The following is a letter from a Blog reader...

Good Morning,

I still never heard back from you for over two months regarding some of the information that i provided to you about Hamlin Politics.

I was in a serious automobile accident in Grantsville, Maryland On August 5, 2005 in the car driven by one of my Korean graduate students. We went off Interstate 68 on the left shoulder , hit the rough payment and over we went. I was the only one in the car that sustained serious injuries. I was not seat belted at the time of the accident due to working on getting my maps and papers ready to move to the front seat to guide the driver with our entrance into metropolitan Washington. I was invited by the Korean couple, Nam and Inhee , to be their personal travel guide in the washington, DC area. Fortunately, the EMV people were there immediately and took us by ambulance to Cumberland Trauma Unit twenty miles from the accident. I sustained contusions to both lungs, and multiple bruises , both internally and externally on the upper torso. My oxygen reading was 39. I spent the next full week in the hospital, primarily in the IC Unit , getting my breathing back to normal. God was good, the staff at the hospital was good, and my husband and two students stayed with me and guided me with all things. I am now recovering back home in Indiana slowly. I feel the whole experience was a wonderful testimony of care and kindness by people.I am so lucky to not have had broken bones , lacerations , and damage to my spinal cord. As our car did flip over at least one time. I never have seen the accident report from the Maryland Police Department. WE were suppose to drive 60 miles from the hospital to the barracks with a $4 money order to get our copy. Can you believe in this day and age the Maryland Police could not fax a copy and accept a credit card? Good Morning, maryland , we are now living in the 21 century.

Anyhow, I regret that your blog does nothing for me. I am not into putting people down in that fashion. I admit to be frustrated by the crummy rummy workings of people in position, but rather than devote time to knocking them with your clever ways, I think it would be better for the community of Hamlin that you would spend your expertise with helping individuals follow their rights as citizens in keeping government clean and working honestly. As I mentioned , my father ROY WOLF, supervisor of the Town of Hamlin during the late fifties and early sixties was such a leader. Actually, he was too honest and too smart for leading a small town. His goal after leading Hamlin for only a couple terms was to work with Gordon Howe ,the head of Monroe country government . It did not work out.

Please confirm this letter and may I add this letter to the blog . I feel in a democratic society, you as editor of the blog accept other written blogs. I would like your reply today if possible...August 21, 2005 .

Mary Wolf Depew

International Advisor,Teacher and Friend to students at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana and former resident of Hamlin, New York
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Thank you Mary.

Through the years of editing The Blog and working to change local government, this Humble Editor has received lots of criticism- most of it behind his back. The main theme is: “He makes a lot of good points, but he’s so harsh! If he would just be a little nicer, say some positive things, we’d all like it better.”

Almost without exception these critics are Republicans, so that complaint is heard almost two to one around Hamlin. Democrats, Blanks and member of other parties, don’t make that plea. They slap your Humble Editor on the back and say, “Good job! It’s about time somebody ‘told it like it is!’”

Republicans are more sensitive because it is their party which keeps returning our elected officials to office. They see, correctly, that when The Blog criticizes these officials, they are indirectly criticized as well.

However, what nearly everyone seems to have missed is that The Blog has never been “political.” It is a communications tool about the actions of elected officials. It is a little electronic newspaper that does its best to reveal the shenanigans of our elected goons.

The Blog is free. The Blog does not charge for it’s service. The Blog has never received a penny from any source for any reason. Yet somehow, amazingly, because it is free to read, all manner of people have come to believe they have a right to give input about it. While your Humble Editor welcome the input, frankly he doesn’t give a damn about it.

Going to town meetings, taking notes, following up with sources, verifying information, researching on the internet- all the stuff that real journalists do- is a lot of work. The Blog is a public service for the town of Hamlin. Those that chose to read it.

All that your Humble Editor has ever demanded in return for this unrewarded labor is the opportunity to unleash his creativity and exercise his well-endowed sarcasm muscle.

Local government, while it may act like one, it is NOT a joke. The decisions, the actions, and more often the inactions, of the incompetents that keep getting re-elected, and worse- reappointed- are harmful to every single Hamlin resident. Mostly it is harmful to property owners, but also to seniors, to kids, to crime victims, to developers, to farmers, to small business owners- pretty much everybody, except the inner few who get favors.

These people hurt us! Their chicanery and incompetence hurts the future of our town and the value of our property. It’s not funny. It's bad. It's harmful.

So this Humble Editor determined that if local officials were going to harm us then they were entitled to feel a little of the same in return.

In Arthur C. Clarke’s novel, “Childhood’s End” the alien race that appears above the planet issues only one directive to the human race: No gratuitous hurting of animals. Animals may be killed and eaten, but there will be no hurting them for fun.

A few days later, in Mexico City, the first bullfight was held after this order was issued. The contest began and everything seemed normal. When the first banderilla was stabbed into the back of the bull a huge, collective scream went up from the audience. Everyone who was there to enjoy the animal’s suffering felt the pain of the spear. They hurt just like the bull did. There was never another bull fight.

So it is with The Blog. If these elected and appointed officials are going to hurt us, then they should feel a little bit of the barb themselves.

However, since so many people have urged The Blog to behave in a different way, to “be nicer,” to treat the people “we” voted for more genteelly, your Humble Editor has agreed to try.

The following is an example of a Blog story if the Warner Republicans were the editors. Please enjoy it.
PT
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LOCAL NEWS...

It was another beautiful day in Hamlin! The air was clear and mild. Birds sang and the town smelled of sweet corn. This continues a streak of 1247 days of perfect weather for our blessed community.

Last night our well meaning and hard working Town Board met. They had several photo-ops giving recognition awards to some citizens. (See separate story, pg.2) They talked about the memo from Zoning Board Chairman Norm Baas which said that, while everything was good all around, he felt the ZBA had to, occasionally, work. He wasn’t complaining! Let’s make that clear! He merely hoped the Town Board might have an idea how to remedy this occasional event. Then they adjourned.

Afterwards Supervisor Warner told The Blog that everything was good in the town, that all the residents were healthy and happy and local government couldn’t be better or more efficient.

The Blog salutes our brave leaders and hope they continue to prosper as they take such careful care of the community! They are truly hard working and self-sacrificing. Every Hamlin resident should be grateful for their presence and contributions!
==========================================================================

The most overvalued currency is free advice.- B. Franklin

ANNOUNCEMENT SHOCKS GOP

Retiring Supervisor Austin Warner III shocked the local political community yesterday when he admitted that he was secretly a Democrat and had been, “a Democratic operative” for almost thirty five years.

The startling revelation came amidst rumors swirling throughout Hamlin that he planned taking a job with new Monroe County Democratic Chair, Joe Morelle, in January.

“Joe and I are very close,” Warner told The Blog, “he was my ‘handler’ for the last fifteen years. I really can’t comment on my future plans however.”

Warner explained that he migrated over to the Democrats during the Nixon Administration. “The GOP turned out to be such liars,” he said, “They lied about the war- Vietnam, back then- and how it was going. Nixon and Kissinger undermined the Paris Peace Conference in ‘68, then turned around and settled the war on the very same terms. I lost faith with the leadership.”

During this time Warner fell in with a “liberal element” at Alfred University. He was secretly recruited to join the Democrats by close friend Steve May, who would later become Mayor of Rochester.

Asked how he could actually be a Dem while registered as a Republican with the Board of Elections Warner said, “I signed a document which pledged my fealty to the Democratic Party. It stated that I was a political operative and would be registering with a different party. I was going deep undercover and the party, and I, needed that letter as an anchor. It was a touchstone, if you will, that kept me focused on my real job.”

What was that job? “My mission was to infiltrate a local Republican organization, take control and drive it into the ground. Sort of a ‘search and destroy’ project.”

