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Wheatfield
Town Board amends drainage Sturgeon receives permanent appointment by Ralph
Schwarz The Wheatfield Town Board unanimously approved last Monday an amendment to the local law governing disclosure of drainage conditions on land within the town boundaries by any seller to potential buyers. The amendment exempts real estate agents acting on behalf of the seller from the requirement of any disclosing drainage easements to potential buyers, as long as the seller submits a written notice indicating he or she refuses to sign the disclosures required by the local law. Under the original wording of the law, realtors and other agents acting on behalf of the seller had to submit a written disclosure on the existence of any encroachments, easements, drainage ditches, swales, detention and retention ponds, or whether the property is located in a designated flood zone, and include the disclosure in sales contract or as attachment to the sales contract. With the amendment, the Town Board responded to concerns expressed by area real estate agents regarding legal liabilities. Under the original wording of the law, any sellers or their agents who are found guilty of knowingly violating its provisions will become subject to fines ranging from $500 to $2,500, or a prison term of up to 15 days, or both. Repeat offenders will be penalized with fines ranging from $1,000 to $5,000, or a prison term of up to six months, or both. "We felt it was fair to provide exemption for the agents," said Town Attorney Robert O'Toole, who joined Town Supervisor Timothy Demler last month in a meeting with local realtors. "Several agents raised the question (of) what happens if they have a seller who refuses to sign. ... We felt the agents shouldn't be held responsible." Realtors Worried About Paperwork Although most realtors welcomed the change to the law, some still complained about the additional paperwork the drainage disclosure creates. "You're reading too much into this," Demler said during the public hearing preceding the vote. "The purpose of the law is not to tell the town what ditches are there, but to advise potential buyers that there are drainage conditions on the property that are not the responsibility -- other than maintenance -- of the town of Wheatfield. ... If there's a ditch there, you report it. If not, you get either fined or jail time." Responding to concerns that the penalty structure would put the career of real estate agents who are not familiar with the Wheatfield law in danger, Demler said that the town has no intention to jeopardize realtors. "Nobody is more business-friendly than this town," he said. "All we are asking for is a good-will effort. Just advise your client to give you the information and fill it out and file it as part of all the other paperwork you're going to do anyway. What's the big deal? And why wouldn't a seller sign something unless there wasn't a problem?" As a result of the new amendment, the Drainage Disclosure Law will not be enacted until Aug. 1 to allow developers, realtors and home sellers to become familiar with the provisions of the law. "This will give us the opportunity to educate the law community and the real estate community, post more details on our Web site, get more input from the public," Demler said. "So there is no penalties, no sanctions for the time until this local law starts. Law Prompted By Drainage Problems The Drainage Disclosure Law was prompted by a recent wave of drainage problems experienced primarily by new homeowners in Wheatfield. As previously reported in the Tribune, a number of residents from the Erika Lane, Willow Lake and Trails End subdivisions approached the Town Board last year for help after the respective developers failed to complete drainage works or made inaccurate promises to the buyers. Examples for such inaccurate promises included cases where developers or home sellers told new homeowners that the town would fill ditches or detention lakes in their backyards or drainage construction would be completed by the time they move in. Although the town is not responsible for completing ditches and ponds on non-town properties, the Town Board has repeatedly intervened on behalf of the affected residents to correct some problems. Most recently, the town negotiated the completion of a detention lake in the Willow Lake subdivision. Sturgeon Receives Permanent Appointment The Town Board also appointed Ed Sturgeon as permanent recreation director based on his scores from the New York State Civil Servant Examination for Recreation Directors. Sturgeon has been serving as interim recreation director since Dec. 1, 2003. "We're happy to announce that the Town Board when it interviewed for recreation director made a very good choice because the interim recreation director made in into the top-three of the Civil Servants list," Demler said. "And if this wasn't good enough, he was number one." A former maintenance supervisor of at Occidental Petroleum in Niagara Falls, the 58-years-old Sturgeon brings plenty of experience in the area of athletics and youth activities. Throughout his 20 years with the Niagara Wheatfield Athletics Association, he was involved in the district's wrestling, football, cheerleading, and soccer programs. In addition to coordinating various youth programs for the school district, he maintained the district's athletic fields, primarily the baseball and softball diamonds. "We like to congratulate Ed for his hard work on the new programs," Demler said. "He brought some new ideas, which are moving forward, and we like him to congratulate on his exam and also for doing a good job." Other Business In other business, the Town Board unanimously voted:
Next Meeting The Town Board will host its next meeting on
Monday, May 3, at 7:30 p.m. An open work session starting
at 6:30 p.m. and a joined public hearings starting at 7:15
p.m. will precede the meeting. |
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