Saratoga Springs Politics

The Saratoga Springs City Council voted unanimously to request that the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors seek approval from the New York State Liquor Authority to require bars in the city to close by 2 AM rather than the current closing time of 4 AM.

Saratoga Springs City Council asks to restrict alcohol sales in bars after 2 a.m.

The County and the NYS Liquor Authority, rather than the city, decide the hours that alcohol can be served, and the city’s two representatives to county government do not appear to be supportive of the city’s request.

Fueled by alcohol and an increasingly aggressive and volatile party culture, the late night, downtown bar scene has become difficult to police. Public Safety Commissioner Robin Dalton told the council, “It’s become clear to us through analytics and arrests that the hours of 2-to-4 a.m. are unquestionably posing a public safety risk to the community at large. We cannot let this public safety threat go on.”

Police Chief Shane Crooks told the council, “We have seen a large increase in calls for service and the number of people. The people we end up dealing with that late at night are highly intoxicated.”

According to the Daily Gazette story, Saratoga Springs’ representatives to the County Board of Supervisors, Tara Gaston(D) and Matthew Veitch(R) were less than enthusiastic about the county acting to address this problem. They cautioned that the process would be protracted. The Gazette reported that “…they [Gaston and Veitch] wanted to hear from bar owners and other stakeholders in what could be a lengthy committee process before forming an opinion of whether the county should approve the city’s request.”

Veitch noted that both the county and state Liquor Authority would have to hold public hearings on a potential change – if the proposal gets that far.

“You are talking several months at a minimum, if it even passes the county,” he said. “We have bars downtown that serve patrons and police and sheriff; there are multiple factors at issue. I’ll keep an open mind and let the process run its course.”

Daily Gazette August 3

The Caroline Street scene has long been problematic, and there have been other appeals from the city to the county over the years to restrict bar hours. All have been rejected by the County Board of Supervisors.

It is troubling that our two Supervisors are apparently unwilling to be advocates on behalf of the city regarding a solution to this ongoing problem.

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Gazette Article Gives Excellent Brief History Of Efforts To Change City’s Closing Time For Bars

As crowds return to Saratoga Springs’ Caroline Street, so does an old idea

Democratic mayoral candidate Ron Kim has sent out a fundraising email (see full text below) that contains some disturbing inaccuracies delivered in a problematic tone.

The email bases its appeal for donations on the alleged threat to Saratoga Springs that his opponent, Heidi Owen West, supposedly poses to the city.

It begins with this ominous warning:

“The January 6 insurrection was 410 miles away in Washington DC but the danger it presented exists right here in Saratoga Springs.”

It continues:

“Did you know that members of the Saratoga County GOP organized buses of rioters to travel to the January 6 insurrection?“

“Did you know that tonight the same group is holding a fundraiser for my opponent, the GOP candidate for mayor Heidi [Owen] West?”

This was simply not true.

First of all, let’s put aside the question of whether the travelers went to Washington with the intent of rioting in the capital. While there were buses that went to Washington in January from this area, they were organized by a group called the Upstate Conservative Coalition (UCC).

I am sure that there were registered Republicans among the travelers, but the group that organized the trip was not the city or county GOP.

Most importantly the UCC had nothing to do with Ms. Owen West’s fundraiser. In fact, while the county Republican Party promoted the event on their Facebook page, Ms. Owen West organized the fundraiser herself, independent of any group. While she is the Republican endorsed candidate for mayor, she is a registered independent voter.

Mr. Kim’s letter then claims the following:

“The GOP is spreading its anti-democracy misinformation and lies -all to the detriment of our city and our way of life here in Saratoga Springs.“

Without indicating exactly what misinformation and lies he thinks the GOP is spreading here, he is clearly trying to have the reader associate Ms. Owen West with this alleged threat to “our way of life here in Saratoga Springs”.

While I understand that Mr. Kim’s email is meant to motivate people to send him money, I find his intemperate appeal to fear quite disturbing. In fact, this appeal for money seems to me to mirror the very tactics of spreading misinformation that he attributes to the GOP.

