TIPS FOR SKIP

Tip #1

The American flag colors are RED, WHITE and BLUE.  While it’s nice to have the flowers planted at the end of Union Avenue your planting directions are a little askew.  The colors are, starting with the outside ring and working into the center BLUE, RED, and WHITE.   Switch the flowers so they either start inside out as red, white & blue or outside in as red, white & blue.  The only other thing I can figure is that you are honoring another country.

Tip #2

This advice would be like the decision to you made to save money and buy regular pick-up trucks rather than 4 wheel drive pick-ups for plowing snow.

You can save money by not replacing the brown (dying) bushes in our ‘crown jewel’ Congress Park by doing these two steps.

1. Purchase cases of glue in spray cans and spray all the bushes so the needles don’t fall of the branches.

2. Purchase several cases of evergreen color spray paint and spray the dead branches.

IS SCIROCCO TAKING THE CITY DOWN?

Is Commissioner Scirocco taking the City down with him?  Listening to him at the Council meeting last night, one would think we had a 5^th grader sitting on the Council.  He just couldn’t get it through his head that the DEC cannot issue titles like lead agency.  He was repeatedly told by the City Attorney about this fact and she even read the part of State law that deals with the Racino issue.  Another item his brain couldn’t grasp was that the law also states that any ancillary buildings even if they have no gaming in them (like Vapors) is still under the State Law passed in 2001 in that the City does not have to be consulted as long as the Racino follows all the regulations that the State mandates.  It must be tough for him to try and keep up with what goes on in Saratoga.  We have to remember that when Scirocco was Supervisor he was against the Racino locating in Saratoga and he seems to have carried a lot of hate with him over the years and is bringing it out again.

A funny statement he made was that ‘no one from the Racino ever called him, ever’.  The Mayor then said that she has called them many times and has set up meetings with them and even to discuss items relating to the expansion and was always put through to someone to talk to.  She did give some important advice to Scirocco, “call them”.  I doubt that will ever happen, have you ever tried to speak with Mr. Scirocco?  Call him at City Hall and leave a message to call you back?  Try to email him seeking a short answer regarding any matter, good luck.  Many people I know have left 10 to 15 phone messages and at least as many emails with not so much as a peep back from him.  I think the reason these people called and emailed so much was to see how many times it would take to get a response but good old Commissioner Scirocco broke them down and they gave up.

The most disgusting tribute to the Scirocco era is how bad the entrances to the City and the downtown flowers look.  THERE ARE NO FLOWERS except the ones in front of stores that they themselves planted; there are however, many, many weeds in the flower beds around the trees on Broadway.  Maybe he is going for the natural look this year.

The entrances themselves are another matter, heading North on Rt. 9 past the Honda dealership the islands are mowed like a golf course and flowers are planted and look very nice.  The State takes care of these islands and you can tell where the City takes over, the islands grass looks like it was mowed to sell hay, again the flower beds are weeds with no flowers (they should be in the ground by now).  He certainly shows how visitors what to look forward to when they enter the City.

Moving on to our “gem” in the City, Congress Park.  Take a walk around our gem and visit Spit and Spat, the evergreen shrubs are half dead (the brown color looks great, just kidding) and weeds seem to be the flower of choice.  The shrubs throughout the park have a big problem, half of them are dead, now I can’t blame this on Scirocco but replacement should have started in early spring.  The hill across from the Casino looks like a hay field, the weeds must be 5’ high and the message board at the end of Union Ave. is full of prize winning weeds.  NYRA has already planted the islands they maintain on Union Ave. and the grass is well manicured, however, like everything else, the islands down Union Ave. that the City maintains have no flowers and the lawns look like hell.

Scirocco has destroyed in a few years what it took quite a while to do, namely make Broadway look clean and crisp.  When you spend over $22,000.00 on flowers and by June 3^rd the City still looks dirty and full of weeds it’s no wonder why Scirocco can’t grasp what a 5^th grader should know.

Now, on to some important matters.  The Commissioner still has not answered the question posed to him by many people and that is did he forgive the payment of water hookups at the Bonacio project on Weibel Ave. to the tune of $880,000.00?  Did he forgive the water hookups to the attorney who built 3 new homes on Jefferson St.?  This attorney has land next to these houses and it is said intends to build 8 more homes.  The Commissioner put a new water main on Gridley Avenue, was it for this attorney? Will these water hookups be forgiven also?  Will you answer these questions at a Council meeting Commissioner and offer proof of payment if made?

There has also been a problem at the landfill with the methane gas for years and the State hounded Commissioner for years to install a gas flaring system to safely get rid of the underground buildup which is at dangerous levels.  The State was very upset with Scirocco that for 3 years after the City said in writing that they would take the necessary steps to get the flare system installed it still was not acted on.  The grant section of the State was ready to take back some of the $500,000.00 in grant money the City received but the City started to act and the State decided not to request any monies to be paid back  hence the motion by Scirocco at tonight’s Council meeting to have the Council pass action to fund the program.

