Current Rotterdam Supervisor Steven Tommasone, 43, a Republican, is once again facing Democrat William Cooke, 60, in this year’s race for town supervisor.
The two faced each other in the last election for supervisor.
This year, Cooke said, the voters know how Tommasone runs the town, and he believes they are disappointed.
I think the town wanted to give him his chance; he had been town councilman, but I think since they’ve seen the way he’s run the town they’ve had enough, Cooke said.
Tommasone said his track record speaks for itself. He said his administration has paved more roads, decreased the tax levy and tackled more quality-of-life issues such as the water problems in Masullo Estates than any other administration.
`We’ve done more in two years than the Democrats did in 40,` he said.
Both candidates feel they are qualified to tackle some of Rotterdam’s largest issues, such as its failing infrastructure, water problems, taxes and the need for more parks.
Cooke said the largest problem facing the town is the current administration’s lack of good leadership. He said his background as a national business agent for the National Association of Letter Carriers, where he is responsible for 22,000 letter carriers, qualifies him for the leadership role.
`I have a lot of leadership experience and a lot of community experience,` Cooke said.
Tommasone said while there are multiple problems facing the town, he thinks taxes are the largest. He plans to tackle this problem by bringing in development that increases the tax base and good-paying jobs.
Tommasone said he plans to improve economic development within the town by working with state agencies and ensuring that the town’s Industrial Development Agency is working closely with the county’s Metroplex Development Agency, which has helped bring in almost $119 million in new investment into Rotterdam.
`Our strategy is proven to already work,` Tommasone said. `We will continue to work as hard as possible to bring in good-paying jobs.`
Cooke said his first priority when it comes to economic development is the Hamburg Street corridor. He said he wants to get an anchor store on the Grand Union property, which would help small businesses by drawing people into the area.
Of course, development within Rotterdam is always complicated because the town lacks infrastructure such as water and sewer lines.
Cooke said he is not opposed to bonding for sewer lines, but he would want to see how much money the town receives from the reassessment first.
Tommasone said the town has failed in the past to plan for sewers, but he is opposed to having residents foot the bill for sewers if they don’t want them. He said he wants to get the appropriate infrastructure around the town’s exits, and if residents want to hook up to it they can petition for it.
`No town board should force this upon the residents,` he said.
As far as the concern with a high water table in the area near Masullo Estates, which is causing major damage to the roads and homes in the area, both candidates agree that something needs to be done.
Cooke said while he is not an engineer, he believes the problem is coming from water sitting and not moving. He thinks more drains should be installed and the current drains need to be clear of debris. He also said an engineer should be hired to look at the problem.
Tommasone said the problem in Masullo is there is nowhere for the water to be drained. He said the town is working on acquiring land to drain the water, but there is only so much the town can do.
`I think those in Masullo understand we’ve done everything we can,` Tommasone said. `I’m going to keep going until the problem is resolved the most substantial way the town can.`
The candidates are also concerned with creating parkland and conserving land.
Tommasone said his administration has several different sites in mind for a large town park. He said any plans would not affect taxpayers; rather, Tommasone hopes to use the IDA to purchase property in the western part of town.
`We want a place where people can fly model airplanes, or run their dogs or put up lights for nighttime ball games,` he said.
Cooke said he would like to have a town center and a place for teens.
`We have no place for our teens to go once they are above Boys and Girls Club age, so they end up hanging out at the Rotterdam Square Mall,` Cooke said. `Rotterdam is large enough to support a town center.`
Cooke is a lifelong Rotterdam resident. He attended Draper High School. He lives in Rotterdam with his wife and four children.
Tommasone works as a marketing specialist for New York’s 529 college savings program. He has a degree in marketing from Siena College. He currently lives in Rotterdam with his wife and three daughters. “