Village of Cherry Valley Board Meeting Minutes
Tuesday March 17, 2026
The Village of Cherry Valley Board of Trustees meeting opened at 6:30 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 eight guests.
Approval of the February 17, 2026 minutes was made, as members received in final written form. It was upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried, to accept the minutes as written.
Treasurer’s Report SUMMARY for March 17, 2026 Board Meeting
It was upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried, to accept the Treasurer’s Report as given.
GUESTS:
Mrs. Amy Herr attended this evening’s meeting on behalf of the Cooperstown Community Band. In recent years the Village has sponsored and hosted the Community Band for a July summer concert behind the Community Center on 2 Genesee Street. She inquired this evening if the Village would be willing to sponsor the group again this year and if so, if the group could utilize the parking lot space again for the concert. The board agreed that they will continue to sponsor the Cooperstown Community Band this year at $350.00 and that yes, the parking lot behind the community building could be utilized for the event in July.
Ms. Maxine Antunes-Reiff presented this evening with concerns about local dogs. She stated that the dog in question has been witnessed on multiple accounts (over the last year at least) attacking other dogs, as it was not leashed nor in a fenced in area. She stated that she has tried to reach the Town’s dog control officer, Jaird Johnson, but has no luck in touching base with him. Mayor Stiles stated he would get a complaint form for her directly from Jaird Johnson and hand deliver it to Ms. Antunes-Reiff himself. As the owner of the dog in question was present this evening, she publicly apologized and stated that she has made, and will continue to make, every effort to resolve this issue including but not limited to: looking at working with trainers and fixing the invisible fence.
OLD BUSINESS:
Shared Service Agreements
DPW Superintendent Valentine noted that he is continuing his outreach with the Town of Richfield Springs to complete a shared service agreement in which the Village of Cherry Valley and the Town of Richfield Springs will have the ability to help one another out with various circumstances. He also noted that he is in contact with many other surrounding municipalities to create shared service agreements with them as well.
Insurance Bond/USDA Loan
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory recalled for the board the additional insurance bond that they had previously voted to opt out of. She noted that in recent research of said bond it appeared that it actually may not be able to be cancelled as it is a requirement for the Village to have due to the remaining USDA loan. She is in contact with Mr. Mike Hutcherson, the Village’s insurance broker, to finalize details and will report to the board when additional information becomes available.
Teresa Kennedy with the “Empire State Capital Volksporters”
Ms. Teresa Kennedy had approached Clerk-Treasurer Gregory mid Fall 2025 about the walking group she is a part of. She wanted to inquire to the board about approval to utilize the parking lot and park here at the Community Center for a group walk in September 2026. Clerk-Treasurer Gregory reported about the group, based on information provided from Ms. Kennedy. The board agreed this was a good idea and stated that they could certainly utilize the lot and field for their event. For more information about the Empire State Capital Volksporters you can visit their site @ https://escvwalks.org/.
Property Care Contract
Mr. Aaron Van Buren, owner of AA Property Care, provided Clerk-Treasurer Gregory with a copy of his proposed contract for the 2026 property care season. Clerk-Treasurer Gregory provided a brief overview of the contract and noted she would provide copies to the board to fully review on their own time. Once reviewed, at the April 21, 2026 meeting a final decision will be made on the contract.
Alden Creek “Deed”
Resident Ellen LaSalle asked Clerk-Treasurer Gregory about whether or not the creek that runs through the Village, Alden Creek, has a deed attached to it by the Village or anyone else. Deputy Clerk-Treasurer Bouboulis researched this information for Ms. LaSalle and upon speaking with the Department of Environmental Conservation, found that no one in particular “owns” the creek. The board discussed this matter briefly as well but no new information was provided.
Election for Trustee
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory announced to the board of the recent contact from Ms. Martha Sherwood and her inability to be an election inspector at tomorrow’s election. The board discussed, with guidance from Attorney Poulson, the choices they had regarding the upcoming election. One of the guests had a name and phone number of an individual they knew was trained and that may be available; Clerk-Treasurer Gregory called this individual but received no response. The board decided to move forward with the meeting and come back to this matter at the end. When they did come back to this to discuss options, Attorney Poulson stated she would do some more research before tomorrow’s election start time, and touch base with the Board regarding what had to be done..
