Well played Ken Ivins...

Keeping it a secret what he planned to run for was a good play to get news coverage of an announcement that he would be running for supervisor, or at least to ensure it (particularly at 8 at night. I've got stuff to do!).

What he was planning to announce, in fact, may even have been a secret from him. He told me Monday he made up his mind about what to run for last Thursday. 

Ivins said "some people have really twisted my arm big time," to run against Accounts Commissioner John Franck. Ivins said he seriously considered it. In fact, I'm told he may have called Franck to tell him he was going to do it.

"That would have been rough on Ken," said Democratic Chair Charles Brown. "He probably made a good choice" to go for supervisor.

He took a couple of potshots at the Democrats in his announcement.

"This has probably been the most contentious council we have had since the Val Keehn days and I think we owe that a lot to the Democrats at the table."

But mostly he talked about the offices he decided not to pursue in lieu of a run at supervisor. 

He said he wouldn't run for public works or public safety because Skip Scirocco and Rick Wirth are running for those, but he was then able to run through the other three seats at the table as possibilities, since no one has announced a run at finance, accounts or — most importantly — mayor on the Republican ticket.

GOP Committee Chair Dave Harper said they have a candidate for that office, but won't say who yet.

He said it will be announced "on or before" May 13, when the GOP Committee will make their endorsements.

I've heard rumor for a little while here that it may be Deputy Mayor Shauna Sutton making a run at mayor and she has not denied it.

I called her today to ask about it. She called me back after 5 p.m. (you're not supposed to conduct political business during business hours as a city employee) and said she gave her word she would remain silent about who is running for anything, so she declined to comment.

"But I notice you are not calling me to deny that you are running for mayor," I said to her. She, again, didn't deny it.

Just rumor, but...

Harper said they need two more candidates to have a full slate (Which if they have mayor, would leave finance and accounts, assuming they endorse Rick Wirth). 

A few of the names he dispelled, though, were Jay Rifenbary, former Saratoga Springs School Board member and current motivational speaker, who Harper said "gave (running for Public Safety) strong consideration but pulled out." Similarly, he said Vice Chair of the ZBA Kieth Kaplan has also pulled his name out of consideration for any office (I had heard he might run for finance commissioner, but I guess not).

When I asked him about whether they would have a full slate when push came to shove, his eyebrows went up and he said "I'm not sure about that."

On Democratic Chair Brown's end, he is confident his side will have a full slate. 

At this point they'll need two supervisors and a Public Works Commissioner, which they didn't run in 2011. Brown said "I think we have one" and that he would not be a "paper lion."

For supervisor, Brown confirmed that Peter Martin is "genuinely considering" a run at the office. He is currently the interim Saratoga County clerk, but said he won't be running for that office.

He last ran in 2009 when he lost to Ken Ivins for Finance Commissioner, so it would be deja vu all over again like in the Public Safety race.

Brown, of course, said he doesn't think it will end the same. "Ken is qualified, but I suspect he won't be our next supervisor." 

In fact Christian Mathiesen told me he has spoken to Wirth about his run at his job and essentially said he would like to see the race run (and end, I'm sure) the way it did two years ago.

It was, I must say, a positive and respectful race on both sides.

Matt Veitch evidently is not running for mayor.

His was one of the names I'd heard floated in the recent weeks as a potential Republican opponent to Joanne Yepsen, but it doesn't look like Veitch will be taking that step.

He announced Wednesday that he will be officially announcing his run for re-election to county supervisor tomorrow in this brief statement:

"Supervisor Matthew E. Veitch (R)-Saratoga Springs will be announcing his run for a fourth term as Supervisor on the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors. He will review his accomplishments, as well as outline his ideas for the future of Saratoga Springs. Please join us at the Spring Run Trailhead, near the intersection of East Avenue and Excelsior Avenue for this important announcement."

It would have been interesting to see the Saratoga Springs supervisors go head-to-head in a winner-take-all race.

Election results show that, since 2007, when he beat-out Yepsen's Democratic running mate, Cheryl Keyrouze, for the second Spa City seat on the Board of Supervisors, Veitch overtook her as the top vote-getting supervisor.

Yepsen won with 4,883 when she was first elected in 2005. 

