NARROWSBURG, NY — The future sewage-bill increase rate was announced at the Tusten Town Board meeting on October 2. Due to revenue shortfalls at the current sewage rate, the sewage increase has a base rate of $125.50, $11.40 more than the current base rate, and includes a use rate of $8.88 per 1,000 gallons.

Board member Jane Luchsinger said that the water and sewage department meeting determined the new sewage rate from the options presented to the board by RCAP Solutions, an organization that assists communities with environmental services, in August. For an individual with an average sewage use rate (55,553/gallons), the new rate is approximately a $60.71 increase per quarter. See the breakdown below.

A public hearing for the new sewer rate will be held on Tuesday, December 5 at 6:30 p.m.

Grant money promised

Recently the Town of Tusten was awarded a grant by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to develop an open-space and recreation plan. The two-year, $150,000, 50/50 match grant will help Tusten protect important open spaces and develop recreation opportunities. To help cover the grant match, the town requested aid from the Upper Delaware Council (UDC). Luchsinger said the request was answered and the UDC has agreed to provide $10,000 toward the project.

Pavilion project update

The past couple of months the Tusten Town Board public comment period has been dominated by the park project, a grant-funded proposal to build a pavilion at Tusten Multigenerational Park, aka the Flats ballfield. After strong opposition from many residents, the size of the pavilion was minimized to 24 feet by 30 feet, but plans are continuing to move forward slowly.

At the meeting, residents expressed again their concerns about the pavilion, including traffic, noise, the cost of maintenance, the potential for the structure to attract crime and frustration over other, older projects at the ballfield that they said have not been completed or maintained.

The board confirmed that the current 24-foot-by-30-foot plan rendering will be submitted to the UDC for review, given the project’s location within the river corridor. Additionally, the grant giver—nonprofit Sullivan 180—plans to come speak to the board and public to answer questions in the near future.

One resident, Vanessa Reeves, was eager to support the pavilion. Despite just learning about the project at that meeting, Reeves offered cleaning services from her company, Vanessa’s Cleaning and Home Management Services, and to build the project, labor free of cost, with her husband’s company Reeves Mountain Holdings LLC.

Reeves told the River Reporter she loves that park and she thinks “that’s what community is all about.”

On the horizon

In other business: The board 

• accepted the resignation of Corey Dexter as a member of the town highway department and moved to have the town clerk post the position opening as well as the vacant animal control officer opening, due to the resignation of Nico Juarez.
• accepted a motion to instill a curfew on Halloween, Tuesday, October 31 beginning at 9 p.m. until Wednesday, November 1 at 6 a.m.;
• announced that the Little Lake Erie culvert project construction continues to be on schedule and is on track to be completed in the first week of November; and
• set a public hearing for the new budget on Monday, November 6 at 6:30 p.m.

November 7 election

The town will vote to fill two of the town board seats in November’s election. Current board member Jane Luchsinger won’t run again and board member Bruce Gettel will run for reelection. There are three candidates for the two seats. The two candidates with the most votes will sit on the town board.

Learn more online

For more on the pavilion project and sewer rates, visit:

“Oh-deer,” 

“When a grant is not a gift,” 

“Sewer rates to go up, pavilion size to come down,”