Carlucci joins Grant Valentine, a Ramapo resident, senior New York State Parole Board officer, and a former Republican, who announced his candidacy last month. No other candidate has emerged, but Tuxedo Town Supervisor Peter Dolan has also indicated some interest in running for the Senate post.

I called for the meeting of the Rockland Progressive Dems last month when no clear picture of the State Senate race had emerged. Incumbent Republican Thomas Morahan has not indicated whether he will run for another term and sources have told me that Republican Rockland County Legislator Ed Day is considering his own run for the Senate District. Morahan has recently dealt with health concerns, but he’s been notably active at his job since returning.

Acknowledging that two or more candidates for the State Senate job might mean a Democratic primary for the nomination, some in attendance believed that a primary would be costly and would not help the candidate who emerged as the Democratic nominee in the long run. Others disagreed and indicated that the Democratic Party is “the party of primaries” and welcomed a preliminary race between several candidates.

For their part, both Carlucci and Valentine indicated that a primary might not be necessary. Valentine said he was optimistic that an informal vetting process by party members before a primary would disclose a front runner. Both Carlucci and Valentine indicated that they would support whoever would be the eventual nominee.

Both candidates said that they believe that Albany was broken. Valentine indicated that he’s seen problems at many different levels in his nearly three decades as a civil servant. Carlucci said that the State Senate had particular problems. He further indicated that he would support legislation for fair, non-partisan redistricting and many other reform measures to help fix what he feels is a broken State Senate.

Morahan, should he decide to run again, remains an entrenched incumbent and Carlucci further indicated that he would be running more against the abysmal record of the State Senate body.

The executive committee of the Rockland Democratic Committee will meet soon with prospective State Senate candidates.

This article is cross-posted at Left of the Hudson.

Without even something as simple as a business plan or a building permit, the Town has already bulldozed a notable section of the 61 acre drainage basin on Route 45, cutting down trees and paving it over. However, neither the Board nor Town Supervisor Christopher St. Lawrence has been able to provide any hard evidence that the wooded site is in fact blighted and worthy of being classified as an urban renewal zone. But by declaring it one, the Town can easily move ahead on development and construction without going through typical bureaucratic processes.

But has St. Lawrence and the Ramapo Board played fast and loose with the legal definition of blighted to skirt State law?

New York’s Constitution (Article XVIII, Section 3) uses the precedent established by Yonkers v. Morris to define blight as follows:

* Factors to be considered in determining if area is “blighted” and thus subject to urban renewal condemnation include such diverse matters as irregularity of the plots, inadequacy of the streets, diversity of land ownership making assemblage of property difficult, incompatibility of existing mixture of residential and industrial property, overcrowding, incidence of crime, lack of sanitation, drain areas makes on municipal services, fire hazards, traffic congestion and pollution.
* For an area to be termed “blighted” and thus subject to urban renewal condemnation, degree of deterioration or precise percentage of obsolescence or mathematical measurement of other factors do not have to be arrived at with precision, since combination and effects of such things are highly variable.

Further, the New York Development Corporation Act defines a “substandard or insanitary area” as:

[I]nterchangeable with a slum, blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating area, or an area which has a blighting influence on the surrounding area, whether residential, non-residential, commercial, industrial, vacant or land in highways, waterways, railway and subway tracks and yards, bridge and tunnel approaches and entrances, or other similar facilities, over which air rights and easements or other rights of user necessary for the use and development of such air rights, to be developed as air rights sites for the elimination of the blighting influence, or any combination thereof and may include land, buildings or improvements, or air rights and concomitant easements or other rights of user necessary for the use and development of such air rights not in themselves substandard or insanitary.

I think an interested party stands a good chance of challenging this development and stopping its progress in court. After all, wouldn’t the Town of Ramapo have to prove that the area has the potential to degrade the quality of nearby property or is itself in the process of deterioration? And what proof would they present?

Aerial photographs of the site show the property to be a healthy, attractive wooded area with a stream running through it. Only the area that was bulldozed and paved over by the Town of Ramapo seems to mar it. However, the Town claims the site is polluted and filled with trash, such as abandoned cars. But those that have visited the area, including Preserve Ramapo‘s Michael Castelluccio have found the site to be “pristine” and devoid of trash. The Town has even admitted that the levels of mercury, DDT, and arsenic on the site are not highly toxic.

By insisting this wooded area is blighted and by designating the site an urban renewal zone, the town allows the Ramapo Local Development Corporation, a quasi-governmental agency chaired by St. Lawrence, to forego numerous protocols typically used in the development and construction stages. It also assists the corporation in seeking state and federal grants, including real property tax abatements. After the stadium is built, it would be owned by St. Lawrence’s corporation, which would lease the stadium to tenants.

