Village board holds special meeting

by Rachel Hunter

The Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees held a special board meeting on Friday, June 28 in the municipal boardroom.

Village of Gouverneur Mayor Ron McDougall called the meeting to order at 8:04 a.m. once a quorum was present. In attendance at the meeting was Village of Gouverneur Mayor Ron McDougall, Village of Gouverneur Deputy Mayor Charles Newvine, Village of Gouverneur Trustee Floyd McAdam, Village of Gouverneur Clerk/Treasurer Barbara Finnie, and Village of Gouverneur Deputy Clerk/Treasurer Kristina Ayen.

The Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees approved a tax roll correction at 63 Rock Island St., Gouverneur. Village of Gouverneur Deputy Clerk/Treasurer Kristina Ayen said the following: “After the water/sewer was relevied to the taxes, it was found that there was a clerical error and somebody’s water got relevied that shouldn’t have. We need to give them credit back.” Mayor McDougall then commented that the amount is $96.56. The motion was made by Village Deputy Mayor Charles Newvine, seconded by Village Trustee Floyd McAdam. The motion carried with all votes cast in favor.

The Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees approved the hiring of Raegan Devlin, 16, of Gouverneur at the Gouverneur Recreation Department, starting on Monday, July 8, at an hourly rate of $15.60. She is a certified lifeguard, and will be on site during the summer recreation program’s trips to the Town of Fowler Beach at Sylvia Lake. It was noted that Miss Devlin has her working papers, and will fill the vacant position. Mayor McDougall also noted that recent GHS graduate Meredith Bush turned down the job offer after the Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, June 18. The motion to hire Raegan Devlin was made by Village of Gouverneur Deputy Mayor Charles Newvine, and seconded by Village Trustee Floyd McAdam. The motion carried with all votes cast in favor.

The Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees approved the hiring of a part-time laborer at the water/sewer plant. Mayor McDougall noted that Troy Lucas is on paternity leave (about six weeks). “We decided to give Bruce Hotaling some help on some of the labor issues,” Mayor McDougall said. Recent GHS graduate Joshua Spilman has been approved to fill the position, starting July 1, at an hourly rate of $18.86. Mayor McDougall noted that Mr. Spilman has his working papers. The motion to approve the new hire was made by Village of Gouverneur Deputy Mayor Charles Newvine, and seconded by Trustee Floyd McAdam. The motion carried with all votes cast in favor.

The Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees also approved the hiring of a new trainee at the wastewater treatment plant. James Brice of DeKalb has accepted the permanent position at an hourly rate of $20.47, effective on Monday, July 1. The motion to approve the new hire was made by Village of Gouverneur Deputy Mayor Charles Newvine, and seconded by Trustee Floyd McAdam. The motion carried with all votes cast in favor.

Mayor McDougall and the Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees extended congratulations to the Gouverneur Central High School Class of 2024. Graduation was held on the evening of Friday, June 28 at the Gouverneur and St. Lawrence County Fairgrounds grandstand. See full coverage inside this week’s edition.

Mayor McDougall also wished all a Happy Independence Day (July 4, 2024).

The six-minute special board concluded at about 8:10 a.m.

The next regular monthly meeting of the Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees will be held on Tuesday, July 16, 6 p.m., at the municipal courtroom. For more information about the Village of Gouverneur, call 315-287-1720.