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General News: Mayor Gross Reflects on First 90 Days
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| Mayor Gross outside village hall |
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| New welcome mat at village hall |
July 01, 2007
Ninety days into his two-year term as mayor of Cornwall-on-Hudson, Joseph Gross is talking about the promise he made on the campaign trail to bring transparency to government.
“I’m in a period of establishing the will of the people who put me here,” Gross said during a recent interview in his office, “In the past, we found out about projects after they were done using taxpayers’ money. I’m not going down that road.”
Foremost on his mind now is a proposal to expand the parking lot behind the village bandstand, a project for which local businesses have pledged tens of thousands of dollars to pay for the work.
The parking proposal came about after former mayor Ed Moulton and two trustees approved an agreement that required local restaurant-owner Tony Missere to create a new parking lot on village land on River Avenue. The deal, which also allowed Missere to build an outdoor eating patio, was approved at a special meeting called two days before Moulton left office.
Gross says that the agreement was impetuous and that the public was left out of the process. He doesn’t believe that the village has a parking problem and says that he wants to make sure that public projects benefit the most people.
“The contributions (from the businesses) seem great on the surface,” Gross said, adding that he was concerned that at other times some of the businesses negotiate with the village for public projects.
Gross said that he is also concerned about the village debt load and has nixed two capital projects to save money: a new fence behind the police station and a new floor for the village bandstand. He has agreed to spend money on a half-dozen new trash cans for the village.
Gross said that keeping people informed is the most important aspect of his job and he knows that his style is different, a break from the past. He likes to get out and talk with people and receives calls at all hours at home.
“It’s as if the whole village is my family,” he said. Asked how he liked being mayor, Gross replied that it has been nothing but a good experience. “It feels like destiny,” he said.
(A special meeting will be held on Monday July 2 at 7 p.m. at village hall to address the proposed parking lot changes.)
Comments:
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This may be a good proposal, however, the process is in question. The mayor and the trustees are elected by the community to manage village affairs such as road changes to improve traffic flow, expansion of public parking, etc. The Superintendant of Public Works reports to these public officials and should keep them totally informed of his activities so that effort expended on the publicıs behalf can be managed properly. It is very surprising that Mr. Gilmore prepared detailed plans for a major project, including discussions with local businessmen and Senator Larkinıs office to secure donations and funding, without prior approval and guidance from the mayor and the full village board. We elect village officials to work closely with employees and do not intend that these employees work independently on projects of their own choosing. Warren and Mary Mumford
posted by warmar on 07/02/07 at 12:00 AM
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