Dear Editor,<\/p>\n
At the May 1 Village Board meeting, I felt slimed! No, it\u2019s not the trustees who did it. It was the testimony given for the board\u2019s consideration.<\/p>\n
We endured a lugubriously condescending sales pitch from an engineering firm hoping to shove its snout into our sewer plant. The practiced skit began with a condescending obfuscation of a very simple treatment process. We all know that when you blow air through a straw into your glass of cola, the bubbles reduce the carbonation. Our sewage plant is that straw and glass, enough said! <\/p>\n
I salute the trustees who asked the presenters to provide real numbers, rather than outrageous, best-case, revenue estimates showing their $500K design of a multimillion dollar plant would be a zero-cost asset to the Villagers. The hungry engineering supplicants then listed potential cost-overruns needing \u201cgeotechnical analysis.\u201d <\/p>\n
Long-time villagers know there were cranberry bogs south of Route 17. We don\u2019t need their geotechnical slurps from our trough to tell that the ground is soft. Pie in the sky projections and anticipated expensive overruns may be a common tactic among honey dipping contractors, cashing in before they retire in Florida, but those of us who plan to stay want this to stop!<\/p>\n
How should the board respond to an angry homeowner, whose plight was among those that inspired the dissolution of the OHPC, complaining that the installation of ill-fitting, non-conforming windows caused a rise in their home tax assessment? This is an issue that was central in the last election and a response should have been forthcoming.<\/p>\n
Onto the budget. I won\u2019t look at the video to see how many times the budget overruns and staffing issues were stated as \u201cout of the OPD\u2019s hands.\u201d It was actually claimed that FICA (social security), was one of OPD\u2019s problem issues. This line of argument doesn\u2019t work in traffic court – why should it work in budgeting? These are known costs, not budget surprises.<\/p>\n
I was reminded of the importance and seriousness of the mayor and trustee positions. It is important that they lay down a marker, that they would not stomach buffoonery in their presence. At the immediate previous meeting, the fire department gave an excellent, forward looking, revenue generating plan with realistic projections and disclaimers. That model is what the board should demand of all supplicants.<\/p>\n
I salute the patience of the mayor and all the trustees. I also admonish them to be prepared – it is in your hands through research and study – to be ready to respond in a thoughtful manner to the significant challenges facing you.<\/p>\n
Sincerely,<\/p>\n
Peter C. Gordon<\/p>\n
Village of Owego Resident<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dear Editor, At the May 1 Village Board meeting, I felt slimed! No, it\u2019s not the trustees who did it. It was the testimony given…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-65412","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-letters"],"yoast_head":"\n