The Village Board has approved contracting out the operations of its Wastewater Treatment Plant – VRI Environmental Services will now run both the water and sewer plants.

The vote on the matter was unanimous at the October 7 Village Board meeting. For one year it will cost the village $353,012.42. VRI, Deputy Mayor Jim DiSalvo said, was the only bidder for the job, although he added that several board members and village employees called other providers to see if they were interested in bidding on it.

The board had budgeted $444,000 for the same services that VRI will provide at the plant. “If you base if off that, it’s a savings for us,” DiSalvo said. He did say the board will have some “legacy costs” for the plant but won’t accrue any of those going forward.

Trustee Dr. Melanie Guerrero voted yes for the move, adding that she views it as a savings too. She did, however, again say she did not like the way the RFP (Request for Proposals) was put out, saying the work at the two plants should fall under one bid.

Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator John Jones is retiring at the end of this month, which is why the board had to decide on how to move forward. Operators with the necessary license to run the plant are not easy to find, DiSalvo said, and the average salary for them is between $135,000 and $145,000 annually.

In other business from last week’s board meeting, it started with a continuation of a zoning public hearing. The board is looking at making several zoning changes for Highland Falls, including rescinding a B3 district; changing the allowable height for Main St. buildings to 48 feet (from 60-70 feet); reducing density from 2500 square foot lot area for a single dwelling unit to 1250 feet; clarifying the term ‘mixed use’ on Main St., requiring retail space on first floors with apartments above (however, ‘grandfathering’ that for 10 years in some cases) ; addressing parking requirements on Main St. – residential units need 1.5 off street parking spaces; and changing the current B3 district back to B1 (there is an 18 month grace period for projects currently planned in existing B3 districts).

After listening to public comment – there were nearly 20 people who spoke – the board decided to leave the public hearing open. They were not able to vote on it that evening, anyway, Attorney Alyse Terhune said, as they await SEQR determination. The hearing will be continued at the October 21 board meeting, DiSalvo said.

Much of the public comment was aimed toward potential future development of the U.S. Academy Motel on South Main St., and West Point’s Association of Graduates plans to develop buildings they have purchase on Main St. into mixed-use (retail and residential) buildings.

A copy of the proposed local law is available at highlandfallsny.org. A link to a recording of the meeting, featuring the public comment, is also available to view there.

In other business from the meeting:

• n The board authorized the paying of $537,005 in bills and claims. $163,500 will go to Arold Construction Co. for a storm drain lining project; $41,558 to CDR Electronics for an upgrade to the village’s security cameras (reimbursable by a grant); $30,800 to the Highland Falls Fire Department for the leasing of the fire house; $12,899 to AAA Emergency Services for HFFD hoses; and $29,182 to Eventus Construction for sludge pumping, hauling and disposal.
• The board okayed a resolution requesting New York State to investigate lowering the speed limit on Old State Rd. The Town Board recently passed a similar resolution. Trustee Guerrero voted no, saying “30 miles per hour there is slow enough”.
• Jacob Lewis was approved as a Highland Falls Fire Department member, on the recommendation of Chief Erik Smith.
• $54,860 was approved for installing new fencing at Roe Park. Pulaski Fencing will do the work. Trustee Guerrero voted no after DiSalvo said the work was being paid for by ‘unanticipated revenue’. She said: “We should use any unanticipated revenue we have for something more meaningful.”
• The Village engineer was authorized to receive bids for the Little League Field rehabilitation and Mearns Ave. rehabilitation projects.
•  A $13,675 bid from DeSantis Landscaping to install a new statue (“Last Man Standing”) at Memorial Park was approved. Guerrero voted no. Several members of the public asked how much the statue cost – DiSalvo said he would find out but added that it was purchased via a grant.