The Town Board met on Monday, March 10, 2008.
A full complement of the Board was present and the meeting opened with public comments on the proposed Senior Citizen Tax Exemption. Other than a request for definition/explanation of the intent of the legislation, which will provide some relief (up to 50% of the assessed value) to senior citizens with income levels of not exceeding $36,000, there were no other comments. The relief will apply to both Town and School taxes. Any applications for relief should be filed with the Town assessor, Greg Stevens.
Under the heading of Monthly Reports, the Supervisor announced that $3,500 had been collected from cartage companies whose trucks were passing through town roads. On other issues, it was mentioned that the bids that had been received for the demolition/reconstruction of the Powerhouse were "all over the place" and would have to be re-bid. The replacement construction must be able to withstand severe flooding of the Ramapo river. On the subject of 'Recreation Fees' some better definition was necessary in order to change the structure of the fees. It was also intended to review the procedural requirements regarding the business signs legislation.
In his monthly update, the Supervisor stated that investigations were taking place relating to the flooding level of the Ramapo river, particularly between River and Contractors roads and that he shortly expected to male further recommendations regarding a clean up and the related dredging needs. No progress has been made on matters relating to the proposed cell tower construction as the Verizon representative has been absent/sick. Comments were made on last weekend's storm and the damage sustained to both town and village properties, plus the power outage which lasted for the best part of a day in some areas.
The Board approved the following resolutions:
1. Tax exemptions for limited income senior citizens.
2. Re-bidding the contract for the 'Outside Stage' of the Powerhouse.
3. For the 2008 Farmers Market and Chamber banners.
4. Sale of a surplus police vehicle.
5. Posting of open position for Summer Camp Director.
6. Increase fees in lieu of Parkland Dedication for land development.
7. Sign law/enforcement and related duties etc of the ARB.
In the 'Public Comment' section of the meeting, Sue Heywood discussed the TPAG concert held in the school auditorium/theater over the previous weekend where the attendance had been disappointing, perhaps in part due to the inclement weather. However, Mrs Heywood did specifically mention that the lack of support from ANY members of either the Town or School boards was particularly disappointing, given the efforts of TPAG, which so far have been praiseworthy in terms of both the quality and variety of previous concerts. She said that it was imperative that all public officials, elected and otherwise, should offer visible means of support to the efforts of TPAG to bring cultural events to our local community. The Supervisor expressed his own and the Board's collective regrets at their failure to support the last concert, due to 'prior engagements'.
www.tpfyi.com