To pay for ongoing damage from the July 9, 2023 flood, the Town of Highlands Board has authorized the purchase of a $4 million Bond Anticipation Note (BAN). BANs are good for one year and can be renewed up to five times before they are rolled into a long-term bond, Comptroller Kelly Pecoraro explained to the board as they prepared to vote.

In 2023 the town took out a similar BAN, of which they have now spent $2.8 million. The new BAN will be issued one day before the old one is due (on November 21), so the new one will be paid off. The interest on the BAN that is about to be paid off will be $170,000 – in 2025 the interest will be $190,000.

“The goal is to borrow less each year because FEMA is reimbursing us for the work that has been done,” Pecoraro said. So far, FEMA has reimbursed the town $225,000 for the 16 projects related to the storm. Of those 16, six have been closed out, she added. In several of the projects FEMA and the town’s insurance company are still trying to work out the payment details on some projects.

The board members approved the action at its October 7 meeting. At the same session they okayed spending $4099 for new blinds for the 14 new windows in Town Hall. They will hold a public hearing on October 28 to spend that money from the Town Hall Repair Reserve Fund.

The board also met with Police Chief Joseph Burns and Town of Highlands Ambulance Corps Captain Jeff Gathers and President Christin Byrnes regarding the 2025 budget. At the start of the session, Supervisor Bob Livsey said the board “is still on track to come in under the tax cap, with the use of the tax stabilization fund.”

Burns did not ask for a significantly increased budget and told the board about several cost-saving measures he’s taking, like getting a better deal on THPD-issued cell phones, getting rid of television sets in the police department and cancelling the cable service on them, and not using any postage because the town now has an electronic accident reporting system. He also reduced the department’s fuel line by $10,000, based on this year’s expenses.

He did ask for $40,500 to purchase new firearms and tasers, saying while the towns “are still functional”, they’re old. He said he would also like to implement the use of body cameras in the THPD, but did not add that to the budget because the issue must be negotiated with the PBA.

Burns also asked for $3000 to pay for unlimited training for his officers with the Orange County Police Chief’s Academy.

For the ambulance corps, Gathers and Byrnes asked for an increase of $2.50 per hour in their EMTs pay. Livsey told them the board will discuss salaries at a later meeting.

The two pointed out that they had cut $1000 from training expenses and $1000 from uniforms, and are asking for $25,000 instead of $50,000 to go into THAC’s ambulance reserve fund. There is currently $135,000 in that fund now, but the town is also working on obtaining grants for a new ambulance.

The THAC is asking for an additional $12,000 ($8000 to $20,000) for vehicle maintenance as they deal with two aging rigs.