[0:16] [clears throat] Timson.

[0:19] [cough]

[0:27] Perfect.

[0:32] Okay.

[0:36] Okay.

[0:50] » [clears throat]

[1:02] » I'd like to welcome everybody to the regular town board meeting. I please

[1:07] silence your cell phones. >> [clears throat]

[1:15] » To the flag of the United States of America to the stands, one nation under

[1:22] God, indivisible, liberty and justice for all.

[1:35] » [clears throat and cough]

[1:38] » At this time, I ask for a moment of silction, please.

[1:52] » Thank you very much. So, at the beginning of this meeting, we have a

[1:56] public hearing on a local law. This will be on a local law. Did anybody sign this

[2:01] sheet in regards to the public hearing? Okay. So, um,

[2:12] please take notice that a public hearing will be held by the town of Lon, Niagara

[2:16] County, New York on the 24th day of August, 2026. Commened at 6:00 p.m. at

[2:21] the town hall 1375 Bridge, Leon, New York, on the adoption of local law

[2:27] number 4, 2026. A local law imposing a moratorum on [clears throat] placement,

[2:32] installation, use, storage, occupancy of shipping containers within the town of

[2:36] Lewis, Hager County, New York. Said law is intended to provide time for the town

[2:40] board of the town of Lewis to research and adopt appropriate modifications to

[2:44] the town of Lewis comprehensive zoning regulation. A complete text of this law

[2:49] is on file at the office of the town clerk and is available for review by any

[2:52] interested person during business hours. As such public hearing all persons

[2:56] interested who wish to be heard will be heard

[3:00] is July 27th. >> Thank you. Okay. I don't have anybody

[3:05] signed up to speak on the public hearing. Does anybody wish to speak on

[3:09] the public hearing in regards to the moratorum on storage sh

[3:24] All in favor? I opposed. Motion carries. Um

[3:30] before we get into the agenda, our highway superintendent as has asked me

[3:36] um if he would like to give a quick statement to everybody. So

[3:42] Michael Weiss is our highway superintendent.

[3:45] [clears throat] Over the years, the highway department's

[3:49] approach to drainage maintenance has largely been uh reactive rather than

[3:54] proactive due to limited staffing efforts and primary focus on cleaning

[3:58] areas. Only after complaints have we have been received. While this

[4:05] has addressed immediate concerns, it has not provided our residents with a

[4:08] long-term solution to the growing drainage and flooding challenges facing

[4:12] our community. Our current method of operation is no longer sustainable.

[4:17] Aging infrastructure, changing weather patterns, and years of deferred

[4:21] maintenance have placed an overwhelming demand on our existing workforce. The

[4:25] dedication of my current employees has allowed us to accomplish tremendous

[4:29] amount, but they cannot continue to meet uh these increasing demands without

[4:35] additional support. Since taking the role of highway superintendent, Mr.

[4:39] Broadick and I have spent countless hours meeting with residents and

[4:42] visiting dage problem areas, inspecting dig ditches and culverts and evaluating

[4:48] recurring flooding concerns throughout our community. Doing so has provided

[4:52] valuable insight in both immediate needs and long-term improvements required to

[4:56] better serve our residents. I completely sympathize with our community's

[5:01] concerns. Taking action to resolve these issues is top priority. I remain fully

[5:06] committed to finding a lasting solution to our flooding issues. My goal is not

[5:11] only to simply respond to complaints, but to develop a comprehensive drainage

[5:15] program that identifies problems before they become emergencies, prioritize

[5:20] critical projects, and create a primitive maintenance schedule that

[5:23] benefits every neighborhood. With that being said, it needs to be understood

[5:29] that this is not a realistic overnight uh solution to our problems, but a

[5:35] long-term ongoing project that will take time to complete. While not every issue

[5:39] can be resolved immediately, every concern should be received uh receive

[5:45] careful evaluation, honest communication, and a plan moving

[5:48] forward. I plan to complete these projects while remaining fisc fiscally

[5:53] responsible. To effectively address our community's

[5:57] drainage needs, I recommend establishing a drainage division as a part of our

[6:02] current highway department responsible for routine inspection and maintenance

[6:06] of roadside ditches and off-road ditches, culverts and drainage channels,

[6:11] preventative cleaning program rather than a than a complaint driven response.

[6:16] flood mitigation planning and project development, mapping and documenting

[6:20] drainage infrastructure, coordinating drainage improvements with road

[6:24] projects, uh responding effectively to emergency

[6:28] flooding events, maintaining regular communication with residents regarding

[6:33] drainage concerns. We're going to need equipment um

[6:37] especially for off-road ditching. Uh we would be looking at an excavator, a tub

[6:42] grinder, and possibly an off-road dump truck. Uh tub grinder would help us

[6:47] tremendously, but we wouldn't have to try and haul everything out. It would

[6:50] save us time. Uh if you're looking for a dedicated

[6:54] budget line um for perforated pipe, drainage,

[6:59] gravel, crush stone, landscape fabric, fabric, uh solid drain pipe, pipe

[7:05] contractor, uh connectors, coupling elbows and end caps as needed, catch

[7:10] basins or drain inlets, uh top soil or mulch to restore the areas. I'd also be

[7:16] looking to hire two or three man crew for this. um we just don't have enough

[7:22] guys right now. [clears throat] The staffing structure would allow for both

[7:26] routine maintenance and uh in response by planning future infrastructure

[7:32] improvements along with help of our current staff.

[7:36] We also need help from the community. Residents also play an important role in

[7:40] maintaining our drainage system. I respectfully ask everyone to help avoid

[7:44] it the placements of [clears throat] brush leaves, grass clippings or other

[7:49] debris in roadways, roadside ditches and drainage channels. These materials

[7:54] restrict water flow, clog culberts and basins and contribute to localized

[7:59] flooding during heavy rainfall. By working together, we can improve

[8:03] drainage performance throughout the community. This is a long-term

[8:07] commitment. Approximately between 2014 12 and 2014, the highway superintendent

[8:13] at that time cut the drawing division. I firmly believe we need to reinstate this

[8:18] division. The proposal represents more than a

[8:22] creation of new drainage division. It represents a long-term commitment to the

[8:26] residents of our community. My objectives is to build a drainage

[8:29] program to protect homes, roadways, and public infrastructure for years to come.

[8:34] By investing in a drainage division, uh we

[8:39] dedicate personnel, equipment, and proactive maintenance, we can move away

[8:44] from complaint driven system and move toward one that prevents these events

[8:47] from happening before it occurs. While these improvements will take time,

[8:51] planning and investment, I also commit to working alongside with

[8:56] uh alongside this community employees and current registration to develop long

[9:02] lasting solution that improve the quality for everyone. I've only been in

[9:06] this position for a year. Unfortunately, some of the drainage issues were not

[9:10] properly addressed by my predecessors. Please bear with us while working. We

[9:14] work diligently to understand these issues, develop solutions, and make

[9:18] necessary improvements. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we

[9:23] work toward getting these issues resolved.

[9:29] Steve and the town board have been completely supportive of funding sol of

[9:33] finding solutions to finding these issues and our full support of our

[9:37] highway department. I appreciate their continued support and they're committed

[9:41] to working together to address these issues. [clears throat] Thanks.

[9:50] » Okay. Agenda approval. Does anybody have any

[10:00] approval as to the

[10:04] motion? Second. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carries. [clears throat]

[10:10] Res

[10:14] Nancy 49 392.

[10:22] [cough and clears throat]

[10:30] Can you hear me? >> Yes.

[10:33] I'm here to talk about the chronic severe flooding on.

[10:42] I have asked for help since I bought my house in 1989.

[10:49] This has been going on for 37 years.

[11:03] On the east side of the street, I am the lowest line home,

[11:09] so I get the brunt of the flooding. My yard becomes a lake truly.

[11:18] It has rotted out the floor of my shop or shed

[11:24] and the lower boards of the shed itself. And of course,

[11:31] it's washed out by raised vegetable garden

[11:36] and leaves behind a mess of mud, debris, and stone strewn out into the street.

[11:45] This happens every time. Every time we get a heavy rain or

[11:51] downpour, a deluge of [clears throat] water flows down the escarment

[11:58] across a portion of Creek Road extension just east of Hill

[12:06] and continues to pour down mostly my side of Hill.

[12:13] The flood water is pouring down through from the escarment

[12:19] to an open dirt ditch plugged up with brush leaves grass

[12:27] clippings. Shouldn't an effort be made and I hope

[12:33] can find a solution

[12:36] to find the source of this poor dage on top of the hill and

[12:44] I don't have too much. I do thank supervisor Rodri for kindly

[12:51] stopping to talk with me several weeks ago,

[12:56] but respectfully I cannot accept his excuses for inaction.

[13:02] He says the Hojack Railroad has jurisdiction

[13:08] and I have learned [clears throat] it since our talk that the Hojack was sold

[13:13] years ago to Mr. Steve Muda. I don't know.

[13:20] [clears throat] >> I don't believe it's the whole it's not

[13:23] the whole

[13:27] south of Creek Road extension is owned by Nager.

[13:32] So he did not buy that section. >> Another excuse given by previous town

[13:39] officials for inaction was that Creek Road extension is a state highway.

[13:46] and the town cannot interfere.

[13:51] Isn't it about time after flooding properties for at least 37 years

[13:58] that the town step up to help residents on road extension

[14:05] and build new court? Of course, I'm not an engineer, but

[14:10] wouldn't you start with this open ditch,

[14:15] find the source on top of the hill, and corrected the drainage issue up

[14:22] there, try to contain the stitch. What Mr. White said was

[14:30] very uplifting. And of course he he talked about

[14:34] cleaning the necessity of cleaning rings and catch basins. So [clears throat] I

[14:40] look forward to whatever can be done to help us all. Thank you very much.

[14:47] » Thank you. >> Can I just ask a quick question?

[14:51] [clears throat]

[14:54] » Did you have any sewer backup? >> Did you have sewer?

[15:00] Just water in the basement. Okay. Thank you. Um if uh I probably will ask that

[15:06] question of everybody when you get up. Um I've got a map that I'm marking

[15:13] points on just so that I'm aware of where we've actually had sewer backup

[15:19] and where it's just been water cooling. Um I do have some areas already marked

[15:24] on the map, but that would be very helpful. Thank you,

[15:29] » Linda Skelezo. >> [clears throat]

[15:41] » Hello. Um, my name is Linda Scal. I reside at 477 Creek Road.

