VOORHEESVILLE — The village hasn’t seen a contested election since 1994, and this year continues the trend as two incumbent trustees run unopposed to keep their seats.

Trustees William Hotaling and David Cardona are both up for re-election and neither will be challenged in the March 20 election.
"Any time you have an election, contested is the way to go," Hotaling said, but serving on the board is time-consuming and a lo Digeser seeks approval

Vertical windmill is for the birds
t of people don’t have time to do it. Often, he said, it takes a big issue to get people to run; the village hasn’t had one in a while.

Voorheesville has 2,705 residents according to the 2000 census, but only a fraction of them vote — 82 people voted last year and 45 the election before that. Both candidates say that they’re running because they care about the village.
Hotaling, who serves as deputy mayor, has been on the board for eight years; he’s running for his third four-year term this month. "The reason I run goes back a ways," he said. "The village is in my blood."

Born and raised in Voorheesville, Hotaling served as the superintendent of public works for 29 years and then took a seat on the village board when he retired. The biggest issue he sees facing the village in the years to come involves the budget, he said.
"Money doesn’t go as far as it used to," he said, and then listed a number of services that the village provides to residents, including trash pick-up, snow removal, park upkeep, and recreation programs.

Cardona, who has been on the board since he was appointed in 2004, called the services provided by the village to residents tremendous for the amount they pay in taxes. He’d like to maintain those services over the next four years, he said.

Selling municipal water to people outside the village, at double the rate, was mentioned by both candidates as a good source of revenue for the village, providing that it doesn’t hurt the service to residents.

Senior housing was another item that both candidates support. Local developer Troy Miller plans to build a senior-housing complex in the village, which both Hotaling and Cardona hailed as necessary, though inadequate. Miller plans to build nine condominiums at a cost that could range from $165,000 to $180,000. Years ago, Omni had proposed a 48-unit senior-housing complex on property owned by St. Matthew’s church on Mountainview Road but it hasn’t followed through.
"Troy is on the right track, there’s no doubt about it," said Cardona, but, in order for the village to keep its senior population, it will need more housing.
Where the two diverged was on the idea of a master plan for the village. Cardona said he thought coming up with a comprehensive land-use plan would be a good idea while Hotaling doesn’t see a need. "As people come to us with ideas, we look at them," he said, explaining that the village handles things on a case-by-case basis, and therefore doesn’t need a master plan.

The election will be held on March 20 in the village hall.