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Click to visit the
Official Town Site
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General News: Public Speaks on Village Master Plan
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| About 50 people attended the public hearing. |
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| Kirk MacDonald explained his ideas about developing the riverfront. |
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| Master plan committee chair Lee Murphy said recommended zoning changes will help protect the village's future. |
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| Mayor Gross listened to what everyone had to say but didn't speak about the plan himself. |
January 19, 2009
About fifty people attended a public hearing this Saturday on the draft master plan intended to shape the future of the village of Cornwall-on-Hudson.
A similar public hearing on the plan was held nearly two years ago and, after minor revisions, it was submitted to the village government for final review 18 months ago.
Village trustee Barbara Gosda, who also served on the master plan committee, opened the hearing, noting that a lot has changed in two years that would impact how villagers see the future. Housing prices have plummeted and business has frozen, she noted, saying that the community has to be sure it is getting what it wants in the master plan document.
One issue that dominated the discussion was the fire siren. The draft plan recommends lowering the decibel level of the siren or, if that is not possible, to locate two smaller sirens in the village. Several members of the Storm King Fire Engine Company #2 said they thought the master plan committee had agreed to take out the recommendation two years ago and they argued that quick response and public safety necessitate the current fire siren.
Andrew Argenio, a member of the village planning board who is running for a trustee seat, had a list of issues he believes the master plan needs to address, including green building practices. He pointed to a conflict between maintaining trees on steep slopes to stop erosion and cutting tree tops to enhance views. He also criticized the idea of building a large dock at the riverfront or a two-story low-impact parking garage.
Jeffrey Small, who wrote the portion of the plan addressing design issues, said that the committee studied how the village would look if every lot available under the current zoning code was built on and realized that the code would have to change to maintain the character of the village. He said that is why the committee is recommending an increase in lot size.
Three residents of Duncan Avenue asked for the village to take action immediately on what they call a dangerous intersection at Hudson Street. Jane and Tom Peterson presented a petition signed by 50 residents that calls for steps to ensure the safety of drivers.
Kirk MacDonald, a master plan committee member, spoke out against the plan, calling it ‘disorganized’ and he put forward three proposals that he said had been virtually ignored in the plan. He argued in favor of developing a parcel of land between Route 218 and the Hudson River that is now owned by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission but that was once part of the village. MacDonald shared his vision of a 30-acre park with an adjoining 20 acres of homes, apartments and perhaps a hotel. He also criticized the low taxes paid by the Cornwall Yacht Club and suggested the master plan could propose a creative development for the riverfront. His third point called for rezoning Maple Road. MacDonald ended his remarks with a call to reject the draft master plan in its entirety.
Strong steps were urged by another member of the public, John Wenz, who said it was absurd to have two separate governments for a population of 15,000 people. He called for consolidation of village and town services as a response to the shrinking resources both communities face today.
Dan DeGroat spoke against the view preservation law, saying he was forced to cut his tree tops to enhance the river view of neighbors above him on Braden Place. Barbara Farabaugh also argued in favor of preserving trees, not views, and Gary Haugland suggested the village and the town work together on environmental conservation issues.
Master plan committee chair Lee Murphy spoke at the end of the public comments and he noted that the Orange County Planning Department had approved the document. He expressed doubt that anything of substance will result from the review of the master plan draft, which has been in the village hands for 18 months. He explained that the fire siren recommendation was intended to protect the health of residents’ ears but said that while a lot of attention had been put on that one issue, proposed zoning changes were more important.
With the public hearing now behind them, the trustees said they are now ready to work on the document. Trustee Rick Gioia gave a glimpse of the future when he said that “to protect ourselves from avaricious developers, the plan has to be air tight.” He recommended hiring a certified planner, saying, “we have to go over every individual thing.”
Click here to read what people had to say at the master plan public hearing held in April 2007.
