Month: June 2019

Ray Watkin was mayor of Saratoga Springs from 1974 to 1979. Ray was a real visionarry. It was Ray who spearheaded the preservation movement that viewed the city’s aging architecture as jewels. His administration pursued grants and other policies to upgrade the downtown and bring out the beauty that years of neglect had hidden.

Ray ran a shoe store on Broadway in the block between Lake Avenue and Caroline Street. He used this store not only to make a living but as a vehicle for talking to the people of the city about issues. This evolved into his successful campaign for mayor.

Happy Birthday to my friend, Ray Watkin.

[JK:I offered Claudia Braymer, the attorney who represents the neighbors in the dispute with the hospital, a forum to address my recent blog post on the issue. I made a similar offer to Matt Jones who represents the hospital. Ms. Braymer sent me the following statement.]

While the Comprehensive Plan does define Institutional as an area that allows for religious, health, educational, cultural and tourism, the Comprehensive Plan does not state that the Institutional area would allow for commercial/professional office complexes.  Yet, that is exactly what the proposed OMB-2 designation would allow.

The zoning change is not simply about the Hospital’s one proposed-in-theory (but not actually before the Planning Board) medical office building.  The zoning change for Parcel #1 is about changing the entire 17+ acre Parcel #1 site (most of which is currently owned by DA Collins) to a zoning district that allows for professional offices (not limited to medical offices), plus medical offices, parking facilities, and other related accessory structures.  The Comprehensive Plan does not support changing all of Parcel #1 to a zoning district that allows for professional offices of an unrestricted nature.

The City Council should reject the OMB-2 designation, and have the Hospital & DA Collins bring forward all of their plans for this undeveloped land, so that the public and the City can evaluate the situation in the light of day, and come to a rational conclusion about the proper zoning designation.

Sincerely,

Claudia Braymer

Braymer Law, PLLC

Claudia K. Braymer

Attorney at Law

PO Box 2369

Glens Falls NY 12801

(518) 882-3252

claudia@braymerlaw.com

The Independence Party is sponsoring a debate on Friday, June 14, between the candidates in the upcoming Democratic primary for Finance Commissioner. Both challenger Patty Morrison and current Commissioner of Finance Michele Madigan were invited to attend.  At this point only Commissioner Madigan has accepted the invitation.

The Independence Party has endorsed Commissioner Madigan but to ensure fairness has enlisted Chad Beatty, publisher/editor of Saratoga Today, to moderate. The event will take place regardless of how many candidates choose to attend.

The event will take place at the Saratoga Casino Hotel Riley’s/Arrowhead Meeting Room on Friday, June 14. Doors Open at 6:30pm, debate 7PM-8PM.

Previous attempts by the Saratoga County League of Women Voters to organize a debate between the two candidates were unsuccessful.

Chris Mathiesen recently brought to my attention an error in my Hospital vs Neighbors story. The committee that produced the 2015 Comprehensive Plan was appointed by Mayor Scott Johnson’s administration and not Mayor Joanne Yepsen’s.

I would like to publicly apologize to Ms Yepsen for my error. I have edited the story to correct it.

In a previous post I wrote about a totally opaque website on local politics. The site is called Common Sense Saratoga (CSS). After quite a bit of criticism about the anonymity of those involved in the site from a variety of sources  they decided to post the names of four people they characterize as “Founders.” They listed them as follows:

Founding Members

·         Gordon Boyd – Independence Party

·         Ann Bullock – Democratic Party

·         Mark Pingel – Republican Party

·         Bob Turner – Democratic Party

As those of you who follow city politics will know, Boyd, Bullock, and Turner were all on the charter commission that promoted the city manager form of government and were active with It’s Time Saratoga which was the social media face of this group. I assume that this site will replace It’s Time Saratoga, continuing the strategy of distorting the issues facing the city to try to convince the public falsely that the city is in crisis and the only remedy is to change our form of government.

The entire project has the feel of this kind of spin. It no longer mentions the charter (yet anyway) but presents itself as interested in broader issues. The selection of the “founders” is meant to put a non-partisan face on the site to appear to represent a broad based perspective. Conspicuously absent from this list is Pat Kane who some of us suspect has a role in this but whose name was perhaps omitted because of his highly public and documented history of disturbing behavior.

Interestingly, only a short time ago, Zuzia Kwasniewski asked Bob Turner on the Saratoga Unites Facebook page if he was behind the anonymous website and he disavowed any involvement. Now, of course, we find that he was a founder. When I asked Zuzia if she could send me a screen shot of his response she returned to the website only to find that his comment had been deleted.

A Dubious Story On Unpaid City Taxes

The top story on the site is titled “Why Doesn’t Saratoga Collect It’s Back Taxes?”

The piece begins with “… a surprisingly large number of taxpayers simply will not pay their taxes and, based on past experience, they probably see no reason why they should.”

