Eating the Cake While Having it Too
When your opponent resorts to personal petty attacks, and spins facts to put you in a dark light, you know that you are wining in the arena of ideas.
I am referring to two reports posted recently on the preserveramapo.org website. One was headlined that “A town supervisor is not needed at a crime scene.” The writer, a former homicide investigator from Buffalo, says that Supervisor St. Lawrence’s presence at a recent homicide investigation was not at all needed. For the record: The Town Supervisor is a Police Commissioner in the Town of Ramapo and he can show up at any crime scene he desires to. His presence can never “impede” an investigation.
Another report, “Open space generates overwhelming debt for taxpayers,” is also quite interesting. In the report, the writer, the chairman of Preserve Ramapo, makes odd claims regarding the town’s purchase of open space and the hole it leaves in the budget.
It is astonishing how St. Lawrence can’t win with these cry babies. If the town permits building of new housing complexes, the Supervisor gets ripped to shreds for not preserving space. If the town buys open space, the cry babies complain that it costs too much for the budget. So whichever way you look at it, the Supervisor does not do a good job regarding Open Space.
At any rate, the writer claims that the Town’s repayment of debt and interest will in 2009 total ten times more than it was in 2000, due in large part to the purchase of open space.
As was mentioned before, what exactly is wrong with buying open space and keeping the town as green possible?
Secondly: Ramapo has in recent years secured large state and federal grants that were used to help pay for open space. In simple English, that means that town residents didn’t pay directly for all open space purchases- purchases which Preserve Ramapo apparently cannot decide if they support or oppose.
Thirdly: The town’s debt increased mainly due to long-term projects that expanded the town’s ability to accommodate the peaceful and productive growth of the past 20 years. Whereas the cry babies sit and complain about backed up drainage systems and low pressure waters, St Lawrence raised money through bonds to correct the problem. Whereas the cry babies complain about the traffic, St. Lawrence fought against the giant Wal-Mart from opening a store in Ramapo, and spent money to expand roads, and build sidewalks for the safety of pedestrians.
Fourthly: Moody’s, the bond rating firm, gave the Town of Ramapo an excellent rating this year, due in part to the town’s administration working to turn the deficits of the late 1990’s into surpluses. Moody’s rating is also the result of the town using less than 12% of its constitutional borrowing limit, and the tripling of the town’s tax base in recent years.
Finally, it is perfectly normal for the town to borrow money through bonds despite having money in the budget, just as businesses borrow to expand their activity while having money in their coffers, and just as people borrow to buy a house. Borrowing for the right reasons and at the right rate, is not a bad thing. In fact, America’s future would be better off if it had adopted the fiscal policies and principles that Mr. St. Lawrence has exercised in recent years.
The Town of Ramapo has made good use of its public properties as well. Some of them, such as the Cultural Arts Center in Spring Valley, were reserved every weekend last year, and other properties have to be maintained for historic nature, whether or not they bring a financial benefit to the town. Besides, it is funny that the Chairman of Preserve Ramapo critiques the “underutilized” properties in the town while his followers were passionately against the closure of half empty, unproductive public school buildings in East Ramapo.
But hey, what else would you expect from grumpy, bored, cry babies?
Yitzchok Schreiber
Chairman, Reserve Ramapo
I am referring to two reports posted recently on the preserveramapo.org website. One was headlined that “A town supervisor is not needed at a crime scene.” The writer, a former homicide investigator from Buffalo, says that Supervisor St. Lawrence’s presence at a recent homicide investigation was not at all needed. For the record: The Town Supervisor is a Police Commissioner in the Town of Ramapo and he can show up at any crime scene he desires to. His presence can never “impede” an investigation.
Another report, “Open space generates overwhelming debt for taxpayers,” is also quite interesting. In the report, the writer, the chairman of Preserve Ramapo, makes odd claims regarding the town’s purchase of open space and the hole it leaves in the budget.
It is astonishing how St. Lawrence can’t win with these cry babies. If the town permits building of new housing complexes, the Supervisor gets ripped to shreds for not preserving space. If the town buys open space, the cry babies complain that it costs too much for the budget. So whichever way you look at it, the Supervisor does not do a good job regarding Open Space.
At any rate, the writer claims that the Town’s repayment of debt and interest will in 2009 total ten times more than it was in 2000, due in large part to the purchase of open space.
As was mentioned before, what exactly is wrong with buying open space and keeping the town as green possible?
Secondly: Ramapo has in recent years secured large state and federal grants that were used to help pay for open space. In simple English, that means that town residents didn’t pay directly for all open space purchases- purchases which Preserve Ramapo apparently cannot decide if they support or oppose.
Thirdly: The town’s debt increased mainly due to long-term projects that expanded the town’s ability to accommodate the peaceful and productive growth of the past 20 years. Whereas the cry babies sit and complain about backed up drainage systems and low pressure waters, St Lawrence raised money through bonds to correct the problem. Whereas the cry babies complain about the traffic, St. Lawrence fought against the giant Wal-Mart from opening a store in Ramapo, and spent money to expand roads, and build sidewalks for the safety of pedestrians.
Fourthly: Moody’s, the bond rating firm, gave the Town of Ramapo an excellent rating this year, due in part to the town’s administration working to turn the deficits of the late 1990’s into surpluses. Moody’s rating is also the result of the town using less than 12% of its constitutional borrowing limit, and the tripling of the town’s tax base in recent years.
Finally, it is perfectly normal for the town to borrow money through bonds despite having money in the budget, just as businesses borrow to expand their activity while having money in their coffers, and just as people borrow to buy a house. Borrowing for the right reasons and at the right rate, is not a bad thing. In fact, America’s future would be better off if it had adopted the fiscal policies and principles that Mr. St. Lawrence has exercised in recent years.
The Town of Ramapo has made good use of its public properties as well. Some of them, such as the Cultural Arts Center in Spring Valley, were reserved every weekend last year, and other properties have to be maintained for historic nature, whether or not they bring a financial benefit to the town. Besides, it is funny that the Chairman of Preserve Ramapo critiques the “underutilized” properties in the town while his followers were passionately against the closure of half empty, unproductive public school buildings in East Ramapo.
But hey, what else would you expect from grumpy, bored, cry babies?
Yitzchok Schreiber
Chairman, Reserve Ramapo
Posted by Yitzchok Schreiber at Sunday, August 16, 2009 6:15:00 PM 
Categories: Preserve Ramapo, Campaign
Tags: Ramapo Christopher P. St. Lawrence Town of Ramapo Campaign 2009 Preserve Ramapo Campaign
Categories: Preserve Ramapo, Campaign
Tags: Ramapo Christopher P. St. Lawrence Town of Ramapo Campaign 2009 Preserve Ramapo Campaign
Comments