Bob Young, a Flower Hill resident who has sparred with the village, found himself back on the front lines during a Board of Trustees meeting Monday night.

A heated debate erupted between Young and the village in 2018 over a Christmas light display on his Sunnyvale Road property. At a meeting last November, despite village code, he refused to wear a protective face mask.

On Monday, he showed up after the meeting had begun. But as soon as the trustees allowed for public comments, he started arguing with them.

Young’s comments on one piece of legislation that later passed permitting trustees to call in sick and use videoconferencing for meetings developed into criticisms of the trustees and the rest of the village’s government.

“Frankly, I think it’s not an onerous ordeal for you guys to get here once a month to vote on things and take the time to go face to face with the constituents,” he said.

Ronnie Shatzkamer, the village administrator, offered a hypothetical case of a person being out of town for a business meeting. But Young said that if one can’t show up, the trustee shouldn’t be in the position.

The trustees then started voting on the new law, but Young intervened. He said that his concerns were being dismissed, which resulted in a brief argument between him and the board members.

“You’re obviously here just to be disruptive,” Trustee Frank Genese said to Young.

Young then said the residents expect more of the village board. The trustees eventually completed their vote.

He spoke once more later on in the public comment session. He said the reason he attended the meeting was that his tree’s limbs, which went into a neighbor’s backyard, were trimmed without notice.

“He’s impacting my property, my tree and no one did anything about it,” said Young. “Oh, it’s his right? He has aerial rights to cut off all the limbs on [my] trees and make [my] tree lopsided? Meanwhile, I can’t put Christmas lights on my house without the approval of all you people.”

Young continued by criticizing Genese on the November 2021 meeting. He said that even though the trustees didn’t have masks on before the meeting, they shouted at him for not donning one while it was going on.

Trustee Brian Herrington then pleaded with Young not to be disrespectful. The former mayor said the village has tried to make peace with him.

“I think this trustee board is a joke,” said Young. “All you do is pass laws where you all agree. I have more to say.”

The board did not let him say more. As he was walking out, he said the village has been “pulling crap” on him and residents for years.

The next Flower Hill trustee meeting will be on Oct. 3. It will take place at Village Hall at 7:30 p.m.