Village Board of Trustees Meeting

Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Village of Nyack Board of Trustees Held at Village Hall at 7:30 pm on Thursday, February 27, 2025 Present: Joseph Rand, Mayor Pascale Jean-Gilles, Trustee Joseph Carlin, Trustee Nathalie Riobe-Taylor, Trustee Also Present: Andrew Stewart, Village Administrator Dennis Michaels, Village Attorney Linda Donnelly, Village Clerk Absent: Donna Lightfoot-Cooper, Trustee Meeting called to order at 7:30 pm Pledge of Allegiance Mayor’s Introduction I’d like to commend the residents that attended the meeting with the Fresh Market owners to discuss their concepts and ideas, and the owners of the Fresh Market for working with the community to get ideas and feedback. Wonderfully done! REMINDER – This Sunday is the Penguin Plunge at Memorial Park. Over $1 Millon has been raised, and they’ve helped over 39 children. This year’s recipients are Brielle Gaine, Luke Garrecht and Zach Dolinsky. COMMENTS FROM THE VILLAGE BOARD Trustee Carlin – Still a lot of complaints about the intersection (pedestrian crossings) of High Avenue and Route 9W. I reached out to Pat Carroll, and he is requesting a site survey and traffic study from NYSDOT. I want to commend Pat Caroll for his rapid responsiveness. Trustee Jean-Gilles – Meeting here last week with Rockland Gardens tenants and their management company. Issues they’re trying to work through. Village will keep track. Hoping there will be another meeting soon to give their tenants an update; March 6th at 5:30p at the Rockland County Legislator one of the parents, Michele Gaye who lost her son at Sandy Hook, will be coming to discuss school safety and gun safety. Page 1 of 12 PRESENTATIONS Thomas Schneck – Nyack Tourism Grant Program Thank you to the Board for your support, and to Joe and the Business Council for making sure it’s a fair process. Mayor Rand – No application not worthy. $50,000 to give. Do foresee another $15,000 for some of the applicants whose events take place in the fall or throughout the year. Trustee Riobe-Taylor – How do you track how many people attend these events? Thomas Schneck – Get numbers after the event. Trustee Jean-Gilles – How many of the events are free of charge? Thomas Schneck – 10 events Trustee Jean-Gilles – Of the Grantees, how many are village residents? Are we getting communities of impact to come and have these events? Is it a diverse group of people? Thomas Schneck – Pretty good cross section of gender, backgrounds – across the board. Trustee Carlin – Are the for-profit venues providing discounted tickets or free to people who need it? Thomas Schneck – Yes, through the Nyack Center and Arts Walk. If someone gets a request, they are very accommodating. If you know of anyone where money is an issue, let me know. Mayor Rand – Nothing is a high-ticket cost; let’s make sure we track next round and question the application whether is satisfies diversity objectives of the village, ticket price, etc. Trustee Jean-Gilles – Would be nice to see ways to bridge barriers for people we know typically do things for the community. Thomas Schneck – We don’t have those barriers. We make it very simple. Administrator Stewart - Grant money only goes toward promotional costs. Up to the applicant to by their own means. Hotel Bed Tax expires this year. Mayor Rand – Create logo for the village specifically related to this event. PUBLIC COMMENT Eric Johansmeyer – Sidewalk on Third was run over by DPW during Sandy. Has yet to be repaired. Put claim in in 2013. Alternate side parking sign removed and never replaced. Administrator Stewart – Sidewalk on list for repairs; also looking at drainage. Drew Burke – Village had recreation department for many years, should bring back. There is nowhere for the kids to go. People are not using dog waste bags. Parking in front of post office and no way of telling how long they are there. PUBLIC HEARINGS ADOPTION OF MINUTES –02/13/25 On motion of Trustee Carlin, seconded by Trustee Riobe-Taylor. The minutes of the meeting held on 02/13/2025 were accepted as presented. ACTION ITEMS RESOLUTION NO. 2025-20 – ACCEPTING AUDITED VOUCHER SUMMARY The following resolution was offered by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Jean-Gilles. Page 2 of 12  WHEREAS, the Audited Voucher Summary was presented to the Nyack Village Board of Trustees at its regularly scheduled meeting of February 27, 2025. RESOLVED, the Village Board hereby approves the General Fund Claims set forth on pages 1 through 11 in the amounts of GENERAL FUND $ 537,655.32 PARKING AUTHORITY $ 9,980.71 WATER FUND $ 4,060.90 CAPITAL PROJECTS – 2017 $ 1,555.00 CAPITAL PROJECTS – WATER $1,509,769.52 On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes RESOLUTION NO. 2025-13A – APPROVE GRANTS UNDER THE NYACK TOURISM GRANT PROGRAM The following resolution was offered by Trustee Carlin, seconded by Trustee