At 6:00 PM on Monday, March 15th, 2021 Mayor Meg Grenier read the following statement: this is the Village of Menands Board of Trustees, semi-monthly meeting. I am Mayor Meg Grenier and as it is 6:00 o’clock, I will call this meeting to order. For anyone outside the village staff who is attending this video conference, I would ask if you would please identify yourselves, Steve Boulet, Renee Lequire, Bill Nevins, John Stangle, Nancy Manny, Eric Johnson. The Mayor asked them to mute their microphones.
Mayor Grenier then did a roll call of Village staff: Deputy Mayor Aileen Nicoll, present, Trustee Seth Harris, present, Trustee Diane Foley, present, Trustee Brian Marsh, present, Clerk Don Handerhan, present, Chief Lacosse, present. On behalf of the Village Board, I would ask all residents that we please keep our First Responders, all essential workers and those affected by this pandemic in our thoughts and prayers.
Pursuant to Governor Cuomo’s executive order number 202.1 issued on March 13th, 2020: Suspending article 7 of the public officer’s law, to the extent necessary to permit any Public body to meet, and take such actions authorized by law that allowed the public to not be physically present at the meeting, but allow the public to listen to or view such meetings via teleconference call or video conference, while recording and later transcribing of the meeting. Village of Menands Board of Trustees semi-monthly meeting is being held via Google Meets video conference to protect Public Safety and Welfare during this COVID-19 pandemic. In an effort to conduct this meeting effectively we asked those in attendance to please mute your microphone during the meeting. As we are conducting only essential business during tonight’s meeting, there will be no public comment. Any comments previously submitted to Clerk Handerhan prior to the meeting and deemed essential will be read into the record. Governor Cuomo has extended executive order number 202.1 through March 24th, 2021.
A motion was made by Trustee Harris to accept the minutes of the March 1st, 2021 Board Meeting, seconded by Trustee Foley.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Trustee Harris made a motion to accept the minutes of the March 8th, 2021 Budget Workshop, seconded by Trustee Marsh.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
A motion was made by Trustee Harris to approve payment for the following, seconded by Trustee Foley.
WARRANT # 20:
GENERAL totaling $63,320.94
WATER totaling $13,111.04
SEWER totaling $ 487.50
TOTALS $76,919.48
PAYROLL # 21: totaling $81,769.00
(02/26/21-03/11/21)
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
A motion was made by Trustee Marsh, seconded by Trustee Nicoll, to accept
the following resolution:
RESOLVED, that the Treasurer be, and hereby is, authorized to make the following Budget Transfers
Account Account
From Acct: A.3410.0421 To Acct: A.3410.0446
Description Fire – Training Fire Medical/Physicals
Amount: $500.00 $500.00
SEWER FUND
From Acct: G.1990.0400 To Acct: G.8120.0453
Description Contingent Acct Engineering
Amount: $10,000.00 $10,000.00
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
The Clerk reported that the Mayor has submitted the Preliminary Village Budget for 2021 – 2022 to the Board. Copies are available for the public at the Village Office and on will be on the Website.
March 15, 2021
Donald Handerhan
Village Clerk
Village of Menands
280 Broadway
Menands, NY 12204
Dear Don,
Attached you will find the Tentative Budget for the Village of Menands for the Fiscal Year 2021 — 2022 — beginning on June 1st, 2021.
Please have as many copies as is necessary available for the Public, along with copies for each member of the Board.
Very truly yours,[Mayor Grenier]
The Clerk reminded the Board that the Budget Public Hearing is scheduled for Monday, April 12th, 2021 at 6:00 P.M.
Trustee Harris introduced Local Law 1 of the year 2021 authorizing a property tax levy in excess of the limit established in General Municipal Law §3-c.
LOCAL LAW # 1 OF THE YEAR 2021
Village of Menands, County of Albany
A local law authorizing a property tax levy in excess of the limit established in General Municipal Law §3-c.
Section 1. Legislative Intent
It is the intent of this local law to allow the Village of Menands to adopt a budget for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2021 that requires a real property tax levy in excess of the “tax levy limit” as defined by General Municipal Law §3-c.
