Let the planners plan
At their last meeting, Village of New Paltz Planning Board members were told to expect not to be involved in the environmental review of the New Paltz Apartments project on Route 32 South. Mayor Tim Rogers signaled some second thoughts about that at the February 24 village board meeting.
The property proposed for this development — which would house more than 600 people in its current iteration — is not actually in the village at all. Developer Michael Moriello has submitted an annexation petition to get the land the water, sewer and zoning requirements needed to move ahead with this idea. Planning board attorney Rick Golden told members of that board that because the environmental review would need to be performed as part of the annexation process, they couldn’t do it themselves because their authority won’t extend to this parcel until it’s legally part of the village.
Rogers said at the village board meeting that having the village planning board become the lead agency for the environmental review is the mayor’s preference, allowing trustees to “rely on their determinations during the annexation process.” It wasn’t made clear how this would be accomplished, given the challenges of jurisdiction, but Rogers signaled that this would be discussed more thoroughly at the March 10 meeting.
Huguenot Street hearing held over
Plans to make a stretch of Huguenot Street in new Paltz a one-way road permanently have not yet crystallized. Village trustees agreed at their February 24 meeting to allow neighbors and other residents more time to think about the impacts of limiting vehicular traffic to a northbound flow from Broadhead Avenue to Mulberry Street. This section, adjacent to the portion that’s now closed off to motorized vehicles entirely, already has such a one-way provision on Sundays, to facilitate traffic to and from worship services. The expansion is being considered to reduce strain on the stone houses in this historic neighborhood, as well as to promote safety in an area that’s becoming more of a draw to pedestrians and cyclists.
In suggesting the hearing remain open, Mayor Tim Rogers specifically mentioned allowing nearby neighbors time to talk among themselves and reaching out to members of the bicycle-pedestrian committee.
Trustees urged to use power wisely
Village of New Paltz trustees are expected to be asked if the Trans-Hudson project by the Thruway can be hooked into the water and sewer systems, and one town resident has asked them to consider more than just the pipes. Dan Schniedewind acknowledged that this would, among other advantages, allow for a water loop to be created; dead-end water mains can lead to low pressure for users in that area. However, Schniedewind also noted that because the applicants are seeking a drive-through restaurant window, that this project is a “de facto Thruway rest stop,” which is in violation of both town zoning and the smart-growth principles community leaders prefer. The applicants have had this request turned down by the town council and are now seeking a variance from the zoning board of appeals. Schniedewind would like village trustees to make any approved connection conditioned on the drive-through window being abandoned and the application otherwise conforming to the standards set forth in the zoning, which include building a second story.
Applicants have resisted the second story as well and Schniedewind has characterized that opposition as being driven by profit. That’s because the applicants do not believe a national retail tenant could be found for a second-story space and do not want “lower-quality renters,” which Schniedewind interprets as local business owners who would not be in the market to pay as high a rent as one of those corporate tenants. The two-story requirement in the zoning is based on the same principles as were written into the village’s neighborhood-business-residential zone along North Chestnut Street.
Schniedewind also recommended trustees hold out approval if the applicants don’t remove an entrance to this project from Route 299 because of the safety implications given the Empire State Trail runs around that corner as well. While that ramp was approved by state transportation officials, Schniedewind observed that they have “very low standards for bicycle-pedestrian safety.”
New skid-steer loader needed
Mindful of the financial uncertainty that has been caused by the ongoing pandemic, New Paltz Department of Public Works (DPW) employee Joe Granieri would still like to see one piece of equipment replaced as soon as possible: a skid-steer loader that has been in service since the last time Bob Dole was running for president. Due to a combination current market conditions along with fastidious maintenance and care, the skid-steer loader — a small four-wheeled vehicle that’s used to move snow and other materials throughout the year — can fetch a very high trade-in value right now. Granieri was given a figure of $14,000 for a vehicle purchased in 1995 for $32,000, and does not know how long that offer might last. Due to its age parts are harder to come by, and that’s led to the machine being out of service for weeks at a time when certain repairs are needed. In short, keeping it running is becoming costlier.
While a longer “wish list” of equipment to purchase was also provided, Granieri urged trustees to prioritize this above any of the others as being needed in the coming year. The high trade-in value in particular gives this a sense of urgency, but Mayor Tim Rogers has been working to replace a stock of equipment from before the turn of the century since being elected. What’s even made that possible is how equipment is cared for in the DPW: the mayor repeated an oft-cited fact, that insurance agents consistently value the stock well above average price because of decades of scrupulous maintenance, in-house repair and inside storage whenever possible.
The scheme Rogers is considering would be to purchase the $57,000 replacement late enough in the year that the first payment is made in the new fiscal year, which begins June 1. This would also have the new one in service well ahead of winter, when it’s central to operations to remove huge piles of snow from busy intersections. Granieri was agreeable, but emphasized that there are risks to such a delay: the trade-in value may change and if the machine breaks down in the meantime, the cost of repairs has been creeping close to $3,000 at a clip. Given the financial questions posed by the pandemic-fueled economy, trustees appear willing to assume those risks and hold off until the weather warms up.
