BERNE — As the town board voted last week to form the Berne Sewer District, some residents continue to find fault with the town’s plans for their hamlet.

About 40 residents signed a petition asking the town to eliminate gas stations in the hamlet of Berne from the town’s zoning ordinance, an issue that has been visited several times in the past few years.

In January of 2005, the town adopted a controversial zoning plan. It splits the hamlet into two zones, one allowing gas stations and the other not. In the petition, residents asked that gas stations be removed from the zoning of both zones.
"Being in a highly-populated area, we’re concerned for a number of reasons," said Susan Hawkes-Teeter, who submitted the petition to the town board at a meeting last Wednesday. "Our primary concern is a potential risk to our drinking water...Even a small amount of leakage can contaminate our water supply."

All gas storage tanks in Berne are subject to inspections by the town, and state and federal agencies.
The town board will forward the petition on to the planning board. To eliminate gas stations from the zoning, said town attorney William Conboy, "You would have to amend the zoning ordinance. You would have to redo the whole process."

Since the rezoning passed, one gas station, Stewart’s, has tried to move into the hamlet. The company gave up, saying it was not able to meet strict zoning requirements meant to preserve the historic nature of the hamlet.

At Wednesday’s meeting, Supervisor Kevin Crosier asked the petitioners what the town should do with the already existing gas tanks in town.
"We wouldn’t want to hurt that business," Crosier said.

Hawkes-Teeter told The Enterprise that the signers of her petition were all from the hamlet, but not all from the zone where gas stations are allowed.

Later in the meeting, the board voted unanimously to create the Berne Sewer District. The state comptroller’s office approved the town’s application.

The district will provide sewer service to residents of the Berne hamlet. It was created in response to contamination in the Fox Creek.

Some of the same residents who opposed the rezoning have questioned the sewer district. At Wednesday’s meetings, some asked if the town had a plan for what would happen if the construction went over its $2.5 million price tag. Conboy said the town is not authorized to spend more than $2.5 million on the project.
"There are sewer districts all over the state of New York," he said. "We’re not doing anything new."

Other business:

In other business at the Feb. 8 meeting, the Berne Town Board:

—Voted unanimously to allow Boy Scout Andrew Cortese to design and build a outdoor grill for the town park. The grill will be six by four feet wide with a 10-foot high roof, Cortese said. The project is part of the requirements for Cortese to become an Eagle Scout.
"The charcoal pit will be a great addition to the park," Crosier said.

Once the weather warms up, the town will stake out a location for the grill in the park, Crosier said; and

—Heard from Crosier that he is going to meet with the Center for Economic Growth and other Hilltown supervisors to discuss Tech Valley.

Last year, Berne declined to contribute to a fund for promoting the Capital District as Tech Valley. Crosier, however, said he thinks the town can still use Tech Valley to its advantage.
"I think, if we partner with Tech Valley, we might be able to accomplish some of the things we want to accomplish here in the Hilltowns, that is, keeping our rural character," Crosier said.

Councilman James Hamilton suggested that Crosier bring up the issue of broadband Internet with the Tech Valley leaders.
"We don’t even have cable for 60 percent of the town of Berne," Hamilton said.