Sottile said when he took office, no union member contributed to health-care costs. Now, he said, most contribute up to $1,000 toward the city’s $20,000 family health plan.
While Sottile finds unfair comparisons between the Gallo brothers, neither does he appreciate being compared with the man he replaced.
Criticisms on the quality of city life then and now draw his ire. He allows things looked better a dozen years ago, streets were paved, litter picked up. “The city can’t do everything. We can’t afford it anymore,” he said. “People have to take more responsibility for their own properties.”
Sottile said he tried to promote affordable housing in the city, but with mixed success. He said he’s particularly proud of supporting the new homeless shelter off Thomas Street at a time when many city officials, including T.R. Gallo, were resistant. He moved aggressively to have the King’s Inn welfare motel on Broadway closed down and demolished. Plans for its future remain in flux, which is just north of WTF.
Aldermanic relations
Sottile had little to say about his often contentious relations with the common council, other than to note that as alderman-at-large for eight years he understood the dynamics between legislature and executive.
He cited the late former alderman John Porsche as a “role model.” He called majority leader Bill Reynolds “a sensible leader with a clear perspective on most issues.” He said former alderman Mike Schupp was energetic and aggressive,” qualities he cited in naming Schupp Department of Public Works superintendent a few years ago.
Alderman-at-Large “Jimmy Noble has been a partner. Jimmy was engaged. We had different styles. I carried T.R.’s water (in the council). Jimmy carried mine.”
Sottile admits to growing weary of the job at the end.
“I don’t want to say I’m relieved, but I feel less stress after deciding to step aside,” he said. “If you want to do the job right, you’re constantly worrying. The biggest thing is the unknown, whether it’s Mrs. Jones calling about her trash not being picked up or Mike Schupp calling with a million-dollar sewer break.”
Sottile allowed he let the social side of the mayor’s job slide in recent years. “I have a family, too,” he said. “Our son lives in Albany. We like to travel on weekends.”
In 2007, the mayor donned his best colonial garb.
He admits to some conflict with local media. “I had my moments. I wasn’t intimidated. I spoke my piece,” he said. “I think we could have promoted our accomplishments more, but I didn’t have a press person to write press releases every day, like some guys now.”
Sottile feels the mayor’s office is administratively understaffed. “It’s just me and my secretary and she saves me a lot of grief,” he said. “With the increasing demands of the job, I think the mayor should at least have a full-time administrative assistant.”
Hugh Reynolds use of vulgarity in his recent column is totally inappropriate and unnecessary.
“Someone committed to the less fortunate” is a very funny line(hilarious, actually) when measured against his bloggate comments on the subject in general in www.yuku.com ulsterpublishingmessageboards . You really have to give him credit though for consistently lying through his teeth down the final bell, and directly controverting his role model Sister Dorothy(who taught him never to cheat otherwise the only person who would be cheated would be himself). He seems to lie in direct proportion to the number of times he is interviewed by the press. What will be next for this pathological liar? Phony deductibles and selling broken down barns as mansions? Hah.
The huge holes in the road that sunk down so low you couldn’t find them that took two years to fix on Albany Avenue. That “Giant Schupping Sound” continues to “Schupp right along.” Yes, in addition to this appointment being against the City Charter(and this indiscretion, ahem, rubber stamped by the city council, making its own law as it went along and not bothering to repeal the one in place in case it found it worthy of such), it was Sottile’s way to say “My BIGOTRY was BETTER than that of many others(hahahahaha)”. Reminds me of the old time song I fist heard on my paternal grandfather’s 78 RPM recording of “The Robert E. Lee” as a mere boy, just with new lyrics:”SEE them Schup-ping alonnnnnng…HEAR them Schup-ping alonnnnng….you see they’re soooo neat…rrrrrreal sweet…go down by the Lev—ee, right down by the Lev–ee… waiting for the Robert E. Leeeeeeeeee!!(weeeee!!)(I will play it and sing it on the piano and make Mark Russell appear like a creative piker in comparison to his musical political commentary) The “flip side” happened to be “The Yellow Rose of Texas”, which was also done by Mitch Miller and his male singers on television too. Shayne kind of reminds me of Mitch Miller, conducting these singers(or trying to), except without the Goatee(and plenty more hair). I can picture him conducting the singers marching along Broadway some Memorial Day Parade, waving his hands as if trying to conduct with Hoffay the Clown trying to juggle balls with faces of Kevin Cahill on them with his face looking as if it is ready to ask the question “What is my Raison D’Etre?” “Jo-Jo the Clown”, if we could resurrect the kind old soul, would have laughed so hard UPAC would crumble to the ground!!!