John Colby was given time on the agenda and also expressed in writing to the board, his concern about an 8-foot privet hedge, recently planted by the Ferrises, which appeared to encroach on his right of egress. An ostensible reason for the hedge is to mask a large LIPA utility box at the corner of the two adjoining property driveways. Also at issue, according to Mr. Colby, is that the Ferris's irrigation system may be buried on Colby property. Confusing the situation about what is or isn't on whose land — or on village property for that matter — is a missing concrete property marker.

Karen Kelsey, who attended Saturday's meeting, responded that access to their flag lot is very narrow and that the utility box is right next to their driveway. The hedge height was sufficient to cover up the box. Grass may have grown up over the marker, she suggested.

While this could be considered a private matter between neighbors, Mayor Tim Hogue said that “I think we can work this out.” Locating the markers needs to be the first order of business to determine the property lines, he said, and the trustees who are not familiar with the physical layout need to take a look at the hedge.

There is no question, he said, that the box is unsightly and he noted that Mr. Colby had raised some good points in his memo. The matter should be resolved satisfactorily by the next meeting, he said, with discussion in the meantime among the trustees and the two property owners.

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

At July's board meeting, the trustees approved a number of appointments for the 2009-2010 year. Mr. Hogue noted that the appointment of Arthur Bloom as the village fire marshal was inadvertently omitted from the list. The board unanimously approved his appointment for the coming year.

Prior to the meeting it was pointed out that the list showed Ken Walker as the chair of the Planning Board; this was picked up in the Reporter's July 18 article. Mr. Walker is a former chair; the current chair will continue to be John Colby.

OTHER BUSINESS

FEMA has made changes in its flood plain policy that will affect some village residents, the mayor explained. The state DEC has adopted the new regulations and the village now needs to formally incorporate these in its own code and local law. The board unanimously voted in favor of the changes, and a public hearing will be scheduled prior to a vote to adopt the changes as part of local law.

Trustee Mary Walker reported that the work on the village gazebo, originally part of the Fiske property, is about halfway completed, thanks to the work of village highway supervisor, Richie Surozenski. It is a decided improvement, commented the trustees and the handful of residents at the meeting.

Mr. Hogue briefly updated the board on the following:

• Some preliminary work has been completed recently on the Julia Dodd bridge/culvert. The mayor announced that within a day of hearing that the bridge project was no longer being considered as part of the state's stimulus plan, he learned that line item funding in the federal Department of Transportation's budget is very likely. This would require a 20 percent contribution to the cost of the project by the village, or approximately $40,000. Mr. Hogue said he will discuss another grant possibility with the town's grant writer to help offset this amount

• Thanks to Hap Bowditch, new railings of his design have been installed on the Village Hall steps.

• The New York Yacht Club's visit to Shelter Island Yacht Club, using anchorages approved at the board's July meeting, was “spectacular,” Mr. Hogue reported, and went very well.

• Plans for submitting by September a joint village/town statement of intent to conform to MS4, the storm water run-off legislation, are progressing. It's an onerous task, Mr. Hogue said, but in a good cause. A shared grant with the town may help to offset the costs of compliance with the MS4 mandate.

The next meeting will be held Saturday, September 12, at 9 a.m.

Add your comments below:

Your name:

Your email:

Subject:


Comments:



Enter text seen above: