After living and working in Colonie for the majority of her life, Democrat Alison McLean-Lane says she is more than ready to take on her new role as county legislator for the 14th Legislative District.
McLean-Lane was appointed as the newest lawmaker at the Albany County Legislature meeting on Monday, Feb. 11. The seat has been vacant since Democrat Phil Steck moved from the legislature to the Assembly in January. The new lawmaker will now take over the district, which encompasses part of Colonie, the entire Village of Menands and a part of the City of Watervliet.
McLean-Lane grew up in Albany and moved to Loudonville when she was 13 years old. She attended Albany Academy for Girls and Boston College. After that, she lived in Boston for 11 years working for the Lyons Group, a large conglomerate for nightclubs, bars and restaurants. Later, she moved to New York City for graduate school at the Fashion Institute of Technology and stayed in the city for several years to work in marketing.
In 2006, McLean-Lane moved back to Colonie and became a committeewoman for the Colonie Democratic Committee. She ran for town clerk on the Democratic ticket in 2007, the year Supervisor Paula Mahan secured office. She did not defeat Town Clerk Elizabeth DelTorto in that race, but Mahan hired McLean-Lane as her confidential secretary after she took office.
“I worked with her for five years in constituent services, which is a role I really loved,” McLean-Lane said. “It’s a great opportunity to help people no matter the problem, big or small. It’s very rewarding, actually.”
McLean-Lane said her time working in Colonie has helped her really get to know the area, which will help her as a new lawmaker. She added her family and her husband’s family have been Albany County residents for generations. She is currently a resident of Menands, where she lives with her husband and two children.
“I think I do know the area fairly well. When you’re fairly involved in being a committeeperson, you go door-to-door every single spring, summer, fall and meet a ton of people. I met untold numbers of people who came through the doors looking for assistance,” she said. “(But) there are always new things to learn about the area.”
McLean-Lane said she is very responsive by email and has an open ear for anyone who wishes to speak to her.
“I’m always ready and willing to listen to people’s concerns,” she said.
One major concern she will have to face while starting out in the legislature is the continuing debate about the Albany County Nursing Home. McLean-Lane said she would have to do “a little bit of catch up” on the issue before coming to a conclusion on it.
“I’m definitely making an appointment for a tour of the nursing home and appointments with various people within the county to examine their budget … look at what’s been the issues so that I can learn from myself,” she said. “It’s a situation (with) a lot of passion on all sides around it. The most important part is that the people there get the care they need and we can’t lose sight of that.”
A special election will be held in November to decide who will fill the remaining two years of Steck’s term.