In 2007, election results show he came in second in the race with 4,584 to Yepsen's 4,946 (Keyrouze took 4,116 votes as a second Democratic candidate).

In 2009 Veitch had flipped the tables, taking 4,757 to Yepsen's 4,240 votes.

Last time around, though, the gap had closed and the two were both neck-and-neck, receiving the least votes either had ever received for supervisor — 4,035 for Veitch to Yepsen's 4,020, though it is worth pointing out that it was essentially uncontested, since it was only the two candidates running for two seats.

Either way, we won't be seeing a Yepsen vs. Veitch race for mayor (womp womp).

It seems we will be seeing Rick Wirth take on Christian Mathiesen for Public Safety Commissioner... again. A Caroline Street bulletin board told me so for certain (though I had heard a while back that he would be running with or without the Republican nod) with a flier that said he would be holding a fundraiser at the Mouzon House at 5:30 p.m May 2 .

And another blast from two years ago, Ken Ivins Jr. will be running for... something. You can hear all about it April 29 at the Thirsty Owl, but it'll cost some campaign contributions.

I had heard a while back that Ivins would be challenging John Franck for Accounts Commissioner, but with an open seat at the Board of Supervisors maybe he's changing his focus. We'll find out at the Thirsty Owl (also get some good wine).

Like Christmas, the election season seems to start earlier every year. We're barely into 2013 and already people are speculating about who is running for City Council in November.

"Usually you don't hear about these things until April," Mayor Scott Johnson said in his office Tuesday. 

I've heard all sorts of rumors at this point: that the mayor is not running again; that a certain supervisor is looking to unseat him if Johnson does run again; that Ken Ivins is returning from his term off to take a run not as finance commissioner, but as Accounts Commissioner; that Bill McTygue is planning a campaign for supervisor; that Cuomo is running for president.... oh wait, wrong election, though that is probably the same level of foresight we are talking about here.

Well, I'm going to be calling around on these. Actually, I called around on these (with the exception of Cuomo) and I'll post their responses as (if) they call me back.

Ivins said he hasn't made up his mind about what he is going to do another half-year from now (I can relate, I still haven't finalized my plans for this evening). As for the idea that he would not go for Finance Commissioner again, he said "I haven't made up my mind yet A) whether I'm running and B) what I would be running for." So that doesn't exactly sound like "No."

McTygue also didn't discount the idea. "It's early," he said, adding "no decision have been made at all in that regard."

He said people have been speculating because he has been making more appearances at City Council meetings and speaking up about issues. "I've been getting a lot of encouragement," he said.

Johnson, too, said he hasn't "publicly decided yet" about whether he would be running for reelection, but in our conversation about who a potential opponent would be referenced a quote he attributed to Joe Bruno, saying "I don't pick my opponents, I just beat them." 

Well, on the mayoral race I did catch up with Joanne Yepsen as well, who wouldn't say what position she is planning on running for in November. "There are several options on the table," she said, adding that she is having "preliminary conversations," about which she would choose. She wouldn't comment, either, on whether she was just evaluating city positions or if she was looking outside.

Those aren't the only rumors running around, obviously, but those are the ones I thought I'd address today. If anybody else hears others, let me know and I'll try to get non-committal answers from those people.

Busy week last week, so I never got to blog about a few things. I'll start with the Saratoga Springs Housing Authority Meeting.

The rumor before the meeting was that Ken Ivins was going to be putting these resolutions forward that were "sure to spark some debate" as one person told me.

The resolutions would force the chair to go to the City Council for salary approvals, roll back Director Ed Spychalski's salary to a modest $116k (down from $152k last year and $144k this year, in case anyone doesn't know — I'd link to a previous story but there is so much history to this that I think it would be more efficient just to put "Spychalski" into the search bar on The Saratogian's main site), and would change the SSHA's policy on contract approval to encompass anything more than $2,000.

Well, there was debate, but it was just about whether to discuss the resolutions at last week's meeting. Spoiler alert: they didn't.

When Ivins made his motion to put the issue on the agenda, a stir ran through the board.

Chair Eric Weller asked one of the SSHA's legal counsels, John Hicks, if adding the resolutions to the agenda "is germane?"

"It is not germane," Hicks responded.

Nonetheless, Ivins made his motion to add the resolutions followed by....

"Al, second the motion. Al. Al, second the motion. Second the motion Al."

