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Let’s talk about the Brockport boathouse
Let’s talk about the boathouse. Nine long years, and it’s not over yet. Has the secrecy finally ended? What else is there for us to know? Is there news that might not go over very well with village taxpayers in an election year? I think so.
Let’s recall that this project’s “nothing” bill is actually estimated to be about $170,000 in village services and materials. However, since then, there have been two transfers of general fund cash into the project; the last amount being about $7,000. Taxpayer costs are nearing $200,000. Think about what we already fund with our taxes: Sweden/Clarkson Recreation; BCS physical education instruction, sports teams and the new pool complex (which I voted for); and many parks throughout the village. We also have local independent teams for a number of sports.
Yes, it will be built. Who else might use OUR boathouse? The college, of course, even though nobody wants to talk about that. With the college paying to use OUR boathouse, as rumors have it, fairness and common sense tell me that the money should go to pay off our debt, and in the future, become a revenue source. I expect, however, that the rowing club politicians and supporters plan to keep the cash to pay their operating expenses as “supervisors” of our boathouse. Poor village residents (so says the mayor) pay to build the boathouse and then decide to funnel its revenue to a private club? We can’t figure out how to pay the insurance or light bills? How dumb do you have to be to agree to this unbelievably sweet deal? The rowing club should be paying us to use our facility. The contracts, operating instructions, and a determination of who will control the money have yet to be made public. Why not? We can’t FOIL what doesn’t exist on paper and we can’t complain about the unknown.
I won’t use the boathouse, and that would be fine, if it even remotely benefited the village as a whole or at least a good number of Brockport residents. Truthfully, it won’t. This project is a win for the college, a huge win for the rowing club, and a glorious win for politicians who care more about themselves and their personal interests than the people they are supposed to serve. Let’s pay attention to how they vote on this one last piece of the puzzle. For the rest of us, and I hate to say it, we get another financial burden to shoulder. Isn’t this one issue finally enough reason for you to prevent these politicians and their supporters from continued control of the Village of Brockport? I think so, and I’ll say, once again, “Vote them out!”
Carol Lee Hannan
Brockport
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