Riobe-Taylor. WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees, in recognition of the importance of tourism to local economic development, recently adopted a local law providing for a Hotel Bed Tax in order to fund tourism promotion projects, intends to allocate 50% of this tax revenue, minus an administrative cost of 8%, to tourism promotion projects, and WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees delegated to the Nyack Business Council the responsibility to advise the Board of Trustees on funding decisions in response to applications for Nyack Tourism Grants, and contracted with Visit Nyack to administer the grant program on behalf of the Village, and the Business Council has received, reviewed and discussed applications, including presentations by applicants to the Business Council; therefore RESOLVED, the Board of Trustees of the Village of Nyack allocates $51,000 in funds for the current round of the Nyack Tourism Grant program, and RESOLVED, based on advice and recommendation from the Nyack Business Council, the Board of Trustees approves the following grants for tourism promotion projects, and directs the Village Administrator to execute all necessary agreements, subject to the review of the Village Attorney, to fund these projects, with any unused grant funds rolled into the next round of the grant program: Page 3 of 12  1. Arts Rock Events $ 4,000 2. Carolyn Doyle – Social Dance Parties $ 1,000 3. Ecstatic Dance Events $ 2,450 4. Edward Hopper House – Plein Air Festival $ 3,500 5. Elmwood Playhouse $ 2,400 6. Historical Society – Historic House Tour $ 5,000 7. Laura Graham – Second Hand Shop Hop $ 1,200 8. Maragon Management/Hippie Dippie Threads – Wellness Event $ 1,000 9. Maureen’s Jazz Cellar $ 4,000 10. Modern Druid – Spirit of South Broadway $ 2,000 11. Music for Life – Night Out $ 1,500 12. Nyack International Film Festival $ 5,000 13. Nyack Art Collective – First Fridays $ 1,800 14. Nyack Library – Nyack BIPOC Business Event $ 2,000 15. Phoenix Theater Ensemble – Phoenix Festival $ 5,000 16. Rockland Jazz and Blues Society – Nyack Jazz Week $ 2,000 17. Rockland Pride Center – Various Events $ 2,000 18. The Angel Nyack – Ukuleles on the Hudson $ 2,000 19. Trade and Prosper – Nyack Village Craft Walk $ 2,500 TOTAL $50,350 On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes RESOLUTION NO. 2025-21 – OBTAIN PROPERTY BY MEANS OF EMINENT DOMAIN AT 281 UPPER DEPEW AND 25 ROUTE 59 The following resolution was offered by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Carlin WHEREAS, the Village of Nyack has authorized the “Safe Route to Schools” capital project for the public use, benefit and purpose in order to improve certain sidewalks within the Village, to increase the mobility and safety of children walking to and from the Nyack Middle School, and to meet ADA requirements for those sidewalks; and WHEREAS, the location of the public sidewalk project and the reason it was chosen is that the new sidewalk will connect the Village’s two major east-west thoroughfares: Depew Avenue and Main Street; and Page 4 of 12  WHEREAS, the general effect of the public sidewalk project on the residents in that locality is positive, as it will allow Nyack Middle School students to walk safely along Depew Avenue and Main Street and WHEREAS, in order to facilitate the project, the Village needs to obtain certain real property interests from owners that are in or adjacent to the project area; and WHEREAS, a majority of the property owners have voluntarily executed deeds for those property interests in favor of the Village; and WHEREAS, certain property owners have not voluntarily executed deeds in favor of the Village, and it is necessary for the Village to proceed with eminent domain proceedings; and WHEREAS, the owner of the two adjacent parcels depicted on the accompanying acquisition Maps 11 and 12, with addresses of 281 Upper Depew and 25 Route 59, respectively, has been unable or unwilling to provide the Village with an executed deed for those parcels and time is of the essence to advance the construction of project; and WHEREAS, the public project generally involves the replacement of an existing structure or facility with no substantial changes, and specifically involves expanding the existing sidewalk footprint from three feet to four feet in width, such that there will be no or a negligible effect on the environment, and the Village has therefore determined that the acquisition of the parcels is a Type II Action pursuant to 6 NYCRR Part 617.5C (1) and (2) (SEQRA), and no further review is required; and WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of Article 2 of the New York Eminent Domain Procedure Law (“EDPL”), certain procedural prerequisites to acquiring a property interest through eminent domain proceedings, including the conduct of a public hearing on notice and the adoption of determination and findings, are applicable unless