GOPeekskill

Click here to view the video:  Don’t Believe the Foster Spin, See the Video for Yourself

“Don’t hide behind the FOIL process…”

“Peekskill taxpayers have a right to see the total contents of the report immediately”

Press Conference

Comments of Tony Washington

Candidate for Peekskill Mayor

November 4, 2011

My running mates and I are here today at this barren site on Lower South Street to bring to the public’s attention some disturbing news concerning the real cost of cleaning contaminated land that the Administration of Mary Foster purchased from the Ginsberg Development Corp (GDC).  This land was originally to be part of a lower South Street Redevelopment plan that the Administration of Mayor John Testa had worked on with a great deal of public input.

As you have heard debated many times over the past few years, had the plan moved forward as conceived by the Testa Administration, today, there very well may have been a Target and other retail establishments on the very parcels over my shoulder.  However, upon taking office in 2008, the Foster Administration immediately shelved the plan they inherited and nothing……not the hundreds of thousands in sales tax receipts……not the hundreds of new jobs that would have been created……nothing at all has happened on lower South St……nothing, has happened except for the City deciding to become land speculators with the taxpayer’s money.

Just over my shoulder, there are 3 parcels of contaminated land that run contiguous with one another that are now owned by the taxpayers of Peekskill courtesy of the Foster Administration.  Rather than work with developers who would keep title to the parcels, the Foster Administration recklessly gambled $9.8 MILLION of Peekskill taxpayer money to purchase the land they had no valid reason to buy…land that for years had been used for activity that made it ripe for contaminants. In fact, when Karta operated their business on just some of this property, they were cited with 4,500 DEC violations in just 3 years.

We can agree to disagree with the Foster Administration on the wisdom of not moving forward with the Testa Plan.  However, it is inexcusable for public officials to use taxpayer dollars as if it were play money and make irresponsible decisions without giving a single thought to what the consequences of those decisions may be.

We have seen a copy of the Preliminary Remedial Cost Analysis that was conducted for the City well AFTER the Purchase had been completed…the two parcels that are the subject of the report are commonly referred to as the “Upper Karta Property” and the “L&L Property.”  By sheer coincidence I’m sure, the report is dated October 25^th, one day AFTER the last City Council Meeting before the Election.  How convenient!

The TECTONIC company, an environmental engineering firm, concluded in their study that the cost of remediation was not $2 Million as some of us had been led to believe …no, this detailed analysis determined that the initial cost of remediation for just these two parcels will be over $4.1 MILLION!!  It’s very clear now why the Foster Administration didn’t want the public to see the report before the election.  But the story doesn’t end here.  The report goes on to say that the possibility of, “groundwater contamination is yet to be addressed” and recommends a number of additional tests on the two sites which will cost an additional $70,000 or more to complete.  Once all tests are completed, the sad truth is that the property will cost more to clean it than the taxpayers originally paid for it!!  This transaction is akin to the City taking a walk near a cliff with a blindfold on…one would think they’d be smart enough to remove the blindfold before taking the first step.

At the last City Council meeting the Mayor pooh-poohed questions about when the long awaited environmental study would be available.  Now we know why a straight forward answer was not forthcoming and how this Administration is not interested in being upfront and honest with their constituents. They are withholding the report from public view until after the election. Peekskill taxpayers have a right to see the total contents of the report immediately since they are now on the hook for the cost of the purchase AND the environmental remediation.

The sad story here is that the Foster Administration has now put the taxpayers of Peekskill in harm’s way.  Besides the two properties that this report addresses, they have paid another $6.0 MILLION for the third parcel.  The Mayor claims that any environmental remediation costs will be deducted from that purchase price.  That is not the case here with the parcels bought from GDC.  Even if the costs of the 3^rd parcel are reduced from the sale price, Peekskill is now in the chain of ownership of contaminated property due to the Foster Administration and that could end up coming back to haunt us in the future, well after the final sale has been completed.

So, here is the scorecard…The Foster Administration paid just under $10.0 Million for 3 pieces of highly contaminated property.  We now know, well after the property has been closed on, that the taxpayers are on the hook for more than $4.2 Million in environmental remediation costs on 2 of those parcels that will not be reduced from the sale price that has already been paid out.  And, the Administration is hiding the report that details the problems that the City is now responsible for.

