Members Present:
Paul Slutzky, Chairman
Richard Volpi, Deputy Chairman
Gary Goodrich, Board Member (absent)
Harold Goldberg, Board Member
Carl Giangrande, Board Member
Gail Shegerian, Alternate Member

Public Present:

Michael Tancredi, Michael Osterer, Chris Jones, Jarrod Isham, Frank Castro, Diana Matkovich, Rob Corson, Joe Jove, Jolanta Jove, Alexa Kwiatkowski, Brian Hickey, Bennet Krasner, Victor Magnotti, Steven Lamb, Jessica Haines, Betsy Pelletteri, Dina Willaims, B. Victor Williams, Penny Sikalis Spring, Valentyna Tabaka, Bodan Tabaka, Yavoslava Tkacmuk, Natalie Tantovskiy, Michael Papa, Lee McGunnigle

Opening of Regular Meeting:

P. Slutzky opened the meeting at 7:00 PM.

Review and Approval of Minutes of September 23, 2021:

After review, H. Goldberg made MOTION to approve the minutes. MOTION seconded by R. Volpi and carried unanimously.

Privilege of the Floor:

Multiple members of the public asked to speak, including:

Frank Castro—said he was against regulating short term rentals; stated that Chairman Slutzky should recuse himself from discussion of the short term rental matter as he is on the Board of Managers of the Kaatskill Mountain Club property, which in the draft of the STR law is exempt from this regulation; said Village trustees should not be included in Planning Board discussions; advised that a group of 560 people has formed to fight the proposed STR regulation and they are raising a war chest to do so.

Bennet Krasner—stated that Chairman Slutzky should recuse himself from any discussion of short term rental regulation as he is President of the board of managers of the Kaatskill Mountain Club, which presents a conflict of interest. Said the Village already has laws it can use to deal with issues regarding parking, garbage and occupancies. Said an outside consultant cannot assist in drafting legislation as that would constitute practicing law without a license.

Alexa Kwiatkowski—said she doesn’t think Village needs regulation of short term rentals. Said she would be willing to serve on a committee that could be set up to deal with this type of issues.

Bonnie Krasner—asked how much consultant, Delaware Engineering was being paid for their engagement on this matter. Consultant K. Schwenzfeier advised their fee for the professional services agreement for this matter is $10,800.

Wally Cascio—said the Village needs housing for employees. Said he collects sales tax on short term rentals he does, but Air B&Bs don’t collect or remit sales tax.

Michael Tancredi—said he would like the process to be more organic using more community input.

Valentina Tabaka—said we need to treat everyone equal.

Ernie Reale—said he felt that creating regulations for short term rentals when less than 5% are creating problems is unequal treatment.

New Business: none

Old Business:

  • Hunter Inn Site Plan Revisions—7433 Main Street—Chris Jones of AJA Architecture and Planning presenting

P. Slutzky referenced the site plan application, finalized proposed site plan drawings, and completed Short EAF which were previously emailed to the Board members. C. Jones presented the full size site drawings and reviewed the various proposed changes, including new exterior stair case on west end of hotel, new deck area, new swimming pool and landscaping changes.

In response to Board questions, C. Jones advised that: new outdoor lighting would be minimal, would not shine off property and would be dark skys compliant; the new pool would be a gunite pool and would be operated seasonally; the dumpster and generator enclosure would be a 6’8” high screened fence; runoff drainage would be contained onsite; no changes to the NYSDOT curb cut were anticipated.

P. Slutzky advised that as the hotel is visible from Main Street, the Board needed to review the façade and site changes under the Village’s Architectural Review Law. He asked if any renderings of the proposed façade changes were being prepared. C. Jones said none were prepared as façade changes were very minimal.

The Board reviewed the information presented in Part-1 Project Information of the submitted Short Environmental Assessment Form. The Board agreed the project would be designated an Unlisted Action under SEQRA and as the proposed action does not require any permits from any government agency other than the Village, the Board would be lead agent in an uncoordinated SEQRA review. After the twenty questions in Part-1 were reviewed, P. Slutzky advised that no SEQRA determination could be made until response has been received from Greene County Planning’s 239 Review and until after a public hearing is held, if the Board decides to schedule one.

After discussion, R. Volpi made MOTION to hold a public hearing on the proposed project at 7:00 PM at the next scheduled Board meeting. H. Goldberg seconded the MOTION which was carried by all.

P. Slutzky advised C. Jones he would forward a Notice of Meeting to him, which would have to be mailed certified return/receipt to all the abutting neighbors to the Hunter Inn.

  • Hunter Peaks Major Residential Subdivision and Site Plan

P. Slutzky said he was told by applicant’s engineer that they did not want to proceed with the review until they have received comments from the Watershed Inspector General’s office relative to the revisions to the plat and SWPPP that have been submitted. He said when applicant is ready to continue the review, we will need to circulate letters to the agencies affirming our intention to retain our Lead Agency status in the coordinated SEQRA review process.

The Board reviewed the estimate of infrastructure costs to be bonded that was put together by our consultant engineers and noted that it is approximately one million dollars more than the applicant’s contractor had estimated. However, it included costs for retaining walls and rock removal, which costs were not included in applicant’s estimate.

Board reviewed Hunter Peaks’ sign permit application, but were unable to determine if the sign location is in the Village or the Town of Hunter. P. Slutzky said he would get clarification on this and if it is the Town, the application will have to be submitted to the Town.

  • Short Term Rental Committee

P. Slutzky advised he would first like to address some of the comments that were made by members of the public under Privilege of the Floor. He said he would not recuse himself from discussion of this matter because he is a member of the Board of Managers of the Kaatskill Mountain Club. He said he does not believe this presents any conflict of interest as the Club is a very different kind of property than the short term rental of single family homes. He said the Club, which functions as a time share condominium hotel, has management staff on premises 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to deal with any guest issues that may arise and it is regulated and inspected by the NYS Department of Health and other regulatory agencies on a regular basis. It also collects and remits sales taxes on all room rentals. He said these are the reasons why it along with timeshare, hotels, motels, bed and breakfast establishments and school or non-profit dormitories are excluded from the proposed draft law.

He further advised that the Board’s consultant from Delaware Engineering was not practicing law without a license, as was alleged during Privilege of the Floor. He advised the Planning Board was asked by the Village Board to act on a consulting basis to craft language relative to the short term rental issue that could be recommended to the Village Board and the Village attorney for their review and possible approval for incorporation into the Village of Hunter Zoning Law. He said the Board’s consultant was assisting in this process and any final draft of language would have to be reviewed and approved by the Village Board and the Village attorney and be the subject of Public Hearing(s) before it could be adopted in the Zoning Law.

As members of the public still desired to be heard on this matter, the Board entertained a lengthy discussion of the issue with multiple members of the public.

Date of Next Meeting:

The Board reviewed potential dates for the November Board meeting as the fourth Thursday of the month falls on Thanksgiving. R. Volpi made MOTION to reschedule the regular November Planning Board meeting to November 18 at 7:00 PM. H. Goldberg seconded the MOTION which was carried by all.

Adjournment:

H. Goldberg made MOTION to adjourn the meeting at 9:46 PM. R. Volpi seconded the MOTION, which was carried by all.

Transcribed by:
Paul Slutzky