Another feather in Scirocco’s cap,  DPS as most everyone knows is remodeling the offices and other areas of the department.  It seems like there have been change orders like there are on any project, but in this case Tim Wales the City Engineer has cried to Scirocco that there is no one acting as clerk of the works and looking to keep check on the project and want Commissioner Scirocco to hire an outside firm to act as the overseer.  Now, the City employees a City Engineer who is paid over $101,000.00 plus benefits and an Asst. City Engineer who is paid over $95,000.00 plus benefits.   The question I have is why can’t one of these two do the job or the Building Inspector for that matter since this is an in house project?  I guess Scirocco is like former Mayor Johnson in these matters, it is better to spend 3 times as much on outside help than use our own employees who God forbid would have to work a little.

How much more can we take of incompetent leadership?  Oh yeah, you elected him to do just this.

Who is this Robert Davis guy and is he a real person from Saratoga or a comedian from Albany?

CHAPTER 3

I know Chapter 3 comes on the heels of Chapter 2 but Chapter 3 kind of finishes off SAVE. Tonight’s Council meeting may have finished off the SAVE groups plot to stymie the Casino & Raceway’s plans to expand.  Speaker after speaker played the same tune as in previous Council meetings (they don’t want the Racino to expand, period).  However, much to the chagrin of the SAVE group, the City’s  outside legal expert in  SEQRA cases  told the Council and those in attendance and online during a Q & A that any lawsuit to become lead agency would fail and cost the City a lot of money for basically nothing.  He stated that the City filed an Article 78 in a similar case in 2006 and lost and he also commented that the laws have gotten tougher against Cities in these cases.

Also our esteemed DPW Commissioner asked Skip Carlson ‘how much time does a customer stay and play the slots’?  This is another gem from the lips of the Commissioner.

I know it’s never over until the fat lady sings but I thought I did hear Robert Davis singing ‘We All Live in a Yellow Submarine’, as he left the building. 

CHAPTER 2

Well, Chapter 2 regarding the Casino/Raceway scuffle has gone to the proponents of an expansion at their property.  Round 1 went to SAVE Saratoga with a no vote from the Council as far as a casino coming to Saratoga.  I still think that Saratoga will get a casino because if one is located in E. Greenbush or Albany it will be a set back for businesses and dining establishments in and around our City and I don’t just mean Broadway.

The article hit the newspaper last Friday morning regarding the City’s status in what involvement they have in the project, Saratoga Springs was listed as an involved agency, meaning they had discretionary approval of the plans and now is a City which has none because any changes goes through the  State’s Office of General Services..  The demand from the Mayor a week earlier of ‘they (Racino) HAVE to go through the City’s Land Use Boards to I hope they will go through the Land Use Boards, sorry Mayor, I don’t think they will play ball with you on this one since you shafted them on the issue already.

I feel we need another convention center and it will fit in nicely with what we have now instead of chasing business to Albany as Mark Baker has done in the past when his City Center is booked.

It is interesting reading the comments that are written by citizens at the bottom of the article printed on the free online version of the Saratogian.  It seems the SAVE group sometimes referred by commentators as Saratogian’s Against Virtually Everything have become quite loud and nasty in their posts.  Water is an issue at the Racino with them now tapping into the County water supply, so the Councils past actions have hurt the City in this respect also. 

Talking about City water, DPW is installing 2 new water lines on Gridley & Crescent.  The project is $90,000.00 just for parts alone; labor cost information is being withheld according to sources.  These 2 water lines benefit the flat track and the City is picking up the tab.  By the way, the track gets plenty of water now but 2 years of a chlorine problem where the track had to shut down 80% of water usage for days is the reason Skip is installing the lines which is supposed to solve the City’s chlorine problem to water that goes into the track.

THOUGHTS & THINGS

It is my understanding that all City vehicles have to be marked with either City emblem with Saratoga Springs somewhere on the side of the vehicle, or like the Police & Fire cars & trucks the City name spelled out with the exception of Police undercover vehicles.  You may ask yourself, why does the Commissioner of Public Works and his Deputy ride around with the City of Saratoga Springs vehicles with no designation that they are Saratoga city vehicles?  Many people I know see the Deputy at the Mall, Targets, Walmart and they say at clubs during working hours.  If a vehicle is owned by the City then they should be marked as such, unless Skip & Tim are using their own vehicles.

It is now known that both Andrew Jarosh and Ken Ivins will be vying for the County Treasurer’s job which pays around $99,000.00 per year in salary alone.  Saratoga County's cities and towns will be endorsing one of these 2 sometime in the near future.  I predict that Jarosh will get the City of Saratoga’s nod and Ivins will pick up the bulk of the other committees endorsements with John Herrick’s backing. Herrick is not fond of Saratoga Springs candidates as we found out during last year’s election when the County Republican Committee gave hardly any money to boost the chances of Republican candidates.

