Village of Cazenovia

Welcome to the Mayor's Notebook.

January 12, 2008

I am sure you are probably sick of all the end of the year recaps that you have seen in the newspapers, magazines, and on TV around New Years Day. You probably think you have seen your last for 2007. Well I hate to disappoint you, but here is a brief recap on what went on in the Village of Cazenovia in 2007.

In January 2007 the Village Board voted to enact the Historic Preservation Overlay District legislation. This legislation created a Historic Preservation Committee which is an advisory committee to the Planning Board. The members of the committee are, Ted Bartlett, (Chairman), Gene Gissin, Dan Kuper, Betsy Moore and Scott Shannon. Also in January, Tom Vogt withdrew his petition for the annexation of the Cazenovia Motel Property into the Village.

In February, the Village Board approved a zoning change for the Northborough Ridge project. The plan is for 27 units on the Burton Street site. Also in February, a Comprehensive Plan Committee was formed to develop an update to the current Comprehensive Plan. EDR was hired to help the Village update the plan. The Village Family increased by two in the month of February, Village Clerk Laura Herbert Abernathy gave birth to twin girls, Sophia and Tabitha.

In March Troy Waffner resigned as Village Trustee. At the time, Troy was going to be taking a job in Albany and could not stay on as Trustee. Barbara Bennett was appointed to replace Troy as Trustee.

In April the Village Board passed the 2007-2008 Village Budget. Total appropriations in the General Fund were $1,923,878. Total revenues from property tax were $810,885. The taxable assessed value of the Village was $152,321,300. The 2007 – 2008 tax rate remained the same at $5.32 per $1000 assessed value.

In April 2007 the Village Board awarded the contract for the reconstruction of Seminary Street.

In May 2007 the Village Board passed a local law to adopt the NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code. The law which was required to be passed by New York State adds new permit requirements to owners of property in the Village and will cost an extra $9,000 in inspection and enforcement costs to the Village.

In the June Village elections, Tom Tait and Russ Brownback were elected as new Village Trustees. Also in June, paving started on Seminary Street and the new playground equipment was installed at Lakeside Park.

In July we opened the bids for a new fire engine.

In August, Dudley Johnson proposes to have a private outdoor park on his property on Chenango Street. The Trustees started discussion on removing the residency requirement to launch a boat at Lakeside Park. The Trustees hired an engineering firm to conduct a structural condition review of the CAVAC Building. NYSCA awarded the Village a $15,000 grant to go towards the cost of our Comprehensive Planning efforts. The Village installed a new 8“water main on Williams Street.

In September the Village Board passed a local law to enact an Interim Moratorium on Fast Food Restaurants and Adult Businesses in the Historic Business District. A new hiking trail was opened up on the Village property which ties into the Stone Quarry Art Park hiking trails on Stone Quarry Road.

In October the Village Board appointed Kathy Burns to replace Laura Herbert Abernathy as Village Clerk. The Village was awarded a granted of $200,000 from Home Land Security for the purchase of our new fire engine.

In November the Village Board appointed Bill Carr as Public Works Administrator. Bill replaces the retiring Steve McLaughlin. Also in November the Village presented a letter of thanks to Joan Keilen for her many years of service to the Senior Recreation Program.

In December 2007 Ernie Koglmeier presented a new proposal for the development of his property on Chenango St. The new plan calls for a total of 7 lots on the property. Ernie’s proposal was referred to the Planning Board for consideration. Also in December we had to replace the motor on our 40HP pump at the water treatment plant.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

November 5, 2007

Well it looks like our fabulous fall season is coming to an end and winter is about to set in. The winter season brings with it a lot of extra duties for our village highway department. They will be getting up early to plow our streets and sidewalks to make them safe for our children to get to school and make the streets passable for emergency vehicles. Please remember, no all-night parking in the village, if you see a newcomer to the village, remind them not to park on the streets, especially during the winter season.

