The event
On September 1st 2015 Poughkeepsie High School hosted the 2015 Mayoral Forum for the city of Poughkeepsie. The event was organized and moderated by the Poughkeepsie Journal and the Dutchess County Chamber of commerce.
The first thing I noticed was that at least 90% of the audience was white. I found that to be a little strange considering that they make up only about 50% of the population of the city (according to the 2010 census). That same census listed 30% African American and 20% Latino (a percentage that has no doubt increased in the five years since the census). Where were the representation from these communities? Perhaps they didn’t read the publications that announced the debate? Perhaps they felt disenfranchised in the process? It’s hard to say, but the fact remains that the audience did not reflect the demographics of Poughkeepsie.
The event was organized into two question and answer sessions, the first was one hour long with the two Republican candidates Rob Rolinson and Jere (pronounced Jerry) Tierney and the second was two hours long with the four Democratic candidates Lance Hardy, Randall Johnson, Kenneth Levinson, and Robert Mallory Jr. Each candidate was given a chance to answer the same question in turn. The moderator made it clear that there should be no personal attacks and that candidates must confine their responses to the allotted time.
The candidates
General impressions
Rob Rolinson looked to be the consummate professional, neatly attired and calm and collected in demeanor. Rolinson’s experience in the county legislature showed as he spoke knowledgeably about a wide variety of issues affecting the city of Poughkeepsie.
Jere Tierney looked every bit the retired police detective that he is; large and imposing with a personality to match. He started by asking the audience to stand up and say the pledge of allegiance which struck some as out of place. However, he seemed to have a good grasp of many issues despite a lack of political experience.
Lance Hardy had a serious countenance, seemingly ready for a fight. Throughout the questioning he reflected a xenophobic attitude with an implied fear of gentrification. He repeated several times that events in Poughkeepsie should be only for residents of Poughkeepsie and that we need to stop doing things to appeal to NYC folks. He seemed unaware that Poughkeepsie needs outside money to bolster its economy. He clearly demonstrated a lack of experience and thought in terms of economics throughout the questioning and finally brought the point to a head when he was asked about what he would do in terms of budgeting for Poughkeepsie. He answered that we should get drugs off the street. When pressed, it became clear that he had no answer concerning the budget.
Randy Johnson was the first to be seated of the four Democrats. His ear to ear smile seemed designed to give the impression that nothing could phase him. His well thought out answers on a variety of topics seemed to support this impression. However, something of a gaff at the end broke the persona. When asked whether he would run as a third party candidate if not selected for the Democratic ticket Randy sat in silence, hemming and hawing for a full minute before saying “Well you see, I don’t want to lie to the voters.” He then waited another 30 seconds before saying “Not at this time.”
Ken Levinson had a big smile and a tie that went well past his belt line. He made it clear from the outset that his primary focus was finance and stated in no uncertain terms that he saw the city as a business. Between his push to be merciless with drug dealers and his emphasis on cutting the tax in the budget without raising taxes made it hard to believe he was on the Democratic ticket.
Bob Mallory had a serious professional look about him and immediately started organizing his paperwork upon sitting down. Mallory seemed to be very much in touch with the community, while maintaining a broader vision of how it might improve.
The issues
REPUBLICAN
Crime:
Both Rob Rolinson and Jere Tierney have served as police detectives and brought first hand knowledge to bear.
Rolinson suggested that we need more officers, but also better deployment of existing resources. As mayor, he would expect daily situation reports from the police. He also addressed some of the preventative measures such as reducing the number of abandoned properties and making the mayor’s office a place for addressing quality of life issues.
Tierney wants to focus on gang violence and focus attention on chronic offenders. He suggests that community policing needs to be more than a few officers being assigned to walk to streets and instead to think of it as a department wide strategy for the police. He would also like to see more intervention programs for younger children to keep them from joining gangs in the first place.
Vacant Properties
Rolinson emphasized the need to clean up the buildings and streets to make properties more inviting to prospective buyers. His goal is to identify the top ten blighted properties in the city and either remediate them or tear them down within his first year in office.
Tierney agreed that clean up could be important, but chose to focus on incentives for businesses to relocate to Poughkeepsie. He also emphasized the importance of entrepreneurship and cottage industries. He also suggested closing down Main St. from time to time to make it more friendly to pedestrians and improve business, seemingly unaware of the utter failure of the “Main Mall” which had already been tried.
