By Russ Tarby

Contributing Writer

As work commitments piled up over the summer, contractor Shawn Malone had to delay renovating the 173-year-old Liverpool Village Cemetery.

At a special meeting on June 9, the village of Liverpool Board of Trustees awarded the bid for the cemetery project to Shawn Malone Excavating of Hannibal.

The total amount awarded is $225,410, for installation of new pedestrian path pavement and construction of a new Tulip Street sign on masonry posts.

At the Aug. 17 village board meeting, Liverpool Mayor Gary White announced that Malone plans to start work here on or about Sept. 14. He estimated that the project would be completed within eight weeks.

Nearly three years ago, 128th District Assemblywoman Pamela Hunter reported that the village had received a $250,000 state grant earmarked for cemetery improvements.

On the recommendation of a cemetery advisory committee chaired by Dr. Michael Romano, the village hired Environmental Design & Research, a Syracuse-based landscaping firm, to prepare a schematic design for the restoration work.

Trapper possibility

Animal trapper Mike Walker, president of Walker’s Wildlife Solutions of East Syracuse, appeared before the trustees at their Aug. 17 meeting. He had been contacted by Trustee Jason Recor after a village resident complained about the proliferation of woodchucks in his neighborhood.

For more than two decades Liverpool residents have asked village government to do something about nuisance wildlife here, especially skunks and ground hogs.

Walker – who is licensed as a nuisance wildlife control operator by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation – worked for the town of Salina from 2015 to the end of 2019. He said a conflict over insurance coverage led him to decide against renewing his town contract with in December. He told the trustees, however, that he carries his own liability insurance.

The trustees have scheduled a special meeting at noon on Thursday, Aug. 27, at which they’ll discuss Walker’s proposal to work as the village’s animal trapper.

July police stats

Liverpool Police Chief Don Morris informed the village board of trustees at its Aug. 17 meeting that officers made 179 traffic stops and issued 191 citations for violations of the state’s vehicle and traffic laws during July. Five arrests for DWI were made, and four accidents were investigated. Officers made 165 residential checks last month while investigating a total of 429 complaints, incidents and calls for service.

Officers arrested 45 individuals in July with 67 criminal charges filed.