Lysander — Lysander residents who discover a stray dog after business hours need not fret: Supervisor Joe Saraceni announced at the Jan. 25 town board meeting that dog control officers Dan Boccardo and Rich Billings will be on call around the clock.
“They’ve agreed to cover us 24/7, and we were able to come up with an expense-neutral proposition,” Saraceni said.
The parks and recreation department will lend the dog control officers a truck, which will be outfitted with snow tires and a cap to protect dogs during winter weather.
In related news, the town board voted to renew Lysander’s agreement with the CNY SPCA. The town contracts with the CNY SPCA to bring stray dogs there for a $150 fee per animal, plus additional fees for cruelty investigations or euthanization and cremation, if needed.
Department news
Also at the Jan. 25 meeting, several department heads updated the board and residents on their recent activities:
- Assessor Theresa Golden reminded residents that the deadline for all new and renewed STAR (School Tax Relief) exemptions is March 1. The assessor’s office will be sending reminder postcards as well. Residents should also look out for property tax credit freeze checks from the state Department of Taxation and Finance, which are still being sent out.
- Town Clerk Elaine McMahon said the U.S. Department of State has advised that there will be an increase in the number of passport applicants this year, so those wishing to obtain or renew a passport may have to wait longer than the usual four to six weeks for their applications to be processed.
- Highway Superintendent Gene Dinsmore reported that there had been 17 snow events between Jan. 11 and Jan. 25. The highway department has used more than 1,000 tons of road salt this winter, totaling about $49,000.
