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Code Violations and Process of Enforcement Debated at Cold Spring Village Workshop
Higher fines and education are two areas under consideration
by Kevin Foley
Village occupants who blatantly ignore or, in more benevolent interpretations, misunderstand regulations governing new building, repairs and renovations to their homes and businesses were the subject of a spirited discussion at the weekly Cold Spring Village Workshop meeting, Tuesday, September 18, 2007. Nominally a meeting to consider reforms to the Village procedures for dealing with approval applications for such work, the ninetyminute wide-open dialogue among the Village Trustees, the Mayor, members of the various Village boards and citizens focused primarily on the problem of activities that take place outside the governmental framework.
Trustee Karen Dunn began the discussion asking questions about whether the current system for accepting applications from residents for Village approvals was efficient and effective. But after a few minutes Al Zgolinski, chair of the Historic Review Board said, the real problem is that too often things are done before we even know about it." Echoing this view Review Board member Pam Colangelo said she saw a problem with knowing how best to go about enforcing regulations and stopping projects that go on without any Village approval. "I happen to walk around the Village a lot and I see things that I know are not before our board, like windows all taken out of a house. We know it's wrong but where do we go to do something about it?"
In response to a question from Mayor Anthony Phillips on fines, there was general agreement that the current Village code allowed for low fines only levied once in anyone's memory. Phillips described that as "a good reason not to care." "If someone continues a project without approval we have to have recourse to give them a choice to either take it down or face the consequences. The Building Inspector can issue a stop work order as part of this process," said the Mayor.
The Mayor, who took pains to point out the small dimensions of the Village government, said the Village had recently hired a second part-time building inspector and that not enough had been done to empower that person with respect to enforcement. He said he would shortly convene a meeting with the Building Inspector, George Tompkins, and all relevant parties to bolster the efforts of that office. "The Building Inspector has to have the authority to act, I will see to that," he said. The Mayor also said he wanted to see any complaints people had about possible violations copied to himself and the Trustees.
Both officials and audience members spoke about individual situations they believed might be examples of Village code violations. At times they even used the names of property owners and then proceeded to disagree with each other as to actual conditions or the extent of any violation on these properties. One frustrated audience member said he had spent $350 in expenses seeking approval for a fence on his property. His application was denied, which he accepted, only to see a neighbor erect a larger more objectionable fence without any approval.
Some participants emphasized the importance of having a proactive education program so that residents, contractors and real estate agents fully appreciate the implications of living and doing business within the boundaries of an Historic District. Others pointed out that the advantages of such a designation are trumpeted when selling property but the obligations are seemingly forgotten when improving it.
"A high fine is a quick education," said Planning Board chair, Randy Taggart. He referenced the Putnam County experience where officials found that adjudicating low fines wasn't worth the time of the lawyers needed to carry out the process, so fines were significantly increased for a variety of categories. "This isn't a touch-feely process, it's serious," said Taggart.
Trustees Seth Gallagher and John Teagle both agreed heavier fines should be considered, but said that education and warnings should be simultaneous with that effort. Trustee Dunn and Mayor Phillips preferred to emphasize the urgency of increasing enforcement and creating greater consequences for violations.
As to the process for applying for an approval of a project, Village review board members in general thought the current system works well enough despite occasional misunderstandings about which board should be considering a particular issue before another. There was consensus that the Building Inspector's office was the best place for applicants to begin and to find out which board to go to first. "It's not so much where people go first or second in the end," said Randy Taggart. "We take a close look at applications and we send them to the Zoning Board if that's where they should be. The system works, but if he elected officials want to change it, they can."
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