Section 2. Authority
This local law is adopted pursuant to subdivision 5 of General Municipal Law §3-c, which expressly authorizes a local government’s governing body to override the property tax cap for the coming fiscal year by the adoption of a local law approved by a vote of sixty percent (60%) of said governing body.
Section 3. Tax Levy Limit Override
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Menands, County of Albany, is hereby authorized to adopt a budget for the fiscal year commencing June 1, 2021 that requires a real property tax levy in excess of the amount otherwise prescribed in General Municipal Law §3-c.
Section 4. Severability
If a court determines that any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or part of this local law or the application thereof to any person, firm or corporation, or circumstance is invalid or unconstitutional, the court’s order or judgment shall not affect, impair, or invalidate the remainder of this local law, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, or part of this local law or in its application to the person, individual, firm or corporation or circumstance, directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment or order shall be rendered.
Section 5. Effective Date
This local law shall take effect immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State.
Trustee Harris made a motion to approve holding a Public Hearing on April 5th, 2021, Local Law 1 authorizing a property tax levy in excess of the limit established in General Municipal Law §3-c, seconded by Trustee Nicoll.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Trustee Marsh led a discussion regarding the Village using Express Pay online payments for taxes and water/sewer payments. Discussion Followed.
Trustee Marsh made a motion to approve the Village using Express Pay online payments for taxes and water/sewer payments, seconded by Trustee Harris.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Mayor Grenier read comments received from the public regarding the Police Reform Report.
Worth Gretter
I have read the Menands CPPR committee report. I thought it was well done in general, but needed more emphasis in one important area: training.
When you look at the numerous incidents nation-wide of abuse by police, training would have alleviated or outright avoided most of them. I see several important aspects of this:
1) The other officers on the scene need to know, from their training, that it is their duty to restrain a fellow officer who is over-reacting. In the George Floyd case in Minneapolis, four other officers instead acted to prevent citizens from intervening. There should have been a little voice reminding each of them that their training required them to step in.
2) Training needs to explicitly refute the military mentality of “dominating the battlespace”. This played a role in the Floyd case as well. When he refused to get in the police car, it became a contest of wills. The police perceived that it would be a “loss” for them if they failed to make him follow their orders. When a situation deteriorates to this point, the choice becomes “get in the car or die”.
3) Officers need to be trained to always consider other options, both in techniques and in resources. In the Floyd case, and again in the case of the nine-year-old girl in Rochester, when someone won’t get in the car, there are certainly better techniques than strangulation or pepper spray. If nothing else, the police could call for a van and have several officers simply lift the handcuffed suspect into it.
4) The use of other resources such as social workers are suggested in the Menands report. This too requires training, so that officers can make an accurate assessment of a suspect’s mental status, and thus know when to turn the case over to another agency, hopefully before further violence results.
5) Another important part of assessment training is threat assessment. This must be taught in a way that is strictly factual in assessing threats. For instance, a possibly armed suspect who is fleeing does not represent a threat, and there is no possible justification for shooting him in the back. Officers rationalize that “we can’t have this armed suspect roaming the streets”, but realistically there are many armed people roaming the streets. If the fleeing suspect gets away, the officers need to accept that they must wait to apprehend him next time.
6) Finally, all training falls into three categories (and maybe more). First and most obviously is the initial training when an officer begins their career. Second, is continuous training for periodic refreshers as well as updates on new laws, techniques, equipment, etc. And third, but often overlooked, is “lessons learned” training. This should follow any significant incident that occurred (or was averted) in the department, but should also take the opportunity to learn from the mistakes of others. The George Floyd killing should have been followed immediately by every police department in the country asking themselves “what can we learn from this?”
