Village of Cherry Valley Board Meeting Minutes: Tuesday June 16, 2026
The Village of Cherry Valley Board of Trustees meeting opened at 6:33 PM by Mayor Stiles with the Pledge to the Flag. In attendance were Mayor Jeffrey S. Stiles, Trustees Ian M. Feulner and K. Don Brigham, DPW Superintendent Wayne B. Valentine, Clerk-Treasurer Melissa F. Gregory, and Attorney Jill A. Poulson, Esq. Also in attendance were six guests.
May 19, 2026 minutes received a correction this evening, to the “New Business: Other” section. Attorney Poulsen made a correction to her previous statement regarding the Village’s rules surrounding fireworks. She noted that the Village adopted an ordinance (among many) on May 26, 1966, that included rules surrounding fireworks. Local Law No. 1 of 1997 amended some of the original May 1966 ordinances, including Section 3 which now reads: “The discharge of firearms, firecrackers, rockets, gunpowder, or other explosives within the corporate limits is prohibited.”
Approval of the May 19, 2026 minutes, was made, as members received in final written form, and with corrections as of June 16, 2026. It was upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried, to accept the minutes as written.
TREASURER’S REPORT
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory noted that there is no treasurer’s report for this meeting, as there are some discrepancies that are being cleaned up across accounts while finishing the end of Fiscal Year 2026 records. She noted additionally that the installation of the accounting software will begin tomorrow (6/17/2026), and that the company is willing to let the Village enter data for the prior fiscal year (2025-2026) to further help find the discrepancies with the paper documents currently being utilized.
GUESTS
Aaron Van Buren
Mr. Aaron Van Buren attended this evening’s meeting to discuss his contract with the Village for Property Maintenance. He provided the Board with a letter of “resignation” for his work, noting reasons of 1) lack of signed contract from the Board, and 2) due to lack of additional help this summer, he feels he is unable to perform to a standard he has set for himself. Mr. Van Buren stated that he will continue work through the end of June/July 4th but will then no longer be servicing the Village properties. Trustee Brigham and the Board thanked Mr. Van Buren for his dedication to the Village over the years.
Scott Dibble
Owner of Phat Backs BBQ, Mr. Scott Dibble, attended this evening’s meeting to discuss the potential for his business’s food truck to park and serve in the Village one to two times per week. After a brief overview of his business, its history, and planned future, Mr. Dibble asked if there was interest in having his food truck in the Village and if so, where and when. After discussions with the Board, a consensus was made that Fridays are the busiest days of the week for the Village and so that would be probably the best day for the truck to serve. Regarding a location, nothing definite was decided upon. Mr. Dibble noted that Phat Back’s last day in the Red Shed Brewery here in the Village will be Saturday June 27th.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Dustin Lewandowski inquired about the ongoing conversation surrounding his Main Street property. The Board noted that though it had been tabled, there was still action/discussion to have.
Otsego County Board Representative, Leslie Berliant, attended this evening’s meeting to see if anyone had any questions for her regarding the recent climate surrounding the County, but also to let the Village know of updates. She noted that the County Planning Board would be meeting Friday 6/19 to discuss how to better improve communication between communities. She also noted that the Roseboom cell tower should be up and working in about one month!
OLD BUSINESS
Recent Village Walkthrough
The Board of Trustees, along with the Mayor, DPW Superintendent, and Clerk-Treasurer completed a Village Walkthrough on June 3rd. The focus was on sidewalks (Montgomery Street; Alden), roads, trees, and the well house. Regarding the sidewalk on Montgomery Street, there is a small section that is in need of repair due to being paved over. The Board had a discussion on how to proceed with the fixing of that section of sidewalk, and as no consensus could be made, it will be further discussed at the next meeting in July after Mayor Stiles and the Trustees can look at the sidewalk again.
America250 Celebration
The Board reviewed options provided to them from Clerk-Treasurer Gregory regarding themed decor for the Village. They agreed upon a set of banners that nicely commemorate the 250th birthday of our Nation. The DPW will hang these banners on posts around the Village.
Water Bills
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory, in preparation for the upcoming water bills to be sent at the end of the month, inquired about the additional $25.00 “Administrative Fee” that was discussed in prior months. Mayor Stiles stated that that fee will not be added to the bills until January of 2027. A guest inquired about the pricing of this year’s water bills, and Clerk-Treasurer responded, noting that the new rate for water usage, starting July 1, 2026, will be $12.75/1,000 gallons metered, with a minimum water bill then of $255.00 for 20,000 gallons.
Department of Public Works
DPW Superintendent Valentine began with a memo (read by Clerk-Treasurer Gregory) from Rural Water Association representative, Mark Roberts: “Rural Water Association representative, Mark Roberts, would like it noted in the minutes that DPW Superintendent Wayne Valentine has made multiple attempts to notify the Village of Cherry Valley Board of Trustees and Mayor, of the urgency regarding New York State’s implementation of the lead and copper replacement rules and regulations. Further, should the Village Board of Trustees and Mayor choose to ignore this urgency, it is to be noted that DPW Superintendent Wayne Valentine is not to be held liable for any damages and/or fines that the Village of Cherry Valley may incur.”
DPW Superintendent Valentine also noted that while attending training last week, he learned that in order for the Village to partake in any sort of repairs to sidewalks that run along a State Highway (such as Main and Alden), there needs to be permit applications, engineer partnerships, and more.
Joint Planning Board
The Board discussed the “re-working” of their participation in the Joint (Town and Village) Planning Board. Inquiries were made as to what qualifications are needed in order to be a member of the planning board, and who is currently listed as being on it. Further discussion to be had regarding next steps.
Village’s Grass Ordinance
The Village’s tall grass ordinance (Local Law 1 of 2013) was reviewed. Trustee Brigham noted that he is not in favor of this ordinance, but agreed with the remainder of the Board that issuing a warning letter is satisfactory. Further work is to be done with the ordinance if changes are to be made, and the Village will work with Attorney Poulson to make the changes in the correct manner.
NEW BUSINESS
Donations
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory reported that donations were received for the following: 1) $50.00 from Stuart and Lois Collier, towards the cemetery; 2) $500.00 from Ed and Teena Harvey, towards the hanging flower baskets; 3) barrel planted flowers throughout the Village, from Lou and Joann Guido. Thank you to all who donated; it is always greatly appreciated!
Spring/Summer Newsletter
Included with water bills will be the Spring/Summer newsletter and Clerk-Treasurer Gregory inquired about what other items (aside from the usual this time of year) the Board would like to have included. The Board noted the following additional items: $25.00 Administrative Fee in January 2027 (directly related to lead pipe replacement requirements from the Environmental Protection Agency); why there is an increase to the water bills; tall grass ordinance; note on how Village residents can help one another.
Other
Trustee Feulner updated the Board regarding the volunteer group he and Angelica Palmer are working to compile that will be working on the NYForward Grant. The interested volunteers are meeting next Wednesday, 6/24/2026 at 6:30pm (location TBD) to discuss the initial stages of the grant, along with all that being part of this group will entail. Currently there are approximately ten people that will make up the group.
FINANCES
Audit of Claims:
After review by the board, it was upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried, to make payment on paid bills as follows:
EXECUTIVE SESSION
The Village Board ended the public portion of the meeting at 8:16 pm to enter executive session, for personnel reasons.
ADJOURNMENT
The Village Board ended the executive session and adjourned the meeting at 8:57p.m. upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried.
Respectfully Submitted,
Melissa Gregory, Clerk-Treasurer
June 22, 2026