Ivins has the experience of being the City’s Finance Commissioner and did a good job while in office and should be the front runner.

Jarosh, although young has the benefit of his wife being the Deputy Commissioner of Ivins and now a high level employee of Sonny Bonacio, so money will not be a problem for him.

It will be interesting to see if a primary will be held in September between these 2 or if Ivins is the endorsed candidate will Jarosh accept the position of Chairman of Saratoga Springs Republican Committee?

Is there any truth in the story I heard regarding a pass to not pay for water hookups that a local developer received from the DPW Commissioner to the tune of close to $1 million dollars?  If this is true that means the taxpayers of Saratoga Springs will have to pick up the tab.

We will be checking this out to see if it is indeed true and if it is we will try to FTM.

RIP VAN WINKLE (SCIROCCO) WOKE UP

I attended the Council meeting on Tues. April 1^st and as I sat there and watched the SAVE group who were happy in one sense but nervous in another.  The were thanking the Council for changing their minds from a year ago when they voted yes to expanded gaming by a 5-0 margin to changing their minds in March not to allow the expansion of table games.  However, they were a little nervous as was Commissioner Scirocco because the vote they took in March was non binding as they wanted to see what the RFA required and also see what negotiations could be achieved with Saratoga Casino & Raceway.

The issue looks moot for Saratoga getting a casino anyway because of the Albany proposal.  That proposal blows Saratoga out of the water and will truly become a destination venue which looks like it will even cut into the track season with the plans that the Albany casino has.

SAVE, now wants to go after the Saratoga Casino & Raceway to not be able to expand at all.  Get this through your heads SAVE, the City cannot make the Thoroughbred track, Harness track or Racino do anything or make them jump through any hoops to build or not build.  The City does not own the property, the State governs what can or cannot be built there.  The convention center and hotel will get under way very soon and has the go ahead to do so.

Now here is the comical part of the meeting.  If you remember at the State of the City address, Mayor Yepsen appointed a local Racing Committee made up of racing people from the Thoroughbred, Harness and businesses dealing with both industries to monitor the effect on developments that will keep our City officials up to date on any positive or negative trends that start to happen.  She introduced the Committee members who are outstanding in their own fields and they stood to a round of applause.  Last night when Mayor Yepsen announced that this Committee would look at a proposal for a casino to be placed somewhere close by and what it may mean for our economy, our sleepy Commissioner asked who appointed this committee?  Why is this Racing Committee just for Saratoga Springs, we already have a NYS Racing Committee?  When was this Committee appointed?  Obviously Scirocco fell asleep during the Christmas Holiday’s and woke up on April Fool’s Day. 

Speaking about Rip Van Scirocco, is everyone happy with how clean downtown has looked the past few years?  I have received some comments from friends that the streets never looked as dirty as they have been in the last few years.  I think either Rip or his outside Deputy needs to stay on top of this and they may even have to check with the inside Deputy, Donna Buckley to make things work.

In closing, I would like to ask Commissioner Scirocco to apply for the license to apply the copper sulfate to the ponds in Congress Park this year before you drift off again.  You forgot last year and the ponds looked like swamps which were quite embarrassing when showing a beautiful park to out of town visitors.  Get with it 

THE COST OF DOING BUSINESS?

A few years ago Commissioner Franck wanted to look into an earlier closing time for downtown bars except during our ‘season’ from Memorial Day through Labor Day.  Needless to say the rest of the majority Council at the time brushed his idea aside.

Public Safety Commissioner Chris Mathiesen ran on a platform with one of the planks being rolling back the closing time of bars because of serious late night problems.  He was intent on doing something about the problems and police overtime especially that which is focused on Caroline Street.  However, again he met with resistance, this time from the Board of Supervisors whose job it is to approve any earlier closing time for the County as a whole not just 1 town or 1 City. Because of Commissioner Mathiesen’s diligence, Washington and Warren Counties looked at what the cutback in hours would mean for them and the 2 Boards of Supervisor’s did establish earlier closing times.  I think it is time again for Saratoga County to listen to our Commissioner because it is a real problem downtown and not just blow him off because he is from the minority Party.

