Wednesday April 24, 2024 
North Greenbush Town Board Update
Happy Summer and with that brings our exciting summer concert series to North Greenbush. Join us every Sunday at 6pm at the gazebo behind town hall for great music, food and fun.
At our town board meeting, Supervisor Joe Bott and Deputy Supervisor Kelly Hoffman introduced resolutions appointing new members to our North Greenbush Police Department and as part of the town’s negotiating committee, worked closely with the PBA in finalizing a new contract agreement with the union.
Our officers are the finest and bravest and this contract reflects our commitment to providing quality officers who serve and protect our community. Joe and Kelly both thanked Josiah Deeb, PBA President for his cooperation during negotiations. The board voted to table a public hearing for a zone change at 634 Bloomingrove Drive until additional information is received. The purchase of a new truck for the highway department was passed. Members of the Town Open Space Committee were joined by several Albany Law students who did a presentation on the importance of natural resource inventory.
When you drive into town on Route 4, our new “Town of North Greenbush” monument is a welcoming sign to our community. The addition of sidewalks for residents to enjoy to walk or ride bikes as part of the Route 4 improvement project has been well received. Residents have commented about the positive impact they have enjoyed with safe places to walk and cross, walk to their physicians offices, commercial establishments and out to eat. This has been a wonderful improvement and opportunity for our residents to experience all of the great things our town has to offer.
As always, please feel free to call the town supervisor’s with questions or ideas for us. We hope you continue to have an enjoyable summer!
Supervisor Bott, Deputy Supervisor Hoffman, Councilpersons Merola and Gordon.
Councilman Jack Rogers Reports to the Town of North Greenbush
The Summer Concert Series will continue every Sunday through August 14th depending on the weather.
The Route 4 Project is coming to an end. We are just waiting to complete the traffic light at Route 4 and Winter Street Extension.
An informative presentation was provided by Keith Hirokawa and his students from Albany Law School. The presentation was on the North Greenbush Natural Resource Inventory. The North Greenbush Open Space Committee is currently working on an inventory of the town’s resources. Thank you to the members of this committee for their hard work and for their attendance at the meeting.
The Town Board appointed a new Police Officer and Police Dispatcher. Welcome to North Greenbush.
A resolution was passed to appoint additional summer staff for the 2022 summer season.
The contract with The North Greenbush Police Benevolent Association (PBA) was approved.
The Town Board passed a resolution for an “ Out of District User Agreement” for two properties to connect to the water main in water district #13. This is a temporary agreement so they can access water now.
A public hearing for a zoning change for the Points North Holding LLC was tabled in order to get additional information and studies.
A resolution was passed to purchase a new truck for the Highway Department.
Check out the town website for information, announcements, and town board meeting minutes at townofng.com or contact me at jrogers@<span class=”oe_displaynone”>null</span>northgreenbush.org. I also post information on my Facebook page Councilman Jack Rogers. You can attend meetings in person or live stream at https://townhallstreams.com/towns/northgreenbush.
Get involved and informed about what is happening in the Town of North Greenbush.
Next Town Meetings are:
•Planning Board 7/25/22 at 6:30PM
•Zoning Board 8/10/22 at 6:30PM
•Town Board 8/11/22 at 7:00PM
Have a Safe & Fun Summer,
Councilman Jack Rogers
Rensselaer County Legislature Approves HVCC Budget by a 13-6 Vote Along Party Lines
The Rensselaer County Legislature held a Public Hearing on the Hudson Valley Community College (HVCC) 2022- 2023 operating budget before their July meeting on Tuesday night.
Legislator Dan Casale is the Chair of the Education Committee and chaired the public hearing that saw no speakers other than President Ramsammy.
HVCC President Roger Ramsammy spoke about the college’s ability to prosper through the pandemic by creating innovative new programs and expanding the college’s physical footprint in the region. President Ramsammy also stressed the fact that tuition will not be increasing for the 2022 school year that will begin shortly.
When it was time to vote to approve the budget, a member of the Legislature Minority made a motion to table the vote, citing concerns from their constituents. However, no constituents or Legislators spoke against the budget during the Public Forum that preceded the meeting.
After the motion to table failed, the six Legislators that represent Troy voted against the budget. It is worth noting that the Legislature does not manage the college’s budget, but is required to approve it each year. Rensselaer County also sponsors the college by contributing $5.4 million each year to its $91.9M budget.
Legislator Dan Casale is the Chair of the Education Committee and chaired the public hearing said, “It was exciting to hear President Ramsammy speak about the bright future of HVCC, and it was great to hear that tuition would not be increasing even during this time of rising costs everywhere. I was surprised to see that for the first time that anyone could recall, the budget wasn’t adopted unanimously by the Legislature.”
“As a HVCC graduate, I am proud of how the college has grown, and am excited about the direction it is going under the leadership of President Ramsammy”, said Chairwoman of the Legislature.
Honoring Sunhee’s Owner Jinah Ahn as a “40 Under 40” Albany Business Review 2022 Recipient
The Rensselaer County Minority Legislature presented a resolution (P/275/22) to Sunhee’s Owner Jinah Ahn commending her on her dedication to our community and success in entrepreneurship at their Regular Meeting on July 12, 2022.
Rensselaer County Minority Office – July 2022 Monthly Report
HVCC Budget – The annual budget for Hudson Valley Community College was put to a vote in the legislature this month. While all of our legislators are grateful for the college and the positive impact it has on Rensselaer County, many of the minority legislators had recently been approached by concerned constituents regarding the funding of several international trips taken by HVCC President Roger A. Ramsammy, members of his administration, members of the HVCC Board of Trustees, and their spouses.
It remains unclear where this funding originated. When pressed by Legislator Doran in an Education Committee meeting, CFO Donal Christian promised to send the appropriate expense reports, but instead the legislators learned that they would have to undergo a legal process that would keep them from obtaining the necessary information in time for July’s legislative meeting. As a result of this, Legislator Doran made a motion to table the budget until the August meeting so the vote could be made once the information they requested was obtained, a motion that was soundly defeated by the legislative majority, who claimed that this was not an issue and that no one was denied access to these records. Legislators Grimm, Doran, Fleming, Nichols, Weaver, and Zalewski, having been denied pertinent information on the budget, had no choice but to vote no on passing it.
Urging the Closure of the S.A. Dunn Landfill – The legislature unanimously passed a resolution urging Governor Hochul and the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation to oppose the renewal of the operating permit for the S.A. Dunn Landfill in the city of Rensselaer. The landfill, which is located 500 feet from the city’s public school, has had a severely negative impact on city residents since its creation, and the city would benefit greatly from its closure.
NEXT MEETING – Tuesday, August 9, 2022 in the RC Chambers located on the 3rd floor of the Ned Pattison Government Center, 1600 7th Avenue, Troy, NY.