Higher fences and parking-law violations also discussed
By Liz Schevtchuk Armstrong
The possibilities of longer terms of office for elected officials, higher fences, and a crackdown on parking-ticket scofflaws occupied the Cold Spring Village Board Tuesday night (June 7) before the board disappeared into executive session to discuss personnel matters.
At the board’s weekly workshop session, Trustee Charles Hustis proposed extending the terms of office for mayor and trustees from two years to four years, if voters approve the change. His colleagues expressed skepticism. A week earlier, Hustis had raised the issue in passing. Tuesday evening, he returned to it, distributing a memo that outlined four options:
- Changing both mayoral and trustee terms from two years to four years
- Keeping the mayoral term at two years but changing the trustee terms to four years
- Keeping term for mayor and trustee “as is,” but establishing term limits for them
- Keeping the current terms of two years for both mayor and trustees
Hustis, whose term ends next April, said he brought up the matter to “give some food for thought. I’m just throwing it out” for feedback. ““It should be a referendum question. Let the,
Hustis said that Option 2 would bring the village into line with town practices, as the town supervisor serves a two-year term but the other Town Board members serve a four-year term as councilors. This approach would also allow longer-serving trustees to advise an inexperienced mayor, he said. Giving the mayor a shorter term than that of the trustees “doesn’t sound good to me!” Gallagher quipped.
“Perfect! That’s what we want!” Trustee J. Ralph Falloon countered with a laugh.
The plus to Option 3, term limits, “is that new people can become involved,” Hustis continued. The drawback is that an outstanding public official would be barred from continuing in office after a certain number of years, he said. He summed up the implications of the fourth option, leaving the present practice intact, as opting to “let the democratic process work.”
“I kind of like Number 4,” keeping the current system, Gallagher said. Potential candidates might find a four-year term a lengthy commitment and thus “a little bit daunting,” he added. “Signing up for two years is a little bit easier. Plus I think the campaigning is good because you are forced to go out door-to-door and talk to people.”
Falloon, too, pointed out that four years might seem too long to some prospective office-holders. As well, he observed, some board members might burn out after two years. If that happens and the term is four years, “you’re of no use to the rest of the board because you’re just trying to get your next two years over with.” Campbell noted that it can take a year for a new trustee to feel acclimated but with two-year terms there’s only another year before the term ends. If seeking re-election, “you can’t believe how fast you’re going through all the motions” of another campaign, he said. However, “if you’re good and doing a decent job, you shouldn’t have any problems” getting re-elected.
Parking-Law Scofflaws
In other business, the board agreed to have Village Attorney Stephen Gaba draft a law to allow police to “boot” or put immobilization locking devices on parked cars owned by drivers who constantly ignore parking tickets. “There are a pretty good number of people who get the tickets and basically tear them up,” the mayor told the board. “This is not your average person. It’s scofflaws,” who receive upwards of 10 tickets, sometimes accumulating unpaid fines well over $300, which they refuse to pay as their infractions continue, he explained. “Just the fact that you have a law” spelling out consequences for repeat violators should make drivers think, Gallagher proposed. “The goal is not to boot vehicles but to get them to pay tickets.”
“We want their money,” Hustis put in.
Fence Heights
The board also gave a bit of attention to a recurring concern: amending the zoning code to allow higher fences, at least around part of a residential property. The board discussed such a change a year ago and the possibility has been bandied about in the village for months. “The idea tonight was to get this into people’s hands,” Gallagher said. “We’re not doing anything tonight. We’re just looking at it,” before deciding whether to schedule a public hearing on the change. Currently, village law restricts fence height to 4 feet. The revision would allow a fence 6 feet tall, on one side of the property. “I still don’t like it. It means I can only have privacy on one side,” Falloon said. Moreover, “whether it’s 4 or 6 feet, you still have the ‘boxing'” effect with houses whose enclosed lawns start to resemble a series of tall boxes or stockyard pens, he said. Other questions arose on the meaning of certain clauses or words in the draft law, so the board decided to ask Gaba for clarifications and revisit the matter at its June 14 meeting.
Gaba this, gaba that. This is starting to sound like the “Yo, Gaba, Gaba” administration.
A.W.
Another brilliant comment from a pseudonym!
Keep up the great work AW, too scared to criticize and cast dispersions with a face the community can see, but relentless in pursuit of base, grand statements sorely lacking any real insight or benefit to the community.
Please give us more of your anonymous wisdom! I am sure this will inspire the inevitable response complete with quippy language and a sure sense of self importance.
Endless pontification is easy behind a mask, but it does become tedious.
Thomas,
My witty quips are all used up. When I read the news lately it’s simply “the horror, the horror.”
Though, if I were a member of the Working Village Group I might be trying to cast dispersions towards any and all dissenters…you know, the one’s that keep pointing out the obvious…like the cronyism that’s running rampant in local politics.
My comment below was a tongue in cheek jab at the name of the Village of Cold Spring attorney, that just happens to also be the name of a popular children show. But you know that. I guess the point of the comment was that local politics, especially Village politics, resembles a children’s show more often than not. I can only wonder at what expense the Village Board keeps asking Yo gaba this? Yo gaba that?
But then again, it must be nice to be a member of the WVG now’a days, I hear they just love it when “a plan comes together.”
By the way Thomas, by not putting you last name are you not also presenting a pseudonym? Though I highly suspect that you are really Joe McCarthy…keep up the good hunt and blacklist away!
A.W.
Ahhh, classic AW! Just as I called it, response inevitable.
Never fails to criticize from behind the cowardly vail. I can only hope that the next comment takes a swipe at the mayor, or the members of the village board.
All of whom are actually DOING something for the Village. Of course you don’t agree with it, but it provides opportunity sit on the sidelines and rant whatever small-minded jabs you wish.
You owe a debt, you might have to do something constructive if there were different administration.
As usual this will not go unanswered, some people just can’t control themselves.