During its August 19 meeting, the Cornwall-on-Hudson Board of Trustees began discussing whether or not to sign onto Governor Kathy Hochul’s “Pro-Housing Communities” certification program to ensure the municipality’s eligibility for funding programs in the future. The biggest concern is whether the village would still be eligible for NY Forward funding should it not sign into the program.

In July 2023, Hochul signed an executive order creating the Pro-Housing Community Program, a policy designed to reward local governments that are working to address New York’s Housing crisis. New Yorkers continue to face a housing shortage, combined with rising rent and home pricing costs.

According to village attorney Joe McKay, the executive order sets up a certification program which is designed to address the increased cost of housing and lack of affordable housing in the state. Towns, villages, and cities can become pro-housing communities certified and once certified, can get priority to certain funding programs.

A proposed resolution allows municipalities to pledge to become part of the program and endeavors to meet the goals of the program which include: streamlining permitting for multi-family housing, affordable housing, accessible housing, accessible dwelling units, and supportive housing, adopting policies that further fair housing, incorporating regional housing needs into planning decisions, increasing development capacity for residential uses, and enacting policies which encourage a broad range of housing development including multi-family, affordable, accessible, accessory, and supportive housing.

McKay made it a point to note the resolution uses the word “pledge,” indicating there’s nothing binding on the part of the village if it went forward to adopt the resolution.

Trustee Bill Braine said the village’s Comprehensive Plan already speaks to making housing more accessible and affordable, adding the executive order seems to align with the village’s future plans. He said village code allows for attached accessory apartments, but currently doesn’t address accessory dwellings. Braine said there are grants available to homeowners who wish to build a guest-size structure on their property.

While the village, for all intents and purposes, is nearly built out, there are some private property owners who could come before the Zoning Board of Appeals or Planning Board and seek permission to develop. An applicant recently appeared before the Planning Board to build 20 single-family dwellings on Shore Road.

Trustee Lori Beth Paliotta expressed concern about how something like the pending tree preservation law, which seeks to prevent the clearcutting of trees, might be impacted by further development.

Having only started to review the executive order, Mayor James Gagliano said he wanted it back on the agenda for the September 9 work session for further discussion. He said he wanted to speak to other communities which have and have not decided to sign onto the program.

The Town of Cornwall has already submitted a letter of intent, and the City of Newburgh is a certified community.

To be designated as a Pro-Housing Community, municipalities need to submit a letter of intent to Housing and Community Renewal. To achieve certification, applicants must provide documentation verifying permits which show an increase in their housing stock by one percent over the past year, or three percent over the past three years.

During a town hall meeting last year, Senator James Skoufis said he had the three percent requirement for each municipality reduced to one percent for the entire county, alluding to one community which could satisfy this condition on its own.