Activists urge Benczkowski to run for State Senate

[gorja]

From the Buffalo Chronicle
Activists urge Benczkowski to run for State Senate

The wildly popular Cheektowaga Town Supervisor Diane Benczkowski — the region’s highest profile advocate for infrastructure modernization — is being urged by environmental activists to seek the 63rd District’s State Senate seat. The district comprises Cheektowaga, Lackawanna, Depew, South Buffalo, and the East Side.

Incumbent Senator Tim Kennedy has been damaged by his funneling of more than $80,000 into a political action controlled by G. Steven Pigeon. Pigeon and his two associates, Kristy Mazurek and Dave Phaff, have since been charged with campaign finance violations in State Supreme Court.

Kennedy has, at times, struggled to retain his office.

During her short tenure in office, Benczkowski — as a first term Supervisor — has secured millions in funding from the State to address sewer and grey water systems. For decades, deicing chemicals running-off the Buffalo Niagara International Airport, along with grey water runoff from the Town’s vast shopping centers and the surface parking lots that accompany them. That pollution has long fouled the Black Rock neighborhood down stream.

The Supervisor’s record of balanced, on time budgets that are widely acknowledged to be fiscally conservative has earned her great admiration in Cheektowaga, with it’s constituency of older, culturally conservative, pro-labor Democrats. Benczkowski’s message of fiscal prudence coupled with infrastructure modernization resonates strongly in the predominantly German and Polish community.

The Senate District is an overwhelmingly Democrat-enrolled.

In Albany, a fight is brewing between two factions of the Democratic Party. The Independent Democratic Caucus, led by Senator Jeff Klein of the Bronx, is at odds with the mainline caucus led by Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins of Westchester County. Since 2012, Governor Cuomo has orchestrated the alignment of the independent caucus with the Republicans.

Among political operatives it is widely known that Cuomo abhors the idea of Democratic control of the Senate, fearing the leftist Democrats would hijack his more centrist agenda thereby undermining his control of the legislative process while complicating the politics of a presidential primary bid.

Pressure from New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio has been forcing the Governor’s hand, though that alone is unlikely to prevent key primary battles aiming to keep the Senate chamber in fiscally conservative hands.

[WNYresident]

Who are these "activists"?

[Dan Roman]

Who are these "activists"?

The other dem faction

[WNYresident]

On a good note if she took Tim's spot it would be easier to change out 3 seats in the upcoming election.

[Electric Eye]

Hopefully she will stay and continue to fight for the tax payers in Cheektowaga...she does need help as 3 on the board insist on spending more and fighting her every step of the way.

[Dan Roman]

Hopefully she will stay and continue to fight for the tax payers in Cheektowaga...she does need help as 3 on the board insist on spending more and fighting her every step of the way.

Haha, that’s a good one

[cheekman]

Hopefully she will stay and continue to fight for the taxpayers in Cheektowaga...she does need help as 3 on the board insist on spending more and fighting her every step of the way.

What a load of BS that is. What poop this is the region’s highest-profile advocate for infrastructure modernization. She is the biggest one to cry there is no money to fix anything. How about taking care of her problems in her town. Town-owned traffic lights that need work. Dick road to start. Oh yes, and the NYS dot is still doing a study on that. Just to find out her buddy Fish Fry Mark over sees all of the town-owned traffic signals. Not doing a good job of that. FF must be spending too many lunch breaks. Hic cup. How about the X-way lights? The queen and fish fry wants them gone, and the cops want them to stay. Infrastructure she wants to dismantle it and cant keep her own town in running order. Labor haha ask the PBA about her labor issues. Pussy boy Kenndy has to go but not with her.

[Lancastermom]

Hopefully she will stay and continue to fight for the tax payers in Cheektowaga...she does need help as 3 on the board insist on spending more and fighting her every step of the way.

Absolutely true.

[Dan Roman]

Absolutely true.

If she stays then maybe she can figure out why the town population is decreasing seeing that she was clueless as to why the town population decreased in all but a few census tracts

[WNYresident]

I've been pointing out a few reasons why our town is losing population for the last 10 years. I'm highly disappointed that the town board never got wind of speakup. We could have enlightened them to a few reasons why people/business have fled.

[Greg Sojka]

WNYresident, they are watching in Lancaster Depew and Cheektowaga. They will not comment but they all check it daily. I have had several ask me about comments on this site.

[cheekman]

Hopefully she will stay and continue to fight for the tax payers in Cheektowaga...she does need help as 3 on the board insist on spending more and fighting her every step of the way.

eyeball, what in gods name is she fighting for? Needs to go.

[WNYresident]

Hopefully she will stay and continue to fight for the tax payers in Cheektowaga...she does need help as 3 on the board insist on spending more and fighting her every step of the way.

So what seems to be the one or two items that continually increase that is causing our property taxes to rise?

Are the number of earth quakes increasing causing road damage or damage to town owned property? Privately owned properties damaged by local earth quakes would be handled at the owners expense.

Is it the weather causing increasing damage on various town owned properties that we need to repair? Privately owned property damage would be handled at the owners expense? Oh wait. It's been very cold lately. Is the price of salt increasing?

Have our yearly floods increased in number causing our property taxes to rise? I would assume the floods would wash away our court building or town hall occasionally. Right?

So what is it?

[Electric Eye]

So what seems to be the one or two items that continually increase that is causing our property taxes to rise?

Are the number of earth quakes increasing causing road damage or damage to town owned property? Privately owned properties damaged by local earth quakes would be handled at the owners expense.

Is it the weather causing increasing damage on various town owned properties that we need to repair? Privately owned property damage would be handled at the owners expense? Oh wait. It's been very cold lately. Is the price of salt increasing?

Have our yearly floods increased in number causing our property taxes to rise? I would assume the floods would wash away our court building or town hall occasionally. Right?

So what is it?

You already know this but I will spell it out anyway.

Current and retired EMPLOYEE pay and benefits, and Spending.

ex: $220k for a SEWER TRUCK that was NOT part of the supervisors 2018 proposed budget or recommended by the Citizen Budget advisory committee.

[shortstuff]

WNYresident, they are watching in Lancaster Depew and Cheektowaga. They will not comment but they all check it daily. I have had several ask me about comments on this site.

Like who Greg? No one is asking about this issue. Diane will decide what works best for her and her family. There is simply no one who wants to serve in Cheektowaga. It is a dying town. Taxes are out of control, in fact the exodus exists in Buffalo proper.