Letters to the Editor April 27

Posted 4/26/17

Congratulations on NYPA awards It is always nice to read about good things happening in the community. I was pleased to read about The River Reporter receiving three awards at the New York Press …

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Letters to the Editor April 27

Posted

Congratulations on NYPA awards

It is always nice to read about good things happening in the community. I was pleased to read about The River Reporter receiving three awards at the New York Press Association [NYPA] conference and trade show, which was held at the Gideon Putnam Resort in Saratoga Springs.

I understand the awards were given for Graphic Illustration, Best Advertising Campaign, and Innovative Ad Project. Well done!

Please extend my sincere congratulations to your staff and all those involved in helping to make The River Reporter an award-winning newspaper. Keep up the great work!

If I can be of any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact my office.

John J. Bonacic

Albany, NY

Time for a change in Shohola

For the past seven years there have been some rotten things going on in Shohola—things fully supported by Supervisor Greg Hoeper.

Soon after coming into office, Hoeper voted for a rule limiting discussion between supervisors and township meeting attendees to three minutes. Along with this rule, came another: anyone who wanted to comment at a meeting was required to put a check mark next to their name on the sign-in sheet or they would not be called on to speak.

How, you might ask, would a person know if they had a comment on a meeting topic before hearing it announced or discussed at the meetings? The answer is, of course, they couldn’t.

The truth is, Hoeper handled things so badly when he took office that there was a loud and heated outcry from a stunned public, and the rule he voted for has shielded him from answering questions. 

This year, up for re-election, Hoeper suddenly announced that he wants to do away with the three-minute/check mark rule. “People should be able to speak for as long as they want to,” he said. When asked why, if he believes that, he let the rule stand for seven long years, he had no answer.

Either Supervisor Hoeper was using the rule to avoid answering to the public, or for seven years, he hasn’t had the backbone to state his opposition to it. Neither makes for a good supervisor. Shohola deserves better.

Shirley Masuo

Shohola, PA

About that check-mark rule

My husband and I have lived in Shohola for seven years and feel it’s a very special place. Work and other commitments have kept us busy, but last year were finally able to attend our first township meeting.

The first thing we noticed when we got there was that one had to put a check mark next to one’s name if one wanted to speak during the public comment period at the end of the meeting. We thought that was strange, but my husband and I followed the rule.

At the end of the meeting a few people had comments, as did we, but since it was our first meeting we asked if others could go first. We were told very sternly that we could either speak in the order we were called upon, or not speak at all. Apparently, our check mark had come first on the list. It was embarrassing and confusing as we weren’t expecting to be treated harshly and made to feel unwelcome.

Although I’m pleased that Supervisor Hoeper wants to do away with the check-mark rule, I question why was it allowed to go on for seven years, or for that matter, at all. Even the timing of its removal seems arbitrary and leaves one to wonder—what’s to stop Mr. Hoeper from changing his mind again in the future?

I for one, will be writing in Shirley Masuo’s name on my primary ballot for these reasons. She’s level-headed, fair and respectful of everyone’s opinions. She’s a compassionate person who really cares about Shohola and won’t be changing her mind on a whim.

Angelina Mayuli Holcomb

Shohola, PA

Questionable priorities in Eldred school budget

We’ve all heard the phrase, “Put your money where your mouth is.” In other words, there are two ways to ascertain the priorities of an organization: the words they utter; or how they allocate their resources. I would suggest the latter is a more useful gauge.

Let’s consider, for example, the proposed Eldred school budget. Between local taxes and state aid, we’ve had an infusion of $409,000 in new revenue. So, what are the current board of education and administration’s priorities? How are they spending all this cash? New programs for the children? Advanced classes? Educational field trips? Extra-curriculars? Sports?

Ninety-nine percent of this new revenue is spent before it gets anywhere near our children’s classrooms, stages or fields. To start with, $357,000 gets siphoned off to the district’s health insurance company. Are the teachers receiving any new benefits for this hefty price tag? No, they remain the same as in previous years.

Oh, and let’s not forget to mention, they spend $48,000 on raises for the administration.

So now we’re left with $4,000 for the children. What should we buy for them?

Allyson Wagner

Eldred, NY

Antler restrictions should be all or nothing

The New York State antler restrictions either need to be statewide and enforced or removed. I don’t think we need legislative law and specific wording in the state budget to save yearling bucks from greedy hunters: just simple Department of Environmental Conservation regulations and enforcement would be plenty.

As long as we have the 3M Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) in Orange County, where antler restrictions do not apply, local dishonest hunters from the units with antler restriction will write “3M” on their spike and four-pointer buck tags [in all Orange County WMUs other than 3M, a buck must have at least five points to be legal to take]. What happened to all the game wardens, aka Environmental Conservation Officers (ECOs)? Where are they besides the Basha Kill?

I remember seeing ECOs with confiscated deer piled all over their vehicles and doing road stops and having check points regularly for years, and now I barely ever see one up in 3A, 3H or 4W (the WMUs around state land in Sullivan, Delaware and Ulster County).

The antler restrictions won’t save yearling bucks in the units that are near 3M as long as it is a non-antler-restriction unit. New York needs to either scrap or get serious about antler restrictions instead of playing the political game of trying to please everyone. I am sending this to the Albany DEC office and locally to the Federation of Sportsman Clubs of Sullivan County.

John “JP” Pasquale

Livingston Manor, NY  

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