Who’s my landlord?
There’s a push to get the full rental registry database for the Village of new Paltz online. Trustee Alex Wojcik thinks it’s high time to make it easy to access these data, but also wants to improve their quality. With shifting corporate shells, Wojcik explained, many tenants don’t actually know the identity of their own landlord. Rent might be left in a box for collection by some faceless agent, and the only phone number on the registration form might connect to a voice mailbox associated with a limited liability corporation. Wojcik once sought help from Legal Services of the Hudson Valley, but the lack of information about the landlord meant that the case went nowhere. Now, Wojcik wants to ensure that each registration includes phone and email information for a human.
Others around the virtual board table on February 24 raised privacy concerns. They agreed that the information in the registry is shared on request to employees of the building department, but Mayor Tim Rogers wondered if simply putting it all online would cross a line. The mayor is “philosophically” supportive of posting all of the information, but preferred to get an attorney opinion before moving ahead. However, word was received during the meeting that the village’s attorney was generally supportive; now it’s just a matter of finding time for the streamlined village staff to input all the information and get it online.
Public hearing on short-term rentals to be reset
Village of New Paltz trustees have carefully held the public hearing on their proposed short-term rental law open for some months, in order to cast the widest net possible for feedback. Now, though, the process is going to begin anew because some of the changes trustees are looking to make are not mere “tweaks,” and cross into the area of substantive alterations. The new hearing will begin on March 10.
The change, proposed by Mayor Tim Rogers, would dispense with differences based on whether the property is in a commercial or residential zone. “We want people to be able to live in this community,” Rogers explained. In keeping with that, the law should allow residents to rent a bedroom out constantly, or the entire property when on vacation, as long as they are actually living in that building most of the time. The mayor feels that striking language that sets out residential zones as having different rules would simplify the law and make it easier to enforce; the goal is to discourage investment properties being used in this manner.
Deputy mayor Kt Tobin noted that laws of this type are being considered in many nearby communities, communities where rental registration and inspection is not already required as it is in the village in all cases. The village law being pondered wouldn’t alter those requirements. “If you want a hotel in [commercial] zones, don’t back-door it,” Tobin said.
Soft ground slows work
Initial work on the new firehouse in New Paltz has revealed that the ground under where part of the building will be sited is softer even than anticipated. That’s caused some delay in preparing the ground at the corner of North Putt Corners Road and Henry W. Dubois Drive; more gravel and compacted soil are needed under what will be the west and north sides of the new building. The extra material and labor to correct the problem is expected to cost no more than $40,000.
Consider the source
Asked to back a state senate bill that would ban the use of leaf blowers from May until September — when leaves generally aren’t on the ground – Village of New Paltz trustees started thinking at the February 24 meeting about where to place blame for the widespread use of these polluting devices.
“This is not an environmental proposal,” remarked Mayor Tim Rogers, “it’s how loud and annoying leaf blowers are.” The State Environmental Quality Review act, used to evaluate the impacts of new laws and construction, has sections for both noise and air pollution.
Such a ban would likely be enforced by police and as deputy mayor Kt Tobin noted, that flies in the face of the work trustees have been engaging in, namely to avoid having armed officers respond to what are largely neighborly disputes. “I don’t want to use police for this,” Tobin said. “Think about how that would play out.”
While trustee Alexandra Wojcik is working on language to encourage residents not to use the machines, which operate at dangerously loud volumes and propel potentially harmful particles through the air at high speeds, Tobin thought that state legislators should be asked to put pressure on manufacturers rather than “blaming the victim.”
Pushing for statewide rent relief
Following up on resolutions last year encouraging landlords to freeze rents and be flexible working with tenants during the pandemic, Village of new Paltz trustees are now supporting bills in the state senate and assembly that would have landlords paid from the state treasury to avoid the ripple effect of evicting people in crisis. “Canceling” rent outright is problematic because it’s common for landlords to borrow heavily to purchase or improve their properties; the proposals being considered call for using additional incomes tax on the highest earners, or revenue from taxing cannabis as a plant for recreational use, to make landlords whole. Senator Mike Martucci and assembly member Kevin Cahill are specifically called on in the resolution to become sponsors of these bills.
Too early for action on election
Putting a referendum on the ballot to move Village of New Paltz elections from May to November can’t happen until it’s less than 30 days before the election, so trustees will vote on April 14 to include it. The overall plan is to shift the cost and administration of the village vote to the Ulster County Board of Elections, which would as a consequence mean that it would be conducted using the same partisan rules as are the norm in most places. Village law right now specifically forbids running as a candidate of any recognized political party, which has the effect of preventing voters from voting a party line without doing any research.
The next village election will be on May 4. Details on running this year — under the old rules which may be swept away if voters agree — can be found on the village web site.
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