[15:48] I came here tonight intending to demand answers and express my anger over the

[15:52] fourth backup in my home in as many years. The reality is I know I'm

[15:57] unlikely to receive a clear answer. Instead, I would like to address a few

[16:01] other issues. The first is a statement published on

[16:05] social media by the sewer department on August 11. Quite frankly, the statement

[16:09] was rude, dismissive, and insensitive to residents who had just cleaned raw

[16:13] sewage out of the basement, not once, but twice in a 5day period.

[16:19] The statement begins by suggesting that some residents do not understand the

[16:22] difference between storm water and sanitary sewer. I can assure you we do

[16:26] after all these years. The statement then went on to provide a

[16:30] list of things homeowners can do to protect themselves. Eliminating basement

[16:34] bathrooms, installing backwater valves, installing knife for gap gate style

[16:40] valves, updating plumbing systems, and spending thousands of dollars to modify

[16:44] their homes. Every one of these recommendations

[16:48] carries a significant cost. Some require expensive construction and disruption to

[16:52] the property, and not one of them comes with a guarantee.

[16:57] Most importantly, the statement failed to explain what the town is doing.

[17:01] The sewer issues have been occurring for more than 20 years here. Residents

[17:05] continue to experience backups, flooding, property damage,

[17:10] financial hardships, emotional stress. Yet, after decades of complaints,

[17:15] studies, projects, and promises, none of us are are still dealing with

[17:19] [clears throat] the same problems. The next thing in the statement, do this

[17:23] and you'll never have to call the town again. As a taxpayer, I found that some

[17:29] I found that statement shocking. Is that really the message this administration

[17:33] wants to send to its residents? Should residents feel discouraged from calling

[17:38] the town for help? The financial damage I have suffered now

[17:43] exceeds what I have originally paid for my home. Let that sink in. But the

[17:47] financial impact is only part of the story. The physical and emotional toll

[17:51] has been devastating. Cleaning raw sewage is exhausting. It's hazardous. It

[17:57] exposes families to contamination and health risk. I am an insulin dependent

[18:02] diabetic and I have legitimate concerns about the health implications of living

[18:06] in and administering medication in a home that was contaminated by sewage.

[18:12] Even after extensive cleaning, I still have to question if my home is truly

[18:15] safe. Every weather forecast now causes anxiety. Every heavy rain brings fear

[18:21] just like the other day. Weeks later, I remained physically exhausted and

[18:25] mentally drained from this aftermath. No resident should have to live like this.

[18:30] Residents deserve transparency and accountability.

[18:33] After more than 20 years of reoccurring sewer problems, residents deserve more

[18:37] than excess expensive suggestions and social media posts telling them how they

[18:42] should protect themselves. We deserve to know what is being done,

[18:46] what improvements are planned, what is the timeline, what [clears throat]

[18:50] measurable results have been achieved, and most importantly, what is being done

[18:54] to permanently address these issues. Secondly, the backflow prevent program.

[19:00] The program should correctly identify the equipment being installed. A

[19:04] backwater valve is not a backflow pre. These are two very different devices

[19:08] that serve two different purposes, and the grant document should use the proper

[19:12] terminology. the residents can clearly understand what they're being funded and

[19:16] what they're installing in their home. The eligibility requirements state the

[19:20] program is available to owner occupied single family homes that are chronically

[19:24] burdened with sewer backups issues relating to inflow and infiltration

[19:29] during sign significant rainfall events. This raises several questions. How are

[19:35] these affected areas identified? Who determines which property qualifies? Is

[19:40] there a map of this? and if so, is it publicly available?

[19:44] Residents deserve transparency regarding how the eligibility is determined.

[19:49] In addition, if the town's position is that the sewer backups are caused by the

[19:53] inflow and implication and that water keeps its own level as in that

[19:58] statement, what happens as more homeowners install the pound recommended

[20:02] val? If sewage can no longer enter my home, does the pressure and flow simply

[20:06] move elsewhere in the system? Potentially affecting properties that

[20:10] have not historically experienced backups. If affected areas have already

[20:14] been identified and these issues have existed for more than 20 years,

[20:18] residents also deserve to know what improvements have been made in the in

[20:22] the past, the root cause of the problems rather than simply shifting the burden

[20:26] of protection on the individual. Secondly, the liability and insurance

[20:31] requirements concern. The town is not hiring the contractor, selecting the

[20:35] contractor, supervising the work, or paying them. The homeowner is

[20:39] responsible for hiring and paying. Therefore, it is reasonable for the town

[20:43] to disclaim responsibility for the workmanship. But it is difficult to

[20:47] understand why homeowners are being asked to indemnify the town and wave

[20:51] their rights through such broad language.

[20:54] The agreement states, "The homeowner hereby agrees to indemnify and hold the

[20:58] town of Lewon harmless against any and all claims and further covenants not to

[21:02] sue the town of Lewon for any and all claims." What exactly does that mean?

[21:07] Any and all claims? Does it apply to the contractor's workmanship and

[21:11] installation of the valve or does it extend to claims involving the the town

[21:16] sewer infrastructure? If a homeowner installs a backwater

[21:20] valve through this program and later experiences another sewer backup, does

[21:24] the town believe that the homeowner has waved their right to pursue a claim

[21:27] against them? If not, then that agreement should should be revised to

[21:31] clearly state that the release applies only to the contractor.

[21:37] No matter how that language is interpreted though, the practical

[21:40] concern remains the same. If I experience another sewer backup caused

[21:44] by a known problem within the town sewer and the backwater valve fails, the focus

[21:49] will admit it immediately shift to that valve. The question will be who fail?

[21:53] What failed? Was it the town sewer or was it your valve? The town can now

[21:57] point to the valve and the signed waiver while the homeowner is left bearing that

[22:01] loss. Residents are being asked to install equipment on their own property,

[22:06] hire and paint their own contractor, and maintain this device for the life of

[22:10] their home to indemnify the town in a green office

[22:15] sue in return and receive $2,500 reimbursement. It raises an important

[22:20] question. Is this program intended to help the homeowner protect their home or

[22:23] does it effectively transfer the responsibility for a known municipal

[22:27] infrastructure problem onto the property owner?

[22:31] Finally, the process itself is unnecessarily complicated. Homeowners

[22:35] dealing with recurring sewage backups are already under significant stress.

[22:39] Requiring pre-insspections, approvals, and additional administrative work steps

[22:44] before work can even begin only delays the solution. The process should be

[22:49] really simple. Homeowner submits an application, hires a qualified

[22:54] contractor, backwater valve is installed, and the

[22:58] town performs final inspection, and then you reverse. This is a reimbursement

[23:02] program, not a town construction project. The focus should be on helping

[23:07] the residents quickly reduce the risk of future sewer backups, particularly when

[23:11] those backups are tied to your known limitations within the town sewer. I

[23:16] respectfully ask the board to revise this program by correcting the

[23:19] terminology, clarifying the eligibility criteria, and making affected area

[23:24] information publicly available, [clears throat] narrowing the liability

[23:27] language to contractor related issues only, removing unnecessary

[23:31] administrative burdens, and creating a more straightforward process that truly

[23:35] serves the residences intended to help. My [clears throat] issues began in 2017,

[23:42] just six weeks after purchasing my home. After the first tour backup, I was told

[23:47] my lateral was a problem. Following that advice and approximately $18,000 to

[23:53] excavate and replace the line, lo and behold, the backups happened

[23:58] again. Suddenly, now we're told that it wasn't the lateral. It was the problem

[24:02] is the town sewer infrastructure, and we're working on it. Repairs are

[24:06] supposedly underway. Fast forward to today, and I have now experienced three

[24:11] additional sewer left on August. After calling the town in frustration, two

[24:16] town employees came to my home. One pointed to the floor drain actively

[24:21] discharging raw sewage and stated that I needed to hire a plumber and kept that

[24:25] drain. There's my problem is what he said. I asked him whether I should kept

[24:30] the toilet too where it was flowing out of or the shower, but I kept everything

[24:34] in my house because Steuart's family. My husband has been a plumber for over

[24:40] 40 years. We understand plumbing. We understand drainage and we understand

[24:43] the difference between a homeowner problem and a municipal infrastructure

[24:47] failure. What I witnessed that day was not

[24:50] problem solving. It was lane shifting. I was also told that drains are not

[24:54] allowed in new construction and would not pass an inspection. Which raises

[24:59] another question. If our sewer infrastructure is already struggling

[25:02] under existing demand, are we properly evaluating the impact of continued

[25:07] development on an AC sewer system? The answer seems pretty obvious, but yet

[25:11] here we are to issuing a new build permit, not just for homes, but condos

[25:16] and development. Today, I have installed a backwater

[25:20] check valve and hopefully protects my home in the future. But I am no longer

[25:23] standing here for myself. I am standing here for residents who can't afford the

[25:27] thousands of dollars in plumbing modifications. I am standing here for

[25:31] the elderly residents on fixing them. And I'm standing here for young families

[25:35] that cannot absorb 10, 20, and $30,000 expenses to fix the system.

[25:41] I don't know if it is the intention of this administration to make the town of

[25:44] Lewon an embarrassment, but unfortunately that is the direction we

[25:47] are heading. There was a time when I would tell people I lived in Lewon and

[25:51] the response was always, "What a beautiful town." Today that response is

[25:55] shifted to is that the town with the flooding problems? How's your sewers? We

[26:00] can compare it to Falls and L now the two go hand in hand now. Think about

[26:05] that for many outside our community. This is becoming what we are known for.

[26:10] Lewon deserves better. Our residents deserve better. At some point we have to

[26:14] stop managing the symptoms and start solving the problem. We have to ask

[26:18] ourselves whether the current approach is working because after decades of

[26:22] issues, residents are still standing here asking the same questions and

[26:26] telling the same story. When does it end? When do we accepting temporary

[26:31] fixes and start demanding lasting solutions

[26:34] because the reputation of this town, the trust of its residents and the quality

[26:38] of let the families who live here depend on it.

[26:42] The ability to flush a toilet, take a shower, trust that sewage will safely be

[26:47] removed from your home is not a luxury. It is one of the most basic services

[26:51] local government infrastructure is intended to provide. New York state law

[26:55] recognizes the necessity of sewage systems for the protection of public

[26:59] health and federal law recognizes the importance of wastewater systems in

[27:03] preventing pollution and protecting the community.

