Board of Trustees
Village of Tarrytown
Regular Meeting No. 26
February 19, 2008 8:00 p.m.
PRESENT: Mayor Fixell presiding; Trustees Basher, Butler, Hoyt, McGee, McGovern, and Zollo; Village Administrator McCabe; Village Treasurer Hart; Village Engineer McGarvey; Chief of Police Brown; Recreation Supervisor Arduino; Village Attorney Shumejda; and Village Clerk Booth
The meeting began with the Pledge to the Flag.
ADJOURNMENT OF GRIEVANCE DAY
Trustee Zollo moved, seconded by Trustee Hoyt, and unanimously carried that the following be approved: Approved 7-0
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby concurs that property tax grievance proceedings were opened on Tuesday, February 19, 2008 at 4:00 p.m. and are hereby closed, and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all grievances be referred to the Assessor for a written report on or before April 1, 2008. The assessor is hereby authorized and directed to arrange for hearings with taxpayers who have requested same,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Grievance Day adjourns at 8:00 p.m. on February 19, 2008.
Grievance Day Adjourned at 8:00 p.m.
REPORTS
Mayor Fixell reported on the following:
- He was pleased to announce that we have hired Michael Blau as our new Village Administrator. He will start on April 14, 2008. Michael Blau comes back to our Village with a tremendous amount of experience, professionalism and skill.
- He was also pleased to report that regarding the Bernstein law suit against the Town of Greenburgh attempting to force the town to charge Village residents for town parks, particularly Taxter Ridge Park., the courts found that the suit was unfounded and overturned a lower court ruling and as it stands now the Villages have won and that’s great news for the Village of Tarrytown.
- Mayor Fixell read the following response to Mayor Zegarelli’s article in the River Journal:
“Though I am always reluctant to respond to articles in the River Journal, in last week’s published interview with Mayor Zegarelli, it contained a number of misstatements and unsubstantiated claims regarding the GM development and Tarrytown that need to be corrected. First, the article suggests that our concerns about traffic are a “red herring” and that, somehow, the proof of that is that Ichabod’s Landing (a 44 unit residential project as opposed to a massive 1100-plus unit mixed use development) has not generated loads of traffic. Well, as everyone involved in this process understands (or should understand), our lawsuit relies on the very traffic projections provided by GM and Sleepy Hollow which 1) show that there will be significant negative traffic impacts;
and 2) recognize that those impacts must be reduced. The real problem is that the mitigation measures offered by GM and Sleepy Hollow both will not work and require that Tarrytown eliminate a substantial number of parking spaces in our downtown. In effect, what Sleepy Hollow and GM are trying to do is to have Tarrytown compound our parking problems in order to fix the traffic problem they’re creating. Perhaps what’s worse is that GM and Sleepy Hollow have ignored the one proven method to reduce traffic, namely reduce the density of the project, particularly the over 300,000 square feet of heavily traffic-generating commercial and retail uses. Second, the article leaves the impression that the primary impediment to the project moving forward is Tarrytown’s litigation. Well, as those involved in the process are aware, the timing of our lawsuit and the expected duration of the court proceeding left plenty of room for the project to
proceed along its normal time-frame. Sleepy Hollow had and has much work remaining which will certainly not be delayed by our filing. I think it’s all too clear that any delays that are now occurring are due to problems that have little to with our litigation. Third, the article makes outlandish claims about the clean-up of our waterfront. It really ought to be unnecessary to repeat this again, but here are the facts: the asphalt plant has been tested and cleared, the clean-up of the entire site has been certified by the State DEC to meet its highest standards, and the Village has employed its own environmental monitor to ensure that, as construction proceeds, every rule is followed precisely and that our residents’ safety is completely protected. If ever there were a red herring designed to distract attention from one’s own problems, this unfounded assertion is it. Fourth, the article suggests that we’ve
“ignored our own studies” regarding traffic on Franklin Street. Again, this is both a distraction and a distortion: the fact is that our studies suggest that we ask the State to consider adding a traffic light at the top of Franklin to help handle the traffic generated by our waterfront development and that is exactly what we will do. However, the development is still about 2 years away from generating its first car. Most importantly, in approving this development, we took exactly the steps recommended by traffic experts: we virtually eliminated the major traffic-generating uses in the project, namely commercial and retail space, as well as the asphalt plant. We did exactly what Sleepy Hollow has failed to do. Fifth, the article says we’ve “announced plans to put a hotel in…at the boat club” and that “Tarrytown is putting in a hotel and other things.” Once again, that’s simply
wrong. The waterfront developer made a general presentation of his idea at a recent televised board meeting and has not even submitted a single preliminary document. And if this idea gets beyond the talking stage, you can be sure that it will undergo a vigorous and open review that will ensure that any environmental impacts will be properly studied and mitigated, as we have done in the past. And, finally, I want to say that while it’s frustrating and disappointing to read this type of unsubstantiated commentary, and tempting to respond with anger, I for one will continue to approach our relationship with Sleepy Hollow in a respectful, cooperative and business-like fashion. We may have legitimate public policy differences, but there is no reason to allow these differences to descend into political name calling that serves neither of our communities well.”
Trustee McGee stated that the Warner Library will be closed this week from February 17th to 24th for safety reasons while they install new carpeting and a new circulation desk. You may return books and a/v material through the box drops on the side of the library. No fines will be charged from February 17th to March 1st. Patrons should also be aware that no items will be delivered to the library during this week. If you have items on hold, don’t expect them until next week.