This brings me to another big problem.  I was at the Council meeting Tuesday night and heard Tom McTygue ask Commissioner Mathiesen what the cost to the City was when SPAC hosts the Phish concerts.  Normally there are 2 per year but in 2014 there will be 3.  Phish fans destroy the State Park rendering it a filthy mess taking Park staff 2 days to clean up.  I also put Dave Matthews in this category but at a slightly lower level of destruction because of their fan draw.  Saratoga pays our Police to handle the crowds and parking, we pay Saratoga County Sheriffs double pay to do the same and we also pay off duty State Troopers double pay and pay for their hotel rooms while they are working here, this year it will be a two night hotel stay.  Saratoga Hospital is also over flowing with legal aged and underage kids who are so drunk that some have almost died from alcohol poisoning drug use.  These fans remind me of the Deadheads who followed the Grateful Dead from venue to venue.  I am glad they love the music but they add nothing to our community for these 2 or 3 night concerts.  They camp out at State Parks or anywhere they can without being roused by the Police or go back home, only to come back the next day.  They do not frequent our hotels or restaurants nor do they shop downtown.  The little we do make is the small amount of sales tax from Burger King or McDonalds and the like, if you want to find out where they spend their money on food, visit the park the day after a concert and you will get an idea.

My question is first of all, why do we use Saratoga Police?  I thought Routes 9 & 50 were State roads, why our ambulances, shouldn’t SPAC have their own?  If they do use Saratoga’s Police and Ambulance shouldn’t SPAC reimburse Saratoga for each call?  SPAC should pick up the tab for the pay and hotel rooms for the State Police, after all it is in a State Park and the Park has its own Police force, why should we pay?  It’s about time we demand SPAC pay its share to Saratoga Springs, with the possibility of no Casino, we will need every penny we can get from wherever we get it from.  I hope the Commissioner provides us with the information he promised us he would and Commissioner, I applaud you for walking downtown to see first hand the late night problems and hope you take a drive on Rt. 50 about 6 the night of one of these concerts and a walk in the State Park the day after to see the problems and junk left by these concert attendees.

THE END OF THE LINE

These have been slow times but I have a bit of information from an inside Republican source.  David Harper, the City Republican Party Chairman will serve his last day this coming Thursday.  He is upset that he has gotten word he will not be considered to replace District Attorney Jim Murphy.  Murphy’s replacement looks like it will be Karen Heggen, First Assistant District Attorney.  It seems that the game of musical chairs between Judge Scarano, Jim Murphy and a DA replacement have been in place for a few years.  The source also indicated that as a segue to the DA’s chair Harper accepted the Chairman’s position; (don’t trust John Herrick).  It was also relayed that the City Republican Committee has asked Executive Committee member Andrew Jarosh to take the reigns and that he is deciding if he can fit the position into his schedule.

BUT I SAID YES LAST YEAR.

In a 5-0 vote the City Council Tuesday night voted against the State gambling law, leaving the door open for the State to still have Saratoga Springs as #1 on their list to put in a Saratoga style Casino after the bidder for a casino builds community relations.  I’m sure the Destination Saratoga group will bring to Albany past Mayors, Commissioners, Supervisors and current business owners who would like to see a Saratoga style casino placed here, to pressure them as well.

This vote holds no water with many as last year the council (except for Yepsen, who was not Mayor) voted 5-0 in favor of expanded gambling in Saratoga Springs and if Destination Saratoga does indeed go to Albany for talks, I am sure they will bring a copy of that resolution with them.  The leader of the no vote was none other than Commissioner Skip Scirocco, who if you remember pulled a circus act against having the Racino in Saratoga when he was a County Supervisor which contributed to his ouster from County politics.  Commissioner Scirocco will soon have his own problems when a story of epic proportions comes to light in the very near future, which may contribute to his ouster from City politics, but that will be played out another day.

Regarding the casino, Mayor Yepsen has called this the issue of the decade.  While I agree, there could be a part (b) that will be an issue of the decade and that is what will happen to Saratoga Springs if a casino is placed as far as 25-35 miles away?  We would be crazy to think that we could keep our same status as the destination city of NY.  A speaker at tonight’s meeting said that NYRA already owes the State $17 million dollars that it can’t pay  and without casino money the thoroughbred industry can’t even turn a profit.  The Governor wants NYRA to make money without the casino money and if it can’t, then our flat track will follow the trend of lower attendance and handle that has happened over the last few years and then we ask what then Commissioners?   We have 2 new hotels going up now and 1 on the board (I think) and that doesn’t count the numerous hotels built in the last 6 years.  The City will have more non occupied hotel rooms as it has empty condos.   Saratoga Springs lost its City in the Country charm years ago and our officials can’t accept this, we are becoming an over built city with no controlled growth (something I don’t think we ever had).  We need to do something to bring more people to Saratoga and the flowers on Broadway aren’t going to do it.

 PS:  Remember 43% also have a voice and can tilt an election.

THE TALE OF BABY FACE TIGHE

It had to happen.  The blogger who hated everyone and everything except Scott Johnson & Shauna Sutton has gotten himself in a pickle.  This is the blogger that spent every day for 3 years in the Mayor’s office getting material for his written attacks on other people, what do they think of him now?  The Past Mayor & Deputy certainly knew how dirty he played and what sickening attacks on the people he wrote about without any evidence, but hey, that’s how they wanted to play.

