Putnam County Executive Seat and Legislative Seat Previews

County Executive Race

The marquee race, the fight for county executive, is between incumbent Republican MaryEllen Odell and longtime Legislator and Democrat Sam Oliverio. Both are lifelong Putnam residents who have stark differences on how county government should work.

MaryEllen Odell

Having been in office for the past three years, County Executive MaryEllen Odell believes her administration can expand on accomplishments she’s already reached if voted in for a full term. After winning a special election following Vinny Leibell’s legal troubles and resignation, Odell said she has kept her promises during her short tenure, “and I think the people of Putnam County see that.” Those promises include a myriad of initiatives Odell pushed forward, including improvements to the Putnam County Golf Course, cultivating a relationship with the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce, and staying under the tax cap while under spending the budget. As a working mother of two children who owned a small business and is always visible in the community, Odell noted she’s a lot different than previous administrations that constituents find refreshing. Before being a legislator for five years, Odell got involved by building up the Carmel Sports Association and helping veterans. Going more specifically into the golf course and Tilly Foster Farm, Odell knows the county has taken appropriate action with both. At the golf course, Odell said by partnering with private investors, but still having a general manager who answers to the county, it has made the golf course more accountable. The overhaul in renovations like redoing the parking lot by using East of Hudson funds has turned the facility around and attracted more events like weddings. At the farm, the county’s focus on making Tilly Foster an educational center for agriculture and culinary by partnering with BOCES, while keeping its historical value has also been the right decision for the county. While running on her record, Odell said there are many other things to be cognizant of going forward. She wants to see the Butterfield hospital site redeveloped and make more county services available to the west side of the county, especially a new and improved location for a senior center. She wants to work closely with the Fiscal Vision and Accountability Commission recently set up in order to find ways to make government work more efficiently and possibly find ways in which services can be shared at different levels of government. Continuing the fight against Medicaid fraud, worker’s compensation fraud and the war on drug addiction, are also priorities for the Odell administration. She also will continue to fight The Journal News’ attempt to obtain pistol permit records in court, despite there being an opt-out form for those residents that want their information private. Odell has defended actions that have been scrutinized by opponent Sam Oliverio, like the accusation she too often mixes politics with government. Her response is, “I never feel like I’m taking advantage of my office, nor would I ever.” Looking back on her three years in office, Odell said she has no regrets about what decisions she’s made and actions she’s taken. “When we came up here on the third floor, we had a vision and you take that vision and you design a plan and you execute that plan,” Odell stated. “And that’s what we’ve done. We’ve stuck to that plan.” Overall, when comparing herself to Oliverio, Odell said the choice is clear. Voters want a county executive they can relate to and that means a resident living paycheck to paycheck, a community leader who raised a family while running a business. “This is not an encore career for me,” Odell said, taking a jab at Oliverio. “But as an opportunity to get this county to where I believe we should have always been. We have so much to offer here.”

Sam Oliverio

Sam Oliverio, an assistant principal at Putnam Valley High School, believes the focus of government in Putnam County is not where it should be. His vision of Putnam is to take care of the health and safety of its residents. “The current administration is not in league with my vision nor do I believe it’s in the vision of the people of Putnam County,” Oliverio, a Democrat and 18-year legislator, said. “For too long we’ve had one party rule.” Oliverio during his campaign expressed 15 beliefs that have a myriad of ideas to make residents a priority. Oliverio said to boost business development the county should focus on supporting small, main street businesses and not big box stores. That means giving small business owners the same tax breaks that bigger companies are given. County services should better suit constituents, and if elected, Oliverio pledges to attempt to open a senior center in every town in the county. Oliverio has also said reopening the closed kitchen at the Putnam Valley Senior Center would be one of the first things he does if in office. Another way to better serve residents, Oliverio said, is to foster a better relationship between the two branches of county government. Right now, there is little communication between the county executive office and the legislature, which is a problem because the nine legislators are the closet to the people they represent, he said. “That will empower our people,” Oliverio said, noting consensus building between both sides would lead to better government. During almost two decades on the legislature, Oliverio said his work has led to successful initiatives. Putting forward a Pro-Act card, improved Indian Point regulations that result in more safeguards, and saving transportation lines after they were originally slashed are all examples he’s given. One promise Oliverio has offered is lowering the salary of the county executive from $146,000 to $102,000, noting in tough economic times the head of the county should lead by example. Another lofty plan Oliverio would pursue is trying to land a community college in Putnam. With open space available, Oliverio said the money paid in reimbursement tuition fees could be used to build the college. When addressing two county properties, Tilly Foster Farm and Putnam County Golf Course, Oliverio was critical on how Odell has handled both. While he likes the direction the golf course is going, the amount of money poured into the facility makes Oliverio uneasy. At the farm, he wants it to be a traditional agricultural center and maintain its historical value. When addressing the county’s ongoing legal battle with The Journal News regarding handing over pistol permit information to the news organization, Oliverio said he would drop the appeal the county has put forward because there is now an opt-out form that allows gun owners to remain private. “The appeal, I really question the validity and sense of purpose,” Oliverio said, but did note he fully supported the county’s first stand against the newspaper because that opt- out form was not available back then. He’s also doesn’t like the way Odell has mixed politics with government. He said Odell has given patronage jobs to political allies and let political influence dictate policies she pushes forward. “There is so much politics going on,” Oliverio said. “You follow the money, it’s a political agenda or maybe an idea from someone who gave a lot of money to your campaign.” Oliverio noted he pays for all his campaigns and takes no donations, which makes him fully independent. Oliverio, as a Democrat in a Republican county knows he’s the underdog, but his confidence is high just a week before the election. “I represent the people,” he said. “Under my governance, all individuals will be represented, not just the favored few.”

