Lewiston Town Board hears about proposed MSM helipad

Town OKs new pay structure for part-time court constables

By Terry Duffy

Editor-in-Chief

Lewiston Town Board members heard details of a new helipad under consideration at the Mount St. Mary’s Hospital campus on Military Road, at a public hearing before Monday’s regular meeting.

Janet Hawker, assistant director of planning design for Catholic Health Systems, which oversees operations at the hospital, briefed Supervisor Steve Broderick and board members on the planned purpose. She said the helipad was intended to assist the hospital with the transport of cardiac patients to Buffalo-area medical facilities, primarily Mercy Hospital in South Buffalo.

Citing a number of issues, including weather and traffic, Hawker said, “It’s meant to service our patients much better. We anticipate at most one to two flights per week, and we’re probably going to see four to six flights per month, at most.”

Attorney for the Town Thomas Seaman advised board members that various applications still need to be filed on the part of Mount St. Mary’s/Catholic Health before any work can begin.

“This is for the concept plan approval (from the public hearing held earlier). But no work would be done on that project until that applicant files their detailed plan applications. That goes through the Planning Board and then back here (before the Town Board). We would have another public hearing for the detailed plan approval,” Seaman said. “This is just for the concept plan. It’s not a finalized decision yet.”

Soon after, board members went on to approve the concept plan.

Moving on to other news from the session:

•Town Board members convened to executive session to discuss a personnel matter and returned with a proposal for a new pay structure for the town’s part-time court constables.

“We have a resolution prepared by our attorney establishing a pay structure for our part-time court officers,” Broderick said.

He noted the town’s part-time court constables would be compensated “for a minimum of three hours for the actual time worked, whichever is greater for any day that they report to work.”

The resolution provides that the hourly compensation for the part-time position would be as follows: date of hire, $17.28; first anniversary, $19.39; second anniversary, $20.11; and the third anniversary and thereafter, $21.46 per hour.

The measure went on to be approved by the board with little comment.

•Lewiston Senior Center Director Melinda Olick advised the board she was now looking into bids for new entrance doors and windows at the 1960s-era building on Lower River Road. Olick explained the center did not use its designated funds for a planned paving project due to the ongoing town waterline project and the use of the lot for related piping and equipment. Instead, she wished to use the funds for new doors and windows.

“We’d like to reallocate that money to replace new doors and windows at the Senior Center,” Olick said.

Following a motion offered by Councilman Bill Geiben for Olick to seek bids, Broderick said the town building inspector’s office will work with Olick to ensure the bidding process and all procedural tasks are addressed to enable a speedy installation process.

Geiben said the Senior Center project would likely qualify as an energy savings project for the town and informed that energy auditor Jason Kane was scheduled to visit with town officials next week. He suggested including the Senior Center project in their discussions.

“He may have something for us (on this),” Geiben said.

Attorney Seaman suggested the board take a motion for the project to go out to bid following its discussions with Kane.

“You don’t need to set a specific date for the project to go out to bid,” he said.

Instead, he suggested the board prepare the bid to be released following its planned discussion with the energy auditor. Soon after, the board approved Geiben’s amended motion on the bid.

Also approved that evening was the hiring of John Parone as a new Senior Center van driver at a rate of $12 per hour (or $500 annually).

•Town Engineer Robert Lannon said two minor changes involving right of ways at the Essex Patio Homes development on Bronson and Upper Mountain roads have been addressed and the project is moving along. He said he received a letter from Savorino Development attorneys relating to the matter, requesting approval, and said all pertinent matters have been handled.

“It’s a very minor change with the PUD – a one-foot change in a right of way,” Lannon said, as he sought board approval on the matter, which was granted soon after.