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Board updates enforcement on vacant properties; Cooperstown All Star Village water plan requires town action
Summary
Inspectors found multiple vacant or unsafe properties; police removed occupants from one declared unsafe building. The board also updated members on the Cooperstown All Star Village water request, saying the town must create water districts before the board can approve providing water.
Code-enforcement staff reported recent enforcement actions and a status update on a request tied to Cooperstown All Star Village.
Why it matters: unsafe or vacant properties can create public-safety hazards and strain local enforcement resources. The Cooperstown All Star Village item identifies procedural prerequisites before the town can provide water service to that development.
Staff told the board they obtained a search warrant to vacate a property on Academy Street (recorded in the file as 4244 Academy). Police removed about 22 people from the building during that action. Inspectors found the property had utilities turned off and described serious vacancy conditions; staff reported that the building was secured but asked the board to continue monitoring it because warm weather could attract people to occupy it illegally.
The board also discussed the Ford Block property at 179 Main Street; staff said the building was declared unsafe and the vacate process is underway. Members said people displaced from the vacated Academy Street building may have moved to nearby vacant properties, and staff will continue monitoring both locations.
Regarding a separate request from Cooperstown All Star Village seeking water service, staff said the town and the applicant understand the conditions tied to providing water but emphasized that nothing can move forward until the town forms the required water district(s). Staff described the procedural steps for creating a district: identify the properties, file a map with the comptroller’s office, advertise the proposal and, if required, hold a referendum. Creating a district typically requires about two months if the town and affected property owners agree. Staff said it is unlikely the Cooperstown item will return to the board before the fall; the town would need to create separate districts for the West End and the development itself before the board could consider approving water service.
Board members noted personnel changes in town staff — two retirements were mentioned — and said those transitions may have slowed the district-formation process. Staff reiterated the board will be updated as the town completes the necessary district paperwork.