Warner appears to have succeeded beyond the wildest dreams of his Democratic strategists. In six years as Supervisor in Hamlin he has violated virtually every principle of the Republican party, nurtured and exposed every weakness and corruption the party is known for and fundamentally ruined local government.

“The strategy is long term,” Warner told The Blog “It is really a generational process. You see, we target an entrenched, deeply Republican community for action. An operative like myself makes their way to the highest levels of the party and then we ruin it. When you get to be Chairman, mayor or supervisor you commence the final stage, named Action FUBAR. We are tasked to ‘Foul Up Beyond All Repair’ every aspect of local governance.”

How can THAT be a good objective, The Blog asked? Warner explained, “Look, the Republicans have sold middle class voters an elaborate package of phoney ‘values’ which has seduced them to join the party. ‘Family Values’ is a sleazy disguise for racism and hostility toward the poor; ‘Personal Responsibility’ is about removing health and safety protections from the workplace, lifting corporate regulations just as they increase onerous regulation on private citizens; A ‘Strong Defense’ is code for conducting political wars in lieu of foreign policy while giving unlimited funds to the military industries. The plan is really no mystery, look at Chenney and Halliburton. Bush is an Oil-Man and the Vice President runs a huge defense contracting company. Anybody with eyes and half a brain can figure this one out.”

Warner interrupted his explanation to reveal another shock, “Do you mind if I remove these?” he asked as he peeled away a false mustache and unhooked his sandy wig to reveal a close-cropped silver scalp. “I have been wearing these for years but could never quite get used to them.”

Returning to the Republican strategy he continued. “Their plan was beautiful in its simplicity. The GOP stopped selling ideas, policy ideas, and started selling emotionalism. They were, naturally, getting advice from the advertising business- more correctly the media- which was exchanging their services for a huge package of benefits to come later. The GOP sold itself to corporate America which in turn helped sell the GOP to blue-collar voters. The very employees of the companies funding the GOP!” Warner shook his head in admiration.

“It was, it is, a beautiful plan, I must admit. To be able to enlist the very constituents you are about to screw- well that is both bold and brilliant. We Dems had to do something, something radical. That’s why we initiated these undercover ops. We had to place Dems in high level GOP positions to gradually, but undeniably, prove that the GOP were actually liars and corporate flunkies. Our job was to reveal the truth.”

Warner leaned back in his chair and continued. “I was assigned to Hamlin since that’s where my family had moved. I joined the local party, got in the Lions Club, did volunteer work at the Catholic Church. I built up my cover. When the opportunity presented itself, I ran a primary and got elected supervisor. The rest is history.”

The history Warner refers to is, “The worst legacy in local government history!” part-time historian and former resident James Martin said. “Warner ran this town into the ground. The guy won’t read- so he knows nothing about town planning. He was controlled by guys like Norm Baas, (Chair of the Zoning Board) and Jim Breslawski (former Chair of the Planning Board) and THEY don’t read either. When we needed a new law for telecommunications towers I had to write it! Those guys couldn’t even do the research!”

Others concur. Speaking anonymously, a former member of the Hamlin Republican Committee said, “He raised taxes every single year he was in office! Yet he still claimed he was against them. He completely screwed the community with the STAR Program by keeping assessments down for Jim Breslawski. He drove every able minded member of the Master Plan committee right out of the building. He fired the Building Inspector with two months left on the guy’s contract which resulted in a Federal lawsuit and will cost the town tens of thousands of dollars. He failed to protect average citizens from disreputable developers like the fiasco up on Watuoma Beach Road. The list goes on and on!” The irate citizen added, “Then he picks Pat MacIntosh to take his place! He thinks she’s qualified because she was the only person he could trust with the fact that HE can’t add or subtract!”

What about the impact of this revelation on the campaign of Ms. MacIntosh? “Who cares?” was Warner’s terse reply.

“I am proud of the job I’ve done!” Beamed the ebullient Warner. “I have shown that small town Republican government can be just as incompetent and punitive to the middle class as the big boys.”

Asked if revealing that he is actually a Democrat might undermine the idea that it was a Republican who hurt the community, Warner sat right up, “No, of course not! Don’t you see? They elected me THREE TIMES!”

DOES THIS SHOW HAVE A FUTURE?
Reprinted, with permission, from “Clown News,” a publication of Mercedeth, Inc.

The first act in last night’s infamous Cirque de Hamlae’ was a shocking surprize. It was an announcement of a cancellation! The production began with news that the Light Show segment had suffered a serious failure. The Master Electrician declared that technical difficulties forced him rewire the marvelous performance which had so entertained last month’s audience. (For the mechanically minded: Master of Smoke and Mirrors, Ken Licht, operator of the Light Show, announced his blame for fact that the Circus would have to re-hire all the acts engaged last month!)

Licht, whose impressive contortionism worked magic tricking and misdirecting the audience about the truth during last show’s program, told the crowd that he, “forgot” something. He forgot that the Circus had sent letters to the County seeking comments on the proposed changes to the Circus and the replies had not come back! This regulation is routine because the County doesn’t want any Circus to adopt crazy or illegal acts. They require this comment process!

According to the announcement made during last night’s performance, the Master Electrician took responsibility. “I didn’t know they hadn’t been returned,” he stated. Circus insiders know this is the job of the Grounds Keeper who both sends out and collects these records. But, the Master Electrician “forgot” to check on them so he gets the blame.

Sadly, and highly upsetting was the fact that no remuneration was offered to the audience for this failure to perform. Circus fans all had to pay the full price! A shocking performance!

Next on the bill was Shirley’s Incredible Clown Show. Shirley is world renown for her marvelous and entertaining skit, “Heritage Day,” a day long faux-historical celebration of political onanism. Originally, Heritage Day was a community event designed to recognize and celebrate Hamlin history and its contributors. Almost instinctively, it was seized by the internationally famous mime and current Ring-Master, Butch Warner, who “adapted” it as his own personal publicity event. Heritage Day became “Supervisor Day” and the poor soul who had envisioned the performance faded into compulsory servitude. Shirley’s Clown Show became the vehicle for this expression. (Pun intended!)

Sadly, as those who are dedicated readers of “Clown News” know, Shirley’s Clown Show was recently fired by the circus, and although there remains a chicken’s-teeth chance she’ll return, most observers insist she’s gone from the show for good.

She is still under contract however but obviously, because of her dispute with management, the Heritage Day skit had been scratched from the program! In announcing the cancellation Shirley said, “It’s all my fault. I forgot to follow through on some things.”

This comes as no shock to circus insiders. Shirley never liked the skit but was forced, as a matter of party obeisance, to carry it out. Everybody on the show circuit knew that Shirley was merely a beard for a long, insincere and ultimately bogus day of pagan Ring-Master worship. Now, given the chance, Shirley has happily sabotaged the entire project and deprived the boss of his one day of glorious self-abuse.

Only history is harmed by the end of this charade. However, considering that history had been relegated to nothing more than a title and a greasy platform for self-promotion, there will be few complaints.

Next on the bill was a very entertaining spectacle as the Man-on-Stilts and The Savant played out a routine of community good. In an apparently unplanned skit they toyed with the Ring-Master, dancing around singing about “Senior Zoning.” The song was in honor of the Ring-Master’s Patron, the DeMarco family, none of whom were in attendance. The Man-on-Stilts sang the chorus, “It’s only Fair,” while the Savant did cartwheels around the irate and seemingly mystified Ring-Master, who was armed only with a puny light-saber to fend them off. The melody changed abruptly mid-chorus to a march as the two antagonists began a menacing chant called, “The Library Was Promised Computers.” The aforementioned Shirley’s Clown Show made a memorable appearance.

As a longtime observer of the Circus, and your humble pundit, I must comment that the Cirque de Hamlae’is in serious trouble. “Clown News“ subscribers know that the Ring-Master is retiring under cloudy circumstances and he wants his secretary take over the job. Most of the important acts in the Circus are opposed to this “royal plan of ascendancy,” as one critic called it. Many important acts are demanding new management and calling for an outsider.

