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A new $3.8-million City Hall with an Alpine motif, topped with a 73-foot spire and clock tower, is rising on the eastern edge of the city, at the corner of Main and North Oak streets. Completion of the 28,900-square-foot facility is expected to be completed in April 2008. The building will house city offices and council chambers, and the Gaylord Police Department and garage.
The city of Gaylord was incorporated in March 1922. Since then, it has become a regional business and recreation hub. The city operates under a home-rule city charter, as a council-manager government.
Gaylord developed an Alpine motif in the 1960s, lending a unique charm to the city, which has come to be known also as the Alpine Village. The residents of the city adopted Pontresina, Switzerland, in 1965 as Gaylord’s sister city, and the citizens of Switzerland sent Gaylord a boulder from the Swiss Alps in 1989, which now stands at the northwest corner of the courthouse lawn.
Gaylord’s Downtown Development Authority (DDA) completed a $2-million streetscape project in 1995, enhancing the city’s Alpine theme with stylish downtown lighting, parks, partially bricked pathways, benches and trees.
Another DDA project, the Pavilion on Court Street, officially opened in the summer of 2002. The structure, which nearly spans from Main to First Street, hosts farmers markets, concerts, antique markets, car shows and more, and is a central gathering area during Gaylord’s annual Alpenfest.
As Otsego County continues to grow, the city of Gaylord’s boundaries also have been expanded, extending water and sewer services to developing businesses.
The mayor, clerk and treasurer are elected positions with two-year terms that expire in January 2010. The city manager position is appointed by the Gaylord City Council. City offices are located in the County-City Building, 225 W. Main St., Room 109, Gaylord, until mid-April; offices will then be located in the new City Hall, 301 E. Main St., Gaylord; 732-4060
Clerk: Rebecca Curtis
Treasurer: Dave Duffield
City Manager: Joseph Duff
Mayor: Gladys Solokis, 732-1643
Mayor protem for 2008: Council member Joe Wambold
All council members serve four-year terms, with half of the six seats up for election every two years. The City Council meets the second and fourth Monday of each month in the City Council Chambers of the County-City Building, 225 W. Main St., Gaylord, until April; meetings will then be held at the new City Hall, 301 E. Main St., Gaylord; 732-4060
Council members:
Ward 1 Joseph Wambold (term expires Jan. 2012), 302 S. Center Ave., Gaylord, 732-1578
Ward 2 Todd Sharrard (term expires Jan. 2012), 709 West St., Gaylord, 732-7331
Ward 3 Gerald Campbell (term expires Jan. 2012), 124 E. Third St., Gaylord, 732-4311
At large:
Patrick Mankowski (term expires January 2010), 280 Grandview Blvd., Gaylord, 732-4773
Steve Johnson (term expires January 2010), 417 S. Elm Ave., Gaylord, 732-7911
Russell Jann (term expires January 2010), 502 S. Center Ave., Gaylord, 731-1116
Assessor: Debbie Dunham, 225 W. Main St., 732-4060
City Police Chief: Joseph FitzGerald, 225 W. Main St., Gaylord, 732-1777
Human Resources: Karen Clark, 225 W. Main St., Gaylord, 732-4060
Public Works Superintendent: Keith Roberts, City Garage, 102 E. Seventh St., Gaylord, 732-5475
Water Dept.: Steve Ciszewski, 102 E. Seventh St., Gaylord, 732-5475
Wastewater Treatment Plant: Dale LaBelle, 500 E. Seventh St., Gaylord; 732-0750
Board of Review: The board members serve three-year terms and hear tax assessment appeals in July and December, as needed; chairwoman is Debbie Dunham, 225 W. Main St., Gaylord, 732-4060
Planning Commission: The commission members serve three-year terms and meet the first Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at the County-City Building, 225 W. Main St., Gaylord, 732-4060; chairman is Roger Markham, 338 E. Fourth St., Gaylord, 732-6490
Zoning Board of Appeals: The board members serve three-year terms and meet the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, as needed, at 7 p.m. in the County-City Building, 225 W. Main St., Gaylord; 732-4060; chairman is Ronald Dickerson, 808 North Ohio Ave.; 732-5201
Gaylord Downtown Development Authority: Meetings are the first and third Tuesdays of each month, 7:30 a.m., Sugar Bowl Restaurant. Office is located at 225 West Main St.; 732-7073; chairman is Bob McNamara, 732-6471; vice chair is Diana Roney, 731-4245; interim executive director is Joseph Duff, 732-4060
Area: Approximately 5 square miles
Population: 3,681
Residential units: 1,200
Taxpayers: 2,800
2007 taxable value: $199,086,201
2007 SEV: $239,582,600
Government: Home-rule city charter
Registered voters: 2,000
Voting precincts: Wards 1, 2 and 3 vote at Otsego County Fire Hall, 811 S. Wisconsin Ave., Gaylord.
Tax levy (Principle resident property, or homestead):
City operating: 11.5869 mills
Street millage: 4.1513 mills
Waste water debt: 2.1 mills
City Hall/DPW debt: 1.0153
State ED tax: 6.0000 mills
County allocated: 4.0502 mills
County voted: 4.0033 mills
Gaylord schools
Voted (operating): 0 mills
Debt: 2.41 mills
Sinking fund: 1.1378 mills
Intermediate School
Allocated: .2597 mills
Voted: 1.4876 mills
Total: 38.2021 mills
Nonhomestead properties:
City operating: 11.5869 mills
Street millage: 4.1513 mills
Waste water debt: 2.1 mills
City Hall/DPW debt: 1.0153
State ED tax: 6.0000 mills
County allocated: 4.0502 mills
County voted: 4.0033 mills
Gaylord schools
Voted: 18.0 mills
Debt: 2.41 mills
Sinking fund: 1.1378 mills
Intermediate School
Allocated: .2597 mills
Voted: 1.4876 mills
Total: 56.2021 mills
City taxes on a home with a $100,000 market value (homestead) would be $1,910.11 yearly.