1/25/08 - Anti-crow device gets OK

(As published by the Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

The Cortland County Legislature decided Thursday to buy a mobile noisemaker to push crows out of the center of the city, but not without some dissent.

Some Democrats also broke ranks to protest committee assignments favorable to Republicans.

The most significant opposition was lodged against the Legislature’s eventual decision to purchase a mobile noisemaking device to combat the crow problems, mostly within the city limits.

For $2,116, a Canadian company — the same one that installed a stationery unit on the top of the County Courthouse last year — will build a portable unit that would be able to dislodge crows in a 2-acre radius. The unit would be small enough to fit on the back of a truck.

The Legislature approved the purchase 13-6.

Legislators Newell Willcox (R-Homer), Kathie Wilcox (R-5th Ward), Don Spaulding (D-6th Ward), Tom Hartnett (D-4th Ward), Dan Tagliente (D-7th Ward) and Steve Dafoe (D-Homer) voted against the purchase.

Dafoe said that the noisemakers “don’t work,” and would rather see the money go toward the Cortland Free Library, which had $50,000 cut from its 2008 appropriation by the city.

Willcox later agreed the money would be better spent on the library.

County Administrator Scott Schrader said the unit would likely be kept on the back of a Highway Department vehicle until an agency — nonprofit agencies would have priority — requested some help with the crows.

A county employee would drive the truck over and drop off the unit, and would return to pick up the device once the crows had been chased off.

Legislator Carol Tytler (D-3rd Ward) said she was pushing for the purchase because the YWCA in her district is unable to allow children to play on the crow feces-encrusted playground. She hopes a mobile noisemaking unit would push the crows off into a better area.

Throughout the meeting, Dafoe, Tagliente, Hartnett, and Spaulding voted together against several committee appointments involving the appointment to extra-legislative committees of Legislature Chairman John Daniels (D-Cortlandville) or Republican legislators.

These included the appointments of Willcox to the county Convention and Visitors Bureau Board of Directors; the appointment of Daniels and legislator Tom Williams (R-Homer) to the Criminal Justice Advisory Board and county Traffic Safety Board; and the appointment of Daniels and Minority Leader Danny Ross (R-Cortlandville) to the Tompkins Cortland Community College Financial Oversight Committee.

“We didn’t agree with the appointments,” Dafoe explained afterward. “We weren’t asked to be on any committees.”

I strongly supported the purchase of the portable crow deterrent equipment. Brian Parker (Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds) indicated in the Committee meeting on 1/15/08 that a permanent device was installed on the Courthouse and it has been very successful in preventing crows from roosting on the building.

This portable device can be utilized by any municipality in the County; Brian is going to develop a plan for reserving and using the equipment. In the City, this means that public areas such as the YWCA can let children outdoors without health risk from extensive crow feces, and local residents won't have to wash their vehicles, houses, etc. when the thousands of crows roost in their area.

Regarding the dissatisfaction by a group of Legislators to Mr. Daniels' appointments - I do not believe that the same group ever requested Committee assignments from Mr. Daniels. Communication is a two way street, and right now the streets seem empty.

I find it amusing that during the election season, when Mr. Dafoe's attendance record was called into question he refused to talk to the newspaper. Obviously that has appeared to have changed now that Mr. Dafoe wants to be heard.