In anticipation of the winter snow storm scheduled to begin this evening, Monday, February 27, 2023, please move all cars off village roads, especially on snow emergency routes. The Village lots will be available for overnight parking, free of charge, starting at 6pm. The marina lot is also available for overnight parking. Cars can remain in the lots until the snow emergency is lifted. Updates will be posted on the village website. Thank you for your cooperation!

The Nyack 2030 Climate Action Plan will lay out a roadmap for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from Nyack households, businesses, and government operations and for preparing for increasing heat, storms, flooding and other impacts of climate change. Throughout the spring, working groups will evaluate strategies and help create a plan with ambitious but feasible goals to reach by 2030.

Register here: https://Nyack 2030 Workshop.eventbrite.com. This project has been funded in part by The Climate Smart Community Grant Program, Title 15 of the Environmental Protection Fund through the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation.

Rand Wrap-Up!

Village Board Meeting 02/23/23 summary from Trustee Joe Rand.

WORKSHOP

Thomas Schneck, Visit Nyack

Discussed tourism grants that will come out of the new 3% room occupancy tax effective January 1, 2023, which is expected to generate about $100,000 annually. The tax is designed to be split 50% for tourism grants and 50% for general fund.

We’ve asked Visit Nyack to develop ideas for strengthening tourism, and provide a proposal for how to award grants. Visit Nyack identified the following primary goals:

• Increase revenue and employment by business community.
• Increase overnight guests.

Visit Nyack also identified important additional goals:

• Reflect wide diversity of village and promote minority and women-owned entrepreneurship.
• Leverage the assets of the village.
• Create repeatable and sustainable activities and initiatives.
• Develop cooperative relationships with businesses and nonprofits.

Visit Nyack will be trying to create “experiences” that tie together varying businesses into a theme.

The proposal suggested the creation of a “Tourism Board” to review grant applications, but Trustees raised the question of whether the role could be incorporated into the charter of the Nyack Business Council, whose roster would be adapted to provide this role. The proposal also includes the possibility of retaining a third party to advise grantees and then manage disbursements.

VILLAGE BOARD MEETING

1. General Resolutions

We approved a series of resolutions approving the following:

• The Chamber’s Classic Car Nights on July 10 and Exotic Car Night on August 10, 2023
• The Nyack Halloween Parade on Saturday, October 28, 2023.
• Nyack Boat Charter License to use the marina for a 5% gross revenue fee.
• A youth basketball tournament on July 8-9 from 10AM-7PM
• A food truck permit for Tonay Pridgen for Memorial Park and the Marina, provided the truck generator is rated for 60 decibels or less and is located in an enclosed cabinet on the truck.
• Public Hearing for March 23, 2023 to discuss changes to minimum off-street parking requirements in commercial and residential construction.
• Public Hearing on affordable housing legislation on April 13, 2023.
• Issuing a solicitation for a competitive bid for a food service management company for the Nyack Summer Food Service Program.
• Appointed Matthew Croussouloudis to the Planning Board, and Taylor Light as an alternative member.
• Several contracts with Brooker Engineering regarding construction in Memorial Park on a pathway and playground improvements, based on grants we received from Rockland County ARPA.
• Approve an agreement with Karen Arent to provide Landscape Architect services for the Great Lawn Improvement Project in Memorial Park, based on grants we received from Rockland County.

The final resolution was a 10% Village property tax assessment exemption for fire and ambulance volunteers, in recognition of their exemplary service to our community. Governor Hochul recently signed legislation allowing local governments to provide these kinds of exemptions, and Orangetown has adopted a similar law for the town tax.

2. Hospital Parking

A resident off Sixth Street near the hospital complained that the streets are still getting filled up by hospital employee parking during the workday, that the employees are not using the new parking garage. The mayor indicated he would speak to the hospital administration about the issue and see if it evolves, since the lot has only been open for about a month.

3. Mayoral Term

We started a public hearing on proposed legislation to change the mayoral term from 2 years to 4 years. The trustee terms would stay as 2 years. This public hearing is being held over through the next meeting if you wish to present written comment or speak about it at the next meeting on March 9, 2023. Note that Haverstraw, Spring Valley, and Piermont all have 4-year mayoral terms.

4. Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers.

As you may know, the Board passed legislation banning gas-powered leaf blowers starting this year, and allowing them only for a few months in the spring and fall this year. Village Administrator Andy Stewart let us know that the Village has sent out informational mailings about the gas-powered leaf blower ban to over 100 landscapers and to apartment building property managers in the Village to advise them that those leaf blowers will only be allowed in certain months this year and then not at all next year.

5. Emergency Tenant Protection Act

Note that we will be holding a workshop on the Emergency Tenant Protection Act at 6:30PM on March 9^th before our regular meeting. The ETPA authorizes the creation of rent stabilization rules for buildings built before 1974 with at least a minimum number of units. We are currently looking at the possibility of implementing the ETPA and will be discussing it at the workshop.

6. Restaurant Bump-out Policy

The Village Administrator also discussed the creation of a policy governing the restaurant bump-outs – the concrete-enclosed street seating that some restaurants are able to set up during the spring-fall timeframe. The consensus of the business community is that the bump-outs are good for the downtown area, even with the loss of a handful of parking spaces.

You can contact us at (845) 358-0548, or visit www.Nyack-NY.gov.