1/31/08 - Conifer Housing meeting notes

Good Morning,

Thank you Dan Quail and Tom Michales for facilitating the meeting on the Conifer project. In addition to Tom and Dan, also noted in attendance from the City were Clay Benedict and Susan Feiszli, as well as Mayor Gallagher.

And as well as Kathie and myself, both Tony Piombo (2nd Ward) and Danny Ross (McGraw LD-12) attended from the County.

I attended the meeting more in capacity as a resident than as a Legislator, and as I stated this is a City project. The County really has no decision making in this, except that the Cortland County IDA will help to secure low interest loans and issue the PILOT. It was a very informative meeting, and one I hope shed some light on the financial strain of the City and the need to develop housing stock for workforce families. From what I gathered from the Conifer representatives, this will allow blue collar families the opportunity to afford high-quality housing and (hopefully) spend their hard earned money right here in the City of Cortland.

Dave Compagni hit this right on the head last night when he indicated that there is really nothing we as residents, and to the City for the most part, can do as long as the proper zoning is obtained, permits secured, and Codes followed, I believe that Confier can and will do this, and the project will be a success if approved. And in the big picture, the property will immediately pump $120,000 in back taxes that Fritz Brown owes back to the City , County and School; will be paying PILOT funds for several years; and will eventually be a taxable property that can help offset what we all consider to be high taxes.

Do we all want the property to be located there? I would say 60 people in the neighborhood said NO. Why? Obvious reasons include location to several low and subsidized income housing already on Pendleton Street, the association / stigma of rental housing to lower property values, the influx on young children to our crowded Randall School, and the increased traffic on already busy thoroughfare from Port Watson Street to Marietta, the housing developments and Cortland High School.

But the fact remains that this will provide a boost to the tax base, will clean up a less than attractive area by the railroad tracks, and as Kathie jokingly (I think!) said - would we rather have the jail there?

My questions for Tom and Dan are:

1) Will the current City services (sewer and water in particular) be able to handle the 56 units proposed under this project? Can our pipes along Pendleton and Port Watson support the buildings, which most likely were put in years ago even before the other apartment complexes were built? If not, how much will this be and who pays for the utility infrastructure upgrade(s)?

2) Traffic along Pendleton Street is a problem. Most likely Pendleton Street will need to be widened or modified in the future to accommodate the additional traffic. Are there any plans to perform a traffic study as part of this project, who pays for the study? Then, how are the study recommendations addressed and how are they funded?

The two items above in my mind appear to be those that will have a direct impact on our taxes. The Conifer project will ultimately add revenue to City, County and School budgets. But City services that may cost hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars to accommodate the increased density of cars and people need to be reviewed and addressed.

And one last item. As I indicated to Dan after the meeting, this is not the same County Legislature from two years ago. I ran for County government because I was unhappy with the County's lack of communication with the public and the City on projects, and their seeming lack of consideration of taking properties of the tax rolls and the additional burden they were placing on the residents in the City of Cortland.

The County General Services committee is in the process of gathering information on all of the properties currently owned and maintained by the County and hope to take a big picture approach to the the County facilities. We will be working with the City to ensure that the mistakes of the past are not repeated. We will not take taxable property away from the City without informing the Common Council well in advance of any decisions.

Thank you,
Chad Loomis

Announcement - Combined 8th and 5th Ward Meeting

Good morning!

In case you haven't seen the notice or received an email, there is a combined 5th and 8th ward meeting tomorrow, January 30 at 7pm. It will be held at the Randall School Library.

Both City and County representatives will be in attendance. We will provide updates and answer concerned citizen questions.

I will specifically address county facilities planning questions and hope to outline the status of current General Services items.

I look forward to seeing you there, and thank you for allowing me to serve.

Chad

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.

1/25/08 - County may be close to selecting voting machine

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

The County will likely choose the same model of ballot marking devices as its neighbors in the push to come into compliance with the federal Help America Vote Act.

Republican Election Commissioner Bob Howe said the county would likely purchase the Sequoia Imagecast ballot marking device, one of three options approved Thursday by the state Board of Elections.

The machine has been endorsed by representatives of the counties that make up the state Election Commissioner Association’s Region 5, which includes Cayuga, Chemung, Cortland, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins and Yates counties.

Because it operates as both a ballot marking device and as a voting machine with minor modifications, Howe said he hopes that the machines, estimated to cost a total of $250,000 initially, would allow the county to fund the purchase of its new electronic voting machines entirely with state monies.

The three machines approved by the state are the Sequoia Imagecast, Premier Automark and the ES&S Automark. All three are optical scan ballot machines.

The optical-scan machines were the choice of the state Democrats, while Republicans favored touch-screen voting machines.

Democratic Election Commissioner Bill Wood refused to comment Thursday to the Cortland Standard.

Counties in the state will be required to have at least one handicapped-accessible polling place, using the so-called ballot marking devices, or BMDs, for the Feb. 5 presidential primary. The county currently owns an Avante BMD that will be used on Feb. 5.

“Anyone that feels they need a machine like that to vote on, they can come to the County Office Building,” Howe said Thursday.

By the primary election in September 2008, every polling place in the county has to have a handicapped-accessible BMD in place. Since each device costs more than $6,000, this would cost about $250,000 to put a BMD in each of the county’s 42 polling locations. Some locations actually encompass more than one polling place, but a single BMD should suffice at each location for 2008, Howe said.