The last three months have been busy ones for the Board of Trustees. On August 17th we were advised that our Village Clerk / Treasurer, Laura Herbert Abernathy and our Public Works Administrator, Steve McLaughlin would be leaving at the end of October. The hunt was on to find replacements. We advertised for the both positions in the newspapers and received several applications for each position. The board carefully reviewed the resumes and interviewed three applicants for the clerk job and four applicants for the Public Works Administrator position. In the end, the board selected Kathy Burns for Village Clerk and Bill Carr for the Public Works Administrator. We thank all those who applied for the positions and ask that they keep us in mind for future job openings. We are very happy for Kathy and Bill and know that they will do their best to serve the village residents in their new positions.

The Board would like to thank Laura Herbert Abernathy for her eight years of service to the village. She has been a wonderful Village Clerk and we wish her great success in the coming years. Laura will be working part-time to help Kathy in her transition as Village Clerk / Treasurer.

The Board would also like to thank Steve McLaughlin for his nine years and four months service to the Village of Cazenovia. Steve has been a fabulous Public Works Administrator. His knowledge and talents has been a tremendous asset to the village. We all wish Steve a very happy and healthy retirement.

In other news, we finished installing a new water main on Williams Street, that street will be refurbished next year. We have completed the installation of new handicap accessible access doors on the front of the Municipal Building and at the entrance to the village meeting room. We have also installed a new power point projector in the village meeting room. The projector can be used during meetings to allow the audience to see documents, pictures, charts, and videos. The Stone Quarry Art Park has built a new hiking trail on the village property on Stone Quarry Road. It’s not too late to take a hike on the new trail. We also have two new Police Officers, Mark Reed and Joe Hudson. We welcome Mark and Joe to the village.

If you didn’t already know from all the campaign signs, there is a Town election going on and tomorrow is Election Day. Be sure to get out and vote. If we have as many voters as campaign signs, it will be a record turnout.

August 8, 2007

By looking at the Mayor and Village Board page you can see that we have two new Village Trustees. Congratulations to Tom Tait and Russ Brownback for their election to the Board of Trustees. We are very lucky to have such dedicated and talented people willing to devote their time and talents to public service.

I want to thank Troy Waffner, Barbara Bennett and David Vredenburgh for their service to the Village Board of Trustees. Troy served as trustee for a little over four years. He was a wonderful trustee, always very sincere and he always listened to the concerns of the village residents. He was a great asset to the Village Board. Barbara Bennett did an outstanding job replacing Troy as trustee for the last four months of his term. Her involvement in the water department for those four months has made a positive impact on that department. Her interest and involvement in the community is remarkable. As for Dave Vredenburgh, there are no words that can express the thanks and gratitude we all have for Dave. He was an outstanding member of the Board of Trustees for the past nine years. Dave has gone well beyond the call of duty dedicating untold hours to the Cazenovia Community as a Village Trustee, Fire Fighter, CAVAC member. If you see Troy, Barbara or Dave in your travels, give them a pat on the back and say thanks.

With the election of the new board members comes new appointments. Paul Brooks has accepted the position of Deputy Mayor and Commissioner of Fire and Police. Kurt Wheeler is staying on as Commissioner of Buildings, Streets, Sidewalks and Utilities. Tom Tait will be the Commissioner of Parks, Trees, Cemetery and Youth Recreation and Russ Brownback will be the Commissioner of Water and Sewer. With a little over one month on the job, our new trustees have really hit the ground running. Do not hesitate to contact the trustees for any of your village concerns or ideas.

We have just been notified that the Village of Cazenovia has been awarded a $15,000 grant from NYSCA (New York State Council on the Arts) for the update of our Comprehensive Plan. As you know, the village has hired Environmental Design & Research (EDR) to help us with the update. This grant will be used towards the payment of their services. I want to thank Barbara Henderson of CACDA for her tireless efforts in applying for the grant. Barbara is quick to point out that I helped her with the grant application, but the real truth is, without her help we would have never received the grant. Thanks Barbara.

The Franklins Trek is in the village this week. We had the annual parade on Sunday the 5th at 11:00 am. That is a pretty busy time for most Cazenovians but the folks that were there were treated to a great parade and a fabulous history lesson on all the remarkable cars. If you haven’t had a chance to walk thru the college campus and look at the cars be sure to do so. What you will find is terrific looking automobiles, which were built in Syracuse between 1902 and 1934, and terrific people willing to share their time and thoughts on their cars. One thing that will come out when you talk to the Franklin people is that they love coming to Cazenovia. We are glad of that because we love having them!

