Town Board report 11-16-23
Town Board approves updated comprehensive plan
After several years of committee work, hearings, outside consulting, and surveys, the Town Board unanimously approved a final revision of the town’s Comprehensive Plan.
The updated plan has been revised several times to accommodate feedback from the public.
On Tuesday, the Town Board completed a necessary environmental impact review, held one final public hearing, and then approved a motion to accept the updated plan. The Comprehensive Plan is seen as a guide for future land-use and zoning changes, as well as specific strategies to address needs identified by town residents.
In other news:
Town committee volunteers needed!
Over the course of numerous committee reports to the board, it became evident that several of the standing committees that advise the board need additional volunteers to serve as committee members.
Town residents can expect to see postings of available committee openings on the town website in the near future. Committees looking for new volunteers include the Broadband Committee, Climate Smart Committee, Grants Appropriations Committee, and Housing Committee.
In addition, two new committees will be formed soon. Descriptions of each committee’s mandate and any qualifications for volunteers on these committees will be announced on the website:
The first is the Community Preservation Fund and Advisory Board (CPFAB), which is necessitated by the passage by referendum of Proposition 3 on the November ballot. The CPFAB will oversee and recommend to the Town Board how to expend funds raised by the real estate transfer tax that was authorized by the passage of Prop. 3. By law, the committee will consist of five members, at least one of whom must be an active farmer.
The second is the Zoning Committee, which will complete next steps in updating town zoning regulations to implement the updated Comprehensive Plan.
More speeding activism
Two representatives from the hamlet of East Chatham spoke about the petition that was signed by over 100 residents of the hamlet, asking for assistance in addressing speeding and unsafe road conditions in the hamlet.
The petition was submitted to the County Safety Board by Supervisor Collins. It is one of several that have been submitted to the town board in recent months, with the result that the board has established a committee to identify common concerns (especially in the hamlets) and to generate solutions. That committee’s work is ongoing.
Board approves Tri-Village Fire debt plan
The Board endorsed Tri-Village Fire Company’s engaging with a local bank for a loan of up to $200,000 to assist in the purchase of a new $750,000 pumper truck.
That endorsement doesn’t obligate the town to any participation in the loan. Its purpose is to show community support and thereby enable Tri-Village to negotiate a favorable interest rate.