Ivins, "whispered" urges to Al Callucci to second the motion (perhaps they had discussed it before), but Callucci was staring at the other side of the room. Finally, Ivins gave up (literally threw his hands up).

That's when Al seconded the motion, but there was a full ten seconds between the motion and its second. He later said "sorry I was asleep," with a laugh.

After all of that, too, they were the only two to vote to put the motions on the agenda. They'll be back, though, next month, when they will be "sure to spark some debate."

"It seems very blatantly political -- it's the last City Council meeting and the contracts would not be renewed until after the next election," said Finance Commissioner-elect Michele Madigan leaving the City Council meeting Tuesday night.

She had just watched four contracts with law firms and one contract with the city's human resource company, Pinnacle Human Resources, LLC. extended to two-year contracts, something sources in City Hall said is unprecedented.

Accounts Commissioner John Franck spoke out on the city council about just that.

"We've never done this as far as I can remember," he said.

"I think they are good services, but this is bad government" Franck said of the contracts with the HR company as well as the law firms of Harris Beach which handles labor and collective bargaining and Fitzgerald, Morris, Baker and Firth PC which is currently litigating lawsuits on charter challenge and civil service. "I don't think these contracts should go more than a year," Franck said.

He was the sole council member to vote no on all of the contracts except the contract to continue litigating the appeal of the Saratoga Citizen petition, which Kenneth Ivins Jr. also voted against.

Mayor Scott Johnson said the rationale behind extending the contracts is that they locked in the price for the next two years and could avoid any cost increase (something Franck said hasn't happened since 2006), but Madigan saw a different motivation.

"It appears that the rationale behind these amendments may be to solidify them until after the next election so that the incoming council members will have no say in them," she said in a prepared statement she read to the council during public comment.

Franck said that if the City Council were going to award extended contracts to the law firms and Pinnacle, they should put out requests for proposals. "It doesn't make sense to me, I don't see the prices going up dramatically," he said, adding he would expect even better prices if the city put out a request for bids.

It was the last council meeting for two of the men around the table Tuesday. Madigan will replace Finance Commissioner Ivins and Christian Mathiesen will replace Public Safety Commissioner Richard Wirth in less than two weeks and the remaining members offered their praise and farewells to their two departing comrades.

Franck said Wirth has "always been a gentleman who looked past party lines," and he thanked him for his "tireless service" running the city's largest department seven days a week, something Franck knew he did because he frequently saw Wirth coming and going from City Hall on the weekends while he hung out at Compton's.

He said Ivins was dealt a tough hand over the last few fiscal years but said "in your four year period you have brought us back."

Scirocco thanked the both of them as well, though made eye-contact with Ivins (whom he has publicly disagreed with on frequent occasions) when he said "You both in your heart made the right decisions I'm sure."

Johnson commended them for their community service and "dedication to our city."

"Those of us who serve in these capacities know it is no easy chore to undertake," he said. And while he hoped they would continue to be involved in city politics and service, he had one parting lighthearted(?) request:

"Don't come to public comment please."

To drive that point home, here's Madigan's comments to the council in full:
I see that this evening's agenda includes discussions and votes on the Pinnacle Human Resources contract and the Harris Beach contracts. It is my understanding that the current Pinnacle HR contract runs until May 2012 and the amendment seems to merely extend the contract to December 2013. The Harris Beach contracts are also being amended tonight to extend from December 2012 to December 2013. All of these contracts are being amended until after the next election. Absent a pressing need to amend these contracts, it seems premature to even discuss these tonight. Again, a new council will be seated in 12 days, and there are 5 months remaining in the current Pinnacle HR contract and a full 12 months remaining in the Harris Beach contracts. It appears that the rationale behind these amendments may be to solidify them until after the next election so that the incoming council members will have no say in them.
While I have briefly reviewed the specifics of the proposed amendments, and must wait to find out more in tonight’s discussion and possible vote, I must point out the possibility that a majority of the new council may not agree with the wishes of the majority of the current council on such important matters. If this is the case, what will it cost the city to once again change, amend or terminate these contracts? I would respectfully request, in the interests of good governance, fiscal prudence, and transparency, that this council postpone discussion of these items until the next meeting, when the new council will be seated.
Of particular concern to me is the contract being amended that relates to Human Resources. Local governments are facing unprecedented challenges; whether we are addressing fiscal challenges, environmental issues, public safety, or a crisis, having the right people in the right jobs will pay off for our city. It is not clear to me, especially since I have been unable to review the contract in question, that outsourcing Human Resources – in violation of the City Charter - is in the best interest of our city. Since this is such an important issue, I believe it is unreasonable for the current council to take any action on this contract, thereby encumbering the new council which will be seated in 12 short days. We can take this matter up in just a few weeks, and I humbly ask you to allow us to do so.
Thank you,
Michele Madigan, Commissioner of Finance-elect