June 18, 2007

It is one day before the village elections. This has been a very lively campaign season with three candidates running for two open Village Trustee seats. All three candidates are very well qualified, and in the end the village will win.

The reconstruction on Seminary Street is complete. The street looks beautiful. I want to thank Steve McLaughlin and the Village Highway Crew for the great work they did on the project to keep the cost down. They installed all new storm water drainage, updated the water and sewer services, and poured all the sidewalks. It is a big plus to have a village crew able to do that kind of work, do it right and meet schedule commitments.

The flower baskets on the light poles are up and blooming. Many thanks to the Cazenovia Garden Club for providing the baskets of flowers and for all the numerous projects they do to beautify the village. Alexis Ellis is working for the village this summer on the parks and flowers. She is a graduate student at ESF. She is doing a great job. She has already made an impact on the village with her green thumb and her landscape design talents.

I would also like to introduce the rest of the summer part time employees working for the village. They are Buddy Blair, Ralph Tallett, and Howard Judd. All three do a great job keeping our village and cemetery in tip-top shape during the summer months.

The new playground equipment is up at Lakeside Park. I took my grandson to Lakeside last week and the equipment got his stamp of approval. The village highway crew, with guidance from the equipment distributor, had the equipment in place and operable in three days. I hope all young Cazenovians enjoy the playground.

Lakeland Park is open for swimming. There are lifeguards on duty but all should remember to follow all the safety rules when swimming at the park. Our first concert in the park is Thursday June 21, 2007. I hope all village residents enjoy the park this summer season.

On a sour note, we have had some vandalism at the park already this year. If you see vandalism please report it. If you are with friends that think it is cool to disfigure village property, tell them to stop. You may feel hesitant to step out of your comfort zone, but when you do, you will know that you did the right thing. The village parks belong to all of us.

That’s all for now, don’t forget to vote!

April 29, 2007

The Historic Preservation Overlay District Regulation went into effect in February of 2007. The regulation created an Advisory Committee (five members) to the Planning Board to be known as the Cazenovia Historic Preservation/Architectural Advisory Review Committee (the “Committee”) See Public Notices section of the website for a copy of the regulation.

The regulation applies to properties located within the Historic Preservation Overlay District as shown on the Village Zoning Map. The essence of the regulation is that in order for a property owner to make exterior alterations to properties within the Historic District, a Certificate of Compatibility from the Committee is needed. Then the property owner will have to get an overall approval of the project from the Planning Board. This will add an extra step in the process for property owners within the Historic District; however we hope to streamline the process as much as possible.

Section 180-32.5 of the regulation states the following requirements for a Certificate of Compatibility:

No person shall carry out any exterior alteration, restoration, reconstruction, demolition, new construction, or moving of a landmark or property within an historic district, including buildings and exterior building features and site features such as sidewalks and fences, or portions thereof, without first obtaining a certificate of compatibility or hardship relief from the Village Planning Board. Painting or repainting and ordinary maintenance and repair of existing buildings, building features and site features are exempt from the requirements of this section, as are changes involving only building mounted mailboxes and flagpoles, and any modifications or changes involving only living vegetation and/or seasonal changes such as air conditioners, fans and/or seasonal decorations.

The Committee Members were appointed at the April 2, 2007 Village Board Meeting. The Committee Members are:
Ted Bartlett (Chairman) Senior Associate Crawford & Sterns, Architects & Preservation Planners
Gene Gissin, Professional Photographer and owner of the Historic Cazenovia Depot
Dan Kuper, Owner and Manager of the Historic Lincklaen House
Betsy Moore, Associate Professor, Interior Design at Cazenovia College
Scott Shannon, Associate Professor, Landscape Architecture SUNY/ ESF

We are very fortunate to have such talented and dedicated community members willing to dedicate their time to serve on the Historic Preservation Committee.

The Historic Preservation Committee’s first meeting was on April 23, 2007. Four projects were presented to the Committee and all four were given a favorable recommendation to the Planning Board.

Spring is finally here. Our parks are open and ready for business. Please remember to treat the park property as if it were your own. Pick up any trash you find and put it in its proper place. Don’t let your peers vandalize public property. Report any vandalism to the Village Police.

