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Christian comes back from meeting in Albany even more opposed to consolidation

By Howard B. Owens

Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian believes she has new evidence to feed her opposition to consolidation between the town and the city.

Christian and colleague Patti Pacino recently attended New York Conference of Mayors' Winter Legislative Meeting in Albany.

She says she heard horror stories about how consolidation is going in other municipal jurisdictions.

She said lawsuits and fees are skyrocketing.

From WBTA:

"One of the areas is with the fire department: volunteer versus paid. And now the volunteers want to get paid," Christian says. "The other one was the (village) police department, and where their jurisdiction is going to stop. Are they going into the town?"

Christian says Seneca Falls was one of the only approved consolidations in New York State. Municipalities almost everywhere else have voted it down. Christian says those votes have been very lopsided, and she believes it would be the same way here -- based on what she's heard about the town.

"So obviously they have to work everything out in our area," she says, "before they even consider putting this forth."

Christian says there’s a much better alternative.

"You can have shared services, without doing any of this," she says.

Blah Blah Blah...It's amazing that the person who has been the most against this is in public, is the person we sent on a "fact" finding trip.

Shared services is great, but the fact that we have so many separate municipalities for such a small county is a joke. I'm not a fan of this plan as it stands, because I don't feel it does enough, but I'm sick of people who are verbally against an issue being in the lead.

Mar 4, 2011, 5:44pm Permalink
John Roach

Phil,
This was not a "fact" finding trip on this one subject. The New York Conference of Mayors (NYCOM) offers training every year to local government officials. You go and they have different topics you can sit in on.

Who on Council that might have gone to this training would meet you definition of impartial?

Mar 5, 2011, 1:06pm Permalink

Wow...this is why I don't write on here anymore. The reason why I placed fact in quotations "" is because I knew it was a training. Sorry my sarcasm is broke. My annoyance is that with this topic being discussed we sent someone who has been openly negative about it. She came back with only failures.

John, I prefer they didn't send anyone from tis council. I don't think anyone on this council is competent anymore. We are doing the same tired old things and calling it progress. They're living off the actions of three years ago.

Mar 6, 2011, 7:39am Permalink
Charlie Mallow

NYCOM is a resource and a lobbying group for local governments. NYCOM has always been against consolidation because their membership is made up of politicians who will become unemployed if it succeeds.

Consolidation has been dead for over a year and it will never happen in any form because, the people don't want it too. People in NYS love their government sprawl and it's a waste of time even discussing a change.

Mar 6, 2011, 8:22am Permalink
Bea McManis

Posted by Phil Ricci on March 6, 2011 - 7:39am
I don't think anyone on this council is competent anymore.

Pretty strong statement. Are you saying that, had you won the election, you would be the only competent person on the council?

Mar 6, 2011, 9:01am Permalink

I didn't win, Bea.

I'm talking about what this council's done, or hasn't done, in the past year and a half. I guess you like the fact that there is still no plan for a future. That the best answer to a dwindling population, rising property tax burden and decrease of business is to bring back a position that did little in its last incarnation.

Leave the last election alone. Get over it. Live in the now. I do and my taxes are going up in every facet of government. Meanwhile I haven't seen a pay increase in two year due to that economy, yet every union employee will see increases. Not to mention, will have their pensions protected.

No I don't think they're competent, because they applauded this budget, and those that didn't applaud haven't done a thing to stop it. Standing in front of anything that could possibly stop this steady increase makes them so.

Mar 6, 2011, 12:14pm Permalink
John Roach

Phil,
You distorted facts. You should know that the majority wins. Two council members voted NO, seven vote yes.

There is not much more the two could do, but lets hear what you think they could have done.

Mar 6, 2011, 1:19pm Permalink

I distorted no facts John.

What has been brought to the table? Saying we need more cuts is not a solution. Since you, John are such a Rosemary supporter, please tell me what she has brought to the table? Not sitting in a meeting and saying we should do more. What have any of them done to lower costs?

Please...tell me.

Mar 6, 2011, 1:43pm Permalink
John Roach

Phil,
They voted against the Economic Development Director and wanted a zero tax increase. Seven to two on the vote.

You want the Police Department done away with and could not sell that idea when you ran. But at the same time you are also against even the small cut of eliminating the Youth Department, your pet project, so I doubt you would have done any better than Mr. Barone or Ms. Christian.

Demanding a cut you know has little support, but protecting a cut that could be made is a bit confusing.

Mar 6, 2011, 2:01pm Permalink

Nice spin John.

I like how you keep making it about me and an election that happened a year and a half ago. The youth board and all of their small budget is gone, yet we still have an increase. I don't understand John? I thought getting rid of that blight would save us?

Demanding a cut that has no positive effect on the budget while ignore the real issues is why we are where we are. It's why we'll continue to increase and why people like my family and I are leaving NY.

People who support and are in Unions seem to be all that speak up. Oh well.

Have a nice rest of your weekend, John. This bores me and it won't change anything anyway. We can quibble all day, but we're still paying more for less services. Later.

Mar 6, 2011, 2:20pm Permalink

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