LIBERTY – On January 5, the Liberty Town Board held its first meeting of the year, starting with their annual reorganization meeting, addressing schedules, official designations, committee assignments, and welcoming the new members to the board.

Present at the meeting were Town Supervisor Frank DeMayo, Town Clerk Laurie Dutcher, Councilmembers Dean Farrand, Vincent McPhillips, Bruce Davidson and newly-elected Sherri Kavleski.

The location of the town board, planning board and zoning board meetings will be held at the Liberty Senior Center, located at 119 North Main Street. The town board work sessions will take place on the first Monday of every month at 10 a.m. The town board regular meetings will take place on the first and third Monday of every month at 6:30 p.m. If the regular town board meeting falls on a holiday, then it will be rescheduled to the following Wednesday.

The planning board meetings were set for the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. However, if the meeting must be rescheduled, then the meeting will take place on the first Thursday of that month. As for the Zoning Board meetings, they will be held on the third Tues. of every month at 7 p.m.

A series of annual appointments were voted on, including Cheryl Gerow as the budget officer and Robert Werlau as the zoning board chairman. In addition to that, a few board members were re-appointed with several alternate board members being voted on, with only a few being tabled for further discussion at the next meeting.

The town board also appointed committee liaisons for the town departments, and a quarterly schedule for the voucher review was established among the board members. That concluded the reorganizational meeting for the new year with a regular town board meeting following right after.

For the first Liberty Town Board meeting of the new year, the board discussed employee training, licensing contracts, and heard from members of the public.

The highway department requested to fund training for three employees seeking a commercial driver’s license (CDLs), with the cost of the training totaling $4,650. That led to a discussion about the recent change in New York State that prohibits employers from requiring employees to reimburse training costs, even if the employee later leaves the job.

Board members discussed the financial impact that could have on such municipalities and noted that workforce development grants may help offset costs. The motion approved the CDL training with plans to explore grant funding opportunities when future requests arise.

Several licensing matters were also approved—the town board authorized the supervisor to execute an agreement with the Humane Society of Middletown as well as authorizing the town clerk to advertise for bids for repairs to the Loomis Wastewater Treatment plant clarifier once bid specifications are finalized.

During the public participation portion Manny Steinberg addressed the board, expressing concerns from the Jewish community regarding representation on the local Steering Committee. He emphasized the importance of inclusive representation and suggested consideration of both Jewish and Hispanic community members to reflect Liberty’s growing diversity.

The meeting concluded with board members thanking the community for their engagement and extending best wishes for the new year.