[27:06] Residents should not have to repeatedly bear the financial, physical and

[27:10] emotional consequences of a known recurring sewer failure. I am asking

[27:14] this board to remember that behind every flooded basement is a family whose home

[27:19] health and peace of mind are being [clears throat] affected. Thank you.

[27:23] Thank you,

[27:29] » Michael Hall. >> That was my wife. You gave her enough

[27:33] time to speak. I'm good. >> Okay. We're [clears throat] I mean, when

[27:37] a lot of people speak, we try to limit it to 45 minutes. We're not going to do

[27:40] that tonight. Um Clayton Miller,

[27:47] » I was just gonna say thank you for letting

[27:52] um Just a few things. I I've read every

[27:56] single port that has spoken this since great.

[28:05] So I would like to say that I have no absolutely no doubt that every single

[28:09] one of you there deeply

[28:15] and I 100% there to fix this issue. I also think that public

[28:26] garbage driving.

[28:34] I also think that in the same we are probably past the point of the people in

[28:41] this room fixing the issue.

[28:46] Let me give you a quick since you're only five minutes. Don't worry,

[28:51] [clears throat] but a quick historical anecdote. So when the Apollo 13 mission

[28:54] went to hell and hand for two straight days, all the people at all the people

[29:00] on the show worked without sleeping to fix the issue to get Apollo 13.

[29:07] They tried everything. They were committed to it, but eventually after

[29:11] the second day, they say, "We need help." So what did they do? They got on

[29:16] the phone. They called the best jet propulsion specialist in the country.

[29:20] They called the best engineers and tracked down the company that made

[29:24] thrusters for our team. that them making the call and saying we need help is the

[29:31] reason Tom Hanks lives at the end public um I I firmly believe that despite all

[29:39] of your best efforts everyone's best efforts we need help from a firm or

[29:45] [clears throat] a person that at this very moment is somewhere in another

[29:49] municipality making corrections the same issues that

[29:54] we have it's not from a lack of these people exist. So even if we don't

[29:59] hire or contract, I think the board should put together an RFP for

[30:05] information from an outside company that can potentially contract with and fix

[30:12] these issues. And I think part of asking for help quite frankly is letting go

[30:19] ego. I think it's letting go hubris. No offense, but every mostly people up

[30:26] there every year about election time fixing Louis's infrastructure.

[30:31] Nothing's getting fixed. And a lot of these issues go way past your

[30:36] administration, your term of service. They go all the way back to 2018.

[30:42] I believe every time any word associated with flooding

[30:47] drainage sewers happen in this town in 2008, it's on a spreadsheet. I put it

[30:52] online. 2,147 pounds since 2008.

[30:57] We are nowhere closer despite our best efforts of being where we need to.

[31:06] It's okay to say that we need help. You guys are all servants. Hart time job.

[31:12] I'm sure there's thous.

[31:17] The best thing servants can do is say because my

[31:24] but a lot of people here's then you can only push people so far.

[31:32] So if you have a company come in and they

[31:37] have a viable long-term solution they should be wide latitude wide

[31:43] authority to enact the what you need. And as a community, we're

[31:50] all going to have to buckle up and get our checkbooks out. And that's not your

[31:54] fault. These are things that should have been done incrementally for a long time.

[31:58] But the second part of this conversation that is coming is what it's going to

[32:03] cost all. But quite frankly, if we are a community, we're going to have to we're

[32:09] gonna have to suck it up and help these people up. So I'm probably over my

[32:14] » No, I'm not cutting anybody off.

[32:21] Tim Henderson.

[32:30] My name is Tim Henderson. I live in the village of Houston

[32:35] and I was a licensed wastewater treatment plant operator for almost 30

[32:41] years at our plants. I was at a meeting here about a year ago

[32:49] and the crowd looks the same. Um, at that time I questioned the allocation of

[32:57] $15,000 toward the engineering department to do

[33:02] a study of the flooding process. Now, with the basement still flooding, I

[33:09] think the only people that benefited were the engineers.

[33:13] Um during my time at the treatment plant, my partner and I were assigned

[33:19] one summer and there was plenty of rain, so we got pretty good idea of what was

[33:24] going on. Uh extensive walkound survey of troubled areas.

[33:33] We found looked at just about every manhole in the town and just about

[33:38] everyone was leaking. Uh we die tested the parking lots at NU

[33:45] and we found that some of the roofs on the dormitories were discharging right

[33:50] into the sewer system and you took it seriously

[33:55] put uh $250,000 into a [clears throat]

[33:59] cleanup campaign and they made things right.

[34:06] We also found off of Bronson

[34:10] a manhole where some fish had taken the manhole cover off. So, we were actually

[34:16] draining Fish Creek during a high flow. Um, fellow operator and I made some

[34:23] suggestions, but they were largely ignored. So, I'm

[34:28] just going to offer them again tonight. Now, the water pollution control center

[34:35] serves approximately 27,000 residents.

[34:42] It's been estimated that each individual contributes about 100 gallons a day.

[34:49] So, as you can see, um I went to courts on the little math

[34:55] challenge. But if you multiply

[34:59] 27,000 by 100,

[35:04] you're almost at capacity even on a sunny day. I have been there during high

[35:10] flow events where the flows have uh reached over 12 million.

[35:18] So I have a few suggestions. One was the installation of a an

[35:25] automatic um overflow line like an intercept on

[35:32] the line that comes in to the treatment plant.

[35:36] [clears throat] And at a certain level when it flow got so high it would

[35:40] automatically uh take over the flow and and go into

[35:45] the alcohol line before it even gets to the treatment

[35:51] plant. Uh there's a large area behind the

[35:56] treatment plant which would probably accommodate a third overflow retention

[36:02] facility. Um, you can apply to the DDC for a

[36:06] waiver uh to bypass the village closed the requirements. Right now, you can't

[36:15] bypass until it gets to a certain level

[36:24] that you know this system is is critical.

[36:28] uh increase in the scheduling for clearing lines including

[36:33] village lines off center streets that uh consistently flood with grease from the

[36:39] restaurants. Uh possibly sleeves in some of the the

[36:45] older areas that would help with the INI.

[36:50] And uh if these fail, I guess the last resort

[36:56] would be an adjustment to affected homes uh in their taxes that would reflect,

[37:04] you know, what their cleanup costs have been.

[37:07] Um many homes now pay more in cleanups than they do in taxes. And homeowners

[37:15] uh shouldn't live in fear of a rain event.

[37:20] many that I know actually have some form of PTSD.

[37:25] So, I wish you all well and I hope you take it as seriously as everybody else

[37:32] that is affected.

[37:36] » Did you experience uh any storage back up in the basement?

[37:40] » No, but I uh submitted a letter to my friend Eva.

[37:44] » Yep. I know she did, but um I just wanted to um I was one of the lucky

[37:49] ones. >> Okay. Okay. You're also on a boat too,

[37:52] right? >> No.

[37:53] » You're on. Okay. Thank you so much. Appreciate it.

[37:57] » Rick Flores,

[38:02] » I'm going to make mine quick. I I appreciate Mr. Wise coming up with

[38:07] saying that u there was a lack of uh transparency and in the highway and he's

[38:14] only been there a year. So, what can you expect from me here? But my story starts

[38:19] back in 2002. I built my house in 2002 and from 2002

[38:24] to 2008. I had a lot of water problems. I was

[38:29] going through some pumps like it's king. Okay. In 2008 finally uh the town came

[38:35] up. Uh Bob Nobles used to work for the water department and he implied that I

[38:40] built my house on artisian well. There was no electric.

[38:48] There was a town being leaked somewhere, but they never found it. What they did

[38:54] was put two dams [clears throat] in front of my house to offset the storm

[38:59] water coming into my house. From 2008 to 2024, I was fortunate.

[39:05] Nothing happened, but there was a lot of new builds in our area. Legacy, uh,

[39:12] North Bridge, there's a lot of town homes. So there's a lot of additional

[39:16] water coming, you know, in our area. Just this recent one on the 20 um

[39:24] what was it? The 26 I believe um we had the water coming down from Upper

[39:32] Mountain. Actually, somebody said, not upper mount, correction, Mountain View,

[39:36] that there was somebody pumping water right down the highway. All right.

[39:42] Sanitary water. Some people say, "Well, no, that's sewer water." But the U

[39:46] manholes say sanitary. I can tell you this. I'm tired of having

[39:53] sanitary water come up from my toilet in my basement.

[39:58] I have a new home, fairly new home. The infrastructure in that area, this should

[40:04] never happen. [clears throat] The s the sewer and the sanitary are two separate

[40:09] entities. Why Why are we having that in uh issue with uh

[40:17] excuse me infiltration between the storm and the sanitary. That's a big problem.

[40:24] And what we do have is we have a problem with one uh part of the town saying,

[40:30] "Well, that's sewer's problem." Or they the sewer guys will say, "No, that's

[40:35] that's a that's a storm sewer, not the sanitary sew." And then we hear about

[40:40] how the town will not allow us to clean. I mean, the state won't allow us to

[40:44] clean the ditches because of muscles. We're just tired of hearing that. We

[40:50] want you guys to work together and find a solution because homeowners like

[40:54] myself, [clears throat] there's seven home owners in in our area and they're

[40:59] very new homes and seven of them got flooded basement with sanitary sewer.

[41:06] That should not happen. How would you like your grandkids to be playing in

[41:10] your cellar when you had that happen? I have grandson. I don't want that to

[41:15] happen. And mine is send not once, twice, within one week.

[41:21] » Where? >> Uh 4692

[41:25] Stacy Drive. >> Thank you very much. Appreciate it.

[41:30] [applause]

[41:34] So, I received a letter from Eva Nicholas. I want to read it into the

[41:38] record. Um, statement regarding the recent sewer backup. I'm Eva Nicholas

[41:42] and I live at 903 Onidita Street in the village of Lewon. I'll be out of town

[41:46] for this important meeting, but I write this statement because I too experienced

[41:50] raw sewage flooding into my basement during the last two storm events. My

[41:54] damages are substantial, several thousand dollars so far, and other than

[41:58] pure rainy days. As long as I've lived here, I never experienced any water

[42:02] problems in my basement until after the clearing of acres of green space pines

[42:06] and that land was replaced with new buildings, parking lots, driveways,

[42:10] brick, concrete, asphalt, and water has no place to go. I wonder if the impact

[42:14] on sewer systems were carefully evaluated before all that development

[42:18] was approved. Relentless expansion shouldn't come at the expense of

[42:21] longtime residents and you shouldn't have to deal with the consequences or

[42:25] the expense of poor planning and overdevelopment in historic sign even

[42:32] the record. Um, Sharon Bland.

