Draft audit shows little concern for Town of Niagara; regular meeting set for Tuesday

By Timothy Chipp

Contributing Writer

Town of Niagara officials continue to review their required external audit this month, with plans to formally file the paperwork in June.

Members of the town’s board met during a work session May 10, discussing the prepared audit with Charles Trottier, senior managing partner with Elma-based accounting firm Drescher & Malecki LLP.

Trottier delivered some good news, saying the firm is preparing to issue clean opinions on its accounting procedures, the optimal outcome of a months-long process.

Board members will hear the final report in June after its draft is complete.

Trottier said the audit only inspects the procedures the town uses and doesn’t dig deep to identify if there is any wrongdoing on the part of the town, though.

“We perform procedures to let us know if fraud exists, but we don’t look for fraud (explicitly),” he said.

This marks the second year Drescher & Malecki has audited the town, following up on a similar clean opinion in June 2022.

That audit, Trottier said, was more in-depth as it marked the first time the firm was reviewing the town. With a better understanding of how the town operates, the auditors were able to proceed much quicker.

While the audit won’t be a focus of the Town Board’s May meeting, set for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Town Hall, 7105 Lockport Road, there will be plenty of items on the table for discussion.

The audit was one of 17 agenda items discussed May 10, with other items including a second amendment of the lease agreement with T-Mobile for a mobile network antenna on top of the town’s water tower at Town Hall.

Town officials are seeking to increase the rent for the space by $300, citing upgraded electronics, including more antennas, at the tower.

Also discussed May 10 was a request by Brian Beiter, water and sewer superintendent, to hire one seasonal employee for each of his two departments, expected to start June 5 for a duration of 12 weeks.