Flood Grant Meeting Tonight

A meeting on the plans for $12 million in funding through New York State is being held tonight in Schoharie. The meeting regarding the Community Reconstruction Zones will be from 7pm-9pm in the Schoharie Town Hall. $3 million was awarded to each the Town of Esperance, Village of Esperance, Village of Middleburgh, and Village of Schoharie.

We get the following from the Schoharie Promotional Association Facebook page. (Their FB page is worth a like, by the way)

Up to $3 million is available for the Village of Schoharie to help rebuild our community, revitalize our local economy and protect us from future flooding. Come bring your ideas and concerns to add to the draft plan or just plan to attend to learn about progress so far.

Letter to the Editor: Thank You for your Courage

Dear Editor,

 

While I have remained silent with respect to your articles, I wish at this point in time, to express my deepest appreciation.  There is much to be said for your willingness to seek out the truth.  Your commitment to write about your findings has been comforting to many, including myself.  You are a breath of fresh air and I congratulate you for your diligence.  The support you have given to identifying those individuals in county government that have been a part of ongoing wrongdoings, deception and criminal activity has been outstanding.

 

The struggle to stamp out corruption at all levels of government will continue without a doubt and it will take committed individuals to carry on that effort as well as journalists like yourself to help expose the truth.  I wish to thank you for believing in those of us who have been on the front lines struggling to unveil what the facts really were pertaining to allegations of targeting, harassment and discrimination in our county work place.

 

I wish to thank you for your courage, stamina and unbiased opinions.  You exemplify what true journalism is about.  Your website has and will continue to be a source of information to Schoharie County residents.  As an elected representative of the people, I could not ask for anything more than for you to report  what is factual.  You have captured the attention of many.  Please stay committed to what is right and I thank you personally for believing in me.

 

Gene Milone

New Board Faces Challenge, Opportunity

A headline like the one can be written about nearly every election. The same could have been said after the 2011 election when Supervisors had the opportunity to focus on bringing the County back from the flood. While this did occur in many cases, the infighting over the last two years has poisoned much of the discourse.

However, the new County Board of Supervisors is under new management with many new faces representing the town governments.

There are many challenges for the Board-- including many that cannot be resolved overnight or all listed here.

Tying Up Loose Ends

The Board will have to choose who will be the next Chair. Fulton Supervisor Phil Skowfoe is ahead by two votes in his race against Frank Tatten with absentees still yet to be counted. The Supervisors could pick Mr. Skowfoe to serve another term if he wins. Former Chair and Esperance Supervisor Earl van Wormer could be chosen as a bridge between the experienced and new members of the Board. Carl Barbic of Seward has been mentioned, but at 86 may be deemed too advanced in age.

The Board will have to decide what to do with Personnel Director Cassandra Ethington, who is currently suspended.

The Board will also need to carry out an overhaul of many of its policies as requested by the Fitzmaurice and Walsh lawfirm in the Report.

Economic Development

Sharon and Middleburgh may be growing, but there are still struggles across the County. With the Guilford sale in the competent hands of Bill Cherry, a deal is more likely but is still a large undertaking. On top of this, economic damage from the flood still haunts large portions of the County.

Cobleskill's tepid economic growth under Tom Murray also needs to be corrected as businessman Leo McAllister prepares his new administration. On the County level, issues revolving around Planning Director Alicia Terry's poor handling of the Guilford situation will need to be addressed.

Political Reform

Obviously the changes made in the wake of the Fitzmaurice Report will be large, but it only represents a small part of the overall picture. Schoharie Supervisor Gene Milone argued recently that a County Executive is desperately needed and the weighted voting system the County currently uses is showing its age.

Ethington Came Perilously Close to Gaining Control of Majority of Important County Departments

While the Todd Ethington campaign ended in ignominity last night it only shows part of the unfolding story. As documents, emails, and interviews showed, Cassandra Ethington effectively wielded a great amount of control in County civil service.

However, as more information is coming to light, her role keeping tabs on employees, creating alliances with powerful office holders and department heads, and using fear to keep people from speaking out became devastatingly effective until the Fitzmaurice Report hit the headlines.