Have a great spring and we will see you all at the Memorial Day Parade.

March 17, 2007

Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Well, we have almost made it through the winter weather of 2007. We had a break early in the year but we paid the price in February and thus far in March.

The village work crew has done a yeoman’s job of keeping the streets open. We had to haul the snow off of Albany and Lincklaen Street, in the Historic Business District, several times and in other sections of the village where the streets were getting narrow. We appreciate your patience when we had to block off the streets to move the snow.

I want to take this opportunity to thank Troy Waffner for his service on the Board of Trustees. Troy has served as Commissioner of Water and Sewer, Chairman of the Village Parking Committee, Village Board Representative on CACDA, and has had many other duties and responsibilities for the Village of Cazenovia. Troy’s ambition, enthusiasm and his love and respect for the community will surely be missed. We wish Troy great success with his new job in the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. I know that Troy will do a fine job for New York State.

To replace Troy as Trustee, I appointed Barbara Bennett to complete Troy’s term of office. Barb has been a life long resident of Cazenovia who has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make Cazenovia a better place to live. Barb is a former nurse at Cazenovia High School (for 23 years), a member of the Madison County Democratic Committee, and is active in the American Legion. I know Barb will do a great job and I thank her for her service.

It’s a busy time in the Village. We just finished up work on the 2007-2008 village budget. We have scheduled a public hearing on April 2, 2007 to present the budget to the community. The good news is that the village assessment went up, and at last years tax rate, will add $18,000 to the revenue side of the budget. Additionally, last year we made the last bond payment on the improvements to the Municipal Building which will loosen up $53,000 in this year’s budget. On the appropriations side, we put in an additional $22,000 for the update of our Comprehensive Plan and we added an additional $20,000, ($10,000 each) in the capital accounts for street repairs and for fire equipment. We think the budget is a good one and we propose to hold the tax rate the same this year as last year at $5.32 per $1,000 assessed value.

I am glad to report that Trustee Kurt Wheeler is back from Iraq. We all thank Kurt and his family for the many sacrifices they made during his time on active duty. I know that Kurt’s work in Iraq will serve a great value to the Marine Corps and to all Americans as we try to understand and learn from our experiences in Iraq. Thanks also to all our service men and women for their service and sacrifice for our country.

Enjoy St. Patrick’s Day, and the rest of winter 2007.

December 21, 2006

With 2006 coming to a close, I thought I would take a moment to look back at what happened in the Village of Cazenovia in 2006.

We started out the New Year with a Resolution honoring retired Village Justice George F. Conway. George had served as Village Justice for thirty years. We thank George for his service, dedication, advice and leadership.

James L. Ryan resigned as Planning Board Chairman after 27 years and was appointed Village Justice to replace George. Jim was later elected Village Justice in June 2006. Bill Hall was appointed the Chairman of the Planning Board to replace Jim Ryan. Both Jim and Bill are doing great at their new positions.

In other people news, in February Jerry Munger was appointed to the Zoning Board of Appeals.

During the year, the College and the Village hosted three Town Gown Forums. The College presentations were on College planning, College services made available to the community, and the economic impact of the College on the community. The Village presentations were on Village Zoning, Village owned properties, and the capital equipment owned by the Cazenovia Fire Department. We hope that the community has enjoyed the Forums and the opportunity for dialog between the College and the Village. Our next Town Gown Forum is scheduled for February 15, 2007.

The Village instituted a boat launch permit system at Lakeside Park this year. The permits were free for village residents and cost $25 for residents living outside the village in the Cazenovia Central School District.

We had three joint public hearings with the Town of Cazenovia and the Village of Cazenovia to consider petitions for annexation of properties into the village. They were the Parker property on Ten Eyck Avenue, the CPF property on Rt. 20 east, and the Vogt property also on Rt. 20 east. The Parker and CPF petitions were voted down and the Vogt petition was withdrawn.

A proposed zoning change for the Chenango Crossing Development from R30 to R6 was not approved in February but was later approved in November as a Planned Development (PD).
Currently the Board is considering a proposed zoning change for the Northborough Ridge Development from R30 to PD. A vote on that zone change is expected at the January 2, 2007 Village Board meeting.

