City hoped for provision in sales tax reauthorization

NORWICH – Although two city of Norwich officials were on hand during Monday’s Chenango County Board of Supervisors meeting, neither were on the agenda and, therefore, were not asked to speak.

Following the meeting, Mayor Joseph P. Maiurano said he had intended to address the extension of a special, 1 percent sales tax collection. The tax - which was unanimously prolonged for another two-year period - was imposed in 2002 to afford the county’s year-old $26.5 million Public Safety Facility. Town supervisors agreed this week to re-word the legislation and extend the tax in order to pay for the facility’s new communications system.

The mayor said he had written a letter to the chairman of the county board regarding the matter and carbon copied the two supervisors who represent the county seat. “I was surprised they didn’t ask me to speak,” he said after the meeting. “And I was surprised the two who represent the city didn’t bring up our concerns.”

County Clerk of the Board R.C. Woodford said he had not received any request for the mayor to be placed on the agenda.

Maiurano said he would have asked for a provision in the legislation for the City of Norwich to receive any extra collections of city-generated sales tax.

“When you need the money, you have to keep asking for it,” he said yesterday. “I think they do a great job over there at the county, it’s just sometimes you get discouraged.”

City of Norwich Supervisors James J. McNeil and Linda E. Natoli said they thought an agreement had been reached at a prior meeting with the mayor that the county should go ahead and extend the tax. “We agreed that we would address the city’s request in 2009,” Natoli said.