Rate hike vote was an affront to all involved

Public input at Fishkill meeting seemed to have no purpose

Published in the August, 14 2013 issue of the Southern Dutchess News.

A public meeting was held on Aug. 7 by the town of Fishkill on the proposed 135 percent increase in sewer rates.

A number of residents spoke as to their concerns on how such a large increase would impact their lives especially those on a fixed income. Others asked if the town had considered other means of financing such as going to the state or a lender to extend the length of the repayment of the $1.1 million owed to the City of Beacon. There was no satisfactory answer.

Town Supervisor Bob LaColla stated that the best deal was with the City of Beacon that offered a 2 percent rate, but for a rather short repayment period necessitating the extremely high increase.

Another resident asked to see a map of the Dutchess Park Sewer district. The answer was: there was none! The question is why not?

After hearing the many concerns of so many residents, two councilman requested time to review the matter and it appeared that the matter had been tabled.

After most residents had left and towards the end of the meeting a vote was taken on the 135 percent rate increase. The two councilman who requested additional time to review other avenues for financing and consider concerns appeared to be pressured. One councilman caved in and voted for the rate hike. Councilman Tuttle abstained. It passed.

The vote should have been taken in full view of the concerned residents. It was clear their input was totally disregarded and the rate hike was a forgone conclusion.

Linda R.

Fishkill

Fishkill sewer rates to increase 135 percent

 A public hearing ended with a resolution to raise Dutchess Park Sewer District's rates 135 percent for its 1,926 customers.

Huge Sewer Rate Hike Leaves Fishkill Residents Fuming

Greg Maker, Hudson Valley Reporter, for more free local news check out the papers website as I do.

FISHKILL, N.Y. – Fishkill residents in the Dutchess Park Sewer District are irate that the Town Board voted to raise their rates by 135 percent, but board members say it would have been more expensive in the long run if they didn’t do it.

The Town Board approved the rate hike 4-0. Councilman Timothy Tuttle abstained from the vote. Residents of the sewer district will now pay $97.20 for 1,000 cubic-feet of sewage, up from $41.40.

Supervisor Bob LaColla said that the sewer rate increase is one of the final steps the town needs to take to improve its financial situation.

Currently, the town owes the city of Beacon $1.1 million, which it is paying off with a 2 percent interest rate. Beacon Mayor Randy Casale, who was at the Fishkill Town Board meeting on Wednesday night, said that Beacon has been “more than fair” with Fishkill on the debt it s owed going back to the third quarter of 2011. Casale said the city has gotten to the point where its capital project plans are being affected without the money Fishkill owes it.

“It’s not fair to our ratepayers,” Casale said. “If nothing gets done, we will wind up in litigation and [Fishkill] would have to pay us more money. Nobody likes to see rate increases but there is no room for compromise. Over the years the cost of business has gone up. When no rates were raised for many years, that should have raised a red flag in everybody’s eyes.”

LaColla said that one of the reasons for the high rate increase to sewer district is because residents were charged less than they should have been paying over the years, adding that it was not enough to pay the bills.

“These new rates will not only pay the bills but will pay the outstanding money we owe to Beacon,” LaColla said.

Fishkill resident Pat Lewis questioned the “credibility” of the numbers that the Town Board presented to the public. Lewis said that money was borrowed from the sewer district to pay general town bills and was never returned.

“We want to see what the true numbers are,” Lewis said. “There is so much borrowing back and forth that it got out of control. Nobody ever had any consequences except us – the residents.

LaColla said that the numbers are “legit” and there were no findings of criminal wrongdoing.

Resident RoseAnne Montalbal said that she understands that the town owes Beacon money but said her problem is that it took too long to pay it back. She said that the town should have caught the problem during the first rate increase in January.

“Nothing was said then,” Montalbal said. “These rate increases are really going to be difficult. It’s not the board’s fault or the residents’ fault but the thing is we don’t know if we can afford to pay this increase and live. It’s a lot of money for people to put out, especially based on what is going on across the country with the economy. It’s not just a raise, it’s a spike.”

Resident Chris Kazimir said that the latest rate increase is another example of the government reaching into the taxpayers pocket to pay back what it owes.

“It’s us who are paying it back,” Kazimir said. “We need to become self-sufficient so we don’t have to worry about paying others back.”

Resident Patty Moranski said she moved to Fishkill in 1977. She said that since she’s been living here she has paid her water bill on time and has done everything she was supposed to do but the local government hasn’t been looking out for its residents. Moranski suggested that everybody in every water district pay one price to help lower ones costs.

“Why is it only a Dutchess Park problem?” Moranski asked. “I have no problem paying school taxes even though my children went to private school. It would be so much cheaper if everybody paid a little bit instead of pushing it all on us.”

http://hudsonvalleyreporter.com/dutchess/2013/08/huge-sewer-rate-hike-leaves-fishkill-residents-fuming/

Public Hearing for Dutchess Park Sewer Rate Revision Aug 7, 2013 at 7 PM

Planned rate increases for residents in the Dutchess Park Sewer District will be the focus of a public hearing at Fishkill Town Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 7 at 7 p.m. The Town Board is proposing the revised rates to defray costs of operating the sewer district and to restore a significant negative fund balance in the district. The increases would be in the minimum charge, for 1,000 cubic feet of sewage, from the current $41.40 to $97.29. The rate for flows above the minimum would go from $0.04140 to $0.09729.

http://www.fishkill-ny.gov/content/public-hearing-dutchess-park-sewer-rate-revision-aug-7-2013-7-pm

Hudson River Fjord Trail update

On the question of the Route 9D speed limit, the legislators heard from John Teagle, the caretaker at Little Stony Point, and Paul Elconin, of the Open Space Institute, vice president of the Friends of Fahnestock and Hudson Highlands State Parks, as well as from Nelsonville resident Vincent Tamagna, county transportation manager. All have also been involved in the proposed Hudson River Fjord Trail for pedestrians and cyclists between Cold Spring and Beacon.