[42:41] » Hi, I'm Sharon Bland. I'm a fourth generation res. [clears throat]

[42:48] Yes, on river road. [clears throat] Um, I'm for action group. We've got over 300

[42:54] active homeowners that have experienced damages in our community. But obviously,

[42:58] this is a Niagara County problem. Um, I want to issue a brief rebuttal to some

[43:03] statements made by Mr. Weiss and Mr. Ritter, which were incredibly

[43:06] insensessive, suggesting that we don't know the difference between sewer water

[43:10] in our basement and storm water, which of course we do. We don't put stuff in

[43:14] the ditches. Mother Nature puts stuff in the ditches. And state law requires the

[43:18] town and the county and the state to maintain their rights of play. Now, I've

[43:22] lived here long enough that I can say, as other residents have said, nobody's

[43:26] maintaining our ditches. I've been contacting you for 40 years. My

[43:30] grandmother broke her leg in the ditch. My mother broke her arm in the ditch and

[43:34] I'm still trying to maintain the ditch. Now I contacted Mr. Weiss in February

[43:38] and respectfully requested help when we had flooding then and I got kiss. I

[43:43] filed notice of clay. Now I have 7 to 15,000 of damage, a huge crack in my

[43:48] basement, sewer water, flies, all kinds of fun. The storm system was not

[43:53] working. I notified them in February. There's a problem. I got nothing now.

[44:00] We're not supposed to be reactive. We're supposed to be proactive. We've been

[44:03] paying tax dollars for decades and decades to clean our ditches. So before

[44:09] you decide to allocate hundreds of thousands of dollars to new department,

[44:13] new employees, where did our infrastructure dollars go? Why are our

[44:17] ditches not being maintained? Why is the state not enforcing it? And when are the

[44:21] county and the state going to step in and help residents? Because this is a

[44:25] fiasco. There are hundreds of people with hundreds of thousands of dollars in

[44:29] damages. After I received no response from Mr.

[44:34] Weiss, I filed three more notices of claim.

[44:37] As of today, I've filed a foil request for all of the infrastructure records in

[44:42] order to audit the town of Lewon and to find out where our money has gone. I've

[44:46] also issued a letter to all Niagara County mayors, supervisors, and

[44:51] townships to ask them to take part in programs that exist to help us create

[44:56] our infrastructure. There's government money out there, and all we have to do

[45:00] is apply for it. Um, we've had a 350% increase in our assessments. Now, we

[45:06] paid money for infrastructure and our property values are predicated on things

[45:10] like storm water and sewer and now radioactive waste runoff that we need to

[45:15] be very concerned about. Um, before one penny gets spent in additional

[45:20] departments and personnel and equipment, we want town meetings. We want

[45:24] accountability. We want to have these conversations because there are many,

[45:28] many, many people affected. We want no more band-aids. Now, there's two

[45:32] programs out there that already exist. the clean water revolving state fund

[45:36] which provides grant monies low interest loan 7%. There's also another one that

[45:40] turns out everybody's availing except us called the New York State Resilient

[45:44] Watershed Grant Program and it's funded by the Environmental Bond Act and

[45:49] basically we need to get a resilient New York flood study or have a DEC approved

[45:53] comparable study. Then we can apply for all kinds of improvements. They've

[45:57] already got it up on Bill Creek in County um up at at Tom and Niagara and

[46:02] all kinds of surrounding areas. I've got a map here that shows that a whole bunch

[46:06] of municipalities in our area are already included except us. Um there's

[46:11] all kinds of money and help to do what we need to do. Um we need volunteers to

[46:18] be included so that we can clean up areas if we don't have enough personnel.

[46:22] We got to fix this before spring. We're going to have a huge problem in the

[46:25] spring. It's going to be a heck of a lot worse than it is right now. So, I'm

[46:29] asking the town to please look into programs that would help us. I'm asking

[46:34] all the supervisors and mayors in the various cities and towns in Iber County

[46:38] to register their damages. There's a website to do this that the states put

[46:43] forth. I've got a petition on change.org. I'm trying to get Governor

[46:47] Hokll to answer. I'm getting a little bit of blowback there because of course

[46:50] they don't want to take responsibility for their part of our problems. I know

[46:54] this isn't all you. I've lived here a long time. These problems have existed

[46:58] forever. But it doesn't matter what came before. It matters what we do tomorrow.

[47:03] We have to fix these issues. Our property values are going to depreciate

[47:06] if we don't fix these issues. We are in the equivalent of a basin. We are

[47:11] becoming a sort of an effective flood zone. When you call for flood insurance,

[47:16] it's double the cost of your homeowners and it only covers 250,000 which won't

[47:20] cover most of us. So that's a bad one. You can't even fix the problem if you

[47:25] want to throw money at it. Um, we're also, I think, being victimized by local

[47:29] providers that are fixing cracks in our basement. I went to multiple homes whose

[47:34] basement walls cave in. It is disgusting. It is a health issue.

[47:40] It's just appalling. I've never seen anything like it and I've seen of it.

[47:43] But I'll tell you what, we've got to fix the problem before it gets worse. And we

[47:48] have to also pay attention to the fixes that people are putting in because I put

[47:53] a fix in too and that fix failed and other people's fixes failed and now

[47:57] there's people with the races caving in that can't live in their house and

[48:00] that's because those fixes are not fixing the outside they're just putting

[48:04] a band-aid on the inside. So my theme for the day is no more bandaids. Please

[48:08] help us find permanent solutions. We deserve that. Thank you. It's Cheryl,

[48:14] right?

[48:18] Um, do you have that website? Because I think isn't it through FEMA? It's like

[48:24] » I bet I can give you a piece of paper that's got it all laid out. That would

[48:27] be wonderful because I think it would be very helpful if we put that on our town

[48:31] website so that at least we can get that cataloged. So if we are able to apply

[48:36] for any federal money, FEMA money, >> then um that kind of gets aggregated

[48:41] together. Right. And and I'm also trying to get people to put a sign out in front

[48:45] of their house that they're a flood victim because people were

[48:48] misunderstanding when I was trying to gather names together because there's

[48:52] thresholds and I'm not understanding completely if it's a property threshold

[48:55] or a money threshold or both. >> But people are like, "Oh, no, no. Um,

[48:59] you know, my sump pump didn't work." I'm like, "It doesn't really matter. What

[49:03] matters is that if you've had water damage, we can't meet the threshold

[49:07] unless we know about you." >> Yeah. I believe that it is a monetary

[49:10] threshold, but I'm not positive. I think it's like 38 million somewhere around

[49:15] that point. >> Yeah, I talked to somebody um but

[49:17] Governor Huffle referred me to of all places, Homeland Security's emergency

[49:22] response team. Yeah. >> And apparently the city, I think the

[49:26] county has to have 1.3 million and the state has to have something like 39.

[49:32] » Yeah, it's like 38 or 39 million. >> But then he also told me that FEMA

[49:36] doesn't cover private people. Now, this is the first time I've heard this. And I

[49:39] mean, we all know FEMA from Baton Rouge and and Louisiana and all that. I'm not

[49:44] sure what he's talking about there, but I do know that there's funds out there

[49:47] that we can apply for. And they've done it locally in smaller communities than

[49:51] our Somerset. Um, if they can do it, we can do it. And [clears throat] maybe

[49:56] that would get us to our destination quicker.

[49:57] » Okay. Because that would be so very helpful.

[49:59] » I absolutely. >> So, thank you very much.

[50:03] Sharon Shar, could could you email me that map, please?

[50:07] » Yes. Okay. I could probably just give you the sheet of paper.

[50:11] » Oh, >> it's very interesting. It shows up the

[50:13] townships that have already. So, basically, we've had over 50 um events

[50:19] in this area already that are considered right now.

[50:22] » I think it's like um I believe it's it and that's I don't know if I'm going to

[50:26] say it right. It's a life grant. Um there's a couple of other grants that

[50:30] were uh could possibly go for but I do know that we have to get our ducks in a

[50:38] row as far as to like with Mike. It's a fabulous start. We now have to develop

[50:43] some type of plan that we can now present in that grant application.

[50:48] » Right. >> So

[50:49] » I would be more than willing to volunteer to finance. I'd be happy to

[50:53] help you with that. I'm sure there's lots of other people that could too

[50:55] because they wrote massive amounts of paperwork.

[50:59] Okay. Thank you so much.

[51:05] » Thank you everybody for speaking. Really appreciate it. Um

[51:12] moving on right now to our approval of meet minutes from the regular town board

[51:18] meeting on July 27. [clears throat]

[51:22] I reviewed them meeting minutes and I make a motion to make acceptance

[51:26] presented. We have a motion, a second. All in favor?

[51:32] » Motion carries abstract claims. >> I move to approve the regular abstract

[51:38] claims 2602317 through 2602462.

[51:45] [clears throat] Recommend payment. This is an amended amount in which you have

[51:50] recommend payment in the amount of $525,358

[51:55] plus a post audit in the amount of $16,590.

[52:02] A second a motion and a second. All in favor?

[52:07] » I oppos

[52:26] clerk's office. >> The postage machine is up. We need to

[52:31] approve to extend the lease and have the town clerk sign the lease with any votes

[52:35] for another 60 months that $1735 a month

[52:44] is moving forward.

[52:50] » Second motion second all in favor motion car.

[52:58] So recently we put out bits for cleaning key fobs for the doors. It's 25 inside

[53:03] doors and two outside doors. Um at town hall we did receive three bids for that

[53:10] from maximum security in the amount of $57,500.

[53:14] One from security 101 $51,750 and from technical solutions 23,856.

[53:24] I'm requesting approval to accept the low bid from technical solutions in the

[53:28] amount of $23,856.

[53:32] I'll make that motion. >> Second motion in a second. All in favor?

[53:37] » I

[53:40] think

[53:47] this was going to come out, I believe.

