Tarrytown Board of Trustees Work Session Roundup

Here's a look at what happened at Wednesday's Board of Trustees work session of September 1, 2010:

Lake Cleanup Going Swimmingly

Village Administrator Michael Blau said that a new aeration system that was installed at the upper lake in Tarrytown has been a success.

The lake, closest to the EF School, has visibly cleared of algae after about a month of aeration. The contract with the company overseeing the lake restoration was approved back in May. The Tarrytown Lakes Committee, which pushed for the aeration, is hoping that the lakes can be rehabilitated enough to open to swimmers in the future.

One Problem Solved, Another Begins at Patriots Park

In response to resident's concerns that not enough was being done to limit traffic through Patriots Park, the Village of Tarrytown recently installed new bollards connected by a chain to limit car access to the children's play area on the park's south side.

However, curbing cars has also been a problem for other park users.

Blau said that he had received "a number of e-mails" about the situation, mostly from pedestrians and stroller pushers who are hindered by the barrier.

Blau said he would be visiting the park to look at the bollards in the near future. Trustee Becky McGovern said that the fix was a "work in progress."

Zollo Wants the State's Opinion on Police Overtime

Trustee Doug Zollo has been vocal about police overtime at recent meetings; now he wants to hear an opinion from the New York State Comptroller. 

Zollo's main concern is the use of police for supervising, or handling traffic, at site jobs. These jobs are paid for by private companies, but the overtime accrued can count toward an officer's pension.

"I want the state to give you an unbiased opinion if it is correct the way we do it," Zollo said to Blau.

There are many issues raised about having police perform site jobs out of uniform, which would end the practice of overtime going toward a pension. Village liability for an officer's actions, and making sure officers are covered in case of injury are just a few of the many problems that could result.

Blau said he would send a request, but noted that receiving a response from the comptroller usually takes a long time.

(Note: We will be running a full story on pension padding soon.)

Board to Adjust Code for Animals

The board discussed two amendments to the village code on Wednesday.

The first issue was clearing up the language in the code referring to dogs, cats and domesticated animals. As the law stands, dogs are only allowed in certain parks, and domesticated animals – goats, chickens, llamas, etc. – are banned in the village.

Trustees are looking to alter the text to allow dogs in all public parks (provided they are leashed, and allow domesticated animals in the village.

There are some small clauses in the current code that elicited a laugh, including one section that specifically singled out pet pigeons. That clause states that any owner of pigeons at the time the law was passed (in 1998) would not be allowed to increase the amount of pigeons they own.

Board to Adjust Code for Peddlers and Solicitors

Trustees are still working on the language of the village code that pertains to door-to-door peddlers and solicitors.

Trustees agreed there should be more power to track and monitor peddlers and solicitors.

One option would be either require a background check, or fingerprinting, for those who want to go door-to-door in the village. However, those options were considered too draconian for most members of the board.

Trustees are also looking at increasing the amount of money it costs to obtain registration to peddle or solicit in the village, and were looking to set a date that a peddler or solicitor would be barred from the municipality for violating the village code.

The village will consult with the police department for their recommendations on peddler regulations before trustees make any decisions.

Tarrytown Finally Gets County Funds

When the Boys and Girls Club shut down last year, the Villages of Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow stepped in to provide free summer camps for kids who were displaced by the closure. At the time, the county said they would pitch in for the effort.

Now, over a year later, the county has released the funds it promised – $17,000. Since the village's books for that time are already closed, the money will go into the general fund.

Concern Continues Over Water Fund

Trustee Tom Butler again raised concern over the village's continued increase in water rates to bolster the water fund. 

This year, Tarrytown could raise as much as $300,000 in profit from water rates. That money is coming, in part, from a recently-approved village rate hike.

The amount the village raises through water rates goes to pay for water that is provided by New York City and to ongoing upkeep of the village's water infrastructure and associated debt service.

However, Butler said that year-on-year increases are becoming burdensome.

"The problem is, as we get older, this continued increase in rates will continue to drive people like me out of this village," Butler said. "Nobody ever lowers rates."

The village has a number of improvements to make on the water system as well, which could mean going out for more bonds. More bonds will increase the village's debt burden, and hence the water rates, over time.

Butler was also concerned about moving excess water fund money into the general fund, which trustees approved in the last fiscal year to avoid drastic personnel cuts. 

Rough Numbers for Pierson Park

The village now has the rough numbers for the cost of the rehabilitation of Pierson Park.

The village had about $3.267 million to spend on the project – $630,000 of which is coming from the village, the rest is from three grants.

Blau has been working with RGR Landscape, the lead designer on the project, to bring costs down so that the estimate, plus a 15 percent contingency allocation, were right at the set amount of money. 

So far, RGR has been able to bring the estimated cost to $3.269 million, $2,000 more than the actual budget. Blau said that the design team was still looking at a way to save money on the project.

"As the cost comes down, the village has to spend less money on the project," he said.

To Pave or Not to Pave Wilson Park Drive

Wilson Park Drive is in pretty bad shape trustees agreed on Wednesday. However, it's also, technically, a private road.

The village has been petitioned by Wilson Park Drive residents to fix potholes in the road and repave the area as they would a normal village street. However, since the road is private, the village was hoping to get some sort of easement along the road before a fix is made available.

It doesn't appear as if Wilson Park Drive residents are eager for that option. Tarrytown trustees were also mixed on whether the village should fill in potholes on the road, or hold out until there is a formal public easement on the property.

"I think we should try to get the easement on it," Mayor Drew Fixell said. "We want an easement that says the public can go on that road."

Village Attorney Jeffrey Shumejda said that the village could technically argue in court that the public has an easement on the property because of prescriptive use – the village plows the roads, school buses operate in the area, and the route is used heavily by motorists.

"They've lost the exclusivity of their ownership," Shumejda said of Wilson Park Drive residents. But he cautioned, "If we get the easement there is something that comes along with it. Right now there is no liability."

Shumejda later said that the village may have also made some mistakes by plowing and filling potholes on the road. That act may have created some responsibility for the village to maintain Wilson Park Drive, at least to those basic standards.