Legislative 2 Seat

It’s been a sleepy race in Putnam Valley between Democrat Wendy Whetsel and Republican Bill Gouldman to take the District 2 seat currently held by Sam Oliverio. Both are hoping to be the new legislator in a district that has seen the same one for 18 years.

Wendy Whetsel

As the Democrat running in this race, Wendy Whetsel understands how crucial it is to have balance in the county Legislature. With current Legislator and Democrat Sam Oliverio, one way or another, not returning to his seat on the legislature, Whetsel hopes to fill the shoes of Oliverio as the only Democrat on the board. “You need to work together, you need to create balance and try to find the best solutions possible,” Whetsel said. When evaluating how the legislature has done, she said she felt, “they haven’t done a terrible job” but couldn’t go into specifics because Whetsel attends her own town board meetings rather than the county ones. When talking about Tilly Foster Farm, she believes holding agriculture classes there could work as a way to get young people involved in farming. As
for Putnam
County Golf
Course,
Whetsel said
the county
has done a
good job of
emphasizing
tourism.
Going
forward,
Whetsel said
she would
like to see
the county
welcome renewable energy projects as a way to help the environment and boost job production. “These are things that definitely have to be valued and protected,” Whetsel said. “And even the senior population is growing and we have to create an environment that is economically viable for them to stay in.” On the town board for nine years, Whetsel said she has done a good job of protecting town assets, assist in keeping a conservative budget, and help residents find better ways to heat their homes. “I’ve been involved in the community,” Whetsel said. “I have the experience. I love working with people. I just think I’m a better, more reachable, more informed choice.”

Bill Gouldman

Claiming to be a businessman and not a politician, Republican Bill Gouldman wants to see county government run more like a business. He believes his unique qualifications of owning two different businesses over the past 20 years are things he can bring to the county Legislature. “If we ran the county as a business, services would be improved, we can cut the cost of these services, and we can cut the waste that is in county government,” Gouldman said. While he couldn’t pinpoint one area to cut waste, Gouldman said his experience allows him to find areas that can be reduced whether it’s five percent, 10 percent or even more. Gouldman, who has run against Assemblywoman Sandy Galef twice and lost, said the biggest issue Putnam faces is a brain drain where recent college graduates can’t afford to live in the county. By increasing the business sector, Gouldman said it could draw more people or retain those young people. “Because (Putnam) is small, it doesn’t mean we can’t do big things,” Gouldman, who is part of the volunteer fire department in Putnam
Valley, said.
When addressing the two biggest county properties, Putnam County Golf Course and Tilly Foster Farm, believes both are headed in the right direction. Plans at Tilly Foster are “viable,” Gouldman said. Gouldman said the county should follow the lead of places like Cold Spring with its kayaking or Patterson with its ski resort and try to “multiple on” that. Overall, Gouldman, a 20-year resident stated, “I believe I’m the right person for this position and I hope the voters come out and vote for me.”

Legislative 3 Seat

After beating Lou Tartaro in a Republican primary, Toni Addonizio and Democratic nominee Jeff Green battle to represent District 3, which covers Kent and a slice of Patterson.

