The consolidation of the Town and Village of Clayton municipal offices is the next logical step to the twenty-five years of continually shared services.  The Town and Village of Clayton have a combined population of 4,817, with a slightly higher concentration in the Town.  The Village of Clayton offices are located at 425 Mary Street.  The Town of Clayton offices are located on the basement level of 405 Riverside Drive.  During recent renovations at that site, the Town resided temporarily in the vacant section of the Village municipal building.

            This proposed consolidation effort would consist of improvements to the former Fire Hall portion of the Village of Clayton Municipal Building.  It would include renovations to provide space for two judge’s offices; court room; client/attorney meeting space; bathrooms; and a waiting area as required by the Office of Court Administration’s new standards.  It would also include the installation of a new entranceway to preclude prisoners from having to be transferred throughout the complex.  Moreover, the Village Mayor’s office would be in the existing facility.  In addition, a fifteen foot addition would be added to the existing municipal building on the West side and a twenty foot extension would be added to the South side of the building.  This extension of the existing building would allow for the current space to accommodate a copy room, a break room, and additional storage for both the Town and the Village.  The additions would house the Town department heads including the Supervisor and Assistant and Town Clerk and Deputy.  Additionally, the joint Town/Village departments such as Zoning, Assessment, and Historian would be located in the addition.  Even more, these Town entities would share this space with the Village Clerk and her Deputies.  This would allow the public to enter at one place for services from either municipality.

            As aforementioned, the Town and Village of Clayton have a long history of sharing services, including the development of a joint Town/Village of Clayton Comprehensive Plan.  Since the early 1980’s, both entities have provided funding for a joint Youth Community Program.  In addition, the Historian has been shared jointly for over fifteen years.  Furthermore, the Town and Village of Clayton share a joint Highway/DPW facility—which is also shared with Jefferson County and a very unique agreement exists with the fuel depot—which is also shared with a third entity—the Thousand Islands Central School District.  In addition, the Village and Town share a joint Planning Board; joint Zoning Board of Appeals; Zoning Enforcement Officer and Assistant; Board of Assessment Review; Court System; and Fire District.  The local library, Hawn Memorial Library, serves both communities and the Village has provided sewer service through an Intermunicipal Agreement to Town residents at Heritage Heights since 1991.  The two entities have also jointly applied for several state and federal grants including the Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP), Geographical Information Systems (GIS), and SARA grants.  Most recently, the pair jointly applied for a Shared Municipal Service Incentive (SMSI) grant. 

            There are many obvious benefits to merging the two municipal offices.  Foremost, one joint Town and Village office complex would better serve the community through convenience and centrality.  This merger would eliminate the confusion caused by having to pay one bill at one office and another bill blocks away.  It would also be a responsible way of controlling spending.  While in the past the two offices had different locations, they each were responsible for extensive phone systems; fax and copy machines; internet services; computer systems; and software.  Each of these items could be shared jointly between the parties if they were at a sole location.  Moreover, there is much duplication of services that occurs as a consequence of operating separate offices.  While sharing one office complex, certain administrative tasks (such as answering phones and greeting customers), maintenance tasks (such as shoveling snow and maintaining the grounds), etc. could be carried out by one person rather than several.  Even more, the merger of Town and Village offices would allow for an eventual single electric bill, phone bill, trash removal, etc.  This would have a definite positive impact on cutting both administrative and maintenance costs for both entities.   

            In conclusion, as Assemblyman Darrel Aubertine stated in his January 6, 2006 Shared Municipal Services Incentive Grant Support Letter for Clayton, the consolidation of both Village and Town offices into one complex would streamline services and create a “one stop government center” for the community.  Senator James Wright’s support to this effort will be the financial foundation of the project.  It would inevitably improve the already constructive relationship between the Village and Town of Clayton and its personnel, creating an even more cooperative municipal environment where the “concept of ‘public servant’ will be restored to a more contented public.”  In truth, the merger of both office buildings into one would be the final piece of the intermunicipal puzzle that both parties have been piecing together for over twenty years—and by far the largest piece.