The Skaneateles Town Board and Skaneateles Recreation Charitable Trust have reached agreement to resolve their longstanding dispute over ownership of certain YMCA assets.
The town board unanimously approved the final revised draft agreement between the town, the SRCT and the Skaneateles YMCA after an attorney advice executive session on Dec. 20.
The SRCT and YMCA already had approved the agreement, according to the town clerk.
The agreement stipulates that the SRCT will pay the town $18,000 by Jan. 31, 2013, and allow any and all town residents free access to the Skaneateles YMCA on the fourth Saturday of each month beginning in February 2013 and continuing through July 2014. This payment is in exchange for the SRCT to keep possession of a number of specific assets currently in the YMCA and owned by town taxpayers.
The list of 27 assets to be retained by the SRCT include items such as an Olympia ice resurfacer, Nevco scoreboard, 10 cycling bikes, non-moving fitness equipment, a complete commercial kitchen, numerous electronic and a number of smaller pieces of athletic equipment.
“After two years of discussions with SRCT, I am pleased that a settlement has been agreed to by both SRCT and the town,” said Town Councilor Steve McGlynn. “Our Town Attorney, Pat Sardino, and our Town Supervisor, Terri Roney, also an attorney, have both reviewed the terms of the settlement and have concluded the terms meet the legal requirements for the town to transfer the assets to SRCT. In addition, Judge Paris was involved in crafting the terms of this agreement so we have an independent legal mind helping to create an agreement which will stand up to any challenges that the town illegally transferred taxpayer owned assets to a private entity. I personally would like to thank SRCT for agreeing to the settlement.”
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The agreement had been in the works since a state supreme court judge laid out a framework and urged the parties to make a deal after meeting with representatives from all three entities behind closed doors in mid-November. That meeting was the result of a lawsuit filed by the town against the SRCT on Oct. 5 declaring that the issue of ownership of an estimated $155,000 in YMCA assets — which has been an ongoing dispute between the two sides since December 2010 — had come to an impasse.
Jason Emerson is editor of the Skaneateles Press. He can be reached at [email protected].
