Village of Warwick establishes new rate for group garage sales

WARWICK - It is that time of year again - garage sales are popping up all along Warwick's landscape. To follow all the rules, one will head to Village Hall and get a permit. If it happens to be a group garage sale, be prepared to pay a bit more for that permit. The village just instituted a rule where a neighborhood or group garage sale must obtain a special permit, at a cost of $100. The permit for a single-family garage sale costs $25, still a pretty good bargain if there is a lot of stuff to sell. The village decided to increase that fee if the sale ran through a neighborhood. It started when residents of Village Cove, a condominium community off West Street, came to get their permits about a month ago for a group sale. In the past, every family had to have a permit. If there are 10 families participating, that ends up being a large chunk of change. The Village Board decided to look into changing the law to make it more equitable. Mayor Michael Newhard said the group figure was decided upon to give neighborhoods a break when they have their sales. "We didn't feel it would be right to charge each homeowner for a neighborhood sale," Newhard said, "but it also wasn't right to charge a group the same as a single homeowner. The board felt this was the best solution." This law applies to groups, organizations or associations as well as private homeowners. The board will hear public comments on new sewer rates, a stream dumping law and subdivision regulations on June 7 at 7:30 p.m. The stream dumping law will provide for regulation and penalties for dumping in streams, ponds, and waterways within the village. This will include throwing yard waste and grass clippings into streams. It also prohibits any solid materials being thrown in that may flow downstream and possibly cause water problems for other homeowners. The change in the sewer rent fee would add a charge of $9.95 to each quarterly invoice to those who exceed 100,000 gallons per year in sewer rents.