Ballot marking devices simply allow a voter to fill out a ballot, while the voting machines actually record the votes.

1/23/08 - Recyclables pile up over holidays

County looks to expand hours or add staff to deal with backlog

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

County officials are hoping to add a few extra hands at the Cortland County Recycling Center off Pendleton Street to eliminate a glut of recyclables left over from the holiday season.

The county Legislature will likely approve an increase in personnel at the center at its meeting Thursday.

Large piles of recyclables tower over the workers in the Recycling Center.

County Highway Superintendent Don Chambers said he was concerned about the possibility of an accident, similar to the one in March 2006 that damaged the overhead door area not even a year after it had opened.

“It cuts down on the maneuverability of the vehicles and makes for tighter quarters, so I was concerned about personnel’s safety, also,” Chambers said Tuesday. “No problems, we just have a backlog of material that needs to be sorted and bailed to be sold.”

Chambers said that the holidays also ate into the amount of hours the staff was working.

Two full-time county employees staff the center, Chambers said. A contract with the J.M. Murray Center provides eight recyclable sorters, working four hours a day, five days a week.

Chambers said the contract stands at $125,000, and he is asking the Legislature to increase it by $10,000.

Whether this amounts to an increase in the number of workers or an increase in their hours still has to be worked out with the J.M. Murray Center.

Last year, a county employee left the Recycling Center and the J.M. Murray Center added an additional worker to make up the difference, Chambers said.

Last September, the crews had gotten behind on sorting and Chambers said additional hours were added at that time.

County Administrator Scott Schrader said that if a contract increase is approved Thursday, the increased staffing could likely be implemented by Monday.

Chambers and Schrader said it would be a matter of only a couple of weeks before the sorters were caught up.

I will be voting for this measure.

CITY NEWS - 1/23/08- City in line for 9 percent aid increase totaling $190,000

(As Published by Cortland Standard, Christine Laubenstein reporting)

The city intends to use $190,000 in additional state aid to replace its city hall and fire station roofs. Other local municipalities plan to use smaller amounts of extra aid toward basic maintenance, fuel and utility costs.

Local municipalities will be seeing a 3- to 9.5-percent increase in direct state aid under the governor’s proposed 2008-09 budget that was unveiled Tuesday.

The city would see the largest percent increase in aid to municipalities funding, while municipalities including the town of Truxton, the village of Marathon and the town of Dryden will see the lowest percent increase in state aid.

The percent increases are based on the municipalities’ level of fiscal distress, which is measured by whether full valuation of taxable real property is less than 50 percent of the state average; more than 60 percent of the constitutional property tax limit is exhausted; population loss is greater than 10 percent since 1970; and the poverty rate is 150 percent greater than the statewide average.

All four indicators were met for the city of Cortland, according to the state Division of the Budget’s Web site.

Cortland is proposed to get $2,192,027 in direct state aid for the 2008-09 fiscal year, a 9.5 percent increase over the $2,001,851 it received this year.

Mayor Tom Gallagher said the extra money might also fund repairs to roads and replace equipment such as Department of Public Works vehicles and police department vehicles.

“I will guess that it will be gone pretty quick,” he said of the extra money.

The city budgeted $2 million for the aid, Gallagher said. The additional aid will go into the general fund.

For some small municipalities, the increase in aid would not have much of an impact.

Under the proposed state budget, the village of Groton would get $20,916 in aid to municipalities funding, a 5 percent increase over its current $19,920.

Mayor Dennis Toolan said the increase would not stretch far. “All you can probably do is buy the same amount you bought last year, with cost increases for fuel and equipment,” Toolan said.

He also noted that although state aid to municipalities is going up under the Spitzer administration, it is still far below what it was a number of years ago. The village used to get about $30,000 in direct state aid, Toolan said, but the state cut that amount to save money.

“It still is nowhere like it was,” he said about the proposed 2008-09 funding.

Homer Town Supervisor Fred Forbes added that over the years the percentage of court fees the state takes from municipalities has gone up, serving as a counterbalance to the recent increase in aid to municipalities.

Politicians do not always provide the full picture when touting their spending increases, he said.
“I say it’s about parties trying to make it a political game,” he said. “It’s nothing against Spitzer — the game gets played no matter who’s in office.”

Spitzer’s proposed 2008-09 budget gives the town an extra $2,416, for a total of $50,740.
That money would go toward lighting at the Town Hall and other Town Hall costs, Forbes said.

I am disappointed that there was no mention of restoring funding to the Cortland Free Library.

1/22/08 - Cornell bus route to be expanded

( As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

First Transit is responding to a growing number of riders on a new bus route between Cortland and Cornell University by putting a larger bus into service. First Transit operates Cortland’s public transportation system.

Ridership on the route has more than quadrupled since its inception in June, said Cortland Transit Manager Sandie Perry. In December 553 passengers rode the bus, up from 159 passengers in June.

“We had a vehicle that had 24 seats, and we’re working on a larger vehicle — we’ve got it in the shop right now being brought up to DOT (state Department of Transportation) standards,” Perry said Monday afternoon.

The larger bus would hold about 40 passengers, and Perry said the vehicle had been brought in from another First Transit operation.

First Transit had expected to sell only 24 passes, Perry said, but has actually sold 27 and Cornell has a waiting list large enough to fill up the new bus.

