Residents react to Brockport's proposed code changes

Although it wasn't on the agenda, the topic of Brockport's proposed changes to codes for rooming houses within the village was on the minds of many of the residents who spoke at the May 16 regular village board meeting.

Norm Giancursio urged village officials to look at the economic impacts the proposed amendment would have on the village.

"We're entitled to have a professional, independent study done on the potential economic impact," he said. "It needs to be done by someone more than volunteers - they probably aren't qualified to do that research."

Giancursio said he is already being impacted by the proposal as he has two properties for sale and one of the potential purchasers has backed out and the other property has seen the value decrease by about $50,000.

SUNY student Angelo Conti addressed the board reminding them of the additional money the students bring to the village.

"We're young adults who are old enough to vote so we should be allowed to have a say in the community in which we live," he said. "We volunteer, we are here and we support the town."

Rhett King said he believes in less government and keeping taxes as low as possible.

"I also believe the board needs to act on behalf of all residents, not just a chosen few," he said. "The lines of communication need to be opened. It's a travesty that the residents have not been listened to."

Trustee Mort Wexler said that if the mayor plans to convene a committee to look into the proposed rental amendments it should be a separate committee from the recently formed codes committee.

"We need a cross section of the factions on the committee," he said. "Right now we've excited half the community with these proposals and now we're going to go back and study it - we should have studied the proposals first."

Trustee Jim Whipple quoted a line from former Lakeside Gala Dinner speaker John Major, "Every action has a consequence." Whipple said the board needs to be aware of its actions and the potential impacts.

"If we put together a committee, I want to let you know, nothing will happen overnight, there will be no quick decisions," he said. "It could take two to three months to convene a committee."

Mayor Josephine Matela said the purpose of the public hearing on May 9 regarding the proposed changes to the village's rental property codes was to gather the public's opinions.

"Our decision was not to undertake any changes until we heard the public," she said. "We now need to sit down and mitigate the problem."