one or more exemptions to such procedural requirements applies; and WHEREAS, one exemption from compliance with the provisions of EDPL Article 2 is established by Section 206(D), when in the opinion of the condemning authority, after considering the elements listed in EDPL Section 204(B), the acquisition is sufficiently de minimis in nature so that the public interest will not be prejudiced by the construction of the project; and WHEREAS, that the specified properties to be acquired are much smaller in scale, at 39 square feet (.001 acres) and 185 square feet (.004 acres), respectively, in comparison to the entire construction parcel and only involves a small portion of each property that is directly adjacent to the public right of way; and WHEREAS, the project is not for commercial purposes, will not require the permanent removal of any existing structures that won’t be replaced and will not otherwise interfere with the current residential use of these parcels or their visual appearances. Page 5 of 12  NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that upon consideration of the foregoing information, and based upon the relatively small size and location of the acquisitions needed at the properties located at 281 Upper Depew, Tax number 65.36-1-50, and 25 Route 59, Tax number 65.35-1-17, both under the same ownership, and because of the lack of appreciable interference with the property owner’s use or the appearance of the properties, the benefit the project will have to the effected nearby residents, the Village and the public at large, it is hereby determined that the acquisition of the real property interests described herein, are de minimis in nature so that the public interest will not be prejudiced by the taking, and as a result, the proceedings will be exempted from the public hearing and determinations and findings requirements of Article 2 of the EDPL; and be it further RESOLVED, that the properties to be acquired are deemed necessary for the completion, construction and future maintenance of the “Safe Route to Schools” project, and without the acquisitions, the Village will be unable to complete the project, and therefore the properties to be acquired are for a public use and will confer a substantial public benefit; and be it further RESOLVED, that the attorney for the Village is hereby authorized and directed to have the necessary papers prepared to satisfy the requirements of the Eminent Domain Procedure Law, and to prepare and file the necessary petition and accompanying documents with the Supreme Court, Rockland County, New York for an order vesting title of the parcels in the Village of Nyack for the purpose of constructing the “Safe Route To Schools” project. Mayor Rand – Owners get fair market value. On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes RESOLUTION NO. 2025-22 – OBTAIN PROPERTY BY MEANS OF EMINENT DOMAIN AT 121 DEPEW AVENUE The following resolution was offered by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Jean-Gilles WHEREAS, the Village of Nyack has authorized the “Safe Route to Schools” capital project for the public use, benefit and purpose in order to improve certain sidewalks within the Village, to increase the mobility and safety of children walking to and from the Nyack Middle School, and to meet ADA requirements for those sidewalks; and WHEREAS, the location of the public sidewalk project and the reason it was chosen is that the new sidewalk will connect the Village’s two major east-west thoroughfares: Depew Avenue and Main Street; and Page 6 of 12  WHEREAS, the general effect of the public sidewalk project on the residents in that locality is positive, as it will allow Nyack Middle School students to walk safely along Depew Avenue and Main Street; and WHEREAS, in order to facilitate the project, the Village needs to obtain certain real property interests from owners that are in or adjacent to the project area; and WHEREAS, a majority of the property owners have voluntarily executed deeds for those property interests in favor of the Village; and WHEREAS, certain property owners have not voluntarily executed deeds in favor of the Village, and it is necessary for the Village to proceed with eminent domain proceedings; and WHEREAS, the owner of the fee and temporary easement parcels depicted on the accompanying acquisition Map 18 with an address of 121 Depew Avenue and a tax identification of 66.37-3-28, has been unable or unwilling to provide the Village with an executed deed for those property interests and time is of the essence to advance the construction of project; and WHEREAS, the public project generally involves the replacement of an existing structure or facility with no substantial changes, and specifically involves expanding the existing sidewalk footprint from three feet to four feet in width, such that there will be no or a negligible effect on the environment, and the Village