IN THIS ISSUE | ||
Calendar ................. |
14 |
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Classifieds ................ |
34 |
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Crossword ................ |
36 |
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Letters to the Editor .......... |
8 |
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Maybrook ................. |
27 |
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Montgomery ............... |
29 |
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Obituaries ................ |
32 |
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Opinion ................... |
8 |
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Pine Bush ................. |
28 |
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Police Blotter ............... |
4 |
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School News ............... |
24 |
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Service Directory ........... |
41 |
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Sports ................... |
48 |
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Walden ................... |
26 |
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Wallkill ................... |
29 |
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Walker Valley .............. |
30 |
By JANE ANDERSON |
Brescia called the $ 89 cost exorbitant . |
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Stanley said that ’ s what the village ’ s | ||||||
When is a bed & breakfast not a bed & breakfast ? That will be the question at a public hearing May 17 , as the village of Montgomery ponders what types of events |
“ I . T . guy ” charges , and that the village has to pass that cost on . Brescia assured Devitt that the village will work out a compromise . |
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go beyond the traditional description of |
Resident |
Don |
Berger , |
who |
with |
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such an establishment .
Proprietors of the Borland House Inn , Anna Frumes and her father Larry , approached the Village Board at its regular meeting May 3 to increase its brunch time by two hours – the inn currently serves brunch to the public from 8 a . m . to 1 p . m ., and Frumes would like to serve until 3 p . m .
The request led to a discussion over the interpretation of “ special event ” regarding bed
& breakfast
( B & B ) establishments . A local law is being proposed to limit parties to a minimum of 40 attendees , and possibly limit them to birthday parties for those who are renting a room at the B & B .
During the May 3 meeting , Mayor
Steve Brescia said it becomes a grey area when events advertised by a B & B appear to compete with events hosted by local restaurants , since B & Bs follow different regulations than restaurants .
Village
Attorney
Kevin
Dowd concurred , saying that it seems to go around the original intent of a B & B to rent a room and have an event such as a fundraiser . Such an event was planned just two days after the meeting , when the Montgomery Montessori School was hosting a tea at the Borland House and was expecting a total of 98 people , Dowd
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Anna Frumes hopes to increase her brunch hours at the Borland House . said .
“ You ’ re getting closer and closer to being a restaurant , and getting around the parking rule by doing that ,” he added .
The hearing is set for 7:20 p . m . May 17 at Village Hall .
During public comment , resident Marc
Devitt contested the $ 89 per hour charge he was told by Village Clerk Monserrate
Stanley that he had to pay to have a recording of village meetings copied onto a flash drive he provided . Devitt pointed out the Boy Scouts from Troop
386 who were attending the meeting for a merit badge requirement : “ You have eight
Boy Scouts here who could do it in two minutes !” Devitt joked .
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resident Maria Beltrametti pointed out a major tax-rate error at a meeting a few weeks prior , asked Brescia what role he plays in compiling the village budget . Brescia explained that he used to go over it line by line , but that recently he has delegated more and more of that duty . Brescia took issue with Beltrametti ’ s recent letter to local newspapers that criticized the village board , saying that it was “ insulting .” Deputy
Mayor
Joann
Scheels explained that after a number of years working with people , “ you get to the point where you feel safe and confident ” in their abilities . When the board realized the budget numbers were wrong , “ we were all embarrassed . But we stepped up to the plate and got it fixed .”
Berger pointed out that the village still had the tax-cap figure incorrect .
“ We got that from the state ,” Scheels countered . “ When we were told it was less [ than we thought ], we requested paperwork . We ’ re at zero . We ’ re here to serve you residents . And we fixed it before it was adopted . We won ’ t ever have that problem again .”
The board members concluded by saying they would consider holding a number of work sessions before adopting future budgets .
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Senior apartment project pitched to Walden |