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Bethel gets back to business

Patricio Robayo - Staff Writer
Posted 7/6/20

BETHEL — After transitioning to having virtual meetings since April due to COVID-19, the Bethel Town Board returned to meet in-person on June 24, at the Dr. Duggan Commmunity Center.

Some …

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Bethel gets back to business

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BETHEL — After transitioning to having virtual meetings since April due to COVID-19, the Bethel Town Board returned to meet in-person on June 24, at the Dr. Duggan Commmunity Center.

Some government buildings have been slowly reopening while following strict social distancing protocols.

The meeting room where the town board usually meets had a drastic reduction in chairs to accommodate the public while still maintaining social distancing recommendations.

Before you enter the meeting room, a table with hand sanitizer, latex gloves, and masks was offered. Chairs in the meeting room were limited, and six feet apart. Every town board member wore a mask as they greeted those who came back for the first time.

Unsafe Structures

Unsafe structures were on the agenda for the town board meeting on June 24. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, some cases were given extensions due to the lack of availability of workers. Now that Sullivan County has reopened, the Town of Bethel wanted to revisit several locations.

96 E. Thompson Place - After an engineering report and a public hearing in 2019, the property at East Thompson Place has been deemed unsafe by the Town of Bethel.

According to Sturm, the owner notified the town they have the intention of rebuilding the structure.

The property suffered a fire several years ago and the majority of the interior space has been destroyed.

At the town board meeting, Bethel Town Supervisor Dan Sturm stated the building had been demolished.

192 Lee Cole Road - A two-story wood-frame bungalow has had an engineering assessment conducted, and a public hearing was held in 2019.

The engineering report states the location has been abandoned.

Sturm said the owner promised to demolish the property, but by the June 24 meeting it has not been done.

Sturm said the town would send the demolishing work out to bid, and the owner will pay for it.

3 Thompson Place - Sturm said the owner contacted him requesting more time to fix up or demolish the “old bungalow type” of seasonal home.

The board voted to give the owner an additional 60 days and revisit the project at a future town board meeting.

23 Woodland Way - According to Sturm, they held off on the engineer's report after it was sold.

He said the new owners are building a one-story family unit.

“I believe they did a really nice job,” said Sturm.

13 W. Sullivan Place - Sturm said the town has been dealing with this property since 2016 and had since held public hearings and an engineer report was issued. According to Sturm, part of the structure has been demolished and it is deemed still unsafe.

The board voted to hold a public hearing on July 22 since so much time had elapsed since the last hearing.

21 E. Corwin - Sturm said they could not get into the property to do an asbestos report because it was “a mess.”

Since the town has not received any correspondence from the owner, the town will move forward and has set a public hearing for July 22.

73 W. Reed - Sturm said there are two buildings and, according to the engineers report, one of those buildings is deemed unsafe. The board voted to hold a public hearing for July 22.

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