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Budget Woes Continue as CS Village Boards Reviews Budget
Dispute with fire company over electrical work expenses centers on generator decision
by Kevin Foley
Budget woes were on display at a relatively brief weekly workshop meeting of the Cold Spring Board of Trustees on Tuesday, April 1, 2008. The trustees spent a little more than an hour before an audience of three reviewing several issues while behind the scenes they worked to craft a budget for the new fiscal year amidst declining revenue and increased expenses.
As the meeting began Mayor Anthony Phillips indicated the Cold Spring Fire Company had sent a letter to the board reiterating its support for building a new firehouse on the site of the old Butterfield hospital. The letter was apparently in response to a recent report from the Comprehensive Plan Special Board that surveyed, without making a recommendation, several possible sites for a new firehouse.
But it was funding for the fire company that received the most attention among the Mayor and the trustees. Phillips and Trustee Seth Gallagher staked out differing positions on how or even if the fire company should repay the village money from an electrical upgrade at the village-owned Main St. firehouse.
"The village invested $10,000 for rewiring because they purchased an oversized generator," said Phillips. "They agreed we would get the money when they received a grant from the state," he added.
"The deal was we paid for the electrical because it's our building," said Gallagher who pointed out that the grant in question for $7,500 was obtained through the offices of State Senator Vincent Liebell and that both the village and the fire company had expected to get funding separately. From his perspective asking the fire company for money back was tantamount to cutting their budget.
Instead Gallagher moved the that trustees send a letter to the fire company asking the fire company to accept a $7,500 reduction in their annual budget appropriation (currently $25,000) for the coming year in light of budget restraints and committing the village to pay the company $3,750 a year for the subsequent two years over and above the annual appropriation.
Trustee John Teagle said he thought the fire company was entitled to keep funds they had received from the state. The Mayor agreed in principal but said he thought the village "should get at least half of what we spent back. They screwed up buying the wrong generator; somewhere along the line they have to take responsibility," said Phillips.
"They feel they didn't make a mistake," said Trustee Edward Mancari who supported Gallagher's approach, which he said, didn't commit them as the village elected officials to any final budget number in subsequent years.
For his part the Mayor said he would not vote in favor of the Gallagher letter.
Teagle, who appeared sympathetic to the fire company's position, nevertheless expressed reservations with Gallagher's proposed solution. With Karen Dunn absent from her last meeting as a trustee, Teagle moved to table the letter until newly elected trustee Gordon Robertson could vote on the matter at the next meeting, which was accepted by all.
Robertson asked if the fire company could be invited to the next board meeting to explain their position. It was not decided whether the invitation would be extended.
In other business with budget implications, the Mayor said Putnam County had erroneously listed the Dockside property on the tax rolls creating an anticipation of $3,583 in revenue for the village which he said would not be received since the property had been put under the control of the state department of Parks and Recreation. The Mayor said it might be possible to file for a payment in lieu of taxes.
In another possible revenue loss the Mayor reminded the trustees that the Butterfield site developer, Paul Guillaro, was requesting a waiver of the water and sewer charges currently on the books for the old hospital which had paid $12,000 a year to preserve the right to reopen the hospital. Guillaro is seeking a small flat rate while renovations take place at the site.
Seth Gallagher said he believed village revenue from the mortgage tax would be approximately $45,000, down from a budgeted $55,000. He suggested that given current real estate conditions the new budget should project only $30,000 for the new fiscal year.
The trustees agreed that the village Historic Review Board's proposal that fines for violation of the Historic District's rules be raised from $20 a day to $500 was excessive and in need of further review.
Gordon Robertson said he was exploring the possibility of upgrading the village software by asking the county for a license sharing agreement for the county's software.
Gallagher also received the trustee's agreement to use some of the board's April 22 meeting for presentations to celebrate Earth Day.
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