We are one nation, one state, one county and shouldn’t we be one community? So much has been said and written lately, whether by the editorial in the OBSERVER, the recent message from the Chamber of Commerce, or the governor’s State of the State address, it is time to come together. We must find ways to consolidate and/or share services across municipal boundaries.

Had the village of Forestville not dissolved, the burden on the taxpayers would have been outrageous, and many of our other smaller villages and towns are facing the same situation. Look at what is happening in Cherry Creek, Brocton, Fredonia and other smaller villages and towns in Western New York; they are drowning beneath the burden of high taxes and being forced to cut or reduce services to the residents. The people in Forestville did the right thing, they voted to dissolve.

But, dissolution is not the only answer — a sharing of services among and between other neighboring municipalities may be all that is needed. (Our school districts are in the same boat.)

In Gov. Cuomo’s State of the State Address he talked about the need for consolidation and shared services between municipalities; but some just don’t want to hear it. We have seen talk of a “Central Avenue Connection” from Temple Street in the village of Fredonia to the Pier in the city of Dunkirk — but will it actually happen?

Our county executive and Industrial Development Agency have been working tirelessly to present opportunities for regionalized services such as the water district, but hold-outs remain. Our high schools have combined sports programs, but won’t go near the idea of actually dissolving one district and merging with another. And the taxpayer continues to pay.

Over the past week, I had the pleasure of meeting with several different professionals in our area; they spanned the spectrum from elected official, to public educator, to a hospital employee, and business owner. In every case the idea of shared services, consolidation, and the rising costs to the taxpayer came up — each of these individuals live in different Chautauqua County “villages and towns” and yet they all said that unless the “attitudinal divide” is closed, their village may not survive. And yet when pushed for agreement to dissolve and merge with another municipality they were against it.

We have police departments within two miles of one another; they support each other, help to cover calls, provide back-up, and yet they cannot seem to consolidate under one roof due to self-serving politicians; and the taxpayer pays.

We are at the point in the America where we are going to have a new President sworn into office on Friday, and yet there are still those who refer to him as an “illegitimate” President. This in spite of the call from the current President to unify the country, and to allow this transition to take place smoothly.

We, whether a village, town, city, county, state or nation, can no longer go it alone and expect to be successful. We, in northern Chautauqua County are fortunate to have the attention of our governor, our county executive and other elected officials — it is through their efforts that we will see the economic change we need, but we must become participants. Maintaining the status quo will only add to the burden on the taxpayer, and the result will be a continued decline in the taxpaying population and economic stagnation — the call for joining forces is coming from the top down.

President Obama has called for unity. Cuomo has again requested consolidation and a sharing of services between our villages, towns and cities. County Executive Vince Horrigan has repeatedly presented opportunities for a regional approach to shared services. Fredonia State President Virginia Horvath has worked with the mayors of Dunkirk and Fredonia to create a central connection.

It is now up to the mayors and town supervisors to remove the political barriers that keep us apart and open their minds to doing the right thing for the taxpayers and residents of their respective municipalities. We must heed the words of the governor and find ways to end the duplicative services and seek regional solutions to the high cost of doing business.

Despite some of the barriers, there is progress being made in our area. This spring we will see the groundbreaking for Athenex; NRG seems to be on the move toward repowering; jobs have been added at one of our local manufacturing plants, Fieldbrook Foods; the P-TECH project is ready to get off the ground at the old School 6 site; and spring is just around the corner.

Now is the time for every elected official to look at what they have and what they can contribute to ensure unified and shared growth in Northern Chautauqua County — going it alone may seem comfortable today, but is not sustainable, and change is not always a bad thing. In the words of Norman Vincent Peale, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.”

On a different note, we will see Donald J. Trump take the oath of office of the president of the United States on Friday, let’s send only good wishes and prayers for a positive transition of power and a unified America. Whether you are a Republican or Democrat, regardless for whom you voted, when President Trump’s administration takes over they will need all of the support the American public can give them; let’s take the high road.

Have a great day.