First of all to put this issue in perspective it is important to note that 95% of the property owners in the city pay their taxes on time.

Secondly, contrary to what this article implies the city charter spells out clearly the serious penalties for tax delinquency, and these regulations have been scrupulously adhered to by the city.

Penalties include:

·         Fines up to 15% per year

·         Liens placed on delinquent properties which will mean the property cannot be sold

·         Damage to personal credit rating of delinquent property owners

·         Public embarrassment as names of delinquent taxpayers are required to be published annually in local newspapers

Understanding The Timing Of Property Seizures

The folks at CSS seem particularly upset at what they see as the indifference of the city to pursue seizing properties with liens on them. As often happens, in spite of what seems to make “common sense”, the issues are far more complicated than they appear. Such is the case with property seizures.

To begin with, New York State law requires three years before the city can seize property for failure to pay taxes. The process of the city seizing private property is long, complicated, and expensive both in terms of the cost in lawyer fees and in the time required of city staff. The city does not have the expertise to deal with foreclosures in house and so must find and hire outside counsel for this procedure.  Rather than doing foreclosures one at a time and continuously finding and hiring lawyers, the economical way of dealing with seizures in a city of our size involves waiting till a number of delinquent parcels can be packaged and dealt with at the same time and only initiating foreclosure procedures as a last resort.  If the city, in most cases can expect to get its taxes and penalties eventually without resorting to seizure, why tie up staff and spend unnecessary money on large legal fees unless it has been determined that the owner will never pay? It is also important to note that some of the delinquent property owners may be experiencing hard times, and the city prefers to try to give them time to recover rather than seize their property.

Saratoga is not a declining city like Utica where property values have plummeted and people are walking away from delinquent properties. The city will in the end get the taxes and penalties owed one way or the other. The question is when and at what cost.

When the city does end up seizing property, there is still the question of what to do with the property. The City does not want to be in the business of owning and maintaining delinquent properties. In the past the city has auctioned off foreclosed properties, a process that also involves the expenditure of many city resources

 A thoughtful assessment of the situation free of malicious spin is that there is no crisis involving the city bleeding away lost revenue.

Here is a link to Finance Commissioner Madigan’s thoughtful report on how the city handles the issue of delinquent taxes presented at last Tuesday’s City Council meeting with additional comments by City Attorney Vince DeLeonardis and Commissioner of Accounts John Franck who reminisces about past properties the city has seized.

The Mysterious Uber Delinquent Taxpayer

Further on in this same piece the writer makes allegations about a particular delinquent taxpayer.

“One taxpayer of particular interest in this group is the beneficiary of long-standing contracts for services to the City.  This individual owes to the City of Saratoga Springs and the City school district no less than $137,000 in back taxes, covering a total of nine lots throughout the city. “

The writer asserts that the parcels involved are worth over $1,300,000.00 and that “the owner operates thriving businesses on several of them.”  

This is a pretty shocking accusation so I decided to use their comment option to inquire further about this case. I wrote them asking who this person was and if they would not name the person, what was their reasoning for protecting this delinquent.

When I clicked send, I got a message that I was a bot and was not allowed to access their site. As you may recall from an earlier post I had asked the site who they were and never received an answer. Having a blog myself, I know how easy it is to block people who one doesn’t want to hear from.

My experience with this group’s history, especially Mr. Kane, is that they are quite capable of making outrageous accusations for which there is no source of verification. Maybe some other reader out there might help me by going on their site and asking the same question.

Ellen Egger-Aimone’s Regrettable Comment

One comment that did get published came from Ellen Egger-Aimone. It reads as follows:

The managers of this website have posted a comment by Ms. Egger-Aimone that is truly odious. Ms. Egger-Aimone basically accuses Commissioner Michele Madigan of allowing developers to avoid paying taxes. She also asserts that Commissioner Madigan is hiding from the public who the delinquents are.

If Ms. Egger-Aimone had a better understanding of how city government works or had bothered to ask before she posted her comment she would have known that in fact what she is demanding already exists. That is, it already is public knowledge who is not paying their taxes.  As noted earlier the names of those people delinquent in their taxes, including developers, are regularly posted in local newspapers as required by the city charter. Here is an image of the notice from last October.

Link To Avertisement With Properties In Default

But in an age of social media and negative campaigns, apparently Ms. Egger-Aimone doesn’t feel the need to be rigorous and accurate in making her accusations and is betting that her audience won’t care about fact checking either.

 Ellen Egger- Aimone is the campaign manager for both Patty Morrison’s campaign to unseat Michele Madigan as Finance Commissioner and Kendall Hicks’ campaign to become Commissioner of Public Safety. Where are they on all this? Should the public expect to see a similar disregard for accuracy in their campaign materials?  In a better world, both Patty Morrison and Kendall Hicks would disavow Ms. Egger-Aimone’s behavior but so far they have been silent.

