Four of the five members of the Tusten Town Board have voted for an engineering study to build an esplanade along the riverside below the stores located on Main Street with our hard-earned tax dollars.

The definition of an esplanade is “a flat open stretch of pavement or grass, especially one designed as a promenade along a shore.” Before deciding how good that idea is, I suggest that you take a walk along the observation deck located across from the post office. At your right, you will see a conglomeration of long poles attached to poorly maintained decks and buildings with assorted garbage and debris strewn about beneath them. The supports for these decks stretch out nearly to the steep embankment leading down to the river. Will these building owners remove their decks in order for the esplanade to be constructed, losing the open-air view of the river that they now enjoy?

This leads to a question I raised at the February town board meeting: will it be possible to get the needed easements? Pat Harrison who, along with his wife, owns Rasmussen’s store, told the board that the mortgage holder of their property will not allow an easement to be included on their deed. That raises the question, how many other land owners who will be affected by this esplanade have the same restriction on their mortgages? If numerous easements cannot be obtained, the esplanade simply can’t be built.

Wouldn’t it be prudent to hire a title company to research this issue for a few thousand dollars, prior to spending $77,000 with no due diligence?

I asked supervisor Carol Wingert and the board why we are not allowing the taxpayers of this town to decide through a referendum if they would like their tax dollars spent on such a potential fiasco. In addition to the $77,000 cost (plus matching grant), there is the estimated future cost of construction of $700,000 to $2 million. The board has done no due diligence in answering the questions that I have just raised, never mind investigating the availability of funding other than the Tusten taxpayers to build this project and then pay operating and maintenance expenses. It’s like hiring an architect to design plans for a house, and the cost is $77,000 for the plans and you have no plan for how to pay to build it. In my mind, that is irresponsible of the town board, with the exception of Norm Meyer, who voted against it.

As the owner of the Narrowsburg Inn, I stand to benefit from the projected 3,000 to 4,300 visitors per year if this esplanade is built. It is estimated that each individual that treks across the esplanade will spend approximately $30 on Main Street, generating approximately $100,000 in revenue for businesses in the hamlet. That sounds wonderful until you look at the cost of financing the average $1.5 million cost, with a conservative six percent interest rate, creating a debt service of $90,000 per year for the Tusten taxpayer, not including operation and maintenance costs that could exceed $25,000 per year.

Why doesn’t the town board look at what is best for the entire population of our town, not just a few merchants like me? A better idea would be to approach the Sullivan West school board to purchase the lower field of the school located on Kirk Road, which could be converted with minimal money to a walking/running track with exercise stations to benefit our youth, our seniors and the working families of this town. If you would like to discuss this with me, I would be happy to spend the time. Let’s pressure the town board to do what’s right for all of us.

[Ned Lang is a resident and business owner in the Town of Tusten.] Fleecing the Tusten taxpayer

Four of the five members of the Tusten Town Board have voted for an engineering study to build an esplanade along the riverside below the stores located on Main Street with our hard-earned tax dollars.

The definition of an esplanade is “a flat open stretch of pavement or grass, especially one designed as a promenade along a shore.” Before deciding how good that idea is, I suggest that you take a walk along the observation deck located across from the post office. At your right, you will see a conglomeration of long poles attached to poorly maintained decks and buildings with assorted garbage and debris strewn about beneath them. The supports for these decks stretch out nearly to the steep embankment leading down to the river. Will these building owners remove their decks in order for the esplanade to be constructed, losing the open-air view of the river that they now enjoy?

This leads to a question I raised at the February town board meeting: will it be possible to get the needed easements? Pat Harrison who, along with his wife, owns Rasmussen’s store, told the board that the mortgage holder of their property will not allow an easement to be included on their deed. That raises the question, how many other land owners who will be affected by this esplanade have the same restriction on their mortgages? If numerous easements cannot be obtained, the esplanade simply can’t be built.

Wouldn’t it be prudent to hire a title company to research this issue for a few thousand dollars, prior to spending $77,000 with no due diligence?

I asked supervisor Carol Wingert and the board why we are not allowing the taxpayers of this town to decide through a referendum if they would like their tax dollars spent on such a potential fiasco. In addition to the $77,000 cost (plus matching grant), there is the estimated future cost of construction of $700,000 to $2 million. The board has done no due diligence in answering the questions that I have just raised, never mind investigating the availability of funding other than the Tusten taxpayers to build this project and then pay operating and maintenance expenses. It’s like hiring an architect to design plans for a house, and the cost is $77,000 for the plans and you have no plan for how to pay to build it. In my mind, that is irresponsible of the town board, with the exception of Norm Meyer, who voted against it.

As the owner of the Narrowsburg Inn, I stand to benefit from the projected 3,000 to 4,300 visitors per year if this esplanade is built. It is estimated that each individual that treks across the esplanade will spend approximately $30 on Main Street, generating approximately $100,000 in revenue for businesses in the hamlet. That sounds wonderful until you look at the cost of financing the average $1.5 million cost, with a conservative six percent interest rate, creating a debt service of $90,000 per year for the Tusten taxpayer, not including operation and maintenance costs that could exceed $25,000 per year.

Why doesn’t the town board look at what is best for the entire population of our town, not just a few merchants like me? A better idea would be to approach the Sullivan West school board to purchase the lower field of the school located on Kirk Road, which could be converted with minimal money to a walking/running track with exercise stations to benefit our youth, our seniors and the working families of this town. If you would like to discuss this with me, I would be happy to spend the time. Let’s pressure the town board to do what’s right for all of us.

[Ned Lang is a resident and business owner in the Town of Tusten.]