Brockport Village Board members October 2 gave their approval for a proposed memorial in remembrance of shooting victim Megan Dix to be located at the rear of the South Avenue parking lot between a wooded area and the railroad tracks.
Linda Kruger of the Brockport Lowe’s store where Dix worked, again spoke to trustees about the project. She said since the Village Board’s last meeting on September 18, she has received positive response from many residents regarding the project.
“I’ve been approached by members of the community who really want to have a memorial … where the community can come together,” Kruger told trustees.
She said Dix’s death shook the Brockport community and that the memorial – which includes a bench, pavers, and flowering plants – would be a place for people to come, honor Dix’s memory and heal. Kruger said she has received the consent of Dix’s family to proceed with the project.
Village Board members discussed issues such as ownership of the land and gas and water lines which run through the area. Kruger reported that a fence may be included behind the sitting area, where mementoes could be placed.
Kruger said she plans to install the garden next spring with a dedication ceremony to be held in the late spring or early summer.
She said she hopes to get College at Brockport students and students at Brockport Central Schools involved in the installation and maintenance of the garden memorial.
In other business, the village board voted to refer the issue of allowing urban/backyard chickens in the village to the code review committee. The current village code does not allow for the keeping of urban chickens, but a group of residents last month approached the board asking for a change in the code that would allow them to keep chickens.
Mayor Margaret Blackman said resident Erica Linden is researching local codes and will present a proposed draft of code changes regarding the keeping of backyard chickens.
Trustee Kathy Kristansen expressed concern that the code review committee is currently at work completing a review of all codes in the village codebook.
She said the chicken proposal should, “not be given to them until they finish their task on the codes.”
The board passed the resolution after wording was added stating that the committee would take up the backyard chicken issue after completing the code review. Kristansen said the committee will likely wrap up their code review task by late November or early December.
Village trustees also adopted a local law to establish Community Choice Aggregation program in the village of Brockport. They additionally named an administrator for the program and authorized Mayor Blackman to sign a Municipal Energy Services Agreement.
Mayor Blackman said the new law will empower local government to determine the source of electric and natural gas supplies for residents and small businesses.
National Grid or Rochester Gas & Electric would still deliver the supply, but the source is negotiated, she explained. Residents and small businesses are, “automatically opted-in … and can opt-out at any time with no fee,” Mayor Blackman said. Large businesses have the option of opting-in if they choose.
Westchester County is the model for community choice aggregation (CCA), Mayor Blackman noted. Electric rates there have been lowered 5.5 to 10.5 percent and 70 percent of customers have opted for renewable energy.
Joule Assets/The Rochester People’s Climate Coalition will now request aggregated and customer specific data and competitively solicit suppliers for the aggregated demand for electricity and/or natural gas for the village.
Mayor Blackman said a minimum of 20,000 households is required for a CCA program to function, meaning the village will enter into an inter-municipal agreement with other local communities which have created a CCA program. She said those municipalities include the villages of Lima and Scottsville; the towns of Geneva, Pittsford and Irondequoit. The Town of Brighton is also considering a CCA program as is the City of Rochester, Mayor Blackman said.
Deputy Mayor Bill Andrews noted that during a public hearing held September 18 on the law, no one spoke out in opposition.
