Tischler Chooses Team Of 14
POTSDAM - Mayor Reinhold J. Tischler has selected 14 town and village residents to serve on a committee that will oversee a study weighing the pros and cons of dissolving the village government.
Mr. Tischler said the group represents a broad cross section of the community.
Eight of the 14 people named to the Dissolution Study Committee by Mr. Tischler currently serve as elected and appointed officials in the village and town governments.
"I've spoken to every one of them, and again, what they are doing is hopefully in the best interest of the community," Mr. Tischler said. "It's going to be a lot of work, a lot of time. I think we've got quite a mixed group here, we've covered pretty much every avenue."
The dissolution committee will be chaired by Timothy M. Connolly, owner of Tim's Comic and Games and a member of the Potsdam town planning and zoning boards. He is also a former member of the Potsdam Village Zoning Board of Appeals.
When contacted Tuesday Mr. Connolly refused to answer questions regarding his role on the village dissolution committee or when the group planned to begin meeting. Mr. Connolly said he will only respond to questions submitted in writing.
Village officials have applied for a $50,000 state grant that will be used to hire a consulting firm to look at potential savings that could result from merging the village and town of Potsdam into a single layer of government.
The dissolution committee Mr. Tischler appointed this week has been charged with overseeing the study and with "investigating the effects of village dissolution on cost, taxation, services, employment, land use, economic development, and community character," according to a resolution passed by trustees Monday.
The committee will consider the effects of dissolution on village and "town-outside residents," and the group's actions and activities will be open to the public, according to trustees.
Other members of the dissolution committee appointed by Mr. Tischler are Village Trustee Ruth F. Garner; Town Clerk Cindy L. Goliber; Elm Street resident Eleanor F. Hopke; SUNY Potsdam Public Relations employee Alexandra M. Jacobs; Chestnut Street resident Mark T. Lee; SUNY Potsdam Associate Professor Jack P. McGuire; Norwood resident and Potsdam Town Planning Board member Mario Pusateri; and May Road resident Daniel F. Parker.
Also appointed were Town Supervisor Marie C. Regan; Barclay Street resident Rosemaria Rivezzi; Village Planning Board member Will Siegfried; Village Trustee Stephen J. Warr and Potsdam Town Councilman and Norwood resident Michael J. Zagrobelny.
Potsdam Planning and Development Director Frederick J. Hanss said the village submitted its grant application for the study Jan. 20 and as of Tuesday there was still no word on when funding would be made available.
If the grant is approved, the village will be required to spend up to $6,000 of its own money in matching funds, according to officials.
Mr. Tischler said Tuesday it his recommendation that the new dissolution committee wait until official word is received on whether the $50,000 study grant will be awarded.
"The plan of action at this point is to wait for the funding," Mr. Tischler said.
Potsdam's look at dissolution was spearheaded by the village's newest trustee, Mr. Warr, who ran for the board on a platform of giving village residents a chance to vote on dissolution.
The discussion is also being nudged by the recent passage of the state's Government Reorganization Act. The legislation, which will take effect March 21, makes it easier for residents to force a referendum on dissolving or consolidating local governments.
