Sleepy Hollow Board of Trustees Roundup – 12/14/2010

Here's a look at what happened at Tuesday's Sleepy Hollow Board of Trustees regular meeting of December 14, 2010.

Public Hearing on Philipse Manor Parking 

The meeting started off with continued comments on proposed changes to the current, blanket no-parking ban in Philipse Manor. We will have a full summary of those comments later today. 

Ichabod's Special Permit to go to Planning Board

Mayor Ken Wray made an about turn on a proposal to amend the special permit for Ichabod's Landing. The owners of the building want to allow a dentist to buy space in the ground-floor retail area, but it is not zoned for professional services.

, Wray said the board could easily amend the special permit on their own, however, he said Tuesday that the request would go through the village's planning board. 

"It was requested that the matter be referred to the planning board," he said. 

GM Submits Formal Application

General Motors has formally submitted an application to obtain a special permit for its Sleepy Hollow property. The application was submitted late on Tuesday. We are working to get a copy of the application to share with our readers. 

Public Comments

North Washington Street resident Mario Bellanich, after noticing that the village would be hiring a part-time Department of Public Works employee, said he wanted the village to concentrate on putting local people to work. 

"People work and pay taxes here, they should work here too," he said. 

Money Lost on the Haunted Hayride

Trustee Bruce Campbell gave a rough accounting of the costs associated with running the Halloween Block Party and Haunted Hayride. 

Overall, the village lost about $8,800 on the event. He said that expenses went over estimates by about $4,000 and revenues were overestimated by almost $5,000.

"We didn't quite break even, but it is a relatively small expense given the publicity and good will it brought in the village," Campbell said. 

He noted that planning for next year's Halloween activities will start early in 2011, and that better planning could help the village's Halloween activities become self-sustaining by next year. 

Village to Approach Cablevision Solo

Campbell said that the village would likely drop out of the Mount Pleasant consortium that is dealing with Cablevision in order to negotiate their own contract with the company. Campbell noted that a new agreement with Cablevision had stalled for some time, preventing the village from getting what it needed for media resources and broadcasting capabilities.

Shared Services Meeting Tentatively Scheduled

Another public meeting on the proposal to merge the Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow and TUFSD recreation departments will take place in January. The tentative date has been set for Jan. 19, and the meeting will likely take place at the High School.

Village to Host Free Meal for the Needy

The village will host a free meal to all those who need it on Jan. 1, 2010. The food will be served at the Sleepy Hollow Senior Center on Elm Street from noon to 4 p.m.

"Anyone who needs it and can't afford it, come on down for a hot meal at noon," Trustee Tom Capossela said. 

The village is looking for food and monetary donations to support the event. You can donate by calling village hall at 914-366-5100. 

Calendars in Planning

Trustee Karin Wompa said the village is ramping up the push for the 2011-2012 calendar. The village is looking for businesses to support the calendar by buying advertising. Wompa said businesses with an address in Sleepy Hollow would be given preference.

Meeting on DeVries Park

The village will host a public meeting on an overhaul of DeVries Park next Tuesday, Dec. 21, at 6 p.m. Plans will be presented to the board by a planner from Westchester County. 

Resolutions

• Trustees approved Stiloski's Automotive as the village's preferred contractor for towing services.
• Trustees agreed to a inter-municipal agreement to establish an emergency water supply connection with Briarcliff Manor, Tarrytown and the Village of Greenburgh.
• The village accepted a $248,200 Community Development Block Grant for the overhaul of DeVries Park. The village will ahve to chip in $82,783.
• The village also accepted $100,000 for repairing curbs on Kendall Avenue. The village will have to pay $33,000 in matching funds. 
• Trustees agreed to apply for a $50,000 grant to develop a hazard mitigation plan. Having the plan would allow the village to secure disaster funds through FEMA if needed. 
• Trustees hired a part-time DPW employee.

Next Meeting

The next regular meeting of the board will not take place until Jan. 4. The public hearing on parking in Philipse Manor will continue then. A work session is scheduled for next week. There is no meeting on Dec. 28.