Buses serving the route arrive at Riverside Plaza near Interstate 81 Exit 11 by 6:55 a.m. and leaves at 7 a.m. The bus proceeds to the County Office Building and departs from there at 7:07 a.m., continuing to the former Cortlandville Fire Station on Route 281, and leaving that location at 7:15 a.m. The bus travels along Route 13 to Route 366 and arrives at Cornell Veterinary College building on Tower Road in Ithaca at 7:45 a.m., then driving immediately to SUNY Cortland.

The afternoon trip leaves the SUNY Cortland library at 4:25 p.m., once again traveling Route 13 to Route 366 and arriving at the Cornell Veterinary College on Tower Road at 5 p.m. It departs immediately, arriving at the former Cortlandville Fire Station parking lot at 5:30 p.m. and then proceeds to the County Office Building by 5:40 p.m. to make a connection with the last bus runs leaving from that location. The bus then travels to Riverside Plaza, arriving at 5:45 p.m.

Perry said that starting Feb.1, the route would also add an extra stop on the Ithaca side — East Hill Plaza.

1/20/08 - Business park dependent on $2M grant

South Cortland site nearly year behind schedule as IDA looks for more funding

(As published by Cortland Standard, Christine Laubenstein reporting)

The Cortland County Industrial Development Agency expects to find out by the end of March whether it has received preliminary approval for a $2 million grant for a South Cortland business park.

The IDA is seeking a $2 million grant through the federal Economic Development Administration for the Finger Lakes East business park on Route 13.

The money would be used to extend water, sewer and power lines to the site, pay for access roads and cover engineering fees.

David Bottar, executive director of the Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board, said the scope of the Finger Lakes East business park project has held up the notification process. In April, Bottar predicted the IDA would hear about the grant by September.

“The review process has lengthened given the size and complexity of the project,” said Bottar, who helped the county apply for the funds “I’m still optimistic (the IDA will get the grant).”

Infrastructure work to the park, mainly construction of sewer and water lines, likely won’t begin until the summer or fall, said IDA Executive Director Tom Gillson.

Former IDA Executive Director Linda Hartsock predicted in April infrastructure work would begin in fall 2006.

Work will take at least one year to complete, Gillson said.

The future of the $6.7 million Finger Lakes East business park hinges on the grant, with a lack of sewer and water infrastructure at the site and the need for the IDA to purchase 260 acres of land.

The grant would also give the IDA a better chance of securing additional government funding, officials said.

The park has 29 parcels, 27 of which are empty. Essex Structural Steel Co Inc. and Monarch Machine Tool Corporation occupy the two parcels.

The Economic Development Administration could not be reached Monday or this morning.

1/18/08 - My view - River Trail

I have the privilege of serving on the Highway Committee, as well as the General Services and Judiciary & Public Safety (JPS).

The Highway Committee is responsible for shepherding the River Trail project. We discussed the issue of the now $2.8 million project, it's impact on taxpayers and options available to the County at the 1/15 committee meeting.

It appears that this project was originally proposed in the late 1990's, and finally got off the ground in 2003. Unfortunately, the original project cost of $1,400,000 was never adjusted for inflation over those years, nor projected out for project construction. In addition, there were approximately $600,000 in easement costs that were not included in the project.

What this means is that the project is in serious jeopardy in its current design. The source funding cannot be increased, at this point there are no other opportunities to obtain the money to fill the shortfall other than the County to supplement the probable $1.4 million.

Another twist is that if the project does not commence (trail is not built in its entirety), the original funding is pulled and the County becomes responsible for all costs incurred. In this case, it will be in the order of $250,000 for engineering fees for the study and the design of the project.

My thoughts - we need to look at de-scoping the project, possibly reducing the width of the path and looking at alternative routing to reduce easement costs. If the project can be brought down to a manageable level, such as $1.7 million, it would still be a benefit to the County. As we are already committed to costs for $250,000, every attempt should be made to produce something the County can enjoy.

I will not vote to abandon the project without every effort to make this project come closer to budget. I would rather spend $250,000 to get a project completed than to walk away and have nothing.

1/15/08 - County may buy device to spook crows

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

The county General Services and Budget and Finance committees decided to purchase a portable noisemaking device to chase crows out of sensitive areas in the city, where thousands of the birds tend to congregate for food and warmth during the colder months.

The $2,116 expenditure would still have to be approved by the full Legislature.

County Buildings and Grounds Superintendent Brian Parker said he began researching the possibility of a portable unit when the YWCA on Clayton Avenue asked for some help in dealing with crows that had rendered the playground in the back of the facility unusable due to the excrement left by the birds.

He contacted Phoenix Limited, a Nova Scotia-based company that built the noisemaking system that keeps crows out of Courthouse Park.

That device produces more than 13 different sounds, and runs from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. The portable device, which would be small enough to fit on the back of a pickup truck, would cover a roughly 2-acre area. “It’s programmed bird-specific,” Parker told the committee.

He said the Courthouse Park system has brought a definite improvement over last winter, when many of the sidewalks were covered in the slick, foul crow droppings. “You don’t need an umbrella to go to the parking lot,” Parker joked.

County Administrator Scott Schrader said several legislators expressed concern about the city’s inability to deal with the crows.

Although the city in past years had contracted with a local pest control firm to use noisemakers to chase the birds out of their nightly roosts, the city’s financial problems meant that no such contract was signed this year.

“It was an expense that wasn’t making anything happen,” Mayor Tom Gallagher said. “We were just chasing them from one part of the city to another.”

