From the Mailbag: Baldwinsville Messenger (Oct. 9, 2019)

Lysander councilor endorses Saraceni

To the editor:

I am writing in reference to the election this November and choice we have for Lysander town supervisor. As many of you know I have had and continue to have the privilege of serving on our town board since 2014. I am not up for reelection this year. As many of you also know I also had the privilege of serving as Onondaga County Parks commissioner until I retired in 2009. In that position I came into contact with so many people helping to do all sorts of wonderful things in the world of parks and recreation for the benefit of the entire community. In that job I learned about character and integrity and what distinguishes some people above others. I learned that character and integrity must always rise above politics and political affiliations.

With that perspective I am writing to tell you that I wholeheartedly endorse Joe Saraceni for reelection for town supervisor where he has served steadily and admirably for the past four years. He is not running as a Republican nor as a Democrat, but rather on the Independence line, similar to last year’s election for mayor for the city of Syracuse where Ben Walsh promised and ultimately delivered on that promise to be everyone’s mayor.

This election is about choosing the right person for the job based upon character, integrity and how genuinely committed the individual is to keeping everyone’s needs and interests at heart, regardless of major party affiliation. I hope you know that what this current board has done is to keep spite, negativity, and back-stabbing away from all that we do; to get this town back on firm financial footing and to preserve our stature as the lowest-taxed town in the entire county. I am so proud to have served on this board under Joe’s leadership and dedication. All I can tell you from experiencing it firsthand is that other candidates seem to revel in negativity, which in my opinion has no place in this town. It is something this current board vowed to change when it took over in 2016 and which we have successfully done.

I have never endorsed a candidate on the Independence line before but in talking to both Democrats and Republicans in our community it is clear to me that Joe is the candidate who speaks for all of us. You’ll see his name on the Independence line on the lower right side of the ballot. I’m voting for the right person and not the party.

Bob Geraci

Lysander Town Councilor

Another endorsement for Saraceni

To the editor:

A little over 41 years ago, I first met Joe Saraceni. We were both students at Elizabeth Street School and in the second grade. We eventually became best friends and have remained that way ever since. Growing up, knowing Joe as only a best friend could, I have grown to have an incredible amount of respect and admiration for him. I’ve known him to be passionate about many things over the years, with Lysander and Baldwinsville always at the fore front of that passion.

Joe has been incredibly active in our community. You could find Joe at many events in the village and town like the B’ville Big Chill, concerts and gatherings at Paper Mill Island, Oktoberfest, Seneca River Days and the Kiwanis Turkey Day Race to name a few. Joe is always out in the community, participating in the events and also listening to the folks in this town. I have personally been out to dinner with Joe on several occasions where someone from the community would want to talk to him about an issue. Every single time, Joe would engage that person in a meaningful conversation to understand what they were asking for/talking about. His attention was immediately drawn to the people he represented and he was/is a consummate professional in helping the people of our community.

Joe has been a leader in our community with a proven track record. After having served as a village trustee, village mayor and now as our town supervisor, Joe has a great deal of experience in local government. He is currently working on his 15th municipal budget. He has budgeted for the village of Baldwinsville Police Department (a full time agency) and the village Department of Public Works which includes both the water and sewer departments. Joe’s experience as an administrator cannot be matched by anyone who opposes him. He has brought forward smart and fair budgets that have included vision for our community that will benefit us now and in the future.

Since Joe took over as the supervisor of the town of Lysander, his administration has been able to cut our town debt nearly in half. He has also been instrumental in keeping Lysander’s taxes the lowest in Onondaga County. It’s easy to think that someone in office would not bat an eyelash at raising taxes to a level equal to the average in the county. Not Joe, he is keeping our taxes as low as possible. Fiscal responsibility that I greatly appreciate!