After many meetings and much public debate the proposed Historic Overlay District Law will be coming up for a vote. The Law would create a five member committee which will be an advisory committee to the Planning Board on Historic Preservation. The vote on this is also scheduled for the January 2, 2007 meeting.

The Village launched its’ own website in 2006. Now village residents can use the website for information on scheduled meetings, agendas, meeting minutes, the village code, and lots of other information.

We negotiated a new three year contract with the PBA in 2006. Currently we have four fulltime police officers and will be hiring a fifth officer shortly.

Village Trustee Kurt Wheeler was mobilized to active duty in the US Marine Corps in October 2006 and is now serving in Iraq. We wish Kurt and all our service men and women a safe return to their families and their communities.

A new stop light will be coming to the Village of Cazenovia. The State DOT has determined that a stop light is required at the intersection of Forman Street and Albany Street. The light will help reduce the back-up of bus traffic on school days and make that intersection safer for our citizens.

We had lots of great events in the Village of Cazenovia this year. The Chili Run, Easter Ball, Taste of Caz, Cazenovia College Block Party, Memorial Day and Fourth of July Parades, Fourth of July Fireworks, Franklin Club Party at the Park, Caz Cruisin’, the Summer Concert Series, the Farmer’s Market, Hillary and Bill Clinton’s visit, Jaz in Caz, the Christmas Walk, and the first Cazenovia Forum, just to name a few. Cazenovia is a great place to live.

It has been a busy and exciting year here in the Village of Cazenovia. Hope you all enjoy the Holidays, and have a safe and happy New Year.

October 21, 2006

The new playground equipment for Lakeside Park was delivered last week. With our busy fall season, we will probably wait until the spring to put it up.
Last week we were looking for a water leak. We were using an extra 90,000 gallons of water a day and didn’t know where it was going. We finally located the leak on Corwin Street and repaired it on Friday the 20th. Just a reminder, if you see water bubbling out of the ground or standing in spots where it shouldn’t be, let us know, it could be a leak. Water leaks cost us all money!
The leaf season is half over, remember to keep the leaves out of the ditches. When they get in the storm water catch basins they can cause flooding of the streets.
It will not be long before we are out plowing the streets. When the temperature is above 10° F we use straight salt on the streets. When the temperature falls below 10°F we use a mixture of sand and salt. Drive carefully when approaching the snow plows; they need a little extra room to negotiate the streets because of their size.
Be sure to remind any visitors or newcomers to the village not to park all night on the streets. If they do and we have to plow the streets, we will have to have their cars towed. That’s a heck of a way to make a good first impression on visitors or new residents by towing their cars.
We all wish Trustee Kurt Wheeler, and all our service men and women, a safe tour of duty and hope to have them all home safe and sound as soon as possible.

September 15, 2006

The Village Highway Crew is finishing up work on the new sidewalk on Forman Street. What a great improvement to the village. That sidewalk will get lots of use in the years to come. The sidewalk to connect Audubon Drive to Forman Street is on hold at this time while we get permission from the property owners and the residents of Audubon Drive.
The next project for the Village Crew is the shore line restoration at Lakeside Park. That work will be starting the week of September 18th. We will also be building a short sidewalk at Lakeside Park to provide handicap access to the new pavilions.
There will be a legal notice in the paper about fall leaf and brush pickup, but I thought I would mention it here to help spread the word. Leaf and brush pickup will begin October 10, and end on November 16. Make sure the leaves and brush are separated, no bagging of the leaves, brush a maximum of 10 feet long should be placed parallel to the street. The leaves and brush should not be placed in the ditch where they can block the storm water drainage system. Don’t forget to wear gloves while raking, those blisters really hurt.

August 22, 2006

I hope it is not too late to recognize the M&T Bank for the great job they did modifying the front of their building on Albany Street to make it handicap accessible. You may remember in 2005 the bank applied for a building permit to put a handicap ramp on the sidewalk in front of their building. Although we all know that access for the handicap is an important issue, the prospects of a ramp and guardrail on the sidewalk on Albany Street met with vocal resistance from village residents. The Bank then withdrew their request and presented a revised plan. The revised plan cut and removed the 6” stone step in front of the building to drop the door threshold to the sidewalk level and modified the floor inside the building to ramp up to the existing floor level in the bank. The plan, although much more costly, saved the historic character of the building and at the same time provided barrier free access for the handicap. It was a win-win situation for the bank and the village. If you stop by the bank, tell them thanks for being such good neighbors.