Committee member Gene Waldbauer (R-Cortlandville) wondered if the city would be willing to run the noise device.

Schrader said he needed to talk with Gallagher about the city’s need to control the crow population; he said Gallagher told him that the city was already waiving the $35 fee for pest control operators to work within city limits for private citizens.

1/9/08 - River Trail costs double

Engineers working to scale back project as county considers possibility of contributing money

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

The engineering firm designing the Tioughnioga River Trail between Cortland and Homer is working to trim back the project after discovering the trail as originally proposed would cost $2.8 million rather than the expected $1.4 million.

Unless the 2.7-mile project between Yaman Park in Cortland and Albany Street in Homer can be paid for in its entirety using the $1.4 million in federal and state grants that have been earmarked, it seems unlikely that the county would pursue the trail’s construction.

Project lead designer Todd Humphrey of Syracuse-based C&S Engineering — retained by the county in February 2006 for the project — said the design engineers were still hammering out the preliminary design of the project.

“At this point, what we’re trying to do is come up with a design that will fall within that number (the budget),” Humphrey said Tuesday.

The estimates for the trail’s final cost were made several years ago, and the ever-rising price of oil and that product’s impact on the rest of the market means that materials costs are much higher than when the project was first proposed.

Meanwhile, there still has to be some room left in the project budget for the cost of securing easements of properties the trail will run across. Estimates are impossible to make until appraisals of the needed properties are performed.

County Administrator Scott Schrader also wondered if the cost of securing easements was taken into account when the estimated project budget was established.

Schrader said that some easements that had been obtained at no cost while the BDC/IDA was still handling the project are rendered null and void because they were not acquired within the federal guidelines. The easements alone can take between six months and a year to obtain, Humphrey said.

The previous design of the trail has been plugged into a three-dimensional computer-modeling program that allows the engineers to play with the path of the trail. A trail that better follows the natural contours of the land means that less earth-moving has to be performed to install the 10-foot wide, asphalt path.

“We are looking for the way that we can construct this in the most economical manner,” Humphrey said.

What this fails to mention (this is the abbreviated on-line version) is that the project was known to have been $500,000 over budget last month, and it was not flagged by the Committee.

The C&S engineering fees are more than $200,000 on this project, and they are not yet complete. The project fee for this is reported to cost nearly $250,000. The article states that the funding for the project was to be from the State. If the project falls through (the County does not want to pay the overage of $1.4 million), the County may be responsible for the engineering fees.

As a taxpayer, how does that sound? In my opinion, this is another example of poor planning and cost projection. We cannot continue to fund projects that go nowhere and cost significant money funded by Cortland County taxpayers. How the estimate can be off by a FACTOR OF 2 needs to be explained. I hope to ask those questions in Committee next week.

01/10/08 - New Legislature chair wants to see county projects developed together

Joe McIntyre/staff photographer
Newly elected Chairman of the Cortland County Legislature John Daniels (D-Cortlandville) listens as County Administrator Scott Schrader explains the duties of the county auditor during the Legislature’s Jan. 3 organizational meeting.

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

The new chairman of the Cortland County Legislature, John Daniels, wants to see the county leave behind the piecemeal process it has used in the past in examining possible facilities expansion and to think about the county’s needs collectively.

This will require the strong leadership of committee chairs and the input of every involved party in order to do it correctly, he said.

Daniels, a Democrat representing Cortlandville, could face either a strongly bipartisan Legislature or a deeply divided one, having received the support of all but one Republican legislator but only two Democrats when he gained the chairmanship on Jan. 3.

“I’m just here to steer the ship, not tell it where to go,” Daniels said Tuesday afternoon.
An independent contractor and former industrial manager-turned code enforcement officer, as well as a former chair of the Legislature’s Buildings and Grounds and Judiciary and Public Safety committees, Daniels and the rest of the Legislature are faced with the task of making or creating much-needed space for cramped departments.

But Daniels wants to make sure the county is not going through the process one piece at a time — he prefers a comprehensive approach.

The county agreed to purchase a property on River Street for a relocated Department of Motor Vehicles office, as well as two parcels on south Main Street, for which a use has yet to be identified.

Daniels pointed to the Area Agency on Aging, which is looking into possibly relocating to the south Main Street properties. After all, Daniels said, the population of county residents over the age of 60 will experience a nearly 27 percent increase between 1990 and 2015, with a 72 percent increase in the size of the population for those age 85 and older in that same period.
Moving the kitchen, offices and other components of the Area Agency on Aging out of the County Office Building would free up space, but Daniels wondered how much would be opened up if another small office — or two or three — could be moved out of the office building and relocated to one of the county’s newly-acquired properties.

“You have to look at that and have some kind of a plan to move forward,” Daniels said.

The county has paid for numerous engineering studies about the space needs of certain departments and the space constraints of the County Office Building. What Daniels wants to see is somebody picking up those studies and figuring out what they mean when taken together.
The new chair of the General Services (formerly Buildings and Grounds) Committee, Legislator Chad Loomis (D-8th Ward) is a professional engineer with Cornell University.

“He’s reviewed all those studies and he’s going to try to tie them together,” Daniels said. “We’ve been studied to death.”

Possibly another 1,000 square feet could be tagged on to the proposed River Street DMV office to accommodate a small department, and enough space would be opened up in the County Office Building to allow the Health and Mental Health departments to consolidate operations in the office building instead of being spread throughout the city.

