The persistent three to two votes on nonconforming property issues show the town a divided village council with deep philosophical differences.
Somehow, somewhere along the line, however, it would be in the town’s best interest to find a way to bridge this gap and locate some common ground.
It is true that variances are meant to be exceptions and not the rule, and it is also true nice-looking properties help boost the value of the neighborhood as a whole.
It is not true that a divided village council is good for a town.
It is also not true that arguments cannot be made for or against an issue at the village council ” as Mayor Anthony Calderone seems to imply in his statements.
According to Calderone, these arguments have no place in the village council because the Zoning Board of Appeals ” a recommending body, not a decision making body ” already does the due diligence needed to make a case.
This begs the question, where should these decisions be made if not in the only decision making body in the process?
Nobody on the council or on staff seems to know exactly how many nonconforming structures there are in Forest Park or how many times this issue will come up. It seems that the village simply doesn’t know, and without that data there is no way of knowing just how much they impact the village.
The council ” not the Zoning Board ” needs to stop and take a good look at these issues globally and figure out how many structures there are, how they affect the town, and what the bottom line for this particular council is.
To keep talking circles around this important issue and not have an ultimate decision is to avoid doing their job and making the decision.
To keep steamrolling each other and bickering in open sessions only makes the body seem ineffective and shows the lack of communication that seems the norm for this body.
We ask that the village council truly make a commitment to resolving this issue, if you can’t see eye to eye, at least you can find some middle ground.
