Change to Elections and Terms Passed
With a 3-1 vote, the Board passed the local law to change Village elections to every two years on even years and extend the terms of the Mayor and Trustees from two years to four years. The law goes into effect only if approved by the voters in November.
Trustee Nora Lucas voted against both stating that the Board was there “to serve the public and not for our convenience.” While saying she appreciated the OCRA students’ work that kicked off this effort, she noted that their sample of voter turnout “was small” and included 2020. That year every registered voter received a ballot in the mail because of the pandemic. That one-time event may have skewed voter turnout. Lucas also noted that voters will still vote every year as there are County and Town elections on the odd years. Lucas expressed concern that moving our elections would change our relationship with elected County officials.
The students had concluded that more underrepresented people vote in even years, but Lucas stated that the data did not prove that.
The voters will have their say in November.
Board discussed a proposal to Change Meeting Schedule
At the May 8th Work Session, the Board discussed changing the schedule and times for both the Work Session and the regular meeting. The proposal, for adoption at the May 22, 2023 Work Session, is that starting in June, Work Sessions will be held on the first and third Mondays, from 5 – 7:30 pm. Regular Board meetings will continue on the second and fourth Mondays with a new 7 pm start time.
NYS Resiliency Study Completed
Village Manager, Jerry Barberio, reported that he had reviewed the NYS Resiliency Study on the Mamaroneck and Sheldrake Rivers. The Report will be presented to the public at one of the meetings in June. Barberio gave a preview of the findings by mentioning the authors had identified several “undersized” bridges. He also reported that the study concluded that coastal flooding does not impact riverine flooding and NYS is recommending mitigating actions such as buyouts of homes and businesses and a green linear park.
