Meet the Candidate: Roger Gross

At a recent Eastern Putnam County League of Women Voters candidate forum, Gross (R) shared some information about himself with community members. According to his statements that night, he:

(Personal)

• Is originally from Pleasantville
• Is a husband, and a father to two sons who attended

(Education, Career, Community)

• Worked in the Brewster Central School District for 32 years (21 of which he acted as head of the Social Studies Department)
• Owned a seasonal business with his wife in the 1970s
• Spent 13 months in Vietnam serving with the U.S. Army
• Is currently serving in his third term on the Brewster Board of Education, and is a member of the , the Putnam Land Trust and the  
• Worked in the office of the New York State Senate for five years (mainly on veteran affairs, education issues and homeland security), which provided him with "a wide understanding of how government works in helping all kinds of constituents in all kinds of situations"

(Local Government)

• Says his philosophy is "what is best for the Town of Southeast at the best cost," and that it holds true no matter what vendor or projects come along
• Believes the Town needs to work with the Village of Brewster in a "cooperative vein" when it comes to consolidation of services — and says that he, along with Board members Robert Cullen and Elizabeth Hudak, have experience doing so
• Says the should be open and remain funded, especially in these "hard economic times," as folks have been frequenting the facility more often
• Foresees the Board drafting two separate budgets for 2012, given the significant hike in funding Library officials plan to ask for through a public referendum in November
• Would not mind looking into the issue of a public referendum for the Town budget, but acknowledges that obtaining proper approvals for such a process would take time
• Says he and his colleagues "rescued a crippling budget" from Supervisor Michael Rights last fall, and instead put a budget in place that was comprehensive, despite five and a half lay-offs
• Says the key to government is compromise and that the Board has a lot of "damage" to repair in terms of its reputation
• Says Southeast is the "cornerstone of Putnam County," and that Routes 22 and 312 are gold mines for attracting businesses to the area
• Is running on the "Integrity for Southeast" committee