Letter to the Editor: RPM fighting for Montgomery

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A good many people in our local area probably know by now who RPM is. For those who don’t let me shed some light. RPM stands for Residents Protecting Montgomery. It was formed by a few concerned Montgomery town residents who felt obligated to rise in opposition to the avalanche of proposed warehouse projects sited in our township; of which two are Medline and Amazon, both mega warehouses each a little over one million square feet in size. This obligation on RPM’s part has added significance since our town government does not have an updated comprehensive master plan with relevant zoning to give us the necessary roadmap if you will to address all this commercial development.

The RPM group is most concerned about the negative consequences of such commercial overdevelopment. It refuses to go quietly into night while our township is crushed by this mountain of warehouses. This coalition of dedicated and conscientious citizens does its due diligence and has become very informed about the environmental, public health and public safety impacts of this caravan of commercial enterprises facing our township. RPM presents these issues at town board meetings with the aim of having them properly addressed and holding commercial developers accountable. I have watched the RPM group at board meetings. Its members are very knowledgeable and articulate their positions very well. They are a committed, civic-minded group who devote much time and effort to meet its paramount objective: To protect and preserve the quality-of-life for our Montgomery town residents. As advocated by RPM there are two orders of business that must take effect to insure our quality-of-life remains intact; namely a building moratorium and an updated comprehensive master plan. These two go hand-in-hand. Our township needs the moratorium imposed while the master plan is formulated.

Over time RPM membership has increased and it has gained momentum. The group now has some clout having its own legal counsel. To be clear this is still a David(RPM) v Goliath(corporate sector) situation. RPM could still use more members if interested and still needs a hike in its financial resources to be a more formidable force. Along these lines the group is doing a fundraiser by selling Super Bowl box raffle tickets. The RPM fight to do what is best for our town residents is a noble one. In that light, without hesitation I bought a raffle ticket.  If you are interested in the raffle or just want to make a donation contact Don Berger at 1-845-800-7584. Footnote: Through the efforts of RPM, Medline withdrew its IDA application  for a Pilot(payment in lieu of taxes) agreement and will not get any tax abatements. It must pay its full share of taxes thus easing the financial burden of the Valley Central school district resident-homeowners. I tip my hat to the RPM group for the work it is doing.

John Lown

Maybrook, New York

 

 

 

 




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