Town of Stark Combined Town Board and Planning Board Meeting, October 21st, 7:00 PM

It is essential for the residents of Stark to remain engaged in meetings during this critical time and to request to be considered for a position on the Stark Planning Board (with a sheet of paper containing name and address), and to inquire about the reason if they are not selected. The events that have been occurring in the town of Stark are as follows:

• The Stark Town Board appears unwilling to consider public input and satisfy the requirements of town law about appointments. This is a problem considering that the town needs to address critical issues affecting its future, including a review of the Stark Comprehensive Plan and zoning laws under Local Law 1 of 2024.

• The Stark Planning Board has consisted of just three people for several years. This is out of compliance with town law. Specifically, Section 1001, Part A, Appointments, of the Land Use Regulations of the Town of Stark

• The town board claims that residents have not been interested in serving in the past, but that is no longer the case. The town has received applications in writing from several qualified residents, including at least one application submitted several months ago. These are residents of Stark. One is a seasoned engineer with expertise in energy systems, eminently qualified to advise the town on energy planning issues.

• The town board has yet to consider all of these requests to serve.

• During recent town meetings, certain Town Board and Planning Board members have expressed ad hoc comments suggesting that qualified applicants are not welcome, including comments that all Planning Board members should have lived in the community for several years or are not qualified if they own property in other communities.

• The Town Board has expressed the view that it is not obligated to fill vacancies until the beginning of the year. Moreover, the partial Planning Board chair has been openly hostile to residents during town meetings.

• The Town Land Use Regulations referenced above do not identify any of the “reasons” for rejecting applications to the Planning Board or refer to delaying filling vacancies until the next calendar year.

• The Town Board must act in good faith to fill vacancies promptly. In the interest of good government, the town should also want to do that.

• Finally,  the town is considering amending the town land use law to reduce the required Planning Board members from five to three so that it does not have to appoint residents who have applied to serve. This directly conflicts with state requirements outlined in New York Town Law § 271, part 1, which says: “The town board of each town is hereby authorized by local law or ordinance, to create a planning board consisting of five or seven members…” State law does not authorize creating a Planning Board with just three members. Further, like the town’s current land use law, part 8 of § 271 states that in the event of a vacancy, “the town board shall appoint the new member for the unexpired term.”