Citizens Against Casino Gambling in Erie CountyCandidates' Night
August 28, 2007 Unity Church, 1243 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY |
| CACGEC hosted a candidates' forum on August 28, 2007. The forum was
chaired by Bob Heffern, CACGEC co-Chairperson. Several of our members
took notes, and a written summary based on these notes has been provided. Meanwhile, since the entire forum was recorded, you can listen to the voices of the candidates themselves. |
index of of audio clips by district and candidateThe recordings are .mp3 files. To access them, just click on the links below. Incumbents are indicated with an asterisk.*In general, each audio clip contains presentations by all the candidates for a given Legislative or Councilmanic district who were present. The candidates are presented below in order by district. However, since some candidates had other obligations and had to arrive late or leave early, they were not presented in the same order during the forum. In one case,** candidates for the same position were presented separately. The order of presentation is listed in the next-to-last column. The last column contains a link to the corresponding written summary. |
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The
summary below should contain an entry for every candidate whose name
will appear on the ballot for Erie County Legislator or for
Buffalo Common Council Member, either in the primary and/or in the
general election. The summary below is ordered by district, and
within district, alphabetically by candidate, regardless of the
speaking order. Incumbents
are indicated with an asterisk (*). The nominations sought (or,
in some cases, already secured) are indicated in parentheses after each
candidate's name. If
the candidate attended the CACGEC candidates' night forum on August 28
and spoke, a brief summary of his or her remarks is provided. If
the candidate provided a written statement, the statement is quoted
verbatim. For Common Council Members who were in office at the time of the vote on the sale of Fulton Street, their votes on that critical issue are noted. Links
back to the corresponding audio clips are provided, either following
the entry for a given candidate, or following all the entries for a
given district, depending on how the candidates were grouped in the
audio clips. Candidates for Erie County
Legislature, 1st District Daniel M. Kozub (incumbent; D, C, I, W) did not respond to our invitation.
Vincent M. Tobia (R) had a scheduling conflict. Jason C. Womer (I) did not respond to our invitation. Candidates for Erie County
Legislature, 2nd District Timothy M. Kennedy (incumbent; D, C, I, W) did not respond to our invitation. Dennis M. Marek (R)
did not respond to our invitation. Candidates for Erie County Legislature, 3rd District George A. Holt (D) was
removed from the ballot by signature challenge, so he was not invited to
participate in the forum.. Barbara Miller-Williams (incumbent; D, I, W) spoke at the forum: She is the Democratic
candidate, and does not know whether she has an opponent. She says she is open-minded on the casino
issue. She was appointed 3/1/07, said
she does not yet have a position on this issue.
She came here to listen and to learn.
She hears people in the community saying, "We need jobs; we need
economic development," and they expect the casino to provide them. She’s heard about businesses folding, and jobs
lost in other cities that brought in casinos (Atlantic City, Niagara Falls),
but she’s not convinced that this would happen in Buffalo, as she cannot
predict the future. Is there another
project for the district? The ECC city
campus is giving people skills. A casino
is not necessarily the answer. She is
concerned about people losing money through gambling. We should look at funding for gambling
problems. She would like a meeting with
CACGEC.
Alan J. Bedenko (D)
spoke at the forum. He is running unopposed in
the Democratic primary. He says that what
happens in the city affects the suburbs.
Gambling is illegal in Joel Rose clarified that
the lottery, pari-mutuel betting, OTB and charity bingo are exceptions to the
general prohibition against gambling already carved out by amendment in the New
York State Constitution. (Listen to audio clip for this candidate) Michael H. Ranzenhofer* (R, C, I) had a conflicting engagement.
Candidates for Erie County L Kathy Konst* (D) did
not respond to our invitation. Thomas R. Ulbrich (R, C, I) had a conflicting engagement but e-mailed the following
statement: “I am certainly interested
in your group and would be willing to meet with you when elected. My door will be open to discuss the
issue. I do not believe that casino
gambling is a panacea for our community that some claim it will be. I look forward to our meeting in the future.” Candidates for Erie County L Ralph R. Hernandez (D) spoke
at the forum: Mr. Hernandez has been a school
board member. He is against the casino. It is not an economic boon, it affects the poorest
of the poor, and it hurts the economy.
It would prevent major corporations from coming here, since they would
consider a nearby casino a recipe for disaster.
He would advocate against gaming.
