LOWDOWN ON FEBRUARY 14 STONY POINT BOARD MEETING

The Stony Point Town Board held a dual session public hearing and regular meeting at the RHO Community Center Building on Tuesday evening.

The public hearing portion concerned the approval of a special permit for the cell phone tower at Stony Ridge Plaza operated by T-Mobile Northeast LLC. A special permit is required for the operation of a wireless facility in the area. Permits are valid for five years of operation. The previous permit for the site expired in December 2011.

Attendees raised concerns about additional technology being put on the site if the permit was approved for five more years. Some questioned the necessity of cell phone towers as technology has evolved over the past five years. Members of the board addressed those concerns following testimony from a T-Mobile representative, that the permit would only be for the site as it exists today. Any changes would need further approval.

Supervisor Geoffrey Finn once again assured concerns in the crowd as he called for a motion to approve the permit. The motion passed unanimously.

It was announced that Stony Point has been selected as a recipient of assistance from the EPA’s Building Blocks For Sustainable Communities Program. Through the program, the EPA provides consultants to towns in need. These consultants will advise communities on steps for smart and sustainable growth.

As a grant recipient, Stony Point owes some thanks to the Rockland Riverfront Communities Council (RRCC), according to Councilwoman Luanne Konopoko. The RRCC provided a letter of support on behalf of Stony Point to the EPA. The letter expressed their support for Stony Point in the selection of the grant recipients for the Sustainable Communities Program. Konopoko proposed that someone attend RRCC meeting on behalf of the town, as Stony Point is not always represented.

The implementation of green infrastructure practices for Stony Point was also discussed. Town Engineer Kevin Maher, updated the board about the ongoing project. Maher outlined what is expected of the town with these new rules, and the possible repercussions from Albany if they are not followed. The board asked Maher to take the information about green infrastructure and create a set of rules that will be made public for easier compliance.

Keep Rockland Beautiful requested an increase of the board’s annual donation, which has been used by the organization for sponsorship opportunities. Supervisor Finn declined to increase the donation and kept it at same level as past years—$500.

The board moved to approve a re-inventory update proposal as well as a settlement of litigation filed against the town from Verizon New York Inc. Also approved was a bid to purchase a new trailer for the buildings/grounds department for $8,171. A request to attend a May 1, 2012 conference by the assistant building inspector at a cost of $275 was also approved.

Next the board turned to concerns from Camp Venture of speeding cars in the area. Installing suggested speed limit signs was discussed. Supervisor Finn agreed to discuss the issue more at a later time.

Possible repairs to the town hall were also discussed. The board’s main concern is replacing the windows in the town hall building, as some no longer function and could pose a fire hazard. An initial quote from one contractor put the price to replace the windows at $17,780. Mentioned also, was the possibility of replacing the town hall’s roof.

Discussion moved to repairs on the town pool. Following last summer’s pool season where the smaller pool was not open, repairs are needed to open it for this summer. Supervisor Finn urged that the unusual January weather be taken advantage of and repairs should start immediately.

The concrete surrounding the smaller pool will need to be taken up in order to replace the piping under it. At that point an expert will be needed to assess exactly what needs to be done. A motion was proposed to hire a pool professional for $3,000. It was mentioned that there is a possibility the bigger pool on the property will need major work, and the board discussed using this pool professional to assess the repair work there.

Finally the board accepted a bid from Homestead Fence of Haverstraw to replace the fence at Eccher Park for $7,025. Hurricane Irene damaged the park last fall. Since then progress has been made to restore the park. So much so that Councilman McDonnell called it “the pride of Stony Point’s workmen.”

The next board meeting will be Tuesday February 28, at 7:00pm in the RHO building.

  rockland county, Stony Point, tmobile, town board