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118 entries categorized "Towns | Ghent"

March 24, 2014

BREAKING: Airport committee approves ‘Porreca Plan’

By a vote of 4-1 this afternoon, the Columbia County airport committee approved the referral of the draft resolution known as the Porreca Plan to the full Board of Supervisors.

Chair Art Bassin, Ghent Supervisor Mike Benvenuto, Hillsdale’s Art Baer and of course Greenport’s John Porreca voted yes. Only David Crawford of Crawford Engineering voted no. Hudson Supervisor Sarah Sterling asked how it was that others of her colleagues seemed empowered to negotiate independently with Mr. Nero, specifying emails from Benson as an example.

Vehement plan opponent Mike Benson, Supervisor of New Lebanon, was absent—prompting audience questions about his whereabouts.

Crawford was challenged by the audience about his vote. These included questions from attorney Ken Dow as to why he would want the County to shut down a viable, established business (the golf course) and take more property off the tax rolls.

Crawford replied, none too convincingly, that he suspected that committee estimates of future tax revenues from Meadowgreens were too high, and that the funds spent would be primarily Federal and State monies. Bassin blasted this second argument as “silly,” given that such funds are also taxpayer-funded, and that the matter had already been hashed out repeatedly.

In a surprise, Meadowgreens owner Carmen Nero announced at the start of the meeting that he, too, supports the Porreca Plan and hopes to work with the County to preserve his ability to develop the remainder of his property adjoining the airport.

With Mahlon Richards of Richmor Aviation also on board in prior meetings, and members of the public applauding the vote today, that leaves Crawford and Benson as inexplicable holdouts. (Are they members of a competing golf club or something?) At 5 pm, County’s Economic Development committee was scheduled to hear a presentation by Ken Flood about the airport’s potential if the entire property were acquired instead. But Flood too now thinks the “private sectors” is a better vehicle for promoting airport-related businesses.

in Columbia County Airport, Politics | Columbia County, Towns | Ghent | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 13, 2014

Attorney blasts Reg-Star airport coverage

IMAGE: LinkedIn

Ken Dow, the former Columbia County Democratic Elections Commissioner and attorney representing neighbors of the airport in Ghent, has joined the ranks of those publicly criticizing the Register-Star’s incomplete and often slanted coverage of the issue.

Dow sent the following commentary to the Register this morning, regarding Joe Gentile’s latest ~~stenography~~ article, erasing most statements which would challenge the “official” storyline:

This article gives an extremely misleading picture of what went on at the meeting. The article dutifully recites Mr. Benson's claims and talking points, but barely notes that the bulk of the meeting was one speaker after another—both members of the public and Supervisor members of the Airport Committee—questioning, criticizing, or downright ridiculing Mr. Benson's eleventh hour “proposals.”

The article does not mention that Mr. Benson's plan would require the elimination of the Meadowgreens Golf Course. That omission may be understandable, since Mr. Benson failed to mention that very undesirable aspect of his proposals, and it only came to light when raised by an audience member.

The article does not mention that meeting attendees sharply questioned Mr. Benson's remarkable feat of creating a plan that nearly copied a plan that has long been discussed and estimated by the Airport's long-time engineering firm to cost $3.38 million, except that Mr. Benson's two fantasy plans both called for buying more land than the $3.38 million plan and INCREASING the land acquisition costs by approximately $700,000 and $1,000,000, yet magically DECREASING the total costs to about $600,000 to $1,000,000 below the long-considered $3.38 million plan. What really had everyone rolling their eyes, however, was Mr. Benson's complete inability to explain how he was able to come up with these magical savings.

What really happened yesterday? Mr. Benson made a last-second attempt to derail the Airport Committee's work by offering fantasy "proposals" using made-up numbers that have the side effect of eliminating Meadowgreens, a local resource that is used and valued by hundreds, if not thousands, of local residents. Mr. Benson has had a pathetic attendance record at these Airport Committee meetings, blowing off his duties as a member and skipping all but one or two. It would have been far better if he had extended his record of absence for one more meeting and spared the Committee and public the nonsense he spewed to everyone at yesterday's meeting.

KENNETH J. DOW, ESQ.
Mellenville (NY)

At prior meetings, the Register-Star’s coverage was specifically called out by residents such as Ghent’s Mark Johnson, who pointed out that their coverage of a previous meeting “made it seem like no one in the audience was here.

This site met with the paper’s new publisher and managing editor earlier this year to discuss its institutional habit of promoting and protecting officialdom, while minimizing contrary information—especially when it comes from well-informed but independent-minded members of the public.

Indeed, Gentile’s article omits numerous statements critical of Benson’s proposal from residents such as Peter Coan, Patti Matheney, Michael Singer, and myself, as well as stern questioning from Supervisors such as Mike Benvenuto (Ghent) and John Porreca (Greenport). Even officials previously supportive of other options, such as Hillsdale’s Art Baer, were poking holes in Benson’s presentation. But Gentile omits these in favor of a long description of Benson’s point of view. Some of those omitted statements can be found in Carole Osterink’s more balanced report for The Gossips of Rivertown, for instance:

Many at the meeting--both members of the audience and members of the committee--were not enthusiastic about Benson's eleventh hour proposals. Attorney Ken Dow questioned Benson's motivation. “If this were a serious effort,” said Dow, “it would have been made months ago. This, on its face, is ridiculous.” He went on to characterize Benson's proposals as “just an attempt to muck up the gears.” Supervisor John Porreca (Greenport), who had originally suggested the solution the committee was poised to recommend, dismissed Benson's proposals as “eleventh hour crap.”

Particularly sticky for Benson was a contretemps about the authorship of his proposal, another lengthy exchanged erased by Gentile’s piece. Research by this site indicated that the metadata on a key document circulated by Benson was not authored by him as he claimed, but by Christopher D. Brubach—representative of C&S, the firm which has been consulting to the County on the airport. Benson has stated in emails that his own firm, BCI Construction, has done extensive work with C&S.