Because 9D is a state highway, running through Putnam and Dutchess Counties, neither county can reduce the speed limit directly.

“The Little Stony Point Citizens Association has been trying for years to get the speed limit reduced” near Little Stony Point and Breakneck Ridge, Teagle said. He gave legislators a map showing 25 miles of 9D between the Bear Mountain Bridge and the terminus near Wappingers Falls. Of the entire length, only a 3-mile section has a 55-miles-per-hour speed – and those three miles start a half-mile from Cold Spring and coincide with the busy area where hikers reach trails, he said. “That’s the crazy part.”

The narrow road twists around curves, with little or no shoulder or grass verge for pedestrians. “You have hikers who have no place to go” but along the road, Teagle told the committee. “You have bikers. You have cars. You have tractor-trailers” and motorcycles, “and they’re all sharing the same roadway.”

Although crosswalks for pedestrians might seem to help, until the speed limit is reduced, “we won’t ask for a crosswalk because people will get killed in the crosswalk,” thinking it safe, only to be hit by a speeding vehicle, Teagle explained. “We’re looking to get all this [stretch] at 30 miles per hour.”

As Teagle’s map indicated, 9D’s speed limit is a hodge-podge: 30 miles per hour in Cold Spring, 40 miles per hour south of Cold Spring to the Bear Mountain Bridge and for a short stretch just north of Cold Spring, 35 miles per hour approaching Beacon and lower than that within it, 45 miles per hour at one stage between Cold Spring and Beacon – and 55 miles per hour at the hiking trail access points. The hiking area also lacks adequate parking, with vehicles crammed into small, makeshift sites by Little Stony Point and Breakneck.

“It really is an accident waiting to happen,” Elconin said. He referred to various Fjord Trail activities underway to improve the situation, including pursuit of grant money to create better parking and start upgrading trails.

District 1 Legislator Barbara Scuccimarra, who represents Philipstown, lent her voice to the pleas. “I’m asking for that support also,” she informed Pena and her legislative colleagues.

“Traffic here is tremendous,” Pena agreed, focusing on the hiker-laden stretch and sounding a bit incredulous that “the speed limit is still 55 miles per hour here.” He pledged to bring the matter to the county’s traffic safety committee and to advocate that New York State reduce the speed limit. “I think it’s a reasonable request,” Pena said.

District 3 Legislator Richard Othmer, a Physical Services Committee member and the chairman of the full Legislature, said that he and others “absolutely” would support a formal resolution asking the state to reduce the speed limit. “The faster, the better, you get it in” the hopper for legislative attention, he told proponents of the change.

Tamagna kicked off the discussion by playing a video, made by Cold Spring residents involved in the Fjord Trail, which shows chaotic conditions at Little Stony Point on a summer day, with cars whizzing past at high speeds, pedestrians literally dodging vehicles to cross 9D to reach a trail, and drivers maneuvering erratically.

He and the others in the informal trolley-trail delegation said safety also could be enhanced by revising the route of the trolley, so it can bring pedestrians from the Cold Spring train station and elsewhere to the trails. Currently, because of various regulations, the trolley cannot do that.

“We talk a lot about the Fjord Trail and this is only going to be heavier traffic” if the trail is created, he said. Tamagna has been drafting a trolley rerouting and soon expects to take town supervisors and other municipal officials on a ride to help finalize the route. After that, he advised the committee, he would seek legislative approval of the trolley changes.

Elconin added that rerouting the trolley would minimize reliance on cars to reach trails or the need to walk along the road, while also supporting businesses and the economy in Cold Spring.

An online petition launched by Cold Spring resident Dar Williams asks Tamagna to champion the change. “The extended trolley route would be a great benefit to the village, town and pedestrians who enjoy our state parks and tourist destinations along the Hudson River,” it says.

http://philipstown.info/2013/07/26/putnam-county-legislators-promise-efforts-to-change-9d-speed-trolley-route/

For more area news, check out the papers website.

7/24/2013 Special Fishkill Town Board Meeting

Please note that this meeting was not televised or recorded on the internet.

http://fishkilltownny.iqm2.com/Citizens/Detail_Meeting.aspx?ID=1097

There was a big discussion about whether a police officer was allowed to be granted a Competitive Classification. The Town of Fishkill operates a part time 24-7 PD. The PBA contract with the town does not cover such. PBA representatives stated that this was a breach of contract as this officer was granted a special privilege that was not granted to everyone else.

Voting yes were Supervisor LaColla, Councilman Buck and Councilman Curry.

Voting no were Councilman Callahan and Councilman Tuttle.

It also appears that the PBA will be filing a lawsuit against the town for this action.

Also, a Public Hearing is set for August 7th 2013 in regard to raising sewer rates from $41.40 a unit to $97.29. This is in regard to paying off debt. I asked the board if they were going to notify the public by mail. They said no and indicated they were going to do a Public Notice.