This article appeared in the Townsman, December 18 edition
Despite pleas from employees to address deplorable working conditions at both the Town Hall and the Comeau municipal building, the Woodstock town board by a vote of 3-2 turned down a resolution offered by councilwoman Terrie Rosenblum and seconded by supervisor Jeff Moran to expend $15,500 to engage the services of an engineer and architect to draw up specifications to help estimate with some degree of accuracy the cost of renovating the Elna Ferrite building. Without such information it is hard to see how the board will proceed. The matter was completely dropped after the vote, and the board moved on to other business.
At this time last year Woodstock voters approved a bonding resolution that would have financed a renovation to the Town Hall at a cost then estimated at approximately $1.5 million dollars. Bidding, which did not take place until April of this year, produced numbers exceeding the project budget by more than $200,000. In the meantime, the owners of the Elna Ferrite building in Bearsville near the new firehouse announced their intention to vacate the building and put it up for sale. Its approximately 17,000 square feet plus ample parking, as opposed to the Town Hall's approximately 11,000 square feet and cramped parking offers a far better solution to Woodstock's long history of inferior municipal facilities, in the opinion of almost all the employees working in the Town Hall and Comeau office building. At the urging of supervisor Moran the town board had inched toward tonight's dramatic showdown.
The meeting began with a video produced by Dion Ogust and town clerk Jackie Earley focusing on the sad and inefficient way town records are stored, showing image after image of town records moldering in basements and attics, and literally cascading off the shelves and every available surface in the planning office.
Earley described the Comeau office building as one "never intended for municipal purposes," and a facility just as unfair to the public who must access it as to the workers who must wend their way through file cabinets and cluttered warrens to perform their tasks. Years ago the Town installed lolly columns to support the weight of the burgeoning files, but cracks are still appearing throughout the building.
Marc Plate, the town assessor made a presentation based on the premise of purchasing Elna Ferrite for $860,000, which appeared to be a solid number compared with other sales in the area, and $636,000 for renovation and "soft" costs, which he admitted was pure guestimate. Adding the numbers together he determined an annual cost of about $0.09 per $1000 assessed value to the taxpayer to pay for a $1,496,000 bond spread over 25 years. The estimated $2,000,000 for the Town Hall renovation would be pennies more. He showed one scenario where the costs to purchase and renovate Elna Ferrite could be offset by sale of the Town Hall, which he thought might fetch anywhere from $1.37 to $1.65 million. Costs for the purchase and renovation of Elna Ferrite in that case would be negligible to possibly nothing if the higher estimate of sale price were attained.
In a procession quite familiar to Woodstockers, several town employees spoke to the board about their working conditions and the need to do something about them.
Town Justice Frank Engel discussed the "more dangerous world" we are living in, and efforts by the New York State Justice Court System to improve security for town justice facilities. People didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he reported that a metal detector provided by the state for no cost to the Town had to be returned because there was no space to in stall it. Justice Richard Husted pleaded with the board to keep an open mind with respect to the Elna Ferrite proposal. Court clerk Kathy Longyear discussed the dangerous situation of cars, including police vehicles, having to back onto Tinker Street, and recounted her own several near-misses with bikes and pedestrians.
Police Chief Harry Baldwin, speaking for the police department and emergency dispatch service, decried the extremely poor working conditions in the extremely small police department, and read a letter from its employees asking the board to go ahead with the Elna Ferrite proposal.
Chief emergency dispatcher Laurie Hamilton offered dramatic testimony to the dangerous proximity employees and members of the public have to criminal offenders, who are sometimes drunk, cursing, urinating and spitting just inches away from them. The Town's lock-up consists of a pair of handcuffs bolted to the wall right outside the dispatch office door.
The building department submitted a letter attesting to the poor condition of the Comeau building and urging the board to take action.
Last came Bob Young, the local architect assisting the town board, who projected a cost of $3500 for engineering and $12,000 for architectural fees to create the specifications for the Elna Ferrite renovation so that contractors could make accurate estimates of what renovation costs will be.
Discussion then ensued among the board, councilwoman Liz Simonson announcing she felt "fearful we might be in a bad economy." She felt that the proposed Elna Ferrite renovation should be considered in tandem with whatever final disposition of the Town Hall. To the idea that the Town Hall be sold she thought it vital the façade remain as it is.
Councilwoman Terrie Rosenblum felt that the dire circumstances just described by the employees demanded the board take immediate action. "Needs dictate that we move forward."
Councilman Jay Wenk felt it was "clear we do something, but I don't know what."
Councilman Chris Collins expressed his opinion the Town not sell the Town Hall, and in the meantime seek more public input with regard to the proposal to renovate Elna Ferrite.
Supervisor Moran, maintaining that the current economy was actually the best time to move on a construction project, what with interest rates low and contractors hungry for work, outlined a plan that saw purchasing and renovating Elna Ferrite and moving the employees from the Comeau offices and Town Hall into it. With the Town Hall empty it would be cheaper to renovate it, and for much less money since no new offices would be necessary to construct, as envisioned in the original concept, but rather just a concentration on improving the envelope for energy conservation purposes. The same would be true with improving the Comeau office building. When the Town Hall was complete the functions conducted at the Community Center could be temporarily moved to it, and the Community Center then improved.
But his plan hinged on first purchasing and renovating Elna Ferrite. There ensued a circular discussion among the board that first called for more public input, followed by the argument that the public cannot make a judgment without knowing what the costs will be to improve Elna Ferrite, and that such costs can't be estimated without spending the $15,500 to draw up specifications, but this led right back to arguments for more public input before proceeding any further.
In frustration Rosenblum, stating she was "tired of throwing stones in front of our own feet," put on the table the resolution to authorize the $15,500 expenditure, seconded by Moran, and shot down by Simonson, Collins and Wenk.
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