The special meeting of the village board was cancelled. Mayor Dungan and both working trustees showed up, and there was some confusion on the part of Trustee Osborne about whether a meeting was even scheduled, but no meeting took place.
According to Dungan, the outstanding personnel issue which led to the special meeting "became moot" after discussion with the village attorney, but there was not enough time to cancel it in advance.
A journalist who was present asked about "rampant speculation" that the personnel issue was, in fact, an attempt to replace Trustee Kimbiz. Dungan asserted that such was not the case.
I asked the mayor about his letter to the New Paltz Times, asserting that mayor-elect West should remember that Trustee Kimbiz was elected with over 900 votes, while West was voted in with around 400.
"It was off by a factor of ten," he said, with no further explanation.
The reorganization meeting for the village will take place on June 8.
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Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Saturday, May 28, 2011
The Almost End of the Dungan Era
Correction: The last day in office for Dungan, Gallucci and Osborn is not 5/31. Village law states that "The term of office of each elective village officer shall commence at the start of the official year following his election" which (the official year) "begins at noon on the first Monday in the month following the date of the general village election." Since election day was May 3rd, the first Monday of the next month is June 5. The new mayor and new trustees will be sworn in at noon on Monday June 5th, the last full day of the outgoing elected officials' terms is June 4th.
From the Village website re: the special meeting on 5/31 (which still looks to be their last meeting):
From the Village website re: the special meeting on 5/31 (which still looks to be their last meeting):
Special Meeting of the Village Board of Trustees | |
| When: | Tuesday, May 31 2011 @ 07:30 PM EDT - 11:00 PM EDT |
| Event Type: | Meeting |
| Where: | Large Meeting Room |
| Description: | VILLAGE OF NEW PALTZ PUBLIC NOTICE PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a special meeting will be held by the Board of Trustees of the Village of New Paltz on May 31, 2011 at 7:30PM at the New Paltz Village Hall for the Board to enter into executive session to discuss the employment status of particular individuals and upon coming out of executive session, any other lawful business. Any resident of the Village of New Paltz is entitled to attend the public portion of the meeting. The Village of New Paltz will make every effort to assure that the meeting is accessible to persons with disabilities. Anyone requiring special assistance and/or reasonable accommodations should contact the Village Clerk. By order of the Village Board of Trustees of the Village of New Paltz, Dated May 25, 2011 Amanda M. Erickson, Village Clerk |
Town Hosts Wetlands Info Session
from the press release ---
Wetlands Info Session
Wetlands Info Session
(New Paltz) The Town of New Paltz will host NYSDEC Biodiversity Outreach Coordinator Laura Heady who will offer an informational program on wetlands, Thursday, June 2nd at 7:30pm in Town Hall, 1 Veterans Drive. Ms. Heady, of the DEC’s Hudson River Estuary Program and Cornell University, states, “Most communities recognize the importance of functioning road networks, water and sewer systems, and utilities and communication lines. Sometimes less understood is our dependence on functioning natural systems – those that support clean air and water, for example.” The program will highlight some of the diverse wetland types in Ulster County, the environmental and economic benefits of wetlands, and how local conservation efforts can contribute to the protection of wetlands for future generations. This presentation is open to the public and all are encouraged to attend.
Friday, May 27, 2011
Snow job
Remember slogging through the worst winter in 20 years a few months back?
Remember the excellent condition the town roads were in?
I had the opportunity to talk to Highway Superintendent Mike Nielson today about the season. For a guy who people feared wouldn't be able to do the job because he's a firefighter in Kingston, the results are pretty damned impressive.
Mike set himself the goal of keeping our roads clear while saving money. Then, he got hit with the nastiest, harshest winter we've seen in a generation - I've confirmed how bad a season it was by checking with Wayne Kelder, who oversees the highways in the Town of Rochester on the other side of the ridge.
This winter was the one where every single highway department in Ulster County - including the county's - was over budget. It's just one of those things that happens when you're dealing with the mysteries of weather, and towns have budget mechanisms to move money around when that much snow hits the plow.
New Paltz, however, spent 60% of its snow removal budget, and did it without those nasty sand buildups which are pretty much expected during the long, dark days of winter.
How 'bout that?
Here's a few more interesting details about the highway department:
Remember the excellent condition the town roads were in?
I had the opportunity to talk to Highway Superintendent Mike Nielson today about the season. For a guy who people feared wouldn't be able to do the job because he's a firefighter in Kingston, the results are pretty damned impressive.
Mike set himself the goal of keeping our roads clear while saving money. Then, he got hit with the nastiest, harshest winter we've seen in a generation - I've confirmed how bad a season it was by checking with Wayne Kelder, who oversees the highways in the Town of Rochester on the other side of the ridge.
