January 21, 2026: Town Board Minutes

TOWN OF FORESTPORT
REGULAR TOWN BOARD MEETING MINUTES
FORESTPORT TOWN HALL
10275 State Route 28, Forestport N.Y.
January 21, 2026 @6:30 PM

PRESENT: Supervisor Entwistle
Councilman Addison
Councilwoman Abrial
Councilman Scouten
ABSENT: Councilwoman Verschneider

RECORDING SECRETARY: Tracy Terry, Town Clerk

CALL TO ORDER:
The meeting was called to order by Supervisor Entwsitle at 6:30 P.M.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE:
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
ABSTRACTS:
GENERAL:
A motion was made by Councilman Addison and seconded by Councilwoman Abrial to pay Abstract # 1 Vouchers #1- #66 in the amount of $40,007.35
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED
HIGHWAY:
A motion was made by Councilman Scouten and seconded by Councilwoman Abrial to pay Abstract #1 Vouchers #1- #12 in the amount of $20,075.40
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1absent MOTION CARRIED
WATER DISTRICT #1:
A motion was made by Councilwoman Abrial and seconded by Councilman Scouten to pay Abstract #1, Vouchers #1 #12 in the amount of $6,801.03
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED
SEWER DISTRICT #1:
A motion was made by Councilwoman Abrial and seconded by Councilman Scouten to pay Abstract #1, Vouchers #1- #8 in the amount of $5,613.23
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED
BUCKHORN:
A motion was made by Councilman Addison and seconded by Councilwoman Abrial to pay Abstract #1, Vouchers #1-#4 in the amount of $3,963.53
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED

TOWN CLERK MINUTES:
A motion was made by Councilwoman Abrial and seconded by Councilman Addison to accept the minutes from the:
 December 17, 2025: Regular Town Board Meeting
 December 29, 2025: Year-End Meeting
 January 5, 2026: Organizational Meeting

4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED

REPORTS
TOWN CLERK REPORTS
JUSTICE REPORT
SUPERVISOR REPORT
BUCKHORN WATER REPORT
WATER DISTRICT # 1 REPORT
PLANNING BOARD REPORT
DOG REPORT

A motion was made by Councilman Scouten and seconded by Councilwoman Abrial to accept the monthly reports.
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED

NOCCOG: Lisa Bellinger went over the monthly announcements.

WATER:

SEWER:
• Income Study for WWIP: Fern, Jen Hartsig’s daughter is working on an income study. The study will be sent out to sewer customers, so the town will hopefully be able to get another grant to offset the cost of the sewer project.
• WWIP Bids: The town is still waiting to hear back from the Engineer with their recommendation. Below are the current bids.
 Spensieizi Construction- 3,075,000 total
 Yanuk Construction- 1,383,600 total
 Electrical- J & A Electrical: 268,000 total
• DEC Inspection: Lucas is addressing the inspector’s list of changes at the sewer plant. Everything is going well, but they had suggestions and Lucas is working on completing the demands by the deadline.
BUCKHORN WATER

OLD BUSINESS BOARD:
• Kitchen Upgrades: The town is looking to retrofit the kitchen to facilitate senior lunches and so the community can host events at the Town Hall. The estimate is $45,000. The town will need to get health inspections from the Health Department. There will be no financial burden on the taxpayers in the future as the upgrades should last for a long time. The ANSUL system is brand new and up to codes.
A motion was made by Council man Scouten and seconded by Councilwoman Abrial to move forward with the kitchen upgrades.
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED

• Colleen Pritchard: Supervisor Entwistle thanked Colleen Pritcahrd, with “Freedom Firs” for donating the four-foot wreath on the front of the Town Hall and to the local Fire Departments.

