November 18th Town Board meeting

After an extended period of public comment, which included remarks from town planner Jan Weston and representatives of the Glass Works Village project, the Board voted 4-1 in favor of the 57-acre Planned Unit Development on Western Avenue near the YMCA. Councilman Redlich was the lone "no" vote.

The Board also voted to approve a schedule for town fees that raised fees overall by 20 percent. Councilmen Grimm and Redlich voted "no" on the fees.

November 6th Town Board meeting

The Town Board passed the 2009 budget. Councilman Grimm voted "no" because of

1 - the double-whammy tax hike --- a 4.68 % increase in the property tax levy and a 20% increase in town fees

2 - a proposal to freeze the pay of the town elected officials and some other political appointees was voted down by Supervisor Runion and board members Paul Pastore and Pat Slavick.

3 - a Grimm proposal to restore $7,200 to the budget for Community Caregivers, a wonderful nonprofit in Guilderland, was also voted down by the same vote.

4- a Grimm proposal to fund $9,000 for park playground improvements was also voted down by Supervisor Runion and Pastore & Slavick.

There was more than three hours of public input and board discussion on the Glass Works Village project. Western Avenue traffic was a top concern among Hamilton St. residents. The debate over the library road also continued.

The Board discussed the serious ethics issue involving the town attorney. The Board's majority voted to fund outside counsel for the town's ethics committee to investigate Sherwood. Grimm and Redlich voted "no" insisting outside counsel in this case was unnecessary town spending.
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Update (2/09): Supervisor Runion claimed in a Times Union article that he planned ahead for the tough economy by budgeting for lower sales tax revenue. Video from the 11/6 meeting appears to contradict that claim. See Ken Runion, sales tax and budget.

October 21st Town Board Meeting

Much of the meeting involved discussion of the proposed 57-acre Glass Works Village project and what to do regarding the proposed road behind the Town Library. Library Trustee Bob Ganz spoke at length and said if the options are a one-lane or two-lane road behind the library, then the Library Board favors the one-lane road. Ganz remains interested in the possibility of finding a way to upgrade Mercy Care Lane which runs a much greater distance behind the library. Ganz said the library withdrew its Environmental Impact Statement objections involving the Glass Works project because he was told the road idea was dropped.

Councilman Grimm raised the issue of the potential conflict involving the town's no-bid contracts awarded to the Feeney, Centi & Mackey law firm. A named partner at the firm, Daniel Centi, is the husband of Town Clerk Rosemary Centi.

The Board also declared November "Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month" in Guilderland.

October 7th Meeting

The principal item at the meeting was discussion of the proposed Glass Works Village project, a planned mixed-use development on 57 acres of land near the town library and YMCA. A public hearing to solicit input was set for October 21st at 8 pm.

April 1st Town Board Meeting

Three key items:

1 - The Board took about two hours to review the Findings of Fact statement presented by developers of the Glass Works Village project. A so-called "urbanist village" development on a 57-acre parcel behind the Town library is proposed. The most significant discussion concerned the traffic impact on Route 20. The Board eventually approved an amended version of the findings.

2 - A public hearing on a request to rezone the Stutz property on West Old State Road resulted in strong resistance from neighbors complaining about the flooding problems already associated with the property. The developer, Amedore Homes, was asked to return to the Board at a later date with plans to mitigate the problem. No vote was taken on the rezoning.

3 - A Northeastern Industrial Park representative presented their Findings of Fact statement regarding its request for zoning changes at NEIP. Since additional memos regarding the findings were not incorporated into the findings statement itself, the representative was asked to return on the April 15th Board meeting with comments incorporated into the document.