This winter was the one where every single highway department in Ulster County - including the county's - was over budget. It's just one of those things that happens when you're dealing with the mysteries of weather, and towns have budget mechanisms to move money around when that much snow hits the plow.
New Paltz, however, spent 60% of its snow removal budget, and did it without those nasty sand buildups which are pretty much expected during the long, dark days of winter.
How 'bout that?
Here's a few more interesting details about the highway department:
- Past practice has dumped 1,800 pounds of sand and salt on the roads. This season it was cut back to 700 - and Nielson feels that it can be done with even less material.
- To put it another way, Ulster County spent $35 per lane mile on snow removal. New Paltz did the same job for $13 per lane mile, and Nielson has set a target of $7.
- This represents a savings to the New Paltz taxpayers of $84,000 for the season. The superintendent's salary is approximately $43,000, so Nielson has effectively worked for free.
Anyone who doesn't think we got our money's worth voting for Nielson should be prepared to demonstrate why.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
The Kimbiz/Kazmin Plot Thickens
Brittany Turner aka Legislative Barbie has compiled quite the dossier on the Kimbiz/Kazmin situation. (Me thinks the unemployed Brittany should seek employment as an investigative journalist.)
I'll let you get the details from her... here's the big take aways:
* Kimbiz/Kazmin may not even be in Americorps. Yikes!
* There are three legal routes to remove Kimbiz/Kazmin from his seat. (Martin, I believe you owe Brittany a dollar.)
* Pete Healey and Brittany are going to try to get the Kimbiz/Kazmin seat declared vacant via the Public Officers Law. If you would like to participate, contact Brittany via her blog.
ALSO ...
The outgoing board was supposed to have held their last meeting and take their last actions last night but after going into executive session during last night's meeting for purposes of discussing "the employment history of a particular individual" they later announced that they would have a special last (yes, I said "last" again) meeting on 5/31 - which just happens to be the last day of their terms. One can only speculate about what that will be about because they did not specify. I seriously hope it is not last last minute shenanigans.
I'll let you get the details from her... here's the big take aways:
* Kimbiz/Kazmin may not even be in Americorps. Yikes!
* There are three legal routes to remove Kimbiz/Kazmin from his seat. (Martin, I believe you owe Brittany a dollar.)
* Pete Healey and Brittany are going to try to get the Kimbiz/Kazmin seat declared vacant via the Public Officers Law. If you would like to participate, contact Brittany via her blog.
ALSO ...
The outgoing board was supposed to have held their last meeting and take their last actions last night but after going into executive session during last night's meeting for purposes of discussing "the employment history of a particular individual" they later announced that they would have a special last (yes, I said "last" again) meeting on 5/31 - which just happens to be the last day of their terms. One can only speculate about what that will be about because they did not specify. I seriously hope it is not last last minute shenanigans.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Fat Bob's goes down the toilet
In a blow to lovers of high-quality low-nutrition food, Fat Bob's fell victim to what was probably a hell of a graduation party over the weekend.
According to owner Bob (who is more notable for his mustache than he is for his gut; blame his kids for name of the place), a braided steel pipe in a toilet broke Sunday night in an apartment over the pizza place, and was unnoticed by its residents. Some ten hours later, an employee came by and discovered that some 10,000 gallons had crashed through the ceiling into the dining room.
This was actually a lucky break, because they were closed on Monday - there's no telling when the apartment residents would have reported the problem.
The dining room, complete with its expensive big-screen television, has been pretty much destroyed, and the shop is closed pending Board of Health approval to reopen.
Bob anticipates that they won't be able to reopen for a week and a half or more while contractors retile the entire dining room and he wrangles with insurance adjusters. I'm hopeful that he won't have to bring a law suit to get paid, but that seems to be standard practice nowadays.
In the past, posts about food have received criticism for being without depth, and rightly so. I am certainly a patron of this establishment, but it's the business disaster, not the chicken-bacon-ranch slices, which compel me to write.
According to owner Bob (who is more notable for his mustache than he is for his gut; blame his kids for name of the place), a braided steel pipe in a toilet broke Sunday night in an apartment over the pizza place, and was unnoticed by its residents. Some ten hours later, an employee came by and discovered that some 10,000 gallons had crashed through the ceiling into the dining room.
This was actually a lucky break, because they were closed on Monday - there's no telling when the apartment residents would have reported the problem.
The dining room, complete with its expensive big-screen television, has been pretty much destroyed, and the shop is closed pending Board of Health approval to reopen.
Bob anticipates that they won't be able to reopen for a week and a half or more while contractors retile the entire dining room and he wrangles with insurance adjusters. I'm hopeful that he won't have to bring a law suit to get paid, but that seems to be standard practice nowadays.
In the past, posts about food have received criticism for being without depth, and rightly so. I am certainly a patron of this establishment, but it's the business disaster, not the chicken-bacon-ranch slices, which compel me to write.
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