Terry Bernardo, keep-it-local challenger
There may be no more daunting — nor impossible-seeming — electoral task facing county Republicans this year than taking on and taking down Democratic incumbent county executive Mike Hein.
Hein won his first bid for the job in 2008, handily defeating Republican Len Bernardo. Come 2011, county Republicans chose not to run a candidate of their own. And for a while this spring, it looked like the GOP was going to forgo the opportunity once again.
But former legislature chairwoman Terry Bernardo — Len Bernardo’s wife — had other ideas. After what appeared to be a rebuff from the county GOP’s nominating convention in June, Bernardo stepped into the breach and was finally endorsed by the party.
How do you beat an incumbent with a campaign war chest more than ten times the size of yours, an incumbent who’s spent seven years making his bones in the public eye, an incumbent who barely acknowledges your existence?
The answer, Bernardo says, is shoe leather. You fill your days with visits to church breakfasts, ethnic holiday celebrations, town board meetings, going to as many as ten such down-home venues on a Saturday or Sunday, going wherever you can find a willing audience.
“Money doesn’t win elections,” she said during a break at one such gathering this past Sunday. “Nor do yard signs or giant billboards. I may not have his money but I’m working very, very hard to meet and listen to residents.”
If Bernardo sounds a bit like Pollyanna, you’ve got the wrong movie: Think “The Sound of Music.” Bernardo favors what she calls the “Mary Poppins approach” to electioneering.
“I’m very passionate about what I do, and I believe in what I’m trying accomplish and try to have fun when I’m doing it — the Mary Poppins approach. Take rigid rules and turn them into something fun or creative. Everybody wants to join the team.”
Bernardo and her husband came to Ulster County permanently following 9/11; they had lived until then in the shadow of the Twin Towers. The attack convinced them to move north to what had been their second home in Accord.
She’s spent most of her professional life in the management side of the hospitality industry, working in corporate environments larger (Sheridan Hotels) and smaller (Ian Schrager’s New York boutique hotels). Bernardo characterized herself as being a good team player with good people skills.
Once ensconced in Accord, the Bernardos built SkateTime 209. Later, she became a Pilates instructor. When former county legislator Sue Cummings suggested that the former competitive roller figure skater try her hand at politics, Bernardo said she told Cummings, “That sounds like fun.”
With that, the Mary Poppins approach came to county politics.
She ran unsuccessfully for legislative office in 2007, was elected in 2009 and re-elected in 2011, during which time she served as chairwoman of the legislature before being defeated in 2013.
15,000 cookies
When Bernardo talks about what she considers the economic engine that’s her number one campaign issue, it’s metaphorically. She said she decided to run in an effort to “rescue” the Catskill Mountain Railroad from what she views as his effort to kill off the private railroad in favor of a walking trail funded by New York City along the northern shore of the Ashokan Reservoir.
The fate of the Catskill Mountain Railroad, which has operated on county-owned land for nearly 25 years, is probably her most contentious and longstanding campaign issue. Bernardo sees Hein’s acceptance of $3.4 million in funding from the city’s Department of Environmental Protection for trail development as being tantamount to destroying the railroad’s history-rich existence, an example of what she calls “urban removal.”
Pointing to last year’s Polar Express tourist operation, Bernardo contends the CMRR has demonstrated its economic vitality as an attraction. She provided an unusual measure by which to assess the holiday-themed ride’s importance to local businesses along the train’s route: “They [CMRR] aren’t buying from Sam’s Club or online — they go to Deisings! Do you know how many cookies Deisings sold last year? Fifteen thousand cookies! The businesses making money off this train — it’s fantastic for them.”
She acknowledged that the Polar Express was a seasonal operation, but the railroad operation has attracted other holiday-themed rides.
Bernardo wants to see the railroad’s track repaired with available FEMA funds to allow it to run from Kingston to Phoenicia. If Hein is re-elected, she says, he’ll be free to impose his plan to use the DEP funds to create a rail-trail while allowing the railroad’s lease to expire next spring, a one-two punch that would kill the railroad’s chances of survival.