This approach also seems seems politically foolish. The number of enrolled Democrats now exceeds the number of enrolled Republicans in this city. That means Mr. Kim is not the underdog in this race. Why send out a message so clearly based on inaccuracies? It not only damages his credibility but also provides fodder to his opponents.

This city is fortunate to have a highly involved citizenry that I suspect will not react favorably to this kind of over the top campaign tactic.

I reached out to Ms. Owen West. Here is her response:

I am not being funded by any political party. I’m a political independent who is solely being funded by a groundswell of people of all political persuasions.

I’m incredibly humbled by the Saratogians who joined me at my kickoff fundraiser earlier this week because they believe in my ability to deliver on the issues that matter the most to our community.

Heidi Owen West

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This is the full text of Mr. Kim’s fundraising appeal.

The January 6 insurrection was 410 miles away in Washington DC but the danger it presented exists right here in Saratoga Springs.

Did you know that members of the Saratoga County GOP organized buses of rioters to travel to the January 6insurrection?

Did you know that tonight the same group is holding a fundraiser for my opponent, the GOP candidate for mayor Heidi West?

The GOP is spreading its anti-democracy misinformation and lies -all to the detriment of our city and our way of life here in Saratoga Springs.

Before midnight tomorrow, we must raise $15,000 because we cannot allow the GOP to out-raise us and out-spend us.

Click here to help me MATCH THE OPPOSITION (to democracy)

I am Ron Kim, an experienced and proven leader with the ability to tackle the tough issues facing our City. As the mayor of Saratoga Springs, on day one, I will work to bring transparency, accountability, and accessibility back to City Hall.

Schenectady, Saratoga counties’ COVID tally hit CDC mask threshold

According to the July 31, 2021, edition of the Daily Gazette, Saratoga County has the unfortunate position of having the highest positivity rate for COVID in New York State.

In the face of this, the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors has continued their practice of opacity. On Thursday, they announced the formation of the Saratoga Health and Readiness Planning (SHARP) Task Force which is charged with addressing ongoing developments regarding COVID. I use the word opacity because the county Health and Social Services Committee met the day before the announcement of the task force and there was no discussion whatsoever of the establishment of such a body let alone who would be appointed to it. All of this was done then outside of the public process of the county’s committees.

According to the Gazette:

“The announcement specifically cast doubt on directives and mandates as a public health strategy, however, and said the task force would focus on educating the public so it could make its own decisions.”

In other words, they have predetermined that there will be no mandates. Who decided this and why? The public has no idea.

There are arguments to be made both for and against mandates but clearly the decisions were made with a complete indifference to transparency or public input.

There appears to be no serious analysis behind the decision to reject mandates.

For a start it would seem important to try to answer a basic question in order to come up with an effective plan: Why is our county number one?

It would also be good to know why the idea of mandated mask wearing in indoor situations has been summarily dismissed.

According to the CDC the viral load of this current variant is staggering. The viral load is the number of viruses being expelled by infected individuals. Apparently the amount of viruses expelled by a person infected with the Delta variant is 1260 times greater than that of the original virus. This is one possible explanation for the sharp increase in cases and the fact that even vaccinated persons have been subject to infection in surprising numbers although those cases have almost always been less severe. Worse, even though the impact of the disease is greatly reduced for the vaccinated, they are still able to spread the disease even if they have no symptoms.

It may very well be that local businesses might be negatively impacted by a mask mandate and there may be other reasons to avoid this. Still, there are arguments to be made for mandating masks. A mandate could help protect employees in shops and restaurants particularly in Saratoga which has an influx of tourists from all over the country including from states with very high Covid rates. Aside from the well being of those workers, businesses, already struggling to hire enough staff, might find themselves having to reduce the hours they are open if staff members fall ill. Responsible policy makers need to be willing to discuss all options and their ramifications.

My concern is that it is ideology, not science driving this decision.

People’s rights need to be respected but we have an encyclopedia of examples where individual rights are limited in the interest of the public good. As just a couple of examples, we have drunk driving laws and shirts and shoes are often required in public venues.

The fact is that if you are a carrier of the disease and you are not wearing a mask, you are spreading the disease wherever you go. You are putting other people’s lives at risk.