Cutting debt and keeping taxes at a level that makes us the lowest in our county are both incredible feats in and of themselves. Joe has proven time and again that he is the best candidate for town supervisor. His passion for our community and experience as a proven, responsible leader is unmatched in this election. On Nov. 5, I urge you to vote for Joseph Saraceni on the Independence Line, Row G on your ballot!

Patrick Kinane

Lysander

Shedding light on domestic violence statistics

To the editor:

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. In light of Town Councilor Roman Diamond’s recent arrest for a domestic incident with his wife, and the silence on this issue from our current leadership, I thought some education on this issue would be prudent:

• On average, 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States.

• Nearly 3 in 10 women in the U.S. have experienced rape, physical violence and/or stalking by a partner and report a related impact on their functioning.

• 1 in 4 women aged 18 and older in the United States have been the victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime.

• Nearly half of all women have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner in their lifetime.

• Most female victims of intimate partner violence were previously victimized by the same offender, including 77% of females ages 18 to 24, 76% of females ages 25 to 34, and 81% of females ages 35 to 49.

• 30 to 60% of perpetrators of intimate partner violence also abuse children in the household.

• There is a common link between domestic violence and child abuse. Among victims of child abuse, 40% report domestic violence in the home

• The U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect suggests that domestic violence may be the single major precursor to child abuse and neglect fatalities in this country.

Sadly, women and children are still not safe from the men who “love” them in our country. By our silence and inaction, we allow these behaviors to continue. Our national government has declared an Awareness Month to bring attention to this issue not so that we can celebrate domestic violence, but so that we can end it. Violence has no place in our society. Violence against women and children is abhorrent. I wish our town leaders would follow in the footsteps of our federal government and speak out against the horrors of domestic abuse. Even if Councilor Diamond was not embroiled in his public controversy, the leaders of this community should make plain, and do it boldly, that domestic violence has no place in Lysander.

If you or someone you know is suffering in an abusive situation please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. Locally, Vera House can be reached at 315-425-0818.

Gail Tosh

Lysander Town Board candidate

Rode responds to recent letters

To the editor:

Over the last two weeks, we’ve seen Lysander elected officials and their supporters touting $2.2 million in grants that the current town board has “raised” or secured in the last four years. While I believe that our town has applied, or is going to apply, for $2.2 million in grants, I question how much we actually received. I have heard the number is somewhere around $100,000 as to what we have received, with an additional $100,000 for Phase 1 of the spray park coming shortly. I would also like to specifically ask about the $1.3 million sidewalks TAP grant and how much of that grant the town of Lysander received.

While I understand the grant process sometimes takes a long time to come to fruition, our elected officials should not mislead residents and voters leading up to an election. Our currently elected officials have three weeks to explain the numbers to the taxpayers before election day.

Just four years ago, mailers were sent out telling people about “Lysander’s Tax Cutting Team,” with pictures of Bob Ellis, Pete Moore, and Joe Saraceni. Every budget since their election has held a tax increase for Lysander taxpayers. That was one very large campaign promise that has never been met.

I also read a response to a letter written by Gail Tosh asking for Roman Diamond to take at the very least a leave of absence from his seat on the Lysander Town Board. While Ms. Reyna accused Ms. Tosh of using trauma to further her political agenda, I disagree. Ms. Tosh was asking why Councilor Diamond would not take a leave of absence while the charges are pending and why it seems there has been no public or private consultation by the other town board members to ask Councilor Diamond to take a leave of absence during this time. I strongly believe that Ms. Tosh would have asked this whether it was an election year or not.

I am not only asking for a leave of absence, but for Councilor Diamond to resign. Councilor Diamond has missed at least 12 official town board meetings since taking office in 2014 but has also missed many other work sessions and town committee meetings as appointed by the town supervisor. While this may not seem like a lot, this total is almost more than the other four current town board members’ absences added together in the same time period.

This activity, or lack thereof, is not befitting of a town board member. When I pointed this out to another local resident they suggested, at the very least, he should donate his take-home pay for those missed meetings to a local charity.