Hello Saranac Lake,

You are overdue for an update.

I ran for this office with the promise to preserve our sense of community, to put locals at the top of the priority list, and to lead with honesty, integrity and transparency. The election made clear that a large portion of our community was ready for some change. And change does not always come easily or quietly. I strive to be a genuine, hardworking person who puts the needs of his family and community above all else every single day. I’m passionate about this community and this job and I have high expectations of everyone I work with. As you know, there was an argument between myself and the former Village Manager that was inappropriate. And I regret that. Period.

As a result, the last few weeks have become a circus, which Saranac Lake does not deserve. It’s been a distraction — much of it fueled by politics and personal agendas — and I’d like to do my best to shift our focus back to what’s important: our village, the people who live here, and the work we’re doing for this community that we love so much.

On that front, I’d like to take this opportunity to share some exciting updates.

Housing is obviously a major issue that we’re continuing to address, but we’ve made some significant progress:

¯ We now have 195 single family homes and apartments (including the Trudeau Village and Saranac Lofts projects under construction) back in our inventory or under construction, including 36 vacant homes that our Code Enforcement Officer Chris McClatchie has helped bring back online.

¯ $1.3 million dollars has been awarded to The Trudeau Village project for long term housing from a grant that was sponsored by the Village of Saranac Lake.

¯ And the 70 new units at The Loft Apartments on Broadway has begun, after many hours of cooperative effort between the Village and the parties involved.

¯ And finally, we passed a new Short Term Rental Law after many, many hours of collaborative work.

This effort is far from over, but we should all feel good to see this progress.

This year, our village is on track to earn almost one million dollars in interest, which is more than the past twenty years combined. This is a big deal that gives us financial flexibility that we haven’t had in decades and it’s happening because of the research, negotiations and maneuvering of Bachana Tsiklauri and Patrick Murphy in our Treasury Department.

For the first time in over a decade, our police department and our department of public works lines, parks and road crews are fully staffed. This makes our village safer and it allows us to be more efficient, saving up to 80% on some project expenses by keeping them “in house.” These departments are in much better shape than they have been in a long time.

As you’ve seen downtown, our DRI municipal projects are moving along and some are nearing completion. Although she’s moving onto another career, Jamie Konkoski has been essential in this process. I’d like to thank her for all of her efforts. She has definitely left her mark on Saranac Lake and for that we are very grateful.

We have a pending purchase of 33 Petrova Ave. for an Emergency Services Building, newly awarded grants including $100,000 for a GeoThermal study, thanks to Erik Stender, and $2 million dollars for Pendragon. Soon we’ll have three brand new Pickleball Courts at Mt. Pisgah thanks to a collaboration with the High Peaks Pickleball Club, and major infrastructure plans are being engineered for Main Street, Ampersand Avenue and Lake Flower Avenue. All of this progress has been made possible by our village staff, our residents, and with the support of our board of trustees.

And just Thursday, with village board cooperation, I’ve appointed Bachana Tsiklauri — our current treasurer — to village manager. I’ve also appointed Patrick Murphy — our current deputy treasurer — to treasurer. These are key roles that must be filled and I appreciate these gentlemen for stepping up. It allows us to keep our institutional knowledge in house and I know they’ll do a great job.

Turnover of staff is to be expected. No matter who’s fulfilling the various roles of our village government, we’re going to keep making progress. Let’s not get distracted. Our future is bright. Let’s work together to do what’s best for Saranac Lake.

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Jimmy Williams is the mayor of Saranac Lake and owner of two local businesses.