KINDERHOOK – The Town Board has hired former Copake Supervisor Reggie Crowley to help with the move from the current town hall in Niverville to their new town hall at the Martin H. Glynn Building on Church Street in Valatie. The board and the court plan to move to the space along with the Valatie Village Board and a county sheriff substation.
“Moving is no longer simple,” Town Supervisor Pat Grattan said at a regular Town Board meeting Monday, February 11. “It’s turned into a project,” he said of setting up computer and phone lines for all the different offices that are moving into the former school building.
The board appointed Mr. Crowley to the help with the move at $20 an hour, with no benefits, for 20 hours a week over a 90-day period. Supervisor Grattan said the town and the Village of Valatie will split the fee for Mr. Crowley, with the town board approving $10 an hour for him and the other $10 coming from the village.
The board also approved the agreement for how the space will be divided up between the two municipalities. The town court and the sheriff substation, which have to have their own phones and Internet lines, will be in the lower level of the school.
The town and village will pay for heating in their own spaces and spilt the costs in any shared spaces. The Town Board will pay for grounds maintenance, while the village is covering the cost of water and sewer.
Supervisor Grattan said the Town of New Lebanon has donated a court bench. He has also said at other meetings the state’s court system will pay for the computer setup for the court.
Monday night he said that the school district, which transferred ownership of the building to the town and village, has been very helpful with explaining the heating system and answering questions about the building.
The gyms are already being used by the community CYO basketball and the sheriff substation has moved from the Legion Hall on Main Street in Valatie to the Glynn Building.
The board also approved the agreement with Columbia-Greene Humane Society and Rensselaer County Humane Society for the pickup and holding of stray or lost pets in the town. The animals will first go to Columbia-Greene but the town will have Rensselaer as a back-up.
The board also heard from members of the Town’s Comprehensive Plan Committee. After the meeting, Edward Simonsen, who is on the committee, said the committee is getting close to a final draft but has not set a date for the public hearing.
The next Town Board meeting will be Monday, March 11 at 7 p.m. in Niverville.
To contact reporter Emilia Teasdale email eteasdale@columbiapaper.com.
