Program: Mike Bono introduced our fellow Rotarian, Mayor Bill Boland.

 

Bill provided a comprehensive overview of the current State of the City of Corning, and its regrettable accommodation of talking dogs named Pete. According to Bill, current challenges include a significant lack of human resources to handle all responsibilities. The number of paid staff has declined from 131 FTEs to 101 since 2003. Financially, the city is sound.

 

Unfortunately, health insurance costs have doubled since 2008, from $1.2 to $2.4 million. Future liabilities for pension health insurance are accrued at a whopping $38 million!

 

On the bright side, our good Mayor shared that later this year, the City will be reassessing properties city-wide for the first time since 2014. In 2021, the City completed 46 blocks of repaving, including the hilly section of Fourth Street between Washington and State Streets, and renovated the brick pavers around the clock tower and Aurene Lane.

 

Bill also spoke to the LED conversion project that is taking place throughout the City, and should result in around $100,000 in annual savings. 

 

Our Mayor is especially excited about the new City parks strategy. This past year saw the Rotary Cherry Blossom Trail groundbreaking to celebrate Rotary Club's 100th anniversary. A new sign and benches are coming this spring, and the City has plans to redevelop the disc golf course and skate park at Denison Park. The City is also planning a flight center at Stewart Park and will conduct a comprehensive tree inventory for the entire park system. A new surface, HVAC system and roof have been installed at Nasser Rink in recent years. The goal of the parks strategy is constant improvement, to foster a heightened community experience.

 

Bill shared that the City has received an $8,000 grant to update the 2002 comprehensive Smart Growth plan for city development. He also touted a new strategic plan for the Public Art Committee, a project that is particularly close to his heart as a visual artist. 

 

Lastly, Bill announced that the City has received a $300,000 Main Street Grant for commercial building renovations and streetscape improvements on the North Side.

 

To close out his presentation, Mayor Bill shared his "pie in the sky" idea for a Greater Corning municipality, which could potentially feature separate boroughs to maintain the unique identifies and cultures of our local communities. It is an intriguing idea!

 

Meeting adjourned.