Town needs Wickham Village resident help for grant application

The town of Warwick is seeking data on household incomes within the Wickham Sewer District to improve its chances of securing grant funding for the Wickham Sewer District Rehabilitation Project.

During the January 9 meeting, Warwick Supervisor Jesse Dwyer explained that the town is working to secure grants for the Wickham Sewer District rehabilitation project and is looking for residents of Wickham Village to help the town provide accurate data on the median household income of the area. He shared that the town will be sending out letters asking residents to share income data, ensuring them the information is confidential, and no personal identification needs to be shared. In addition, residents can expect emails and phone calls regarding the survey.

Dwyer emphasized the importance of collecting this data to help the town secure grant funding and reminded residents that if such funding isn’t secured the burden of paying for the repairs to the Wickham Sewer District would fall on the taxpayers in that district.

Trail concerns

At the meeting, Dwyer shared feedback he received from residents of Bellvale Boulevard, who expressed concerns over the developing bike/hike trail’s proximity to their homes. He noted that the residents wondered why they weren’t contacted directly about the trail, to which Dwyer reiterated his past statements on the multiple public hearings and public discussions on the project. Dwyer did acknowledge that some of the residents were voicing valid concerns and said he will work to address all issues brought to his attention.

Road work

The town will begin engaging the services of Pavement Management Group for the purpose of analyzing the quality of roads and deploying pavement services where most needed. Dwyer explained that this service will enable the town to base its paving decisions on qualitative data from each road. He said that residents can access this information online and see where their road ranks in terms of pavement priority.

In other roadway news, the board passed resolutions related to the upcoming roundabout to be built at Route 94 and County Route 1. After the state puts in the roundabout, the town will take over the maintenance of its landscaping and lighting.

Park updates

Dwyer spoke about the town’s efforts to rewrite its comprehensive parks masterplan, noting that the town is interviewing and soliciting bids and proposals from parks designers and others. In addition, Dwyer presented Warwick Village Mayor Michael Newhard with a check for $150,000 to be used to support the parks within the village of Warwick. Dwyer explained that checks were also distributed to the villages of Florida and Greenwood Lake and that they were funded by the selling of land parcels at the old prison property at Wickham Woodlands.

Other business

During the meeting, the town honored retired town historian Dr. Richard Hull with a proclamation recognizing his contributions to promoting and preserving Warwick’s history and declared him Historian Emeritus for the town. The town also recognized retiring Deputy Supervisor James Gerstner for his many years of service on the town board and dedication to the town of Warwick and declared January 9 as Deputy Supervisor James Gerstner Day in the town of Warwick.