Residents also suggest transportation network

Joined by consultants and residents, Philipstown Town Board members on Wednesday (Feb. 16) traded ideas for spending the town’s share of relief from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) approved by Congress last year to help states, counties and communities recover economically from the COVID-19 shutdown.

The town expects to receive about $730,000. High on Supervisor John Van Tassel’s list: eliminating the Garrison Landing Water District’s ongoing malfunctions; assisting the Philipstown Behavioral Health Hub, a town-supported resource center on addiction and related problems; and joining with the villages of Cold Spring and Nelsonville to address issues relevant to all three — even, perhaps, Nelsonville’s lack of a sewer system. 

During the discussion, held at Town Hall, other board members suggested helping town programs, such as those run by the Recreation Center, that lost revenue during the pandemic shutdown, while audience members proposed town-wide transportation to help residents without cars meet basic needs. 

Van Tassel said Philipstown received half of its ARPA payment in 2021 but hasn’t spent any of it. The remainder is due this year.

“We have some infrastructure issues that, in my mind as supervisor, we definitely need to correct because we’re bleeding money,” primarily at the faltering, 20-year-old Garrison water district system, he said. The town continues to truck in water to supply Garrison’s Landing residents and businesses, while efforts to find new sources have failed. “It’s costing us a lot of money,” he said.

Potentially, the Garrison district could link to a water tank at the Recreation Center, about a mile away, but that could cost $800,000, Van Tassel said. Yet, he noted, “over the past three years we’ve spent nearly that much buying water.” 

Putnam County has asked for suggestions from municipalities for joint projects to undertake with ARPA money; Van Tassel expressed hopes that Putnam could cooperate with Philipstown on a hook up with the Rec Center system.

He also said that he had met earlier that day with Mayor Kathleen Foley of Cold Spring and Deputy Mayor Chris Winward of Nelsonville to consider projects all three municipalities could tackle with the aid. The topics included sewers for Nelsonville, he said, which relies on septic systems and underground cesspools to collect sewage and wastewater.

The Cold Spring sewage treatment plant has enough capacity to serve both villages, and Cold Spring pipes tap water to Nelsonville. 

Also at the Wednesday session, a resident proposed that Philipstown find a way to provide mobility to non-drivers. “Philipstown has no public transportation,” she said, adding that “we’re particularly concerned about seniors. We have a lot of people who live on back roads. It’s difficult to get out” and county assistance is limited.

Putnam County provides some transportation, such as rides to the lunch program in the senior citizen center at the Butterfield complex in Cold Spring. 

Van Tassel said the town would consider helping with transport. But he also cited a longstanding absence of county support for such ventures. “The more we provide for seniors, and for every program, the less the county does,” he said.

Liz Ballotte, from the PKF O’Connor Davies in Harrison, a town consultant, suggested local officials approach the county about ARPA-funded public transportation. Putnam runs a bus system that comes no farther west than Kent. 

“There’s no reason we shouldn’t have” comparable service, Van Tassel said.

Behind The Story

Type: News

News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

Armstrong was the founding news editor of The Current (then known as Philipstown.info) in 2010 and later a senior correspondent and contributing editor for the paper. She worked earlier in Washington as a White House correspondent and national affairs reporter and assistant news editor for daily international news services. Location: Cold Spring. Languages: English. Areas of expertise: Politics and government

One reply on “Garrison Water and Behavioral Hub Seen as Relief Priorities”

  1. As a resident of Nelsonville, I was pleased to read that Philipstown is considering sharing some of the federal funding they are going to receive with Nelsonville.

    The article specifically mentions sewers for Nelsonville. Yes, the system in Cold Spring was designed to include Nelsonville and it has been a topic for every incarnation of the Village Board. When I was a member of a previous Village Board, we investigated the issue thoroughly and even solicited estimates for a sewer connection to Cold Spring.

    Our investigation came to the same conclusion every time: The project is cost prohibitive for a village the size of Nelsonville. We received estimates from $7 million to $10 million for the installation of sewers connected to Cold Spring’s system. That would include only the homes closest to the line (maybe three blocks from Main Street) and does not include the costs that would be incurred by homeowners to connect to the system and decommission their current septic systems.

    We investigated getting a bond for the project but found that paying the bond every year would be far more than the village’s current yearly budget. Nelsonville residents would very likely see their taxes increase at least three to four fold. Nelsonville would not receive any revenue as that would be paid to Cold Spring. Grants were sought but $7 million to $10 million grants are not easy to find.

    I am on record as saying that I completely support the construction of a sewer system but not at the cost of bankrupting Nelsonville or putting financial hardship on the residents. Again, I thank Philipstown for wanting to share the largesse of funds with the villages but I think that the money would be better used for other pending projects.

    Potts is a candidate for a trustee seat on the Nelsonville board.

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