Updated—Letters to the Editor: Vote in Tomorrow's Elections

Eds. note: The last candidate support letters trickled in Monday afternoon and are included below.

Dear Editor: 

What is New York State's biggest lay off problem?   Hint: it's not union employees, though that’s part of the biggest problem.  Answer?  1.6 million people have left New York State in the last 10 years due to NY's unhealthy tax and economic climate. NYS actually has a refugee problem.   If that’s hard to conceptualize, then consider these: seniors and retirees forced to leave due to high taxes; empty shop windows around town for businesses that have gone out of business;  pleas from your favorite charities around town whose donations are way down.

What's the solution?  Lots of people doing their small part within their sphere of influence. Within Bedford’s Town Board’s sphere of influence, Luke Vander Linden is the only candidate who supports the 2% tax cap and opposes overriding it.  Luke is the candidate who best understands the importance of Bedford doing its part to keep taxes as low as possible and help solve the biggest lay off problem in NYS. It's not a time to focus on reasons for exceeding the cap.  

Please vote for Luke Vander Linden for Town Board next Tuesday and remind your friends to do the same.    

Howland Robinson, Bedford Hills

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Dear Editor:

It has been a distinct honor to serve on the Bedford Town Board.  I write to request the support of the voters this coming Tuesday, November 8.

As an incumbent, I run on my record:

1. When I came into office, Town taxes were going up a bit over 5% a year.  Working collaboratively, the Town Board brought that down to a bit over 2%.  And that was before the tax cap became law. Because of the complex formulas used to compute the cap, two of those budgets probably would have come in under the cap. 
2. And we’ll bring the 2012 Town budget under the cap.
3. We have healthy fund balances. 
4. Standard and Poor’s recently re-affirmed our enviable triple A credit rating.
5. In short, we have a sound fiscal position while other municipalities are floundering.  We have accomplished this during a prolonged period of declining revenues, higher costs such as insurance and pension obligations to the state, and unfunded mandates passed on by the state and federal governments. 
6. We have maintained high quality Town services: a responsive and well-regarded police department, beautiful parks, and well-maintained and promptly plowed roads. 
7. A new water filtration plant will bring good, clean, soft drinking water from the NYC water system upstate to customers of the Consolidated Water District.  
8. We are leaders in energy initiatives.  And I commend my Board colleagues, Lee Roberts and David Gabrielson for their leadership in this area.
9. We are leaders in sensible land use policy critical to maintaining the beauty and semi-rural character of Bedford.

As most know, we are comprised of three Republicans and two Democrats.  We all get along well, and work together well.  We have spirited discussions, but nearly never along party lines.  We work to develop a consensus that works best for the Town. 

I applaud my Republican colleagues, because it could have been different. When we first came on the Board, they could have said, “You know, there are three of us and two of you.”  But they didn’t do that.  To the contrary, they listened and were willing to adopt change.  

Our desire to communicate more with the community was high on our list: webcasting is in place.  We now competitively bid virtually everything, not simply those items required by state law.  Our Republican colleagues also were open to two initiatives I led: the ridgeline protection law and the Deep Skies law, both of which help protect the beauty and semi-rural character of Bedford, with the latter helping the Town meet its 2020 goals. 

But it goes deeper, because we, meaning all five members of the Town Board, don’t view the Town’s business as partisan.  A friend on the train platform who tuned into a webcast said it well, “You know I watched one of your meetings.  I couldn’t tell the Democrats from the Republicans. Each of you were digging into the issues, listening to one another and working well together.  That’s the way it should be,” he said.

The great American political humorist, Will Rogers, said it best, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.  

Please vote for me and my colleague, David Gabrielson.

Sincerely

Chris Burdick, Bedford Town Board member, candidate for re-election.

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Dear Editor:

According to the Empire Center, a “vast majority” of town boards in New York State disagree with Bedford’s board and are complying with the 2% tax cap. 

So Board candidate Luke Vander Linden’s position to honor the cap is actually in-line with the position of the vast majority of town boards, while candidates Burdick’s and Gabrielson’s position to override is the minority position. 

Our board would benefit and be more representative if Luke is elected to promote the majority NYS view.  It might not be glamorous or profound, but often the simplest explanation is best.  Here’s Luke’s explanation for his support of the cap - a 2% tax cap will cap taxes at 2% - that’s a line in the sand which provides tax relief for voters desperate for it.  

Luke Vander Linden has it right and is consistent with most town boards in NYS - comply with the cap.  I recommend you vote for Luke Vander Linden for Bedford’s town board.  

Carl Van Demark, Katonah

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Dear Editor:

County Legislator Peter Harckham is a true conservationist for Westchester County.

Mr Harckham understands the need to get the deer population in Westchester in balance with the woodlands that can support them so that the deer do not damage our forests beyond recovery. To that end, he has successfully championed the culling of deer herds in many of our Westchester County parks. 

This deer management approach is in cooperation and partnering with local municipalities and conservation groups such as Mianus River Gorge and Bedford Audubon Society.  I commend Mr. Harckham for his vision and action of protecting our local forests and woodlands.  

This is one more demonstrated example of how Peter Harckham brings together stakeholders of various political backgrounds for the benefit of Westchester County residents.

Thomas Newman  

Major U.S. Army Retired, Katonah

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To the Editor:

In my view, the most important qualification for an elected official is a true care, concern and respect for the people they represent.  Not their own desires and personal objectives.  This is especially true at the most local level, our Town Board.  Decisions that are made directly impact our citizens each and every day.  In this era of partisan fighting on the national level by our politicians, the need to represent the interests of the citizens they were elected to serve seems to have been lost to their own interests and agendas.

I have come to know Luke Vander Linden over the past couple of years and I know he truly cares about Bedford and the residents he’s running to represent above all other interests.  And he wants to work hard for the residents to help make Bedford even better.

He and I have talked about how the town’s communications can be improved, how small businesses in our hamlets need to be strong and how we can support our many great community organizations in this time of limited resources.

None of us has all the answers, but Luke is asking the right questions and I welcome his fresh perspective as a future fellow Town Board member.  And I wholeheartedly endorse his campaign for Town Board this year.  His goal and purpose is simple -- to represent the citizens and their needs.

I grew up here and I love that I can raise my own family here.  I want my daughters to be able to raise their families here too.  Bedford needs strong leaders who can put aside their own personal agenda for higher office and more power – and put the people’s interests and needs ahead of their own. 

I ask you to join me in voting for Luke Vander Linden for Town Board on Nov. 8^th.

Francis Corcoran, Bedford Town Board member