Daniels said it is more economical to increase the size of projects that are being built. “Let’s give ourselves some breathing room — let’s give ourselves a chance to grow,” Daniels said.

He said the Legislature should at least be discussing the possibility of utilizing the eminent domain process to acquire properties. No matter what the process, communication with the neighbors is essential, Daniels said.

Daniels has chosen Legislator Tom Williams (R-Homer), a former state trooper and a code officer, to lead the Judiciary and Public Safety Committee and work with the jail studies in the same manner Loomis will work with the office building studies.

“For the jail, it’s going to take two years, close to that, to get everything in place,” Daniels said.
Both Loomis and Williams were instrumental in Daniels’ bid for the chairmanship, Loomis making the nomination and Williams upsetting chances for a Republican to take the chair. But Daniels said their experience makes them good fits for their new positions.

In all, though, Daniels said he wants to see the right people doing the right job. Legislator Mike McKee (R-Cincinnatus, Freetown, Taylor and Willet), who owns a heavy equipment company, will be chairing the Highway Committee, an important subject for rural residents.

Legislator Carol Tytler (D-3rd Ward) will chair the Health Committee. The choice of the Democratic caucus for chair of the Legislature, Daniels said Tytler would be the “perfect” choice for chairing the Health Committee, given her role as director of communications for a nonprofit organization that provides services for people with disabilities.

Perhaps most importantly, Daniels wants the Legislature to be brainstorming to find creative solutions to the space problems, and he pledged to listen to anyone — whether legislator, department head or regular county employee — who brings him an idea, no matter how well developed.

“My management style is that I work with everybody,” Daniels said. “I’ve already started going to the different departments and just saying hello to everybody. It might take a couple weeks, but I’m going to get together with everybody.”

Despite rumors that he supported replacing County Administrator Scott Schrader, Daniels said Schrader has done a “super job.”

“I think he’s a sharp guy, but he’s not perfect,” Daniels said, acknowledging there has been friction between Schrader and legislators in the past that could be addressed constructively, without spending nearly a year searching for a new county administrator.

Daniels said he also supported redefining the scope of County Auditor Dennis Whitt’s duties, an issue that was brought up by Williams at the Legislature’s Jan. 3 organizational meeting.
Daniels said he is not a micromanager but will spend as much time working as Legislature chairman as it takes to get the job done.

“If you have the right people in the right jobs, they can do their jobs,” Daniels said.

This article captures why I supported John for Chairman. I believe he has the vision to lead the planning of projects for the next two years.

I intend to get a grasp on all of the projects in planning or in progress and will develop a list that will allow for a master planning effort. I will meet and work with Mr. Schrader and the General Services Committee to lay out the moves to efficiently and effectively accommodate the needs of the County departments.

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please email them to me at celoomis@gmail.com. I appreciate your support!

Please note that the General Services Committee will be meeting at 8:00am on Tuesday 1/15. Click here for the AGENDA.

Click here for January meeting schedule.

1/4/07 - Message from Sandy Price

LEGISLATOR'S REPORT FOR JANUARY 2008

Local fire personnel appointed to the Fire Advisory Board are Michael Price of the Harford Fire Company, James Coon & Murray Kinney of the Virgil Fire Department.

The Legislature authorized the purchase of property located on River Street for the purpose of a new Motor Vehicles Department for $375,000.00. The money to pay for this will come from the Tobacco Funds so there will be no impact on the budget. Leasing was considered however purchasing was recommended by the County Administrator. This action was necessary to complete the courthouse renovation plans that has been being done for the past few years. This action prevents the loss of state renovation revenue.

After many months of a vacancy a full time staff psychiatrist was hired. This is great news to all who have felt the impact of this lack of service.

In an effort to help the city with their financial problems the county agreed to pay $26,475.00 to fund the Hazardous Material Response Team.

After an engineering study recommended a $800,000.00 expenditure to fix that short but treacherous spot on Daisy Hollow Road some Highway people put their heads together and came up with a solution to take off the top, put in some drainage, and pave for $425,000.00. That money was transferred into an account to do that. This is great news. The people spoke, the Legislature listened,and responded. Congratulations to Bruce and Ginny Neff for spear-heading this and thank you to everyone involved in solving this long-standing problem.

The organizational meeting of the Legislature was held on January 3rd.
The Chairman is John Daniels
Clerk of the Legislature is Susan Morgan
County Attorney is Mark Suben
Majority leader is Sandy Price
Minority leader is Danny Ross
Veteran's Officer is Carl Bullock
County Historian is Jeremy Boylan
County Auditor is Dennis Whitt

Along with the other elected Legislators, the Administrator and Department Heads this promises to be a winning team. I am hopeful that there will be peace, respect and some important accomplishments in the next two years. I am proud and honored to be the Legislator representing the Towns of Harford & Virgil and being a of this part of this team. Thank you for letting me represent you.

Is there anything I should be aware of or doing?

Thought for the Month:
'When we do the best we can, we never know what miracle is wrought in our life, or in the life of another.' Helen Keller

1/4/08 - County auditor reappointed despite concerns

The county Legislature discussed Thursday holding off on reappointing County Auditor Dennis Whitt, perhaps to redefine his job description, but decided that the matter could be better addressed at a later date.

Legislator Tom Williams (R-Homer) made the motion to table Whitt’s reappointment, which was part of a slew of reappointments that otherwise were passed with little discussion.

