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Leishman Point > Socio-Economic Data
a. High Unemployment in St. Lawrence County
The North Country has some serious economic problems, as evidenced by the recent layoffs at Alcoa and Macadam Cheese, and addressing this issue should be the top priority.
In addition to a persistent high unemployment rate compared to the rest of New York and the country, St. Lawrence county suffers from having one of lowest income per capita in the state (58th out of 62 counties) and in the nation. Citizens make less money per person than those in the state of Mississippi.
b. Waddington Loosing Diversity/Proving Costly
The Village of Waddington suffers from an exodus of its youth – which detracts from the sociological diversity that is crucial to the long-term vitality of a community. The census data shows that the number of youths under the age of 18 decreased 28% from 1990 to 2000. A decreasing youthful population is very evident in the Madrid-Waddington School District where the number of pupils in JK through grade 5 has decreased from 432 students in 1997-98 to 345 in 2002-03. That is a 20% drop in just 6 years! This will have a very negative impact on the NYS financial aid that the district receives in the coming years. This will likely lead to significantly higher school tax rates in the next 5 to 10 years, unless this trend is reversed.
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The overall population of St. Lawrence County decreased slightly from 1990 to 2000.
These figures support the NYPA study which said that building housing on surplus lands is not desirable because it would erode the housing market away from the water. Usually additional housing is not sought in regions that are consistently loosing population.
While Waddington would stand to gain population from building housing on its waterfront, it would be minimal, finite, of aging demographic and likely at the expense of surrounding communities. Once all of the waterfront property is filled with luxury homes, which would eventually occur, there would be nothing left on the water to attract more people to the community. Waddington would essentially loose access to its most valuable resource. This could happen in the next 20 to 30 years if the town proceeds with its large lot subdivision plans for Leishman and (most likely) the Whitehouse Bay area. This is a very narrow minded and short-term approach to development that would have very adverse consequences for future generations.
c. Economic Multiplier
It is well-known that households typically do not contribute much to their local economy. The 1997 St. Lawrence County Agricultural Plan shows that the economic multiplier for households is only $0.64; far lower than the next lowest, apparel manufacturing, at $1.26. Hotel and recreation have a multiplier of $1.43, and eating/drinking establishments have a $1.44 multiplier. In other words, for every dollar earned by a household, only 64 cents stays in the local economy. Conversely, for every dollar earned by a hotel or restaurant, an additional 43 cents or 44 cents is generated and stays locally.
This is especially true in bedroom communities where a resident’s place of employment may be miles away from the home. In this case, the resident usually shops on the way home, at stores closer to the place of employment, since retail choices in bedroom communities are usually limited and prices are typically higher.
Waddington is a prime example of this phenomenon. The influx of new waterfront residents has done little for local businesses, as is apparent by the continued decline of Main Street. With the closing of the movie rental store, all that remains of the retail trade on Main Street is a liquor store, a laundromat, and restaurant that is open for dinners 4 nights a week. A couple of businesses on Route 37 are doing okay as they attract customers on their way through Waddington. Main Street will need to find a niche, such as specialty retail shops that cater to tourists to have any chance of success.
This is one of the main reasons the WRA favors development on surplus lands that helps attract visitors.
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Households
Contribute Least to Local Economy – From St. Lawrence County Agricultural Plan
d. Cost-Benefit of Residential Developments
Documents WRA has studied, including a study by Ohio State University, indicate that areas with a lot of industrial development usually have large fiscal surpluses or generate tax revenues that exceed additional public services, while residential areas have fiscal deficits. It is very unusual for a community to aspire to be a bedroom community, but this seems to be the goal of the Waddington Town Board.
“When
the number of residents who commute out of a community exceeds the number of workers who
commute into a community by a large margin, existing residents are likely to be concerned
that additional residential development may lead to increases in their property tax rates. Is no surprise that local leaders and residents of
bedroom communities frequently oppose additional residential development.” (Ohio State University)
Waddington and St. Lawrence County need to have more business properties on the tax rolls to help reduce the burden on residential property tax payers.
