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minutes 11 pages

DRAFT Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Croton-on-Hudson, NY was held on Tuesday, January 4, 2022, via Zoom. 1. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Pugh called the meeting to order at 7:12pm. Everyone joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. Trustee Simon made a motion to approve the following Fiscal Year Vouchers. The motion was seconded by Trustee Horowitz and approved with a 5-0 Vote. $52,260.67 Water Fund $3,185.27 Sewer Fund $1,285.26 Capital Fund $81,085.80 Trust Fund $3,987.90 3. RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY EMAIL – none 4. CORRESPONDENCE: a. Memo from Village Manager Healy dated December 31, 2021, regarding the consolidation of the Village Justice Court. https://play.champds.com/ATT/crotononhudsonny/2021- 12/8e555438d0ac5f9b5059e473daf83d694fe24a4c.pdf Village Manager Healy explained that Village Court has had significant revenue losses and we have been exploring ways to fill that void, one of the options is the consideration of consolidating the Village Court with the Town of Cortlandt Court. Mayor Pugh stated that the Village is facing significant financial headwinds and there would be a large fiscal impact if consolidation can Mayor Pugh Trustee Gallelli Village Manager Bryan Healy Trustee Horowitz Village Attorney Whitehead Trustee Rosales Village Treasurer Tucker Trustee Simon Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 be made to work, part of the process is resolving some details and we are working with the Town Supervisor and the Town Board. Trustee Simon commended the Mayor and the Village Manager for taking on this initiative, he believes that this is something worth exploring even without the financial savings because there are aspects of government coordination and consolidation that are worth looking at and looks forward to exploring this with the Town of Cortlandt. Trustee Horowitz asked what the future of the Village’s employees would look like and asked if Cortland has evening sessions. Mayor Pugh stated that one of the reasons we are exploring this early is to have a planned transition in finding re-employment for the two full time clerks. Mayor Pugh stated that he believes they occasionally offer evening sessions. Trustee Rosales thanked Mayor Pugh and Village Manager Healy for the pro-active nature of finding ways to improve our fiscal balance and asked what are the synergies that stand out, since there may be installations that the Town may not have that we may have. Mayor Pugh stated that there are ways that this could be structured, one option would be taking advantage of the fact that the Village has a dedicated court room and dedicated office space for court related business, his understanding is that Town Court shares the Town of Cortland’s main meeting room with other Town functions and having a dedicated room could be a benefit for them. Mayor Pugh explained that since you cannot terminate the position of Village Justice during their term, and because the Justice’s term is up the end of 2022, it is something that we have decided to explore at this time. Trustee Gallelli stated that this is a worthwhile thing to be looking at in light of the financial situation and since the Justice’s terms is a four year term, it is situation that can only occur once every four years. Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 b. Memo from New York State Department of State dated December 30, 2021, regarding request for comments on LWRP coordination. https://play.champds.com/ATT/crotononhudsonny/2021- 12/b4e310198f469ec75740aaed800324f1debd3fb7.pdf Resolution: On motion by Trustee Gallelli, seconded by Trustee Simon the Board of Trustees authorized the “Waterfront Advisory Committee” to comment on the New York State Department of Transportation’s intent to pursue Federal funding for a regionwide project to improve local roads. Motion was approved with the following Roll Call vote: Trustee Rosales Aye, Trustee Simon Aye, Trustee Gallelli Aye, Trustee Horowitz Aye, Mayor Pugh Aye. c. E-mail from Stephen Campbell of the New York Power Authority dated December 12, 2021, regarding the “Tree Power Program.” https://play.champds.com/ATT/crotononhudsonny/2021- 12/3fb2b5dad546d7742a185f8c4bf500ad21cce8c0.pdf 5. PUBLIC COMMENTS ON AGENDA ITEMS: Joel Gingold, 55 Nordica Drive, Croton on Hudson, asked that the resolution on permit parking for Nordica and Truesdale Drives be tabled, he believes that the resolution ignores the parking restrictions that have already been imposed, and it is not a true statement that those restrictions have had no meaningful impact on the Croton side of the River, parking is much lower than it was back in 2019 when the real problems occurred and while he understands that because of the virus we have not yet had a normal year with respect to people visiting the River and we also may not know whether the current restrictions will be good