August 14, 2006

The Franklins are in town this week for their 53rd Annual Franklin Trek. They are a real class organization. It is great to have them in Caz each year. The Village Highway Crew started construction on the new sidewalks on Forman Street today. The sidewalk will go from the north end of the High School property to Lakeside Park. (No initials allowed in the concrete)
We are not doing a major street project this year but we will be doing some patch paving work on Lincklaen Street (across from the Lincklaen House), Burton Street (across from the skating rink), the south end of Hickory Lane, and two spots in Gillett Lane. Traffic will be routed around those areas during the repair work.
Next year’s street project will be Seminary Street. That street is in bad shape right now. Please drive slowly on Seminary Street so as not to damage your vehicle. We are holding off the reconstruction work on that street until the college has finished their work on the expansion of Shove Hall.

August 4, 2006
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Village Trustee Kurt Wheeler for all his efforts in the development of the Village of Cazenovia Web Site. As time goes by, the web site will become a valuable information tool for the village residents.
While checking out the web site today I hit the link to Cazenovia Fire Department. What a great web site. It is loaded with information on the department’s history, safety information, list of members, list of equipment, fire definitions, list of recent calls and lots of other interesting information and photos. When you check out the list of calls, you will see how lucky we are to have such a dedicated group of individuals working to protect the Cazenovia Community and the surrounding areas. Many thanks to Fire Chief Tom Tait and the Members of the Cazenovia Fire Department.

July 19, 2006
The new concrete steps for the Lakeside Park pavilions were delivered yesterday. The handrails will be put up tomorrow. The stairs look great.
I ran into a family picnicking at Lakeside Park. They said how beautiful the pavilions were and how they enjoy coming down to the lake for a picnic. They were right; you can’t beat the building, the view and the cool breeze.
The village has been lucky so far this year with all the rain we have had and yet we have had little flooding. We had the Village Engineer, Paul Sheneman look at the creek which flows behind the houses on the south side of Burr Street. If we have flooding in the village, usually it is at Burr Street. Paul is proposing some changes which may eliminate some flooding in that area. Will keep you posted.
It was reported that the seaweed (milfoil) in the swimming area at Lakeland Park is getting high. The County is cutting the seaweed in the lake this year and they only do it a few times per season. We may have to get a work team together to go down to the park and pull the seaweed up by hand. Do you think it will work? Many hands make light work.

July 8, 2006
The work on the new pavilions at Lakeside Park is almost complete. Concrete steps are ordered for the west side, between the two pavilions, which will lead down to the lake. They should be delivered in a couple of weeks.
Thanks to our village workers and our contractors for doing such a fantastic job on the pavilions, they make us all proud. Thanks also to NY State Assemblyman Bill Magee for providing the $75,000 grant money for the project. We also will be replacing the playground equipment with part of the grant money.
Next on tap for the Village Street Crew is to put in catch basins and storm sewer lines on Seminary Street in preparation for the reconstruction of the street in 2007.
The Village crew will also be extending the sidewalks on Forman Street from the north end of the High School property to Lakeside Park. This will be a great improvement in the safety of our school students who have had to walk in the road to get to the park.
The Village crew will also be installing a sidewalk from the new Forman Street sidewalk east to the traffic turn-around on Audubon Drive. With the new sidewalk our young Audubon Drive school students will be able to walk down the sidewalk to catch the school bus. It will be safer than having the bus have to turn around on the dead end of Audubon Drive.
According to our Public Works Administrator Steve McLaughlin, Jennifer Fusaro is just about finished planting all the new annuals around the village, next up for Jennifer is watering, weeding and pruning. If you see Jennifer, let her know how much you enjoy the flowers.

July 6,2006
Just took a trip around the village. The parks look great.
Jennifer Fusaro, our new summer employee, is doing a great job with the parks and all the flowers.
Chief Amico reported that all went well on the 4th of July.
Hope everyone enjoyed the Holidays.