NyackNewsAndViews offered more than twenty candidates on the ballot in Nyack the opportunity to submit a “closing statement” for voters before the Tuesday Nov 8 General Election.

Here are statements from the two candidates for Orangetown Supervisor: Paul Whalen (R) and Andy Stewart (D). Candidates are listed in random order.

Paul Whalen: I have been a resident of the community for 51 years. I have been married to my wife Debbie for 32 years and we are the proud parents of 5 children. My desire to be involved in town government along with my successful business experience are what I feel give me the ability to be a great Supervisor. I want Orangetown to remain the best town for years to come.

As the economic downturn has hit our community, I have had to make cuts in our overhead and work to lower the tax rates for our citizen’s. With pension and medical cost rising, we will have to continue to find cost savings so that we can continue to attract business and industry to our community. Currently 35% of our town tax base is commercial taxpayers. Much of my efforts have been to attract new companies to our community. I have worked very hard to create 506 new jobs. I have also worked hard to save 830 jobs from leaving the town ‘€“ the good news in all of this is that Orangetown is a great place to live and also to do business in. When I arrived in January 2010, I was told that our largest taxpayer Pfizer had made the decision to only operate as a research and development company in the future. Many friends of mine have lost their jobs in the manufacturing component there. Myself and the Town Board were able to negotiate a settlement that saved our tax payers 12 million dollars.

I want to thank you for the trust you have given me to serve you these past 2 years. I will continue to work hard and smart and to always work on your behalf. I would appreciate your vote in electing me to another 2 year term. God Bless you and your family.

Andy Stewart: My name is Andy Stewart and I hope you will elect me Orangetown Supervisor on Tuesday, Nov. 8. I’m the CEO of Keep Rockland Beautiful, a member of the Orangetown Planning Board, a graduate of Leadership Rockland, chair of the Rockland County Water Quality Committee, and a homeowner in Nyack with my wife Rachel Grob and our children Jonah and Talia.

On November 8th, you’ll find my name on Row A of the ballot along with other Democratic candidates for Town Council, Elijah Reichlin-Melnick and Robert Dell.  We need your support, or better-funded Republicans will sweep the Town Council, political balance will be lost, and the river villages plus Tappan, Sparkill and Orangeburg will lack representation in Town affairs.

Why should you care? Paul Whalen recently voted to give $10,000 to a nonprofit on whose board he sits. This favoritism resulted in decreased funding for the Nyack Center. But that is not all. Sewers, police, parks, golf courses, road maintenance — we all use and pay taxes for vital Town services and need to have a voice in their management.

As Supervisor I will:

• Control taxes through better budget planning and Smart Growth
• Support ‘€œgreen infrastructure’€ to control flooding and improve water quality
• Appoint a Town Council member to serve as liaison to the River Villages
• Support community policing in Nyack
• Make Town parks and rec programs more accessible to Village kids
• Please view my full platform at www.andystewart2011.com and let me know your thoughts. Local government is much more a product of citizen involvement than most people appreciate. My sincere hope is that my tenure as your Supervisor will be remembered as a time of greatly increased public participation and oversight of Town affairs by a well-informed and engaged community.

Nov. 8, ‘€œRow A, All the Way!’€