January 23, 2024

Mayor’s Message [Postponement of Joint Special Meeting with Town Related to Water System]:

Dear Residents and Friends of the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson,

I am making the difficult decision to cancel Thursday’s scheduled Joint Special Meeting that was to conjoin the Village Board and Town Council and was related to water system matters that impact both municipalities. We will reschedule the meeting for Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 7:00 p.m., again to be held at Village Hall, 325 Hudson Street, Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY 12520.

This office will ensure we post the notice across all platforms well in advance of new date.

After careful consideration and discussions with a number of residents who all get their news from different sources, I simply want to ensure we are making a solid effort to publicly notice this meeting on all the appropriate sites. I sincerely apologize for any confusion this may have caused. But far better to take a step back and ensure we have a well-informed community.

On behalf of your Village Board,

James A. “Jimmy” Gagliano

Mayor

Mayor’s Message [Rapid COVID-19 Test Kit Availability Edition]:

Dear Residents of the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson,

The Orange County Department of Health has graciously provided to the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson a limited supply of Rapid COVID-19 Antigen Self-Test kits. They are available on a first-come, first-served basis to Village residents ONLY while supplies last. Each household may receive up to two FREE boxes (two self-test kits per box). Simply stop by the Village Clerk’s Office during normal business hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Be advised that we are closed next Monday in observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday.

Do not fret the expiration dates and feel compelled to trash expired kits. The manufacturer advises that the test kits are good for one year beyond any expiration dates. ‘Tis the season for colds, sniffles, flu, RSV, and COVID-19’s various strains. Take advantage of these FREE self-test kits. Stop by Village Hall, say “hello,” and pick up your FREE self-test kits today.

On behalf of your Village Board,
James A. “Jimmy” Gagliano
Mayor

January 9, 2023

Mayor’s Message [Impending Weather Warning Edition]:

Dear Residents and Friends of the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson,

As the region braces for yet another significant weather event -- one which compounds melting snow, high winds, and yet another hyper-localized rainfall, here are some forecasting and precautionary information provided by the County Executive’s Office and the Orange County Deputy Commissioner for Emergency Management, Alan C. Mack:

“[T]he Orange County Emergency Management team is closely monitoring the forecast for upcoming Winter Storm Finn. Today’s storm, combined with recent Winter Storm Ember, may be problematic because of wind and potential flooding. The National Weather Service forecast shows temperatures leaving the low twenties up to a high of 52 degrees. At the same time, the wind will slowly ramp up to steady-state 22 MPH with gusts up to the mid-thirties. At 10:00 AM, we’ll have another small round of snow, with no appreciable accumulation. None of these (on their own) are a problem, but starting at 1:00 PM, rain begins to fall around the County until 1:00 PM Wednesday. 7:00 PM Tuesday night thru 7:00 AM Wednesday is the main problem. The rain is forecasted to fall hard and fast with excessive volume. We may receive over two inches of rain between 7:00 PM -7:00 AM. This is a lot of rain on its own, but the snow on the ground will melt with the higher temperatures and the large volume of rain. The snow that fell during Ember had a 7:1 liquid to snow ratio (seven inches of snow equals one inch of water). Based on past experiences, we believe we’re going to see some significant localized flooding.”

So, as our Village (and Town) crews continue to labor to mitigate flooding within the greater Cornwall area, and in coordination with Cornwall’s Office of Emergency Management Director Kurt Hahn, we are making available a supply of sand bags and sand within the Village at our Municipal Water Building located at 21 Maple Avenue. Any Village OR Town residents seeking to use sandbags to redirect water can stop by and are encouraged to take up to TEN sandbags. You will have to fill them yourself with material and shovels provided. Please take only up to ten bags. Honor System is in effect. You may use our municipal lot to fill bags while securing them and park without obstructing. Please respect the neighborhood while you are doing so. This was the best agreed-upon location that will be open 24/7 and available until material supply runs out.

For Village residents: To be kept informed, you  may register for the Village’s messaging system by either texting the keyword COH1250 to 99411 or by clicking on the below weblink:

https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/BF39E0553EE3

The guidance from the County is to be taken seriously. Within the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson, our stalwart road crews continue to remove snow from the streets and are working to clear any and all obstructed storm drains, ensuring a path for melting snow and impending rainfall. The volume of rain we are expecting – much like the storms of 12/23/2022, 7/9/2023, and 12/17/2023 – will overwhelm our storm drain system. Some of our infrastructure simply cannot handle what the Governor of New York State has referred to as a “1,000-year storm” – the types of storms we are seeing all too frequently of late. We will continue to keep residents updated with any relevant storm-related news or precautions. Please reach out with any needs.

Mayor’s office number: (845) 534-4200 (x311).

On behalf of your Village Board,

James A. “Jimmy” Gagliano

Mayor

Season’s Greetings!

Great news, Winter is here and the days are getting longer! Its time to purchase your 2024 Donahue Park Vehicle and boat-trailer parking stickers. You can purchase during Village office hours at 325 Hudson Street, C-O-H 8:30-4 :30 Mon- Fri. Payments can be made with cash, check or credit/debit. After hours, please use drop box and include application, copy of valid vehicle registration and cash or check payment.

