As the village nears the end of another summer season, the board of trustees looked at ways to deal with persistent problems on Main Street.

The police committee last week listened to representatives from almost a dozen downtown businesses about how to deal with congestion that often stalls traffic on Main St. as delivery trucks and tourists jockey for too few parking spaces and Monday night, trustees renewed the discussion.

"This is a problem we need to address," mayor Carol Waller said.

Police committee chairman Paul Kuhn said there had been many interesting suggestions presented by merchants and suggested trying a voluntary ban on deliveries between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Some merchants were concerned that limiting delivery times may make it harder to get suppliers to come to Cooperstown, but police chief Diana Nicols commented that a number of drivers had said they would prefer to come to the village earlier in the day to avoid the congestion. One roadblock to earlier deliveries was the unwillingness on the part of some merchants to be there to receive the goods, drivers said.

Kuhn said they will try to compile a list of delivery companies and send them a letter asking for their participation in the voluntary program.

Once they see the level of compliance, the board will know "what kind of problem we have left," he said.

Kuhn told fellow board members that he was on Main Street recently when there were four delivery trucks between the flagpole and the entrance to Doubleday Field.

"I was almost hit twice in the period of five minutes," he said. "It's a horrible problem. I think some pedestrian is going to get clipped before long if we don't do something."

Trustee Jeff Katz said he believed that it may be possible to find a little more middle ground if everyone is willing to give a little bit.

Kuhn said the police committee again discussed parking tickets and the idea that it may be possible to re-ticket vehicles for an ongoing violation of the two-hour limit. But village attorney John Lambert said he believed there would be "serious enforcement issues" and suggested the best way to handle it would be through increased parking fines.

Police officers, Kuhn told the board, often hear comments from visitors that the $20 fine is a cheap price for all-day parking. The current fine, he said, does not act as a deterrent to over-limit parking.

Parking enforcement officer Jennifer Gilbert spends her day patrolling Main Street and said Tuesday that the current $20 ticket does not stop visitors from parking past the two-hour limit.

Gilbert said one Dreams Park family from Philadelphia she spoke to believed the $20 fine represented cheap parking. They told her after being here last summer, they budgeted $20 a day for parking for this year's trip.

"Twenty dollars a day for parking, that's how they see it," Gilbert said. "They find out it's one ticket a day so they stay there all day."

Kuhn had pushed to raise the fines to $50 in May, but trustees did not support the proposal. Motions to increase the fines to $30 or $35 were defeated at the time in favor of re-ticketing cars.

The board set a public hearing for Sept. 18 on a change in the law to raise parking fines to $35, except parking in front of fire hydrants, which will remain at $50, and parking illegally in handicap spot, which will stay a $100 fine.

Hearings have also been scheduled for a change that prohibits left turns from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. when leaving Doubleday Field at both Main St. and Chestnut St.

The final public hearing next month will address the growing number of businesses which are displaying merchandise outside the store.

Kuhn said there has been much abuse this summer, including a number of shops which do not have a vending permits. A vending permit is required for outside display and it must be done on private, not public, property.

"I find this not only a safety concern, but what's going on in the village is very tacky. I think it has gotten very much out of hand," Kuhn said, adding that he believes vending permits should no longer be issued.

The public hearing will address an amendment to the law that would do way with vending permits.

Nicols told the board that one of the biggest complaints the police department has received this summer relates to unattended kids and the stink bombs they have been releasing.

Katz said he had received a number of calls from residents about the situation on Main Street about groups of unattended kids from the Dreams Park. There have been some instances where the young players have been disruptive and noisy. There has also been a revival of the stink bombs which were popular a few summers ago. The bombs are purchased locally from F.R. Woods on Main St.

Katz said that in talking with some of the parents about the problems, it became apparent that they were on vacation and had the "feeling that this is their playground."

If we can get no help from the parents or the Dreams Park, he said, "there has to be a point where we push back."

Katz said many residents feel there is nothing that can be done, but he and Nicols agreed it was a police matter.

"I encourage people to call," the chief said.