These are numbers that should frighten even the staunchest supporters of the Foster Administration. When all of this is totaled up, what the Foster Administration has done with this recklessly irresponsible purchase is to put the Peekskill taxpayers in line to absorb a fiscal, if not environmental, disaster. The fact that City Hall has been mum on a report they had been quizzed about just 11 days ago, adds to the outrage. We call on the Mayor to not hide behind the FOIL procedures which will take weeks to run its course…release the Tectonic report now for all to see.

The reports can be obtained from City Hall or Tectonic…Tectonics’ phone # is (800) 829-6531.

For Information or questions,

Contact: Tony Washington

(646) 334-4352

Foster Overpays for Contaminated Land and Sticks Taxpayers with $4.3 million bill

Peekskill Mayor Mary Foster was taken to task today on Fox News for banning clapping at Council meetings and attempting to squash all dissent toward her policies, which include wasteful spending, squandering the City’s fund balance, speculating in real estate, and general intolerance to anyone who expresses a view contrary to her own.

“Everyone claps, even presidents,” reporter Douglas Kennedy noted. “But residents have been clapping loudly and proudly at City Council meetings, many times in opposition to City Mayor Mary Foster.”

“She’s attempting to be very heavy handed toward political dissent,” said one local resident.

“I do not think that this law could be upheld,” a constitutional law scholar noted.  “It smacks in the face of unconstitutionality.”

Foster refused to defend her attempt to squash political dissent.

You can watch the video here: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/11/03/taking-liberties-clap-off/  and here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMwgL_n4Np8:

Dear Friends:

In an effort to be transparent and open about the county’s fiscal outlook, I held a press conference on Wednesday to present a preliminary view of the 2012 budget.  While the actual budget is not due until November 15th, I wanted to build awareness and understanding about the tough and necessary decisions that lie ahead. 

The good news is that since my administration took office, we have successfully cut spending and taxes-something that hadn’t been done in recent memory. 
 
However, the biggest problem facing taxpayers right now is that government gets more expensive every year. Medicaid, pension and labor costs all have crushing automatic increases built into them. We start 2012 with projected expenses of $1.8 billion and a $114 million shortfall. 

Raising taxes is not an option. 

With Westchester residents already paying the highest property taxes in the United States, we simply cannot afford to increase that burden. Living within our means will require tough decisions. But these decisions are essential to making Westchester sustainable for future generations. Our goal is to make smart choices to bring down spending in ways that increase efficiency while still preserving essential services. 

I have asked all of my departments to reduce their budgets between 10 and 20 percent, which will result in a $52 million savings. Please know that while we are working to cut waste, we will not balance the budget on the backs of the needy and our social safety net will remain intact. We will also save another $39 million in one-time savings, such as restructuring our debt and lower retirement costs because of last year’s workforce reduction. 

To close the remaining $23 million gap, I am calling for a “Jobs for Savings” initiative that seeks union concessions to minimize layoffs. The time has come for union employees to start contributing to their healthcare benefits, just like everyone else. The plan calls for a one-week furlough and the same healthcare contributions agreed to by the state CSEA. 

It’s no longer fair or affordable for taxpayers to pick up 100 percent of the cost of the county’s $100 million a year healthcare bill. Not agreeing to these concessions will result in at least 250 layoffs. My goal is to minimize layoffs, and I hope it’s a goal the unions will embrace. 

Please take a moment to read a presentation that demonstrates how I intend to create a balanced budget that benefits all of Westchester’s residents. In the coming weeks, you may hear from special interests who will try to distort the truth to protect the status quo. The reality is that we cannot fix the county’s fiscal problems without making structural reforms to the system. 

 I will continue to fight for Westchester’s taxpayers. I thank you for your continued support. 

Best, 

REPUBLICAN BUSINESS ENHANCEMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN DIFFERS FROM DEMOCRATS APPROACH

Peekskill Republican-Conservative Mayoral candidate, Tony Washington, along with City Council Candidates Joe Brady, Barbara Kerasiotes and Steve Woods laid out their approach to enhance business activity and economic development.  The plan is vastly
different than the approach presented by the current administration.  While the Democrat plan targets a particular segment of the population, the Republican plan takes a broader
view of what local government can and should do to attract business investment and stimulate economic growth.

