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Wallkill Valley Times , Wednesday , November 23 , 2016 3
Conflict questions and code enforcement dominate Montgomery village meeting
By JESSICA COHEN jcohen @ tcnewspapers . com
The contents of Christina Luciano ’ s yard on Cardinal Drive and how codes are enforced there by Village of Montgomery building inspector Bruce Yancewicz have been the contentious focus of the last two village board meetings . But last week Mayor Steve Brescia , abetted by village attorney Kevin Dowd , set forth an aggressive plan to oppose the Lucianos in court , “ looking at other property issues ” to ticket , while disavowing evidence that Yancewicz may have behaved unethically .
At last week ’ s meeting , after Luciano ’ s neighbor , Joan Grippo , complained that a plastic gazebo had been moved from one side of Luciano ’ s yard to another , but not removed , Brescia said , “ We ’ re taking legal action . There ’ s been no compliance at all .”
“ But when will it be taken down ?” asked Grippo .
“ We ’ re following another code . We ’ re having it demolished ,” said Brescia .
“ Bruce is looking at other property issues ,” said Village attorney Kevin Dowd . “ If there ’ s no compliance , there will be another ticket . They applied for a permit for a shed but want to keep the other structure . They ’ ll be served with a subpoena . We ’ ll keep the ball rolling .”
“ For several years , neighbors have been complaining ,” Village Trustee Walter Lindner said later . “ From pictures of the yard shown at board meetings , I can tell it would be unpleasant for neighbors to look at . The court will decide what is a violation .”
Trustee Michael Hembury said that neighbors from three families had called him to complain .
“ I wish the Lucianos would just follow the rules ,” Hembury said . “ We have nothing else like that happening in the village . That ’ s why it looks nice . People follow the rules . When neighbors complain , we have to take action .”
He added that the rules were recently updated .
Questions about conflicts of interest
But Luciano was troubled with the way rules have been enforced . She said that Yancewicz suggested she hire his company to build a shed to replace the structure he cited as a code violation . If so , he ignored the village Ethics Board ruling that prohibited him from doing construction business in the village . The restriction was intended to avoid conflicts of interest , according to board member Michael Hembury .
Yancewicz denied he had suggested his company for the job , and Deputy Mayor JoAnn Scheels said the inspector had offered only “ information and guidance .”
However Luciano said Yancewicz had told her , “ I own a company , and we can provide plans and talk about how to build .” Luciano said she had recorded the conversation .
Questions about discrimination
Luciano also said Yancewicz had asked if she had a green card , which she understood as a racially motivated question . She assumed Yancewicz meant the green card that documents an immigrant ’ s right to reside in the country , she said , since she has Puerto Rican heritage and sometimes plays Spanish music . However , she grew up in the Bronx , she noted .
At the November 1 board meeting , Deputy Mayor JoAnn Scheels said that he was referring to a green assessor ’ s card .
“ He showed us the green card ,” said Brescia .
At the November 15 board meeting , the board presented a pale green card from the assessor ’ s office that listed the structures on the Luciano property .
Reached later , David Briggs , executive director of New York State Assessors Association said the term “ green assessor ’ s card ” is “ not at all ” familiar to him .
“ A property record card could be manufactured on green paper , but not statewide ,” he said . “ Some are orange or yellow .”
Asked whether residents are likely to have a copy of the card , he said , “ An assessor might take it into the field to add or delete what ’ s changed on the property . But it ’ s not common for a resident to have the card without requesting it .”
Asked about this incident , Hembury conceded , “ If he said that , that ’ s not right .”
Questions about intrusiveness
Yancewicz also denied that he had ever been on the Luciano ’ s property uninvited , as they had claimed .
“ I ’ m never on their property . I go with a witness ,” said Yancewicz , referring to the complainant neighbor , Victor Horton .
Dowd said the building inspector should make appointments for visits and get a court order if necessary . “ The idea is to do everything professionally .”
Continued on page 4
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