One might also ask, is the county really going to come up with an education strategy as an alternative that is going to convince people to voluntarily wear masks?

Unfortunately, having such thoughtful discussions in front of the public is simply not the way this county operates.

I contacted the three major candidates running for Mayor to ask about their plans for charter change if elected (I did not contact the Working Families Party candidate promoted by the Republican Party).

Heidi Owens-West (Republican)

I asked her, if elected, do you have any plans to initiate a new charter change proposal?

No, Charter Change has already been defeated 3x.

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Robin Dalton (Saratoga Stronger Together)

I asked her, if elected, do you have any plans to initiate a new charter change proposal?

I have no plans to address charter change in any way, shape, or form in my current term or over the next two years if elected in November.

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Ron Kim (Democrat)

Ron Kim was the co-chair of and spokesperson for the group advocating for charter change last fall. I emailed him to inquire what his plans would be for charter change should he be elected mayor. What follows is our email exchange.

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From: john.kaufmann
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2021 7:30:58 PM
To: Ronald Kim
Subject: Charter

If you are elected mayor, what do you plan to do about the city’s charter?

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From: Ronald Kim <ron@ronaldkimlaw.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2021 8:49 PM
To: john.kaufmann21@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Charter

Abide by it. 

Sincerely,

Ron

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From: john.kaufmann
To: Ronald Kim
Subject: RE: Charter

If you are elected mayor you will not create a commission to change it?

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From: Ronald Kim
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2021 8:55 PM
To: john.kaufmann
Subject: Re: Charter

I believe in democracy, and the voters have spoken, now we move on. 

Sincerely,

Ron

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From: john.kaufmann
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2021 9:05:28 PM
To: Ronald Kim
Subject: RE: Charter

Thank you for your prompt response.  Will you go on the record then to commit that if elected you will not create a charter change commission?

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From: Ronald Kim <ron@ronaldkimlaw.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2021 9:15 PM
To: john.kaufmann21@gmail.com
Subject: Re: Charter

Yes.  However, it is my understanding that the Charter requires the Mayor and City Council to appoint a Charter Commission at a certain point in time (I do not recall when that is.)  If that occurs while I am Mayor, I will abide by the Charter and appoint a Commission, if it does not occur while I am Mayor, I have no intentions of taking this action, because the voters have spoken and we have more important matters to deal with at this point in time.

Sincerely,

Ron

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From: john.kaufmann
Sent: Friday, June 25, 2021 9:56 AM
To: Ronald Kim
Subject: Charter

I did some research and found this under the mayor’s duties in the charter (Title 4 Section F).

“The City Charter shall be reviewed at least every 10 years commencing with the effective date of this Charter.”

As Mayor Kelly established a charter review commission in 2018, I would interpret the section to indicate that the city has until 2028 to carry out another charter review.  What are your thoughts?

JK

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From: Ronald Kim
Sent: Tuesday, June 25, 2021 10:51 AM
To: john.kaufmann
Subject: Re: Charter

As I said, voters spoke in 2020—as a Democrat who believes in democracy I will abide by that decision and focus on other more important matters if elected Mayor in 2021.     If I  happen to be in office at the time the Charter requires a review, I will abide by the Charter and appoint a commission.    I take no position on your interpretation at this point in time.   As an attorney I recognize that “textual interpretations” are not the last word on what is required by a foundational document like our City Charter.  

Ron

Ron Kim Fundraiser Invitation Paints Picture of His Support

I thought the readers of this blog would find it helpful to get a sense of who is supporting Ron Kim’s candidacy. Supporters of charter change figure heavily on this list of donors.

Press Statement from Commissioner Michele Madigan: Public Service and Private Matters

PRESS STATEMENT

July 27, 2021

Re: Statement from Commissioner Michele Madigan: Public Service and Private Matters

Contact: michele.madigan@saratoga-springs.org 518-587-3550 ext 2577

At the July 20, 2021 City Council meeting I suggested that the city and the local Black Lives Matter organization enter into professional mediation, in hopes that this would lower the temperature, allow us all to make some progress, reduce the level of stress and distress in our community, and help us all reach some level of understanding. We simply cannot continue to have this level of distress and dissatisfaction tearing apart our community. I still believe that discussion and mediation can help and I am taking this very seriously. Since that meeting I have taken on the task of organizing a mediation process, including speaking to Elz Figuereo and beginning the process of finding professional assistance.

