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General News: Village to Hire Architect to Fix DPW
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| Rudy Hahn, standing in rear, said he represents taxpayers concerned about the handling of the DPW building. |
June 22, 2010
A meeting of the village board of trustees on Monday was marked by a raucous period of public discussion but ended with Mayor Joseph Gross agreeing with three of the four trustees to hire an architect to begin identifying the problems that need correction in the DPW building, a process that could lead the village building inspector to issue a temporary certificate of occupancy.
During a 45-minute public comment session in the crowded room, people questioned what the board and the mayor were doing to address the problems with the DPW building, which has been empty since February due to structural concerns while DPW employees work out of cramped quarters at village hall.
Former Trustee Hahn Protests Handling of DPW Issue
Former village trustee Rudy Hahn said he was speaking on behalf of a group of taxpayers who are concerned that the mayor was behind the decision to close the DPW building, an accusation roundly denied by Mayor Gross, who said the move came from the building inspector in consultation with state officials. Hahn also said that the structural problems with the building have been blown out of proportion. “It doesn’t really make a lot of sense to close that building down when we’ve had people in there for five years and there is no evidence of settling,” he said.
Mayor Calls for a Full Investigation
After a heated exchange with the Hahn about the building, with other residents adding their comments, Mayor Gross announced that he was calling for a full investigation into “every aspect of that building.” Jonathan Chase, an attorney and village resident, argued that the village should start litigation against the builders of what he called an “outlaw” building, noting that the facts will come out in that process.
Attorney to Review All Documents
With residents arguing with each other about the human and financial costs or turning to the board members to level accusations against them, the mayor had to bang his gavel on at least two occasions to restore order. Once the public comment period ended, the board members agreed to get their new attorney, Joseph McKay, to review all of the documents related to the DPW building and the mayor dropped his request for a special counsel to look into it.
Building Inspector Proposes Hiring an Architect
Only a handful of people were left in the room when three board members, Mark Edsall, Jim Kane and Doug Vatter said they had each received a phone call from the building inspector, Bruce Yancewicz, who told them he wanted to move ahead with the issues that could lead to the issuing of a temporary certificate of occupancy. He proposed hiring an architect to draw up a plan to fix the structural issues in the building.
Both Edsall and Vatter said that they nearly “fell off their chairs” with surprise when Yancewicz called, but they agreed with his proposal. Mayor Gross said he had encouraged the building inspector to reach out “in the spirit of cooperation.” Trustee Barbara Gosda said she had not been contacted by Yancewicz and abstained from the vote to approve the hiring of David Wieboldt, an architect from Middletown. All trustees agreed that the issue of soil samples at the building site will be examined by the architect.
Mayor Drops Bid for Advisory Committee
After the vote to approve the architect’s hiring, Mayor Gross said he was dropping his attempt to form a special mayoral advisory committee. “We are making good progress on something that has been weighing on me for several months,” he said, “we are making progress on the structural and the legal side.”
Comments:
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I think that the recommendation by both Jon Chase and Ray Fulton to pursue remediation through the builders' insurance was a very practical idea. Apparently, this is something that all builders have just for this reason. It would take the personal small town relations out of it and the fact finding and the (hopefully) ultimate settlement costs are covered by the insurance. This leaves the Village Board to direct their energy to other more productive projects.
posted by Kate Benson on 06/22/10 at 9:32 PM
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I agree Kate they seem to be dealing with all the other issues pretty well. I am glad that a special comittee is in place for this one issue.
posted by Andrew Argenio on 06/23/10 at 8:13 AM
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Why is there an immediate assumption that the builders are at fault here? Wouldn't it be prudent to consider the possibility that the builders built exactly what they were hired to build? Isn't it highly likely that the builders were not the architects? Isn't also highly likely that since the builders were paid, that their work was inspected by the village, and found to be completed as contracted? I know everyone wants someone to hang; but, let's get the facts, instead of disparaging a local highly ethical business.
Perhaps the 'fault' lies with the village (or its representatives). If poor decisions were made, as long as they were not illegal or unethical, we, as taxpayers may be spending a lot of money seeking blame instead of solutions.
posted by Joe McDonald on 06/25/10 at 11:09 AM
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Joe, I don't dispute any of the points that you raise, and I am not placing fault anywhere - I simply don't have enough information.
My point is, that by taking the matter out of the domain of the village board, or its appointed committee, and filing a claim with the builders' insurance, the personal feelings and conflicts are (hopefully) taken out of the picture . And, if we are lucky there will be remediation of any problems found and costs will be covered by insurance.
posted by Kate Benson on 06/26/10 at 9:17 PM
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