John the blogger is now an accused child pornographer and child porn promoter who is out on bail, some of his ardent followers say that he is being set up, State Troopers say Baby Face could face more charges, his attorney said “John certainly took on a lot of very powerful people in Albany and Saratoga counties … I don’t want to speculate on anybody’s involvement in what led to the charges.”  There will be a lot more happening in this case, we may still have the Russian connection he always talked about making an appearance.

The only thing I can say at this time is that there is a supply of soap- on- a- rope at the dollar store and Baby Face should stock up now because Mamma, he may be up the river.

YES WE GOT SNOW AND WE MAY BE SNOWED

I am putting this in a short post as it is important  information and could be a two horse race in quest for the DA's post if Murphy wins the race for judge.  I had reported last year that David Harper, Republican Chairman for Saratoga Springs would take over the DA reigns, but today I have it on good word that an Assistant DA and who is on the Board of Saratoga Bridges with whom she works closely with John Herrick ($160,00.00 reportedly per year salary).  John has a penchant for appointing and/or creating positions for those like Shauna Sutton and former mayor John's executive Sec. Theresa to high paying County jobs.  Stay tuned and as I get more information I'll pass it along.

WHAT'S GOING ON?

The new Mayor has set an agenda for her term of hard work for all citizens, for getting things done and for breaking down the barriers that the previous administration had put up as a barrier between themselves and the everyday citizens.  It looks like the ‘good old boy network’ here in Saratoga has been put in moth balls for a while.  The best move so far has been the code blue she helped install in the City and the second was the removal of Clifford Van Wagner as head of the Planning Board.

Also, I am glad that she and the Council haven’t and hopefully won’t take a vote on the sitting of the Casino in Saratoga Springs, let the State Committee do their work.

Saratogian’s hear all the time from the Save Saratoga group about the 58%.  I will tell you now that if a vote were taken today it would be 50-50 or less than 50% for those against casino in Saratoga.  I have heard from many people that voted against Proposition 1 and have changed their mind since it passed, that they would rather have the Casino here than in another community close by.  The worries of Save Saratoga (a) HIGHER HOMELESSNESS is happening at an alarming rate without the Casino, (b) INCREASED GAMBLING ADDICTION, (most of the players will be bussed in and those who visit and stay in hotels will certainly take advantage of our downtown and restaurants), and the problem gambling issue can be addressed by the fine agency we have now in The Prevention Council.  (c) HIGHER CRIME – take a look in the papers, it is accelerating already. There is no worse gambling addiction than horse betting and I have never heard a peep about helping to control this affliction here.  Downtown merchants shouldn’t worry because if at least 20% of the people drawn to Saratoga by the Casino shop or eat downtown, that would be 20% more than now.

The water issue is another issue that seems to be going back and forth in Council meeting discussions.  The Commissioner said we have enough water for emergency conditions and that the back up sources are able to pump enough water to make up the difference in case we need it.  The other side has said that according to a DEC study the Bog Meadow wells cannot pump enough water to fill a water truck daily.  The Geyser wells are going bad as residents say the water pressure is quite bad.  The study done a few years back should be updated if only to give us the number of g/p/h can our existing wells and lake can pump.

A fact that all Saratogian’s should be worried about was discussed on a radio show I listen to.  Carrie Woemer lost a bid for our Assembly seat in November against Tony Jordan, who was also running for Washington County DA and gave up his Assembly seat on 12/31/13 leaving our District without representation.  Special elections have been called for by the 11 Districts without representation but have fallen on the deaf ears of Andrew Cuomo.  The reason could be because some of the elections (of Senate seats) if won by Republicans could give the GOP the majority, which our Democratic Governor won’t allow.  It should stir us up to let the Governor know we want representation as very important issues will be decided this term.  Save Saratoga and Destination Saratoga should come together on this issue of representation for Saratoga as well as the communities in our District.

WHY NOT IN THE SARATOGIAN?

Anyone getting the Gazette or the Times Union knows what is going on in Saratoga Springs.  The Saratogian it seems always leaves out some key articles that we have to be made aware of by an out of town newspaper. 

Case in point:

Scott Johnson made some 20 or more appointments to various Committees and Boards while walking out of City Hall New Year’s evening.  When a Mayor makes appointments, instead of appointing under a cloak of secrecy he/she will make a public announcement, most of the time at a Council meeting.  However, Johnson did not even mention the appointee’s names or even name the positions filled.  The main point of this post is that WE STILL HAVEN’T READ ABOUT THIS IN THE SARATOGIAN.  I will put parts of the Daily Gazette and the Times Union articles here:

Times Union editorial:

“During her successful campaign for mayor of Saratoga Springs, Joanne Yepsen vowed to better engage residents by holding community forums and creating citizen task forces to address the needs of the city’s 26,000 residents.

Her refreshing openness was a sharp contrast to the man she replaced on Jan. 1, Scott Johnson, who often shunned the public’s involvement in the business of the city.

