Cobleskill mayor cools to city study

3/30/2023

By Jim Poole

Cobleskill Mayor Becky Terk may be backing off on her desire to have Cobleskill become a city.
And she’s also exploring options to fund village government, especially the police department.
Village board members last year contracted with the Center for Governmental Research to see whether city status was feasible.
As a city, Cobleskill could receive much more Schoharie County sales tax revenue that would help pay for services that many county residents enjoy in Cobleskill, the commercial center that generates the most sales tax.
“Every single person benefits from the sales tax raised in the village,” Mayor Terk said Friday.
But even if Cobleskill became a city and secured more tax revenue, it’s unclear how city status would affect the Cobleskill-Richmondville School District.
C-R might have to become a city school district, which has more restrictions than the central school district that it is now.
“It’s all about the school,” Mayor Terk said, indicating she’s not hopeful about the city study.
“The last thing we want to do is something that disrupts the school. That’s not how we do business.”
A draft of the CGR study will be available at the next village board meeting April 18, she said.
The County Board of Supervisors last year adjusted its sales-tax revenue formula, giving a little more money to towns and villages.
But Cobleskill’s increased share isn’t enough, Mayor Terk said.
Instead, she’s supporting a just-starting study of merging the County Sheriff’s Office and the Cobleskill Police Department.
Such a merger would help not only with law enforcement manpower in both the county and village, but also take much of the load of paying for the service off the backs of village taxpayers, Mayor Terk said.
Because Cobleskill as the commercial center benefits everyone, the cost of services should be spread out, she added.
“We need a police department,” Mayor Terk said. “We have all the amenities, and the police department costs $1.6 million. I don’t think village taxpayers should shoulder the entire burden.”