It’s official – when the Village of Hilton makes its final payment for street lights on November 15, the municipality will be debt free. The final bond payment will be made on a street lighting system that the Village purchased from Rochester Gas and Electric (RG&E) in 2007. At the time, taxpayers were paying $127,000 a year to RG&E for street lighting in the Village, so Hilton officials decided to purchase the system saving taxpayers up to $50,000 annually in lighting tariff fees set by the state. “The annual savings over the course of the seven years has provided funds to repay the bond,” said Mayor Joe Lee. The lighting bond is the municipality’s only debt.
Shari Pearce, Hilton manager/clerk, attributes the Village’s financial health to many factors, including past and present administrations, preplanning and working with other municipalities. “We work to stay within our budget and find ways to save when we can,” she said. “Governments have been getting negative publicity lately and this is just the opposite – we are managing our tax dollars well.” The average village tax bill in Hilton is around $300, which includes refuse pick up.
Michael McHenry, Department of Public Works superintendent, points to his department’s equipment replacement schedule and capital reserve fund as a way the village plans ahead for large expenses. For example, to replace a $250,000 refuse truck, the Village is using $169,000 from the capital reserve fund and paying for the remainder out of this year’s budget. “The Village Board realizes the importance of having the right equipment and good equipment, and how that makes our department more efficient,” said McHenry. The Village owns 30 DPW vehicles, which have service lives from 10 to 25 years depending on the vehicle.
The Village’s sewer project, which involves replacing some manholes and relining old sections of the 36-mile system, is being completed over 10 to 15 years, so that the cost doesn’t have to be borrowed. “This is our fifth year and we’ve been paying as we go – about $66,000 this year and $100,000 in past years,” said McHenry.
Lee said that the Village takes pride in working with other municipalities in a variety of ways, including sharing equipment and manpower with the Town of Parma on a daily basis. Last year, the Village worked with the Town and Hilton School District to build a municipal salt shed and this year a municipal fueling station was built. The salt shed was the first time the boards pitched in funding for a joint project, said Lee.
The Village also looks to the Hilton School District to help with its mailings. In addition to providing a courier service to the Post Office, the District Print Shop folds and stuffs water and tax bills for the Village. “It would be really expensive if we had to buy this equipment that the school district already has,” said Pearce.
The Village of Hilton offices, located at 59 Henry St. in the Hilton Community Center, shares its space with several tenants helping to pay utility costs for the large building. Hilton-Parma Recreation, the community food shelf, senior center, a daycare and dance studio are housed there. The building is open and operational seven days a week.
In addition to the mayor, the Village employs 19 staff members – 13 DPW and six office staff. Over the past 15 years, three administrators have retired and weren’t replaced. An informal survey done by staff indicated that Hilton offers the most services with the least manpower. “We’re lucky to have such a dedicated staff,” said McHenry. “The people we have are here to serve the public and really care about their jobs.”
