Politics & Government

Village of Pelham OKs Budget, Moves Market Day, Sets Hydrant Flushing

With budget resolutions adopted for fiscal 2011, the trustees moved on, listening to Sparks Avenue residents' complaints about traffic, parking.

After months of  playing with numbers and trying to accommodate the needs of the village in light of the realities of the current economy, the Village of Pelham trustees unanimously adopted a budget for the 2011-12 fiscal year Tuesday evening at village hall.

While Mayor Edward Hotchkiss and the rest of the board members were pleased about the spending plan, they were also leery about next year’s budget, which is already promising to be just as challenging.

”We will be making assessments of next year’s budget on a monthly basis over the next fiscal year so that we can make adjustments as we go along if something needs changing,” said Hotchkiss. He said pension and health care costs—which increased 8.7 percent in this year’s budget—will continue to rise.

Find out what's happening in Pelhamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

After the budget vote,  other issues were discussed at the meeting:

Hydrant Flushing

Find out what's happening in Pelhamwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Village crews will be doing performing annual maintenance of the Pelham water system by flushing fire hydrants during daylight hours May 31 through June 6.

Improving conditions on Sparks Avenue

Residents spoke out about the safety concerns caused by speeding cars. They also do not like the fact that there are cars parked in front of their homes all day.

The board members said once the new 52-space municipal parking lot opens up off of Sparks Avenue in June the parking issue should be alleviated

Pelham resident Joe Parisi expressed concern about the traffic on Sparks Avenue, commenting that, “I want to praise the village on the positive changes that have taken place in the past 15 years but I'm concerned about the volume of traffic on Sparks Avenue which in my opinion is a safety issue.”

Farmers Market to change to Saturdays

The Village Farmers Market will change its day of operation to Saturday in hopes of boosting attendance. May 28 will be the first day.

Annual Chamber of Commerce street fair

On June 4, the annual street fair will take place.  In past years, it has not only brought in revenue to Pelham but has showcased all sorts of displays, shows and vendors of all kinds.  

(Check back with Patch for more information as well as street closures on the day of the fair.)

Village Administrator appointed to the LISWIC

Robert Yamuder has been appointed as a member of the Long Island Sound Watershed Intermunicipal Council.  “This is an organization that is actually being used as a model for Westchester County and I will act as a liaison to the village,” Yamuder said.

Salt storage

The board approved funding for the additional framing and blocking of the salt storage building interior wall in the new village yard. The funding for the project will come out of the contingency fund from the village and will ultimately allow for a more secure and larger storage space for rock salt.

The next Board of Trustees meeting for the Village of Pelham is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. May 10.


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