By Nathan Mayberg
MONTICELLO — December 6, 2005 – Veterans in Sullivan County may see new housing designated just for them.
A proposal was made by developer Leonard Gruenfeld at the Veterans Committee of the Sullivan County Legislature Thursday to build six one-bedroom units in Monticello on Osbourne Street, near the First National Bank of Jeffersonville branch.
The property consists of approximately .56 acres according to Gruenfeld. The units could be occupied not only by veterans but their surviving spouses. Gruenfeld said he would charge between $300 and $500 per unit. He said part of the financing would come from the state, and he would turn over the units to the Monticello Housing Authority. He would need approvals from the Village of Monticello Planning Board on unspecified variances.
Gruenfeld was looking for a letter of support from the legislature. The committee unanimously approved a resolution in support.
In other committee business, a group looking to hold a Sullivan County Airport Festival for veterans of the war in Iraq will be meeting with Sullivan County Manager Harvey Smith to iron out the details of what requirements they need to abide by.
The group was unsuccessful in their first attempt at the festival because they failed to meet their obligations, said Smith. Smith said there are about 25 different regulations they must meet before holding such an event at the airport.
In other legislative business, Sullivan County Sheriff’s Department deputies met with legislators to complain about bothersome plastic seats at the Sullivan County Jail. Sullivan County Legislature Chairman Chris Cunningham and Legislator Jodi Goodman indicated that the problem would be taken care of.
In Public Works Committee, an inter-municipal agreement with the Town of Fallsburg was approved unanimously in order to convey ownership of one-lane Bridge 293 to the town. Legislator Leni Binder said the bridge, on Grey Road, was one of the first built in the town and will be preserved.
According to the resolution, the bridge has exceeded its useful life, so a new bridge will be constructed downstream. However, the town will maintain it due to its historical nature.
The committee also unanimously approved a reconstruction project on County Road 173 in the Town of Thompson. The project will cost the county $43,700 and the state $411,250. The road will be widened and a bidirectional turning lane will be added. The contract was awarded to Stantec Consulting Group of Albany.
The Planning and Community Development Committee authorized $10,000 for the department to apply for environmental protection funds from the state as part of the county’s open space inventory and planning initiative. The county is applying for $50,000 in funds from the state. The application is being supported by the Nature Conservancy and the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development.
And $10,000 was allocated for the department to hire Shippensburg University to develop and implement an image-based Geographic Information Systems land use/land change model to provide a visual representation of changes in land use over time and provide forecasts of future development patterns in the county.
The committee also gave the go-ahead for the Division of Planning and Community Development to apply for, accept and administer funding for a CCAP grant of $50,000 in order to purchase a new van for the transportation development plan.