by Bea Peterson
Town Supervisor
[private]Keith Cipperly
Keith Cipperly has served two terms as Town Supervisor. He is running for a third term. As Supervisor, he said, he has worked to keep taxes down for Hoosick property owners while improving the demographics of the Town. His efforts, he said, and those of the Town Board, resulted in placing over two million dollars of new property on to the tax rolls. His 2014 budget includes a tax reduction of 1.51%.
Cipperly said that when he took office in 2010, he was left with virtually no fund balance in the four major funds for the Town. Under his direction and oversight, the fund balance in these accounts has increased from just over $151,000 to over 1.2 million dollars. He believes, through his efforts and that of the Board, needed repairs to the Town’s pool, skating rink and playground, which had previously been neglected, are now being done without borrowing money or putting an additional burden on taxpayers. “Repairs to the pool, skating rink and playground will need to be completed in the near future in order to keep them open to the community,” he said. Cipperly believes the Town offices will stay in the Armory for now. “I’m happy with many members of the HAYC3 Board,” he said. “But, I’m only one vote. My main concern right now is fixing the pool.”
Cipperly said he is a strong proponent of resident property rights. His efforts, he said, resulted in changes to the zoning laws making it easier to do business in the Town of Hoosick. He also introduced and saw legislation passed that modified the subdivision law allowing property owners to give land to family members without having it count against them as a simple subdivision.
Cipperly said he was one of the first Town Supervisors in New York State to introduce legislation that opposed the New York State Safe Act. He believes the right to bear arms is a fundamental right and pledges to fight to keep those rights.
He is the first Hoosick Supervisor ever to successfully introduce a resolution freezing his salary each and every year and, if re-elected, will continue this policy.
Cipperly is employed by the NYS Department of Transportation, working out of the Petersburgh garage. He was raised in Hoosick Falls and now resides in the Village with his wife Teresa and their children, Caroline and Aaron. He is a member of the Van Rensselaer Star 400 Masonic Lodge. He has coached youth soccer and, for many years, was a 4-H Club member.
Mark Surdam
Mark Surdam has served as an elected Republican Town Councilman for more than nine years. “I am fed up with this Supervisor and his actions,” he said. “I feel the Town deserves and needs someone who is able and willing to work with Town officials, employees and the community as a whole, for one common goal – to better our town.”
“I dislike the political smoke and mirrors I see going on. Our Supervisor has stated that he has raised our fund balance from $150,000 to $1.2 million, knowing that this is not true. Our Annual Financial Report, as given to NY State for the 2009 year, shows he started with a Fund Balance of over $708,000. I mention this only to show that our current Supervisor has no problem bending the truth to fit his political needs. He has done the same with the fact sheet he has been passing out trying to discredit me. I take exception to the manipulation of facts, the partial truths and the outright lies that the Supervisor and his supporters are putting out there.
We know that we need to spend an estimated $450,000 this year to repair the pool yet the proposed budget does not include this spending. How can you propose a spending plan that does not include estimates of what you know you are going to spend? How do you do this and offer a 1.5% tax decrease? I will be open and honest with taxpayers.”
“As far as I am concerned, when you look at all that Hoosick has to offer there is not a better place to live and raise a family. I will work with my fellow Board members and other community leaders to seek and encourage ideas and discussions for some needed revitalization. Taxes are an issue. We are taxed at every turn. In Hoosick I will work to put together a five year spending plan that will help control our taxes while maintaining our equipment, property and services.”
“With the actions and situations I have witnessed as a Town Board member these last few years I knew coming into this election I wanted a choice for a change in the Supervisor position. I know others want to see new leadership in Hoosick as well. I decided to run for Town Supervisor to offer that choice and bring new leadership. I am working with Democrats and Republicans in this election in an effort to lower the level of political games, to bring together a group of people who will put Hoosick First and put politics in the trash bin. I am ready, willing and able to bring a positive leadership change in our community.”
A major issue since Surdam has been on the Board has been Land Use, and he voted against it. “I saw such a level of passion on both sides of the issue, and I felt that if there was this much passion, the community as a whole should vote on it. I personally was more comfortable with the Land Use Plan after it was significantly scaled back as part of a compromise.” As far as the Town offices staying in the Armory, Surdam said, “We’re tenants now. We are working with HAYC3, and we want to keep supporting them. We have to see what their five year plan is.”