Questions were raised about why the County’s own consultants would appear to be collaborating with a lone Supervisor to undermine the Committee’s hard-won compromise solution. Despite the evidence presented below, an uncomfortable-looking Benson continued to insist that he was the author of this document:

Document circulated by New Lebanon Supervisor Michael Benson as his own

February 24, 2014

Baghdad Benson still fighting Airport war

New Lebanon Supervisor Michael Benson missed 70% of Airport Committee meetings, but now expects to dictate the Committee’s decision.

Six Columbia County Supervisors were appointed last Fall to a new Airport Committee. Months of intense debate and research finally produced a compromise solution for the Ghent facility, slightly reducing the runway’s length while reducing costs to address potential hazards. The Columbia Paper editorialized last week that the so-called Porreca Plan presented “relevant facts, precise goals and a reasonable, affordable plan for making the airport safer.” Even Richmor president Mahlon Richards favors the plan.

But now, the Committee member with the worst attendance record is trying to re-wage the County Airport battle, well after it has reached the mopping-up stage.

New Lebanon Supervisor Michael Benson attended just two of the seven public meetings organized by chair Art Bassin. The following chart, assembled from Airport Committee minutes, tells the tale:

An eighth private meeting was also held with the FAA in November, with all Committee members in attendance—except, reportedly, Benson.

DPW chief David Robinson and County economic development czar Ken Flood are included in this chart, though they were not official committee members. Yet their attendance still exceeded that of Benson, who has not uttered a word in public on the topic since a less-than-stellar performance on December 11th.

In his single previous appearance, Benson called for the Committee to enter a secret Executive Session. At an informational session held on the 12th of this month for the Committee to brief the full Board of Supervisors, Benson made and appearance, but declined to comment when asked to do so.

But this lack of attendance and public silence has not stopped the New Lebanon Super (and BCI construction boss) from trying at the last minute to derail the outcome behind the scenes. Nor has a potential conflict-of-interest caused Benson to recuse himself from the deliberations, or given him qualms about trying to shut down the Airport Committee prematurely.

In a January 29th email to the Committee, Benson boasted that his firm has “worked with C&S ... on multiple projects.” C&S is the County’s controversial consulting firm which has reaped hundreds of thousands of dollars of fees, as it has encouraged the constant expansion of the airport. Like Benson, C&S representative Chris Brubach has bent over backward to argue against the Porreca Plan in favor of more expensive options.

Most recently, an 11th-hour proposal from Meadowgreens owner Carmen Nero to the Airport Committee, aimed at throwing a monkey wrench into a planned vote on the Porreca Plan, curiously was addressed to Benson rather than the Committee’s chair, Bassin.

Nero says it was a simple mistake. But the error has only fueled existing speculation that Benson has had a role in instigating the ploy. (Bassin generously treated the proposals as something new to consider, though in fact the County has known for many years that Nero would prefer to sell the whole property.)

Meanwhile, in emails circulated to the Committee and other County officials, Benson has been on the warpath against the Porreca Plan, favoring instead Nero’s preferred option: for the County to buy the entire property, while allowing Nero to retain development rights. (Nice deal if you can get it.)

Benson’s lack of participation in the Committee’s detailed deliberations has not deterred him from charging others with ignorance, and using fear tactics to try to cow fellow Supervisors into submission.

In a new email this past Sunday to fellow Supervisors, Benson attempted to wade into the Committee’s long-running debate about avigation easements over neighboring properties, as if he had just discovered the issue. His comments take a bullying tone which seeks to intimidate fellow Supervisors and public with the specter of “embarrassment” if the Porreca Plan is adopted:

I truly hope that there is a presence (on the committee) or otherwise that realizes; in any possible scenario, there is a need for additional easements and/or land to the north of the airport. I believe that there is. Not dealing with this reality would be a significant mistake and will ultimately be very embarrassing for the County and those caught up in the denial of that very simple fact. Unless I am missing something (and please tell me if I am) this is a reality that there doesn’t currently seem to be a plan for?

Yes, Supervisor Benson “missed something.” He missed over 70% of the Airport Committee’s meetings. Benson had the time and energy to raise spurious complaints about the Committee’s email cc: lists, but not so much for showing up.

Had he been present more often, he would know that many issues about the number, location and cost of known and potential aviation easements were debated at length, over several meetings.

Likewise, the way in which such easements could shift, depending on which plan gets chosen, was another frequent topic of discussion—at meetings Benson skipped.

For the record, Patti Matheney, Michael Schrom, Kevin Delahanty, and Ken Dow were primarily responsible for bringing easementissues to the fore -- in spite of much obstruction by the County Attorney’s office in releasing the paperwork which fleshed the issue out. For example, Bassin’s notes for the 12/27 meeting, read as follows.

3. Dow/Schrom Conclusions - Mr. Dow and Mr. Schrom concluded that they supported a "modified Porreca Plan", which would reduce the runway to 5000 feet, but expand on the southern end and shorten on the northern end to achieve both the 5000 feet or runway and the needed 1000 foot safety zones on both ends. While avigation easements would still be necessary, Dow and Schrom believe they would be less intrusive and disruptive from a "modified Porreca" 5000 foot runway than from the proposed 1000 foot expansion of the northern safety zone from the current 5350 foot runway, using adjacent Meadowgreens land. […]

In short, not only was the issue “raised” by Benson an old one, it is one whose exploration revealed that the Porreca Plan would be significantly less complicated and cheaper than Benson’s apparent goal of a spendthrift purchase from CN Productions.

Benson’s Sunday email also discloses that he will be absent yet again from this afternoon’s 3 pm meeting of the Airport Committee at 401 State Street.

January 30, 2014

Strong turnout for airport meeting in West Ghent

Looks like the committee will recommend a slight shortening of the runway to 4,900-5,000 feet, minimizing expenses related to safety zone issues... Fuller report to follow.

in Towns | Ghent | Permalink | Comments (0)

Updated algebra

10 days after this site’s article on the number of likely operations at the Columbia County airport, Richmor Aviation president has volunteered some different numbers for jet and turboprop operations. In the spirit of fairness, here is a re-running of the possible totals, based on his clarified figures for jets and turboprops from 2013.

