LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — Cochecton Supervisor Gary Maas has missed only one Cochecton Town Board meeting in the more than 10 years he’s held his current office. His absence from the April 14 meeting, occasioned by illness, prompted him to write a heartfelt letter to fellow board members. In it, he expressed confidence in their ability to “carry on the business of the town” without him and optimistically predicted that he will rejoin them to preside at an April 28 special board meeting. Deputy supervisor Ed Grund presided over a meeting that further considered several ongoing matters. 

A March 21 barn fire left in its wake a shaky building skeleton that building inspector/code enforcement officer Jim Crowley has since identified as an unsafe structure. Per state and local law, an unsafe building is one deemed dangerous to the life, health, property or safety of the public. What remains of the former barn at 71 Bernas Road in Lake Huntington is, by virtue of its unsafe condition, a potential candidate for demolition and debris removal. The board reviewed Crowley’s finding and asked town attorney Karen Mannino to send legal notification of the property’s condition to its owner, Johnathan L. Harris, of Middletown, NJ.

Councilman Paul Salzberg reported that the Lake Huntington Lake Association hopes to repeat the algaecide treatment performed on the lake last year. The date for this year’s treatment is tentatively set for late May, prior to Memorial Day Weekend. Salzberg also noted that Sullivan West High School science students will be invited to test lake water samples as part of their science courses. In addition, the association hopes to introduce to all lakefront properties two relatively new methods proven to slow silt runoff that contributes to algae overgrowth: installation of silt fences and planting of tall fescue deep-rooted grasses known to prevent soil erosion.

The board also discussed plans to replace the town barn roof. At an earlier meeting, the board decided to solicit bids for the replacement project, but no contractors have yet completed a roof inspection. Crowley was asked to produce some preliminary specifications for prospective contractors. Although the board had hoped to replace the aging shingle roof with a metal one, cost is an overriding factor and, historically, metal has been pricier than shingles.

Grund, himself a contractor, noted that shingles, a petroleum product, have recently spiked in price, making it almost a toss-up in cost between the two roofing materials. And Crowley noted that roof replacement projects often reflect labor cost for removal of the previous roof as well as new roof cost. He added that, if the current shingle roof is one layer only, a metal roof might be installed over it, eliminating the need for removal of the shingle roof.

“What color do you want it to be?” asked Crowley. The board was stymied.

“Will color make a difference in price?” asked someone, recalling that the town barn has been declared a historic building. “Oh, yeah,” said Crowley, leaving the board to mull the prospect of a neon-colored roof on a vintage classic building.

The board recessed until April 28 at 7 p.m.