Roslyn Estates trustees on Monday approved a local law granting the board the ability to appoint up to three alternate members to the village’s planning board.
The legislation, introduced during last month’s trustees meeting, was deemed necessary because the five-member planning board has struggled in recent months to reach a three-member quorum necessary to vote on applications, Roslyn Estates Mayor Jeff Schwartzberg said.
Planning board members serve five-year terms, while alternates serve one-year terms, according to village code.
Under the law, a member of the Board of Trustees may be appointed among the three alternates and serve at hearings as long as that trustee does not have a conflict of interest in an application.
Schwartzberg said he would likely appoint the alternate planning board members at the next board of trustees meeting on April 13.
In other developments:
• The board set a public hearing for its April meeting on the village’s 2015-16 budget, which Schwartzberg said would be constructed during two work sessions the board plans to hold in the coming weeks.
• A public hearing was scheduled for the board’s May 11 meeting to consider the expansion of village noise ordinances to include barking dogs.
Village Attorney Chris Prior said current noise ordinances are out-of-date and do not specify loud dogs, a recent subject of complaints to Village Hall.
Under the proposed ordinance, residents who complain about the noise must hear a dog barking for at least 10 minutes in a given hour and sign an affidavit, which would then be used in a dispute with the dog’s owner in village court.
“It comes down to testimony from neighbors,” Prior said. “That’s how these types of things are prosecuted.”
Prior said he wrote the ordinance based on dog-barking noise cases that have been successful in lower courts throughout the state.
• Zoning board Chairman Steven Halper suggested the Board of Trustees develop a long-term road repair system in wake of recent harsh winters requiring snow removal practices that cause potholes throughout the village.
“If we’re going to continue to get winters like this, our roads are going to continue to take a beating,” he said.
Trustees said they would be receptive to the idea and would explore an engineering study to determine a timetable for road work.
Deputy Mayor Jeff Lindenbaum said the board has set aside approximately $90,000 in reserves to reduce the cost of a potential bond for road repairs.
The village underwent approximately $700,000 in road reconstruction last year, trustees said.
