Boats, or Parking Spaces?

Boats, or eight new parking spaces?

This is the question currently before Piermont's Board of Trustees—and one that drew considerable outcry from village residents at a Tuesday Village Board meeting.

The village is considering relocating the Piermont Rowing Club's docking station. The station is currently located in the parking area next to the Piermont Library—a space that, if transformed, would yield eight parking spaces.

The PRC, which has 55 members and was founded in 1999, signs an annual lease with the village to use the area.

"We want the Rowing Club to stay in Piermont," said Mayor Chris Sanders. "It's just a question of whether the lot is the best place."

"Maybe there are options other than taking away the parking spaces that are in short order," he added.

A letter presented to village trustees by Scenic Hudson—an organization dedicated to preserving the region's landscape—disagreed with the village's sentiment.

The letter stressed that the PRC fosters and encourages the village's relationship with the Hudson, bolsters local business and aids boaters.

Rowing Club members and concerned residents echoed the letter's main points, noting the area is far more valuable as a water-use space than potential parking.

"Creating new parking spaces destroys wetlands and has a detrimental effect," said Peggy Fox, a Paradise Avenue resident who has lived in Piermont for over 30 years. Fox added she rarely sees the existing lots full.

The PRC has circulated a petition to prevent the relocation; it currently has approximately 60 residents' signatures and 10 business owners' signatures.

Representatives from the Club said the situation has three possible outcomes: allow the PRC remains where it is, move it southeast onto a grassy knoll or move it to Parelli park.

"We feel option one is the best solution," said one representative.

The discussion will be continued at the next Village Board meeting on Sept. 7; in the meantime, the board will consider all options, Mayor Sanders said.