My youngest son was arrested and arraigned on Thursday July 22, 2021 due to his presence at the scene of an alleged robbery. My understanding is that my son was present but not an active participant in the alleged robbery. This involved an alleged dispute over cannabis. There were others present and involved in the dispute who have not been arrested. It is my understanding that further arrests are possible. Those who assaulted the victim are still being sought. As far as I know, everyone involved in this incident is a Saratoga Springs resident. The investigation is ongoing and further arrests are possible.

Since my son’s arrest, local activists – including Mr. Figuereo – have been loudly equating my son’s legal issues (which are wholly and completely about a dispute between local teens) with the recent influx of violence in Saratoga Springs. This is unconscionable. These matters are completely unrelated, have no bearing on one another, and do nothing to address the issues raised by local activists. These actions are counterproductive as well as being hurtful. Despite this ongoing situation, it is my hope that Mr. Figuereo and his associates will be good faith participants in mediation.

Conflating two completely separate and painful issues and using my family’s current private difficulties to address a public problem is unacceptable. It would be best for this legal matter to play out through the justice system. I also humbly suggest that it would be more effective for our local activists and politicians – those currently in office as well as those currently standing for election – to focus on the important public matters at hand and not add to my son’s and my family’s pain. I feel the same way any parent would feel. I love my son very much and I want to help him all I can.

Please allow me in my capacity as an elected official to follow through on my commitment to begin mediation and please allow my family to deal with our struggles with an appropriate level of privacy and compassion.
Michele MadiganCommissioner of FinanceCity of Saratoga Springs474 BroadwaySaratoga Springs, NY 12866518-587-3550

On Tuesday night, July 20, 2021, members of the local Black Lives Matter group disrupted the City Council meeting. The public comment period devolved into chaos as BLM people shouted down members of the Council.

The following are some excerpts from the meeting:

Alexus Brown

In this clip, Alexus Brown confronted the Council over an incident in which Saratoga Springs Police stopped a car she and a friend were driving following the July 14 demonstration.

As background, the public comment period restricts comments to two minutes. Ms. Brown ignored the limit and continued her statement as she described her encounter.

Lexis Figuereo

In this video Lexis Figuereo reads a comment from Facebook which he alleged came from the Facebook page “Moving Saratoga Forward.” The comment is virulently racist. Figuereo also alleged in his remarks that Rob Arrigo, chairman of the local Libertarian Party, is behind this and that members of the Council are his allies.

The fact is that the comment did not come from “Moving Saratoga Forward” (MSF)but instead came from the Facebook page of Figuereo’s own Black Lives Matter group. Council members have no connection to MSF.

This is the BLM Facebook page (link to actual page):

I spoke to Mr. Arrigo about the Silverstein comment. He told me that the Silverstein comment was “absolutely abhorrent” and that he would never be associated with such a vile statement.

The Silverstein statement’s origins are suspicious. Her Facebook page appears to have been created by a hacker.

It is also more than odd that her comment includes an attack on the Adirondack Trust Company. Adirondack Trust was recently fined by the New York State Financial Services Department over discrimination in auto underwriting. In her comment Silverstein alleges that Adirondack Trust consciously exploited people of color.

The story is a little more nuanced. NYSFSD charged that auto dealerships overcharged their victims on loans provided to the dealers by Adirondack Trust. They fined Adirondack Trust for not properly monitoring its loans to avoid theses abuses.

According to the Times Union story, “Under fair lending laws, DFS said, the bank was responsible for monitoring these loans and helping to ensure that minorities were not suffering discrimination.” The TU story is worth reading because of how the violations were discovered. DFS used statistical analysis and modeling to uncover the pattern.

It seems reasonable to ask, if the mysterious Ms. Silverstein was motivated by hatred of people of color why would she go out of her way to throw the Adirondack Trust under the bus for discrimination?

The origins of the Silverstein comment on the BLM site seem more than suspicious.