NEW BUSINESS:
Cherry Valley Youth Sports
Mrs. Allison Gridley, one of the coordinators for the Cherry Valley Youth Sports, attended this evening’s meeting to discuss a few items, as the season is quickly approaching for baseball, softball, and t-ball to start. She discussed the schedules, noting that she’d provide copies to both DPW, the Property Care contractor, and Mayor Stiles. March 31st is set to be the first day of practice for at least one of the teams, and the remaining teams will start practice the first week in April. The home run fencing placement was discussed, as it impacted the property care last season; an agreement was made to raise the fencing up slightly higher for easier access for the property care contractor. Mrs. Gridley noted that there are approximately 90 kids signed up this season across the span of teams. She also inquired about funding and various options were discussed. Further discussions and decisions to be made at the April 7th Organizational Meeting/Budget Hearing.
3 Main Street Gazebo
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory reported to the Board that an individual had contacted the office asking if a permit was required for a small elopement ceremony to take place in the gazebo on the property at 3 Main Street on April 1st. The Board confirmed that no permit/permissions are needed.
Cemetery Inquiry
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory reported to the Board that Mr. Terry Brant had again inquired (initial request was last summer) about pricing for the “burial” of his wife’s cremains. The family is placing her ashes within the headstone and there is nothing that the DPW would be in charge of doing. As such, Mr. Brant wanted to know if there would be any charge at all and if so, if it could be reduced. The Board stated that they would discuss this further at the next meeting.
Mr. Franzen Clough, prior resident of the Village, passed away in January of this year after a stay in an assistance facility for his health. Clerk-Treasurer Gregory wanted to confirm with the Board whether they were planning to maintain the status of his bill, or if they were going to reduce it, as Mr. Clough was reportedly in this facility for his health for the majority of the last six months in which the current bill is written for. The Board discussed and agreed that there would be no change to Mr. Clough’s bill.
Department of Public Works
DPW Superintendent Valentine reported that Village Hall (44 Main Street) was recently inspected by Otsego County and it failed. The handful of items that pertained to the failed inspection were immediately addressed and corrected by the DPW. The DPW plans to follow up with the inspector to notify them of the appropriate changes made.
DPW Superintendent Valentine informed the Board of the purpose of “freeze plates” for the water meters that are installed in the Village. These freeze plates act as a protector to the meter itself; when water enters the meter and if it freezes, these freeze plates (on the bottom of the meters) will take the pressure from the freezing and will crack/break and pop off. The plates ultimately protect the meter itself from the internal mechanisms being damaged.
As there have been freeze plates needing replacing over the last couple of years, the DPW have been utilizing the lot of meters they currently have to replace the plates as necessary. They are low in stock now of meters at the shop that have freeze plates and so more need to be ordered. The company in which the DPW found that sells the freeze plates that they use requires an online account to be created before a purchase can be made.
Motion was made by Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried, to create an account with Water Works Metrology, LLC.
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory noted an upcoming training and event that the DPW may be interested in attending. One is the Rural Water Training Workshop, held annually in May. The agenda was provided to the DPW and Board and upon discussion it was decided that there were not enough applicable topics being covered that it would be worth the DPW to attend. The other event is happening starting tomorrow (March 18-19) in Syracuse; it is the Hard Hat Expo. DPW Superintendent Valentine stated that he has a great interest in attending this event with Maintenance Worker Van Buren however, this is not a week where they can be away from the Village. The date is saved for next year and it will be re-addressed as necessary.
America250
Clerk-Treasurer Gregory reported that NYCOM (New York Conference of Mayors) has emailed municipalities across the state asking for their participation in celebratory events commemorating this year’s semiquincentennial. In doing so, they have also asked that if the municipality is participating that they sign an online resolution along with the other municipalities that are participating. The Board discussed a handful of ideas as they would like to do something for this historic event, but nothing final was decided. The Board also agreed to Clerk-Treasurer Gregory signing the online resolution on behalf of the Village.
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 and budget modifications as follows:
Public Comment
Mr. Dustin Lewandowski asked various questions to the Board and the Board agreed that the timing was not appropriate for such questions.
Ms. Maxine Antunes-Reiff noted that she is willing to place a tire with flowers around the posts near her home again this year, on Montgomery/Church Street. She stated she is willing to maintain it again this year as well.
Executive Session
The Village Board entered executive session at 7:38 p.m. upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried, for personnel reasons.
Adjournment:
The Village Board ended the executive session and adjourned the meeting at 8:28 p.m. upon motion of Trustee Brigham, seconded by Trustee Feulner, unanimously carried.
Respectfully Submitted,
Melissa Gregory, Clerk-Treasurer
March 26, 2026
