County Seeks Additional $9M for Broadband Project

SCHOHARIE COUNTY — Schoharie County is asking for an additional $9 million from the ConnectAll Program of Empire State Development to cover additional costs that have surfaced in the county's ongoing Broadband Project aimed at giving every county resident the ability to connect with the Internet.

County Economic Development Coordinator John Crescimanno confirmed the ask in an email to this newspaper after the matter was discussed during his brief report at the Friday, May 15 county Board of Supervisors meeting. The additional money is being requested to cover the cost of putting more fiberoptic cable underground than anticipated as it has become increasingly difficult to reach agreements with pole owners like National Grid and Verizon to string cable on their poles.

The cost of the project is currently estimated at $33.6 million, with $30 million coming from a reimbursable grant from the ConnectAll ESD program and the remaining $3.6 million from the county. The additional cost, if granted, would bring the total cost of the project to around $42.6 million. Crescimanno reiterated the additional cost would not up the county's share.

"The ask is for approximately $9 million in additional state funding with no additional county funding," he wrote in the email.

Asked how confident he was ESD would provide the additional money, Crescimanno wrote "Our level of confidence is uncertain currently." Touching on the possibility that the project might extend beyond the current end of this year target date for completion, he added "Currently, the broadband team is committed to successfully completing the project per the original timelines given which is Dec. 31, 2026."

During his report at the May 15 meeting, Crescimanno said the project's "schedule is at risk because of pole attachments. We're asking ConnectAll to go predominantly underground." He added the major part of the problem on reaching pole attachment agreements has been with National Grid.

Crescimanno also repeated statements made previously that any damage to roads or other property and infrastructure caused by workers on the project will be corrected by them.

"This project will make any problems right in the end," he said.

"We've had a number of issues and they've been very responsive to them," added Supervisor John Leavitt of Carlisle.

In other news from the May 15 BOS meeting, officials in the county are considering forming a County Assessor's Office to lend a hand to towns who might be having trouble assessing all their properties for taxation purposes.

The idea was brought up by County Administrator Bryan Best during his report at the May 15  meeting. If the office was eventually created, towns would contract with the county assessor office for assessment services, Best said.

"I've been asked to gauge interest in this," he noted. "It could be a benefit to the town and county if there is buy in on all sides."

Best's introduction of the topic sparked a discussion among county BOS members at the May 15 meeting.

"I've been advocating for this," said Town of Schoharie Supervisor Ben Oevering. "We have a great assessor who is leaving to join the county's Office of Real Property. A lot of folks I've talked to said they are having a hard time getting assessors. I'm certainly in favor of it."

Supervisor Donald Airey of Blenheim, Vice-Chairman of the county BOS, also made comments indicating he thought a county assessor office would be useful.

"If you look at dollars, what are we losing?" he said. "Do we know what we're not getting? Are we getting proper assessment and appraisals? I wonder what we're not capturing."

Supervisor John Leavitt of Carlisle said it would be a "good option for towns that can't get assessors right now. If a town gets into a situation where it doesn't have an assessor, it would be something to lean on."

County BOS Chairman Bill Federice of Conesville said the problem of towns getting assessors also extends to code enforcement officers.

"If we don't look at something like this (county assessor), eventually we'll all get caught with our pants down," said Supervisor Earl VanWormer of Esperance.

But other Supervisors had a different take.

"This is not the first time this has come up," said Philip Skowfoe of Fulton. "It's never been found to be cost effective and would cost taxpayers a lot more money. You're looking to put the burden on the county rather than look at your problem and take care of it."

Roger Gural of Summit said he feared an over centralization of services at the county level.

"I think it might become expensive to manage," he said of the county assessor's office idea. "Government is best when conducted at the most local level."

Best said it sounded from the discussion like it was worth him continuing to research the matter.

In another action from the May 15 BOS meeting, board members and the audience honored retiring county Director of Planning and Community Development Services Shane Nickle with a resolution read by Deputy County Clerk Kayla Fripp and unanimously approved by the board.

Nickle is retiring June 14 after 30 years of service with the county. He started as a planner, was soon promoted to senior planner and served in that position for many years before being elevated to director in 2023.

According to the resolution, Nickle "selflessly dedicated himself to fulfilling the needs of the community" and was a "man of singular distinction." In some brief remarks, he said how honored he has been to serve the county for so many years.

"I will miss the people, I will miss the work," Nickle said. "I thank you all for your trust and support you put in me over the last three decades. I'm proud of all we've been able to accomplish."