The He has been a resident for
40 years. He has principles, honesty, and
the political will to do what people elect him for. Maria R. Whyte* (D, R, W) spoke at the forum: She is opposed to casino
gambling. She is a plaintiff in the
lawsuit. A casino is not good economic
development policy. Buffalo i
The fight against the
casino has just begun. A casino is not a
golden egg. Syaed Amian Ali (D) did
not respond to our invitation. Dorian Gaskin (D) did not respond to our
invitation. Betty Jean Grant* (D, I, W) spoke at the forum: She says the best bet for
stopping the casino is the lawsuit. She
says the Mayor, the Council and the Legislature will do nothing and lack the
will to oppose the casino. Legislators
are pressured by those above them.
Requests for improvements for their districts are thwarted, if they
don’t go along with the will of those calling the shots. Candidates will do and say anything to get
votes. But she doesn’t expect change to
come through the legislature. The best
bet is the lawsuit.
John M. Dudziak (D, C) did
not respond to our invitation. Deborah S. Kubiak (D, W)
could not be located. Thomas J. Mazur (D, W) spoke at the forum: He is opposed to gambling. He will become a plaintiff in the lawsuit. The legislative body should take a strong position. In addition to the economic issues, there is a health issue: smoking is permitted in the casino. Mr. Mazur also sent a statement via e-mail: “The long and short of this issue for me is quite simple. I am opposed to casino gambling as a revenue source for this region. It's a form of decadence for our society and it doesn't showcase the charm of what Buffalo and the Western New York region is all about. Above all, I don't even see these revenues helping those that need it the most in the Seneca Nation. It is a misdirected money grab impacting the poorest of the poor who are bent on chasing a get rich fast dream. The odds are always stacked against the players, bringing about more losers than winners.” (Listen to audio clip for this candidate) Joshua J. Penfold (D) apparently
withdrew from the race. Candidates for Erie County L Cynthia E. Locklear* (D) had a scheduling conflict. Timothy M. Wroblewski (D, I, W) did not respond to our invitation. Candidates for Erie County L Michelle M. Iannello* (D, C, I, W) declined to participate in the forum. Rus Thompson (R) spoke
at the forum: He is trying to get rid of
the Grand Island b
(Listen to audio clip for this candidate) Joel P. Feroleto (D) spoke
at the forum: The casino is a bad
idea. It will not create economic
growth. The land should not be taken off
the tax base. There should have been
public hearings before the decision was made. In his door-to-door
campaigning, he finds people want to voice their opposition to the casino. If elected, he would hold public hearings and
draft a resolution. He would join in the
lawsuit, picking up where the present There is no positive result
from the casino in Lynn M. Marinelli* (D, C, I, W) spoke at the forum: Her position on casino was outlined
in a letter she wrote previously to former Interior Secretary Gale Norton
indicating her opposition to a casino in Norton never replied to her
letter. Marinelli offered to join as
amicus in the lawsuit. Each legislative
district represents 50-60 thousand persons.
Candidates for Erie County L James A. Liegl (R) did
not respond to our invitation. Robert B. Reynolds* (D, C, I, W) had other engagements.
He did send a brief statement to the effect that he’s undecided on the
casino issue. Candidates for Erie County L John J. Mills* (R, C, I) had a scheduling conflict. He did say that he opposes the casino. Suzann M. Tighe-Cushman (D, W) spoke at the forum: She lost the last election
by 1.5%. She is a former teacher, and worked
in (Listen to audio clip for this candidate) Candidates for Erie County L Thomas A. Loughran (D, C, I, W) had a scheduling conflict, but attempted to provide a
stand-in. Bradley W. Rowles (R)
had to work, but wanted to talk with us. Candidates for Erie County L Edward A. Rath, III (R, C, I) did not respond to our invitation. Francina J. Spoth (R) did not respond to our invitation. Thomas R. Weisbeck (D) did
not respond to our invitation. Candidates for Buffalo C Michael J. LoCurto* (D, I) spoke at the forum: He is one of few who have
had an opportunity to vote against the casino, on the losing side of a 6-3 vote
to sell Joel Rose asks if there is
something else he, as Council member, can do, hold public hearings? What about issue of giving variances? Irv Rubin asks about the issue of bribes
related to public contracts. LoCurto
answers that there
is a pending resolution regarding open bidding on contracts, putting
contracts
and bids on line. There may be a
conflict involving the Director of Economic Development. He cites
the Webb report. He wants hearings on this issue and will ask
questions. He has criticized on the
floor of the Council the relationship with Bass Pro Board and the
Economic
Development Commission. The Council has
not seen a single plan and has asked for representation on the
Commission.