According to sources, key performers are also deeply disturbed by the Ring-Master’s choice of “The Schmoo” to replace Shirley’s Incredible Clown Show. Among professionals, The Schmoo is considered an amateur. “Where did this act come from?” asked one well know performer speaking anonymously. “What has he ever done but complain? He was in one side-show and bombed. Reviewers said he was lazy, undiscipline, unmotivated and didn’t understand anything about the business. Now the Ring-Master wants to promote him? It doesn’t make any sense. He’s ruining the show,” he concluded.

Yes, the Cirque de Hamlae’ is in serious trouble. I fear that only a complete change in management will save the production. Let’s hope it happens when the Board of Directors meet in mid-September.

Keep Smiling!

Chester Gettof

BUTCH PATROL

Turn out the lights and lock your doors!

Highway Supervisor Tom Ingraham and Supervisor wannabe Pat MacIntosh have been seen lately plodding the streets of Hamlin on “Pester Patrol.” They are not campaigning in the traditional sense, meeting random Republicans and giving them the pitch, “Pester Patrol’ is a misguided tactic made popular by Lame-Duck Butch Warner.

Pester Patrol targets ONLY the people who signed a petition for one of their opponents! For example, primary challengers Dennis Roach and Mike Marchetti collected about 330 signatures on their petition (an impressive 15% of all registered Republicans!) This document is public information so Ingraham and MacIntosh obtained a copy and are going to the homes of everyone who signed it. To pester and admonish them!

Warner built his entire political career around this kind of bullying, intimidating tactic. Big-Mac is cut from the same cloth as her boss, so invading a resident’s home to scold them comes naturally to her.

And scolding IS the point of the visit! Pave-Man and Big-Mac will rebuke the resident, telling them, “WE are the OFFICIAL nominee of the party! We DEMAND your allegiance!”

Butch Warner (maybe this is where he got the nickname,) who stands about 6'2 and goes an easy 260, used to thrust right up to people in their doorways, tower over them, point his finger in their face and threaten them as “disloyal Republicans” if they had signed another’s petition! He would demand that they vote for him and the official ticket. He hinted they would be kicked out of the Republican party and that HE would know how they voted! He physically intimidated people. He menaced them. He lied.

(Don’t take The Blogs’ word for it! Ask around town. Ask people who signed the petition for Ed Evans. Warner went to most of their homes and tried to intimidate them. He was thrown out of plenty! Evans’ supporters were very loyal!)

Pave-Man and Big-Mac are employing the same tactics except without the physical intimidation. They suggest that any voter who doesn’t support the “official candidates” are disloyal Republicans. They leave the impression that something bad will happen if that person doesn’t vote the “party-line.”

This is what Judith Hazen, Chair of the Hamlin Republican Committee told the Brockport Post: “Hazen said she would prefer there not be a primary and... told (committee) members that their responsibility is to support the candidates endorsed by the committee.

‘According to the rules, a person who is a committee person with the Republican Party has no choice about supporting a candidate that the majority has selected. They have to carry petitions for the selected candidates,’ Hazen said. ‘If they refuse to do that, they're not a loyal committee person and will not be doing their duty.’ "

Of course this is not true, and it is probably illegal to make the threat. The "Good-Ole-Boys" who are rapidly losing control of the Hamlin Republican Committee are so desperate there is no lie, no intimidation tactic that they won't use.

So voters, beware the “Pester Patrol!” It’s not as Butch as it used to be, but it’s bad enough.

WARNER CLAIMS RATH “SATANIST”
Web image signals fellow Devil Worshipers

Hamlin Supervisor Austin Warner escalated the war of words with Town Board member Paul Rath claiming he had evidence Rath was a worshiper of Satan.

“This is all the proof anyone needs!” bellowed the zaftig Supervisor at an ill-attended press conference called to make his bizarre announcement. “It’s been right hear under our noses all along and we have never noticed it!” echoing a familiar criticism leveled at Warner himself regarding his well documented failure to collect revenues from the Town Hall ATM.

“Paul Rath is obviously a worshiper of Satan, look at his fingers!” bawled the vast Warner as he pointed to a copy of Rath’s portrait on the Town of Hamlin website.

“I warned you all! I told you he was a Democrat and you wouldn’t listen! Now, how do you like this? We have a devil worshiper in town government!” blustered the substantial Supervisor.

“Evidence” of the fantastic accusation is that Rath’s fingers, which are poised on a calculator, have only the first and fifth fingers extended, in the familiar Italian “Molokia” or Texas Longhorn gesture.

In recent years fringe groups of paranoid Christian fundamentalists have identified the gesture as a symbol of devil-worshipers. They have provided no historical or practical proof claiming that their personal belief is evidence enough.

Warner’s grotesque claim seems to be the result of an ongoing dispute with Rath over the councilman’s refusal to support Warner’s hand picked replacement for Supervisor, Patricia MacIntosh.

“Pat MacIntosh is the kindest, sweetest, most loving, generous, friendliest, warmest, most giving person on the face of the earth!” Warner replied when questioned about his motive for attacking Rath.

“Anyone on my Republican committee who does not support my nominee should not only be kicked off the committee, but kicked out of the Republican Party! And shot too! That’s my opinion anyway.” sputtered the visibly rattled Supervisor as Ms. MacIntosh handed him two steel ball bearings which seemed to calm him.

Rath, reached by phone, denied the allegation.

“I have no idea what he’s talking about. I know Austin has great affection for MacIntosh but this seems a little extreme.”

Rath claims that the dispute derives from some private conversations he had with members of his extended family. Word of those discussions apparently made there way back to Warner.

A town employee in the Clerk’s office, speaking anonymously, said the attack came after Warner heard that Rath had allegedly said, “That guy is wreaking the Hamlin Republican Committee. MacIntosh isn’t qualified to be Supervisor, even if she can write a sentence- which is a step up!”

Rath and Warner have frequently bickered and it is dissension which the Supervisor hates above all things.

“Warner hates it when anyone disagrees with him. He takes it personally. He’s got a very fragile ego to begin with and perceives any dissent as a personal attack” said a local psychiatrist and political observer, who wanted to remain anonymous. “This thing with MacIntosh seems much more sensitive then that however. He’s just gone off the deep end.”

“That’s just the way I hold the calculator” said Rath, a Certified Public Accountant. “That’s how I was taught to do it. It’s efficient.”

Is rudeness catching?

What can the future hold for Hamlin if Pat MacIntosh becomes Supervisor?

At the July Town Board meeting Ms. MacIntosh sat in abject silence while the board undertook to ram a huge package of legislation down the taxpayer’s throats. Board members were almost completely unprepared. Several obviously hadn’t even read, much less understood, the legislation they were planning to enact into law that day!

Lame-duck Supervisor Warner made his feelings toward the public crystal clear: He didn’t like them, they were a nuisance and he wished they were gone! Warner used every impolite tactic to rush the hearing forward while rigidly refusing to participate in any description or justification of the proposals.

Hamlin residents will have to obey these laws, but Warner refused to participate in any explanation of them.

What did nominee MacIntosh do? She sat silently throughout the hearing. She never asked a question, never participated, never admonished the legislators for being unprepared or hostile.

In other words, she was in agreement with Warner! The public is a pest. Questions about proposed new laws are simply a pain. Elected officials are superior. The public is thorn in their side.

Many, many people who have had the unfortunate experience of interacting with Ms. MacIntosh in her capacity as Warner’s secretary will testify that hostility, contempt and superiority were the most obvious tones of that experience.

Those attitudes must be contagious in the town hall.

I told you, I DON'T CARE!

It is difficult to find words that adequately describe the contempt that Supervisor Warner displays toward Hamlin’s voting public.

