Submitted by Christine Rossi
(Hamilton, NY – Jan. 2014) The January Hamilton Town Council meeting is a time for re-organization and appointments. Before addressing those tasks, the meeting started with comments from the public. Mayor Miller shared news that the Village of Hamilton has hired a new parking officer, Christine Watkins. She also reported that the zoning has been approved for Colgate’s Center for Art and Culture, and that the gas utility project for the Village is proceeding on schedule.
Supervisor Shwartz announced Town appointments for the upcoming year ranging from Historian to Custodian, and Planning Board to Town Council committee members. This yearly task often involves reappointing existing positions and filling vacancies as needed. More information on names of appointees and their positions can be found online in the minutes of the Town Council’s January meeting.
Sue Reymers, our new Town Clerk/Tax Collector reported on Tax collection for 2014. Through an agreement with Madison County, all of the 2014 tax collection for the Town of Hamilton is being handled through the Madison County Treasurer’s Office, with payments made directly to the County. The new system is working well, increasing efficiencies, and saving our Town office staff valuable work time.
The Town highway department has been busy keeping roads clear with the winter weather. Superintendent Glazier reported that the Town has earned $61,885 for plowing county roads. To further enhance energy efficiency at the garage and to prepare for extreme weather events, the Town plans to better insulate the garage and to purchase a larger generator in 2014.
After a holiday break the Comprehensive Plan committee is back to work using data from the Survey and Visioning Workshop to create a vision statement for the Town and to organize focus groups. Results of the survey and GIS maps of the Town will be posted online at the Town website.
Colgate Upstate Institute student intern Sohee Ryuk has been working with the Records Retention committee to catalogue Town documents. Students, retired librarians and professors, and other volunteers continue their work with our new Records Management Officer and Town Clerk, Sue Reymers, in exploring best practices for care of these records.
Supervisor Shwartz appointed a committee to explore options to move the town office to a new location that has more usable and efficient space. The committee will also investigate the possibility of co-locating with the village of Hamilton to facilitate shared services in the future.
We know that the Town’s current office location could be better used for a retail business.
The Hamilton Town Council meets on the second Thursday of the month at the Hamilton Town Offices in the village of Hamilton at 7 p.m. Our next regular meeting is Thursday, Feb. 13. We invite and encourage you to join us. For more information, visit townofhamiltonny.org/.
Chris Rossi is a member of the Hamilton Town Council.