And why would Gordon Boyd, Ann Bullock, Bob Turner, and Mark Pingel, the principles behind this site, tolerate and indeed promote this kind of garbage in both the articles they are publishing and the comments they decide to put up.

Ms. Egger-Aimone’s and this blog’s reckless and cruel attacks call to mind Attorney Joseph Welch’s response to similar baseless, character assassination efforts by Senator Joe McCarthy at the famous Army-McCarthy hearings.  

 

We may well ask the same question of the participants in Common Sense Saratoga.  Have they no sense of decency?  

[Release from Preservation Foundation- June 6]

Yesterday Kendall HIcks posted this on his Facebook page.

BBL PAC0, PO BOX 12789

ALBANY , NY 12212

200.00

08-MAR-19

CITIZENS FOR FANCK

511 BROADWAY

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 128660

500.00

25-FEB-19

FITZGERALD MORRIS BAKER FIRTH PC

16 PEARL ST PO BOX 2017

GLENS FALLS , NY 12801

250.00

08-MAR-19

FRIENDS OF PETER MARTIN

PO BOX 313

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

200.00

08-MAR-19

FRIENDS OF TARA N. GASTON

PO BOX 649

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

KODIAK CONSTRUCTION, INC

PO BOX 657

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

MUNTER ENTERPRISES, INC

881 MURRAY RD

MIDDLE GROVE , NY 12850

100.00

15-MAR-19

NOLAN & HELLER LLP

39 N PEARL ST

ALBANY, NY 12207

100.00

08-MAR-19

NORTHEAST GOVERNMENT CONSULTING LLC

501 ST DAVIDS LANE

NISKAYUNA, NY 12309

250.00

08-MAR-19

NRCC NY NON-PARTISAN PEC

111 STATE ST

ALBANY, NY 12207

250.00

15-MAR-19

PJS BAR-B-Q

ROUTE 9

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

SARATOGA COUNTY INDEPENDENCE PARTY CHAIRMAN’S CLUB

102 LUDLOW ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

500.00

08-MAR-19

SARATOGA HARNESS RACING INC

CRESCENT AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

150.00

08-MAR-19

SARATOGA PELICAN ASSOCIATES LLC

232 SOUTH BROADWAY 12866

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

150.00

17-MAY-19

SARATOGA SPRINGS DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE

PO BOX 124

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

1,000.00

20-MAY-19

STEWART’S SHOPS CORP

PO BOX 435 SS 12866

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

02-APR-19

TURF HOTELS

792 WATERVLIET SHAKER RD

LATHAM, NY 12110

250.00

08-MAR-19

BELMONTE, PETER J

145 JACKSON ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

BLACK, GILLIAN

94 YORK AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

BLANCHARD, ROBERT

15 SPA CIRCLE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

BONACIO JR, ALFIO

18 DIVISION ST SUITE 401

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

27-FEB-19

BROWN, CHARLES W

10 PERRY ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

CAIN, GEORGE

6 ROUNDTABLE RD

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

35.00

08-MAR-19

CARR JR, DAVID

13 OAKLAND DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

CLEMENTS, BRUCE H

28 CLINTON ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

125.00

08-MAR-19

COLLINS, DAVID J

8 TOMMY LUTHER DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

CORBETT, CYNTHIA A

45 WALTON ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

150.00

08-MAR-19

DAKE, GARY C

PO BOX 435

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

DAKE, W P

90 BRYAN STREET

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

500.00

11-APR-19

DAKE, W P

90 BRYAN ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

DALTON, ROBIN

78 CAROLINE ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

21-MAR-19

DELEONARDIS, VINCENT J

30 MAGNOLIA DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

75.00

08-MAR-19

DEMARCO, DAVID

7 INGERSOLL RD

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

DICARA, TAMMY

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

FOSTER, DOROTHY

4 BIRCH RUN DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

GOLDBERG, SUSAN V

66 SARAZEN STREET

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

99.00

22-MAR-19

GORMAN, KATHRYN

55 RAILROAD PL APT 311

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

25.00

08-MAR-19

HIGGINS, RICHARD L

100 UNION AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

HIGGINS, RICHARD L

100 UNION AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

500.00

11-APR-19

HOFFMAN, MICHAEL

38 HIGH ROCK AVE, UNIT 6K

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

500.00

11-APR-19

HOFFMAN, MICHAEL

38 HIGH ROCK AVE, UNIT 6K

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

28-FEB-19

HOLLOWOOD, CYNTHIA D

144 5TH AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

17-MAY-19

HOVER, MARK AND CATHERINE

43 LONG ALLEY

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

IRELAND, KIMBERLY

