For the first time, the New Paltz village government has been reorganized in January, a result of voters agreeing to shift historically non-partisan village elections to a political contest run by county officials after more than a century under the old system. The first meeting of 2024 included not only new participants in the public discourse, but also a new push to make New Paltz a single community run through a single government.
Mayor Tim Rogers announced a desire to again look into creating a coterminous government, as a solution to the complexity and confusion of having a village within a town. Under this model, the borders of the existing village would be stretched out to match those of the town, and one set of elected officials would serve as both village trustees and town council members. This differs from the numerous times over the last century that unification has been proposed, usually by dissolving the village. Most of those efforts did not reach the point of asking voters to decide.
When consolidation was considered during the Jason West and Susan Zimet administrations of the aughts, it ultimately fell apart because the state incentives for reducing the number of governments wouldn’t have been triggered because a fire district would have had to have been created. New York law doesn’t allow for fire departments to be administered through a town government, and a fire district is another government complete with commissioners and elections that must be held in December. It’s perfectly acceptable to run a village fire department, on the other hand, attempts to get the rules amended were not successful, perhaps because there was no community consensus in New Paltz at that time.
Rogers offered up the advantages of having a single government that have been suggested by others: reduced confusion by residents trying to obtain government services, and efficiencies that could reduce costs by getting roads paved, buildings inspected, and similar services handled in unified departments.
The mayor also said that this effort could result in a million dollars a year flowing from Albany to New Paltz “in perpetuity,” based on the state aid formula presently on the books. Rogers, who was kind enough to provide a reference to the exact legislation, was clear that any state law can be changed in the future, but appeared confident that this one could survive those political prospects in the long term.
What the mayor wants to do next is have a joint village board-town council meeting, on January 24, to discuss this idea. Asked for comment, Supervisor Neil Bettez said, “As I told Tim, ‘going forward I suggest you discuss potential meeting dates with us to make sure we can attend, before setting a date and publicizing it.'” Bettez further said that this will be discussed at the January 18 town council meeting, and added, “I am open to having a discussion, but clearly [Mayor Rogers] had been working on this for some time and in order to have a meaningful conversation, I want to make sure I know what I am talking about, which might take some time. I asked [Rogers] to send us any info he has so we can catch up.”
Under state law, the mechanism for any board-initiated consolidation requires approval by a majority of both boards. Such measures — including village dissolution — can also be initiated by voters, by securing signatures from ten percent of the voters within each affected municipality.
Dan Torres, a former council member who independently researched the history of these efforts in New Paltz, was also asked for comment, and provided this statement: “There has been a century-long conversation regarding the efficiency of having a town and village. While I think it is noble to continue this dialogue, after repeated failed attempts in the past it’s critical for no single entity to prescribe a solution without first engaging the public, professionals, and both municipal boards.”
Stevie Susta was welcomed as the newest village trustee, having won an uncontested election. Susta will take over liaison responsibilities held by Michele Zipp, namely to the affordable housing board, bicycle-pedestrian committee, and shade tree commission.
Limina Grace Harmon, who faced a Democratic challenger on the way to becoming a county legislator, provided a brief update about getting settled in the position.
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