NORWICH – Mayor Christine Carnrike announced Friday that her first 22 months in office have been enlightening, challenging, and rewarding. She prepares for a second term in 2018 having filed petitions with the Board of Elections to appear on the November 7 ballot as both Republican and her independent party line, Our Future Is Now.
At the start of her first term Mayor Carnrike inherited an administration marked with processes, “loosely assembled” and quickly set about forming a new baseline for performance and expectation. She met with each department head and reviewed plans, reinforcing her message of accountability, efficiency and transparency.
Mayor Carnrike enjoys a respectful working relationship with the department heads, saying, “We need to work together, share ideas and get the job done. We’re in leadership positions to deliver solutions, not shrug and blame external factors, like Albany, for poor results.”
Mayor Carnrike is quick to point out that she may not have all the answers, though she has an unwavering commitment to the community and a practice for gathering facts, then making informed decisions for today and the Norwich of tomorrow.
In a recent conversation, Mayor Carnrike highlighted an early success of her first term, specifically the adoption of the 2017 Operating Budget, passed in mid-November of 2016 (on time), with a 0% property tax increase. She adds that this achievement was below the NYS imposed Property Tax Cap for the first time since the inception of this guidance.
“We are working hard to ensure taxpayer needs are met with the necessary services – Public Safety – Fire, Police, Code Enforcement, and Public Works – Streets, Water, Wastewater, Parks – while keeping expenses in check. I’d like to thank the work of the City Council in this process, too, as we are tested annually by the mandates imposed by New York State.”
Carnrike started her term just as Fred Akshar was elected to serve as Senator for the 52nd District, quickly forged a positive working relationship, and delivered another success for the city in the form of state-funding for body cameras for our Norwich Police and more recently funding for 2 new ambulances for the Norwich Fire Department. “This equipment was sorely needed by the departments and will serve our city for years to come.”
Mayor Carnrike is pleased to report that the city will implement a new accounting software program that will permit credit card and online payment options to settle business affairs. This streamlines back-office functions, yields access to financial information and supports our target of efficiency.