In the following video Mr. Figuereo offers a reflection on how rage is a positive force that should be embraced.

While successful social movements in history have their roots in the rage that social injustice engenders, it is the harnessing of that anger into disciplined and thoughtful organized actions that has brought about real change.

The writings of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King reflect their outrage against injustice, but both men make absolutely clear that indulging their visceral anger is an expense that neither of them could afford.

Both men showed great skill in expanding their base while holding to their principles. The BLM group appears to have squandered much of the goodwill they originally enjoyed and appear to be increasingly isolated in this city.

With respect to Mr. Figuereo and other leaders in his group, it appears clear that their intemperate and incessant outbursts are not part of some carefully, thought out strategy to bring about change but are instead the unrestrained expressions of their rage against people they see as their enemies.

I fear that such a mindless non-strategy will eventually lead to disaster for themselves and those they lead.

Commissioner Robin Dalton

In this video Commissioner Robin Dalton attempts to respond to the criticisms made during the public comment period. It is during this segment of the Council meeting that things really went off the rails. Commissioner Dalton is basically shouted down and the meeting is temporarily recessed.

Commissioner of Finance Michele Madigan

Following the recess, Commissioner Madigan tried to acknowledge the demands of the BLM group and suggest a way forward. As documented in an earlier blog, Commissioner Madigan met with the BLM leadership last year, but her attempt to address their concerns became mired in poisonous insults from Lexis Figuereo and went nowhere.

It is a testament to Commissioner Madigan’s desire to somehow find common ground in spite of the past episode that she sought to advocate for a mediated meeting between the Council and BLM.

Commissioner Dalton also offered her willingness to meet. She described how she had tried repeatedly unsuccessfully to meet with BLM.

Rather than embrace and support Madigan’s and Dalton’s offers, the meeting descends into total chaos with shouts that include personal attacks on both Commissioners Madigan and Dalton. The Council was unable to transact business and the police came in and cleared the public from the room.

Summary

Grim… so grim.

Todd Kusnierz (R- Town of Moreau), who is the chair of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors, has summarily removed Supervisor Tara Gaston (D-Saratoga Springs) not only from the chair of the county’s Committee on Health and Human Services, he has removed her from the committee.

His action follows a minor conflict at the most recent meeting of the committee.

Some Background

RISE is a group in the town of Ballston trying to build affordable housing. The group had successfully secured grants for their project, but the recent spike in the cost of lumber suddenly increased the price of the project by a million and a half dollars.

To secure the grants, RISE was required to come up with the full financing. While the cost of lumber is expected to drop, the applications must be completed by the end of the month. The county apparently has received some $44,000,000.00 in federal monies under the CARES act. RISE is seeking $400,000.00. They stressed that hopefully they will not need the moneys if lumber prices moderate, but for now they need the county’s commitment of funds to secure the grants.

They asked Tara Gaston as the chair to allow them to address her committee. Apparently Supervisor Gaston had a sense that the request would be at least temporarily rejected. The county has yet to establish a vehicle for accepting applications for the moneys. The members of Gaston’s committee all opposed acting on the application at this time.

My understanding is that the leadership of the county does not like to publicly deal with issues when there are not the votes to approve an action. They prefer to deal with things out of the public eye. Supervisor Gaston apparently felt that RISE deserved the opportunity to do their presentation even if it would not be adopted at this point.

I have excerpted two episodes from the meeting. The first occurred during the discussion over the RISE proposal. Supervisor Gaston expressed frustration at the lack of input from her colleagues prior to the meeting.

She exercised the privilege of the chair to express that frustration. When Kusnierz tried to respond she asked him to save his comments until “other business” at the end of the meeting.

The second excerpt is from “other business.” Supervisor Gaston begins by apologizing apparently for not using this part of the agenda to express her own concerns. Kusnierz then issues a backhanded attack on Gaston by assuring the members of the committee that in the future the meetings will be run “smoothly and with decorum.”

It has been my misfortune to have listened to more meetings of public officials than any reasonable person can be expected to endure. In fact, I subjected myself to the lengthy bitter brawls at the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors during the conflicts between the two factions last year over the COVID bonus fiasco.