Surdam is currently on the Revitalization Committee put together by Village Mayor David Borge. In the past he has been active in the Hoosick Baptist Church serving as a deacon and most recently as a Trustee responsible for buildings and grounds. Prior to moving to Hoosick Falls he was a volunteer fireman in North Bennington. While his children were growing up, he spent a lot of time coaching youth sports.
Years ago Surdam was a part time police officer in Bennington, VT, and then in Hoosick Falls. He worked for Haynes Ford for 16 years. He has been involved in local real estate, owns a small property management company and currently works at Delurey Sales and Service. He and his wife, Mary Wirmusky, raised their children here in the Village.
Town Council (two seats open)
David Sutton
David Sutton is running for Town of Hoosick Councilman. He said he hopes to work with all concerned people in the community to preserve our heritage in a fiscally responsible, progressive, collaborative and optimistic way. “This community is struggling, and we need new leadership to make a change; the status quo is not working. We can have a resurgence of community, prosperity and dignity for the new generations.”
Sutton has been a member of the HFCS Board of Education since 2000. He served as Board President for seven years. “In the last six years, the school has progressed in ranking from 67th to 34th in the Capital District Business Review,” he said. The high school is currently ranked 16th out of 85 local schools. Sutton has supplied approximately $20,000 of pro-bono drainage work at the HFCS athletic fields and elementary school playground.
For ten years he worked as a project manager for the family landscaping business supervising projects in excess of one million dollars for clients such as IBM, GE and Corning Glass. Since 1995 he has operated Suttonscapes, LLC, a modest, full service, design/build landscape construction firm based in Hoosick.
Doing for the community is important to Sutton. In 1998 he designed and built the stone walls, planted trees and installed benches at the tennis courts. He helped build the first phase of the Hoosick River Greenway for the Village of Hoosick Falls. With David Begin he designed and built the Respect Life park for Immaculate Conception Church. Recently he worked with the Hoosac School to transform the traffic island at the intersection of Routes 22 and 7.
In the past he has coached fifth and sixth grade girl’s basketball at St. Mary’s. From 1985 to 1992 he was Assistant Coach for the HFCS Wrestling team and in 2000 he was the Head Coach.
He and his wife Amy live in West Hoosick, where he is a lifelong resident. He is a 1983 graduate of HFCS and a graduate of SUNY Cobleskill. He is an honorary alumni of St. Mary’s Academy and a founding member of the Coach Ken Baker Fund.
Sutton’s vocal talents are well known. He has participated in fundraisers for Immaculate Conception Church, HACA/Food Pantry, St. Mary’s Academy, the Health Center, and the Telethon for Children with Disabilities, Wildwood.
Jeff Wysocki
Jeff Wysocki is finishing his first term as Hoosick Town Councilman. He also serves as Deputy Town Supervisor. He is running for a second term. Wysocki said he has worked closely with Supervisor Cipperly and other Board members to keep taxes down, provide better services to the residents and change zoning regulations to help new businesses come to Town. He also worked with Board Member Bruce Patire to change insurance coverage for the Town resulting in better coverage and a savings of approximately $16,000 a year.
Wysocki served as Chairman of the Farm Land Protection Committee and oversaw the completion of the Farm Land Protection Plan. He served on the County Ag and Farm Land Protection Plan Review Board.
Wysocki and his wife Vicki, both life-long residents of the Town of Hoosick, raised three sons in Hoosick Falls and now enjoy spending time with their granddaughter. They own and operate Wysocki Farm. Wysocki has attended several leadership training and fiscal management classes to better serve the community.
Joyce Brewer
Joyce (Wilwol) Brewer is seeking her first term on the Hoosick Town Board. As past Deputy Town Clerk Brewer said she understands the processes and the responsibilities of local government. She is currently employed as the Finance Director of the non-profit Troy Area United Ministries. She feels her financial management skills and grant writing training have equipped her to be helpful in alleviating some of the Town’s fiscal burdens.
Through the years Brewer has been, and continues to be, involved with a multitude of organizations and events in Hoosick. She grew up with 4-H and the Rensselaer County Dairy program. She has been a Girl Scout leader for 13 years. For the last six years she has been Service Unit Leader for the entire Hoosick Falls Girl Scout community. In that time she has helped organize a number of projects, from the community garden to the reinvigoration of the Thrift Shop at St. Mark’s Church. She has organized numerous fundraising projects that have benefitted the Girl Scouts and the community at large, such as the Tucker Thayne Fund and the “Fill the Bus” for the Hoosick Falls Food Pantry. Brewer has been in charge of all the concessions for the HFCS Performing Arts Department, and she is an adult helper with the Jazz Band and the Pep Band.
