Yes! Shame on You Coeymans Supervisor Flach, Town Board members Masti, Dolan, Langdon, Burns! You not only sold out the town of Coeymans as a unit of local government you sold out the community and the residents of Ravena-Coeymans to Carver Companies, TCI, and EMR.
Judas Politics in Coeymans
Coeymans Town Board justified its decision to turn over Riverview Drive and part of Route 144 to Carver Laraway’s greed and megalomania despite local residents’ outcries. Carver Laraway got his way and Coeymans got a permanent dust storm and traffic delays but no jobs.
Several days ago, a local resident told us that the Carver Companies, TCI, and EMR were holding a so-called job fair. We missed it. But when someone slipped a copy of the flyer announcing the so-called job fair under our office door, we understood why we missed it. The so-called job fair was held on a Tuesday morning for only three hours, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Anyone with half a brain can clearly see that this was another smoke and mirrors act on the part of Carver Companies’ PR person. Who in hell could get to a job fair on a Tuesday, let alone during such a brief period.
But the best came when we examined the flyer itself. It is full of propaganda bullshit and lists a number of jobs using their New York State Employment Service job codes. Not only that, the contact for the jobs is an employee of the New York State Department of Labor, a Mr Brian Suedkamp, whose contact details appear in the flyer but no Carver Companies contact. We found that rather odd. Don’t you?
In addition, the seal of the State of New York Department of Labor conspicuously displayed on page 2, making the impression that the whole thing is the State of New York’s effort. And again, no contact information at Carver. Suedkamp’s telephone number is given as (518) 457-1504 and his e-mail is brian.suedkamp@labor.ny.gov Again, no Carver connection. So what’s this Carver Companies job fair crapola, anyway.
In the meantime, we have contacted the New York State Department of Labor for clarification of its involvement in the so-called “job fair.” We’re also contacting the New York State Attorney General’s office to ask for an inquiry. Let’s see how transparent govrernment really is.
Most of the jobs listed in the flyer are for truck drivers and heavy equipment operators—Carver probably needs them to ensure that the dust clouds stay up there and dust covers everything in sight. That may be to discourage new residents or to force current residents out because of the truck traffic, the dust and the other obstacles. But wait! Isn’t there a shortage of commercial driver license holders (truck drivers) and equipment operators? Carver isn’t creating any new jobs at all!
Have you seen this before?
The other jobs are menial administrative jobs or custodial jobs. Low-paying and just that menial.
We drive through Coeymans Rt 144 about four times a day. For the past several days we’ve noticed a middle-aged man, in his late fifties, standing alone on the Coeymans Creek bridge, just opposite the Riverview Drive truck exit onto the bridge. He’s been standing there for what seems to be the entire day, in the blazing sun, armed with a traffic sign paddle, and protected only with a hard hat and a traffic vest. Sometimes you can see a water bottle. (See photo below.)
Carver’s Creating Jobs in Coeymans! And pigs have wings too!
Having seen him there so often and concerned that he is there in the blazing sun and in the middle of all that dust, we finally stopped today to ask him what he is doing there. He was very polite but didn’t want to answer many of our questions, saying that I was in danger and should not park at the corner of Rt 144 and Riverview Drive (Danger!?! Isn’t that still residential parking there? But not since Carver Laraway took over Riverview Drive! Now if you park there you’re in danger!)
Question: How can I be in danger if I’m standing on a public sidewalk or parked lawfully in a public parking area? Beats the hell out of me but perhaps our traffic watcher knows more than he’s giving out. Is Carver Companies creating that much of a hazard? And where is the Coeymans police department in all of this? Not one cop in sight. You surprised? We’re not.
The man was very firm but gentle that he could not talk and that he had to do his job: What he did tell us is that he was there to make certain the trucks got out safely. I could see that. He was there to stop traffic and make us wait so the trucks could get out.
This raises several questions for us: Firstly, is this the kind of job Carver Companies, TCI, and EMR are creating for Coeymans? More importantly, is this the way Carver is going to treat his employees? If you put a dog out on that bridge under those conditions you’d be in court for animal cruelty! How can it be done to a human being without consequences?
Question: Why hasn’t Carver Companies looked at the possiblity of installing two of those portable traffic control devices and sparing the poor employee the ordeal of standing in the sun all day long? He’s probably getting minimum wage to $15/hr, no benefits, and is part-time or a temporary employee; that way Carver doesn’t have to pay any benefits. Right? But then, if Carver put in those automatic devices it may make him look more human-friendly but would put that poor bastard out of a job. But Carver Companies could still take care of its own and keep its trucks moving, it could still keep the choking dust in the air, it could still slow traffic literally to a halt, and it could still inconvenience residents!
We agree with the resident, Barbara Heinzen, as reported in the June 5, 2014, News Herald: “The bridge is premature.” And residents’ questions and comments have gone unanswered and unnoticed.
The Temptation on the Creek
Flach to Laraway: “Behold Coeymans! This, too, can be yours!”
Coeymans has been sold out by a Judas town board whose small-town mentalities have been taken advantage of by slick talking business types. Mr Flach’s remarks like “It will alleviate truck traffic from Riverview Drive…” is obviously not true as we see two months later. Flach’s remark that “[t]he bridge will keep trucks coming from the Port of Coeymans to Riverview Drive off of SR 144″ is also grossly inaccurate, if not totally stupid. Fact is, Coeymans town supervisor Mr Stephen Flach and his cuckoo (or cuckold) cronies Peter Masti, Kenneth Burns, George Langdon, and Tom “Dumbo” Dolan did not think this fiasco through, did not do their homework, got dazzled by empty promises, and betrayed the community of Ravena-Coeymans and all of the town of Coeymans.
Was it really worth the 30 pieces of silver, Judas Coeymans Board?
While you choke on their dust may they choke on their poor leadership!
Beware of the clowns on your town board!!!
The Editor
Coming up in our next issues:
We asked the towns of Coeymans and New Baltimore, and the Village of Ravena to tell us about their accomplishments over the past six months. ZILCH! We’ll take a closer look in an upcoming essay. You’d think the town and village boards would jump at the chance to tell us some of the good things they’ve accomplished. Think again! Or can it be they’ve done nothing?
Mr Peter Masti, sitting Coeymans town board member, likes to write letters to the editor, especially the editor of the Troy Record. Yes, you read that right. What the Nosey Herald doesn’t publish, Masti gets into the Troy Record. Problem is: Masti’s ignorant and insists on publishing that fact! We’ll analyze some of his masterbations…OOPS! We meant, masterpieces in an upcoming essay.
Elections are coming up. We’ll be discussing both Gregory Seeley, Greene County Sheriff, who will be seeking re-election, as well as New Baltimore town clerk candidate, Barbara Finke. Not all as rosy as you might think. Rob Astorino (Now isn’t “Rob” a poor choice of first name for NY governor candidate?) is also running for NY governor, hoping to send the simian Andrew Cuomo into oblivion, the office of the Greene County DA is up for grabs but by another Nobody. But we’ll have something to say about all that, especially local politicos. Not as much accountability or transparency as they promised last November. Surprised?
Stay tuned!