His behavior at last week’s Town Board meeting was beyond excuse or explanation. Warner obviously wanted no part of hearing from the public. He was boldly rude and dismissive. At every opportunity he rushed the process in a naked effort to quash debate, dialogue and discussion.

Warner never defended a proposal. He never explained a proposal. His words, attitude and body language merged to convey his message: “I don’t care! I just want this over. Nothing you all say means anything.”

Warner is a lame duck, bailing out of the job to escape apologizing to former Building Inspector Larry Gursslin. Gursslin has sued Warner and the Town for firing him without cause or due process. Considering that two board members voted against the firing and made statements on the record confirming the allegations, it is almost a certainty that the town will lose.

Gursslin is demanding a public apology from Warner as part of any settlement. Warner is so prideful that he will walk away from the job rather than apologize.

Despite his lame-duck status the Supervisor is still obliged to show respect and regard toward the public.

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Nothing but the truth...

Sadly, most Americans fear and loath lawyers. The reasons are complex involving adversarial relationships, complex legal rhetoric and the fact that one almost never gets a straight, clear answer!

Often a concrete answer is not possible because of conflicting judicial decisions. Often legal answers are complicated by variables. Sometimes lawyers don’t want to be held to an opinion.

Then there are times when lawyers deliberately try to obscure or confuse the truth. When that happens people are genuinely justified in their disdain.

Hamlin Town Attorney Ken Licht surely has earned some public scorn by his behavior at last week’s public hearing.

Warner designated Licht as official spokesman to describe the meaning and impact of the proposed new laws to the public.

Ordinarily, a citizen might expect this assignment to include telling the truth. The public should expect a full and honest accounting of the regulation and its effects. Expectations of truth include the idea that the public will not be mislead by half truths, partial explanations and shaded meanings.

The public did not get the truth from attorney Licht. Instead it got a tainted, politically driven July snow job. Licht, in collusion with Supervisor Warner, deliberately shaped his explanations and descriptions to mislead the public about several of the proposed laws and their effects.

The change to the law on variances was conceived by the Zoning Board to make it easier for them to grant variances but Licht never acknowledged that. He deliberately misled the public about the regulation’s origins and its full impact on the community. He presented the new law as an innocuous “change of language” that brought Hamlin into better conformance with the state.

While that may be true, it is a half truth. This was the ONLY reason Licht gave for the change, masking the true motive. By saying that it was simply a “change of language” Licht purposefully, willfully attempted to deceive the public about the impact that this change will have on our community.

Licht was questioned about that impact and his answer was evasive and off-point. He kept returning to “change of language” while not answering the question about impact and consequence.

Lawyers tricks.

That’s why, eventually, average citizens come away with a bad taste in their mouths when they interact with attorneys. Slippery, shifty, contemptuous and focused on the paycheck, not the truth.

Unfortunately Ken Licht was not elected to any public office. Consequently, he must rely on pleasing Austin Warner to continue receiving his $40,000 plus income from Hamlin every year.

Too bad for Hamlin. Too bad for the truth.

No Licht at the end of the tunnel

The performance by Hamlin’s town board at last night’s public hearing on eight new laws can only be described as disgraceful. The meeting was well attended by about fifty prepared residents. They came armed with solid questions, opinions and insights.

The residents were prepared, the town board was not.

The worst performance by far was that of Supervisor Warner. With a glaring lame-duck contempt for the public he took every opportunity to rush the process along showing repeatedly that he didn’t care what the public had to say or think. Several residents pressed the town board for an estimate of the costs to enforce the proposed new codes. Warner had no answers and seemed to take pleasure in defying the request to answer.

Claiming that “This is a public hearing ,” he refused to respond to the questioning. At one point a resident stood up and bluntly asked the Supervisor to reply to another person’s question on cost and enforcement. “Will you answer that man’s question?” the citizen demanded. “No!” replied the Supervisor with hostility. Warner alleged that the Town Board was, “here to collect information” and consequently there would be no dialogue.

To his credit, Paul Rath made numerous efforts to explain the rationale behind some of the proposals. While each board member, save Warner, tried at least once to explain or defend a proposal, Rath took the lead and worked to offer the residents frequent explanations.

However, it was clear to the public that the Town Board was unprepared for the hearing. In fact, George Todd admitted that he had not read the proposed seventeen page Property Maintenance Code. That was evident, but it was also clear that most if not all the others had not read it either.

Defense of this monster, which no doubt would have been passed in-tact had the public been absent, was left to the Building Inspector. The best Mr. Bauman could offer was that these laws were designed, “to make my life easier.” He asserted that the regulations were intended to cope with varied violations from junked cars to abandoned property.

The public, many of whom had read through the entire proposal, asked pointed questions about the codes that were not relevant to clean up. The public informed the TB that ninety per-cent of the proposed laws were building codes regulating everything from the size of door and windows INSIDE the home to keeping one’s eves painted. It was obvious that no one on the Board knew that. Mr Bauman claimed that the codes had been recommended by Brockport and had been successful there in combating property maintenance issues. Apparently he has not been following the political scene in Brockport. It was obvious too that Mr. Bauman either had not read the entire code or did not understand it.

The Town Board, Building Inspector, Fire Chief and town attorney all demonstrated a shocking, but familiar, lack of understanding of the law. The officials asserted that some proposed laws were not relevant because they didn’t plan on enforcing them! When pressed about the onerous building regulations, the B.I. insisted that they didn’t matter because they only planned on using those parts of the code which regulated maintenance! Several members of the public reacted with the obvious logic, “Why pass laws you don’t intend to enforce?” asked one; “Why don’t you just write the code you need instead of all this?” asked another. Don’t they know that laws still apply, even if nobody acts to enforce them? Laws like that tend to become weapons to be used against citizens.

The entire dias acted as if they had never thought of that. In fact, they hadn’t.

The most offensive performance of the night belonged to town attorney, Ken Licht. Licht apparently views his contract with Hamlin as an obligation to collude with Supervisor Warner’s political agenda. Time after time, Licht obfuscated, blurred and misdirected both the motives and effects of the proposed laws. At other moments, when he might have assisted the B.I. or Councilperson with a legal perspective, he was strangely silent.

His most obvious political performance came when he explained the plan to liberalize the process to obtain an area variance. Licht asserted that the town would be sued if it denied a variance using the language of the existing law. He claimed the wording was outdated. Under questioning from the public, he acknowledged that the criteria for granting or denying an application was essentially the same under both the old and new wording. He promoted the new law as being the “accepted language.”

Licht deviously and pointedly left out the real motive for changing the law: The Zoning Board of Appeals wants to make it EASIER to give out variances. Licht admitted that the criteria was relatively unchanged only the emphasis on the “benefit to the applicant” was affected. Licht claimed that Hamlin needed to conform to language which emphasized a “balancing test.” Then he explained that the town was already using this test because of training he had given to the ZBA.

This is a throughly disingenuous explanation. Why would a town need new language if the process is correct? Mr. Licht knows that courts rule on the process in these matters. If the ZBA follows the right process, if the correct questions and issues are discussed, if the decision is sound and rational then the court is not going to speak to the underlying language of the local code. Conformance to the PROCESS is what matters. Hamlin’s law has already been through the courts and was not found lacking.

In truth, the real reason for changing the language was to make it easier to grant variances. The law was specifically changed to give a variance to the Vito property on West Watuoma Beach Road, where the contractor violated nearly a dozen local laws and NONE were enforced. Very shortly, every Hamlin citizen will witness a heinous act of revenge and rebuke toward the family who had to resort to a lawsuit to compel Hamlin to enforce its laws. Within a few months the ZBA will produce the very outcome the lawsuit sought to block. Instead of punishing a law-breaker, the new owner will be given the right to sub-divide the parcel, convert the “garage” into the house (it was all along,) and sell two parcels where one had been! The innocent, the residents who are in the right, will be punished and the guilty will be rewarded. Even if there is a new owner (from probate) the property is STILL in violation and the town continues to ignore the judge’s orders.

