Four seek two seats in Brockport election

In a village that has been known historically for running nonpartisan political campaigns, voters who go to the booth in Brockport's June election will be faced with two Republican party endorsed candidates and two candidates running on local, independent party lines.

Incumbent Morton Wexler is seeking his second term on the village board while political newcomers Robert Connors, Norman GianCursio and Carrie Maziarz have all thrown their hats into the ring in a bid for two of the open village board seats. Connors and GianCursio have the backing of the village's Republican party. Maziarz is running on the Pro-Village party line.

Robert Connors said he became interested in village politics over the last couple of years after seeing what was going on with the village's financial situation. "The large increases in taxes and the drain on the reserve fund are the main reasons I ran this year," he said. "I have a strong interest in the village because I've lived here my whole life."

Connors, a retired Sheriff's investigator, said he has been involved in the village for many years.

One of the main concerns is the ever increasing tax bills residents are faced with. "It's expensive to live here, especially for the elderly," he said. "People on fixed incomes, who have lived here all their lives, have seen a dramatic increase in their taxes and I just don't believe enough is being done for them."

Is he for a visitor's center? Connors says yes. Can the village afford one? He said no. "It doesn't take long to drive around the village and notice problems with the infrastructure," he said. "These are things that need to be addressed before we start other projects."

Connors said there needs to be cuts in all aspects of the village government. "Everyone should be made to tighten the belt," he said. "All spending needs to be scrutinized. Do I think it's necessary to send a department head to San Diego for a conference? The answer is no."

The village has explored ways to generate revenue - some successfully, Connors said, but now they have created a sewer rent fee as a way to generate income. "I'm not in favor of it at all," he said. "It will generate money but it doesn't seem right that the village of Brockport pays the highest water rates now and we are being asked to pay another 80 cents on top of that."

Across the street in Clarkson, Connors said taxpayers pay about $2.30 per 1,000 gallons while Brockport taxpayers pay $4.38 per thousand. "Everyone kept saying the average rate for the sewer rent would be $60 annually but I've talked to ten families and only one out of those ten will actually be that," he said. "Everyone keeps saying we need to find new revenue streams but what we really need to do is get expenditures under control."

Connors is one of the candidates running on a Republican-endorsed ticket. "I'm totally in favor of running with the backing of the Republican Party," he said. "The village may have always ran an independent election but it's naive to think that Republican and Democrat candidates weren't fielded."

He points out that Trustee Wexler is a Democrat and that Mayor Josephine Matela is a Republican. "In the past, you made up a party name and ran under that auspice but it always had political undertones," he said.

Connors was born and raised in Brockport and he and his wife, Pat, have two daughters. Their daughter Sarah is a student at Niagara University and Michele attends the University at Albany but will be transferring to SUNY Brockport in the fall.

"I'm the best candidate for the position because of my experience with the issues at hand," he said. "I can address those issues and I have proved it at the meetings when I am asking questions of the administration that are of concern to all taxpayers in the village."

It was after attending a lecture at SUNY Brockport college given by Janet Reno that Norm GianCursio decided to become involved in village politics. "I hope to make a difference and make improvements in the village politics," he said. "I think taxes are high and there are ways to cut expenses to get back to the basics."

While on the campaign trail, GianCursio said the residents are complaining about high taxes and, if elected, he is hoping to address that issue by having every department scrutinize spending and that maybe reorganization is necessary.

"There is going to be another increase in taxes to make up for the way the village officials are shifting the budget around," he said. "We are also going to be faced with a drop of about $5 million in assessments for the Kleen Brite property. Village taxpayers are going to have to make up for that if we can't reduce spending."

He said that high property taxes deter investment in village properties.

GianCursio, who ran in 2001 and garnered close to 450 votes, said his sensibility, sense of responsibility and his ability to work with the board for the good of the community make him a good candidate for the job. "Hopefully the people who supported me the last time will come out and support me again," he said.

