WHITE LAKE, NY — Elected officials around Sullivan County believe the sales tax revenue to the county will increase significantly in 2017, and many believe that additional revenue should be shared with the 15 town governments in the county. This belief is bolstered by the fact that 44 out of 57 counties outside of New York City already share sales tax revenue with the towns within their jurisdictions.

Bethel Supervisor Dan Sturm, who is also the chair of the Sullivan County Association of Supervisors, said at a town meeting on April 8 that the supervisors had passed a resolution urging the county legislature to share the revenue, and he wanted the town board to also adopt such a resolution.

When the casino is operational in 2017, Sullivan County and the Town of Thompson will split about $10.3 million in revenue, and another $10.3 million will go to surrounding counties. Sturm said, “None of that will go to the towns, and we think that’s a problem.”

The suggestion of the supervisors is that the county establish a baseline in 2016, and then in 2017 when the casino opens, the county should split any additional revenue beyond the baseline, with 50% of that going to the county and the other 50% split among the towns to help them offset anticipated impacts.

Councilmember Vicki Simpson said she had previously been unaware that 44 out of the 57 counties in the state outside of New York City already share sales tax revenues with their towns, and “the timing is perfect.”

The board unanimously adopted the resolution, which has also been adopted by the Sullivan County Association of Highway Superintendents.

Permit for sand mining

Also at the meeting, Sturm disclosed that after a two-year process the town had finally received a permit from the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) that will allow the town to mine sand from the property known as the former Smallwood Golf Course, which is now a town park.

Sturm said the section that will be mined for sand will be screened off from view by a vegetative buffer, and that it would only be operated for about two weeks per year. The former town sand mine ran out of sand about three years ago, and in the past two years, the town had spent over $130,000 for sand for snow removal needs.

He said that by mining its own sand, the town could save two to three million dollars over the next 20 years.

The town bought the property from the county in 2009 for about $55,000. The Bethel Local Development Corporation spent another $70,000 for engineering, survey and legal work, helping to create a conservation easement to protect 124 acres as forever wild.

He said the mining of a separate 16-acre area would help the town recoup costs. He added that the town is seeking public input as to how the park should be developed.