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Another public hearing was conducted Wednesday evening (11/16) to allow residents to express their points of view about the proposed water district extension on Algerine Road and Lansing Station Road. Town Supervisor Stephen Farkas asked residents for new information, but for the most part the nine speakers restated objections or support that was expressed at the last hearing in October. Residents literally took sides, sitting on the left if they support getting water, and on the right side if they opposed it. But both sides seemed to agree that the Town Board was somehow at fault and that it is dragging its heels by holding so many hearings, including another public hearing in December.

"We seem to be stretching this out," said Jack MacNamara, who has been the key organizer of the faction that wants public water, "and the more we stretch it out, the more it's going to cost everybody. I don't understand why we have to go through another hearing." Barb Bennett, who is outspoken against the water district said, "There's something seriously wrong with this and the board should be ashamed of the tactics it's using to push the water district through."

The Board is caught in the middle of what is truly a local tragedy. Simply put, the people who can't afford it have good working wells, and the people who can do not.

A water main already exists on 34B that is part of the water district that was created to include Milliken Station. Residents on Lansing Station Road, who live on the lakefront, want water. For some it is a matter of convenience, but for others it is because their wells are bad or unhealthy. "My water fluctuates in quality almost on a daily basis depending on the weather. We have a majority who wants and needs water," Joe Wagner told the board.

As you would expect, people with lakefront properties have the means to pay the fees. The problem is that the water main has to get down the hill from 34B to Lansing Station Road. That path takes it down Algerine Road, where many of the residents are on fixed incomes or have limited means. On top of that, their wells work fine. Some fear that the extra fees will mean that they can not afford to stay in their homes.

The Town Board must come up with a fair outcome for all the residents in the proposed district, and they have expended some efforts to bring down the cost. The Town may qualify for a zero percent loan, which would reduce each resident's share of the cost from $574.00 per year to $277.18 per year. The board is also interested in alternative funding, if they can find it, to reduce the cost.

The reduced cost is not a given, however, and residents have fixated on the full cost of the project. "I know I'm not hooking up to this and it just infuriates me that I will have to pay $50 a month for 30 years for something that isn't needed so that a few people who don't want the hassle of maintaining their own water systems can have town water," complained Ms. Bennett.

(left to right) Town Attorney Guy Krogh, Town Supervisor Stephen Farkas, Board Members Bud Shattuck, Doug McEver, Connie Wilcox and Marty Christopher.

The Town Board is actually moving the process forward as quickly as State law allows. "It's basically because of the way that SEQR works," explained Town Attorney Guy Krogh.

The SEQR (State Environmental Quality Review, pronounced "seeker") process requires that a lead agency be appointed to conduct an environmental review, and that preliminary findings on the environmental impact of the project be presented within 20 days of the lead agency's appointment. Because the next Town meeting is more than 20 days away the board will have to conduct a special meeting to appoint itself the lead agency, after which the State requires a public hearing.

After the hearing a referendum will probably be conducted, and if passed by 51% of eligible voters the district extension would have to be approved by the State Comptroller before it could be constructed.

It also gives all residents another crack at convincing the Board of their point of view. Last month Mr. Krogh noted that the public hearings give all residents, not just eligible voters, a chance to influence the board's decision. "For those who are interested in having a district, you probably want it done right," he noted Wednesday night. "And for those who are not interested in having a district you'd probably want to take one more chance to be persuasive."

The hearing will take place December 21 at 6:05 pm. Meanwhile the board will have a special meeting on December 1 to appoint itself the lead agency for the SEQR process. This will fulfill the State requirement and give them the maximum amount of time to gather the required information before the hearing.

Meanwhile the Board is struggling to find the best outcome for everyone. Unfortunately there is no solution that will please all of the effected residents.

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