Ms. Yepsen’s community engagement is the right approach for a city on the verge of a population boom fueled by major economic development. Add to that the thorny issues surrounding the possibility of the Saratoga Racino becoming a full-blown casino in a community that voted against a state ballot measure to legalize Las Vegas-style gaming.

But this new spirit of openness has had a setback. Just hours before he left office New Year’s Eve, Johnson arranged a surprise for Ms. Yepsen: He filled 20 vacancies on a host of panels, including the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals and an advisory committee on open space. The open space group hadn’t met in five years, raising the question that has to be asked about all these appointments: What made filling them so urgent that Mr. Johnson couldn’t leave it to his successor?”

…”Even if Ms. Yepsen finds she has no authority to undo Mr. Johnson’s last-minute packing of these boards and committees, there’s a civic-minded way to resolve this. The appointees should volunteer their resignations and let the mayor decide who stays and who goes. And we would look to Ms. Yepsen to give those candidates fair and full consideration.

Here’s a chance for Mr. Johnson’s appointees to renounce what by all appearances was a crassly political move, and an opportunity for Ms. Yepsen to show that she is ready to work with people from different political backgrounds. That’s the spirit of collaboration and bipartisanship the city needs as it confronts its future — a spirit both sides can show with their actions, not just words.”  Along with the editorial was a political cartoon of mini Johnson’s in a corner.

The Daily Gazette-

Story by Justin Mason

“Mayor Joanne Yepsen is questioning 20 political appointments made by her Republican predecessor during the last hours of his term, including several made to alternate positions on the city’s land use boards that were left empty for eight hours before she officially took over. Though all of the appointments were to volunteer positions, she said the timing, manner and shear volume gives cause for a legal review of what transpired during the closing hours of the Johnson administration.
   “It’s not transparent, and it’s never been done this way — at least not in a long time,” she said. “This was unprecedented as far as I know.”
   Yepsen said the appointments included posts on the Heritage Area Program Advisory Board and the Open Space Advisory Committee — an entity that hadn’t convened in roughly three years. Other appointments included alternate positions on the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals created by a City Council resolution in September 2012 but never filled.
   “Based on some of the appointments, they are clearly political appointments,” she said.
   Yepsen said she had a cordial transition meeting with Johnson prior to the holidays and that he only mentioned appointments she’d have to the city’s Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals and Recreation Commission. She said Johnson’s administration wasn’t forthcoming with a schedule of appointments and made no mention of the flurry that came several weeks later.
   “It was always curious why they wouldn’t share the appointment book with us,” she said. “I couldn’t get clarification from them about which appointments were open and which needed to be filled.”
…..“Yepsen said former Mayor Scott Johnson announced the appointments by memos issued to the commissioners at City Hall at 4:31 p.m. on New Year’s Eve, less than. She said the city attorney’s office is now reviewing the appointments to determine if they were made properly.
   Appointments to such boards and advisory committees are at the pleasure of the mayor, but Yepson said they're ordinarily disclosed at council meetings or by a public announcement.”

Though both papers questioned Mayor Yepsen not releasing the names, it may be because since they have not been publicly named by Johnson and some or all may resign.

This looks like any political gains Johnson and his Deputy made in 6 years if any will be wiped out by the 6 years of secrecy and his attitude of leaving citizens out of the loop when they should be in the know.  Also included was a cartoon of mini elephants in a corner with Yepsen holding a broom ready to sweep out the corner.

PRESSING THE COUNCIL

Given the fact that the previous Council passed a resolution regarding the Casino and that over 40% of Saratogian voters cast their ballots in favor of Casino gambling, I think the red shirts should calm down and wait until the facts are known before they storm  Council meetings.  The next scenario will be the group that is for a Saratoga Style Casino to be located in our City do the same and we will have dueling opinions at the microphone.  I don’t think debate is bad but can’t we wait until we can debate on known facts?

I know many voters who have expressed the opinion that they voted against Casino’s in New York State but since the bill passed they worry that if Saratoga is not a site and we have one close by, then Saratoga will take a negative hit on business in our downtown corridor.

The year ended on a sour note for Mayor Johnson.  Johnson, who at the 11^th hour on New Year’s Eve, made over 20 appointments to land use boards and filled the expiring positions of alternate zoning board members.  The appointments should have been made by incoming Mayor Joanne Yepsen.  This game they played must be remembered if either Johnson or Sutton ever runs for any political office again.

Speaking about Sutton, it was nice to see the job given to her by John Herrick in the County Clerks Office for $65,000.00 & benefits, if the budget reads right and Herrick threw Mayor Johnson’s Executive Secretary Theresa a bone as Executive Secretary to Spencer Helwig the County Administrator, at 47,000.00 & .  What two employees did Herrick leap frog to give jobs to these two girls?