has therefore determined that the acquisition of the parcels is a Type II Action pursuant to 6 NYCRR Part 617.5C (1) and (2) (SEQRA), and no further review is required; and WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of Article 2 of the New York Eminent Domain Procedure Law (“EDPL”), certain procedural prerequisites to acquiring a property interest through eminent domain proceedings, including the conduct of a public hearing on notice and the adoption of determination and findings, are applicable unless one or more exemptions to such procedural requirements applies; and WHEREAS, one exemption from compliance with the provisions of EDPL Article 2 is established by Section 206(D), when in the opinion of the condemning authority, after considering the elements listed in EDPL Section 204(B), the acquisition is sufficiently de minimis in nature so that the public interest will not be prejudiced by the construction of the project; and WHEREAS, that the specified parcels to be acquired are much smaller in scale, at 23 square feet (.001 acres) and 37 square feet (.001 acres), respectively, in comparison to the entire construction parcel and only involves a small portion of the property that is directly adjacent to the public right of way; and WHEREAS, the project is not for commercial purposes, will not require the permanent removal of any existing structures that won’t be replaced and will not otherwise interfere with the current residential use of these parcels or their visual appearances. Page 7 of 12  NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that upon consideration of the foregoing information, and based upon the relatively small size and location of the acquisitions needed at the property located at 121 Depew Avenue, Tax number 66.37-3-28, and because of the lack of appreciable interference with the property owner’s use or the appearance of the properties, the benefit the project will have to the effected nearby residents, the Village and the public at large, it is hereby determined that the acquisition of the real property interests described herein, are de minimis in nature so that the public interest will not be prejudiced by the taking, and as a result, the proceedings will be exempted from the public hearing and determinations and findings requirements of Article 2 of the EDPL; and be it further RESOLVED, that the fee and temporary easement parcels to be acquired are deemed necessary for the completion, construction and future maintenance of the “Safe Route to Schools” project, and without the acquisitions, the Village will be unable to complete the project, and therefore the properties to be acquired are for a public use and will confer a substantial public benefit; and be it further RESOLVED, that the attorney for the Village is hereby authorized and directed to have the necessary papers prepared to satisfy the requirements of the Eminent Domain Procedure Law, and to prepare and file the necessary petition and accompanying documents with the Supreme Court, Rockland County, New York for an order vesting title of the parcels in the Village of Nyack for the purpose of constructing the “Safe Route To Schools” project. On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes RESOLUTION NO. 2025-23 – APPROVE THE MAYOR’S APPOINTMENT OF KYLE COIMBRA TO THE POSITION OF VILLAGE TREASURER The following resolution was offered by Trustee Jean-Gilles, seconded by Trustee Riobe-Taylor RESOLVED, that (i) the Mayor of the Village of Nyack hereby appoints Kyle Coimbra to the Position of Village Treasurer; and (ii) the Village Board of Trustees hereby approves of said appointment, at an annual salary of $87,000. On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes Page 8 of 12 RESOLUTION NO. 2025-24 – APPROVE A CONTRACT WITH FIREWORKS EXTRAVAGANZA FOR JULY 4, 2025 EVENT FOR $29,500 The following resolution was offered by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Jean-Gilles RESOLVED, the Board of Trustees of the Village of Nyack approves a contract with Fireworks Extravaganza for a fireworks show on Friday, July 4, 2025, from a barge on the Hudson River, for a cost of $29,500. Trustee Carlin – Contract says 20-25 minutes, is it possible to get 30 minutes? Administrator Stewart – Will ask for more On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes RESOLUTION NO. 2025-25 – APPOINT DUDLEY LAGRENADE TO POSITION OF PARKING ENFORCEMENT AIDE The following resolution was offered by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Jean-Gilles RESOLVED, the Village Board of Trustees approves the Mayor’s appointment of Dudley Lagrenade to the position of Parking Enforcement Aide, at an hourly wage as provided in the current collective bargaining agreement. Administrator Stewart – Department has a complex job and do it with grace, dignity and professionalism. Conduct themselves well in situations they encounter. Looking forward