Comp plan differences
Queries read by LWV moderator Cindy Bell opened up largely similar responses about each candidate’s experience, how they planned to deal with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, positions regarding cable availability, means of attracting more young people to town government, and what everyone felt Olive’s greatest assets, and challenges, were.
Everyone noted what business backgrounds they could bring to the table, the better (and cheaper) relationship Olive now has with the City, problems dealing with Time/Warner, the responsibilities young family heads face, and the glory of Olive residents…as well as the threat of future storms on rural life.
Differences arose when a question was posed about the possibility of affordable housing in town, and the need for completing an Olive Comp Plan. Johansen and Friedel said they didn’t think affordable housing was a match for the community and its rural services, stressed the need for home rule in such situations, and didn’t like the idea of pushing cluster housing in town. Leifeld and Rank said federal regulations couldn’t be bucked so easily but community concerns could be addressed through zoning…and a Comp Plan that is still in progress. Winne tended to answer all difficult questions by noting how she wasn’t yet a board member and would have to study subjects if elected.
Later, some tension accompanied answers to a question about what each candidate felt their role in town government would entail. Leifeld said he thought he was doing things the way they should be done, working to get “the best bang for the buck” for local taxpayers. Friedel and Johansen talked about listening to town residents’ wishes more, and not making decisions solely on what other agencies and towns are suggesting, or what’s available grant-wise.
Storm response contention
The biggest hullabaloo, however, came up when the subject of Olive’s Irene response arose.
Friedel repeatedly brought up the need for Olive to implement better communications technology, including a generator at town hall, so people wouldn’t have to rely on door-to-door visits by the town police or highway department during emergencies. He also talked about National Incident Management System training and requirements, which he felt Olive was lax about, and said a great deal more work needed to be done cleaning out the town’s many streams and smaller waterways. Later, he spoke about specific problems he ran into during the flood, although he refused to go on the record with them.
While Rank, Johansen and Winne all noted that better preparations would have to be made for future disasters, commending local efforts for what they were, Leifeld became combative about the town’s response, saying it wasn’t right to compare towns to each other.
“It was just one of those things; a catastrophe is a catastrophe,” he insisted, noting how the electricity was out at his home for a full ten days. “We learned that if you want to keep a business running in Boiceville you better put it on stilts. This has brought out the worst in everyone…”
Leifeld and Johansen differed on the amounts by which taxes were set to rise two years ago. Friedel and Leifeld battled about the timing of FEMA payments for stream work, and how to handle such costly endeavors responsibly, within means.
Everyone, at one point during the event, noted how they were all for Olive. It was all they cared about.
The election is November 8. ++
