$1 groomer voted down for Lewis Cty ...why ?

[himiler]

  There were 3 people who voted against this issue.   The article in the Watertown Times has  all the numbers,names and issues. Tried to copy it over hear and was having problem.  However it says that there would be a tax revinue loss due to poorer trail conditions,at this time they didn't have a dollar figure.  Maybe what needs to be done is get this dollar figure loss and have those 3 that voted against this bill make up the difference for the county,after all they were all voted into office for the better of the tax payer of the county,not  there own personal beliefs. Then there was also a local fellow that wrote a letter shooting this down and banging his drum as ussual.  Mr. Krugg, he came out saying  Mr. Lucus shouldn't vote because he is also a business owner,and may benefit from the better trails.   Duh,well ya !  However because of the better trails that will make a better business for Mr. Lucas ,he will have to hire extra people to take care of patrons,he will sell more food and drink,which means his business will pay more tax and on and on.  Also he is not just representing himself in business but many other places around thehill,that will also hire people and pay taxes,so he should be voting and doing his job for what he was elected to do,not step back because Mr.Krugg has a personel dislike of people enjoying themselves. Mr. Krugg also said it would be illegal for the county to contract a $1 dollar deal, last I knew a dollar was binding,if Monroe tractor wants to introduce there equipment for a season at the rate of a dollar,thinking future sales in season to come thats just good business.   I THINK AS A TAX PAYER IN LEWIS COUNTY THE 3 THAT VOTED NO,ALONG WITH KRUGG SHOULD BE HELD LIABLE FOR THE TAX DOLLARS THAT ARE LOST !!

[mirageags]

from all that ive been reading, this krugg guy sounds like a real a-hole...
is this a groomer for snowmobile trails?

[Oscar Meier]

Here is the article that I found on the net. for all to read.


County balks at $1 rental of groomer
By STEVE VIRKLER
TIMES STAFF WRITER
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2010
ARTICLE OPTIONS
A A A 

LOWVILLE — Lewis County legislators on Tuesday defeated a proposal to rent a snowmobile trail groomer for $1 this winter on behalf of the Lewis County Snowmobile Association, citing concerns about its legality.

However, they left open the possibility of revisiting the issue at their reorganizational meeting Jan. 4.

Lawmakers voted 5-3 in favor of renting a groomer from Monroe Tractor and Implement Co. Inc. for $1 and subletting it to the county snowmobile association, which would provide liability insurance coverage, until a broken-down machine is permanently replaced. However, six affirmative votes are needed for approval on the 10-member Legislature.

Legislators Jerry H. King, R-West Leyden; Paul M. Stanford, D-Watson, and John O. Boyd, D-New Bremen, voted against the proposal, while legislators Philip C. Hathway, R-Harrisville, and Charles R. Fanning, R-Copenhagen, both abstained, citing indecision in the matter.

"I'm not putting snowsled clubs down," Mr. Stanford said. "Something just doesn't feel right. We're not in the rental business."

He also expressed concern that two towns — Martinsburg and Turin — reportedly had declined to enter such an agreement before it was proposed at the county level.

The groomer would be based at Timberview Lodge near Houseville and used to cover Trail C4F in the towns of West Turin and Martinsburg, "probably one of the most important spines of our system," said Legislator Richard C. Lucas, R-Barnes Corners, chairman of the legislative Economic Development Committee.

A club that typically grooms that area has lost its machine to mechanical problems and is locked in a legal battle with the dealer in an attempt to recoup some money, Mr. Lucas said. While other clubs will be able to pick up some of the trails, they won't be able feasibly to handle the one high-traffic section, he said.

Monroe Tractor, which has a store in Adams Center, offers a promotional program allowing municipalities to use a Case groomer for $1 per year for up to 250 hours, Mr. Lucas said. However, the nonprofit snowmobile association could not take advantage of the program without piggybacking on a municipality.

Bruce R. Krug, a former Democratic legislator and chairman from Leyden and longtime watchdog of snowmobile and all-terrain-vehicle issues, wrote a letter in opposition to the proposal, suggesting it would constitute an "illegal gift" that would benefit only private interests. He also called on Mr. Lucas to abstain from voting, since he owns Montague Inn, which caters to snowmobilers.

The Tug Hill legislator argued that keeping the main trail groomed would provide a public benefit and ultimately voted in favor of the proposal, although it didn't change the eventual outcome.

Mr. Lucas sought to enlist the support of County Treasurer Vicki A. Roy, also an avid snowmobiler, in showing a public benefit. Mrs. Roy said the trail in question is a "thoroughfare" and losing it would affect sales tax revenues, but she couldn't provide a specific dollar figure.

County Attorney Richard J. Graham said the illegal gift and public benefit arguments both could be made relatively easily.

"I can't say this is a challenge-free opportunity for you," he said.

At the end of the meeting, Legislator Michael A. Tabolt, R-Croghan, floated the idea of revisiting the issue, possibly after obtaining more information.

"I wouldn't mind if it was brought up again at the January meeting," Mr. Hathway said.

Legislature Chairman Jack T. Bush, R-Brantingham, said it may be reintroduced only by a dissenting or abstaining legislator.

