Trash Packer Gets Green Light in Fulton

by Janet Rebeor | February 19, 2014 1:31 pm

FULTON, NY – A new garbage packer and increased rental fees for parks and facilities punctuated business during Tuesday’s Fulton City Common Council meeting.

Introducing the resolution to purchase the new garbage truck, Mayor Ron Woodward said, “We’re one packer down.”

Council President Dan Knopp advised the council the $120,000 equipment purchase would not affect the general budget.

“It comes out of the garbage budget,” Knopp said. “It’s the right thing to do. We’ve got to have it. We can’t have a dump truck, a pay loader and five guys out picking up garbage. We’ve got to have a truck.”

According to this year’s budget, taxpayers will pay total of $832,000 in 2014 for their municipal curbside garbage pick-up service.

Councilors noted the old truck was likely 20 years old and needed to be replaced because the bottom fell out of  it. The replacement truck is expected to last 15 years according to the resolution.

Councilor Tom Kenyon, C-1st Ward, noted that the city owns several trash collection trucks and that the Department of Public Works commissioner could really use at least one more new trucks. He added the city cannot afford to implement a better equipment replacement schedule at this time.

“If the city was in great shape we could turn these over,” Kenyon said. “We’ve probably got three that are junk. Two go out every day. Garbage removal is a municipal service, we’ve got to pick it up.”

“People have been complaining because they see the pay loader and the trucks but that’s why we’ve got five guys out there picking their garbage up, because the packer is down. The DPW really needs this garbage packer desperately,” Kenyon added.

In a polled vote, councilors unanimously approved the bond anticipation note for the $120,000 purchase of the new equipment under New York state contract.

The new piece of equipment, a 20 cubic yard capacity rear loading trash collection truck costs $108,024, and can be specified with one or two hydraulic can tippers for an additional $4,000 and $4,900 according to state pricing documents.

Councilors expected it would take a few months before the new truck arrives.

The mayor then turned the council’s attention to the matter of fees for residents using city facilities, calling the proposed increases modest.

Barry Ostrander, superintendent of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department explained that the new rates would not affect anyone who has already scheduled programs or facility rental with the city.

“Any existing contracts we have with groups, we will honor those contracts at the current rate,” the recreation superintendent said. “Any contract after March 1 would be at the new rates.”

The largest hike was $50 added to the daily rental of the City of Fulton War Memorial. Groups will now pay $275 per day and non-profits $225 per day to use the facility. The former rates were $225 and $175 respectively.

With the new rental fee schedule, councilors voted to add a 3-hour kitchen rental for $30, allowing those who need the War Memorial kitchen for a few hours but not a whole day to pay a lesser rate, and to allow the kitchen to be used by more than one group per day.

Prior to Tuesday’s resolution, users were only able to rent the kitchen for a full day at a cost of $50.

Other fee increases include use of Bullhead Point Pavilion from $25 to $30 weekdays and $50  to $60 weekend days; North Bay Campgrounds fishing access from $5 per vehicle to $3 per person; and  the Municipal Center’s community room which will now cost $50 instead of $25.

Frequent users – those who book the room more than 10 times a year – will get a discounted rate of $20 per event.

Moving on to other city business, councilors confirmed a $4,500 fee for Barton & Logudice as the company to provide engineering services for advice on the repair and possible reconstruction of the City of Fulton War Memorial floor.

In a Feb. 14 letter to Ostrander, B&L vice president Dean Mason outlined the scope of the assessment.

“With the assistance of city staff, (B&L will) cut back the rubber flooring surfacing at bump locations to observe the concrete floor conditions below the rubber covering,” Mason’s letter states.

If necessary, Dean said for an added expense the engineers will also make arrangements to collect concrete samples to try and determine why the floor bubbling occurred.

Dean assures Ostrander that this sampling will be “away from the normal playing surfaces to the extent possible” and “the cost for the core-drilling would be less than $1,000, if required.”

The engineering company will provide the recreation superintendent, mayor and council its opinion of possible costs to repair, improve and replace the flooring.

In another matter, the mayor pulled from the agenda an item that would consider

B&L to assess the Rowlee Beach Park Pool.

Ostrander requested a quote from engineers to follow up on a 2005 evaluation of the outdoor public swimming facility. In a Jan. 16 letter to the superintendent the company agreed to supply a comprehensive report at a cost of $4,600.

The mayor pulled the item from the agenda as city leaders consider their options with regard to the pool, including whether to keep it open.

At the conclusion of the meeting, after re-appointing three members to the Fulton Planning Commission, the mayor and councilors took a moment to recognize Algidio “Archie” Fiorini who died on Sunday. Mr. Fiorini was a lifetime resident of Fulton and served his city as a member of the commission.

Source URL: https://oswegocountytoday.com/news/fulton/trash-packer-gets-green-light/

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