By A.J. Arias

       During the Greenwood Lake Commission meeting on Wed., Mar. 28, Treasurer Dale Van Nimwegen gave her treasurer’s report noting a balance of $39,276 in the Sterling account for New York. Van Nimwegen stated that administrative fees will soon be paid, which will diminish that amount.

      Commissioner Eric Hastings asked if it was possible for the current available funds to be taken back by the State due to their high amount. Van Nimwegen said that as long as the funds are used in a timely manner there should be nothing to worry about. Van Nimwegen did mention that she has no experience with anything of that sort occurring.

      New Jersey co-chair Paul Zarrillo said that if that did occur, there is normally notice given prior to the State tapping into the funds. Further research into the issue was called for by several members.

Herbicide Project Causes Confusion in Role Responsibility

      During her report, Van Nimwegen proposed a vote on the potential use of a Paypros account in order to collect donations for the Commission’s ongoing herbicide project for the New Jersey side of the lake. Paypros is a well-respected application for financial transactions and has great benefits for non-profit organizations, according to research done on the service by Van Nimwegen.

      However, without prior notification to Van Nimwegen, Zarrillo set up a Paypal account on the Commission’s website in order to provide the same service. Zarrillo made the decision without a motion or vote, which was the procedure Van Nimwegen was following.

      Zarrillo said that the process to set up a place for donations to be made was taking too long and he wanted to get it off the ground. Zarrillo stated that he set up the account at 4 p.m. the day of the meeting, which meets at 7 p.m.

      Van Nimwegen said that she had an issue with Zarrillo’s decision. Zarrillo apologized and said that he had made a mistake and agreed that it was inappropriate.

Lake Clean-Up Event

      Commissioner Micki Lees will be spearheading a lake clean-up event on Sat., Apr. 21. Lees said that there will be places to throw out picked up garbage around the lake and that members of the Greenwood Lake community are welcome to assist in the cleanup efforts. Anyone with a private boat is welcome to go out in the lake and clean-up any garbage they can find. Lees is stretching a hand out to the Jersey side of the lake to make the clean-up event lake-wide.

Dock Numbering System

      Co-chairs Floyd DeAngelo and Zarrillo went to a meeting with the Jefferson Police Department to discuss a multitude of topics. One item was the implementation of a dock numbering system on the lake. The system would number each dock around the lake so that it was easier for location purposes in case of an emergency. The hypothetical scenario was offered that in case someone wasn’t familiar with a certain area of the lake and an emergency occurs when notifying police, they can give a more specific location as to where they are. DeAngelo discussed the idea with Warwick Town Supervisor Michael Sweeton and said that he loved the idea.

Orange County to Potentially Increase Funding

      DeAngelo attended a dinner with several Orange County Legislators to make a case for additional funding for the New York side of the Commission’s budget. The figure discussed was an additional $10,000. DeAngelo seemed optimistic about the potential for increased funding and said that the legislators showed signs of approval.

North End Clean-up

      Commissioner George Vurno, noting the beauty of the north end of the lake, has called for a cleanup of that area. Vurno stated that coming from 17A, the north end is everyone’s first impression of Greenwood Lake. Co-chair Zarrillo responded that he was under the impression that the area has been deemed as wetlands and can no longer be touched.

      Commissioners Hastings and Vurno both expressed their belief that only the perimeter of the lake had been classified as wetlands, and were confident that the middle of the lake could still be cleaned up. Zarrillo was in favor of saving the area and cleaning it up but wanted further research into what was wetlands and what could be rescued.

Next Meeting

      The next meeting of the Greenwood Lake Commission will be held on Wed., Apr. 25 at 7 p.m. at the Greenwood Lake Senior Center, located at 132 Windermere Ave. in Greenwood Lake NY.