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Town Board OKs bid for bathroom project, hears from department heads

WASHINGTON — The March meeting of the Town Board took place on Thursday, March 11. Town Supervisor Gary Ciferri gained board approval to proclaim March Parkinson’s Awareness Month.

The first round of bids for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) bathroom improvement project at the Town Park was read. In the first round of bids, all were above the originally budgeted amount. A second round of bids garnered only one bid, from JP Woods, Inc., which was for less than the $90,000 project budget.

A discussion ensued regarding adding alternates and deleting alternates to the project. Ultimately, the bid from JP Woods, Inc. was accepted, pending a review by architect Ed Loedy.

The board adopted a resolution to give the town supervisor the authority to schedule and/or cancel Town Board meetings in the event of a pandemic when the health and wellbeing of the public is at stake. With COVID-19, that’s extremely relevant.

Discussion was also held on obtaining town services during the pandemic. Since March 11, Town Hall is closed. Limited town staff are still available by phone and e-mail.

Recreation Department Director Chelsea Edson spoke to the board about a bid for the design of a filter bed for the town pool, changes in the recreation agreement with the village of Millbrook and assorted other news pertaining to the upcoming Town Park season, now in limbo.

Joseph Spagnola of the Highway Department and Bookkeeper Lois Petrone gave their monthly reports.

Town Clerk Mary Alex reported that taxes have been paid to the town and they will be sent on to the county.

Other monthly department reports were submitted and filed by the town clerk.

Assessor Lisa Evangelista submitted her monthly report.

The town requested the New York State Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services perform a review of the town’s IT practices. The service is complimentary and will provide a network scan, a vulnerability scan and a penetration test, as well as a policy and controls checklist.

A resolution to the board was made requesting the service and authorizing Ciferri to sign the required documents per New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal (NYMIR) and to sign an agreement with Fred Shequine, dba as BTC Consulting, whereby Shequine has provided the town with the necessary insurance requirements and hold harmless agreement. The annual insurance agreement has been provided to NYMIR, said the supervisor.

The annual Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Transfer Station report has been filed with the DEC; the annual Electronic Recycling Report has been filed with New York State; and the annual Recycling Report has been filed with Dutchess County.

The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 9; the meeting may be closed to the public and broadcast instead due to the current public health crisis.

Judith O'Hara Balfe

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