Mayor Tillapaugh, Coop Village Trustees Run for Re-election

By ERIC SANTOMAURO-STENZEL
COOPERSTOWN

At a party caucus on January 22, Cooperstown Democrats selected candidates to run for village seats in the March 18 election. Incumbent Mayor Ellen Tillapaugh and trustees Molly Mooney, Joseph Membrino, and George Fasanelli are all running to continue in their roles.

The mayor’s term for election is two years, while Membrino and Fasanelli are running for three-year trustee terms. Recently-appointed Mooney runs to complete a one-year trustee term. The positions are unpaid.

“I think any position you sort of get in it for a year or two, and then you finally understand how it operates,” Tillapaugh, first elected in 2018, said in an interview.

She said she was passionate about seeing through projects like the affordable housing at 217 Main Street and collaborative efforts with other municipalities to maintain the health of Otsego Lake.

“There are things that I’m very familiar with that I think I can just keep flowing right along, and there wouldn’t be an abrupt end to any of these projects,” Tillapaugh said.

Recent issues before the board have included a variety of infrastructure grants, development proposals, funding the seasonal trolley service, a proposed dog park, and concerns about Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In balancing the local tourism economy and needs of year-round residents, Tillapaugh told AllOtsego that “it all works together.”

“Some of our success in getting grants is because we’re a visible, viable tourism leader, and our name is out there,” she said.

Tillapaugh also pointed to the implementation of summertime parking, which she said Cooperstown was one of few villages to do and “that’s become one of our larger revenue streams.”