Trustee Basher stated that all Tarrytown residents who are Verizon FIOS customers should be able to view the Board meeting live on Channel 34 or 35 this evening. Verizon has put aside time slots for the Board of Trustees and Planning Board meetings to go out live on Channel 34 or 35. This is temporary until we have our own dedicated station 24 hours, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, which will include our scroll, both Board meetings live and all Board replays.
CONTINUATION OF A PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING THE APPLICATION OF EF EDUCATION FIRST, CONTRACTOR VENDEE FOR THE ACQUISITON OF THE MARYMOUNT/FORDHAM CAMPUS, FOR A COMPATIBLE USE PERMIT
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo and unanimously carried that the public hearing be opened.
John Kirkpatrick, Attorney for EF, stated that he apologizes for the confusion today about the name for the permit and hopes that he and Dan Curran can clear it up.
Attorney Shumejda stated that the name on the permit should be the legal entity that will take title of the campus.
Daniel Curran, Director of Operations for EF Education in the United States stated that he has to check on what name they are purchasing the campus under. However, he suggests the permit to say “EF Education.” The legal entity under which the campus is purchased is EF International Language Schools Inc. or any of its affiliates.
Attorney Shumejda has advised the Board that he has an issue with making it as broad as any of its affiliates or subsidiaries.
Mayor Fixell stated that we will have to table this for tonight and continue the public hearing.
Mayor Fixell questioned whether anyone wished to address the Board on this matter. No one appeared.
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee McGee, and unanimously carried to continue the public hearing.
ANNOUNCEMENT OF A PUBLIC HEARING TO BE HELD ON MARCH 3, 2008 REGARDING A PROPOSED LOCAL LAW WITH RESPECT TO THE ANNUAL TESTING AND CERTIFIATION OF THE FUNCTIONALITY OF PRIVATE FIRE HYDRANTS
Attorney Shumejda stated that this local law will require all private owners of fire hydrants in the Village (condominiums, co-ops, and any other entity that has a private fire hydrant) to be tested on an annual basis. By December 31st of each year, a certification by a professional engineer will have to be submitted to the Building Inspector that the hydrant complies with the New York State regulation on the testing and capacity of fire hydrants.
OPPORTUNITY FOR THE PUBLIC TO ADDRESS THE BOARD: SPEAKERS HAVE 5 MINUTES BEFORE YIELDING TO THE NEXT PERSON: THEN 3 MINUTES FOR ADDITONAL COMMENTS
Mayor Fixell questioned whether anyone wished to address the Board on any matter. No one appeared.
RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE SETTLEMENT OF A TAX CERTIORARI CASE RECOMMENDED BY THE VILLAGE ATTORNEY
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo and unanimously carried that the following be approved: Approved: 7-0
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby authorizes the settlement of the JB Realty Enterprises LLC tax certiorari case as recommended by the Village Attorney.
RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE SETTLEMENT OF A TAX CERTIORARI CASE RECOMMENDED BY THE VILLAGE ATTORNEY
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo and unanimously carried that the following be approved: Approved: 7-0
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby authorizes the settlement of the Spelimi/VDC and Spelimi/Atiganos tax certiorari case as recommended by the Village Attorney.
RESOLUTON TO AUTHORIZE VILLAGE ADMINISTRATOR TO EXECUTE CONTRACT WITH THE NEW YORK STATE OFFICE OF PARKS AND RECREATION AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION TO IMPLEMENT A GRANT
Trustee Zollo moved, seconded by Trustee Butler, and unanimously carried that the following be approved: Approved: 7-0
Trustee Hoyt asked that the Village Administrator also look into implementing a play area for children with disabilities.
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby authorizes Village Administrator Stephen A. McCabe to execute a contract with the New York State Office of Parks and Recreation and Historic Preservation to implement a grant in the amount of $10,000 for the installation of natural play equipment at Neperan Road Park.
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES HELD ON FEBRUARY 4, 2008
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo, and unanimously carried that the following be approved: Approved: 7-0
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby approves the minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Board of Trustees held on February 4, 2008 as submitted by the Village Clerk.
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES HELD ON FEBRUARY 13, 2008
Trustee Hoyt moved, seconded by Trustee McGee, and unanimously carried that the following be approved: Approved: 7-0
BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Tarrytown hereby approves the minutes of the Special Meeting of the Board of Trustees held on February 13, 2008 as submitted by the Village Attorney.
APPROVAL OF AUDITED VOUCHERS #15
Trustee McGovern moved, seconded by Trustee Zollo, and unanimously carried that the following resolution be approved:
RESOLVED: The following Abstract bearing No. 14, dated February 4, 2008 containing Vouchers No. 003010 through No. 003174 is hereby ordered paid in the
following amounts as presented:
General $ 219,026.48
Water 29,764.03
Capital 721,178.38
Library 8,942.25
Trust & Agency 183,084.30
Total $ 1,161,995.44
The Board was polled all voting “aye” with the exception of Trustee McGee who abstained from Voucher Numbers 003021 and 003163 and Trustee Hoyt who abstained from Voucher Numbers 003076, 003156 and 003161. Motion carried 7-0.
ADJOURNMENT
Trustee Basher moved, seconded by Trustee Hoyt and unanimously carried, that the meeting be adjourned at 8:25 p.m.
Carol A. Booth
Village Clerk
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