“We believe strongly that local government should not target their efforts for business and economic development on any singular group.  That is precisely what our opponents are presenting and in doing so, they limit the City’s overall chance for successfully expanding economic activity.  When entrepreneurs see an opportunity for success, they will invest.  However, the City can only encourage such investment by creating an environment that is
friendly and welcoming.  Creating additional tax levies that do not exist in other communities is not our idea of a business environment that is friendly or welcoming and leaves Peekskill at a competitive disadvantage compared to our neighbors.”

Since taking office three years ago, the Foster Administration has created taxes not found in many other communities, such as a Hotel Tax, as well as a Real Estate Transfer Tax that the City collects on real estate transactions.

“The unbridled spending spree that the Foster Administration has been on since taking office has put the City in a dire financial condition.  People who are looking to invest in our community now think twice since they know they are going to end up having to have higher costs at the end of the day.  In order to enhance business activity throughout our City, the first step we need to take is to level the playing field with other communities in terms of what it costs to do business here versus other locales,” said Joe Brady, candidate for City Council.  He added, “When elected, one of our first actions will be to address policies that make it more difficult for businesses to prosper.”

City Council candidate Barbara Kerasiotes, whose family ran a small business in Peekskill for over 30 years said, “Government at all levels has an abysmal record of picking who the winning businesses should be.  Look at what is happening in Washington
where billions of tax dollars have been lost because politicians have picked who they thought would be successful in the marketplace.  That is what the Democrat plan calls for in Peekskill…picking specific types of businesses who they want to favor over others.  We think ours is a better approach.  It will include the creation of a Business Attraction and Enhancement Department comprised of existing staff.  People thinking of opening a business and current business owners need a place where they can get accurate and timely answers to their questions. This department will be the place in City Hall where that will happen.  Under our administration, Peekskill will be dedicated to attracting, retaining and supporting business.”

Council candidate Steve Woods added, “Our approach to business development is comprehensive as well as logical.  Besides providing a level playing field from a cost of doing business standpoint, we’ll redeploy our public safety resources to ensure people feel safe and secure throughout our business district without neglecting our neighborhoods.  If people don’t have a comfortable feeling about where they are, it is impossible for businesses to prosper.  Under our administration, we’ll develop an active and meaningful working relationship with the Chamber of Commerce and Business Improvement District that will address business sector public safety so that people feel comfortable and secure.  This will be a cornerstone of our business enhancement and economic development strategy.”

Mayoral candidate Tony Washington said, “We’ll also build on best practices for attracting and retaining good businesses to Peekskill similar to those implemented by the Pataki
Administration at Charles Point.  The ongoing success of this light industrial district where a large number of Peekskill jobs still exist is a model for building economic diversity that we will utilize in the Washington Administration.  Like the businesses at Charles Point, Peekskill will be a place for diverse business investment, not any particular type of targeted business dictated by the personal whims of politicians.  We will create a business friendly environment by repealing the non-competitive Foster administration tax levies while addressing other factors that make Peekskill uncompetitive with surrounding communities.  We’ll streamline City Hall with a new one-stop department where
business owners and potential investors can get their questions answered efficiently.  We recognize the important role public safety plays in having a vibrant business community, which is why our Business Enhancement and Economic Development Plan will include a coordinated public safety and code enforcement effort to enhance quality of life issues within the business community.  In short, we believe our plan for business development in Peekskill contains real solutions that matter in the real world.

A Message from  Mayoral Candidate Tony Washington

“Mayor Mary Foster should immediately stop airing her show on the government channel, on both Cablevision and Verizon FIOS.  We are well into the political campaign, and only weeks away from the election.  It is wrong for Mayor Foster to continue to broadcast her show.  From the day she declared her candidacy till today, taxpayers have been forced to fund her re-election campaign.  The Government Channel is exactly that: a tool for the City to explain how it’s spending taxpayers’ money.  It was never meant to be a vehicle for political promotion.  For Mayor Foster to continue to air her show is an abuse of power.  It should end now.  In the past, Democratic Party leaders have said it is ‘an unfair exercise of power’ for an incumbent Mayor to use Channel 78 to promote her own campaign.  Mayor Foster, it’s time you lived up to the ideals you professed in the past.  You are not living up to your own words.  Stop using the government channel for political purposes.  It’s not fair to taxpayers and it’s not good government.”