Riverhead Town Board meeting wrap-up: April 2

“Just in time for spring,” observed Councilman James Wooten yesterday, as the Riverhead Town Board, after more than three years of debate,  adopted a code prohibiting overnight parking on any road after the declaration of a snow or winter storm emergency by the town supervisor.

Riverhead Highway Superintendent George Woodson first asked the board in December 2010 to ban overnight parking on town roads during snow events, citing difficulties for plow trucks when cars are parked in the roadways, creating inefficiencies and hazards. The town board flatly refused.

Woodson originally sought to have on-street parking banned during all “snow events,” not just “snow emergencies.” At the time, he also asked the town board to prohibit obstructions, such as pillars and boulders, that he said a growing number of residents are placing within the public right-of-way. They also make plowing difficult and present liability issues.

Supervisor Sean Walter was the board’s most vocal opponent of Woodson’s proposals, arguing that the town already had the ability to impound and remove vehicles parked on town highways during a snow emergency and that the code Woodson sought was “unenforceable.”

“We’re not a police state,” Walter said at the Dec. 16, 2010 work session.

The code adopted at yesterday’s town board meeting bans on-street parking only during snow or winter storm emergencies declared by the town supervisor or his designee. It also prohibits plowing, shoveling or otherwise depositing snow onto any town road.

It authorizes the police or other personnel to remove vehicles parked on town roads after the declaration of a snow emergency and makes the vehicle owner responsible for the payment of towing and storage costs. Violation of the code carries a penalty of a fine of not less than $250. Each day the violation continues shall constitute a separate additional violation.

The measure was approved unanimously, by a 5-0 vote.

In other action yesterday, the town board:

• held a public hearing on a proposal to add certain properties along Second Street, including the site of the former firehouse, to the Riverhead Parking District, as well as the parcel on the northeast corner of Roanoke and Third Street, which the town is buying from Suffolk County National Bank, and the adjacent parcel to its east on Third Street; there was no public comment;

• approved the transfer of $475,000 from the highway department fund balance for the purchase of new machinery and equipment;

• approved the land-clearing permit of Heritage-Riverhead Retail Developers, developers of the Costco site on Route 58, to include a condition requiring the employment of an on-site monitor at the applicant’s expense; the town last week issued summonses to contractors it says were caught hauling sand and soil off the site in violation of the developers’ site plan approval;

• set a May 6 public hearing on a proposed voluntary early retirement incentive plan for eligible town employees, which offers fully-paid family health insurance for 48 months following retirement, or lump sum cash payments for four years if the eligible employee is not enrolled in the town’s health insurance plan. Eligible employees who are members of the Civil Service Employees Association must have 20 years of service and be at least 55 years old. Eligible employees who are members of the Riverhead Police Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association or the Riverhead Superior Officers Association must have at least 20 years of credited service with the N.Y. State Police and Fire Retirement System.

• authorized the town planning department to accept credit and debit cards for payment of fees and other charges; the town approved the acceptance of credit and debit cards in 2011;

• approved a donation of $1,000 per year to the Riverhead High School Key Club for recycling education services and authorized payment of the donation for 2013 and 2014;

approved a declaration to “self-insure” for workers compensation benefits;

• reappointed James McManmon to the Riverhead Landmakers Preservation Commission for a three-year term expiring April 2017;

• ratified the reappointment of Janis Leonti, Kathy Goodale and Marjorie Acevedo to the town’s Open Space/Parks Preserve Committee; all three members were serving as hold-overs whose terms had previously expired.