Legislators Spar Over Butterfield Amendment
By Andrew Vitelli – Legislators briefly sparred once again on Nov. 15 over the county’s lease for the Butterfield development in Cold Spring, as the legislature’s Physical Services Committee advanced an amendment to the lease agreement with developer Paul Guillaro.
The amendment, which addressed parking on the site, was relatively minor and technical, with language clarifying that transportation provided by the county to Philipstown seniors during the lease’s duration would continue during any extensions or renewals of the lease. Legislator Carl Albano, the chair of the committee, said he believed this would have been the case either way, but that the amendment was requested by the Cold Spring Planning Board.
While the amendment itself was not controversial, Legislator Dini LoBue, who has criticized the lease as bad for taxpayers and overly favorable for the developer, questioned why plans for the site have not been presented to the legislature.
“You made a presentation to the public at the senior center,” LoBue said, referring to a meeting between Legislator Barbara Scuccimarra, Deputy County Executive Bruce Walker, and several residents. “But nobody thought it was necessary to make a presentation to the legislature first and explain to us what exactly is going on.”
Garrison resident Lithgow Osborne also asked for detailed plans, to which Albano replied, “There will be a more detailed plan. There is a tentative plan that can be seen now.”
After LoBue questioned why the legislature has not been updated on the project, Albano said he would only discuss the amendment to the lease on the agenda.
“I’m not going to spend three hours on this. I’m going to cut it off now,” he said. “I am the chairman here and I would like to run this meeting. I am not going to do other things that are not on the agenda.”
The committee, which consists of Albano, Scuccimarra, and Legislator Joseph Castellano, voted 3-0 to move the resolution to next month’s full legislative meeting.
Speaking to The Putnam Examiner, Albano said the legislature does not need to be involved in every small decision regarding the site.
“If there’s a change that’s going to affect the budget, we’re very concerned about it,” Albano said, adding that smaller changes regarding the site’s design could be left to the discretion of the Office for Senior Resources.
LoBue, however, said the legislature and the public have been consistently left in the dark regarding the project.
“That’s what leads to the questions, and to people feeling like they’re not being told the truth,” LoBue said. “I’m part of the government, and I don’t feel like I’m being told the truth.”
In Nov. 2015, the legislature voted to approve the lease, with LoBue and Legislator Kevin Wright abstaining. It has been amended several times in an often contentious process.
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