By NEAL RENTZ
The Pound Ridge Old Pond Road Committee was told Monday that an easement for a property that would allow for construction of a boardwalk has not been finalized by the town, and a vote to create a water district has been scheduled for later this month.
Councilwoman Alison Boak, who co-chairs the committee with Joseph Virgilio, said at the Oct. 7 meeting there is no agreement in place between the homeowner and the town board.
In August, Boak told her committee colleagues she was informed by town attorney, William Harrrington, an agreement between the town board and the owner of the home adjacent to the Town Park was nearing completion.
The parcel is needed because the committee, in conjunction with the town’s recreation department, wants to build a boardwalk on the homeowner’s land to connect the town park with the 22-acre Old Pound Road lot. Construction on the boardwalk cannot begin until the 2-acre land easement is acquired. The homeowner’s parcel is 4.2 acres in total.
The roughly 22-acre Old Pound Road parcel was acquired by the town in July 2020. The property is off Route 137 between the town park and the historic district. The property has been seen as providing a valuable link between the hamlet and Scotts Corners attractions, and offering a range of potential recreational uses, such as hiking and biking.
Water district vote
Also at the meeting, the committee was told a referendum to approve the creation of a water district for the Scotts Corners Business District is slated for Thursday, Oct. 24, which could affect how Old Pond Road could be used.
The vote will be conducted among the commercial and residential property owners in Scotts Corners, Boak said. Committee member Mark Mosolino, a longtime member of the town’s Water and Wastewater Task Force, noted the 37 property owners are eligible to vote. Most of the eligible properties in the district are businesses, Boak said.
“Some of the owners are in other states,” she said, adding the owners must be present in Pound Ridge on the day of the vote.
Earlier this year there were findings from private well tests in town that revealed the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals.” The PFAS in the drinking water of those property owners affected are at levels exceeding both state and EPA standards.
Mosolino said at a previous meeting the water situation could affect water usage on Old Pound Road.
At this week’s meeting Mosolino said the town has applied for a $7 million federal grant for a potential $10 million project for municipal water for the Scotts Corners Business District, with the remaining $3 million to come from a town bond.
In a follow up interview this week, Boak said, “Regardless of whether or not the water district is created, it’s the charge of the OPR to develop a plan for town board consideration.”
The committee did a survey about two years ago to find out what residents wanted to do with the property. “The possibilities are endless,” Boak said.
The committee agreed to discuss the survey results on Monday, Nov. 4.