[53:52] » H97. So, So I will make a motion that supervisor sign the contract with

[53:58] technical solutions for the money to come out of H97.

[54:03] » Second motion second. All in favor I

[54:09] » just need a motion

[54:13] supervisor that conception

[54:21] just mentioned that >> I didn't know that that's my guess for

[54:26] the town clerk to sign the town clerk to sign.

[54:31] » [clears throat] >> And I will second that. We have a motion

[54:33] to second. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carried.

[54:38] » And lastly, the uniform and M contract through vestice is up in December of

[54:42] this year. We'd like to get head start on for a smooth transition. We'd like to

[54:47] go ahead and start obtaining some bids for that. Now

[54:51] board approval to go out to bed for uniforms and

[54:55] need a motion for that. >> To go out to bed. Yes,

[54:58] » I'll make that motion to go out.

[55:03] motion a second. All in favor

[55:11] on the agenda. Anything

[55:15] you want to add?

[55:20] [clears throat] >> Michael,

[55:22] we have been out some of the areas

[55:28] [clears throat] pretty going on right now.

[55:33] So it's taking some time

[55:39] out. Um this is where talking

[55:45] other than that we've been working alongside with the waste water treatment

[55:49] plant with the camera and the sewer jet storm drains and camera and stuff to see

[55:54] if we can find any problem.

[56:00] Now, Mike, I just had a question with how your proposed with the um two

[56:04] additional individuals. I understand that they're they're summer

[56:09] work, but now in the winter, would they be put to work to develop projects or

[56:16] would they be um brought in as far as with snow removal and other winter

[56:21] maintenance or how would they be strategically? As long as we don't have

[56:27] six feet of snow on the ground, we can continue.

[56:30] We can clear ditches, we can cut down trees, we can clear those areas out. I

[56:36] mean, it's something that we continue year round.

[56:39] » Okay. Okay. So, they would just >> Yeah. Just because it's snowing or it's

[56:43] cold out doesn't mean we have to stop, >> but also just to answer your question,

[56:48] they would be available if you couldn't be town.

[56:52] » Okay. Well, that's just what um you know, just to be able to wrap my head

[56:56] around um what they actually would be doing. I know

[57:01] » a lot of work ahead of us, but um I just want to know if they would be utilized

[57:05] in the capacity to um you maybe run a drone

[57:11] like you had done in some areas to look at or you know as far as to help.

[57:17] » Oh yeah, absolutely. >> So as far as your proposal

[57:23] You want from my understand you want to add two highway department workers MEOS.

[57:29] » Yes. >> You want to discuss that real quick?

[57:33] » Sure. >> Go ahead.

[57:35] » Yeah. If you look at they add two MEOs to our department um solely for the

[57:40] reason [clears throat] but as we said you know they will be utilized in the

[57:44] highway department for whatever reason

[57:50] it would it's a start

[57:54] it's definitely a start >> so after talking like

[57:58] two crew members >> and adding a third from within the um

[58:05] that's where we would start. So, um I think what Mike's looking for is a

[58:09] motion to approve two new hires, any hires for the town highway department.

[58:14] They would be part of the ditching crew within the town highway department. So,

[58:18] they would be a town highway worker who would be just doing ditches. I mean, the

[58:22] goal is to do ditching, but they would be available to do other things.

[58:29] Yeah, the primary focus is going to be cleaning the kitchen with a preventative

[58:33] maintenance program. >> Absolutely propritoring the dishes

[58:36] » to get us back to a situation where we're not struggling to spend months to

[58:41] clean out a dish. It would be very quick to go through and be able to just scoop

[58:47] that ditch out at some point. >> Okay. So, basically, it's it's it is

[58:51] developing a ditch commission. We're just going to call it a ditch commission

[58:54] piece. A ditch voice or ditch division. Um and then they would be responsible

[59:01] for like a rotating basis once everything does get to where we would

[59:07] like it. Then there would be a rotational schedule [clears throat] that

[59:11] they would uh develop and maintain each year.

[59:14] » Basically basically when we finish this project we're just going to

[59:19] » Okay. And then that um I'm going to assume that the ditch division would

[59:23] then need to be its own budget line as you had mentioned. So if you're looking

[59:27] for a budget line for equipment and supplies for the pitching, I don't think

[59:35] we we would be able to do a separate budget line for the actual employees.

[59:40] » Yeah, I'm just thinking of like, you know, like being able to subsection it

[59:44] out as like a division as to where it doesn't go into the general highway

[59:50] budget, but then it actually gets the money gets put in that division

[59:55] » for Yes. for the for the equipment or supplies.

[59:59] » Yes.

[1:00:03] » No, that's fine. I'm just talking for the um you know equipment and whatever

[1:00:09] materials are needed, but I guess that would be question also.

[1:00:13] » Yes. >> So, okay.

[1:00:15] » Okay. So, um you want to make that motion? [clears throat]

[1:00:19] » I if nobody else wants to make it. Yes, I will. I will make that motion to um

[1:00:24] hire two additional people at the highway department for the um sole

[1:00:30] purpose of becoming members of the ditch division.

[1:00:36] » Again, I would stay away from sole purpose. Okay. Yeah. So, I guess not

[1:00:41] sole purpose, but their their main char

[1:00:46] but we can >> as as MEOs within the highway department

[1:00:50] for the purpose of being additionally approved.

[1:00:53] » Yes. >> You mentioned some additional equipment.

[1:00:57] Do you have enough quick? Can we do this one first? Let's do this one first. We

[1:01:01] have a motion. We have a second. >> Okay. Motion a second. All in favor?

[1:01:06] » I motion. Okay. Go ahead. >> So my question was you mentioned some

[1:01:11] additional equipment with with these two not there. Do you have enough equipment

[1:01:17] currently for them to be productive? >> We we do. Yes, but there is ideally

[1:01:23] equipment that you would prefer to see which would make this go a lot faster

[1:01:30] as a discussed proposal like a tough grinder. That way we could actually just

[1:01:36] take care of all the trees and everything right on property and it

[1:01:39] would go back to the earth compared to it takes us 10 times longer to pull all

[1:01:44] the trees out because you can't just cut down a tree.

[1:01:51] » Now would that be included then in this year's budget line? Are you going to

[1:01:56] amend um you know for next year's budget to include that?

[1:02:02] » Yeah. I don't have that. >> Okay. So, I was going to say that might

[1:02:05] be um you know some things we look at for next year.

[1:02:12] Mike and I discussed some work on that. So, state we can try and find time. So,

[1:02:17] we we definitely talked about it. Um so, we felt like getting two people hired

[1:02:22] tonight was the first equipment. >> It's going to take us some time to find

[1:02:26] the right people. >> Yeah. It's not it's not like we have

[1:02:30] people lined up to start working tomorrow. It's gonna take time to get

[1:02:34] the word out.

[1:02:39] » Water, anything you'd like to say?

[1:02:42] » Well, um we had about uh almost 10 inches of rain in five days. If it was

[1:02:49] snow, it would be 8 ft. It's a lot to deal with. I feel for all

[1:02:55] the people that talked today and it's uh you know it's hard to hear uh talked to

[1:03:01] all of the people that spoke here today and hundreds of other people um

[1:03:07] when we have flooding issues and the ditches are flooded um there's no way to

[1:03:12] keep the water out of the sanitary sewer. Um and it's going to back into

[1:03:17] low uh residences. Um, I didn't mean to

[1:03:22] offend anybody by putting uh what I put out on uh Facebook. It's just there are

[1:03:28] some people that do absolutely nothing to try to protect themselves but just

[1:03:35] call and complain. So, um trying to help out everybody that we can and we'll

[1:03:41] continue to try to do our best. >> Thank you. Um Bob Lander from GHB

[1:03:46] couldn't be here, but he sent his storm water expert. Tammy, is there anything

[1:03:51] you'd like to add? >> Um I think we just felt it was important

[1:03:54] to have someone from GH here uh to listen and and hear everything that has

[1:03:59] happened especially for those specific events. And we will continue to work

[1:04:03] with the town. We've already had some meetings with the supervisor, council

[1:04:07] member, and highway department. Um we've already talked about some options and

[1:04:11] we'll continue to work. >> Um can is there get a hard copy of

[1:04:15] report or a hard copy of uh the drainage study that was [clears throat]

[1:04:20] farms. Um I do have it online but I would prefer to be able to have

[1:04:24] something I can go through and capture notes off of. Thank you.

[1:04:30] » So with that since we're on engineering um you know we know the town that we

[1:04:36] have areas that have problems they're historical problems um some go back 60

[1:04:41] 70 years. The big question mark is Lewis Town

[1:04:45] Park. That neighborhood is only like Mr.

[1:04:50] Flores said, I believe he built his house in 2002.

[1:04:55] And he was in phase 8. He was the last house in phase 8. So that neighborhood's

[1:04:59] been going in since the 80s. I know that's a long time ago, but it's

[1:05:04] relatively new compared to Dage. So

[1:05:10] that neighborhood highway sewer has been out there for the last two days coming

[1:05:16] Friday trying [clears throat] to do some camera work.

[1:05:20] Uh sewer jet using the sewer jet to clean out um pipes and everything like

[1:05:25] that. It's a mystery right now what's going on in Moosetown Park. So um what

[1:05:31] we did at Morgan Farms is we did a topographical we did um basically as

[1:05:38] built drawings current asbuilt drawings. So what we're going to do and I'm going

[1:05:41] to make a motion tonight is that the town is requesting a proposal from GHD

[1:05:46] to investigate the drainage issues Lewistown Park phase 8 and nine Harry

[1:05:52] Court Stacy Drive Raymond Sarah and Lauren Court. This effort will include

[1:05:58] necessary topographic and boundary survey storm water modeling concept and

[1:06:02] final design of the storm water infra infrastructure improvements. So, I'm

[1:06:07] gonna I'm gonna make that motion to ask them for an RFP for that.

[1:06:12] So, we have a motion in a second. >> Can I ask a question?

[1:06:15] » Sure. >> Um I my question is,

[1:06:21] you know, we we recognize that we have the infiltration issues. We've been

[1:06:27] dealing with it for years. So, I I mean, I'm curious as to the corporate

[1:06:33] structure of GHD. Are they prepared to give us the

[1:06:37] resources that that we need and do you have the people on staff that can that

[1:06:42] that can get us answers in a relatively short period of time?

