Conesville to Review Campground Plans

By Matthew Avitabile

CONESVILLE — At the monthly Town of Conesville meeting Tuesday evening, the board discussed several issues in a brief meeting.

Dan Crandall presented a proposed campground project on behalf of resident Eric Dahlberg. He said that the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) had reviewed a proposal letter and sought the Town as the lead agency for environmental (SEQR) review. The town previously did so on behalf of Dahlberg’s Conesville Country Store.

The stormwater situation looks “very good,” said Crandall and that the location “looks like an ideal site.”

The stormwater review needs to be approved by the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to proceed,.

Town Supervisor Bill Federice said that the town would “need some time to go through it.”
Resident Joanne Noone asked if the project had gone through the town Planning Board. The supervisor said that such projects would not necessarily need to but rejected further comment. Noone said that she would send a letter on the topic as the two exchanged words icily.

Town Clerk Carrie Sutton said that there had been two dog licenses, two water district payments, and three sewer district payments in the last week.

Town Code Enforcement Officer Rob Giordano said that “spring is here” and that he anticipated a “busy year” of construction.

Town Tax Collector Laurel Mattice said that there was an increase in property taxes paid over the last month with Federice saying that there was a “big improvement from last month.”

Town Historian Kim Young said that she had been working on property and family history research and wrote an article for the Maple Festival. She said that she was going to two historian conferences.

Town Highway Superintendent Ward Apgar said that the crew plowed and sanded all town roads 21 days in the last month and had “pretty big repairs on plow trucks” in a written report. He said that there were also five culvert pipes that froze up that needed to be thawed out. The town also ordered 400 tons of stone and salt mixture from Heidelberg (formerly Carver) to add to the salt shed, which has mostly been used already. He is also seeking a date for the delivery of the new plow truck.

Town Supervisor Federice said that he was disappointed in the results of the Schoharie County Board of Supervisors vote on a $30 million broadband grant administered through NYS Empire State Development (ESD), stating that he didn’t “have a lot of confidence” in the agency.

He also stated that there were “unforeseen” costs to the project, including a $300,000 fee to ESD and at least $50,000 in insurance each year. The supervisor said that some supporters of the project were doing a “victory lap.”
“Not a good deal,” he said, partially citing that many of the connections would be in areas inhabited by the Amish.

He also reported on the county’s victory regarding alternative energy property valuation. In one case, a solar farm in Sharon saw an 84% reduction in valuation, which would have reduced tax revenue by more than $2 million per year.

Federice said that the county made a “compelling case” in court against the state valuation policy. The lawsuit was funded exclusively by Schoharie County with the participation of all 16 towns.

A judge in Sullivan County agreed with the county even after the state argued its position through the Attorney General’s Office.

“We’re thrilled,” he said. “We were upheld.”

Federice said that the effort stopped an “unconstitutional usurpation” and that the state cannot tell any local government to override the value of land.

“This could be— this will be— appealed,” he added.

At the very least, the effort will set back assessment changes for a year, which the supervisor said was a “big win.”
No other county joined in the suit but are now congratulating Schoharie County. Federice, who also serves as County Board Chair, said that he hoped that some of those counties will assist in fighting an appeal.

He specifically thanked Blenheim Town Supervisor Don Airey for his strong work and seeking a “fair return.”
Separately, the supervisor reported to the board that he budget was in good shape so far this year.

The meeting adjourned after about 25 minutes.