What’s being considered in northern Chautauqua County is long overdue. Within the past months, Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel has led the way in talks for a major merger between the city of Dunkirk, village of Fredonia and towns of Dunkirk and Pomfret.

To those who are on the outside, it is an obvious solution. Closer to home, we tend to fight these suggestions because there’s comfort in consistency.

But within the last two years, it has become clear that area municipal governments are letting down those they serve. Property taxes increased 84% in the city in 2025 and 54% last year in the village of Fredonia while fees also are on the rise.

No matter how much money is being thrown at government, these communities are not growing as the population flees while costs continue to escalate.

“This is not something we can just rush into, it is going to take some time,” Wendel said in a news release this week. “We will ensure all the proper steps are followed, and that this benefits each municipality involved. In the meantime, we are going to explore what shared services or department mergers can be accomplished in the short term that would help ensure a smooth transition in the event that all four municipalities combined.”

Besides Wendel, others in attendance included Sen. George Borrello, Assemblyman Andrew Molitor, city of Dunkirk Mayor Kate Wdowiasz, Dunkirk city attorney Elliot Raimondo, Dunkirk Fiscal Affairs Officer Ellen Luczkowiak, town of Dunkirk Supervisor Shari Miller, Dunkirk Town Board member Philip Leone, Fredonia Mayor Michael Ferguson, Fredonia Trustee Jon Espersen, Pomfret Supervisor Daniel Pacos, Pomfret Councilmember Kathleen Dennison, and County Legislator Marcus Buchanan.

Poverty is a huge issue in both Dunkirk and Fredonia. Those who think higher taxes are the answer to balancing budgets are overlooking the pain too many in our region face on a daily basis.

Getting leaders together for talks is an important step. Taking some sort of action, however, has to be the ultimate goal.