3
Wallkill Valley Times, Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Shawangunk’s Chief
Petrone to retire
By TED REMSNYDER
After nearly four decades with the
Shawangunk Police Department, Police
Chief Frank Petrone
will be exiting the agency at the
conclusion of the year, as an era in the
town’s law enforcement comes to an end.
Petrone publicly announced his decision
at the Town Board meeting on June 1,
and Shawangunk Supervisor John Valk
thanked the chief during the session
for giving the administration more than
seven months to find his replacement.
This isn’t the first time that Petrone
has announced his retirement, but unlike
that initial occasion in the summer of
2013 when the board
asked him to stay
on, he plans to make
it stick this time
around.
“It
was
just
time,”
he
said
of the decision.
“Actually, I retired
four years ago this
Frank Petrone July and then I was
re-appointed part-
time. So I’ve been doing the same job
in part-time capacity for four years. My
wife and I decided if I’m going to retire,
just retire.” Petrone’s successor is not
expected to be hired in a full-time capacity
either. “The new position will probably be
part-time too for the new person,” Valk
said. “That will probably continue for
budgetary reasons. We have to balance
the budget under a two percent cap, that’s
why we need a part-time chief.”
Petrone has served the department for
37 years, and has held the chief post
for the past 26. His last official day will
be Dec. 31 and Petrone wants to make
the board’s hiring process as smooth as
possible.
“They wanted me to stick around (in
2013), but now they’ll do interviews and
try to get a replacement by the first of
the year,” he said. “I’ll be helpful with the
transition. I don’t want to see anybody
just go in there cold.” The police chief also
said he’d be open to giving his input to the
board about his eventual replacement.
“It’s the board’s decision, but there’s a
couple of members of my department
that have expressed interest and I’ll give
them some feedback on that, and there’s
some outside people too,” he said.
Valk noted that the Shawangunk
administration will be deliberative in
searching for Petrone’s replacement.
“We’ll be collecting resumes and we’ll
schedule interviews so the whole board
can participate,” he said. “Then we’ll
make our decision. They (the candidates)
will have to take a civil service test to hold
the position.”
At the board’s previous meeting on May
18, the council implemented a new $50 fee
for residents whose dogs are picked up
(and subsequently returned) by Town Dog
Control Officer Paolo Chiappetta. After
consulting with the officer, the board
decided to raise the fee at Thursday’s
meeting to $130 based on Chiappetta’s
recommendation. Dog owners will also be
charged a $65 fee for each additional day
the dog officer has to hold their canine.
Valk explained at the meeting that
Chiappetta tried a similar fee structure
in Gardiner while working there and the
higher fees cut down on repeat offenders
misplacing their dogs. Valk said half-
jokingly during the meeting that he was
worried that with lower fees that when
local dog owners left for vacation, they
would just let the dog officer pick their
dog up instead of ponying up to place
them in a kennel. The $130 fee will cover
Chiappetta’s expenses for tracking down
loose dogs. “Usually it’s the next day
before the owner gets the dog back,” Valk
said. “You have to figure in his time, the
equipment, having to go to the dog shelter
and feeding them twice a day, walk it.
There’s a lot involved. I think people
will keep their dogs penned up. There’s
a lot of dogs at large and it’s a problem.”
Chiappetta will also step up efforts in the
near future to make sure that all dogs
in the town are properly licensed. “The
dog control officer will also start doing a
census by knocking on doors and asking
if people have dogs,” Valk said. “We need
to get them licensed because people aren’t
licensing their dogs, and we can’t track
them down if he picks them up.”
The board also announced during the
June 1 meeting that they’ll be crafting
a pooper scooper law that will fine
dog walkers who decline to pick up
after their dogs. The town will study
similar legislation from surrounding
communities and introduce a bill at
an upcoming session. “Because of the
disease the feces can carry, we need to do
that,” Valk said of the forthcoming law.
“It’s long overdue. A lot of communities
have it. We’re trying to protect the little
kids that play on the sidewalk and in the
parks.”
9
Month CD
At 0.90% APY
Annual Interest Rate 0.88%
LIMITED TIME ONLY
• Deposit must be made with funds not on
deposit with Hometown Bank of the
Hudson Valley.
• APY=Annual Percentage Yield
Rates effective 5/23/17. Rates subject to
change without notice.
For more information call
• Substantial penalty for
early withdrawal.
• Minimum deposit of $10,000.
New funds only.
800-458-8190
ARE YOU TIRED
OF LOCKING UP YOUR MONEY?
0.75
Money Market Account
%
APY
START EARNING HIGHER INTEREST ON YOUR MONEY NOW.
If locking up your money in a CD to get a higher interest rate isn’t working for you; open a
Money Market Account and receive higher interest on your money. Come into your local branch
and talk to a Hometown Banker about how a Money Market Account can help you bank better.
• Minimum of $10,000 initial deposit.
• Flexible access to your money at any time.
• Grow your money faster with interest.
• Deposit, withdraw or transfer money.
* The promotional rate applies only to new personal accounts opened with a deposit of at least $10,000 in New Money. New Money is defined
as funds which do not originate from an existing Hometown Bank of the Hudson Valley account. In order to earn the advertised Annual
Percentage Yield (APY) you must deposit between $10,000 and $500,000. APY is accurate as of 05/19/2017. If at any time the account
balance falls below $1,000, your entire balance will not earn any interest. You will earn an Annual Percentage Yield (APY) of 0.10% when your
balance is between $1,000 and $9,999.99; 0.75% APY when your balance is between $10,000 and $24,999.99; 0.75% APY when your
balance is between $25,000 and $99,999.99; 0.75% APY when your balance is between $100,000 and $250,000; 0.75% APY when your
balance is between $250,000.01 and $500,000; If at any time the account balance plus any interest credited is more than $500,000, the entire
balance on the account will earn an APY of 0.25%. This is a variable rate account, which means rates are subject to change daily at our
discretion. This is a limited-time offer and may be withdrawn at any time. This offer may not be combined with any other promotion or program.
To avoid the $25 Monthly service charge on the account you must maintain a minimum daily balance of $2,500. Fees may reduce earnings
on this account. If your account is closed within 180 days of opening, an “Early Account Closing” fee of $25 will be assessed. Hometown Bank
of the Hudson Valley Money Market accounts are subject to a limited number of transactions per statement cycle, a $15 service charge may
apply for each transaction above these limitations; refer to the Schedule of Fees and Account Disclosure for details.
www.HometownBankHV.com
Member FDIC