Don Carlo Wincenty Clemenzi
if it’s one job I’d never want, it’d be a police officer. Kudos to you and all cops. I teach students the importance of treating people with respect especially people in law enforcement and that you attract more bees with honey than vinegar. That’s fresh in my mind because I just said it yesterday in class. The only thing that comes to mind is how fast some people drive on Menand Rd. I love seeing the patrol cars out catching the speeders. Thanks everyone, yours in special education, Carl Clemenzi
Nancy Maney
Thank you, State of New York and the Village, of Menands for allowing public comment on this report. Being residents for the last 24 years, we are very pleased to have our own police department and we can’t thank the police enough for all they do. From my perspective, public safety and adequately funding the police department should be the number one priority, if it is not already. Regarding the report, I appreciate the history / demographic information which is important for background and context and good for the community to know. I, for one, was not aware of the rich agricultural history of the Village. The 2010 demographic information is very dated. I appreciate that the 2020 census data is not available yet but is there more updated information even if it is footnoted as preliminary and unofficial? Possibly, you are required to use the 2010 data. How are other localities handling this? I like the mission statement very much. Have funding opportunities been pursued in terms of grant funding, etc. to convert part-time officers to full-time (assuming it makes sense to do so)? Are there sufficient vehicles and other necessary equipment? Proper training for the very difficult job these officers do is critical. It should be funded by the State of NY and be regionally based for consistency but modified as needed for unique demographics. The Code of Ethics statement is excellent. I don’t know if that is unique to Menands or standard but “I recognize the badge of my office as a symbol of public faith” says it all. The police involvement in community activities is so important and is a Menands strength. I love the idea of the police greeting students in the morning at school. The weekly newsletter and public notification system are important communication tools as well. I can’t agree more that a strong business sector / environment is very important to Village stability and safety. On page 15, the reference to an increase in mental health calls, is it possible for the report to include the level of increase? This may help with getting more funding for police training. Because of Menands juxtaposition, coordination is obviously needed with police in the City of Albany, Town or Colonie, and City of Watervliet. I think the idea of a training officer who can facilitate not only training but coordination with other departments is a great idea and should be a priority for funding. The Defenders by Demographic table doesn’t seem to add up to the 88 total. Regarding Colonie Youth Court, my husband is a retired Family Court Judge in Albany County (retired December 2019) and would be happy to help facilitate Menands interaction with Colonie Youth Court (where he has an advisory role). Village residents pay Town of Colonie taxes as well and there should be a strong interaction, if not already, regarding training, recruitment, and back-up support. Mental health calls should continue to involve the police department and, in my opinion, it is too dangerous for mental health experts to handle without their support. Police access to a mental health professional seems to be critically important and the Town of Colonie should be able to help with that or join efforts to secure / fund such support. What percentage of traffic stops are substance abuse related? Should that be addressed in the report? The bottom of page 29 and top of page 30 under 10.) regarding procedural justice is not clearly written. Is the pay level for Menands officers competitive? If not, I think it needs to be and we need to work toward that. Thank you for the opportunity to comment and thank you to all who prepared this report and especially to the Menands Police for their service.
William Nevins
As an involved member of the community, I am pleased with the information provided. I hope this information gets out to all our community members. I would still like to hear from our community with some type of follow up after plan is accepted and perhaps an annual review and update. I thank all members involved in the effort made to get this document together. I also thank our Menands police Department and Chief for the leadership and dedication to our community.
Brian J. PETRAITIS
Please to be asked to submit my comments. For 29 years of Menands residency we have both casual and in depth dealings with police in Menands. 100% of the time we had positive, competent, successful dealing. There are regular patrols on our block. A police officer always arrived before the EMT/paramedics and pitched right in. When we or neighbors needed detective work performed it was done so with due speed and good results. All staff and uniformed officers have always been polite and respectful.
Susanne Stein
My household has a multi-racial makeup and I have nothing but accolades for the Menands Police Department. When our family has needed assistance, Menands police has responded promptly, professionally and without prejudice. No-one in my family considered for even a moment that we were treated any differently because of the color of our skin. Menands police continues to make my family feel safe, both inside the home, and when out and about. They are a visible and integral part of our community. The Menands Police Department is a true asset for the Village of Menands!!
Chief Lacosse responded to comments made and advised the Board the Police Officers have already started training at the Watervliet Arsenal with Watervliet Police. A discussion followed.
