Plan afoot to end Tupper village

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August 15, 2008

Mayor reports scant support for initiative

By JACOB RESNECK The Press Republican Fri Aug 15, 2008, 05:46 AM EDT

TUPPER LAKE -- The Tupper Lake Town Council says it's ready to take over governance of the entire community after it unveiled a dissolution plan for the village.

Under the 13-point plan, the Town Council would take over village services, including policing, the municipal electric grid and water and sewer services.

Staff could be shifted

Current department heads would either report directly to the Town Council or to a newly created town operations manager, the plan says.

Village workers would become employees of the town.

The parts of town not in the present-day village would be formed into a special police district, which would contract services from the Tupper Lake Police Department for $100,000 a year.

The Fire Department, now owned by the village, could be taken over by the town only through special legislation in Albany, the report concedes.

Little village support

Mayor Mickey Desmarais told the Press-Republican that the plan has little support.

"No one ever stops me in the street and says they want the village dissolved," Desmarais said.

"They're (the town) so busy putting their nose in our business. Let them do their job, and I'll do mine."

The mayor said he supports expanding the village into the rest of the town, which would create what is known as "coterminous boundaries."

State grant

In neighboring Harrietstown, the town has received a grant to research coterminous boundaries with the Village of Saranac Lake.

"Department of State spent a lot of money looking at dissolving villages," Desmarais said. "It's not going to happen -- not now, not ever. Small government delivers better service."

Last year, an ad-hoc committee appointed jointly by the town and village studied consolidation and dissolution options for Tupper Lake. Its findings were never publicly released.

Town Councilwoman Kathy Lefebvre said the ad-hoc committee had done a good job in its report. The town's initiative, unveiled this week, now puts the matter in the hands of the village.

"As far as we're concerned, they cannot use the town anymore as an excuse for not moving on," she said.

Town councilors admitted they have no authority to tell another government to dissolve.

But a grassroots petition could put the matter on the ballot for village voters, said Town Councilman Jay Skiff.

"I personally think the people should be allowed to vote on it."