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Vital Issues In Chemung County

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Let's switch up the conversation just a little bit. 

Open chat: What are some of the pressing issues you want to hear from candidates about here in Chemung County this election cycle? Chemung County Nursing Facility? Crime? What else? 

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Lack of Code Enforcement in the Town of Baldwin (6th District).  I am so tired of the response to concerns you raise that you are being judgmental or that  people live in the country so they can live how they want.

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All my criticism of Candidates aside I would like some input from them or the Incumbents on the rising crime rates in the rural areas ! What , if anything do they have planned to help the County Sheriff Dept. Increase coverage of Patrols in the outlying Districts , specifically in this case the 6th District , what does Candidate Purvis have planned for this concern . And is there a way as a Legislator is there a way the Candidate can help with with the unsightly property’s in the area , specifically along the Main roads through the Townships in the District . Maybe he can get the so called Code Enforcement Officer  to actually do the Job for which they are paid . 
Again these concerns are given as legitimate questions , all prior criticism aside ! 

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Have any solutions for funding of CCNF been suggested and I missed it? I know at one time there was talk of privatization but I don’t think that was well received by the public. 

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Last I heard was in February the Legislature tabled their plan to spend $$$$ on a 'feasibility study' that was in relation to a possible AOMC deal.

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There was a previous privatization cost analysis study that passed in 2020, but when the pandemic struck the agreement was never executed.

Edited by MsKreed

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Oh that's right. There's so much ridiculousness at the county level it seems like that was forever ago. 

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Yes , and there were comments to the affect that to see what would become of the CCNF one only need to look a block down the street at AOMCs other acquisition , namely St Josephs Hospital. I believe this is a good question for Candidates and Incumbents alike .  

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The slides of Moss's presentation weren't visible on the stream, and not shared on the County website that I could find.

It was good information regarding County run Nursing Facilities and operating costs we have; I'd have liked to have it available for reference.

There was one particular point that he made that would have been nice to see data on......

He first alluded to the high cost of employee benefits: an expense CCNF has that local private facilities do not. Then later.....he stressed that CCNF is currently below staffing levels and has great difficulty recruiting and retaining (CNAs and LPNs specifically) because the private facilities offer so much higher wages that CCNF can't compete. 

Seems like if the candidate pool finds wages to be a bigger incentive than other benefits that the County offers.....maybe the union should rethink what they want for CCNF staff???

 

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In yesterday's Budget Committee Meeting a resolution was passed directing the County Executive to "file an Operations Assessment Report for the Chemung County Nursing Facility" 

 

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Edited by MsKreed

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along with some previous concerns, i would like to know what, if any plans for attracting viable businesses to the area, or what ideas there are to bring back agriculture to the County...despite having a supposedly strong Ag bureau, farming has continuously declined in our are. there is a lot of land just sitting.

Another concern is also 1. Bit more transparency on the part of the IDA. 2. limiting the amount of non-profits allowed to operate within the county 3. again, term limits and the issue of Legislature voting themselves, as pt employees, health benefits that are denied to the other pt County employees 

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Drawing jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities that pay well should be a priority.

As the local burden for Medicaid rises, it would be nice to see real numbers on how many employed residents in the County are recipients.....and where they are employed. Securing income opportunities that exceed Medicaid/SNAP thresholds would reduce that tax burden.

Which current employers (and industries) offer good pay, full-time hours and substantial benefits....and which ones are part-time or staffed by temp agencies?

We hear glowing reports of “job creation” every time the County (boards and councils for economic and industrial growth & development partnered with elected officials) announce a new enterprise. However, we never really see an honest assessment of what those jobs are (or pan out to be).

Our retail corridor tends to be heavily staffed with part-time low benefit jobs.....food service, counter sales and shelf stockers, etc. The Daniel Zenker stretch in Big Flats includes call centers and a seasonal candy factory (that last I knew hired through Addecco). It's almost like some of the "business leaders" in Chemung County who sit on or may have influence (families, business relationships, etc) with those economic boards might not be inclined to encourage employers who may create competition to the compensations they offer their own employees.