Trustee Nicoll made a motion to approve the Police Reform Report, seconded by Trustee Harris.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Proclamation to recognize March 24th, 2021 as “Education & Sharing Day Menands”
Trustee Harris read a Proclamation to recognize March 24th, 2021 as “Education & Sharing Day Menands”
Proclamation
Education & Sharing Day
WHEREAS a quality education is one of the significant foundations for the continuing success of our state, our country, and our society at large; and in the Village of Menands we strive for the betterment of all of our citizens through an increased focus on education and sharing; and
WHEREAS through providing the possibility of an excellent education for all, especially children, with which to gain knowledge through rigorous study, we can create hope for a brighter, kinder and more united and prosperous future in the lives of so many; and
WHEREAS one of the leading global advocates for the advancement of education, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, of righteous memory, stressed the importance of moral and ethical education as the bedrock of humanity and the hallmark of a healthy society, and strongly urged that education be reinforced by the inculcation of strong moral values; and
WHEREAS in recognition of the Rebbe’s outstanding and lasting contributions toward improvements in world education, morality, and acts of charity, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, and the United States Congress has established his birthdate as a national day to raise awareness and strengthen the education of our children; and
WHEREAS for more than forty years the President of the United States has recognized and honored the Rebbe’s vision each year on that day by proclaiming it “Education & Sharing Day USA”; and
WHEREAS we presently battle a global pandemic which has disrupted traditional models of education across our nation, while concurrently motivating a focus on the stronger core values we wish to impart to children and adults, beyond academic achievement; and
WHEREAS we can nurture the unity of diverse peoples through encouraging increased acts of goodness and kindness, imbued with awareness that even a single positive act of an individual can make a major impact in this world; and
NOW, THEREFORE, I, MEGAN GRENIER Mayor of the Village of Menands, do hereby proclaim Wednesday, March 24, 2021, to be: EDUCATION AND SHARING DAY in the Village of Menands and call upon government officials, educators, volunteers, and citizens to reach out to those within your communities and work to create a better, brighter, and more hopeful future for all.
IN WITNESS, WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the Village of Menands to be affixed at the Menands Village Office this twenty-fourth day of March in the year two thousand and twenty-one.
__________________________________
Mayor Megan Grenier
The resolution was seconded by Trustee Marsh.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Trustee Marsh offered the following Resolution and moved its adoption pursuant to Election Law § 15-104 1b “General Election for the Village of Menands will be held on Tuesday, June 15th, 2021 at which time two Trustees and Village Justice are to be elected for a four-year term to commence pursuant to law upon their qualifications and no earlier than July 6th, 2021”, seconded by Trustee Foley.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Trustee Marsh offered the following Resolution and moved that the register of those qualified to vote in the forthcoming Village Election in the Village of Menands to be held at the Municipal Firehouse in the Village between the hours of 12:00 noon and 9:00 P.M. in the afternoon on June 15th, 2021 shall be prepared by the duly appointed Inspectors of the Election of this Village on Registration Day, June 5th, 2021 and be it further
RESOLVED, that the Inspectors of Election shall meet for this purpose between the hours 12:00 noon and 5:00 P.M. in the afternoon in the Firehouse adjoining this Municipal Building in this Village on said date, at which time and place all persons qualified to vote at such forthcoming Village Election and are not otherwise registered, may attend and register their names for such Election, seconded by Trustee Nicoll.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Trustee Marsh offered the following Resolution to appoint Elaine Habbinger, Head Inspector, Lorna McCarten, Inspector, Geneva Conway, Inspector, Susan Handerhan, Inspector and Nancy Casler, Inspector for the upcoming Village Registration Day on June 5th, 2021 and the Village Election on June 15th, 2021, seconded by Trustee Nicoll.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Mayor Grenier read a letter of support for the 5 Elmwood Apartment Project.
New York State Homes and Community Renewal
Hampton Plaza, 38-40 State Street
Albany, New York 12207
Attn: Mr. Darren Scott
Dear Mr. Scott,
The Village of Menands Board of Trustees supports affordable housing projects in the Village, with the understanding that applicants have indicated a willingness to work through all the appropriate local approvals and review processes once the project application is submitted. The Village will also need to reach consensus on details of PILOT agreements.
Sincerely,
Megan Grenier
Mayor
Trustee Marsh made a motion to approve the Letter of Support for the 5 Elmwood Apartment Project, seconded by Trustee Harris.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
Resident Bill Nevins advised the Board that he had attended a Census meeting and the Survey Report will be out on April 30th. The Census Bureau stated that the Village of Menands had a 99.9% completion rate. The final report should be out in August. A discussion followed.
Mayor Grenier thanked Mr. Nevins for all his help with the Census.
