Remarks by Torrance Harvey
177 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 4 of 8
“So one retirement already, or he's going to go?”
“Oh, okay. Yeah. Oh, so he's gone already. Mm-hmm. Okay. All right. Thank you. That's all I have. No problem. I just wanted to point out clarification.”
“thanks Chad you have an extensive extensive budget with 16 subdivisions so I really appreciate your work and your team they do a great job two quick questions well actually three the the sanitation supervisor seems to be significantly significantly lower than your others feel like your labor supervisor and your what's the other one mechanical I think it is. We have 3 labor supervisors, a traffic supervisor and the is there a reason why the sanitation supervisor is it because of the years of service.”
“And then the other 2 questions really quickly. We had implemented a number of years ago the street sweeper program correct. I know we've got the the sweet street for the street sweeper with them, you know the truck but that I'm saying separate we wanted to number of years ago and employ formerly incarcerated individuals for the street sweeper program and not only in the warm weather months but even in the winter to help with some of the shoveling of sidewalks that are designated as city-owned sidewalks like you know you go to 9 W near and if a North across the street is that it that sort of…”
“I really would love if we can increase that if we could go from two positions to five or seven because I know especially in the warm weather months they're sweeping the streets and hopefully picking up garbage like at the waterfront or whatever right any of the city-owned properties but then in addition if we can keep those persons working during the winter when you got to get the sidewalk shoveled and salted and stuff like that because and then I know their seasonal employees hopefully they and some of them can transition if they work really hard and they do a really great job, as most of…”
“okay so I'm supportive of working with the council in whatever way we can to pursue that it may be a budgetary item you know it's definitely a budgetary item we just got to do a cost-benefit analysis and figure out what they would cost or if they would come at a free charge to the homeowners or if they come at some sort of financial rate. But I think I really, really, if it's something beneficial to your team, your sanitation team, it's definitely beneficial to, I think, the residents we have uniformity among the the residents and all the you know even the uh businesses that uniformity looks…”
“And all those supervisors are in the bargaining unit?”
“So what's the rationale with why we as a municipality wait until now, like September, October, to start milling and paving? Is there a reason why we can't get it done in June, July, or whatever?”
“That was always the big fight between me as the mayor and the former DPW uh... super superintendent thank you the former superintendent of dbw because it just felt like you know we waited so late in the season to mill and pave and i'm fully aware of the ADA compliance that has to be done which is the difference and a lot of people don't know there's a difference between the towns like the town of newberg new windsor they don't have sidewalks therefore they don't have to comply to the ADA work which is more costly than the actual milling and paving the curbs and the curb ramps they cost more…”
Not quoted here: it may name a member of the public. Hear it at the meeting.
“So this is like I said, this is going to be forever.”
“You know I want to sound like a broken record and keep reiterating the same thing. In some of my colleagues have already said it not tonight, but in previous meetings. We have to expand the tax base. When we do affordable housing development on empty lots that's not generating much tax revenue, like last night's vote, when you look at what the revenue, tax revenue was in that empty lot for how many years it lay vacant compared to what it's going to bring the first, second, third year. in addition to the hundred million dollar project that was on private property down at the waterfront that…”
“Yes, I like to look at the. Where was it? Oh, the Complete Streets implementation. I don't think that that's a legislative action because I think the Complete Streets program or initiative was already initiated well over a year ago.”
“Yeah, and that's what's happening on Broadway. Liberty Street. Liberty Street, yeah, so in the business corridor. So I don't think that's a legislative action there.”
“He called it public value standards. pbs public value standards i think that's good okay hold on one second while we sort these out so yes yeah it was about a year ago yeah that's an alley question yeah it was um something between planning and yeah about a year ago yes i believe so i mean we can get um to add to this is the updating of the master plan right right”
“There are. Yes, thank you Jason. The short term rental regulation which deals with air B and B was already legislated. We did that work. I think it was a 3%. Yeah, what was it that we got the tax. Yeah, but didn't we didn't we legislate regulate that.”
“Is there not I Or do we want to amend what is already in existence?”
“I don't know. Councilman Shakur, I think this might have been your recommendation. I think it was. yeah so i just want some clarity on that oh okay i remember okay thank you I think at one point councilman shakur when you first got on Council, you had pulled the EEOC report which gave us them.”
“Mayor Harvey. I do have a comment on that because I think that even though we may wish to remove it but I think it's something that the council has to consistently look at because when you look at 100 percent valuation and you look at how often the city tax assessor does reassessments and right and other municipalities don't do it every year that's something that the council has to really be actively engaged in because we found municipalities neighboring us that hadn't done any reassessments since 1986 and then there were certain municipalities that are neighboring in orange county that…”
“Mayor Harvey. yeah i just wanted to um just a point of information for councilman shakur on reparations um i think that um well i a few a couple months ago i sent the council an email because there is a lot of movement on reparations at the state level um not to say that we can't do something at the city level um but there's a lot of traction at the state level i'm in some of those um zoom calls and some of those um meetings online so i know the governor and the state legislature is they they have a whole entire group um looking at what reparations looks like um as it relates to uh african…”
“Also, I don't see it here, but I wanted to add, 1% for our legislation I know that was something we have been discussing 1% for our legislation. The art and cultural. Commission because I noticed that there's a lot of development going on there's a lot of um revitalization affordable housing and infrastructure upgrade and and most importantly i think that um There's a strong, strong art community here in the city of Newburgh. And if we can revisit that 1% for art legislation, we may potentially, with the time that I have remaining on city council, be able to get it up and going so that we can…”
“One of the deletes that was brought to my attention, Councilmember Monteverde just reminded me, the moratorium on street excavations, if we could delete that, I don't think that's no longer a legislative priority. I do want to speak quickly to the standardized garbage containers, 96 gallons. sort of as an addendum to that uh... if we could include the newberg street sweepers program i know that uh... we have funded the newberg street sweepers uh program but i think if we can add it to standardized garbage containers 96 gallons and then as an addendum to that legislative priority um include uh…”
“but I would like to know all right so one of the things that it is a budget item councilman Shakur so what we'll do is when we get to the budget hearings because we're hoping that the street sweeper program will be a feeder to giving guys full-time employment you know if they do well in this program so we can work on that councilmember Martinez”
“I just want a point of clarification on what's legislative what are legislative priorities because some of the things that the councilman has mentioned are more project based so if you could just give us”
“all right a live stream is up so this is the city of Newburgh City Council meeting September 14th 2026 it is now five minutes after the hour we're going to start with a moment of silence and I'm going to ask being that September 11 was a few days ago if we can In our moment of silence, think about the families that were afflicted and harmed that very day 25 years ago. September 11th marks a tragic day in the history of the United States of America. And we shall never forget that day. So we can have a moment of silence thinking about the families, the first responders that were involved in…”