Springville Board supports a growing arts presence in the village

The Springville Village Board will be writing letters in support of two Springville Center for the Arts endeavors. As announced at the board meeting held July 9, the SCA and the Springville Board are seeking to expand the arts scene within the village of Springville.

Per SCA Director Seth Wochensky, the SCA would like to install 25 large murals in downtown Springville and create a walking tour of those sites for visitors. “There are no definite plans yet,” Wochensky clarified, as he came before the board. He said that the SCA is looking into obtaining some of the government monies that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently designated in support of the arts.

While the placement and content of these murals have not yet been determined, Wochensky noted that they will be of various sizes and will fit the size and scope of the buildings they adorn.

The board also approved support letters for an arts festival Wochensky said he hopes is in Springville’s future. “This would be pretty large-scale, to draw a lot of people into the village,” he said, comparing the in-the-works event to the Lewiston Art Festival. “It’s a great setting here for it,” he noted, clarifying that the festival would include music, street paintings, temporary installations and more, to act as a “manifestation of what happens inside the center for the arts.”

Springville Mayor William Krebs said that the art festival is still in the preliminary planning stages and that details will need to be worked out. “There’s a lot of work that needs to be done,” Wochensy said. “This would be a July event, next year, at best.”

These ideas have been in the works at the SCA for some time, but Wochensky clarified that “we have not had funding for public art of this type or festival money. If we get funding, we will look toward doing this.” Wochensky has been made aware of several grants the SCA can apply for to potentially assist with these endeavors.

To apply for funding, the SCA must prove that ventures like these are desired by the village.

In other matters:
- The board accepted, “with regrets,” the resignation of Dan Johnson from the electric division, effective July 13. Johnson, that division’s newest hiree, has accepted a position at National Fuel.

- The purchase of a 2004 Toyota model 7FGU25 forklift from JIT Toyota, in the amount of $9,850 (after trade-in) was approved by the board. Springville received five bids for a used forklift for the water/sewer division.

- Superintendent of Public Works Karl Lux and Electric Superintendent Norbert McCarthy were approved to attend the Municipal Electric Utilities Association’s annual conference in Corning, the week of Aug. 26. Lux will be Springville’s acting delegate at that event. “Our involvement in this is very important,” Krebs said.

- Lux announced that chipping will begin on all streets next week.

- Code Enforcement Officer Michael Kaleta said that the village is spending a lot of time and money cleaning up and mowing grass at vacant homes in the village. The current code states that grass on these abandoned locations should be cut when it reaches a specific height, but Kaleta said he believed it might be more financially feasible to mow every 10 days – two weeks, as waiting longer than that would require raking and carrying away the grass. “It could save money going out of taxes,” he said. “We should bid out to a contractor so someone is not getting overpaid for mowing a lawn.”

Krebs said that allowing grass to grow so high gives those in charge of the properties “incentives” to complete their own yardwork, but agreed that changes could be made to the code. Kaleta will work with Village Administrator Tim Horner and Village Attorney Audrey Seeley to see if changes can be made to that legal code.

- The board scheduled a public hearing for local law E-2012 intro (vehicles on sidewalks), which prohibits the use of self-propelled and motorized vehicles on Main Street between North Buffalo and Elk streets. Krebs said that most of the complaints the village has received on this issue were in reference to skateboards. The public hearing will take place on Aug. 13 at 7 p.m., prior to the board’s regular meeting.

- The board approved Justin Broomfield’s Eagle Scout project to improve the access road along the Spring Brook Trail in Shuttleworth Park. Broomfield has met with Lux, Springville Youth Inc. and Krebs regarding his project.

- Krebs reported that the Concert in the Park series in Fiddlers Green Park has been “well attended.”

The next Springville Village Board meeting will be held Aug. 13 at 7 p.m.