Even after it’s built, Ramapo residents would continue to be taxed diffusely for this new stadium, picking up the slack for the tax abatements that the Ramapo Development Corporation will enjoy. While the developers could have 10 years of real property tax abatements through New York’s Empire Zone program, Ramapo residents will be footing the bill for the additional police, public works, and sewage resources this stadium will demand. In addition, the rest of taxpayers in Rockland can expect to pay for the the Development Corporation’s share of county taxes into the next decade. In short, residents of other towns will end up paying for a project that they didn’t approve. And that’s taxation without representation.

Further, it has been pointed out by local newspapers, bloggers, and activists that the surrounding roads, especially the two-lane Route 45, will be inadequate in handling the traffic to the area, possibly causing back-ups and gridlock that would extend outside of Ramapo and into Clarkstown and beyond. The Orangetown newspaper Our Town said in a recent editorial that:

The downside of Ramapo’s headlong rush to get into the sports business is the traffic impact and the investment in road improvements necessary to support a minor league baseball team and stadium. That could be spread around a much larger number of people who have no say in the matter whatsoever. All towns that could be affected should have an opportunity to review and comment during the planning process.

I couldn’t agree more. I’m calling on the Rockland County Executive’s office to take the lead in this matter, considering that this stadium could have a potential negative impact throughout all five towns.

The Town of Ramapo is playing the entire County as suckers and taxpayers need an advocate. It is the County Executive’s duty to use the bully pulpit of his office to review land use, public works, and taxation issues that can have a dire consequences on the welfare of the County. We need Scott Vanderoef to lead the County a public forum, or if need be, a suit filed by the on behalf of Rockland’s residents to stop the Town of Ramapo from moving forward with this subterfuge.

• High Tor State Park. The pool will be closed.
• Stony Point Battlefield State Historic Site. The site will be closed.
• Tallman Mountain State Park. The pool will be closed.
• Harriman State Park. The Anthony Wayne park area will be closed and there will be reduced maintenance at group camps.

Five years ago, residents in Orangetown voted down a bond to build a municipal pool on the site of the Rockland Psychiatric Center. Unfortunately, there is now no public place in Orangetown where children can swim outdoors this summer. That is, unless some enterprising local politicians decide to do something about it. Perhaps the Town of Orangetown can convince the State to keep the pool open or rent the pool from the State. How about purchasing the pool at Tallman Mountain for a nominal amount to take it off the state’s hands? It certainly would be an inexpensive way of finally providing this town service

Also, our exceptional State Park system is a revenue and jobs generator for the State. Our parks attract out-of-state tourists and generate up to $2 billion in annual economic activity.  Every $1 of taxes spent on parks generates $5 in jobs and economic activity. So the loss of parks in Rockland county also means a loss of revenue and wealth in the region.

In addition to these sites in Rockland, many other regional parks will be affected:

• Knox Headquarters Historic Site (Orange County). The site will be closed.
• New Windsor Cantonment SHS (Orange County). The site will be closed.
• Schunnemunk State Park (Orange County). The park will be closed.
• Donald J. Trump State Park (Westchester County). The park will be closed.
• FDR (Roosevelt) State Park (Westchester County). Reduced Swimming Pool Season
• Hudson Highlands State Park (Putnam County). Arden Point Area will be closed.
• James Baird State Park (Dutchess County). Reduced Golf Course Season
• Mills Norrie State Park (Dutchess County). Reduced Golf Course Season
• Olana State Historic Site (Columbia County). Closed two days per week
• Philipse Manor Hall Historic Site (Westchester County). The site will be closed.
• Rockefeller State Park Preserve (Westchester County). The park will be closed.
• Taconic Outdoor Education Center (Putnam County). The site will be closed.
• Taconic State Park – Rudd Pond (Dutchess County). The site will be closed.
• Wonder Lake State Park (Putnam County). The park will be closed.

The Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation released the suggested list of closures and cuts for the State. The office is facing a $29 million cut in funding, which is about 16 percent of its annual budget. It’s fiscal year begins in April.

Verizon’s FIOS service has not offered MSNBC in much of the NY/NJ Metro area because of a deal it’s parent company, NBC struck with Cablevision several years ago. The contract blocked the news channel from appearing on services that compete with Cablevision’s Optimum service.

Verizon had filed complaints with the Federal Communications Commission in order to get the network on FIOS. It is not clear whether intervention by the government led to this development. Nor is it clear that this is a result of an agreement betweeen Cablevision, FIOS, and NBC’s new corporate parent, Comcast, which is yet another cable television provider.

Progressive stalwarts such as Rachel Maddow, Keith Olbermann, and Ed Schultz can now be watched on channels 103 and 1545 (in high definition). The service on FIOS begins February 2.

Senator Morahan disregarded the civil rights of all of his constituents by voting against the Marriage Equailty Bill on December 2 and did not explain the reasoning behind his vote when given the opportunity to do so on the Senate floor.

