Report From Board of Trustees Meeting 1.3.23

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• Cannabis Zoning Amendment Passed: The Board of Trustees passed a Zoning Code amendment to require that cannabis dispensaries in Tarrytown be subject to site plan approval and off-street parking requirements which cannot be waived by the Building Inspector. The law also limits signage on dispensaries to letters and numbers. If granted a license by the State, a dispensary would only be permitted in three village Zones: Restricted Retail (RR), Neighborhood Shopping (NS) and General Business (GB). Under New York State law, cannabis dispensaries are not permitted within 500 feet of a school and within 200 feet of a place of worship. This map indicates in green the districts in which dispensaries are permitted, and the red hashing indicates where dispensaries are not allowed within those zones due to the restricted areas around schools and places of worship. Local Law 1-2023 can be found in the agenda from the meeting.

• Public Hearing Set for Grant Application to Restore Eastview Pump Station: On January 17, the Board of Trustees is seeking public comment on a proposed grant application to restore the Eastview Pump Station. The use of the original water reservoir pump house constructed in 1888 was discontinued in 1995, and the building has since fallen into disrepair. Over the past ten years, several major steps have been taken by the Village toward the restoration of the building including an initial environmental review of the building’s needs, the partial removal of hazardous materials including all mercury and some of the lead and asbestos, and the issuance of an Economic Development Request for Proposals (RFP) to identify a private partner willing to work with the Village on the building’s revitalization. Duncan's Abbey, a local craft brewer, won the RFP, and while work with the Village was stalled during the pandemic, owner Justin DiNino has continuing interest in partnering with the Village to restore the historic building. A Restore NY grant could cover 90% of some of the initial restoration measures including roof repair and hazardous material removal. We will share additional information about the project on the Village Projects page of our website..

• Agreement with Tarrytown Volunteer Ambulance Corps Reached: In order to ensure continuing and robust service for Village of Tarrytown residents from the Tarrytown Volunteer Ambulance Corps and EMS service, the Board of Trustees has agreed to support TVAC by reimbursing the cost of Refused Medical Attention (RMA) calls within the Village of Tarrytown on a monthly basis upon receipt of an invoice from TVAC in an amount not to exceed $120,000 per fiscal year. An RMA Call is a call in which a patient refuses transport to a medical facility in an ambulance. When the patient is treated on site and is not taken to a medical facility by TVAC, TVAC cannot seek reimbursement. Particularly during the pandemic when many patients did not want to be transported to medical facilities, this causes operational and financial challenges. The Village will reimburse TVAC for the amount they would have charged a patient for the ambulance transportation.

Want to learn what's on the docket for the Board of Trustees? You can sign up to receive agendas in your inbox here.

Accessory Dwelling Units: Next Public Hearing - January 17

The Board has been considering the adoption of a local law to allow homes in Single Family Residential Zoning Districts (map) the ability to add an accessory dwelling unit on the property of an existing home. Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) have also been called mother-in-law apartments, granny flats or in-law suites. The legislation is designed to be a low-impact approach to increasing the number of housing units in the Village while also providing an additional option to help families age in place.

Some of the provisions in the legislation meant to ensure that the zoning change will remain low impact include:

• Only one accessory dwelling unit is permitted per lot of a single-family home.
• Existing or new multi-family homes in single family residential zones will not be allowed to get an extra unit as a result of this legislation.
•  The homeowner must live on-site, either in the primary residence or in the accessory unit.
• If used as a rental, the lease must be for a minimum of 6 months.
• The units must be at least 300 sq. ft. and no more than 1000 sq. ft. or 50% of the floor area of the lot’s primary dwelling.
• The construction of a new detached dwelling unit would only be permitted in the single-family residential zones with larger lots: R-15 through R-80. In the zones with smaller lots, an ADU would be restricted to the existing structure(s).

The Board held the first presentation on the Accessory Dwelling Unit concept at the May 2, 2022 Board meeting, and has so far held public hearings on October 17, November 7, November 21, and January 3. The next public hearing will be held on January 17, 2023. Based on feedback from the public the draft law has been amended several times.