Edited by MsKreed
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On 4/5/2022 at 9:23 PM, Adam said:

what ideas there are to bring back agriculture to the County

I honestly don’t know what a county entity can do to bring family farms back into Chemung County. With the economy the way it is, a bag of chicken feed ain’t “chicken feed” anymore. It’s just too damned expensive to struggle to break even.

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20 hours ago, MsKreed said:

Drawing jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities that pay well should be a priority.

Even if it’s a sole proprietorship, or a specialty shop,  local government needs to get out of the way and let them at least try.

The days of big retail are finished. The city and town streets should be lined with small businesses that specialize in a variety of things as well as cafes and pubs. 

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55 minutes ago, Chris said:

The days of big retail are finished. The city and town streets should be lined with small businesses that specialize in a variety of things as well as cafes and pubs. 

Like Owego and Corning....

Edited by MsKreed
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1 hour ago, Chris said:

 local government needs to get out of the way and let them at least try

Imagine if they offered property tax abatements for small businesses owned and operated by members of the community instead of the billion dollar corporations!

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1 hour ago, MsKreed said:

Like Owego and Corning....

Exactly!

Owego is doing really well last time I was down there. There's not a streetside parking spot to be found and people all over the place. 

1 hour ago, MsKreed said:

Imagine if they offered property tax abatements for small businesses owned and operated by members of the community instead of the billion dollar corporations!

Or just didn't regulate them to death!

Some here remember a REALLY excellent bakery that opened for a short time on Water Street. Problem was, the city had so many restrictions on what the owner could or couldn't do, it was hard for her to get any sort of walk-in traffic. So like many others, she said to Hell with it. 

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I am replying to Adam, who wrote:  along with some previous concerns, i would like to know what, if any plans for attracting viable businesses to the area, or what ideas there are to bring back agriculture to the County...despite having a supposedly strong Ag bureau, farming has continuously declined in our are. there is a lot of land just sitting.

My thoughts:  Better than attracting new businesses to the area, there are many opportunities to start home-grown ones.  Walking around the 13th District, I am shocked at how many buildings are empty and decaying. This applies to houses and defunct business locations.  and the parking lots!!!!  What if he City of Elmira took the $1,000,000 it is planning to spend on an irrigation system for the Mark Twain Golf Course, and established a distressed housing revolving loan program. The house I bought cost 52,000 and will need maybe 20,000 to get it into good shape. I think I will then sell it, and buy another foreclosed house, financed with the proceeds from this one.

I am using local labor to do the work I can't do myself (that is most of it) and trying to find builders and handymen has shown up a great need for more people skilled in this area.  A co-operative of all such tradespeople with a central point of contact would make it much easier for homeowners to get the help they need.  And maybe more people would train to go into the business.

As for agriculture, there is a lot of land sitting. Those parking lots I mentioned.  They could be depaved and turned into small urban farms.  This would have the great advantage of greening the city, both literally and figuratively. It would help absorb storm water, which would reduce pressure on the Elmira WWTP, which needs upgrades that could cost as much as 300 million. That is if it is rebuilt using current technology - and outside consultants and companies.  There is, however, the possibility of treating water biologically through a constructed wetland.

Farms outside the city may need to look at their business models, moving to more diverse crops and produce that can be marketed locally. There are a number of successful small farms in the area. To help with marketing, some entrepreneurs could utilize some of the many empty stores to set up a series of permanent farm markets selling what is seasonally available.  Arguably, the higher quality of freshness and lack of chemicals would improve health and reduce pressure on the CCNF.

There are so many possibilities.

