Appointments made for new year

GUILDERLAND — A new year did not end old controversies on the Guilderland town board.

At its reorganizational meeting on Jan. 5, the two Republican board members, councilmen Mark Grimm and Warren Redlich, voted against the supervisor’s designees for liaisons to town departments. The Democratic majority — Supervisor Kenneth Runion and councilmembers Paul Pastore and Patricia Slavick — carried the vote.

Grimm made a motion that the liaisons to the police committee would have representation from both the majority and minority parties.

Town liaisons serve at the discretion of the supervisor, Runion said, adding, “I don’t believe you’ve met with one of the departments you’ve been liaison to.”

“I believe I’m a liaison to every department,” replied Grimm, adding, “That’s off topic.”

Representation is important, Grimm said, because the board recommends police candidates.

Redlich seconded Grimm’s motion, which was defeated 3 to 2.

“I wanted to allow the motion to amend,” said Runion, “because I knew if we didn’t, we’d be accused of not having open government.”

The vote was similarly split, 3 to 2, on authorizing Runion to make provisional appointments.

The following appointments were made unanimously for one-year terms unless noted otherwise:

— Stephen Feeney, chair of the planning board;

— James Cohen, member of the planning board until Dec. 31, 2015;

— Linda Clark, assistant town attorney for the planning board;

— Peter Barber, chair of the zoning board;

— Allen Maikels, member of the zoning board until Dec. 31, 2013;

— Charles Cahill, alternate member of the zoning board;

— Robert Feller, assistant town attorney for the zoning board;

— John Wemple, chair, and Herb Hennings, Stuart Reese, Stephen Albert, Gordon McClelland, Steven D. Wickham, and David Heller, members of the environmental conservation advisory council;

— William Young, chair, and James Shahda, Michael Bopp, Christopher Bombardier, and Anthony Carrow, members of the industrial development agency;

— Hodgkin & Russ, Joseph Scott of counsel, attorney to the industrial development agency;

— Don Doynow, medical director of the paramedics;

— Alice Begley, town historian;

— Jean Cataldo, registrar of vital statistics;

— Karen VanWagenen, deputy registrar of vital statistics; and

— Rosemary Centi, passport agent.

“Thank you for serving,” said Slavick, noting some had served for as many as seven or eight years.

The board also by unanimous vote:

— Designated First National Bank of Scotia, First Niagara Bank, Citizens Bank, J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, Pioneer Commercial Bank, NTB Bank, and M&T Bank as official depositories;

— Designated Boswell Engineering, Delaware Engineering, Barton and Loguidice, Clough Harbour, and Spectra Engineering as town-designated engineers for 2009;

— Authorized the highway superintendent and the superintendent of water and wastewater management to spend up to $2,000 per year for the purchase of tools without prior approval of the town board;

— Designated the town supervisor as the affirmative action officer and as the emergency response officer;

— Established mileage rate to coincide with the federal Internal Revenue Service approved rate per mile for reimbursement to town employees when authorized to use their private vehicle on town business; and

— Designated The Altamont Enterprise as the official town newspaper.