Libbie Werlau, appointed the Plattekill Town Historian, was asked by members of the Town Board to speak at the June 19 Town Board meeting to answer any questions and concerns about the historical items located in her new office at the Plattekill Grange # 923.

Werlau started her presentation by clarifying that the relocated historical items were incorrectly identified as being on loan to the Plattekill Historical Preservation Society in a previous Southern Ulster Times article. These historic items, which hold sentimental rather than monetary value, are the property of the Town of Plattekill.

As Town Historian, Werlau has ensured that all items in the Town of Plattekill historical collection are inventoried, photographed, and are safely kept in either the Town Historian’s office or at the Plattekill Town Hall.

A binder of photographs and information on each item in the collection is available in the Town Clerk’s Office at the Plattekill Town Hall. In regards to the insurance coverage of the Town collection, Supervisor Croce stated that all items owned by the Town of Plattekill are protected under the Town’s insurance policy, even if they are not housed in a building owned by the Town of Plattekill. Members of the Plattekill Town Board thanked Ms. Werlau for her dedication as Town Historian.

Three Police Cadets Sworn In
Chief Joseph Ryan and Lieutenant William Smith of the Plattekill Police Department introduced three candidates for probationary police officer positions with the Plattekill Police Force. Matthew E. Finch, a lifeguard, Arkeem S. Gorham, former volunteer fireman in Modena, and Elisa M. Vasile, a 22 year resident of Plattekill, were welcomed by Town Board members, and sworn in by Plattekill Town Clerk Barbara Dawes. The cadets are currently finishing up the first phase of their police academy training, and will start the second phase on July 8.

DePew resigns, and is promptly reinstated to the Plattekill Town Board
Councilman Dean DePew tendered his resignation from the Plattekill Town Board effective June 14, 2019. To finalize his retirement from the New York State Department of Corrections. Mr. DePew is required to refrain from working for any state entity for a period of 24 hours.

With the 24 hour waiting period complete, DePew was reinstated as a member of the Town Board at the June 19 Plattekill Town Board meeting. Per state law, DePew will serve a term ending December 2019.

An Eco-Friendly Gift for the Town of Plattekill
Patrick Leonard, who is currently working on his final Eagle Scout project at Thomas Felton Park, presented the Town of Plattekill with a gift. A member of Troop 70, Patrick is working to create an outdoor fitness center with the hopes of incorporating physical fitness into the Plattekill Summer Camp program. Patrick is a former counselor for this program. With the help of Robert Wager, Patrick presented the Town Board with a stainless steel drinking fountain with a water bottle filling station, to be placed near the serving window in the pavilion at Thomas Felton Park. He hopes this will be utilized while Plattekill residents enjoy physical activity at the park.

Plattekill Master Plan Survey will be Available in July
Town Supervisor Joseph Croce, on behalf of the Plattekill Master Plan Committee, asked the Town Board to approve the necessary funding required to start the Master Plan electronic survey.

The Master Plan committee plans on creating numerous detailed surveys in order to gather public opinion on town improvements. The committee will use Survey Monkey, which is a free service for short surveys. However, due to the length of the purposed surveys, the amount of surveys needed, and the required analytic reports, the committee will need to purchase a plan to cost no more than $450 a year. The motion was carried to release the funds to the Master Plan committee. Residents of Plattekill should look out for information on how to participate in the first Master Plan survey, due out next month.

The next meeting of the Plattekill Town Board is scheduled for July 3 at the Plattekill Town Hall.