Well, hopefully we are over the Johnson games, now maybe we can get back to some honest 2 Party representation on Boards and Committees, wouldn’t it be nice to work together than 1 Party be under the control of a little Napoleon? 

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

Well 2014 is starting out with a bang.  Snow and cold for a 36 hour period.

Inauguration of all elected officials were held today (Wed.) and all went well.  Congratulations to all, especially to new Mayor Yepsen who didn’t wait 2 weeks to install Code Blue.  She took the bull by the horns and put a plan in place, although I wish the 10 degree mark could be higher by at least another 10.  However, this should have been done years ago as other communities around the State took the proactive step.  Unfortunately, Saratoga Springs is a reactive City and it takes a death or a proactive politician to make things happen.

I was pleased to be wrong and see that Shauna Sutton has left the building.  I was not pleased however, to see that John Herrick gave her a plum job in the County Clerks office.  I would think that she would have to take a civil service exam to have the job but was told that they could delay the timing of the exam for a long time.  So, here we go again, full time County employee and full time cemetery Director, don’t you just love patronage jobs? 

I was surfing channels tonight and happened to catch the comment period of the televised Council meeting of 12/17, you know the one where Dave Bronner spoke about the proposed fire station (he repeated the same 4 sentences for at least 10 minutes and was never cut off by the Mayor).  Then when the Commissioner of Public Safety corrected some of his misconceptions, Bronner started yelling from his seat.

Cliff Ammon spoke as Cliff does about the 300 Save Saratoga that met to hear some information about the Casino and how we need to keep gambling out of Saratoga, could someone give Mr. Ammon a little history about what made Saratoga famous in addition to it’s water?  I read in the paper where Moreau would like to have the Casino at Mt. McGregor.  The site fits snug by Saratoga, Glens Falls and Lake George.  Moreau having a long shot at getting the Casino would certainly send customers to Lake George in the summer (yes, Lake George has a very long history as does Saratoga) which would be detrimental to us.  Also, they would not have to be restrained by our downtown businesses or City Center and would compete for both business and conventions/concerts, as a matter of fact if any other community around us gets the Casino, we would lose.  Horse racing attendance is down, SPAC cannot survive unless it has concerts that destroy the park and over burden our emergency rooms, where is the Ballet and the Orchestra, for which was the main reason SPAC was built?

The information night at the City Center gave me a few chuckles.  The head of the local Holiday Inn said that building the 135 room hotel on the Racino property, hotels downtown would suffer greatly; does she care about the 3 new hotels that are being built now as having an impact?  I also wonder if she feels that she is taking advantage of tourists when a room you can get from September thru June for $126.00 per night goes up to $356.00 (same room) for July & August with a minimum 2 night stay, this is standard for the hotel industry in the City.

This will be an interesting 3 months for this topic.

WATER COOLER CHIT CHAT

‘Twas a few weeks before Christmas and all through City Hall

Everyone was ready to say bye, bye to Scott Johnson’s snow balls.

The word was spreading about Shauna anew’

That the Deputy spot was hers at the DPW.

The whispers are saying how can this be?

When she can’t even repair a water main “T”.

It was heard that Joe O’Neil would lead the workers outside,

While Shauna will take care of the office inside.

This is odd they say as Skip and Shauna don’t get along’

But when an order from the top comes, you must be strong.

The next bit of news from the County does come,

That at the beginning of the year Judge Scarano will be done.

It’s too bad about the judge because he’s still in his prime.

But the ballot didn’t pass to give him more time.

Jim Murphy will leap into his seat with the gavel and robe

While the DA post it’s said will go to Dave Harper.

So we’ll wait until New Years Day to see if they are right

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

THE STORY OF SMALL BUSSINESSMAN VS. THE MIGHTY COUNCIL & BONACIO

It seems like the small businessman gets the shaft again when a big contractor like Sonny Bonacio wants the City to quash him.

The small businessman is the owner of the Fortunate Cup building, who for over a year has been trying to get his permanent CO for his building.  Unfortunately for him the City only grants him temporary CO’s.  He gave a reading of how the City has been treating him.

The City demanded that he plant a buffer of hedges and then gave him a credit line (a regular City practice) of $20,000.00.  The building owner wants to purchase the empty lot next door for a parking lot and will make the lot ascetically pleasing.  The City and Planning Board members beholding to Johnson & Bonacio- Cliff Van Wagner, Tom Lewis & Howard Pinsley say no way to the purchase and in fact the owner must remove 16 parking from the existing lot.  Now the kicker, who lives in the back of the empty lot?  Why, none other than Sonny Bonacio’s mother.  Also the City has recalled the credit line (something that has not been done in the last 20 years at least).

 Business in the building creates sales tax money for the City, so there must be a reason for the hard ball game.  The main players, the Planning Board members and Johnson & Sutton-Dowd cannot risk upsetting Bonacio.