Brewer is a life member of the First United Church Presbyterian, where she is an elder, treasurer, choir member, Sunday School teacher and has been a VBS volunteer for over 20 years. She is an active member of the Hoosick Area Church Association and was named their Volunteer of the Year in 2012.
Brewer is a life long Town resident. She and her husband Todd live in West Hoosick with their two daughters.
Michael Hickey
Michael Hickey is a registered Democrat running for a seat on the Hoosick Town Board. Hickey is a lifelong resident of Hoosick Falls. His family has roots in the Village that date back five generations.
Hickey graduated from HFCS in 1997 and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from Cazenovia College. In 2008 he joined Farm Family Insurance where he is employed as a Commercial Lines Underwriter.
Hickey served on the Hoosick Falls Village Board for three years. He resigned after purchasing a home outside the Village, in the Town of Hoosick, where he now lives with his partner Angela Cottrell and their three year old son Oliver Ersel Hickey. Oliver is named after Hickey’s father, John “Ersel” Hickey, who passed away in February 2013. John had a great sense of community that Hickey admired. “I aspire to follow in my father’s footsteps of community involvement and service, and I am committed to serving the Town of Hoosick with honesty, fairness and sincerity,” he said.
Highway Superintendent
Last November Democrat Bill Shiland III and Republican Louis Schmigel were on the ballot to fill the one year remaining on 25 year Highway Superintendent Bill Shiland, Jr.’s term as Superintendent. Shiland unexpectedly retired in August of 2012. Schmigel won that election, and now the two are candidates for a full four year term as Hoosick Highway Superintendent.
Louis Schmigel
Schmigel has owned and operated Schmigel Excavating for several years. He started working in the business with his grandfather in his early teens and has 30 years experience in the field. He said the skills required to run a successful business such as managing finances, job scheduling, planning and supervisory experience have been helpful in his transition to Highway Superintendent. He has quickly learned the day to day operations, and he works with the Town employees to provide the best service possible to maintain safe roads for the Town.
Schmigel said his experience as a Town Councilman has helped him better understand the Highway Department budget and he will work to keep within that budget.
Louis and his wife Michelle live in the Village. Together they have two sons, Justin and Joe. Louis is an avid bowler. He also enjoys shooting darts, playing horseshoes, golfing and skiing, but most of all he enjoys spending time with his family. He has served on the PeeWee Football Board, coached Little League Baseball and Youth Basketball. He is a member of the Polish Hall, the Pioneer Fish and Game Club and the Eagles.
Bill Shiland III
Bill said, “I have been with the Town of Hoosick Highway Department for almost 20 years as a heavy equipment operator and truck driver. I have learned from the best and work with a great crew. I believe I have what it takes to work with our multi-talented road crew and get the job done.” Shiland pledges to bring back the practice of dirt road grading several times a year and to make patching potholes on blacktop roads a priority every spring. He vows to keep all highway equipment serviced regularly. Shiland hopes his fellow Democrats will be elected so together they can create a five year plan for purchasing highway equipment that the Town needs. In any case, he vows to budget for the Town’s highway needs and to plan ahead. He said he will work hard to make sure tax dollars are spent efficiently while maintaining the roads winter and summer.
Shiland said, “It’s unfortunate that Town employees felt the need to protect themselves through union membership, but now that they have,” he said, “as Highway Superintendent I will work hard to keep the lines of communication open and meet the needs of the Town workers and Town residents.”
Shiland is a graduate of Hoosick Falls Central School. He has lived in the Town of Hoosick his whole life. “My wife Rebecca and I have been married for eight years. We have three wonderful sons, William and Andrew and my stepson Ryan Philpott. Shiland is a member of the Pioneer Fish and Game Club and spends his free time with his family.
Running Unopposed
Tom Restino, Town Justice
Tom Restino has been a Justice for the Town of Hoosick since 1996. He is running for re-election and is endorsed by both the Democrats and Republicans.
Justice Restino and his wife Margaret are life-long residents of Hoosick Falls. They have three children. He has worked for DePaula Chevrolet for 13 years.
Justice Restino’s father was also a Town of Hoosick Justice.
Sue Stradinger, Town Clerk
Seventeen years ago Sue Stradinger was appointed Hoosick Town Clerk. In her first run for the position she defeated her opponent and she has run unopposed since then. Stradinger and her husband Louis have lived in West Hoosick for 35 years. They have two children and two grandchildren.
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