From The Office Of The Mayor: State of the Village December
The staff at the Village of Endicott wish you a wonderful holiday season. We thank you for your support as we manage through COVID, operate the Village, and prepare for an exciting period of growth and transformation. We are very thankful for the volunteers, youth groups, and businesses that contribute to our success. We hope to see all of you at our Annual Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting on Saturday, December 4, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. This event includes refreshments at the Endicott Fire Department and fireworks.
We are also thankful for the Southern Tier Community Center. Last year was their first holiday season. They provided special holiday magic to more than 150 youth in the School-Age Child Care program. They will once again provide family bags to each child in this program and are excited to offer a unique Amazon Wish list for items requested directly from our SACC youth to engage the child and their families in quality time together. To support this program, you can shop for gifts or make a monetary donation. Contact Pat Harnan at 607-444-3354 with any questions. Please send monetary gifts to Children's Home, ATTN: C&DR, 1182 Chenango Street, Binghamton, NY 13901. Designate "STCC" in the memo line of your donation.
A big thank you to Endicott Precision for manufacturing the replacement gear needed to run the Carousel and donating the work to the Village. The cost was estimated at $1,600. These acts of generosity strengthen our Village and make our jobs rewarding.
Business Development:
Next year will be an exciting time for the Village as we implement projects for Washington Avenue and hiring for iM3NY and Ubiquity Solar continues. We have held one public meeting on the Washington Avenue projects. We will schedule a second meeting to reflect suggestions made by the public and by our department heads. We are hopeful that our application to the Downtown Revitalization Incentive (DRI) will be successful and provide further funding to transform our Village.
Creating attractive urban areas is critical to recruiting the resources we need for business development.
● National Pipe and Plastic held a ribbon-cutting event for their new facility.
● Construction is taking place on the site for Byrne Dairy, thanks to our planning Board's ability to work through issues raised.
● The Agency hosted a celebration event for iM3NY, Ubiquity Solar, and the new owner of the Huron Campus, Phoenix Investors, at Celebrations on the Avenue. Executives for each company and Chris Pelto discussed their vision for their companies in Endicott.
● Phoenix Investors will improve the Huron site next year and expects to attract more companies to the campus. We also anticipate suppliers to these companies will develop a local presence as manufacturing ramps up.
All of this activity is spurring more interest in the Village of Endicott. Here are more highlights.
● Putting in a crosswalk in front of the Middle School on Loder Avenue. The school district is working on ideas to redesign the student pick-up areas.
● Reviewing an innovative idea of developing an exercise area behind where the building that SEPP will renovate.
● Working with volunteers, United Way, and the Town of Union to centralize information on services that are available to folks in need.
● Exploring improvements to our airport. The new companies developing in Endicott may spur the need for small jet travel.
● We are working with the Town on the development of clean energy initiatives. We will be adding an intern to help spur this development and qualify for additional grant support. The funding for the intern comes from a clean energy grant that we have received. Clean Energy will be a long-term initiative as all municipalities will be required to develop plans to achieve State and National goals.
● We are reviewing a Federal mandate to require all organizations with more than 100 employees to be vaccinated or tested weekly.
● I was proud to participate in our Veteran's Day parade and service. Thank you to all who came to show respect for our veterans. We are looking at ways to clean our memorials and statues.
I am excited to announce that I was asked to represent the Towns and Villages Association as president. This is a great honor. We collaborate with Towns and Villages in a three-county area. This is a great venue to address issues that we all face.
Through my long association with the Village and the Town of Union, I have made many contacts throughout the region. It is an honor for me to have this opportunity to be Mayor. I devote my full attention to this office and provide access for the public to discuss their ideas for this unique and historic community. Please stop by or request an appointment. This holiday season, I also want to express my thanks to our employees. They are balancing three jobs: normal operations, COVID, and preparing for an unprecedented period of growth and transformation. We all look forward to a brighter future for our Village.