[1:06:46] » Absolutely. GHD has a hall's office, a Buffalo office. We have a very large

[1:06:52] office out of the Sier area. Uh we share resources all the time. We work together

[1:06:57] as a larger team. Uh we have thousands of employees. Um even some of the early

[1:07:02] work we have done right now has not just been from our local staff. It has been

[1:07:06] shared across our offices to find the best technical staff to work on what is

[1:07:12] needed. So we have a system of many systems in place to ensure that we

[1:07:17] constantly have the right staff and the available staff to work on our project.

[1:07:22] So this will be no different. We will commit to what is needed to get this

[1:07:26] done and to get it done in good in a reasonable amount of time because this

[1:07:31] cannot linger as we heard tonight. It cannot be a slowm moving item. It has to

[1:07:38] » do we have even a rough time estimate before we

[1:07:42] » I don't right now but we will get that together quickly following this

[1:07:47] resolution. >> Is this something that we can get

[1:07:49] updates monthly? >> Absolutely.

[1:07:52] » And addressing Typically, Mr. Landon would be here and

[1:07:56] provide updates. Um, that's moving forward with Mr.

[1:08:00] » So, what we're asking for is proposal on what they're going to do with cost and

[1:08:05] everything like that. Then moving forward once we decide if we're going to

[1:08:09] do that and moving forward, we will work with GHD.

[1:08:13] » Um, I do have another question. Um, just as far I know it's just only a request

[1:08:18] for proposal. Um, I know that GHD has been involved in other engineers

[1:08:23] projects and is currently involved in a project in Tananda with that sewer for

[1:08:28] installing I think sewer liners. But now I'm wondering as far as after we do all

[1:08:34] of these studies and we've got all of this information now is G uh GHD uh

[1:08:41] capable of developing an action plan for us that we then can take and use in

[1:08:49] these applications for assistance. You're looking for something more of a

[1:08:55] master planning or more of a what to do when something occurs?

[1:08:59] » Well, no. I just feel like we've got these studies like we've got study of

[1:09:03] Morgan Farms. We're going to do a study of um I can't remember the name. We got

[1:09:08] the Pure Court Raymond Drive area. Then we're going to do a study here. And

[1:09:12] we're going to What do we do with that study? Like we

[1:09:16] need to have a consolidated like, okay, so this is what's going on

[1:09:21] here. these are the problems we have identified. This is what we can write

[1:09:25] our grant applications off of or this is what we can utilize to implement. So I

[1:09:31] just I just feel like we're we're in a disconnect with the information that

[1:09:36] we're getting and the applicability of that information.

[1:09:40] So the the best format would be to start putting again more of an overall picture

[1:09:47] of the town. Um focus then bringing that focus areas and areas of interest and

[1:09:53] then like you said study can focus on an area but then that needs an action plan

[1:09:59] to then what we will do to improve the infrastructure and or repair or modify

[1:10:04] or whatever the plan is after that. So this first proposal starts that process

[1:10:09] with one area but we need to put comprehensive list together of all the

[1:10:14] areas of interest and start prioritizing and planning ahead and we can start

[1:10:19] working on that I think now that we've had some of these conversations um and

[1:10:23] try to work out the best picture so all the board members can understand and our

[1:10:26] department heads can understand what to do moving forward.

[1:10:29] » Now are there any other historical studies that GHD has already done? I

[1:10:34] mean, and if they've already done them in the village, if they've already done

[1:10:38] them, you know, out uh Creek Road, if they [clears throat]

[1:10:43] under other comprehensive historical studies,

[1:10:47] there are other drainage studies that we've done for local municipalities area

[1:10:52] county specific

[1:10:55] » specifically. Not that comes to mind, but I have to double check with Mr.

[1:10:59] because obviously being a resident he's involved in what goes on here and often

[1:11:04] handles it more directly himself. So I don't want to speak outside of what his

[1:11:09] level of knowledge out outweighs. >> Okay. Not that's just a question for

[1:11:13] [clears throat] [cough]

[1:11:15] about three years. Just that we do have that historical.

[1:11:23] We have a motion and a second. Any more questions?

[1:11:28] All in favor? >> I oppos. Motion carries. Thank you. Um I

[1:11:34] would also like to acknowledge before they stand up and leave, we invited uh

[1:11:39] our legislature. So um Irene Myers is our our legislature to the north and

[1:11:45] Mike Cassell is our legislator from to the south basically divided by 104

[1:11:50] closely 104. There's some area. So I appreciate you being here. they they

[1:11:55] understood that um the county has some issues in this and that it's it's a

[1:12:00] bigger picture of how we can solve resolve some of these issues. It may

[1:12:04] need the county may need the state. Obviously, we have state groups, we have

[1:12:08] county groups. So, I appreciate you guys coming.

[1:12:10] » No, it was our pleasure meeting. Um county is going to be getting together.

[1:12:16] Uh Ari and I only had conversations with the chairman of our infrastructure and

[1:12:21] facilities committee. Uh so, Rest assured, we will be talking and coming

[1:12:26] up with a plan on how to lend some support to the effort.

[1:12:30] » And just so everybody knows, Mike Cassell was a victim of major flooding

[1:12:34] as well. >> I definitely feel the pain of people

[1:12:37] here. Uh flooded in both events, July 26, 27th, and August

[1:12:43] » with [snorts]

[1:12:46] the address.

[1:12:50] » Okay. Thank you very much. Appreciate it. And we did spend some money to do

[1:12:55] some of those competitive things. >> Okay. [clears throat] So, which are you

[1:12:58] closer down towards library? >> Right down the road from the library.

[1:13:02] » Okay. Thank you very much. >> And I'd also like to acknowledge the

[1:13:05] mayor of Lewon, Dan Cota, for coming out to the meeting as well. I would like to

[1:13:09] thank the mayor of Lewon for getting his guys out and doing the ditch cleaning on

[1:13:14] my street and the crap on and also the ditch between the parkway

[1:13:24] and the quad trail. I know that you're looking to work with the DEC to get the

[1:13:28] permits you need to get that cooled out. We should have that permit in the next

[1:13:32] 14 days. And if there is a need and we're talking on the county level, uh we

[1:13:38] need all the towns to work together. We don't want something that the town of

[1:13:41] Louiswis does that negatively impacts the town of Niagara or vice versa. So,

[1:13:46] you know, we need to work with soil and water within our our county, you know,

[1:13:50] people. So, you know, we Niagara if we did anything to get the water out here,

[1:13:55] it would affect the town of Porter, which is also

[1:13:57] » we don't want >> everything goes north. So some goes west

[1:14:02] into the river, but everything kind of between the creeks goes north.

[1:14:05] » And I know sometimes the DEC is not the easiest agency to work with. So I mean

[1:14:11] their application process pretty burdensome. If there's a need for some

[1:14:16] assistance with doing these applications,

[1:14:18] we can help with the county. >> So our our ditches next to the parkway,

[1:14:22] which is on both the east and the west side, is a big source of where our water

[1:14:27] goes. >> Permanent was signed. It's owned by New

[1:14:30] York parks. We have a lease with New York parks for our trail, our bike path

[1:14:35] to, you know, operate that area drainage on our bike path. But the ditches are

[1:14:39] part of New York State Parks. They signed a permit application which Mr.

[1:14:44] Cota started with them and they signed it Friday. So I got I got an email on

[1:14:50] that. So the ball's rolling. We'll see. and and numerous phone calls I believe

[1:14:56] from council governor's office directly um along with

[1:15:03] mayorota uh to seek their assistance on the other

[1:15:07] uh areas that we have issue as far creek fish creek and um Gil Creek that's it

[1:15:14] right so um hopefully that we can establish that communication there and

[1:15:20] get their assistance with the DEC for those creeks and then also to be able to

[1:15:25] possibly get pointed towards some type of, you know, grant program or something

[1:15:30] that we can apply for to get as far as monetary.

[1:15:35] » Thank you very much. >> Thank you. Yes, thank you for having us

[1:15:38] and um like legislator Christelle said that uh we're going to be

[1:15:45] um putting in much effort into trying to look at the big picture of everything.

[1:15:50] Um as we all our weather pattern is changing. So

[1:15:54] » yeah, I think we have 42 we've had 42 inches of rain to date,

[1:16:00] » which is well well above average in this area. So thank you.

[1:16:05] » Well, again, thanks to Michael, thanks Mayor.

[1:16:12] I totally 100% agree. >> I can tell you from supervisors meeting

[1:16:17] across the county, every every town is dealing with this. Every town is dealing

[1:16:21] with DC. Every town is dealing with flooding. Every town is dealing with

[1:16:26] drink issues. So, thanks. And so, we'll take a cover up. You've been to the

[1:16:30] meetings with the uh with the DOT and the towns and the county and the state

[1:16:35] and DPC. [clears throat] So, I appreciate it.

[1:16:38] » Thank you. >> And I was going to say if you have any

[1:16:40] more app,

[1:16:48] » Tim, last but not least, Tim Smith. Oh. Uh, thank you, sir. Uh, we just finished

[1:16:53] up our camp season, uh, preparing for our next season, which I don't want to

[1:16:58] bring up any of those events. I still like to enjoy the last two weeks of

[1:17:01] summer, but follow us on Facebook and, uh, the town website. We got plenty of

[1:17:05] events coming up for the fall and the winter time. So, yeah, a lot of adult

[1:17:08] events, too, not just kids. So, [clears throat] that's a big aspect of

[1:17:12] our recreation department as well. Jackie, no, I'm sorry. You're you'll be

[1:17:16] last. Jackie's online. Jackie, it's minor surgery and attention. You there,

[1:17:23] Jackie?

[1:17:27] » You're on mute if you're there. There you are.

[1:17:30] » Y >> I'm here.

[1:17:34] So, so go ahead.

[1:17:39] » Previously, I submitted eight budget revisions

[1:17:43] for the board to review. And tonight I ask for those budget revisions to be

[1:17:48] approved. >> I went over them with Jackie this

[1:17:51] morning. I'll make a motion to accept. I'll second that motion. Motion a

[1:17:57] second. All in favor? >> I opposed. Motion carried. Jackie,

[1:18:02] anything else you'd like to add? >> Uh, no. I will sit down with Mike to

[1:18:09] figure out the uh the new ditch division funding requirements.

[1:18:15] get that all put together. >> Okay. Thank you very much.