With Morahan’s help, the bill was defeated 24-38. While many of his constituents called, wrote, and visited to give emotional, legal, and logical pleas for its passage, Senator Morahan did not even deem the issue worthy of scrutiny or debate; he voted in lockstep with his party bloc rather than considering the wishes of those that voted him into office.

It’s time for Rockland, Warwick, and Tuxedo residents to stand together and let Senator Morahan—and 37 other members of the NYS Senate—know our displeasure with this style of legislating: One that relies on a single-minded allegiance to party leadership and a stifling of debate concerning a critical civil rights issue that most New Yorkers want righted.

We are urging those from Rockland, Orange and the surrounding areas to attend. The vigil will take place outside of Sen. Morahan’s offices on New Clarkstown Road at Airport Executive Park in Nanuet (north of Route 59).

Please bring your signs, cameras, and appropriate lighting as the vigil will take place as the sun sets.

Here’s a Google Maps link to the vigil location

Please try to carpool to the vigil as we don’t want to be taxing on the local parking facilities.

If you went to the polls last year and voted for change, you only scratched the surface. What happens on November 3 can possibly change the course politics, not only locally, but throughout New York as well.

Democratic leaders in Albany and New York City are holding their collective breath while watching our County Executive Race. Statewide Democratic Party leaders have confided to me that the race between Thom Kleiner and C. Scott Vanderhoef for County Executive has ramifications that go way beyond the county’s boundaries. I’m sure that state’s GOP leaders would agree. After all, they’ve hired Karl Rove’s chosen consulting firm to keep the seat in Republican control.

Beyond the local issues of taxes, balanced budgets, pay-for-play, and the New Square Slaughterhouse, political strategists I have talked to believe that the possible election of a Democratic County Executive can change the makeup of Albany. Is this a grand assumption on their part? I don’t think so.

Our County and the 38th State Senate District have similar boundaries. The Senate district is Rockland County plus the Orange County towns of Tuxedo and Warwick. The fact that both our County Executive, Vanderhoef, and State Senator, Thomas P. Morahan, are both Republicans is not a coincidence. Although Rockland County is nearly 7-to-4 Democratic-to-Republican (3-2 when including Tuxedo and Warwick), unseating county-wide incumbents—especially two that have masqueraded as moderates—has been futile in the past.

But recent state history has proven the theory that the election of Democratic County Execs beget the seating of Democratic State Senators and vice-versa. Once a political party has a powerful county-wide elected official, it often follows that they elect another. This is not a knock against Ellen Jaffee, Nancy Low-Hogan, or Greg Julian, our last three county-wide Democratic candidates, but we haven’t had such a strong Democratic and progressive candidate as Thom Kleiner in decades.

And this is how the election of Thom Kleiner as County Executive will help elicit change statewide: The County Executive election will send a message to State party leaders whether the 38th State Senate District is or is not in play. State Democrats, namely the Democratic State Senate Committee (DSSC) did not put a dime into the 2006 and 2008 campaigns of Low-Hogan and Julian and other potential donors followed, so these candidates didn’t stand a chance against Morahan’s biannual half-million dollar warchest.

These races were basically conceded before they began and neither Democratic candidate could eclipse 40 percent of the vote total.

The election of Kleiner will convince the DSSC and other non-partisan statewide reform organizations to take notice. Morahan, who has recently taken a staunch anti-gay rights stance and who has been consistently against ethics and election reform in Albany, will finally meet a strong opponent in 2010. It will also convince Democratic turncoats such as County Legislator Ilan Schoenberger, Clarkstown Executive Alex Gromack, and Nyack Mayor John Sheilds, all of which supported Morahan in the past, to support the candidate that shares progressive and Democratic ideals. The Morahan fiefdom will be in jeopardy.

The Brennan Center for Justice calls New York’s State Senate the nation’s “most dysfunctional,” and it’s no wonder. Right now, the New York State Senate remains in a partisan and ethical deadlock where Morahan plays a starring role. Progressive State Senate Democrats have been working hard for reform, which includes public-funding for elections and the elimination of member items, a pay-for-play slush-fund system that political experts call “incumbency insurance.” Morahan has been one of the biggest abusers and buys off the loyalty of politicians and constituents, giving “gifts” to local institutions, towns and villages (including the village of Nyack), in the weeks before an election to help cement a November victory. In essence, it’s been legal for politicians like Morahan to use our tax money for their reelection campaigns.

State Senate reform advocates say there’s a lot of work to be done to make Albany less dysfunctional, and it all starts with getting a strong, progressive Democratic majority in the State Senate. A weak Democratic majority where the ethically-challenged Pedro Espada, Jr. and convicted batterer Hiram Monserrate rule the roost cannot bring us the change we need. Both change their party loyalties to suit their mood and they are perfectly happy in continuing to filibuster reform.