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21 hours ago, Elizabeth Whitehouse said:

Those parking lots I mentioned.  They could be depaved and turned into small urban farms.  This would have the great advantage of greening the city, both literally and figuratively

This is an interesting perspective, and now that you mention it, there certainly is a LOT of paved areas with crumbling, vacant buildings no one wants. Although I suspect the red tape involved would make farming to feed folks at, say, the nursing facility would be prohibitive. It's still an interesting idea. 

 

21 hours ago, Elizabeth Whitehouse said:

Farms outside the city may need to look at their business models, moving to more diverse crops and produce that can be marketed locally. There are a number of successful small farms in the area.

Very true, and we as a society have to get more into buying locally grown goods when in season. For God's sake, I was just at the store yesterday to get a cucumber, and they were out. Well, they had the imported ones for 3.00 each still. As I said to the couple standing there, also complaining about the price and availability, "Won't be long, I'll have the garden planted."

I'm looking at putting in more fruit plants to be less dependent on the barely functioning supply chain. 

21 hours ago, Elizabeth Whitehouse said:

...set up a series of permanent farm markets selling what is seasonally available

It is my sincere hope that the county uses some of the ARP funds to build that year round farmers market and convention center at the fairgrounds. That plan was announced almost 10 years ago - it was one of the first things this site's predecessor reported on and fully supported. I really think it would be beneficial both to the county as a draw ( just look at the traffic outside the Ithaca Farmer's Market )but also bridge that gap between farm and table for the locals. 

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Attracting new businesses and providing opportunities for local start-ups aren’t mutually exclusive concepts. In fact, when applied fairly (rather than biasedly picking winners and courting someone’s favorites), good business-friendly practices would encourage both.

Personally, I think we may tend to rely too heavily on some local “economic councils” without necessarily considering whether some board members of those entities always have the best interests of the county as a priority (STEG, CCIDA, Chamber, etc).

Is it a “conspiracy theories” to wonder if CEO’s of Hillard or Streeters or the President of the Local #112 Trades Union might not enthusiastically endorse drawing competition into the county?

The former 5th District legislator who is running again touts as one of his accomplishments: “voted to Expand the Demets Candy factory”.

The same company that CCIDA lured here with a quarter million dollar grant in the first place.  The same company whose workforce is primarily short-term temp employees through Addecco or Manpower, with layoffs once “candy-centric” holidays like Easter and Christmas are past.

In a county with a budget increasingly strained by unfunded Medicaid mandates from Albany, why would we seek “job creation” that perpetuates our high poverty-level instead of long-term living-wage jobs with benefits?

 

There’s sort of an urban legend that’s been floating around for a few generations that, post WWII, Ford Motors showed serious interest in opening a plant in Chemung County....which local leaders declined to support. The further rumor was that some of the larger employers in the area persuaded them to pass on Ford, due to selfish concerns that it would create competition in the local workforce and drive wages up.  

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11 hours ago, MsKreed said:

There’s sort of an urban legend that’s been floating around for a few generations that, post WWII, Ford Motors showed serious interest in opening a plant in Chemung County....which local leaders declined to support. The further rumor was that some of the larger employers in the area persuaded them to pass on Ford, due to selfish concerns that it would create competition in the local workforce and drive wages up.  

Wouldn’t surprise me in the least. 

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For those wondering about Chemung County not suspending the gas tax, here's one perspective:

Screen Shot 2022-06-07 at 10.28.51 AM.png

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That was so fun to watch, I watched it twice. 

Bill McCarthy hit the nail square on the head. Actually, the response from all who spoke up was awesome. But Bill's was a slam dunk. 

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Brennan: "Just wanna say I'm not against poor people, I'm not against poor people having a decent place to stay-"

Briggs ( I believe ): "Just don't let it be Horseheads."

I damn near fell out of my chair laughing. 

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Does Mr. Brennan always spend that much time on his cell phone during meetings? Can any of our neighbors tell us why they would want to reelect him?

My husband and I will be voting for Mr. Bond.

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