Personnel Department

Cassandra Ethington was hired by the County Board after being fired from her previous job for allegedly purchasing concert tickets on the company credit card. Having only an associate's degree from Cobleskill in culinary arts, Ethington allegedly re-wrote the civil service posting for her job as Personnel Director to place herself in the position. (Clarifying edit: The above information comes from various sources involved in the County government.)

Health Department

Cassandra Ethington received help from members of the Board of Supervisors to hand over the County Home Health services to a private company. Assisted by Supervisors such as Martin Shrederis and Bill Goblet, she led the transfer of the services-- which then led directly to her appointment as interim Health Department Director as assisted by Dan Singletary.

Ethington's tenure saw a purge of employees that she deemed a threat. Setting an example, she undermined former Health Director Kathleen Strack and positioned herself to replace her. She fired multiple employees, some under allegedly illegal circumstances and subverted the administration of Asante Shipp-Hilts, who was supposed to serve as de facto  Health Director.

CSEA Union

Cassandra Ethington's role in the local branch of the CSEA union is unclear, but it has become obvious that she held an important kingmaking role with the union. Her role as Personnel Director blocked any employees from appealing straight to the County. Meanwhile, her influence with the union caused employees to feel that she would know about complaints and punish offenders. In fact, her role exposing confidential information allowed her to know intimate details that she could use against employees.

Sheriff's Department

Todd Ethington's victory yesterday would have effectively handed control of law enforcement in Schoharie County to his wife Cassandra. However, even before the race the Ethingtons jockeyed for more control in the Department. Both Todd and Cassandra were vital campaigners for Tony Desmond in 2009-- and reports are circulating that Todd expected a gift (possibly a promotion) for his role putting Desmond over the top.

The Ethingtons soured on Desmond and Cassandra attempted to wrest control from the Sheriff. Her layoff list would have targeted rivals of Todd and decimated the Department-- against the wishes of Desmond. She said that she wanted some of the layoffs to she how 'she could run the jail.'

Board of Elections

Cassandra Ethington attempted to reshape both the staff and the Board of Elections, attempting to take control from both the Republican and Democratic Parties. This effort was rebuffed.

Conservative Party

Todd Ethington was named the Conservative Party's candidate earlier this year. Conservative Party Chair Bill Hanson had been hired by Cassandra-- who manipulated the civil service requirements to force his hiring. The Conservative Party was key in supporting many of Cassandra's allies on the Board of Supervisors, including Martin Shrederis, Dan Singletary, and Tom Murray.

Planning Department

Close Ethington ally Alicia Terry runs the Planning and Tourism Department. Ms. Terry was allegedly involved in Ethington's abuse of civil service law and fired at least one employee under suspicious circumstances.

Budget Office

When County Treasurer Bill Cherry temporarily gave up his role as Budget Officer, Alicia Terry stepped in as one of two new Budget Officers to take his place. Ms. Terry's tenure as Budget Officer allowed Cassandra the latitude to create the parallel 'hit list' of layoffs that devastated the County in late 2011.

Board of Supervisors

For a brief period under the Chairmanship of Ethington ally Harold Vroman, the Conservative Party faction controlled the Board of Supervisors. During this tumultuous period, Ethington accelerated her attempt to take over many Departments, using the flood as a way to manipulate Board members. By 2011, Ethington had control over many important facets of County government and having power that rivaled both the Chair of the Board and County Treasurer. Her control over these differing Departments acted as a trap that would prevent serious inquiries into her activity.

This was changed after the 2011 elections. New Supervisors such as Gene Milone of Schoharie forced the issue. Complaints about Ethington reached an apex in the aftermath of the flood and Mr. Milone took the politically risky step of starting the process that would lead to the Fitzmaurice Report.

For Cassandra Ethington, her effort to control County government and civil service came perilously close to victory. Before the release of the Fitzmaurice Report, her role in the mess in Schoharie was regarded by some as 'hearsay' and a 'witch hunt.' Her control over multiple Departments allowed much of the criticism to be stifled.

