Citing Costs and Confusion, Sen. Skoufis Shares Plan to Consolidate Town and Village of Woodbury

ORANGE COUNTY, NY – Years of duplication of services between the town and the village of Woodbury may soon be coming to an end, with Senator James Skoufis proposing legislation that would streamline services without altering the zoning distinctions between the two entities.

Located within the Town of Woodbury, the Village of Woodbury was incorporated in 2006. The village took charge of all planning and zoning within its boundaries in mid-2007, and since that time it has also assumed responsibility for its own building, water and sewer and fire departments. As a result, there are numerous entities in the town and village of Woodbury that mirror each other, a situation that isn’t sitting well with Skoufis, who noted in an online petition that he started on July 30th that the parties behind Woodbury’s creation insisted that the changes would come at the cost of just $1 per taxpayer.

“Decades later, your tax bills speak for themselves: two government offices, two sets of salaries for elected officials, two attorneys; two engineers; two clerks; two treasurers/controllers; two beautification committees; two websites; two insurance policies; and more,” wrote Skoufis, a Woodbury resident. “Needless to say, this duplication far exceeds the $1 that was promised – and Woodbury residents are paying for it.”

https://www.change.org/p/let-s-put-woodbury-first?recruiter=206555436&recruited_by_id=71ac4450-9568-11e4-9c32-d1ac7ab81ac2&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=psf_combo_share_initial&utm_term=psf&utm_medium=copylink&utm_content=cl_sharecopy_490154475_en-US%3A4

Confusion reigns in Woodbury when issues arise, as residents are unsure who they should be contacting for assistance, a problem that may get larger if the village succeeds in its attempts to wrest control of the police department and the animal shelter from the town. Adding insult to injury, officials representing the different parts of Woodbury have often been at odds, with a property dispute between the two sparking a lawsuit requesting damages of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Skoufis described the situation as “outrageous, expensive, confusing and no longer tenable.”

Hoping to finally remedy the situation, Skoufis is introducing legislation that would create a single entity governing both the town and the village, while still preserving the zoning protections that sparked the village’s creation nearly 18 years ago. In an op-ed that appeared The Photo News (https://bit.ly/3SuqlXX) Skoufis pledged to put the full weight of his office behind the legislation, which would require the approval of both the town and the village boards.

“For nearly two decades, almost all village and town elected officials – of both parties – have supported a responsible merging of the two boards,” wrote Skoufis. “Once the legislation is finalized in the coming days, I will be formally requesting both boards pass the required resolution and, at that point, we will know who is truly willing to put our community ahead of political self-interest.”

Local elected officials who oppose the move to combine the town and the village should be prepared to have their preferences shared with the public, warned Skoufis.

“Some so-called leaders will, no doubt, try to lie about this proposal or fearmonger but, make no mistake, any attempts to do so will be thinly veiled efforts to preserve political power and a taxpayer-funded salary,” said Skoufis adding, “It is time to finally end the madness.”