I think most people listening to these recordings will agree that Supervisor Gaston’s comments did not rise to a level that could possibly be described as violating decorum nor of running a chaotic meeting.

It would appear that the decision to remove her from both the chairmanship and the membership of the committee was punitive.

I will not speculate on why this was done but it is just another indication that while the new leadership at the county is better than the old, that is a very low bar.

It was encouraging when Foothills Business Daily (FBD) launched their site. With the collapse of the Saratogian’s coverage of our city, another source of news regarding Saratoga Springs was welcome.

That said, the recent coverage by FBD of Black Lives Matter has been disappointing and regrettably raises concerns about their reliability as a source of accurate news.

FBD’s Reporting On What Happened in Saratoga on July 14

Here are two examples of FBD reporting on the BLM demonstration that occurred on July 14 in downtown Saratoga Springs.

According to the FBD story dated July 19, 2021:

BLM Saratoga held the press conference after a protest last week that wound its way through the streets of Saratoga Springs with the police arresting five people, four on minor charges. Representatives of BLM said that the police were too aggressive in their tactics, outfitting themselves with shields, clubs and body armor, and then rushing the protesters who were retreating back toward Congress Park, they say. [Read the full story here.] BLM members reiterated that they came without weapons and none were found on those arrested.

Foothills Business Review July 19, 2021

According to the July 15, 2021 FBD

About 8:15, after an hour of marching, the police gave protesters five minutes to disperse and leave the driving lanes of the streets. Police addressed the crowd through a PA system in a police SUV that at first was difficult to hear. (my emphasis) An officer repeatedly read a statement that said the protestors were trespassing and had to leave the street no matter the topic of the protest.

FBD July 15, 2015

I do not take issue with FBD reporting on what the BLM representatives at their press conference had to say no matter how misrepresentative their statements may have been. The public is interested in stories on social justice issues here in our city and news sources correctly see the local BLM group’s statements and actions as deserving coverage.

What I find deeply disturbing is that journalism should not be about simply parroting recklessly inaccurate statements and that unfortunately is what FBD is guilty of.

The description of the events that occurred at Broadway and Caroline as described by the local BLM group at the press conference is simply not an accurate representation and FBD failed in its journalistic responsibilities by not also providing its readers with reporting on what actually occurred.

Likewise the second example above, while not inaccurate, leaves out a significant piece of information that changes the whole understanding of the police effort to communicate with protesters.

Steve Thurston, the publisher/reporter of FBD knows what actually transpired at this demonstration because he was there. I know he was there because I was there.

What Actually Happened

On the evening of July 14, 2021, the BLM demonstrators had halted their march at the intersection of Caroline Street and Broadway. After approximately ten minutes, a police car on Caroline Street facing Broadway, using its sound system began issuing a warning to the demonstrators advising them that the gathering was an illegal assembly and that if they did not clear the intersection within five minutes they would be subject to potential arrest.

Part way through the warning, using a feature in their bullhorns that generates a loud siren sound, several demonstrators, including Lexis Figuereo, attempted to drown out the warning.

It was clear that the sirens were being used to express the contempt the demonstrators had for the police warning.

The small group that remained in the intersection made it abundantly clear that they had no intention of leaving the intersection unless they were forced out.

Simply describing that the police warning, as FBD has done, was hard to hear without observing that the demonstrators were attempting to drown out the police warning with siren sounds gives an incomplete picture of what was happening. It was abundantly clear that the demonstrators were using the sirens to mock the warnings the police were trying to communicate.

Mr. Thurston also had to be aware of the reality that the group occupying the intersection was not going to move unless forced to do so.

The readers of FBD deserved to have this information.

Allowing Readers The Information To Make Up Their Own Minds

People will understandably disagree about the appropriateness of the actions that took place at the demonstration.

Some will believe that the demonstrators were trying to get their message about police racism and violence out and that all they were doing was inconveniencing motorists trying to use Broadway. Traffic could, and in fact had been redirected around the stretch of Broadway from Lake Avenue to Spring Street. They will believe that the police should have simply let the demonstrators block the intersection of Caroline and Broadway for as long as they wanted to.