Applications are available at Village Hall or can be printed from our website: http://cornwall-on-hudson.org We will also accept mailed applications with copies of your
registration and cash or check payment. Further questions can be answered at :845-534-4200 x 315.

Happy New Year and Enjoy the Park!
Village Clerk’s Office

December 4, 2023

Dear Town/Village Water Clients of the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson’s Water System,

A blurb in last week’s Cornwall Local in its “Around the Village” feature has led to some fears and concerns expressed on social media and related to the Village’s “Water Meter Replacement Project.” These fears are unfounded and related to some speculative, inaccurate, and erroneous information being circulated in posted comments section. Here are the FACTS:

The Cornwall water system includes 2,671 meters. ONLY 360 of these meters required updating. Letters were mailed ONLY to the customers requiring upgraded replacements; with initial notice sent via USPS in June of 2023, followed by a second notice in August of 2023, with a final notice mailed out in November of 2023. New fee rate for those who ignored these mailings goes into effect in January of 2024. THERE IS NO CHARGE FOR THE UPGRADED METERS. 

To date, our Water Department has replaced 265 out of the 360 outdated models (73.6%). Our team is scheduled to replace another 26 meters by end of this calendar year. This translates to 291 of the original 360 (79.7%) – which leaves 69 outstanding meter replacements (39 in Town and 30 in Village) for total project completion. 

The remaining 69 meters represent just 2.58% of our customer base. Over 97% of our water customers already possess a meter on their property which can be read remotely. The $75.00 manual read fee – which helps pay for having to pull our small team of employees off of other projects related to maintaining some 52 miles of water pipes, five reservoirs, a well field, and multiple treatment facilities in order to deliver safe, drinkable water to your tap, so that they can make a house call to read a meter -- will pertain to less than 3% of our end state consumers.

Important Note: This fee will only be assessed if the property owner has NOT made ANY attempt to schedule an appointment.

If residents are unsure of what type of meter that they have, they can call our Administrative Assistant Stephanie Xagoraris at (845) 534-4200 Ext. 250. She can advise whether meter requires replacement. I have posted photographs of what is considered “old” and “upgraded.”

BENEFITS: The new meters will read water consumption to the tenth of a gallon allowing for FAR more accurate billing. The old meters read consumption in 1,000-gallon increments.

New meters will allow residents to also remotely monitor their own water consumption system and set usage alerts from any internet capable device.

The new meters also allow our staff to more accurately monitor water consumption on a daily basis, while comparing it to our daily water production to monitor for water system leaks.

I hope this explainer helps to clear up any confusion. Water Superintendent Trainor and his team do an outstanding job delivering this precious resource to our homes, schools, and businesses. Both he and I (and our water staff) are available to any resident with questions or concerns.

On behalf of the Village Board,

James A. “Jimmy” Gagliano

Mayor

 

 

BE IT SO ORDERED

JAMES A. GAGLIANO, MAYOR

 

PDF of Order

Cornwall New York Forward
Local Planning Committee (LPC) Meeting #5
October 24, 2023, 5:30 – 7:30 PM
Town of Cornwall Town Hall
183 Main Street, Cornwall, New York 12518
This meeting will be livestreamed.
(Visit the Village/Town websites for the link)

Join the fifth, and last, LPC meeting for Cornwall’s New York Forward. LPC members will determine the final slate of projects to be included in the Strategic Investment Plan.
Please note that LPC meetings are public working meetings for committee members, and time will be held at the end of the meetings for public comment.

---

PROPOSED PROJECT SURVEY
Scan the QR code to access the survey or go to CornwallNYF.com and share your feedback on the slate of NY Forward projects.
The survey will remain open until Thursday, October 19.

Dear Residents and Friends of the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson,

It deeply saddens me to reflect on the horrific terror attacks on the State of Israel as Israelis were completing their seven-day-long Jewish festival of Sukkot on Saturday. Hamas terrorists based out of Palestine fired thousands of missiles on indiscriminate targets and then breached fences separating Israel from Gaza in order to unleash a bloody terror attack. We are all well aware of the details of civilians being slaughtered, babies beheaded, women raped, and hostages abducted.

Please keep in your thoughts and prayers the innocent civilians purposely targeted and slain. Also, appreciate the pain and fear of the families whose loved ones were taken hostage. New York State has a large Jewish population – our friends, neighbors, and fellow community members. We shall stand with them during this darkest of hours for the State of Israel. Eleven American citizens have been confirmed dead during the attack and an unknown number of American citizens may be held hostage. We pray for their well-being and safe release.

I have ordered all Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY flags on four municipal properties flown in the half-mast position until Friday COB. Regarding queries about official proclamations of support, I have never felt appropriate for the Village Board to engage in geopolitical or even national matters via empty resolution gestures that won’t lead to any concrete solutions (same position we held in regard to Ukraine’s fight against Russia). Our flag lowerings are our one-time symbolic gesture of support. We acknowledge fact that we stand with Israel -- our longtime ally in the Middle East. Terrorism is a global scourge that the world community must eradicate.   

With heavy heart and on behalf of your Village Board,

James A. “Jimmy” Gagliano

Mayor