Another example of Licht’s deception and obfuscation during last night’s meeting concerned the proposal to adopt the seventeen page Property Maintenance Law. As mentioned, ninety per-cent of the code is regulation governing buildings and it is unlikely that Licht read the document.

Members of the public questioned if their existing properties would have to conform to the new laws. They were told by the B.I. that they would not have to since their homes are “pre-existing non-conforming” structures.

Of course this is not true. Under our zoning code anytime a property is “enlarged, altered or changed in area,” that property must come into conformance with all new, existing codes.

When questioned about this attorney Licht gave another wrong and misleading answer. He claimed that the language of the law (125-55) governing pre-existing non-conforming uses refers only to the Zoning Code laws and not the new Property Maintenance Code since that will be a “local law” not part of zoning law.

But unfortunately for the community Licht did not read 125-55 far enough. He only read the first page. On the next page the zoning code says, “no enlargement, change or alteration of a non-conforming structure housing a non-conforming use shall be permitted except by a finding by the ZBA that such enlargement, change or alteration will permit greater compliance with the provisions of this or other appropriate regulations...” This clearly, obviously, includes the new Property Code. (And God help the resident who offends- the full force of compliance will come down heavily on their heads!)

How could he have left that out? Too hot in the hearing room? Unprepared? Maybe it was simply cynical one-upmanship with the public. (One citizen publicly chastised Licht for smirking during questioning of the Supervisor!)

Maybe he just doesn’t care. Why should he? The public doesn’t sign his checks, the Supervisor does. That is where his allegiance is. The Supervisor’s politics guide Licht’s legal interpretations in Hamlin. Don’t bite the hand that feeds- regardless of the virtue, regardless of the ethics, regardless of the impact to the community.

***

To summarize the public hearing: The public came out in large numbers. They were well prepared, thoughtful and direct. The TB was not prepared. Paul Rath tried to communicate, the others were largely silent. Apparently no local official read the seventeen page Property Maintenance Code in detail. The town attorney obfuscated, misdirected and erred.

The town passed the following new regulations: LL# 4- Keeping of Animals and Poultry; LL# 5- amending the Zoning Code to make variances easier to get; LL# 6- Amending the Fire Code to eliminate the annual inspection of one and two family homes; LL# 7- Amending the Zoning Code definitions for Refuse Disposal and Fill; LL# 8- Amending the Zoning Code to transfer the jurisdiction of Ponds from the ZBA to the Planning Board (Effectively eliminating the public hearing process so neighbors will not know about a new pond until it is dug.;) LL# 9- Lead by Paul Rath, and to their credit, the TB defeated the B.I.’s request to enlarge the size of temporary signs. In addition, they reduced the time these signs may be displayed. An unusual act of support for the idea of community aesthetics!

[As an aside- why DIDN’T the town act to make the proposed Property Maintenance Code PART of the Zoning Code? Why is it a separate “local law?” Would it be too difficult to include it in our code book? Is it more convenient that the public would have to discover, then request, additional documents to learn what laws govern their property? Making this a separate law instead of a revision to the Zoning Code doesn’t make any sense.]

The town tabled, for further review, these: LL# 3- Junked and Abandoned Vehicles (There was much dispute as to regulating “lot cars” unregistered cars used to teach kids to drive with, especially in rural districts.;) LL# 10 the infamous seventeen page Property Maintenance Code.

The performance by our elected officials, and the town attorney, was a disgrace. The tunnel is dark.

TOWN TO RAM CODE CHANGES ON PUBLIC


The most important, and perhaps the only VALID, information to emerge from Hamlin’s flawed town survey was that residents, almost unanimously, want to protect the rural character of our community. Nearly 90% of respondents said that protecting agriculture and rural living should be the most important goals for the Town.

In a remarkably perverse reaction to this directive, the Warner/MacIntosh administration has proposed a new law which will almost certainly accelerate the rapid destruction of our cherished rural character!

Our Town Board has proposed, Local Law # 5 which eases the conditions for granting an “Area Variance.”

A variance is an exemption from zoning restrictions. A variance is granted to a specific property by the Zoning Board of Appeals. Once given it goes with the property in perpetuity. A typical area variance is one which exempts a homeowner from the ordinary set-back distances for building in their neighborhood.

Hamlin’s law which governs these variances has traditionally been very conservative. A property owner who sought a variance was required to prove that he or she would suffer substantial financial hardship without it. They also had to show that they had not created that hardship themselves! In addition, the law stated that no variance could be granted if it gave special privileges to one parcel which were not enjoyed by all similar properties.

This last rule was an essential component of the regulation since it protected the concept of precedent. If one person, in a neighborhood, is granted a variance then the next person, in a similar circumstance, MUST also be given a waiver if they ask. Eventually, if an entire neighborhood is granted enough variances it, de facto, becomes a different zoning district altogether! That is the slippery slope which the rule protected the community from!

The new proposed Law #5 completely liberalizes the variance process. It turns it utterly on its head. The rigid test has been stripped away. The old variance rule was presumptively unfavorable to the request, it discouraged change. This new proposal is presumptively favorable to the request, encouraging change. Herein is the threat to our community: Every variance, every liberalization of restriction, will negatively impact Hamlin’s “rural character.”

Who is behind this astonishing change in preservation regulation? Norm Baas and the Zoning Board of course.

It is difficult for the average citizen to understand the culture of the Hamlin Zoning Board. Mr. Baas has installed a philosophy of hostility toward the law. He believes that the mission of the ZBA is to discard the legislative process. The town board writes our laws, Baas believes it is his royal duty to give waivers to them.

Normal Zoning Boards understand that they function foremost as protectors of the law. They understand it is their duty to make property owners adhere to the law. While a ZBA has the authority to grant a waiver, it must consider very carefully the reasons for giving one person an exemption from a regulation everyone else must follow. A normal ZBA has a very narrow and conservative approach to giving out variances. An intelligent, sophisticated ZBA understands that it is a judicial body which may grant variances only if the request passes a rigid set of tests. The guiding principle of most ZBA’s is to deny a variance request unless there are extraordinary circumstances which cause harm to the applicant. Normal ZBA’s are opposed to granting variances as a matter of policy. Normal ZBA’s support their legislators. Further, a strict policy of opposing variance requests serves the community by upholding the legislative process. Laws are not meant to be discarded- even if you have the authority to do so.

Not in Hamlin. Under Norm Baas the ZBA sees itself as separate from, and superior to, the legislative process. There are certain zoning laws which Norm Baas hates! As a member of the ZBA he should be neutral on his personal views regarding the laws, but he is not. He regularly comments on the value of certain regulations and asserts his negative opinions about them.

Worse, is that this attitude has nurtured a culture on the Hamlin ZBA of righteous superiority. The Baas Zoning Board believes it is on a “divine mission’ to right the wrongs of our legislative process. They believe their job is to grant every variance if at all possible. (IE: Tops gas station or the new car wash that is right in the neighbor’s yard!.) Norm doesn’t like most laws. The ZBA follows suit.

Baas’s dislike of laws seems to be part of a larger half-wit political philosophy shared by some core members of the Hamlin Republican committee. There are local officials who advocate a near total rollback of regulation! Judith Hazen, a member of the Planning Board, recently called for eliminating even more protections, advocating abandoning zoning law altogether! “This is still America, people should be allowed to use their property as they want!” she declared in a fit of wild Libertarianism.

Of course you can use your property, Mrs. Hazen! But you don’t live in a vacuum. You can’t burn your property to the ground and endanger firefighters; You can’t process raw sewage on your property; You can’t erect a 350 foot radio tower on it- even if you might profit from doing so. Mr’s Hazen you are part of a community and in every community, throughout civilized society, there are rules. Rules that protect each citizen from the self interest of all the others. Nobody would seriously advocate repealing laws against murder and theft, but stupidly think that limitations on land use is bad. No doubt Ms. Hazen would change her tune instantly if her adjacent neighbor decided to “use their property” to bury toxic waste.