[JZO]

This issue was brought to the Lewis County Snowmobile Association and the Clubs picked and choose what trails they would groom. Now as the Association decided not to groom the 2 Trails everyone is now putting the blame on the County for the Trails not going to be groomed.  Let the Association handle this issue and if they choose not to groom then these 2 trails need to be marked as closed.

[lonerider]

I second the motion for those guys paying the difference!!  They are supposed to be helping the county not hurting it.

[skippydoo]

County will rent snow groomer to association for $1
By STEVE VIRKLER
TIMES STAFF WRITER
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2011
ARTICLE OPTIONS
A A A 

LOWVILLE — Lewis County legislators on Tuesday agreed to rent a snowmobile trail groomer for $1 this winter on behalf of the Lewis County Snowmobile Association after a proposal they narrowly rejected a couple of weeks ago was altered slightly.

Legislators voted 9-1 to rent a groomer from Monroe Tractor & Implement Co. Inc. for $1 and sublet it to the county snowmobile association, which would provide liability insurance coverage. Legislator Jerry H. King, R-West Leyden, was opposed.

Lawmakers on Dec. 22 voted 5-3 in favor of a similar resolution, but six votes are needed for passage on the 10-person Legislature.

Several references to an individual club — which wasn't named but referred to Club Timberview — were removed from the new version, and a clause stating that the county association will be "solely responsible for the equipment and associated costs" was included.

ADVERTISEMENT
 

"We didn't want to sublease it to a club," Legislator Philip C. Hathway, R-Harrisville, who introduced the resolution, said after the meeting. "I would say that it made me feel better about it."

Mr. Hathway abstained from voting on the matter at the prior meeting.

Gary R. Stinson, president of the Lewis County Snowmobile Association, assured lawmakers that association leadership would accept full responsibility for the groomer.

"It's supposed to be in pristine condition when it goes back," he said.

Monroe Tractor, which has a store in Adams Center, offers a promotional program allowing municipalities to use a Case groomer for $1 per year for up to 250 hours, Legislator Richard C. Lucas, R-Barnes Corners, chairman of the legislative Economic Development Committee, has said. However, the nonprofit snowmobile association could not take advantage of the program without piggybacking on a municipality.

An extra groomer is needed to cover Trail C4F in the towns of West Turin and Martinsburg, one of the higher traffic areas in the county's snowmobile trail system. Club Timberview, which typically grooms that area and is affiliated with Timberview Lodge, has lost its machine to mechanical problems and is locked in a legal battle over who must foot the bill.

The board's two Democrats — John O. Boyd of New Bremen and Paul M. Stanford of Watson — said after the meeting they felt more comfortable in dealing solely with the county snowmobile association, not the private club, as well. Both opposed the measure Dec. 22.

Bruce R. Krug, a former Democratic legislator and chairman from Leyden and longtime watchdog of snowmobile and all-terrain-vehicle issues, last month wrote a letter in opposition to the proposal, suggesting it would constitute an "illegal gift" that would benefit only private interests.

[skippydoo]

looks like the county was to slow on this deal


Delay costs snowmobile association use of groomer
By STEVE VIRKLER
TIMES STAFF WRITER
THURSDAY, JANUARY 6, 2011
ARTICLE OPTIONS
A A A 

LOWVILLE — Lewis County legislators were literally a day late and a dollar short in approving the temporary rental of a snowmobile groomer Tuesday night.

"I went to rent the tractor, and they sold it," Gary R. Stinson, president of the Lewis County Snowmobile Association, said Wednesday afternoon. "They sold it yesterday."

An extra groomer is needed to cover Trail C4F in the towns of West Turin and Martinsburg, one of the higher-traffic areas in the county's snowmobile trail system.

The Plateau Riders snowmobile club, previously known as Club Timberview, typically grooms that area but has lost its machine to mechanical problems and is locked in a legal battle over who must foot the bill.

ADVERTISEMENT
 

Monroe Tractor, which has a store in Adams Center, offers a promotional program allowing municipalities to use a Case tractor for $1 per year for up to 250 hours, and county snowmobile association officials last month asked the county to rent it and sublet it to the association for use as a temporary replacement groomer.

Lawmakers on Dec. 22 voted 5-3 in favor of the proposal, but six votes are needed for passage on the 10-person Legislature.

To alleviate some legislators' concerns, the proposal was revised to specify that the county association, not the individual club, would care for the machine and benefit from the arrangement, and the new resolution passed Tuesday night by a 9-1 vote.

However, the two-week delay ultimately cost the snowmobile association use of the $400,000 tractor, as it apparently was sold to a large farm in the Batavia area and trucked there, Mr. Stinson said.

"They had no more in the program," he said. "There's none available."

Mr. Stinson said the 500-horsepower machine would have been more than twice as large as area clubs' typical groomers, but, with a drag hooked behind it, would have worked fine as a temporary solution to the groomer shortage.

Plateau Riders officials now are renewing a search for a used groomer that they could lease affordably for the next couple of months, and the matter likely will be discussed again at next week's snowmobile association meeting, he said.

Relatively low snowfall totals over the past month have limited the need for trail grooming, Mr. Stinson said.