to bringing Dudley on full-time. Mayor Rand – Commend department. Know how hard you work with professionalism and grace in difficult circumstances. I am appreciative of the extraordinary work you do. Thank you! Trustee Carlin – Thank you, Rosa, for all you do. On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes Page 9 of 12 RESOLUTION NO. 2025-26 – REFUND BUILDING DEPARTMENT APPLICATION FEES DUE TO PROJECT CANCELLATION The following resolution was offered by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Carlin RESOLVED, the Nyack Village Board of Trustees approves the refunding of $1,224 to Daavid Hill, of 77 N Midland Ave, due to withdrawal of Permit # BP2022-0009. On roll call the vote was as follows: Trustee Jean-Gilles . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Riobe-Taylor . . . . Yes Trustee Lightfoot-Cooper . . Absent Mayor Rand . . . . . . . . . . . Yes Trustee Carlin. . . . . . . . . . . Yes DEPARTMENT REPORTS (based on availability) Orangetown Police Department – No meeting this week. Had conversations by phone about certain locations and individuals that need more attention Trustee Carlin – What was resolution to that? Mayor Rand – Did resolve that they were able to pursue charges. Agreed it was time to take more action to enforce the law here. Village Attorney – First Justice Court session this morning with quality-of-life matters. Went very well, good turnout. Residents who came were overwhelmingly cooperative. Shoutout to Code Enforcement Officer Richard Siddi. Very prepared, excellent demeanor, very helpful. Going forward traffic calendar and village ordinance violations will be separate court dates. Mayor Rand – Several public safety issues where there was a default judgement because limited liability company failed to appear, fine of $1,000. Administrator Stewart – Leaf blower violations in court as well. Village Administrator – Communications in disruption in federal funding resources - CDBG one - under contract for sidewalks. Future money in doubt. Local community development office would like Board to consider sending letters to our local representatives to support continued funding of these programs. Senior Center new roof, paving, millions of dollars over the years. The federal money for solar arrays and EV vehicles in doubt. Can be disruptive to our planning process if these monies go away. Would like to draft letters of support. Mayor Rand – Will get letters signed and sent. Trustee Jean-Gilles – Reach out to Congressman Lawler’s office. Administrator Stewart – Will there be an increase or decrease in CHIPS? Trustee Jean-Gilles – Believe there will be an increase, one requested. Music in the Park permit application will be received for next meeting with desire to have beer and wine at these events. From a staff perspective – no issues with it. Mayor Rand – Thank you for list of capital projects and grants. Clean up and post for public. Administrator Stewart – List speaks to extraordinary projects we have moving forward. Lots of work and coordination to get projects going. Page 10 of 12  Mayor Rand – $10 million worth of work largely through grants and matching funds ($9 million in grants/$1 million matching). Still opportunities to get monies. USA250 will be offering grants. We will be seeking these monies. Trustee Jean-Gilles – Since we’re coming up on the budget, is there any way we can put some remaining funds into parks and rec so we can have a basketball program this year? Administrator Stewart - Up to the Village Board Mayor Rand – Absolutely worthwhile to find money for recreation program. Village Clerk – OLD BUSINESS Budget Calendar Two budget workshop meetings 6:30 pm – 4/3 & 4/15, deadline for adoption 4/24 Public Murals – Code amendment to exempt from ARB review. Exemption in code so we can do public mural permitting under certain conditions – public involvement, at least one member of Village Board on committee, Village Board review of final product – share sketches, designs and process Unleashed dogs in Memorial Park Number of instances; need to enforce unleashed dog rule. Fine for unleashed and not scooping after dog should be increased. NEW BUSINESS Green Fleet Right-Sizing and Efficiency Policy Very basic; gets us points towards more grants; resolution for next meeting COMMUNICATIONS Grand Fondo NY Proposed Race Date, 05/18/2025 Requested more Nyack residents in Memorial Park to cheer them on; resolution for next meeting Tyrone Williams, Easter Egg Hunt, Memorial Park, 04/19/2025 Resolution for next meeting EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Jean-Gilles to enter into executive session at 9:47 pm. Motion by Trustee Riobe-Taylor, seconded by Trustee Jean-Gilles to end executive session at 9:48 pm. Motion carried unanimously. Page 11 of 12 ADJOURNMENT Motion offered by Trustee Carlin, seconded by Trustee Riobe-Taylor. Motion carried unanimously. VILLAGE CLERK Page 12 of 12