes as written: Council Member Thompson. Seconded: Council Member Fredericks. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

Special Council Meeting - June 23, 2008

Motion to approve minutes as written: Council Member Leake. Seconded: Council Member Thompson. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

Council Meeting - July 7, 2008

Motion to approve minutes as written: Council Member Fredericks. Seconded: Council Member Casale. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

Reports: Text for the July 21, 2008 Reports of Activities is at the end of these minutes.

Mayor's Communications read by Mayor Steve Gold.

City Administrator Meredith Robson's read her Report of Activities

City Attorney – First Meeting of the Month

Council members read their Reports of Activities

Mayor Steve Gold read his Report of Activities

County Legislator Reports

Public Comments: Pertaining to This Agenda Only - None

UNFINISHED BUSINESS –

Resolutions: None

Local Laws And Ordinances: None

NEW BUSINESS

Resolutions:

1. Resolution No. 104 of 2008 - Special Use Permit – 1258 North Avenue – Applicant Jose Henao – For an Accessory Apartment at 1258 North Avenue. Set Public Hearing for Monday, August 4, 2008.

Motion to set Public Hearing for August 4, 2008: Council Member Thompson. Seconded: Council Member Pasti. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

2. Resolution No. 105 of 2008 to Authorize City Administrator to Sign Agreement with Adventura Holdings, LLC to provide Bus Shelters and Advertising Services in the City of Beacon.

WHEREAS, the City Council has received and reviewed a contract from Adventura Holdings LLC (“Adventura”) to provide bus shelters in the City of Beacon, and

WHEREAS, the City will receive compensation from proceeds from advertising placed on the bus shelters, and

WHEREAS, providing the bus shelters enhances the safety and health of those using buses in the City, and

WHEREAS, the terms of the contract with Adventura are beneficial to the City and its residents, and

WHEREAS, the action of the City in entering the contract with Adventura is a Type II action exempt from review under the State Environmental Quality Review Act,

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the City Administrator is authorized to sign the agreement with Adventura Holdings LLC for the provision of the above-described bus shelters and services.

Mayor Steve Gold: What this refers to is that there is an organization with the idea of putting bus shelters in Beacon at no cost to the city and what they would do in exchange is give the city some revenue for the advertising that is done on these bus shelters. Many people for a long time have wanted to see bus shelters throughout Beacon. The County has not had bus shelters even though we asked for them many times. This is actually a way of getting them as well as revenues. The contract is such that we can ask them to be removed in 30 days if we are not satisfied. They clean up on graffiti very quickly if that occurs.

Attorney Wolf: Before the council suggests or discusses this, it has been suggested to me that a few minor additions in the conditions made and I wanted to point that out to you. Attorney Wolf went on to explain each minor change that was suggested. (Changes had already been made by Mayor’s office in the agreement that was approved)

Mayor Steve Gold: I want to thank the Meredith and the council for those additions. They seem to be appropriate.

Motion to authorize City Administrator to sign agreement as amended: Council Member Thompson. Seconded: Council Member Kelly. On roll call, all voted in favor. Motion carried.

*Mayor Gold suggested that item #6 be addressed next since it relates to the same subject. (See No. 6)

3. Resolution No. 106A of 2008 - Add to Agenda: Authorize Mayor Request Chairman Of The Dutchess County Legislature, At His Earliest Possible Convenience, To Convene A Meeting Of The Public Safety Committee Of The Dutchess County Legislature For The Purpose Of Considering And Drafting A Local Law Regarding Selling Scrap Metal.

Motion to add to agenda: Council Member Casale. Seconded: Council Member Pasti. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

4. Resolution No. 106B of 2008 - Authorize Mayor to Request Chairman Of The Dutchess County Legislature, At His Earliest Possible Convenience, To Convene A Meeting Of The Public Safety Committee Of The Dutchess County Legislature For The Purpose Of Considering And Drafting A Local Law Regarding Selling Scrap Metal.

WHEREAS, the increase prices of scrap able metal including copper and aluminum has led to a spike in reported thefts of these metals in the City of Beacon; and

WHEREAS, households, businesses, construction sites, churches and the City have all had high value items stolen with the intent to sell the items as scrap metal; and

WHEREAS, while the County and State both have laws regulating precious metals and some scrap metal, there is no regulation of scrap metal transactions when the transaction is less than fifty dollars; and

WHEREAS, in order to avoid any reporting requirements, scrap metal thieves are breaking up their transactions to under fifty dollars and "shopping" their goods to numerous scrap metal processing facilities severally hindering the ability to investigate the theft and prosecute the thief; and

WHEREAS, the stolen goods are being processed not only in the City but at scrap processing facilities throughout the county; and