He doesn't see being endorsed by a political party as being an issue in the election. "I don't think that having the backing of a strong support group is a bad thing," he said. "I know I would make my own decisions because I've been doing that my whole life and would continue to do that for the betterment of the community."

GianCursio said the village board should be open to interaction with the residents who attend meetings. "I have long-time knowledge of the village and the people who live and work here," he said. "I understand their wants and needs and want to be able to help take care of those situations."

GianGursio said he is a lifelong resident of Brockport and has two daughters and two grandchildren.

Carrie Maziarz, who has been active in village politics as a member of the zoning board of appeals and the historic board of preservation, decided this was the year to seek election to the village board. "I saw the need for a different kind of candidate," she said. "There are defined differences between myself and the other candidates. I don't agree with what two of them would like to see happen in the village."

Two of the candidates, Maziarz said, would like to see the dissolution of the police department, code enforcement and the economic development office. "These departments need to be maintained if the village is to move itself into the future," she said.

For the past five months Maziarz has been involved in the coordination of a Farmers Market in Brockport. "I've worked with all levels of government in the quest to get this up and running," she said. "In addition to the Farmers Market, I know I can bring new and different ideas to the table."

Being proactive will be Maziarz's approach to agenda items. "We live in a fantastic, historic village that offers a lot of opportunities and we need to capitalize on that," she said.

When asked about the recent budget process, Maziarz said she thought the process was fair. "I think there are a good group of people who worked very hard to come up with the best budget they could," she said. "The village does need to curtail spending and look to other avenues to bring in new industry and businesses in order to generate more revenue."

Maziarz said she will be an unbiased village official. "I have a freshness that people will take to. I have no axes to grind," she said. "I would like to bring a unity to the board instead of the division that has been cropping up."

If elected, she said she would also like to see the board go back to having open sessions for the public at both the beginning and end of the meetings.

Maziarz and her husband, Pete, have lived in the area for five years now and have owned their house on Adams Street for four years. They have three children: James, Peter IV and Joseph.

Incumbent Morton Wexler, who is running on the Freedom Party line, is known by many residents as being one of the most approachable, accessible village officials. "People know that I tell the truth, answer questions and am more than happy to meet with people," he said. "People might not always agree with me but they know where I stand on the issues."

Wexler, who was elected the first time in 2000, said he feels that he still has a lot to contribute to the process and the betterment of the community. "I hope my experience will help get me re-elected but I hope more than that people will understand I'm not a rubber stamp."

Wexler expressed dismay that for the first time in the village's 175 years, partisan politics are entering into the mix. "Unfortunately this year politics has raised its head in our election process. The direction we seem to be heading concerns me," he said. "We have a person running whose agenda is very limited in scope pertaining to rental property."

Fiscal responsibility is one item at the top of Wexler's list. "For the past two years I have voted no on the budget. Money is our number one concern," he said. "The Farmers Market and the walk-able/bike-able concept is positive and we are starting to move on some projects but for some other projects we have to ask ourselves where the money is going to come from."

Wexler said the village board cannot continue to go back to the community and keep raising their taxes to fund projects. "Whatever we plan to do has to be weighed by the amount of money we have," he said. "You might have a laundry list of things that need to be done but ultimately that list will be shortened because of the lack of money."

He cautioned that municipalities need to live within their means.

The board will have to pick and choose which projects best serve the largest part of the community. "There are infrastructure issues - roads and sidewalks that need to be taken care of but the board has to carefully decide which project will benefit the majority of the community," he said.

Wexler said he doesn't have an agenda other than wanting to represent the people of the community. He and his wife, Diana, have lived in the same house on Oxford Street since 1960. They have three children and six grandchildren.

"I will continue to speak my mind," Wexler said. "Diversity on the board serves this community."

Elections will take place Tuesday, June 15 from noon to 9 p.m. in the village hall. Voters will be asked to choose two candidates from the pool of four. Trustee Wexler is seeking re-election to his seat while Trustee Peter DeToy will not be seeking re-election this year.