Baas believes that he is being a Conservative when he proclaims that certain zoning laws are infringements to property owners. He cannot recognize that granting virtually every variance request is the very definition of “liberal.”

As to the rest of the zoning board they seem to follow right along, quietly bleating, “ baas, baas, baas.” The other members of the ZBA are complacent, uninterested in learning and profoundly backward in understanding community planning. When Norm baas, they follow.

Despite these policies Baas has occasionally had to struggle with granting a variance because, in reality, the law is written to limit them. Reacting to that, Norm has lobbied the Town Board seeking to liberalize the code. Norm wants legislation to make it even EASIER to give out the candy.

The Hamlin TB, sheep of a different stripe, are poised to give Baas just what he wants- an extreme liberalizing of the language of the law. Once again in Hamlin we see the tail wagging the ram: the ZBA wants a legislative change, the TB follows.

Liberalizing variance law will rapidly erode our community’s rural character. Strict rules which limit growth and discourage "change” are the community’s only defenses! The Warner/MacIntosh administration is totally incapable of grasping this fundamental concept of Town planning.

As children we learned that if, “You keep the rules, the rules keep you.” This applies in Hamlin too. Strict regulation and limitations on variances are good things. They are essential tools to protect the rural character of the community. Take some time to tell your Town Board that you do not support liberalizing the regulations which protect our community. Go to the public hearing at July 11 Town Board meeting- speak up!
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This is outrageous!

The worst and most devious reason for Norm Baas’s plot to liberalize the zoning code is so he and Warner can get revenge on some citizens who have caused “trouble” for the town.

Most readers of The Blog will remember the outrageous story of the house that pretended to be a garage on West Watuoma Beach Road. (See archives: 5/7/03; 5/22/03; 2/9/04; 5/11/04; etc.) This famous embarrassment to the community resulted in a lawsuit by the Delapa family against the Zoning Board. The Delapas won the suit easily with Judge Frazee admonishing Hamlin to “obey it’s own laws.”

Almost immediately after the court decision the property owner, Rick Vito, died. Hamlin used the interval, while the property was in probate, to ignore the judge and scheme to find a way to reward the villain while punishing the innocent.

They have succeeded. The planned revision to the variance law will allow some sleazy new developer to snap up the Vito property and get a variance to subdivide the parcel!

THAT is the plan ladies and gentlemen! Instead of complying with the existing law which forbids two principle buildings (houses) on a single parcel, instead of enforcing the law and punishing the violator by having him tear down the old cottage, instead of doing the right thing Hamlin officials have conspired with the town attorney to rewrite the law to make it easier for the next owner of the Vito property to get a variance!

Norm Baas and the Warner/MacIntosh administration have conspired to disobey a court order just so they can punish the Delapa’s for seeking justice. The court determined that the Delapa’s wre in the right and told the town to act. They have refused to act and schemed to alter the law to punish the innocent.

The Zoning Board has already met in secret and illegal “executive sessions” to plan the strategy.

This action will send a clear message to all the sleazy, creepy disreputable developers in the five county area: “Come to Hamlin! We do NOT enforce the law and we’ll find a way to reward you if you break it!”


What a town!

COMMUNITY SUPPORT

Citizens Pitch-In

It looks like the helpful residents of Hamlin are pitching in to help locate a buyer for the Burkes Hardware property.

The project began when realtor, Kyle Rath, placed the For-Sale sign. Knowing the direction Hamlin was developing, he naturally thought that the parcel would make an excellent location for a new gas station.

A good realtor knows that sometimes you have to stimulate potential buyers to "think outside the box." He sought to give people ideas on how to develop the property.

Other alert citizens soon joined in the effort! Many, many residents understand the unfettered liberalism of the Planning and Zoning Boards. They have seen the kinds of dangerous, undermining and commercially disastrous decisions these Boards have made about Hamlin's future. They have witnessed the fear and uncertainty of the boards. They have seen how these men and women are incapable of saying “NO” to any project or proposal. Hamlin residents know that they cannot rely on local government to limit growth. The concept is over the heads of our officials.

So, what the hell!? Let’s go for it. Let’s get this property sold! Maybe a Dangerous Dog Kennel? Maybe a K-Mart or Rite-Aid. Maybe a CLUSTER of cell-towers! Maybe a nice strip mall with an insurance company/sub-shop/tanning & nails/pizza parlor/liquor store/bagel shop/diner? That sounds GOOD! Man, Hamlin will Really be a MODERN town then!

Keep the ideas coming folks! Send an email here if you like and we’ll publish the ideas. Let’s show local government that we have all given up! Let’s show the Warner/MacIntosh administration that Hamlin residents support the kind of development that trashes the future of the community! Let’s get out there and show our support!

Oooooo, I hate Republicans...I mean Democrats...I mean Conservatives...I mean Independents...

What’s it all about Shirleeeeeey?

Everyone knows soon to be ex-councilperson Shirley Hollink is pissed at the Hamlin Republican Party, but what makes her think that qualifies her to be a Democrat?

Not just any Democrat either. No, Hollink fancies herself to be the top-dog Dem. She thinks she can become the Supervisor of Hamlin by running on the Democratic ticket!!

How would Hollink, a life-long arch-conservative Republican, become the town’s first Democratic Supervisor in decades?

Answer: She hopes to steal the nomination from the unsuspecting Hamlin Democratic Committee!

Hollink, who has an extremely bloated opinion of her political shrewdness, is circulating a very special type of nominating petition. Hollink’s petition does not originate with the Democrats or ANY political party. Her petition comes off of the internet! Holloink is passing around the type of petition which forces a DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY. Not a real primary mind you, but a WRITE-IN Primary!

Oh, my, my, my. Isn’t she clever?! “Those stupid old Dems. Why they must be just as dumb and asleep-at-the-wheel as the Republicans. They certainly must be as dumb as the Conservatives and the Independence Party.”

Shirley is trying to steal the nominations FROM THEM TOO!!

To review: Shirley Hollink is: 1) Petitioning to be in the three way Republican Primary for Supervisor. 2) Petitioning to create a “write-in” primary for the Democratic ballot. 3) Petitioning to create a “write-in” primary for the Conservative ballot spot. 4)Petitioning to create a “write-in” primary for the Independence ballot too.

Shirley Hollink wants to have FOUR BALLOT POSITIONS in the election in November!

Well, good for her! Go for it Shirley! We have just one question.

WHAT ARE YOU?

What kind of political freak pretends to be everything from Neo-Con, nut-case Conservative to “diversity-oriented” bleeding heart Liberal?

Answer: Shirley Hollink, that’s who.

WHO ARE YOU SHIRLEY??

WHAT ARE YOU?
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Keep reading The Blog! Our next story will feature a full report on Hollink’s disastrous visit to the regular meeting of the Hamlin Democratic Committee on June 22.

Also, don't miss learning about the terrible risk that Deputy Town Clerk Sherry Dobson is taking by acting as notary for Hollink's Democratic petition!

Don’t miss it!

Poster Child Planning Board, Part II

In the June 6 Planning Board meeting two different applicants sought to enlarge their pre-existing, non-conforming parcels.

That means that the original parcels do not conform to the zoning regulations of the district in which they are located. In these cases the parcels were too small. Both applicants sought to add property to their parcels which would, “improve” the parcel, in the words of one PB member.

Both applications were granted.

Sadly for Hamlin, the Planning Board once again, as they do so often, failed to understand and enforce our laws.

Statute 125-55 C: [Nonconforming lot size, open space, height or building size regulations,] (2), states: Such non-conforming building, other structure or use of land, when enlarged or extended, shall comply with the regulations of this chapter.

This means, simply, that if your property does not conform to the regulations of your district it must come into conformance upon enlarging or extending it.

