ONEONTA _ The SUNY Oneonta student, city alderman and former Hartwick College president running for mayor say they will stump Saturday during the Fourth of July celebration in Neahwa Park.
Jason Corrigan, 21, Erik Miller, 34, and Richard Miller, 66, are in the midst of petitioning to get on the ballot with a major political party.
Party petitions are due at the Otsego County Board of Elections between July 13 and July 16.
Mayor John Nader, a Democrat, announced in March he had been appointed as provost of the State University College of Technology at Delhi and would not seek a second, four-year term.
Corrigan said he has been enjoying going door-to-door to get the 122 signatures needed to get on the ballot as a Democrat. He said he hopes to collect 250.
"I'm sure a lot of them are going to be questioned," Corrigan said Wednesday, referring to the process of challenging petition signatures.
Corrigan transferred to the State University College at Oneonta from the State University College at Plattsburgh for the spring 2008 semester.
Corrigan said has been meeting with business and community leaders to plot a new course for the city, which he said has remained status quo for 30 to 40 years.
"It's time to move forward," Corrigan said.
He said he is lobbying Amtrak for passenger rail service linking Oneonta with Albany and Binghamton; is exploring "green-energy" options for city buildings, such as solar panels; and looking at ways to support arts and entertainment programs.
Corrigan said he looks forward to challenging his opponents to several debates, including an outdoor debate at Muller Plaza where the candidates can "step on a box" and pitch themselves to voters.
Alderman Erik Miller
Erik Miller, a Republican, won election to his first term on the Common Council in 2007, and his candidacy for mayor was endorsed by the city Republican committee in May.
He is the executive director of the Otsego County Conservation Association. His Council seat is not up for re-election this year.
"I'm out walking around, doing some meet-and-greets," Miller said of his campaign so far.
Miller said the major concerns he is hearing from the public are taxation levels, especially for seniors, and a need to improve the sense of community.
"I really want to get out there on a grass-roots level and make a difference," Miller said.
Among the most-pressing issues faced by the city is the need to improve aging infrastructure, he said.
Erik Miller said he also would like to focus on improving the morale of the city work force.
It's also clear that 2010 will be a year for the city to "tighten our belts," Miller said.
"The city is very well-off," he said, but it will only be able to stretch its wealth so far.
Ex-Hartwick President
Richard Miller
Richard Miller, who is not related to Erik Miller, retired as president of Hartwick College last year and has since founded a consulting firm.
Miller, an independent, launched his bid for mayor in early May, and had sought the approval of the Republican and Democratic committees to get on their ballots as required by state election law. The Democrats approved his request, setting the state for a potential primary with Corrigan on Sept. 15.
Under state election law, Miller cannot collect petition signatures by himself for the Democratic line, and his campaign committee has been going door-to-door, he said Wednesday.
Among supporters of the former college president are Nader and Kim Muller, a former mayor and Democratic Party activist.
"I think the strengths of my candidacy are experience and professionalism," Richard Miller said.
He said he is concerned about the conditions of the city's neighborhoods and downtown, and foresees difficult financial decisions next year because of a projected decline in state financial support and sales-tax revenue.
"You can't spend what you don't have," Miller said.
This decline in outside revenue has the potential to shift the burden to property taxes, he said.
The Common Council, city staff and the mayor need to be able to put their differences aside, Miller said.
In addition to getting on the ballot as a Democrat, he said, he will also be seeking a line for his Collaborate for Oneonta party.
Corrigan is also seeking an independent line on the ballot on his Unifying Oneonta party.
A candidate running in an independent party needs 136 signatures, and the first day for signing will be July 7, with petitions due between Aug. 11 and 18.
Erik Miller said he is not seeking an independent party line, but he is looking for the handful of signatures needed to get on the Independence, Working Families Party and Conservative party lines.
The mayor's post pays $19,500 annually.
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Jake Palmateer can be reached at 432-1000 or (800) 721-1000, ext. 221, or at jpalmateer@thedailystar.com.
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