© 2024
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
An update has been released for the Android version of the WAMC App that addresses performance issues. Please check the Google Play Store to download and update to the latest version.

Plattsburgh Charter Changes Approved

Plattsburgh City Hall
WAMC/Pat Bradley
Plattsburgh City Hall

Changes to the 113-year-old document that guides the governance of the city of Plattsburgh have been approved by voters.
In March, Plattsburgh Mayor James Calnon appointed 12 city residents to a commission charged with reviewing the city charter and drafting changes to the document.  

After months of research and discussion, the group considered three ballot proposals – one to modernize the language, another to stagger the terms for city councilors and the mayor and a third asking residents if the city should switch from a mayor-council to city manager-council form of government.

The third option proved to be most contentious and to some the most confusing.  After the mayor offered a compromise the commission opted to place just two questions on the ballot: modernization of the charter and staggered elections.

Few residents attended the work and education sessions held by the Charter Commission and members were apprehensive over the potential outcome of the ballot vote.

Unofficial results show ballot question one modernizing language and clarifying the powers of a mayor-council government passed 78 to 21 percent.  The second ballot question to stagger terms of city council members and the mayor was also approved, 81 to 18 percent.
Commission chair Luke Cyphers says he’s surprised by the margin, but not the outcome.  “The turn out was a bit better than I anticipated.  I was really heartened at that margin because I think a yes vote really did indicate that you had been paying attention to our process and that you  took maybe a little bit of time to see the  issues and why passing a clean charter was a good idea.”
Commission co-chair Theresa Bennett  is not only relieved, but says the panel feels  a sense of accomplishment.  “So many groups have tried to update the charter over the years and I think that we  took the lessons learned from things that we felt had failed in the past and really approached it in a correct way. And it was a clear message that the language and authorities and different parts of the charter just needed to be updated.”

Mayor James Calnon is, not surprisingly, happy with the results.   “I asked the commission to take a look at making the charter understandable so that it would really be a document that would get used more, really defining roles and responsibilities. And then taking a look at the question should we have both continuity in government as well as an annual update to who’s on the town council? And staggering terms does that.  I think when you look at the results it was kind of like people were going why wouldn’t you do that?  The voters really responded 80-20  I think is great support.  These people worked very hard for months and months and really put a tremendous amount of effort and passion into their work and I think they did a really good job. And I believe the voters indicated they agree.”

A third question was ardently considered but did not appear on the ballot.  The commission debated asking voters if they wanted to keep or change the city’s form of government.  Calnon broke the logjam by promising to propose to the common council a local law that will place it on the 2016 ballot.   “There’s a little bit more controversy with form of government:  mayor-council vs. city manager.  There’s also a lot of detail. Now that we’ve defined here’s the new plain language charter with staggered terms in it, then the council’s already prepared what that charter would look like whether it was a mayor-council government or a city manager government.  So it’s there. It’s easy to see what the difference are because again it’s now in very plain language and very understandable.  So it gives people a chance to really look at that very specific question.  Now as to the rest of the discussion about what are the strengths and weaknesses, you know, some of the more subjective parts of this, we’ll spend most of the year I think people who have strong opinion one way or the other will weigh in.”

According to the dictates of the commission as soon as a vote has been completed on a ballot item the commission dissolves.

Related Content