From The Desk of the Mayor November 2012

As hurricane Sandy approached the northeast several weeks ago we all collectively held our breath fearing that our area could be in for a repeat of the type of destruction inflicted by hurricane Irene, or even worse. Things were moved to high ground and battened down, supplies were gathered, and chain saws were fired up and made ready. The East Branch Flood Commission met and discussed last minute preparation steps and emergency planning for the storm across the watershed. Our first responders geared up. And then we waited ... until the wind and rain started picking up and some trees started coming down. The tree that came down on a power pole on Wagner Avenue closed that road by 10 pm on Monday the night of the storm and with a long uncertain night ahead I declared a state of emergency in the Village to effectively close the roads until Sandy passed and the safety of the roads and infrastructure could be evaluated come daylight. As it turns out things calmed back down for the most part, Wagner Avenue was cleared the next morning, the state of emergency was lifted by lOam, and we gradually exhaled. Our Fire Department had prepared well and stood committed to stay ahead of any and all safety situations to protect us through the night and we are fortunate for their dedication. Many other volunteers stepped forward to assist in the event the Village needed their efforts. I want to say a big thank you to everyone who worked hard preparing as much as possible for the storm. The lessons of Irene are still fresh and the planning and coordinating that has been ongoing paid off. However, there is always so much more that can be done and the real lesson from Sandy is that we never know when a real disaster will hit us so we must plan while we have the chance and prepare as if the threat is always real, as it was this time for those folks further down state. FEMA Worksheets Arrive - The Village has finally received the complete work sheets for the three "large" projects identified for FEMA funding post hurricane Irene. These projects include the stabilization of a portion of the Lake Street embankment which suffered erosion, the replacement of the retaining wall in the park which completely washed away, and the reconstruction of the Park. We did not know exactly what to expect but as it turns out these worksheets do contain a mixture of adequate and acceptable measures as well as some measures that do not meet the Village's actual needs. An example is the unwillingness on FEMA' s part to fund the full replacement of the tennis courts, rather they insist on making relatively minor repairs which all of our experts have said will not work given the poor condition of the court bases. Village

engineers are currently looking over the documents and planning the necessary appeal with Village officials. The appeal process we are told will take six months from the end of October when the documents were received. Parking Lot Easement - The Village has entered into an agreement to grant an easement for parking to the owners of the Evergreen Inn (formerly the Emory Brook) on the Village lot across the street from that establishment. The agreement includes complete maintenance at the property owners' expense, complete preservation of the Village's ability to access water mains and infrastructure on the property, and the ownership ofthe land is retained by the Village. In other words the easement is highly conditional and is intended to be a sort of partnership to create adequate parking area to allow for the maximum opportunity of the Evergreen/Emory Brook to be brought back as a thriving, bustling, and highly visible business at the very entrance to the Village. Instead of a dark dormant building across the street from a neglected chunk of land where debris has been dumped for decades right at the front door entrance to Fleischmanns off of Route 28, there will be one day soon a fully renovated hospitality business lit up across from a well maintained parking lot inviting all those who come over the hill down Route 28 to turn off into the Village to patronize our growing businesses rather than continue driving past to points west. This is exactly the type of redevelopment the Village needs and will lead to more revenue in the form of property taxes, water and sewer rents as well as avoided maintenance costs. I am excited about this opportunity and about the cooperation that made it happen and can not wait to see this transformation take place. New Board Member - Trustee Fred Woller tendered his resignation to the Village Board and at the November regular Board meeting his resignation was accepted. Also at that meeting I appointed David Yates to fill the vacancy until the seat will be up for election during the regular Village election in March. I would like to personally wish Fred Woller well and thank him for his years of service on the Village Board. I would also like to thank David Yates for stepping up to graciously offer his public service to the Village at this time. David and his wife Young Song have owned a home in the Village for four years and after having the first floor of their house on Main Street destroyed by the Great Flood of 2011 they rebuilt it and David decided to call Fleischmanns Home. David has worked in the digital design profession and has volunteered his talents in helping to keep Fleischmanns updated on social media. Happy Thanksgiving and a belated Happy Veterans Day and a Thank You to All Our

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Todd Pascarella, Mayor

Village Office 1017 Main Street (PO Box 339) Fleischmanns, NY 12430 phone 845-254-5514 email: village39@catskill.net website: www.fieischmannsny.com