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ARKWRIGHT: New revenues add to spending

Wind turbines have paid off, big time, in the town of Arkwright. Town Board members, with one exception, have signed off on moving forward by seeking bids to build a new town hall.

Last week, architects presented board with an architectural rendering of the proposed structure. Town officials in recent years have complained often about the condition of the current site. This will, in their eyes, be a great improvement.

“When we talk about spending money, we’re talking about investing in the town,” town Supervisor Brian McAvoy said. “It’s a lot of money, I get that, but in the long run if we don’t do it, we will have spent more or have risked the town’s status, and I’m not willing to do that. As long as I’m here, I’m going to fight like heck to keep investing in roads, investing in equipment and investing in buildings.”

But the bigger question comes down to this: does a town that serves 1,000 residents truly need to construct a new hall? Its recent windfall is due in large part to the turbines, which were constructed in 2018. It’s a dependable revenue source for the town at the present time.

Credit for those being installed goes to previous board members and longtime former Supervisor Frederic “Nick” Norton. As the town struggled to make ends meet, they looked outside the box.

Realistically, by building a new hall, a small town is not being efficient or continuing the model set forth by the previous board. Cash is flowing — and government loves to spend it when it comes in.

We would have much rather seen a partnership with a neighboring town to share a facility. This decision, unfortunately, preserves a county that continues to run with far too much government.

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