Mayor’s Message February 2024
“There are at least two things going for February: It’s short, and it’s not January”
- NY Times’ Dani Blum
And, to prove the point, SUN is in our forecast after a long and gray January!
February may be a short month, but The Rhinebeck Village Board has a very full agenda. We are making progress on immediate measures as part of the “Safe Routes to School” initiative. You will soon be seeing new stop signs at the intersection of South Street and South Parsonage Streets. The Board voted to amend our Vehicle and Traffic regulations to allow the installation of the signs. We took this action after a Public Hearing. The signs are ordered, so we should get them installed soon. We will be putting up notices to remind everyone about the changes.
There will be a special meeting on February 27th to continue the SEQRA (State Environmental Quality Review Act) review of the proposed zoning overlay for 6 Mulberry Street. Proposed action includes the adoption of a local law to create an overlay district, Bulkeley Shepherd Overlay (BS-O) for the adaptive reuse and redevelopment of the existing schoolhouse into a 9-unit multi-family building, as well as a subdivision to create five parcels, including one for the school and four additional parcels to be developed as single family homes. The review assesses the environmental impact of the project. The February 27th meeting will be at 6:30PM in Village Hall. More information on the project can be found on the Village’s website:
6 Mulberry — Village of Rhinebeck.
The Board is continuing to deal with the effects on our budget of rising material costs and salaries. This is a problem facing municipalities all around NY State, as we deal with high prices, supply chain issues, workforce recruitment and retention. We have made major progress in road improvements, but each project costs a lot more than it used to, and the State has not increased the funding it provides us. The New York Tax Cap is set annually at 2 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever is less, with some exceptions. Local communities have the ability to override the cap. Our advocates at the New York Conference of Mayors (NYCOM) are continuing to lobby for the cap to be amended to provide exclusions for certain municipal expenditures (like building roads). In case the State does not take action in time for the 2024-2025 budget, the Village Board has introduced a local law which would allow us to exceed the States 2% cap on the total amount to be raised through property taxes charged on the municipality's taxable assessed value of property if needed. There are specific steps which must be taken prior to April 1 in order to enact this law:
● Introduce the Tax cap override law
● Complete the budget review process
● Notice of public hearing for budget and local law (if needed)
● Public hearing for both (if needed)
● Adoption of final budget and Adoption of Tax Cap Override (if needed)
Over the past three years, we have held the budget under the cap, even as costs and inflation have risen. Village CFO Karen McLaughlin presented the 6 month review of our Village Budget. Her complete report can be seen at: 6 Month Financial Review — Village of Rhinebeck
And as it’s February, planning for the 2024-25 Fiscal Year is a big agenda item for the Village. The fiscal year begins in June. Completion of the Comprehensive Plan is also high on our “To Do” list. By reallocating budget line items, we were able to fund the Comp Plan with an additional $50,000 which will cover engineering, legal and communication costs through the end of May. As the budget discussion progresses, we will plan for all the upcoming projects in the 2024-25 fiscal year.
And some GOOD NEWS for our budget planning ! We are now getting 10% off our electric bills for 9 of the Village’s Central Hudson Electricity accounts. That’s because they are now being powered by solar energy from a “Community Distributed Generation” project, a solar farm in Marbletown, NY.Thanks to Sustainable Westchester who provided valuable guidance to get us and other municipalities onto this project. We can cancel our subscription at any time if rates change.
The Archtop Fiber construction is progressing well. Designs are nearly finalized, and we look forward to completing the core network and hub site by March and we will be working on the distribution network shortly thereafter with a completion of the entire hub area including the other surrounding villages and towns this summer. The Village will be the first to be built and expect it will be substantially complete by Memorial Day. When completed residents will have the option to use them as their internet provider at 1Gb (gigabit) that's faster than other plans.
As always, please reach out to me with any questions or comments. You can reach me by phone 845-876-7015 ext 2 at Village Hall or via email MayorBassett@Villgeofrhinebeckny.gov
Mayor Gary Bassett