Town signs contract for Trail to the Train project

AMENIA — The highlight of the Thursday, Oct. 20, Amenia Town board meeting was the board’s vote to accept the contract with WSP Sells for the first phase of the Trail to the Train project.The contract had been in negotiations for several weeks before the final version was accepted.The Trail to the Train project will extend the Harlem Valley Rail Trail south from the Wassaic Metro North train station into the hamlet.The town has already received a $600,000 grant and a $100,000 grant to help cover the cost of the project.The board vote to accept the contract also gave town Supervisor Wayne Euvrard the approval to sign the contract.The board also completed the Scenic Protection Overlay (SPO) project.The new SPO map was introduced to the board over the summer, and the public hearing took place on Thursday, Sept. 15. The board was required to wait 30 days after the public hearing before adopting the new map. Since that time period has passed, the board voted to adopt the negative declaration of any environmental impact due to the project, then voted to adopt the new SPO map.The new map may be examined at the Town Hall building.During the public comment session, Justin Svingen, the North East Community Center (NECC) transportation program director, spoke with the board about the new curb-to-curb public transportation system that the NECC is implementing.Svingen had two points that he wanted to discuss with the board.First, he explained the fees that all the towns in the coverage area will be asked to pay. When Euvrard asked if the program would go forward if some towns refused to pay, Svingen assured him that the program currently has enough grant money to sustain itself.Second, Svingen said that since the NECC is a nonprofit and cannot enter into a contract with the county, who owns the vehicles, the program needs a town or towns to act as a sponsor and enter into the contract with the county. The NECC would then repay the town for the cost of the vehicles.Attorney to the Town Michael Hayes said that there would probably need to be contracts between the county and every town that is participating in the program due to liability laws. Hayes said that there would need to be one or two additional contracts between the town and NECC to cover the other aspects of the agreements about the program.During the meeting held on Thursday, Oct. 13, the board presented updates on the Town Hall building for renovations that will be paid through a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) grant.CT Male, the contractors that performed the predesign review, found that the building has some insulation and determined that the heating systems currently installed in the building can be retrofitted with energy efficient cooling equipment.The Amenia Town Hall Employee Handbook, which is in need of an update, has already finished the first draft stage. Once a few changes have been made, the project will be ready to be sent out.The board discussed options for the Amenia Landfill front gate. The board members agreed that a wood gate would best fit the local character, but they will look into the cost of several options, including a metal gate, before making a final decision.At the beginning of the meeting, the board opened two bids for snow removal. Each bid included numbers for several snow removal options, including road plowing of up to 80 inches of snow and salting for sidewalks and Fountain Square. It was determined that Alan Smith of Dover had the lower bid, but the town will further review the bid documents before making a final decision.Councilwoman Vicki Doyle said the Enhancement Committee would like to use some of the money in its budget to purchase small Christmas trees or greenery to be placed in the barrels in the center of Amenia and Wassaic. The committee will look into the cost of the project. Doyle said that normally the Festival of Lights takes over decorating the town centers, but that budget is too low this year.During his report, Supervisor Wayne Euvrard pointed out some important dates of upcoming events.Thursday, Nov. 10• Public hearing for the 2012 Town of Amenia Budget, Town Hall, 7 p.m.Thursday, Dec. 1• Public Hearing for the cell phone tower permit renewals, Town Hall, 7 p.m.

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