Letter To The Editor: Re-Elect Mayor Gearity

To the Editor:

As a homeowner for 33-years in Ossining Village, I urge all Ossining voters to support the re-election of Mayor Victoria Gearity in the upcoming democratic primary, and again in the general election for
Ossining Village Mayor.

Mayor Gearity is responsive to her constituents and brings the right level of experience to address the important issues facing this village.

I have been in contact with the Mayor four times over her term. She always returns my e-mails with thoughtful detailed answers sometimes within hours after I’ve e-mailed them.

For example:
1) She was instrumental in getting the storm drain sinkhole fixed on Hillside Terrace (my street) – many thanks to the DPW crew who worked extra hard to do the job right.
2) When I pointed out the condition of Snowden Ave she responded and the upper half of this heavily traveled railroad access street was repaved.
3) When I came out against the idea of a traffic circle on Main Street, she expressed her well thought out arguments for the project.
4) When I asked why the Town/Village could not build an outdoor swimming pool complex like the Town of Mt. Pleasant she provided a thoughtful answer that boiled down to dollars and cents.

Lastly, the Mayor’s family owns a home in our village and her kids like my daughter are products of Ossining schools. My school tax bill just arrived, but I take comfort in knowing that she understands the burden of high property taxes.

However, groups like Community Voices Heard want to increase subsidized housing and urge passing of the Emergency Tenant Protection Act (ETPA), which would implement government control over apartment rents, leases and maintenance. This rule, if passed will inevitably have damaging consequences on homeowners and businesses. The result will be higher taxes, the potential for buildings to fall in disrepair and fewer not more housing options.

I am sure that Mayor Gearity will be just as thoughtful about the need for rent subsidies and regulations and reject ETPA.

Michael Spall, Ossining NY