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December 19, 2009
A Denton Publication
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Savings
Activities
Arts
The Coupon Queen’s befuddling case of the confused cashier.
Winter-weekend programs in full swing at the Wild Center.
Musician Campbell delivers positive message at NCS.
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Municipalities Town, school settle with Whiteface Lodge could save big with Tier V reform $1.35 million repayment hits budgets hard By Matt Bosley
matt@denpubs.com
By Jonathan Alexander denpubs@denpubs.com SARANAC LAKE — If New York Gov. David Paterson’s calculations are correct, local municipalities and school districts could save big in the years to come due to pension reform he signed into law Dec. 10. Paterson says that in order to get the state’s fiscal house in order, Albany must make fundamental reforms to the way it spends money. “Tier V is the first substantive pension reform in a quarter century, and is another critical step toward making our government more accountable to taxpayers,” Governor Paterson said. Under the new Tier V plan, which was passed last week as part of the state Deficit Reduction Plan, new hire public employees will be subject to a significantly less generous pension package and be required to chip in more towards their own retirements. Yet-to-be-hired employees will be required to work longer before accessing their benefits and it increases the minimum age of non-penalized retirement from 55 to 62. According to the state Office of the Budget, New York will save more than $35 billion over the next three decades because of the pension reform. Paterson is calling the Tier V law the most significant attempt at reigning in statewide property taxes in decades. According to the Budget Office, Essex County stands to save $14.2 million over the next 30 years, while Franklin County could save $14.1 million. The villages of Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake both stand to save around $2 million, while Lake Placid could see nearly $3 million in cost reductions. Local state Sen. Betty Little, who has been calling for local municipal relief for years, supported the legislation and applauds Paterson’s efforts. “This is a sensible and necessary change,” Little said. “The impact is two-fold, saving taxpayers an estimated $35 billion over the next thirty years while ensuring that the pension system remains solvent in the future.” New York State Association of Towns Executive Director Jeff Haber said that the Tier V reform is a huge step in easing the burden on local governments, who are typically faced with skyrocketing retirement and medical insurance costs. “The Association of Towns applauds Governor Paterson’s actions in proposing and enacting Tier V. For the first time in decades, legislation could actually reduce current local pension bills, and will definitely provide significant long term savings and property tax relief,” Haber said. The association is often critical of the state for overburdening local governments with costly mandates. The legislation also tightens the reigns on teacher ’s pensions, raising the retirement age two years to 57 and increasing the personal contribution from 3 to 3.5 percent. The budget office predicts a 30-year savings of $13.8 million for the Saranac Lake Central School District and $7.9 million for Lake Placid. The Tier V legislation excludes municipal employees in New York City. The largest municipal savings will surface once the current generation of public employees has retired and are replaced by employees who are subject to the new pension system.
LAKE PLACID — Local municipalities have agreed to repay $1.35 million worth of taxes to settle a dispute regarding the property assessment of the Whiteface Lodge. Essex County, the Town of North Elba, and the Lake Placid Central School District have all approved a settlement agreement that will reimburse the 94-unit condominium timeshare property for taxes its owners claimed have been too heavily assessed. As a result of the settlement, the town and county will each have to pay $245,000 to the lodge’s current and former owners. That amounts to nearly 6 percent of North Elba’s $3.8 million 2010 budget. “I’m not happy with it, but I’ve got to live with it,” said North Elba Supervisor Roby Politi, noting the town will either borrow the money through a bond, or use any leftover fund balance from this year ’s budget. Politi explained that the dispute can largely be attributed to New York State property tax law 339Y. “It’s a discriminitory law that allows condiminium and fractional interest properties to be assessed at a value less than market value,” he said. “It’s a New York City law that was unfortunately allowed into the whole state. It needs to be changed.” Assessing such properties requires a complicated appraisal process, Politi said, and few assessors in the state are qualified
The town of North Elba, Essex County, and the Lake Placid Central School District have all reached a settlement with the current and previous owners of the Whiteface Lodge, seen here. The settlement will have the municipalities pay $1.35 million to the time-share condominium complex for taxes it said were over-assessed. to accurately assess their value. “The cost to the town just to do an appraisal of this property was $40,000,” he said, adding that to hire an experienced appraiser for all the condominium properties in Lake Placid would be cost-prohibitive for the town. Whiteface Lodge was constructed in 2005 and sold soon after for $62.2 million. During that year, the property was as-
sessed at $74 million. In 2007, the property sold for $60 million and the new owners added more units. Since then, its assessment has risen to nearly $112 million. Part of the settlement states that the property will be valued at $40 million for tax purposes, and will remain as such for the next three years unless it is sold for a larger sum.
See LODGE, page 2
Path cleared for opening of Chair Two By Chris Morris denpubs@denpubs.com
Nature Totem #86 by photographer Burdette Parks is one of many unconventional works currently on display at the Adirondack Artists’ Guild, 52 Main St. in Saranac Lake. On Saturday, Dec. 19, Parks will be at the exhibit to give a brief, informal talk about the photographs and his unique method of photography.
TUPPER LAKE — A local nonprofit and community volunteers are days away from seeing their dream become a reality. Representatives from the state Department of Labor visited the Big Tupper Ski Area Dec. 10 to inspect the newly refurbished Chair Two. Jim LaValley is chairman of ARISE – Adirondack Residents Intent on Saving Their Economy. He told WNBZ last week that Chair Two passed its load test. “Inspectors looked at the chairs, brakes, and emergency mechanisms,” LaValley said. “They basically told us that we have a viable and operational lift.” The Department of Labor is the regulatory agency, LaValley said. The department regulates ski areas throughout New York, as well as amusement parks. LaValley said the target date to reopen Chair Two is Dec. 26. That leaves volunteers just under two weeks to take care of several minor details that need to be addressed before opening day. An insurance inspection also resulted in a “favorable report,” LaValley said. “We’re basically good to go,” he said. “The hard work that all of our volunteers have put in is paying off.” LaValley added that groomers are running and that recent snowfall is helping efforts. “We just need a little more snow,” he said. ARISE currently has a one-year lease on the property owned by Big Tupper LLC, which is part of the stalled Adirondack Club and Resort project. ARISE will reopen one lift – Chair Two – and one rope tow. No snowmaking is planned at the site. In November, the Adirondack Park Agency approved a permit to allow ARISE to operate facilities on parts of the mountain.