Comments:
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Could someone explain to me why the village requires a siren to alert volunteer personnel in this electronic era? The siren is not quaint, and it is not necessary (think of all the communities in all the states that do not have such a siren to call people to service), it is a nuisance (and as a safety professional, I can measure the noise level and calculate the effective 8-hr exposure level for you and show it is not a health hazard to the community). It is annoying to listen to it everyday at 5PM, in the middle of the night to be awakened from a dead sleep by it. If the fire dept really feels they need this method to notify people of a need to come running, and they are assuming all these volunteers are sitting nearby waiting for this siren to call them, it is a sad state of affairs. A less startling cell phone or blackberry buzz or ring woud be more in tune with todaystechnology and less disruptive to the rest of us. After 17 years of hearing it, I have had enough already.
posted by Catherine tubridy on 01/19/09 at 11:28 PM
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Catherine - The National Fire Protection Association, which provides guidelines for the fire service, requires 2 methods of emergency notification for volunteer fire departments and recommends that it should be tested daily. In our community we utilize both pagers and the siren. Text messaging is also available to the members, which cost each member the applicable texting fee, but it is unreliable as often times the text message is not received for several minutes after the emergency call as been recieved and dispatched by the emergency dispatcher. In the Village of Cornwall on Hudson the siren is turned off between 10pm and 6am. This has been the case for the past 6 years at least. If you are being awaken in the middle of the night, it is not from the siren located in the Village at the Storm King FD. The duration for which siren is activated has also been shortened. It also does not not go off at 5pm on Sunday's.
I for one like the siren sounding everyday for at 5pm.It signals the end of the day for many of our citizens and the beginning of evening. Growing up in the village it was used as a signal for me and my many friends that it was 5pm, time for dinner and I should get home. I continue to use this thought process with my own children.
Over the past 18 months the fire department responded to 2 alarms for which the siren was the only notification of an emergency call. One was a house fire, which the current paging system did not operate properly and the other was a person in cardiac arrest who was driven to the fire station and the driver of the car activated the siren with our call box out front. In both instances the firefighters who responded did so only because they heard the siren. I am sorry if you feel that the siren is a nuisance, however if you or a family member were to be involved in an incident similar to what I described above, I am sure that you would find the siren to be music to your ears as many of our residents in need of help already have.
Stephan - Please stop comparing the fire service to COVAC. We operate in a totally different manner than COVAC. I don't think that it is appropriate for you to compare the two volunteer organizations as you are not a member of both. It would be just as inappropriate for me to compare COVAC's proposed billing of taxpayers for services rendered in addition to taxes the residents already pay to the system of funding for our fire department which relies on municipal taxes and no billing.
I am also tired of you always pointing out that you are a volunteer with COVAC whenever someone brings into question your volunteer standing within the community or if you like to emphasize your point such as with your letter about school buses. I thank you for your service to the community, but I do not need to be reminded of it constantly. I am sure that there are many volunteer members of COVAC other than yourself just like there are many volunteer firefighters other me.
I can only imagine that the COVAC Officers and Board of Directors probably cringe every time you throw COVAC's name out there, as I am sure that you don't speak on their behalf.
In closing, I must remind everyone that the Master Plan is not just about the Fire Siren. The siren is just a small part and in the over all scheme of things is something that should be discussed after all the zoning, waterfront and other major suggestions are considered.
Well, I got to go now.I am late for dinner. The siren went off 30 minutes ago.
posted by Mike Trainor on 01/20/09 at 5:32 PM
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also I'd like to add that the fire alarm is useful to the citizens who live in the village as I tell my son if you hear the alarm that means that there will be volunteers rushing to the fire house and engines roaring on the streets sooo as there are limited sidewalks in the village it is a precautionary tool to keep off the street.
posted by john buescher on 01/21/09 at 12:16 AM
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If after 17 years of hearing it you have had enough perhaps you should consider yourself the victim of a deprived childhood. I have lived here for almost 50 years years (holy crap!)I grew up with the whistle and it is an integral part of life here. Five o clock whistle signals it's time to be home (not all of the kiddies have cell phones, you know) or even better, cocktail hour! It reminds me to come in from the garden and start dinner (when I'm feeling all Donna Reed, usually *after* the cocktail) Also, as John mentions, the fire signal warns folks, (children in particular) that emergency vehicles will soon be rushing out to help, it also reminds us to say a prayer for those whose peril has prompted the whistle, and for those who respond to their need. If you moved here from the city to find the peaceful country, you was misinformed. That has moved to Delaware county...it's north, then west...
posted by Kate Benson on 01/21/09 at 10:28 PM
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