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Record of Proceedings

North Salem Planning Board Meeting - June 3, 2026

Town Board & Boards — Wednesday, June 3, 2026
BodyNorth Salem, New York
SessionTown Board & Boards
DateWednesday, June 3, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 25:50

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:00

All right.

0:02

I'm going to start the planning board meeting of June 3rd, 2026.

0:08

I'd like to start by saying that Emily Simonis has resigned from the board.

0:14

She and her husband are going to have a child this August.

0:19

And it's just a bit much to be coming out for evening meetings with one other child.

0:24

So we wish her well.

0:26

And

Unassigned speaker

0:27

the

Speaker 1

0:28

town board did interview a few people, and they actually appointed a new member, Chris Stankowitz, who will not be with us tonight.

0:37

He hasn't, he was just appointed.

0:40

He hasn't taken his oath of office yet, but he should be joining us for our work session.

0:46

And speaking of that, I just want to confirm that at least we'll all be here for the June 17th work

Speaker 2

0:52

session.

0:53

Yes.

Speaker 1

1:04

Definitely those two.

1:06

I'm not sure if we'll start anything else.

Speaker 3

1:09

I'm not around in that first week of July.

1:14

July 1st, is it?

Speaker 1

1:16

Yeah, so that's our first meeting in July, the first.

1:20

Are you going to be here?

Speaker 3

1:21

No, I'm that's when I'm away.

Speaker 1

1:23

You're away.

1:24

All right.

1:25

Um so how does the seventh

Unassigned speaker

1:28

look?

Speaker 4

1:31

I'm still not here.

1:32

I mean the eighth.

1:33

I'm

Speaker 1

1:33

still not here.

1:34

You're still not here.

1:35

Okay.

1:35

Um so we're just gonna have to

Speaker 3

1:38

oh the I'm sorry, the eighth I am back.

Speaker 4

1:43

I could do the first or the eighth, whatever either one works.

Speaker 1

1:46

Okay, so we will let everybody know.

1:51

It um we're gonna need at least another board member, so we we'll have to check on that, Don.

1:56

I would prefer the first because I think it's hard to jump into a meeting right after the fourth of July weekend,

Unassigned speaker

2:02

but

Speaker 1

2:02

we certainly need to get a uh a quorum and um

Unassigned speaker

2:08

I

Speaker 1

2:08

don't think we have a large uh number of items on the agenda, so it shouldn't be too bad.

2:16

All right, um, uh the public hearing for Grant Road LLC will be carried over to the July meeting whenever it's held.

2:27

Um and the first item tonight will be Hollywood's preliminary subdivision.

2:34

Um since we last met, we did get a letter from Mark Sallas and Ellen Clark, uh, which was received and distributed to everybody, and we got an email and letter from Alan Pilch of June 1st, which also was distributed to everybody.

2:50

I believe all of the um public hearing comments have been considered, and I did ask the planner to prepare a draft resolution of approval for tonight, which you all have, and even the applicant was we gave him a courtesy copy.

3:10

So the one thing I do want to point out is there are multiple places where the same information is given.

3:25

The road widening strip for lot one appears to have one number on the preliminary plat and some of the sheets of the plan set, but a different number in at least one of the charts.

3:42

And Will was questioning whether or not that might have happened with some of the other road widening strips.

3:47

So just um I'm not gonna change anything in the resolution, but I just caution um that that should be looked at closely before you um resubmit

Unassigned speaker

4:01

for

Speaker 1

4:01

the final plat.

4:02

They all should match, and there's multiple charts, so you have to look at all the different charts on all the different pages.

4:11

Um with that, does do the board members have any comments or questions on the draft resolution of approval?

Speaker 3

4:18

No,

Speaker 4

4:18

no questions, not other than it's a long one.

Speaker 1

4:21

Yes, we tried to be thorough.

4:24

Yeah, yeah.

4:26

Um I just want to make sure I did everything out.

4:38

And um, as was stated at the close of the public hearing, they did change the um primary area of the septic for lot one, which is closest to the neighbors.

4:52

Yes, so that will be adjusted on the plat.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████33%
Zoning And Land Use█████████████████████████████████33%
Environmental Protection███████████████████19%
Technology and Innovation███████████████15%
Summary of Proceedings

North Salem Planning Board Meeting - June 3, 2026

The Town of North Salem Planning Board convened on June 3, 2026, at 7:00 PM. The Chair announced the resignation of board member Emily Simonis and the appointment of new member Chris Stankowitz. The board approved a preliminary subdivision plat for Hawley Woods, approved a wetland permit and related approvals for the Bossi property at 2 Brookside Lane, and carried over the public hearing for Grant Road LLC to a future meeting.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • The board acknowledged receipt of written public hearing comments from Mark Sallas, Ellen Clark, and Alan Pilch regarding the Hawley Woods application, stating they had been considered in the draft resolution of approval.