“I am a little confused about what this office is,” Williams explained. “I see that the person in this position appears to me at least to be performing many other tasks instead of just auditing the books and dealing with the county finances.”

He pointed to County Administrator Scott Schrader’s performance evaluation of Whitt, naming the auditor a “key staff administrator,” and later identifying Whitt as acting as the chief of staff or assistant to the chairman of the Legislature.

Whitt agreed with this characterization this morning, saying that he acted as such because of authority granted to him by past chairmen. He was hired as auditor in 2004 in response to the county’s financial problems, and Whitt said that from the beginning there was an understanding that he would be involved in addressing and solving problems, rather than just identifying problems via audits.

Williams proposed either limiting Whitt to strictly auditing duties, or expanding the job description to bring it more in line with Whitt’s current duties, perhaps as a deputy county administrator.

“The new chairman will have to decide if the extended role I have is necessary,” Whitt said, not sure if it would be appropriate for the Legislature to limit the decisions of the new chairman, John Daniels (D-Cortlandville).

Legislator John Troy (D-1st Ward) explained that the Democrats had discussed the matter in their caucus and had decided that the issue might be better addressed first within the Personnel Committee.

Schrader pointed out that any county office is based on the job description dictated by the county Legislature, and that Whitt would have to alter his performance if the legislators chose to limit him.

Newly-appointed County Attorney Mark Suben said the Legislature certainly has the authority to define additional duties that the auditor could perform, outside of audits.

1/4/08 - GOP puts Democrat in Legislature chair

Republican scuttles bid for GOP chairmanship

Joe McIntyre/staff photographer
Newly elected Chairman of the Cortland County Legislature John Daniels (D-Cortlandville) recognizes a fellow legislator during his first meeting as chairman Thursday.

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel Reporting)

A trio of Democratic Cortland County legislators backed out of their party’s caucus decision, and in league with nearly all the Republicans voted John Daniels into the chairmanship for the next two years.

It took several votes, and one Republican broke ranks to sink his party’s chance to hold the chairmanship.

Local attorney Mark Suben, a Democrat, was unanimously picked as county attorney, and Clerk of the Legislature Sue Morgan — also a Democrat — was unanimously chosen to continue on in the job she has held for the past two years.

Daniels (D-Cortlandville) received the chairmanship in the third round of voting, after some legislators failed in their bid to recess the meeting until next week.

One Republican in favor of a bipartisan coalition, Tom Williams (R-Cortlandville), had the deciding vote and cast it against what could have been a Republican chairmanship in the Democrat-controlled Legislature.

Little discussion accompanied the voting since the legislators moved right from their caucuses before the meeting into the voting, and then recessed back into the caucuses after failure to pick a chairman in the first five votes.

In the first round of voting, Dan Tagliente (D-7th Ward) nominated Carol Tytler (D-3rd Ward) for chair, newcomer Chad Loomis (D-8th Ward) nominated Daniels and Larry Cornell (R-Marathon and Lapeer) nominated John Steger (R-Preble and Scott).

Tytler was the choice of the Democrats following a caucus last week, but she only received eight votes in the first round, with Democrats Daniels and Loomis breaking with the party and denying her the post.

The vote on Daniels was next, but he only received six votes in the first round, entirely from Republicans with the exception of Loomis and himself.

The Republican’s pick, Steger, came closest to snagging the chairmanship with nine votes, just one short of the majority needed. He received the support of one Democrat, Dan Tagliente, and nearly all the Republicans.

Williams was called last on the roll call vote, done alphabetically, and hesitated for a moment before he voted against fellow Republican Steger.

Larry Cornell looked at his Republican colleague with a look of disbelief and both parties retreated to their caucuses.

“That’s the way politics are,” Steger said afterward.

After the meeting, Williams explained that he was in favor of a bipartisan coalition and that a Republican chairmanship could have locked up the Legislature for the next two years.

“I guess it was to shake the tree,” Williams said. “I think the government will work better if we can provide some kind of coalition.”

He had also pledged his vote to Daniels, he added, because Daniels would “be the person that would most likely work well in the center of the ring.”

The legislators returned from caucuses, this time nominating only Tytler and Daniels.

The vote for Tytler was followed by one for Daniels, and each received nine votes in the second round, with some Republicans defaulting to Daniels and many Democrats continuing to back Tytler.

Tagliente called for a vote to recess the session until next Tuesday. That motion failed, with only nine votes.

The legislators again retreated into their caucuses, and returned a short time later. This time, newcomer Kathie Wilcox (R-5th Ward) nominated Daniels, and Tytler was nominated again as well. The Republicans were unified in their support of Daniels — except for Steger — along with Democrats Loomis, Kathie Arnold (D-Cuyler, Solon and Truxton) and Daniels himself, for a final tally of 11-8.

Arnold later explained that she mistakenly voted for Daniels in that round, not realizing that if he won there would not be a vote on Tytler to follow, but she decided not to change her vote since it would not have affected the outcome.

Daniels said after the meeting that he was sorry the decision came down to a contest between himself and Tytler, and hoped she would continue to work hard on behalf of the Legislature.
“We need a bipartisan group, and I think we’ve got that,” Daniels said after the meeting. “I’m sure that there were a lot of feelings that got hurt.”

Daniels said that he and the majority and minority leaders would begin discussing committee appointments over the next couple of days.

He identified the space needs of the county as the biggest priority, especially moving quickly to move the Department of Motor Vehicles office out of the County Courthouse and onto a River Street property the county recently agreed to purchase — a project spearheaded by Tytler.

