Marsha Signore was the first to step forward on behalf of the van.
“It’s not a big deal to a lot of people but to the seniors, of which we we’ll all be seniors one day, they need the van for social interaction, to get to the stores. They need to be able to get out,” she said.
Signore, an employment specialist at Madison Cortland ARC, also sees the van as an important aspect of life for her consumers, using it to get back and forth to work.
“I understand that there are taxi cab company but when people live in Oneida, they work in Canastota, that’s $20 a day. They make minimum wage. They can’t afford it and I should not be the one to have to tell them they have to quit work because we can not provide transportation,” Signore said.
Signore also added that there’s a trickle effect as the people try to stay in town and buy locally.
“It’s something I think we have to think about saving,” she concluded.
Not originally planning on speaking, Gary Pantzer said he “was impressed by several of the speakers” to then address the council on behalf of the van.
“That does seem to be a quality of life issue, especially for the handicapped and elderly. Something like the senior van, I personally would be willing to see a small increase in my property taxes,” he said. “I’m not saying I enjoy paying taxes but if it’s for a good reason and managed well, then it’s a fact of life.”
Myles Nashton on the other hand said he is not for a property increase.
According to Oneida Recreation Director Brandon Lovett, there are 207 registered users of the van and that the unit of service is far greater. The van costs $1 per unit of service (one-way trip) within the city and $2 outside.
Van driver Randy Domes added that the users range from using the van two or three times a week to 10 times a week and he usually has four or five people riding at a time.
Bruce Herb suggested subsidizing taxi services and getting service organizations to help.
“Every service organization in Oneida, as part of their charter, is community. I would suggest we contact some of the service organizations which would pick up the slack,” he said.
Domes said that he has talked with volunteer groups but they have the same problem.
“Eventually they either get burned out or cost out,” Domes said.
Mayor Peter Hedglon said that the average cost for the van, after taking the total number of trips and dividing it into the expense, is $5.86.
“If the people who use the van aren’t paying a cab to go from point A to point B, they’re using the van, the cost is shifted from the user to someone else and in this case, it’s shifted to the real property taxpayers of the city of Oneida,” he said.
According to Hedglon, it’s also been brought to his attention that the van needs to be replaced which would require a 3.2 percent increase in the tax rate.
“If we want that service, despite the fact that we’re not obligated to provide it and no other community in Central New York provides it, but if we want it because it’s a quality of life thing, are we willing to pay for it,” he said.
In other budget discussion, Kathy Dorman, president of Sherrill-Kenwood Public Library, asked the council to reconsider last year’s decision to cut funding.
“Up until last year, the city of Oneida, out of respective for its Kenwood citizens, has made a contribution,” she said. “It was a slap in the face to all residents of Kenwood.”
Dorman added that circulation has increased and that the library tries “very hard to be fiscally responsible,” having written several grants and held fundraisers.
Hedglon said that there is a possibility that a special tax district for the library could be developed.
Charles McMahon raised his concern about a $2.5 million dollar shortfall. Specifically, he wanted to know if the city would receive $1.5 million in state aid and the projected sales tax revenues by the end of the year.
Former councilman Don Skinner asked the council how much debt the city currently has to which the response was $3.8 million.
“You better smarten up. You’ve been spending money like crazy and you haven’t got the money,” Skinner said.
Joe Magliocca expressed his concern about the city putting off large capital projects and directly subsidizing the budget by taking money out of the general fund. He told the council it needs to stop such practices.
“The financial problems this city faces, it’s an issue that conservatives, republicans, democrats, everyone here can agree upon,” he said. “I also want to say it’s the responsibility for each and every councilor here to not only serve your respective constituents but the city as a whole.”
