Pleasantville Village Board of Trustees Work Session: Safe Streets for All Update and Panther Club Registration

The Pleasantville Village Board of Trustees held a virtual work session on January 27, 2026, to receive an update on the federally funded Safe Streets for All (SS4A) program from NV5 Engineering and BFJ Planning, and to discuss possible changes to Panther Club after-school registration. The agenda noticed the meeting for Monday, January 26, 2026, at 7:00 PM; the meeting metadata provided for this summary identifies the date as January 27, 2026, and the transcript itself does not state a date. No formal votes were taken, and the regular board meeting followed at 8:00 PM.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Ashley G., a Highland Terrace resident outside the village, called the current sign-up process a 'nightmare,' supported a lottery, but opposed guaranteeing spots for all siblings and opposed grandfathering. She urged prioritizing younger children and asked whether the lottery would be administered by individual day rather than as a full-week award.
• Will Neves, a Chote Lane resident, asked whether the study was grant-funded, why 2045 was chosen, and how long implementation would take. He later asked whether an incoming kindergartner could enter the spring lottery before being registered at BRS; staff confirmed yes.
• Lauren Levine, a Mountain Road resident in the Pleasantville district but technically Mount Pleasant, shared a negative UPK lottery experience and worried that families who were uncertain could enroll, block out families who depend on care, and later drop out.
• Carrie Brownley, of 29 Cornell Street, Pleasantville, supported Lauren's concern, saying a $530 deposit may not stop families from treating the lottery as a backup, and that the current system, though imperfect, may protect families with the greatest need.
• Will Collins promoted the upcoming May school bond, saying an adjacent turf field could keep athletic teams off BRS fields and benefit Panther Club; he urged residents to vote yes.
• Terry Conway of the pedestrian committee said the committee was very happy to be involved in the SS4A process and wanted a strong focus on the walking school district.

Safe Streets for All (SS4A) Update

• Village staff said Pleasantville secured $160,000 in federal funds for the SS4A program and selected NV5 through an RFP; NV5 is working with BFJ Planning on public engagement.
• NV5 presenter Bill said the plan aims to reduce fatal and serious injury crashes to zero, respond to public safety concerns, produce realistic and implementable solutions, and position the village for future implementation grants.
• The team is using the federal Safe System approach: safe road users, safer vehicles, safer speeds, safer roads, and post-crash care. It is analyzing five years of crash data (2020–2024) from New York State CLEAR police reports, using the KABCO injury-severity scale, and will also examine B and C injury crashes, not only the grant-required fatal and serious injury (K and A) crashes.
• The proposed goal is zero fatal and serious injuries by 2045. In the five-year data pool, there was one fatality, on the Saw Mill River Parkway; serious injuries were described as slightly more than some peer municipalities, minor injuries about on par, and overall not alarming.
• Schedule and engagement: crash analysis is wrapping up at the end of January; concept solutions will follow; public outreach is targeted for May; a final action plan is targeted for late July, with study completion and village adoption around November. BFJ's Mark Frecker presented the 'Pleasantville Safe Streets' branding, a website and interactive map, focus groups with schools, public safety agencies, and other local stakeholders, a pop-up at Pleasantville Day, a public information session in mid-June, and a late-summer engagement summary. He said the draft engagement plan had been shared with the pedestrian committee and its comments incorporated.
• Discussion covered state, county, and town jurisdiction issues, the Grand Street/Saw Mill River Parkway crossing, the county's pending red-light camera approval, and the village's walkable, no-school-bus character. NV5 said it validates police reports manually and cited an example where seven reported injury crashes turned out to be outside village limits.

Panther Club Registration Discussion

• Recreation Superintendent Mike and Panther Club Director Carrie proposed a lottery system for the 2026–27 school year using Community Pass. Families would register during a spring window, names would be drawn by family to fill 150 spots and group-size limits, and sibling groups would be drawn together. Unselected families would remain on waitlists, and the department would continue filling openings as they arise.
• For the following year, they proposed grandfathering families selected in the first lottery into future years, with a new lottery only for newly available spaces. Carrie said about 75–80% of Panther Club families have multiple children, and estimated 185–200 interested families versus a 150-student cap, so some families will always be unable to enroll.
• Board members viewed a lottery as fairer than first-come, first-served, but expressed concern that grandfathering could make it harder for new families to enter. Trustee Yemi noted that many people who could not attend had contacted her to oppose the lottery. Staff said a decision was needed before the spring brochure goes out around the end of February, and a follow-up work session on February 9 was mentioned.

Key Outcomes

• No resolutions, ordinances, or formal votes were taken at the work session.
• NV5/BFJ will continue the SS4A work, with public-facing milestones including the website/interactive map, Pleasantville Day pop-up in May, and a public information session in mid-June.
• No final decision was made on Panther Club. The board must decide before the spring brochure is published around the end of February; another work session on February 9 is possible.