LoCurto voted against the sale of Fulton Street to the Seneca Nation of Indians for the casino. (Listen to audio clip for this candidate) She does not support casino
gambling. It is socially and
economically devastating. We should
offer alternatives, like supporting small businesses. When asked if she can say "No" to
the Mayor, answered that she should not be judged on basis of her relationship
to the Mayor. Her relationship with him
will be beneficial because she can go to him and express her position. She will work with him, but will let him know
when she disagrees with him. She thinks
a strong anchor like Bass Pro is needed for the downtown waterfront area, but
the site should be reconsidered. There
has not been enough public input into the plan put forth recently. On the issue of living wage she says all employees
deserve a living wage. The problem is
with the Control Board which says raises cannot be given. (Listen to audio clip for this candidate) Charles V. Panzarella (R) did not respond to our invitation.
We were not successful in reaching him by phone, so there was only a
written invitation. Candidates for Buffalo C Brian C. Davis* (D, I) did
not respond to our invitation.
Davis voted for the sale of Fulton Street to the Seneca Nation of Indians for the casino.
Byron J. McIntyre (D, C, W) spoke at the forum: He is a fire fighter and a teacher. He went to the casino with $200, but spent
$700. The current casino in (Listen to audio clip for this candidate) Candidates for Buffalo C Nicholas A. Caetano (R) did
not respond to our invitation. David A. Franczyk* (D, C, I) did not respond to our invitation.
Franczyk voted for the sale of Fulton Street to the Seneca Nation of Indians for the casino.
Samuel A. Herbert (D) had a last-minute conflict. In
a phone message following the event, he apologized for missing the forum and
then repeated his oft-stated support for the casino in what he sees as the absence
of other job opportunities. Candidates for Buffalo C Richard A. Fontana* (D, C, I) had a scheduling conflict.
Fontana voted for the sale of Fulton Street to the Seneca Nation of Indians for the casino.
Richard M. Gattone (R) did
not respond to our invitation. Candidates for Buffalo C Melissa R. H. Brown (D) spoke
at the forum: She opposes the casino—it doesn't
benefit the community. We must stop it
before it happens. It’s time for a
change. She will represent the whole city.
The city deserves better. The Masten
District deserves better. Dwayne A. Ferguson (D) spoke
at the forum: He is a retired teacher. His job would be to bring back the community. He says No to the casino—it will not bring
anything to people. He would fight the casino. Terry Robinson (D) was
invited late, because his candidacy was not generally known, and did not
respond. Demone A. Smith* (D, C, I) spoke at the forum: He served four years as an Erie
County Legislator. In theory, he doesn’t
like casino gambling. But do it right—like
in Regarding the living wage—the
city needs to find $4 million to fund it.
The Council found $1 to 1.5 million.
He talked to the Mayor today. He
is serious about it. The Mayor wants to
solve the problem. What we are doing regarding
economic development in the District –the ECC campus provides educational
opportunities.
Eric Jones (G) spoke
at the forum: He is the only Green Party
candidate in David A. Rivera (D, I, W) spoke at the forum: He is the endorsed
Democratic candidate. Opposes the casino
because: 1. the compact is illegal; 2. there has been no community input; 3.
the negative economic impact. The City
has sold us a false sense of economic development. There will be no development; restaurants and
downtown will suffer. If he had been
there for the We need good schools and
job opportunities. Sergio R. Rodriguez (R)
spoke at the forum: He is a city landlord. He is concerned about the moral implications
of gambling. He is concerned with youth
violence. The pools should be opened up
to keep kids off the streets, also open up schools. Peter J. Savage, III (D, C) had prior commitments, but he
e-mailed the following statement:
“Although
I am unable to attend, I would like to take this opportunity to express my
views with respect to casino gambling. I
have never gambled in a casino locally or otherwise. I have never been to Asked
for a clarification of the connection between zoning reform and casino
gambling, he added: “With
respect to zoning reform, I was merely pointing out the importance of
concentrating our efforts on facilitating true economic development
opportunities rather than pinning our hopes to desperate "pie in the
ski" efforts such as casinos.”
Joseph Golombek, Jr.* (D) is running unopposed.
He did not respond to our invitation. Golombek voted against the sale of Fulton Street to the Seneca Nation of Indians for the casino.
Candidates for Buffalo C Michael P. Kearns* (D) is
running unopposed. He had a scheduling
conflict.
Kearns voted against the sale of Fulton Street to the Seneca Nation of Indians for the casino.
Candidates for Buffalo C Chris W. Brown, Jr. (R) did
not respond to our invitation. Bonnie E. Russell* (D, R, C, I) had a scheduling conflict.
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