Discussion Items

  • Hawley Woods Preliminary Subdivision (396-404 Hawley Road): The board considered a draft resolution of approval. Applicant spokesperson Mr. Powell requested a correction on page 11, changing the requirement from an "electronic notice of intent" to an "individual permit" for the Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) to be filed with the New York State DEC, noting it is over an acre of disturbance of Phase D soil. The Chair flagged inconsistencies in the road widening strip measurements across the plan set and advised the applicant to ensure all charts match before resubmitting the final plat.
  • Bossi / 2 Brookside Lane Wetland Permit: The board debated Condition 13 regarding a potential future dock on Peach Lake. Attorney Alan Singer for the applicant objected to the wording, arguing it should not require a wetlands permit where none is required under the town code. The Chair proposed adding clarifying language: "If the dock will be secured solely with an anchor, then a wetlands permit may not be necessary." The board accepted this amendment.

Key Outcomes

  • Hawley Woods: Motion to approve the negative declaration and preliminary subdivision plat carried unanimously (Ayes). A correction was made to page 11. The applicant was instructed to standardize road widening strip data before final plat submission.
  • Bossi / 2 Brookside Lane: Motion to adopt the resolution of approval with the clarified Condition 13 carried unanimously (Ayes).
  • Grant Road LLC: Public hearing formally carried over to the July 2026 meeting.
  • Financial Report (May 2026): Approved by the board.
  • Minutes (May 6, 2026): Approved by the board.
  • Next Meetings: A work session is scheduled for June 17, 2026. The July regular meeting date is to be confirmed (either July 1 or July 8).

Administrative Updates

  • Board Resignation and Appointment: Emily Simonis resigned from the Planning Board. The Town Board appointed Chris Stankowitz as her replacement; Mr. Stankowitz will join upon taking his oath of office.
  • AI Research Discussion: Board members discussed the use of artificial intelligence for municipal and legal research, noting the importance of verifying outputs and using closed, proprietary systems when handling confidential information.

Meeting Transcript

All right. I'm going to start the planning board meeting of June 3rd, 2026. I'd like to start by saying that Emily Simonis has resigned from the board. She and her husband are going to have a child this August. And it's just a bit much to be coming out for evening meetings with one other child. So we wish her well. And the town board did interview a few people, and they actually appointed a new member, Chris Stankowitz, who will not be with us tonight. He hasn't, he was just appointed. He hasn't taken his oath of office yet, but he should be joining us for our work session. And speaking of that, I just want to confirm that at least we'll all be here for the June 17th work session. Yes. Definitely those two. I'm not sure if we'll start anything else. I'm not around in that first week of July. July 1st, is it? Yeah, so that's our first meeting in July, the first. Are you going to be here? No, I'm that's when I'm away. You're away. All right. Um so how does the seventh look? I'm still not here. I mean the eighth. I'm still not here. You're still not here. Okay. Um so we're just gonna have to oh the I'm sorry, the eighth I am back. I could do the first or the eighth, whatever either one works. Okay, so we will let everybody know. It um we're gonna need at least another board member, so we we'll have to check on that, Don. I would prefer the first because I think it's hard to jump into a meeting right after the fourth of July weekend, but we certainly need to get a uh a quorum and um I don't think we have a large uh number of items on the agenda, so it shouldn't be too bad. All right, um, uh the public hearing for Grant Road LLC will be carried over to the July meeting whenever it's held. Um and the first item tonight will be Hollywood's preliminary subdivision. Um since we last met, we did get a letter from Mark Sallas and Ellen Clark, uh, which was received and distributed to everybody, and we got an email and letter from Alan Pilch of June 1st, which also was distributed to everybody. I believe all of the um public hearing comments have been considered, and I did ask the planner to prepare a draft resolution of approval for tonight, which you all have, and even the applicant was we gave him a courtesy copy. So the one thing I do want to point out is there are multiple places where the same information is given. The road widening strip for lot one appears to have one number on the preliminary plat and some of the sheets of the plan set, but a different number in at least one of the charts. And Will was questioning whether or not that might have happened with some of the other road widening strips. So just um I'm not gonna change anything in the resolution, but I just caution um that that should be looked at closely before you um resubmit for

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