Hague Supervisor Joshua Patchett looks to year ahead

HAGUE | As he enters into his second term in office, Hague Town Supervisor Joshua Patchett and his administration will continue their quest to strengthen the community and move the charming Adirondack town in the right direction. "I think the future of Hague is always going to be dependent on protecting Lake George and putting our water quality ahead of all our other needs," Patchett shared. 2026 will see Patchett putting an emphasis on improving the town's infrastructure while maintaining the Town's zero tax commitment. And to continue accomplishing this, he believes in taking a slow, conservative, methodical approach and going after grant funding. "It has long been thought that the Town of Hague is very unlikely to get grants because of our median income age is high," Patchett revealed. "However, we are defying those odds; our administration has been going after grants in an unprecedented approach, and it is paying off." Thus far, it has paid off in total of $475,000 the past two years in grant funding awarded to the Town of Hague. According to Patchett, in year one of his role, the Town received $40,000 of grant funding, and in year two (which have come through in the last week or two), Hague was awarded $435,000. "The Town of Hague is very grateful to grant writer Tracy Clothier and the Warren County Planning Department for all of their assistance with grant funding applications," Patchett gratefully acknowledged. Year one's grants included a Smart Growth Grant and a grant from the Glens Falls Foundation, with that funding spent on working with JMZ Architects on a new visitor center plan, which provided a schematic layout of a potential future building, and a comprehensive plan that was just completed. "We haven't figured out what direction we want to go other than having a schematic plan to move forward with, and the residents that did speak out about the proposed visitor center plan were mostly not in favor," Patchett admitted, adding that he did view the amount of residents that voiced an unfavorable opinion of a new center was a relatively small sample in terms of population. In the second year of his first term, Patchett said the Town received a salt shed grant that focuses on water quality improvement to Lake George in the amount of $228,000, and thanks to Clothier, a Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) grant for $90,000 was also awarded. "The LWRP is critical to the future of Hague because what it does is you work with the state and it gives you a road map for specific projects and a more in-depth comprehensive plan," Patchett explained. "I designed to improve water quality, protect natural areas, promote public access and provide a framework for managing resources, guiding development, and enhancing public spaces." Patchett said once a designation and completed plan is in place, being a recipient of LWPR helps bigger grants get procured in the future. "If you get stuff on your comprehensive plan and then it is on your LWRP state-approved plan, it really helps you get extra points when applying for grants in the future," said Patchett. "I think it will take a year or two to complete, but whoever is sitting in the chair of town supervisor, and the residents will benefit greatly." The Hague Brook Delta situation, where the Town Beach keeps filling in with sediment from the brook, will also be getting attention this upcoming year. "We received a $50,0000 Hague Brook Delta study grant," Patchett said. "Once that is complete, in theory, we will be able to apply for a grant to potentially figure out a way to approach solving that problem not only for the Hague Beach but for the surrounding properties for the Hague Brook Delta." Patchett said the other manner in which the Town was considering approaching the delta issue was to try to get an inland waterway designation through legislation. "If you can get the designation, you are more likely to get the funding to help, but that is stalled in legislation right now, and we are unable to make headway," he imparted. The Town was also awarded a Hague Sewer Study grant for $42,000. "That is designed to layout if we were to put in a third sewer district, what location would make the most sense to protect Lake George," noted Patchett, adding that the Town received multiple awards from the Lake George Association (LGA) to help protect the lake. "We have two grants that we are still waiting to figure out if we will be awarded, one of them is a Town Parks Improvement grant for $125,000 and that will cover multiple different projects," said Patchett. "We are applying for a Performance Pavilion Centerpiece that is in alignment with the Town Park Master Plan that was developed years ago." Patchett, the confidential secretary, and Clothier also applied for a $175,000 award through Warren County Occupancy Tax. That application will be heard this month at the Occupancy Tax meeting of the Warren County Board of Supervisors. "We are hopeful that my colleagues will understand the importance of Northern Lake George and consider granting the award," Patchett said. Patchett added the Town, in another effort to increase revenue, has been making sure that the Town of Hague Fund Balance is appropriately invested and yielding interest. According to Patchett, there are big projects coming in 2026, some that are already underway. "The new salt shed will happen thanks to the grant, and we will be putting up a new cold storage, large metal building up at the highway department this year," Patchett said. "The pad has already been poured." The major project going out to bid is the new highway garage renovation, which will cost over $1,000,000 and will be self-funded from the Town of Hague General Fund. Patchett said the last time the structure was touched was decades ago. "This is a need and we considered trying to go after grant funding for the project. However, it was determined it was highly unlikely that we would get any grant funding for that. The renovation will entail completely revamping the entire existing facility. "It will have all brand new offices, brand new restrooms, brand new septic system, everything new electrical, new installation, and a new roof," Patchett said. "It will be like a brand new building." A recommendation to the Town to enact a Length of Service Awards Program (LOSAP) for volunteer firefighters and EMS personnel will also be put forth this year. "A LOSAP is designed to be a retirement program that the volunteers would be able to benefit from after a certain age," Patchett explained. "It is an incentive designed to act as a retention tool to combat dwindling volunteer numbers in fire and emergency services." As long as the Town Board approves, Patchett intends to put the idea forth to the Hague tax via referendum with an estimated cost of five to six cents per thousand assessed based on the year of 2026. "As an example, if we went with my recommendation, a $200,000 home would see a $10.50 per year, and a $400,000 home would increase by $21," Patchett said. "That is based on creating about $52,000 of revenue yearly for this program." For now, the future of the overturned Short Term Rental (STR) Local Law is at a standstill. It's in the best interest of Hague residents to reflect on what we have been through and make sure we are making the appropriate decision," Patchett acknowledged. Patchett said in 2026, the Town of Hague will remain firmly committed to its long-standing support of quality education for the students in the Ticonderoga Central School District.

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Hague Supervisor Joshua Patchett looks to year ahead

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