DRAFT MINUTES
BOARD
OF FINANCE
MAY
12, 2020
Page
1 of 3
Via Zoom
The
following Board members were present:
John Grabowski-Chairman, John Ford, Sharon Huxley, Catherine Erickson, Sally
Huyser and Lars Demander.
Also
in attendance were: First Selectman Paula
Cofrancesco, Finance Director Sheila Lane, Town Attorney Vincent Marino
Visitors: Lina
Frazer, Fred Nevin
1.
Chairman John Grabowski called the
meeting of the Board of Finance to order via Zoom at 7:01 p.m.
2. APPROVAL
OF MINUTES
Chairman
Grabowski called for a motion of approval for the minutes of the Regular Meeting
of April 14, 2020. The motion of approval was moved by Member Huxley
and seconded by Member Huyser. There
were no changes to the minutes. Voting
for: Grabowski, Ford, Huxley, Huyser, Erickson,
Demander. Unanimous approval.
3.
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
Chairman
Grabowski reported on the following:
·
Attended an Amity meeting last night and their
surplus is down from March.
·
Amity schools have a lot of concerns going
into next year on an operational standpoint due to the virus.
·
Amity Budget passed at the 2.49%.
4. FIRST
SELECTMAN’S REPORT
First Selectman Cofrancesco reported on the
following:
·
Fran Doba, Tax
Collector, has responsibilities for the Town Hall computers, phones and Town
website and I spoke to Chairman Grabowski in regard to a proposal to give her
some financial stipend approximately $100.00 per month from December 2019 to
June 2020.
Member
Huxley questioned should this be a part-time position in the future and that if
this continues to be her job, that her responsibilities should be reviewed to
determine the appropriate rate.
It
was moved by Member Huxley and seconded by Member Huyser to approve the stipend
of $100.00 per month from December 2019 to June 2020 totaling $700.00 for Fran
Doba for her additional responsibilities with the computers, phones and Town
website at the Town Hall.
Vote 6 to 0.
Voting for: Grabowski, Ford, Huxley, Huyser, Erickson,
Demander.
Unanimous approval.
BOARD
OF FINANCE
MAY
12, 2020
Page
2 of 3
·
Road work around
Town is moving along and hoping to have road work completed by July 1,
2020.
·
We have advertised
in newspaper for bids on chip sealing.
·
We held a
preliminary meeting at Town Hall last week on how we plan to reopen the Town
Hall. Starting to bring staff back instead
of the staggered hours. Will make sure
we have proper hand sanitizer dispensers, shields for counters and some
departments running by appointment only.
Do not have a set date at this time to reopen the Town Hall.
·
Member Huxley
questioned who is doing road work at the corner of Amity Road and Valley
Road. Is it the State or Town doing the
catch basin work? Member Huxley has
concerns with catch basin being built up on high curve. First Selectman Cofrancesco will inquire and
follow-up.
5.
FINANCE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Finance Director Sheila Lane reported on the
following:
·
Emailed to all
members the 2020 Expenditure Monthly Reports.
·
Have been in
contact with the State in regard to federal funds to offset emergency expenses
to open Town Hall and to open Parks and Recreation Camp.
·
She received
information from Fran Doba, Tax Collector, regarding the shortfalls of taxes to
be paid this year and will share this information with Board.
6.
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON
2020-2021 BUDGET
Finance Director Lane distributed copies to all
regarding the public comments on the proposed budget.
Town Attorney Marino stated the Board of Selectman
authorized the Board of Finance to adopt the budget for the coming year and
that through the Executive Order by the Governor not the State Statutes the
Board has the authority to strike items from the budget or to add items. The Board should consider the public comments
and adopt budget to satisfy the Town.
The Board reviewed Items #1 through #10 on the call
for the Town Meeting to be held by Zoom on
May 18, 2020 at 7:00 p.m.
With consideration of the public comments, there
were no issues with Items #1 through Item #6.
There were public comments on Items #7 and #8 for
the Bethany Volunteer Fire Department.
There were concerns of the request for a Utility Vehicle and a Command
Vehicle. The Board would like more information from the
Fire Department on the specifics of the Command Vehicle before the Town Meeting
on Monday, May 18, 2020.
Also, the most public comments were on Item #9 for
the Land Acquisition Fund. Finance
Director Lane stated there is a balance of $427,500 in the Land Acquisition
Fund now. The Board is considering decreasing
the amount requested.
BOARD
OF FINANCE
MAY
12, 2020
Page
3 of 3
Regarding Item #10, Chairman Grabowski stated that
the Annual Reports will not be ready for the Special Board of Finance Meeting
(Town Meeting) and won’t be completed until probably late summer.
Another item discussed was the road resurfacing
budget, which is for maintenance and for the drainage work on the roads.
There was also a comment on the DARE Program and
having a program at an older age. Board
felt DARE Program should definitely stay and is very beneficial.
7. ADDRESS
CONTROL ISSUES
Member
Huxley stated that we need to respond to management letter from the
auditors. Finance Director Lane stated
that it has been done and she will distribute letter to the Board, and if there
are any other comments, she can send a revised letter.
8. ANY
OTHER MATTER PROPER TO COME BEFORE THE MEETING
None
9. ADJOURNMENT
At
8:02 p.m. there being no further business, it was moved by Member Huyser and
seconded by Member Erickson to adjourn the regular meeting. Unanimous approval.
Respectfully
submitted,
Antonia
R. Marek
Meeting
Clerk
