Village Board of Trustees Meeting

Minutes of the regular meeting of the Village of Nyack Board of Trustees held at 7:30pm on Thursday October 8, 2020 at Nyack Village Hall, 9 N. Broadway, Nyack, New York Hon. Dr. Don Hammond Presiding: PRESENT Dr. Don Hammond Mayor Louise Parker Trustee Donna Lightfoot-Cooper Trustee Elijah Reichlin-Melnick Trustee Marie Lorenzini Trustee ALSO PRESENT Walter Sevastian Village Attorney James Politi Village Administrator Jennifer Hetling Village Clerk/Treasurer Meeting called to order at 7:33pm Pledge of Allegiance As we continue to address our respective challenges associated with COVID-19, Village government continues to operate. And as there are matters the Village must continue to address as part of keeping the Village operational, our October 8, 2020 Village Board meeting remains as scheduled. As Village Hall is closed, the meeting will have to be held remotely (see below). We will be keeping the Agenda (see posting on website) to essential items. On March 7, 2020, in Executive Order No. 202.1, Governor Cuomo suspended certain provisions of the Open Meeting Law to permit a Village Board to meet and take actions authorized by law without permitting in public in-person access and authorizing such meeting to be held remotely by conference call or similar service, provided that the public has the ability to view or listen to such proceeding and that such meetings are recorded and later transcribed. The Village will be activating a remote meeting platform for the October 8th Village Board meeting, which will enable residents to phone in and listen to the meeting in compliance with the Executive Order. In the interests of the public's health and safety, the Village Board strongly encourages residents to utilize this platform. The Village Board appreciates your patience and understanding during this difficult and evolving situation. Please be sure to check in on the Village website for updates which will be posted on an ongoing basis. Adoption of Minutes September 10, 2020 – Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Donald Hammond to accept the motion as presented. Motion passed by a vote of 3 – 2 (Trustees Lorenzini and Reichlin-Melnick abstained) September 24, 2020 - Motion by, Louise Parker seconded by Marie Lorenzini to accept the motion as presented. Motion passed by a vote of 4 to 1 (Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper abstained). Public Comment – Joe Carlin – Asked about the status of the TZ Vista negotiations and public access. Attorney Sevastian responded that the land acquisition and development agreement (LADA) has been completed but it has to be filed which has not been done yet. Once the agreement is filed the Village will get the public access immediately. JC Brotherhood – Asked for an explanation of Resolution 2020-59. He also asked if there was a cutoff date on the resolution to which Attorney Sevastian stated that the resolution would expire 12/31/2021. Action Items Resolution No. 2020 – 56 Resolution of the Nyack Village Board to accept the Audited Voucher Summary #14-2020 Motion by Donald Hammond, seconded by Elijah Reichlin-Melnick to accept the motion as presented. Motion passed by a unanimous vote. Resolution No. 2020 – 57 Resolution of the Nyack Village Board approving the ACADA street fair events for 2021 Trustee Parker stated that the language of the resolution should include a caviat that if COVID continues the events would be subject to cancellation. Mayor Hammond stated that he would like to table the resolution to have time to talk more with the business community since they have new ideas. The dates will be reserved for ACADA but the street fairs will not be approved yet. Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Marie Lorenzini to table the motion as presented. Motion passed by a unanimous vote. Resolution No. 2020 – 58 Resolution of the Nyack Village Board approving the local law to amend Chapter 250 of the Code of the Village of Nyack, entitled “Parks and Recreation”; specifically Article II (“Boat Launching”), Attorney Sevastian explained that pursuant to the last meeting, the marina should be used for passive uses. Some of the fines have changed and the enforcement mechanisms. Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Marie Lorenzini to accept the motion as presented. Motion passed by a unanimous vote. Resolution No. 2020- 59 Resolution of the Nyack Village Board under NY S08236, signed Chapter 111 on 6/17/2020, authorizing the Village Building Inspector to extend Nyack Zoning Board and Nyack Planning Board active approvals, and building permits, for a period of up to but not to exceed 120 days. Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Marie Lorenzini to accept the motion as presented. Motion passed by a unanimous vote. Resolution No. 2020 – 60 Resolution of the Nyack Village Board to award the Nyack Pedestrian Safety (PSAP) Improvements contract to Ray S. Pantel, Inc. Village Administrator explained this is the PSAP for the upgrades to the traffic signals at various intersections. A portion of the plan will be taken out to keep in budget. Motion by Donald Hammond, seconded by Louise Parker to accept the motion as presented. Motion passed by a unanimous vote. PUBLIC HEARING 8:00pm Amendments to Chapter 250 of the Code of the Village of Nyack, entitled “Parks and Recreation”; specifically Article II (“Boat Launching”), Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Marie Lorenzini to open the public hearing at 8:04pm. Motion passed by unanimous vote. JC Brotherhood – Commented that the FlightBoard owner that does use the marina doesn’t believe he will be affected by the new law but he thinks he would and suggested that the law may need to be revised to accommodate this activity. Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Donna Lightfoot-Cooper to close the public hearing at 8:11pm. Public Comment – Joe Carlin – Considering the Rockland County COVID hot spots, is there anything the Village can do to enforce people to follow the rules. There have been many unmasked people in the park and downtown. The Mayor will be meeting with the police and the Orangetown supervisor to discuss strategies. Margaret Amador – Asked if alternate side of the street parking in effect and if they are being ticketed. She stated that on Fourth Ave. tickets haven’t been issued and the sweeper cannot get through to clean the streets. Department Reports to the Board of Trustees Orangetown Police Department – Mayor Hammond stated that he has talked to OPD about Community Housing issues. Village Attorney – He has received Verizon’s consent to the street light purchase. The planning board met on Monday including the hospitals garage application and all the documents will be posted together on the website tomorrow. He reminded the board that the NYS retirement system needs the ROA report There are some pending litigation items happening. The LWRP follow-up will be back from the State by the end of October. Village Administrator – The water improvement project has begun in West Nyack. He has been working on keeping the office and staff safe during COVID and as it relates to school and policies. He is working on the TAP project and getting it moving it forward. Main St will be closed for a period of time on Tuesday October 13 for a building project to pour concrete. Montefiore Nyack Hospital offers a service where they review the building policies and do a site inspection related to COVID. Then they give recommendations for improvement. This service is also offered to community establishments. Village Clerk – Treasurer – None Old Business – Installation of plaque for Jerry Donnellan – Monumedic will be helping with the installation of the plaque to ensure it’s placed properly. New Business – Hotel Tax Proposal – Mayor Hammond stated that this would be a new revenue source. It would be good to research this option. Land Use Permit Extension Proposal - 15 Minute Business Curb-Side Pickup Spaces Proposal – Mayor Hammond stated that the businesses have been asking for this option. The cold weather is coming and more and more people will be getting takeout. James Politi is looking into 5 or 6 spaces that could be devoted to this. Community Housing Correspondence Response Proposed Guidance for Food Services Outdoor Dining during the COVID-19 public health emergency – Mayor Hammond is waiting for guidance from the fire inspector as to outdoor heaters. He asked if the board would need to do any resolutions for this to which James Politi stated that Manny Carmona, the fire inspector, will be working with the individual businesses that want to explore this option. Montefiore Review of COVID Practices and Polices at Village Hall Proposal Communications - None Public Comment – Joe Carlin – Commented that the large groups in the park may dwindle down once the Jewish holiday is over but the nice weather will keep people out and in public. Comments from the Village Board of Trustees Louise Parker – None Donald Hammond – Many residents have been contacting the board about large groups of people in the park without masks. Mayor Hammond will meet with Orangetown Police to see if there are options for enforcing masks wearing and come back to the board at the next meeting with suggestions. Meetings with the businesses have been going well. The police reform commission meetings start October 20th. The next meeting will start at 7pm with the NPA board meeting. The CCA letter has gone out and any questions can be referred to Rockland Community Power . Elijah Reichlin-Melnick – Would like to add alternate side overnight parking on Franklin Ave. near the gardens. He would like to get this accomplished by the end of the year. Marie Lorenzini - None Donna Lightfoot-Cooper – There is a three bedroom apartment available in Waldron Terrace is anyone knows someone in need. There are a lot of cars running the stop sign at Franklin and Hudson. At the same corner, people have been parking right to the corner so the parking authority should watch this area. Executive Session Litigation: Kelly v. Village of Nyack Nyack Parking Authority Staffing Motion by Donna Lightfoot-Cooper, seconded by Louise Parker to enter executive session at 9:00pm. Motion passed by unanimous vote. Motion by Donna Lightfoot-Cooper, seconded by Louise Parker to exit executive session at 9:32pm. Motion passed by unanimous vote. Motion by Louise Parker, seconded by Donna Lightfoot-Cooper to accept a resolution on litigation. Motion passed by unanimous vote. Adjournment Motion by Donna Lightfoot-Cooper, seconded by Elijah Reichlin-Melnick to adjourn the Village Board meeting at 9:34pm. Motion passed by unanimous vote.