Richards states that there were 361 jet operations (takeoffs plus landings) last year. Various County-commissioned reports and studies have variously pegged jet operations at 3%-8% of the total; Mr. Richards at a public meeting last fall estimated 3-5%. As explained in the prior post, it takes just a simple dose of highschool algebra to work out the total from the subset:

Though not explicitly stated, one can also infer from Richards’ update the number of turboprop operations, which are consistently estimated in the various County literature as 8% of the total airport activity. That yields:

Thus the low end of the jet estimates coincides closely with the turboprop estimate: 3,950 vs. 4,513. It thus seems reasonable to conclude, using only “official” sources and Richmor’s volunteered numbers, that the actual number is in the 4,000-4,500 range.

in Politics | Columbia County, Towns | Ghent | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 24, 2014

FAA invite doesn't fly

A special meeting of the Columbia County airport committee at the West Ghent firehouse next Thursday night (7 pm) will be the first actually held in the town which hosts the facility.

But in response to an invitation to attend and answer questions, representatives of the Federal Aviation Administration are now saying they “can't make it,” according to committee chair Art Bassin.

At last Tuesday's meeting, Bassin reported that the reps had to “get permission” from higher-ups before committing to the meeting—leaving an impression now that permission was denied. Another source indicates that one of the staffers recently had a death in his family, but one would think such a vast agency would have enough personnel to advise communities on urgent policy questions.

SATURDAY UPDATE: Bassin was told by the FAA’s Steve Urlass “that they are in the final phases of a move to new offices. He said they would be available the second half of February.”

in Politics | Columbia County, Towns | Ghent | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 20, 2014

Airport Algebra: How busy is Ghent, really?

Chart of estimated airport activity based solely on Richmor Aviation and County consultants’ data

Page 18 of the Columbia County Airport’s 2011 Business Plan laid out a plan to expend $13,060,000 in Federal, State and County funds on “capital improvements” to the facility between 2011-2015. The County would pick up over $1.5 million of the tab. Are investments of that size worth it, or could the County and Richmor Aviation make do with less?

With Richmor reporting only 140-150 jet operations per year, it’s been baffling to watch Airport committee members and County staff repeatedly stress the importance of spending millions to keep the airport “jet friendly.” Consider this: Macfarland-Johnson’s projected $13 million computes to about $18,000 per jet takeoff or landing over that five-yer period.

It’s dollar figures like that, as well as neighbors’ concerns about maintaining the “quiet enjoyment” of their homes, which has made the number of flights in and out of the Ghent airport a bone of contention in recent debate. (NOTE: combined takeoffs and landings are known to aviation folks as “operations.”)

As it turns out, the answer to that long-running debate may be hiding in plain sight, based solely on data already in the Airport Committee’s hands, provided by its own consultants and tenant. It only requires a look at figures already on the record, and reverse-engineering the totals using some highschool math.Consider the following known data points, all from sources which County poo-bahs generally have treated as reliable:

In the handout above, Mahlon Richards of Richmor Aviation reported operations to the airport committee of 141 jets and 270 turboprops for the year as of December 11th, 2013.
Richards also told the committee last Fall that jet traffic represents 3-5% of all operations.
Stanwcyk Aviation, a vendor of the airport, similarly claimed in a 2011 report that jet traffic represents 3% of operations.
A report commissioned by the County from C&S Engineering estimated jet traffic as representing 8% of all operations, and the same number for turboprops.

Using only the above information, a range of total number of operations can be computed backwards using some rudimentary math. (The results are presented in the chart at the top of this post. NOTE: The table topped up Richmor’s numbers by an additional 5% to compensate for the missing 19 days of the year, even though airports are much quieter in winter than summer.)

Taking Richards’ numbers at face value, and assuming that Richmor, Stanwyck and C&S have correctly projected these to represent 3%-8% of the total, that would mean somewhere between 1,850 and 4,933 takeoffs and landings occur annually at the airport.

The math works like this... If one assumes 148 jets represents 3%, or 5%, or 8% of all operations, 148 stands in the same relation to 3/5/8% as the total [x] does to 100%. (The author would like to apologize in advance to anyone in whom this induces a nasty 10th Grade Algebra flashback.) Solving for [x]:

Problem is that local officials and their consultants have been reporting vastly higher numbers than 2,000-5,000 operations, and basing grant applications and studies on those vastly higher numbers.

Most preposterously, a County-commissioned study predicted that by 2014 or so, there would be about 50,000 takeoffs and landings per year. That absurd number was then dutifully inserted as fact into the Town of Ghent Comprehensive Plan.

The revelation of more accurate figures than the improbable official tallies could prove an embarrassment, so some officials seem eager to derail this train of thought. Still, no one at this point is lending any credence to such grossly inflated projections, which were cooked up by C&S Engineering a decade ago.

As previously reported in detail here, 50,000 operations translates into an average of 137 flights per day. Put another way: Nearly a dozen planes would have to take off or land every daylight hour of every single day of the year to make it to fifty grand—in other words, an “operation” every five minutes.

Meanwhile, Stanwyck Avionics has claimed there are 17,800 operations per year, translating to about 4 per daylight hour. (Stanwyck reportedly has a service contract of roughly $1,050 per month with the airport, and some expect that the company would reap a nice chunk of any work resulting from the proposed Meadowgreens “taking.”) The Stanwyck numbers supposedly come from a manual count made by a student relative of the owners, who listened to radio transmissions from incoming and outgoing planes.

Those who use the airport, live or work nearby, or even just drive the 9H corridor find it hard to believe that 18,000 operations, let alone 50,000, are occurring every year. Neighbors such as the Harrison family, who spend most of their days outdoors farming, report seeing more like 4-6 planes per day, not per hour. Notice how the Harrisons’ and others “naked eye” estimates correlate quite closely with the reverse-engineered numbers’ range of 5-14 per day.

Stopping short of accusing the Stanwyck of outright fabrication, one would prefer to assume that some honest mistake was made in their counts. Diving into the particulars of Stanwyck’s report, one finds various eyebrow-raising claims. For example, their day-by-day counts purport that on April 22nd, 2011, there were 241 operations at the airport. (The next day, they reported just one operation; maybe their wings got tired.)