The proposed law to be considered on January 17 has been adjusted to restrict accessory dwelling units in the zoning districts with smaller properties (R-5, R-7.5 and R10) to no more than one bedroom. Clarification language was added that accessory dwelling units would only be permitted for single-family homes in single-family residential zones, and not for multi-family dwellings that have been grandfathered into those zones. The resolution to adopt the law will also formally establish it as a pilot program with a plan to review the local law at the threshold of 10 units or a year, whichever comes first.

The proposed legislation to be considered at the January 17^th public hearing can be found here.

Many questions from residents have arisen over the course of the last several months. We have compiled many of these questions and answers on the Housing Affordability Task Force web page. The following are a few answers to questions that arose at the most recent public hearing, but for a complete list of questions and answers, check out this page.

Is the proposed ADU legislation going to change all Single-Family Residential Zones to Multi-family zoning districts?

No. The Village Code has separate zoning districts where multi-family units are allowed. The Accessory Dwelling Unit proposal would only allow one additional accessory dwelling unit that complies with the law per lot, and that unit would be confined to the existing single-family structure, or in the larger lot Zones R-15 and above, there could be a new detached accessory structure that conforms to the size and setback restrictions of the law.   

Was this legislation considered in the Tarrytown Comprehensive Plan?

Yes. The Tarrytown Comprehensive Plan was developed over the course of many months with widespread community input. Chapter 10 of the section on Planning Goals and Policies emphasizes the need to “ensure housing stock supports a diverse and multi-generational community,” and implementation action 10.b.ii states: “Amend single-family zoning to permit accessory, establish guidelines and permitting process.” The Housing Affordability Task Force was charged with considering this goal and implementation action from the Comprehensive Plan and spent more than a year researching and crafting this proposed legislation with the Village Attorney and the Village Administrator for the Board to consider.   

If this legislation is so low impact, why should we institute it at all? Don’t we have enough affordable housing in the Village?

The experience of other communities has demonstrated that ADU legislation does not result in a vast tide of new dwelling units, but rather, with all of the moderating provisions in the legislation, ADUs tend to be installed only where they work.

The following is a list of communities that have ADU legislation, the number of units, and the year the legislation was enacted:

The purpose of ADU legislation is to provide an opportunity for those who need it, whether it be to house a family member who needs to move back home, or receive rental income from a second unit in order to age in place. According to the 2019 Housing Needs Assessment for the County, and specifically the Municipal Housing Snapshot for Tarrytown, almost 20% or 1 in 5 renters and more than 13% of owners (more than 1 in 10) in Tarrytown are severely cost burdened, which means they pay more than 50% of their annual income on housing. This legislation offers one alternative for those who need it.

For more answers to questions about Accessory Dwelling Units, please visit the Q and A page or find more resources on the Task Force page on our website.

The next public hearing will take place in Village Hall on January 17, 2023. If you wish to make a comment, but cannot attend the meeting, we welcome you to email the Village Clerk at kgilligan@tarrytownny.gov.

New Facebook Page

You may have been following the happenings of our Recreation Department, our Police Department and the Warner Library on social media for years now, but the Village Administration now has its own Facebook page. Like or Follow the page for news and updates from the Village. If you want to get in touch with us, you will still need to call, email or visit us in person because we can't monitor Facebook 24/7. Here is a list of contacts for Village Departments. The Village has more plans for finding new ways to communicate with residents in 2023. Stay tuned!

Con Ed Updates

Main Street: Gas main work has begun on Main Street, now that the holiday shopping season is over. Work on the mains will take 2 to 3 weeks per section, moving roughly a block at a time. 

The Village negotiated with Con Edison to ensure the holiday season was not disrupted for downtown. The replacement of gas mains is disruptive, but it is necessary, and Con Ed has been required by the Public Service Commission to complete it for the health and safety of all.

Service work and service switch-overs from the old main to the new main will take a few more weeks in each section. Parking in each section will be prohibited where the contractor is working, and will be restored in that section as the contractor moves to the next section. Parking for service work will be blocked off a few spots at a time where the service crews are working. 