enough to solve those problems. Mr. Gingold suggested that a survey be conducted before the Board moves forward. Village Manager Healy explained that under New York State Law the Village cannot enact a “Residential Parking Permit System” without Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 “Home Rule” legislation, it would be the Board’s intent to remove the current restrictions if we were able to get approval from the State, the time and length of the restrictions would be determined by the Board, and he imagines that they would only be instituted for the necessary period of time. Mayor Pugh stated that while we received authorization from the State for Hastings and Young Avenues, the Village did not establish a program for several months, and it was only instituted after extensive consultation with those residents. Trustee Gallelli stated that this is a multi-step process and even if the State Legislature grants this request, it does not mean that it happens, is not a done deal even if the Legislature approves it. Trustee Simon stated that the consultation process with Hasting and Young Avenue residents was at least a year long, he found that process helpful in terms of getting the neighbor’s views and he would expect that the Board would go through a comparable process with Nordica and Truesdale Drive residents. Brian Cook, 52 Truesdale Drive, Croton on Hudson, stated that he agrees with Mr. Gingold’s comments, why even continue with the process if none of us want it, it seems a bit unreasonable if the proposal is to charge people to park when they are visiting family and friends during the summer. Mayor Pugh stated that opinion on this matter is divided, there are residents that recognize that this is an inconvenience, but some residents on Truesdale recognize that this has helped with people parking and trespassing on their private property to access the River. Village Manager Healy said that he is not sure where the information is coming from that the Village would be charging for a guest pass, this was never discussed for Hastings and Young Avenues, and it has not been discussed for Nordica and Truesdale Drive residents. Village Manager Healy explained that the first two resident permits are free, but there is a Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 ten dollar fee to obtain a permit for a third vehicle which is for a two year period. Robert Anderson, 3 Oak Place, Croton on Hudson, stated that he is concerned that the Board is making a foregone conclusion that there is still a problem when in fact there isn’t, he has found that the people who are parking there are family friendly, there is no litter and he has not seen more than four to five cars parked at a time and taking this step is not necessary when it will in essence block out a large number of respectful people who want to visit that area. Comments submitted via e-mail: E-mail from Marilyn and George Dreyer, 2 Cedar Lane, Croton on Hudson, stating that they do not support any restrictions on their street. E-mail from Vernon Huff, 5 Nordica Drive, Croton on Hudson, stating that he opposes the proposed new parking regulations and does not believe the changes are necessary. E-mail from Robert and Carolyn, 7 Nordica Drive, Croton on Hudson, stating that they are opposed to the proposed new permit system, they feel that the current system is working well. E-mail from Tim Robinson, 15 Nordica Drive, Croton on Hudson, stating that he is opposed to the parking permit system, believes that the current system is working fine. 6. RESOLUTIONS: Resolution #1 of 2022 On motion of TRUSTEE GALLELLI, seconded by TRUSTEE SIMON, the following resolution was adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Croton-on- Hudson, New York, with the following Roll Call vote: Trustee Rosales Aye, Trustee Simon Aye, Trustee Gallelli Aye, Trustee Horowitz Aye, Mayor Pugh Aye. Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 WHEREAS New York State enacted legislation in 2012 that established a “property tax cap” on the amount that a local government’s property tax levy can increase each year, and WHEREAS under this law, the total amount to be raised through property taxes charged on the municipality’s taxable assessed value of property, is capped at 2% or the rate of inflation, whichever is less, with some exceptions, and WHEREAS the rate of inflation this year has been set by the State Comptroller’s Office at 4.23% for municipalities operating on a June through May fiscal year, and WHEREAS the state legislation provides for local governments to override the cap to protect the Village from unforeseen financial circumstances, and WHEREAS the state legislation requires that in the event an override is necessary, the law enabling it must already have been adopted by the Board of Trustees, and WHEREAS Local Law Introductory No. 1 of 2022 has been drafted to override the “property tax cap” law enacted by State Legislature, if necessary, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Village Board of Trustees hereby calls for a Public Hearing on Tuesday, January 18, 2022, at 7:00 PM in the Georgianna Grant Meeting Room of the Stanley H. Kellerhouse Municipal Building to consider Local Law Introductory No. 1 of 2022 to override the “property tax cap” law enacted by State Legislature, AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 7 of the Public Officers Law to the contrary, the meeting may be conducted via virtual technology in accordance with the Chapter 417 of the Laws of 2021, or it may be conducted in person at the Stanley H. Kellerhouse Municipal Building, located at 1 Van Wyck Street, Croton-on-Hudson, New York. The format will be dictated by public health and safety concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Trustee Gallelli stated that every year since 2012 the Village has enacted this same resolution, it is a necessary step that we must take in order to protect the Village against the possibility that we would not come in with a budget that was Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 appropriately sized. Trustee Gallelli stated that in the past we have reversed this resolution just prior to the adoption of the Budget. Mayor Pugh stated that historically this has been a proforma matter, however, we are in very unchartered waters in terms of revenues going down coupled with tremendous inflationary pressures. Mayor Pugh explained that in a highly inflationary environment like we are in today we could exceed the “Tax Cap,” and this is a challenge that we are facing. Mayor Pugh stated that we cannot take anything for granted, and this is why the Village is looking aggressively for savings and new revenue sources. Trustee Simon stated that inflation is just a fancy name for everything being more expensive, and referred everyone to the “Property Tax Cap” chart attached to the backup documents, when you at the 4.2% inflation number it is very chilling, and we are going to have our work cut out during the Budget process. https://play.champds.com/ATT/crotononhudsonny/2021- 12/a463ae6e84ed521d9ca8811c9a16cb14eb11c1f0.pdf (chart) Resolution #2 of 2022 On motion of TRUSTEE HOROWITZ, seconded by TRUSTEE SIMON, the following resolution was adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Croton-on- Hudson, New York with the following Roll Call vote: Trustee Rosales Aye, Trustee Simon Aye, Trustee Gallelli Aye, Trustee Horowitz Aye, Mayor Pugh Aye. WHEREAS the Village has received complaints from residents in the area of Truesdale Drive, Nordica Drive, Cedar Lane and Old Post Road South regarding individuals who park their vehicles along the roadway to use the Croton River and the Croton Gorge Unique Area, and WHEREAS in recent summers, which were particularly hot and humid, an extreme number of vehicles have parked on these roadways, which led to potential safety concerns, and WHEREAS the New York-New Jersey Trails Conference, in consultation with the Village and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, has Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 established the stewards program to limit the users of the Croton Gorge Unique Area, and WHEREAS while this program has had some success limiting vehicles accessing the area from the Ossining side of the Croton River, it has not had a meaningful impact on the Croton side of the Croton River, and WHEREAS as a result, the Board of Trustees is desirous of having a residential parking permit system created for residents of Truesdale Drive, Nordica Drive, Cedar Lane and Old Post Road South, and WHEREAS under New York State law, such a system can only be enacted after approval by the New York State Legislature, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Village Board of Trustees hereby re- affirms its support for a residential parking permit system for Truesdale Drive, Nordica Drive, Cedar Lane and Old Post Road South in the Village, as previously established in Resolution 192-2019 dated December 19, 2019, and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to State Assemblywoman Sandra Galef and State Senator Peter Harckham. Village Manager Healy explained that back in December 2019 when the Village first requested the “Residential Parking Permit System” for Nordica and Truesdale Drives, a number of neighbors at the end of Old Post Road South had asked to be included, and while we have not received many complaints since we implemented the current restrictions, we did receive at that time some of the same concerns about where family and friends would park who are visiting in the summer. After a discussion by the Board, the Resolution was amended to include Cedar Lane and Old Post Road South (from the corner of Morningside to Truesdale Drive). Resolution #3 of 2022 On motion of TRUSTEE SIMON, seconded by TRUSTEE HOROWITZ, the following resolution was adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Croton-on- Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 Hudson, New York