KJ files petitions to form Town of North Monroe

GOSHEN – A petition with over 2,400 signatures of Monroe residents was filed minutes before 5 p.m. closing time on Monday with the Orange County Clerk’s Office, calling for the county legislature to approve the just under 1,100 acres of land in the Town of Monroe to secede and form a new town of North Monroe. The Town of Monroe would be left with over 12,500 acres.
Only 650 petition signatures are needed to request legislative action. A two-thirds vote of county lawmakers is required for approval before the proposal would go back to a vote of all Town of Monroe residents in the fall 2017.
“We believe that this is the most practical and reasonable solution to resolving a longstanding issue in our region, recognizing the different needs of both communities, and allowing each community to coexist in peace and harmony,” said Kiryas Joel Village Administrator Gedalye Szegedin.
Kiryas Joel officials note that a separate town would eliminate the Kiryas Joel block-vote effect on all Monroe elections, which they say would reduce community tensions. “Monroe residents are entitled to chart their own course by electing town leadership without any influence from the Kiryas Joel residents, but this can only be made possible by splitting off the Town of North Monroe,” a statement from the KJ leadership said.
They said the split would also allow each town to decide which public and community services and facilities it finds desirable – including possible consolidation of local fire districts and alteration of school district boundaries.
County Executive Steven Neuhaus said he is “cautious” about any changes in the southern part of the county, especially since the county is still embroiled in a lawsuit with those KJ supporters who proposed annexing some 700 acres of Monroe land into the village last year.
“I am very defensive about anything of that magnitude that will change southern Orange County so the rest is yet to be written,” the county exec said.
Neuhaus said he does not have enough information at this point to say he is for or against the two-town concept.