Negotiations between the Plattekill Library Board of Trustees and the Town of Plattekill for the sale of the present library and surrounding property to the Trustees appears to be moving forward. On March 21 Supervisor Joe Croce sent a letter to the Trustees “informing them of a change in our demand for the library,” related to the price for the building and property.

“We would consider selling it to the library, that’s what we’ve said all along,” Croce said.

In a subsequent interview, Library Board of Trustees President William Farrell responded, saying, “I am looking forward to continuing discussions on the possibility of purchasing the Library property from the town.”

Mowing Contract Awarded
The board approved hiring Grass Masters Landscaping to handle the town mowing at a cost of $600 per week upon the recommendation of Highway Superintendent Bobby Wager. This company was the only one to submit a bid for the work.

It was noted that in case the middle soccer field section at the town park is not mowed by the person hired by the soccer club, an additional fee of $65 per week will be charged.

Master Plan Update

The board formally approved paying Cindy Hilbert $3,000 to chair a committee that will update the town’s Master Plan. Supervisor Croce informed the board on how she will be paid.

“We’re going to be doing it as a contractual and she will not be paid out of payroll. This will be like we’re hiring a contractor,” he said. “She will be paid four quarterly payments of $750, which is our agreement with her, and at the end of the year she’ll get a 1099.”

Logging Permit Approved
The board approved a logging permit for Barney McGivern, of Goodfellers Forestry Service.

McGivern is planning a Selection Harvest, cutting about 300 hardwood trees of varying diameters from 16 inches and larger. He will be targeting 38 acres of a 98 acre parcel at 11 Ene Road, near the intersection of Rudolf Drive in Modena. He will start this spring and finish by the fall of this year.

In his application to the town, McGivern described what takes place during a Selection Harvest.

“It is a regeneration cut where specific trees are selected to be cut according to prescribed criteria in order to create and maintain healthy and uneven age and stand of timber and promote regeneration of the forest. Trees will be marked in blue paint prior to harvest operation. Trees were chosen by value, location and the health of trees which could be harvested responsibly to encourage the Best Forest Management Practices.”

McGivern said his work will not impact surrounding properties and he will use the slope of the land to avoid and/or divert runoff water from entering streams and drains. He added that water bars will be employed to achieve directional flow.

Upon finishing the harvest, McGivern said that all skid roads, “will be back bladed smooth and be free from logging debris. All tops will be removed from cut areas or lopped to a height of 4 feet or less. Impacted areas will utilize existing retention ponds for possible runoff.

McGivern stated there will be no impact to town roads from trucking, pointing out that all trucking will be done on existing roadways and entering and exiting will happen on a NYS highway. He also contacted the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation and found no evidence state regulated wetlands in the targeted logging area or the existence of any threatened or endangered species of animals or plants.

Supervisor Croce informed the board that he had previously met with McGivern.

“He doesn’t have to be here, he’s not cutting 10,000 board feet, but he came to me and said he’s a local guy and I want to do right. I want to do future projects here in town, so I want to make everything as legit as possible. I thank him very much for that,” Croce said. “I think he has everything done that needs to be done.”