[1:18:20] We'll talk to you soon.

[1:18:24] » Okay. Nothing under old pending business. Nothing under new business

[1:18:28] under my leazison report. Um

[1:18:33] Leah, are you here?

[1:18:39] » She's in hospital. >> Oh, okay. So, can you step up to the

[1:18:43] microphone? I'm sorry. What's your first name again?

[1:18:48] » Gina Maria Marino. >> Gina.

[1:18:50] » So, Gina came to me with her with her sister and talked about a break in their

[1:18:56] um water line. Um there's water and sewer. Um it was a water line break. Her

[1:19:03] average bill is I >> Yeah, I got it right here. I was going

[1:19:09] to run through this real quick. Real quick. Bear with me. Uh, her most

[1:19:13] expensive bill on here was in 23 at $112 and it was 60 61 61 61 61 62 62 706 62

[1:19:24] and $5,729.

[1:19:27] So that's a long shower. So explain explain to us what happened.

[1:19:33] » Um, my sister has health issues. She was in hospital and

[1:19:41] had a water break in the bathroom upstairs.

[1:19:46] It ran for two days and then it was two subs and then

[1:19:54] um I had another neighbor check in on Florida and it's been flown in every

[1:20:01] month for the last six months to try to get this sorted out. I'm on a plan

[1:20:07] and I like she had a new meter put on and everything. There's no way this was

[1:20:13] just a normal. >> I think if you remember our

[1:20:15] conversation, you had the work done. >> I did.

[1:20:18] » And I I asked for like a work order on my phone that I'm not allowed to

[1:20:26] because my phone had to be shut off. >> Oh,

[1:20:29] » that's why I I brought everything digital. I came up with Well,

[1:20:33] » give me We'll do

[1:20:36] a meeting >> either a meeting or if you can email

[1:20:39] them to >> I can do all the

[1:20:40] » okay and we'll figure out water we'll figure sewer water I'll have

[1:20:46] your phone number um >> please

[1:20:48] » do me a favor write down your

[1:21:07] And then what we'll do in our next meeting, you wouldn't need to be here. I

[1:21:10] can present

[1:21:18] » I will call you tomorrow. Okay,

[1:21:22] » I hope your sister feels better.

[1:21:31] » So, um, we just settled. Um,

[1:21:36] I believe it's been completely finalized. Um, we know what the numbers

[1:21:41] are going to be. And what we've done in the past is we have matched our court

[1:21:46] officers with our part-time police officers per their contract.

[1:21:52] And what I would like to do is um basically approve the court officers

[1:21:59] making as much as equal to the part-time officer's pay within within the town

[1:22:05] highway per town police contract. So I have I don't have those numbers in

[1:22:11] front of me. I have the contract you want to look at them. But um it's a

[1:22:15] situation. It's a product basically of minimum wage going up and everybody's

[1:22:19] salaries going up. So we approved the police contract I believe at the last

[1:22:22] meeting and I would ask that we approve the court officer's pay moving forward

[1:22:29] um from Hold on a second. What was the date again? Was it was

[1:22:35] today right? >> Yeah.

[1:22:41] It'll be today to coincide with the new with the payroll period. So I would ask

[1:22:45] that the court officers pay would increase equal to the part-time police

[1:22:49] officers paying their contract. Yeah, I'll make that motion. I'll second.

[1:22:54] » All in favor? >> I opposed

[1:22:58] motion. Um legal

[1:23:03] you have a resolution in front of you relative to an undertaking with the

[1:23:07] state. Obviously uh town does work within the rights of way of state of New

[1:23:14] York etc. And basically what this is is a understanding uh that of what the town

[1:23:21] will do andifying the state for that type of work. So this is just

[1:23:26] [clears throat] basically a reaffirmation of what the

[1:23:30] town did I believe 10 years ago. It's a longer term relationship. I think the

[1:23:35] last one was 2005. Okay. without reading the whole thing.

[1:23:39] Um, it's town list town board resolution authorizing the execution of new

[1:23:43] undertaking of New York City Department of Transportation. Now, therefore, be it

[1:23:46] resolved town board and town hereby approves and authorizes town to enter

[1:23:51] into the New York State DOT undertaking presented to town board attached here to

[1:23:55] exhibit A. Town supervisor is hereby authorized and directed on behalf of the

[1:23:59] town to execute the undertaking attached as exhibit A and to deliver the executed

[1:24:04] undertaking to New York State Department of

[1:24:07] Transportation together with a copy of the instant resolution and any other

[1:24:11] documents reasonably required by New York State DOT to process and accept the

[1:24:15] undertaking. The undertaking attached is exhibit A is incorporated into and made

[1:24:19] a part of this resolution. This resolution will take effect immediately

[1:24:23] upon it adoption. So you need a vote on to resolve to enter into it and then a

[1:24:29] vote to authorize supervisor to sign the actual undertaking attachment.

[1:24:35] Okay. Can I get a motion? I'll make that motion.

[1:24:40] » Second motion to second. All in favor? I motion carried and a motion for

[1:24:51] second. Motion second. All in favor? I motion.

[1:24:57] » Some months ago, um town board authorized me to negotiate

[1:25:03] um with the owner of parcel of property on Slement

[1:25:08] [clears throat] Road and Garlo. There's some issues with respect to the traffic

[1:25:12] patterns there. Uh also some complaints of the neighbors as to uh whether it met

[1:25:18] code numbers of American violations coming from the manager's office. we've

[1:25:22] reached uh an agreement with that um with that individual and I have supplied

[1:25:28] and that is attached to your agenda a contract purchase contract for the

[1:25:34] amount of $60,000 for that particular lot. Um we are holding uh several deeds

[1:25:42] and documents in escro pending vote today.

[1:25:46] So we're all aware of this. So what it is,

[1:25:50] just so everybody else knows, there's the old red and white building, the

[1:25:53] corner of Carlo 31, which has been in court for since I started here in 2007

[1:25:59] » and it's changed ownership and it's been kicked out of the court because of that

[1:26:03] and brought back into the court. We've had promises, oh, we're going to clean

[1:26:05] the building up, which it was cleaned up, but the building needs to be

[1:26:08] condemned and it is condemned. >> It is condemned. So um so it's a

[1:26:13] two-fold process. when we were had the opportunity to purchase it. Also, if

[1:26:18] anybody that's driven south on Garlo and hit 31, it's an awkward intersection.

[1:26:24] The intention is to line up Garlo on the on the north side with Garlo on the

[1:26:29] south side so you're not facing kind of a a south east angle. We're

[1:26:37] going to to line it up. So, that's the real intention of getting the property.

[1:26:42] Um, the other is to demolish that building and clean that property up. So,

[1:26:47] I would ask for a motion. And also, we received a $50,000 grant from

[1:26:53] Assemblyman Morinell that could be used to obtain this property. It's one of the

[1:26:57] parameters of using the grant and one of them is to obtain property. So, with

[1:27:02] that, I would ask for a motion to uh approve the purchase of that property

[1:27:07] for $60,000 >> plus closing costs. Closing cost.

[1:27:12] Exactly. >> Wouldn't you figure another

[1:27:15] » $1,500 to $2,000 at most? >> Where the remainder come from?

[1:27:21] » Um H97 our infrastructure. >> Jackie Jackie now are you there?

[1:27:30] » Was that how I understood it? It was going to be through the um our H97

[1:27:36] infrastructure fund. >> Yes.

[1:27:38] » Okay. Thank you. So It would be a total of basically $62,000

[1:27:45] up to $62,000. >> Motion

[1:27:50] second. >> All in favor?

[1:27:56] » Motion and also authorized

[1:28:05] contract. All

[1:28:07] » in favor? I oppos. I know we had some

[1:28:19] engineering. We've already taken care of that. We've already taken the budget

[1:28:22] provisions. Councilman Bird report police fires. I have a letter here from

[1:28:28] Officer Buzzio. Please accept this letter as formal

[1:28:32] notification that I am resigning from my position as a police officer with the

[1:28:35] Louis police department effective August 31st 20126.

[1:28:40] Leaving the Louis in police team was a very deep and well thoughtout decision.

[1:28:43] I have had an extraordinarily rewarding time in serving this community alongside

[1:28:48] some of the finest individuals I ever known. My co-workers here have truly

[1:28:52] become like family to me and the camaraderie, memories, and invaluable

[1:28:56] professional lessons I've gained are things I will carry with me throughout

[1:28:58] the rest of my career. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity,

[1:29:02] mentorship, and support provided to me during my tenure police. Prior to my

[1:29:06] departure, I will ensure all my open reports are finalized and assist in

[1:29:10] making the transition as smooth as possible. I wish you and the entire

[1:29:13] Louis Police Department continued safety and success. I make a motion to with

[1:29:20] regrets accept Mr. Buzzio or officer Buzzio's resation.

[1:29:26] Motion a second. All in favor? >> I

[1:29:31] [clears throat] wish the best. >> I'm requesting a motion to hire two

[1:29:37] full-time positions to fill up coming vacancies. One is Paul Neville with a

[1:29:42] start date of September 7th, 2026 to replace vacancy created by the

[1:29:48] resignation of M officer Michael Buzzio who is leaving on August 31st 2026

[1:29:56] and also for the hiring of Dylan Loganich

[1:30:01] okay sorry thank you with the start date there's a bunch of change in the start

[1:30:07] date September 8th 2026 [clears throat] to replace the vacancy created by

[1:30:11] Anthony Nicolleti when he retires on September 25th

[1:30:16] Both hireers are from the civil service list. They need to attend the Niagara

[1:30:18] County law enforcement academy which starts on September 8th.

[1:30:25] We have a motion to second. Any questions? All in favor?

[1:30:29] » I opposed.

[1:30:34] » The only other thing that I have is the historical association Lewon. are

[1:30:38] holding their annual Lew in Jeopardy Wednesday September 16th

[1:30:44] at Fellow Winery looking for good entertainment time and

[1:30:50] learn something about your community. It's always a well dependent.