NEW BUSINESS BOARD:
• Battery Storage Law: New York State requires towns to have Local Laws for safety. A Draft copy is available. Laurie Fessler, from the Gallery, stated she read the proposed Local Law, and it needs protection for the property owners and stronger wording to help the Fire Departments with safety equipment and evacuation. She suggested protections for local water or well water. Supervisor Entwistle told Laurie to email him the suggestions, and he will pass them along to the attorney.
A motion was made by Councilwoman Abrial and seconded by Councilman Addison to schedule a Public Hearing on February 18, 2026, at 6:15P.M.
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED
*The proposed law is attached to the minutes*
• Highway Resignations: For the record, Aaron Smith resigned from the Highway Department and Ray Reuger is coming on as a Part Time Wingman for the Highway Department.
• Ski Trip to Gore: Supervisor Entwistle organized a trip to Gore Mountain, February 28th. You need to be an intermediate or above-skier. There will not be a bus, so individuals need to drive themselves. The Learn to ski day at McCauley was a success, all 13 kids are now able to ski. He thanked Danielle Abrial, Tyler and Tracy Terry for their help. He is planning another Learn to Ski day in February.
• Senior Recreation: Supervisor Entwistle congratulated Councilman Addison, as being the Senior Recreation Director. He held his first meeting on Monday and had 15-18 people in attendance. The next meeting is Monday, February 9th at 10am. He encouraged people to reach out to Councilman Addison or Tracy Terry, Town Clerk to sign up for the email subscriber list or textmygov.
• Taxes: The taxes went up 268% for the general town tax. Last year it was $2.18/1,000 and this year it is $3.22/1,000; the tax cap was broken. Six separate meetings took place regarding the tax cap. Anyone with questions should reach out to Supervisor Entwistle.
• Tax Collector: Vicky Palen is the new Tax Collector. The former Tax Collector had a Community Bank account, and the new Tax Collector is using Adirondack Bank. Currently there are funds in the Community Bank account, and it is likely that some of 2026 online tax payments went into the previous bank account. This resolution is to take Sherry off the Tax Collector account and add Supervisor Entwistle. After the season is over, close the account completely.
A motion was made by Councilman Addison and seconded by Councilman Scouten to pass Resolution #1 of 2026.
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED

• Plowing: On the 7th of January, the Highway guys had overtime 16 times already. Last year, they had 12 days of overtime.
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
A motion was made by Council man Addison and seconded by Councilman Scouten to enter into Executive Session to discuss a legal matter.
4 ayes/ 0 nays/1 absent MOTION CARRIED
The Board returned from Executive Session at 7:12 P.M. with no action taken.

• Quarry: Supervisor Entwistle stated everyone should be respectful of each other, no matter what side you are on. Both sides have felt the town hasn’t done them justice. There have been thousands of manhours spent on this, from everyone- the Planning Board, Supervisor, Town Clerk, Planning Board Secretary, Assessor and the Town Attorney. He commended everyone for doing a professional job. Supervisor Entwistle recused himself from any business with the quarry as he has a personal relationship with both sides.

Supervisor Entwistle left the meeting at 7:15P.M.

 Tim Benedict, on behalf of Red Rock Quarry stated he went before the Planning Board last week. The DOT recognized State Route 28 and Stone Quarry Road need to be rectified for the line of sight on the North and south of Route 28. The Planning Board stated they needed to get Town Board approval and once they had that, they could go back to the Planning Board. He stated Mr. Sunderlin would incur the costs either by reimbursing the town or paying for the costs directly. The State Environmental Quality Renew act (SEQRA) is determined by other agencies and he stated the Planning Board should be the lead agency.
 Deputy Supervisor Addison stated no decisions were going to be made tonight, likely for a Public Hearing. The application to the Planning Board is not complete currently. They do not have bids for engineering of the roads, and the town will not incur any costs for a privately owned business. The town is only responsible for the road in its current state. The town has no intention of utilizing taxpayer money to fund a privately owned business.
 Mike Butler, from the gallery, asked since the APA and DEC signed off on this project, whether there have been any changes to the plan since then. Tom Sunderlin stated there were not any changes as they are obliged to comply with that plan.
 Michael Hurd stated historically there was a Stone Quarry Road easement, for Joe Terzyn’s property. He asked what the specs of the road are currently and if it was widened with the DOT requests, what it would be. Deputy Supervisor Addison acknowledged there were contradictory beliefs as to ownership of Quary Road. He stated that Duane Frymire did a survey in 2020, and he stated the town owns the road. It is up to Joe Terzyns to seek legal remedy regarding his claim for ownership of the road. The town paid for the survey as part of the process to see who owned the road.
 Ian Avery, with AWLA, from the gallery stated they have concerns with the impact on the wells. Deputy Supervisor Addison stated those concerns should be addressed at a Public Hearing. He suggested he put his concerns in writing and email them to him and he will address them.

Deputy Supervisor Addison closed the discussion regarding the quarry.

NEW BUSINESS PUBLIC:
• Laurie Fessler from the gallery asked if there was any news on the short-term rentals and what the town’s responsibility is. Deputy Supervisor Addison stated they want the town to take over and administrate but the town does not have the resources for that.

ADJOURNMENT:
A motion was made by Council man Addison and seconded by Councilwoman Abrial to adjourn the meeting.
3 ayes/ 0 nays/2 absent MOTION CARRIED

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 7:31 P.M. by Deputy Supervisor Addison.
Respectfully submitted,
Tracy M. Terry

Forestport Town Clerk