The Village of Montgomery’s September 5 board meeting featured several in-depth comments from board members and residents, including ample feedback for developments proposed for the area.

Dennis Maher, a Walden resident and founder of Orange County Aces, opened the discussion and offered to donate a spare tennis wall to Veterans Memorial Park, believing that it would be a great addition for residents looking to get into tennis.

“I’d like to do more in the community with tennis, and having this wall right there at Veterans Park would be a great addition to not only the kids in the community but also any adult that wants to get out there,” Maher explained.

The board motioned to accept the offer but will need to discuss installation with the village engineer first.

Don Berger, a Montgomery resident, raised concerns about the KSH project, a four-warehouse development proposed for Route 211, stating that neither the board nor the applicant is addressing the residents’ needs.

“The KSH project has been, from the residents’ standpoint, a very rough ride…what’s problematic, and I know we’ve talked about this at the planning board sessions, is that we’ve really had a lot of people there, and they’ve been talking about a lot of great things. And what we feel is that we’re not being listened to,” Berger said.

Berger went on to explain why the project’s original noise study was insufficient and how the project’s location could affect the village’s aquifer.

“The noise study that they would give was garbage; they were given a noise study with one tractor-trailer bay. There are 92 tractor-trailer bays! How could you take a noise study for one? Impossible,” Berger said, touching on the noise study.

Micheal Hembury, a board trustee, gave his statement on the village’s water situation, stressing that the surplus of approved projects will significantly diminish both water amount and quality.

“We have numerous, undeveloped, already approved projects that have been waiting long before I got on this board. Why would we invite more? If all these projects took off tomorrow, we’d be in bad trouble,” Hembury said.

“I do not want to drink sulfur water; we’ve all had the taste, and I do not want it. Any future water wells are way off, low enough. We could be dragged into litigation for approving and promising what we don’t have, especially when Orange County said ‘no’,” he continued.

Later into the meeting, Mayor Stephen Brescia awarded Ralph “Buddy” Nelson a certificate from the New York State Conference of Mayors, commemorating the work he’s done for the village over the last 35 years.

“In recognition of 35 years of distinguished public service to your community, the New York State Conference of Mayors is pleased and honored to publicly acknowledge your dedication and commitment,” he said.

Brescia also announced this year’s Clinton Street Car Show on September 17 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., announced that the Great America Race will return to the village on June 27, 2024, and proposed that the village’s Tractor and Engine Show be renamed to “Skip Chambers Day,” a suggestion he received from Robin Reynolds, a member of the village’s architectural and historic review board.