While adopting the budget Tuesday night at the City Council meeting, Finance Commissioner Ken Ivins Jr. laughed that it was the first time in a "long, long time," that he was going to see his property taxes actually go down.

But it seems, in actuality, they won't.

Not because of the city, as is traditionally the case, but rather because of a tax increase at the county that is likely to happen - the first county tax increase in eight years.

Read Michael Cignoli's preview about the public hearing, which he said he hears will be lively, in The Saratogian tomorrow (Dec. 1) or go see for yourself at the public hearing at 5:30 p.m. at the county offices.

It's a little funny, actually. The comprehensive budget originally proposed at the city had a .54 percent increase - which would mean an $8 increase in taxes on a $200,000 house. Now city residents are looking at a $8 decrease in their city taxes.

But-- and here is the (sort of) funny part -- the first year in recent memory that taxes are going down in the city, the county manages to erase that and residents still end up with an $8 increase on a $200,000 home.

Saratogians just can't win.

Here is a link to the comprehensive budget. It is on the city's website at Saratoga-Springs.org.

Earlier I wrote that the budget was online "as of this morning," but I was informed by Ivins' deputy commissioner that the budget was actually posted as of about 4 p.m. Wednesday.

The combination of skateboarders and the city budget at last night's (Oct. 4) city council meeting was somewhat surreal. But I guess it makes sense, because by the end of Ivins' budget presentation I was as tired as if I had dug out the skate bowl myself.

It was long, mostly dry (as these things often are) and I should have left breadcrumbs through it because by the end I was pretty lost.

From what I gleaned, the city is better off than it was a year ago. Through some financial gymnastics (a term I got from DA James Murphy to describe white collar crime -- though I'm not implying anything by using it here) Ivins and Christine Gillmett-Brown explained how the tax cap doesn't mean 2 percent for Saratoga Springs, but actually means 4.8 percent.

All you need to know is:

(Courtesy of the New York State Office of the Comptroller. For a better view, click it.)

Regardless, the tax rate is only proposed to raise about .54 percent, on average. District by district that could vary slightly, but for the most part it means that the $6.07 per $1,000 of property owned tax rate won't be changing.

Of course, as has been pointed out in the comments of the story and in a press release from finance commissioner candidate Michele Madigan, the comprehensive budget itself wasn't presented, only a synopsis of it, something she said violates the charter.

"Those of us who attended the Council Meeting last night were expecting
the Commissioner to fulfill the duties of his office and lead a presentation on our city’s finances and his proposed 2012 budget," Madigan said in a statement released today. "His failure to submit the Proposed 2012 Comprehensive Budget last night, as required by the Charter, further illustrates that he is not fit for the position he holds and should not be reelected.”

Her release also includes the various components that are required to be in the comprehensive budget.

I will point out, though, that the charter only requires that the commissioner submit the budget to the city council at the first October meeting, not present the full budget at the meeting.

It is on file in the Accounts Department for anyone's reading pleasure (or lack thereof). And I keep being assured it should be online as early as tonight.

Also at the meeting, Saratoga Citizen organizer Pat Kane took advantage of the public comment, which first he lambasted for its brevity. Each member of the public is only allotted two minutes (something that is rarely enforced but always hanging over commenters heads). "I think it's a shame a citizen can only get two minutes in front of you people," he told the council, going on to say its "embarrassing."

Then he challenged the city council to pass the budget before election day. "You have the legal capability to approve the 2012 budget before then," he said, adding "shenanigans" can happen when budgets and elections mix. "There will always be a period of time where if you wait you could have more numbers," he said, undercutting Ivins' primary reason for advocating against that strategy.