That day’s length was 13 hours, 39 minutes. This would have meant nearly 18 planes taking off or land every daylight hour of 4/22/11—once every 3-4 minutes. If that had occurred, one the neighbors presumably would have been going berserk. Was their some kind of airshow? Did Snoopy and Woodstock take amphetamines and do 241 touch-and-gos with the Sopwith Camel? It defies reason.

One tends to suspect that if counts were actually reviewed, some fundamental mistake was made. Perhaps radio transmissions with another airport got mixed in, or multiple transmissions from the same pilot were accidentally logged as single operations. In any event, somehow the Stanwyck numbers came out more than triple the highest estimate that can be derived from Richmor’s jet and turboprop data.

Meanwhile, actual FAA data obtained by neighbors Michael Schrom and Patti Matheney via the well-known aviation website FlightAware showed only 1,664 operations in 2011-2012, dropping to 1,469 in 2012-13. The data shows tail numbers of the planes, as well as points of origin and destination. (That number is very close to the lowest of the figures on the topmost chart in this post, projecting a total based on Richmor’s jets as 8% of operations.)

Everyone agress that the FlightAware numbers omit some planes which filed flight plans, and thus may not include “touch-and-go” operations by students and local recreational pilots. However, according to Mahlon Richards, any plane which reaches a cruising altitude of 18,000 feet is required by the FAA to file a flight plan. Moreover, charter companies have little interest in flying without a plan, due to the greatly-enhanced safety of their passengers when controllers knows where they are headed.

In any event, the Schroms point out the improbability of 15-16,000 touch-and-gos happening. They certainly aren’t seeing it the airspace over their property, which falls within Runway 21’s “Protection Zone.”

* * *

So why does any of this matter? Why should people care how much the airport really get used, and what types of planes and passengers are using?

Such questions directly impact the quality of life of neighbors, and raise suspicions in the public mind about whether the County’s elected officials and development staff are gaming State and Federal grant programs with inflated figures.

In terms of the Airport Committee’s work, resolving these questions are also germane deciding how long a runway is truly necessary—and how much economic or social value the airport has to the County. Indeed, the County’s own studies and consultants have consistently stressed the importance of accurate data to assessing options at the airport.

For example, Macfarland-Johnson Inc., the authors of the airport’s Business Plan, wrote in 2011:

The first step in determining the impact enhancement options could have on revenues is to predict the change in aviation demand if each strategy were implemented.

Gaining a clear picture of the volume and breakdown of the airport’s usage is essential for decisionmakers to make a rational, informed decision about the appropriate type of airport at this location. Such numbers also speak to the question of how many more millions of public dollars it makes sense keep pouring into a facility where usage is in decline.

That decline is another issuue no longer in dispute, with both Richmor Aviation, C&S Engineering, and airport neighbors all agreeing that usage has slumped in the past decade. Despite the recovery of the economy since the 2008 crash, a recovery at least for the types of people who charter and fly planes, everyone agrees that activity is in steady decline.

Richmor president Mahlon Richards himself has stated that he does not expect that a signficant increase in activity over present levels will occur. There is no reason to disbelieve that self-effacing statement, from a guy who has stayed even-keeled throughout a sometimes-wrenching process. The question then becomes: Why spend millions on eminent domain or other overly-ambitious infrastructure projects for a facility whose prospects are seen as flat even by its owner?

in Planning & Land Use, Politics | Columbia County, Towns | Ghent | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 31, 2013

2013 in review

Some of the biggest ups and downs of the year include:

Biggest Sale of a Small Object: Auctioneer Colin Stair of Stair Galleries in Hudson sold a Tsarist figurine by Fabergé for $5.2 million in October to an undisclosed phone bidder. The figurine was discovered in a Rhinebeck attic.
Wackiest Would-Be Terrorist: County resident (and Kinderhook Elk) Eric Feight was arrested as part of a harebrained plot to build a ray gun intended to beam radiation into mosques, with the apparent crackpot goal of giving Muslims cancer.
Most Avant-Garde New Building in an Historic District: Grigori Fatayev built this handsome black box off Willard Place behind the Allen Street home of painter Tony Thompson. The building now serves as Thompson’s studio.
Most Welcome Threat to Leave the County: Following two catastrophic fires in 2012, and after suing the Town of Ghent for upholding its zoning code in 2013, TCI of NY threatened to move their PCB (mis-) handling business across the river to Coeymans. While many breathed a sigh of relief, reminding TCI to not let the door hit them in the back on the way out, it remains to be seen whether Coeymans will really take on the troubled company. The first weeks of the New Year may provide an answer, as the end date for the postponement of TCI’s lawsuit comes due. The company agreed to drop the suit if they found a new home.
Liveliest Glimpse of Old Hudson: A video of people hanging out and partying in the 7th Street park in the early 1990s was posted by YouTuber Satansdarkmetal.
Most Misleading Local Headline: The Register-Star titled an article about the Board of Supervisors voting to keep on pursuing eminent domain against Meadowgreens owner Carmen Nero: “Board Rejects Eminent Domain Resolution.”
Most Pandering Local Headline: For its article about a local engineer who allegedly “zoned out” while speeding a Metro-North train into a fatal accident around a curve at Spuyten Duyvil, Columbia Paper editor Parry Teasdale used this headline: “Germantown Engineer Assists Crash Probe.”
Most Heartening Turnout at a Public Meeting: Hundreds streamed into the Livingston Town Garage for the first public meeting of Livingston Farmers & Families, which is organizing to alter or stop a massive power line project from Upstate to NYC. The meeting featured the political speech of the year, a ripsnorter by farmer and Town Board member Will Yandik, who seems destined for higher office.
Clumsiest Campaign Rollout: The first major media introduction of newly-minted Hudson Valley resident Sean Eldridge, who is seeking to unseat Congressman Chris Gibson, came in the early Summer pages of the New York Times. But the article mainly provided fodder for his opponent. The Times’ revelations about the cost of Eldridge’s Shokan house, with the implication that he and Facebook zillionnaire Chris Hughes had shopped around for a district to run in, were swiftly followed by an Albany Times-Union exposé of how Eldridge’s campaign was paying area residents $100 a pop to focus group attack messages on Gibson.
Most Revealing Comment by an Official Once Thought to Be More Enlightened: Mistakenly thinking that the press and public had left the room, Hudson Development Corporation director Sheena Salvino denigrated citizens who had come out to support the Community Garden as a “mob.”
Most Revealing Comment by an Official Never Thought to Be More Enlightened: County Economic Development tsar Ken Flood shared his unvarnished opinion with Ghent resident Kevin Delahanty that “restaurants in Hudson and Chatham ... don’t provide good jobs except for the owners.”
Worthiest Ideas Gathering Dust on Some Politician’s Shelf: In July, the Columbia County Emergency Management Council proposed a series of sensible, forward-thinking guidelines to prevent major disasters. Little or nothing has been heard about their recommendations in the six months since.
Ugliest Use of Social Media by an Elected Official: Ghent Town Board member Richard Sardo opined in a Facebook post that MSNBC host (and Berkshire County resident) Rachel Maddow “looks very much like an ugly man.” Sardo, who coupled this assessment of Maddow’s looks with his barely-disguised hots for FOX anchor Megyn Kelly, badly lost his Tea Party bid for Town Supervisor against Republican Mike Benvenuto.
Most Gratifying Told ’Ya So: The Valley Alliance was vindicated as the City of Hudson glumly acknowledged the group’s contention that the people, not Holcim, already owned 4.4 acres along the Waterfront. Research by the Alliance demonstrated that the riverfront lands had been improperly sold in the early 1980s without State approval.
Least Merited Award: Hudson Phoenix president John Tonelli was given the Chamber of Commerce’s “Businessperson of the Year” award in June, just months after announcing the arrival of his plastics extrusion business. But Phoenix seemingly never made any hires, and according to a Chamber source the company had “ceased operations” by November.
Least Festive Street Fest: A car show put on by American Glory’s Joe Fierro, with little or no notification to neighbors, shut down the 300 block of Warren Street on a Spring Saturday, but attracted little interest.
Most Hilarious Banter Between Star Chefs: A New York Magazine article about the opening of Fish & Game featured this exchange between the restaurants’ principals, Zak Pelaccio and Jori Jayne Emde:
Foraging for ingredients turns out to have its limitations. Before long, Pelaccio suggests we give up the mushroom hunt. Emde reluctantly agrees. “I mean, I can smell mushrooms though,” she says, then tells me about recently sniffing her way to ramps. “Zak calls me a hound dog.” She gives an animalistic howl. “It’s weird, that’s the sound I make when we’re having sex.”

