Tuxedo residents seek to create new village

Forward thinking residents of the Town of Tuxedo are looking to create a new village and are putting their proposition up for a vote Tuesday, July 16.
If the referendum passes, the newly created Village of Tuxedo would extend to the entire borders of the town, but would exclude the Village of Tuxedo Park, which is completely within the town, according to the town’s website.
Once created, however, the Village of Tuxedo would then immediately be consolidated with the Town of Tuxedo.
If approved by majorities in both the town outside Tuxedo Park and the whole town, the consolidation plan would be approved by the Town Board.
Going forward, the newly consolidated town-village would continue to operate as a town, while having the power given to villages, including the power to prevent pipelines from traveling through their borders, which towns do not.
“Residents in the Town of Tuxedo are extremely environmentally conscious,” Supervisor Michael Rost said. “We thought, how can we strengthen ourselves so we can stop something like this in the future?”
Woodbury's example
Village of Woodbury Mayor Michael Queenan said he will be watching the referendum with interest.
“I wish them all the luck in the world, I hope they do it,” he said. “I’ll be keeping an eye on it.”
Woodbury went through a similar referendum process in 2006, Queenan said, which resulted in the creation of the Village of Woodbury.
Unlike the plan being considered in Tuxedo, however, the Village and the Town of Woodbury are not consolidated, or coterminous.
“We would’ve liked to have been a coterminous town-village, but, because there’s a piece of Harriman that comes into Woodbury, we couldn’t be,” Queenan said.
Restricting development
Incorporating as a village is a pro-active measure, he said, because it restricts what development can occur.
“When you have a village, like we have in Woodbury, no village can be created in a village” he said. “It eliminates little villages popping up in the town.”
If the measure should pass, the relationship between the Town of Tuxedo and the Village of Tuxedo Park would remain unchanged, according to the town website.
Five other town-villages currently exist in New York, including Mount Kisco, Harrison and Scarsdale in Westchester County.
The proposed consolidation plan is based on the home rule provisions of the state Constitution, the New York Village Law and the New N.Y. Government Reorganization and Citizen Empowerment Act.