RANDOLPH Officials spent time taking care of business at the town of Randolph's annual organizational meeting.
Trustee Timothy Shields took the oath of office for another term on the town board. Later in the meeting, the board accepted, with regrets, the resignation of trustee John Milliman, who has put in several years of dedicated service.
Due to more work related duties and travel, Milliman found he would no longer be able to serve with the same commitment he had in the past.
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Trustee Timothy Shields, left, takes the oath of office for another term on the board. Clerk Lori Milliman, right, swears him in as Supervisor Dale Senn witnesses his installation.
This seat is now open and the board delayed making an appointment until time was allotted for anyone who may have an interest in the empty seat to step forward with their intent.
The board will appoint an interim trustee to the vacated seat at next month's meeting. The provisional appointee will retain the seat until the November elections where at that time, constituents would have the opportunity to vote on a candidate.
Officials pointed out that if the dissolution vote takes place, it could all change before the election. Officials ask that anyone interested in filling the seat on the board contact Lori Milliman during regular office hours at 358-9701.
There were no changes in appointed positions. The mileage rate was set at 50 cents per mile. The health coverage plan for employees was a topic of discussion at some length. In an effort to save taxpayer dollars and still provide good benefits to the employees, the board decided to approve a high deductible health plan that would include a debit card to cover the deductible and co-pays.
Officials stated that this would be a savings to the town and a benefit to the employees. This new flex plan with a high deductible will have the debit card to be started out with $1,200 each year for employees to use on health expenses only. The benefits are not lost at the end of the year if they are not spent, unlike a similar flex plan.
Board members discussed outdoor boilers after Trustee Beverly Kehe-Rowland read to them a letter she received from a resident on the topic.
Nancy Olejniczak stated in her letter "If the town believes that action is necessary to avoid nuisance smoke complaints, I hope that its action will be limited to a zoning ordinance that states that outdoor wood boilers must be installed a minimum distance from the nearest neighboring residential building."
Her letter was prompted by an article she read on the town council meeting in The Post-Journal last month. She also stated, "I don't own one of these boilers and don't plan to, but I think any ban on them is totally unnecessary and hope that the town will not act on this recommendation."
The recommendation she referred to was one made in a letter officials received last month from the governor's office recommending the banning of outdoor boilers. The suggestion came from the county also. It was stated that the village regulates the use of outdoor boilers, the town does not.
The town does not anticipate restricting the use of them, with officials stating that there was no need to regulate them. Officials also stated that outdoor wood boilers that are contained in a building would not even be an issue under the current regulations. Officials also stated that there is a process for obtaining a variance for those who are considering installing an outdoor boiler.
The board went over some of the particulars of the dissolution and a special district that would be set up in East Randolph.
A water and sewer district is already in place and a street district would be the only matter that would need to be addressed; if the voters pass the dissolution vote in March. The entire dissolution study will be available on the website for interested constituents to review.
Milliman also made known the fact that any special use permits or building permits are currently available online at their Web site www.randolphny.org.
The board will meet again at their regular time on Feb. 10 at 7:30.