There is a process for “relief” if enforcement of the regulation is too onerous for the property owner: they make seek a variance.

By granting the applications to enlarge the parcels the PB granted a de facto variance, something they are not empowered to do. Only the Zoning Board, following the correct process, may grant a variance to the lawful legislation.

Who doesn’t know that?

The Planning Board and support board attorney apparently.

While the PB might be confused about some other, seemingly conflicting, language in the rule, [125-55 A, (1)] the attorney should know better. “Unless otherwise provided...” doesn’t work. It is actually provided- in C (2).

This is not the first time the Planning Board has violated the law in this regard. They have done it other times right on Redman Road even. This rule is a plain and ordinary regulation in virtually every zoning code in the state. For our Planning Board to not know it, to not have it on it’s fingertips to enforce the law, is incomprehensible.

The only other explanation is that Hamlin’s Planning Board believes it is above the law. Sometimes they act as if they are empowered to disregard regulations they disagree with or find inconvenient. Given the PB’s arrogant and dismissive history, combined with their superior attitude toward the taxpaying public, that is a very plausible interpretation.
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A GREAT IDEA FOR CIVIC IMPROVEMENT

Recently a prominent Republican contacted The Blog with a great idea. As most residents know, Hamlin’s two biggest eyesores, the apartment buildings on the NW and SW side of Rt. 18 at 19, are for sale. The idea is this: Hamlin should immediately seek out funding to purchase the two structures. Once owned, the municipality can improve them or bulldoze them.

If we had a smart, contemporary local government ‘revitalizing” these two properties would have topped the list of “incentive zoning” projects. Incentive zoning is the process of negotiating with commercial interests who seek zoning variances for increased profits. A recent example is the five variances granted to Tops for their gas station. If our local officials had been smart and civically responsible, they might have arranged some form of assistance from Tops.

Sadly for Hamlin, local government is dull-witted, unambitious and lost in the past. Yet, they keep getting voted into office!

How about it City Fathers? Let’s see how fast you can move. Let’s see if you really care about the community or just give lip service to the idea.

[No odds are being offered at this time, for obvious reasons.]

Shirley gets a makeover

As if the public needed more proof that the Hamlin Republican Committee is in a state of collapse here it is:
Shirley Hollink wants to run for Supervisor as a DEMOCRAT!!!

That’s correct. Shirley Hollink wants to run for Supervisor as a DEMOCRAT!

How did all this come about? First, we have to return to her expulsion from the Town Board last March. The public has never been given an explanation for why Hollink was purged and the answer is simple, and sadly predictable.

Shirly Hollink, who had repeatedly been voted into office by the citizens of Hamlin, was removed from incumbency for one reason: She was the first, and only, elected official to challenge the legitimacy of James Breslawski’s membership on the Planning Board.

That’s right. Hollink had her candidacy removed, and has been effectively ostracized from the HRC, because she gave voice to the FACT that Breslawski was not a resident of Hamlin, and therefore could not legally serve as a public official.

It is that simple. It is that puerile too. And punitive, and the complicit Warnerites on the HRC ought to be embarrassed by their juvenile participation with the Supervisor’s petulance and revenge-taking.

Hollink was right. The rest of the Town Board, the entire Planning Board and every other official in Hamlin government who propped up the Breslawski fraud was wrong. They ought to admit it. Instead, they have decided to participate in the punishment of the innocent.

“I was just following orders!”

So, driven from her own party Hollink has sought support elsewhere. First, she approached officers of the Hamlin Democratic Committee hoping to make a presentation. She told Rich Marsden, Democratic Town Leader, that she was, “highly elect-able.”

Maybe so, but that didn’t make her a Democrat.

The HDC invited Hollink to write to them requesting time for said presentation and the request would likely be granted for the next regularly scheduled meeting later in June.

Obviously, this would be too late to secure Democratic petitions to get on the ballot, so she made an end-run around the committee. Hollink went right to the top, she called the Monroe County Democratic headquarters and requested that she be given the nomination for Supervisor on the Democratic ticket!

Naturally, Dem HQ referred her back to the local Democratic Committee...which has invited her to write a letter...

Once again, the community sees the troubling character of members of the local Republican Committee. Alleged Republicans, more accurately. First, they try to solicit important Democrats to join their committee in a transparent effort to syphon off talent. Next, an elected official and determined Republican, purged Stalin-like from the party for advocating the truth, runs to the Democrats for salvation of her career.

Hey, Hamlin Republicans! If you like the Democrats so much go to the Post Office, get a voter registration card and change parties! They will welcome you! They will give you a patient and thorough re-education.

If you like Dems, join the Dems! Don’t just try to use them.

Tonery submits to interview

GADFLYATTACKS PLANNING BOARD

After leading the effort to remove the unlawful Chairman, James Breslawski, from the Planning Board political gadfly and perennial candidate Peter Tonery applied for the newly vacated seat. Recently, The Blog had the opportunity to sit down with Tonery and discuss his application. Here’s what he had to say...

TB:How did the interview go? PT: Quite well actually. Everyone was polite. Warner was snippy, chomping at the bit to try to sabotage or embarrass me. On the other hand Paul Rath was very generous and asked several meaningful questions.

TB: Like what? PT: Well he asked what ideas I would promote to the Town Board if I were a member of the PB. I suggested that Hamlin should drastically cut back on the amount and location of commercial zoning along Lake Road. I said too that the town should have a laundry list of projects that they wanted to see accomplished so that the next time a project like the Tops Gas Station came along the town might practice a little “incentive zoning.”

TB: What’s incentive zoning? PT: Well it’s the practice of trading some leniency of zoning regulations with developers in exchange for something which would serve the community at large. For example, right now the town is building a new road into the playing fields behind the town hall and constructing a shelter and food service booth. Either of these projects might have been funded or built by Tops in exchange for the five variances they received.

TB: Did the town receive any consideration from Tops for the variances the got? PT: NO! We lost out again. There is little doubt that this lack of imagination and municipal sophistication has cost the taxpayers probably around $10,000 is services.

TB: Would Tops have paid that much? PT: We don’t know what they would have paid. You have to ask first.

TB: What else notable happened? PT: The most interesting thing was a statement made by Judith Hazen, the newest PB member. I had said that I would be much more conservative about granting SUP’s (Special User Permits- allows a property owner to conduct an activity that is prohibited in the zoning district where the property is located. IE: A retail business in a residential district.) I stated that I thought the PB was egregiously liberal in granting SUP’s and that it was bad for the town, for town planning and future growth. At the time, I was speaking to Dave Rose when Mrs. Hazen interjected, “This is still America you know. People have a right to use their property!”

TB: Why is that notable? PT: Well while it sounds like rational, hard core Libertarian philosophy it is, of course, simple nonsense.

TB: Why? PT: In the first place I’ll bet Mrs Hazen would scream her head off if the next door neighbor tried to bury barrels of toxic waste in his/her backyard! Naturally, she would be right to do so since burying of toxic waste is highly regulated and forbidden in residential and agricultural areas. The point is that not even she, a pseudo-Libertarian, actually believes in the principle, “People should be able to use their own property.” Hey, if you don’t want regulation go for it- a family could move into Hamlin, live a nice life then have a new neighbor move next door and start a cemetery. Why not? “People should be free!” Right Mrs. Hazen?! She also knits throughout the PB sessions.

TB: What? PT: Yeah, she knits during the meetings. Sometimes she looks at the maps wrong too. BUT, she is a good Republican. Rather, a “Good-Ole-Republican.” She is an entrenched Warner Republican.

TB: Anything else? PT: Yeah, Warner was really funny! He kept trying to cut Paul Rath's and my conversation short. He was dying to try to bludgeon me with some really old, old news about my presence on the defunct “Water Committee.”

