Note: What would normally be the Boad’s April 21st meeting will instead be held on April 28th.
Temporary Certificate of Occupancy (TCO). (See Town Board, March 10,2026) The Board opened and closed the hearing but postponed any vote pending the town attorney preparing a revised version. One of the major revisions will be adding the requirement that before issuing a TCO the building inspector would need to refer the application to appropriate departments ,e.g., planning, highway, engineering. Councilman Esposito, who was sponsoring the amendments also had some other revisions.
While some concerns were raised about how the amendments might impact potential new owners of single family houses, Town Engineer Ciarcia noted that in practice TCOs were typically only issued for commercial developments. Another comment focused on Underhill Farms and the extent to which the required road improvements had to be totally completed before a TCO could be granted; in response, Supervisor Lachterman said that the road only had to be “operable.”
Councilwoman Siegel opposed granting the building inspector the authority to issue TCOs; her position was that there was greater transparency and accountability when the request had to be discussed in public before the Town Board. In response, Councilman Esposito said that if the building inspector could issues COs, he saw no reason why he couldn’t also issue TCOs. And since TCOs are supposed to give the applicant time to complete “minor” issues, Ms. Siegel also questioned why TCOs could be extended for up to 12 months.
Volleyball at Granite Knolls. Matt Talbot, chairman of the Recreation Commission
advised the Board of its plans to create a sand volleyball facility at the park. The estimated $125,00 cost would come from the town’s Trust & Agency Account that is funded by developers who pay a recreation fee. Noting the increased interest in volleyball, there appeared to be full support from the Board for the project.
Sensory Garden/Trail. (See Town Board, September 2, 2025) Matt Talbot, chairman of the Recreation Commission shared with the Board a new concept plan. Instead of the original plan for a sensory “garden,” the new plan calls for a sensory “trail” with sections roughly in the area between Stony Street and the entrance road. There was no cost estimate; funding would have to come from grants and/or the fund balance.
Board members will make a site visit to Graite Knolls to check out the locations for both the proposed volleyball courts and the sensory trail.
Underhill Avenue striping. It was explained that the portion of the road west of Route 118 can’t be permanently striped until all the road improvements have been completed and the road is repaved. Councilman Esposito noted that one of the holdups, moving a Verizon pole, had just been done, and he was hoping that the rest of the work would follow soon.
485b Committee. (See Town Board, February 10,2026) In a 4-1 vote with Councilwoman Siegel voting no, the Board appointed four members to the committee that will review the existing law that grants 485b tax abatements. There are still openings on the committee if anyone is interested.
Councilwoman Siegel said she had nothing against the four appointments; her concern was that the membership was not balanced in terms of the members’ initial views on the law and that one person who was interviewed was not being considered. Councilman Gilbert agreed with Ms. Siegel about the lack of balance but voted for the four appointments.
Ms. Siegel also raised the issue of providing the new members with some guidelines and a deadline but the Board didn’t act on those suggestions.
Septic Repair/Connection program. Councilwoman Siegel announced a new County program that offers FREE design and repairs for failing septic systems for properties in the NYC watershed. The program will also pay for connecting to an existing sewer line for properties within 100 feet of an existing line.
For more information, check https://bit.ly/arcgis-26
Sewer pump station upgrades (See Town Board February 10, 2026 and March 9,2026). In response to comments from Councilwoman Siegel, Supervisor Lachterman advised the Board that based on an email the town engineer had just received from bond counsel, the town could proceed with the project and funding was no longer an issue. Plans for the Farmwalk station have been sent to the county Department of Health for approval; plans for four Hallocks Mill pump stations will follow.
Emergency Medical Services (EMS). (See Town Board February 10,2026) Reporting on the March 30th roundtable meeting, Supervisor Lachterman said he anticipated a follow up meeting in about two months and more discussions about what the state study will involve. Councilwoman Siegel noted that based on the meeting, a scope of services for a local study of how to provide supplemental funding to the volunteer ambulance corps was being circulated for comment and would be ready soon for the Yorktown Board to advertise an RFP. (Note: The Cortlandt Town Board has already voted to participate in the study.)
For a video of the meeting, click yorktownny.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=1&clip_id=2092