Planning Board numbers may rise

MILLBROOK — Tuesday, May 31, at the Village Board meeting, Millbrook Mayor Laura Hurley discussed a proposed local law to increase the members of the Planning Board from five to seven. The term for a member of the Planning Board lasts seven years. In New York, village law states that if two additional members are added to a five-member board they cannot actively partake in board matters. Village Attorney Rebecca Valk said, however, that this restriction can be overridden. The Village Board discussed what the training requirement should be for the two additional members if the proposed local law is enacted.“The Village Board would indicate there are only four hours of training within a year,” said Deputy Mayor Stan Morse. “If you put in a training requirement it will mean that people on the board only have an eight-hour leg up in training than the two new members. I am not sure it really serves a purpose. It’s good to increase the numbers but I would prefer not to have any restrictions.” The board left the discussion open for the public hearing, which took place on Tuesday, June 28. At the June 28 village meeting the public hearing for the local law was opened and is staying so to allow the public enough time to respond about the potential membership increase. “I would like for volunteers to step forward who would like to be on the Planning Board so that if we enact this law we will have some folks who are ready to serve,” said Hurley. In order to be a Planning Board member in Millbrook one must be a resident. Hurley said that residents should send a letter of interest to the Village Board if interested in the position. At the June 28 meeting the board was supportive of passing the proposed local law.“It’s so important to the village; the Planning Board determines the future of the village,” said Morse. “If we add two more members it will bring more opinions, to better solve problems. If a big issue comes to the board it’s better to have more people discussing it, so it will be beneficial.”

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