“It certainly has been difficult for us,” Tytler said. “I am a person of my word, we had a caucus, and I know that tomorrow I can look in the mirror and feel good about my efforts as a county legislator.”

She said she would continue to work hard in the Legislature, and that Daniels would “do a good job, I’m sure.”

Democratic Majority Leader Sandy Price (D-Harford and Virgil) said that she first got word that the caucus was unraveling Thursday morning, and that it was unusual that it would take three rounds of voting to install a chair.

Marilyn Brown, the preceding chair, was elected to the chairmanship unanimously in the first vote in January 2006.

“I could have worked very well with Mrs. Tytler and I know I’ll be able to work with Mr. Daniels,” Price said. “I’m glad that we kept at it until we took the vote tonight (instead of recessing).”

Price acknowledged the need for healing, but she said she hopes to be able to pull her party together, despite the strong personalities within it.

Republican Minority Leader Danny Ross said that a Republican chairmanship “would have been nice,” but that he is confident in Daniels’ leadership.

Newcomer Wilcox agreed. “I wish it hadn’t happened. I would rather we had the Republican chair, but I think the next best thing is Mr. Daniels. He’ll be a breath of fresh air,” and would work with both parties, she said.

Wilcox said Daniels had “vowed to be fair with committee appointments,” with members of both parties well represented.

My View - Communication

Communication - How easy is it? Apparently not very, according to my first 3 days on the Legislature. That is, at least with some members. That's I guess the advantage of 19 people with different views, opinions and priorities trying to decide what is best for the County.

I think all of us need to look objectively at the issues facing us and take a bi-partisan approach. With a 10-9 advantage, my Democratic counterparts voting party line will not help the County. Compromise and cooperation will lead to success in the upcoming two years.

By presenting all of the facts and figures, debating respectfully and asking questions will ensure that a positive outcome is obtained. I will not vote for any items that I cannot understand or explain to my constituents- and advocate for when questioned.

I hope to provide more insight into the Legislature as I immerse into the position. I apologize for what might be considered more of an 'executive summary' of information from the Cortland Standard for the majority of the blogs, but that was my main (and sometimes only) means of getting the issues recorded.

Chad

12/31/07 - GOP caucus backs slate for key posts

(As published by Cortland Standard, Evan Geibel reporting)

The Republican legislative caucus met Saturday and endorsed the slate for county Legislature leadership positions that was proposed last week by party leaders.

The Republicans will be standing behind Legislator John Steger (R-Preble and Scott) for chairman of the Legislature; Patrick Perfetti of Homer for county attorney; and Carletta Edwards of Cortland for clerk of the Legislature.

No minority leader has been selected as the party is waiting to see what happens at Legislature’s organizational session Thursday night.

The Democrats, who hold a 10-9 majority, have chosen Carol Tytler (D-3rd Ward) for the chairmanship and Sandy Price (D-Harford and Virgil) for majority leader but have not put forward names for county attorney and clerk of the Legislature.

They will meet tonight to discuss possibilities and talk with interested persons. Tytler has said if she were appointed chairman by the Legislature, she would keep on Sue Morgan, the current clerk of the Legislature.

The bare 10-9 Democratic majority could make predicting an outcome difficult and both parties are poised to make last-minute decisions at Thursday’s session.

12/28/07 - Grant helps fund recycling building

(As published by Cortland Standard, Aimee Milks reporting)

Cortland County received nearly $1.5 million in recycling grants through the state Department of Environmental Conservation to reimburse half of its $2.9 million recycling center, which opened in 2005.

The announcement of the grant award came Thursday and will help pay for the costs of rebuilding the 22,000-square-foot facility, purchasing equipment and parking area.

The county received the $1,492,077 through the DEC’s Environmental Protection Fund.
According to the DEC, the grant program provides up to 50 percent reimbursement to local governments for eligible project costs, limited to a maximum state share of $2 million.

“Municipalities send in applications but must join a long waiting list for funding. As funding becomes available, the state gives the green light to qualified projects,” said DEC spokesman Yancey Roy.

Don Chambers, county highway superintendent, said this morning that the county sent in an application for the grant money in early 2004.

“When you deal with the state, nothing is a sure thing. But we knew we were eligible,” said County Administrator Scott Schrader. “The program was designed to pay 50 percent of the costs for solid waste projects.”

Chambers said the nearly $1.5 million will be used to pay back the money the county borrowed to build the facility.

Schrader said the money will go into the county’s reserve for debt service and allows the county to eliminate its debt service costs from the operating budget.

“Now there will be a couple of years where we won’t have to pay debt service,” he said. “Because we don’t have to show those payments in the operating budget it will be reflected, theoretically, in lower tax rates.”

The facility is nearly twice the size of the prior recycling center, which was burned to the ground in October 2002 after a city man parked a stolen van over a pile of newspapers.

“We have had very good luck with the new facility,” Chambers said. “It runs very efficient.”

12/28/07 - Democrats select choices for key Legislative posts

(As published by Cortland Standard, Even Geibel reporting)

The county Legislature’s Democratic caucus chose its candidates, leadership positions on the Legislature Thursday night, putting forth Carol Tytler for chairman and naming Sandy Price as majority leader.

Legislator John Daniels (D-Cortlandville) had also been vying for the chairmanship, but Tytler (D-3rd Ward) was chosen by a secret ballot.