Trustee Harris gave an update on Story Walk. They will be using the Purple Trail hopefully by the end of May. Chief Lacosse offered the Police Department if any help is needed. A discussion followed.
The Mayor read a letter addressed to the Mayor and Trustees:
I would like to thank Officers St. Gelais and Braden of the Menands Police Department for their response of our home during our recent smoke alarm activation.
It is reassuring to know that however careful we might be, accidents happen, and the professionals in the Police Department are checking on thing’s day and night.
We appreciate the officers’ assistance in a stressful situation.
Yours truly,
Susan Y Sweeney
Memorandum 2/28/21
TO: All Menand Village Board Members
FROM: Bill Garvey Jr
I got some letters of importance and concern.
- I like to thank my new hero Brian Marsh for replying to may letters dating May and June of 2020. Im glad that my new hero in Menands Brian Marsh agrees with my concerns dealing with commercial trucks using residential streets in Lower Menands, crosswalks with white lines on Brookside Avenue and Harts Land and Broadway Junctions being in poor condition and 230,000 Bridges throughout our nation needing repairs of replacements. Once again thank you Brian Marsh for the 1/29/21 letter to me. I appreciate it.
- I wish to bring attention to the Menands Village Board dealing with my concern dealing with bush, weeds, plants and vine growing in 1 area between Railroad Avenue and D & H Railway. Any area in Menands and other local communities being covered by weeds, bush, plants and vines are health, welfare, environment, public safety and fire hazards. This subject remains a serious problem in Menands between early April and November of each year. The area between Railroad Avenue and D & H Railway being covered by weeds, plants, bush and vines can cause the quality of life to deteriorate plus property values to decline in Menands. I would appreciate it if the Village Board could kindly please have our Village Public Works Crew remove all bush, weeds, plants and vines from the area between Railroad and D & H Railway during the spring or summer of 2021. This job needs to be done.
- I like to express my concern about the north and south parts of Oakwood Avenue still in poor condition. This Village Street is still got bumps, ruts, cracks and potholes on it. Any Village Street including the north and south part of Oakwood Avenue having bumps, ruts, cracks and potholes is a welfare, public safety, fire and quality of life hazards. Any vehicle using any road or street with bumps, cracks, ruts and potholes may result in accidents by which motorists and others may get killed or hurt. Our Village could lible to get slapped with lawsuits in which lawsuits are costly, slow and time-consuming process. Our Village simply can’t afford to go through lawsuits. When any vehicle hits bumps, cracks, ruts and potholes this may cause any vehicle to have knock out alignments, broken axles and tire blowouts which result in costly, slow and time-consuming repairs for vehicle owners to go through with. I urge our Village Board to please kindly have our Public Works Crew repair the north and south part of Oakwood Avenue during the spring or the summer pf 20221. The earlier the north and south part of Oakwood Avenue repair job gets done the better this is going to be for everyone concern
- On 2/16/21 while driving north on Broadway here in Menands, I observed 1 vehicle broken down on Broadway just north of Route 378 exit where there is 1 traffic light signal system. The broken-down vehicle was 4 door, colour very light brown and DePaula Noyer Chevrolet car. This vehicle had its flasher lights on to indicate that the light brown vehicle was broken down. So, I reported this problem to the Menands Police very shortly. So, the Police Dispatcher wrote the report about the broken-down care problem. The Police Dispatcher told me that he will send a Police Officer to the broken-down vehicle on Broadway to find out the problem. Three minutes later while driving north again on Broadway I witness that the Menands Police were right on the broken-down care site. I like to thank the Menands Police for doing their job to investigate the problem. Well done.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Yours sincerely
Bill Garvey Jr
At 6:41 P.M. Trustee Harris made a motion to enter into Executive Session to discuss a personnel matter, seconded by Trustee Foley.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
The regular meeting reconvened at 6:54 P.M.
A motion was made by Trustee Harris to adjourn, seconded by Trustee Foley.
ADOPTED:
Trustee Foley voting AYE
Trustee Harris voting AYE
Trustee Marsh voting AYE
Trustee Nicoll voting AYE
Mayor Grenier voting AYE
The meeting was duly adjourned at 6:54 P.M.
_________________________
Donald Handerhan
Village Clerk