Public Hearings Scheduled Feb 12, Depositories Discussed

DELHI - Delhi Town Council members scheduled two public hearings for Monday, Feb. 12 at the regular meeting on Jan. 8.

Highway Superintendent Daren Evans would like to appoint a deputy highway superintendent outside of the allowed residency location. A local law developed in 2020 states deputies must live within a 10-mile radius of the highway department facility. Council members set a public hearing for Monday, Feb. 12 at 5:30 p.m. to amend the law to permit a 15-mile radius. 

Another public hearing was set for 5:35 p.m. the same day regarding a local law for government exemption. The council received a letter in 2023 from Delaware County Economic Development Director Glenn Nealis requesting the Bramley Mountain Fire Tower restoration project be exempt from town planning and zoning protocols. 

The Friends of Bramley Mountain Fire Tower have been working to resurrect the original fire tower - decommissioned in 1970 - at the Bramley Mountain Trail summit in Delhi for several years. The Friends argue that fire towers are a popular hiking destination that will both bring in local tourism to support the economy and provide an educational experience for local schools.

Due to the property (Bramley Mountain) being owned by New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) the Friends are required to have a municipal entity take liability responsibility. Delhi Town Council members denied the contract in 2023. However, the county approved the liability contract a few months later and took the lead on the project. 

Although the town did not take liability, the project is still subject to following town planning protocols which include public hearings and permit applications. According to Nealis' letter, state legislation permits governmental entities to request exemptions from local zoning, regulations, and ordinances. 

The council has been discussing this issue since receipt of the letter in October. Supervisor Maya Boukai presented the council with a new resolution edited per requests by the town liability and insurance carrier. According to Boukai, the exemption would not include building permits but only exempt the project from zoning regulations.

Council members Margaret Baldwin and Joshua Morgan said they would like some time to further research the request and review the resolution. Morgan added that public input would be helpful and ultimately the public hearing was set.

In another discussion, the council heard a presentation from a representative at NY Glass, a municipal investment firm. NY Glass is available only to municipalities and districts including counties, towns, villages, schools, fire districts, etc. The interest rates on assets increase automatically with the federal government increases, said the representative. The program currently has roughly 13000 participants whose assets are pooled together allowing them to earn the same interest rate together. NY Glass retains an administrative fee off the top of all earnings.

Boukai asked NY Glass for a presentation after hearing from the Delhi Mayor that the village switch to NY Glass yielded them an additional $30,000 in revenue for 2023. Boukai also mentioned that the town of Walton has been using NY Glass for several years. 

If the town were to utilize the firm, it would be the designated depository which is currently Delaware National Bank of Delhi. Boukai plans to meet with Delaware National representatives to see if they can match the offer from NY Glass. 

"It would be good to not burn our bridges with our local banks. They gave us a million interest-free," said Baldwin.

Morgan said after some research on NY Glass he saw that it increased in popularity during the global pandemic when interest rates were increasing. He mentioned that the program's popularity might decrease as the rates level back out. 

In other business:

Council members accepted donations from Helfgott and Renfroe of $1,000 for the town pool and $5,000 for the highway department.

Councilmember Christina Viafore and Boukai were approved to attend a training in New York City to be reimbursed for hotel expenses at GSA rates.

The town's internal audit is expected to be completed by the end of January.

Town Clerk Elsa Schmitz will advertise for lifeguards for the town pool to be hired during summer months at a rate of $15.50 an hour.

The code enforcement officer issued two building permits, conducted 11 inspections, five conferences, one c/o letter, and one certificate of occupancy, and drove 110 miles in December.