The Democrats did not discuss possible appointments for the county attorney and clerk of the Legislature, but have scheduled another caucus to discuss the appointments and meet with possible candidates at attorney James Baranello’s office at 39 Church St. at 4 p.m. Monday.

Democratic Party Chair and Election Commissioner Bill Wood would not comment on the caucus selections this morning.

The Republican Party leadership has put forward its own recommendations: Legislator John Steger (R-Preble and Scott) for chairman, Patrick Perfetti of Homer for county attorney and former Legislature clerk Carletta Edwards for that position once again.

The Republican caucus plans to meet at 8 a.m. Saturday at Republican County headquarters on Port Watson Street to discuss these recommendations.

Tytler said this morning she shared her vision for the next two years and emphasized teamwork and communication as her priorities.

“For us as a Legislature, I think that one of the most important things that we can improve is communications — that’s vital to our success. All things flow from there,” Tytler said.

She addressed important countywide issues such as space needs, economic development, infrastructure, and inter-municipal cooperation, as well as an important concern of her constituents, flooding.

Tytler hopes to hold a strategic planning session with both legislators and county department heads, similar to one she attended after joining the Legislature in 2004, in order to prioritize the issues facing the county in the years ahead.

She seemed optimistic about her chances of emerging as chairman during the Jan. 3 organizational meeting of the Legislature, at which appointments for the leadership positions and other county positions will be decided by the full Legislature.

12/27/07 - Local lawyers defend county attorney

(As published by Cortland Standard, Even Geibel reporting)

Several local attorneys have come out in support of the County Attorney’s Office, alleging the county administrator is unqualified to be making the accusations of misconduct he has leveled at the office and that this is another example of heavy-handed administration.

Schrader defended his actions and accused the lawyers of having ulterior motives.

With local attorney Mike Shafer of the Riehlman, Shafer & Shafer law firm acting as spokesman, the lawyers also urged legislators to think hard before they renew County Administrator Scott Schrader’s contract in three years.

Shafer and local attorneys Mardis Kelsen and Matt Neuman held a press conference on the steps of the County Courthouse early Wednesday afternoon. Shafer stressed that they were there as individual attorneys, not speaking for the county Bar Association.

Schrader had given a memorandum to the county Budget and Finance Committee on Dec. 13, indicating he believed County Attorney Ric Van Donsel’s recommended settlements for two properties on Williams and Randall streets — included in the failed south Main Street Public Health Building project — were too high and that a criminal investigation was warranted.

“Mr. Schrader’s outrageous suggestion that the District Attorney’s office conduct a criminal investigation concerning the conduct of the County Attorney’s Office,” Shafer said in a prepared statement, “while arising out of the aftermath of the failed South Main Street Development Project, is part and parcel of the County Administrator’s consistent practice of pointing blame at others when one of his schemes does not come to fruition as he would have hoped.”

Van Donsel has not been willing to comment to the Cortland Standard on the matter.

Schrader had also suggested an investigation into Assistant County Attorney Ron Walsh’s conduct, given that Walsh had represented Steve Lissberger, the former owner of the Randall Street property, in a sale to a third party in August without notifying the county.

Walsh said Dec. 14 he was unaware that his client was involved in negotiations with the county at the time the property was sold — Lissberger filed his claim in April, Schrader said — and that he had represented Lissberger when the property was originally purchased in March 2006.

Schrader said this morning that he was still drafting the formal request for an investigation to be presented to the district attorney.

12/21/07 - County decides to buy site for DMV building

(As published by Cortland Standard, Even Geibel reporting)

The county Legislature voted to purchase a site off Port Watson and River streets for a Department of Motor Vehicles office at its last session of the year Thursday night.

The roughly 1-acre property would cost the county $375,000, which will be paid out of the county’s $2.8 million share of state _settlement funds from tobacco companies.

The only legislators to vote against the purchase — a two-thirds vote of the Legislature is necessary for property acquisitions — were Newell Willcox (R-Homer), Tom Williams (R-Homer) and Kay Breed (R-Cortlandville).

Legislator Larry Cornell (R-Marathon and Lapeer) was absent.

Part of the property would be subdivided from the BOCES plaza at 240 Port Watson St., owned by Joe Armideo of Homer.

The neighboring Barbarito Auto Body shop and a single-family home on that parcel at 112 River St. has been bought by Armideo and will be included in the sale of the property to the county.

Both will be torn down to make way for the DMV office, which the county will build for approximately $400,000, according to estimates. That cost can also be paid out of tobacco settlement money.

A resolution to lease was on the Legislature’s agenda but became moot after legislators approved the purchase of the property. The lease would have cost the county about $60,000 annually over a 10-year period.

Armideo provided the county with the rough costs of a building he would have constructed and later leased. At between $120 and $150 a square foot for a 4,000-square-foot building as the county envisions for the DMV, the building could have cost as much as $600,000 after a 10-year period.

“We’re basically paying for that building over its life span,” Schrader said.

A $60,000 yearly lease would amount to a half a percent tax increase, Schrader said. The county could not use tobacco money to lease; the money can only pay for capital improvements.

Willcox said he wanted more information about leasing. “I didn’t vote against the DMV,” he said. “I didn’t feel the lease options were fully explored.”

Also, a higher $777,000 figure for the lease was included in the Legislature’s agenda for the night, which Schrader said had been inserted before the $600,000 lease price had been provided.