Your Town Board Welcomes You to 2022 |
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Town Board members (l to r): Andres L. Castillo, Bobbi Bittker, Ellen Calves, Stephanie McCaine
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Happy New Year!
I am thrilled to be serving as your Town Supervisor. I have had a productive first week working alongside my colleagues on the Town Board and the talented
town officials and employees.
We are excited to be working on a variety of things to serve you. We will discuss the 2022 capital plan in a public work session on Tuesday evening to include projects to provide clean and reliable drinking water, wastewater treatment, road and sidewalk paving, beautification, park improvements, and electric vehicles. We are moving forward with the comprehensive plan, the wireless plan, and the 10-year capital plan. We will consider policies to improve affordable housing, leaf blower restrictions, inclusion and equity, and community engagement. We will also be working on improving communications via social media, the website, and the newsletter in the coming weeks. And more.
We hope you like the new format of this newsletter. If you have suggestions or additions, please reach out to me and Phyllis Cohen at pcohen@bedfordny.gov in the Supervisor’s office.
Be well,
Ellen
Town Supervisor
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Everybody's talking about it (again)!
While the Omicron variant put an unexpected damper on many people’s holiday plans, due to the tools that we now have with vaccinations, boosters, and treatments, we are learning to adapt and continue to move towards normalcy while protecting those most vulnerable.
To keep our employees and the public safe, we are requiring masks inside town buildings and strongly encourage people to use our online, by mail, or drop box (outside the door) options when doing business with the town to minimize the number of people indoors.
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New Year, New Town Board
Our newly elected town officials were sworn in at the beginning of the year and the Town Board held its first Town Board meeting on Tuesday.
I am honored to serve alongside Bobbi Bittker, Stephanie McCaine, and Andres Castillo.
Together we will endeavor to represent everyone in our town, encourage broad participation, and treat people who come before the board with respect. For more information on our town board and other newly elected officials, please click here.
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Appointment of Deputy Supervisor
Kate Galligan
At the Town Board meeting on Tuesday evening I appointed Kate Galligan, former town board member, to the role of Deputy Supervisor.
Under town law, the Supervisor appoints a Deputy to serve in case the Supervisor is absent or unable to perform a task (i.e., sign a document pre-approved by the town board, attend a meeting and report back to the Supervisor). This appointment is at the discretion of the Supervisor, does not need to be a town board member, and it is usually someone who the Supervisor feels she/he can call upon for help and advice.
The Deputy has no specific responsibility outside of the Supervisor’s request. If that person is not a town board member, she/he has no vote on the board, even if the Supervisor vacates the position. The title does not grant special power and does not signal who should be Supervisor in the future. In case of a true vacancy, that decision is up to the Town Board.
Kate Galligan is a trusted advisor of mine. She has served on the town board in recent years and left that position to serve at the County level with Legislator Kitley Covill this past year. Kate has great experience with issues that are very relevant to the town like zoning and wireless communications, she knows and works well with the County, our department heads, and community members.
I appointed a non-town board member after consulting with several elected officials, and I spoke at length with Pound Ridge Supervisor Kevin Hansen about his non-town board member deputy who has been extremely helpful to him (and their entire town board) as an advisor.
My appointment of a non-town board member is not meant to indicate that the sitting Town Board members are not fully capable of serving in this role. But, this title has been misunderstood in Bedford’s recent history. I wanted to reset the understanding around this by removing this misnomer from the Town Board dynamic by appointing a non-elected, but experienced, person who has no intention of running for office.
I am looking forward to a productive and positive year with everyone on the town board.
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Conservation Board Annual Report
At the Town Board meeting, the Conservation Board submitted their annual report to the board for approval.
There are many valuable projects that have been completed that have helped to make Bedford “one of the most environmentally sensitive communities in the State"
More importantly, there are some great things in the works for the coming year including the formation of a volunteer corps to help remove invasive species (Bedford Vine Cutters), formation of a group to help install and maintain a rain garden at the Town House, a draft of a new tree ordinance to present to the town board for consideration, a recent grant for over $30,000 to add wildlife corridors to the Bedford Mapping project, and more. As Simon Skolnik is stepping down after 25 years as chair, but remaining on the board we presented him with a proclamation and declared January 4, 2022 Simon Skolnik Day in all the land.
The Town Board approved Gentian Falstrom as the new chair and look forward to supporting many Conservation Board objectives in 2022.
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Now Accepting Applications for Town Board Appointment
At the 1.4.22 Town Board meeting, the board members discussed the open seat on the town board that was created by my taking office as Supervisor, thereby vacating my other town board seat. To avoid a special election during COVID and to fill the seat as soon as possible, we agreed to publicize the opening, interview candidates, and intend to appoint someone before February 15.
Interested Bedford residents may:
- submit a letter of interest and resume to
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supervisor@bedfordny.gov
- and attend an informational session on Tuesday, January 18, 2022 at 6pm.
The ZOOM link will be the same as the one for the town board meeting that evening.
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Serve the Town on a Committee
If you are interested in serving on a committee, board, or commission, please let us know! Submit a letter of interest and resume to supervisor@bedfordny.gov.
Currently, there openings on the following committees:
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Knowledge is power!
COVID-19 Tests
Knowing if you test positive for COVID-19 is important to manage the spread.
For more information and other testing locations throughout the county click here.
We do not know when we might get another batch of masks or self-tests from the County to distribute to residents, but when we do we will alert you via newsletter, social media and Nixle Alert
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Comprehensive Plan Meeting for Neighborhoods
Wed. 1/12 @ 7:30PM
The Comprehensive Plan committee has held public participation meetings around each of the three “hamlet” plans drafted by the subcommittees.
Now the Comprehensive Plan committee wants to hear from everyone who lives in a self-described neighborhood about your vision for zoning and land use in your area of town. Stanwood, Bedford Corners, Katonah Ridge, wherever you live… you may face different challenges from the hamlet centers and we want to hear them.
For more information about the Comprehensive Plan, click here.
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School Taxes Due - 1/31
Please consider paying online, by mail, or using the drop box outside 321 Bedford Road.
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Mobile Shredder - 1/22
The mobile shredder is coming to the Town Recycling Center in Bedford HIlls at
343 Railroad Avenue, Bedford Hills 10507
11:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Click here for more information.
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