It is safe to say that if the Fitzmaurice Report was delayed even further, Todd Ethington and his allies would have done substantially better at the polls. Instead, the succession of the Report and the corruption emerging from the Conservative Party led Mr. and Mrs.'s Ethington's final tally of 15.6% yesterday.

Another Heroin Arrest in Cobleskill

A 41 year old was arrested for possession of heroin in Cobleskill. This follows another bust just several weeks ago. Joseph Panetta of Cobleskill was arrested and charged with two misdemeanors, possession of a controlled substance and of a hypodermic instrument. He was held in jail and had a court date yesterday.

Winners to be Named in Blenheim, Fulton and Wright Supervisor Races on November 19th

Voters in the Towns of Blenheim, Fulton and Wright proved to be a indecisive bunch in yesterday's election, with all three of their supervisor races decided by six votes or less according to unofficial results posted by the county Board of Elections and we wont know who the winners are until Tuesday, November 19th. 

The reason being is that there are still uncounted absentee and affidavit ballots greater then the margins in all three towns: Blenheim has eight absentee ballots to count with Democrat Sean Smith leading incumbent Republican Robert Mann 70-64, while Wright still has 34 to count with Democrat Karl Remmers holding on to a slim three vote lead (320-317) over Republican Amber Bleau and Fulton voters submitted 24 absentees in the even tighter contest between incumbent Democrat Phil Skowfoe and Republican Francis Tatten, where Skowfoe leads by only two votes (214-212).

And keep in mind none of those totals include affidavit ballots, which are subject to challenge and according to statistics are counted anywhere from 64.5% to 79.5% of the time, further clouding their impact in this year's election. 

Deputy-Commissioner Sara Davies-Griffin told the Schoharie News in a email this afternoon that they will be opening the absentee and affidavit ballots on Tuesday, November 19th at nine in the morning on the third flood of the county building and that it is open for all members of the public to witness. 

Uncertainty is guaranteed to be a theme of November 15th's county board meeting, as two of the longest serving members - who challenged each other in January's organizational meeting - wait to see if they will be returning for another term on the board, while the Town of Wright's chair will remain vacant for yet another month.

Vroman Only Ethington Ally Left on Board

Only one open member of the Cassandra Ethington caucus remains on the Board of Supervisors after yesterday's wave election. Supervisor Harold Vroman of Summit was unopposed in the election and in fact had the Republican, Democratic, and Conservative lines.

The former Chairman of the Board has been among the most obstinate members of the Board of Supervisors. On Friday he was the only person to vote along with Dan Singletary of Jefferson to not suspend Cassandra Ethington and not to release the second portion of the Report.

Vroman also donated money towards Dan Singletary's re-election bid, paying for an ad in last week's Cobleskill paper. His involvement in the Conservative Party mailer was also suspected.

Mr. Vroman is a long-time incumbent and was at the middle of many of the negotiations surrounding the issues with the Health and Personnel Departments. Much of the most extreme infighting between the Supervisors themselves came under his tumultuous tenure as Chair of the Board.

Mr. Vroman still remains popular in Summit, receiving almost all the votes yesterday while unopposed. Mr. Ethington also carried Summit-- which he only did there and in Jefferson. Ousting Mr. Vroman would be a particularly difficult task.

However, he is just one member of 16 now with Ethington's support.

Election Rundown: Desmond, Milone Re-Elected; Galasso, Murray Defeated



 

While citizens of Schoharie County rewarded Sheriff Desmond with 48% of the vote and four more years atop the county's law enforcement apparatus, residents of Cobleskill were less kind to their two leaders: voting incumbent Town Supervisor Tom Murray out by six hundred votes and Village Mayor Mark Galasso by almost two hundred.

 

Esperance and Schoharie residents voted to re-elect their incumbent Supervisors despite them facing two well organized opponents, with Esperance voting overwhelmingly to "Keep Earl Supervisor" and Schoharie standing firmly behind Gene Milone. Mr. Milone's victory in particular speaks volumes to the amount of trust his constituents have in his ability after two years of fighting the powers that be to not only better serve the citizens of Schoharie but to cleanse the county government of inrooted corruption by motioning twenty-one months ago for the initiation of what would become the Fitzmaurice Report.

