CANTON -- The Municipal Building Board Room was packed and more chairs were brought in as Mayor Mary Ann Ashley delivered a “State of the Village “ message at the village board’s meeting Jan. 21.

The mayor summarized the village’s accomplishments over the last year – “There were hundreds,” she was quoted as saying – including a budget that stayed under the two–percent tax cap with no increase in taxes or water and sewer rates, a decrease in the debt load of the village, and cuts in spending, and new contracts negotiated with the Water and Wastewater Unit and with workers in the Department of Public Works.

Her review also included a report on the police department that included the hiring of a new permanent chief and a fully staffed department with less overtime and a declining rate of complaints to respond to.

Other points included the discussions with the railroad company CSX over village safety and train speed, discussions which the mayor says will continue; the dissolution of the village court; the completion of the major downtown project by the state DOT; other street and bike trail paving, new sidewalks, and paving the Pavilion parking lot with the town; and the planting of nearly 150 trees in the past three years.

The village also worked on a community action plan and rearranged its economic development structure with a new revolving loan fund with the township; revised the structure of the Recreation Department with a new village position of golf superintendent for the municipal course at Partridge Run and a new contract with a marketing specialist, to encourage more participation and increase revenues.

The village also continued its examination of services that can be shared with the town, and started a Shared Services Committee, Mayor Ashley reported.

The new mayor listed her top three goals as:

• an infrastructure plan aimed at promoting sustainable growth with subsidiary goals of decreasing taxes and better management of village workers

• devising more ways to collaborate “at all levels”

• ease implementation of the goals of the Board of Trustees and village departments.

Multi-year goals include open and clear communications among citizens, businesses and institutions in the village and beyond, and increasing transparency in government and interest in participation.

On financial matters, Ashley said she would emphasize a continual effort at seeking efficiency in operations to keep spending down, especially in consideration of the “35% of the property owners who pay 100% of the taxes; diligent work to increase the tax base; and to consider the value of hiring a village manager.

A continuing long-term goal of the village has been development of a second village water source. Ashley added other infrastructure goals such as a continuing program of upgrades to water and sewer systems, streets and sidewalks, and looking at new locations for the police department and DPW.