Dear Neighbors:

The Village recently asked the County to let our DPW trucks refuel in Croton Point Park. Unfortunately, the county turned down the request. We also reached out to the State to see if we could place the petroleum tanks on state land within the Village. After several months, we still have not received a response.

With no other options, the village board has voted to move the DPW fueling stations to the former skateboard park, located on Riverside and Rt. 129. No one is thrilled with this decision, least of all the board. A little history: Our existing below-ground fuel tanks, currently located at the train station, are close to their life expectancy, so they need to be replaced. If we stayed at the current location, they would not be allowed because the state and county have deemed the train station a Critical Environmental Area, which it wasn’t back when. Most of the available land the Village owns suffers from similar issues, that includes the DPW garage. Hence, the old skateboard park it is.

Although the state owns most of the land surrounding the site, as my colleague Ann Gallelli has stated, we are committed to doing whatever we can to spruce up the area with trees, plantings, maybe even art. If we’re honest, this spot has always been an eyesore. It was an ugly skateboard park, an ugly farmer’s market, and ugly when it sat empty. This is an opportunity to turn a bad situation into a good one.

Andy Simmons, Village Trustee