Seneca County is poised to have a great run over the next several years.
Chairman of the Seneca County Board of Supervisors Bob Shipley sat down with Josh Durso on Thursday’s edition of the Inside the FLX podcast.
His goals for 2017 include creating more continuity among the board, as well with other entities within the county to drive economic success.
One of those areas includes working closely with the Seneca County IDA, which has received harsh criticism over the last several months for their handling of the controversial Depot deal.
He noted that one of the methods to achieve this goal was to put together a core group of committee members, who can work together and cross party lines. In creating the committee assignments for 2017, Shipley called on the majority and minority leaders — Fayette Town Supervisor Cindy Lorenzetti and Lodi Town Supervisor Lee Davidson — to assist him.
“Creating those committee assignments was a collaborative effort,” he explained, which ties into the themes associated with many of his efforts at the county-level.
“We need to eliminate the training stigma associated with Seneca County,” he continued, speaking to another important mission for the chairman this year.
Addressing the high-volume of turnover that exists within the county has been an issue that multiple supervisors have voiced concerns about. “When you see employees leaving the county for other opportunities at neighboring counties, it shows that we need better collective bargaining,” he explained while discussing the issue before the podcast began.
Creating stronger collective bargaining for employees to create stronger packages to retain them is a necessity, according to Shipley.
“People are our strongest asset,” he continued. “We have to address that problem moving forward,” Shipley concluded.
He also addressed the growing water and sewer management issues, which have plagued the county and board throughout the past several years.
“We’re now looking at creating an RFP to address the water and sewer issues,” Shipley explained. The board recently began debating taking the management of three different districts out to bid, since the county has struggled historically to manage them.
On top of those issues, the County is undertaking several major water and sewer projects — none more apparent and immediate than the development of a sewer district on Rt. 318.
“All of these things help bolster economic activity,” he explained. Many have pointed out that adding more infrastructure to a part of the county that is ripe for development with the opening of the del Lago Resort & Casino will be a long-term benefit.
One of the things that Shipley attributed to Seneca County’s overall economic success is the continued effort shown by County Manager John Sheppard.
“There’s a learning curve, but he’s done an outstanding job researching and coming up with plans for [the Board of Supervisors] to consider.”
Watch the entire interview in the video window above, and check out the latest news and information on the FingerLakes1.com App.