“It boosts my self-esteem,” says Pelaccio.

“Like you need it,” she returns.

“We always need it,” Pelaccio says.
Least Effective Tool for Promoting Business: In March, the Columbia County Industrial Develpment Agency (IDA) had to revoke its Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) plan for fish-breeder Local Ocean, as the company had gone into default. Yet another past Chamber award-winner, the company announced its closing in August.
Lamest Campaign by a Candidate Claiming to be a Skilled Organizer: Hudson’s Victor Mendolia garnered the lowest number of votes of any mayoral candidate in a two-person race in recent memory, possibly in City history. The former City Democratic chair lost his campaign manager in the process of losing to incumbent Bill Hallenbeck, despite Democrats having a massive registration advantage over Republicans, and despite Hallenbeck himself earning fewer votes than his first run. Turnout was almost half of Hudson elections of a decade ago, despite the number of registered voters staying the same. As of August, Mendolia had spent more on restaurant dinners than his campaign had banked up for the Fall campaign.
Most Important Unread Mail: Government records uncovered by Ghent resident Patti Matheney revealed that the Department of Homeland Security had warned local emergency officials of the presence of highly-explosive sodium in the TCI building. But the warning apparently went unheeded, contributing (along with egregious negligence by the company itself) to some 12-15 explosions when water was dumped on the company’s smoldering building. Shamelessly, TCI attorney Bill Better shamelessly tried to use this revelation to deflect responsibility from his client.
Most Confusing Campaign Signage: Road signs for the Taghkanic Republican slate seemed to deliberately conflate 20something candidate Ryan Skoda with his much better-known father, farmer (and sitting Town Board member) Richard Skoda.
Most Concerted Effort to Deny the Obvious: Hudson City Attorney Cheryl Roberts, Alderman Cappy Pierro, Council President Don Moore, and attorney Giff Whitbeck repeatedly attempted to deny that Standard Oil had occupied a key piece of the Hudson Waterfront, even after clear evidence was brought forth to prove it. Roberts, who had incorrectly identified the Standard Oil location, and lectured citizens about being “completely wrong,” even wondered aloud whether oil tanks existed in the 1880s. Moore similarly wagged his finger at the public about “being careful.” Eventually, the Gang of Four could not help acknowleding their mistake, brushing it off with barely a shrug. (Their motivation appeared to be a desire to avoid any investigation into contamination.)
Most Selfish Bogarting of Scarce Public Services: The new Barlow Hotel somehow convinced the City of Hudson to not only build an awning over the sidewalk, but also to grant the business exclusive use of two parking spaces in the 500 block of Warren, ostensibly for loading and unloading of baggage. The request was granted despite the block being the the busiest in Hudson, and there being a vast public parking lot immediately behind the hotel. (This frequent perambulator of that part of the street has yet to see a single guest using the two much-needed spaces for their intended purpose.) The City has not clarified what the criteria are for securing one’s own private parking spaces, but no doubt others would love to get the same special treatment.
Least Dignified Post-Election Email: Claverack resident Chris Lastovicka broke with American election tradition in trashing the Town’s voters in the wake of her partner’s loss of her Supervisor seat. Incumbent Robin Andrews lost by 20 votes to Republican Kippy Weigelt. Lastovicka blamed weekenders whom she claimed did not turn in enough absentee ballots—despite Andrews picking up 60 votes from absentees. No blame was assigned to the candidate herself for failing to take a stand on issues such as TCI or the County Airport, or for opposing both an increase in the State minimum wage and common sense gun regulations.
Most Blatant Media Conflict of Interest: Community radio station WGXC had scheduled an interview with recently-departed Mendolia campaign manager Clay Laugier. But the interview on the @Issue show was abruptly canceled without explanation—the most obvious being that Laugier was likely to be critical of Mendolia—a co-host of the show, on leave at the time.
Two Most Pleasant Out-of-County Finds of the Year: Discovering that Dope Jams Records of Brooklyn had reopened in Oak Hill (Greene County) and stumbling upon an utterly authentic northern Chinese restaurant in Wappingers Falls.
Most Missed Bar, Bar Owner, and Bar Patron: 2013 brought the sad demise of the Iron Horse bar, its owner Frank Martino, and one of its most loyal patrons—former Hudson Police Commissioner Jeff “Sweeps” Bagnall. Join me in pouring one out tonight, New Year’s Eve, for all three.