Later, Ivins' responded during his presentation. "That is just not good financial planning," he said.

Finally, Kane also reminded the city council that thousands of Saratogians filled out a petition for the opportunity to vote on charter change.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Finance Commissioner Kenneth Ivins will debut the city’s 2012 comprehensive budget at the City Council meeting tonight. Ahead of that, Ivins released some of the preliminary details of the budget—including the proposed tax increase of .54 percent at a kind of Preview Presser (You read that term here first folks).
“It’s essentially one-half of 1 percent property tax increase and my goal is by the end of November we can get the number even lower,” Ivins said, explaining as the year comes to a close, more solid numbers for revenues in the city will come in. “The further you get into the year the better numbers you get for preparing a budget.”
He also distributed a sheet showing the dollar-amount tax increase for homes valued at $200,000, 300,000 and $400,000 (see below, and please excuse the foolish dashes, Blogger isn't cooperating with me).

Home Value===== 2011=====2011==== Increase
$200,000--------$1,212.80----$1,221.41----$8.61
$300,000--------$1,819.20----$1,832.12----$12.92
$400,000--------$2,425.60----$2,442.82----$17.22


Last year’s budget passed with a 4.45 percent tax increase, more than eight times the 20112 proposal.
Ivins attributed the change to better-than-expected sales tax revenues, Video Lottery Terminal funds coming into the city which had been absent for years and health insurance costs which increased, but not by as much as previous years.
One thing that is not driving up the cost was Ivins’ decision not to include the position of reservation coordinator in the budget—a position requested by Public Works Commissioner Anthony “Skip” Scirocco that created debate and a split vote at the Sept. 20 city council meeting. (the comments in the story are not so split)
"I voted for creating the position," Ivins said. "I've voted to create a number of positions over the years I don't necessarily fund. I felt this was not the right time to fund that position," though he did not rule it out in the future.
Michele Madigan was also on-hand for Ivins' brief press conference. She asked him about the sale of the Lillians' lot on Broadway to contractor Sonny Bonacio and whether the money would be in the budget again. (It was in both 2010 and 2011, though not used).
Ivins said it would be as part of the Woodlawn Avenue parking garage-- since the revenue from the sale is being used for that project.
Madigan, too, said she was pleased to see the "pretty low rate. But I think we could do 0 percent, but I wouldn't want to see that at the cost of any layoffs."
Check in on The Saratogian for full coverage of tonight's presentation on the budget and further in-depth coverage in the days to come (We can't do it all tonight -- damn deadlines).

I think Michele Madigan got the message that I will post most everything I receive from candidates on this blog, because I have been inundated with regular faxes with the letterhead: "Michele Madigan for Finance; The Clear Choice."
Her latest was a response to Ken Ivins' response to one of her first.
“Just because I voted to create the positions does not mean I voted to fund the positions,” Ivins said Thursday in response to criticism from Madigan.
Ivins recently voted to create a position of "Reservation coordinator" to handle reservations for city owned property. The position pays $20.39 an hour plus benefits. (Also check out Managing Editor Barbara Lombardo's editorial on the position)
“Mr. Scirocco made a good argument for creating the position,” he said. adding that he has been meeting with the commissioners this week, going over requests for each department and “crunching the numbers.”
Ivins said that was on the table as a potential cut.
Madigan's latest letter, dated Oct. 3, includes Ivins' first statement above. She said she wants to be finance commissioner "because the incumbent cannot seem to communicate clearly with his fellow citizens and, frankly, does not seem to understand our city's finances. His response to me is a prime example. He votes for staffing changes, but then says he didn't vote to pay for them."
Ivins explained to me that he created the position but didn't know if it was in the 2012 budget yet. "I'm in negotiations with Mr. Scirocco," he said, something he does before every comprehensive budget comes out.
He gets a "Wish List" (Accounts Commissioner John Franck's words) from every commissioner, meets with each department head and then decides which ones the city can afford to pay for.
The comprehensive budget is due out at the Oct. 4 City Council meeting.
"I expect Ivins to propose a small property tax increase and will be looking very closely at his revenue and expense projections for the coming year. Hopefully they will bear some resemblance to reality but based on his past performance I'm not holding my breath," Madigan said and called for a debate.
We'll see how her predictions pan out at tomorrow's meeting.