CITY HAS A NEW INDOOR SWIMMING POOL

As of today, Saratoga Springs has a new indoor swimming pool and it has been named the Scirocco Victorian Pool.  We are so glad that the Commissioner put in new water filters at the water treatment plant so the pool has crystal clear water.  The left side of the pool is 6’ deep and slopes to 8’ on the opposite side.  It seems that when the tanks were being filled no one bothered to shut off the valve and the inside flooded.  This may be a bright spot for Scirocco, he wanted to add a new position but the budget wouldn’t allow for it and even after debate, when it came time to vote on the budget, Skip voted for it saying ‘this is a good budget’.  So he is looking for ways to make some new revenue.  The Rec. Center will lose more money than it did last year (thanks Scott & Shauna).  However, the Commissioner ever the opportunist will fill the pool with kiddy blow up tubes and rent them out ala the Carousal.   Too bad he didn’t get that new position, he could use a life guard at the new pool. Good luck Skip.

News Flash:  After promising that the houses on the East side by Saratoga Lake that he would not use the lake as a drinking source by Skip and the Republican opposition, they will now be supplied with water from the County pipeline and will add to their area by glowing at night, hopefully they will shine in different colors so they can form a Christmas wreath led by none other than Wilma Koss.

Well, some news just in.   Chris Mathiesen has just won election to his current DPS post.  This means that the only post that Shauna can have is Deputy Commish of Public Works.  This should not be a stretch for her because by learning to dig graves she would be a natural to work with the men putting new sewer lines in, as long as Donna says it’s ok.  It is said that John Harringbone (I know) is pushing Skip to get her in the trenches.

The City has a potential problem.   Following an alleged violent dispute, city police say they tracked the suspect to his home and, upon their arrival, were greeted by a man waving a meat cleaver at them. He was subsequently hit with a Taser and arrested.
Police say they arrived at the Saratoga Casino and Raceway at around 11 p.m. Saturday in response to an incident involving a man who left the premises following the dispute. The alleged head banger is accused of twice slamming a woman into a wall, pinning her in a door way so she could not move and threatening to “smash her face in” the next time he saw her.
 Upon entering his house, the officers had contact with the slammer who they described in a press release as uncooperative. He allegedly retreated into the back of the home and returned “brandishing a large cleaver above his head, waving it in a threatening manner and screamed at officers to get out of the house.”

After a few moments, the Tasee tossed aside the cleaver, struggled briefly with the cops, was hit with a Taser and taken into custody.  The problem now is the accused wants an independent investigation, it seems as he was shaking all over from the electric jolt he was alleged to have mumbled that all he was doing with the meat cleaver was cutting up a side of beef.

ELECTION NIGHT REFLECTIONS

Right now it looks like the Council table will have 4 Democrats and 1 Republican.  Congratulations to everyone that ran.  It has been rumored for some time now that if a Republican won, Shauna Sutton would be their Deputy, all of City Hall is shuddering if this comes to pass however, her role will be severely diminished and she will most likely have to do the paving and leaf pick up, among other physical jobs.

Shauna needs 2 more terms in office to qualify for lifetime health insurance paid for by the citizens of Saratoga Springs.

Also, there has been a rumor floating around that the reason that Scott Johnson did not run was because he wants to challenge Paul Tonko for Tonko’s Congress seat.  Good luck with that Scott.  Tonko is as popular among both parties as is Jim Tedisco.  Scott will never make it to Congress, but don’t tell Shauna who had a slip of the tongue election night when she said “In a few years, Scott, you and I might be working together again.” *Saratogian*.   Let’s hope Johnson goes and parks himself in Florida to work on his lobster tan and Shauna either works for Skip (where she will be 5^th fiddle) on a Council of 4 Democrats.
The race where the absentee ballots might change the outcome is the race for DPS.  The spread right now is about 121 votes for the incumbent, and if the number of the ballots that have arrived already it looks like Mathiesen will take the seat.

In closing, we say adios to Scott Johnson, it was nice knowing you, but we’re glad you are going.  Shauna, we are just super glad you’re going and hope it’s not true about Skip hiring you.

FAST & FURIOUS

With the election 1 day away it feels like the 7^th game of the World Series.  Information is flying faster than a fly over by Superman.

In startling news, if you haven’t heard it already, The Housing Authority last week hired an Asst. Director for the Housing Authority.  The announcement will be made after Election Day and the new hire is from Schenectady.  The word going around is that he is a good friend of the current Director, when asked by various people Board member Ken Ivins responded that he could make no comment.  It is very interesting that our local newspaper looks like it  hasn’t checked into the story yet  (remember, they did endorse Ivins), which is another secret the Saratogian looks like they want to keep quiet about because of the good old boy’s network.  We will read about this in the newspaper days after the election.

Let’s remember transparency is the key for good government and it looks like Ivins is already showing what he will do.