 

Two Supervisors from the southern portion of the county, Mr. Mann of Blenheim and Mr. Singletary of Jefferson, lost to a pair of young men in their respective races - with Mr. Mann losing by just six votes and Mr. Singletary by sixty, while two races remain too close to call without the inclusion of absentee ballots: Fulton Supervisor Phil Skowfoe, who currently heads the county board, leads his opponent by just two votes and Karl Remmers leads Amber Bleau by three in the Town of Wright.

Supervisors Bradt, Barbic, Lape, Van Glad and Vroman either handily defeated their opponents or faced no opposition at all, while Republicans Bill Federice and Bill Smith of Conesville and Broome respectively trounced their Democrat counterparts. Former Town of Broome Supervisor Anne Batz lost in her bid for Town Clerk, while former Village of Middleburgh Mayor Bill Ansel-McCabe failed to remain on the Middleburgh Town Board.

Most interesting of all, Town of Carlisle residents voted to elect Dave Laraway - host of the Northeast Gardner Show on WSDE - in addition to incumbent councilman Robert Smith with roughly 330 votes for both of the candidates, while in the Town of Summit the Democratic nominee for Councilman received only 8 votes against his Republican opponents, the lowest vote total for a candidate on the ballot this election.

The biggest winner of the evening was District Attorney James Sacket who received well over seven thousand votes, or around 85% of all votes cast county wide, in a dramatic showing of confidence by the citizens of Schoharie County in his prosecutorial abilities. 

"Tri-Partisan" Ad Was Kiss of Death at Ballot Box

The candidates endorsed by the Conservative Party placed an ad in last week's Cobleksill paper together, hoping to carry themselves to victory. Instead, every opposed candidate on the ballot yesterday faced defeat. Only Harold Vroman won-- and he was unopposed.

Three races are too close to call but have the Conservative Party-backed candidates lose. Many of these candidates were allies of Todd and Cassandra Ethington.

Vote in Our New Poll: Are You Satisfied with the Overall Election Results?

With the sweeping changes at the County and Town levels, the Schoharie News is running a new poll to see if you are happy with the overall results. It is over on our sidebar right now.

Vote and share with your friends.

County Coroner Results

Donna McGovern has won another term as the Coroner of Schoharie County by a large margin.

McGovern, Donna	6963	100.0%
............. Total votes in the Town of Blenheim cast for McGovern, Donna	89
............. Total votes in the Town of Broome cast for McGovern, Donna	275
............. Total votes in the Town of Carlisle cast for McGovern, Donna	407
............. Total votes in the Town of Cobleskill cast for McGovern, Donna	1236
............. Total votes in the Town of Conesville cast for McGovern, Donna	226
............. Total votes in the Town of Esperance cast for McGovern, Donna	437
............. Total votes in the Town of Fulton cast for McGovern, Donna	337
............. Total votes in the Town of Gilboa cast for McGovern, Donna	196
............. Total votes in the Town of Jefferson cast for McGovern, Donna	322
............. Total votes in the Town of Middleburgh cast for McGovern, Donna	693
............. Total votes in the Town of Richmondville cast for McGovern, Donna	476
............. Total votes in the Town of Schoharie cast for McGovern, Donna	758
............. Total votes in the Town of Seward cast for McGovern, Donna	428
............. Total votes in the Town of Sharon cast for McGovern, Donna	384
............. Total votes in the Town of Summit cast for McGovern, Donna	239
............. Total votes in the Town of Wright cast for McGovern, Donna	460

District Attorney Results

Incumbent District Attorney James Sacket cruised to re-election unopposed today by a wide margin. The 20 year veteran had the Republican Party's backing.