December 30, 2013

The Ghent Red Light District?

Image: Wikimedia

If one County official has his way, the Town of Ghent could become the County’s red light district—literally.

A presentation by Ghent resident Michael Schrom and attorney Ken Dow at Friday’s airport committee meeting focused on a sleeper issue for the County: the enormous number of easements which must be acquired from a dozen or more neighbors if it goes through with its eminent domain plan.

The County would need to spend an additional half-million dollars or more to cut down hundreds of trees obstructing the flight path to the 5,350-foot runway. That runway was expanded from roughly 3,500 feet in the 1980s, without all necessary easements being acquired. So either the runway must be shortened, or moved, or a huge “taking” must be made from neighboring property owners.

None of those owners have been officially notified of this aspect of the plan. (Schrom provided the committee with an inventory of the parcels and names of owners, in case they wanted to correct this 13-year-old oversight.)

Moreover, these removal plans and cost estimates date back to 2001, meaning they do not account for continued tree growth over the past 13 years and the increase in property values, let alone inflation. Worse, the cost estimates are wildly inconsistent, with some property owners being offered as little as $127 per acre of disruption, and others more than $24,000.

Once all these complications and costs were presented, committee chair Art Bassin piped in with a suggestion passed along from David Robinson of the County Department of Public Works. According to Bassin, Robinson had pondered the obstruction issue before, and had a solution: instead of cutting them down, attach a red warning light to the top of each tree.

The standing-room-only audience erupted with guffaws. But the laughter died down as it became clear the suggestion was not intended as a joke. Bassin did appear to absorb the public’s reaction to the idea’s aburdity, and it was tabled at least until Robinson could appear at a future meeting.

[More on this latest airport meeting in another post this week.]

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December 20, 2013

A big week for backing down (Part II)

Last Wednesday’s meeting of the Columbia County Board of Supervisors’ airport committee played out a bit like an episode of the ’80s sitcom Benson, only with the lead character eliciting groans and retorts, instead of canned applause and laughter. As if following a TV script, the New Lebanon Supervisor of the same name did his utmost to assist the Richmor “household.” But in the end even his apparent “boss” Mahlon Richards spurned his help.

The committee’s work would seem primed for comedic misunderstandings, if only because of the confusing names of its members. Out of five appointees, there are two guys named Art, two named Mike, and three with similar last names: Bassin, Benson, Benvenuto. The studio audience may be forgiven if they have some trouble keeping the players straight.

At the end of a tumultuous 90 minutes, Mike Benson finally backed off his threat to motion for an executive session, and to end the committee’s deliberations. For a moment, it looked like peace might reign again. Unfortunately, the reasons for the construction-magnate-turned politico’s decision seemed to arise from a calculation that he did not (yet) have enough votes to steamroll the process. So there was no neat resolution of any comedic malentendu.

The meeting was standing room only, with at least 45 members of the public crammed into the first floor conference room at 401 State Street in Hudson. Attired in an off-the-rack suit and power tie (and for some reason repeatedly leaning down to tie and retie his leather shoes), Benson came spoiling for a fight. But he was immediately deflated by the absence of both County engineer David Robinson and economic development tsar Ken Flood, whom he seemed to have been counting on for backup.

Benson’s goal was to wrap up the Committee’s discussion of whether to use eminent domain (and $629,000) to seize land from Meadowgreens owner Carmen Nero, who feels his property adjoining the airport is worth more like $3 million. But one after another, the premises undergirding Benson’s argument were knocked down:

FAA: Over and over, Benson applied pressure for a decision by asserting that the Federal Aviation Administration had “required” or “mandated” that the County acquire the land for a safety zone. Each time, either a fellow committee member, or a member of the audience, or the County attorney reminded him that the FAA’s suggestions regarding the safety zone were only just that—suggestions. He was reminded of the Committee’s letters and meetings in which the FAA acknowledged that expansion was just one of several options.

At one point, almost the entire room burst out correcting Benson’s fifth or sixth attempt to portray his preferred option as a requirement.
INSURANCE: Stymied on the FAA front, Benson tried a fear tactic instead. Raising the horrendous possibility of an accident at the airport—maybe that very night!—he argued that if the land were not taken from Nero right away, the County’s insurance would not cover it. Calling upon County attorney Rob Fitzsimmons to back him up, Benson did not get the answer he expected: Fitzsimmons indicated that their policy is adequate.
CONTRACT: Already seeming exasperated, Benson turned to yet another line of argument. The County, he said, had a contractual obligation to Richmor Aviation to take the eminent domain action. Feeling on solid ground, he read out a portion of the contract which he thought would justify this position, though the actual text was ambiguous. Unfortunately for the hapless Benson, he was again on quicksand: a member of the audience had read the entire contract, and read out the very next paragraph—which clearly stated that the County had the right to do as it saw fit, and modify the contract when necessary. That fuller reading was again supported by Fitzsimmons.

Hudson alderman and attorney John Friedman also pointed out that the contract itself might be void to begin with, as it does not appear that the County has ever bid out the lease of the airport. Terms, the discussion revealed, were offered exclusively to Richmor over the past 40 years. As Friedman sought to ask a question of company president Mahlon Richards, Benson kept interrupting and trying to answer for him, prompting Friedman to note “how much your voice sounds like Mr. Richards’.”