School
Neither candidate was especially strong in terms of solutions to Poughkeepsie’s educational woes.
Rolinson claimed that the schools are good and that we just need to fix people’s attitude about the schools. He also noted that education was not his area of expertise and that he would defer to experts when making decisions about education.
Tierney suggested that we should open a charter school. He also proposed that we refocus our efforts on K-6 to make sure that students have an adequate foundation.
DEMOCRAT
Economy
Levinson said we need new businesses and waterfront development.
Mallory suggested an improvement in accounting practices and that we have a rezoning plan. He also suggested that a more efficient bus service would help people to get and keep jobs. He proposed a facade grant to help businesses improve their look and draw in more customers.
Johnson offered that we should solicit new businesses to come to the city, although he didn’t suggest what might entice them to come. He emphasized the need for a planning department to create a comprehensive plan for the city. Rather than focusing on the riverfront, he suggested that we should start with upper Main St. and work our way down to the river.
Hardy said that too much time is being spent thinking about the waterfront and entertaining people from outside of Poughkeepsie. He also said that we don’t need outside developers coming in and pushing out the existing people. While he was very clear on what he didn’t want, he offered no plan of what he did want.
Crime
Johnson says that the causes of crime are a much deeper issue than just policing. We need to focus on having jobs and other opportunities for Poughkeepsie residents so they are less tempted to turn to crime. He encouraged community policing and regular dinner meetings between the mayor and members of Poughkeepsie’s police force.
Hardy would like to see a halfway house for those being released from prison to reintegrate into society before immediately going back to the neighborhoods where they came from.
Levinson said that the police need more resources and that we can have no mercy for drug dealers. He suggested the preventative measure of having more programs available for children.
Mallory would like to see higher police engagement. He also suggested regular ward meetings where members of each ward could communicate their concerns with the police. He would also like to see the police athletic league getting involved with the children of Poughkeepsie to build a more positive relationship between the force and the community.
Rebuilding Main St.
Hardy would like to see new businesses like Popeyes or a movie theater. He believes the parking meters are causing an unnecessary burden on the people of Poughkeepsie.
Johnson would like to bring in a Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods.
Levinson emphasized his own work rebuilding Main St. through his private company and suggested that Poughkeepsie should give incentives for new businesses to locate here.
Mallory had a unique perspective and said that we need to do a better job of marketing the city, especially online. He also said that we need a planning department in the city and that we should hold banks accountable for maintaining the abandoned properties that they own.
Schools
Johnson touted his record as a board member and said that as mayor he would like to appoint people to the school board. He would also like head start programs.
Hardy told of his work with the superintendant and in the school district generally. He would like to see the trades like automotive and woodworking come back into the schools.
Levinson agreed that a trade program would be great for the students and also wanted a head start program.
Mallory brought up the need for a more efficient bus system to help Middle and High School students get home from after school activities. He would like to see students getting internships in government offices and to have apprenticeships offered for students.
Arts and Culture
Mallory seemed hesitant to commit city funds to the arts because of the tight budget.
Levinson was all for investing in the arts saying that we need to spend money to make money. He sees the arts as a way to draw people up from the city.
Johnson said that he supports the arts and would like to create and “arts task force”. He is either unaware of the existing Arts Council, or has something else in mind. He also had plans to shut down Main St. to have a pedestrian market for the arts.
Hardy was difficult to follow on this issue, but two things were clear; the youth should be involved and “outsiders” should not.
Abandoned properties
Hardy suggested a foreclosure bond program where owners would be fined $10k upon foreclosure to be used for maintenance of the property. He would like to see these properties used to create low-income housing units.
Johnson emphasized the need for a comprehensive list of who owns which abandoned properties. He would focus on code enforcement and incentivising the rebuilding of properties instead of building new properties.
Levinson said that he does not like the idea of the city owning properties because it would then be responsible to control and maintain them. However, he did suggest that the city use eminent domain to take properties which are in foreclosure.
Mallory wants to hold banks accountable for maintaining the properties that they own. He said that he would close the loopholes for fines and leverage community based organizations to rebuild properties.
