Two Trustees Recap the October 13, 2026 Village of Pittsford Board Meeting

\\\\ REMINDER: There will be a Pittsford Schools student-run art fundraiser supporting the Greater Rochester Habitat for Humanity on October 17, 2026 from 4-8 PM at Railroad Street Artworks in Fairport. Please take a look at the attached flyer for more details / ways to help out! \\\\

Hi neighbors,

Man, who knew all you had to do was put marijuana on the meeting agenda to get half the Village to attend!  Now, did I enjoy seeing so many residents' faces at Village Hall / hearing directly from them?  Yes!  Did I enjoy spending ~45 minutes discussing a doomed-from-the-start agenda item for no real reason?  Not at all...especially when it meant a meeting that didn't end until after 8:30 PM / I missed putting my son to bed...ANYWAY, here's a summary of last night's regular Board meeting (the full meeting agenda and meeting packet can be found here):

WHAT'S THE BUZZ

General Trustee Board Meeting

Tuesday, October 13, 2026

6:00-8:30pm

Trustee Attendees; Mayor Plummer, Trustees Cove, Limbeck, Wilkes, David Marshall

Welcome to my (with-in 24 hour) Post-Trustee Meeting update!

My number one campaign promise was to keep you informed. The style for these posts is a "neighbor to neighbor" approach. As if we were taking a walk through the Village and you asked me “What happened at the Trustee meeting last night”?

What I present is not the full meeting correspondence, but instead my opinion of what happened and what you should know.

The full meeting video and minutes are available to you via the Village Website at www.villageofpittsfordny.gov

These are the significant happenings at our meeting last night.

O’Donnell Associates – Presentation on regulated adult use retail (added by the Mayor?)

• This agenda item was a presentation by a company called MJ Dispensary that is "Monroe County & the Finger Lakes' first licensed recreational cannabis dispensary", along with their lawyers from O'Donnell Associates, and they were lobbying to change our local legislation / open a location in the Village
• I remain completely confused as to why it was added / put on the agenda given no Trustees have discussed an interest in revisiting this topic post the February 2022 vote by Village residents to reject: (i) cannabis dispensaries operations in the Village; and (ii) onsite consumption establishments in the Village
• After giving a long presentation, none of the Trustees (myself included) felt the benefits (increased tax revenue) outweighed the negatives (too many to list here)

- We had a packed house of concerned Town and Village residents, all of whom were against revisiting this topic / were similarly confused as to why this was on the agenda

• The Board did not move forward with any changes to existing local laws, i.e., cannabis dispensaries cannot operate in the Village, nor are onsite consumption establishments allowed to operate in the Village
• Thank you to all of the neighbors who came out to make their voices heard last night, it is always great to see you / happy that you were able to make an impact!

1) Cannabis presentation by O’Donnell Associates

An ask to allow “retail sales of cannabis only, no on-site use” in the Village of Pittsford. Numerous letters, calls and emails from residents against overturning (no Cannabis retail) legislation passed in 2021, was received. The full trustee board will not support considering this kind of retail at this time.

Discussion of Motion Certification (added by the Village Clerk and/or the Mayor)

• This agenda item appears to have been added by the Village Clerk and/or the Mayor, and was focused on outlining how Board meeting motion recording will proceed going forward, specifically:

- After a motion is made, and seconded by a Trustee, the Village Clerk / employee running the meeting will read back the motion to the Board to ensure accuracy - Once the motion has been verified as accurate, the voting rollcall will begin

• It appears the inclusion of the August 2026 meeting motion re: approval of the Frederick Douglass statue, was included solely to provide an example of internal disagreement as to the accuracy of a voted upon motion, thus the need for measures to avoid similar issues in the future
• The Board recognized the new motion recording process and will follow the process going forward

2) Frederick Douglas Statue

We confirmed via minutes that the exact motion made by Trustee Limbeck was “To place the Frederick Douglas statue at a location appropriate that can be fully seen with the assistance of the artist in the front lawn of Village Hall”. DPW needs to pour the cement slab. We hope it is up soon.

