Where Is Piermont's Website?

Piermont residents have likely grown accustomed to finding out about meetings and events the old-fashioned way—through the bulletin board posted outside village hall.

While nearby village's have government websites up and running, Piermont's website has been in the works since summer of 2008. For some time, the URL has been directing to a page that reads: "Official Website Coming Soon!"

The website's beginnings date back to June 3, 2008. At a village board meeting, Piermont officials approved a contract for Now Age New Media, a web development company, to construct a village website. It was determined the project would cost $2,700.

At the same meeting, Piermont Mayor Christopher Sanders made an appeal to pay Now Age New Media half of the price at the start of the project, and half at its completion. Village trustees unanimously passed the motion, and $1,350 was paid out.

Still, the decision has not yielded a website—an issue village trustees say will be resolved shortly.

"We're still waiting on information from some [village] departments," said village trustee Steven Silverberg. "But the site should be up in about a month."

Trustee Audie Moran noted an e-mail goes out to several residents prior to meetings, cluing readers in to salient issues.

Craig Gordon of Now Age New Media said the site is finished, and the launch date is up to the village.

"It's out of my hands," he said. "The village has means of entering their own content."

During the wait, some residents have turned to the unofficial Piermont website, a site that posts village announcements and village hall minutes. The website is run by Piermont resident Richie Stark.

"[My] website is around to give residents information about what's going on in the village," Stark said. Stark's initial plan was to post the minutes from village board meetings.

"The meetings aren't usually that highly attended," he explained. "Most residents don't know what's going on."

Eventually, Stark's website grew—now it encompasses local events and basic information about local merchants. Stark also posts the village newsletter and text from the village archives.

"It's had good feedback," he said. "A lot of people tell me it's the only place to get information about what's happening with the [village] board."

And when the official village website launches—and the familiar "Coming Soon" disappears—Stark intends on sticking around.

Another site Piermont residents turn to for information and meeting times? A village Facebook page, where residents Bob Samuels and Marc Farre preview events and have a forum for discussion.

Correction: The web design company is Now Age New Media, not Now Age Media.