Published: July 17, 2009 12:00 am      

Otsego to have 6 contested races

Six of 14 seats on the Otsego County Board of Representatives will be contested this year, according to the Otsego County Board of Elections.

Thursday was the deadline for filing elections petitions.

Currently, Republicans hold 10 seats to the Democrats' four. Two Democrats are being challenged by the GOP; Republicans face four challenges, one of which is from a fellow party member.

Those contested races are:

District 2 (Butternuts, Morris and Pittsfield): Democrat Irving Wesley Hall of Pittsfield is challenging incumbent Republican James Powers of Butternuts.

Hall, a retired professor and writer, said Friday he is running because he believes the county needs a manager, resolution of its contract with the CSEA and improvement of communication.

``I also think we're in a recession that will be deeper than the Great Depression, and we're not doing nearly enough to get ready for it,'' he said.

Hall said the board has been beset by ``toxic relationships'' and if elected, he would work to unite members for the common good.

Powers, the board's chairman, is completing his 10th year in office.

He said he will run on his record of working to resolve the county's solid-waste woes, pushing forward with communication upgrades and holding county expenses and taxes down.

During his tenure, he said, the board has taken steps to improve emergency communications and get out of, or at least revamp, MOSA.

District 4 (town of Oneonta): Republican Janet Hurley Quackenbush is challenging incumbent Democrat Richard Murphy.

Quackenbush, an Oneonta Town Council member, has said she is running to help restrain county property taxes and to help improve the county's budgeting.

``In the last two years, the county board has not even passed a budget, opting to let a default budget slide into place instead of a proactive effort to develop a rational budget process with reforms in place that ensure each member's participation and an open process,'' she stated recently.

Murphy, who is completing his first term in office, has noted that he serves on the county's Administration Committee, which has taken the lead in reducing expenses this year as declining sales-tax revenue threatens to put the county over budget.

Murphy also has advocated having board members examine the pros and cons of continuing to operate the county's nursing home, Otsego Manor, which drains a significant amount of tax dollars.

District 6 (Decatur, Westford, Maryland and Worcester): Republican John Imperato of Schenevus is challenging incumbent Republican Donald Lindberg of Worcester.

Imperato, a county dispatcher and president of CSEA Local 8100, said he believes the county board is myopic.

``I don't think they're very effective,'' he said recently. ``I don't think they have the camaraderie or vision to guide the county toward long-term goals.''

As an example, he said, the county and CSEA have not been able to agree on a new contract in more than 21/2 years of negotiating.

Lindberg, who is completing his 10th year on the board, said representatives do a lot more for the county than is generally recognized.

Lindberg, an entrepreneur, is chairman of the county's Otsego Manor Committee and a former board chairman.

He said he, too, wants to resolve the contract stand-off, but without imposing a new burden on taxpayers.

District 10 (Edmeston, Burlington, Plainfield and Exeter): Democrat Keith Carpenter, former Edmeston town supervisor, is challenging Republican Betty Anne Schwerd.

Carpenter, an executive with American Marketing Solution and a member of the Edmeston Central School Board, said he running for numerous reasons, including concerns about the environmental risks of natural-gas drilling.

``That concerns me, and I also think we should investigate the long-term consequences of operating Otsego Manor,'' he said.

Schwerd, who is completing her fourth year on the board, has said she is running to keep county expenses and taxes in check. She serves as chairwoman of the county's Intergovernmental Affairs Committee and serves on the Administration Committee, which has spearheaded efforts to cut the 2009 budget.

District 12 (city of Oneonta, wards 3 and 4): Republican Craig Gelbsman is challenging incumbent Democrat Cathy Rothenberger.

Gelbsman could not be reached for comment by phone Thursday afternoon.

Rothenberger, who is completing her 16th year on the board, said recently that she is seeking another term for several reasons, including helping children by ``making sure distressed families are given every opportunity to stay together.''

District 13 (city of Oneonta, wards 5 and 6): Democrat Linda Rowinski is challenging incumbent Republican Scott Harrington.

Rowinski, who formerly worked for the county's court office, works in the real estate and title insurance business. She said she could offer insights on the effects of natural-gas drilling on real-estate values and would work to resolve the county's impasse with the CSEA.

She also weighed in on the county's second consecutive default budget, saying board members should assure they craft a spending plan they will support.

Harrington, chairman of the county's Human Services Committee, said he is seeking re-election because he likes serving the public. He said he believes the board has done a good job of addressing problems from MOSA to telecommunication woes.

``We're cleaning up a lot of problems we inherited,'' he said ``I think this board has been very proactive, and we work well together, no matter which party we're in.''

Harrington is completing his second year; during his first, he chaired the county's Otsego Manor Committee.