WHEREAS, requiring scrap metal processing facilities to conduct an I.D. check, record identification of the parties, record description of property, and hold all purchase for five days will significantly reduce the marketability of stolen items; and

WHEREAS, in order to be effective these requirements must be implemented on a countywide basis; and

NOW, THEREFORE,

BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Beacon hereby requests and urges the Chairman of the Dutchess County Legislature, at his earliest possible convenience, to convene a meeting of the Public Safety Committee of the Dutchess County Legislature for the purpose of considering and drafting a Local Law which in sum and substance shall require scrap metal processing facilities to (1) conduct I.D. checks on all transactions, (2) record such identification, (3) record a description of the property purchased, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, and that the Chairman of the Dutchess County Legislature shall ask such Committee to be prepared to put forth, at its earliest possible convenience, such necessary legislation to the full board of the Dutchess County Legislature.

Motion to Authorize Mayor to Request Chairman to Convene Meeting: Council Member Casale. Seconded: Council Member Pasti. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

5. Approval of Mayor and City Council to Name Streets in the City of Beacon for 911 Purposes

Whereas, the City of Beacon City Council hereby authorizes the mayor to adopt the name of certain streets for the purposes of 911 identifications

· Adopts Archer Avenue as the name of the street off Iris Circle, which is a three lot subdivision

· Adopts Shea Lane as the name of the street off East Main Street at the intersection of Pocket Road, which is a two lot subdivision

RESOLVED, that the following street names are adopted as follows:

· Adopt Archer Avenue as the name of the street off Iris Circle, which is a three lot subdivision

· Adopt Shea Lane as the name of the street off East Main Street at the intersection of Pocket Road, which is a two lot subdivision

Comment:

Council Member Thompson: We have a law that describes the procedure to be followed when dedicating a street to a particular person.

Motion to Table: Council Member Kelly. Seconded: Council Member Thompson. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

6. Resolution No. 107 of 2008 - Authorize City Administrator of the City of Beacon to Execute Agreement with Beacon Housing Authority for Bus Shelter

Note: Action was taken on this resolution after Item No. 1 above.

WHEREAS, the City of Beacon and the Beacon Housing Authority desire to enter an agreement for the provision of a bus shelter at a designated site at Forrestal Heights in the City of Beacon; and

WHEREAS, the bus shelter shall aid in the convenience and welfare of City residents and others using bus transportation in the area, and the terms and conditions of the agreement are consistent with such objectives and the best interests of the City of Beacon,

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Administrator of the City of Beacon is authorized to execute an agreement between the City and the Beacon Housing Authority for the provision of a bus shelter at Forrestal Heights.

Motion to authorize City Administrator to sign agreement with Beacon Housing Authority: Council Member Kelly. Seconded: Council Member Thompson. On roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion carried.

Local Laws And Ordinances: None

Ratifications / Appointments:

1. Resolution No 108 of 2008 - W. H. Mase Hook & Ladder Company #1

1. Dave Brewer Active to Honorary effective May 6, 2008

2. Michael Fasano Active to Exempt effective June 3, 2008

3. Edwin Mickel Active to Honorary effective June 3, 2008

4. Andrew Phelps Active to Honorary effective June 3, 2008

Motion to ratify: Council Member Thompson. Seconded: Council Member Pasti. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

Announcements: None

Public Comments: None

Budget Amendments: None.

Next Workshop: Monday, July 28, 2008 at 7:00pm – Municipal Center

Next Council Meeting: Monday, August 4, 2008 at 7:00p.m. – Municipal Center

Motion to go into Executive Session: Litigation at : Council Member Kelly. Seconded: Council Member Pasti. All voted in favor. Motion carried.

Motion to end executive session at p.m.:

Adjournment

Text from July 21, 2008 Reports

Text from the July 21, 2008 Reports of Activities

Mayor's Correspondence

Date: July 16, 2008 – Catherine Forbes – Vice President Community Impact – United Way

RE: 2 – 1 – 1 Services in Dutchess County

Do you and your staff find it hard to know all the resources available to people who need help? Hudson Valley Region 2-1-1 is there to help. This free service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in 150 languages.

Last year, 4,000 Dutchess County residents dialed 2-1-1 with health and human service questions. Here are some examples of the help they found:

• During a heat wave, 21 people found the nearest cooling center;

• During tax season, 496 found free help filing their taxes, claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit and their Economic Stimulus payment, and;

• 3,113 callers received help meeting their basic needs such as funding food, shelter, utility assistance, and help following a disaster or personal crisis.

This year we are encouraging all parents of children ages 0-6 to call. When they do they can find the nearest screening event that will help them learn about their child's development and they can learn how to help their child meet their developmental milestones. Plus, they can learn about services for their family's financial stability.