Hoosick Falls Village Board Meeting – Let The Buyer Beware

by Bea Peterson
There was standing room only at the Hoosick Falls Village Board meeting on Tuesday evening, November 10. Dr. Raymond Hyde and his wife addressed the Board regarding properties they own at 43 and 71 Wilder Avenue. Dr. Hyde said they came up from Virginia to “straighten my name. I like this town and I have purchased other properties here,” he said. In 2005 he bought a three family house at 43 Wilder. He has paid taxes on a three family house. Now the property is up for sale and he has received a letter from the Village stating the building is only zoned for two families. To add insult to injury, he has put $107,000 worth of renovations into 71 Wilder only to learn at this point that it must be owner occupied to be a double house, as must 43 Wilder. He explained he would not have invested that much money in a previously uninhabited property if he had known it had to be owner occupied. He purchased the building from HUD as a two family home. Trustees Ann Bornt and Ric DiDonato stated that there is a 1992 Village law that states single houses converted to apartments must be owner occupied in all residential areas, unless they were converted prior to 1992. Hyde told the Board Building Inspector Dick Weeden had inspected the property and did not tell him it was listed as a single family home. They have been paying taxes on a double as it has two electric meters.
Bornt said anyone purchasing rental property in the Village should first check with the Village Clerk to see how the property is classified. Properties cannot be increased in apartment size from what the Village records state. That is the law. DiDonato said the face-painted house on Classic St. was a result of a buyer finding out after the fact that the house could not be converted into apartments. It wasn’t until after Bill Ingwersen purchased the VFW that he learned he could not convert that building into apartments. It was a year and a half of working with the Planning and Zoning Boards before the plan for apartments was approved as an Urban Development Project. Timothy Girdis, who owns a house on Griffin Ave., was extremely concerned when he learned of the owner occupancy law. He was at the meeting to present the Board with an engineering study of his property, which contains apartments. The state of disrepair of that property to this point has bothered his neighbors for years. One wonders now if he will pursue repairs.
No Large Trucks On River Road
After reviewing photos brought to the meeting by John Smith and listening to his complaints about truck traffic on River Road, in addition to the complaints that were aired last month, Trustee John Hickey proposed that a law be passed prohibiting tractor trailer trucks from traveling on River Road. The motion passed. The Village Attorney will draw up the law, and a public hearing will be held regarding the new law at the December Board meeting. Smith pointed out that there are no sidewalks on River Rd., there are telephone poles on the very edge of the road and no guardrails in many places. He complained that curbing has not been replaced. Jim Hurlburt said the old granite curbing was removed while the new water line was being installed. However, much of it was stolen from Village property where it was stored. Trustee DiDonato said that didn’t matter. If there was curbing on the street before, it had to be replaced with cement curbing and a claim should be submitted for the stolen curbing.
Woods Brook
Bonnie Smith of Hall St. inquired if any progress had been made on the grant for a study of Woods Brook. DiDonato and the Mayor said they will be writing letters to County Executive Jimino and Congressman Murphy to seek their help in getting funding as it has yet to come from NYS Senator Roy McDonald. Winnie Restino said she had had a contractor come and look at what could be done on her property and, because of the situations around her property, he said he would not touch it.
The owner of the new house at 131 Rogers Avenue congratulated and thanked the Village and Jim Hurlburt on the way they so quickly resolved the low water pressure situation at his home.
Trustee Mike Hickey and Melvin Dessler have laid out the site for the future dog park. Dessler will arrange for the fencing to be installed.
Former Village Trustee Robert Becker asked why someone could not be cross-trained as an assistant water plant operator instead of hiring another person. The Mayor said he had asked that same question, but DEC said they must have an assistant. Becker said the Board is going to have to consider some very unpopular decisions in the future as the Village becomes more and more strapped for cash “Keeping Dispatch, for example, is comfortable, but it should be eliminated.” Accepting non-funded mandates may not be possible, he concluded. Mayor Monahan assured him the Board is looking at many and all ways to cut costs. They both agreed the people who complain the most about the lack of services will be the same ones that complain about high taxes.
Mayor Monahan acknowledged the Hoosick Falls Central School football, field hockey and boys and girls soccer teams for an excellent season. Across the Board they have done very well, he said.
Trustee Bob Downing said he had attended a DEC seminar. He said a lot more communities are being forced to build new water plants similar to the new one the Village has. The cost of such a plant today has risen to nine million dollars. “If we don’t maintain this new plant,” he said, “we will be in the same position we were before.”
Trustee John Hickey reported that the Highway Department has been busy with leaf pickup and getting the equipment ready for winter.
Trustee Bornt said she has audited the Court’s books as required. She noted there were problems with the Dispatch phone system.
Trustee DiDonato said the Hoosic River Watershed Association has hired someone to design the River Walk. He informed the Board that former Hoosick Falls resident Mark Revet was killed last week in a plane crash. “Since he was instrumental in getting the River Wall started and worked extensively with the railroad, I would like to see a portion of the Walk dedicated to Mark,” he said.
Election Date And Place
The Board agreed that the Village election would be held on Tuesday, March 16, 2010. Only two polling places will be used. The first ward will vote at the CEO building on River Road and wards 2, 3 and 4 will vote in the Municipal Building. Three trustees will be elected for two years each.
Christmas Decorations
Mayor Monahan said the Village will be sending out letters to businesses to see if they want a Christmas tree this year. Last year not all the trees were decorated. “We are still willing to pay for them and drop them off,” he said. “But only to those who want them.”
Voter Registration
To register to vote in the Village new residents will have to register with Rensselaer County and check with the County to make sure they are on the roll. Registration of eligible voters is still possible at voting sites on Election Day.