Ulster County has studied ideas on how better to manage its courts, economic development efforts and road maintenance and on ways local governments can collaborate more effectively. Now, the county is sharing its findings with the release of voluminous reports that could set the stage for revamping long-static arrangements.
The reports on municipal shared services and collaborations were released by Ulster County on July 15. The centerpiece of the study is the comprehensive Summary Report on Intergovernmental Collaboration compiled by Gerald Benjamin and Joshua Simons of the SUNY New Paltz Center for Research, Regional Education and Outreach.
The Summary Report includes more than two-dozen areas for potential collaboration and cooperation.
The ideas range across an array of governmental concerns.
The study found that many courts in Ulster County are insolvent, spending more than they take in in revenue. To make justice more effective and more affordable, for example, it is recommended that officials look to create regional courts for serving municipal needs of adjacent communities.
Planning services can be expensive and duplicative. The report recommends creating “circuit riders,” professional planners and code enforcement personnel who serve more than one government. The administrative arm could be arranged by a council of governments who agree to collaborate and set up a funding structure that details the duties and requirements they need from the professional traveling planners.
Creation of a “super economic development agency” to serve as a single point of entry for the array of  economic development efforts around the county  is another  proposal. The study found that the nonprofit Ulster County Development Corp. was the most likely choice to serve as the single point of entry, but said that some tweaking of  structure and administration might prove beneficial.
The water supply for the area is “an environmental asset and key economic development resource,” the report states, but notes that for cost reasons, officials have largely ignored  a series of reports over decades on how to bring better collaboration to water supply matters. The report raises many of the same ideas of regional interconnectivity, which would provide backup supplies and help upgrade aging infrastructure.
Shared sanitation services is another area ripe for savings through better collaboration. The report notes that Kingston in 2007 entered a 15-year period of converting waste into fertilizer pellets. Yet, since Kingston has not grown as much as anticipated, the system has excess capacity, which other municipalities can utilize helping both Kingston and themselves.
The year-long study effort that was led by Jonathan Drapkin, CEO of Pattern for Progress, a mid-Hudson planning and policy organization. It included experts from the Center for Research, Regional Education and Outreach, the Intergovernmental Studies Program at Rockefeller College ”“ University at Albany, Fairweather Consulting and the Center for Local Government at Binghamton University.
County Executive Mike Hein said the next step is to create plans of action for implementing the ideas raised by the reports, but there is no firm timetable. The reports are available on the county website.