with the following Roll Call vote: Trustee Rosales Aye, Trustee Simon Aye, Trustee Gallelli Aye, Trustee Horowitz Aye, Mayor Pugh Aye. WHEREAS Westchester County maintains a system called the Westchester County Repository for Integrated Criminalistic Information (RICI) to allow for the electronic transmission and storage of criminal records and police blotter information, which includes information related to a subject’s arrest, booking, detention or incarceration, and WHEREAS the information is stored chronologically on a central computer maintained by the County and is shared by multiple law enforcement agencies having access to the system, and WHEREAS the Village of Croton-on-Hudson had signed an agreement with the County to request access to the RICI system and supplemental computer services from Westchester County which has since expired, and WHEREAS Police Chief Nikitopoulos has requested that Village renew this agreement with the County for an additional five-year term, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Village Manager is hereby authorized to sign the agreement with Westchester County to renew access to the Westchester County Repository for Integrated Criminalistic Information for the period beginning November 1, 2021 , through October 31, 2026. 7. PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS: none 8. APROVAL OF MINUTES: Motion to approve the minutes as amended of the Regular Meeting held on December 20, 2021, was made by Trustee Horowitz. Motion was seconded by Trustee Simon and approved with a 5-0 vote. 9. REPORTS: Trustee Rosales thanked Village Manager Healy and Village staff for the disbursement of Covid related protective equipment and test kits and Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 looks forward to resolving some of these parking issues going forward in a way that represents everyone’s interests. Trustee Simon stated that he has been working with the “Sustainability Committee” on the new “Federal Electric Vehicle Charging Program”, they are in the process of preparing comments on how to shape that program to ensure that Croton will be eligible, he and Mayor Pugh virtually attended the Town of Cortlandt’s swearing-in ceremony, commended Matthew Sherman on his duties as past Chair of the “Bicycle Pedestrian Committee”, and welcomed La Catrina restaurant to Croton. Trustee Horowitz announced that the sub-committee of the “Conservation Advisory Council,” “Croton Clean,” has scheduled their next clean up at Croton Point Beach this Saturday, 9:00am. Trustee Gallelli congratulated the new “EMS” Officers, she reminded everyone that if they are coming for an activity at the Municipal Building to please make sure that the event is still taking place, she virtually attended the Town of Cortlandt swearing in and welcomed the new officers. Trustee Gallelli stated that Covid is creating a huge problem in terms of uncertainties with revenues and expenses, and while we thought we were at the end, there has been a setback which she believes will have an impact on the Village’s Budget process. Mayor Pugh thanked everyone for their kind wishes while he was recovering from Covid, he attributes his mild case to being vaccinated and encouraged everyone to do so. Mayor Pugh advised that the Municipal building is closed for the remainder of the week, we have a duty to our work force to keep everyone safe as well as the community so that we continue to safely and reliably deliver Village services, residents can tele-communicate with staff, and a drop box has been provided at the Municipal Building. Village Manager Healy advised that we have a hand-full of staff members out due to Covid, which is why we have closed the Municipal Building and we appreciate everyone’s patience as we work to get through this. Village Manager Healy announced that the Public Hearing regarding Village Trustees Board Meeting January 4, 2022 “1380 Albany Post Road” has been cancelled, some substantive changes by the Planning Board have been made, and we will be discussing it at our next Work Session. Village Manager Healy announced that Moody’s has given the Village an “AA” rating, we had a successful discussion with them, and they are pleased with how we are planning to recover from our revenue loss at the train station. Village Manager Healy thanked those that helped with giving away Covid test kits and masks and while we were not able to satisfy everyone, we were able to hand out thousands to Village residents, decals for the “Residential Parking Permit System” have arrived for Hastings and Young Avenues and we look forward to getting the applications out to those residents, water bills are due on January 15th, payment can be made on-line, through the regular mail or deposited in the drop box at Village Hall. There being no further business to come before the Board, a motion to close the meeting was made by Trustee Horowitz. Motion was seconded by Trustee Simon and approved with a 5-0 vote. Meeting adjourned at 8:26pm.