Town of Milford
Report Card
The following is a list of concerns the Goodyear Lake
Association Inc. has brought in front of the Milford Town Board for the last
two years and the Town’s response to these issues. Also included in this report
are any actions that the Town took against the Association for whatever reason
they may have had.
1)
We repeatedly asked them to post an agenda
before each Town Board meeting. We were repeatedly denied, even though it is
obvious at each meeting that they indeed do have an agenda they work through.
We were asked if we did not trust our elected officials to do their job. Our
answer: no, we do not trust them, not when the board members themselves have no
idea of the agenda until the night of the meeting, and/or the members make no
effort to contact their constituents if they know of an agenda. This is not
open government.
2)
We asked them repeatedly for 2 alternates, as
provided for by state law, to the zoning board of appeals. We did this so a
full board be made available to a petitioner in case of a conflict of interest
on the part of a board member, or in the case of an extended leave by a board
member. With a five member ZBA, any 2 to 2 tie is a loss if one member
abstains; with only four on the board, a 2 to 2 is a loss; with only three
members present a 2 to 1 vote in favor is also a loss. We were denied our
request.
3)
We asked for speed bumps to be placed around the
lake in the summer. This was done, but not everywhere we asked they be put;
Lakeshore Dr. So.
was ignored. When people complained to the Town about the bumps, the Town told
them that GYLA wanted the speed bumps, not the Town.
4)
We asked, when scrap metal prices were at their
highest, if they Town could engage, as did the Town of Hartwick, in a town-wide
scrap metal drive. We were told “No”, because a few out of the entire town
might throw garbage in the bin and not metal. Meanwhile, the Town of Hartwick made over $1500,
after costs, for the Town on their drive.
5)
We asked that the sign on County Route 35 be corrected
from “Sillman Cove Rd.” to its correct spelling “
Silliman Cove Rd.” This was done.
6)
. When we put a temporary building on our
property at Journey’s End, similar to buildings placed all around the area, we
were cited by the ZEO for not having a building permit. When we asked why we
received the citation and not all the others, we were given no satisfactory
answer, even though, in some of the other cases, this same ZEO himself told
people that they needed no permit for a temporary building. We paid the fee.
The others have not
7)
We were cited by the ZEO for operating an
illegal parking lot on our property on Journey’s End, and told that the
property was poorly maintained. The
property is obviously carefully and constantly maintained by GYLA. There was no
illegal parking occurring. The citation was dropped by the Town.
8)
Citing a conflict of interest and partiality, a
15 year, trained member of the ZBA was dropped from his position. The reason
given was that two members of the ZBA belonged to GYLA. Now we have only 1
member from the lake area representing the largest voting and residential
tax-paying block in the Town, while 4 of the ZBA members represent the least
populated, outlying districts.
9)
The Town did support our efforts to celebrate the
Centennial of the Dam & the Lake.
10)
Our repeated complaints about the conditions of
the properties on Maple Street still have not been resolved. These “ad hoc”
dumps need to be taken care of; they are a violation of the Town’s own Junk
Law.
11)
The Town has helped in the removal of the
piled-up water chestnuts pulled from the river and lake, although some piles
were left to rot in place, leaving live seeds close to the water’s edge.
12)
The Town has not actively pursued the training
of its officers on the ZBA and Planning Board as required by law; some members
have not attended once in 2 years. We are at a loss as to why to Town would be
soft on training and education when their decisions might impact people’s very
existence.
SCORE: Positive: 4 Negative: 8