Others may take a more moderate approach believing that it was ok to let the demonstrators block the street for close to an hour and a half but it was time to return access to the public.

Others will assert that the demonstrators should never have been allowed to block traffic in the first place.

However you view the justifications for the BLM actions, any person who was there that night would know that the demonstrators would not have retreated from that intersection had the police not forced them to. The idea that the police actions were gratuitous because the demonstrators were retreating from the area following the warning begs credibility and the FBD had a journalistic responsibility to report this to their readers no matter what the BLM spokespersons wanted the public to believe.

What actually occurred was that with demonstrators refusing to free the intersection following three warnings, a phalanx of police advanced on the intersection.

Most of the demonstrators fled the intersection and regrouped at Broadway and Division Street. Five who remained behind were arrested.

It should be left to the readers of FBD to decide whether the actions of the demonstrators and the police were justified but to enable them to do so FBD needed to provide them with accurate information so readers could make up their own minds.

The More Nuanced Problem of Determining What Details to Report On and How To Provide Context

FBD is really a one person operation, Steve Thurston. Most people reading the kind of things that Mr. Thurston reports on probably don’t appreciate how time consuming and challenging just covering events can be. To his credit, Mr. Thurston manages to inform himself and his readers of a lot of news, especially for one person.

He also uses a form of journalism that is popular in our digital age. Brevity, as in very short pieces, seems to be the paradigm for the FBD.

Being brief brings with it great challenge, especially in stories that involve radically different narratives coming from opposing parties. In fact, there are stories that simply cannot be shoehorned into a few, compact paragraphs.

There is a point where poorly crafted stories rather than educating their readers actually misinforms them.

Let’s take this paragraph from FBD on the actual demonstration of July 14.

Saratoga Springs police arrested five people, early reports say, Wednesday evening July 14, after Black Lives Matters protesters wound their way through city streets, stopping traffic and sometimes verbally engaging with two mounted police officers, pedestrians and others. Protesters chanted “No Justice, no peace, no racist police” and other similar chants.

FBD July 15, 2021

Everything in this paragraph is true. The demonstrators had “wound their way through city streets verbally engaging with two mounted police officers, pedestrians and others.”

Demonstrators did chant “No Justice, no peace, no racist police” and other similar chants.

This is, however, a highly sanitized rendition of what the demonstrators had to say both to the police and to the diners they often addressed.

With respect to FBD, the one chant it quoted suggested a level of civility that was not in evidence that night.

This was not a “We Shall Overcome” crowd. Things were very ugly. As Mr. Thurston had to be aware, Lexis Figuereo’s behavior was particularly ugly and provocative. Mr. Figuereo used his bullhorn extensively to yell expletive loaded rants at the police.

I know that the protesters would argue that the presence of so many police, many in protective gear, was a statement by the city of its hostility to them. Mr. Figuereo has made it clear that he unashamedly has good reason to be as insulting and provocative as he wants.

The problem for a journalist is what to include in an article and what to leave out. It is not an easy problem to solve. It is a constant source of tension between journalists and the people they report on.

Still there are cases of journalistic abuse or ineptitude that deserve calling out.

Were the expletive taunts directed at the police anomalies, it would be understandable to have dismissed them as not newsworthy. Mr. Thurston, as an eye witness, had to be aware of the extensive incidents of demonstrators yelling provocative and insulting things at the police. Some of these were delivered at very close range.

I know that FBD unsuccessfully sought a response to the BLM press conference from members of the Council. It would have made its job easier had FBD gotten members of the Council to offer opposing views. But the lack of statements from elected officials is no excuse for allowing its news site to be a vehicle for Mr. Figuereo to allege that the criticisms of his group’s behavior were without merit.

Sarah Burger has resigned from the chair of the Saratoga Springs Democratic Committee. Significantly, she also resigned from the Committee. Her father, Ralph Burger, also resigned from the Committee.

I was unable to reach her to find out why she resigned.

In an email sent to Saratoga County Democratic Chair Todd Kerner and to the members of the city Committee she wrote that:

“There were many reasons including health concerns. The time has come for me to step down as chair and from the committee effective immediately.”

