Letter to the Editor

Town of Lloyd missing opportunities

By David Plavchak, Highland
Posted 9/10/20

The town of Lloyd is missing the opportunity to grow its Tax Base and specifically keep Seniors living in the Town of Lloyd.

When speaking to Seniors who reside in the Town, many of them are …

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Letter to the Editor

Town of Lloyd missing opportunities

Posted

The town of Lloyd is missing the opportunity to grow its Tax Base and specifically keep Seniors living in the Town of Lloyd.

When speaking to Seniors who reside in the Town, many of them are facing a dilemma, they want to downsize and sell their homes, but can’t find what they are looking for in Lloyd. So that forces them to move out of the Town of Lloyd. Many of the Seniors lived the majority of their lives in Highland/Lloyd and they support our local businesses. There have been proposals for Senior housing in a “Gated Community Like” environment where you pay an Association Fee for Maintenance and upkeep and you have amenities such as a pool, clubhouse, gym access, medical facilities and some retail. However, they have either been pushed aside by the Town Board’s current moratorium, or deterred by the proposed overly restrictive new Zoning Proposals.

My personal opinion is the current Town Board has a very myopic view of what many residents require. They appear to react to the most recent uproars instead of encompassing what is best for the entire town. I understand that there could be issues such as traffic, congestion, etc. in some areas of the town. Many of these issues can be mitigated through good planning instead of stopping all development, or severely restricting development in certain areas. The Ulster County Planning Board also disagreed with the moratorium, but our Town Board over rode that disagreement. The Ulster County Planning board has similar issues with the proposed Zoning changes.

In the recent past, there have been proposals for a hotel similar to what is in New Paltz off of the Thruway exit, but the Lloyd Town Board’s moratorium and restrictions have caused it to be stopped. It is about time our Town starts to take advantage of the “gift” of the Walkway instead of letting Dutchess County, Poughkeepsie and other neighboring town get the benefits of the tax ratables and retail revenues. Instead our Town Board has their own agenda which does not support the entire Town and does not focus on what is best for the “whole” instead of parts of the Town. The Board is reactionary instead of forward thinking and some Board members are more focused on their own personal agendas; whether it be their protecting their personal business or the numerous apartments they own.

If you have viewed or attended the Town meetings recently, you would see the lack of leadership and the unprofessional conduct being displayed. I would also urge residents to get involved and understand what is happening in our town today. It is sad that the Town is missing great opportunities to move forward. Lloyd can do much better than where the current Town Board is guiding them to.