News from Town Board Meeting
Discussion of climate issues and climate policy / legislation dominated the August 18 Town Board meeting.
The board considered a resolution to support the NYS Climate Action Council Scoping Plan (https://climate.ny.gov/Our-Climate-Act/Draft-Scoping-Plan). This plan was devised to meet the state’s established climate and equity goals signed into law in 2019 in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (Climate Act).
The scoping plan lays out specific methods and initiatives to reach statewide environmental goals to reduce economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030 and by no less than 85 percent by 2050. NYS has presented the Scoping Plan at numerous public hearings and has collected more than 18,000 public comments as of early June 2022.
The board didn’t vote on the resolution; instead, some board members raised concerns about specific recommendations outlined in the plan, including how suggested changes in building codes and decreased use of fossil fuels over time in favor of alternative energy might affect the Town of Chatham. The board will address whether or not to support the resolution in an upcoming board discussion.
Deborah Conrad was appointed co-chair of the town’s Climate Smart Action Task Force Committee and will share leadership duties with board member Rick Werwaiss.
Board member Werwaiss announced an upcoming NYSERDA program that will offer funding and rebates for the installation of heat pumps.
In other news:
The board approved a lease with the Village of Chatham to continue to rent the courtroom and related facilities at Tracy Hall in the Village for one year. Alternatives to the use of this space are under review by a town board committee, which is also exploring possible expansion, relocation, or renovation of the current Town Hall on Rte. 295.
The town board learned that their letter of intent to apply for Restore New York grant funding was approved; now the work of writing the grant proposal begins. The NY Restore grant program is open to municipalities to assist in funding projects that focus on eliminating and redeveloping older structures in a community. This can include demolishing, rehabilitating, and restoring residential, commercial, and mixed-use buildings.
The board has identified the old Columbia Boxboard site on Rte. 295 as a potential target of this funding. While the former paper mill is in partial use, serving as home to some artist studios and Sundog Solar Inc., the majority of the site needs major work to make it usable.