This attendee then asked Richards (who sat stoically throughout the meeting, answering briefly in tones much softer than Benson’s) whether Richmor had any problem with the contract or the County’s delivery of services. Again Benson interjected several times as if to speak on Richards’ behalf. But when the Richmor chief finally got a chance to speak, he said that he had no problem with the contract, no intention of suing the County, and was satisfied with the relationship. Benson seemed chagrined, yet still undaunted in making an adversarial case against his own side’s defense (that of the County) in favor of a position for a theoretical plaintiff (Richmor) who evinced no interest in pursuing his theoretical dispute.
TIMING: Throughout, Benson also tried to suggest that time was of the essence, believing that the County could not risk of deliberating a moment longer. But committee chair Art Bassin noted that even if they voted to move ahead on Benson’s motion right away, the eminent domain and construction process for expanding the zone would take a very long time, maybe 3 years.

The only “quick” option, Bassin reminded him, was the one Benson likes least— that of immediately shortening the runway from 5,350 to 4,500 feet, obviating the need for seizing more land on the north end.

It was also pointed out from the audience that the County had been aware of the FAA’s gentle suggestion since 2001, yet had not taken any action to prevent what Benson portrayed as a virtual emergency. The lack of urgency over the past 12 years, coupled with the assurances on insurance and timing, severely undercut this fourth Benson line of attack.
PROPERTY RIGHTS: Benson furthermore attempted to position himself as a champion of property rights and the freedom of business to do whatever it wants. The effort seemed limited to one business, which happens to be a renter not a property owner.

“No one here is a bigger defender of property rights than me,” Benson thundered, all but thumping his chest. However, Michael Schrom of Ghent pointed out that there were at least a dozen neighboring residents and business people (including himself) in addition to Carmen Nero whose property would have to be seized to enact Benson’s preferred plan. Where, then, was his concern for those people’s and businesses’ rights? Benson could offer no coherent explanation.

It was also pointed out (by this attendee) that the dozen other impacted neighbors’ parcels had been specified in a County-commissioned report for tree removal and clearing. Nevertheless, none of those neighbrs apppear to have ever been contacted by the County to alert them about government’s plans for their private land.

Benson soldiered on, again coming to the unsolicited defense of Richmor and its business interests as paramount. But again, a voice emanated from the audience to chop the legs out from under this phalanx. A local mechanic and pilot who formely worked for Richmor related his experience trying to do business at the airport, describing how he was squeezed out and prevented from setting up his own operation there. If this were all about promoting activity at the airport, why had healthy competition or complementary business been so consistently discouraged in favor of one company?
OPTIONS: Greenport Supervisor John Porreca tried to turn the debate in a constructive direction by presenting a new alternative: shortening the runway slightly on the North end, while lengthening it to the South.

The Porreca solution would result in only a slightly shorter runway (5,000 feet), and would not require the eminent domain against Nero the north, as the County already owns land to the South. The rest of the Committee seemed eager to analyze this alongside the other two options; but Benson seemed fit to be tied, viewing this less as a positive new idea and more as a threat to his promised motion. Yet again, Richards undercut his would-be advocate in saying that he thought the idea was promising and something Richmor could probably live with.

In this context, there was also extensive back-and-forth about the number and type of planes taking off an landing at the airport. As the committee and the public started to drill down on Richmor’s claims, it became more apparent that the number of jets which would be adversely affected by a shortened runway were surpassingly small. Indeed, the main concern according to Richards was his company’s preference for taking off fully loaded, so that it could buy more fuel from itself and less from other vendors. No dollar figure was put on this added cost. But it hardly seemed to justify a public expenditure of as much as $13 million for upgrades which would follow the six-figure eminent domain process.

As the meeting drew to a close, Ghent supervisor-elect Mike Benvenuto sought to calm the churned-up waters, sensing a growing consensus that the Committee now had a wider range of options and a better idea of what research was needed to complete. Bassin felt that analysis could be completed in a matter of months, not years, and would if anything result in a speedier resolution than jumping straight to eminent domain.

This brief moment of harmony, so much like warm-n-fuzzy final minute of a Benson episode, was spoiled by New Lebanon’s Supervisor. Asked if he wished to make his motion after all that, Benson hemmed and hawed. Then, causing audible exasperation among the audience, he proceeded to reiterate all the arguments that had just been thoroughly discredited.

As if having not heard any of the previous discussion, Benson returned to all of his original talking points: The FAA is requiring it; the County has an insurance risk; the County is in breach of contract; the Committee has no more time to spare; Richmor’s property rights and business interests must come first. This prompted howls of protest that all of these had already been raised and debunked.

Without acknowledging that he had heard any of the prior debate, Benson did seem to have wised up to one thing: that he did not have the votes to carry his motion that day. Of the five present, only commitee member David Crawford (an engineer, who spent much of the meeting whispering to Benson while others spoke), seemed at all likely to agree to end the discussion and move it to the full Board. So Benson instead retreated to a plea that the Committee needs to come to a decision “soon,” to which Bassin again replied that he did not think more than a couple of more months would be necessary to arrive at a sound recommendation.

The incipient harmony was then smashed again with further discord from Benson, who unexpectedly tore into an unnamed citizen for making what he believed were intemperate or even slanderous remarks in an email. Resident Patti Matheney countered that as a public official, Benson had standards of decency to adhere to himself, and wondered aloud if he were prepared for his own emails to be read out at a future meeting. This attendee inquired whether the County had a policy governing the private use of government-issued email accounts, which Fitzsimmons indicated it did.

The next meeting is scheduled for Friday, December 27th (time and venue TBD) at which Michael Schrom is expected to make a presentation based on the results of the Freedom of Information Law request he made with another resident, Kevin Delahanty.

December 9, 2013

Benson inserts foot back in mouth

New Lebanon Supervisor Michael Benson appears to be having a bit of trouble adjusting to the world of public governance—perhaps being more used to running his own private show as a construction magnate.

Last week, Benson was exposed for trying to close down the County’s newly-formed airport committee before it gets a headwind behind it. In a widely-circulated email, Benson not only sought to end the committee’s fact-finding mission, but do do so in a secret executive session. (According to New Lebanon sources, Benson routinely takes his Town Board into Executive Session, regardless of whether the topic qualifies for such secrecy under State Law.) Committee chair has sent concerned residents email assurances that its work will continue.