[1:30:55] Okay, thank you very much. Councilman Memorial. The first thing on my agenda,

[1:31:01] we had an agreement for transferring street lights from Buffalo Street in San

[1:31:07] back back in September 23rd, 2024. I worked with National Grid. Our highway

[1:31:14] supervisor at the time said there was a lot of issues with them lights with

[1:31:18] wiring. Parts aren't available anymore. There's timers that have to be set for

[1:31:24] daylight savings time. and he said if we could turn them over national grid let

[1:31:28] them maintain them replace what has to be replaced the wiring infrastructure

[1:31:33] also needed love and attention so this was approved and everything but I got a

[1:31:39] contact from national grid that they can't find or something happened in

[1:31:43] between with we need the supervisor to sign the agreement for the transfer of

[1:31:48] the street lights national grid that's all this is it's uh something that was

[1:31:52] approved on September 23rd 2044 just need supervisor signature.

[1:31:59] » I'll make a motion that supervisor sign >> with attorney approval.

[1:32:07] So we have a motion and a second. All in favor? I [clears throat]

[1:32:11] oppos.

[1:32:15] And then I have school forgiveness. These are people that need to replace

[1:32:20] the liner, put new pools in, and they're asking to have the sewer part of their

[1:32:26] build um the first one is John Jerus 510

[1:32:33] Riverdale Avenue. He has a $8231 sewer portion. I make a motion credit that

[1:32:45] a motion second. All in favor? I post >> and all of these have been already

[1:32:52] [clears throat] reviewed by our

[1:32:56] 823. >> Yes. Okay. That was already all these

[1:32:59] were approved by Jeff. Okay. The second one is Shell Fortuna 5268 Lewon Road

[1:33:11] for $188.54.

[1:33:17] Motion a second. All in favor? >> I motion carried. The third one is for

[1:33:24] Kate Mesa at 603 Park Lane. S forgiveness $43.56.

[1:33:45] Motion, a second. All in favor? >> I opposed. And that's all

[1:33:49] [clears throat] I got. Um

[1:33:53] Councilman.

[1:33:57] » Um yes. First of all is that I do believe that the library received the um

[1:34:03] study from their building. I have not reviewed that yet, but um I did see a

[1:34:10] email from Fred Queso as far as I think they have engineering study done of the

[1:34:16] building. Also want to remind everybody that the senior center is going to be

[1:34:20] closed the week of Columbus indigenous day so we can [clears throat] actually

[1:34:23] knock out the remainder of the kitchen [cough] and the women's bathroom. And

[1:34:29] also I just want to say to everybody who came here this evening, thank you very

[1:34:34] much. I um can relate to what you have gone through because I too at a point in

[1:34:39] my life had to sewer back up and it is it it's horrible and it's it's difficult

[1:34:45] to go through and uh difficult to clean up. But I will say that um I believe

[1:34:52] that Jeff has been doing a very good job with what he has been given and being

[1:34:58] inundated with all that water. Um, as as you think of a sewer system, it's kind

[1:35:04] of like our blood vessels. It's supposed to be a closed system and remain a

[1:35:08] closed system and somehow we just keep getting water that breaches that closed

[1:35:16] system. So, I take it upon myself as a charge and I believe the rest of this

[1:35:21] board does that it is our responsibility to find a solution to this. And I think

[1:35:30] with all the steps that we have taken tonight, I'm hoping that a solution is

[1:35:35] going to be found. And then also too, we were two days away, right Jeff? Two days

[1:35:40] away from connecting the big sewer line project and the end groomment. Two days

[1:35:45] away. And I believe that that probably would have helped mitigate. But again,

[1:35:52] just know that we all are trying to wrap our heads around this. And

[1:35:58] um at least I know from my perspective, I'm starting to collect information and

[1:36:04] starting to funnel in that data into something workable that we can use to

[1:36:09] create a plan to move forward. So thank you very much for being here.

[1:36:13] » And I want to add to that. I went through mine. I didn't touch base on it.

[1:36:19] So the thing I would extend to everybody and I tell this to everybody just the

[1:36:24] town is a phone call away. Obviously, we can't go in and do town work inside

[1:36:28] people's homes, but what we can do is we can visit your homes. Myself, highway

[1:36:34] superintendent, um some of his highway workers, uh Ryan Titler from the sewer

[1:36:39] plant, we've gone in and we've actually helped, not physically, but with some

[1:36:45] suggestions that have actually helped people out. Um we're always available to

[1:36:49] do that. We've and again, I'm not trying to blame the homeless. We know we have

[1:36:53] issues, but we found some pumps that were pumping into pipes that were

[1:36:57] completely clogged. Um we found where um some pumps weren't connected to our

[1:37:05] infrastructure. Um and we found where even our backflow preventor has helped

[1:37:12] people um discover other issues when they want to put them in. We're willing

[1:37:16] to come out and try and do whatever. Even um Ed Zimmerman and Tim Masters

[1:37:20] from the building inspector's office um they're a wealth of knowledge as well.

[1:37:24] they'll come out and we'll visit any house. Um, again, we're not allow we're

[1:37:29] not allowed to do work. Um, you know, the backlog for better program is to

[1:37:33] help people out. Um, we can't do the work. The intent of the document wasn't

[1:37:39] to to hold the town not liable for any and all. It's basically the backflow pre

[1:37:45] because there is maintenance on a backflow pre that once it gets

[1:37:47] installed, there are requirements that it needs to be cleaned. There's certain

[1:37:52] aspects of it. So, it was to cover the town in case it was put in faulty or if

[1:37:57] there the maintenance wasn't done by the homeowner, but it was not designed to

[1:38:02] basically pay you people off for $2,500 to resolve the town of every issue we've

[1:38:06] ever had in your house. And legally, I talked with Alice today, it wouldn't

[1:38:12] relieve the town from any and all um flooding issues or anything if the town

[1:38:16] was involved. Um the backflow pretor program to me was a lowhanging fruit to

[1:38:23] get some type of a resolution immediately for people that were having

[1:38:26] problems. Um and I promise you we are going to continue to look at it. We're

[1:38:31] we've always supported the highway department. Um this board from 2016 on

[1:38:37] the changes and everything has always supported the highway department. I

[1:38:40] don't believe we've ever told the highway department no when it comes to

[1:38:44] purchasing equipment, obviously manpower. Um, so we'll we'll we'll

[1:38:49] continue to plug away and um you can call me. I mean, I'm available even if

[1:38:56] you didn't like my excuses, but uh but um I I will come to anybody's house.

[1:39:02] I'll return any phone call. So, please reach out to me. So with that, um, also

[1:39:06] I want to give a quick update on our lower river road park because I know it

[1:39:10] was a frustrating process. Um, we basically stopped the relationship with

[1:39:17] the lowest bidder who bid on our lower park. [clears throat] If anybody's

[1:39:20] driven down there, it's beautiful and it's going to get better. Um, he was

[1:39:24] supposed to be done, the contract was supposed to be done last December. It

[1:39:28] was into February. We had weather that was decent. He wasn't showing up. So, we

[1:39:32] called in his performance bond. It did not cost the town any money um any more

[1:39:39] money by him being kicked off the job site. He had a performance bond. We

[1:39:42] called in that performance bond. The company who uh wrote the performance

[1:39:47] bond put the job back out to bid. I'm happy to say that A1 Landscape was the

[1:39:52] winner of that bid. They are the ones that originally built our first pavilion

[1:39:56] down there. So, what they're going to be doing next is they're going to be

[1:39:59] finishing the pavilion that's down there, which also includes a 120 foot

[1:40:04] fishing pier that runs parallel to the ground with a kayak launch. Um, it's

[1:40:09] it's going to also be ADA compliant with a ramp. Um, it's going to be beautiful.

[1:40:13] It's it's the whole totality of the project is 950,000. That's what this

[1:40:18] board approved. So, it's not a pavilion that costs $950,000. It is a project

[1:40:24] that includes a pavilion for $950,000. And also Ed Zimmerman's not here. Um he

[1:40:30] updated us on the bathroom that's going in the outall building. One of the

[1:40:33] biggest complaints or one of the complaints was we didn't have a bathroom

[1:40:36] that's closer to the pavilions. We're putting in a full men's and women's

[1:40:40] bathroom in the outall building. It's all greenway money. It's all N River

[1:40:44] Greenway money. It's been approved by the N River Greenway. It's money that

[1:40:47] can only be used for those type of projects. It can't be used to fix

[1:40:51] flooding. I wish it could because that's where we would focus it to but it it

[1:40:56] can't be. It has to be for parks, recreation trails, um some uh

[1:41:03] invasive species type things which we haven't really done yet um right now on

[1:41:09] it. But it also can help our waterfront and um I talked to the uh fishermen, the

[1:41:15] captains. They would like to see some improvements down at the waterfront even

[1:41:18] in the village. I I'll talk to Dan eventually about that. So, those are the

[1:41:23] projects that are going. I just want to update everybody on the lower project

[1:41:26] and um and I I appreciate everybody coming tonight um and and promise to

[1:41:33] support the highway department in their endeavors with the drainage. So, with

[1:41:37] that, um I would ask for um upcoming board. Well, does anybody else want to

[1:41:42] say anything before we close? Does anybody want to say anything?

[1:41:46] » Mr. Newman, >> I just I missed the public hearing on

[1:41:49] the the storage containers. >> Okay.

[1:41:51] » I just hope we can come to a resolution where we don't have to outright ban them

[1:41:55] from our title. >> The intention isn't to ban them from I I

[1:41:59] think I talked to >> Yeah, I emailed you.

[1:42:01] » Yeah. I mean certain areas, but it's just we don't want a free-for-all

[1:42:05] either, right? >> That you know, that's the intent,

[1:42:07] » right? I understand like residential are >> we can slap some paint on them and make

[1:42:14] » Yeah. I appreciate it. Um, upcoming boards,

[1:42:19] commission meetings, historic preservation, I don't know if they're

[1:42:22] still having a September 8th meeting. It'll be posted on our [cough] do zoning

[1:42:26] board September 10th at 6 p.m. Town Board work session September 14th at 6

[1:42:31] p.m. I will not be in attendance. I'll ask Deputy Supervisor Conrad meeting. I

[1:42:37] My in-laws are having their 60th wedding anniversary, so I will be in the state

[1:42:40] of North Carolina. I just want to put that out there. Um, planning board is

[1:42:44] September 17th at 6:30 p.m. and our regular town board meeting is September

[1:42:49] 28th at 6 PM. With that, I would ask for a motion to appear.

[1:42:54] Motion second. >> All in favor?

[1:42:57] » I appear. Thank you everybody.

Town of Lewiston Regular Town Board Meeting-Public Hearing August 24, 2026

Transcript