Tentative 2025 County Budget Should be Released Oct 15

SCHOHARIE COUNTY _ A tentative 2025 budget for Schoharie County should be available for view on the county website on Oct. 15, county Administrator Korsah Akumfi said during a recent interview at his office.

From there, the county Board of Supervisors would hold a public hearing on the budget soon after Election Day (Nov. 5) and would likely be set to adopt the budget at their regular meeting on Nov. 15.

Akumfi did not want to speculate on the total amount of the 2025 budget at this time or whether or not there would be any tax increase. At a Sept. 10 meeting of the Conesville Town Board, town Supervisor and county BOS Chairman William Federice said the tentative county budget for 2025 stood at $88 million but that Akumfi and other county personnel were working to "trim it down."

"At the moment, numbers are still developing," Akumfi said during the interview. "We're looking at producing a budget that is reasonable and can be supported by the financial conditions we live in. The board will decide on any tax increase (if there is one).

"We have significant projects in the county we are evaluating  to see if we will be able to actually commence."

One of those is replacement of the county's Bridge Street Bridge in Schoharie estimated to cost anywhere from $8 million to $12 million, according to Akumfi. He added the county has applied for up to $15 million in federal grant money for the project.

"We hope to get something rolling next year (on the bridge)," Akumfi said. Also still being discussed is redevelopment of the former county jail in Schoharie, which has been unused since flooding in 2011.

"A couple of months ago the board decided to explore alternatives for the old jail," Akumfi explained. "There is a reality we all face in terms of the homeless situation and housing situation. The board has been exploring the use of that jail to resolve some of our problems. We identified a company who can basically transform it into housing."

That possible transformation could take the form of either a renovation or tearing down the existing structure and putting up an entirely new one, the administrator continued. Whether redevelopment of the former jail involves the spending of any county funds has yet to be determined, he added.

"Discussions are ongoing," Akumfi noted. "If we can agree to terms, we would basically hand the jail over to them to develop. The first thing is to get an agreement with the developer, and then the developer would make decisions around the way to proceed. We hope to get something moving in 2025."

Also scheduled for next year is a total of around $2 million for improvements/repairs to the county office building, courthouse and other facilities, he added.