Lawmaker Calls for Elimination of County Tourism Department

As Rockand County's new tourism director took office Monday, a county Legislature member from New City formally called for the elimination of the Tourism Department to save about $250,000.

The department has been targeted by some county Legislature members previously, but the recent death of tourism director Heather Duke sparked renewed discussion about whether Rockland could come up with other, less expensive ways to promote itself in the region.

Rockland County Legislator Ed Day, R-New City,  proposes Rockland eliminate the Tourism Department and move its functions to the Pearl River-based Rockland County Economic Development Council, a non-profit organization that promotes business development.

"Politicians talk a good game about saving taxpayers money, but the true measure should mirror the adage 'actions speak louder than words,'" said Day. "It is my view that we have a perfect opportunity for both a better product and substantial cost savings, and I will leave no stone unturned in that quest."

Rockland launched its Tourism Department in 1994 to promote regional tourism in the county. Duke, who had ran her own local marketing and public relations firm, operated the department until her sudden death in July.

Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef last week named his chief spokeswoman, C.J. Miller of Nanuet, as the new tourism director at a salary of $102,000 a year. Miller has a staff of two in New City with a department that has an overall budget of about $500,000.

Going into the new job, Miller said she was aware that some members of the Legislature were looking at tourism as possible target for cutbacks. However, Miller contends the county government can handle tourism protional effectively and that she plans on examining the department's spending to look for cost savings.

Miller said she believes communities such as Haverstraw and Pearl River could benefit from new promotional efforts that could draw visitors from outside Rockland. Pearl River, she said, is especially viewed as a community that could benefit from tourism efforts because of its location on the New Jersey border and its unique downtown.

Day agrees with the assessment that areas like Pearl River serve as "gateways" to Rockland and need help promoting themselves as regional travel and entertainment destinations. However, Day contends the county could do a better job by turning the task over to an organization with more marketing expertise, such as the Rockland Economic Development Corporation.

Day said previous discussions about the Tourism Department identified about $250,000 in savings through personnel cuts. However, at the time, Day said lawmakers were reluctant to make layoffs.

This year, Day said the death of Duke and the possibility that two Tourism Department workers would take early retirement have change the dynamics of the department as lawmakers look for ways to cut costs.

"I recognize that the county executive recently announced another appointment to the Tourism director position, and that as an 'at pleasure' appointment he is entitled to do that," Day said. "However, it should be completely understood that our legislature controls the purse strings of government, and how we fund this function is fully within our domain, not his."

This matter is scheduled to be heard at the next meeting of the Legislature's Economic Development Committee, set for 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 1, at the Allison-Parris building, 11 New Hempstead Road, New City.

"This is a 'back to back homerun' situation for our taxpayers, as I envision initially bringing all available resources within Rockland; community, business, civic groups to bear in an effort to promote our county, at a savings of a quarter of a million dollars," Day said. "As this model progresses, I see additional tourism dollars coming into our county that will further minimize the need to go to our beleaguered taxpayers to fund government. That is called doing the job, smarter, leaner, and more efficiently, which is exactly what the people rightfully should expect from their elected officials."

Political Differences

As discussions move forward on the fate of the county Tourism Department, its new director is hoping to keep political differences out of the mix.

Although the daily operations of the county government are run by Vanderhoef, a Republican, the lawmaking body - the county Legislature - is controlled by Democrats. Miller is a registered Republican who switched her political affiliation from independent after she began working for Vanderhoef in 2005.

Miller says her decision to register as a Republican was based on her personal opinion of the work Vanderhoef has done in county government, not a particular loyalty to the Republican Party. "I am a Vanderhoef Republican," Miller said.

To overcome political barriers, Miller said last week she had already begun talking with county Legislature members about the Tourism Department and its future.

Although Day is a Republican, Miller has not gained Day's support. Day and Miller's boss, Vanderhoef, went head-to-head in May and June when they both sought the Rockland County Republican Committee's support to run for state Senate. Although it was a brief campaign, it was a bitter one, with Vanderhoef coming out on top as the GOP's choice.

Vanderhoef is seeking the seat that was held by the late state Sen. Thomas Morahan, R-New City, who died July 12 at age 78 after a six-month battle with leukemia. Clarkstown Town Clerk David Carlucci, a New City Democrat, is running against Vanderhoef for the post that represents all of Rockland County and part of Orange County.