Activist Kevin Gaughan is calling for a “summer-long conversation” after planning to file petitions today calling for votes to dissolve the villages of Farnam, Sloan and Williamsville. Photo by David F. Sherman Purchase color photos at www.BeeNews.com The day Sloan residents have both celebrated and feared for months finally arrived on Wednesday, as Kevin Gaughan filed his petition calling for the dissolution of the village government.

The civic activist walked into Sloan Village Hall just before 11 a.m. Wednesday with some of his volunteers and handed the petition of 400 names to Village Clerk Debra Smith.

Now the ball is in the village’s court. By law, the village has 10 days to validate all of the signatures. If it validates at least 220 of them, which would represent 10 percent of the village’s registered voters, the village board will have 30 days to set a referendum date. And the referendum vote must be held between 60 and 90 days of the decision.

Kevin Gaughan stands outside the Village of Sloan Municipal Building with volunteers Linda Goessett and Bob Gaik moments before filing the petition to dissolve the village government Wednesday morning. Photo by John Rusac Purchase color photos at www.BeeNews.com “I think by eliminating the unnecessary level of government, this community will prosper,” Gaughan said.

Sloan is one of three initial villages to receive a petition from Gaughan. He also delivered petitions to the Villages of Farnham and Williamsville on Wednesday. His plan is to force a vote in all 16 villages in Erie County.

Gaughan was very careful in deciding when to file the petition. Because of the mandatory window of when the vote can be held, he’s hoping to time that with primary day on Sept. 14.

“I respectfully urge the Sloan Village Board to choose that date so that the election does not cost the taxpayers extra money,” he said.

Still there was a hiccup in the process. Gaughan had intended to file the petition last week, but a mix-up in his office led to the misplacement of the Sloan petition. He and his volunteers quickly hit the streets again to reacquire the needed signatures. The original petition, he said, had 440 names on it.

Should the referendum not pass, by law, another petition to dissolve the village government cannot be filed for another four years. That is welcome news to those in the village who don’t want to dissolve the government.

“The village welcomes a referendum at this point, because it will put to rest this issue for at least four more years when it’s voted down,” said Smith after providing Gaughan and his volunteers with a time-stamped copy of the petition’s front page.

To that end, Gaughan is calling for a series of debates in Sloan, Farnham and Williamsville with the mayors and trustees. He said he sent a letter to each board member in Sloan, including Mayor Leonard Szymanski, proposing a series of community meetings throughout the summer to provide residents with every piece of information they need before voting.

“I believe in good faith they think that this is not the right thing to do,” Gaughan said of the board members. “In like manner, I, in good faith, think that the best way to preserve and sustain these villages is to shed the government. So I think they would be the most appropriate people to engage in the debates.”

Szymanski, who was sitting in his office when Gaughan filed his petition, said he would be open to discussing the situation with Gaughan.

“I’m not afraid to talk to him or anything like that,” Szymanski said. “As a matter of fact, that’s what a debate is, just talking it out. I want him to show me where we’re going to save taxes. Where are we going to save money?”

The issue has dominated discussions in Sloan and other villages for several months and has become a polarizing force in the communities. That was evident when Gaughan was standing outside of the Sloan Municipal Building Wednesday morning. In the span of 30 seconds, one motorist shouted out her car window “Yo u suck, Gaughan,” and another shouted “good luck, Kevin.”

There are many in the village who feel threatened by the proposed dissolution. Signs have popped up in Sloan and Williamsville telling Gaughan to “get out.” But the Buffalo attorney says this is not a war.

“The purpose of having this community conversation and debate and having this vote is not an occasion to draw battle lines,” he said. “It’s an occasion to engage each other in a constructive conversation, so that this community can thrive again.”

The most asked question of Gaughan’s project by residents is “what’s the plan?” While Gaughan’s Web site (www.thecost.org) lists the salaries for every elected official in each village, there hasn’t been a breakdown of exactly how services would transfer to another entity after dissolution. Many assume that the Town of Cheektowaga would take over, but that hasn’t been declared yet.

“You don’t need a government to have excellent services,” Gaughan said, adding he would provide his own plan on how Sloan could operate after dissolving the village government. “And you certainly don’t need, as a (Sloan) resident, three governments, the village, the town and the county.”

Both sides are confident that the vote will go their way.

“I want the village to stay as is,” Szymanski said. “People don’t know what they lose until it happens. I don’t think it will happen. I think that we’ll win in the end with the majority votes.”

“I haven’t lost yet,” Gaughan said, “and frankly, I don’t expect to.”

e-mail: mkrueger@beenews.com