(Photo by Lauren Thomas)
The Village of New Paltz public hearing on a law to cut the window of time during which snow must be shoveled to 12 hours after the cessation of the storm from the present 24 was again continued after no one showed up to comment last week. There have now been three sessions of this hearing, with exactly one person sharing their views. If trustees were to vote now, the only testimony to weigh would be opposed to the measure, but they are hopeful that if they continue to keep the hearing open, other residents will eventually show up and have their say.
Trustee Don Kerr observed that interest in this law may increase after the first significant snowfall.
If you would like to submit a comment regarding the proposed change, you can do so by e-mailing your comments to [email protected] or by attending the January 23 Village Board meeting that begins at 7 p.m. at Village Hall.
Sounds like there is no justification for this. What if your out of town for a day or so? The Village of New Paltz is lost in the shuffle.
Village should be responsible for all snow removal, including side walks. How redlicious to depend on business owners to maintain a single appropriate foot path for pedestrian traffic. Who cares what it cost, many people depend of foot paths through snow and ice, many drunk people walking from local bars ect.
Very bad idea to not have official snow removal on city/village sidewalks. Insane idea to involve business owners in snow removal.
The purpose of public sidewalks that the city built is public safety, when it snows city should be removing snow, not owners. Wake up and think……
Six hours max, and that’s just for the sidewalks buffeting The Stripes.
With the idea of keeping the students safe, maybe the university would design and install solar-powered electrically heated sidewalks that melt completely as soon as the sun comes out.
Best to hire snow removal staff to safety maintain public sidewalks, explain how road is public and sidewalk is not public?
Why are the roads plowed by city/town and walkways left for property owners to clear, that is insane, city must remove all snow from sidewalks same as plowing roads, very simple.
Very bad idea to depend on businesses/owners to clear public sidewalks. What happens is sidewalks not properly cleared, some areas safe, some areas have sand, some salt, too many indifference.
Uniform walkway important for public safety, especially in winter after snowstorm.
The village DOES hire outside contractors with village tax money since the last century. Before that, the municipalities had a single pickup truck, with one driver and a worker in the bed with bags of salt that was thrown into the streets by hand. As to sidewalk shoveling, there is not a single place in the United States where and when it snows that the parcel owner is not responsible for its removal. You’re going to like it here in this country.
The sidewalk is no different than the road, both sidewalk and road support traffic, therefore if ever contested in supreme court, courts would rule city liable for walk same as city is responsible for roads.
Businesses are not responsible for road vehicular traffic, predestination traffic mimics vehicular traffic, both move people therefore village/city responsible to maintain safe public walk way.
Who built side walk? City or business? City is responsible…….
The courts require a precedence, as the first Rule of Law is “The courts hate to set precedence.”.
If you don’t think the sidewalk is yours to shovel, tear it up out of the ground and make a pile of it on your front lawn. It’s not like “Texas vs. Johnson” where the Supreme Court ruled in favor of burning the American flag a a right of free-speech? What’s a little rubble, anyways?
We dont need creepy old men in black gowns making decisions for us.
A direct democratic vote will work just fine. Direct democratic rule.
insane to elect leaders than make rules to follow them. Days of King and Queen long over.
Time for complete prison reform, locking humans in cages for punishment extremely cruel and torture.
Rehabilitation and separation from society much more appropriate. Crimes are really mental health issues that relate to society as a whole.