Lysander — The town of Lysander is ringing in the new year with a new supervisor and two new town board members. Supervisor Joe Saraceni and Councilors Peter Moore and Bob Ellis shared their New Year’s resolutions for the town for 2016, as did returning Councilor Bob Geraci and Baldwinsville Mayor Dick Clarke:

Supervisor Joe Saraceni

Saraceni listed a few of his “top priorities for the New Year”:

• Form an economic development committee to identify and attract new businesses while partnering with the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency (OCIDA) to market the remaining undeveloped industrial zones in Lysander.
• Meet regularly with neighboring municipalities to collaborate on shared services and intermunicipal cooperative agreements.
• Seek out public/private partnerships to enhance services and generate revenue.
• Utilize the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) to encourage sustainable residential, industrial and commercial development while maintaining the town’s characteristics.

Councilor Bob Ellis

Ellis admitted that he has “never made a New Year’s resolution in [his] life,” so he kept his goals for 2016 short and sweet.

“I will continue to lead an honest, healthy and happy life both personally and professionally,” he said.

Councilor Peter Moore

Both Moore and Saraceni emphasized teamwork in their New Year’s resolutions.

“A year from now, when I look back on the year 2016, I would like to be able to say that I have been part of a cohesive team that worked together to create a balanced budget for the residents of the town of Lysander,” Moore said.

Moore said he’d also like to get to know and work with employees of each department in the town.

“We are very fortunate here in the town of Lysander to have such dedicated employees in all departments, and getting to know all of them, earning their respect, and being an integral part of their team is an important goal for my first year in office,” he said.

Councilor Bob Geraci

continued — Geraci said he is committed to working with the Comprehensive Land Use Plan to maintain Lysander’s green space while encouraging smart development.

“My goal will be focused on making sure that any development that occurs is done by showing that costs to the town will not be increased over time and that the natural landscape integrity of the town is not unduly compromised,” Geraci said.

Geraci pointed to the Route 31 corridor toward Clay and Cicero as an example of natural features lost to development.

“There are communities all across America which lost green space because they didn’t recognize at the time its significant contribution to the quality of life in the community. Once green space is lost, it is lost forever,” Geraci said. “My goal is to do what I can to make sure that does not happen in Lysander.”

B’ville mayor shares 2016 goals

Like Bob Ellis, Baldwinsville Mayor Dick Clarke is not a big believer in personal New Year’s resolutions, but he shared his goals for the village for 2016.

“The goal is to continue working to make the village a great place to live — regarding safety, aesthetics, the waterfront,” Clarke said. “And to strive to continue to make this a great community for seniors.”

Clarke said the board of trustees will strive to spend wisely while continuing upgrades to the village. He said he will continue to be accessible to residents as well.

“That means returning phone calls from concerned citizens and being out and around the village where residents can see me and talk with me,” he said. “It means listening.”