Quote for Services from Labella Associates

• This agenda item was regarding the revised quote for service from David Kruse at LaBella Associates to study traffic calming measures we could implement for the Village, including a comprehensive review of existing reporting data / materials, new data collection at core gateways, benchmarking of data, and a complete memorandum
• Unfortunately, the Board received copies of the revised quote upon arriving for the evening's meeting...so, not ideal if we're expected to vote on approving the expense
• After a cursory review of the document, it appears the Board's changes were incorporated, albeit a few typos, so the Board should be in a position to vote at our next workshop meeting (next week)

Dedication of Sewer Infrastructure from Westport Crossing

• This agenda item was a carry over from our September 8, 2026 meeting, specifically relating to sanitary sewer, utility, and storm sewer access easements the Village needs at the 75 Monroe complex

- Effectively, the easements will allow the Village the right to access these areas for construction, inspection, reconstruction, repair, etc. of sanitary sewers, sewer mains, utilities, and storm sewers

• Prior to approval, the Board has requested a counterparty call to discuss a few clarification questions (e.g., how the the letter of credit amount was determined, why ~$172K is deemed adequate, etc.)

Refuse District Service BID

• This agenda item was regarding preparation for the expiration of the initial waste removal contract for the Refuse District
• The Mayor and Clerk noted that we may be working with the Town to coordinate a contract with the most favorable terms (kind of like a GPO approach for those in the healthcare space)
• The Board brought up items we want to be considered in a revised bid contract, specifically:

- I noted that customer service has been a lacking, likely given the remaining trash haulers are major, publicly traded entities, thus our Village receives limited focus; new language in the "performance penalties" section could be the remedy / way to improve attentiveness - Trustee John Limbeck noted we should have firm language in place to deal with fuel surcharge fees, as well as considerations for a situation in which diesel prices decline during the contract period from their current highs

• The Village Clerk was tasked with providing the Board with an updated contract incorporating the changes discussed / any coordination efforts with the Town

6) Refuse District contract

Our 2-year contract with Casella to offer village wide garbage pickup is complete. We will send out a call for BID to secure a refuse company to continue our service. We also have an option to renew with Casella with a mix increase of 2%.

Extension of Skanex Contract

• This agenda item was regarding a contract extension with Skanex Pipe Services, a provider of sewer pipe inspection, cleaning, and "cured in place pipe" lining services
• As I noted in my reminder email, in an ideal world, the most recent contract, along with the extension proposal, would have been included in the meeting packet so the Board could understand items such as contract term, YoY changes in service prices, changes to included services, etc.; however, this was not the case
• As a result, the Board has requested copies of the contract extension and most recent contract prior to moving forward with any approvals

Adoption of Election Date Resolution

• This agenda item was to review and potentially adopt a resolution for the Village to put a proposition question on the March 2027 election ballot regarding changing the Village Election date from the 3rd Tuesday in March to the 3rd Tuesday in June

- As I noted in my reminder email, the basis for the change in election date is listed as effectively removing the case in which a temporary annual budget is created by a previous Board, and then a final vote on a final budget occurs immediately after a new Board is seated, potentially creating a situation in which new Board members have had no input on an annual budget they are supposed to adopt

• The Board voted unanimously to approve adopting the resolution (the full language of the resolution can be found on PDF pages 65-66 of the meeting packet)

7) Election date change from March to June

Full board support voted in the resolution for our election date change choice of either (current) March date to (proposed) June date to be placed on the March 2027 ballot for resident vote.

Initiative to create a Village of Pittsford New Resident Welcome Package (added by Trustee David Wilkes)

• This agenda item was an introduction to an initiative I am taking on to create and send new Village of Pittsford residents a package (packet really) containing helpful information and materials to aid in their acclimation

- Essentially, the packet would be supplementary to the materials the Town of Pittsford sends out when a new resident moves in, i.e., would focus on specific details, rules and regulations, etc. that are Village specific (e.g., we're a historic preservation municipality, we have three core Boards that you will interact with as a resident, zoning regulations mean common home improvement projects require special consideration, intro to the DPW and what they do / services they provide, etc.) - See PDF page 70 of the meeting packet to review my document outlining goals and milestones for this project

• I let the Board know that since stepping up to the plate on this project last month, I have already identified and met with the point person in charge of creating the Town's new resident packet, received the latest copy of the materials, and started cataloguing what the Town includes vs. what the Village's packet could include to avoid duplicity + ensure it is truly helpful to a new Village resident; I plan to bring the strawman comparison of packet items to the next meeting to keep the ball rolling
• The Board reception appeared positive / they seem interested in providing input on this important project, so stay tuned as this develops

4) Village Newsletter

We are close!! The Debuty Clerk and I are working on a template to be presented to the board at the next meeting. We will start with 2 newsletters (Fall/Spring) snail-mailed a year.

