Letters to the Editor

If you remember, back over a year ago I asked why Onondaga and not Oswego for the Inland Port. At that time, there was only one area in Onondaga County looking to be the site of the Inland Port and its almost 2,000 high-paying jobs. It was Jamesville. The residents spoke out against it and didn’t want it in their backyards. The people of Fulton and Oswego County want it.

I have noticed over the past few years more and more homeowners having problems with their sewer lines. There may be help in the form of a grant program that will help with the costs to repair your sewer lines. The grant program is CDBG (Community Development Block Grant), it has been used primarily in the rural areas of the county for wells and septic systems.

As 2017 quickly approaches, people may be wondering how they can improve their health and well-being in the new year. I would like to take this opportunity to encourage those who are considering quitting smoking to set a date to quit and stick to it in the new year.

In another couple of weeks the remaining 6 firefighters of the 17 positions cut from the department in the 2017 budget, will be laid off. This will be a first for Oswego and the largest cut to a fire department in recent history across the state. This equals a 33% reduction in the city’s firefighting force. As a result, the number of firefighters on duty at any given time has been reduced to 7.

This year has been a year of firsts at the Oswego County Legislature. In previous letters, I mentioned some of them. Well here is the biggest first I have seen in the three years I have been on the legislature. This year, the legislature approved budget reduction suggestions that were presented by the Minority Caucus.

I got stuck at the end of my driveway today (Dec. 13) and was attempting vainly to shovel myself out when along came two angels in the forms of Mr Williams and his son, Dylan.

It is time for the Oswego County Legislature to universally adopt a 7 p.m. meeting time. Serving in our county legislature for almost a year I will be the first to acknowledge there are areas in which we are moving forward, but it is also my elected job to make the public aware of an area that has fallen desperately behind. These daytime meetings prevent a large majority of citizens from attending and engaging in county government.

I just wanted to say thank you for the mention about my toy drive Tunes For Tots. We appreciate all the support we have been getting from the community over the last five years and I can’t say thank you enough. With our all-star lineup this year, we are sure this will be even bigger and better than years prior.

This effort to spend your dollars in locally owned stores is such a strong part of our overall economic engine that it should become a natural habit. Those dollars not only keep our local businesses open, they retain employment for many others throughout our county.