3 FRUITWOOD DR

BURNT HILLS , NY 12027

100.00

08-MAR-19

JONES, MATTHEW J

2 VICTORIA LANE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

1,000.00

08-MAR-19

JORGENSEN, DIANE M

5 WIEBECKE CT

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

KIEHL, ELLEN

231 CAROLINE ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

35.00

02-APR-19

LASALLE, GAYLE B

147 WOODLAWN

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

25.00

08-MAR-19

LEWIS, TOM L

60 FRANKLIN ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

LUCAS, JOY A

30 BRAIM RD

GREENFIELD CENTER , NY 12833

150.00

08-MAR-19

LYONS, CHRISTOPHER

2163 ROWLEY RD

BALLSTON SPA, NY 12020

100.00

08-MAR-19

MADIGAN, MICHELE D

7 EMERALD LANE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

154.03

11-APR-19

MADIGAN, MICHELE D

7 EMERALD LANE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

36.04

14-APR-19

MALLORY, PATRICIA

12 ROBERTS LANE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

MARTINEZ, JAMES

15 FIFTH

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

75.00

08-MAR-19

MATHIESEN, DMD, CHRISTIAN E

154 WEST AVE 12866

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

MCCLENEGHEN, FRANK D

2189 COOK RD

GALWAY, NY 12074

250.00

08-MAR-19

MCCLENEGHEN, FRANK D

2189 COOK RD

GALWAY, NY 12074

500.00

03-MAY-19

MCLAUGHLIN, PATRICIA M

6209 EMPIRE AVE

SCHENECTADY , NY 12306

100.00

02-APR-19

MURATORI, VALERIE

288 CAROLINE ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

02-APR-19

NEWKIRK, THOMAS R

553 CRESCENT AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

OGDEN, JOSEPH J

11 MOKASHA SQ

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

PARILLO, FRANK

4 THERESA TERRACE

MALTA , NY 12020

250.00

17-FEB-19

PARTRIDGE, JANICE

2 MAGNOLIA DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

200.00

08-MAR-19

QUINN ZANELLA, KELLY

27 COLLINS TERRACE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

ROOHAN, J THOMAS

514 BROADWAY

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

ROOHAN, J THOMAS

519 BROADWAY

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

500.00

11-APR-19

SALERNI, EUGENE

24 LONGWOOD

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

75.00

08-MAR-19

SANTAMARIA, KATHLEEN

3 KEMPTON PL APT 7

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

SCHWARZ-LAWTON, HELEN

209 NELSON AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

SELLERS, RICHARD

PO BOX 789

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

200.00

08-MAR-19

SHIMKUS, TODD

139 JEFFERSON ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

SOBOL GOMEZ, ELIZABETH

15 ADAMS ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

500.00

01-MAY-19

SOBOL GOMEZ, ELIZABETH

15 ADAMS ST, 12866

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

STENGLEIN, PHILIP A

7 WHITE OAK PATH

BALLSTON SPA, NY 12020

75.00

08-MAR-19

SUTTON, RODNEY J

12 FIFTH AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

VON SCHENK, STEPHEN

75 COOLIDGE LN

DIAMOND POINT, NY 12824

100.00

08-MAR-19

WAIT, CHARLES W

658 N BROADWAY

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

250.00

08-MAR-19

WAIT, JR, CHARLES V

8 LAKEVIEW DR

GANSEVOORT , NY 12831

100.00

08-MAR-19

WALSH, MARGARET

16 ROSEWOOD DR

CLIFTON PARK , NY 12065

250.00

08-MAR-19

WEIHE, MARTHA JANE

44 WHITE ST

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

WILDER, NANCY

6 HORSESHOE DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

14-MAY-19

WILSON, KATHLEEN

16 CENTRAL AVE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

50.00

08-MAR-19

ZANGRANDO, JOANNA

24 COLLINS TERRACE

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

ZIEKER, MELISSA

10 MAGNOLIA DR

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

WILLIAM B WILMOT AND JOAN M. TAYLOR

46 UNION AVE, UNIT 204

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

100.00

08-MAR-19

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY 12866

644.00

08-MAR-19

Total Contributions: 17,178.00

According to News Channel 13 the Presbyterian New England Congregational Church on Circular Street has offered to become a permanent home for Code Blue in Saratoga Springs. Some neighbors have voiced opposition.

Here is a link to the story:

https://wnyt.com/news/saratoga-springs-may-have-found-its-code-blue-shelter-some-neighbors-opposed/5377535/

I had heard rumors that what had been a temporary pause in Kendall Hicks’ campaign for Public Safety Commissioner had become permanent.

I attempted to find out from Ellen Egger-Aimone, his campaign manager, what the status of his campaign was. I texted her twice and also emailed her but have received no reply. I would note that when I contacted her some time ago about a disturbing story regarding Mr. Hicks she responded quickly asserting that it was not accurate.