5) New Resident packets

Trustee Wilkes offered to edit the old packet (not used in awhile) to reflect what new residents need to know. Trustee Limbeck would like the packets delivered in person by a member of the board.

Upper-floor Dwelling in mixed use building code review (added by Trustee Dave Marshall)

• This agenda item was regarding a zoning code change related to upper floor dwelling units (apartment units); see PDF page 72 of the meeting packet for the exact code changes
• Currently, upper-floor dwelling units in mixed-use buildings in the business districts are permitted up to a maximum of 8 units, and are permitted without a unit limit in mixed-use districts; the modified language would:

- Permit upper-floor dwelling units in mixed-use buildings in the business districts up to a maximum of 2 units - Require a special permit for upper-floor dwelling units in mixed-use buildings in the business districts with 3 to 8 units, and a maximum of 8 units - Permit upper-floor dwelling units in mixed-use buildings in the mixed-use districts up to a maximum of 2 units; and - Require a special permit for upper-floor dwelling units in mixed-use buildings in the mixed-use districts with 3 to 10 units, with a maximum of 10 units

• Effectively, this would bring a special permit requirement for any land owners / developers looking to make a medium to large scale apartment floorplan in a mixed-use building
• The Board voted unanimously to move forward with the revisions, noting that once the materials are brought to public hearing, we could ultimately remove the upper boundary limits without delaying approval given it would be less restrictive vs. more.
• Stay tuned...

3) Amendment to the code on multifamily dwellings in Multi-Use Office Districts, (MU-OF).

(210-21.4.A) Change maximum dwelling units of 8 to 2.

(210-22.4.A) Add maximum of 2 dwelling units.

Holiday Wreath BID

• This agenda item was regarding a quote from Bristol's Garden Center in Victor for holiday wreaths to put up around the Village
• The total order cost was quoted at $2,277.00, comprised of:

- 30 - Wreaths, 30" ring, outside diameter 40" @ $46.00 each= $1,380.00 - 3 - Wreaths, 60" ring, outside diameter 80" @ $159.00 each= $477.00 - 30 - Custom bows, scarlet red with long tails @ $14.00 each= $420.00

• I asked Jason, the Village Superintendent, how this quote's cost compared to last year, and he said that it was identical (seems odd given the macro environment, but I digress...)
• Another Trustee asked if we have tried to shop this bid around, and Jason noted that we have tried in the past; however, most shops were unable to fulfill such a large order, so we have had success going with Bristol's
• The Board voted unanimously to approve the quote for holiday wreaths from Bristol's Garden Center

Front Porch Change Orders

• This agenda item was regarding a change order from Bero Architecture PLLC for the Village Hall front porch restoration services, specifically plinth base replacement, plinth cast stone replacement, and demolition costs
• The net change order cost increase was $1,209 given the majority of the costs were covered by closeout credits from Hungate Construction, LLC, the previous construction company on the project
• The Board voted unanimously to approve the change order for the Village Hall front porch restoration services

Member item; Trustee Marshall asked for research to be done on village staffing work-load, growth, and pay over the past 4 years and how that compares with other villages in NY. This will be presented at a future meeting, preferably before the budget planning cycle in Feb.

Public Hearings:

• N/A (none scheduled for Tuesday's meeting)

Next Meeting:

• The Board's next WORKSHOP meeting will be Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 12:15 PM
• The Board's next REGULAR meeting will be Tuesday, October 27, 2026 at 6:00 PM

Thanks and please remember to shoot me any thoughts you have regarding what would have been helpful info to have known when you moved to the Village!

Best,

David Wilkes

Trustee | Village of Pittsford, New York villageofpittsfordny.gov

The next WORKSHOP Trustee Board meeting will be Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 12-1pm.

We will discuss the Labella contract to update our active transportation plan to improve pedestrian and bike safety.

"Make our job harder, please get involved!”

For more in-depth information please go to:

For taped video view please go to; https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd0u3_ZhnHzNTSakdyjzSUw