Village Sells Barn to Motorcycle Club Founder

STAMFORD – Members of the Stamford Village Board heard a plea for resolution on a $7,000 water bill, approved the sale of the barn located at 7 1/2 Railroad Ave and heard a request to acknowledge a settlement agreement regarding  Mountain Dog Cafe LLC and 5-9 Harper St., during their regular meeting on Monday.

Deborah and Josh Kross, who own 3 Mountain Ave. in the village, were present to present their grievance on an outstanding water sewer bill. The couple has an average quarterly bill of $61 for water usage, but for a one-month period from mid-February into March,  they used more than $6,000 worth of water.

A water meter profile suggested they had some sort of leak occurring, but D. Kross said "leaks do not fix themselves" and they had no repairs since the previous December when they fixed a leaky toilet. The bills were not excessive prior to that leak being repaired by a plumber. A letter from the village suggests a water leak somewhere on the property. However, the water meter is located in the basement of the home, which means water had to flow through it. 

She did say they allowed water to trickle in their absence over the colder months, but again, those months were outside the date of the "surge" in usage.

The village will now have the meter calibrated to ensure it is reading properly. D. Koss doesn't believe that will resolve the issue of the huge bill for them.

According to Department of Public Works Superintendent Jesse Calia, the profile of the meter shows "leak-like" usage from Feb. 17 to March 20 and then it went back to normal consumption. While the Krosses indicate they let the water trickle in November and December, he believes they left it to trickle and when temperatures plummeted to minus 14 degrees, a leak this size of the one indicated is not uncommon. "We have seen many water service lines freeze and break, creating a large bill.  Also, if and when water meters malfunction, they never speed up then return to normal, they slow down or don't read at all."

"We are absolutely certain we did not consume that much water (more than 250 gallons per day). We want to work with you to resolve this issue and urge you to work with us for an amicable solution." she concluded. 

Karen Saminski, who owns 5-7 Harper St., Mountain Dog Cafe LLC, was present to ask the village board to acknowledge a court settlement last Nov. 6 which she said has never been acknowledged in the village board minutes.

According to Saminski, the court directed counsel at the time of the decision to bring it to the Nov. 18, 2025 meeting. A conference with the judge in May told her attorney to bring the settlement agreement before the village board for a vote at its next meeting, which would have been the June 9 meeting. She indicated she and her husband have reviewed the minutes and found nothing indicating the agreement was ever placed on the agenda or acted upon with a formal vote. The settlement, according to paperwork provided by Saminski from her attorney, is seeking compliance with the directive for the village board to vote on the agreement which was intended to end litigation and the related appeals. It was part of the Third Department’s settlement program in good faith and reached a negotiated resolution intended to end the litigation and its related issues. The email seeks  compliance with the court’s directive for the Stamford Village Board to hold a definitive vote. It would grant a right of way along the side of the building in exchange to drop the litigation charges against the village.

No action was taken, following an executive session to receive advice of counsel.

The village approved the contract for sale of the barn located at 7 1/2 Railroad Ave. to Jacob Breinholt for $28,000. He is a founding member and manager of Catskills Moto Club.

In a letter to the village board, he indicated he considers the structure a perfect fit for the future home of CMC. He said the club currently has about 10 riders who have been seeking a non-residential location to use as a place to store and work on motorcycles. He said they plan to "shore up" the structural integrity of the building before securing access to it. At some point they may consider a membership based subscription for other local riders who need somewhere to store a bike in the off season and utilize tools. More long term, his letter indicated they hope it will become a gathering point to serve local and transient two-wheel enthusiasts and perhaps a retail space. 

He indicates they are mostly dual-sport riders who enjoy riding paved roads and dirt trails equally well. "There is a lot of work that will need to be done to get this spot in ship shape and we will need to work side by side with the village to accomplish this," Breinholt wrote.

The board members present, with Bob Orcutt absent, approved the contract.

It was announced there will be a Lighting of the Tower on Mount Utsayantha on Sept. 5. This is an annual event that Trustee Jim Kopp reported is a fun event each year when all of the fire towers are lit from 8:30 to 9 p.m.. It will be their 13th annual fire tower lighting ceremony. People are asked to look up and see the lights on the summits and to remember that there was once a fire observer there, watching over and protecting their homes, businesses, communities and surrounding forest. Illuminators will read off the names of past observers when their lights are lit. Information about the fire towers is available at nysffla.org/light.html.

Mayor Robert Schneider indicated in his report on the monthly meeting of the mayors of Delaware County that they are now circulating a petition to ask the county to share a portion of the sales tax collections with the villages.

Due to a shortage of fluoride, it was announced that no fluoride will be added to the village water.

Board members also rescinded a decision last month not to invest any more money into the replacement of the culvert on River St. The village was facing a $200,000 shortfall in the Bridge NY grant and did not want to invest anymore as the grant, which is a reimbursement grant, was due to expire. However, it was reported the state Department of Transportation has come up with additional funding to reimburse the village for the extra costs associated with placing an historic looking facade on a replacement culvert.

In his report on the monthly meeting of the mayors in the county, Mayor Schneider reported they have started a petition for county residents to sign, asking the Delaware County Board of Supervisors to share a portion of the county sales tax with the villages. Numerous appeals have been denied by the county board, he said, so there is a petition at the Stamford Village Hall for anyone wishing to support the mayors’ request for the county to share the sales tax revenues.