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It's campaign season and as you drive throughout the area you've probably noticed the abundance of signs posted in strategic locations. This election year, chances are I probably will not vote for Town Supervisor, which alarms me greatly as it falls against my ethical principles and responsibilities, but in the past few months that I've researched the candidates, I'd rather not participate in the democratic process this time around.

The Town of Hyde Park, unfortunately, has been mismanaged for years. You had town administations that were affiliated with special interest groups that catered to THEIR needs and others that I don't really think cared at all or used it as a stepping stone for higher aspirations of political office.

I've read through the entirity of the minutes and resolution votes of the current Town Board and can conclude that they received bad press from the HV News and didn't get a fair shake from start. Within a month they were already featured negatively on cover stories and in articles. Considering the problematic issues that they were faced with or discovered (such as the bookkeeper's failure to maintain accurate  financial records) they have been able to keep the town relatively even keeled. Unfortunately, in this upcoming election they were not endorsed by the republican town committee, which leads you to ask yourself....are the town board members mere puppets of those on the committees since they hold the power to nominate and endorse. But that's another blog topic altogether.

Which brings me to the main point of this blog. The candidates that are running in the supervisor race are questionable.

The Republican candidate Kakish is a political unknown. His voting record indicates that he has never voted in a town election since moving to the Hyde Park voting district  in 2004. He has never attended a town board meeting before (somehow) being nominated by the Republican Town Committee. He even referred to the office he was running for as 'Superintendent' rather than the correct title of 'Supervisor.'
He attended a law school that has dismal review rates and because it's not accredited by the American Bar Association, he is only eligible to practive law in either Mass. or Conneticut if he even passes the bar exam that he took this past July in CT. Rumor has it he failed at his first attempt.
He is not currently an attorney as he states in press articles that were printed in June and that he has even linked them onto his Facebook page that he created for his run for supervisor. As a graduate with a Juris Doctorate degree he should know that impersonating an officer of the court is a BIG NO-NO.
As the chief finanical office of the town, how Mr. Kakish (Qaqish)will manage the town's budget of $11 million is questionable. Between him and his wife, there are over $100,000 in legal judgements on file with the Dutchess County Clerk's office. Somehow he thinks and has stated that these judgements are the error of Brad Kendall, County Clerk.
He has encountered numerous financial problems and on record with the County Clerk is a refinance on his home in which a third party had to be listed as a grantee. Mr. Kakish and his wife will not be able to sell their home until these judgements are satisfied. The presentation he has created of being a successful co-owner of his wife's daycare is a facade. He is currently unemployed and even the BMW SUV he drives is registered to another individual.

The Democratic candidate, Ms. Rohr has had several years of experience with local committees and planning boards, however, she is affiliated with special interest groups whose goals are to prohibit the economic developments of Hyde Park. On her website she lists several committees and boards she served on, but somehow forgot the position of spokesperson for STOP THE SPRAWL. 
Will more land in this town be given away to special interest groups that are tax-exempt?
There are several projects that are currently being proposed by the current town board, which includes a developer looking at the land on the north side of St. Andrew's Road (which would include an outdoor amphitheater). Will projects such as these that will bring real revenue to the town be halted because of some has been claim that Hyde Park is somehow 'historic?' Hyde Park is no more historic than any other town in this county. In fact, other than several estates being located in the town, which includes the Roosevelt and Vanderbuilt properties, there isn't much that Hyde Park can claim fame to. It was formed in 1821, much later than any other community in this area and didn't have a post office until the current one was built in 1940. The main post office that served the community before then was located in Staatsburgh, which had eclipsed Hyde Park in terms of the size and businesses that flourished there.

While there are projects that are currently in the works, which include the Hyatt Hotel and Dunkin' Donuts, they may be the last in the upcoming two years if Ms. Rohr stays true to her Stop the Sprawl roots. I've addressed her Stop the Sprawl background as well as letters that she's written in public record in my past blogs.

There is speculation that she will propose legislature that will infringe on property rights of landowners to cater to special interest groups and rumor has it that she is chummy with the former bookkeeper that couldn't reconcile the bank records for eleven years and may reinstate her in some capacity in her administration.

Either way the wind blows, Hyde Park is screwed.

Mickey Mouse
9/21/2011 10:41:49 pm

Each candidate have emerged because of the incompetence of this board. By his own words, Martino has been fired from the State Parks, Post office. Rumor is he was asked to leave from Hyde Park Schools due to an incident involving a child. And from his own mouth, he is a former member of the CIA, and I don't mean Culinary Institute of America. Boy, this guy is nuts.

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