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Garrison Fire Department Finances Still Being Questioned
No works planned for Old Albany Post Road
by Mike Turton
The Philipstown Town Board held an uncharacteristically brief meeting on Wednesday, May 7, 2008, taking care of a number routine house-keeping matters before informally discussing a number of outstanding issues with members of the public.
Nothing is about to change along Old Albany Post Road - at least not in the in the near future. A debate has been simmering for many months, if not years, over whether or not part of the gravel road should to be paved in what some residents feel would be an effective way to reduce erosion and manage storm water runoff. Others have argued vehemently that as a significant historic resource, it should be left as a gravel road. The section of the road near Continental Village was hit especially hard as a result of torrential rains in April, 2007. An all-parties meeting was held at the VFW Hall in Cold Spring on April 24 to discuss the issues involved. In addition to Town officials and residents, the meeting was attended by representatives of FEMA, FEMO and the Old Road Society. An official of the Federal Advisory Council on Historic Preservation in Washington DC participated by speaker phone, pointing to how seriously the issue is being taken beyond the boundaries of Philipstown. The meeting was a marathon, lasting more than four hours. The outcome was a clear decision that no funds will be spent until all parties can agree on the nature of works to be completed. "It was the longest meeting I've ever attended," commented Councilman Richard Shea who went on to say that the meeting did impress upon him just how highly Old Albany Post Road is regarded as a historic resource by federal and state officials. Shea indicated that the meeting pointed out that among historic roads in New York State, Old Albany Post Road and Indian Brook Road are considered to have been altered the least over the years. No meeting date has been set yet for further discussions.
The issue of funding and budgeting practices of the Garrison Volunteer Fire Department (GVFD) is still unresolved, most of all in the mind of Garrison resident Joe Regele. After the formal agenda had concluded, Regele, who has consistently criticized GVFD for being what he considers cash-rich, asked the Town Board if the fire department's audited budget statement for 2007 had been received. During 2008 budget hearings, GVFD officials indicated that last year's audited statements would be submitted by the end of March. GVFD did submit their own budget summary but the Town has yet to receive an audited budget report. Regele criticized the format of the informal budget statement saying, "They use QuickBooks and could have simply printed out their budget summary." According to Regele, what GVFD presented instead was a manually produced summary that he said "neglected to include $35,000 to $40,000 in revenues" and that over the duration of its three-year contract with the Town, GVFD could realize a surplus of $100,000. "This is all verifiable. It's black and white. What's going to happen here?" Regele asked. Councilman Richard Shea indicated that in discussions with GVFD officials it had been agreed that some surpluses could be rolled into the next year's budget but in amounts not to exceed three months of operating expenses. Regele persisted, stating that the GVFD "is awash in cash" and pressed the board asking, "What are you going to do about it?"
Supervisor Bill Mazzuca indicated that the Town would send a letter to GVFD asking them to meet with the Town Board regarding the status of the audited financial statements and to explain the department's financial statements.
Mazzuca presented a brief report summarizing the activities of the Putnam County Sheriff's deputy contracted by the Town as part of the 2008 budget to patrol Philipstown roads, especially during morning rush hour and in high traffic areas such as Routes 9 and 9D. During the month of April more than fifty summons were issued including thirty speeding violations.
Councilman Shea reported that he had attended a meeting of the local Council of Governments which also includes representatives from Nelsonville, Cold Spring, Haldane School District and Putnam County. The goal of the group is to foster better communications among the various levels of government. While sharing of services was discussed at the meeting Shea commented that what he would like to see is revenue sharing with Putnam County. "Putnam is one of only five counties in the state that does not share revenue with the towns" Shea said.
Next Philipstown meeting is this Wednesday, May 14 at 7:30 at the VFW Hall in Cold Spring, It will be a public information meeting on Storm Water Management (MS4).
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