LEGISLATURE STUFF - Cash and a Dream

CATSKILL - Offering real cash on the barrelhead, the burgeoning Greene County Animal Alliance is hoping success will come on their third try, seeking special support from the Greene County Legislature.

Mark Gorelick, a GCAA board of directors member, visited a Public Safety committee meeting last week, wanting to purchase five acres of county-owned land in the town of Cairo.

The property, if secured, would be the location for what the GCAA believes is a vital companion animal shelter on this side of the Hudson River.

Gorelick was extending $75,000 for the five acres that could be cut from a 16.85 acre tract bought by the county for $475,000 two years ago.

A portion of that parcel, located at the old Cairo Fairgrounds between Main Street and Route 84, is already set aside for the construction of a new Community Services Center.

Lawmakers were set to approve bids on that project, this week, utilizing 5.5 acres for what will be a $12.5 million job.

There are currently no plans for the rest of the land, according to legislature chairman Patrick Linger, although that does not mean a deal with the GCAA is on the horizon.

“It could be a conversation but there are a lot of other things to consider,” Linger said in a phone interview following Gorelick’s presentation.

“One important thing to realize is that county taxpayers paid for that land, not the legislature. We wouldn’t want to sell it for less than we paid,” approximately $28,000 per acre, Linger said.

“I think it is a needed service. I’m not against it, but we aren’t at a point where we can say we won’t use the land for something else,” he said.

“There isn’t anything definite, but another entity is interested in the same land. We aren’t ready to declare this surplus property” Linger said

Meanwhile, the county is in the midst of multiple infrastructure efforts, such as the soon-to-be-opened Justice Center wing of the county courthouse in Catskill, a $28.8 million undertaking.

That space will serve as a new home for the District Attorney and Public Defender offices with multiple agencies already chomping at the bit to move into their vacated space in the county office building.

In terms of the GCAA, “we have land behind the old Mental Health building [adjacent to the Cairo town park] that might be serviceable,” Linger said. 

“The county has 84 acres there that includes a solar field. We use maybe half of it so that is doable but there is a problem,” Linger said.

A small, aged bridge spanning a creek leading to that property would need to be replaced, to the tune of $800,000, before real talks could begin regarding an animal shelter.

Gorelick says he is well aware of the obstacles and financial realities, preferring to see the Cairo land as a perfectly-timed opportunity.

“This was my third appearance before the legislature,” Gorelick said in a follow-up phone interview, dating back three-and-a-half years.

“We are not where we were then, when we were asking for land. We are no longer asking for land. We will be paying something,” Gorelick said.

“It’s not as much as what private people are asking, but it would allow the county to recover some of the money spent on these five acres,” he said.

GCAA has been productively busy, raising $150,000 toward their vision, says Gorelick, noting, “people are ready for this in Greene County.”

Greene County once operated an animal shelter along Route 385 between the towns of Catskill and Athens, absorbed 30 years ago by what is currently the Columbia-Greene Humane Society, outside Hudson.

On their website, the GCAA states that, “members of our group have been doing cat and dog rescues for many years.”

GCAA has “found that the resources of other counties are overwhelmed with animals from their own county. This often means turning away Greene County strays and animals that are in need, “the website states.

“It is Greene County Animal Alliance's goal to fund-raise and create a shelter facility of our own - located in Greene County,” the website states.. 

“We envision a model no-kill shelter where healthy or treatable animals, who don’t present a danger to public safety, are not euthanized due to a lack of space or time. A shelter known, both locally and regionally, for exceptional animal care and community education,” the website states.

“The amount of money we’ve gotten shows that spreading the word has been effective and we continue to receive more support,” Gorelick said, noting the GCAA is also in consistent pursuit of outside funding.

“There are government grants available for animal shelters. They will fund renovation, site preparation and building,” Gorelick said.

“No one is going to fund just a dream,” Gorelick said. “We can’t even apply unless we have a site. That’s been our stumbling block. We know $75,000 isn’t a lot but it’s a real offer. We are hoping the third time is the charm.”