The Post-Standard News |
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Post-Standard,
The (Syracuse, NY) August 26, 2003
FOR FIRST TIME IN A DECADE, VOTERS WILL HAVE A CHOICE Sara Errington Staff writer A new political party
has emerged in Spafford with a mission to preserve the town's rural
beauty and open the town government to new ideas.
The Spafford Party was born Aug. 17 during a meeting
of 10 people in the basement of the Borodino Grange. Three candidates
representing the party will run for town offices in the Nov. 4
general election. "The democratic process hasn't been in effect for a long time,"
said Joyce Barnett.
Barnett and Linda Sanders are running for town council seats, and
Richard Malcolm is running for supervisor.
Gordon Ireland, who is seeking a third four-year term as
supervisor, said he and the current board have made a lot of progress in
Spafford.
In the past seven years, Ireland said, he's helped to land $700,000
in government money that's been used to strengthen the town's
infrastructure and enhance its appearance.
"I haven't heard many complaints," he said.
The Republicans won't choose a slate until they caucus Friday.
Ireland and Councilmen Charles Parsons and Bill Vinzant are up for
re-election.
Sanders, Barnett and Malcolm said they feel as if Spafford
is at a turning point and that the current administration isn't receptive
to ideas about how to prepare for the future.
"The area is changing. The demographics are changing," Malcolm
said.
Lakefront property is hot, and people are replacing modest camps
with huge houses. The value of some lakefront homes increased 50 percent
in a townwide revaluation this year.
About 115 homes were built in the last decade, according to
building permits filed with the town. Many new homes are being built where
there are good views of Skaneateles and Otisco lakes.
The Spafford Party candidates said the people they
represent feel that the development pressures that Skaneateles has faced
for the last decade have finally crept down the lakeshore into
Spafford.
And, while they aren't against development, the candidates said
they want to make sure it happens in a way that doesn't overwhelm the
rural scenery that drew them to the town.
That's why one of their first goals in office would be to push for
a master plan that would create a blueprint for future development in
Spafford.
"We want to make sure we're positioned properly, so the future
doesn't overtake us without any kind of master plan," Malcolm said.
They'd also review town zoning laws, which have barely been touched
since the 1970s.
Extending more services to town residents is also something they'd
study.
Developing Borodino Landing so more people could access Skaneateles
Lake is one possibility. So is developing programs that serve children and
senior citizens, who now have to travel to other towns.
Those who met at the Grange Aug. 17 say that trying to work with
the town board toward their goals is futile.
Sanders, who is president of the Spafford Area Historical
Society, regularly attends town board meetings and says he hasn't been
impressed with the reception new ideas get.
"There's no vision in the party we have now," she said.
The trio said they're encouraged that 87 town residents signed
their petitions in just 24 hours.
"It seems like a lot of people feel the same way," Malcolm said.
Ireland said the group's fears about development are unfounded and
that the current board welcomes new ideas, but not if they will raise
taxes or are unrealistic.
The town's terrain and county policy discourage the water and sewer
lines that would bring heavy development.
"I don't see Carrier Corp. moving to Spafford," Ireland
joked.
The town's had the same number of residents, about 1,650, for many
years, he pointed out.
"I think if we need anything at all, it's a plan for the
watershed," he said. Ireland said he would consider looking at formal ways
to protect the town's two lakes, which supply drinking water to much of
the county.
Earlier this summer, he told a lakefront resident at a town board
meeting that he generally opposes telling people what they can do with
their property.
Property owners concerned about how lakefront property is developed
are welcome to put their own restrictions on it during the sale, he said.
Ireland said his concern with increasing services is that it
increases taxes, which would be hard on the town's poor and elderly
residents.
If the town developed Borodino Landing, for instance, it would have
to find funding, police it and staff it with lifeguards.
"It's going to cost $750,000 to $1 million to develop it, easily,"
he said.
More service for seniors and children would also cost money, he
said. The town already has a summer children's program at the Grange.
"If you get into these kinds of things, the taxes are going to
jump," he said.
The town tax rate is $3.74 per $1,000 of assessed value. The town's
annual budget is $531,503.
Ireland said the demand for services is coming from only a few
people.
"There's another side to the town than just a handful of people who
want these fancy things. If they aren't happy with Spafford, let
them move to some other town."
Illustration: PHOTO Purchased for reprint on the Borodino Bullett | ||