With the Altamont mayoral election just around the corner, incumbent James Gaughan is touting future plans and past successes, while challenger Harvey Vlahos is pointing out where he sees room for improvement.
The Village of Altamont will be hosting its mayoral election on Sunday, March 18.
The village runs its own elections and is not on the same timetable as the county, state and federal elections, Town Clerk Jean LaCrosse said.
She said the town uses the same machines, and the election is presided over by election inspectors who are village residents.
Gaughan said the village has much to be proud of, but more work needs to be done.
I would, first and foremost, have wanted to sustain the promises I made and kept four years ago, Gaughan said of a reelection.
Gaughan said he promised to safeguard tax dollars, resources, senior services, community and youth programs and the historic charm of the village.
`[I have] a just-in-time way of operating. I try to act on issues brought up by the public quickly,` he said.
A large part of Gaughan’s plan was updating the village’s comprehensive plan and continues with initiatives to connect walkways and bike paths within the town.
`It was a 25-year-old plan. It was out of date,` Gaughan said.
He said he is especially concerned with the aging sewer system, and he plans to seek federal funding to upgrade it.
He also touted some of the village’s past accomplishments, and said he plans to keep the momentum of his successes.
Gaughan said the AAA bond rating the village enjoys and the inter-municipal services the village shares with the Town of Guilderland, such as fuel and heavy equipment, are accomplishments he is proud of. He also said he is pleased with the $17,000 he helped raise to build a playground and park on Maple Avenue.
Gaughan said he also helped secure several grants for the police department, senior citizens and cyber-protection software used by the Altamont police to help track Internet stalkers.
His challenger, Harvey Vlahos, sat on the Village Board of Trustees from 2003 to 2007 years ago, and finished second to Gaughan in the 2005 mayoral election, four years ago.
Vlahos said he has reservations about some of Gaughan’s tenure.
`I realized near the end of the campaign that Jim Gaughan spent $7,000 for a village race. That bothered me not because I lost, but it just changes the whole way people get elected,` Vlahos said.
Vlhaos took issue with mayor Gaughan’s contributors, coming from outside of Altamont. He said contributors from California, Illinios, Virginia and New York City comprised a large portion of the $7,000 Gaughan raised.
Gaughan acknowledged the money, claiming he was unsure how much money would be needed to make a successful run, and raised as much as he could from family and friends from around the country. He noted that he filed all of the proper paperwork, as he did in this election.
Gaughan also claimed Vlahos has not filed any paper work related to his 2005 bid or this election.
Vlahos said that since he has not raised more than $1,000 he is not required to file. He said he raised close to $500 in 2005 and plans to raise the same amount this time around.
Vlahos criticized Gaughan for what he characterized as the mismanagement of a legal settlement regarding the senior housing complex Brandle Meadows and the 5-acres of land that featured a well that rested on private property.
Vlahos contested that the legal battle was drawn out longer then it needed, and the village had spent close to $30,000 on legal fees, he added.
He said Jeff Thomas, the developer of Brandle Meadows, was considering a $100,000 offer to the land-owners to settle the matter, and allow the village access to the water, which would partially by used by Brandle Meadows, but took that offer off the table when Thomas was faced with a potential $180,000 benefit assessment fee.
Vlahos said he warned the board of that possibility, but it fell on deaf ears.
`That was just fiscal mismanagement,` Vlahos said.
`It’s one thing to talk the talk, but you got to walk the walk.`
Gaughan responded, though, and said Thomas was asking for concessions and faster access to the water, as well as having several fees waived in order for him to foot the $100,000.
Gaughan said he questioned the legality of waiving the fees, and added the town was compensated by the well- owners with an additional 28-acre buffer around the well.
He also criticized the police force budget, stating that it jumped in 2003-2004 from $109,000 to $158,000 but did not yield enough benefit to warrant the extra spending.
He also said the crime rate has stayed low, and spending the additional money may not be worth it.
He also criticized the police force for its high turnover of part-time officers and their predominantly `city` oriented training.
Gaughan states though, that the increase under his administration was only from $140,000 to the current $158,000 and that is mostly represented increases in the cost-of-living.
Vlahos also criticized Gaughan for not making the printing of the village newsletter more competitive. There were 700 copies of the spring newsletter by Minuteman Press, Vlahos said. Another company, Data Flow, printed the fall newsletter. Vlahos questioned the change and why a bid was not offered to local media printer, The Altamont Enterprise, to see if a better price could be obtained.
`It certainly does appear it was a conscious decision,` Vlahos said.
Gaughan said his staff was entrusted to find a printer that would turn the product around quickly, and that no bid was legally required for the printing of the newsletter, since its cost was less than $1,000.
No debates have been scheduled regarding the election, but both candidates said they would be willing to participate in an open discussion of village issues.“