SHERIDAN - After consulting with the town attorney and some careful consideration, the Sheridan Town Board decided not to sell the town farm.
Supervisor Louis Delmonte explained at a recent town board meeting the town was not looking to sell the farm in the first place and was solicited by Cody Becker of Becker Technologies, LLC, of California, to sell the 100-acre property on Miller Road.
He said this was a topic at the board's last workshop and after discussing the legal requirements with Town Attorney Jeffrey Passafaro the board felt it was not worth the hassle.
"We discussed it with our attorney and he gave us a whole list of things we would have to do to go through with this. The town was not out to sell the farm, we were solicited and people use it. So, we decided not to sell the farm," Delmonte explained.
When Delmonte opened up the topic for public comment, it was clear residents were confused about the proposal to buy the town farm.
One resident said she thought it was a business proposal where the corporate retreat would be "open to business people from around the world." She said she thought this would bring revenues and tourism to the county but was disappointed to hear the proposal was for a private retreat, not a business.
"If it was a business proposal at least one person on this board would have voted for it," Councilwoman Amy Farnham said indicating herself.
Another resident said he had heard Becker wanted to have a hunting lodge on the property and use high-powered rifles to shot game.
Delmonte said that is not what they had indicated but the town is not selling the farm anyway.
After the meeting Delmonte and board members explained the town farm is more like a town park which is open to residents for activities like hiking, snowshoeing, skiing and bird watching. Town Clerk Julie Szumigala said the town has received revenue from the gas wells and logging from the property in the past.
The board will meet for a workshop Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the town office and for its regular meeting on Oct. 18 at 7:30 p.m. in the fire hall.