Bernardo is skeptical of Hein’s quick acceptance of federal or state funds for a variety of programs and needs. When such funds become available — she mentioned money for bike lanes and the DEP’s money — she said she would only accept them if there were no strings attached.
“Let’s keep it local,” she said. “I don’t want to be told what to do by Washington, without a say in things.”
Wow! The new paltz times is a little biased on this article! Hardly mentioned Bernardo at all!
What a load of ___ this article was. I’m voting for Bernardo. Disgusting Biased article… my goodness..
Save The Rails!
When I first learn of Mr. Hein’s plans to reasign the future of the Historic Ulster & Delaware Corridor I became comcerned. My interested in local history was kindled by a group known as the SAUGERTIES FULTON STEAMBOAT FOUNDATION. It was a group that planned to build a second replica of Robert Fulton’s North River steamboat. Their plan was to compliment the Clearwater on environmental issues.That was back in 2005.
With the lack of funding sources the dreams soon turned to disappointment and collapse of the SFSF. I however maintained my interest. I got a call from a fellow in Northport, NY. He asked if I could provide him with drawings of the North River. He wanted to build a “large” model. NY state learned of his plan and commissioned him to build the model for the Visitor’s Center at Clermont. I gave copies of undimentioned drawing and did some basic research for the modeler. Today there is a 7′ long (1/20 scale) model at the center. I designed and created a 1/12 scale model of the running gear of the North River with a team of volunteers. It too is a NYS Registered Museum exhibit located at Clermont.
An off shoot of my research was a basic knowledge of the Hudson River steamboats and Thomas Cornell. He was the steamboat magnate who developed the railroads from the Hudson through the Catskills.
Enter Mr. Hein… I posted a message on his FACEBOOK page and on that of the Friends of The Catskill Mountain Rail Trail, expressing my concern over the destruction of the U & D rails.My posts aksed why both of the rails and a trail couldn’t co-exist. My posts were immediately removed and i was blocked from both pages. I have since learned that that several others have suffered the same fate. I have several e-mails to Mr. Hein. over the past year. He has yet to repond to any of them.
Am I being unreasonable in asking why replace the rails with a trail when through compromise bith features could co-exist? I think not.
You aren’t being unreasonable BUT you are being unrealistic. CMRR has failed to complete any plans they’ve ever discussed. Failed to raise funds. Failed to restore trains. Failed to provide basic upkeep of those rails. The ONLY people to point blame at are themselves!!! Be real, please.
I can’t speak to or for CMRR. It appears that you are parroting thruths and half-truths published by others. You’ll have to sit down and talk with them to get answers to questions that you may have. I am not a member. I speak as a history buff and the potential loss of the Rail system developed by Thomas Cornell & I believe his son in-law.It was developed to support the steamboat trade on the Hudson, both Tourist and freight. The U & D railroad carried passengers from thsteamboats to the various resorts in the Caskills. It also carried frieght to and from the communities along the corridor.
Trains are returning as as a cummuting and light freight options. There is a future with Rails and a trail that compliments them. Whether it be CMRR or another entity. The potential is there.Their is more of a risk with a trail only as many communities through out the country are finding out. There appears to be a move by communties to rethink the benefits of rails with trails. A national trail group even mentions it.
The rail and trail advocates shouldn’t be adversaries but instead should work together to devlop the U & D Corridor to its greatest potential.
I think that CMRR has failed in its efforts to lead a rail plan, has failed in its obligations contractually, has failed to raise funds, failed to actually DO what it claims it wants to do and just politicized the hell out of the issue instead of OWNING THE FACTS. That said, Bernardo scammed you and me – the tax payers – out of real $$$ and did not live up to her and her husbands promises to create jobs in return for tax breaks. So, yes, it makes TOTAL sense that Bernardo and CMRR would be on the same side because they are the same kind of operators – take on the take, and not do the hard work you promised to do!!!