Sacket, James L	7494	100.0%
............. Total votes in the Town of Blenheim cast for Sacket, James L	99
............. Total votes in the Town of Broome cast for Sacket, James L	301
............. Total votes in the Town of Carlisle cast for Sacket, James L	438
............. Total votes in the Town of Cobleskill cast for Sacket, James L	1224
............. Total votes in the Town of Conesville cast for Sacket, James L	235
............. Total votes in the Town of Esperance cast for Sacket, James L	500
............. Total votes in the Town of Fulton cast for Sacket, James L	358
............. Total votes in the Town of Gilboa cast for Sacket, James L	210
............. Total votes in the Town of Jefferson cast for Sacket, James L	353
............. Total votes in the Town of Middleburgh cast for Sacket, James L	757
............. Total votes in the Town of Richmondville cast for Sacket, James L	506
............. Total votes in the Town of Schoharie cast for Sacket, James L	872
............. Total votes in the Town of Seward cast for Sacket, James L	449
............. Total votes in the Town of Sharon cast for Sacket, James L	410
............. Total votes in the Town of Summit cast for Sacket, James L	269
............. Total votes in the Town of Wright cast for Sacket, James L	513

Town of Broome 2013 Election Results

The Town of Broome has five races this election day, four of which are hotly contested. Incumbent Supervisor Anne Batz is now running for Town Clerk.

Supervisor

Smith III, William M	228	65.7%
Micheli, David A	119	34.3%

Clerk

Wood, Donald K	201	56.6%
Batz, Anne M	154	43.4%

Councilman

Vance, Dale	224	32.6%
Wood, David L	223	32.5%
Schafroth, Frank J	151	22.0%
Jackson, Kermit E	89	13.0%

Assessor

Schmidt, Irene

243

100.0%

Highway Superintendent

Wayman, Jason S	193	52.4%
Parker, Michael A	175	47.6%

Town of Carlisle 2013 Results

There are two of four contested races in Carlisle including for incumbent Supervisor Larry Bradt.

Town of Carlisle

Supervisor

Bradt, Larry R	342	66.7%
Bortell, Susan M	171	33.3%

Clerk

Crofts, Colleen

470

100.0%

Councilman

Smith, Robert L	350	38.6%
Laraway, David	322	35.5%
Cross, Linda K	235	25.9%

Town of Gilboa 2013 Election Results

All unopposed races in Gilboa tonight.

Town of Gilboa

Supervisor

VanGlad, Anthony

200

100.0%

Councilman

Tompkins, Norwood	193	51.1%
Pickett, Dorothy	185	48.9%

Assessor

Molle, Thomas V

213

100.0%

2013 Sheriff's Race Results

Just coming in from the County Board of Elections-- incumbent Sheriff Tony Desmond has won a hard-earned victory tonight over his Democratic and Conservative rivals.