Overall, work on Main Street will take a few months, with final paving taking place when warm weather returns in April/May. There will be no Saturday work on Main Street unless there is a gas emergency.

Downtown: Streets being backfilled now include Cottage Place, John Street and S. Washington Street.Next week the contractor will remove materials from the side streets, but the staging location in the South Washington Lot will remain.

E. Sunnyside Lane – work is progressing with the construction moving east up E. Sunnyside Lane. There will still be conditions of “no through traffic” from Broadway to White Plains Road during construction. 

New Year's Resolutions to Check Off Your List? Join the Fitness Center

Invasive Strike Force: The Vine Squad Needs You!

TEAC is forming a NEW Vine Squad to help combat invasive vines that blanket our parks and trees. We will meet the first and third Saturdays of the month from 10am to 2 pm, January through April, starting this Saturday, January 7th.

This week (Saturday, January 7th, 10am), we'll meet at the parking lot at the corner of Wilson Park Drive and County House Road. You'll need to wear long sleeves and long pants, a hat, and bring water snacks, gloves and hand tools, if you have them.

Please sign up here.

Every Household Can Order 4 Free COVID Tests

Sign up here to get yours: https://www.covid.gov/tests

Metro North Cares Program

MTA Metro-North Railroad announced the rebrand of its “Call Ahead” program to “MNR Care,” a customer assistance program that will serve Metro-North riders with mobility disabilities who need assistance accessing or navigating the railroad system. The program was rebranded to align with the Long Island Rail Road’s LIRR Care program. The on-call service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including holidays, to help customers, including those with mobility disabilities, who require assistance to board and/or exit from a Metro-North train. 

Customers can use the service when traveling to or from any station on the Metro-North system. Customers can request assistance by contacting Metro-North ahead of their travel, by dialing 511, 212-532-4900, or 877-690-5114 for Connecticut riders. A Metro-North representative will then contact train crews to notify them to be on alert for customers requiring assistance. This helps train crews know to be ready to find a customer who needs assistance on the platform and deploy the bridge plate if needed. At Grand Central Terminal, courtesy wheelchair assistance is provided upon request. 

Need Help with Heating Bills?

New York State has gathered information about a range of programs available for those who need assistance this winter.

• Energy Affordability and Electric and Natural Gas Bill Relief Programs: Eligible residential low-income customers can enroll in the Electric and Gas relief program before December 31, 2022, for a one-time credit to eliminate arrears accrued through May 1, 2022. This information if available for download by clicking the Electric & Gas Relief Program Fact Sheet.
• Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP): a federally funded program that provides heating grants to help income-eligible consumers pay for their energy costs. Additional information regarding the HEAP program can be found at the mybenefits website, or you may go to the HEAP website. The Consumer Assistance factsheet provides income eligibility information, as well as a more detailed description of each program benefit.
• HEAP Benefits and Important Dates:
• Regular Benefit component opens November 1, 2022 and is scheduled to operate through March 15, 2023
• Emergency Benefit component opens January 3, 2023 and will operate through March 15, 2023.
• Heating Equipment Repair or Replacement component opened October 3, 2022 and is scheduled to operate through March 15, 2023.
• Clean and Tune benefit opened October 3, 2022 and will operate through September 29, 2023.
• Cooling Assistance component opens May 1, 2023 and is scheduled to operate through August 31, 2023.

There are also utility sponsored programs and other assistance available. Please check out https://www.dps.ny.gov/winter for more information.

County Tax for Home Heating Suspended for Three Months

From the Examiner: "Westchester County officials announced last week that the county portion of the sales tax on home heating sources will be suspended for three months in hopes of giving beleaguered homeowners a break on energy prices amidst skyrocketing costs.

County Executive George Latimer said the 4 percent exemption will be in effect for three months, from Dec. 1 to Feb. 28, through the heart of the upcoming winter season. If a homeowner needs to fill a 250-gallon tank with heating oil at about $6 a gallon, for example, there would be a savings of about $60 with each delivery, he said."