Theresa Trouvé to be first female trustee since 2005
The Central Property Owners Association kicked off the calendar year with one of its most crucial meetings: the annual residents electors and school districts electors meetings, where the ballots were cast for village trustee and school board nominee. Both ran unopposed.
Current CPOA President Theresa Trouvé was unanimously nominated for village trustee for the 2014-16 term prior to the meeting. Trouvé will be the first woman on the village board since Garden City’s 40th mayor, Barbara Miller, who served from 2003 to 2005. The trustee-elect was pleased with the evening’s outcome and is ready to take the next step forward for Garden City.
“It was a very exciting evening witnessing our village government in action” said Trouvé. “I am honored to be the designated candidate for village trustee from the Central Property Owners Association. I look forward to working with the board of trustees in the best interest of the village.”
The 44-year Garden City resident ran the meeting with Vice President Gary Kahn, Treasurer Mary Beth Tully and Secretary Brian Plaut. Thirty people were also in attendance. Aside from the nominations, several reports from officers and board members addressed the needs and problems of village residents. Topics of the evening included the town budget, property taxes and road expenses to name a few. Guest speakers Village Auditor James E. Olivo and Village Trustee Andrew J. Cavanaugh were also present and shared information about the town’s fiscal status.
Olivo spoke about maintaining the village’s budget and how the board is up for the task of planning ahead. One of the things he mentioned was the idea of the redoing of 7th Street which was last redone in 1987. Despite how well 7th Street is thriving, aesthetics are a concern. Olivo stated, “If you drive down 7th Street, you will see that it is starting to look like a 30-year-old streetscape.” Olivo felt the village has had a very good run thanks to a well-maintained infrastructure, but crucial elements like 7th Street are coming to a head from a wear-and-tear perspective and will have to be dealt with in the near future.
The subject of road repair was also of great concern at the meeting. There was discussion about the town not having the proper equipment to prepare the roads correctly. One comment pointed out how patchwork is insulting for people driving on the roads. Years ago, the goal was to have approximately 15 percent of the roads in the village replaced per year, but now they are only doing a mile of the 75 miles that exists in the village a year. According to Olivo, the cost to repair a mile of road is a staggering half a million dollars.
Cavanaugh spoke about maintaining the town’s financial activities and the services that the residents have come to expect. The cost of labor, health care and pensions for town employees are rising, thus making it a challenge to maintain reasonable real estate taxes. “We have to think of the broader picture rather than the narrow,” Cavanaugh pointed out.
Also in attendance were two Garden City High School Ambassadors, senior Steven Menelly and junior Bobby Menges, who provided the latest information regarding the recreational activities within the town. Data that was collected from a survey sent to the town residents was reported on. Both high school student Ambassadors spoke about the percentage of people who were in favor of such things as a dog park and centralized community center for the town.
