MASSENA - Longtime Village Treasurer Daniel E. Case is retiring.

Mr. Case, 62, said he plans to step down by the end of September in order to spend more time with his several grandchildren and other family. He has served as treasurer for nearly 23 years.

“In talking with my wife and what not, we just decided it was time,” Mr. Case said.

Mr. Case said he will miss the village staff he works with and serving the public after he retires. He has worked under four mayors - Charles R. Boots, Kenneth MacDonnell, Randy G. DeLosh and James F. Hidy - and too many village trustees to count, he said.

Mr. Hidy praised Mr. Case for his service to the village.

“He’s one of the spokes that contributes to the wheel,” Mr. Hidy said. “He’s just a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the treasurer’s position. Dan’s number one interest has always been in the success of the village.”

The village began advertising for Mr. Case’s replacement on Wednesday. The Board of Trustees is seeking someone with “good knowledge of governmental accounting principles and practices, three years of bookkeeping or business experience,” including accounting work and a high school diploma. The requirements do not include a bachelor’s degree or any higher education.

Mr. Case is Massena’s chief fiscal officer whose responsibility includes tracking all monies and accounts of receipts and expenditures, according to village law. The treasurer also has an active role in preparing the village’s budget each year.

Mr. Case, who has a bachelor of arts in math and a masters of science in applied mathematics, said the village used the same advertisement when he first applied.

Mr. Hidy said he reviewed the job qualifications before they were published. He began having second thoughts about only requiring a high school education after the job was advertised.

The village’ Board of Trustees should select a candidate with further qualifications than a high school degree even if the advertisement did not state them, Mr. Hidy said.

“Usually when someone applies, they’re going to have all those credentials anyhow,” Mr. Hidy said. “If we get a good influx of applicants, we’ll be able to pick and choose which ones we feel confident in.”

“If it’s not in the requirements right now, it’d be in our best interest to give close consideration to those who do have those degrees,” he added.

Other village staff lauded Mr. Case for his years of service.

“He’s a genuinely nice person,” Deputy Treasurer Laura Gagne, Deputy Village Treasurer said. ““We’ve watched each other’s kids grow up.”

“He’ll be very much missed,” Village Clerk Patricia M. Dumas added,

Mr. Boots said Mr. Case is “the best we ever had” and a conscientious public servant.

“He knows his stuff inside and out. You could ask him any question about the budget and he’d know the answer to it,” Mr. Boots said. “You could always go to him any time and he had the time for you.”

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