NORTH SYRACUSE — At their Feb. 10 meeting, village of North Syracuse officials paid their respects to longtime trustee Diane Browning, who passed away Feb. 6.

Browning served on the village board from 2003 to 2020, including two years as mayor in 2010 and 2011 and two stints as deputy mayor. She also served as a senior advocate for the town of Cicero and was a board member for North Area Meals on Wheels.

Current Mayor Gary Butterfield said that when he first became involved in village politics, he and Browning were political rivals, but working with her for so many years, the relationship evolved first into mutual respect and then into a true friendship. It was Butterfield who appointed Browning to her second stint as deputy mayor in 2018.

“She was my dear friend and my mentor, and she definitely will be missed,” said current Deputy Mayor Patricia Gustafson.

In a 2008 story in the Star-Review, Browning detailed some of the work she and the village board did to help seniors in the area, including setting up free transportation from some of the village’s senior housing complexes to shopping and other services.

“I love the small-town atmosphere, it’s just a small community that you get to know your neighbors,” she said of the village she lived in for 52 years. “I like being there for the community, serving the people of North Syracuse and being part of making decisions for the community.”

In that same feature, Browning answered a whimsical Q&A, stating that her ideal car would be a Hummer and the three people she would love to have lunch with were her husband, Dr. Phil and Brad Pitt.

In other business

The board denied the request of a homeowner on Herman Drive to have two trees removed that are in the village’s right of way. The board cited the town’s code that it will remove trees in the right of way only if they are a danger to the public or are threatening public infrastructure.

The roots of the trees in question are growing into the private sewer lines of a resident on Herman Drive.

The board also set two public hearings for March 10. The first will be to gather public input for the use of the Community Development funding the village will received in 2022. The second public hearing will be on new language to “simplify” the zoning code on Main Street.

“The language in our zoning just needs to be changed a little bit,” Butterfield said. “This will simplify our code and make it less complicated.”

Butterfield also reported that the board is working with its engineers on a plan to address three “major” issues with stormwater management — at Herman Drive, Centerville Court and Gateway Park. The projects would be funded with money from the American Rescue Plan Act.