Ellicottville Looks to Attract More Full-Time Residents
Ellicottville Looks to Attract More Full-Time Residents
Village Board discusses repopulation, short-term rentals, joint fire contract, among other things
A move to repopulate Ellicottville with full-time residents is becoming a key issue in the discussions surrounding the Downtown Revitalization Initiative project. Mayor John Burrell told Village Board members at the monthly meeting Tuesday, August 17th that the effort is getting focused on bringing in year-round residents who work in the community and serve on committees and boards.
He said the village had 1200 residents in 1950 but today the village's permanent population is only 400. Workers must commute to Ellicottville, spending a lot of time and money on gas and childcare.
"Our workers are spread too thin," said Trustee Caitlin Croft.
Trustee Sean Lowes said he's recently met newcomer homebuyers who are settling in not as vacation homeowners but as full-time residents, sometimes because they see the community's possibilities and have been priced out of real estate deals in upscale communities in other states. Some of them have careers that allow them to work from home.
The Mayor said some revitalization ideas being tossed around by the planning committee include redevelopment of the 1887 Building to include a first-floor community arts center, and shared housing units upstairs, and a new street leading into the former Signore manufacturing site for new commercial properties, and market rate housing for residents who live and work in the community.
As the result of a citizen complaint, Village Attorney Richard Stanton promised to look into a due process issue related to a local law freezing permits for accessory apartments (in the commercial district).
Village resident M.J. Brown claimed the wording of the local law was changed - before its passage at the June Board meeting - to cover accessory apartments in the entire village and not just the residential use zones mentioned in a public hearing notice.
Brown applied for a permit in April to convert her former retail unit to a 700 square foot accessory apartment at 1 Monroe St., and the application was tabled by the Village Planning Board due to the moratorium on new accessory apartments. She said she was "disturbed that one thing was announced and another passed" and that she had been trying to get "a straight answer" since the public hearing.
Village Planner Gary Palumbo told the Board that he is preparing to present a draft of a zoning amendment addressing accessory apartments in a week and stated, "the local law did not change" after the public hearing. He added that Brown's application is in line for approval after passage of an amendment.
Stanton told Brown that her complaint involves a due process issue that he has already begun to research. He said he will be looking to see if there was a difference between the notice and the scope of the law and will report his findings in writing in a few days.
Resident Kevin Lester, who spoke in support of Brown, said she paid a $500 permit fee in April and applied for a permit, then blocked off reservation dates for the apartment, but has lost income because of the moratorium.
"She's following the rules but there are others who are renting but haven't applied for a permit and who don't advertise,” said Lester, pointing to a lack of enforcement because the building inspector's activities are complaint-driven.
Mayor Burrell said the Village is addressing the problem through rental advertising and violators are being caught and warned and later issued a summons.
In response to a complaint by resident Carl Kirchner, the Mayor and Trustee Caitlin Croft offered to call businesses when there is trash and litter around the dumpster area.
Kirchner said most business owners do a good job maintaining their dumpsters but he asked passers-by to "be a good neighbor and ask the businesses to clean up before their name ends up in the paper."
In other matters, Mayor Burrell introduced Zach Carlson, the new assistant engineer for the Ellicottville Engineering Department. Carlson recently received his Bachelors Degree in civil engineering at the University of Buffalo.
He also announced that the Ellicottville Fire Company may be asked to join in a contract to provide fire protection for the town of Mansfield due to a lack of manpower, adding portions of Mansfield are already covered by Ellicottville and Little Valley.
Trustee Sean Lowes outlined a plan that is being drafted with Mansfield Town Supervisor Robert Keis to cover a specified area with the Ellicottville ambulance, a service that would be billed to Mansfield residents. Mansfield would be represented by a representative on the Fire Commission and the fire hall could eventually become a substation for the Ellicottville Fire Company.
Trustee Doug Bush announced all involved agencies will attend a Fall Festival planning meeting on Aug. 25th. He said planners intend to eliminate carnival rides and reduce the number of vendors for this year's event by 50. He presented a list of upcoming Ellicottville Chamber-sponsored events for approval, including Rock N’ Roll Weekend (Sept. 17-19), Lacrosse tournament (Sept. 24-26), Fall Festival (Oct. 9-10), and Christmas Stroll (Nov. 26-28), which were all granted approval in a Board vote. Bush abstained from voting on the Oct. 23rd Ellicottville Half and 5K Marathon approval because he is an organizer of the event.