Following that counterproductive episode, Benson tried a new tactic to distract from the substantive work of the committee. Showing little interest in anything pertaining to actual airport operations, Benson trained his sites on a much more important meta-question: the airport committee’s email list. Who was on the cc: list, he demanded to know over the weekend—and why?

Benson chose to lead off his tirade about this vital matter with an example that blew up in his face.

“I see Cindy Hall’s name, but I don’t see Greg Fingar’s name,” Benson thundered, referring respectively to the County Democratic and Republican chairs—in an apparent effort to imply that Bassin had some partisan agenda in forming the email list.

“This just doesn’t look good,” Benson concluded, wringing his hands: “In fact, I am deeply concerned.”

Unfortunately, Bassin had a ready answer for Benson. “The names on the list at this point,” Bassin patiently explained, “are all people who have voluntarily expressed an interest in being on the list.”

Then came the kicker: “I actually asked Greg Finger if he wanted to be on the list last week, and he said no.”

In other words: Benson was whining about Fingar being left out—but Bassin had gone out of his way to try to include Fingar, but he refused to be included in the discussion.

Oops. Sometimes what is allowed in private business just doesn’t translate to public debate.

December 5, 2013

Public participation panics Supervisor

New Lebanon’s Mike Benson calls for secret session to shut down airport debate

The Columbia County Board of Supervisors has taken over a decade—more than 120 months—to get around to addressing alleged safety issues with the County airport in Ghent.

But apparently even a single month of research and public participation is too much for one Republican supervisor to bear.

In a typo-filled email sent early this morning to the newly-formed airport committee, Benson calls for a secret session to end debate after just two meetings. He then goes on to vent his spleen at unnamed “groups” who have attended meetings, and to argue Richmor Aviation’s case against that of the County itself.

Benson rants about his impatience to “put this matter behind us.” The New Leb super and BCI Construction magnate then “strongly” urges chair Art Bassin of Ancram “to hold and [sic] Executive Session (of the Airport Committee) next week, so we can consider making a recommendation (on that same night) to the full board.”

His demand would appear to be illegal under the State’s Open Meetings law. That law only allows a limited number of specific reasons for going into executive session, a practice often abused by local and County agencies.

Not satisfied with ending the conversation before the committee has completed its tasks—which Benson did not object to when they were set forth—he then proceeds to become Richmor’s advocate against the public, and even against the County’s own legal interests.

Richmor, Benson thunders, must not “be subjected to too many more parades in front of groups looking to drive [them] from Columbia County. This group, which it appears at times that we are ‘reporting to’ is intent on doing just that; driving business from Columbia County and I do not support that and furthermore I do not want to be a part of it. I would go so far as to say; I am embarrassed by these actions.”

Clear statements have been made by the public at meetings that no one wants to shut down the airport; indeed, attendees have expressed support for the continued operation by Richmor at existing, manageable levels. At an earlier information session, Hudson 5th Ward supervisor Rick Scalera called for a show of hands of anyone who wanted the airport shut down; no hands were raised. (Perhaps Benson missed that meeting.) Richmor’s owner Maylon Richards himself has publicly claimed that he does not wish or expect to expand operations.

Nevertheless, Benson throws a tantrum on behalf of “Richmore”—the airport operator whose interests he’s decided to champion, but whose name he cannot be bothered to spell correctly.

Bassin’s agenda for the upcoming meeting includes a list of yet-to-be-settled questions for Richmor to address as part of the committee’s ongoing research into options to bring the airport into compliance.

Benson then attempts a fear tactic, arguing against the County’s own legal interest in favor of a private corporation. He tries to claim that the County “may be walking dangerously close to a breach of that contract if we do not facilitate the terms and conditions of it.” Benson apparently is not concerned with evidence which has come forward suggesting that the County is not enforcing its end of the contract as far as collecting its full share of fees from Richmor for landings by turbined planes. (More on that in a future post.)

“We need to move on to many other issues,” Benson concludes, without specifying either what issues he deems more pressing, or why he believes his fellow Supervisors are incapable of dealing with more than one issue at a time.

In a polite and sober reponse, Bassin agrees to put Benson’s motion on the agenda, but points out that such a decision should not be taken in executive session. More importantly, Bassin asserts that the only way to move forward speedily and cost-efficiently on the runway issues is to shorten it, rather than expanding it.

Bassin’s full reply is below.

Mike,

Thanks for your note.

I think its premature to decide this now, but I am happy to put this issue on the Agenda for Wednesday. We should have this discussion in open session, not executive session.

If we wanted to make a decision or recommendation next week, common sense and logic would suggest we recommend shortening the runway to 4500 feet. That decision would immediately put us in compliance with the FAA safety zone guidelines & standards, eliminate any insurance risk, and not have any impact on the Richmor business. And we can continue to explore the logic and rationale for expanding the safety zone as has been proposed.

If we were to do this, one runway will still be 5350 feet with a 1000 foot safety zone, and the other would be 4500 feet, with a 1000 foot safety zone.

And the FAA has told us that the 4500 foot runway can still accommodate class C and D jets as long as they are not "fully loaded". It is unlikely anyone will be flying into or out of the airport "fully loaded".

Not shortening the runway immediately leaves us exposed us to being out of compliance with the FAA guidelines & standards and to possible insurance risks for another 3 years. This seems like an unnecessary set of risks to continue to take.

I think we all share your concern for Richmor, and I am looking forward to hearing how they feel about this set of issues. I suspect there may be investments in the airport that would be more valuable to Richmor's business than adding a 1000 foot safety zone by buying the adjacent land...like additional hangar space or an ILS.

And I am not sure what the need to rush is...we have been working on this for 10 years already...another couple of months is not going to matter.

Even if we decide to recommend that we immediately shorten the runway to 4500 feet to immediately comply with the FAA's safety zone guidelines and standards, we can still explore the benefit and logic supporting buying the adjacent land and adding the 1000 safety zone. If we can make that case, we can always implement that plan down the road.

Art

SamPratt.com