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| May 05, 2024 |
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General News: State Says No to Occupying DPW Bldg.
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| The DPW building on Shore Road is under scrutiny for structural problems. |
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| Wayne Yeoman, standing, and other DPW employees listened as the mayor tried to address their concerns. |
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| Jonathan Chase (standing) and Andrew Argenio (seated) both spoke out at Monday's meeting. |
May 18, 2010
The New York State office of code enforcement issued a report on Monday that strongly recommends against occupying the Department of Public Works building on Shore Road in Cornwall-on-Hudson. The report was based on a structural engineering study of the building conducted last month and concludes “that the building remains standing should not be taken as an indication that a structure failure would not occur with minimal warning.” The report also identifies 28 violations in the structure, from a lack of a fire barrier between the office and the garage to the lack of signed engineering plans.
DPW Workers Express Frustration Over Working Conditions
Word of the state code officer’s decision came at the end of a village board meeting on Monday attended by a half dozen employees of the DPW who wante to know when they were going to get back to normal working conditions. The DPW and water department were displaced from their workplace on February 19th due to concerns about structural violations in the building. They have been working out of cramped quarters in the back of village hall or from the Catskill aqueduct water treatment plant in New Windsor.
Wayne Yeoman, the president of the CSEA local union that represents the DPW and water department workers, told the board that the employees are on edge and frustrated, and that morale is at an all time low. “It is making it very difficult to do our jobs efficiently and that as far as safety, we feel it is more dangerous to perform our duties under the current conditions we are working,” Yeoman told the board. He singled out the lack of storage and changing areas for employees and a lack of a safe place to go for rest periods as sources of discontent.
Board to Look for New Temporary Workspace
The trustees listened to the list of complaints, then Mayor Joseph Gross attempted to answer each one, saying that he shared their frustration with the DPW employee. “I ask all of you to keep eyes and ears open for alternative space because repairs will be lengthy and costly.” Mayor Gross said.
Trustee Jim Kane suggested that the village consider repairing the water department building on Maple Avenue since it has not been sold. That repair could cost the village at least $25,000, according to the water department supervisor, Bob June.
Accountability for Costs of Repair Raised
The cost of those repairs and the potential expense of correcting the two dozen violations at the DPW building led Mayor Gross to propose that the village board look into how it can recoup the losses incurred by the evacuation and subsequent work on the building.
A village resident, Jonathan Chase, stood up and said that the people who authorized and built the building should be held accountable for the costs of fixing it. “It could have been built properly and it wasn’t,’ Chase said.
Argenio Makes Ethics Charges Against Two Trustees
The issue of the DPW building was the starting point for another resident, Andrew Argenio, who questioned the relationship between trustee Mark Edsall and the construction company that erected the building in 2006. Argenio, who is also a member of the village planning board, noted that Edsall is the brother-in-law of one of the partners of Burns & Whalen Construction and said Edsall violated the local ethics law by taking part in matters about the building.
Argenio also said that Edsall’s position as the town of Cornwall’s engineer and his firm’s work with other municipalities and the county water department create a whole series of conflicts of interest. In addition, Argenio argued that more ethics violation could be tied to trustee Doug Vatter’s rental of property owned by Burns & Whalen, a fact that he said created a conflict of interest regarding the DPW building.
Edsall Says Charges Attempt to Destroy a Person
Mark Edsall later said that he didn’t understand the basis for some of Argenio’s complaints and noted that he has often disclosed his position as the town engineer and recused himself from actions involving the town. He also said that he was not involved in the construction of the DPW building, a project that was undertaken by the Local Development Corporation.
Doug Vatter said that renting a building is no different than purchasing a meal from a restaurant and doesn’t lead to a conflict of interest.
“He can’t win on the discussion, so it has to degrade to personal politics, to destroying a person by raising ethics complaints,” Edsall noted. “It’s sad.”
Argenio sees the situation differently, pointing out in his letter that “according to the ethics law, the citizenry are entitled to the expectation of exemplary behavior and I am obligated to report my observation.”
Comments:
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Presumably the building contractor(s) who built this mess are insured & still in business. Call them back to the site and have them make it right & legal...now. Most legitimate businesses have an "errors & omissions" policy...time for them to submit a claim, I suspect.
posted by susan ostrander on 05/19/10 at 3:18 PM
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State Says No to Occupying DPW Bldg...Kinda funny that this gets looked at as a second report/ inspection when its only an opinion based on a report. I cant believe the State of New York would make a statement like that based on reviewing a report/evaluation and pictures prepared by an independent engineer, It was sure enough to make a few happy and grant them there wish though. It would be nice if the State would do an onsite inspection themselves to give a reasonable second opinion,although there are probably ties with the big man there too..I don't dought for a minute that there are some code violations, but to make it sound like the building could collapse at any second is far fetched I'm sure.This so called mess has been hit with high winds and a major snow storm this year and alot of homes and buildings in the area took a hit with lots of damage, but the building that is called a mess is still standing as it has been since 2005. I personally think there are alot of hidden personal reasons with a select few that never wanted this building to begin with.It would be nice to see the so called major problems found and fixed and to stop wasting our hard earned money on your self centered egos and personal agendas. As for your famed building inspector who looks like someone hired for a Starsky and Hutch movie, he serves the King well because he does as he is instructed wether its right ,wrong or indifferent.
posted by Bob Coons on 05/20/10 at 8:02 PM
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