State Democratic Committee insiders and reformers agree that Rockland is a bellwether county. If we’re going to see reform on a state level, it’s critical that we have a strong Democratic majority with a progressive State Senator from the 38th Senate District.

So, when voting on November 3, remember that a vote for Kleiner is also a vote for legislative reform on a state level.

Onderdonk Pond on the Pascack Brook

NOT pretty.  NOT natural.  A direct result of lots of digging.  OK, once in a while people will cause some sedimentation, BUT this is happening EVERY time there is a heavy downpour for about the last 3 or 4 years. It is not normal for an area which is already built out to experience such a dramatic amount of digging.  This is due to HUNDREDS of individual site approvals ALL of which have to pass in front of supposed environmental watchdogs on zoning boards and at the county level.

Why should you care?

1. Rockland has spent millions of your tax dollars dredging this stream.  YOU will be taxed to dredge it again.
2. Aquatic life has been impaired.  Over the last 15 years I have been living by this stream we used to have many herons, different kinds of Ducks, and even Kingfisher.  Now there are usually no birds on the water.  There used to be many Bass and Perch.  Now it is mostly Carp.  The degradation of Aquatic life has been documented by the DEC (below)
3. The Pascack Brook feeds the Hackensack River and the Meadowlands.  Our negligence is harming our neighbors downstream.
4. Of the 402 acres of Historic Wetland in the Upper Pascack Brook only 96.4 remain.

The Pascack is a protected brook according Rockland County.  Does this designation have any meaning?

This crap is defined as a pollutant by NY State, but is never accounted for as local government routinely declares “negative” environmental impact at zoning boards.  And yet, THERE IT IS- environmental impact!  This stuff kills whatever is living in the stream.  It results in increased tendency to flooding costing those downstream millions in flood damage and costing the taxpayer to pay millions to clean it up to avoid further damage.

Pascack Brook and tribs, within NYS (1501-0015) Impaired Seg
Waterbody Location Information Revised: 07/01/2008
Water Index No: NJ- 5 Drain Basin: Hackensack-Ramapo Rivers
Hydro Unit Code: 02030103/160 Str Class: C*
Waterbody Type: River Reg/County: 3/Rockland Co. (44)
Waterbody Size: 16.2 Miles Quad Map: PARK RIDGE, NJ (Q-24-3)
Seg Description: entire stream and tribs
Water Quality Problem/Issue Information (CAPS indicate MAJOR Use Impacts/Pollutants/Sources)
Use(s) Impacted Severity Problem Documentation
AQUATIC LIFE Impaired Known
RECREATION Impaired Known
Type of Pollutant(s)
Known: – - -
Suspected: SILT/SEDIMENT, UNKNOWN TOXICITY, D.O./Oxygen Demand, Nutrients
Possible: – - -
Source(s) of Pollutant(s)
Known: – - -
Suspected: URBAN/STORM RUNOFF, Industrial, Municipal
Possible: – - -
Resolution/Management Information
Issue Resolvability: 1 (Needs Verification/Study (see STATUS))
Verification Status: 2 (Problem Verified, Cause Unknown)
Lead Agency/Office: DOW/Reg3 Resolution Potential: Medium
TMDL/303d Status: 3b*
Further Details
Overview
Aquatic life and recreational uses in Pascack Brook are impaired by unspecified pollutants attributed to municipal/industrial inputs and urban/stormwater runoff.
Water Quality Sampling
A biological (macroinvertebrate) assessment of Pascack Brook in Pearl River (at West Washington Street) was conducted in 2002. Sampling results indicated moderately impacted water quality conditions. Biological communities were dominated by facultative filter-feeding caddisflies and species richness was low. Impact Source Determination indicated municipal/industrial influences were the likely source of the impacts. (DEC/DOW, BWAM/SBU, June 2005)
Section 303d Listing
Pascack Brook not is currently included on the NYS 2008 Section 303(d) List of Impaired Waters. However this updated assessment suggests it is appropriate to include this waterbody on the 2010 List. Due to the unknown nature of the specific pollutants causing the impairment, it is recommended that the listing be added to Part 3b, as a waterbody for which TMDL development is deferred pending the verification of the pollutant/cause. (DEC/DOW, BWAM/WQAS, 30
June 2008)
Segment Description

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The news and diaries posted on the Rockland Progressive Dems site are the  individual opinions of the members of the Rockland Progressive Democratic Caucus. They appear on this Web site to provide a progressive forum for Rockland County residents. While the Executive Committee of the caucus may edit some of these posts for clarity, length, and accuracy, it does not necessarily endorse the contents of each post. All members of the Rockland County Democratic Caucus are invited to share their viewpoints and comment on those viewpoints on this site.