8/31/07 - Committee narrows search for DMV office to 4 sites

Final selection process will include public comment and thorough review; Legislature will look at options in Sept.

(As published by Cortland Standard, Corey Preston reporting)

Legislators are taking a much more cautious tack as they seek a new location for the county’s motor vehicle office in the aftermath of the debacle surrounding the county’s efforts to purchase properties along south Main Street.

The full Legislature, at a still unscheduled special session in early September, will get its first look at a list of four potential sites for a new motor vehicles office, said Carol Tytler (D-3rd Ward), who chairs the county space needs committee that developed the list.

The Legislature will have the option of narrowing that list down before the county administrator would secure options on the remaining properties, locking in a price for each.

At that point, according to Tytler, the potential sites would be made public and would be subject to numerous public meetings before the Legislature would vote on any particular site.

“Clearly it’s a matter of learning from the south Main situation,” Tytler said. “All along we’ve wanted to do this very methodically, make sure all the legislators have all the information, and make sure the public has an opportunity for input before we actually vote.”

When the Legislature first voted in favor of purchasing nine parcels along south Main Street for $894,000 in December 2006, with the intent of building a Public Health Facility, some legislators community members complained they had not been informed of plans for the project.

The public outcry prompted the Legislature to reverse its decision in January, which led to lawsuits from some of the property owners involved in the deal, who claimed that the county had entered into a legally binding contract.