COCHECTON, NY — The June 8 meeting of the Cochecton Town Board included a conversation about regional building trends.

The number of sales of property was trending downward, both in Cochecton and in the neighboring Town of Tusten, according to Jim Crowley, who serves as both towns’ code enforcement officer. New building was going on, he said, but there weren’t a lot of new homes getting built.

The board also read a report from highway superintendent Kevin Esselman concerning the town’s purchase of a truck for the highway department.

The town’s truck has been delayed for months, due to supply chain issues. The current estimate is that it will be ready in October.

The town is hoping that date will be early October, said supervisor Gary Maas. If that happens, the highway department can pay for the truck through this year’s state funding from the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS). If not, the town will have to use money from its general fund and make up for it with next year’s CHIPS money.

Representation

The town board also discussed the effects of the state’s redistricting process.

It was unfortunate that Martucci was leaving, said Maas. Redistricting had placed Martucci in a 42nd Senate District that covered most of Orange County, removing Sullivan County from his jurisdiction. Democratic Sen. James Skoufis, who currently serves in the 39th Senate District, serves the other half of Orange County.

Both Martucci and Skoufis declared their intention to run for the new 42nd district. On May 31, Martucci withdrew from the race, citing the uncertainty of the redistricting process. “Anyone that has a family with young children knows that it’s important to have some degree of certainty,” he said.

“Skoufis has been in office quite a long time,” said Maas. “From what I understand, they had a conversation and that’s the way it went.”

Maas also commented on Sen. Peter Oberacker, who currently serves as the senator for the 51st Senate District, the district that Sullivan County has now joined.

“The man travels, from what he told me, 4,000 miles a month,” Maas said. “Then you add Sullivan County on the end of it there, cut off a little of his top there, but the majority of it is all north of us going to Greene County.”

Oberacker has been to Sullivan County several times already. In a trip on May 25, he received an endorsement from the Sullivan County NY Republican Committee; Maas serves as the chair of that committee.

Since the Cochecton Town Board met, Republican Terry Bernardo has announced a primary challenge against Oberacker; click here for more information.