A resident addresses the board during discussion of the rejected solar canopy bid.
A resident addresses the board during discussion of the rejected solar canopy bid.
A planned solar canopy for the Croton-on-Hudson Department of Public Works garage has hit a snag after the Board of Trustees rejected the only bid submitted for the project. During the October 15 work session, the board voted 3-0 to toss out the September 4 bid, citing a failure to include the required bid bond or cash deposit. Because the missing bond is considered a "material defect" in the bidding process, village officials had no choice but to reject the proposal. The solar canopy project was slated to be fully funded through grants awarded by the New York State Energy Development and Research Authority (NYSERDA). The village initially issued an Invitation to Bid on July 31, but the lack of compliant responses means officials will likely need to re-evaluate their approach and go back to the drawing board to find a qualified contractor. Beyond the solar setback, the board used the work session to look at two other ongoing village matters: local parking and volunteer retention. Officials discussed an expansion of the residential parking permit system, specifically looking at adding Hastings and Young avenues to the program. While no formal vote was taken, the discussion signals that the board is moving toward alleviating non-resident parking congestion in those neighborhoods. The board also reviewed a proposed Length of Service Award Program (LOSAP) for Croton EMS. LOSAP is a state-established program designed to help volunteer fire and ambulance departments recruit and retain members by providing financial incentives based on years of active service. Establishing a LOSAP program requires a permissive referendum, meaning it would ultimately need to be approved by Croton voters. Superintendent of Public Works Frank Balbi also checked in with the board to provide a standard update on DPW operations and current capital projects. Trustee Slippen arrived 15 minutes into the 7:00 PM meeting, which was held in the Georgianna Grant Meeting Room of the Stanley H. Kellerhouse Municipal Building. Trustee Politi was absent from the session. Residents looking to follow the progress of the DPW solar project or the parking permit expansion can find future meeting agendas on the village website.
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