It is unusual for a city chair to resign heading into the local election season. Her email indicated that she planned to continue her role on the Executive Committee of the New York State Democratic Committee.

Saratoga County Democratic Chair Todd Kerner made the following statement about Ms. Burger: “Sarah devoted a lot of time and energy to the City Democratic Committee and to getting Democrats elected. We thank her for all her efforts and wish her the best.”

On Friday, July 16, 2021, four of the six Democratic candidates for local office convened a press conference on the steps of city hall to announce that they planned to diffuse tensions in the city by doing a better job of listening to Black Lives Matter (BLM) activists. They seemed to be unaware of the history of city officials attempting to do just that.

Present at the press conference were Ron Kim (Mayor), Minita Sanghvi (Finance), Dillon Moran (Accounts), James Montagnino (Public Safety), and Shawn Wiggins (Supervisor).

The candidates admonished the current City Council for allegedly failing to try to engage the leadership of BLM to address their concerns. The candidates asserted that had the current Council members done so, the city would have been spared BLM’s demonstrations.

Ms. Sanghvi told those present:

“A lot of that would have been unnecessary if the city leaders had gone and talked to [the BLM people] where they are at Congress Park and resolved to meet at a later date instead of having them come here to Broadway and have the police tackle them. It shouldn’t have gotten that far in the first place.”

Minita Sanghvi

Ron Kim stated, “They don’t feel heard. Nobody’s listening to them, so that’s why they’re marching in the streets.” He continued:

“I’m not saying we are going to wave a magic wand and grant anything [activists] are asking for, but I am saying listening to people is part of the job here. It’s part of the job description and that’s not happening, and that’s creating some of these problems” 

Ron Kim

But there is a history of attempts at dialog

Apparently Mr. Kim and Ms. Sanghvi are unaware of the history of efforts to engage the local leadership of BLM in a dialog. As just one example, here is a recording of Commissioner Madigan speaking at a special meeting of the City Council on October 1, 2020.

I contacted Commissioner Madigan and asked how the local BLM responded to her offer to meet with them. She responded:

Deirdre and I met with Lex and Jamaica Miles in October for nearly 3 hours.

Reviewing their 13 demands and outlining which demands we already meet, which needed state and or county involvement, which needed more work and follow-up. I was also looking into moderated meetings with BLM All of Us with Dale Willman.

I set a timeline for deliverables and getting back to them with next steps. I called them both literally 4 business days later to review the progress I made, but a personal matter came up so I was 1 day behind on deliverables.

Lex screamed and swore at me on the phone, didn’t care about my “personal issue”, I didn’t do enough and hung up on me. Then he made several videos complaining about me and the cost of my renovated office,  and said all I did was whine about my personal problems (which was untrue, I simply said I wasn’t as far along as I liked but had info on each deliverable I promised and wanted to review that with him and Jamaica).

After the videos and being publicly excoriated by him and others, I decided they were not working with me in good faith and there was nothing more I could do to move the conversation forward. Again he just yelled, demanded, became vulgar, hung up in me, and then made ugly videos.

I wish the Democratic candidates all the best in this latest attempt to engage Mr. Figuereo in a conversation that will reduce the tensions in the city. They are incorrect and unfair in claiming, though, that those currently in office haven’t also tried to do this.

A Troubling Fundraising Email From Ron Kim

The email below was forwarded to me. It does not bode well for the coming campaign season.

My recollection of Mr. Kim’s two terms as the Commissioner of Public Safety is that he had a tendency towards intemperate outbursts. This email seems to indicate that he has not left that trait behind.

According to Mr. Kim we are seeing “the right wing tear down democracy in Saratoga Springs.” Citing “critical race theory” and “racist dog whistles” he claims “we are seeing the Trump playbook being implemented right on Broadway.” I’m not sure what he means by this but it seems a bit hyperbolic.

While Mr. Kim seems to be putting himself forward as the only candidate to preserve democracy in Saratoga Springs and save us from being taken over by Trumpism, let’s remember that his Republican opponent Heidi Owen West is actually a registered independent. His other opponent Robin Dalton changed her Republican registration also to independent, publicly criticizing the policies of Donald Trump and the national Republican Party.