Toni Addonizio

After an impressive primary night win, Republican Toni Addonizio is hoping to carry that momentum right into the general election. Beating incumbent Lou
Tartaro soundly, the lifelong
Kent resident has continued
to go door-to-door and hear
concerns from residents.
Noting her belief in open government, Addonizio
stressed even after the
election, if elected, she would
be accessible to all residents
in her district. When asked
about the proposed county
budget, Addonizio called
it “very good” because it
was able to stay under the
state mandated tax cap and
focused on the drug addiction problem overrunning Putnam. “My whole thing has always been safety and welfare of the community and I have a strong desire to keep our county safe,” she said. As a real estate agent, Addonizio said the county must keep taxes under control because it is driving seniors and younger people out. Her plan to do that is consolidate services within the county. She also thinks investing in a college in Putnam would eventually provide relief to the county because it has to pay a reimbursement tuition fee when a student leaves the county for state schooling. Specifically to the town of Kent, Addonizio said it needs to better focus on bringing small businesses back. “We have no industry at all, we having nothing in Kent,” Addonizio noted, mentioning a strip that is currently empty that the county should promote to bring businesses into. When addressing the entire county, Addonizio said the focus on Tilly Foster Farm should be agricultural and educational. By bringing in musicals, parties and other events on the farm’s property, Addonizio believes it would promote tourism. If elected, Addonizio said she would be an independent voice on the legislature and make every decision by advocating for her constituents and fight to be fiscally responsible. While her opponent has claimed the Republican “machine” is backing any candidate to beat him, Addonizio dismissed that, stating the campaign has been run free of influence and she “isn’t run by anyone.” Overall, Addonizio, who is part of Rotary International and on the board for Cornell Cooperative said, “I’m looking forward to serving the community and I hold myself to high standards.”

Jeff Green

From Jeff Green’s point of view, he believes that county government in Putnam still thinks this is “1950-something and it’s time that they bring this county into the 21st century.” Green, a Green Party member running on the Democratic ticket and longtime Kent resident, said
the county is more diverse
financially, racially, and
religiously, and the needs of
all residents should be met
and reflect that diversity.
He originally got into the
race because he noticed
his worker’s compensation
bill had two different taxes
from Putnam County. After
that, he found other ways
the county taxed its citizens
and called it startling. “I
got thinking maybe this
is a good time to run, get
on the legislature and try to lift the veil on Putnam County government,” Green said. Green has a stark difference on many views the county currently holds. For one, he believes resources for the war on addiction should go to more social workers, instead of sheriff deputies like what is proposed in the county budget. Green also said he thinks a walk-in clinic, something that the county currently doesn’t have, should be brought into Putnam. Additionally, having a more robust county recreation program for residents during the summer would also be a good idea to pursue, Green said. When addressing the future of Tilly Foster Farm, Green lambasted the former lease between the county and Preserve Putnam. He said the contract written out was “garbage.” But since the lease has been broken, Green said he has to give the county credit for trying to turn around the farm. The biggest thing Green would like to see legislators consider is replacing the county executive, an elected position, with an appointed county manager. By doing that, it would make the legislature more responsive to the community and remove the political head from the county, which he said causes nepotism. Overall, Green said when lawmakers discuss county projects, they need to do a better job of truthfully expressing their needs, and not pushing for more than they want in order to come away with something, rather than nothing. “If everybody went in openly and honestly with their needs, then we could reach consensus on things so that nobody’s losing,” Green said. “I’m willing to bet if I have three years sitting on the legislature that I might be able to make some change.”

Legislative 8 Seat

After Dini LoBue beat Amy Sayegh in a Republican primary, the two are set for a rematch in the general election.

Dini LoBue

After a tense Republican primary in which current Legislator Dini LoBue’s run as a lawmaker was on the line, the Mahopac resident pulled through with a win, touting herself as the most “independent” legislator in the county. Known to scrutinize and question every cost of county money, LoBue has said she’s proven she’s a fiscal conservative. During budget season, LoBue has been the most outspoken against raises for certain county employees. While LoBue hasn’t proposed many new laws, her defense is that she is an advocate for smaller government. LoBue has lived in Putnam for 44 years and is a graduate of the Mahopac school system. If she wins the general election, she would be the most experienced legislator on the board. During her six years, LoBue believes she has earned the trust of the people in her district. LoBue is also on the Conservative line.

Amy Sayegh

While a newcomer to the political scene, Amy Sayegh still posed a threat to her incumbent opponent leading up to a primary election. Ultimately, she wasn’t able to earn the Republican line and while it was originally thought she might have snagged the Conservative line from LoBue, a thrown out ballot prevented that from happening. Regardless of the setbacks, Sayegh has stayed in the race, running solely on the Independence line. Sayegh would like to see the county and her district encourage more “mom and pop” businesses to come to the area for better economic development. Sayegh has been critical of LoBue, criticizing her as a politician who is “out of touch” with her district and someone who is hurting her district because she’s too busy engaging in petty politics. Sayegh, a breast cancer survivor, started her own non-profit organization in 2008 called Community Care, which helps residents going through cancer treatment.