I am running for Town Supervisor
I have decided to run for the office of Town Supervisor. I have many reasons for doing so. First many people have asked me to run. Second, I want to return Rushford to the kind, gentle, and fun place that it used to be.
First, the last few years has been disastrous for the town. We have been taking money out of the fund balance, like a savings account, to fund the Town budget. That can’t continue, or the Town will run out of money. Peter and Will changed the Town’s budget, after the Board approved it, which will make it very hard to stay within our budget numbers this year without having to take more money out of the savings account.
Second, there are problems with the zoning law. A few people, including three of our Board members, are interpreting the law differently than It has been for 20+ years. This has resulted in people getting appearance tickets and having to go to court. Those charges were all dismissed but both the people getting tickets and the Town had to pay for attorneys to go to court. The current administration has had 16 months to review and change the Zoning Law and they are not any closer to a solution than when they took office. I have suggested a citizens committee to help the Planning Board review and make recommendations about the Zoning Law, but the Three have turned down that suggestion. Two attorneys have offered to help with the Zoning law, free of charge, but they were turned down by the Three. The offer from those attorneys is also on this web site.
Third, the Town needs to have a long term or multi-year financial plan. This type of plan is recommended by the State Comptroller’s Office and the Association of Towns. The Three do not understand a long-term plan. They think it is the Comprehensive Plan which is something entirely different. After a long-term plan is created, then the Town can create a fund balance policy to ensure stable taxes for the future. Without it, stability is difficult.
The Three have done everything they can to keep the public in the dark regarding what the Board is working on. They passed a policy against video streaming meetings which is contrary to the Open Meetings Law. The Three have passed a policy with makes it an ethics violation for a board member to tell the public what is going to happen at a Board Meeting. This probably violates the second amendment of the US Constitution and the intent of the Open Meetings Law. But, they don’t seem to care. The Liberty Party couldn’t even make it through election day without committing misdemeanors.
I will do everything I can to keep the public aware of Town Board happenings and maintain a degree of transparency that the voters and taxpayers deserve.
Rushford deserves better than this. Please support me in my efforts to change Rushford back to the kind place it used to be.