OBSERVER Photo Fredonia Trustee Jon Espersen speaks during his March 1 W(h)ine time event held in the village.

Toward the back of the Downtown Brew location on Water Street earlier this month, about 25 residents gathered around a group of tables placed together to voice their views, concerns and some appreciation for what was happening in the village of Fredonia. Patiently and politely, Trustee Jon Espersen listened with interest.

His monthly gatherings, he labels as “W(h)ine time,” offer constituents an avenue to representation that does not include attending what can be an overly extended Village Board meeting that gives residents only three minutes of time to speak about an issue. Instead, Espersen’s event was more of a dialogue with those he represents.

On the day of this meeting, the four-day boil order came to an end shortly before the start of the 4:30 p.m. session. Those who attended wanted to talk about drinking water while others noted problems with some quality of life issues, including properties that are not being kept up or vehicles carting trash around that were not properly enclosed.

Espersen’s in-person efforts in an era of communication that relies on computers and cell phones — through social media and texts — seems to have worked on this day. Toward the end of the gathering, he received a thanks and a bit of applause.

Not bad for a trustee who was being hit with plenty of problems.

Though it was not his first gathering of this kind, it was the largest so far. Some of that turnout was due to the ongoing water problems that consistently hamper and damage a village that has — through the last Census count — lost nearly 11% of its population since 2010. Currently, more than 9,800 live in the municipality. About 3,000 are college students.

A majority of the loss can be tied to enrollment at the State University of New York as well as the exodus of Carriage House, which had as many as 400 jobs in the region when it closed in 2015. Was poor water quality — five boil orders since 2009 — part of the equation for the fleeing business and population? There’s no question it cannot be ruled out.

That is why Espersen is considering all options regarding the current system. Since his meeting on March 1, new revelations have surfaced. Equipment failed at the plant and a connection — discussed back in 2015 with the city of Dunkirk — has never come to fruition. That proposal would start at the Willlowbrook Avenue tank to a major feeder on Water Street via Central Avenue.

Some of the current leadership also wants to throw more money at the problem. Village users already pay a high rate for flawed water. Republican Mayor Doug Essek is talking about building another holding tank on Fredonia-Stockton Road. So far, there’s no cost connected to that proposal.

In the meantime, the mayor fired off some frustration regarding the system. “I think if we go directly to the city (of Dunkirk), there’s no need to go through the North County Water District, even though that’s been suggested, and actually, beat down our throats for a number of years now,” he said.

Those recommendations, we must note, have come from fellow party members who include both former County Executives Vince Horrigan and George Borrello. Horrigan’s leadership got the district, which serves Brocton, Portland, the town of Dunkirk and Sheridan, started.

Fredonia had its chance to be a part of it – even as a potential supplier — but backed out. It is a municipality that believes it is so superior to other communities that it can stand on its own while being content to keep falling on its sword.

Borrello, during his short term as executive while campaigning with Essek in 2017, also advocated for the village to be open-minded regarding the possibility of joining the district. Once Borrello left the position in Mayville to become state senator, his successor PJ Wendel avoided the north county district issue. He’d rather sit on the sidelines than advocate for anything that might be controversial even though it is a proven regional solution.

Thankfully, Horrigan and Borrello did not back down during the early years or a district would still be a pipe dream. We keep hearing about this hollow strong leadership theme by Wendel during recent campaigns for county executive but we obviously just don’t see it.

Espersen, a Republican, was joined by Ann Eckman of the Pomfret Town Board, who is unaffiliated but endorsed by the Democrats, and village mayoral hopeful Michael Ferguson during the W(h)ine Time event. All three seemed committed to finding solutions, even though it will not happen right away.

Not only is the village water system antiquated and troubled, its dam reservoir has been categorized as a high hazard potential after inspections. That means a failure or mis-operation will probably cause loss of human life.

As of today, that diagnosis is only a warning. Someday it could become a real emergency.

John D’Agostino is the editor of The Post-Journal, OBSERVER and Times Observer in Warren, Pa. Send comments to jdagostino@observertoday.com or call 716-487-1111, ext. 253