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This letter was submitted by Ms. Jeanine Klopp, Asst.Chair of the Hamlin Democratic Committee.


In a time of great uncertainty it is comforting to know that there are dedicated people committed to ideas and values which will make our community a better, safer place to live. These are the principles of the Hamlin Democratic Committee, adopted by resolution in July.

Preserving our rural and agricultural environment
We believe Hamlin must act aggressively to establish limits on development and protect agriculture. Local government must produce a smart, strong and forward-looking Comprehensive Plan which developers and residents can use as a road map for growth, even as it is the foundation of preservation.

Justice for all
We believe that all local laws should be applied and enforced fairly. That every resident is valued and considered equal. We believe that whenever a resident has a problem, or seeks help, local government will respond quickly and with respect. There should be no exceptions.

Open Government
We believe government belongs to the people: that the public has an inalienable right to open meetings and transparent management. We believe it is the duty of local government to actively inform citizens of the issues and decisions it makes, to reach out to the community in a reliable, truthful manner. We believe in welcoming and encouraging residents to take an active role in the town’s management and in the planning of its future.

Prudent and Responsible Administration
The mission of government at any level is to promote and protect
the, “health, safety and welfare” of its citizens. This includes spending tax dollars frugally and intelligently. It means ensuring that every transaction the town enters into is carefully scrutinized to maximize the benefits for the community.

The Importance of Family
Economic forces have created great strains on the American family. Most homes in Hamlin now have two wage earners. Over 85% of our workers drive sixty minutes or more to their jobs every day. Hamlin is where families reconnect, where they relax and recreate. Local government should focus its attention and resources on providing the services which best, most effectively, serve the needs of our working families.

For too long local government has lost contact with what is genuinely important to citizens. It is time to remedy that. This Declaration of Principles is also our political platform. If you believe that these ideals have value please consider supporting our goal of improving local government.

To learn more visit our website at hamlindems.com or attend one of our meetings held on the fourth Wednesday of each month in the Town Hall.

Jeanine Klopp

Assistant Chair
Hamlin Democratic Committee

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The Blog! invites other political parties and organizations to submit their letters of purpose.

For years The Blog! has been warning residents about the stubborn campaign, waged by Zoning Board Chairman Norm Baas, to ruin the rural character of Hamlin. In direct opposition to the facts, published research, expert opinion and government studies, Norm Baas has insisted that Hamlin must have smaller lot sizes in our agricultural districts.

His destructive plan is about to be achieved.

The alleged “Comprehensive Plan” Committee, which has been in existence for OVER three years, has finally produced a proposal! The ONLY item of significance in it is the recommendation to shrink the lot sizes.

(While taking three years to produce almost nothing would be noteworthy in other circumstances, it is commonplace in Hamlin. It is SOP and a analysis of the “product “ will be forthcoming!)

According to members of the Committee, past and present, virtually every meeting began with a tedious monologue by Baas about reducing lot sizes. Mind you, he NEVER offered supporting data, never provided any evidence to prove his assertion, he simply, tirelessly, echoed his opinion over and over and over. Perhaps just to shut him up the “Committee” agreed to his position.

However, they did “compromise.” Instead of the two acre parcels Baas wanted they settled on three.

Now, what do the experts in NYS say? The official recommendation of the Agricultural and Markets Department, the Planning Federation and the Department of State is that the BEST way to protect farmland from development is by having minimum lot sizes of TEN ACRES!

These aren’t baseless suggestions either. They have been implemented in many communities and the proof is there. Towns with smaller lot sizes transform into suburbs much more rapidly. Larger lot sizes are a disincentive to both seller and buyer. People who want a “farmette” or country living life style will be willing to purchase the bigger lots. If a farmer has to sell ten acres to a builder the sacrifice to his ag business is significant. That is the FORCE which protects agriculture. It is proven.

But don’t bother Norm Baas with the facts. He is stubborn, old fashioned, out of touch with contemporary planning stategies- and obsessed by this one idea.

Norm is twenty five years behind the times. Oh, and he’s the Chairman of Hamlin’s Zoning Board.

A man who won’t do any research, who holds destructive opinions and refuses to substantiate them- HE is in charge of zoning in Hamlin!

Readers of The Blog! are urged to be alert to the public hearings on this awful proposal and turn out to oppose it!
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Please click on the link below to read about an enlightened NYS farming community which recently INCREASED its minimum lot sizes to ten acres. Their local government is mostly farmers!

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WHEN "GOOD GUY" IS NOT ENOUGH

FEMA's Brown was a "Good Guy"

In last month’s Republican Primary a new generation of voters joined forces with a broad cross section of more traditional Hamlin voters to oust the Warner administration from power. The vote against Pat MacIntosh was a staggering 67%! Fully two-thirds of the Republicans who were involved, informed and motivated enough to cast primary votes sent a clear message: “Out With The Old!”

It was the first chime from the bell announcing the end of the “Good-Ole-Boy” era.

There will be a new Supervisor that is certain. Dennis Roach has the credentials, the education and the experience to be Hamlin’s first “modern” leader. Roach has had a long professional career in the navy and private sector. Individuals who advance in the military must show ambition, determination, competitiveness and a commitment to education.

These are exactly the virtues that have been missing from local government for too many years!

Hamlin confronts many serious issues in it’s future. The most important of which is the speed and shape of development. For almost a decade the Chairman of the Zoning Board, Norm Baas, has advocated reducing the minimum lot size in agricultural, low-density districts. This is precisely the opposite of what dozens of studies, in NYS and across the US, prove is the method to preserve and protect farmland. ***

Meanwhile, for years the Chairman of the Planning Board, Jim Nesbitt, has pushed a clandestine plan to find government money for his pet issue: Getting tax-payers subsidize the Brockport Yacht Club! With Warner’s consent, Nesbitt quietly created the specious “Sandy Harbor Management Committee,” a bogus, wasteful expansion of local government. The Committee was invented as an “official” entity to disguise the goal of obtaining grants to pay for the dredging needed to allow sailboats out to the lake. The Yacht Club, in a painfully obvious reversal of the “Personal Responsibility” virtue claimed by conservatives, reasoned that if other boaters use the inlet then the taxpayers ought to fund the dredging! The BYC pretended it didn’t know that power and pleasure craft don’t require dredging! Nesbitt’s shabby committee hit a moral low point when it claimed that one of it’s goals included “ Homeland Security,” thereby enabling it to apply for Federal grant money!

The new Supervisor will be saddled by a Town Board comprised of men who have had their government jobs for too long. Rose, Todd and Rath are conditioned by too many years of service to an apathetic and dysfunctional administration. Hamlin’s town Board is renowned for its lack of imagination, initiative and willingness to work. While they “liaison” with local organizations, they have never studied or discussed critical planning and development issues.

However, they are all “good guys!” No question about that. Each of these individuals is bright, friendly and out-going. They just don’t DO anything. Being a “good guy” is not very hard. Studying, committing to on-going training and analyzing complicated ideas is. Voters must consider if “good guy” is sufficient reason to support local officials who hold the future of the community in their hands.

Dennis Roach is obviously a smart, pro-active individual motivated by a genuine desire for public service. Unfortunately for him, he will likely inherit a disinterested, dysfunctional Town Board.

It’s unfortunate for Hamlin too. One step forward, three steps back.

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*** Read a story from the Spring 2005 "PLANNING NEWS" published by the New York Planning Federation about the Town of Flemming, outside Auburn. The community is 90% agricultural and recently passed a new zoning ordinance making the minimum lot size in Ag. District TEN ACRES! The Supervisor, a third generation farmer, said, there is "strong support from the local farm community" for the new law.

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