TB: What was that about? PT: When it was Warner’s turn to ask me a question he asked, “Do you think you can be a team player?” I replied, “Yes, of course.” Then he asked, “What about how you acted on the Water Committee?” Now this goes back, it must be, four or five years. I wrote a letter to my neighbors about the proposed waterline for our street. I said that I thought we might get the line a lot cheaper if the Supervisor would get off his backside and negoticiate with the State Park to tap into the existing waterline in the Park. I estimated that it would cost us about half of what it finally did. I also told them that the water committee had been formed mainly to force Dave Rose to start having the town install the waterlines rather than outside contractors. Rose, who had been Highway Supervisor, had always resisted this. Warner, still harboring lots of animosity toward Rose for failing to name Warner to the Town Board the previous year, wanted to embarrass Rose and so he assembled this committee to force the issue. Warner claimed that I had broken some unspoken code of silence, that I was not permitted to speak to my neighbors about water issues as long as I was on the committee. That was nonsense. Actually, I was surprized that he brought it up because of the bad blood it represented between him and Rose.

TB: What would you have done differently? PT: Hmmm. I think I would have challenged Warner to define his concept of “teamwork.” Whatever baloney he offered I would have replied that, by all accounts, his measure of teamwork was, “Do as I say, not as I do. Do it and don’t argue.” Everybody knows he is a bully and micro-manager. It would have been fun to debate it with him.

TB: Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences withy our readers. PT: My pleasure.
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Please Mr. Democrat, can ya' help us out?

BEGGING FOR HELP

How bad is the condition of the Hamlin Republican Committee? Pretty bad considering they are actively soliciting Democrats to join!

That’s right, attempts to recruit Hamlin Republicans has been such a dismal failure that they have now resorted to seeking out prominent Dems, trying to entice them to join! In the last two months two well known Democrats, one a former candidate for office the other a prospective candidate, have been approached separately by both George Todd and Howard Hueser who asked them to come over and join the local GOP committee. Note: both these individuals are founding members of the new Hamlin Democratic Committee!

What would prompt such a move? Was it a clever plot to undermine the Dems? Was it designed to deprive the Dems of candidates? Was it genuine? Were they being ironic?

The truth is, the Hamlin Republican Committee is in crisis. The powerful Warner clique has just enough votes to stay in power. Just enough votes that is IF the number of committee members is artificially suppressed. The HRC can have 44 members, it has only 34! Even that is not enough to insure the Warner Republicans a majority however. In fact, Warner had to arrange to keep some committee members away from the nominating meeting in April just so he could get his Supervisor and Town Board candidates elected! There were only 27 members at the meeting to vote! The Warner Republicans number no more than 14 or 15. If the HRC had full membership then there is little doubt that the only qualified candidate for Supervisor, Dennis Roach, and Shirley Hollink would have been selected.

Today’s crisis has been brewing for a number of years and the fault lies with Warner. He is so demagogic that he must dominate the Republican committee to stay in power. This has resulted in the frustration, disaffection and departure of many good, quality Republicans from the committee. People like Jerry Hoffman and Mark Reeves, good solid citizens who were willing to sacrifice to help their party and the community were turned off and driven away by the power politics of the Warnerites. It is too bad.

Only by reducing the membership could the Warnerites maintain dominance however. So losing good people was an acceptable price to pay.

How would recruiting Dems help this ugly situation? Well, the Warner Republicans are famous for bait and switch. Just as they turned down a qualified candidate on the basis of, “not long enough on the committee,” they would entice some poor dumb Dem to join, suggesting they could win office with GOP support. Naturally, the HRC would then turn the tables- relegating the new recruits to the back row saying that they were not yet qualified because they were “too new!” Oh, its been done before!

Sadly for the HRC, there are no, “poor dumb Dems” around for them to prank this way. The Hamlin Dems are smart, united, dedicated and aggressive. Hamlin Dems are the opposition! They are not, ”power seekers.” Hamlin Dems want office because they genuinely believe that Democrats can, and will, do a better job of governance than the Republicans have done.

For a party led by a man who once denigrated councilman Paul Rath by calling him a “Democrat,” they have once again revealed their near total absence of integrity. Not only do they insult their own dedicated party members by soliciting outside the organization, they offer power and prestige, which they have no intention of giving, to Democrats. It’s a hell of a way to do business. It’s demonstrates a true poverty of character. What we’ve all come to expect.

BRING IN THE CLOWNS

Support our cause!

How bad is Hamlin’s management?

Consider this episode from our prestigious Planning Board. About two years ago a local businessman announced that he intended to build a carwash adjacent to the Dollar General Store.* The parcel with the carwash is zoned Commercial-General Business. Next to the carwash, to the south, is a residential parcel.

Hamlin zoning code states that wherever a C-NB parcel adjoins a Residential parcel there must be built a 50' buffer. The code includes a definition of a buffer which describes it as mainly agricultural.

The purpose of a buffer is simple. The new commercial activity may significantly change the character of the neighborhood and impact the residential property owners. The buffer helps reduce that impact and encourages the installation of an attractive barrier protecting the homeowner from the effects of the new commerce.

Attractive is an important consideration. It is important for the long term development of the community.

Well, fellow residents, OUR PLANNING BOARD IGNORED THESE REGULATIONS! Apparently, nobody bothered to remember, or look, up the regulation on the buffer set-back distance! As a result, the tarmac for the carwash is now about 10' from the boundary with the residence! They are off by FORTY FEET!

Imagine how you would like that!

Great job Planning Board! Thank you for your due diligence, your caution and your over-riding concern for the careful development of the town!

Naturally, everybody wants to find a scapegoat. One member of the Zoning Board told me it was the Building Inspector’s fault! WHAT?? Hamlin’s Building Inspector has only had the job a few years but there are people on the Planning Board who have been there for over a decade! The obligation of the Planning Board is to APPROVE a proposal as it is shown on the map. The authority to approve obliges Planning Board members to KNOW THE RULES! Don’t blame the BI, sure he might have mentioned it, but the legal obligation lies with the “experts” on the PB.

Once they discovered their monumental screw-up the PB was at a loss how to fix it. Since the map and plan was approved, the developer of the carwash had no obligation to change it. His plan, with the incorrect set-back was approved by our “town fathers,” He is off the hook. (His plan required a variance, something the PB directs developers to do all the time- just not this time.)

Subsequently the Planning Board met to find a solution for the aggrieved residents to the south. They proposed first a stockade fence, then a chain link fence.

Beautiful. Just beautiful.

One of the most important duties of a Planning Board is to protect and promote the aesthetics of the community. In fact, it is their duty to IMPROVE the aesthetic quality of the community. So the solution to their horrendous screw-up on a parcel which has a great deal of exposure on our main thoroughfare is to install a chainlink fence!

Thank you Hamlin Planning Board. Thank you so much. Thank you for failing to do your job. Thank you for contributing to the ever increasing commercial ugliness of the Town. Thanks you for hurting everybody’s property values.

You are the poster children of municipal incompetence.

*[Many Hamlin residents know the background of the Dollar General mess- about how the Planning Board didn’t even bother to ask the developer to show them a sketch of the building! Consequently they installed the cheapest, ugliest structure they had in their inventory! Dollar General was not permitted to build in Hilton because none of the designs presented were acceptable to that town’s Planning Board!]

Hamlin GOP Produces Candidates

Jumbo, the GOP mascot, dispenses Hamlin's future

HAMLIN GOP MAKES BIG DECISION

On Tuesday, the Hamlin Republican Committee produced a slate of candidates for local office in 2005. With its usual regard for the future of the community, the constipated clique that controls and terrorizes the organization directed the other members to “support the nominees or quit the committee.”

The candidates are all hand-picked Austin Warner supporters. They were selected by secret ballot with no vote count given. The ballots were immediately BURNED! Destroyed before anyone could verify them.

Said one disgruntled member, “That core group demonstrated their contempt for the committee, for the democratic process and for the future of Hamlin. They dumped on everybody.”
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