Candidate	Votes	Vote Percentage
Desmond, Anthony	4148	48.2%
............. Total votes in the Town of Blenheim cast for Desmond, Anthony	43
............. Total votes in the Town of Broome cast for Desmond, Anthony	222
............. Total votes in the Town of Carlisle cast for Desmond, Anthony	259
............. Total votes in the Town of Cobleskill cast for Desmond, Anthony	252
............. Total votes in the Town of Conesville cast for Desmond, Anthony	160
............. Total votes in the Town of Esperance cast for Desmond, Anthony	323
............. Total votes in the Town of Fulton cast for Desmond, Anthony	235
............. Total votes in the Town of Gilboa cast for Desmond, Anthony	152
............. Total votes in the Town of Jefferson cast for Desmond, Anthony	149
............. Total votes in the Town of Middleburgh cast for Desmond, Anthony	471
............. Total votes in the Town of Richmondville cast for Desmond, Anthony	275
............. Total votes in the Town of Schoharie cast for Desmond, Anthony	582
............. Total votes in the Town of Seward cast for Desmond, Anthony	243
............. Total votes in the Town of Sharon cast for Desmond, Anthony	328
............. Total votes in the Town of Summit cast for Desmond, Anthony	116
............. Total votes in the Town of Wright cast for Desmond, Anthony	338
---
Travis, Lawrence Larry	3117	36.2%
............. Total votes in the Town of Blenheim cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	49
............. Total votes in the Town of Broome cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	106
............. Total votes in the Town of Carlisle cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	180
............. Total votes in the Town of Cobleskill cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	775
............. Total votes in the Town of Conesville cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	86
............. Total votes in the Town of Esperance cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	155
............. Total votes in the Town of Fulton cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	137
............. Total votes in the Town of Gilboa cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	83
............. Total votes in the Town of Jefferson cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	96
............. Total votes in the Town of Middleburgh cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	299
............. Total votes in the Town of Richmondville cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	254
............. Total votes in the Town of Schoharie cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	288
............. Total votes in the Town of Seward cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	226
............. Total votes in the Town of Sharon cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	79
............. Total votes in the Town of Summit cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	86
............. Total votes in the Town of Wright cast for Travis, Lawrence Larry	218
---
Ethington, Todd J	1345	15.6%
............. Total votes in the Town of Blenheim cast for Ethington, Todd J	36
............. Total votes in the Town of Broome cast for Ethington, Todd J	35
............. Total votes in the Town of Carlisle cast for Ethington, Todd J	77
............. Total votes in the Town of Cobleskill cast for Ethington, Todd J	137
............. Total votes in the Town of Conesville cast for Ethington, Todd J	51
............. Total votes in the Town of Esperance cast for Ethington, Todd J	102
............. Total votes in the Town of Fulton cast for Ethington, Todd J	53
............. Total votes in the Town of Gilboa cast for Ethington, Todd J	33
............. Total votes in the Town of Jefferson cast for Ethington, Todd J	182
............. Total votes in the Town of Middleburgh cast for Ethington, Todd J	107
............. Total votes in the Town of Richmondville cast for Ethington, Todd J	102
............. Total votes in the Town of Schoharie cast for Ethington, Todd J	95
............. Total votes in the Town of Seward cast for Ethington, Todd J	61
............. Total votes in the Town of Sharon cast for Ethington, Todd J	72
............. Total votes in the Town of Summit cast for Ethington, Todd J	138
............. Total votes in the Town of Wright cast for Ethington, Todd J

Town of Esperance 2013 Election Results

The Town of Esperance sees an incredibly tense election between current Supervisor Earl van Wormer and Mayor Steve Miller.

Town of Esperance

Supervisor

VanWormer III, Earl	361	62.6%
Miller, Steven R	216	37.4%

Clerk

VanWormer, Charmayne

387

100.0%

Highway Superintendent

Candidate	Votes	Vote Percentage
Keller, Michael D	494	54.9%
Easton-DeSarbo, Kathy S	405	45.1%

Councilman

Ovitt, Gary D

510

100.0%

Town of Cobleskill 2013 Election Results

The largest of the Town races sees a healthy fight for all four of the positions open, including the largest share of weighted votes on the County Board-- Tom Murray.

Town of Cobleskill

Supervisor

McAllister, Leo T	1007	71.4%
Murray, Jr, Thomas M	403	28.6%

Justice

Bywater, Gary	991	36.0%
Fiorillo, Dawn L	711	25.8%
Northrup, William	624	22.6%
Weiss, Marc	430	15.6%

Councilman

Montario, Elizabeth	901	35.7%
Mallery, Roger J	570	22.6%
Stevens, Bruce	537	21.3%
Williams, Ron	516	20.4%

Village of Cobleskill 2013 Election Results

Incumbent Mayor Mark Galasso sees stiff competition from Trustee Linda Holmes.

Village of Cobleskill

Mayor

Candidate	Votes	Vote Percentage
Holmes, Linda	497	62.1%
Galasso, Mark A	303	37.9%

Trustee

Snyder, Timothy	538	36.6%
Johnson, Kathleen S	528	35.9%
McDermott, Mark J	404	27.5%

Town of Richmondville 2013 Election Results

The Town of Richmondville sees Scott Bennett running in his third consecutive race for Supervisor.

Town of Richmondville

Supervisor

Lape, Richard T	421	66.5%
Bennett, Scott	212	33.5%

Justice

Needleman, Herbert

512

100.0%

Councilman

Lancaster, William S	359	31.4%
Maurice, Paul	346	30.3%
Hall, Vernon F	247	21.6%
Stahlecker, Zachary	190	16.6%

Highway Superintendent

Althiser, Keith G

490

100.0%