I'm afraid that you're going to be absolutely correct Brad and that's why we need to know how much money has been wasted b4 election time.
And what happens if the audit shows wasted money?? The Republicans own that boondoggle now. Tedisco, Amedore, and Farley had a chance to delay the $25 million cap raise and wait for the results of the audit like their constituents asked, but obviously it was in their interest, as well as the Democrats, to expedite the process. But at the end of the day, if thing go wrong, egg will be on the face of those Republicans who could have prevented the $25 million raise and the 5 year extension.
Suhrada and Santabarbara should have said 'no' to the proposed increase right from the beginning instead of playing games with a compromise of a $10M increase instead of the requested $25M. They should have stuck their necks out beyond their party and risked it all. Cause ya know what? If Suhrada and Santabarbara had said 'no' and Tedisco and Amedore said 'yes' and the audit comes up foul....who would come out the victors? If it had happened that way....those 2 country legislatures would have made the distinction between the reps and dems.
The best we can hope for now is that the audit is complete BEFORE this legislation is passed. Then we'll all know.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Loan cap relief for Metroplex projects Deal puts $75M ceiling on lending for development in Schenectady County
By LAUREN STANFORTH, Staff writer First published: Friday, June 6, 2008
SCHENECTADY -- Schenectady County Legislature Democrats and two key assemblymen agreed to a deal Wednesday that moves forward plans to boost the Schenectady Metroplex Development Authority's lending power from $50 million to $75 million.
State Sen. Hugh Farley, a Niskayuna Republican, submitted the original home rule legislation a few weeks ago that would allow the county's redevelopment arm to take out bonds and lend businesses up to a total of $75 million instead of the current $50 million. Metroplex needs home rule legislation approved by the state Legislature to change its lending limit because its revenue comes from 0.5 percent of the county sales tax. State Assembly Minority Leader James Tedisco, a Schenectady Republican, and Republican Assemblyman George Amedore made the agreement with the county legislators. Tedisco balked at the original legislation. He wanted to require that no future county managerial employees or county legislators be allowed to work for Metroplex or serve on its board. "The public authorities in the state have come under criticism and rightly so for being a form of shadow government," said Tedisco's chief of staff, Bill Sherman, adding that there are no such concerns about Metroplex. Tedisco, Amedore, Farley and County Legislature President Susan Savage, a Democrat, worked out a deal Wednesday that includes the conditions and required no future state lawmakers or political party chairmen be allowed to serve on Metroplex board. The request to raise the lending maximum to $75 million remains, as well as an extension that allows Metroplex to exist until 2033, instead of 2028. Savage, however, said the county manager clause would have eliminated Metroplex Chairman Ray Gillen, who is also Schenectady County's economic development chairman. But Sherman said that was never the intention, and that Republicans agreed to make Gillen an exemption in the new legislation. Metroplex takes out bonds and lends money to help get businesses started in Schenectady. Metroplex has committed to lending $45 million and can't do many more projects because it will hit the $50 million cap, Gillen said. The $50 million cap was established under state legislation when Metroplex was founded about 10 years ago, Gillen said. The County Legislature must approve the new home rule message at Tuesday night's meeting, before it's sent to the state Legislature for a vote. Lauren Stanforth can be reached at 454-5697 or by e-mail at lstanforth@timesunion.com.
If the audit shows what most of us think it will that our tax dollars are being wasted with very little return for our dollars invested, both parties have got to assume responsibility for their actions. The bottom line is that we as the 8th highest taxed county in the country need tax relief, cut wasteful spending from the budget, and eliminate pork from the budget not more of the same old crap that we've seen for as long as I can remember.
This crap may just continue. We got the dems running the metro-purse and the reps, (tedisco/amedore), obviously supporting it and the dems doing the audit. Now tell me that's not a recipe for a disaster!!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
The Metroplex has done everything according to the law, in which case I'll be happy to congratulate them on a job well done.
If the audit concludes that the Metroplex Board of Directors has managed the expenditure of public revenues responsibly and that the "investment" has resulted in meaningful and tangible return on investment (ROI), I will write a Letter to the Editor in which I will thank the State Comptroller for serving the public interest in performing the audit and acknowledge and commend Mr. Gillen for the job that he has done.
I will, however, continue to oppose the basic premise upon which the Schenectady Metroplex Development Authority was founded and the practice of the redistribution of public revenues to private entities as I don't believe that it is a legitimate role of government. I will opine that the practices of awarding unsecured loans, forgiving loan principle, accepting subordinate positions on mortgaged assets, and awarding grants be discontinued as these practices are, in my opinion, not financially sound. I will also call for periodic audits (a minimum of once per every 5 years) to be performed by NY State as required for public authorities.
Regardless of what the results may show, I believe that the effort that we have taken was a worthwhile one.
This was on WROW 590AM yesterday, the same day "CAPITOL Metroplex bond cap deal reached Compromise will keep legislators off board" was published. Maybe Mr. Tedisco thinks that we need to listen to what he's going to do this summer, since he just voted to approve a nice big tax on the county residents? I looked for this on his site, but I couldn't find it.
OK, so the file I tried to attach is too big, but I wanted to make sure everyone got the text of "Tedisco's Take," which aired about 6:25 AM the same day as the above article with the approval of Metroplex's additional funding at the state level. Ends up that the file is a couple megs, which is over the 1 meg allowable size of an attachment. If anybody knows how to attach a bigger file, or wants a copy, please let me know, so you can hear this in Mr. Tedisco's own voice. These are his words:
Quoted Text
Summer is just around the corner. You can feel it in the air. The nights are slowly getting warmer. It’s time to get out and enjoy all that summer has to offer in the Capital Region. But as you rightfully pay attention to your family and friends during the warmer months, please keep in mind that in just a few short months, you’ll be going to the polls for a very important election. The presidential election has certainly dominated the airwaves so far. However, state lawmakers are also up for reelection in November. I urge you to take a little time out of your busy summer to listen to the issues. There’s a lot at stake. Our state is in constant crisis. We’re facing deficits. We’re up to our eyeballs in debt. New Yorkers are overtaxed and are sending a strong message by going to other states. Performing your civic duty is critical this fall. You need to be well informed before going to the polls. Remember, without you, this democracy cannot and would not work. I’m Assemblyman Jim Tedisco and that’s my take. What’s yours? Go to http://www.TediscosTake.com and have your say.
Ya, the last we heard was 6/2 - with the Silver Diner and Bombers changing buildings.. VanDyck goes on the auction block July 2 - that's the next I'd expect to hear (though I'm not sure when we'll hear the results of it)
Albany has a new SMART concept for their own Metroplex:
Quoted Text
$1.5M loan fund created for start-up tech companies The Business Review (Albany) A $1.5 million loan fund to aid growing technology companies in the Albany, N.Y. area was announced Monday by the Albany County Business Development Corp.
The Technology Acceleration Fund will target emerging technology ventures that have a high probability of creating jobs. The loans will average $100,000 and be administered by the Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce. The fund will have its own advisory board to review the applications and make recommendations to a loan committee.
Applicants may request between $50,000 and $500,000. A $350 non-refundable fee is due when the application is submitted.
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